It had been two months since Subaru arrived at the Astrea Manor. Nothing serious had happened since Reinhard and Subaru returned from their meeting with the Sage Council. Felt agreed to keep Subaru's reemergence a secret while Subaru began to take an interest in the upkeep of the manor. Despite Reinhard's insistence, Subaru eventually got him to agree to letting him work with the mansion staff. He wasn't used to receiving kindness from people without giving them something in return. This way, both Subaru and Reinhard could be happy with their living arrangements.
"Subaru, when we're done with Reinhard's lessons can you finish that story that came from your homeland? The one about Orion and the…"
"Sure, sure! We can talk about the constellations more if that interests you. Do me a favor though and stop cheating off me during our spelling tests!"
Felt cracked a smile.
"Subaru, I'm not cheating. You really think that Reinhard can't catch me staring at another person's paper?"
Subaru laughed at the obvious lie.
"That's ridiculous and you know it! Reinhard is a total pushover and never calls you out on your obvious scheming!"
It's true, Reinhard had an obvious soft spot for his lady Felt and he let her get away with far more than one would expect. With his disposition, anyone unfamiliar with Reinhard would think he was a butler instead of the legendary "Sword Saint".
"That's a lie, that nagging idiot would never let me hear the end of it! 'Felt-sama it is unacceptable for a future ruler to engage in academic dishonesty.' You really can't picture him saying something like that?"
After busting out a perfect 10/10 Reinhard impression, Subaru couldn't help but nod in agreement at the joking statement made by Felt. However…
"That impression is good, but I know a way we can settle this right now. Why don't I call Reinhard over and have you repeat what you told me earlier?"
Felt looked away and nervously laughed.
"I…uh….exercise my right to stay silent."
"Too late!" Reinhard entered into the study room right after Felt finished her conversation with Subaru.
"My lady, if I may compliment you, your impressions are strikingly accurate and comical!"
Reinhard started laughing as he saw Felt getting embarrassed for getting caught red-handed in a web of lies. He knew she had been cheating, and although he would eventually need to call her out on it, he couldn't help but find it funny seeing Subaru's continued annoyance at the phenomenon.
"Damn you and your superhuman hearing.." Felt whispered under her breath.
Of course, Reinhard heard that, and he felt the need to remind her that she was a 'royal selection candidate' and a 'future queen' and blah, blah, blah, she knew the drill.
"So, Reinhard, what brings you in here after your lecture? I thought you would be out on patrol at this time." Subaru said.
"Well, I've received some important information regarding the other camps, and I've come here to plan out our next move."
Reinhard sat down at the table with Subaru and Felt before pulling out a letter addressed to Felt. After cutting open the letter with a letter opener, Felt read the contents and looked up at Reinhard in confusion.
"Reinhard, how the hell did you know what the letter said before I opened it?"
Felt received letters from people every day due to her being one of the royal selection candidates, but this letter in particular was extremely important.
"That's simple, I use my 'Divine Protection of Mail Divination' to view the contents of letters before throwing out junk mail."
"What the hell! Why do you have that power? Can you get any more OP!?" Subaru sighed. Seriously, 'Divine Protection of Salt Reasoning' and now this? If there was a God in this world, he certainly had a sense of humor.
"So, what does the letter say?" Subaru asked Felt.
"The Emilia Camp has requested a conference with the other four camps at the Miload Estate to discuss the results of the expedition to the Sage's Watchtower."
Felt looked a bit annoyed to have to bring up the Watchtower. She knew Reinhard had a bad association with that place as it was where everyone learned the truth of what happened to Subaru. What did they need to 'discuss' which they failed to address on the 2-month ride back to the capital?
"It can't be helped; the contents of that tower are particularly dangerous should they get into the wrong hands. Felt-sama, I believe it would be wise to attend the meeting and see what the Emilia Camp wants to do with that place."
Reinhard spoke up. He clearly did not like talking about the tower either, but he also knew that he had a responsibility to make sure it was protected from Witch Cultists and enemies while they were away. The Sage had not been cooperative during their visit there, but perhaps she was a potential avenue to returning Subaru's memories. It was worth a shot!
"Subaru, for obvious reasons, it would not be wise for you to come with us to this meeting. So, for the week that Felt-sama and I are gone, please work with the staff here to keep up your studies and maintain the manor."
"Got it. I doubt it would be a good idea for me to go to that meeting either. I mean this Watchtower has nothing to do with me anyway, so I'll just wait here until you guys get back."
"Thanks Subaru. It really means a lot to me that you decided to stay with us for as long as you have. Should anything come up, the maids here will be happy to help. If something serious happens and you need to contact me, please use the metia in your room to call me."
"Metia?"
Oh right, he forgot to show Subaru the new metia he had purchased for the manor!
"Subaru, a metia is a communication device that allows people to talk to each other over long distances."
"Ah, I see."
'This is just like a cellphone!'
"So, I can call you if I ever need help?"
"No, sadly, metias are not very common. As of right now, I am only in possession of one. However, there is one in the Miload mansion which you can use to contact me once I arrive."
'Oh, so more like a landline huh? That's a disappointment.'
"I would also leave that as a last resort as someone at the Miload manor might pick it up before I do. Should that happen, all the secrecy until now would mean nothing."
Reinhard did not want to discourage Subaru from asking for help, but he also knew that Subaru wanted to keep a low-profile until he got his memories back. If one of the maids ended up picking up the metia, Reinhard would have a lot of explaining to do.
"I understand! Don't worry about a thing Reinhard. I'll look after the place and make sure its perfect for your return!"
Subaru smiled at Reinhard. While they were gone, he planned on teaching the maids new recipes from his home world. Maybe then he could finally reminisce over the life he left behind a few months ago. He was very happy to have met Reinhard and Felt, but he also wanted to share that happiness with them as well. This was the chance for the perfect surprise!
After Reinhard and Felt departed for Miload manor, Subaru immediately consulted with the head maid of the manor, Lilia. He had gotten to know her pretty well over the duration of his stay at the Astrea manor. She helped teach him to cook, clean, and trim the hedges around the manor. Now that they were alone, he wanted to see if he could replicate some of the dishes from his homeland with the ingredients they had there.
It had been several days since they had left, and Subaru was going out to the market a lot picking up ingredients. Without Reinhard around to wake him up in the morning, Subaru also got into a habit of oversleeping.
"Subaru. Sir? Its past noon. Weren't you planning on heading to the market today to pick up ingredients?"
"Lilia? Oh, sorry about that, can you give me like five more minutes?"
"No! Subaru, the market closes at 3:00 today and you have a long list of supplies you need to get!"
Lilia turned on the light in the room and Subaru jolted awake.
"Man, I forgot how brutal you can be when you have a goal in mind Lilia! Let me really quickly get into my tracksuit…"
"You don't get to be head maid by oversleeping every morning!"
Lilia flashed a smile a Subaru. He looked somewhat disheveled, but he finished putting on his tracksuit and styled his hair.
"Let's head out and grab all this stuff in one go!
Subaru had forgotten how crazy this new world could be. After being picked up by Reinhard, Subaru did not leave the mansion unless he had a specific reason to. Spending nearly two months insulated from the rest of society, he had really been enjoying the days he got to spend perusing the capital. He saw diverse demi-human species conversing with medieval-style dressed humans like it was a normal day for them. He witnessed spirits glowing and magic spells being casted by street performers.
He really was in another world! He was living with the literal reincarnation of the Sword God and a candidate to become the future ruler of Lugunica! What a ridiculous turn of events for his first few months here (even if they technically weren't).
Following a day full of shopping and conversating, Subaru finally ended up at his last stop.
"Hey kid, glad to see you again! Want to buy some appas?"
'Oh hey its this guy again. He seemed crazy the last time I met him. Wait, he calls them 'appas'? Figures. They call potatoes 'tatoes' so it makes sense this would be incorrect too. Oddly enough, they still call 'mayo' mayo here, guess my Mom will always have the last laugh huh.'
"Hello? You ok kid?"
"Sorry, I zoned out for a second. Yeah, I think I would like to buy some appas!"
Subaru was starting to get the hang of this, so long as he doesn't get blindsided, he should be ok talking with this guy.
"Hey, how's that blue-haired girl doing? Is everything ok with you and your buddies?"
'Ah shit. This isn't good. I guess I better play along.'
"Yeah she's doing fine….I'm sorry I have to ask this, but what is your name again?"
The guy blinked a bit, but he didn't seem offended by the question.
"Don't sweat it kid, you are one of my best customers! My name is Kadomon."
"Thanks Kadomon, especially for the discount!"
Kadomon didn't actually give him a discount, but Subaru felt like messing with him after the guy brought up stuff he had no memory of.
"Yeah yeah, just make sure to tell people to come to my shop will ya?"
"I will!"
Subaru cringed a little bit. He wouldn't be able to do that until he got his memory back. Just another promise he had to keep once he figures out what the hell is going on.
While Subaru headed back to the mansion, two familiar faces passed him by in the crowd, none the wiser that he had ever been there.
"Why th'hell are we bein' sent to capital while th' camps are all meetin in the mansion!"
Garfiel stomped the ground next to Otto as they headed to a shop past the marketplace with the small shop owners.
"I don't get it either Garfiel, but it wasn't up to us! Roswaal just decided to send us on some errand to pick up one some new magical gizmo. I swear, its like he thinks we are ground dragons or something!"
Otto looked around the marketplace, trying to find the place Roswaal sent them all the way here to patronize.
"I didn' join Emilia so Roswaal could send us n'recovery missions! I came t'serve the Cap'n!"
Garfiel was upset with the way the Emilia camp had fallen apart since Subaru's death. It never even occurred to Garfiel that his amazing Captain could die, let alone in such a horrible way. When he learned what happened, he committed himself to remaining strong for the rest of the Emilia camp. In the end, he only ended up bottling up his emotions before venting them out to his sister. While he admired Emilia and believed in her cause, he detested Roswaal and he hated taking orders from that clown.
Now he had sent him and Otto away from Emilia during an important meeting between all the camps!? What was he thinking?
"I'm famished. Before we continue looking for this stupid shop, lets pick up a snack!"
Him and Garfiel eyed an Appa stand on the side of the road and walked over.
"Hello, can we get like… four appas please?"
The man paused for a second before pulling out a bag.
"You guys are buddies of Natsuki Subaru right? Did he tell you both to come over here?" He looked satisfied with himself. Looks like that discount he gave him really did pay off!
"Uh, yeah we were friends of Subaru. Did you know him?"
Otto looked down. He felt bad saying he was a "friend" to Subaru, but he didn't want to leave this guy hanging, especially when he didn't know the truth behind Subaru's death.
"Know him? I just talked to him! Didn't he just tell you to come over to my shop?"
Garfiel and Otto looked up in confusion. What was this guy talking about? He just talked to Subaru?
"You jus' talked w'the Cap'n?!"
Garfiel wanted to know everything. If there was even a chance….the slightest hope…he needed to pursue it. Subaru was his Captain and a great man. He failed to be the Shield of the camp and it had followed him ever since. Emilia was distraught and everything that Subaru built was starting to collapse. If Subaru was here, he would find him. Screw Roswaal's stupid request!
"Hello? Lilia I'm back!"
"There you are Subaru, what took you so long?"
Lilia seemed irritated with Subaru's slow shopping. He probably spent all day 'taking in the sights' instead of shopping and now she would have to stay up later because of it.
"Sorry, I lost track of time and I ended up getting lost on my way back. I picked up everything you asked though! With your help, we'll have the perfect surprise for Reinhard and Felt when they return!"
"You mean I'll have the perfect surprise? I suspect that once we go into the kitchen to start testing these recipes, someone is going to sneakily head off to bed."
"Hey, Lilia, don't think that lowly of me will ya? I really do want to give something back to Reinhard and Felt after everything they've done for me."
"I take it back! Maybe you do have some grit? Let's see how long you hold out under the pressure of being a maid."
Lilia began deviously smiling, slightly unnerving Subaru, as they headed to the kitchen to begin testing recipes.
'Damn it, that really was stressful!'
Subaru headed to bed after 5 hours of consecutive cooking with Lilia. She was a demon! It makes sense why she is the head maid, she could cook for the entire manor like it was nothing.
'Of course, I can't let her know that. She already thinks lowly of me as is. I can't give her any more reasons to tease me!'
He began getting into his pajamas and hopped into bed. Reinhard should be arriving at the Miload manor some time tomorrow, meaning he should be able to call him after their meeting is over and potentially clue him in that he has a surprise waiting for them!
Excited and happy, Subaru turned off the light and quickly dozed off.
"Subaru. Sir? Its past noon. Weren't you planning on heading to the market today to pick up ingredients?"
"What? Did I oversleep again? I'm sorry about that Lilia, we were up really late testing recipes so…"
"Huh? Subaru, the market closes at 3:00 today and if you don't get up right now then we won't be able to get everything!"
Lilia flicked on the light, prompting Subaru to jump out of bed.
"What do you mean? I picked up everything we needed yesterday. Aren't we just hammering out the details for the preparation at this point?"
Lilia looked confused. Subaru didn't leave the manor yesterday and when she checked this morning, they were still missing ingredients.
"What are you talking about Subaru? You didn't leave the manor yesterday. We even made plans last night to go to the market today and pick up all the missing supplies."
Subaru froze. This doesn't make sense! Did she forget everything?
"Uhh, hello? Today is Wednesday right? Our plan was to get everything by Tuesday."
"Sir, today is Tuesday. Has your oversleeping finally resulted in you mixing up your days?"
Lilia dismissed this attitude as something becoming of a lazy house guest. He can't even remember simple agreements he made the night before! Well, no matter, he will uphold his side of the bargain whether he wants to or not.
Subaru was eerily quiet.
"Yes, I guess I must have forgotten the date."
Lilia left his room and closed the door behind her.
'What the hell was that. This can't be real right? I know completed all the shopping yesterday. I have to get to the bottom of this.'
AUTHOR NOTE
Alright guys, chapter 3 what do you all think?
Lilia is an original character, but honestly, I just needed a placeholder to pull off the scene at the end of this chapter. The story is starting to develop a lot more and I think that the next chapter will be the impetus for a lot of the later story. If anyone knows the names of a canon maid that works in the Astrea manor, please put it in a review so I can swap out Lilia's name. I want to keep this story contained with canon characters wherever possible.