[User] Two men smelling of mud as they pounded each other to settle their dispute—Emilia did not understand even a fragment of what drove them. Even so, something that was hot, ebbing, and flowing inside her chest probably served as answer enough.

[Assistant] "Er, oh no! Subaru’s going to die if I don’t heal him! !" Snapping back to her senses, Emilia practically flew down the stone steps, seemingly gliding as she raced to Subaru’s side.

[User] Standing beside Subaru, Patlash gave Emilia an almost wary glare.

[Assistant] "Ah, you don’t need to make a worried face like that; it’s all right. Without Puck, my control is a little shaky, but I can borrow the power of minor spirits for something like simple healing, so…" As she said this, the minor spirits of which Emilia spoke gave off a pale glow as they lent her their strength. Soft light enveloped Subaru and Garfiel and began to slowly heal their wounds. Subaru’s pained expression softened bit by tiny bit. Making a thin smile at the sight, Emilia gently brought his head onto her lap. Somehow, lending Subaru her lap like this had become a very familiar development, even though she would have much preferred fewer opportunities to give an injured Subaru her lap pillow.

[User] "When you wake up, there are so many things I really need to ask you, so…" But perhaps the things she wanted to say to him numbered more just then. As she murmured, Emilia gently combed through Subaru’s hair as he slept with the face of a child. Subaru grimaced for a moment. Then his lips truly slackened.


[User] Deep inside the being known as himself, something set down roots, asserting its own existence. Subaru did not even know if the heat it bore was hot or cold. Yet, the strange feeling of something black and stagnant circulating in Subaru Natsuki from corner to corner gave him some idea as to what it was. Therefore, he asked not why or how, or even what for. There was no reason to ponder such things. That left only one matter for him to worry about.

[Assistant] —Invisible Blow. Unseen Palms. Blindside Impact. Each sounded atrociously derivative. They weren’t stylish at all. These were arms that none save Subaru could ever see, and none save Subaru might ever control. Accordingly—

[User] “A divine will unseen by the eye…therefore, I dub thee Invisible Providence…”

[Assistant] “…Er, what did you, say just now?” When Subaru weakly opened his eyes, murmuring with his mind still vague, a questioning voice called out to him. Leaping into his vision, her eyes open wide.

[User] She has a beautiful, upside-down face.

[Assistant] Slowly comprehending this, Subaru blinked several times, realizing he had awoken from a dream.

[User] Simultaneously, he took in the sight of Emilia before his eyes and the soft sensation under his head.

[Assistant] “Ahh… Emilia-tan’s giving me a lap pillow again…”

[User] “Mm, that’s right. How many times have I given Subaru a lap pillow by now?”

[Assistant] “I’m a little hazy, but this is the third time, maybe? It’s a reward for getting over the first big hurdle, so…”

[User] “Yes, yes.” Emilia let Subaru’s playful words of savoring his reward glide over her in her familiar manner.

[Assistant] From there, Subaru accessed his memory from just prior to losing consciousness, recalling he had been punched extensively.

[User] “Hey, Emilia-tan. How’s my face? It’s not in a state you’d never want to look at again, is it?”

[Assistant] “Ahh, it’s fine. It’s not that weird.”

[User] “And she’s not even trying to be mean!” Subaru gazed at Emilia’s mystified expression as he lightly tried to move his own limbs.

[Assistant] Somehow, he managed to budge them. His bones creaked, and he was bruised all over his body, but he didn’t mind it enough to complain.

[User] “Ah, goodness, don’t be rash. It’s no good unless you rest.”

[Assistant] “I really don’t want to leave the paradise that is Emilia-tan’s lap, either…but I have to go searching quick. Otto and Ram could be out there dying in the woods.”

[User] From his restored memories, Subaru recalled that it was Otto who had driven Garfiel into a corner. According to Garfiel, Ram had assisted him, but he remained concerned for the pair’s safety. Judging from Garfiel’s personality, he shouldn’t have actually taken their lives, but—

[Assistant] “Before they expire in the forest, I’ve gotta save Ram at least…”

[User] “Stop imagining us expiring and worry about me a little more, would you?


[User] “I-I’d recognize that fierce comeback anywhere…” When Subaru tried to put life into his wobbly body and sit up, he widened his eyes hearing the voice immediately beside him.

[Assistant] When he shifted his gaze from Emilia to the direction of the voice, a filthy-looking young man sitting on the tomb’s stone steps entered his vision. Though marred by soil, mud, and blood, the sight was, beyond any doubt, Otto Suwen. Seeing Subaru’s gaze, he raised his clasped hands, his lips loosening into a leer. “This applies a fair bit to me, but it seems you went through quite a terrible time as well, Mr. Natsuki. But…”

[User] “Why, you—!” Subaru leaped at him, delivering a headbutt.

[Assistant] “Gyaah—? !” Taking the blow in the gut, Otto fell at Subaru’s feet as he raised an anguished moan.

[User] “Wh-what is this all of a sudden?! I was praising our shared experience in a hard fought battle just now!”

[Assistant] “Shut up, you stupid moron! Don’t go acting all cool! You freelancing almost blew up the whole plan! But without your assist, I wouldn’t have been able to nail Garfiel, either, so it’s not like I don’t feel grateful, okay? !”

[User] “I don’t even know what you’re saying anymore!”

[Assistant] That truly Otto-like reaction made Subaru pat his chest with relief. “Either way, glad you’re safe. If you died, I figured you’d turn into a ghost and haunt me at my bedside… Is Ram all right, too?”

[User] “Yes, though my liver went cold when I awoke and found Ram lying on the ground. I was quite relieved to find her state was not as bad as it looked. If anything, the poison she spewed after I carried her on my back was worse.”

[Assistant] “She talks super-strict to anyone but the people closest to her… How’d you convince her anyway?”

[User] “One of the conditions for her cooperation was that I would not to speak about it to you, Mr. Natsuki.” Covering his mouth with both hands, Otto’s demeanor made it clear he had no intention of explaining further.

[Assistant] “Damn it.”

[User] “Ow! What did you punch me for just now? !”

[Assistant] “He’s hiding his embarrassment, Otto. That’s all.” Emilia smiled as she joined Subaru and Otto’s exchange. Then Subaru saw Patlash, who, at some point, had come to Emilia’s side. When the land dragon brought her nose close, Emilia gently stroked it with her white fingers. The interaction was most unexpected.

[User] “My Emilia-tan and my Patlash are getting along so well…what a nice scene.”

[Assistant] “Don’t say stupid things.


[User] “This girl has been worried for you this entire time, Subaru.”

[Assistant] “Mm, I get that.” Subaru smiled wryly at Emilia’s scolding, walking close to Patlash on his own two feet. Then he reached a hand out to her black scales to give her some gratitude-infused petting.

[User] “Gwah?! Wh-why? !” When a blow from her tail made him pull his hand back, Subaru objected to Patlash with teary eyes.

[Assistant] Patlash glared back at him with reproach in her yellow eyes. She even raised a sour growl that made Subaru cringe.

[User] “Shall I interpret?” Otto offered some consideration from behind.

[Assistant] “Nah, even I don’t need you to interpret this…” Subaru shook his head, letting out a small sigh. “—Don’t make me worry like that, right?”

[User] “Also, addendums with a sense of Don’t get cocky, There won’t be a next time, and Become mine already with a fair hint of anger.”

[Assistant] “That’s some serious heroine power at work. Jumping into the race to be my leading girl?” With a content face, Subaru extended his hand once more. This time, when he did so, Patlash accepted Subaru’s hand, acting as if it couldn’t be helped as she took it as an apology. Otto and Patlash—in the Sanctuary, these two had done nothing but save him. Just like usual, he had to borrow the strength of many in order to overcome a mountain that his strength was insufficient to overcome himself. Would a day truly come when he could pay it all back? “Now that I’m thinking of the mountain I’m indebted to you all for breaking past, where’s Garfiel?”

[User] “Ah, Garfiel is over there. I think it’s best not to get in the way, though.”

[Assistant] “Whaddaya mean, get in the way?” As Subaru inclined his head, Emilia touched a finger to her lips.

[User] “You see…right now, Ram is looking after him, so…”


[Assistant] “Garf, are you awake?” The first thing he saw when he awoke was a girl’s lovely face. He felt conflicted. It was the first thing he’d wanted to see, and also, it wasn’t. The fact that his chest was faintly beating louder made Garfiel avert his eyes as he cleared his throat a single time.

[User] “Yeah…I’m awake. —Dah? !”

[Assistant] “Then move already. My legs are getting numb.” Instantly, Garfiel was thrust from a soft sensation down onto the grassy soil.

[User] When he shot her a resentful glare.

[Assistant] “What?” as she made a sour face. One would never think it was the demeanor of a girl who’d lent the unconscious Garfiel her knees up until moments ago.

[User] “Just like usual, a girl without one shred o’ kindness…”

[Assistant] “Ram believes that kindness is something one must give to a person worthy of receiving it."


[User] "If Ram fails to give any, Ram did not believe that it was appropriate.”

[Assistant] "…I ain’t worth it, huh?”

[User] “From that sentence, it is obvious you prefer I had said something else. This is why you and Barusu are both hopeless. You must be smoother than that if you wish to hear a girl’s true thoughts.”

[Assistant] “Ow!” As he lowered his eyes, Ram flicked a finger off his forehead. The blow was inflicted upon the scar on his brow, which he had a habit of touching. Rubbing that white scar, Garfiel rested his eyes on the sight of Ram in her filthy clothes. It was none other than he who had made them that way, yet Ram was exerting herself for him nonetheless.

[User] “Ram, ain’t no scars left on yer body? If there are, be my bride and I’ll…”

[Assistant] “I shall not. Take responsibility for my scars some other way. —In the first place, you had a lot of cheek to do that, Garfiel. How you dare leave an injured Ram behind back there.”

[User] Ram’s harsh, overbearing gaze cowed Garfiel into silence. The anger in her eyes also held criticism for the end of their battle. Having knocked Ram to the ground and thrust Otto into a thicket, Garfiel, out of weakness, had not sought to settle things with their deaths. He’d hesitated against someone he cared for. There was that. But Garfiel hadn’t been serious against Otto, who he didn’t care for, or even Subaru. —Because he lacked the most important thing for a warrior: courage. That was why he’d tried to rely on his blood, turning into a mindless beast to avert his eyes from the consequences. His hypocrisy, for relying only at times like that on the blood he normally detested and cursed, made him sick. How could Garfiel protect the Sanctuary with one deceit piled upon another—

[Assistant] “Garf…you’re an idiot, so thinking about it is useless.”

[User] “…Wha?”

[Assistant] “I am not saying to turn into a beast and abandon all logic. I am saying that transforming makes you even stupider than when you try to think. It is far better to fight thinking of nothing with a completely empty head.” As Garfiel sat cross-legged on the ground, the irritated Ram’s assertion made his eyes bulge in astonishment. It was better to say that Ram, the victor, was gazing down upon Garfiel, the vanquished. He didn’t mind her talking like that, but was it really necessary to speak to Garfiel about things that might lie ahead? After all, he was the vanquished. A suitable punishment was sure to be forthcoming.

[User] “Watch out next time. After all, you will be fighting for Ram and Emilia hereafter.”

[Assistant] “—Whaa? !” At a juncture where he expected her to pass judgment on him, Ram’s words shook him to his core. Garfiel’s face reddened. He clacked his sharp fangs as he digested the statement. “Stop messin’ with me!


[User] "After doin’ all this, bein’ your enemy, stompin’ all over what you people think…you’re sayin’ you’d forgive me and take me as one of yer own?!"

[Assistant] "Don’t be absurd. I’m saying you need to work for it because we don’t forgive you. You cannot beg for forgiveness without offering something in return, can you? Ram won, and Garf lost. Be a good boy and do as I say.”

[User] “This is so messed up! !" Hopping to his feet, Garfiel stomped his heel against the ground. Instantly, his body wobbled, but his wounds were largely healed. He tightly clenched a fist. “I accept that I lost! But acceptin’ and yieldin’ are two different things! Me, I’m in fightin’ shape even now! If ya wanna do things I don’t want, ya shoulda just killed me! If ya wanna pick up where we left off right…”

[Assistant] “Enough whimpering!” Her pink eyes looked upward. The raw intimidation in them made Garfiel draw in his breath. “You lost, didn’t you, Loser Cat Garf? Just how long do you intend to dawdle and look pathetic in front of the girl you like? The instant you lost, you went from blaming others to blaming yourself, pointing your fangs inside instead of outside. That’s all, isn’t it? So, so stupid.”

[User] “Uh, um…” “…J-just because I lost, what, I should make some stupid smile and line up on your side? There’s no way I can do that! I accept I lost, but I ain’t acceptin’ I was wrong!”

[Assistant] “Yeah, that’s right, I accept I lost… Losing ’cause of numbers ain’t no excuse. But me, I don’t think I was wrong. This feels half-done.”

[User] He could not betray himself from up to that moment. It was impossible for him to submit to Ram and the others, even for pretense’s sake.

[Assistant] “If you do not wish to stay half-done, prove that you are not standing still.”

[User] “…What did you say?” As Garfiel breathed raggedly.

[Assistant] Ram spoke those words in a quiet voice. Sitting on the grassy field, Ram lifted up a hand, turning its white fingers toward him.


[User] "I can largely imagine what Barusu would say. Also, you do not need to be afraid, Garf. —So you should go see with your own eyes.”

[Assistant] “The tomb’s Trial…” The instant he put the words to his tongue, Garfiel’s back was drenched with cold sweat. His breaths quickened, and his heartbeats became ragged. He heard his youthful self’s sad crying ringing in his ears. “Garf, can you change?


[User] “Or will you remain a cowering, unmoving little boy?”

[Assistant] “Cut that out. The way ya said that makes even me wanna deny it…” Garfiel rang out in protest at Ram’s words. Tensely, he realized he had not firmly told her I won’t go, remaining in the chasm between the two choices: I’ll go and I won’t. —He was being completely taken for a ride.

[User] Even as he spat blood, Subaru had stood before Garfiel and shouted what he believed—namely, that he needed to find out if he could win against himself on that day of his childhood or not.

[Assistant] “Your face says your resolve is set.”

[User] When Garfiel turned around, Ram was brushing leaves from her hip as she stood up beside him. Gazing at her face, Garfiel suddenly had a thought. Deep down, he felt that Ram didn’t regard getting Garfiel on her side as all that important. Why, then, had Ram cooperated with Subaru and the others and scolded him then and there? —Wasn’t Ram simply putting her foot on her childhood friend’s back to give him a push? If that was true, the woman he loved was quite a woman indeed.

[Assistant] “Well, it’ll be fine, Garf.”

[User] Taking that silence as unease, Ram, for once, spoke with a warm tone of voice as she peered at Garfiel, giving his bare shoulder a light pat. “If you see something scary enough to make you cry, Ram will console you. —A favor to an old acquaintance.”


[Assistant] “Don’t wanna stay long in this place.” Garfiel murmured as, within his chest, the sound of his heartbeats gradually sped up. Go to the back, and the Trial was there. As a half-blood, Garfiel held the qualification to challenge it; as night came, the tomb’s lighting came on, as if to welcome its challenger.

[User] “…Pathetic. That’s what I came all this way here to find out, damn it.” Dwelling on that sound logic, he scorned the timidity of his own heart.


[User] He’d been angrily yelled at by Ram, beaten to a pulp, and treated as a tiny fool before yielding like a little girl. He hadn’t wanted to realize or understand just how cowardly he truly was. —Then and there, it was within his power to destroy the tomb’s corridor, rendering everything else moot. The recuperative power of the blessing of earth spirit was extraordinary. Already, he had regained enough strength to destroy the tomb. Ram and the others waiting outside had no means of stopping him. He could spoil the results of such an agonizing battle, rendering it all for naught. —Hadn’t she and the others realized that much?

[Assistant] "Damn it all."

[User] Of course they had. Setting aside Emilia, who knew too little about doubting people, and Otto, who was short of a few important components, there was no way the highly observant Ram or the very calculating Subaru would fail to see that possibility. In other words, they firmly believed that Garfiel would not destroy the tomb. Perhaps they thought he was too chicken to do it. —Or perhaps, they trusted him. The answer to that question, too, likely lay beyond the moment he overcame the Trial.

[Assistant] "" In all bluntness, Garfiel had kept inside the Sanctuary, worrying about everything with his woefully insufficient head. In only a few days, ten years of that had been turned on its head. He never dreamed his own feet would carry him to the tomb’s stone room once more.

[User] "...Ahh?" He arrived at the innermost chamber, a stonework room enveloped by a faint, blue light. Having visited this place after ten years, Garfiel crossed his arms, sensing that something was off. Something gave off some kind of strange impression. A difference in the stone room entered his keen nocturnal vision. Garfiel squinted his eyes at this—

[Assistant] "—First, face your past."

[User] That instant, his vision swayed, and something indistinct covered his thoughts. The past was coming—

[Assistant] One might call it a mysterious feeling to awaken within a dream.

[User] "" Crinkling his nose, Garfiel slowly stood up and surveyed his surroundings. What flew into his vision was a most familiar forest—but compared with the scenery Garfiel knew, this forest was over ten years “younger.” Garfiel, who was in contact with the forest on a daily basis, knew as much. This was the past. The Trial had begun, and he was in the Sanctuary of ten years past.

[Assistant] "No doubtin’ it now, huh…" Clenching a fist, Garfiel let the words trickle out as he made a bitter face. It was obvious that this was the past. It was expressed more eloquently than any words, more obviously than seeing how the trees were young again—and it was thanks to the scene spread immediately before Garfiel’s eyes. —It was a scene of three women exchanging words in a place close to the Sanctuary’s barrier. One had youthful features with long, pink hair—Ryuzu.


[User] Another was ten years of age, give or take, and she was a girl with delicate, silky, beautiful golden hair—his older sister, Frederica. And standing facing the two of them was a woman with golden hair in a triple braid, her eyes downcast with a gentle look on her face. She was holding a young child against her chest.

[Assistant] "—M-Mom." The sight of his mother and Garfiel’s younger self made a weak voice trickle out of his throat. However, the tiny voice with which he called his mother did not reach, failing to affect the scene in any way. Of course it didn’t. No one could change or interfere with the past.

[User] As Garfiel trembled and stood rooted to the spot, his mother and Ryuzu exchanged words. And yet, the contents of the words and the reactions to those words—nothing reached Garfiel at all. Ryuzu’s sense of loneliness, Frederica’s feelings as she held back tears, the thoughts of their weakly smiling, seemingly conflicted mother, or even his innocently smiling, idiotic younger self—none of it was conveyed to him, for this was Garfiel’s memory of the time. The conversation could not be replayed, because the young Garfiel had no memory of it.

[Assistant] The silent projection repeated itself over and over, as if to rub in that he was powerless and far too late.

[User] “…Either way, no doubtin’ it was a stupid argument in the first place.” Considering what happened afterward, he could guess what they were talking about. His mother was trying to abandon the forest to go to the outside world, and Ryuzu and Frederica were trying to stop her. Garfiel was the only one with a blissfully ignorant look, thinking only of his happiness at being embraced by his mother. Youth was his excuse for not realizing he was watching his mother go off to her death—

[Assistant] "—!! You shitty brat! !" Seeing the smile on his younger self’s face, Garfiel angrily thrust his claws forward. He wanted to rip the guy to shreds—his past self that was ignorant and powerless to do anything but watch. And yet, his claws passed right through the young child, and right through the arms of the mother who held him. He stomped the ground, trying to send it flying as if to kill off his past. The blessing did not activate. —He could not interfere with the past. That was the absolute rule of the Trial.

[User] "Then…then why?! Why show me this scene, damn it?! !" What Trial? What past? What Witch of Greed testing ground? Nothing changed. Nothing could change. His mother was dead. He was weak, able to save nothing. Nothing. Was that just how it was? Was this all there was to the world? Was the Trial there to teach him that?

[Assistant] He went down on one knee. The actresses playing out the tragedy of the past did not notice Garfiel kneeling.


[User] He’d come to gaze directly at his never-ending regrets, digging into his wound from ten years prior and making it bleed. Was this fine? Was this to be the conclusion of his challenging the Trial after being kicked around by the girl he yearned for?

[Assistant] "No…" He clenched his teeth so much that they creaked. Glaring at the soil, Garfiel’s desires trickled out from his lips. No. No. No, no, no. He would not have it end like this. —After all, Garfiel had hoped that something would change, that something would change him. He knew it was convenient talk, but Garfiel had hoped. Having held for ten years that never changing was right, he’d hoped for a change, for turning over a new leaf. After all, a powerless man had shouted it to him. A man strong enough to defeat even him had shouted.

[User] The past. The barrier. The Sanctuary. His family. Just like them, he stood still, never changing. Yet, even though he stood still, never changing, it wasn’t over. —The guy said it, didn’t he? If he wished I want to start, he was free to start again.

[Assistant] "Then…!"

[User] "—You are leaving no matter what?" Abruptly, as Garfiel leaned down, a familiar voice struck his ears. However, by rights, it was a voice he should not have heard. It was a voice from the past, one that surely could not reach him.

[Assistant] "Yes, I shall go. Though, it shall cause you a great deal of trouble, Lady Ryuzu…"

[User] "I do not particularly mind. The issue is how these children feel." Words were exchanged between family he was used to hearing from, and family he was not. Ryuzu wore a grudging look as his mother spoke to her.

[Assistant] For as long as he could remember, it was the first time he had heard his mother’s voice. Drawing in his breath, Garfiel’s thoughts were stolen what was unfolding. Gazing lovingly at the Garfiel in her arms, his mother gently rocked his body.

[User] Gazing up at that same mother, Frederica grasped the hem of her skirt and wrung out her voice. "M-Mother…I—I…"

[Assistant] "I am sorry, Fuu. I’m sure I will make you worry a great deal, too."

[User] "That’s fine. I am all right…but I feel sorry for Garf."

[Assistant] "I want to go together, but your Mommy is a klutz, so I am sure it would be very hard for Gar. Fuu, though you are Mommy’s child, you are very responsible, so please." Lonely as she felt, Frederica was dutifully seeing their mother off.

[User] For the first time, Garfiel learned that his older sister had agreed with his mother leaving the Sanctuary. For her part, Ryuzu embraced the trembling Frederica’s shoulders, respecting her will.

[Assistant] "Give these to both of them. One to Fuu and one to Gar." Their mother took off the two necklaces that hung from her own neck. Both of them had blue, inlaid crystals hanging from them.


[User] "Gar, your mommy is heading out now." As she addressed him, Garfiel’s mother lifted up the necklace and smiled toward him.

[Assistant] She gently kissed him on his forehead.

[User] "I’m sure I will bring your father back. Wait for me until then, yes?"

[Assistant] "—! !" Her eyes were filled with kindness and love, her words overflowing with sympathy. Then, finally, she handed the young Garfiel over to Ryuzu.

[User] Firmly embracing Garfiel’s body, Ryuzu nodded and smiled to his mother.

[Assistant] From there, his mother and Frederica embraced each other; she kissed her beloved daughter’s forehead in the same manner she had her son’s.

[User] Garfiel slumped to the ground, gazing at that in a daze.


[User] "Mother loved us. She loved me, and she loved you."

[Assistant] Reflexively, Garfiel lifted his face toward the voice that was directed toward him just then.

[User] Staring at him with the same jade eyes as his, the past that Garfiel could supposedly never interfere with was staring right through him.

[Assistant] "Mother left the Sanctuary for the sake of her family. Are you dissatisfied with this?"

[User] "D-don’t mess with me like this! What’s up with telling me she loved me?! What are you tryin’ to do to…?"

[Assistant] "I suppose this would be easier on you if she did not love you." The young Frederica spoke to Garfiel, whose voice was caught, as if pitying him.


[User] “If you think love goes only one way, you can justify your own scars.”

[Assistant] “You’re wrong…!”

[User] “If you come to know you both love and are loved…that leaves you unable to justify your choice to remain in the Sanctuary, does it not?”

[Assistant] “No!! No, no!! You…you don’t even know nothin’ about…what happened to Mom next!”

[User] “—How could I not know?”

[Assistant] Garfiel, shouting as he gave in to anger, instantly lost his voice as if impaled by ice.

[User] Frederica hardened her young cheeks, her expression holding back tears as she stared at Garfiel.


[Assistant] “Of course I would know. If Mother was visited by misfortune immediately after distancing herself from the Sanctuary…of course I would not fail to hear of it.”

[User] “Then…then why…? !”

[Assistant] “Surely, you understand why I would not tell you that at such a young age? Garf. You are not a child anymore, so…”


[User] “Really, you remembered that Mother loved you, didn’t you?”

[Assistant] Garfiel had become obstinate in order to trample many feelings underfoot.

[User] “Your forehead wound—you did that to yourself so you could forget Mother’s kiss, to act like it never happened, didn’t you?”


[Assistant] “—The past…is ending, isn’t it?” Frederica murmured.

[User] “Wait. Please, wait…”

[Assistant] “What…should I do?”

[User] “Goodness…must you rely on a tiny older sister like me to arrive at an answer?”

[Assistant] “I know it’s pathetic! But, Sis, you’re the only one I can count on. Hey, tell me… Sis, why’d you go outside? Should I go outside, t…”

[User] “Garf, what do you want to do?” Frederica interrupted her pathetic younger brother, who wanted to hold her hand.


[User] That moment, he wanted to hear a response, a compass needle pointing to what he should want to do. "Garf, what do you want to do?"

[Assistant] As her younger brother prevaricated, the older sister gave him an exasperated, benevolent smile, repeating the same question.

[User] That was why Garfiel drew in his breath, and… "I want to be wanted."

[Assistant] "Who do you want to want you?"

[User] "I want…I want to be wanted by people who need me."

[Assistant] "Why do you think that way?"

[User] "Because they…they helped me remember."

[Assistant] His older sister did not speak the words Remember what?


[Assistant] "If he breaks his promise and destroys the tomb, I am not sure what we are going to…gyafnn!” As Otto made that statement, intending to ease the tension but failing to read the mood, Ram bluntly sent him flying with her shoe.

[User] “…Young Gar!” The loud shout came from Shima—who was there as part of Team Ryuzu, watching over the tomb.

[Assistant] "So is Miss Shima Miss Ryuzu’s older sister or younger sister?”


[User] Garfiel, eyes narrowed as he bathed in the wind of the Sanctuary, showed no sign of being flustered.

[Assistant] "Hah!” With his face remaining like that, Garfiel leaped from the top of the stone steps toward the grassy field, landing in front of Subaru and the others—no, in front of his two grandmothers, Ryuzu and Shima, standing up, looking from one to the other.

[User] "Y-Young Gar. I…we, ah…”

[Assistant] "Don’t make faces that don’t suit ya, old hags… Sorry to make ya worry.”

[User] "Young Gar.”

[Assistant] "Still, I gotta say, I’m used to different old hags with the same face standin’ next to the others, but I sure ain’t used to the same two old hags standin’ next to each other.” As the grandmothers stood side by side, Garfiel spoke quite bluntly as he simultaneously put his hands on both their heads.


[User] It was a difficult issue with no easy answer. But in the moment that he watched the three of them, Subaru thought, Might not need to worry about them after all. “Garf, how was it?”

[Assistant] Gazing at the exchange between that family, Ram clutched her own elbows as she posed Garfiel that question.

[User] Her words brought a tiny growl out of Garfiel. “Way my eyes see it, ain’t no results to celebrate. Felt more like, wha, that’s it?”

[Assistant] “That sounds like an impression from a proud middle school shoplifter… But you did it?”

[User] “—Far as I’m concerned, it’s a clean break.” Responding to Subaru thus, Garfiel made a deep exhale from his nostrils.

[Assistant] Those words made everyone present draw in their breaths for a moment, but different deep sentiments immediately poured out. In other words, inside the Trial, Garfiel had come to terms with his own past. This was proof not only that he had passed the Trial, but that the Sanctuary was one step closer to liberation. “So how about you take that momentum into the two Trials left…”

[User] “Don’t mess with me. —And that ain’t my role, is it?”

[Assistant] “Yes, that’s right. What comes after is my job. I won’t have anyone go and snatch it away.”

[User] Clicking his tongue, Garfiel gave Emilia a nod of his chin.

[Assistant] Accepting this, Emilia puffed out her chest at the torch passing to her. The firmness of her enthusiasm made Subaru slacken his cheeks.

[User] Then, to that very Subaru, Garfiel went “Ahh” toward him, awkwardly scratching his cheek. “Besides that…the hell is this?”

[Assistant] “Is what? This touchy-feely stuff doesn’t suit your character at all. You’re clearly a zero ingenuity, muscle-brain type, so just be a barbarian about it.”

[User] “Hey, I know ya makin’ fun of me with that. Ya askin’ fer…nah, that ain’t what I wanna say.” He began to lose his temper, but Garfiel lowered his arm without doing a thing.

[Assistant] Subaru tilted his head at the atypical action.

[User] In his stead, all by herself, Ram made a little smile with an air of exasperation. “Garf.” Then she gave Garfiel a gentle little poke in the vicinity of his hip.

[Assistant] In the face of Ram’s lethal attack, Garfiel exhaled in apparent surrender. “Me, I probably…accepted what was in the Trial ’cause of you. Thanks.”

[User] “…Did you just say thanks?”

[Assistant] “I ain’t sayin’ it twice! Just, it made me remember somethin’ important. That’s why…aw, crap!” Perhaps both his anger and embarrassment had risen during the time he spoke, for Garfiel bared his fangs. Then he thrust a finger toward Subaru with so much force, it seemed he might bite Subaru’s head off. “Listen here, ’kay? Yeah, I lost! The Trial’s results changed, too! But that sure don’t mean everything comin’ out of ya is right! The proof is in what happens from here, or else!


[User] "If you open this place up and bad stuff happens to the old hags, no mercy! !”

[Assistant] “R-right. Of course, that’s what we…”

[User] “I’m sayin’, I’ll watch with my own eyes whether ya jerks are all talk! I’m seein’ this through to the bitter end, ya hear?! —So ya better get this done right, General! !” Roughly shoving Subaru’s shoulder away, Garfiel cut off his words and twisted his cheeks into a smile. His demeanor and the unexpected manner of address left Subaru taken aback. During that time, Garfiel instantly turned his back to Subaru, turning his feet toward his two grandmothers.

[Assistant] "Just now, Garfiel made a really red face." Having witnessed the same thing, Emilia spoke to Subaru, her voice infused with a giggle.

[User] “General…? The commander in chief here is Emilia-tan, not me…”

[Assistant] “You’re the one who smacked Garfiel down. It was a clash between men, right? Because he acknowledges that, you’re Garfiel’s general, Subaru. General—that’s so amazing.” Emilia’s honest, not-sarcastic-whatsoever praise made Subaru wryly twist his lips.

[User] "Just give in. He is in such high spirits, it cannot be helped. Let him do as he pleases.” Ram came right beside him, shrugging her shoulders.

[Assistant] “Incidentally, I’m waaaay weaker, so it’s not like I set out to be some kind of accidental main charac—”

[User] “It feels more like you have made a brother. You are the elder, so be magnanimous.”

[Assistant] “Well, if it’s like that, it is what it is……wait." Subaru raised a stop sign with his hands, having heard one portion of the statement he could not let pass.

[User] “What?” Gazing at the back of Garfiel’s head with exasperation and affection in her eyes, Ram turned back toward Subaru.

[Assistant] “What did you say just now?”

[User] “Which part?”

[Assistant] “The part where you said Garfiel’s younger than I am?”

[User] “Ahh,” Ram went, nodding as she seemed to grasp Subaru’s question. “This year, Garf finally turned fourteen.”

[Assistant] "" This information, which was opposite Subaru’s expectations, left him aghast. Incredibly disturbed, he closed his eyes, turning his face up to the sky and shouted: “—That makes him a delusional eighth grader! !”


[User] “…Staying here too long will only dull your resolve, won’t it?” With Garfiel having come to terms with his internal conflict and Subaru having felt the impactful blow of his actual age, things had calmed down a notch—whereupon Emilia, brushing off grass as she stood up, retightened that relaxed atmosphere with a single sentence. As Emilia gazed at the tomb with a sober visage.

[Assistant] “Going, huh?” Subaru posed a question.

[User] “Yes, I’ll go… Just watch."


[User] "I’ll do as Garfiel did, then go farther.”

[Assistant] “Sure you can do it…?”

[User] “I’ll do it…because I’m not afraid of changing anymore.”

[Assistant] Garfiel clacked his fangs at the reply; Subaru’s chest burned with pride.

[User] Subaru lined up right by her side, heading as far as the entrance with her. He could not go inside and hold her hand from beside her. Therefore, he at least wanted to be with her until she set off.

[Assistant] "Hey, Subaru. About what happened inside the tomb…” Abruptly, as they walked shoulder to shoulder, Emilia broached the subject. Subaru imagined it was something related to the Trial. Thinking this, he waited for the words that might follow, but it was difficult to read what they might be. Emilia made little glances as she looked at Subaru uneasily. For some reason, her cheeks were faintly red.

[User] "Emilia?”

[Assistant] “I—I mean, what happened inside the tomb! Y-you know, that…”

[User] “That…? Ah, er, um.” Emilia’s slightly anger-tinged words made Subaru’s face redden as he recalled the preceding events.

[Assistant] He came to belatedly realize that having stolen her lips, practically biting them in the process, was a pretty big deal.

[User] "Inside, er…Subaru, you and I…you know?”

[Assistant] “A-ahh…yeah, we, ah, we did.”

[User] “I mean, I think it’ll be really rough from here. But this is important, so…when the Trial and a lot of other things are taken care of, we’ll have a nice, long talk, okay?”

[Assistant] Subaru nodded to Emilia’s proposal, the motion making his head rattle from the already precarious state inside it.

[User] "But you’re pretty confident if you’re talking about having a conversation after all this, Emilia-tan.”

[Assistant] “Is this confidence? I wonder. It might be just bluff and bluster, you know?”

[User] "But that means you ain’t ready to blow it, right? I’m sure it’ll go well. I’m willing to bet on it.” Subaru raised up his thumb and flashed a grin.

[Assistant] Emilia tilted her head, looking mystified. "Bet? Bet what?”

[User] "Dating rights! If I win, I get a date with Emilia-tan, and if you win, you get a date with me.”

[Assistant] “Yes, yes, whatever you say.” Just like usual, Emilia elegantly parried Subaru’s advances.


[User] Despite this, Emilia smiled at Subaru, not tense at all. "Well, I’m heading out for a bit."

[Assistant] "Come back soon. Watch out for carriages and strange men."

[User] "Don’t say foolish things." She shared a wry smile and after that, a lovely smile. Leaving this behind her, Emilia went into the tomb, vanishing from sight. The faint light that wrapped around the tomb did not reach the back of the corridor.

[Assistant] Watching her back as she boldly strode away, Subaru brought his hands together once, going down on one knee as if to pray. From there, Subaru could do nothing. The rest was Emilia’s battle alone. "Now Giltirau takes one step… Gonna look less of a man with a worried face like that, General."

[User] As Subaru saw Emilia off, Garfiel came to the stone steps below. He stood beside Subaru, hesitating only slightly before chiming in. "Hey, ah, General, I gotta apologize to ya for just a teeny tiny bit."

[Assistant] "Huh, it’s easier to absorb those peculiar sayings when I know they’re coming from an eighth grader. I had a phase like you, quoting all sorts of sayings from important people." / "Well, isn’t that admirable of you? You can talk to your general about anything. It’s embarrassing if you put it that way." The lack of defiance made Subaru scratch his cheek in a blushy manner.

[User] "Well, I went inside, okay? So I was in the back there, too…"

[Assistant] "Ahh, so you were."

[User] "That’s why I saw. The, uh, product of all the general’s hard work." Garfiel prevaricated, finding it hard to put it into words.

[Assistant] Subaru, not grasping what he was trying to say, made a questioning look. But he immediately realized it. He had a guess. His face turned deep red. —He saw it! He saw it, he saw it! He saw it!! / "N-nooooo…! I forgooot! I mean, I mean… I didn’t expect you’d actually go into the tomb yourself…s-so, if you went in, you…aaaahhh!" Covering his face with both hands, Subaru squirmed as he fell on the spot. Shame. Shame strong enough to want to die. Few were the souls who could live with so much shame. That moment, he detested Garfiel, perhaps hating him more than when they’d come to deadly blows.

[User] "You glarin’ at me like that puts me in a bind! …But…my bad for seein’ it. General, you’re a huge stupid bastard, but I’m glad you’re the general I lost to!"

[Assistant] "Shaddap, forget you saw it! You can just pretend you didn’t see it, damn it! You’re not a little kid…wait, you are a little kid! Damn it all! !" When he tried to call Garfiel a brat, Subaru immediately realized it was he who was at an overwhelming disadvantage, what with his soft spot in his opponent’s grip.

[User] The resentful shout sent Garfiel bursting into laughter, slapping his knees.


[User] As he rested, exposed to lukewarm gazes, Subaru prayed for Emilia’s good fortune, simultaneously praying that she would not notice the “graffiti” he had left behind. Now that someone else had seen them, those little love letters had become quite a farce.

[Assistant] “…Subaru, you…idiot.” Tense as she passed through the corridor, Emilia entered the stone room where the Trial was undertaken. She traced the faintly glowing stone walls with her finger as words trickled out of her in a giggly tone.


[User] “…I mean, this really is stupid.” In contrast to her words, Emilia’s expression softened, filling with affection. The walls Emilia traced with her fingers had marks on them that they should not have had. Every single one of the four walls of that cramped, stonework room was buried in many, many markings. The shadows from the glow gave those marks tangible shape. Emilia touched her hand to them as her chest grew hot.

[Assistant] “Hang in there, you can do it.”

[User] “Puck and I are both cheering you on.”

[Assistant] “Once this is done, let’s go on a date.”

[User] “I’m counting on you, Emilia.”

[Assistant] “I love you. That’s why I believe in you.”

[User] “Idiot…idiot, idiot, idiot… Subaru, you…dunderhead.”


[User] Emilia did not understand if the experience of being invited to her past ought to be called a dream. Dreamlike might have been appropriate to describe sinking into the familiar forest in the innermost part of her memories and stepping into it with her own feet. Surrounded by tall trees, she felt the tranquil breeze and the warm soil beneath her soles as she breathed in deeply. This place, inside the Trial, was not the snowy landscape dotted by white-laden trees that loomed large in her memories. This place had not yet reached that point. That said, it was undoubtedly on the path that would arrive at the snowy landscape Emilia so deeply regretted.

[Assistant] "—My, there has been a flood of guests of late." Without a word, Emilia turned her gaze toward the person who had abruptly spoken so glibly. Deep in the forest reproduced from Emilia’s memories, which was filled with the green scenery just as she remembered, one figure decidedly not from her past stood askew in the shadow of a tree. Leaning upon the trunk, the white-haired woman casually studied Emilia. There, clad in black clothing and bearing a face beautiful enough to bewitch any onlooker, stood Echidna, the Witch of Greed. When Emilia noticed the Witch’s gaze, the latter smiled charmingly at her, slowly stepping out of the tree’s shade and walking over. "Truly, a flood of guests. Both guests who ought to be welcomed—and guests who surely were not invited." As she walked over, Echidna turned a casual voice and a frigid gaze toward Emilia. This was no sarcasm; they were pure, unadulterated feelings of disgust and scorn.

[User] "It’s quite something for you to crawl back here after putting on such a shameful display. Even I am shocked at your audacity and refusal to quit." Her frigid black eyes both resembled those of the one closest to Emilia, and yet did not. This malice was directed not toward half-elves, but toward Emilia personally. —It was raw hostility.

[Assistant] "No matter how dejected and teary you are, you get to curry favor with a man who’ll console you and forgive you. You defile my personal world over and over. Selfish in the extreme—you are a loose woman, shameless and immoral. —What do you have to say about that, Witch’s daughter?" The sheer ferocity of her words would have torn the old Emilia’s heart apart, utterly smashing it to pieces. Without mercy, without hesitation, the Witch hurled insults to whittle down Emilia’s spirit. It was not the only reason she’d been broken by the Trial before, but her challenge began there. The Witch neither wanted Emilia to challenge the Trial, nor to overcome it. The Witch did not expect Emilia to overcome the Trial whatsoever. —Ahh, I see. Here, I have to do that thing Subaru told me to. Now she understood. It really was exactly like Subaru had told her.


[User] "—My name is Emilia…just Emilia. The Freezing Witch who hails from the Great Elior Forest." Emilia could tell that naming herself rubbed the Witch the wrong way.

[Assistant] Privately satisfied with that reaction, Emilia jabbed a finger toward the Witch, seemingly shooting right through her into the sky. "Another Witch’s malice will not affect me. —I am a troublesome woman like that.”


[User] "...Ryuzu." The fragment of an old memory from the far reaches of her mind made that word spill from her lips. She had spent those empty and stagnant months and years the same way, averting her eyes from that painful past. Why now, of all times, had she remembered that regret, that memory, that girl’s name? The most likely explanation was her premonition.

[Assistant] I’m getting you out of here, Beatrice—This time, my hand’s gonna lead you right out under the big ol’ sun, and we’ll play around until that dress is totally black from mud.


[User] "—Oaaaaaah! !" In the wake of a roar, steel met steel. A dance of sparks punctuated the ringing echo.

[Assistant] "—Marvelous. You are truly marvelous. Just stunning." The sultry voice that reached the ears of the ferocious golden beast seemed utterly amused by the mortal combat that was unfolding.

[User] "I ain’t happy hearing praise from anyone but Ram! !" Blotting out the lovely voice with an angry cry, Garfiel threw his mighty fist, which sailed over the head of his foe and punched through the wall behind her.

[Assistant] "Ah…!" Seeing the incoming attack boasting a surface area a hundred times larger than a fist, the woman—Elsa—let out an aroused sigh of admiration.


[User] With superhuman agility, she minimized the damage she sustained as her black blade flitted toward his neck.

[Assistant] A blow with the force of a gale sent Elsa flying back.

[User] "Marvelous." Elsa murmured in wonder as she remained crouched, one hand on the floor.

[Assistant] "Praase frmm you dnnt mke me hppy, dmmnit!"

[User] It took only one look to realize that Garfiel had caught her kukri with his fangs. He shattered the arrested blade with one bite and spat out what was left.


[Assistant] Faced with an opponent so powerful that normal methods were useless, Garfiel glanced over his shoulder and behind him.

[User] "Hey, Sis. What are ya doin’, just starin’ at me like that?"

[Assistant] "Eh? Ah, well, I had not intended on…"

[User] "Sorry, but it really don’t look like I’m gonna have time to show off. The general put me in charge of keepin’ you safe, so please." Garfiel chomped his fangs as he called to his hesitant sister.

[Assistant] Frederica’s reactions were dull, and her legs remained motionless, though it was no fault of hers. The battle between Garfiel and Elsa had reached a level that left Frederica unable to intervene. Assistance was out of the question; simply moving required courage.

[User] "It’s time to show what a good little brother I am!"

[Assistant] "Garf? !"

[User] Seeing Frederica hadn’t moved, Garfiel decided to act first. When he ferociously leaped toward his foe.

[Assistant] Elsa smiled charmingly, already knowing what he intended to do. "Thinking of your sister at a time like this? What a kind boy." As she spoke, the killer parried a bestial claw with her knife and leaped backward, clearing a great distance.

[User] Garfiel followed after her, shifting the battlefield to somewhere deeper in the mansion. This cleared the path to the Sleeping Princess—Rem. If Frederica took Rem with her and left while her brother kept the enemy occupied, then there was nothing to fear.

[Assistant] "Garf!" As he rained a flurry of punches, a clear, unwavering voice called out to him from behind.

[User] "I believe in you!"

[Assistant] "Damn right you do!! !" His strength surged as a fire roared to life in his belly. Elsa twisted her body to dodge a swing of his bestial claws, but she was too slow.


[User] Garfiel snagged her black braid and slammed her into a wall before proceeding to race down the corridor with her.

[Assistant] “Ooooaaaaahhh!! !” Roaring, Garfiel charged straight into the mansion, with Elsa still pinned against the wall.

[User] Dust and debris flew from the wall as it broke, leaving her unable to resist the heavy impacts.

[Assistant] All he had to do now was snap her neck, cave in her skull, and grind her against the wall until she was reduced to paste. Then he’d regroup with his friends and—

[User] “Letting your mind wander in the middle of our dance? What a naughty boy.”

[Assistant] Faster than his mind could think, he miraculously flinched away out of sheer instinct.

[User] A moment later, what should’ve been a direct hit grazed his left ear instead.

[Assistant] Now off-balance, Garfiel completely lost his footing—in fact, the floor itself was missing.

[User] He fell right through the gaping hole that Elsa’s swing had produced.

[Assistant] The slicing attacks kept coming even as he entered a free fall.

[User] Garfiel relied purely on intuition to deflect them with the shields strapped to both his arms—defense, defense, defense.

[Assistant] Ultimately, he couldn’t intercept every strike.

[User] Blood flowed freely from fresh wounds that appeared all over him.

[Assistant] The moment he made contact with the floor below, Garfiel rolled away to escape the zone of death.

[User] He rose from the carpet on all fours while glaring straight ahead.

[Assistant] A white cloud of dust parted to reveal his opponent, as though she stood atop a moonlit stage.

[User] The beautiful assassin smiled, gripping her kukri with both hands.

[Assistant] Her upper body was smeared with blood.

[User] “…Looks like Sis is on her way. The rest is up to the general.”

[Assistant] Sensing the presence still on the floor above had already set off, Garfiel sighed in relief at the completion of his first objective.

[User] According to Subaru’s plan, the remaining objectives were… …Wait, what were they again?

[Assistant] “Awww, crap. I can’t remember… Oh well.”

[User] No doubt there was a backup plan in case Garfiel didn’t win—a plan for keeping everyone alive as they sought shelter in the Sanctuary.

[Assistant] That didn’t matter, though.

[User] It was fine even if he forgot.

[Assistant] As long as he won, there was no need to remember that plan.

[User] With that final thought, he slammed both his shields together in front of him.

[Assistant] Garfiel steeled himself with the clamor of metal scraping against metal.

[User] Elsa licked her lips at the sight.

[Assistant] “—Elsa Gramhilde, the Bowel Hunter.”

[User] “Garfiel Tinzel, the Sanctuary’s Ultra-strong Shield.”

[Assistant] The assassin’s bloodred smile melted into the darkness right as she started freely bounding in all directions, awaiting his pursuit.

[User] Just before they collided, Garfiel crinkled his nose, bared his fangs, and howled:

[Assistant] “This is one hell of a first battle, General, so ya better hold up your end!”


[User] He had no trouble breaking through the illusion she’d cast on the hallway with ease, setting foot into this very same archive of forbidden books. There was little doubt that both of them had made the worst impressions imaginable during their first encounter. After she robbed his still-recovering body of mana, Subaru went down without even putting up a fight. Burning with the need for revenge, he later went on to prod and annoy her at every opportunity, continuously interfering with her alone time. He spent two months at Roswaal Manor like this. During that time, Subaru and the girl—Beatrice—argued and fought on numerous occasions, getting along rather childishly. When they saw each other, a commotion was bound to occur. Yet, curiously, their likes and tastes matched in the strangest and most unexpected of ways. Why? Somehow, it constantly bothered Subaru that she seemed alone. Even now, he thought of those days and the time they’d spent together as something irreplaceable that bonded them together. Subaru had returned to see Beatrice once more, and this time, he would never, ever let go of her again.

[Assistant] "You want to take Betty away from this place…?" Bewildered, Beatrice repeated the declaration Subaru had made upon entering the room. Still seated on the stool in its customary position, she hugged the black book to her chest all the tighter. She clutched the book of knowledge entrusted to her by her mother, its pages of prophecy blank.

[User] "Is that…any of your business, I wonder? No one asked you…to do such a thing."

[Assistant] "I figured you’d say that, but I don’t have time for a long debate. I’m bringing you out of here with me one way or another."

[User] "What a self-serving… Would you leave this instant, I wonder? Leave and have a good cry on that girl’s lap."

[Assistant] "You trying to start a fight…?! You keep that up, and it’s gonna be war…! !" Subaru’s lips trembled in shame as she brought up memories of him making a fool of himself. If anything, Emilia’s lap pillows were an enormous blessing, but he couldn’t rely on her at the moment. Emilia was currently giving her all in the Sanctuary. It was Subaru’s job to do the same at the mansion.

[User] "Anyway, there’s no time for chitchat. You know what’s going on outside, don’t you?"

[Assistant] "...I understand there are intruders in the mansion, I suppose. Still, why should Betty get involved in this dispute? Anyone who wishes to scuffle in the dirt should do as they please."

[User] "Unfortunately, the situation isn’t friendly enough to be called a scuffle. I left the fight against Tough Enemy Number One to a promising newcomer, but…he’s too much of a softy." Shaking his head at Beatrice’s words, Subaru racked his brain as he mulled over how their allies had been deployed throughout the estate. The greatest asset they had—Garfiel—was almost certainly already engaging the main threat—Elsa.


[User] Both possessed superhuman strength, so they could be considered evenly matched—or at least, Subaru hoped so. He couldn’t be certain. It was less that Garfiel was too soft and more that he was incredibly kindhearted. That was the proper way to express it. Subaru and company had strategically relied on that kindness to defeat him during their confrontation at the Sanctuary. How his deeply emotional personality would influence the current combat situation at the manor was anyone’s guess. Subaru couldn’t dismiss the possibility that Garfiel would, instead of pitying his opponent, be so concerned for his allies that it’d end up dulling his claws and fangs. To get everyone in the mansion out safe and sound, Garfiel had to be in peak fighting condition to draw off their powerful foe. "Basically, that means I have to eliminate any obstacles that get in the way of our Lethal Weapon so he can go all out. I’ve left Petra in Otto’s hands, and I’m relying on Frederica to secure Rem, so…"

[Assistant] "That leaves just you and Betty… Is that what you are trying to say, I wonder?"

[User] "Yep, that’s pretty much it." If there was nothing holding him back, Garfiel could unleash his full power. That was why the top priority was getting Petra and the others out of the mansion first. He was sure Frederica would secure Rem and meet back up with everyone else in short order. "And the last piece of the puzzle is me getting you out of here. If you don’t wanna run hand in hand, I’ll carry you in my arms or on my back, whatever you like. Just so we’re clear, I’m not budging on this."

[Assistant] "Don’t make me repeat myself. Is your help even necessary, I wonder?" When Subaru tried to take one step closer, Beatrice refused him in a low voice. She swiveled her head about, as if meaning to address the room instead of Subaru. "Betty is in control of the Great Spirit’s archive of forbidden books, a place isolated from the fleeting outside world. No matter what menace lies beyond those doors, does it even matter, I wonder? Your concern is unnecessary."

[User] "Nah, I can’t let this slide. Your archive of forbidden books is awesome, all right. No argument there. But it’s got a fatal flaw. More importantly, the other side knows exactly how to beat it."

[Assistant] This critique of her Passage ability, the foundation of her confidence, made Beatrice raise her eyebrows with displeasure. Certainly, when it came to staying hidden, the archive of forbidden books offered countless advantages. However, Subaru had seen for himself on previous runs that these advantages were not absolute.

[User] "Your Passage is only effective on closed doors. If someone opens all the doors in the mansion…" The last one would lead straight into the archive of forbidden books without fail. In a prior run, Elsa had used that method to trespass upon the archive, attacking Beatrice in an attempt to take her life.


[User] He was doing his best to explain, but—

[Assistant] "—Why does the enemy know of this weakness, I wonder?" Beatrice’s question made Subaru catch his breath.

[User] "Roswaal told them…that must be how they know."

[Assistant] She’d arrived at the conclusion so quickly that Subaru had no chance to offer up any excuse. He could only gaze in astonishment as Beatrice’s certainty deepened.

[User] "Is Betty’s death recorded in Roswaal’s book of knowledge, I wonder?" After voicing that musing, Beatrice briefly let out a breath. Phew. Like a spontaneous sigh of relief.

[Assistant] The sight sent Subaru into a fit of rage. "You…! What was that sigh just now…? Why do you look like you’re okay with all this?!"

[User] “…If you have come this far, surely you understand. Roswaal is simply upholding what is written in the book of knowledge, I suppose. If this is the result, Betty’s fate is already sealed.”

[Assistant] “What the hell are you…? Roswaal’s book is his, and your book is yours, right? Or are you telling me that book you’re hugging says at some point he’s going to have you killed? !” Subaru jabbed a finger toward the book of knowledge, which Beatrice clutched as if hoping to shatter her resignation. The truth was that he already knew Beatrice’s mystic tome was empty. Not once in four centuries’ time had any prophecies of the future appeared within its pages.

[User] When Subaru shouted at her, Beatrice cast her gaze downward and slowly opened the book in her arms. Then she turned its contents toward him, revealing there was indeed nothing written inside. “There isn’t anything in here, I suppose. Betty’s fate is a blank page.”

[Assistant] “Then that means you don’t have any reason to let Roswaal have his way! You should decide what you wanna do for yourself the way you always have!”

[User] “…The way I always have?” Beatrice’s eyes went wide, blinking as she softly repeated those words. Her voice, sounding as if it was devoid of all emotion, left Subaru speechless. However, those blue eyes of hers glinted with something unmistakable—a cavernous sorrow.

[Assistant] “Just what did Betty decide on for herself in all those days?” As she murmured, Beatrice meticulously turned the pages of the tome with her slender fingers, as if she thought those pristine pages represented the sum total of the long years she had spent blank and empty. “I have continued to protect this mansion, all alone, because Mother asked me to… When did I ever make a choice of my own? Who is this Beatrice you speak of, and what has she done for herself?”

[User] “…Beatrice…”

[Assistant] “Is Betty’s life not as barren as this book, I wonder? Is it not as empty? I have decided nothing for myself."


[User] "No accomplishments or achievements… I have nothing at all…” Softly, she closed the book of knowledge. Beatrice slowly stroked the front cover of the tome that bore no title. She caressed it gently, enviously. Then she quietly spoke again.

[Assistant] “Truly…it would have been better if Betty were simply a book.” Unable to indulge in even fleeting fantasy, Beatrice confessed her sad, painful wish. If only she could be a doll without a heart, a storybook unshaken by the passage of time, then she wouldn’t have to suffer. But she couldn’t. And so she grieved.

[User] “Sadly, Betty does have a heart. After waiting for so long that all hope and faith faded away, certain thoughts came unbidden. Were these fears and worries, I wonder? Many a night have I gathered my memories and clung to them, anxious that I might one day forget my mother’s face or smile.” Digging her nails into the book she clutched to her chest, Beatrice bit her lip as she glared at Subaru.

[Assistant] “There were times when I was afraid of being alone and desperately wanted to be with someone, anyone. But as the years went by, everyone eventually left Betty behind. They all said something incomprehensible about how it was for something so important… Mother left! And so did Roswaal! Even Ryuzu!” Beatrice shouted, on the verge of tears as her face contorted. The names she shouted struck Subaru as he recalled everything he had learned about Beatrice back in the Sanctuary.

[User] “Betty…the spirit Beatrice…has always been alone, destined to be left behind by everyone else… But now I can rest a tiny bit easier, I suppose.”

[Assistant] “…Why? Why would you feel relieved that you might be killed by someone you know?” Subaru said, his voice strained.

[User] “The reason is obvious.” Beatrice responded to Subaru’s strained voice with a single nod. A fleeting smile came over her lips; it was one that showed a yearning for something that lay deep in the past.

[Assistant] “Even if it’s only within Roswaal’s book of knowledge, the fact that Betty has been recorded… Does that mean Mother has not forgotten about her daughter, I wonder?” With a little smile, Beatrice spoke those words, as if they were some kind of salvation. The girl seemed happy, as if a death sentence written in the mystic tome left by her mother was exactly what she hoped for. As if she could find peace by dying at the hands of a man who belonged to the same household she had treated like family for centuries. After four hundred years of faithfully waiting and wishing, Beatrice was happy to finally fulfill her mother’s wishes, even if it meant death. It was precisely because she’d insisted on following her mother’s instructions with blind devotion that Beatrice couldn’t do anything but accept her fate.


[User] She believed in Echidna the Witch like a martyr ready to sacrifice herself for the faith. This much was plain to see in the pure liberation that suffused her smile—

[Assistant] "Give it a rest already." That unsettling, intolerable smile made the fire in Subaru’s chest burn all the hotter. The tragic happiness Beatrice felt after seemingly confirming her mother’s love was a twisted thing. It was utter garbage. As if condemning her daughter to death could ever be considered a form of motherly love.

[User] “…What do you…intend to do?” Subaru was so consumed by righteous indignation that he had stepped forward without even noticing. The disconcerting expression on his face made Beatrice stiffen warily.

[Assistant] “Were you even listening, I wonder? What is it you plan to do? Does it need to be explained that whatever you intend, Betty shall show no mercy, I wonder? I have…already accepted my fate.”

[User] “What a load of bullcrap. You’re just like Roswaal. You haven’t changed a bit. Actually, you’re a lot worse. At least Roswaal knows what he’s doing. Why do you have to make everything more complicated, damn it?” Boundless anger began welling up within him. When he thought about it, ever since he had become involved in the events surrounding the Sanctuary, Subaru had been wrestling with his wrath over and over. He had been angry with himself during the Trials; angry at the Witches, who toyed with him; angry at Garfiel, the stubborn kid who looked down on him; angry at Roswaal, the man who was trying to prove the frailty of Subaru’s beliefs by doggedly adhering to what was preordained; and angry at Emilia, who refused to believe in not only Subaru’s love but also herself. And now he was angry at fate itself after seeing Beatrice abandon all hope. "Beatrice, you’re an idiot. Dumb as rocks, that’s for sure! It hurts just looking at you! !"

[Assistant] “Wha…? !” Subaru’s sudden outburst of anger and the abrupt segue left Beatrice speechless. The irritation and confusion she felt prevented her from immediately raising her voice.

[User] “You had four hundred years to figure this out! Why is the only thing you ever came up with so extreme…?! Why’d you think of only one plan?! There are so many other things you could’ve done, damn it! !”

[Assistant] “O-of course I thought about it! Betty tried checking if there was anything on these blank pages again and again…but nothing ever changed!”

[User] “That’s why you’re an idiot! What about trying to heat them to see if anything was written in invisible ink?! These days, no one falls for that trick anymore, even when it’s a novelty New Year’s card! Consider some more possibilities, would you? !” The persistently blank pages of the tome had convinced Beatrice that her fate simply led to a dead end.


[User] "Like what if your mother messed up and gave you the wrong book by mistake?!"

[Assistant] "Huh…?" Beatrice didn’t even know how to respond. That surprise quickly gave way to anger as Beatrice’s ire only grew.

[User] "Do you intend to insult Mother, I wonder?! Mother would never make such a stupid mista-"

[Assistant] "Can you say for sure it absolutely couldn’t happen? You don’t have even the slightest doubt? Are you so certain the only possible explanation is that your mother deliberately handed her own daughter a book with nothing but blank pages?" Subaru used fallacies and questionable logic to massage and obfuscate the truth.

[User] "Why…would you put it that way…?"

[Assistant] Overwhelmed by Subaru’s force of will, Beatrice’s voice wavered, her eyes losing focus. She firmly believed in her mother, and yet, Beatrice stubbornly shook her head.

[User] "M-Mother surely would never make such a mistake. I-is that not obvious, I wonder? This is Mother we’re talking about! Would you doubt your own mother’s words?!"

[Assistant] "Of course I would! The times I can trust her don’t come along all that often! My mom’s the same person who heard a report about a satellite falling into ‘the atmosphere’ and somehow thought it was ‘Aichi Prefecture.’ I stopped believing any news that came from her mouth after that! It’d be mega-embarrassing if I spread around something that stupid again!"


[User] “Even if I had twice as many fingers, I wouldn’t be able to count on my hands how many times an argument between my dad and me ended with a fistfight, and that’s in the span of less than twenty years. You’ve had twenty times that. You’re telling me you never had doubts like that even once?”

[Assistant] “I simply do not understand… What is it you want Betty to say, I wonder?! I cannot understand at all! Your desire, your objective… They make no sense! None at all!”

[User] “Fine. I’ll say it straight so that even idiots like you and your mother can hear me loud and clear!” Action/Narration As Beatrice started clutching at her head, Subaru drew near and grasped both her hands.

[Assistant] From above, he brought his face close to Beatrice’s, coming so close that he could feel the teary-eyed girl’s breaths. “Stop letting an empty book and a verbal promise you made four centuries ago control you. Beatrice, what you want to do is your choice.”

[User] “Four hundred years… Isn’t that more than enough time to justify at least one rebellious phase?”


[Assistant] Action/Narration With both her hands still in his grasp as she sat atop the stool, Beatrice averted her face from Subaru. Considering the height of the stool, her eyes were roughly at the same height as Subaru’s. Beatrice cast her gaze downward, her lips trembling as she looked at the book on her lap.

[User] “No matter what you say…a pact is a pact. And a pact is absolute… That’s why…”

[Assistant] “Big talk from a girl looking for a loophole in that same pact, ready to go straight to her death so long as that pact isn’t broken in the process.” Action/Narration Beatrice shied away from his piercing stare until his comment made her eyes shoot wide.

[User] Action/Narration After having her inner thoughts laid out so plainly, a shudder ran through her as she began to tear up.

[Assistant] “What you’re saying is all messed up, Beatrice. Haven’t you noticed the inconsistencies? There’s no way you haven’t. You got a good head on your shoulders.”

[User] “Would you…just be silent, I wonder…?”

[Assistant] “No, I won’t. You want to stop upholding the pact? That’d be fine by me.


[User] “You’re the one who hates keeping your promise so much that you literally want to die. No one would blame you for wanting to break it.”

[Assistant] "I would blame myself! Why can you not seem to understand this? !"

[User] “You’re the one who doesn’t understand. If keeping that promise you made means dying, you should just break the promise and live. That’s what I’d do; is it so weird I’d make that choice?”

[Assistant] Beatrice, who continued obsessing over the pact, looked at Subaru like he were some kind of monster beyond all comprehension.

[User] Subaru found it pretty baffling to be perceived that way. Of course he knew keeping your word was important. He’d been scolded by Emilia more than once for breaking his promises, and he’d learned that the hard way after enduring quite a few painful experiences. That’s why even someone like him had taken to heart how important it was to not go back on a promise. Despite that, Subaru didn’t feel any reluctance whatsoever in telling Beatrice to break hers. He’d already explained his reasoning. It didn’t even merit a second thought.

[Assistant] "H-how can you be so impudent and devious, I wonder…?”

[User] “I know I’m the brazen sort, and I’ve reflected on how that’s gotten me into trouble before. Still, I’ll never budge on the important stuff.”

[Assistant] Subaru’s answer would not change. From the beginning, the issue at hand was Beatrice’s heart. She could not conceal her shock and confusion as he told her to ignore her pact. That much was expected. In this world, pacts bore enormous weight to the beings known as spirits. He was in love with a spirit mage himself, so Subaru was well aware of the gravity of the situation. He understood completely. And even so, Subaru told Beatrice to prioritize herself over the pact.

[User] "I-if you were…the one I’ve been waiting for…then maybe…” As Subaru continued to stand close by, Beatrice gazed at him, slowly shaking her head side to side. A single duty had remained entwined around Beatrice’s heart, chaining her down for four hundred years even as the blank pages of her mother’s keepsake whittled her heart away. This mission of hers was the greatest reason she had not relinquished the pact despite all her suffering. If she only completed this duty, Beatrice could finally be free. Accordingly, Beatrice peered into Subaru’s black eyes, as if clinging to them, as if giving her heart to them. “Would you…?” As if out of breath, she exhaled slowly, seemingly trying to forgive herself…

[Assistant] “Would you…become That Person for Betty?” This was tantamount to asking him to finally bring an end to Beatrice’s four centuries of emptiness. He recalled Echidna’s words. This was precisely the reply that the Witch of Greed desired. Given that there was no right answer as to who That Person was, would Beatrice eventually select one of her own accord?


[User] Beatrice swallowed, awaiting his reply.

[Assistant] Gazing straight back into the girl’s eyes, Subaru answered loud and clear. "You really are an idiot. There’s no way in hell that I’d be this stupid person or whatever you’ve been waiting for."

[User] Subaru slammed into the wall, swooning in agony as he crumpled from the impact. After he hit his side hard on a column in the hallway, he raised a soundless cry as he writhed around on the floor. "Gaaaghhh… I—I can’t believe it…! That idiot… We were still in the middle of talking…! !" Seeing the door slam shut right before his eyes, Subaru leaped toward it and tried to open it as fast as he could, but once he did, all he found on the other side was a simple guest room. Passage had already activated, and Subaru had been barred from the archive of forbidden books once more. The moment he forcefully announced his true feelings on the matter, Subaru had been locked out. "I had more stuff to say… Damn that short-tempered toddler…!" He’d chosen his words poorly. His chest ached as he recalled how the last expressions he’d seen Beatrice make were ones of sadness and anger. He hadn’t told Beatrice everything he wanted to say to her yet. If he didn’t find a way back into the archive of forbidden books right away—

[Assistant] "—Mr. Natsuki? !" A voice held Subaru in place just as he was about to run off in search of the archive. When he turned to check behind him, his eyes met those of someone peeking in his direction from the next room over. It was none other than Otto, who had accompanied Subaru to the mansion and should have been operating independently. And just like Otto, Petra was also sticking her head out to see what was going on. Subaru widened his eyes in surprise as realization dawned upon him.

[User] "Damn it, you guys… Why are you still in the mansion?! You only needed to open the doors on the first floor, and the plan was to run as soon as that was taken care of, right?"

[Assistant] "That is true, but unfortunately, a problem has arisen within the mansion…" Though initially surprised by the unexpected reunion, Subaru’s face went pale when Otto mentioned some trouble was afoot. Securing an escape route out of the mansion and using it to elude the enemy was the crux of their plan. Accordingly, Subaru had entrusted that duty to Otto. If he couldn’t do it, no one could. If even Otto had deemed it too difficult, then there was no choice but to accept it was an impossible task. "What happened?


[User] “The short version, please.”

[Assistant] “This is the work of the Beast Master you spoke of, I presume. The interior of the mansion is already filled with demon beasts.”

[User] “That must mean Meili’s here, huh…but she already should’ve been accounted for." Otto’s hushed report left deep creases in Subaru’s brow. The two assailants—Elsa the Bowel Hunter and Meili the Beast Master—were basically sisters of slaughter. The danger Elsa posed was painfully obvious, but Meili’s command over demon beasts was something that could not be taken lightly if they wanted to make it out of this encounter in one piece. So of course, he’d readied a countermeasure—

[Assistant] “—But there are demon beasts the repel stones don’t work on at all! !” Even in the darkness, he could tell Petra’s face was red as she shouted and beat Subaru’s question to the punch. The girl was gripping a glowing blue crystal—a phosphorescent stone for warding off demon beasts. This was what Subaru and the others had prepared to neutralize the Beast Master.

[User] “Wait, seriously?! I was sure that if we had these demon-beast repel stones, they’d keep them away like during the Urugarum incident… Why isn’t it working? !”

[Assistant] “I don’t know! Perhaps the ones that appeared here are exceptions, but at any rate, assuming these demon beasts have appeared throughout the entire manor, even reaching the marquis’s room will be…”

[User] Extremely difficult. Otto left this part unspoken as he finished explaining how the odds had abruptly turned against them.

[Assistant] “—?! ?” Subaru felt an impact come from below his soles, instantly drawing his attention. He quickly noticed there was an odd warping underneath the red carpet covering the corridor floor. It bulged further, and then—it burst. The tremors and deformation of the corridor had merely been a harbinger. The real show of destruction was occurring on the floor below, causing the entire west wing of the mansion to collapse, taking the corridor they were in along with it. The windows cracked, the wooden beams flew apart, and the whole mansion seemed to groan under the strain. As he lost his footing, Subaru found his body suddenly floating in midair. Reflexively, he reached out and yanked a tiny body toward him. As he fell toward the center of the hole, he tried to at least shield the small child pressed against his chest before they hit the ground.

[User] “—Make sure you don’t let go! !” When that thunderous voice rang in his eardrums amid all the destruction, Subaru did everything he could to obey. A moment later, he felt his body being pulled by the scruff of his neck. Then he was unceremoniously tossed to the ground, which made for an admittedly much softer landing. He felt his cheek brushing up against grass. When Subaru looked around, he saw he had rolled onto the green, open yard outside the mansion.

[Assistant] “J-just now, that was…”

[User] “Miss Frederica!” When Subaru shook his head and looked up, Petra leaped out of his arms.


[User] Her gaze was focused on someone whose blond hair was beautifully flapping in the wind; it was none other than Frederica herself. Petra’s eyes glimmered as the older maid elegantly brushed the young girl’s hair back and gently wiped the grime off her cheek. "Even if this is an emergency, please forgive my impropriety. Frederica Baumann has returned."

[Assistant] “Frederica! !” Overcome with emotion, Petra threw herself toward Frederica, who smiled as she gently caught her adorable junior and held the girl close to her chest.

[User] Consequently, Otto, who Frederica had been supporting on her right side, was unceremoniously dumped onto the grass. “Ow!! Wait a minute! I’m grateful you saved my life, but what is this rough handling? !”

[Assistant] “I—I am very sorry, Master Otto. She was simply higher on my list of priorities…”

[User] “Women and children, the elderly, men, and then Otto, huh?”

[Assistant] “Have I been exiled from even the ranks of men? !” Setting Otto’s complaints aside, their group quickly confirmed they were all unharmed. Thanks to Frederica, everyone present had emerged from the manor safely. This was not limited to Subaru, Otto, and Petra, either.

[User] “Master Subaru—I have brought her here with me, as requested.” Still holding Petra, Frederica turned around to show Subaru what she meant. There, firmly secured to her back with bedsheets, was a sleeping girl—Rem.

[Assistant] Instantly, Subaru’s breath caught in his throat, but that initial stiffness almost immediately gave way to relief. “You did… Thank you…for getting her out safe and sound. I mean it.”

[User] “It was the natural thing to do. More importantly, we have a pressing problem to deal with…”

[Assistant] Subaru brushed a finger against Rem’s cheek as she continued to sleep. While he did that, he looked intently at Frederica to convey his thanks, then he followed her gaze to the west wing of the mansion, which was spectacularly wrecked. The sheer extent of the damage made it seem like a giant truck had crashed right into the building. To be fair, that metaphor wasn’t that much of an exaggeration. The only difference was that instead of a truck—

[User] “—What…is that?” Otto stood up and brushed off his knees as he posed the question. It was something everyone present wondered, with the exception of the sleeping Rem.

[Assistant] “It looks like a really huge hippo to me.” The creature they were staring at was enormous. The color and texture of its hide resembled a boulder, and the four limbs it boasted seemed as thick and stout as millstones. It had a dreadful, vile face, red eyes that brimmed with hostility, and a broken horn perched on the tip of its nose. Moreover, this demon beast had a tiny figure riding on its back.

[User] “Huh. That’s amazing. I’m kinda shocked our attack just now didn’t take anybody out.” Straddling the back of the enormous demon beast, the little girl waved her legs all about as she addressed them with an amused voice.


[User] The cruel, innocent ring to her words was familiar to Subaru—and to Petra as well.

[Assistant] She was clad in black clothing, while her deep-blue hair was tied up in a braid—

[User] “—Meili!”

[Assistant] “Oh? None of you folks seems to be all that surprised. I’m just a little disappointed.” When Subaru shouted her name, Meili drew her lips back, unhappy that she’d failed to surprise them with what was supposed to be her big reveal. Unfortunately, Subaru and company had no reason to humor her.


[User] “You busting up the mansion like this is a way bigger deal! The hell you think you’re doing? !”

[Assistant] “Well, I couldn’t find the maids who were our target. So I had Rock Piggie pitch in. And thanks to that, I ended up finding all of you, right?” Meili touched a finger to her cheek, showing not a single shred of guilt as she sized up her prey.

[User] “But you really surprised me. I mean, this job should’ve been easy. Now everything’s behind schedule.”

[Assistant] “That so? If you’re off schedule, you should report to your superior and await further instructions. If you use your own on-site judgment, there’s no telling what huge and terrible problems might happen.”

[User] “Tee-hee-hee. Nooope. You can’t trick me.”

[Assistant] Even as they shared what seemed like a friendly chat, he could sense demon beasts gradually closing in on the yard.

[User] “I feel sorry for Elsa, but I’m going to take all the maids for myself. Ah, no need to worry. I’ll be gentle to Petra. We are friends, after all.”

[Assistant] “Y-yay, I’m so happy—If we’re friends, that means you’ll let us go, right—?”

[User] “Tee-hee-hee. Of course we’re friends. That’s why we’ll get along until the veeery end, right?”

[Assistant] “Uh, Subaru, sorry, but I tried my best, and it still didn’t work…”

[User] “Master Subaru…”

[Assistant] "Frederica? What are…? Whoa!" Suddenly, before Subaru could come up with an escape plan, the older maid stood directly in front of him with Rem still on her back. Frederica did not respond to his call and instead undid the knots, freeing Rem. Subaru instantly moved to her to catch Rem’s sleeping body before it fell.

[User] “—I shall provide that girl, no, that assassin with the proper hospitality. During that time, all of you…”

[Assistant] “M-Miss Frederica! Y-you mustn’t!” Petra clung to Frederica, who had boldly declared she would act as a rear guard for the party.

[User] Subaru had simply gone silent.


[User] Frederica gently turned her gaze toward the young maid, who refused to let go of her waist. "Stop, Miss Frederica! This is exactly the same as before… We’ve only just met again, and…"

[Assistant] "No, it’s different now… After all, last time, I was resigned to death.”

[Assistant] "So much has changed. After ten years, I have reunited with Garf…with my younger brother. And I have you, my unspeakably adorable junior. I have never been happier. And that’s why I refuse to be defeated here." Frederica spoke to Petra while gently stroking her head.

[User] Seeing the will residing in those jade eyes from up close, Petra said no more.

[Assistant] Frederica was truly Garfiel’s elder sister.

[User] "Frederica! We’ll head for Roswaal’s room!"

[Assistant] "Please do. I shall join you once I have given this girl a proper spanking." Offering a graceful reply in turn, Frederica readied herself for the imminent battle.

[User] "Otto! Take Petra!"

[Assistant] "Loud and clear!" Grasping the barked instruction, Otto set off running with Petra in tow.

[User] With Rem on his back, Subaru raced ahead of them, guiding them to the entrance into the mansion from the yard.

[Assistant] "Hey, hold on a…! Don’t decide stuff on your own like that! Petraaaaa!"

[User] "Thbpttt!" The sight of Subaru and company fleeing at full speed made Meili cry out from atop the demon beast, sticking out her tongue tauntingly.

[Assistant] Meili moved to pursue them.

[User] "—Dear guest, from here on, I will have to insist you remain with me and enjoy the Mathers family’s hospitality!"

[Assistant] "Gaaah! I’ll make you regret this! Get her, Rock Piggie!!"

[User] "—!! !". Looking down at Frederica, who was blocking her path, Meili puffed up her cheeks as her temper flared as the enormous, boulder-like demon beast issued a roar that echoed across the entire grounds.

[Assistant] With a flutter of her skirt, Frederica’s arms creaked as they transformed. "Now, come closer. I’ll be teaching you some harsh lessons today! Prepare yourself."


[User] Splitting up from Frederica, Subaru and company made a beeline for the mansion’s main wing, aiming for the topmost floor. "Otto! Anything to worry about from behind?!"

[Assistant] "Miss Frederica is managing somehow! However, we still have no good way to deal with demon beasts!" As they raced down a corridor, Otto asserted the demon beasts were a pressing issue that remained unresolved.

[User] Subaru didn’t have a new plan ready yet.


[User] "How about we use your blessing of language and your pro bargaining skills to negotiate with the demon beasts and convince them to let us escape? You’d get all the glory!"

[Assistant] "Most demon beasts only go, Me swallow you whole. That does not constitute a conversation…"

[User] "This isn’t the time for joking around!! If…if we don’t do something fast, Miss Frederica will—!" Petra’s desperate plea made Subaru and Otto cut the banter and focus their thoughts on coming up with a plan.


[Assistant] "Mr. Natsuki! There’s some black-winged mice in front!"

[User] "Whoa!" While Subaru was deep in thought, some black shadows had flown toward him in the moonlit corridor and were already right before his eyes. These were demon beasts with round bodies, about the size of puppies, that resembled flying mice with black, bat-like wings. Two of the creatures, worthy of the name black-winged mice, aimed their sharp fangs at Subaru.

[Assistant] "Go away! !" Petra raised the repel stone aloft, instantly driving off the black-winged mice.

[User] "You saved my bacon, Petra! …But this means the stone isn’t completely ineffective, doesn’t it?"

[Assistant] "Against normal demon beasts, it works just fine! For the moment, it is ineffective only against a single demon beast. So long as that beast is not…"

[User] "Meaning that one is—" Special, he was about to say, but two things happened before he could—the sound of an impact ringing out, followed by high-pitched death cries. From the back of the corridor, in the darkness where the moonlight did not reach, a monstrous claw flashed, drawing out screams and fresh blood simultaneously. The fearsome blow tore the wings off the black-winged mice, leaving them helplessly falling and rolling onto the carpet. Pitch-black blood coursed from their wounds as the two demon beasts convulsed. An enormous maw reached forward to snap up their bodies, chewing on them. The murderous sounds of snapping bones and bloody flesh being consumed reverberated across the corridor.


[Assistant] "Totally forgot it, but… So we meet again, you shitty demon beast…!"

[User] "!! !" As if responding to Subaru venting his rage, the black demon beast raised a roar that seemed to shake the entire mansion.


[User] Bathed in a sense of awe like being buffeted in blast winds, Subaru adjusted Rem upon his back and clenched his teeth.

[Assistant] "Otto! Give that bastard a taste of the repel sto—"

[User] "No! It won’t work, Subaru! That demon beast is a…"

[Assistant] Petra shook her head side to side, her face pale as she pleaded with Subaru.

[User] "That demon beast is a…"

[Assistant] He’d already guessed what Otto was about to shout.

[User] "A Giltirau! The repel stone will not work on it! The beast is our worst enemy right now!"

[Assistant] Instantly, the demon beast—the Giltirau—lowered its body, aimed itself toward the group…and charged. Its claws rent the carpet. Its roar made the very foundations tremble. With a snarling battle cry, it came barreling toward them.


[User] "—Heeey, Lia. Don’t wobble your head like that and sit still, would you?”

[Assistant] Before she opened her eyes, the first thing she heard was a soft, lovely voice. Slowly, as if guided by the voice, her consciousness floated to the surface. Her vision was hazy. In the span of several blinks, she realized she was sitting in a chair and this was her own house built from the hollow of a great tree in the forest. She was sitting in her own chair in the living room.

[User] “Goodness, how long are you going to be such a spoiled little child? You’re really incorrigible, you know.” From so close that she could feel her breath, she heard a voice so gentle, it seemed to embrace her.

[Assistant] It caused such a stirring in her chest that the girl hurried looked over, immediately spotting a woman with short silver hair, a foul look in her eyes, and who, to Emilia, was the ideal woman.

[User] “Mom…”

[Assistant] “You turned so quickly, it surprised me… Did you doze off? Were you catching a nap while leaving me to do your hair…? We truly have a lazy Princess on our hands.” As Emilia’s eyes went wide, her mother smiled with an air of exasperation.

[User] She did not understand why she felt so deeply moved by simply seeing the sharp eyes and soft expression of her mother. "Mom…”

[Assistant] “Mm? What’s wrong? If something happened, you can tell me anything.”

[User] “You’re really dressed up today, huh, Mom? It’s really cute.”

[Assistant] “—! Is that all? And here I was getting worried only for you to tease me.” With just a hint of a blush, Fortuna flicked Emilia’s forehead with a finger.

[User] Putting a hand on her forehead, Emilia went “eh-heh-heh” and grinned. Emilia was always proud of her mother, but she thought Fortuna looked especially beautiful that day because she was actually wearing a skirt for once instead of her usual easy-to-move-in attire. Though her clothes had minimal adornment, the color-matched, fresh-looking outfit suited Fortuna very well.

[Assistant] “Oh, look at you. Even though you have such a cute face, it’s quite a mess today… You really do seem like you’re still half-asleep. I thought I sent you to wash your hair at the watering hole earlier. Did you just have a drink and come back?”

[User] “Hmph, Mom’s making fun of me again. There isn’t even the tiniest smidgen of carelessness in my whole body. Everyone else always says that I’m really well-behaved, too.”

[Assistant] “Even though you still use such ridiculous phrases, I’m really worried other people are filling your head with silly ideas. I’d better have a little chat with Archi after this.” The way she pressed her lips together seemed to indicate dissatisfaction, but the way Fortuna pressed a palm against her forehead clashed with that image.


[User] Her mother proceeded to move in front of the sullen Emilia and resumed doing her hair once more. She had long hair, silver just like Fortuna’s. Her mother braided it up with practiced ease like she used magic. "Okay, now it’s all nice and beautiful. Go look in the mirror.”

[Assistant] “Mm-hmm, thanks, Mom. The mirror…” When Fortuna patted her on the shoulder, Emilia stood up with a big grin to do as she was told. The little girl proceeded to turn toward the full-length mirror—but then she stopped.

[User] “Emilia?” Fortuna called out to her daughter with a questioning voice.

[Assistant] But Emilia did not reply. For some reason, she could not approach the full-length mirror. Even she did not know the reason why. Her legs were cramped. As Emilia stewed in melancholy, salvation came to her from a different direction. She heard the sound of someone knocking on the door to their home. Lifting her head with a gasp. "A guest!” and whirled around, her legs hastily taking her in that direction.


[User] “—Good morning to you, Lady Emilia. I am overjoyed that you came to greet me.” When she opened the door in a fair bit of a hurry, Emilia’s breath caught as the tall visitor on the other side greeted her. The man, with green hair and soft features, smiled at her. Seeing the tranquil benevolence residing in this individual’s eyes, Emilia could not help but break into a broad smile.

[Assistant] “Geuse… G-good morning to you.”

[User] “Yes, it has been some time, Lady Emilia. I hope you will treat me kindly today.”

[Assistant] “Today…?” Hearing words of greeting from the visiting man—Geuse—made Emilia tilt her head in confusion.

[User] That curious reaction elicited an “oh my” from Geuse, who raised a curious eyebrow. “Are you not aware? I had thought we had sent word beforehand…”

[Assistant] “Geuse, don’t take her seriously. Lia’s just being a sleepyhead this morning.”

[User] “Grrr, I can’t believe Mom’s still saying stuff like that…” Fortuna’s exasperated voice made Emilia look over, but her words caught in her throat. Fortuna was not dressed like normal, and she was holding a basket clearly meant for going out and about. Emilia could faintly smell herb-grilled meat sandwiched between cuts of her mother’s handmade bread. In other words—

[Assistant] “—Ah! We’re going to the lake?”

[User] “Why, this girl looks like she only just remembered even though she’s the one who asked to go…”

[Assistant] “Did I really? …Maybe I did ask. If that’s true, then I just get to be twice as happy.” When she thought back on it, she felt like she had made a request just like that. And having forgotten it, the instant she remembered made her feel like she’d gotten to enjoy it two times over.

[User] “…Geuse, what do you think of her?”

[Assistant] “It is rather in character for Lady Emilia, I believe. She specializes in doubling her happiness."


[User] "Perhaps we have a thing or two to learn from her.”

[Assistant] “You spoiling her irresponsibly puts me in a bind, though. Goodness…it must be Sister’s blood in her.” Fortuna sighed as she touched a hand to her forehead. Then, when she noticed Geuse training his gaze firmly upon her, she gave him a sharp look as if asking, What…?

[User] “No, it would be better not to worsen your mood…”

[Assistant] “We’ve known each other long enough. There’s nothing you can say that will shake me now, Geuse.”

[User] “Then I shall speak the words. Lady Fortuna, your clothing choices this day are dazzling. I find myself rather enchanted by the sight of you.” When Geuse spoke his mind with a guileless look on his face, Fortuna stiffened for a brief moment.

[Assistant] “—!” Then Fortuna’s face turned red. An instant later, with a powerful punch to his shoulder, she sent Geuse flying. Forgotten in the commotion, the basket was in danger of falling onto the floor, but Emilia caught it just in the nick of time.

[User] “Did I truly say something rude I should not have…?”

[Assistant] “No, it’s not that. Mom gets embarrassed really easily, so she couldn’t help but blush when you said that to her, Geuse. Tee-hee, Mom’s so cute.”

[User] “Don’t go around making things up! Geuse is… He is a man wicked to the core.” With the quarrel at home out of the way, the three amicably strolled along—Fortuna marched ahead in a huff, with Emilia and Geuse walking side by side as they headed for the lake in the forest. The incident upon their departure had Fortuna in a mood, and Geuse had gotten worked up over that, but from Emilia’s point of view, Fortuna wasn’t really angry—she was just shy. Emilia was a little aggravated that Geuse seemed to be the only one who wasn’t picking up on that. But the relationship between Geuse and her mother was close, if a bit prickly, and certainly a happy one.


[Assistant] “Oh my, Lady Fortuna.”

[User] “And Emilia and Geuse, too.”

[Assistant] “Good to see parent and child getting along.” The housewives living close by commented and called out as they watched the trio heading down the path toward the lake.

[User] “You are obviously very loved,” and the happy smile on his face made Fortuna swallow her words.

[Assistant] “…I—I suppose,” was the only reply she could muster. Then as Fortuna inconspicuously matched her walking pace with Emilia and Geuse, Emilia quietly waved back to the housewives, whereupon the wives smiled with mischievous looks on their faces. They walked in that manner for a while until the forest abruptly fell away and their destination, the lake, came into view.

[User] “As usual, the air here is very refreshing. I feel like I’m in a better mood already.”

[Assistant] “That is because you are always carrying such weighty burdens, Lady Fortuna. You must stretch your wings once in a while.