Re: Memento mori
Summary
Natsuki Subaru the hero of lugunica the slayer of the white whale and great hare
saving water gate city from the attack of the witch cult is arrested over suspicions
of him being the Sin Archbishop bishop of pride.
Chapter 15 – Revolt
An eerie atmosphere brewed around the capital.
All the Nobles and Knights were cautious of their actions as a single spark could light the
kingdom ablaze.
As the name for the captured archbishop spread once more after Gluttony's death. The
civilians started to remember the "Forsaken Hero"
The high-ranking merchants used this opportunity to Utilize the people's emotions to
increase their profits. They denied dealing with lesser influential noble families to portray
their goodwill and side with the notion of the protesters.
The protesting common folks were now joined by others with the same goal in mind to
strip of the power from the corrupt nobles who were abusing it.
The sudden upsurge of emotions from the civilians aided a certain royale candidate
backed by the Astrea family.
Articles were already being printed as the journalists were hungry for sales fueling the
already uncontrollable fire.
A young boy with long bangs was running around the capital questioning the general
public.
"Excuse me sir, Can I have some of your time" The boy poked Kadomon who was busy in
his appa stand as usual.
"I am Shorty Megan; I am here on Behalf of the Dragon times" He proclaimed.
"Huh" Kadomon looked at him in annoyance, Afterall journalists were famous in twisting
tales and changing people's opinion's
They are frequently accused of conspiring with the likes of the council to brainwash the
general public.
"Um Sure, but you have to buy something afterwards" Kadomon replied as he continued.
He still had his doubts, but he was of indecisive nature. "Why are they going against the
hands that feed them?" Is what is thought while agreeing.
"What do you think about the current false accusations made by the council against the
Lolimancer?" He asked with a serious look.
"You were present in the riots last night right!"
"Can you give me more information on what happened, afterwards?"
"As we were making our demands, all of a sudden there was an attack" Kadomon
followed.
"Huge ice crystals formed outside, most of us thought it's the knights, but as we saw the
guards run out of the prison we were worried as well"
"It wasn't until we were informed that the council has decide to announce a verdict and
follow up with answers over the matter that the streets are calm today" Kadomon
replied.
"But it won't be for long, the people are still angry over what they did to their hero"
"So, how many appa's?" Kadomon asked as he finished his answer.
"Huh! Um" Shorty looked at his pockets and found his coin pouch missing.
As Shorty was panicking, Kadomon was annoyed and took this opportunity to scare the boy
away.
"STOP INTURUPTING MY BUISNESS" He screamed as the boy ran away.
"I will never be able to get a proper report like this" He thought to himself.
As he passed the bulletin board he saw a huge crowd, Due to his short height he managed
to squeeze in as he was met with the article posted that drew everyone's attention.
An article from the national newspaper of Priestella, "Penned by Thomas Erkeul!" He read
it out loud, surprised as he continued to read further.
"The Natsuki Case: The Fall of the Hero of Priestella"
As he kept reading further till the end of the article. "This story showed us the lack of
responsibility of the Reign towards its own citizens. We should be more careful with our
enemies, because maybe they once were a Natsuki Subaru too, before becoming Cultists."
As he finished reading it, he frowned and bit his handkerchief over his inability to write a
single proper article about it.
Back at the appa stand
Kadomon looked grim as he spaced out.
"Dear" He snapped out as he hears Raksha calling out to him. He followed his attention
towards her.
"Are you alright?" She asked
"Yea, I am, how is Plum?" He asked looking guilty towards her.
Raksha's face turned into a frown as she avoided looking at him and replied "Her Head
Injury is healing but can't say she is well"
"She is still scared to come out of her room, Whenever I am away" She replied.
Kadomon recalled that night of the incident in mind.
The Night of Pride's capture
Noticing how late it was getting, both Kadomon and Raksha rushed out of the house. They
were scared over the idea of losing their only daughter. The idea of loss hovered over
them due to there over protective nature for their daughter.
As he walked a little further, he noticed Plum lying unconscious with a head injury.
"PLUM!" Kadomon screamed in panic.
"PLUM! PLUM WAKE UP"
"OI"
"PLUM" Kadomon kept on repeating desperately as tears were building up in his eyes. He
held in his tight grasps, As the thought of losing his daughter gloomed over him.
One after another his desperate pleas were unheard, By the unconscious girl. He then
stopped as he was out of breath, taking time to check for any other possible injuries.
Plum expression, she was regaining consciousness. He eyes twitched as she groaned, He
head injury was making her feel lightheaded as she regained consciousness.
"PLUM, WAKE UP" He called out to her again. As she showed signs of life, Kadomon felt a
big sigh of relief that cooled his burning heart to the core.
As Plum woke up slowly and opened her eyes. She heard muffled noises, her vision was
hazy all she could see was a Silhouette of a shadow hovering over her, she panicked as she
started screaming "NOOO, STAY AWAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY".
She closed eyes to restrict her vision out of fear.
Kadomon was in shock as his eyes went wide witnessing her reaction, but he thought she
misunderstood the situation as he held her more tightly trying to calm her down.
As Plum felt his grip tightening, she screamed louder and louder "NOOO HELP"
"PLEASE HELP PLEASE" She screamed and cried.
"ITS YOUR DAD"
"PLUM COME TO YOUR SENSES" Kadomon desperately tried to calm her down.
"NOO, LEAVE ME" As she continued to scream Raksha arrived at the scene as she saw Plum
condition she cried and ran towards her with all her might.
She gently grabbed her from him as Kadomon was still in shock, but subconsciously he
prioritized his daughter. Raksha held Plum in her embrace. She felt relieved, she cried as
she saw her injury and cleaned the blood with her cardigan.
"MOOOM" Plum started crying as she felt her mother's warmth.
"There There, my sweet girl" She rubs her back to calm her down.
"Plum, it's your father" Kadomon tried to come closer to her trying to comfort her.
As plum slowly turned back towards him she screamed again while she tightened her grip
on her mother cardigan.
"NOOO"
"PLEASEEE"
Kadomon's heart broke and he was devasted. Raksha looked at their interaction in shock
as she realized the situation she embraced plum as hard as she could to stop her crying.
"Raksha please take her home immediately"
"Dear"
"JUST GO"
Kadomon and Raksha argued as Kadomon turned his back to her trembling.
Raksha with a sad frown walked away as she wrapped Plum with her cardigan.
She was slightly confused and she as well wanted answers, Kadomon was too engraved
with the shock of his daughter not recognizing him. Raksha wanted to know the truth of
what happened to the boy. How did Plum end up this way. She swore to Od she wouldn't
forgive him if he dared to hurt her daughter, but her main concern for now was to help
Plum calm down.
She sat plum onto the dining room chair as she disinfected the wound and slowly applied
medicine for it to heal. As she began to ask her in a calm tone as she prepared hot milk
for her "Sweety, can you tell mama what happened?". She passed her the cup of hot
milk.
She held the cup with a sad frown as She recalled the incidents she had a scared
expression on her face. She suffered PTSD of the assault.
Raksha held her hands to calm her down as plum managed to get comfortable enough, she
spoke.
As Plum finished telling the events that led to her situation, Raksha couldn't bear it. She
hugged her almost spilling the milk but was saved as Raksha managed to hold the cup
while tangling her into the hug.
Slowly her trembling hands calmed as she was close to her mother. The vibe changed as
the air around them felt much lighter now. Raksha made every attempt possible to
comfort her and make sure she felt safe as she clung to her almost like a life support.
As Raksha noticed the time her motherly instinct's spoke to her, "Sweety?"
"The milk has gone cold, let me reheat it for you" She spoke as they took the time to cool
off.
As they were almost done, "Sweety its time for bed, can you head over to bed mom will
wait for your dad"
As she spoke, they heard knocks on the door, Plum flinched. As Raksha noticed this She
asked Plum "Sweety its too late already, can you head to bed"
"No, I want to sleep with mommy" She cried.
"I will join you soon sweety, Mommy just needs to clean the rest of the dishes before
bed" She replied to make her worry.
As Plum left and went to her room, Raksha went ahead to open the door. Kadomon was
standing at the door as he hesitated to enter. He was nervous that Plum might get scared
if she saw him, no matter how much he hated it, He still wanted her to be happy.
"Raksha! May I" He asked.
Raksha looked at him, his face lost its color. The tear stains under his eyes were visible.
Raksha hugged him as she made way for him to enter.
"Is she ok?" He asked her.
As Raksha reiterates the complete story, Kadomon fumes in rage. He wasn't having it for
the nobles to treat his daughter; this way he just wanted to beat those knights and his
companions the outcomes of messing with his family.
Suddenly both of them had this sudden thought on their minds "Was he really a witch
cultist". The short amount of time they spent with the boy did prove, that he wasn't
really a threat, but "were we deceived?" Was another question they had in their minds.
Raksha went ahead to Plum to put her to sleep while Kadomon went to the guest room
where they accommodated the boy. As he searched the room for any information he could
find about the mysterious white-haired youth.
As he was searching, he found a bunch of paper's under his pillow.
"What's…this?" He thought to himself as he proceeded to read them.
"From Natsuki Subaru"
"Is that his real na-" As he read his name he realized, this guest that have been
accommodating was no stranger to him. Even if his looks differed from when he first met
him, He will never forget those nasty eyes of his. Upon his realization he shuffled through
the rest of the letters as he found a letter he penned for his friends and allies.
As he kept on Shuffling, as he read through the names. Until he reached the last one, That
caught his attention. It was addressed to Plum. As he kept the others aside and began to
read it. It read as follows.
"Dear Plum,
Please don't hate your father for asking me to leave, He loves you a lot. He is very
strong and responsible unlike me; I admire him very much. When I first came to the
capital, I was broke and lost. He helped me to find my way.
You are the sweetest, I wish I had a sweet sister like you, I enjoyed telling you stories
about my hometown, and the little lullaby's you taught me helped me sleep at night
peacefully.
Your mom's cooking is amazing, it reminded me of my mom, I learned a few recipes
from her, and I will use them to cook on my trip. She is very kind and supportive.
So, I promise If the stars are good, I will meet you again.
Make sure to eat all vegetables as it will make you strong.
From Natsuki Subaru."
He didn't read the other letters out of respect for his privacy as he recalled his memories
and frowned as he finished reading the letter he remembered the broke boy whom he met
last year in his wired attire as he claimed weird things. It was him with the Half-elf who
saved Plum when she was lost. As all his memories came back, he rushed out to make the
guards aware of the truth and possibly avenge his daughter.
Present time the meeting of the council
"It's all the cat demi-humans fault"
"I told they are nothing but a pain" The member of the council with his signature blue
eyebrows and a depressing look on his face, spoke in a furious tone.
"I request you to have a civil discussion about this and not let your prejudice against the
demi-humans act as a judge on what you speak, Bordeaux" Miklotov Replied.
"Prejudice you say?"
"Do you even know what happened at the Aihiya Swamp" Bordeaux yelled slamming on his
desk.
He recalled his memories that scared him for life. He recalled his friends, His allies who
lost their life during the battle against the demi-Humans, As on that unfortunate day he
lost his whole battalion who fell prey to the enemies magic circle that resulted in there
defeat.
Since that day he grew a deep-rooted hatred for them, He swore even if the kingdom were
to accept them and ignore the atrocities that they caused. He would never forget the loss.
"The destruction of three armies and the loss of a large fraction of the Kingdom's
manpower"
"Do you realize how many mothers lost their kids, How many kids lost there fathers,
People lost their father, brother, lover on that battle against those cold blooded vile
creatures" Bordeaux Spoke.
Miklotov stayed silent as he knew how he felt, He lost his own friends and allies to during
the war between the human's and Demi-Human's.
But he knew if this issue is mishandled then the kingdom would be in flames, "Bordeaux"
"He was no ordinary boy; I hope you recognize that" Mikoltov further replied.
"I may have gotten old, But I am still far from being senile" Bordeaux replied.
"He was able to defeat 2 archbishops, was honored as a knight and took down two Witch
beasts which no one managed to defeat for over 400 years as they roamed around the
world killing, Od knows how many" He further added.
"I have to say I was surprised as well, that boy who first claimed to be the Half-elf
candidates knight, only to be rejected by her."
"He surely didn't fall back on his words" Mikoltov added.
"If we are not able to pass a verdict to the public, The riot will only get violent" Another
member of the council added.
"What's the current ground report on the riots" Mikoltov asked.
"Most of the riots are led by family members or civilians who were affected by the attack
on priestella" a member of the council replied.
"We can present his torturers to the court and hold them accountable" Another member
added.
"Do you understand the consequences if his death went public?"
"This would disrupt the royal selection process" Mikoltov Added.
"Could it be that this was the witch cults plan all along?" The other members added
As discussion went out of control, Bordeaux Spoke "Silence"
"I still stand by my words to Hold the demi-human knight accountable; He ignored the
basic principle of the royal court as used his influence to bypass a faire trial and move on
with his torture in the name of interrogation"
"Your hate for the demi-Humans is understandable but you need to keep in mind that we
were the ones to pass the verdict of his execution by the hands of knight sir Julius"
"And if any of this information went public, it could bring down the Karsten and Hoshin
Camp's, not to mention the Half-Elf's Camp especially"
"Especially after Her sponsor boasted of the achievements of her knight in her name"
"We need to be more carefully with whatever verdict we pass"
"To make sure that law and order is maintained" Mikoltov added.
The whole council was left speechless as they understood the gravity of the situation.
As the discussion further continued with them coming to no conclusion the announcement
of the verdict was pushed back.
But on one vote all of the council members agreed together was to secretly arrest the
knights involved in his torture.
As Mikoltov announced the end of the meeting with the conclusion as of now.
"As The representative of the council, I Miklotov McMahon issue a direct order for the Six
Tongues to arrest Sir Julius Juukulius and Sir Felix Argyle to ensure that everything is
under control and no information is leaked"
As he finished, he looked at the Man dull blond hair and a goatee. "We as members of the
Six Tongues will follow as per instructed"
"Russell"
"don't mess up this time, this is far more confidential than the previous mission at the
Astrea Domain". Bordeaux spoke.
As Russell turned back to leave,The new members of the council started to whisper among
themselves.
"Is that the Russell Fellow?"
"I never imagined he was the member of the Six Tongues"
"They work on secret and highly confidential cases"
"Does their involvement mean, there is something big brewing"
"Silence" Mikoltov spoke as he dispelled the meeting.
At the Astrea Manor
A Young girl roughly around the age of 15, with fair skin with a medium-length golden hair
tied neatly with a black bow sat at the Astrea mansion garden.
"Why was it so noisy all of a sudden" She thought to herself.
As anytime she tried to ask or get any knowledge of the reason the manor was suddenly so
lively, she was always met with fake reason.
"Urgh, this is so frustrating"
"They think Imma kid unable to see though their lies" She spoke while gritting her teeth.
"As soon Rienhardt returns, I need an immediate answer"
"If you are asking me to act like a royal candidate, at least treat me like one" She yelled.
As She was enjoying her tea awaiting her knights arrival, she noticed all the maids are in a
hurry. The head maid had a very concerning look on her face.
"What's all the fuss about this time" She asked the maid.
"Uh Felt-sama!" The maid replied.
As she hesitated to speak. Felt made up her mind to find out what's the fuss about as she
forced her way towards the main hall.
As she entered, she saw Rienhardt standing there, she wasn't able to see his face as she
sneaked in closer to him.
"You bastard, where have you been all this time" She yelled as she launched a kick
towards him. The rest of the maids wanted to stop her, but no one dared to take the
initiative.
She was expecting him to dodge the kick like he usually does, but as her kick went close to
his face, it connected.
She left her mark on the face of the strongest the most powerful knight of the kingdom.
As she realized she was shocked.
"Rienhardt?" Felt asked in a shocked tone.
"Felt-sama, Young master just returned from his mission"
"He might need some rest, please don't take it to seriously" The head maid spoke in a
very cautious tone.
But She wasn't having it anymore, the maids didn't tell her anything, she was put in the
dark for most of the time which she hated, and now even her knight was not acting like he
used to.
"Oi!"
"Rien"
"Tell me, tell me everything" She demanded the truth.
As Rienhardt looked at his lady before turning to look away unable to meet her eyes.
"What will she think if she learnt of my failure?" He thought to himself. I never deserved
the title of the Sword Saint, Grandfather was right. I stole it, I am nothing but a monster.
As he continued to be lost in his thoughts.
*Baam*
Felt kicked him again.
"I hate that look on your face, this isn't you Rein"
"You wish to go around looking like that all day as a sword saint?"
"What will the people think if their protector was to display such a grim depressing look,
as if you killed your friend" Felt spoke.
As Rienhardt heard his lady, he made up his mind, "I will surrender myself to the council
I have to take the responsibility" He thought to himself, even if he knew the council will
overlook this matter due to his immense strength he proved as a valuable asset to the
kingdom, so they won't want to lose him.
To him Natsuki Subaru was his friend and a close ally.
His lips quivered as he hesitated, but he made up his mind as He looked at his lady with a
straight face. "Lady Felt!"
As Felt saw the seriousness in his tone and glint in his eyes she prepared herself for what
was about to come.
"It's about nat…" his name felt like a taboo to him to even utter, even trying to speak it
felt heavy, his body treating it like poison because of his guilt.
"It's about Natsuki Subaru" saying it could easily contended with the most inspiring of his
acts…
Saying those words hurt, it was a confusing pain invisible to his mind but poked like a
sharp blade to his heart.
As Rienhardt was going through the stages of his guilt. Felt suddenly felt shocked as she
remembered all the memories.
Her first meeting with the raven-haired boy as he acted weird upon their first interaction.
He caught her attention with the otherworldly magical device he had with him called a
metia.
As he then proceeds to save her and her cherished old man for the infamous assassin.
It was thanks him that she is alive and breathing, "How could I forget?"
"This is absurd"
As her expression changed upon realization of the absurdity of the situation, her mind
clicked. She heard this somewhere, Something very similar. She recalled the stories she
heard while her stay at the Astrea manor.
This was very similar to Rienhardt's mother's case who was affected by the sleeping
beauty curse rumored to be caused by the witch cult.
As the thought crossed her mind, She finally pieced together the situation as she stood on
his foot, redirecting his attention to her.
she glared at her knight, "What happened to big bro?" She asked while she continued to
glare daggers at him.
"Why are you making that face?" She added to her list of questions, as she read her knight
like a open book. Growing up in the slums she learned how to read people, this was
something like a blessing but a hard-earned skill.
As Rienhardt heard his lady, he felt his heart sink as he recalled the memories of his visit
to his cell.
Rienhardt ran jumping from roof to roof swiftly sailing through the capital, it took him
only a day to reach the capital but to him it felt like eternity. He was losing his patience
as he got closer and closer to the prison.
As he reaches the prison, he is shocked as he is met with huge number of people rioting in
front of the prison. His mind was in a dilemma he desperately needed to save Subaru but
his duty as a knight also came first to ensure peace among the civilians,
As his mind dwells into his thoughts.
*CHINK*
*CHINK* *CHINK*
*CHINK* *CHINK*
Loud spikes made of ice emerged from the underground prison as the sight caused the
crowed to disperse out of fear, Rienhardt knew what the cause could be, as he ran past all
the knights.
"The Sword saint?"
"We are saved"
"The council heard us finally" The knight started to celebrate in relief.
As she rushed in cautiously…
He soon lost his cool and rushed to the cell where Subaru was held. His nose caught a
smell, something that disgusted him to his core. It smelled like frozen meat as he
searched for the origin of the smell with the concern for Subaru still vivid in his mind. He
faces made an expression that if the others saw they wouldn't believe it was Rienhardt.
Bodies after bodies laid frozen as they were sucked out of blood by a giant ice crystal
piercing through their body.
The crystals painted red with the blood of the prisoners held in their respective cells.
His face was painted in horror. "Subaru!" He screamed as he turned and ran towards the
cells crushing every other thought he had in his mind.
As he reached the cell, he was met with bodies of knights lying unconscious on the ground.
His looked turned to the now broken in half Gallow, which tore his heart in half, He coped
to himself "Maybe he escaped" but he knew the level of magic wasn't something Subaru
was able to cause. "Maybe Emilia-sama?" it made sense to him Afterall he was her knight,
and she must have regained the memories as well.
But something grabbed his leg as he was struck with shock and fear he hesitated to look
below, but the grasp on his leg loosened, noticing this he shrugged his hesitation aside as
he looked down.
Only to find a barely conscious Julius lying like a corpse barely able to breathe as his once-
shining white uniform is now littered with his own vomit and his hand and legs turned blue
due to the cold.
Rienhardt quickly held his head up. "Julius!" He screamed in an attempt to keep him
conscious.
"Julius, hold on" He spoke in desperation he didn't want to fail another one of his friends.
As Julius managed to grasp his last breath before losing his consciousness, He spoke
"Reinhardt, I am a murderer"
"Please leave me here"
"This is what I deserve…."
"Julius" Rienhardt screamed, With the sounds of footsteps echoing in the background.
With the confidence of the sword saint coming in for rescue the guards managed to build
up the courage to enter.
"Help the others"
Rienhardt spoke as he took Julius' unconscious body and ran out the prison in search of a
medic.
"Please, just a little bit, hold on for just a little more" Was all Rienhardt thought in his
mind.
As his eyes were already like a swamp, if someone were to look into them at that
moment, they would just be sinking in pity for the Sword Saint.
He Ran…
And Ran…..
As he finally reached the Karsten Manor.
He rushed in ignoring the guards alerting the Sword Demon. As the Old man rushed out of
shock as to what brought his grandson to pay a visit at this hour.
"Rienhardt!" The old man spoke with a hint of annoyance yet calmness in his voice.
"What a disrespectful display"
"Is this how you wish to Uphold the title of the sword saint" He screamed.
"Grathfather" Rienhardt looked with a broken smile and his murky eyes.
Wilhelm took a step back as he never saw such a expression on his grandsons face. He
looked down at the person his grandson was holding, He felt a sudden shock as he
understood, "Rien take Juli to the guest room down the hallway" Wilhelm spoke as he
rushed to alert the maids he sped through the manor in search for Felix. As the night drew
in more darker and colder the Karsten manor was sent into a sudden chaos one could have
never expected to witness.