[User] "You gonna do it?"

[Assistant] "No, I just thought it was very impertinent of me. You may be a coworker, but you are also Lady Emilia’s savior, so our positions are different."

[User] "That kind of stiff attitude will just crimp my style… Wait, that’s what you think?"

[Assistant] Her statement, that she couldn’t treat him as a simple coworker because they stood apart, stuck in his ears. Seeing Rem raise her eyebrows at the question, Subaru began roughly tugging on the hair on his head. "To be honest, I’m not good at picking up on stuff like that. Sorry to…make you worry about it."

[User] "No, I am simply saying it cannot be helped. Please forget about it."

[Assistant] "I can’t just let that go so easily. People are petty like that. Now, then…" Subaru put a hand to his forehead, lowering his eyes as he looked at Rem.

[User] She seemed not so much regretful about her slip of the tongue as she seemed chastened by Subaru’s admonition. That helped him decide what to say. Subaru lifted a finger as he made a suggestion. "Okay, I’ll give you my one condition. If you’re okay with that, I’ll totally forget what you just said."

[Assistant] Rem closed her eyes briefly before nodding with a look of resignation. "Condition…you say? I understand. I will hear you out."

[User] Subaru made a strained smile, not intending to draw out that big a reaction, and then said… "If you fix up my hair and give it a little brushing, I’ll forgive you."

[User] Unable to take Rem’s silence in the face of his counteroffer, Subaru raised his voice. "The silence is kind of painful to me here, you know."

[Assistant] Rem’s pale blue eyes reflected Subaru in them as she sighed a little. "Lady Emilia already pointed this out, but you desire very little, Subaru."

[User] "That’s weird. I thought we’d be making up instead of you getting all shocked like that…"

[Assistant] "As I have heard from Sister how you gave her perverted looks when you were alone, I was rather resigned to something less decent."

[User] "Slander’s a horrible thing! !" He was scared that Ram’s gossipy statement would make sparks fly with Emilia in short order. He’d have to establish a direct lifeline with Emilia before that could happen. Subaru was still plotting countermeasures against Ram in his head when Rem grasped the hem of her skirt.

[Assistant] "I accept your condition—I shall go along with your idea." And so, with a prim and proper bow, she accepted his suggestion for smoothing things over.

[User] Her performance drew a laugh out of Subaru as he looked down at his hands. "Hey, I wrapped up shortening the legs while we were talking. I did it right, huh?" The work complete, Rem took hold of the trousers, acknowledging his work…

[Assistant] "…Yes, you did. You get full marks for sewing. But much like yourself, I do not think it will be of use, Subaru." …then poured cold water all over him.

[User] "Huh?!"


[User] "I thought we just made up here? !" Combined with Subaru’s retort, the earlier awkward atmosphere had fully lifted.

[Assistant] Subaru returned the sewing kit to Rem before stroking his own forehead. "So, about my hair…when do you wanna do it? It’s tough to do it today ’cause it’s so late."

[User] "That is true. I would like to get it done as soon as possible, but I will be working in the evening for several days…unfortunately."

[Assistant] "We’ll just have to make the time. Man, it’s really been a while since I had my hair styled!" He’d been cutting his own hair since he got into middle school, nearly five full years earlier. He was good enough to do it by touch without using a mirror.

[User] "Well then, it is getting late, so I will excuse myself. You will be working in the morning as well. Can you wake up on time on your own?"

[Assistant] "Honestly, not all that sure there. I’m good at waking up if I have a clock, but there’s nothing like that here, so maybe not? Don’t you have roosters or something?"

[User] "...This seems severe, so Sister or I shall wake you in the morning." Faced with Subaru’s unreliable reply, Rem reluctantly launched him a life raft.

[Assistant] "Seriously? I feel bad to use my seniors in place of a clock, but…"

[User] "It shall do us no good to have you sleep into the afternoon, after all."

[Assistant] "What kind of oversleeper do you take me for? !"

[User] "Someone who could sleep away the entire day, I imagine?" It took a while for Subaru to realize that this was a joke, by Rem’s standards.

[Assistant] After the banter, Subaru thanked Rem as she left for accepting his suggestion. She passed through the doorway and waved a hand as she went out of sight. "Whatever comes out of their mouths, they’re sisters through and through, huh." Rem was superficially polite as she slipped in the dagger; Ram was arrogant. But just the same, they were considerate to the point of overbearing, something Subaru thought was highly desirable in coworkers.


[User] "It’s been five days since that spectacle—time enough for you to see how this shaaall proceed?"

[Assistant] "I suppose so— He is no good." Ram heard her master’s voice in her ear as he stroked her pink hair.

[User] Roswaal and Ram were the only two people in the room; there was no sign of the twin’s “other half,” Rem. Put simply, that day’s report was about the issue of Subaru and Ram’s education of him. With her stating that his education was going most poorly, Roswaal stared for a moment before laughing. "Ahaaa, is that so. Completely useless?"

[Assistant] "Barusu really can do nothing at all. He’s no good at cooking, clumsy at cleaning, and the very thought of entrusting laundry to him disturbs me. He’s oddly skilled at sewing, but besides that, nothing can be left to him alone."

[User] "In a place with so many girls, that, too, is a grave matter, is it nooot?"

[Assistant] At that age it cannot be helped, Ram seemed to say with a strained smile, looking up at her master as she thought back on the details of the previous four days. In that brief but vivid time, even a stranger would have noticed the grimace replacing Ram’s graceful, neutral expression. "It is quite raaare to see such a face on you. Is he so worthless?"

[User] "Worthless through and through. It is not that he is clumsy; it is that he does not know. I cannot but think he was raised poorly. However, he is also lacking in culture."

[Assistant] "So haaard on him." Roswaal held back a laugh.

[User] Ram sighed a little, shifted her position in her master’s arms, and sank farther against him. He gave Ram’s pink hair a good stroke with his palm. "So, Ram, the important part— Do you think he is involved?"

[Assistant] Roswaal maintained his smile, his tone of voice unchanged from before. The subject was unstated, but she knew what he wanted to hear.

[User] Ram closed her eyes, thinking for a little while. "I cannot rule it out, but I think the possibility is low."

[Assistant] "Hmmmm. Why is that?"

[User] "He stands out too much to have been sent to infiltrate this House… Not in a good or b… No, in an especially bad way… In the first place, Barusu himself is…" The words seem to pour out of her mouth. It was, in a fashion, a reply to his question, so Roswaal greeted her answer with a satisfied smile. It was the smile of a master that said: It makes perfect sense. Though the smile was not being sent her way precisely, Ram realized her cheeks were burning nonetheless.

[Assistant] "I see, and I must agree with that. Meaning he truly is a benevolent bystander." As Roswaal spoke, the chair creaked as he shifted positions. He turned opposite to the desk, straight toward the large window through which shone the moonlight.


[User] Roswaal’s oddly colored eyes seemed to twinkle, the corners of his lips rose at the scene below. "I muuust say, he certainly doooes not discourage easily.”

[Assistant] Roswaal saw a black-haired boy speaking and laughing with a silver-haired girl in the manor’s garden. As was typical, the young man made one-sided conversation, but the girl didn’t seem to mind. “How chaaarming. I no longer possess such passion.”

[User] Ram looked into Roswaal’s eyes from close up as she replied. “Women are happy when they’re pursued.”

[Assistant] In contrast to the luster in her eyes, Roswaal’s eyes narrowed in a teasing look. “Perhaps you measure Subaru higher than I thought?”

[User] “…He is no good at all, but I do not think poorly of him. He knows nothing related to the work, but what he simply does not know, he can be taught.”

[Assistant] Responding to the dissatisfaction in Ram’s eyes and her chilly voice, Roswaal used the hand with which he had brushed her hair to caress her cheek. Ram seemed too enchanted to speak as Roswaal pondered her reply.

[User] There is beauty in enthusiasm, Roswaal thought with a nod. “Based on my position, I shooould probably intercede, yeees?” Roswaal commented as he looked down on the cute rendezvous in the garden with his yellow eye alone.

[Assistant] “Both are such children. Nothing will happen regardless.”

[User] “You do have a point.”

[Assistant] Faint laughter filled the private study as they pulled the curtain over the window overlooking the rendezvous between the boy and girl below.


[User] Subaru stretched out the wrinkles visible through his manservant outfit’s sleeves and checked how he looked in the window. “Not bad, not bad at all. I can do this. Right out of the bath, I look fifty percent sexier in the mirror. I feel like this is gonna work!”

[Assistant] Trying to at least surround himself with an attractive aura, Subaru took a long, shallow breath and stepped forward.

[User] He was walking on the shortly mowed grass of the garden, heading for a green-covered corner lined by high trees, a place where the blessings of the moon were all the more remarkable. There sat a girl, her silver hair twinkling in the moonlight as a pale light surrounded her.


[User] Subaru now knew that the firefly-like pale glow actually came from spirits. That fact added to how watching the surreal scene bewitched his heart, like a demoness that wouldn’t let go. He unintentionally stopped in place, his breath catching.

[Assistant] Perhaps sensing him, the girl’s closed eyes abruptly opened. The two amethyst jewels caught sight of Subaru approaching. "Oh, hi. R-real coincidence bumping into you like this?”

[User] “You come like this every day, you know. As for coincidence…don’t we live under the same roof?” One glance from being spotted before he could speak threw Subaru off his game.

[Assistant] For her part, Emilia sighed at the already typical line from him.

[User] Undeterred by his slip, Subaru smiled at Emilia. “Hearing the words under the same roof really gives me a tingling…”

[Assistant] “The word tingling really sends a shudder up my spine. For some reason, I don’t like it.”

[User] With Emilia staring up at him, Subaru scratched his cheek and sat next to her like it was perfectly normal. They were a mere three hands apart, proof that the sense of distance between them had lessened.

[Assistant] Emilia, by now used to Subaru sitting next to her, did not bother to point out the distance. Between her daily morning ritual and mealtimes, his sitting beside her was something she now took for granted. It was unclear whether she was silently permitting it or simply giving up on forbidding it, but either way, Subaru was happy to be so close. “So, what are you doing?”

[User] “Mm? An extension of the morning routine. I can meet most of them in the morning, but I can meet some of them only at night, so…” Subaru nodded in response, readily accepting Emilia’s reply. He was finally accustomed to living in a world where time was measured in “day” and “night.” Incidentally, daily life over a twenty-four-hour period was largely as one would expect. Living in accordance with the body’s internal clock brought a sense of tranquility like nothing else. His four days of training as a manservant had also been four days acquiring that world’s common knowledge. That said, learning servant work came ahead of academics, so his overall comprehension was still rather thin. “Gives me new perspective looking back on my school days with the weekends off…” Subaru had often disparaged his Spartan instructor during the last four days. But such one-sided comments from Subaru still furthered the friendly conversations he had with Emilia at night. Subaru silently watched the side of Emilia’s face as if bewitched by the dreamlike scene.

[Assistant] Emilia suddenly commented, perhaps finding it rare for Subaru to be lost for words. “It’s no fun to watch, is it?” How Emilia somehow sounded apologetic made Subaru sit up and shake his head.

[User] “Nah, I could never be bored being with you, Emilia-tan.”

[Assistant] “Wh—” The straight-hitting statement made Emilia’s breath catch as her cheeks reddened. Seeing Emilia’s face flushed from the surprise attack made Subaru redden up to his ears.


[User] After all, the line he’d said just then had been the complete, literal truth. Subaru rapid-fired his words as if trying to explain away his blushing. “Ah, er, I mean, we hadn’t had a chance to settle down and talk for days, right?”

[Assistant] Emilia nodded in full agreement. “ Th-that’s right. Seems you’ve had quite a time learning how to work at the manor… You’ve been working your heart out, huh?”

[User] “Hearing that makes me so happy I wanna cry…” Glossing over the atmosphere, they buried that topic in a deep hole and turned it into an unintentionally bittersweet moment.

[Assistant] “Shortening the sleeves of my uniform and putting buttons on an apron got me top marks, but that’s it.”

[User] “You really are exceptional in only one area.”

[Assistant] “Well, I tried to grow up to be a guy with an edge instead of perfectly round and flat…”

[User] Emilia, not knowing of Subaru’s introspection, gave honest praise for his self-confidence. “I see, is that so. I’m glad that you’re confident in something, too.”

[Assistant] Subaru made a rather conflicted smile at the sight of Emilia being happy for him. “Besides, it’s not like you’re awful at the other jobs. Ram and Rem keep this quiet, but they have been praising you, you see…”

[User] “Seriously? So I’m making ground even with my seniors here? So, what, cutting myself with the knife, knocking over the bucket, and messing up the laundry, it all raised my relationship points? !”

[Assistant] “I think you should reflect on that just a little.”

[User] Emilia made a pained smile at Subaru’s stating his glaring failures. Her violet eyes gently narrowed, looking at Subaru, examining him carefully at close range. “But work’s hard every day, isn’t it?”

[Assistant] “Super hard, totally tough. It makes me wanna borrow Emilia-tan’s arms and breasts and lap for some low-stress healing.”

[User] “Yes, yes. If you’re making light of it, you must be all right.” Emilia reached with a fingertip and gave Subaru’s forehead a light push. Subaru, weak to the pressure, could not resist Emilia’s fingertip, making a showy tumble backward onto the grass. He let out a pleasant sigh as he felt the soothing coolness of the grass and gazed up at the star-filled sky.


[User] "—The moon’s so pretty, isn’t it?"

[Assistant] "There are some places you just can’t reach, right?"

[User] "I wasn’t asking for it at all, and you hit me with something like that?!"

[Assistant] "What, did I say something bad?"

[User] Subaru’s attempt at dropping a romantic line fell flat due to cultural differences in a different world. He pressed a hand over his heart to show he was apologetic, startling Emilia. "Ah…"

[Assistant] "Oh, darn it! I was tryin’ to hide that…" Subaru tried to hide his blushy smile as he moved the hand Emilia was staring at behind his back… The left hand that had borne the brunt of his repeated failures at work. Subaru stuck out his tongue to try to gloss over it, but Emilia lowered her eyes with a serious look.

[User] "So, everyone else is working hard, too." Emilia’s murmur sounded like she was criticizing herself.

[Assistant] Subaru silently acknowledged what Emilia was thinking as she spoke to herself like that.

[User] "...How about I cast a healing spell?"

[Assistant] "Nah, it’s fine. I’d rather not heal it and leave it like this."

[User] "Why’s that?"

[Assistant] "Mm, it’s hard to put it into words… It’s kinda a sign of how hard I’ve worked?" Subaru thought that they weren’t typical words coming from him as he strongly clenched his beat-up hand. "I don’t mind working hard as much as I thought I would. Being able to do things I couldn’t do before…it ain’t bad. It’s hard, it’s really tough, but it’s kinda fun. I mean, Ram and Rem are surprisingly strict, that loli’s annoying, seen less of Rozchi than I thought I would, though…"

[User] "Roswaal would probably get prickly if you told him that."

[Assistant] "Nobody uses prickly anymore…" Subaru bent a hip to emphasize his bending the conversation. Then, rising to his feet like a spring-loaded doll, he brought his right hand to his forehead in a tidy salute toward Emilia. "Well, just need to knock down the problems one by one. I mean, this is the only place for me to live… Either way, it’s fun, see?"

[User] Subaru’s display of determination made Emilia’s expression freeze like time had stopped. Only her eyes moved, blinking several times over, before a smile suddenly came over her.

[Assistant] "That’s right."


[User] "Yeah, I think that, too… Goodness, Subaru, you’re such an idiot."

[Assistant] "Wait, isn’t that reaction weird?! Shouldn’t we be falling back in love or something?!"

[User] "I wasn’t in love to begin with! You really are such a… I’m an idiot, too."

[Assistant] Subaru looked hurt at the exaggerated reaction. Emilia’s final murmur never reached him.

[User] Emilia’s smile deepened. The softness of her charming smile was as if the earlier pressure on her was long forgotten, like Subaru had unintentionally bewitched her with his own spell. He couldn’t express how Emilia looked at that moment with mere words like pretty or cute.

[Assistant] “E M D (Emilia-tan’s Majorly Divine)!”

[User] "I’m genuinely grateful and you joke about it like that…?" Emilia tapered her lips in a slightly annoyed pout and pushed a finger into Subaru’s forehead again. It was likely not Subaru’s mere imagination that these occasional touches carried more warmth than they had before.

[Assistant] "Having said all that…it’s nice that you’re trying hard, but how’d you get your hand all beat up like that, anyway?"

[User] "Oh, this one’s simple. This afternoon, I tagged along when Rem went shopping at the village close to the mansion. The kids were playing around with me when this little dog-ish thing chomped on me."

[Assistant] "So it’s not the product of hard work?!"

[User] "Nah, it’s so big you can’t notice the traces of hard work… I didn’t think I was the type animals hated, though…" Back in his own world, children and little animals loved him—that, or he just looked like a pushover. That made the former result odder still. But his effect on kids was still going strong.

[Assistant] "The village kids… They smacked me, kicked me, and blew snot on me, too. That sucked, damn it."

[User] "Somehow you seem good at looking after little kids, Subaru."

[Assistant] "That’s taking it the wrong way, Emilia-tan. Winning them over now means I’ll reap the rewards when they grow up. I’m a long-term thinker, see."

[User] "Yes, yes. I will admit you’re honest about your petty stubbornness." Emilia, accustomed to Subaru’s silliness, let it roll over her as she stretched and looked up at the sky.

[Assistant] "I’d best return to my room now. How about you?"

[User] "I can’t sleep by Emilia-tan’s side, so I’ll head back, too."

[Assistant] "You get that job only when you’ve polished your skills with your current work."

[User] "Now you said it. Just watch, they’re gonna write legends about me…!" Subaru took Emilia’s words to heart, burning with enthusiasm. Emilia made a strained smile as Subaru looked back and raised a finger.

[Assistant] "Ah, right. Would you come with me tomorrow when I give the village brats some payba—er, a lovey-dovey da—er, go to watch the cute little animals?"

[User] "Why did you correct yourself several times…?"


[User] "And, ah, I…” Emilia lowered her eyes, seeming hesitant as she murmured, “I don’t mind going with you, and I’m curious about that small animal, so…”

[Assistant] “Okay, let’s go, then!”

[User] “But it might be troublesome for you to have me with you like…”

[Assistant] “Got it, let’s go!”

[User] “…Are you really listening?”

[Assistant] “I’m listening! I could never let a single word or phrase from Emilia-tan escape!”

[User] “Oh, Subaru, I just hate you!”

[Assistant] “Aaa! Aaa! Sorry, what was that?! I can’t hear you!” How Subaru covered his ears, spectacularly taking back what he’d said the moment before, made Emilia break out in laughter, all ills forgotten.

[User] Then, she wiped a teardrop from her eyes with a finger as she looked at Subaru. “Goodness…but only after I finish my studying and you finish all your work, Subaru?”

[Assistant] “Oh yeah! Roger that! I’ll so totally get them done!” With the date arranged, Subaru made a dramatic fist-pump pose.

[User] Watching Subaru’s self-satisfied look, a charming smile came over Emilia as she let out a little sigh. “I was thinking, watching you makes my worries seem so small, Subaru.”

[Assistant] “No way?! I mean, you might become queen; worries and social stress like that would turn my stomach inside out!”

[User] Emilia, unable to hold back any more, burst out laughing, her mirthful voice making Subaru laugh, too. The two laughing like that announced that their rendezvous for that night had come to an end.

[Assistant] “Come to think of it, why are you dressed like that after work?”

[User] “Ah, I thought it’d make a good impression on you… So, what do you think? Pretty handsome, huh?”

[Assistant] “Mm, I suppose so. It has that ‘I’m a capable servant’ look.”

[User] “Well, there you go crushing my hopes!”


[Assistant] 12 Subaru had his hand on the door, peeking in as he spoke in a casual voice. “Huh, do you actually sleep right, loli girl? If you stay up too late, you won’t grow as tall as you should and you’ll end up as an adult that short.”

[User] Beatrice replied with resentment in her voice. “…Do you breach the Passage as if it is a matter of course, I wonder?” She sat on the wooden stool well within the archive as she glared at Subaru.

[Assistant] “Did you have a reason to come see me, I wonder?”

[User] “Not really. I thought I’d say hi before I went to bed. I was gonna give up if I didn’t get it in three tries, but I got it in one, so…”

[Assistant] “Truly, what kind of intuition do you have…?” Beatrice had a tired look as she pulled on one of her rolls. When her fingers released it, the stretchy, elastic roll bounced the other way. The sight struck Subaru profoundly.

[User] “Can I try it, too?”

[Assistant] “Only Puckie may touch the likes of me… Would you go away already, I wonder?”

[User] “Not fair only you get to play. Oh well.


[User] “I’m in a good mood, so I’ll forgive you.” Still buoyant from the promised date, Subaru headed out as Beatrice glowered at him. But the moment before the door closed, he thought he heard a voice speak with a lonely echo.

[Assistant] “—That has nothing to do with me.”

[User] The voice tugged at him. “Huh, gotta open the door so I can give her a good comeback.” The once-open door to the secret archive now led to a simple guest room once more. He tried opening and closing the door in front of him to see if he could catch it connecting to the archive again.

[Assistant] Rem looked beside herself as she watched Subaru there, opening and closing the door. “…What have you been doing? Checking the condition of the lock?”

[User] “Oh yeah, I thought I heard a creak in the hall the last few nights… So that was you, Rem?”

[Assistant] Rem was carrying a silver tray with nothing on it in one hand as she watched Subaru feel up the door. “Is something bothering you?”

[User] “Nah, this led to the archive of forbidden books with the loli girl till just now; it’s gone, though.”

[Assistant] “Did you want something from Lady Beatrice? You could ask me if you prefer…?”

[User] “Just saying hi before going to sleep. Nothing…big.” The phrase he heard from Beatrice just before the door closed was on Subaru’s mind, but he shook his head—it wasn’t something he needed to press her about at the moment. “What, you’re still working, Rem? Better turn in. Morning’s coming quickly.”

[Assistant] “I’ll sleep after I do the dishes. At the moment, Sister is serving tea to Master Roswaal, you see.”

[User] “What the heck are those two doing at a time— Ah, well, that’s fine.” It was almost past midnight; he didn’t much care for Roswaal and Ram having a private chat, discussing some lively topic between just the two of them. Not my business to say, though, Subaru reflected. He suddenly realized that Rem was watching him. Her pale blue eyes were staring in the direction of his head. “Don’t suppose chances like this come up much. Doesn’t look like it bothers you any, though.”

[Assistant] “…No, until now it has not bothered me that much, or somewhat, or even a little bit.”

[User] “Geez, downplaying a bunch of times back-to-back makes it sound like it really bothers you!” The sharpness and intensity of Rem’s gaze increased to the point that his capacity for speech faltered. Subaru wrapped up work rather late and Rem had been constantly busy, so few opportunities presented themselves. What the heck, thought Subaru with a grimace when Rem raised her hand a bit. “If you like, how about I do it now?”

[Assistant] “What… Now? It’s pretty late, isn’t it?”

[User] “A quick cut and wash will not take very long.


[User] “If I do not, I cannot fulfill the cherished desire you confided in me from your own lips, Subaru.”

[Assistant] “Cherished desire is a little much!” For such a neutral expression, Subaru saw Rem’s eyes brimming with fierce determination. Subaru scratched his face, realizing it must have annoyed her quite a bit over the last four days. He wanted to do something about that annoyance if he could, but—

[User] “Sorry, Rem. I’ve made a promise to go out with Emilia tomorrow. I’ve gotta get up early and take care of work quickly, so I really can’t do it tonight…”

[Assistant] “Is that so… No, I was being unreasonable. I’m sorry.” Using the just-made promise as his reason for putting off the promise he’d made to Rem before, at his own suggestion, weighed on his conscience. But Rem was a practical girl and tried to take Subaru’s circumstances into account. Feeling guilty about Rem’s position, Subaru felt his words left a bitter taste in his own mouth when suddenly,

[User] “How about tomorrow night?”

[Assistant] “…At night, you say?”

[User] “My condition for the promise with Emilia is getting all my work wrapped up. There’s no special work scheduled for tomorrow afternoon, so after that, since it’s still on your mind…” As he spoke, he was truly shocked with himself for arranging dates with two girls on the same day. Not that his feelings toward Emilia and Rem were in the same vein to begin with… With Rem, he felt fondness toward a fellow coworker. He still didn’t really know how he felt toward Emilia.

[Assistant] Faced with Subaru’s suggestion, Rem closed her eyes and made a small nod. “Understood. Tomorrow night it is. This is a firm promise, you understand?”

[User] “I don’t know why it bothers you that much, but yeah, a promise it is. Tomorrow night, then.” He thought about making it a pinkie promise, but he hesitated, not knowing if such a thing existed in that world’s customs. As he hesitated, Rem made a polite bow, turning around with a small flutter of her skirt. She departed with quiet, gliding steps. Subaru watched her go before heading back to his room, biting down a yawn as he mentally went over his schedule for the coming day.

[Assistant] “I have to thank the kids for creating the reason for a date all the way to the village tomorrow. Oh, before I do that, got to find out where the best flower gardens are…” As he entered his room, he held his nose high and puffed out his chest, full of hopes and dreams for the coming day. Subaru stripped off his butler uniform, giving himself a makeover with the tracksuit as he crawled into bed. As his head hit the pillow, his eyes were open, thoughts racing about the next day, not conducive to sleep at all. Faced with his mind betraying his body, Subaru immediately switched mental gears and resorted to his secret weapon.


[User] Namely… “One Puck, two Pucks…” In the back of his mind, little gray kitty cats were running around and frolicking as he counted them one by one. Subaru linked his fantasy Puck to the real one, letting his memory of the fluffy feline lead him to a happy place. His mind slowly sank, pulled into dreamland. “One…hundred and four Pucks…” Picturing a fluffy paradise, warmth enveloped his mind—and finally vanished.

[Assistant] As Subaru awoke, he felt like his consciousness was rising as if poking his head through the water’s surface. Suddenly released from the suffocating feeling, his eyes opened, waiting several seconds to take in the world. He felt like he’d woken up in a different place than where he’d gone to bed. He felt sunlight burning his eyes. Subaru sat up his slightly sluggish body and shook his head. His head was a bit heavy. Perhaps he was tired from not being entirely used to his new life yet. But this was not the day for such weak thoughts. Wide-awake, Subaru went over the date promise he’d made with Emilia the night before. “That’s right, Subaru Natsuki—today’s the time to leap into action!” The day was a day with a happy future. A day he’d awakened to crisply, a day of promised victory. But…


[User] “—” Pink-haired and blue-haired twin sisters looked upon Subaru’s determined face in surprise. Subaru, blushing to the tips of his ears, buried his face in the pillow to hide it.

[Assistant] “What! You were there?! Then you should’ve said something! Aw man, I’m so, so embarrassed!” The fact that they’d stopped rousing him awake two days before made him careless. To think that both of them would visit on that particular morning… As usual, the twins’ expressions did not change much as Subaru groaned on top of the bedding. Though it did seem like they were fighting the temptation to point at him and break out laughing.

[User] “Er, hold on, you two. I mean, that reaction kinda hurts. I’m a delicate soul here. There are other reactions, right? !” He was looking forward to their at least engaging in the cold verbal abuse to which he was accustomed. —Subaru realized afterward that it was quite awful for him to actually be looking forward to the verbal abuse.

[Assistant] “Sister, Sister. He’s greeting us as if he knows us somehow.”

[User] “Rem, Rem. He’s greeting us in a very chummy fashion.” It didn’t feel right. Their murmurs brushed against something in the back of Subaru’s mind.

[Assistant] “Er, ah? Something weird? My seniors coming to wake me up is one thing, but playing pranks on me is bad taste, you know?” Certainly the two were always blunt, but—something felt off. As Subaru spoke, he began to realize why he felt that something was off with them. —Their eyes. The way they looked at Subaru. The familiarity from the previous night was gone; they’d gone back to treating him like a complete stranger. Then, decisive proof came flying at him.


[User] "Sister, Sister. Our Dear Guest seems to be a little confused?"

[Assistant] "Rem, Rem. Our Dear Guest seems to be a little touched in the head."

[User] Subaru was aghast at being called “Dear Guest.” The polite echo made Subaru feel like something sharp had gouged out the back of his stomach. Subaru pressed a hand to his chest to hold back the phantom pain. He didn’t know what it all meant. Their reactions, it was as if—

[Assistant] "You two… Ha-ha, this really isn’t…funny…" With both of them still looking at him like a complete stranger, Subaru abruptly brought up his left hand to block them from his view. But Subaru instantly regretted doing so… …because he saw that the bandage on his left hand was gone. The rough fingertips from kitchen work, the callouses from handling knives in ways he wasn’t used to, the bite marks from the puppy that had bitten him while the children toyed with him—they, too, were gone.


[Assistant] For he absolutely, absolutely did not want anyone to see his face at that moment. Not the people he’d grown so fond of. Not the people who’d seemed to grow so fond of him. He absolutely didn’t want to cry in front of people looking at him like he was a stranger.

[User] "Why’d I…go back? !"


[User] "Mm, that is a pretty attractive suggestion, but…I’ll pass on both." Subaru declined her offer while gazing at the bite marks on the back of his left hand. He’d decided that scars, in a way, were a good thing.

[Assistant] "Well, it’s a mark of honor. No one lives as prettily as on the day they were born."

[User] "It is said that scars are a man’s medals, though all you accomplished on the battlefield were mistakes."

[Assistant] "That might have a kernel of truth, but don’t say stuff so cold, geez!"

[User] The way Rem tilted her head and looked at him indicated she didn’t realize what a venomous tongue she had. That was even scarier. "Besides that, I’ve cut my hand lots of times in front of you before, so why offer to heal me all of a sudden? I mean, you never offered to do it before?"

[Assistant] "That’s because I thought you’d forget if it didn’t hurt, so you should keep the wounds as a warning."

[User] "That’s educational policy straight outta Sparta… So why’d you offer now, then?" He wanted to know the reason why this case was different from the others, making her unable to let this one go.

[Assistant] After Subaru posed his question, Rem kept her silence for a while. Looking at her face from the side, Subaru thought it might have to do with the little smile from earlier. "The futon flew on. The kitten catnapped. Who’s the one who said a pun? !"

[User] "Did you suddenly go wrong in the head?"

[Assistant] "You’re jumping to conclusions. No, I thought I’d find out for sure why you were all smiles earlier." Though, considering her reaction to the demon talk earlier, he thought it could be that, too…

[User] "I thought you’d really go for cheap gags. So I wondered if I tried it, maybe it would put you in a good mood and make you want to be nicer to me, or something like that."

[Assistant] "Do not expect you will get a chance to have me heal your wounds ever again."

[User] "You’re that angry? !"

[Assistant] "I have been this angry since earlier from your bad-mouthing Sister behind her back."

[User] "I do that a lot lately!" The look Rem shot at Subaru grew sharper still thanks to that last comment.

[Assistant] Fearful, Subaru gave up on apologizing, closing his mouth and gazing at the sky. Evening was slowly giving way to night. That was when he felt his limbs stiffen.


[User] "So the challenge is to get to tomorrow morning safely—but before that…" Subaru thinks about making sure that he actually had a promise with Emilia for a date to begin with.

[Assistant] For the second time, Subaru Natsuki was approaching his greatest crisis during his first week at Roswaal Manor.

[User] "So, since Ram and Rem both said they weren’t going to show their faces here tonight, I’ve come to supervise your studying in their place. Not that I can do much to help…" Emilia cutely stuck out her tongue.

[Assistant] Subaru is sitting facing the desk, with Emilia sitting on the bed, watching him like a hawk, ferociously whittling down his endurance.

[User] Subaru is thinking about how there's a cute girl in the room of a teenage boy, just the two of them, late at night like this.

[Assistant] "Hmm. You’re taking studying more seriously than I expected, Subaru." Emilia got up and voiced her admiration.

[User] Subaru was desperately chanting innocent inside his head, unable to feel innocent at all.

[Assistant] Subaru fumbled with his notebook as he opened it to show Emilia where he’d gotten in his studying.

[User] "R-right now I’m learning basic I-characters by writing them. My current goal is to read this picture book for kids, since it’s mostly written in I-script."

[Assistant] "Hmm, the goal is a picture book… Ah!"

[User] "What, it’s got an interesting story or something?"

[Assistant] Emilia lightly shook her head at Subaru as her hand stopped midway through browsing the picture book he was using for reference.

[User] "Well, nothing big, but yes, a little. When you can read this, too… Yeah." Emilia audibly closing the book, sat on the bed once more and got comfortable.

[Assistant] Subaru was unable to conceal how Emilia’s refined but unguarded nature left his mind all jumbled.

[User] "Normally I wouldn’t be doing this for someone I met only a few days ago, but I’m giving you special treatment…to thank you for your hard work."

[Assistant] "Sheesh, that’s not a whole lot of thanks, Emilia. If you want to show your thanks, how about a massage? Something to melt away and heal all the aches and pains of a hard day’s work, geh-heh-heh."

[User] Emilia clapped her hands as she scolded him. "That sounds perverted somehow, so no. And don’t change the subject. Keep going, will you?"

[Assistant] Subaru turned back toward the desk as he fought his worldly desires.


[User] Subaru chanted innocent, innocent in his head as he wrote the characters onto the notebook, driving out idle thoughts as he focused his head on one thing at a time.

[Assistant] “Goodness, you can do it just fine if you don’t let yourself get distracted.”

[User] “That’s because I lose track of everything around me once I’m into something. That’s why I’m straight-like-an-arrow aimed at the person I like!”

[Assistant] “Hmm, is that so? It’d be nice if the person you like notices that sooner rather than later.” Emilia brushed it off like it had nothing to do with her.

[User] “Hey, Subaru… Why don’t you take work as seriously as you do studying?”

[Assistant] “My motto is to be diligently un-diligent…is what I would say, but this isn’t the right mood for that. Uh?”

[User] “It’s a serious matter—Ram was complaining about it a little, too. From time to time it feels like you’re holding back.” Emilia’s words and expression both held distaste at having to convey such a message.

[Assistant] Subaru could make only a pained grimace, for she had hit the mark.

[User] “…So you do feel guilty about it. It feels like you’re honest to a fault in some odd places, Subaru. You’re not slacking off studying, after all.”

[Assistant] “Well, there’s some little circum… I guess that’s not an excuse. I’ll put everything into it starting tomorrow, so please forgive me, Your Highness!”

[User] “Mnn, I have no objections… Ah, was that a little off?” Emilia cutely tilted her head, perhaps wondering if she’d been a little too haughty.

[Assistant] Subaru, relieved at seeing Emilia’s stance softening, firmly resolved to honor the pledge to Emilia he’d just given.

[User] “Feelings are real important here. I want my renewed hard work to completely provoke those two sisters!”

[Assistant] “And there, another splendid moment completely wasted… Are you finished studying?”

[User] “I managed to get today’s part done! Hey, Emilia, would you listen to a little request of mine? I’d like a reward for working hard from tomorrow on, so…?”

[Assistant] “A reward?


[User] "Just so you know, I don’t have a lot of money I can spare."

[Assistant] "Wow, you sure were brought up strict. Now, now, just hear me out. I’ll work seriously starting tomorrow, so…let’s go on a date!"

[User] Subaru posed with a full smile and a thumbs-up as he made his proposal to Emilia.

[Assistant] Faced with the greatest smiling face in Subaru’s arsenal, Emilia’s big eyes blinked slowly. "Um, what’s a date?"

[User] "Heh. A date is when a guy and a girl go out all by themselves. What happens between them, only the Goddess of Love knows!"

[Assistant] "Then you went on a date with Rem today, Subaru?"

[User] "Nooo, an unexpected counterattack?! Please, that didn’t count, that didn’t count! !"

[Assistant] "I understand you want to go out with me, but where?"

[User] "Actually, there’s this village close to the mansion with this super lovely mutt. It has flower gardens, too. I wanna use my metia to record for all eternity you standing among the blooming flowers." Subaru went to a corner of his bedroom, where his shopping bag with his few, precious possessions from his original world were stored. The cell phone and cup of ramen were still in there, having survived the ferocious combat at the fence’s shop. "If the battery holds up, I wanna fill the whole memory card with pictures of Emilia…"

[Assistant] "Ah…the village, huh?" In front of the person who wanted to drag her out from her daily routine, Emilia put her hand to her cheek, deep in thought.

[User] Subaru recalled that she’d hesitated considerably before the last date invitation, too. Somehow he’d gotten her to say yes the last time. Subaru made his teeth shine to recreate that memory. "The dog’s super cute. Let’s go!"

[Assistant] "But it might cause you quite a bit of trouble, Subaru. The villagers…."

[User] "The kids there are completely innocent, totally a bunch of angels. Let’s go!"

[Assistant] "…All right already. It can’t be helped. I’ll just have to go with you."

[User] "The flower gardens are magical and wonderful and… Wait, seriously?" He was struck senseless at how Emilia seemed less resistant to the idea than last time.

[Assistant] Subaru was still thrown off as Emilia tapered her lips and drew in her delicate shoulders. "If that’ll make you work hard from tomorrow on, I’ll go with you. So don’t go drifting off anywhere, okay…?"

[User] "Nope, nope, will do no such thing! My soul’s already burning with determination to finish all my work perfectly!"

[Assistant] "Your soul’s burning for something like that? !" Emilia’s shocked face at Subaru’s burning drive sent them both into laugher.


[User] "It’ll probably be clear tomorrow, too.”

[Assistant] “—Yeah. It’ll be a day I’ll never forget.”

[User] “There you go again, Subaru…” Emilia turned around and leaned against the windowsill as she began to admonish Subaru for his frivolity. But her tongue stopped moving when she saw the expression on Subaru’s face.


[Assistant] No doubt it was because, when she hadn’t been looking, Subaru’s expression had become uncharacteristically serious.

[User] “If you stay here too long, I’m gonna end up falling asleep and mistaking you for a squeeze pillow till morning…”

[Assistant] “Just now… Ahh, it’s nothing.”

[User] “You know, if you suddenly stop talking like that, it really makes guys nervous…?”

[Assistant] “It’s nothing!” Emilia, perhaps set off by his probing the deeper meaning of her actions, remarked as she left the window and cutely strode past Subaru. She went straight to the doorknob before looking back.

[User] “Now then, Butler Subaru. Work hard come tomorrow. Rewards come only to children who work hard for them.” She made a light wave of her hand to bid him good night, followed by a smile and a toss of her hair. Without waiting for Subaru’s reply, the silver silhouette vanished past the doorway.

[Assistant] He could stretch out his hand, but it could not reach. All that remained in his room of the lovely girl was the faint scent of her perfume in the air. But—

[User] “Hold on, hold on, seriously? Geez, I’m getting real popular here. Seriously.”

[Assistant] The promise had been made once more. Now, Subaru could challenge the night again. It was six hours to get through the fourth night. Six hours before the promised morning of the fifth day.

[User] “Now, Mr. Fate, let’s do this—”


[Assistant] Subaru was sitting on the floor with his back against the bed, anxiously passing each moment as he waited for daybreak. The coldness of the floor hadn’t really registered in the two-plus hours he’d spent sitting there. But Subaru’s body was extremely, almost excessively aware of the cold. The reason was simple.

[User] “Who could sleep with his heart pounding like this anyway? !”

[Assistant] His heartbeat was fast and loud, making large thumps that he could swear were ringing in his eardrums. His senses were keen to the point of feeling his blood coursing through his whole body; his fingers throbbed nonstop like they were numb.

[User] “Here’s what I get for looking forward to the promise with Emilia. Geez, I haven’t had this much trouble sleeping since before that picnic in first grade…and I ended up oversleeping for the school trip. Really takes me back…”

[Assistant] His reminiscing distracting him somewhat, Subaru glared at the sky he’d been looking up at for hours on end.

[User] Still a long time, he belatedly thought. It was about four hours until morning. He didn’t feel sleepy whatsoever, but remaining on guard for whatever might occur had frayed his nerves. Thinking of the possibility of an attack made it impossible for him to focus on anything else to kill time.


[User] Besides, continuing to think was the only thing Subaru could do. He’d redone the last four days, as in, four days for the second time. There were numerous differences in discord with prior events. They had heavily affected the path he’d taken to reach that night. But Subaru had surely checked off the majority of the events in his memory. However, what nagged at him was that he still didn’t have a clue how to avoid causing a new loop. Relations with Emilia were good. He felt like relations with Ram and Rem were getting better, but… He hadn’t encountered Beatrice since that night. The last time, it wasn’t for long, but Subaru had been in contact with Beatrice. Setting that aside, he had barely seen Beatrice this time around. Strict time management had prevented him from exchanging more than a few words with her.

[Assistant] "Just like before, she gave me a good tongue-lashing just from seeing my face, sheesh…" He didn’t recall having much discussion with her, but it was most certainly Beatrice’s being there that had saved Subaru’s mind from shattering when confronted with facing his “second” first day. It was the sheer normality of how she blew him off that made Subaru feel calm enough to find himself.

[User] "I should’ve thanked her for that somehow." Not that Beatrice would appreciate what he was thanking her for, and no doubt she’d make quite a sour face if he did, but Subaru still wanted to share his thoughts with her. With a smile, he thought back on the thorny conversations the two had instead engaged in. If he made it to the next morning, there would be lots and lots more that he could accomplish. He had things he wanted to say, not just to Beatrice but to Ram, Rem, and even Roswaal. Of course, he wanted that to be after first exhausting ten thousand words on Emilia. Looking back on it, he had to smile. Putting last time and that time together, it was eight days all told. Maybe it was the mushy feeling inside him that made his eyelids seem a bit heavier, though there were still three whole hours until morning.

[Assistant] "This isn’t an MMO. It’s no joke if I fall asleep here…" He rubbed his eyelids as the sudden sleepiness faded away. But the sleepiness had come with a chill; he made a bitter smile as his body began shivering out of the blue. He cradled both shoulders, trying to raise his body temperature. But the chill wouldn’t leave him no matter what he did. Still, the sleepiness gradually got worse.


[User] “This is bad; don’t tell me this is…? !” Feeling a chill that came not from cold but from fear, Subaru nervously put his hands on the floor. But with the shaking already spreading through his whole body, his arms could not support him.

[Assistant] When he got up, his knees felt creaky enough to break apart; Subaru was aghast at how sluggish and nauseated he felt. “S-somebody…” Subaru’s heart rate, so strong just earlier, had weakened, and his breathing was hard as he left the room.

[User] He wanted to call for help, but his raspy voice caught in his throat. His legs were cramping as if his lungs weren’t accepting oxygen from the dry air that hovered in the dark corridor. This is bad, was the thought that dominated the back of Subaru’s mind.

[Assistant] He didn’t have any tangible understanding of what was happening to his body. The one thing he did know was that his life was in danger. Subaru sluggishly walked forward, groaning as he made his way toward the stairway going up.

[User] Each step through the familiar passageway was labored enough that it seemed to shave off another piece of his soul. “Haa…haa…” Reaching the stairs, he climbed up one step at a time on hands and feet.

[Assistant] He wondered how long it would take him to reach the top. Just thinking about it deflated Subaru as he crawled deeper into the hallway.

[User] The insides of his body seemed to be melting; he felt like everything was turning into some kind of soup. The vomit that welled up dripped from the corner of Subaru’s mouth onto the corridor; his face was stained with tears.

[Assistant] Subaru, crawling so pathetically, had only one thing, one person, in the back of his mind. —Emilia. Emilia. Emilia. I have to get to Emilia.

[User] Responsibility, or perhaps duty—Subaru was driven by an emotion he couldn’t put into words. In that moment, Subaru had none of the self-preservation instinct common to all species.

[Assistant] Subaru, crawling his way to Emilia’s room, was already barely breathing. His arms too weak to bear the weight of his body, he leaned against the wall and slid his way forward.

[User] Anyone watching would have felt less pity than disgust at his having lost the dignity of walking upright like a man. “—” His whole body was sluggish. His breaths were ragged as his ears continued their high-pitched ringing.

[Assistant] So it was pure happenstance, one might even say dumb luck, that Subaru noticed the strange sound. —The sound he noticed was like the clank of a chain.

[User] Getting a bad feeling, he stopped moving. His shoulder slid down the wall; he pressed his head against the floor. “—Uh?” The next moment, an impact blew Subaru back.

[Assistant] Subaru’s body, flopping to the floor but a moment before, flew. He bounced several times, his face literally wiping the floor, as Subaru realized something had hit him incredibly hard. There was no pain.


[User] “What happ…” What happened, he started to say as he tried to put his hand to the floor to lift himself. But his shaking hand had no strength to grip the floor. That was strange. He had no balance. His right arm was working so hard; what was his left arm doing? Where’d it run off to? Annoyed for no tangible reason, Subaru glared at his useless left arm. —That was when he realized that everything left of his shoulder had been torn off.

[Assistant] “—Ah?” Falling on his side, Subaru gazed dumbfounded at his amputated left arm. A large quantity of blood gushed out from the wound carved into him that had sent his left arm and shoulder flying, dyeing the hallway red. A moment after he noticed the existence of the wound, Subaru was wracked with pain like lightning coursing through his whole body. Subaru, no longer able to process the pain and heat, flailed around like a stranded, dying fish and slammed himself against the ground several times, too choked up to even scream. His vision faded, with red and yellow light mixing together as Subaru’s consciousness faded from the mansion. I wanna die. I wanna die. I wanna die. I wanna die. I wanna die. I wanna die. I don’t wanna live. I just wanna die. I’ll die soon. I’m dead. I don’t know anything. Everything’s far off. Can’t remember anything. Don’t care about anything. Just let me die already. As if responding to Subaru’s earnest plea—

[User] “The sound of a chain…” That faint sound was the last thing he heard before his skull was smashed.


[Assistant] “—! !” Waking up screaming was an experience that was bad for the heart. Subaru, thrusting off the sheets as he woke, breathed raggedly as he absorbed the shock.

[User] “L-left hand… It’s here; it’s here, isn’t it?” He stretched his left hand into thin air as if grasping for something with it. His severed, blown-off left side was intact. Clutching his right arm to confirm it, too, was there, the sense of loss Subaru absorbed for a while made him shake and feel sick to his stomach. Subaru felt like his heart was wrenching as he looked at his restored left hand. Of course, there were no scars, either, not from being blown off, not from the dog biting the back of his hand.

[Assistant] “I’ve gone back again…” The vanishing scars meant that Subaru had lost his bout against fate. He’d gone back in time. Perhaps one could instead say that he’d been given another chance for a rematch. At any rate, he had to confirm the time—and as he arrived at that thought…

[User] “Ah, sorry. Good morning.” Subaru finally realized that the twins were clutching each other in a corner of the room as they watched him.


[User] Like small animals keeping their distance, neither replied to Subaru’s completely out-of-place greeting. Subaru scratched his head as he wondered what he should do. Ram and Rem had no doubt forgotten about Subaru. That pained Subaru’s chest somewhat, but Subaru ignored the pain and formed a smile. He’d show his sincerity as the first step to getting along. After all, even if they’d forgotten him, he hadn’t forgotten them. "Sorry for the trouble. Subaru Natsuki, rebooted and ready to go!" Subaru strongly rose from bed, standing and pointing his index finger to the heavens.

[Assistant] Disregarding the twins’ surprise at his sudden approach, Subaru remained in his dramatic pose and said, “By the way, what’s the date and time?”

[User] —And so began his first day at Roswaal Manor for the third time.


[User] "How very rude. Yes, I suppose that is in your nature, Dear Guest?” Rem was behaving just like she had at the mansion, her curtsy and polite speech so thoroughly out of place that he felt like he really was seeing things.

[Assistant] "I’ll grant you that a girl with a blunt weapon is kind of hot, but…”

[User] Subaru, having tasted its might and losing his life to it once already, knew only too well that Rem’s control of the iron ball was absolute. Little by little, Subaru ground the reality down between his teeth, his mouth forming the words he was reaching for. “It’s kinda cliché to ask, but…why are you doing this?”

[Assistant] "It is nothing complicated. You are suspicious, so I will render judgment as a maid should.”

[User] "Haven’t you ever heard of ‘love thy neighbor’…?”

[Assistant] "I am fully committed to this, so…” Rem looked at Subaru like she expected a prompt response, apparently having no intention of letting him play for time.

[User] “—Does Ram know about this?” Abruptly, he invoked the name of the sister sharing Rem’s face.

[Assistant] "I intend to finish this before Sister is aware of it.”

[User] Subaru took a deep breath and looked back straight into Rem’s eyes.

[Assistant] Rem raised her brows as she watched Subaru lick his lips as if he’d come back to life. "So you decided this on your own? Roswaal didn’t order you?”

[User] "I will eliminate all who oppose Master Roswaal’s wishes. You are merely one.”

[Assistant] "Man, can’t he train his lapdogs not to bite at people just passing thro— Ugh? !” Subaru taunted Rem a little to probe Rem’s true feelings, only to have the chain leap in from the side.

[User] "You shall not insult Master Roswaal.”

[Assistant] The blunt impact made his vision waver; a sharp pain conveyed the vertical cut in his left cheek. With the iron ball still stuck in the rock face, she’d smacked Subaru by using the chain as a whip. So that was the price he paid for his flippant taunt.


[User] But he’d gotten something for it. At the very least, he could now confirm that Rem’s loyalty to Roswaal was the real thing. She no doubt really believed silencing Subaru was for Roswaal’s benefit. She’d decided that Subaru’s leaving Roswaal Manor was disadvantageous for Roswaal, who was supporting Emilia’s candidacy. In other words, this was—

[Assistant] "Ah, that’s what it is— That’s how little you trust me, huh?"

[User] "Yes." Her grudging nod made Subaru feel pain equal to a sharp blade being thrust deep into his chest.

[Assistant] Subaru had dreaded that answer, for accepting it meant looking at his days at the manor in an entirely different light. So Subaru didn’t say it. He locked that horrid feeling deep in his chest. But he couldn’t help himself from laughing at his own obliviousness. "Damn, just look at me. I thought I’d done all right, but I was so wrong…"

[User] "…My sister—"

[Assistant] "I don’t wanna hear it—! Take this!" Rem hesitated slightly for one instant as Subaru shouted and drew his cell phone from his pocket, thrusting it before him.


[User] —The next moment, a white light cut through the darkness of the forest, freezing Rem momentarily. "—Raaah!" Subaru screamed as he leapt in and tackled her small body, knocking her away. Rem was able to wield that violent device with unbelievable force, but in a straight-up collision, Subaru’s greater height and weight won out. His charge held nothing back, sending her small body flying; she lost her balance and stumbled to the ground. Subaru didn’t spend even a moment to look at her as he rushed past. He wheezed as he shoved air into his lungs and thought as he ran. If this was Rem’s decision alone, Subaru had two options for survival. One surely was to return to the manor and speak directly to her master. But if Roswaal thought the same way Rem did, he’d simply be going from the frying pan into the fire. "But even so…there’s Emilia…!" His memory of her shone brighter than that of any other. If he could trust anyone, it was her. —But would she, a royal candidate, trust Subaru’s words when she had the most to lose from doing so?

[Assistant] "—? !" Instantly, the voice from the back of Subaru’s head struck him with the force of a thunderbolt. Without any doubt, it had been his voice that doubted Emilia’s heart. It was Subaru himself who had doubted her, knowing how she was forthright, earnest, and unhesitant to put herself in harm’s way for others. "Why…am I doing…!" His standpoint had changed, and so had his thoughts. But to doubt Emilia? If Subaru couldn’t even trust the person he’d resolved to protect, who could he believe in? He was pathetically fleeing through the mountains because of the big plan he’d formed to protect the life of someone whose heart he doubted. How sane was that? —He’d gather intel this time? Yeah, right.


[User] Why was he here, under threat from a completely unexpected direction, running for his life like this? He’d been too proud. He’d been naive. He hadn’t thought it through. His breath ragged, half running and half falling down a slope, Subaru was awash in regrets. He whined as tears clouded his vision. His steps grew clumsy. Suddenly, the trees opened wide into a clearing; Subaru saw that night was creeping across the sky.

[Assistant] "—Ah?" A blade of extremely concentrated wind lashed out, slicing off Subaru’s right leg at the knee, sending it flying away. Subaru watched his right foot leap and bounce with great force as he lost his balance, slamming into the ground. The impact made the cut on his cheek bleed again; his shoulder bone sounded like it’d exploded as it rammed into the rock.

[User] "Aaaaaaagh! M-my leeeeeg?!" It didn’t hurt, and that felt scarier. Pieces of his lost lower leg were blown off, sailing into the thickets ahead. A delayed gush of fresh blood dyed the ground reddish-black; only then did the pain invade his nervous system in earnest.

[Assistant] "—!" He clawed at the ground as unspeakable pain rippled through him. He pressed down on the wound, thrashed his body, pounded his free right hand against the ground, smacked a tree, and clawed at the bark as his consciousness boiled from the heat. It hurt, it hurt, it really hurt. He felt the pain shaving away his nerves as if a carpenter’s plane were whittling him from the inside out. Having lost so much blood so quickly, it gradually dawned on him that he was dying.

[User] "Mana of Water, grant thy healing." A soft palm abruptly pressed down on Subaru’s thrashing body. Unable to move, Subaru shifted his bloodshot eyes and noticed the girl in the maid outfit at his side. It was the blue-haired Rem. Rem, who had tried to kill Subaru just now, enveloped her palm in a pale light, pouring warm magical energy onto Subaru’s amputated right leg. He felt the itch of healing magic. The pain didn’t vanish completely, but shock seized Subaru at the surreal scene. Subaru didn’t know why Rem was healing him at a time like this. Sensing Subaru’s gaze, she gave him a soft, casual smile.

[Assistant] "I will not be able to ask you anything if I let you die so easily." It truly sank in what an optimistic idiot he was. Rem stood up as she finished her first aid, making a sound with her chain as she pulled along the iron ball. Subaru was lying faceup with the iron ball gouging the earth as it neared him. The closer he saw it, the clearer it looked like the crude, unrefined, specialized tool for violence that it was, existing only to take life.


[User] "—I am confiscating this." Rem spoke as she crouched and opened up Subaru’s firmly closed hand.

[Assistant] Rem roughly pried open his fingers and took the knife, turning it around in her hand. "Had you stabbed me with this earlier, you would have been able to flee a little farther." Rem knitted her brows, speaking like she couldn’t comprehend Subaru’s illogical act.

[User] Subaru, suppressing his breathing amid the throbbing pain, shook his head.

[Assistant] Rem sighed and discarded the knife into the forest thicket. She seemed to refocus her attention as she made the chain clank and coldly looked down at Subaru. "I ask you, are you working with one of Lady Emilia’s rival claimants to the throne?"

[User] “…My heart belongs to Emilia.”

[Assistant] The moment he spoke, the chain ferociously lashed Subaru’s upper body. His shirt, scratched all over during his flight, easily tore open, as did the skin underneath.

[User] Subaru’s scream echoed through the forest.

[Assistant] "Who hired you and on what terms?"

[User] "E-Emilia-tan’s smiling face is…priceless."

[Assistant] She moved her wrist the other way and did the same thing again.

[User] Feeling like she’d lashed him in precisely the same place, he knew his anguished cry served as praise for her skill.

[Assistant] She asked more questions like that.

[User] He made more replies like that.

[Assistant] Several times more, the chain rang out.

[User] Several times more, Subaru’s painful cries matched it.

[Assistant] When his consciousness faded, Rem treated him with healing magic. Trapped in a hell of repeated healing and violence, Subaru’s spirit frayed; he lost consciousness several times like that.

[User] Rem must have felt tired of Subaru’s obstinate attitude when she wiped the blood spatter off her face and looked up at the sky. "If I do not get back soon, I will be late preparing the meal…"

[Assistant] “…Dinner, huh. What’s on the menu today, huh…”

[User] "Let’s see. How about mincemeat pie?"

[Assistant] "S-sorry, I think I’ll have to skip it…"

[User] Rem finally showed some sign of emotion as she sighed at Subaru’s behavior, flippant to the bitter end. After that, she fell silent for a while before looking down at Subaru, her eyes colder than ever before as she interrogated him. "—Are you a member of the Witch Cult?"

[Assistant] Subaru knit his brow, perplexed at having vocabulary he’d never heard before thrown at him.


[User] "Answer, please. You are one of the Bewitched, yes?"

[Assistant] "...Be what?"

[User] "Do not play games with me!"

[Assistant] Agitated, Rem’s pale blue eyes shot daggers through Subaru in a rage. It was literally the first time Subaru had seen Rem worked up like this since they’d met. Rem’s pale face glowered as she looked down at Subaru with pure hostility. "I don’t know them… My whole family’s atheist to begin with…"

[User] "Still denying it? It is plain you are involved with the witch. Her stench is all over you!"

[Assistant] Hatred. Rem’s eyes seethed with dark hatred as they glared at Subaru. "Even if Sister or no one else notices, I can smell it on you! The leftover stench of that monster makes me want to spit in disgust!"

[User] Subaru fell silent.

[Assistant] Rem, standing before him, bit her lip so hard that she seemed to be grinding her teeth. "I was anxious and angry when I saw you speaking with Sister. You, someone involved with the one who put Sister through so much…weaseling into our precious home—!" Her words of undiluted malice mercilessly bathed Subaru in bitterness. "I have been watching you since Master Roswaal welcomed you…but the entire time, it hurt to watch you. I could not bear it."

[User] Subaru had been unable to say a word.

[Assistant] "Even if I knew that the whole time Sister was taking care of you, she was just pretending to be friendly!"

[Assistant] Rem seemed to be making up for her seemingly inadequate emotions by slamming all her bottled-up resentment at Subaru in one go. Rem stopped speaking as her shoulders shook, her eyes filled with rage as they glared at Subaru. Then, her anger abruptly wavered from surprise. "—What the hell…?"

[User] For, as Rem spoke words filled with hatred, Subaru had been crying quietly. "I knew it was…something like that." Sobs came up his throat, hot tears slipping out of his eyes and falling upon his cheeks. The flood of seemingly ceaseless tears continued as Subaru said in a sorrowful, halting voice, "So that’s what it was… I knew there was some reason behind all the kindness. But…I was too afraid to ask…"


[User] “I finally learned how to peel veggies without cutting my hand. I learned how to do laundry right. Didn’t finish learning how to clean the place, but…” He couldn’t have hoped for more in four days. But he’d thought that, if he could get past those four days, there was much more to learn in the days to come. “Reading… It’s just the simple stuff, but I can do that now. I studied like I promised. I read the picture book. It’s all thanks to you two…”

[Assistant] "What are you…talking about?" The tone of Rem’s voice fell, like she was creeped out by Subaru’s rambling words.

[User] Subaru looked straight up into Rem’s eyes. “I’m talking about what you two have done for me…”

[Assistant] “I recall no such thing.”

[User] "—Why don’t you remember? !" The sudden burst of rage made Rem take a step back without thinking. Subaru forced his lying body to rise, glaring at Rem with his teeth bared as he shouted. “Why’d everyone leave me behind…! What did I do to you…! Tell me what I did to you…!” He couldn’t control his emotions. He knew full well he’d be ripped to pieces, but Subaru’s heart, his very soul, could not stop shouting. He’d been summoned to another world, subjected to senseless things, and in spite of it all, he’d gritted his teeth and pushed forward. But he’d reached his limit. “What’d I do wrong? What’s wrong with me? Why do you girls hate me that much…? Even…that promise… I’ve always…”

[Assistant] "—I—”

[User] “I’ve always lo—” —The impact did not permit him to say any more. The sudden force bent back Subaru’s body; it gently hit the tree trunk behind him. Subaru heard nearby sounds like faint breathing and frothing water. When he shifted his gaze, he immediately discovered the cause.

[Assistant] "—" His throat. Half of Subaru’s throat had been ripped out. He was gurgling air and bubbles of blood from the middle of his windpipe. Dumbfounded, he looked at Rem’s face as she stared at the wound. Having seen that much, Subaru’s eyes lost their spark, going dizzy and white. He couldn’t speak. His mind felt like someone had turned off the switch. Everything grew distant. There was no pain, no sadness; he left behind all his emotions. But in the end, he had the faint sense he could hear someone’s sad voice.

[User] “—Sister is too kind.”


[User] Her hands were on his thighs as the silver-haired beauty gazed into Subaru’s eyes with concern.

[Assistant] Subaru seemed to stop holding his breath when he was sure his fingers were moving as he intended. He gingerly touched his own chest, confirming from the outside that his heart was making quiet beats. His body moved. His voice came out. He couldn’t feel any pain from his heart.—But the fear remained. Subaru fell into despair, for it had ripped his one hope to shreds. Just thinking about defying it a second time made him see the swaying black cloud in his mind. Subaru had no choice but to face facts.

[User] Emilia put her palm against Subaru’s face, at a loss as she asked an uncertain question. “—Wh-what’s wrong? You’ve been acting weird since earlier. If something’s wrong…”

[Assistant] Subaru cut off Emilia’s worried voice midway, lying down and turning away his head. He couldn’t face her. His features probably looked horrible. If he looked at Emilia in his current emotional state, there was no telling what he might say to her. Working all out to keep his mind steady, Subaru could manage to say only one thing. He threw away the words he wanted to say. He threw away the feelings that wanted her to hear. He threw away everything. “Don’t have anything to do with me.” Listlessly, that was all he said as he curled into the bed. He didn’t even look at Emilia’s shocked reaction. Unconsciously, Subaru had firmly grasped a single fact the moment the palm touched his chest. —He would not be permitted to break free. Subaru was alone. And he would remain alone.


[User] Roswaal went to Subaru’s room after he’d hurt Emilia with his heartless statement.

[Assistant] Subaru largely didn’t remember what they’d talked about. But he felt like he’d been appraised like an expensive vase. He didn’t know if that was just this time or if it had happened before and he just hadn’t noticed.

[User] “I shall treat you as a guest for as looong as you prefer.”

[Assistant] Subaru felt like he’d said something convenient like that. He also felt like the details didn’t matter anymore. If he left the mansion, they’d shut him up for good. That was certain. But even if he was dead weight in the mansion, he couldn’t avoid getting ground into mincemeat in the near future. He felt like his saved game guaranteed a BAD END.


[User] “—” Subaru was on top of the bed and not moving much, but his breaths were quick and ragged. Fearful of falling asleep, Subaru had used the feathered pen in his hand to cut the back of his other hand several times. Every time his eyelids seemed to droop, he forced his consciousness awake through pain. If he slept, he didn’t know what he’d wake up to. He’d already died three times. In the royal capital loop, he hadn’t experienced more than three deaths. To Subaru, plunged into that first day for the fourth time around, dying a fourth death was unknown territory. —Maybe, if he died here, he’d never come back. He couldn’t find a way to avoid death. But still, he didn’t want to die. He distrusted all and struggled against all in his desperate fight to live. He forgot the passage of time, the churning of his empty stomach; Subaru became eager to simply exist. The pain of his wound felt like affirmation of his existence. The spaces between the holes in his hand vanished. Pain. Joy. Pain. Joy. Pain. Pain. Pain—

[Assistant] Suddenly, his face shot up when he abruptly heard a little girl’s voice.

[User] “—You certainly have a cowardly look about you.” A girl was standing at the entrance, leaning against it, shooting Subaru a look like she was gazing at a beast.

[Assistant] “—So it’s you this time?” He belatedly realized that his voice was low and scratchy. It surprised him. His voice held more hostility in it than he’d imagined. Maybe he was voicing his feeling that the world was cursed.

[User] "What an incorrigible fool, to waste away like this in the span of a day or two."

[Assistant] "No one asked you— What’d you come for?"

[User] Beatrice, having mocked Subaru’s disgraceful sight and received his sullen retort in turn, narrowed her eyes slightly.

[Assistant] “…Puckie and that little girl asked me to pay you a visit.”

[User] “Puck and…Emilia?”

[Assistant] "You were acting oddly since you awoke, I suppose, so they suspected that I had done something to you when you first woke up. A rather rude suggestion, if I may say so."

[User] Surely Subaru’s heartless words had hurt Emilia, yet she was concerned for Subaru all the same, enough to speak directly to Beatrice, even if her suspicions were misplaced? As a result, Beatrice, with a weakness for Puck to begin with, had Puck begging her to help them, so here she was, reluctantly showing herself in Subaru’s room. Emilia’s concern for him brought just a tiny bit of warmth to Subaru’s heart. Even if it was meaningless as far as breaking the stalemate was concerned…

[Assistant] "Got it. I’m all right now.


[User] "You came to apologize, and that’s enough.” Beatrice’s lips twisted as Subaru tried to brush her away. “Why must I apologize to you, I wonder? Before anything else, I will not be leaving until that misunderstanding is cleared up.” Instead of leaving the room, she marched over to the bed.

[Assistant] Subaru was about to pile on more complaints when… “—Hm?” Subaru watched as she crinkled her nose and tilted her head.

[User] If she just stayed quiet she’d look pretty adorable, but… Beatrice looked displeased at being stared at and covered her face, glaring at Subaru. “’Tis not just your dull face, I suppose, that is rotten. It is quite thick all around you.”

[Assistant] “—Huh?”

[User] “Perhaps I speak of the scent tickling my nose? It would be wise to avoid meeting the twins for a while.” Beatrice pinched her nose and waved with her free hand as if driving off an unpleasant scent.

[Assistant] “—” But Subaru’s mind couldn’t let go of the keyword scent. Scent. Certainly someone had used that word around the end of the third loo— “A smell coming from me…?”

[User] “—The scent of the witch. Perhaps your nose is broken?”

[Assistant] He remembered that word. He’d come across that piece of vocabulary only recently. So that meant— “The jealous witch?”

[User] “In today’s day and age, there is none other who would be called witch, I suppose.” Her statement, belittling him as a petty idiot, aroused only more questions in Subaru.

[Assistant] “Why is that scent coming from me?”

[User] “Who is to say? Perhaps the witch took a liking to you, or perhaps she hates the very sight of you. Either way, the witch giving you special treatment makes you attract trouble.” Beatrice slumped her shoulders, her gloomy behavior indicating any further talk about it was unwelcome.

[Assistant] Witch—a being shunned throughout the world to the point that the fairy tale “The Witch of Jealousy” would not record her name. But Subaru had no connection to the witch or the story; he’d read about it only in a book. Naturally, without any memory of having met the witch, he had no memory of how he might carry a lingering scent from her touch. —Rem had also said he stank of the witch, hadn’t she? He felt that the overwhelming hostility was related in part to the scent of the witch. If that was so, he’d earned her hatred through something he had no memory of; with one slander piled on another, she felt she had no choice but to silence him. Subaru, having grasped something that was wholly outside his control, sighed at length.


[User] As Subaru remained silent, Beatrice looked at him as she reached toward the doorknob. “If nothing’s wrong with you, I’m leaving. I should tell Puckie that we had a chat and what we talked about, I suppose.” She seemed ready to vanish into the Passage when he called out to stop her.

[Assistant] “Wait a sec.”

[User] Beatrice looked distinctly displeased as she looked back at him.


[User] Subaru stubbornly arrived at the words and tossed them out. "You feel bad about what you did to me, don’t you?” He didn’t know if it meant anything or not—but he thought it was worth a shot.

[Assistant] Beatrice shot Subaru a sour look as Subaru knocked against the bed and asked again. "Do you feel bad about it? Yes or no?”

[User] “I think no such thing.”

[Assistant] “I’ll tell Puck on you.”

[User] Beatrice repositioned herself to face Subaru, crossing her arms and raising her nose with a haughty air. “Ugh…perhaps I think it a teeeeeny bit.”

[Assistant] “I’ll forgive you if you’ll do one little favor for me.”

[User] “…Would you speak it, I wonder?”

[Assistant] “Could you protect me until sunrise on the fifth da— The morning after tomorrow?” It was a thoroughly shameless request to make of a girl who looked younger than he did.

[User] Beatrice was silent for a while in the face of Subaru’s heartfelt request. “That is a rather vague statement. Perhaps there is a reason someone is after you?” The question Beatrice countered with was quite natural and sensible.

[Assistant] Beatrice kept Subaru in her sights as she paced around the room. “In the first place, I do not want to bring discord to this manor. This manor is a place that, to me, I must not lose, I suppose.”

[User] “…I don’t want to cause any trouble. I just wanna put out any sparks that fly.”

[Assistant] “That is quite a sentiment coming from someone trying to make it another’s problem?”

[User] “For once, I don’t have a comeback.” Beatrice sighed as Subaru bowed down before her. Subaru was still bowed as he thought he heard a sound like the door being closed from the inside. The sound of Subaru’s request being denied and Beatrice returning to her archive. The moment he heard that sound, Subaru’s threadbare hope snapped.

[Assistant] “Could you put out your hand, I wonder?” With Subaru filled with resignation, Beatrice walked to the side of the bed and offered her tiny hand.

[User] Beatrice’s irritation sent Subaru, in complete shock, rushing to take her hand. As he did, Beatrice scowled as she looked at the damaged back of his hand. “Disgusting. Perhaps you are an unsalvageable deviant who delights in self-harm?”

[Assistant] “Roswaal’s got the deviant market locked up. I was just trying to give myself a tattoo and messed it up.”

[User] “Your artistic sense, skill, and talent for lies are completely lacking… There is no saving you from that.”

[Assistant] Exhaling, Beatrice put her tiny palm on top of Subaru’s hand, as if trying to cover the wounds. Her smooth fingers invited his in until their hands intertwined. “—I shall grant thy wish. By the name of Beatrice, the pact is formed.” Beatrice’s solemn statement left Subaru completely at a loss for words. Suddenly, the girl before his eyes looked completely different than before. As her fingers gripped his, the warmth they conveyed made his mind see the aura of mystique surrounding her.


[User] “Makeshift or not, a pact is a pact— Perhaps I have been moved by your irrational request.” Beatrice released his fingers and crossed her arms once again.

[Assistant] Subaru bowed before her, suppressing the wave of emotion that hit him. He didn’t put the emotions into words, but they gushed from a bottomless well deep in his heart. He didn’t know how to react to being offered salvation from the least expected source. “Seriously…a little girl’s gonna make me cry…”

[User] “Could you not say little girl, I wonder? Also, I will never forgive you if you say one word to Puckie about this.”

[Assistant] “So that’s the important part?! Desperation gets you demon-possessed, I tell you.” Subaru made a bitter smile in response to Beatrice’s look of genuine hostility. His fourth loop had begun with despair. It was a small smile, the only of this loop, but it was there.


[User] Emilia was currently nodding while sitting on the side of the bed with a charming smile on her face. “I see, so Beatrice came to properly apologize. I’m glad. A job well done.”

[Assistant] For Emilia to approach him like this after Subaru had treated her so poorly, which weighed heavily on his conscience, it was no exaggeration to say he thought of her like a goddess, his one light in a dark world. When Emilia visited again and he tried to apologize for his initial rude statement.

[User] She simply brushed off Subaru’s horrible words. “You were just overwhelmed, right? It can happen to anyone. It can’t be helped. Ram and Rem will be pleased to hear you say that, though.”

[Assistant] Subaru gave no proper reply to the gentle request she’d slipped in at the end. He closed his eyes and thought back on his days at the manor. Back then, during those memories, were there not moments when Subaru and the sisters drew closer together? —Maybe he just wanted to believe it was so.

[User] Emilia looked at the tray left on the side of the bed and the untouched meal, slowly going cold, resting upon it as she murmured in a sullen tone.


[User] "So you really didn’t eat breakfast, did you?"

[Assistant] "…Sorry." After snapping at Emilia, Subaru had become more quiet and withdrawn.

[User] Ram diligently went about her duties as a servant. Even when they knew he would never touch the food nor thank them for it.

[Assistant] Rem diligently went about her duties as a servant. Even when they knew he would never touch the food nor thank them for it.

[User] —For all he knew, it might be poisoned. That was the thought that passed through his mind when he looked at it. He hated himself for doubting the two of them.

[Assistant] “Maybe it’s tough, but it’s bad for you if you don’t eat at least a little bit.”

[User] “My stomach won’t take it… Well, maybe if Emilia-tan went ‘Say aah’ for me I could eat, but…” Subaru cursed what an incurable joker he was, sending such a flippant remark Emilia’s way when she was genuinely worried about him.

[Assistant] “Here, then. Say aah.”


[User] Emilia had set the food tray on her lap, lifting a spoon and looking at Subaru.

[Assistant] She used the spoon to scoop up some soup, which was still somewhat warm, and gently brought it toward Subaru’s mouth.

[User] Subaru immediately shook his head, unable to understand what Emilia was trying to do. "No, nonono, wait, hold up, Emilia-tan, what are you doing?"

[Assistant] "What do you mean, what? You said you’d eat if I did this, didn’t you? So eat. I’m saying ‘say ahh’ and everything."

[User] "Err, this is like a ritual that girls don’t actually do; their faces just go bright red and that’s as far as it goes, I thought?"

[Assistant] "If you’re going to speak like a child, you can’t be embarrassed at being fed like one. That would be silly."

[User] As Subaru dragged his feet, Emilia went "Say aah" again with a powerful, compelling stare.

[Assistant] Subaru finally buckled under the pressure, feeling like he’d gone red to the tips of his ears as he opened his mouth. "A-aah…"

[User] "There, swallow. Here’s the next one. Here, here, here, here, here."

[Assistant] "That’s too fast!! Was that aah just to get my guard down?"

[User] Subaru tried to keep up with one spoonful after another before roughly waving his hand midway. "T-time-out, time-out! Can we stop? It’s going down my th-throat the wrong way…!"

[Assistant] "Goodness, and it was going so well, too… Subaru?"

[User] "Cough, cough, r-really, my throat feels…all weird…" Subaru averted his face from Emilia, faking coughs to try to make the action seem more natural.

[Assistant] He didn’t want Emilia to see his face just then.

[User] Something hot was welling from deep in Subaru’s eyes.

[Assistant] He opened his eyes to give his tears somewhere to run and desperately tried to stop them from flowing.

[User] She continued to be kind to him in a world where he could see no hope.

[Assistant] He wondered if he was truly worthy of such treatment…

[User] …for Subaru Natsuki was in despair precisely because he rejected that he was.

[Assistant] "Hey, Subaru." As she called out to him in concern, Subaru lightly cleared his throat and tested his voice as he got back in order.

[User] "…Mm, ahh, ahh. Okay. Yeah. I’m all right now. I think. I’m all right." He made the richest expression as he turned toward Emilia…

[Assistant] …and met her extremely gentle eyes, looking right at him. "Let’s continue."

[User] "…The way you put that makes this feel really naughty somehow…"

[Assistant] "—?" Emilia, tilting her head, apparently hadn’t noticed the risqué, bewitching nature of her statement.

[User] Or maybe it’d all been in his head to begin with.

[Assistant] And so he finished eating, with Emilia offering a ‘Say aah’ and him opening his mouth, cheeks red from shyness and complicated sentiments.


[User] “Good. Now, what do we say when we’re done eating?” Emilia clapped once in satisfaction.

[Assistant] “That was great.”

[User] “That’s bad manners. Once more, and say it right.”

[Assistant] “Thank you for the food.”

[User] “You’re very welcome.” Faced with Emilia’s broad smile, Subaru patted his belly, which strangely felt nice and full. His stomach felt no discomfort at having been stuffed after two days of going empty.

[Assistant] “Ram said, ‘He hasn’t eaten properly in a while so we must be gentle on his stomach,’ and that’s how Rem made it. They’re such good girls, aren’t they?” Emilia’s words, as if boasting on behalf of the sisters, stabbed Subaru’s doubts like a dagger.

[User] If that was the truth, he’d be happy enough to cry at such a show of concern. But Subaru knew better. The very pain of the delusion made him want to cry. If only their gentleness and kind treatment didn’t have that lurking behind it.

[Assistant] “Well, now that you’ve eaten, too, you must be tired, so I’ll head back and let you rest.”

[User] “You could always sleep here beside me?”

[Assistant] “Good, good, seems you’re already your usual self. Now, I do have things I need to be doing, too. Don’t tell anyone I was slacking off, okay?” Emilia winked and stuck out her tongue.

[User] “—Emilia. Keep your door locked at night and don’t let anyone in, okay?”

[Assistant] Emilia brushed back her silver hair and inclined her head ever so slightly at Subaru’s sudden admonition. "Or you’ll sneak in?"

[User] “Right, exa… No!! Hey, that was Puck not Emilia just now, wasn’t it? !”

[Assistant] “Wow, got it in one.” Puck popped his head out of Emilia’s hair and grinned at her and Subaru. He swished his tail as Subaru glared at him, no doubt having been listening in that hiding place from the very beginning. “I didn’t want to intrude on such a lovely scene, but your emotions suddenly turned serious, huh? That got my attention.”

[User] “…I just have a bad feeling, okay? You take good care of Emilia, now.” With the black cloud lurking, Subaru had to be evasive when speaking about the future.

[Assistant] Even so, Puck, able to read emotions, accepted his words without question.

[User] “I’ll have you know I really don’t like feeling left behind in this conversation.”

[Assistant] “It’s just saying a cute girl like you should always be careful about night visits, and to watch out for cars and men. Right, Dad?”

[User] “That’s right, Lia. Daddy forbids you from seeing men…bad-looking, dark-haired men in particular.”

[Assistant] "Brutus?"


[User] "!” Puck laughed out loud as Subaru invoked the name of the famous betrayer.

[Assistant] Emilia pinched the laughing Puck and shoved him back into her hair, this time rising to her feet.

[User] Subaru saw both of them off and, now alone in the room, flopped onto the bed. “Aw, no…” The instant Subaru’s mind felt a smidgen of relief, his consciousness dove into a deep sleep.

[Assistant] Subaru's consciousness felt like a floating cloud, trapped between dream and reality.

[User] Subaru’s vivid, “dead” memories replayed over and over, etching themselves deeper into his mind. He moaned, tossed, turned; he made anguished sounds as sweat drenched his entire body.


[Assistant] “—” Abruptly, the tension in Subaru’s body vanished.

[User] Someone was holding Subaru’s hands. Someone’s touch from the real world pulled back Subaru, drifting in unconsciousness in the bed.


[Assistant] “—Just how long are you going to sleep, I wonder?”

[User] “Whoaaaa!” Subaru cried out in pain, having been violently kicked, followed by a hard landing on the floor.

[Assistant] Beatrice was there, scowling, one leg raised in an unladylike manner. Beatrice snorted, once again unable to hide her displeasure. "You were sleeping quite comfortably while I bothered to come at the appointed hour.”

[User] “It’s like, you’ve got to put people down even when you don’t have to?” As Subaru talked back, he broke out in a cold sweat at having unintentionally slept.


[User] “Sleeping on the all-important fourth day. Maybe I really do have a death wish.” “Would you cease your muttering, I wonder? There are more appropriate places for it.” Beatrice, looking down and watching as Subaru lightly poked himself, sat on her stool as she spoke.

[Assistant] He was already in the archive when he awoke. “Well, this is a surprise. Did you carry me in my sleep?”

[User] “I would not like to spend time in a room filled with that scent of yours, I suppose. This archive is my place and none other’s. Could you behave yourself while here, I wonder?”

[Assistant] “You actually thought this out, huh?”

[User] “Do not just sit on the floor mumbling. Would you like to be swatted like an insect, I wonder?”

[Assistant] Oh, so that’s what you’re reading, said Subaru, looking at the pages open before Beatrice as he stuck out his tongue.

[User] Subaru rose from the floor, abruptly staring at his own two hands. An odd sensation remained. Someone had held his hand as he slept, hadn’t— “Hey Beatrice, don’t tell me you held my hand while I was asleep?”

[Assistant] “I won’t be telling you such a thing, I suppose. I would not, even if Puckie asked me to.”

[User] “What a thing to say… But hey, at least we can die together!”

[Assistant] “No. Absolutely not.” Beatrice, rather sour, tapered her lips as Subaru looked around the room once more.

[User] “How am I supposed to kill time in here…?”

[Assistant] “Oh, right. Are there any books here written just in I-script?”

[User] “—To think that you cannot read but the simplest things. How many humans do you think would cry with joy at just the thought of entering the Mathers family’s archive of forbidden books?”

[Assistant] “Well, I do feel bad for them… So what, you’re here full time?”

[User] Beatrice lowered her head a little at Subaru’s question. “Such is the pact I have made.”

[Assistant] “Another pact, huh? Maybe I shouldn’t say this when you’re helping me, but isn’t it rough?”

[User] Beatrice closed her eyes and spoke as if to cut off all further inquiry.


[User] "All the pacts, they are things I desire, I suppose." He'd heard the term pact several times since arriving in that world, always with heavy overtones. Beatrice spoke the word with the same weight as Emilia and Puck did for the spiritual pact they had. Subaru appreciated as much, having formed one temporarily with Beatrice himself. Beatrice looked so young, yet here she was, in and upholding a pact—for some reason, Subaru felt something like an unendurable ache deep in his chest when he looked at her. "Hey, are you really fine with all— Whoa!"

[Assistant] "Your questions are becoming annoying. You can read something and be quiet, I suppose." She underscored her statement by tossing a book at him.

[User] When Subaru caught it, he realized that the book he’d caught was written in I-script, down to the title. When Subaru lifted his face, Beatrice had already lost interest in him, lowering her eyes to the book in her own hands, making a show of declining conversation. She seemed to be strenuously insisting that he leave his half-asked question unfinished. While her demeanor left no room for words of thanks, Subaru was grateful and happy.


[Assistant] Time in the archive of forbidden books passed gently and quietly. With neither exchanging words, only the sounds of the pages being softly turned echoed within the archive. That said, Subaru’s heart wasn’t into reading at the time; all he was doing was turning the same page over and back again, making the same page sound like a prank. —Shut in the archive of forbidden books, he had no way to know what was going on outside. Beyond the room not having windows, the very nature of the archive was to be in a separate space, locked off from the outside world. He had no way to tell the time of day or feel the passage of time. He wondered what time it was by then. By simple logic, being in the room for half a day would get him through the problematic night. But he had only a vague sense of just how much time had passed while he’d been in the archive. He couldn’t trust his own senses, but he also hesitated to ask Beatrice. It wasn’t for any reason as simple as not wanting to stop Beatrice while she focused on her reading. Subaru was afraid that any action he initiated might stir up something. His fingers turning the pages of the book were numb. The tip of his tongue begged for water. His heart was beating like an alarm bell. He was out of breath. How long could he remain strong against such tension, he wondered? If the start had been so brutal, the end might be without any warning whatsoever.

[User] "—Calling." A murmur abruptly echoed through the silent archive. Subaru’s face seemed to leap up as Beatrice put down her book and slid her legs onto the floor.


[User] Rather than speaking to Subaru, it felt like she was murmuring to herself. "A call for me, I suppose?" Beatrice waved a finger as she spoke.

[Assistant] The next moment, Subaru’s whole body felt ill as space bent. Subaru made a small moan as his entire body shuddered from the sensation that most resembled floating.

[User] Hearing this, Beatrice looked at Subaru as if only just remembering he was there. "Ah, you were there, weren’t you? I forgot, I suppose?"

[Assistant] "That’s a bad joke, forgetting about a guy right in front of your face…"

[User] "—Puckie is calling. It would seem this is an urgent matter." With that as Subaru’s only warning, Beatrice strode past him to the door like it was the natural and obvious thing to do.

[Assistant] Subaru’s voice shook as he called out to stop her. "W-wait, hold on! If you go out now…"

[User] "You can stay shut in here if you like. Perhaps you will be safe here?" Beatrice left behind her words of obvious sarcasm as she passed through the door.

[Assistant] Subaru, blood rushing to his head from her attitude, seemed to kick away his chair as he leapt up and reached toward the door. He’d hesitated for only a few seconds, but… "Aw, to hell with it. What’s the big deal, right? !" Spurring himself on with the foul-mouthed statement, he roughly opened the door and stepped outside.


[User] He couldn’t find the words. Finally, Subaru had—

[Assistant] "—Subaru?" Lifting his gaze in annoyance, he saw a silver-haired girl standing deeper in the hall—Emilia.

[User] "Emilia…?" Subaru began feeling a sense of accomplishment that barely seemed real while Emilia watched him in silence.

[Assistant] As if Emilia had remembered something, she rushed over to Subaru. "Subaru, where did you go?"

[User] “Er, I…”

[Assistant] "I mean… No, that’s fine. It’s fine, just…come with me." Emilia pulled up Subaru with surprising insistence and ran off with him.

[User] She looked like she wasn’t going to take no for an answer as a smirk came over his face. "Where are we going… Hey, Emilia, listen to me. I’ve worked really hard to get to this point…" Subaru stared at the side of Emilia’s face as he tried to find the words to convey his success. "Why are you making a face like that? I mean, it all turned out all right…didn’t it? I’m safe and sound, and you’re… Yeah. Let’s go to the village…together, and then…"

[User] "There’s lots I want to do with you and talk about with you. A lot’s happened. I wanted you to know th—"

[Assistant] "—Subaru." With one brief call of his name, she interrupted him. The look she had was like when they’d been fighting for their lives at the fence’s shop.

[User] "What in the world h—" Happened, he tried to ask but couldn’t. For before he could put the word on his lips, a different sound slammed into his eardrums. —He thought it was a yell. Perhaps it was a wail instead. It was a long, high-pitched sound filled with sadness that scarred the very soul. The morning air of the manor was rent by the unending cry of pain, as if someone were being torn asunder.


[Assistant] They passed through the corridor and headed up the stairs. The east wing of the second floor of the manor was for the servants’ bedrooms, where Subaru’s room on previous loops had been. Emilia led him by hand to the innermost room. And there stood… “Roswaal and…”

[User] …The man with long indigo hair narrowed his eyes as he saw both rushing over. Beside Roswaal stood Beatrice, leaning her back against the wall as a gray cat curled up on her shoulder.


[User] "Inside." Roswaal motioned to the open door of a bedroom beside him.

[Assistant] Subaru turned toward Emilia.

[User] Emilia nodded to him.

[Assistant] Holding his breath, Subaru walked in. Here, too, the yell continued unceasingly, filling the whole of the room. Subaru entered, his eyes wide open, frozen from tension—and then he saw. It was an immaculately preserved room. It looked like a girl’s room with minimal furnishings employed to maximum effect, a reflection of a steadfast maid’s personality. Though Subaru had received an identical room, it felt different. For a moment, such feelings let Subaru forget the sight before his eyes. But the moment passed as the horrible truth crashed upon him, a truth from which he found nowhere to run.

[User] "AaaaaaAAAAAaaaaaaaAAAAaaaaA—!" It was Ram yelling, tears pouring out, her deep sadness threatening to rip her throat asunder.

[Assistant] —And there lay Rem, still clinging to her older sister when she had breathed her final breath. How many times had his mind gone blank from what he’d experienced? How many times had he come face-to-face with tragedy beaten into him? Wasn’t it time someone saved him from this? The blue-haired girl lay upon the bed, no longer breathing. Her skin was pale; her eyes would never open again. She was dressed in a delicate negligee that somehow seemed perfect on her. Subaru abruptly realized that he hadn’t seen Rem out of a maid uniform once. "Why did…Rem…" Subaru murmured, brushing his short hair back with his hand, he fell to his knees. His head hurt. His brain came up with the wonderful suggestion that the sight before him was all in his sleep-deprived imagination. This was his fourth loop at the manor. To Subaru, who’d already died and gone back three times, Rem was the person he was most wary of. "Then why…why was Rem killed…?" Surely it was Rem who killed Subaru, not the other way around. Suddenly, a little devil on Subaru’s shoulder whispered—maybe she wasn’t really dead? Maybe it was all a trick, a trick to make Subaru drop his guard? A joke in exceptionally poor taste was incomparably better than the nightmare before him being real.