CHAPTER 7: A BLOODTHIRSTY MAID AND A BROKEN MAID

Staring down at his hands, Subaru was frightened. He had returned by death. He raised on hand to his face as he questioned.

"Why..."

He turned to look at the two maids in his room. He knew by their expressions, that they didn't recognize him. This only frightened him more. He placed a hand on his face as he questioned himself once more.

"Why have I gone back?"

"Sir, sir, you don't seem to be feeling well. Are you all right?" A voice speaks from his right.

"Sir, sir, you seem to have a stomachache. You didn't soil yourself, did you?" Another voice speaks from his left.

But he doesn't have time to think about them as he begins to breath heavily. His body begins to shake as his mind rushes for an answer. Finally, he responds to the voices.

"You don't... remember me?" He says as he tries to remain calm. "So it's like none of it ever happened?" He couldn't understand. Just why did he return by death?

He waited for an answer from the two maids as he continued to shake. Finally, they answered.

"Sir?" They both spoke.

He moved his hand to cover his eyes, so the maids couldn't see he was about to cry. After calming himself, without saying a word, he began to get out of bed.

"Sir, you shouldn't try to move so suddenly." One of the voices spoke.

Subaru didn't respond. He didn't say a word before he rushed to the door and left the room as he covered his eyes with his arm while he cried. He ran through the hall as his mind rushed to think.

What happened, damn it?! Everything reset again! Including my promise to Emilia!

Their minds were in turmoil by all the emotion they felt along with the feeling of Subaru's body and his voice echoing in their minds. They could even feel the tears falling down Subaru's face. And his heartbreak. The feeling of losing his promise to Emilia. Yet, they were unable to do anything. Forced to run through the halls of this mansion. Forced to cry.

They could even feel the carpet underneath Subaru's bare feet as well as his robe moving while he runs. Not only that, there was another feeling. One they couldn't quite make out. It was like it was being buried deep within.

Subaru quickly opened a door and rushed in, closing it behind him. He then pressed his back against it and slid down till he was sitting on the floor. He couldn't help but feel depressed. All his work. All his time building up relationships. All of it was gone. His promised date with Emilia... was gone.

Subaru buried his face into his knees as he sulked.

"You come in here without even knocking? What a rude one you are." A voice speaks from in front of Subaru.

He didn't even have to look up to realize who it was. It was Betty. He was in the forbidden library.

"Sorry." Subaru speaks in a dull and tired tone. He raises his hands and puts them together as he says, "Just let me stay here for a bit, please."

"There was last time, and again now... How are you breaking through my door crossing?" Betty speaks to him, sounding annoyed.

Subaru then realized something.

"Beatrice!" He shouts as he looks up at the girl.

"Addressing me with no title, I suppose?" Betty replies with annoyance clear on her face.

"Sorry, listen. You said this makes the second time that I'd broken through your door crossing, right?" Subaru continues to speak to Betty.

Betty flips through the pages of the book in her hand as she says, "Yes, remember? I teased you about it three of four hours ago for being so insensitive.

Subaru looks down as he realizes that Betty really does remember him. "If this is the second time I've woken up in the mansion..." He then looks up at Betty as he continues speaking. "Then you remember me, right?"

Betty didn't even look at him as she replies while flipping through her book. "If I could, I'd rather erase you from my memory, I suppose."

He moves to lean against the door to the library as he starts thinking.

"So the conditions are different from last time..." He mutters to no one but himself as he thinks outload.

Next thing they all knew, they were standing up. It was quite jarring. To be sitting one moment and standing the next. With no movement controlled by them.

"Thanks. You were a big help." Subaru spoke to Betty as he smiles tiredly.

"I didn't do anything." Betty replies to him.

Subaru stretches as he says, "Somehow, seeing that never-changing attitude of yours calmed me down."

He turns around towards the doors to the library and reaches for the door knob.

"You're leaving, I suppose?" Betty questions.

Subaru turns around to look at Betty and says, "Yeah. There's something I want to make sure of." He turns back around and starts to open the doors as he continues, "I'll wait until afterward to get depressed."

In the capital

Otto and Garfiel walk through the streets.

"So, do ya know where Reinhard is?" Garfiel speaks as he looks around and follows Otto.

"He's probably with Ms. Felt. I'm going to the knight's station to see if we can find out where he is."

"The knight's station, huh?"

The two of them walk through the capital till they finally make it to the knight's station. He asks about Reinhard, but it seems Reinhard isn't available. Him and Felt seem to be away for a time. They've been away for a couple of days now. This feels Otto with dread.

"That means... the only candidate to talk to is..."

Now standing before the candidate, Priscilla Barielle, he shakes with nervousness written all over his face. He told Garfiel to stand outside while he spoke to the princess.

"Missing?" She spoke as she looked down at him.

Otto could only shake as he spoke to her. "T-That's right." He stuttered. "Subaru is missing... and... something is happening in the Mather's domain." Otto looked down, not wanting to look her in the eyes. He had hoped he wouldn't have to resort to asking her for help. He knew her personality from all the things he heard about her.

There was silence for a moment before she replied. "Hmph." She turned her head to look away. "Why would mineself care what happens to the commoners of that domain. Is it not the responsibility of the one above to manage their own domain?"

"I-If you are referring to the Margrave, then I'm afraid he is unable to help-" Otto was then interrupted.

"Is that man so worthless he can't even keep track of that half-wit's dog as well as protect his own domain? How deplorable."

"Princess." The knight with one arm spoke beside her. "I believe this is a bigger matter than you think. I don't think this man was done speaking." He then turns to Otto. "Sorry, bro. Please continue. Is there a reason that clown can't help?"

Otto bows, thankful to the knight for speaking up. Though, his outburst seemed to upset the candidate as she elbowed him in the stomach. "Aldebaran. Did mineself give you permission to speak? I believe not. Why should I listen to this worthless dog who has to beg for help?" She closed the fan that was in her hand and pointed it upwards under the man's chin as she spoke.

Despite the threat the man faced, he spoke again. "I'm sorry, but this seems like a real issue if this guy from the Emilia's camp came to ask you."

Priscilla just looked away. "Hmph."

Al rubs his stomach as he waves to Otto. "Please continue."

Otto bows again before looking back up to continue speaking. "Right. The reason the Margrave is unable to help... is because he is also missing. The villagers in the domain are unconscious and a barrier has been put around the mansion. The domain is covered by dark clouds. Something really dangerous is happening. I was hoping you could lend us aid. If you agree..." Otto bowed his head as he spoke, but suddenly he stopped. He hadn't thought of anything to offer the candidate.

He thought he'd have something by now. He was in such a hurry that he didn't think beforehand. What a mistake.

She took the fan and covered her mouth as she looked down at Otto speaking. After she noticed Otto stop, she closed her fan, her expression was unreadable. But she heard him. A smile found way to her face as she stared down Otto.

"My, isn't this amusing?" She opened her fan once again to fan herself as she continued speaking. "Fine, I shall head to this Margrave's domain. Be thankful a divine being such as mineself heard you, commoner."

Priscilla's response shocked Al. "Princess?" He questioned. "Are you really going?"

Priscilla shot daggers of a stare at Al, her annoyance clear, making him flinch back. "You dare question minself, Aldebaran? Remember your place, worthless mutt."

Al immediately backed off and away as he rubbed the back of his helmet. "Whatever you say, Princess."

"This will be nothing more than amusement." Priscilla spoke to Al as she looked away with a pouting face and her fan still fanning herself.

She quickly closed her fan, the sound echoing. "Aldebaran, go get the carriage."

Al walked pass Priscilla as he speaks. "Of course, Princess."

Otto had a feeling of relief that he got help, but also a feeling of dread for the fact that it was Priscilla he had to ask. Both feelings present on his face as he looked up toward Priscilla.

Garfiel still waits outside for Otto, not trying to hide his nervousness as it was clear just from one look at him.

"Garf." A voice spoke from behind Garfiel, getting his attention. Garfiel turns around to find Otto walking out of Priscilla's gates.

"Otto Bro!" Garfiel shouted, surprised his brother was hurt at all.

Otto walked up to Garfiel, nervousness showing on his face. Otto took her hat off as he tried to smile.

"Well, I got her to agree. Though I don't think she's going to help very much. If anything, she might get in the way to make things more 'amusing'" Otto chuckled nervously. He put his hat back on as he said, "Let's go, Garfie-"

Otto stopped speaking as he noticed something. Or rather, someone. Behind Garfiel, a man wearing white with red hair. A small girl at his side. He recognized the man. It was Reinhard with Felt.

"Reinhard?" Otto spoke without thinking, letting his thoughts leak out.

Garfiel was confused by this and turned to see what Otto was seeing. Right there. In front of them. It was Reinhard van Astrea.

"That's..." Garfiel spoke before Otto ran past him and toward Reinhard.

Reinhard notices them as he looks up from Felt, standing beside him. They both stopped and turned to face Otto.

"Reinhard, I'm so glad I found you!" Otto shouted as he came to a halt. Finally, someone who could actually help them. Too bad they already got Priscilla to go, but what's done is done.

Otto stood up straight and took a deep breath before he made his request. "We need your help." Garfiel followed Otto and stood behind him.

Reinhard and Felt looked confused by these two. They looked at each other before looking back at Otto.

"Sure, how may I be of help?" Reinhard replied.

That easy? Otto thought to himself.

"Woah, woah, woah, what ta hell is happenin' 'ere" Felt interrupted. "Who are you people?"

Otto was shocked by Felt's sudden shouting and backed up. "Oh, my bad." He took off his hat and placed it over his chest as he says, "My name is Otto Suwen."

"And I'm Garfiel Tinsel." Garfiel also introduced himself after Otto.

"We're from the Emilia camp."

Reinhard's confused expression turned to a smile before he said, "Ah, you're with Subaru then. Nice to meet you."

"Huh? They're with big bro?" Felt also seemed to understand who they were.

"So what can I help you with?" Reinhard then asks, with his understanding of who the two in front of him were.

Otto put his hat back on with a sheepish smile. Finally, they might be able to get some real help.

His smile faded as he finally started to explain the situation. "Well, you see, Subaru is missing."

Reinhard's smile faded as he heard those words. Subaru... was missing?

"Not only that, but it seems the Margrave is also missing. A barrier has suddenly appeared around the mansion and those in the domain have fallen asleep. Ms. Emilia is inside the mansion along with Ram and Petra. Ms. Crusch also came to help, and she went inside with the sword demon and Felix."

Reinhard's concern grew more the more he listened. "We also have Ms. Anastatia going and as much as I hate to admit it. Ms. Priscilla is also going. But I don't know how much help they will be against this barrier that seems to only let a few in while the others can't even penetrate it." Otto was going to speak more but was interrupted by Garfiel.

"And we were hopin' ya help us."

Reinhard looked down with a thoughtful expression before Felt's outburst.

"What are ya thikin' about? If ya want ta help, the get goin'. I'll tag along as well." Felt had a wide smile as she continued speaking. "Cause I wanna know what happened to big bro."

Reinhard looked down at Felt as she spoke. After listening to her, a smile found its way upon his face. He turned to look at Otto with that same smile.

"I'll help in any way I can." He then turned to Felt before saying, "But I'm afraid you'll have to stay here, my lady. It might be too dangerous for-"

"Ya better not be thinkin' I'll just stay here." Felt interrupted with an annoyed expression. She wasn't about to be left here while Reinhard goes, not when it involves Subaru. The one who saved her life. If she can repay him by saving his life, then she was going to do it.

It was obvious that Felt was not going to stay here. There was nothing he could do. If he left her here, she'd just go by herself, and that might be even more dangerous than being by her side. He lost.

He bows his head as he says, "I see. Very well then." He turns to Otto with a neutral expression. "We shall go. Let us head to the Margrave's domain right away."

Otto smiles. Now he had the strongest on his side. If anyone could destroy that barrier, it's Reinhard.

They all head to Otto's carriage and leave the capital, heading for Roswaal's mansion. It seems that Priscilla had already left for the mansion. Otto could only wish and hope she doesn't cause trouble when she gets there.

At the mansion, Fredrica stands outside with her hands up to her chest, clenching each other as she looks at the mansion with a worried expression. The barrier still never let her through.

All she could do was wish and hope everyone inside is fine. But that couldn't be farther than what was happening as everyone in the mansion were asleep experiencing something none of them could have predicted.

"Just name your desire!" Roswaal spoke.

Subaru placed both hands on the table and stood up with a smile as he says, "In that case, I have but one request. Hire me to work in this mansion!"

This time, Subaru had a plan. He doesn't know what killed him, but if he just follows the same path, then he'll end up at the same place. That was how he'll find out how he died.

But despite his best effort, it seems that Ram and Rem by themselves derailed the entire loop, starting with picking out a uniform for him to wear. Instead of what happened last time, he didn't try on any uniforms, and they didn't take his measurements, wanting to do that later and get right into him working.

That posed one question to the people in the mansion seeing this play through Subaru's eyes. How did the maids derail the entire loop or whatever Subaru called them. It was getting harder for them to think as their feelings, thoughts, and all their senses were merging with Subaru's. There was still that single feeling they couldn't quite make out as it was still buried.

Subaru, now in his room, is worked up.

This wasn't a mystery to any of them as they knew through Subaru why he was so worked up. Ram had asked him to wait for her in his room.

"She didn't mean anything... She didn't mean anything by it." Subaru speaks to himself. "Clear my mind, clear my mind! Emilia-tan is the only one for me!"

Despite them feeling their own mouths moving, only Subaru's voice came out. Even now, the only thing that came to their minds were Emilia and Ram. They could feel Subaru's hands on their face and his body rolling around on his bed.

Subaru then sits up on his bed and closes his eyes. "Calm down, calm down." Subaru tells himself as he closes his eyes.

"One Emilia-tan, two Emilia-tans, three Emilia-tans..."

Subaru quickly opens his eyes with a blush and smile on his face as he shouts, "Am I in heaven?!"

"You're too noisy Barasu. It's nighttime. Be quiet." A voice suddenly speaks from the door.

Subaru is startled and moves to hide his face. The voice belongs to Ram.

She walks through the room as she says, "Barasu, come over here."

Subaru stands in the huge wardrobe. He is trying on his butler uniform.

This sudden change was really confusing. Although, they knew what happened between Subaru and Ram. While Emilia, Ram, Rem, Beatrice, and Petra have already accepted what they were seeing. Crusch, Felix, and Wilhelm were still confused. Wilhelm was the first to accept what they were seeing.

So this is what that young man has been through. His memories. This was the thought in Wilhelm's mind.

Crusch was caught wondering if what they were seeing was real. Were these really the memories of Subaru Natsuki? Just what were these? How were they seeing this to begin with? So many thoughts and so little answers.

Felix was only confused as he couldn't even think. Everything around him was just... so real yet not. He could feel the tracksuit on Subaru's body, he could feel Subaru's eyes moving, Subaru's arms and legs moving, Subaru's mouth moving. He felt fear. He wasn't in control. Not only that, but he didn't even know if Crusch was okay. He was stuck moving and talking as someone other than himself. This fear was shared with the others but not as prominent.

The others were more focused on understanding what they were seeing or just watching for better understanding of Subaru.

Looking at himself in the mirror, he says, "Wow... I hate to admit it, but it's perfect." He starts turning to get a better look at himself in his butler uniform while continuing to talk.

"Guess there's no need for my sewing skills this time."

"Sewing skills?" A voice speaks from the door. It's Rem. "Do you like sewing?"

Subaru turns to like at Rem as he replies to her. "Kinda." He looks around to notice all the clothes.

"By the way, it looks like Ros-chi and Emilia-tan have lots of outfits, but I don't see any for you or Ram."

He moves to Rem with the measuring tape as he says, "Want me to sew some for you? I'll take your measurements."

"That is unnecessary." Rem replies, making the smile fade from Subaru's face. "These uniforms are all my sister and I need."

Next, they all saw how Subaru handled chores slightly better than last time. But this time, they noticed something. Something that a certain blue-haired maid became scared over. Rem was watching him. Throughout the entire day. Subaru also noticed. Rem became slightly scared. She remembers how she was back then, and now she could only hope she didn't do something... bad.

Now outside, Subaru, Ram, and Rem were cutting the hedges.

"Rem..." Ram suddenly speaks. "If you like, you can tidy up Barusu's hair a bit."

"Sister?"

"Woah, whoa! Having a girl mess with my hair will get me all worked up-" Subaru tried to protest but was interrupted by Ram.

"You keep looking at Barusu because his hair bothers you, right?"

There is a moment of silence before Rem replies with a bow.

"Yes, that is correct." Looking up with a smile, she says, "I think just combing it and evening out the ends would make him more presentable."

Subaru looks at Ram who also looks back as she says, "You heard her. You should take her up on her offer. Her hands will take you to paradise."

"You make it sound so dirty..." He turns and smiles at Rem as he continues, "If you don't want to, you should just tell her. Not that I want to be picked on, but..."

Rem shakes her head as she says, "No, I don't think that at all. The truth is that it did bother me a little... very much, a little... extremely, a little."

The next events they were shown was Subaru's conversation with Rem as they cleaned the bathtub as well as his visit to the village where he gets bit by the same dog as last time.

Subaru and Rem are now walking beside each other as Subaru carries two bags.

"You were quite popular with them." Rem speaks to fill the silence.

"For some reason, kids have always liked me."

"Like animals, children observe a hierarchy. They can tell if it's alright to belittle someone."

"Those brats... They have no respect."

"Did you show them anything about you worth respecting?"

The conversation eventually leads to Subaru mentioning Ram in which Rem immediately starts to praise.

"Why do you have such absolute faith in your sister? That's not normal. You're demonically inspired, for real." This phrase made Rem stop in her tracks.

"Demonically inspired?"

Subaru turns his head to see her with a smile as he says, "It's the demon version of divine inspiration. Sounds kinda cool, right?"

"Do you like demons?" Rem asks.

Subaru turns to look at the sky as he answers Rem's question. "Well, gods generally don't do anything." He turns back to smile at Rem. "But demons will laugh along when you talk about future plans. Especially for next year and stuff. They'll laugh their heads off."

Subaru then notices something. Rem is smiling. He's frozen from her captivating smile. He completely drops both bags as he shouts, "That smile is a million volts."

"I'm going to tell Emilia-sama." Rem immediately says as she walks past him.

He picks up the bags and says, "I wasn't trying to hit on you."

Next thing, Subaru was in his room. His heart is beating so fast it feels as if it would explode. There wasn't any mystery as to why. Emilia was in the room.

"Both Ram and Rem said they wouldn't be coming to see you tonight, so I agreed to help with your studies instead. I'm afraid I can't do much though."

This situation eventually leads to Subaru trying to make his promise to Emilia once again by using stupid things like how the moon is pretty, even though they were inside. He eventually does it and Emilia leaves the room.

It is now nighttime, but instead of going to sleep, he stays up, sitting in a chair in the corner of the room. He looks at his hand with the dog bite before closing it into a fist.

"Alright, let's settle this, Fate. I'm not going to sleep, no matter what." Subaru speaks to no one but himself.

It was clear to all of them what Subaru's plan was. He was going to stay up to see what killed him. It was terrifying. After all, they weren't safe with just watching. They all knew this from what's happened before. If whatever killed Subaru comes back, they'll be hurt as well. If they weren't stuck in Subaru's body, they would have all tensed their bodies.

"I'm staying awake to greet the morning of my promise."

Subaru's heart was beating fast. He grips his tracksuit where his chest as if he was extremely nervous as he speaks out loud, "Jeez... What am I, a grade schooler who can't sleep before a class outing? Reminds me of when I overslept on the day of the class trip..."

He starts to fidget with his hands and moving his legs as he keeps looking right and left. "I wasn't able to retrace the same loop exactly, but I got along well with Ram and Rem. In fact, I think I did better than last time."

His body becomes tired as he's about to fall asleep while still talking to himself. "If there's anything I feel like I missed, it's that I didn't say goodnight to Beatrice..."

These words really dealt a blow to the spirit as she already knew Subaru was bound to die soon. If only she'd been nicer to him. If she wasn't in Subaru's body, tears would've fell down her face.

"Every time I saw her, all we did was insult each other. But maybe I should have... at least... thanked her..."

You have nothing to thank Betty for, I suppose. I should apologize to you, in fact. You were under the same roof as Betty and still died. How? How did you die?

The spirit already knew what killed him. The curse. The same curse he asked her to help with. However, she wasn't thinking straight, but she didn't have to wait long for her question to be answered for what happened next.

He can barely keep his eyes opened from how tired he is. Eventually, he closes his eyes, going to sleep. But that all gets interrupted as his eyes jolt open along with his body as he quickly stands up, knocking the chair over. He suddenly feels a weakness come over him as he falls to his knees.

"What is this?" He asks himself. He starts holding himself as he feels so cold which Subaru also speaks.

He grips the collar of his tracksuit up as he thinks. "No... Could this be..." He then felt something coming up his throat. He places his hand over his mouth to hold it in, but it doesn't work. He throws up, starting to feel sick.

He leans back up with his hand still over his mouth. His face no longer showing happiness or anything.

"S-Someone..." He utters, knowing no one would hear him.

He stands up and heads for the door, leaving his room. He walks through the hall, using the wall to help himself walk, keeping his hand over his mouth. He collapses as he throws up. But that doesn't stop him as he continues walking through the halls and up the stairs while calling for help.

Walking through the halls upstairs, he continues using the wall for support. Then came the sound of chains. Unaware of where the sound he cane from, he starts to look. He starts to turn his head to see behind him before he's suddenly hit by something, knocking him back far as he falls to and slides across the ground, landing on his stomach.

A pool of red liquid forms under him as it becomes hard to breath.

"What just..." He tries to speak before he feels something drip on his face from above.

He turns his eyes to see what it was. It was his arm on the chandelier. Upon seeing this, his eyes widen as the pain starts to settle in. He screams. He screams as loud as he can while rolling around on the floor and gripping where his arm used to be. But he stops rolling. He no longer has the strength.

He lays on his stomach, struggling to breath, until... something comes into view and hits his head, making it explode.

Natsuki Subaru died.

Waking up, she screams. The half-elf didn't have any idea what happened. She quickly sits up with a shocked expression while gripping her left arm. Breathing heavily, it wasn't just her who woke up. Crusch and Ram were with her. None of them had any idea what happened. Besides the obvious pain they were still feeling despite being fine, another thing confused them. The appearance of the blue-haired girl.

They already knew she was Ram's sister, but to see her like this made them all feel weird as none of them had any memory of her. It didn't help that these were memories they didn't have with Subaru, or anyone either.

Wilhelm was busy trying to calm down Felix as he was completely shaken and crying. This pain really took a toll on him. But it wasn't just the pain that affected him so much, it was the confusion, the feelings. Everything about what they witnessed. He couldn't believe that Subaru had actually gone through something like that. He wanted to justify what they were seeing by any means, even if that means denying that such events never happened to Subaru or any of them. But he knew that wasn't the truth.

Wilhelm had already recovered from the pain. But did the man he respects so much actually have to go through something like that. The feeling of getting your head crushed isn't something to overcome so easily. How? How could Subaru be alive after that? He knew the answer. Of course, he knew the answer. Those flashes he saw at the beginning explained everything.

What a cruel ability. He thinks.

Rem just hugs Petra tightly. The small girl is completely shaking as she mumbles nonsense to herself. Her mind was on the brink of breaking. Or perhaps she was already broken. Rem could only angrily curse out the fate that has been bestowed upon a girl such as Petra. And if this was the work of a person, then she'd curse them out as well. This was too cruel.

Although even she was completely unharmed by what she saw and felt. She recognized those chains anywhere.

So I really did hurt you, Subaru. My hero. She thinks as a tear falls down her face.

"What was that?" Crusch asks.

"Subaru's memories. Were those really his memories?" Emilia speaks as she stares downward.

The duchess wasn't even sure if Emilia meant to answer her question or not.

"Do you really believe that Barusu went through this?" Ram asks, staring at Emilia from behind her.

Emilia didn't respond. They all just sat in silence, trying to process what had just happened.

Approaching the Margrave's domain, Julius could see the dark clouds over Arlam village.

"Oh, oh. We're getting closer." Mimi says as she sticks her head out the window. "Those are some scary clouds."

Anastatia doesn't respond as her expression is one of seriousness.

Not only is Natsuki missing, but now something is happening around the mansion. What could Subaru and the Margrave be doing at a time like this?

The enter Arlam village and get out of the carriage.

"Woah. What could've happened here?" Tivey asks as they all stare at the unconscious villagers. Even Julius and Anastatia were shocked by the scene.

"I believe there is something more going on here. I think we should get to the mansion, the source of the issue." Anastatia agrees with Julius and they all head to the mansion.

Outside, the see a girl with blonde hair. She notices them coming up and turns around.

"Ms. Hoshin." Fredrica speaks in a surprised tone.

"We heard 'ere was a problem happenin'."

Fredrica bows as she says, "That would be correct. A barrier has formed around the mansion. I am unable to get inside."

Julius walks up to the mansion as he places his hand out. "I wonder..." As his hand gets closer and closer to the barrier, it goes... right through it?

"Huh?" Julius questions.

This also surprised Anastatia and Fredrica as well as Tivey and Hetaro. Mimi doesn't seem as surprised. Anastatia also walks up to the barrier and reaches for it with her hand. It also goes through. What was this? Next was Tivey as he became curious about the barrier. It stopped him. But why?

"Hey, Hetaro. Try going through the barrier." Tivey shouts to his brother.

The barrier also stops him.

"Hey, Mimi. Try touching the barrier." Anastatia gave the order this time.

Mimi obeyed and to their surprise, it let her through.

"Woah. Hey look. The barrier doesn't stop me. Guess I'm like super strong, right?"

Anastatia then came up with a plan.

"Hetaro, Tivey, ya two stay outside. Julius, Mimi, you guys follow me. Let's see what's in this barrier." And with that, Anastatia, Julius, and Mimi entered the barrier.

The barrier that leads nowhere but hell. A hell only one man could survive.

Tivey and Hetaro watch with nervousness as they watch their sister follow Anastatia into the mansion, but not long before they see all three of them collapse.

"Sissy!" They both shout at the same time.

Fredrica only looks with worry. Did this happen to everyone else as well.

As for Anastatia, Julius, and Mimi. Their minds were flooded with images. Images of someone's life, not their own. As they make out the images, it was clear what they were seeing. This was the life of Subaru Natsuki. Next, they felt something. A flood of emotions as well as... pain. An overwhelming amount of pain. An unbearable pain and then... darkness.

Their eyes open against their wills to see an unfamiliar ceiling along with a scream. Subaru's scream. The immediately knew it from the moment they heard it.

He screams as he rolls around in bed, gripping his left arm as if he's in pain before he sits up and calms down. Sweating and hyperventilating as he slowly realizes he's alive.

"My left arm!" He speaks as he turns to look down at said arm. "I still have it, right?" He brings his left hand to look at it as he says, "I went back again... No, maybe I should say I made it back..."

He then notices the two frightened maids in front of him. "Oh, sorry. Good morning." It was clear to him. They didn't remember him. How frustrating. But that didn't drain his energy as he immediately jumped out of bed.

Now in the library, he circles Betty as he thinks to himself. He comes to the conclusion that the first time he died from physical weakness, but the second time, there was a killer. But were the others targets as well? He talks about how he didn't even see the attacker and that his death was in vain. A truly frustrating feeling for those watching through his view.

"Quit pacing around. You're really irritating me. So stop or get blown away" Beatrice cuts through his thinking, making him stop and look at her.

"Oh, sorry. It may sound weird but walking around in circles make the gears in my head turn a lot easier. Cut me some slack. We're close now, aren't we?" He replies.

As Betty twirls her hair, she says, "Exactly what sort of relationship do you think we have, I suppose? We've only met twice."

After some more talking, Betty looks up at Subaru and says, "It's time for you to leave. You're hands have stopped shaking, so you can disguise your fear now, I suppose."

"You could tell?" He replies nervously while hiding his hand behind him.

"You were trying to hide it, I suppose? It's quite vexing to be treated as a mere convenience."

What were they seeing? Were they really in front of the great spirit? But how? Anastatia and Julius were nervous and confused while Mimi only had confusion with a hint of fear. She was just walking into the mansion before she felt her consciousness drift away and waking up in the unfamiliar place with a strange body. Subaru's body.

Meanwhile, Anastatia and Julius decided to watch with curiosity. If this really was Subaru's eyes they were looking through, then they needed to watch. Anastatia wanted to know more about Subaru and where he came from while Julius wanted to know more about Subaru to gain a better understanding of his friend.

Meanwhile, Betty wanted to cry. She's never had an interaction like this. Which could only mean one thing. Why? What was she doing? Why was she letting this boy die under the same roof? All she wanted was to cry. To see Subaru and apologize. She wanted to make amends. Amends for being so useless. Despite this, one thing came to her mind.

The previous death. He was killed. Murdered by someone. But how? If an intruder entered the mansion, she would have detected it. Unless... it was someone in the mansion. But who? The only ones in the mansion besides her were Roswaal, Ram, and Emilia. So who? The chain sound didn't sound familiar. Wait... there is one more person. The blue-haired girl. Subaru said she was Ram's sister and a maid at the mansion. She didn't remember anything about the girl, but if what Subaru said was right, then it has to be her who killed him. But why? The only question unanswered. Why did Subaru die?

Subaru speaks more to betty before getting sent out the window and falling into a flower bed. He meets with Emilia, gets washed by Puck and eventually the maids come to get them. He starts to think of what he knows before...

"You may have any reward you request. Just name your desire." Roswaal says.

Placing his hands on the table and standing up, he says, "In that case, let me live here as a house guest, and eat and sleep all I want!"

Although, he didn't exactly think about how he was going to go about gathering information and instead walks around the mansion. He meets with both Ram and Rem, but to him, they act strange since he's a house guest. He then decides to go to Betty.

"Yo!" He speaks while waving.

Betty looks up from her book with an annoyed expression.

"You come in here every day without knocking. You truly have no manners whatsoever. It would be in your best interest to leave before you get blown away, I suppose." She raises her hand and puts her palm at Subaru.

Understanding what she means, Subaru quickly waves his hands in front of him with panic as he says, "Whoa! Wait, wait! I just want to ask you something."

This gets Betty stop, allowing him to ask her a question. Is there any magic that weakens someone, and kills them as if putting them to sleep?"

Hearing this question, Betty puts her hand down and closes her book. "If I must answer, then yes, there is."

Betty then explains the concept of curses and shamans. He also learns that the mana drain she did could also kill him as well as the truth behind who actually healed him. Betty. She then sends him flying out the window once again.

He then interacts with Ram in his room, speaking about the fairy tales in a book while also sharing one of his own. He learns about the covenant the royal family has with the dragon, but when he brings up the story about the witch, Ram decides to leave in a hurry.

A scary witch. A terrifying witch. To even speak her name was terrifying. Everyone called her the Witch of Envy.

This made each and everyone in the mansion want to shiver out of fear that Subaru could say her name so casually. But why did the witch suddenly come up? They didn't have time to think much on it as Subaru continues.

His plan is to leave the mansion.

Standing at the entrance of the mansion, Emilia speaks up with concern.

"Are you sure about this? We could call a dragon-drawn carriage to take you to the capital..."

Despite everything, Emilia seemed to just act like his mom. But finally, Subaru stays bye to the residents with a smile. But he wasn't really leaving. As soon a he got far enough, he looks to make sure no one if there before heading off into the forest. He finds a good viewpoint of the mansion as well as a good view of Emilia's room.

He places the bag on his back and pulls out a knife. A kitchen knife as he sist on the ground. Memories of his time in the kitchen of the mansion play through his mind.

Looking at the knife, he speaks with a sad smile. "She'd probably get mad at me for using it this way..."

He looks down as the knife touches the ground. "I hope she does, anyway."

Looking up, he says, "I don't want to die."

Rem, Betty, and Emilia all wanted to punch themselves at these words Subaru said. It hurt them. Hearing him say those words, knowing he's going to die. It hurt.

Memories of Emilia and Puck flash through his mind as he says, "I don't want them to die."

He grits his teeth before saying, "What did I tell you Natsuki Subaru? Even if no one remembers what happens when everything repeats, you remember it." He turns the knife, looking at his reflection.

The sun begins to set as he looks off the ledge and at the mansion.

"Now that I think about it, I didn't go shopping for Rem this time. Just because the food meant for me was leftover?"

He then hears it. The sounds of chains. He turns to see a ball with spike flying at him. He moves and nearly dodges, the spikes grazing his right cheek, but falling off the ledge. Luckily, he has a rope tied to him that catches him before he hits the ground.

"Emergency escape!" He shouts as he uses the knife to cut the rope. He quickly runs away, discarding his bag, but keeping the knife.

"I saw it.! Yes, I saw it! I saw where the sound of chains came from!" He shouts as he runs.

He looks back as he says, "But is it coming this way now?"

He turns his head back to face forward, only to realize he's at a dead-end. The bottom of a cliff.

"Does this mean I played into the attacker's hand?"

He catches his breath before turning around. He takes off the jacket of his tracksuit and holds it out in front of him. "If you're coming, then come!"

The sound of chains echo through the forest. Despite Subaru's calm expression, his heart was beating fast with anticipation.

Out of the forest, the same ball with spikes flies toward him.

"Do you have the nerve?!" He shouts as the spike ball gets caught on his jacket, lifting him up, but not hitting him and instead crashing into the side of the cliff with his jacket and him.

Dropping back to the ground, he grabs the chain attached to the spike ball.

"All right, show yourself, damn it!" He shouts, ready to see the killers face. "I've gone through all kinds of hell trying to see your face!" He pulls the chain, but it stops. As if it was attached to an immovable object. The chain eventually gets looser as if whatever it is attached to is coming closer.

"Then I have no choice." A voice suddenly speaks back to Subaru. A voice he clearly recognizes. He begins to shake as a figure in the shadows comes closer, revealing their body.

It was Rem. His despair was like no other.

He wasn't the only one who felt that way either. None of them could believe it. The blue-haired girl, which Subaru constantly praised, was the one that killed him. But why? Why was she doing this?

"The ideal scenario would have been to finish this without anyone noticing." Rem spoke as she steps closer to Subaru.

He couldn't believe it. He looks down at the chain, hoping it wouldn't lead to Rem. But... he couldn't deny it. Rem was the one that killed him. Her expression was blank, as if none of this phased her. As if she didn't feel any guilt toward what she was doing.

Shaking, he looks up at Rem. "You're joking... right Rem?"

Rem finally opened her eyes to look at Subaru. Her eyes had not a hint of guilt, but anger.

"As long as you do not resist, I can make your death a painless one." Rem spoke.

But this only made Subaru sink into despair further. Was Rem... really the one doing this? He wanted to deny it.

"Why? Why are you doing this? Look, might be a cliche to ask, but I gotta know."

"It's simply the rule of maids. If someone is suspicious, punish them."

He couldn't believe his ears.

"Tell me, does Ram know too?"

Walking toward him, Rem speaks. "I intend to finish this before my sister sees anything."

Subaru could only look down. "Is that... Is that how little you trusted me?"

"Yes." Rem almost immediately responds, driving Subaru further into despair.

This was unfair.

Subaru's eyes widen at this answer before smiling nervously. "Damn, I'm so pathetic. And I was so sure that we were getting along well."

Despite the situation, it didn't stop Petra from trying to run. The others wanted to either fight back or question the maid even more for answers. But their minds were all filled by Subaru's thoughts and fear. His despair. The feeling of being betrayed. They couldn't think straight, forced to focus on what was being shown to them.

These words made Rem stop.

"My sister..." Rem begins to speak but is interrupted by Subaru.

"I don't wanna hear it! Take this!" He shouts as he takes out his phone and flashes the camera lights at Rem, making it hard for her to see before he rushes and pushes her down and runs away. He couldn't even bear to hurt her. There was no way he'd hurt her.

He runs. He runs as fast as he can. The sun begins to rise, but he still runs. Suddenly, he trips and tumbles to the ground. He moves to look up. In front of him is... his leg. He opens his mouth and widens his eyes from shock before letting out a loud scream as the pain sets in. He turns around to find that his leg is indeed gone.

He continues to scream as loud as he can. The pain and fear is too much. All he can do is scream. He then hears a voice.

"Mana of water, heal this damaged body."

He looks to see who was speaking to find Rem healing his leg from which he was bleeding. She states she can't let him die because she needs information.

They all knew what this meant. She was going to torture him for information. But this all vanished as they were overcome by fear and pain. Pain unlike any they've felt. Fear so overwhelming. Betrayal. That was the one feeling overwhelming all others. The feeling of Betrayal.

Despite their own feelings as they don't have any memories of the girl in front of them, they still felt a sense of friendship. So, her betrayal still hurt. They could still feel how it feels to be betrayed. But for one of them, they felt something far more. Hatred. But this hatred isn't directed at anyone, but at themselves. The blue-haired girl only felt hatred toward herself.

After all, this was herself in front of her. Not only that, but she as well as everyone else in the Emilia camp understood what was really happening and who attacked Subaru to bring him to the ground. But none of that mattered now as they were all too focused on the blue-haired maid standing before them and what she was about to do next.

Subaru looks at her with fear, not understanding anything. Now standing in front of him, she speaks.

"I ask you this, are you a faction member supporting one of Emilia-sama's rivals for the throne?"

Despite his pain, he was able to answer, "My heart belongs to Emilia-tan forever until the end of..."

That answer didn't seem to please her as she took her chain and slammed it down, hitting Subaru's side. He screams out in pain. His screams didn't mean anything as Rem asks her next question.

"Answer me, who hired you and under what conditions?"

"Emilia-tan's smile did, and it was priceless."

Once again, Rem slammed her chain down on Subaru's stomach. He holds his stomach as he screams out in pain. This time, his blood splatters onto her face.

"Let's try again. Are you affiliated with the witch's cult?"

Now holding his stomach tightly, he replies. "The witch's cult?" He turns his head to look up at Rem, still in pain.

"I don't know what that is. My family's been secular for generations. Why..." He didn't even get to finish speaking as Rem interrupts him with her outburst.

"Don't you play dumb with me! Your baldfaced lies can only take you so far! When the foul stench of the witch is covering you from head to toe! Every time I watched you conversing with my sister, I felt as if I would out of my mind with anger and unarrest! Someone associated with the one who has caused my sister so much agony! Having the audacity to boldly approach the place in which she and I both belong! I can't bear it any longer!"

Her voice was laced with anger and pain.

"Even if deep down I know my sister only acts friendly with you and only pretends to care for you!"

These words hurt so much. He was in utter shock. So shocked he couldn't find the words to say. He fell onto his back, staring up at the sky. He moved his hand up as he begins to shake. And then, he spoke anything he could.

"Look... I don't cut my hands when I peel vegetables anymore. I can read and I can even write now too. Just the basics, but hey. I kept my words and studied hard. I can read... those fairy tales." Tears begin to flow down his face as he continues speaking anything he could.

"All thanks to you two."

Rem only had a look of confusion.

"Fairy tales? What are you talking about?"

He turns his head, looking at Rem with a smile as tears begin flowing more. "I'm talking about... all the wonderful things you guys gave me."

"I have no memory of any of that." This was Rem's reply. A reply that only filled Subaru with anger and confusion as he forces his body to sit up while she shouts everything on his mind.

"Why? Why don't you remember? Why do all of you keep leaving me behind like this? What did I ever do to you? What am I supposed to do? What did I do wrong? I don't understand. Why do you guys hate me so much? Even when you said you'd cut my hair. All that time, I... I really like you both. You..." He doesn't get to finish speaking as his neck is cut open by wind magic.

He falls to the ground, barely alive.

"My sister... is too kind." Rem says before...

darkness.

Waking up screaming, tears run down her face.

"Mimi?!" Hetaro shouts out, seeing his sister screaming.

Julius gets up with a shocked look, not understanding what it is he just saw and felt. His hand moves over his neck and stomach. The pain is gone. But the memories... are still there. A thought then enters his mind.

"Ms. Anastatia." He speaks as he turns to find Anastatia sitting up, a hand on her forehead. Her expression immediately says what she's thinking. She doesn't understand what she saw, just like Julius. But a scream interrupts both their thoughts. Turning to the source of the scream, they find Mimi holding her head. Her pupils shaking from fear.

What she felt was something unlike any others. even though she was awake, her mind wasn't processing it.

"Mimi?" Anastatia speaks as she moves over and places her hands over Mimi, trying to calm her down.

"Ms. Anastatia?" Julius speaks out once again to his lady.

Anastatia has immediately regained her composure. She turns to look at Julius with a serious expression.

"Julius. Go see if 'ere is anyone else in thi' mansion. Find out what is goin' on."

Julius shows his own serious expression, showing that he agrees to his lady's order. Gripping the sheath of his sword, he stands up and runs further into the mansion.

Meanwhile, a certain half-elf has woken up.

Her pupils were shaking and her teeth were chattering. She rubs her neck and stomach. The pain was gone. But what was that? That's when she remembers something. The blue-haired girl. She's already seen that girl. She ran off to get Petra. But then... she was also the same girl who just killed Subaru.

If they were to believe these things were the memories of Subaru, then that would mean he has memories of being killed by this blue-haired girl and yet he still says he loves her. That can't be right.

Her fear was then replaced. Replaced by Hatred. Hatred for such a cruel and unfair death. Crusch and Ram were still recovering from what they had witnessed. Emilia stood up and immediately started walking quickly in the direction Rem went.

"Ms. Emilia." Ram was barely able to speak out. "Wait."

Emilia didn't listen as she started moving faster toward Rem.

Ram could only watch as Emilia walks away. Crusch was busy catching her breath. She never felt such fear. She doesn't know about before her memories were taken, but after, she's never felt such fear and pain.

As Emilia continues walking, she suddenly hears an explosion that catches her off guard. She begins to run in the direction of the explosion to find a terrible scene.

Betty was standing with an angry expression and her palm pointed at Rem who was on the floor, curled up and crying with her hands on the sides of her head, pulling at her hair. Petra was in an even worse state than Rem as she was shaking a lot with her arms wrapped around herself as she bangs her head again the ground.

Wilhelm seems the most calm as he's busy trying to stop Petra from banging her head as well as dealing with Felix. As for Felix's situation, he was completely despondent. His eyes were dark as he lays like a motionless doll on the floor.

"Ms. Emilia." Wilhelm speaks out first.

Emilia was going to reply but was interrupted by Betty shouting.

"You heartless creature! How could you do that to Betty's contractor, in fact? All because of your grudge toward the witch's cult? Betty already confirmed he wasn't an enemy, I suppose." She was on the verge of tears. Her colorful dress seemed worn from her tight grip.

Emilia couldn't even remain mad as she saw the sight in front of her. Her mouth was opened wide. She wanted to speak, but there was nothing she could say.

Rem sat curled up, mumbling to herself. "It wasn't me. It wasn't me. It wasn't me. It wasn't me. It wasn't me. It wasn't me me me me me me me me me. Please. Someone. Tell me it wasn't me. It was an imposter. A fake. It wasn't me. Please, it wasn't me. I don't want that to be me. Cause if it was... I couldn't take it."

It was clear that Rem was going to respond to anything she says. Betty wasn't going to attack her. Petra was probably broken, and Felix wasn't reacting at all.

Emilia began to shake. Why? Why is this happening? Why? Subaru... where are you? Please help us.

Author Note: Wow. Sorry for taking so long to update. I had some other ideas for fanfictions and wanted to write them down. I already have another fanfiction. Also, I've uploaded this fanfiction and the other one to Wattpad. So, you can also read them there. But the story will always be updated here first.

I still haven't thought about what to do with Subaru and his family and I'm trying to make the story less copy paste from the anime. I think a way to do that would be to give the characters more time to speak before seeing Subaru's memories and try to summarize what they see and not describe everything from the anime, so I'll work on that.

I hope you guys will continue enjoying this fanfiction as well as the others I have in mind. Also, if you guys have any criticism for this, you can tell me if the reviews. I always welcome good criticism. Thanks for reading.