The room was silent. Other than pure astonishment, each person's face held different proportions of guilt, apprehension, confusion, and joy. Even with all the time people had to prepare, nobody expected to hear a bombshell like that. The initial reaction was what Garfiel and Otto had expected. Clearly, this was something that had been weighing on the minds of every camp member for a while. It had been a taboo to even mention Subaru's name, much less what they had done. It wasn't because they were trying to be selfish either; rather, they didn't feel worthy to pursue any sort of redemption for their mistakes. Talking about Subaru was an affront to his memory. How dare his traitors speak of him in such a way?
And here was Garfiel, not only shouting Subaru's name in front of the camp, but implying that Subaru had risen from the dead! If they didn't know any better, they might've assumed Subaru's spirit was coming back to haunt them.
"Garf-san! What the hell are you thinking?!"
Otto was planning to break the news. But Garfiel had said something reckless. Anyone could see that the atmosphere had shifted, and not in a good way. Sure, Subaru's survival should be good news, but there were a lot of problems with declaring it like it was fact. Not only were they operating off of rumors, but the fact that Subaru was not with them would be the next thought running through the minds of the camp members.
"Subaru-kun. . ."
Before Otto could clarify what Garfiel said, a voice spoke up from the back of the room.
"Nee-sama. . .please don't fall."
Ram caught Rem's shellshocked body.
"Subaru-kun is. . .S-Suba. . ."
Ram and Rem had made their presence known to the rest of the camp. Frederica began to walk towards the two of them as the room looked like it was about to break out into chaos. Petra was overjoyed. Frederica was doing her best to suppress her emotions. Roswaal's eyes widened. Even Clind and Annerose found themselves looking up in confusion.
"I apologize everyone. Garf-san spoke presumptively."
Otto took back control of the room before it was too late. He hadn't been able to look over towards Beatrice and Emilia, but he didn't feel right saying something so polarizing without complete certainty.
"Someone who knew Subaru well has seen him roaming the capital. As of right now, there are only rumors."
Otto quickly corrected Garfiel's mistake and looked around the room to see the damage he'd caused.
"Oi! Otto. I understand I mighta' messed up th' news, but stop treatin' us like w'gonna break or somethin'!"
Garfiel, as usual, wanted to affirm the strength of everyone around him. It was a bad habit he'd picked up from Subaru. Tact? Sensitivity? To those two, they don't exist! Imbeciles! This camp was seriously lucky they had someone like Otto.
"How?"
A soft voice spoke up and cut through all the chatter.
"H-how is that possible Otto? I-. . ."
The voice paused. She didn't want to make a scene. It'd been up to her to hold this camp together. To protect what remained of Subaru's legacy. But. . .
"W-we buried him. We saw his body. How could something like that be possible!?"
She started losing her composure. It was inevitable at this point. Emilia had done her best to hide the suffering she'd been feeling since Subaru's death. Only twice had she let the mask fall off. First, when she regained her memories. The second time, when she begged for Reinhard's help. Was she really going to fail them again? Because of some random street chatter?
The entire camp had been immersed in guilt. But, regardless of their feelings, nobody stopped missing him. Everyone felt the void that Subaru's presence had left. They were embarrassed and disgusted with themselves that they still acted like his friends. They all might've ended up isolating themselves if Emilia wasn't there. Now people were beginning to realize the strain that it had put her under.
"W-Why? Why Otto? Why did it have to turn out like this. . ."
Emilia couldn't hold her tears back anymore. A year ago, she would've been able to talk to Puck and Subaru if she was feeling afraid or inadequate. The fact that they believed in her was what pushed her into becoming a better leader. Something like this wouldn't have been enough to break her. Now, she was forcing her camp to chase rumors and falsehoods because of her mistake. What kind of pitiful leader does that make her?
"E-Emilia-sama. Please understand. I wouldn't call everyone here if I didn't have a real suspicion these rumors could be true. I beg you to hear me out. I believe there is validity that can be found. . ."
"Betty's Subaru c-can't be alive."
Beatrice interrupted Otto.
"I-I don't understand, I suppose. Why hasn't he returned, in fact? I know we were wrong, but Subaru. . .he promised. . . he said he'd stay with Betty! This can't be right, I suppose!"
Everyone was shocked to hear Beatrice's cries. She'd remained in denial of Subaru's death since it happened. This was the last thing Garfiel and Otto expected to hear from her.
"I-I didn't want this, in fact! S-Subaru's contract with me is gone! He never came back for Betty. . ."
Beatrice collapsed onto the floor. She understood how unreasonable and unfair she'd been acting. She was the reason Subaru was detained in the first place! Did she really think promises and 'words' would overcome such a brutal act of betrayal? She wanted to believe that if she waited around long enough, Subaru would return to her. That she could apologize and cry her eyes out and that Subaru would understand. Understand the guilt and pain she'd been feeling for what she'd done. Understand the love she felt for him. That maybe, one day, they could form another contract. That there was still hope for things to go back to the way they were.
"B-but this means. . .there's no hope for Betty, in fact!"
Beatrice dashed out of the room and used her door crossing to prevent anyone from following her.
'Damn it! This is why I tried to tell them instead of Garf-san. This should be good news. They are all too entrenched in their guilt to see that they might've been granted a second chance. A chance to make things right.'
Otto turned back to Emilia and could see that she was beginning to internalize Beatrice's words.
"Emilia-sama. Do you know a man by the name of Kadomon?"
Her eyes immediately swung upwards and met Otto's. She had just been shocked out of the pit of despair she'd put herself into by another bombshell.
"He says he's spoken to both you and Subaru before."
Emilia was in disbelief. Kadomon had seen and spoken to Subaru? She knows that he never forgets a face. He remembered her when Subaru took her up there during their visit to the capital. It had been months since Kadomon had seen her, but he remembered.
'C-could this actually be real?'
"Um, Yes both Subaru and I have talked to him before! He's the appa salesman, right?"
Otto watched her face go from despair to determination in under a second. It appears she was beginning to believe his outrageous news after all.
"Emilia-sama, I'll tell you everything I know."
On the other side of the room, Garfiel was getting chewed out by Frederica and Ram. Ram, who had been holding an unconscious Rem, was repudiating Garfiel for what his thoughtless statement had done to Rem. Frederica, on the other hand, was angry that Garfiel went and ruined Otto's announcement and hurt Emilia.
"Garf. What were you thinking? Look at Emilia and Beatrice! You should've let Otto explain what was happening. Why did you feel the need to shock everyone!"
"Garf, your tactlessness is on the same level as Barasu's! Not only have you wounded my maidenly heart, but you have also traumatized my sister. Please, go die."
Garfiel could read between the lines from both of them. While Ram and Frederica were upset with him, they were clearly feeling relief at the prospect of Subaru's survival. Ram had already started back up her teasing and Frederica was more upset at the problems he had caused Otto.
Petra had been joyously weeping into Annerose's shoulder while this whole ordeal had gone on. She had clearly missed Otto's revised statement about it being a "rumor". Annerose would never outwardly admit she was happy about this news, but she was also smiling at the possibility of Subaru returning. He had made the Manor more lively in the previous year than it'd ever been before. Perhaps she would have to thank him for that.
Finally, Roswaal and Clind sat and watched in silence. Both were clearly deep in contemplation.
"Have you been able to get anything out of that guy yet?"
Subaru sat down for lunch and saw Reinhard entering into the dining hall.
"No, sadly, we've been unable to get information out of him that we didn't know already. It seems Halibel-san was right about him working for an assassin organization. It's looking like a lost cause."
Subaru looked confused at this.
"Wait, why would that mean the interrogation is a lost cause?"
"Because, Su-san, it means that guy never made contact with his employer."
"HAh . . .!"
Halibel appeared behind Subaru with a wide smirk on his face. Subaru had jumped in fear from the shock of Halibel's seemingly instant teleportation.
"These organizations have a habit of compartmentalizing their secrets to prevent leakages."
"That wasn't funny!"
Subaru turned around and growled at Halibel.
"My mistake. . .I thought you saw me Su-san"
"Nope! This is the fourth time you've done that! If you do it again, I'll bribe Reinhard to 'teleport' behind you in the shower."
Halibel laughed a Subaru's toothless threat. After getting to know the guy, Halibel could tell Reinhard was way too nice to do something like that. He respected the guy's strength and all, but seeing a 15-year-old girl order Reinhard around like a dog was enough for him to understand the type of person he really was.
"Halibel-san, have you discovered any leads regarding the assassin's organization?"
"Potentially, but whether or not I can pursue it is something else entirely."
Subaru and Reinhard looked at him for a second before Halibel realized what he said and elaborated.
"Oh, my bad. What I meant to say is a couple things. First, whoever orchestrated this plot is somebody who knows about Subaru's survival. That should narrow down the list of culprits, unless there was a leak of some kind. Second, as of right now, I am under Subaru's employment. This means that any action I take is up to him."
"Wait, Hal-san, what reason would I have to stop you from investigating the assassin?"
"I've learned that this organization operates out of Gusteko. If I want to find out who is responsible, it'll mean leaving you here to go look into it myself. Do you feel safe with me leaving your side?"
Subaru paused for a moment. He could see Reinhard was closely observing his reaction. Truth be told, Subaru didn't want any of his protection to leave. However, he also understood that Reinhard had been dwelling on his mistake since it happened. He was probably feeling inadequate. If he wanted to make any progress, he needed to find out who was responsible. Subaru trusted Reinhard's capabilities, so he was left with one option.
"Sure. Reinhard should be more than enough to watch me. But, Hal-san, please be careful."
Halibel smirked.
"Why, wait a minute Su-san, does this mean you worry about me? It's such a shame I can't return your love, sadly I've committed myself to. . ."
"Oh, you know what, give me back my concern!"
After a long briefing with the entire Emilia Camp (minus Beatrice), Otto had seemingly convinced every member of the veracity of the rumors. At the very least, they were going to investigate these claims fully. Otto and Garfiel were also told about the five-camp meeting by Frederica and Ram. Beatrice's outburst and Emilia's denial suddenly made more sense. It was quite the series of unfortunate revelations.
"Soooo, we are going to send people to the caaapital to search for Suuubaru?"
Roswaal was the first person to suggest a plan of action.
"Th' hell should we listen t'you for?"
Garfiel never trusted Roswaal. He was right to distrust him once he learned of the plot the bastard made against the people in the mansion. With Subaru around, he'd always begrudgingly accepted that man's necessity to the camp. Without Subaru, he didn't want to hear a thing Roswaal had to say. It was clear that the people around Garfiel were feeling similarly, as the amount of looks cast towards Roswaal were increasing with every second of silence.
"Garf, I will not tolerate any disrespect towards Roswaal-sama. I will give you a moment to apologize."
Ram understood why everyone distrusted Roswaal. Even she had her suspicions with what he was planning. However, that didn't give them the right to disrespect him that way. Especially after the earnest efforts he made to support Emilia.
"It's quiteeeee alright Ram. Tell us Garfiel, what do yooooou want to do?"
Garfiel sat for a moment and thought it over. He knew about Subaru's scent from Ryuzu. It might be possible to track Subaru down if they searched for traces of miasma. First, they needed to ascertain Kadomon's claims. If he was lying, then this whole search was for nothing. Even after all of that, they'd need wide coverage. It could easily take weeks if they are unlucky. Worst of all, they'd have no way to know if Subaru was still in the city the entire time they were searching.
"I got n'idea. Doubt you'd like it."
"Well, spit it out Garf."
Ram was still in a bad mood about what he'd said to Roswaal.
"We need t'figure out if Kadomon's tellin' the truth."
Emilia wanted to speak up. The man was grumpy, sure, but he wouldn't lie about something like that. Before she could, Frederica interjected.
"How would we do that Garf?"
"We ask for Crusch-san's help. I'm assuming that's the plan Garf-san?"
Otto had discussed this part of the plan with Garfiel on the trip back from the capital. It would mean informing the other camps about Subaru, but they had no reason to leak what happened to Subaru as they were complicit as well. It might also help to bridge the gap between the camps that formed after Felix's acquittal.
"And whaaaaat would you have us do neeeeexxt, Garfiel?"
Roswaal didn't like the idea of informing the other candidates, but he knew that he would looks suspicious if he tried to push secrecy. He decided to further question Garfiel.
"Th'thing is, Cap'n has a strong coat of witch stink."
By this point, everyone involved with Emilia's camp was aware of this. However, they were confused why Garfiel was bringing this up now. There's no way they'd be able to smell him, even if the whole camp was searching.
"And th' scent attracts Mabeasts."
Most of the people at the table froze up. Otto looked at Garfiel in shock while Roswaal simply smiled.
"Ahhhh, I see. You mean to use heeeeer?"
Subaru and Felt were back to their usual antics. While she was away on business, Reinhard had been doing lessons with just Felt. Needless to say, they were more boring and lackluster than the ones in the mansion. Sure, she was actually learning instead of being distracted by Subaru, but that also meant she had nobody to cheat off of! As someone who prides herself on her impressive abilities of thievery, this was unacceptable! Now that Reinhard knew how much she'd been cheating, he was giving her more homework and more attention. That was the last thing she needed!
Once she got back, she asked Subaru for help with something. Reinhard now had his justification to spend even more time with her! At the very least, she needed to get him back for all the crap he's been pulling. Thus, the inception of 'Operation: Prank Reinhard' began.
'For anyone else, this wouldn't be too difficult. With enough craftiness, I am certain I could prank anyone. But him. . . this will be a different matter entirely.'
Subaru was staring off into space. Reinhard's lectures about Vollachian succession would put the divine dragon to sleep. He decided that a better use of this time would be to think about his prank on Reinhard.
"Hey, Big Bro, you got any ideas?"
Felt whispered over to Subaru when Reinhard's back was turned.
"Yeah, I've got a few. But if I had to guess, that bastard probably has five divine protections to pick up on what we are saying right now."
For just a moment, Subaru swore he saw a smirk appear on Reinhard's face. He wouldn't be taking any chances. His opponent was simply too powerful.
'If anyone could figure a way around those divine protections, it'd be Hal-san. I'll ask him right before he leaves.'
In reality, Subaru needed something to take his mind off of the other things going on. He had been having nightmares for the past few days and was scared that Halibel might not return. He didn't want to tell anyone this of course, but he was really scared that somehow the employer figured out he'd survived. At least now, he had something to focus on until Halibel got back. Subaru knew that pranking Reinhard wouldn't be easy.
"Subaru, can you name all the current divine generals?"
Reinhard hit him with a curveball. It seems he was feeling a bit left out from their conversation and decided to derail Subaru's scheming.
"Uhhhh, Cecil. .us?"
"Wow? You got one! Looks like you can pay attention to me!"
Subaru and Reinhard laughed a little bit before he turned back to the board. He didn't have the heart to tell Reinhard that he had his book open under his desk.
'My best bet is to get a list of all his divine protections and find a way around them.'
He never heard Reinhard's quiet chuckle.
"Hey listen Hal-san, please come back soon. You've really helped us out. After all this business is done, I want to find a way to make it up to you, alright?"
Subaru and the rest of the maid staff stood in front of the manor. The each wanted to thank him for what he did and wish him good luck on his upcoming mission.
"Oi, Su-san, haven't I told you about this? No need to get all sentimental, ok? You've literally known me for a week!"
Subaru looked at him with a smirk. This guy was in no place to talk! He'd accepted Subaru's job for free and is now risking his life to get more information. Who was really attached to who here?
"Hey Halibel, if you wanted to prank Reinhard, how would you do it?"
Subaru diverted the conversation away from that. The last thing he wanted to deal with was more teasing.
"Well Su-san, that was out of left field! I suppose if I was serious. . ."
Halibel paused a moment.
"I wouldn't prank him directly, rather someone he's closely involved with. Maybe light a ton of stuff on fire and laugh about how the true prank was his inability to stop me!"
Subaru looked at him like he was crazy for a moment.
"Dude, what the hell? You know what, nevermind."
Halibel seemed satisfied with his teasing and began walking off.
"Halibel, thank you for protecting us!"
"Halibel, please be careful!"
The maids all began to wish him good luck.
The Astrea staff might not admit it, but they wanted him to stay as a guest for as long as possible. Halibel had saved the lives of everyone in the manor while Reinhard was away. Many of the maid staff found him to be a real funny guy. He'd enter through windows or roofs before he was caught using a door, he smoked from a comically large pipe, and he had the best fashion out of everyone in the mansion. It was a shame to see him go, but the least they could do is thank him for all he'd done.
Crusch was unable to focus on her work. Having just returned from a heavy five-camp conference, it was expected that she might be fatigued from all of the negotiations and travel. However, she had been displaying erratic behavior. Not only had she been seen leaving the manor at night, but she was beginning to drift off in the middle of conversations. It was starting to remind her comrades of her amnesiac days.
To be fair, her personality had changed from the new perspective she gained as an amnesiac. It simply couldn't account for this though. Something was bothering her and nobody knew what. Nobody except Wilhelm and Crusch.
"Crusch-dono, what did it say in that letter?"
Wilhelm had seen the insignia on the letter and he'd seen her reaction to its contents. Whatever Crusch had read, she did not want to talk about.
"Wilhelm, I apologise. I'm not sure if I'd be allowed to speak to you about it."
Crusch could see Wilhelm's stern reaction to the letter. She knew he'd want to know what it said. Sadly, she wasn't at liberty to say.
Before a certain event, Emilia and Cruschs' camps had been in a close relationship with each other. It would've been fair to say that they had the strongest alliance in the Royal Selection. She used her military force to protect Emilia's domain, and Emilia's camp helped her to take down the White Whale. They'd also retrieved her memories and removed the curse she'd received in Priestella. It was tragic that they had ended up enemies, but Crusch took responsibility for her part in it. She never expected to get a letter from Emilia.
Most of all, she hadn't expected to learn Subaru was alive.
The news was joyous, but haunting. She knew what her knight had done. He'd tortured Subaru without just cause or a semblance of a plan. Even after he removed her curse, she'd inflicted cruelty upon him. In a way, her biggest mistake had come back to haunt her. She would do whatever was asked of her, and she'd see it through. However, Crusch still feared something. She feared the inevitable confrontation she'd have with him. The man she'd killed. This would be the first person she couldn't look in the eye. The first time she'd felt true shame. Crusch was made very aware that she'd only been told about Subaru because they needed her Divine Protection. It had nothing to do with their friendship, loyalty, or anything of the sort. Those bridges had burned a long time ago. They simply needed her to check something for them. Perhaps, that revelation is what caused her the most pain.
"I'll be gone for around a week. I plan on going into the Capital. Will you accompany me Wilhelm?
"Of course, Crusch-dono."
Emilia and Otto headed down to the underground passageway beneath Miload Manor. They had debated over and over again whether she could be trusted, but they knew that they were on a limited clock. If there was to be any chance of retrieving Subaru, it would be through her. They cracked open the door and found a young girl playing with several dolls. Each of them resembled different members of the Emilia camp or former acquaintances of hers. At this point, they were desperate. As long as she promised to help, they'd listen to her demands.
"Searching for Onii-san? Sou~nds fuuun."
Authors Note
No excuse for the gap between chapters. Just didn't feel like writing lmao. Finally decided to continue writing chapters though! My name is Continuer123 after all. If I was planning on dropping this fic, I wouldn't do it on the literal biggest cliffhanger you've had thus far. As per usual, comments are appreciated. This is the first fanfic I've ever written and since I haven't written anything in over a month, there might be a dropoff in quality/consistency. Also, I'm considering starting another fic and I'd be interested to see everyone's reaction to the first chapter. Thanks, and look forward to the next chapter!