[User] When he did so, the madwoman concerned was covering her face with her palms as she blindly flailed at the surrounding area with innumerable evil hands.

[Assistant] "Spirit…! Spiriiiiit! !" The woman poured hatred onto the spirit, perhaps simply that aggrieved from the blow it had given her.

[User] The madwoman was merely wrecking the woods in anger, as if trying to inflict even a glancing blow on the offending spirit. She’d completely taken her attention off Subaru. That moment, he was free to choose whether to attack or flee.

[Assistant] "I’ll run, then!" A greedy choice, like evading the wildly flailing hands and landing a single blow to the madwoman’s vitals was beyond Subaru’s means. Rather than engage, the better option was to secure combat capability. "We can’t let her be. But I need Wilhelm-level combat strength here! Should be that—"

[User] "—You called, Sir Subaru?" In his haste to rendezvous with the others, Subaru’s eardrums were greeted by the voice he most wanted to hear. When he turned around, his eyes were greeted by the sight of a white-haired, elderly man—the Sword Devil—slipping through a gap in the grove and rushing over.

[Assistant] "Wilhelm!"

[User] "That was most concerning. I am very sorry I could not be here sooner." Wilhelm, carrying his treasured sword in pursuit, breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that Subaru was safe.

[Assistant] Subaru, delighted at the best reinforcements he could hope for, blinked hard when he noticed the red light floating atop Wilhelm’s head. That glow was none other than that of the spirit that had just saved Subaru from peril. "That’s the spirit from earlier… Wilhelm, don’t tell me you use spirits? !"

[User] "Unfortunately, I have no talent beyond the sword. It is purely on loan from its proper contractor. However—it would seem you are in need of my specialty." Wilhelm had stepped in front of Subaru by the time he finished those words.

[Assistant] The ghastly aura radiating from the Sword Devil was great enough that the madwoman, eyes seared by the light, noticed and turned toward it.

[User] "Ahh, SO there you are… You, you shall not escape…!" The bloodstained woman’s madness was directed at both Wilhelm and the spirit attending him.

[Assistant] "The enemy’s in the same league as an Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins! You saw earlier how strong Unseen Hands are. Even you can’t just take her on from the fr—"

[User] "No matter. Knowing they are invisible, I have ways to deal with them." When Subaru warned him of the seething woman’s madness, the Sword Devil made that firm reply as he stepped forward.

[Assistant] The sudden move startled Subaru, and even amid her villainy, the woman was dubious as well.

[User] "What is this? Your head, your life…do you come to present these to me? If so, that is a WISE and diligent choice! I would like to respond with all due respect. However…"

[Assistant] "Invisible hands, is it?


[User] "A most interesting parlor trick—I must experience it at least once.”

[Assistant] “…Did you call this a parlor trick?” For a moment, Wilhelm’s words made the madwoman’s madness vanish.

[User] Wilhelm responded to her utterance by lowering his sword, beckoning her with his open hand—Come on, he taunted.

[Assistant] “—! This foolish endeavor is to abandon all logic! And to discard logic is lazy! !”

[User] “Wi—” Mad with rage, the woman thrust both hands forward; simultaneously arms spewed from her shadow, assaulting the Sword Devil. Their ferocity compelled Subaru to instantly shout for him to dodge, but he wasn’t in time.

[Assistant] The black, evil hands ought to have grasped Wilhelm’s limbs, cruelly rending his flesh asunder— But they did not. A silver flash ran across the sky, and droplets of blood spurted from the woman’s neck.

[User] “If the human launching the attack is in plain sight before you, it can be anticipated, invisible or not. By watching the movement of her eyes, feeling her hostility, reading how she breathes as she aims, it was all too clear.”

[Assistant] “—” The Sword Devil made that frightening declaration having completely anticipated the pitch-black, evil hands, striking them down with his sword. Without exaggeration, his evasive timing was perfect; his talk of reading her breaths was no mere boast. His shocking combat skill had blunted the advantage posed by the invisible hands.

[User] “How, how, how can this…?” And without doubt, the madwoman’s shock was even greater than Subaru’s. She pressed a palm to the right side of her neck, taking in the feeling of the blood smearing it from the fresh cut.

[Assistant] Damn it, she threw herself with her own power…” In concert with the sword strike, the woman had leaped backward in an unnatural pose and with unfathomable speed.

[User] The shadowy arm had grabbed and tossed the woman’s body, narrowly saving her life from the Sword Devil’s blade. However, as a consequence, the evil hand’s gripping power had crushed her left shoulder. It was a violent emergency evasive maneuver of sorts with no room for subtlety.

[Assistant] “What…what a diligent concept, such diligent skill, aaa diligent way of life!” However, the woman patted her crushed shoulder, glaring at Wilhelm as she said. Her cheeks flushed, the woman praised Wilhelm with delight in her eyes.

[User] Receiving what was, by her standards, unreserved adulation, Wilhelm grimaced in visible displeasure. However, the woman paid this no heed.

[Assistant] “None have ever challenged my love with such a method, such technique, such cunning! What diligence! Ahh, splendid!”

[User] “Even this world is not so barren that I would waste words upon the likes of you.”

[Assistant] “Do not say such hurtful things. I want you to show me more! Of you! Your sword! All OF you! Captivate me more! !” Her body half smeared with blood, the madwoman stretched her hands out to Wilhelm as if seeking his affections.


[User] The Sword Devil did not conceal his displeasure at her statement, giving his sword a swing as he charged once more. "Then then thennnn! HOW about this? !"

[Assistant] Together with her pronouncement, Unseen Hands gushed out from the ground, forming a black wall in front of the woman. It was a wall Wilhelm could not see. If he kept charging in like that, he’d be enmeshed in the evil hands, unable to evade.

[User] "She made a wall of arms in front! Go around!"

[Assistant] "—Understood." Wilhelm kicked off from the ground, evading just short of the black wall before his eyes.

[User] The Sword Devil proceeded to leap sideways, escaping from the arms’ range, thrusting his sword into the ground and swinging it upward.

[User] The angular sword strike gouged out the earth, sending a shower of dirt pouring onto the madwoman. He had kicked up a completely mundane smoke screen of dust. Naturally, the woman showed no signs of damage from it.

[Assistant] "—? Did that have a point…?"

[User] "I hoped you would not disappoint me! Come! Come, come! Diligent old bones! You, the beloved child that knows love is the greatest thing in this world! Demonstrate your diligence to me! !"

[Assistant] The Sword Devil’s behavior drew comments from both Subaru and the madwoman. But Wilhelm said nothing to either set of words. The aged swordsman simply continued his nimble run as dirt showered down upon the woman over and over. Brushing away the unpleasant downpour, the madwoman turned eyes toward the Sword Devil like a maiden in love. The arms of instant death obstinately pounded down wherever she was looking.

[User] "Are you finished? Is there no more? If so, dismay! Disappointment! Despondency of the soul, despair! Ahh, AHH! Are you lazy?!! !"

[Assistant] "N-no way? !" At the woman’s shout, shadow exploded; it was a terrifying volley of power that squarely locked on to Wilhelm. The hitherto sporadic evil hands now numbered above thirty, literally filling the sky in the narrow gaps between the trees. Subaru felt dizzy from the overwhelming number of them. Fatally, there were thirty-odd of them, and Subaru could only point out one or two at best—

[User] "Anyway, it’s bad, Wilhelm!" At the same time as Subaru’s woefully insufficient cry, the evil hands cascaded straight down onto the Sword Devil. This time, malice that mercilessly destroyed all it touched would trample Wilhelm flat. As he raced across the ground, Wilhelm looked overhead, his blue eyes narrowing as he said,

[Assistant] "I told you." The Sword Devil’s tranquil voice rode on the warm forest breeze as he easily evaded the encroaching invisible hands.

[User] Both Subaru and the woman were taken aback; not even they knew which one had spoken the word. The evil hands poured down on all sides, twisting around to assail the Sword Devil’s limbs. With superhuman agility, Wilhelm dodged, evaded, and overwhelmed them.


[User] “—So long as I know the arms are invisible, I have ways to deal with them.” A vicious smile came over the Sword Devil’s cheeks as he glared at the woman.

[Assistant] Subaru scarcely closed his wide-open mouth, astonished by the results.

[User] “Absurd. Absurd, absurd, absurdabsurdabsurdabsurdsurdsurdsurdsurdsurd…!” The woman’s eyes lost all focus as she was stricken senseless by the foiling of her best move. Trembling, the woman crushed her remaining fingers in true Petelgeuse fashion, but her emotional outburst did not relent as blood flowed from her nose.

[Assistant] “Impossibleimpossibleimpossibleimpossible! How could you escape my Unseen Hands? !” The woman thrust her blood-smeared right hand at Wilhelm, nosebleed still dripping.

[User] “Of course, I evaded them by sight. Once I knew their nature, foiling them was mere child’s play.” Wilhelm tediously made the declaration as he once again made dirt shower with the tip of his treasured sword.

[Assistant] Subaru finally understood Wilhelm’s objective in making that move as he saw it repeated over and over. At the same time, he was in shock.


[User] “Now then, both of our tricks have been sufficiently exposed. I shall obtain vengeance for my comrades.” Thrusting the tip of his treasured sword forward, Wilhelm threatened with suppressed anger.

[Assistant] “Ahh, ahh, it is splendid! Your actions are diligence personified! To inflict this situation, this development, this predicament upon meee…! I, always striving to be first among Her adherents, to repay Her favor and love with diligence! And yet, you have…!” The madwoman spread her blood-smeared arms wide, laughing as if granting his bloodlust a warm welcome.

[User] “‘—If I do this, I will be loved. Exhaling once in the face of the woman’s unsightly cries, the Sword Devil gazed at her with enmity winning out against the bloodlust in his eyes.


[User] "If I do enough, I will be loved.’ The frivolity with which you speak the word rots my ears. It is not love of which you speak. It is merely your own conceit.”

[Assistant] “What do you know about love?! Love is eeeverything to me! !”

[User] Wilhelm did not reply to the woman’s shriek; rather he slammed his sword down and advanced. The dirt shower recommenced, and the Sword Devil put his foot down, carving a wound in the ground as his body shot out like a bullet. Even though, like a whip, like a spear, like a maul, like a sword, the madwoman’s evil hands raced to mow Wilhelm down, he saw through them all, and was thus allowed to draw near.

[Assistant] “It is over, heretic.” As he stated this, the treasured sword in Wilhelm’s hand plunged to the hilt, deep into the madwoman’s belly. The sword ran through her, coming out of her back; when he yanked it out with a twist, a great deal of blood and entrails poured out.

[User] “Ahh, this cannot…” Her palm was impotent to stop her blood from gushing out, her intestines from pouring out.

[Assistant] Wilhelm silently looked down at the madwoman, unable to stem the spillage of her life. Having cut down so many lives, the Sword Devil knew that she had little time left to live. “It seems you require a mercy blow?”

[User] “—Mercy is unnecessary. My life drains away, my blooood, disappearing… My diligence, the heartbeat that sustains me, is stopping, vani…sh…ing…” Refusing the Sword Devil’s mercy, the madwoman fell onto her side with a smile on her lips. The light proceeded to fade from the woman’s eyes.

[Assistant] Subaru stood rooted to the spot as he watched her final moments. “…!”

[User] “Ahh, my brain is shaaa…” While Subaru stared, the woman left only those final words before her breathing completely ceased. It was the death of the second user of Unseen Hands, the second Sloth.

[Assistant] Watching until the end, Subaru let out his breath. The conclusion of the battle had made him practically forget to breathe. His body resumed its life functions, as if remembering that which it had forgotten. “I-is it…over?”

[User] “—At the very least, this woman has most assuredly ceased to breathe.” Wiping the blood from his sword, Wilhelm replied thus to Subaru, who was nervously peering at the corpse.

[Assistant] Subaru bit his lip, feeling as if the meaning behind those words bolstered his earlier deduction. But Subaru immediately shook his head, switching gears. He knew it was no time to sink into contemplation. “Setting her aside…anyway, we’ve gotta head back! I’m worried about everyone else. If we don’t link up with them…!”

[User] “—No, Sir Subaru. I have just been informed that they have wrapped up their end.”

[Assistant] “Informed…?”

[User] With Subaru agitated, Wilhelm offered a hand toward him. A pale light was floating above his hand.


[User] The spirit swayed left and right, emitting a faint red light, asserting its own existence.

[Assistant] “That’s the spirit from…er, a minor spirit? Anyway, you’re saying that this spirit told you the others are safe on their end?” Subaru spoke toward the flickering light on Wilhelm’s hand in hope of a reply.

[User] The spirit did not reply with words; it merely floated into the air, entering the forest as if to lead the way.

[Assistant] “That means Follow me, doesn’t it?”

[User] “—Let us go, Sir Subaru.”

[Assistant] Grasping that it wished to guide them, Subaru and Wilhelm chased after the spirit. They returned to their comrades after repelling a foe rivaling an Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins; considering the circumstances, it was good news to return with, but grave emotions were carved onto the pair’s faces.

[User] “—Shit.” But that moment, the only thing on Subaru’s mind was the state of the allies with whom he would be reunited.


[Assistant] “—Who’s there?”

[User] “Hold up! It’s us! Sorry to startle you!” Checked by a sharp yell, Subaru came out of the thicket, showing himself with his hands up.

[Assistant] The knights who had sensed them returning from deep in the forest, and thus pointed their swords at them, immediately relaxed their guard, relief on their faces as they lowered their blades. But that relief was marred by sadness and regret. Subaru had a feeling that the result of the fighting in the forest hadn’t been a pure victory, something to take joy in.

[User] “It seems you have both returned.” As Subaru and Wilhelm surveyed the area, Julius ran over.

[Assistant] Seeing that Subaru and Wilhelm were each without injury, he stood at attention without any change in expression. “At the very least, it is good that you two are safe… Shall I make the damage report?”

[User] “…Yeah, please do.” Having confirmed the other was safe and sound, Subaru granted approval for Julius to shift to the damage report.

[Assistant] Accepting, Julius indicated the forest-turned-battlefield with his hand. …The forest littered with fallen trees and traces of bloodshed, the aftereffects of combat. “Five died instantly from the initial, invisible attack. Two more died while engaged in combat with the Witch Cult in the attack immediately following—our total casualties for this engagement were seven.”

[User] “Seven…” Subaru had expected as much, but the number slammed heavily into his heart. They’d lost five in the initial Unseen Hands ambush. It was a most cruel loss.

[Assistant] “…The Witch Cultists that tried to take you down?”

[User] “All of the nine Witch Cultists here perished. Two were captured alive, but they killed themselves like all cases prior to this point…despite Ferris’s strenuous efforts.”

[Assistant] “So the enemy was completely wiped out. On our side, if we include the five scouts, our losses are twelve in total…”

[User] “I cannot say that dividing our forces was a…poor move. Had we done otherwise, it is highly likely we would have simply increased our initial losses.


[User] Of course, it is also possible that the enemy would hesitate to attack greater numbers, but…” Though the casualties stung deeply, neither Julius nor Wilhelm gave any hint of losing his cool.

[Assistant] For his part, Subaru had been biting his lip enough to draw blood since the damage report began.

[User] “…That ends my report. And yours?”

[Assistant] “—! You don’t have anything else to say to me?”

[User] “Necessary reports come first. I had thought to ask you for your report before all other matters, but…”

[Assistant] In contrast to the emotional Subaru, Julius had a very calm demeanor. But as he replied, his forelocks were slightly askew, and there were traces of blood on his royal guard uniform. Of course, even he had not come through unscathed.

[User] Gazing at the vestiges of intense combat, Subaru restrained his scattered emotions. “…At the very least, we beat the Sloth that attacked us just now.”

[Assistant] “‘The Sloth that attacked us just now’…you say. Not a report to take solace in, it would seem.”

[User] Subaru’s gloomy reply contained nominally good news, but Julius immediately homed in on the problem therein. The authority-using madwoman who had launched a surprise attack on the expeditionary force, whisking Subaru away from the battlefield, was an evil on par with the assuredly slain Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins—a being worthy of the title of Sloth.

[Assistant] “The first stage of this operation should have taken out the Archbishop of Sloth. You were more confident of that than anyone ... yet, in spite of that, you call the earlier foe Sloth?”

[User] “…Yeah, that’s right. The one just now was a Sloth—a second Sloth.”

[Assistant] The last part of that statement—“a second Sloth”—made Julius knit his brows in dismay. But given the seriousness of Subaru’s gaze, combined with the events that had actually taken place, he offered no rebuttal. "So the first Sloth defeated was a different person from this Sloth. You are absolutely sure of this?”

[User] “I’d never forget the look on that piece-of-shit bastard’s dead face. Plus, the second Sloth was a woman. There’s no way you’d mistake one for the other. There’s no way you would, but…” When Subaru had first encountered the madwoman, he’d hallucinated that it was Petelgeuse. That was because he sensed things beyond their appearances that tied Petelgeuse and the woman together. It felt as if their madness had sprung from a common root—

[Assistant] “The authority was the same, the words and actions were the same. I’ve got a reaaally bad feelin’ about this.”

[User] “Perhaps the first Sloth we defeated was a double, and the second Sloth was the real Archbishop of the Seven Deadly... No, there is no way to be certain of that. Besides, in this case, the real issue—”

[Assistant] “—Might be in a whole different league than which one was the real deal.”

[User] When Julius felt he might have speculated too far, Subaru picked up his conclusion and ran with it. The statement made sweat emerge on Subaru’s brow; even Julius’s face stiffened somewhat.


[User] It was a terrifying prospect. However, in light of current circumstances, it was also a logical conclusion. Given the appearance of Petelgeuse the first time, and the madwoman the second, it was inevitable they would arrive at the same possibility. "In other words, there are multiple Archbishops of Sloth—or perhaps the Archbishop of Sloth is actually a group with the same power, acting toward a common objective?"

[Assistant] "...The only Sloth I knew of was the sickly-looking bastard that came out first. But now that I’ve seen the next woman, I can’t tell you you’re wrong."

[User] The madwoman had called herself a finger and identified with the Archbishop of Sloth. It fit. That’s what they would go with: that Sloth was multiple Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins working in concert. "So without exaggeration, the fingers are parts of the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins. If it is a group composed of multiple archbishops calling themselves Sloth, it would explain the breadth of the upheaval they have caused in every nation."

[Assistant] "So Sloth is the part of the Witch Cult carrying out the doctrine of the faith. Just the thought gives me chills.”

[User] That it was the practical arm of a larger religious group was very much a flight of fancy. Subaru wanted to laugh, but even a dry laugh failed to emerge. If Petelgeuse Romanée-Conti was but one Sloth among many, their pleasant, orderly advance had been nothing more than a farce. That was a terrifying prospect indeed. "In the end, this remains no more than speculation. I would like to avoid carelessly spreading unease and unrest among the others."

[Assistant] Julius shifted his eyes toward the expeditionary force, clumped up in one group. “We lost twelve men, with three fingers to go… This is a rate of attrition we cannot ignore.”

[User] "—Not twelve, eleven." Ferris corrected the number of their losses, walking over to them. His white coat was sullied with blood as he wiped the sweat off his brow and pointed behind him. "I pulled one of the heavily injured ones back from the brink. It was a really, really close call, though…"

[Assistant] "That is good news. To stabilize someone in that condition…as expected of you, Ferris."

[User] "I said it meowself—I can bring back anyone who isn’t dead." When Julius said the words good news, Ferris gave a thin, wry smile. But his smile soon faded as he shifted his gaze in a different direction.

[Assistant] Subaru’s eyes, drawn there as well, were greeted by the sight of someone covered with a thin cloth.

[User] "I can’t save everyone… Now I really understand the meaning of the captain’s words."

[Assistant] "You have done well. It is not a role any of the rest of us could hope to accomplish."

[User] "Mmm, thank you." Ferris replied briefly to Julius’s consoling words, but everyone there knew that they were a small comfort.


[User] Head bowed, Ferris licked his lips and, after a brief pause, looked at Subaru. "...So about what you said earlier, where’s the body of the second Sloth?"

[Assistant] Grimaced at the sudden change in the conversation. "—In the forest over that way, but why do you wanna know?"

[User] Must have overheard the earlier exchange with Julius. He stared in the direction in which Subaru pointed, narrowing his yellow eyes. "Just maybe, if I examine it, I might find some differences."

[Assistant] "Differences? What kind of differences?"

[User] "Between the fingers you’re worried about and the other cultists, Subawu."

[Assistant] Subaru’s breath caught.

[User] "Wait up, ’kay?" Taking several companions with him as he went off to examine the corpse.


[Assistant] Having watched Ferris go, Subaru went to the expeditionary force members clustered together. Subaru couldn’t look straight at the row of casualties lying right beside them. The lined-up remains were covered with thin cloths, the least they could do for those who would never awaken again. There was nothing anyone could have done for the initial five casualties who had been ripped to pieces. However, the five lives lost in the surprise attack were another story. Subaru should have realized, if no one else. "I should’ve known as soon as I heard the first five were torn apart with bare hands. I’m the one who was aware what power we were dealing with. I should’ve noticed." Subaru, of all people, should have recognized the cause of the deaths of those who had been slain without a single sign of resistance. But Subaru, shaken by the deaths of his allies, had let the chance slip, leading to more casualties. On top of that, his own whisking away by the enemy had forced his allies to split their fighting strength, prolonging the combat. Had Wilhelm not pulled out, those lost during the engagement might well have lived. "Even if it was a surprise attack, the opponent was small in numbers. Barring an exception, such as an Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins’ authority, there was no chance of defeat. It was precisely for this reason I sent Master Wilhelm to you."

[Assistant] Listening to Subaru’s murmurs, Julius set his disheveled hair in order as he offered his own view. "Indeed, that authority, defying all logic, is a far greater concern. You did your duty, helping us evade it. The rest was our duty…as knights."

[User] But it was also a fact that no words of consolation lessened the pain in Subaru’s heart. People had died in the fight against the White Whale, too.


[User] “…Because I was involved with these people.” Only then did Subaru Natsuki realize that he bore responsibility for those casualties.

[Assistant] “—So heavy.” Subaru had used the information gleaned from Return by Death to cooperate with Crusch and the others in subjugating the White Whale.

[User] “…” With that all-too-late realization, he was fiercely angry with himself for being so foolish and worthless.

[Assistant] “Sir Subaru.”

[User] “—!” Subaru was enveloped by rage sufficient to turn his vision red when that voice brought him back to his senses.

[Assistant] Wilhelm was standing before Subaru, staring straight at him.


[User] The Sword Devil’s eyes were as tranquil as the surface of a lake as he gazed right through Subaru’s dark eyes. “You likely have a number of things running through your mind at the moment, none of them trivial emotions…but forgive my exceedingly great rudeness and allow me to say this.”

[Assistant] “—” Subaru’s words made him unwittingly straighten his back. He didn’t know what would be said to him, but whatever it might be, he needed to give it his undivided attention.

[User] "—Fight.” Spoken in a low tone, that word made the very air tremble. But Subaru also received it as a blade—one that bit into his body, his heart, his very soul. The ghastly aura pouring from Wilhelm filled the forest-turned-battlefield, wrenching its way into Subaru’s mind and body. The hostility swept over the whole area, and naturally, the knights’ eyes all fell on the two of them. At the center of that vortex of gazes, Wilhelm continued, “Whether you feel regret, or are stricken with remorse, fight. If it is fated that you must do battle, that you must resist—fight with your entire body and soul. Do not give in for a second, a moment, a single fraction of time. Gaze at victory and crave it with every fiber of your being. If you can still stand, if you can still move a single finger, if your fangs are not yet broken, stand, stand, stand, stand, fight—fight.”

[Assistant] “—” The words were very similar to ones Wilhelm had spoken to Subaru before. When he’d been smacked around with a wooden sword in the courtyard of Crusch’s mansion, Wilhelm had spoken words concerning girding one’s heart for battle; that was the only moment Subaru had been allowed a tiny glimpse into the Sword Devil. At the time, after Subaru had heard those words, Wilhelm pegged him as person with no drive to become stronger. In point of fact, Subaru hadn’t faced him with true earnestness. Deprived of willpower, Subaru had had no idea at the time what the Sword Devil thought or was trying to tell him. But this time was different—and this time, he thought the message was different, too.

[User] “You’re telling me to…become strong?”

[Assistant] “No—I am telling you to be strong.” The frighteningly lofty and sharp demand thrust through his chest.

[User] “I wanna be that way, too. But it’s hard. I didn’t want anyone else to die like this, but they did…because I wasn’t good enough!” Once again, he’d made the mistake of getting full of himself as soon as things were going a little bit well. As a result of his mistake, people had died. If he made more mistakes, no one knew who would die for them next.


[User] "If I don’t do it… I’m the one who started this!" He’d desperately tried to think of a way to avoid that, and yet nothing came. He was out of ideas.

[Assistant] "You got them involved, you strung them along, and they died, is that it? You are incorrect." With remorse threatening to wrench Subaru’s heart out of his chest, Wilhelm spread both arms wide.

[User] "Not a single individual here believes you involved us in this. Even if you provided the spark, we chose this battle ourselves. Everyone is here of his or her own will."

[User] "Please stop placing responsibility for the deaths on yourself alone. They do not wish you to be burdened by this. Simply make room in your heart so that you do not forget. That is all you need do."

[Assistant] "Not forget what…?" he wondered.

[User] "—That they shared this burden with you. That is all." Wilhelm shook his head, putting Subaru’s notion to rest.

[Assistant] This time, his words made Subaru’s entire body numb, as if he’d been struck by a bolt of lightning. Wilhelm nodded to him and touched the sword on his own hip.

[User] "Lending one’s strength does not mean merely swinging one’s sword. It means challenging the same foes, worrying over the same obstacles, sharing the wounds and the weight of the burdens. This we can do. This is the lesson I learned in the past." Wilhelm spoke those words and motioned with his chin.

[Assistant] Overwhelmed, Subaru did as indicated, noticing that the gazes of all present were focused upon him. Each and every one of those sets of eyes burned with the same emotions as Wilhelm’s. —He felt someone had once told him not to try to fight alone. At a disadvantage against a mysterious opponent, not a single person looked ready to cut and run. Not a single gaze said to Subaru, This wasn’t the deal, nor did wiser voices condemn him.

[User] “…Having at least one wiser person seems like a good thing, though…” He let out a sigh. Simultaneously, the dark clouds dwelling inside Subaru’s head rapidly brightened.

[Assistant] This did not mean freedom from anguish. But he had left the dead end in which he’d trapped himself behind him. Subaru had been reminded of the limits of his own head.

[User] "Shit—!" Subaru roughly scratched his head, gritted his teeth, impulsively stamped his foot, and turned to everyone, bowing his head.

[Assistant] "This is the only head I have to lower. It’s low quality, so I’ll lower it as many times as I need to." Subaru entreated his comrades, whose gazes remained unchanged, saying, We’ll fight. Somehow, somewhere, he’d escaped barefoot from resignation and remorse.

[User] "A lot of things…seriously, a lot of things have changed. The Witch Cult’s Sloth is seriously tough. To put it bluntly, we can’t even see the bottom. I get why they’re treated like gods of pestilence the world over. It shook me how much damage we took just taking ’em on.


[User] "It shook me, but…" It’d shaken him because he’d mistakenly thought he ought to think, counter, and fight all by himself. Thanks to everyone there, his limbs had finally stopped shaking. Because they thought, Let’s fight. "I still don’t have any firm idea what we should do. But I know we’ve got to do this. We have to beat them. We have to beat Sloth, here and now." However mysterious the opponent, it was Subaru’s side that had started it. All they could do was defeat the enemy, whatever it took, until the battle was decided.

[Assistant] Turning, Subaru looked at the remains of the comrades that had fallen in the forest, remains that had instilled such remorse and such a sense of responsibility that he’d been unable to look straight at them all that time. This was Subaru’s inescapable sin. However you wanted to dress it up, Subaru was responsible for their deaths. And he would not permit himself to run from his sins any longer. Subaru wondered if he hadn’t been arrogant in thinking that borrowing someone’s assistance was no heavy thing. Subaru had started this battle, and so he would shoulder it. But he didn’t think of it as too heavy a burden. And so, he was determined to carry it, even if he himself knew not how great it would become. "We’ll save Emilia and the others. We’ll smash the Witch Cult flat. And to do both of those things…"

[User] "Let us do that which is needed…not for anyone else, but because you have asked it." And for that, our strength is yours, said Wilhelm’s nod, and those of the members of the expeditionary force.

[Assistant] He still had a mountain of things to think about, and the number of obstacles blocking their way was yet unknown. However, these he could overcome, because he need not challenge them alone. If Subaru had been strong enough to stand alone, he’d never have gotten out of that blind alley. Therefore, for just one moment, he thought that… "…Good thing I’m weak and puny, then."

[User] "—Shall we go?"

[Assistant] "Yeah, let’s go. And lend me your strength and wit." Death did not lighten. It remained heavy. So long as he knew this, he could struggle against it with his head held high. Subaru Natsuki walked forward, resuming the fight. And so their battle continued.


[User] “Hmm,” Ram went, nodding her head. “I did not imagine the Sword Devil would be my opponent. I can accept having lost.”

[Assistant] “Compared to my glory days, ’tis little more than a nickname. Each day, I strive to resist decay, but I cannot defeat old age. My skills are two steps behind my former peak.”

[User] “Having been laid low by such dulled skills, those words feel like irritating sarcasm.” Ram crisply cast Wilhelm’s modesty aside.

[Assistant] The Sword Devil seemed to like that attitude from Ram, but Subaru did not. He pressed Ram about the rude tone of her words. “Hey, what’s that attitude you’re giving Wilhelm? Setting aside you’re always like that with me, you should be politer to other people at l—ow!”

[User] “Receive outsiders in the manner of guests, you say? I see, it is as you say. My, my, there is no excuse for my repeated rudeness, dear guests.” Flicking Subaru’s nose with a finger when he drew near, Ram proceeded to elegantly bow to everyone present. As she behaved like a perfect servant, a cold smile came over her beautiful, doll-like face. “I apologize for my repeated rudeness, but the mansion of Marquis Roswaal L. Mathers lies ahead. At present, at the command of my master, I am not receiving outsiders, so I ask that you please detour and leave.”

[Assistant] “Slip the dagger in at the end, huh? Besides that…what the heck’s that supposed to mean?”

[User] “It means what it says. Currently, the environs of the mansion are in a state of heightened alert. I cannot allow outsiders to approach…though I suppose such words are wasted on an ingrate such as you, Barusu.”

[Assistant] “Ingrate…?” Subaru’s expression clouded over at the appraisal he could not dismiss.

[User] “Yes,” said Ram, nodding. “Is it not so? Having received such great favor from Master Roswaal, you curry favor with another master as soon as he seems done with you. Or perhaps it was all an act to enter our good graces to begin with? If so, it would seem that you received your just deserts.”

[Assistant] “Wait! You’re getting this all wrong! You’re completely misreading the circumstances!”

[User] “So this is what a dog that bites the hand that feeds him is like.”

[Assistant] “Listen already!” Ram’s acrimonious demeanor was a daily ritual, but the hostility included with it was the real deal. The gaze she shot Subaru’s way was frigid enough to make his insides tremble, telling Subaru that something was badly wrong. There was a reason for her to be this rigid. It was to prevent this, to not allow for any misunderstanding, that he’d—

[User] “…Right, the letter of goodwill! That’s what writing that letter was for. Didn’t it reach the mansion?”

[Assistant] “—Letter of goodwill.” Subaru had taken pains to clear up any possible confusion about the circumstances. When he spoke the words, Ram’s eyes narrowed, her reaction demonstrating that she recognized their significance.


[User] But her reaction to the ring of those words was absolutely not a favorable one— “…Ram, what are you angry for?”

[Assistant] “Certainly, a letter arrived from the royal capital. But it is useless to characterize that thing as written in goodwill.” Ram’s voice had little intonation, barely holding back the fires of a burning rage.

[User] When Subaru failed to understand the meaning of her emotion, Ram snorted as she spelled it out loud and clear. “When I think of the letter that pompous messenger arrived with… Calling a blank piece of paper a letter of goodwill is quite a farce. What did you mean by this, Barusu?”

[Assistant] “It was a blank piece of paper? !” It was Subaru who was horrified at learning the incomprehensible truth.

[User] Ram continued to glare at the bewildered Subaru, anger oozing from her eyes. “The wax was formally sealed with the Lion Rampant seal of the House of Karsten. In other words, Duchess Crusch Karsten was making a declaration of war against a rival candidate for the throne… Well, that is how we took it.”

[Assistant] “That’s crazy! Why would you decide it was that so fast…?” Subaru was drowning in Ram’s conclusion

[User] Wilhelm intervened. “Sending a blank letter is a method of conveying to the other party, ‘We have no intent to negotiate.’ It cannot be helped that they took it in that manner.” The creases of his brow knotted, a stern face on him as he shook his head toward Subaru.

[Assistant] “As a matter of fact, were a white letter delivered to me, I would arrive at the same judgment as she: a display of hostile intent.”

[User] “Then what happens if you seal a blank letter and send it by mistake?! If a war starts over that, what does history say—‘Oops’?”

[Assistant] “Then one could only set the heavy burden aside and give up. That said, I did not judge hostile intent by a single piece of paper, either. But there were multiple issues, so…”

[User] “What do you mean, multiple issues…there’s even more? !” The bad report had been more than weighty enough. Yet, there was still more on top of that?

[Assistant] “Two days ago, the forest around the mansion became unnaturally calm…to the point that even my eyes could catch nothing. Thereupon, an armed group appeared bearing the crest of the House of Karsten, which had declared war with the blank letter… Surely you cannot blame my little bird’s heart for being on the verge of breaking?”

[User] “Ugeh…!” The sidelong glance Ram shot him put Subaru’s flea-size heart on the verge of breaking.

[Assistant] Though Wilhelm had a worried look on his face, Subaru raised a hand, feeling the desire to curse Fate for the nightmarish entangling of circumstances.


[User] "That’s a huge misunderstanding! In the first place, do I look that cunning? !"

[Assistant] "Well, this is what a dog that bites the hand that feeds it looks like."

[User] "You’re still saying that? !"

[Assistant] "I have hardly said it enough. But it’s fine. It is clear for the most part." Though Ram’s words were sharp, she’d no doubt gleaned the high points of the situation during the conversation. Perhaps that was also because she hadn’t detected the intellect required for wicked scheming from Subaru’s replies.

[User] "So…you sent a blank letter by mistake and you are still Lady Emilia’s dog… You’re fine with that?"

[Assistant] "I’m not, but it’s okay. Dogs are like family, so for Emilia I can be a dog, sure."

[User] "That would be a rather base ambition, would it not?" Wilhelm pointed out what low sights Subaru had, but Subaru, worried that the conversation wasn’t progressing, shook his head.

[Assistant] "Wilhelm included, everyone here is reinforcements—we’re on your side. Anyone making you worry, we’re gathered together to send ’em packing." The worst of all misunderstandings threatened to bring the hard-won alliance crashing down. Aghast at that fact, Subaru puffed his chest out, establishing his goodwill toward Ram.

[User] Ram furrowed her brows, so Subaru got to the point.

[Assistant] "I fulfilled the objective of me staying in the royal capital—an alliance between Emilia and Crusch, as equals. The people gathered here are the proof."


[User] Immediately afterward, they set off toward Earlham Village with Ram in tow. They had no time to waste. The misunderstanding-driven combat with Ram had cost them even more. Subaru endeavored to explain things to her while they headed toward the village. That included the fact that they were allied camps. He was grateful his comrades in the expeditionary force were taking things so well. They’d accepted Subaru’s earnest apology and Ram’s gratitude for their help after her initial hostility, taking it all in stride. Thanks to the zero casualties, those words had ended the matter.

[Assistant] "You did give Wilhelm some trouble…but he even hid the wound from it."

[User] "A fine man, just as the rumors said."

[Assistant] "Oh, yeah. He is, isn’t he?"

[User] "What are you so pleased for, Barusu? It is creepy."

[Assistant] Subaru, gripping the reins, overreacted as he agreed with the words of praise for the Sword Devil. The sight of it brought a genuine scowl to Ram’s face; one of the hands on Subaru’s hips jabbed him in the flank. At present, Subaru and Ram were riding together on the jet-black land dragon’s back.

[User] Subaru turned his head just enough to look at Ram, who was sitting behind him, as he thought back to the earlier battle. "I have to ask…what was with that illusion attack earlier? I thought the only magic you could use was wind magic? No one told me about that part."

[Assistant] "It is a mixture of wind-type magic and a hallucinatory drug."


[User] "I had truly intended only to whisk the commander away while the others were weighed down…but I never imagined you would be able to break free.” Ram’s words trailed off. She nodded to herself a few times and said.

[Assistant] “You probably gained a resistance to the drug. The drug is derived from the leaves in the tea you always drank, after all.”

[User] “I was drinking that poison every time? !”

[Assistant] “I am kidding.”

[User] It hadn’t sounded like she was joking, but Subaru did not press the issue further—not purely because he was afraid to know whether it was true or false, but also because he felt the trembling in the arms with which she touched him. Realizing that her trying to break the tension had resulted in him blurting something out in plain sight, he said.

[Assistant] “Sorry I made you put your guard up like that. Whatever the cause, you were pretty serious back there, huh?”

[User] “I suppose… Serious enough to be resolved to take my foe down with me. Can I truly trust the gentlemen behind us?”

[Assistant] “Or what, they’ll seize the chance to march on the mansion? A pretty nasty bunch is after the place, after all. Even Crusch doesn’t really want that much trouble.”

[User] “…So it is outlaws lurking in the forest that are after Lady Emilia, then.”

[Assistant] “I really did write about that in the letter, y’know…” With Ram unexpectedly hinting at the Witch Cult’s presence, Subaru could only lament the cause of the jumbled circumstances. Upon his opening the lid of his painstakingly acquired insurance, it had turned into the greatest of all traps. However, the singular fact that a blank letter of goodwill had arrived brought a different problem into sharp relief— Namely, that someone out there had swapped his letter of goodwill, aiming to turn Emilia and Crusch against each other.

[User] “What happened with the messenger who brought the letter to the mansion?”

[Assistant] “We politely granted him our hospitality. After all, I thought that he might prove useful in the event of a prisoner exchange.”

[User] “Prisoner exchange…?” Even if a prisoner exchange with the Crusch camp truly came to pass, the only people from the Emilia camp to have returned were Subaru and Rem. When Subaru thought back to the surprise attack, he remembered that Rem’s first move had been to try to drag Subaru off without a care as to appearances. Perhaps the purpose of that aggressive operation had been to get the “imprisoned” Subaru back. Though even if he asked Ram about it, there was probably no way in hell she’d give him a straight answer. Either way, she already had someone from the most powerful candidate in her grasp. If the messenger proved to be a spy, she would interrogate him, simple as that.

[Assistant] “Anyway, you can relax about the enemies hiding in the forest. We’ve already smashed seventy percent of them.


[User] "We have a way to draw out the last thirty percent, too.”

[Assistant] “…The enemy is seventy percent crushed? Barusu, are you are saying that you destroyed them?” She was taken aback upon hearing the words.

[User] He’d conveyed the state of the battle with the aim of changing the subject. In modern warfare, losing 30 percent of your fighting strength was considered being routed, but even in an age without modern logistics, 70 percent was a considerable number. The Witch Cult was on the verge of being wiped out. “But where they’re concerned, they’ve gotta be annihilated down to the last man. Besides, the fewer they are, the more time it’ll take to find ’em. Plus, it might make them desperate.”

[Assistant] “So that is why you assembled the transportation needed to evacuate… Holing up in the mansion is a poor plan, I take it?”

[User] “These guys would set it on fire and not even blink. We have a lot of memories of that mansion, so I don’t wanna see it go up in smoke. Easy to understand why running is better, huh?” Along with the reinforcements he’d brought were the horde of traveling merchant dragon carriages. When he explained the force’s various objectives.

[Assistant] Ram closed her eyes, sinking into thought. It was natural for her to be bewildered by it all—and yet: “Sorry to act out of turn, but this is my decision. As for the right to decide…Roswaal’s not at the mansion, is he?”

[User] “—That’s right. Right now, Master Roswaal is traveling to Garf’s…to the sanctuary. Currently, I am under instructions to obey Lady Emilia’s commands.”

[Assistant] “Did Emilia order you to smack anyone approaching the village with illusions?”

[User] “That was my independent judgment.”

[Assistant] “Figures.”

[User] Subaru patted his chest, relieved at the fact. Even if she was backed into a corner, it would have been far too violent an order for Emilia to give. “…You are naive to be relieved about that part, Barusu.”

[Assistant] “Ah?”

[User] “I said, the village has come into view.” Subaru hadn’t caught her murmur the first time, so he thought Ram had repeated her words as she pointed forward. At her urging.

[Assistant] Subaru turned his eyes to the road ahead; the entrance to Earlham Village truly was within view. The highway, continuing to infinity within the illusion, had come to an end. To Subaru, it had been a very long road, enough to make the proper return a sight for sore eyes. “I’m finally back…” Not once but twice had he returned to find the village a tragic sight. When he had returned to the village before that, Subaru’s mind had been whittled down to the bone. So to him, this was a first. “But…doesn’t feel like there’s much of a welcome.” The expeditionary force passed through the entrance, entering the village square. Amid that imposing atmosphere, the villagers poked their heads out of the surrounding homes one after another.


[User] However, the expressions on their faces were certainly not sunny; naturally, they were ones of worry and confusion. Subaru could hardly blame them; an armed group had suddenly appeared in the village’s midst.

[Assistant] “Ram, how much did you tell the villagers?”

[User] “…I warned them not to wander outside the village and to stay out of the forest. I did not touch upon any of the details.”

[Assistant] “Okay. Nice call.” If the Witch Cult was even guessed at, the village would surely be in chaos. Perhaps Ram was to be commended for keeping that part a secret, considering that she had thought the Crusch camp was her enemy.

[User] “Hey, isn’t that…Master Subaru and Miss Ram?”

[Assistant] “It really is. So Master Subaru has come back…” One by one, the villagers began to realize that it was Subaru and Ram on dragon-back. With all eyes upon them, seemingly in charge of the group, Subaru got off Patlash, judging it a good time to do so. He was probably best suited to explain the situation.

[User] “Barusu…”

[Assistant] “Just wait a minute. I’ll talk to ’em—Wilhelm, Julius, Ricardo.” Subaru put a hand up to Ram and addressed the three heaviest hitters of the expeditionary force. He chose them because they would amplify his persuasiveness to the villagers. They weren’t just reliable; they looked the part. Subaru brought the three with him as he walked straight into the center of the village square.

[User] “Subaru, it would seem that they are concerned. Do not neglect to be considerate.”

[Assistant] Nodding at Julius’s whisper, Subaru took a deep breath before loudly clapping his hands together. Seeing the Subaru they knew so well do this made the villagers widen their eyes, wondering what was going on. Seeing from their reactions that he’d nicely gathered their attention, Subaru opened his mouth to set their concerns at ease.

[User] “Yes, everyone’s attention, please! Hi, it’s been a while. It’s been a few days, but is everyone doing okay?”

[User] “I know coming back like this is really sudden, but today, I’m asking everyone to do something.” After a modest greeting, Subaru switched to the topic at hand. The way Subaru raised his voice made the villagers, surrounding him from a distance, look at one another’s faces. They all knew Subaru, and he knew all of them. Understanding their worry and confusion, Subaru spoke in the gentlest voice he could, but also laid things out very quickly. He wanted to convey the situation with haste, enough to deny them time to think about other choices—and enough to make evacuation a reality.

[Assistant] “Actually, the demon beasts in the forest seem to be getting bad again. These are the people brought in to wipe them out…but I want everyone away from the village until that work is done. Of course, I prepared the transportation in advance. It might not be that comfy a ride, but…” Hiding the lie behind a layer of truth, Subaru selected words that would not startle the villagers as he continued speaking.


[User] Their memories of the demon beast–related crisis two months before were surely still fresh. He had to be convincing when he told them that the forest beyond the barrier still harbored demon beasts. Behind him, they could see an expeditionary force formed of veterans and numerous traveling merchant dragon carriages to transport them. Even if it felt high-handed to him, Subaru pushed forward while concealing that the Witch Cult was attacking.

[Assistant] “The evacuation will be for half a day at shortest, one or two days at most. Sorry to cause trouble for everyone, but please accept this as the safest way to…”

[User] “—Why are you lying to us like this?” The young man interjected suddenly.

[Assistant] “Huh?” Subaru’s eyes widened.

[User] As one of the village’s band of young men, he had exchanged words with Subaru numerous times. It seemed that he’d spontaneously blurted it out, but when Subaru met his eyes, he hesitated for a moment before stepping forward. "You bring a huge group of outsiders…to hunt demon beasts? Why tell us something like…?"

[Assistant] “Because, hey, it’s dangerous. I mean there was the demon beast ruckus not long ago, right? We need to deal with it before it becomes that bad this time around, so…”

[User] “Don’t try to pull the wool over our eyes!” Subaru tried to correct the precarious atmosphere, but the young man would not lend Subaru his ear. His unsophisticated face had a scowl on it, his fist shaking as he glared at Subaru. Upon it were repressed rage and despair, and irrepressible fear.

[Assistant] “Master Subaru, you said you were trying to clear up our concerns, but…doing it this way is making everyone in the village afraid! We’ve been thinking the Witch Cult is up to something the whole time!”

[User] “Uh…” The young man visibly lost his temper as he shouted, instantly making Subaru’s words catch in his throat. The youngster’s voice echoed around the village, spreading unrest among the villagers, and, naturally, among the traveling merchants as well. There was no unrest in the expeditionary force, but the turbulent flow of discourse made their faces grow graver as well.

[Assistant] “You’re…not denying it, are you…?” The young man weakly murmured, finding his answer in Subaru’s silent demeanor. The sight caused an outburst of unrest among the villagers, making their pent-up worries pour out all at once.

[User] “So the people from the mansion really were talking about the Witch Cult yesterday… Why are they in a remote place like this…?”

[Assistant] “That’s obvious, that’s obvious, isn’t it? It’s because the lord did something like that!”

[User] “Why must he support a half-elf…a half-demon…?” The worries spoken by one set of lips after another made it painfully clear that Subaru’s efforts to smooth things over had resulted in the opposite effect.


[User] The villagers had understood long before: the unrest enveloping their village was not unrelated to Emilia, residing at the mansion of the lord of the land. They were not conveniently ignorant. It was only natural that they would reject Subaru’s plan.

[Assistant] “Hold on a minute! I’m sorry! I was wrong, and I apologize! But…”

[User] “—” Accepting that his effort to convince them had failed, Subaru voiced an apology. At the same time, he realized something. Among the villagers, some lamented, some raged, some glared. Those negative actions were not caused by their difficult-to-resist fear of the Witch Cult. Their negative energy was trained not toward the Cult, but toward the half-elf who had yet to show herself.

[Assistant] “What makes you think that?! Don’t you realize it’s got nothing to do with half-elves or Emilia?”

[User] “How can it not be related?! The Witch Cult rampages against anything related to half-demons. Even the children of the village know that much! And yet, the lord not only shelters a half-demon, he nominates her to be the nation’s king! This is no joke!” The youth’s anger shocked Subaru; the near scream cut into him like a blade. His reaction made the youth’s eyes freeze over as he looked downward. But he did not amend his statement.

[User] "Is that what you all think? You think it’s all the fault of the half-elf in the mansion?” There was no reply. They seemed to think silence was more eloquent than anything they could say. These were the friendly villagers he’d spent so much time with. Though it had only been two short months, so many things had happened that Subaru felt deepened the friendship they shared with one another. That was why he had been so desperate to save them. He’d believed that they would accept his feelings without suspicion or doubt…and yet.

[Assistant] “This was just me getting ahead of myself again…?” He’d underestimated the deep-rooted fear of the Witch Cult planted in every human being of that world. Even people who believed in Subaru’s innate goodness could not defy the scars of history. That fact made Subaru weakly slump his shoulders—but the next moment, his shoulders were slapped from behind.

[User] From very close, an individual patted Subaru’s shoulders, moving parallel to him while exhaling. "Raise your head—after all, Lady Crusch says you should never lower your sights.”

[Assistant] “You…”

[User] "Do you think what you’re doing is wrong…? If you don’t think that, you don’t need to look down.” Ferris’s firm declaration surprised Subaru, coming from the last person he would have expected to console him. So, too, was he surprised at the memory that Ferris’s words spurred him to recall. They were words Crusch had actually spoken to Subaru, albeit during a different time around from the present.


[User] "Besides, wasn’t recklessly picking fights at the castle a lot harder than raising your head here?"

[Assistant] “…Now hold on.” Ferris’s taunting comment made Subaru’s shoulders go slack in a way that was very out of place.

[User] Subaru wondered just how long he was going to be made fun of for that single moment. "—Yeah. Compared to that, this is nothin’." As much as his words had been rejected, he did not doubt that he was doing the right thing. He understood that the villagers had an aversion toward half-elves. That very cruel fact caused a dark shadow to fall over Subaru’s heart. But that reality was absolutely not something he could do anything about now. It was something to be changed by Emilia’s future actions, with Subaru at her side. "It’s not somethin’ I can do anything about just by saying ‘I’m gonna change it.’ Not when I haven’t managed anything else yet." As much as he thought their assessment was unfair, all he could do was show them results big enough to make them see her in a new light. And Subaru and the others were acting to create the time necessary for him to do so. —Subaru Natsuki wanted to believe that was the reason he had come again like this.


[Assistant] "From what you’ve said, I understand how you all feel. I won’t tell you, ‘Drop everything and come with me.’ It’s natural you all have your thoughts on it. It hurts, but I get that, too."

[User] The villagers kept their silence, saying nothing as Subaru spoke those words, training earnest eyes toward them. With silence falling over the village, Subaru thought their reaction very sad. At this rate, all he’d have done was spend time in futility.

[Assistant] "—The words of a servant of our house are the commands of Master Roswaal, lord of this land. You serfs never had any right of refusal to begin with. Come now, hurry and obey your instructions." Having observed on the sidelines up to that point, Ram had stepped out of the ranks of the expeditionary force to stand alongside Subaru as she confronted the villagers. The overbearing glint in her eye and the authority of her statement surprised and unnerved the villagers.

[User] "H-hold on! I get why you’re putting it harshly, but you don’t have to put it like that. Everyone has their own lives. It’s only natural they’d be thrown off like…"

[Assistant] "It would seem you, like these villagers, are insufficiently aware of the greatness of your lord." When Subaru objected to Ram’s high-handed statement, Ram glared at Subaru with an exasperated air.


[User] "If you incur issues or damages due to the evacuation, our landlord shall take responsibility and compensate you. If any of you object, come forth and state your names. This is Master Roswaal’s decision.” The way she said it was stern; her meaning was severe as well.

[Assistant] She had been uncompromising, the contents of her proposal soothed the concerns of the populace, leaving Subaru and the villagers in awe of her.

[User] Everyone understood: by backing up Subaru’s words with the authority of the landlord, Ram gave the villagers what they needed to agree.

[Assistant] “Ahh, sorry for Ram’s harsh way of saying it, but what I want hasn’t changed. Everyone needs to evacuate the village. I realize that it’s so sudden you can’t properly prepare.”

[User] “That’s why I’ll take responsibility and talk to Roswaal about proper compensation for damages. I want everyone to at least believe me about that. Please.” Accepting Ram’s viewpoint, Subaru appealed not to emotion, but to logic.

[Assistant] Between Ram’s calm and Subaru’s urgings, the villagers were silent for a time. Then they nodded in apparent resignation. They were a long way from liking it. However, they’d given their consent. The evacuation could begin.

[User] "Sigh…” Subaru breathed out with relief.

[Assistant] He was joined by the comrades standing in a row behind him. Everyone had been tense and anxious, but somehow, they’d climbed that mountain.

[User] “I’ve gotta say, though.”

[Assistant] “What?” Subaru shared in his comrades’ relief before proceeding to look at Ram, standing right beside him. Ram had a suspicious look in response to that gaze

[User] He thought that it had been her words that had given the final push. He thought that was very Ram-like—hard edged, difficult to fathom, but kind.

[Assistant] “Having you tell people to do what I say is new. Does this mean you’ve accepted me?”

[User] “Hah!” Ram snorted.

[Assistant] Somehow—just a little bit—he took solace in her demeanor.


[User] The evacuation would last for two days at most. So it would begin as soon as the minimum supplies needed for that time were loaded. The conditions Subaru placed on the villagers were very grudgingly accepted.

[Assistant] “There’s fifteen dragon carriages. If we put seven people on almost each one, we should be able to get everyone aboard with room to spare.” Subaru had asked the young men of the village to take a roll call, ensuring every villager was accounted for.

[User] Now that they were evacuating, they surely didn’t want to cause any extra trouble. Though they still dealt with the expeditionary force rather awkwardly, they dutifully did as they were told. There was just one issue that couldn’t be left unresolved—

[Assistant] “Explaining this to Lady Emilia and Lady Beatrice at the mansion, yes?” Ram said, hands on her hips as her eyes shifted to the path going from the village to the mansion. The issues for proceeding with preparations to evacuate had been resolved. The mansion was another issue.


[User] “I thought the village was pretty agitated, but what’s Emilia been up to?”

[Assistant] Ram responded to Subaru’s suspicions by lowering her eyes with a faintly melancholic look. “She was busy until late evening, so she should still be resting at the moment. Ever since returning from the capital in a state of despair, she has been weary, lacking any time to put her heart at ease.”

[User] “Unghh…”

[Assistant] “She has the look of someone who has been put through a distasteful ordeal by a man.”

[User] “Don’t attach distasteful to it, okay?! …Not that I’m denying it…”

[Assistant] “While Master Roswaal is absent, it is up to Lady Emilia to deal with anything amiss at the mansion and the village. But you can understand the villagers’ reactions to Lady Emilia from their earlier demeanor, yes?”

[User] “I can picture it, but I don’t really want to put it into words… Rejection, huh?”

[Assistant] “’Rejection’? A rather simplistic impression, isn’t it?” Ram laughed loudly at Subaru’s words, her face immediately turning more cheerful. “—More like repudiation. If you have been rejected, you can always reach out again. If one’s outstretched hand has been brushed aside, that means there has been contact. But what if you have been repudiated instead?”

[Assistant] “If it is disgusting to even touch, one must wonder how one closes the distance.”

[User] “I said something mean.” She said immediately with a sigh. “Lady Emilia realized there was something amiss in the forest and attempted to have the villagers take shelter in the mansion. Then the villagers repudiated her. She is not someone sensible enough to withdraw immediately after being repudiated, something I imagine you know for yourself, Barusu.”

[Assistant] “But I also know that she’s not a girl who’ll get hit with cruel words and not be hurt.”


[User] “So what’d Emilia do after?”

[Assistant] “After repeated attempts at persuasion were declined, she was unable to sit still, so she went around reweaving the barriers around the village. After all, as we had not judged the unrest to be from the Witch Cult, she feared it might be demon beasts.”

[User] “After that, the blank declaration of war arrived last evening, so she was fretting about that until the morning.”

[Assistant] “Well, that wasn’t really a bad call, but…”

[User] “So that pops up here, too…” While Ram spoke as if it were light banter, Subaru could only lament that the letter had done damage on another front. The report on events in the capital, evacuation preparations, Emilia and Ram’s concerns, Ram’s independent actions—the secondary damage was a gift that kept on giving. For such a simple trick, the effects were all too painful.

[Assistant] “In any case, with this much advance preparation to evacuate, Lady Emilia is unlikely to object. If we report to her at the mansion, it should make her agree immediately.”

[Assistant] “Barusu?”

[User] “No, I get it. Just makes my heart hurt a little.” With Ram looking suspicious, Subaru shook his head, conscious of his quickening heartbeats. Here, on the brink of a reunion with Emilia, his tension was at its zenith. Just as Ram saw it, Emilia was not the kind of girl who’d reject the cooperation of so many people. Hence, Subaru’s stress and worry were an issue of Subaru’s own heart.

[Assistant] “Julius, come with me, ’kay? I’m heading to the mansion to convince Emilia and the loli.”

[User] “Me?” As he hardened his resolve, Subaru looked around him and called for Julius. Subaru nodded at Julius, whose face showed that the nomination had come unexpectedly.

[Assistant] “Yeah. I’m a lot more convincing with you beside me than not. You’ll be my proof that I’ve behaved and repented after all the stuff at the castle.”

[User] “I see, very well. If it will make the talk go more smoothly, use me to your heart’s content.” His handsome face indicated consent, elegantly nodding at Subaru’s suggestion. The gesture made Subaru grimace.

[Assistant] Ram, glancing sidelong at the exchange, sighed as she said, “A petty and very Barusu-like little trick.”

[User] “Hey, don’t call it petty. Call it paying attention to the little details. Ahh, Julius, besides that.”

[Assistant] “What is it?”

[User] “You’re the one who stuck a spirit on me, right? I want a proper explanation.” The offhanded way Subaru made the remark made even Julius look apprehensive. His reaction made Subaru avert his eyes, a guilty look on his face as he continued:

[Assistant] “Now look, I’ve been saved two times now with my life on the line, so I get that you’re a spirit mage whether I like it or not.”

[User] “I would prefer you called me by the proper title, spirit knight. I employ spiritual spells, of course, but I do not recall skimping on my sword training.” Giving that reply, Julius stared at Subaru’s face with utmost seriousness.

[Assistant] “…You are unexpectedly calm.


[User] “I was thoroughly convinced you would find my being a spirit user to be distasteful.”

[Assistant] “Even I can account for time, place, circumstances, and person once in a while. There are times when I haven’t, though.”

[User] Subaru, eyes still averted, made a pained smile as he motioned toward Julius’s right arm.

[Assistant] There emerged the minor spirits that Subaru had seen during Ram’s attack, seemingly orbiting the arm. The flickering spirits numbered six in total, each one lovingly nestling close to Julius’s arm. However beautiful and fickle they looked, they were beings imbued with supernatural power. “As you have surmised, these girls are spirits—known as common spirits—that I have formed a pact with. They are buds yet to bloom into distinct categories of spirits. I borrow their strength through my pledge to become a knight worthy of the beautiful flowers they shall become.”

[User] “So you had the red one keep an eye on me?” One of the minor spirits resting on Julius’s palm was the red one that had leaped out of Subaru’s hair during the illusion. When he thought back, it was that same scarlet minor spirit that had appeared when he had been captured by the crazed woman. All of it was Julius’s doing. Twice, Subaru had been saved by him in his time of need.

[Assistant] “It is hurtful to hear you call it keeping an eye on you. She was protecting you from the shadows.”

[User] “…Incidentally, what was that thing you used when you were breaking the illusion?”

[Assistant] Julius had used some kind of magic to share the method of breaking the illusion with every member of the group. As a result, Subaru’s brain had been put through the wringer from the multiple thoughts passing through it. “That was magic cast through borrowing the power of In and Nes, combining Dark with Light…that is Nekt, an advanced magic spell. It links the Gates of all human beings within range, enabling thoughts to pass between them. Though it seems to have been rather too effective upon you.”

[User] “Yeah. I thought I wasn’t gonna be me anymore.”

[Assistant] “As a matter of fact, there is no question it is a difficult spell to employ. After all, it is a ritual to thin the boundaries between you and the minds of others. If deepened to excess, not only thoughts but also the five senses can be commingled. I’m sure you experienced the fear of being consumed by others to a fair extent?”


[User] Okay, I understand. I'm ready to convert the provided book chapter into a roleplay conversation, adhering strictly to the given format and rules. I will pay close attention to detail, ensuring accuracy in dialogue, actions, and scene transitions. I will use only character names and strive for a natural flow in the conversation.

[Assistant] **I am ready for the book chapter.**


[User] “That’s walking one hell of a tightrope!” Subaru was aghast at learning far too late that he had crossed a more precarious bridge than he had even imagined.

[Assistant] Julius turned a look of deep interest toward him and said, “But it is rare for the buds to make a mistake when tuning it. Perhaps you possess an unusually high affinity for spirits… Does anything along those lines come to mind?”

[User] “Sorry, the only spirit I get along with is a mouse-colored cat.” On top of that, right then, he had no confidence that he could ever approach that cat in the same way as before.

[Assistant] “If you have an opportunity, you should try to learn the basics of spiritualism from Lady Emilia. If she is resistant to teaching you, I would be willing to aid you myself.”

[User] “I’m not sure what brought on this sudden outpouring of friendliness, but it doesn’t sound like an instant process, so I’ll pass for now.” He didn’t deny that the suggestion held its attractions, but Subaru reflexively declined the offer.

[Assistant] His reaction made Julius pull back, seemingly disappointed, when Subaru simultaneously remembered something. Ferris had told him. Subaru was still subconsciously harboring enmity toward Julius—just as he had at that very moment.

[User] “Can’t I do something about that?” The first time, Ram had interrupted, but was it not the time to properly clear up the ill feelings between them? With such thoughts in Subaru’s mind, his gaze caused Julius to incline his own head. Subaru narrowed his eyes at the handsome young man fluent with words, anguished in the attempt to somehow spit out serious words of his own. But— “…I understand that you don’t feel like putting all your cards on the table, but right now you’ve gotta put up with it. There’ll be problems with our teamwork if we don’t know what the other can do, right?”

[Assistant] “—Mmm, understood. If possible, I would like to put Ia on you again. Please grant your consent.”

[User] In the end, hesitation clogged up Subaru’s throat, and all he could manage was to keep his statement inoffensive. While Subaru’s thoughts were elsewhere, the red minor spirit called Ia circled above his head. It proceeded to land on the crown of Subaru’s head, asserting its existence with a faint emission of heat. "Hey, this isn’t gonna make me bald, is it? I’ll have you know I’m trying to go through life without becoming bald or chubby…”

[Assistant] “She’s been nestled against you until now without you even noticing, yes? It is especially so for those with a high affinity for spirits. Your Gate will acclimate quickly, and you will cease to notice her.” In accordance with this lecture, Subaru immediately stopped feeling the heat on the crown of his head. The principles were unclear to him, but she had apparently slipped inside Subaru. That faint heat was the only thing he’d felt from it.


[User] “What should I do to call it out?”

[Assistant] “She responds to the name Ia. As she cannot respond to commands that are too complex or beyond her power, please do not forget to be as considerate as when approaching any lady.”

[User] Apparently, in other words, read the mood—not Subaru’s strong suit.

[Assistant] “Now then, Barusu, will you finally put your cowardice aside?” Ram, looking tired of waiting, cut into the pair’s conversation. She was leaning on a fence, and her jaw was firm as she indicated the road running from the village to the mansion.

[User] “Or do you intend to let a defenseless girl, her mana all used up, walk such a dangerous mountain road alone?”

[Assistant] “More like you ran out of gas doing friendly fire. To be honest, I didn’t know you had that in you…” He was genuinely surprised at her combat ability. She could even take Wilhelm on, if only for a short period. However, he could not wipe away his disappointment—including at how a crucial scene had gone up in smoke.

[User] “Had Master Wilhelm been at full strength, I would not have lasted ten seconds. After all, my power has fallen two steps…no, four steps from its peak.”

[Assistant] “Why’d you make it double Wilhelm’s? Stubbornness?”

[User] “Pride.”

[Assistant] It was an exceptionally Ram-like statement, and for that matter, it was likely the literal truth. Subaru couldn’t even imagine how astounding Ram had been before she had lost her horn.

[User] “That probably accounts for why Rem dwelled on it so much…”

[Assistant] “Did you say something, Barusu?”

[User] “Nothing at all, Big Sis. If I spill the beans that much, it’ll make for more scary people to deal with.”

[Assistant] “—?” Ram was suspicious about his demeanor, but Subaru avoided saying any more at that juncture. He was hesitating about Rem—her little sister—and all the feelings Subaru bore toward her. More than any other, it was thanks to Rem that Subaru had overcome his trials at the royal capital and was standing there. In that moment, the importance of Rem’s existence rivaled that of Emilia’s inside Subaru. But considering the time and place, explaining those difficult-to-describe emotions to her older sister just wasn’t happening there and then. He could face that, and all the other concerns, after everyone had overcome the current state of affairs.

[User] “We have to explain the alliance, too, so we should grab Ferris and head to the mansion, huh?” Someone from the Crusch camp was required for smoothly clearing up the misunderstanding from the letter of goodwill incident. They’d leave most of the expeditionary force to guard the villagers, with several heavy hitters joining him on his way up to the mansion.

[Assistant] “So about Ferris… What’s he up to anyway?” Subaru, searching for any sight of the kitty-eared knight in the village, finally spotted him at a corner of the village square. There rested the merchants’ dragon carriages in a line; Ferris was surrounded by their owners, engaged in some kind of argument.


[User] "It is because the circumstances with the Witch Cult have come to light. They might be venting their frustrations about it."

[Assistant] "Geh… Well, I suppose they would. Sorry, I’ll go mediate a little." Subaru scowled at Julius’s guess, and headed toward them.

[User] Ram seemed beside herself as she watched him go.

[Assistant] Ferris was clearly relieved when Subaru wedged himself into the center of the dispute. "Ah, Subawu…"

[User] "Okay, that’s enough! Can someone explain to me what this argument’s about?"

[Assistant] "They keep saying, ‘This wasn’t the deal’! Even though I told them again and again that Ferri doesn’t represent the group…"

[User] "That’s right, pal. You’re the one we wanted to talk to!" This time, instead of Ferris, whose cheeks swelled up in a huff, the angry voice poured onto Subaru.

[Assistant] Kety breathed raggedly through his nose and jabbed his finger into Subaru. "The deal… Well, I suppose not?"

[User] "Of course it’s not! There’s no mistaking what you told us: ‘Help us evacuate people while we exterminate demon beasts.’ And when we open the lid, what’s inside? !"

[Assistant] Kety, his face red with anger, pressed roughly against Subaru’s chest and said, "It turns out to be trouble involving the Witch Cult! This is quite a fraud, you know? What the hell are you up to, dropping that kind of huge lie at our feet? !" Accosted in such a threatening manner, Subaru was of course taken aback by the sheer force of it.

[User] Subaru was at a loss for how to apologize to Kety, who was vehement to the point of incoherence.

[Assistant] "If that’s the case, how about we make a more tangible apology by raising the reward, meow?"

[User] "—Wha…? You sure got more sensible than earlier all of a sudden." Kety’s smile toward Ferris, hiding behind Subaru’s back as he made the proposal, deepened further.

[Assistant] Subaru breathed a sigh of relief inside that his demand was so straightforward.

[User] "The original condition was to name our price. Can we expect double that?"

[Assistant] "Because you’re greedy, meow… Where is your register? I’ll review the contents with Subawu."

[User] "Hey! Do we have to do that…? Doesn’t human life come first?" Subaru’s eyes widened as Ferris drove the conversation further and further afield.

[Assistant] Kety, having just handed the register over to Ferris, gave a mean-spirited look down at Subaru and said, "This is a huge issue related to the lives we’ll be leading tomorrow. But if you don’t want to, that’s fine."

[User] "…I’m just grumblin'." Cowed by Kety’s downward gaze, Subaru grudgingly climbed into the wagon of his dragon carriage.


[User] "Even though the owner’s so violent, meow?”

[Assistant] “I had the same thought, but why are we doing this together? Go thataway or somethin’.”

[User] “This’ll be done faster if two people are checking, yes? And it’s not like he minds, meow.” Ferris snuggled against Subaru as they checked the cargo in the curtained wagon. Subaru raised his eyebrows at Ferris’s pushy demeanor.

[Assistant] “More importantly…making up with Julius? Did you do it?”

[User] “…Concerning that issue, after much consideration and study, I wish to approach the matter with positivity and discretion.”

[Assistant] “I thought so, meow. I thought, It’s Subawu, so he’ll mess it up for sure. And after you said all that cool stuff in front of the villagers, too—” Ferris put a hand on his mouth and giggled, showing no sign of ceasing his teasing look.

[User] Subaru, feeling burned at the teasing over earlier events and his lingering resentment toward Julius, continued the inspection, comparing cargo to the register.

[Assistant] “Well, it wasn’t a bad try, meow? All you have to do is apologize to Julius with the same intensity…”

[User] “Why you little…!”

[Assistant] “Hey now, don’t start a lover’s quarrel inside someone else’s dragon carriage. Get the work done already.” When he talked back at Ferris for making light of his situation, Kety made his disapproval with both of them very clear. When his tall frame lumbered over, he was even more sour about Subaru and Ferris’s lack of concentration. "I can yell at you more, you know. If you’d rather I don’t, get serious.”

[User] “Y-yeah, sorry. We’ll do it right…”

[Assistant] “Uh-oh, he’s angry with you, Subawu. Sheesh, you really are a handful, meow.” Seizing on Kety’s anger, Ferris hopped away from Subaru’s side.

[User] Subaru had just about had enough of his antics. But before he could raise a coarse voice—

[Assistant] “—So careless of you.” Ferris murmured, narrowing his yellow eyes, he touched Kety’s exposed arm.

[User] Kety let out an anguished cry, his eyes rolling up as he toppled onto his side.

[Assistant] “Huh…?”

[User] “Subawu, don’t just stare like that. Stand watch outside so that no one notices.” All trace of levity gone, Ferris gave crisp instructions to Subaru, who was taken aback by the sudden series of events. But Subaru was rooted to the spot, unable to understand what had just taken place. Seeing this, Ferris sighed and explained "This person is part of the Witch Cult. I touched him to check earlier when all those people were around me; he has the same weird ritual embedded in him as the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins’ finger had earlier.”

[Assistant] “—?! He’s a Witch Cultist?! And a Sloth on top of that? !”

[User] “The possibility is high."


[User] “That’s why I thought I’d get into the dragon carriage to lower his guard.” As Ferris replied to the wide-eyed Subaru, he checked Kety’s fallen body and found something.

[Assistant] When he lifted a hand, it was holding a cross-shaped sword furnished by the Witch Cult. “That’s one of the swords the Witch Cultists… They seriously infiltrated the traveling merchants…?”

[User] “But we captured this one alive. The instant I touched him, I made the water in his body run wild and knocked him out. Though if I’ve directly affected someone even once, I can do the same thing without even touching, meow.”

[Assistant] “…Meaning you can do the same thing to me. Kinda gives me the chills to hear that…” Grudgingly, Subaru did as Ferris directed and checked on things beyond the curtain.

[User] Fortunately, no one on the outside seemed to have noticed the skirmish inside the carriage.

[Assistant] No one else seemed to be coming aboard. “But if one of them was a Witch Cultist, that changes everything.”

[User] “We can’t be certain they don’t have others among the merchants…but we can check that from here on out, I suppose?” Ferris shook his head as if it was no big deal.

[Assistant] After that, he gave the unmoving Kety a smack on the cheek, then pressed a palm, glowing with a pale light, to his face and said, “Now, spill out everything that you’re planning, would you? Ferri’s hand is the gentlest in the world…but it can do such terrible things, meow?”

[User] “—” Subaru’s body shuddered when he remembered the phrase Those who know how to heal people also know how to break them.

[Assistant] Ferris’s request made Kety open his eyelids a crack, gazing at Ferris with unfocused eyes.

[User] His lips frailly struggled to move, but Ferris’s power was supreme. He apparently couldn’t move at all. “Ferris, be careful. If he is a Sloth, even if he can’t move his limbs…”

[Assistant] “He can still use his power, yes? That’s why I have you watching, Subawu.”

[User] Just because the flesh could not move didn’t mean Unseen Hands couldn’t be put into motion.

[Assistant] In accordance with Ferris’s request, Subaru squared his shoulders and kept the closest eye possible on what Kety was doing.

[User] With Subaru and Ferris both hemming him in, Kety breathed out, seemingly deflated. Then—

[User] “What?” When Kety seemed to murmur something, Ferris narrowed his eyes, demanding he repeat himself.

[Assistant] Subaru hadn’t been able to hear the statement, either. Kety opened his mouth once more—

[User] “—YES.”

[Assistant] “—! Ia! Protect him! !” Ferris seemed to leap to his feet the instant the whisper reached his eardrums, calling to Subaru, at the entrance to the wagon—no, to the common spirit tethered to him.

[User] Ferris’s gravity, normally unthinkable for him, made Subaru stare for a second, wondering what had happened, when…

[Assistant] “Ah?” With a burst of heat, the common spirit flew out, deploying a crimson wall of shimmering light around his entire body.


[User] It enveloped Subaru, completely isolating him from his surroundings—

[Assistant] “Now cooomes the beginning…of the end! !” Frozen stiff, Subaru heard a shrill voice saying that right before his eyes.

[User] The next moment, Subaru was engulfed by the flames of the exploding dragon carriage, losing all track of which way was up.


[User] "Those bas—!" Their short swords reflected the flames; their glints burned into Subaru’s eyes as he yelled at the top of his lungs.

[Assistant] A chant resounded, and simultaneously, Subaru saw light in the sky.

[User] "Al Clauzeria—!"

[Assistant] The rainbow softly enveloped the knights and villagers, transforming into a wall for them.

[User] "None shall mar the beautiful radiance of the rainbow—this is the truth of the heavens." He snobbishly spoke those words as he thrust his cavalry saber toward the sky.

[Assistant] Seeing the result for himself, Subaru clapped his hands as he rushed over to Julius.

[User] “Incredible! Good job, well done! You really let loose! I’m glad you’re here for once!”

[Assistant] “Somewhat vexing praise, but I shall accept. I am glad you and Ferris are safe.”

[User] Julius, thanks to whom the front line had recovered, was relieved to see Subaru and Ferris rushing toward him.

[Assistant] “Sorry, I messed up. There was a Sloth with the traveling merchants, but I couldn’t deal with him.”

[User] “It is the result of the enemy outthinking us. I have no intention of criticizing you. Right after the dragon carriage you and Subaru entered exploded, the Witch Cultists in the village went on a rampage. The damage from the explosion and the surprise attack is not shallow, but I had TB and Ram evacuate the wounded to the mansion.”

[Assistant] “There’s a lot of enemies, though.


[User] "The evacuation didn’t go well, I take it?" Julius had avoided spelling it out, but the authority of Sloth was without doubt the cause of their disadvantage. That power could change the course of battle all by itself, and Subaru’s eyes were the only counter. And if he could not fulfill that duty, all they could do was await their fated destruction.

[Assistant] "Anyway, we’ve got to smash all the Sloths! I’ll do the looking! Julius, lend me your strength!"

[User] "Of course. Ferris, link up with the evacuees and treat them. You are our lifeline."

[Assistant] Subaru clenched a fist, Julius nodded, and Ferris winked. Acknowledging their mutual roles, the three instantly separated. Subaru and Julius were to wipe out the Sloths; Ferris was to bolster the knights and villagers and form a defensive line at the mansion.

[User] "Now then, stand up! We’ll head to the mansion and hold out there. Run, run!" With Ferris’s gallant voice at his back, Subaru turned his attention to the clashes of blades he heard all over the place. The combat, far fiercer than what had come before, showed that the Witch Cult had gotten serious.

[Assistant] "How many Witch Cultists are in the village, roughly?"

[User] "The precise number is unclear. However, there were many participating in the height of the battle. The entire force of the remaining fingers has likely entered the village. Clearly, this is a difficult foe."

[Assistant] "If we can take down the last three Sloths, we can win this in one… Ah? !" Subaru saw a chance to turn things around, but that instant, he saw the sky ahead blotted out by blackness. Directly above the flames in the village, countless black hands were covering the sky. The numbers were straight out of a nightmare.

[User] "—Unseen Hands! !" When Subaru looked up and shouted that, Julius’s expression grew graver still. But his eyes were glazed; he could not see the same nightmare. In a sense, that was fortunate. After all, it would not be strange if seeing lethal violence on such a scale caused the heart to falter.

[Assistant] "Probably under there…!" Subaru had to take Sloth on, but someone was taking Sloth on without him. His intuition soon became firm belief. The black hands cascaded from the sky, destroying trees, houses, and the ground itself with their overwhelming power. It was without cessation, over and over again, destroy, destroy, destroy—fueled by the anger of being unable to finish off one’s foe.

[User] "We have to hurry! Wilhelm’s fighting right near there!" There was only one human being who could take Sloth on without Subaru.


[User] Wilhelm broke through the downpour of invisible attacks by moving beyond the limits of his own vision. He swayed from left to right, suddenly accelerated and decelerated, did as many flips as he could, toying with his enemy and drawing ever, ever closer through each repeated skirmish. "Accordingly, I shall nail you to the wall here and now, Witch Cultist—!"

[Assistant] "It cannot, cannot, cannot, cannot be! To think you would resist to this extent! !" To the fore, farther down the road, a tall man stood opposite Wilhelm. His posture, with his head bent at an unnatural angle, resembled that of a doll that oozed creepiness as some human hand toyed with it. The madman had lost free use of his flesh; instead, it was the authority that held his body in its grip and controlled it. The man, dressed in traveling merchant attire, did not appear to be making the slightest effort to conceal his identity.

[User] "Rrrrraaa! !" He swung his sword, splitting the earth, kicking up a shower of dirt that allowed him to read the arcs of the invisible attacks. With superhuman evasiveness, Wilhelm broke through the wall of bloodlust burying the path between him and his foe and charged.

[Assistant] "Such favor, to increase the numbers so! Such tenacity in the face of them! Such conviction! As a diligent disciple, I cannot praise it enough! Ahh, ahh! Oh, love!"


[User] "My brain is shaaaaking!” Different eyes, different face, different voice—even so, they shared the same madness-filled look. Though a different being with a different appearance, this Sloth was obsessed with Wilhelm just the same.

[Assistant] As he received the repulsive praise, Wilhelm moved farther from the battlefield, pursuing the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins on his own. Given the current balance of forces, he was the only one who could take the madman on. He was the only one who could keep the damage to a minimum and strike the man down. Wilhelm glared at the insane man before him, increasing the speed of his steps.

[User] Heedless of the shower of dirt, Sloth recklessly repeated the invisible attacks. It was as if not only was he insane, but his tactics were stupid, as well. Of course, the duel would be settled just as stupidly. “—!—!!—! !” The madman made some kind of lament, but Wilhelm, running straight forward, did not hear.

[Assistant] He stripped away all that was unnecessary, charging forward as he became a single blade, the steel that would rend wickedness asunder. Naturally, as he drew closer the obstacles increased. The number of grazes grew greater, and the inside of Wilhelm’s body was bathed in sharp heat as he poised his sword, lashing out. The earth split apart, and the madman’s posture tilted. Wilhelm turned his sword tip toward the center of the body’s mass, driving it home. “—I have you!” There was not even slight resistance to the tip of his blade. The feeling of rending a life was one the Sword Devil had oft tasted. His treasured sword impaled the madman through the left of his chest, completely destroying the beating heart within. Not even Ferris could have pulled him back from the brink of death. The merciless strike had brought his life to a conclusion.

[User] “…Yes, if it was you, then…” Failing to die instantly with the blade running through his back, the madman spewed blood as he tried to say something.

[Assistant] Wilhelm drew his sword back to cut his last words and testament short.

[User] “When you focus on fighting invisible arms, you lose sight of what you can see… Lazy, is it not?”

[Assistant] His thoughts contorted for a second. An unnecessary crack in the Sword Devil’s belligerence was pried open, as if he was trying to think of what the words could mean.

[User] An instant later, the madman lunged at Wilhelm, his shaking arm raising a dagger. Then, without hesitation, he employed the dagger to stab his own left eye. Through the eye socket, the tip of the blade invaded his skull, piercing his brain and cutting short his own life.


[User] "Wha—?" The instant the blade robbed him of his eye, and his life, light surged out—

[Assistant] The instant he rushed around a demolished house and onto the broken road, the earth shook. "—"

[User] The shock wave coursed underfoot; the shudder in the air made it hard to breathe. Then, as Subaru sprinted forward, the delayed flames and wind from the blast followed suit, mowing down everything in front of him. "Whoaaa—!"

[Assistant] "Don’t move! Aro! Iku!" Julius raised an arm before him, calling out to the spirits glowing green and yellow.

[User] A green blade came to be, and a bulwark of earth and stone rose before them. The wave of heat rushing from ahead was sliced apart before bouncing off the stout wall, protecting the pair from its wrath.

[Assistant] "What happened? !"

[User] "I do not know. Just before the explosion, I felt like I saw a human silhouette pass through, but…" As the reverberations of the blast relented, the two rushed past the broken ground toward the center of the blast zone.

[Assistant] And when Subaru saw who lay at the center of the blast zone, his voice went cold. "Wilhelm…? !" Raising his shaking voice, Subaru rushed over to the white-haired, aged swordsman who was lying curled on the ground. He had sustained grave wounds from blast winds and flames over his entire body; it was almost strange to find his body in one piece. His face was a grimy black; Subaru couldn’t tell if it was from blood, dirt, or burns. But he was faintly breathing.

[User] Knowing at least that was true, he let out a long, long breath. "But he’s in big trouble at this rate! We’ve got to get him to Ferris, or—" When Subaru went down on one knee, intending to carry Wilhelm,

[Assistant] "It does not seem things will be quite that simple." Julius stepped beside him.

[User] Sensing the urgent warning embedded in those words, Subaru lifted his head. Julius swept the tip of his drawn cavalry saber around the area. His reason for doing so was simple: the enemies he was holding in check hailed from several directions, not just one. Carrying cross-shaped swords, Witch Cultists blocked them on each of four sides. But that was not the largest problem. A final person arrived with the four, removing her hood as she appeared. It was a small-statured woman, with short hair the color of black tea. The cultist’s hands were empty; she stood before them seemingly defenseless and wide open. However, her bloodshot eyes and the way she hurt herself, biting her shorn-nailed fingers, were all the proof they needed that she was the most dangerous of all.


[User] After Petelgeuse, the madwoman, and Kety, this was the fourth Archbishop of Sloth.

[Assistant] The woman bit the nail of her right thumb, twisting her hand as she tore the nail off.

[User] The sight and liquid sound of blood droplets and exposed flesh made Subaru grimace in pain and disgust.

[Assistant] "Comin’ out one after another with timing like this… How many of you are there, damn it?!"

[User] "Why, why, why, why…why is it youuu yet live? All of those measures, and yet…why is it you do not fall before my diligence?!"

[Assistant] "Well, that’s my line! Cut it out already! Doing continues over and over like this! You have some kind of grudge against us?!"

[User] Then Wilhelm stirred in his arms. Perhaps it was due to external stimulus, but the Sword Devil was still unconscious when his lips faintly moved. The way his anguished breaths held increasing anger toward their foe felt ghastly to Subaru. It was almost as if he was subconsciously trying to tell them something—

[Assistant] "Wilhelm?"

[User] "Same…ne—per…"

[Assistant] He couldn’t completely make out what the trickling voice tried to say. And the Witch Cultists were not merciful or polite enough to wait for him to hear it once in coherent form. Subaru was clutching Wilhelm on one knee when the woman turned a nail-less finger toward him and shouted.

[User] "You! If the lazy you and the diligent you backed away, all would be firm! All would be decided! Everything arriving at its proper conclusion! Thus, scatter here! Scaaatter to the winds!!" Spewing spittle, the woman put her hand into her own robe. However, she did not find what she was looking for. Pulling her hand out, she gnashed her teeth hard enough to break them.

[Assistant] Subaru had a hunch as to why she was in such a mortified rage. That flash of insight let Subaru understand what role was his to play. Witch Cultists were on all sides, whereas Wilhelm was gravely injured and Julius was exhausted. The only one left to take on the fourth Sloth was Subaru Natsuki, useless at anything but decoy duty. But even if his Witch Cult attraction was of no use, there yet remained something he could do.

[User] "Julius, can you fight off the four besides Sloth while covering Wilhelm?"

[Assistant] "Subaru?" Shifting his gaze alone, Julius gave Subaru a slight, questioning rise of his brows. However, there was no time to explain the fine details.

[User] Subaru glared at his amber eyes and repeated himself. "Can you do it? If you can do that…I’ll do what I can do."

[User] "Right now, you’re the only one I can count on. If you’re willing to put yours in my hands…I’ll put mine in yours."

[Assistant] "Put what?"

[User] It was obvious. Subaru responded to Julius’s words by pointing at Sloth and saying, "I’ll smack that idiot."