Re:Zero - The King of Pride

Chapter 19: Chapter 19



Two days later, Subaru and company continued to travel north hugging the eastern mountains and passing far to the east of the army camp. This led them through a wide open grassland with little cover but they didn't see any other humans.

What they did see were mabeasts, lots and lots of mabeasts. The mabeasts all seemed to be traveling south east and they were all in a bad mood. However the mabeasts they encountered were all fairly small. While the mabeasts' glares all wished Subaru and company a cruel death, none of them seemed able or willing to deliver on that threat.

Subaru and Emilia had encountered a deep, wide river in a marshy grassland and were searching for a shallow area to ford it.

They had found some promising shallows and were about to cross when a short distance away six mabeasts appeared stood up and rose out of the river. They were huge hulking animals that looked like hippos but twice as tall with rock-like skin.

Subaru swallowed hard. Beatrice tried to slip off his shoulder but Subaru wouldn't let her.

"If they try to attack us, we run," Subaru whispered to Emilia, trying to shield his family.

The enormous beasts glared at the group and made strange growling sounds like a wild boar.

After a long moment the mabeasts turned around and slowly walked away, casting several dark looks back at Subaru.

"Well, that was unexpected," He muttered.

"Why did they walk away?" Emilia asked.

Suabru shook his head, "I don't know but I'm not going to let this go to waste. Let's cross the river and keep going."

Subaru and Emilia crossed the shallows and kept walking across the grasslands. Subaru saw the hippo mabeasts wallowing in a wider part of the river. They were still glaring at him.

"Beako, do you think the mabeasts might be able to sense my Authority and that's why they're backing off?" Subaru asked, "I remember that they were supposedly created by witchcraft so maybe they were designed to be submissive toward Authority holders?"

"Betty doesn't know, I suppose," Beatrice replied, "People can't detect the presence of an Authority but it's not impossible that mabeasts could."

"Hm. Maybe the next time we bump into a mabeast I'll see if I can tell it to roll over," Subaru mused.

"Betty recommends practicing with a small one first, I suppose. Before trying to teach your mabeast to 'shake,' make certain that it can not bite your hand off."

"Your sister is very smart," Emilia said to Puck with a smile.

"Thank you," Subaru and Puck said together.

Emilia laughed.

The sun was starting to set behind the mountains when Subaru heard a bellowing roar.

They all dropped into a crouch and in the distance Subaru saw an enormous mabeast shaped like a chimera: it had a lions head, the body of an enormous goat, and a long tail that looked like a snake. It had large bat-like wings.

The creature was roaring and attempting to seize a group of people that had sought shelter in a small cave. The cave was too small for the beast but the monster was slowly but surely digging his way inside.

"Beako, what the hell is that thing?" Subaru whispered, irrationally afraid that the creature hundreds of yards off would hear him.

"It's a Guiltylowe, I suppose. The Black King of the Forest. It's terribly dangerous, in fact," Beatrice answered.

Subaru watched the beast drag huge clumps of dirt away from the cave mouth. The people inside were screaming for help.

"Well, it hasn't noticed us yet…" Subaru said in an undecided tone.

"Subaru," Emilia murmured.

He looked at her with resignation.

"We can't just abandon those people," She said simply.

Subaru sighed, "No, I don't suppose we could. And honestly, I'd think less of us if we did."

"Subaru! A Guiltylowe is extremely dangerous!" Beatrice reminded him, "This is not a good time for your 'taming mabeasts' experiment, in fact!"

"Don't worry, Beako. I don't think a Guiltylowe would make a good pet. For one thing, where could we get enough kitty litter?" Subaru muttered.

He watched the creature then triggered Reason and Judgment.

The creature is large but also extremely agile and it's clearly powerful going by the way its digging up all that dirt. Your main advantage will come in surprise. When given the opportunity it will leap at you because it sense no threat. You'll get one clean shot at the Guiltylowe then. You should definitely make it count because if the Guiltylowe survives you'll never last thirty seconds to use Indomitable again.

A pretty poor plan to be sure but pretty much the only option. The spirits are still low on their mana and probably can't be of much help and Emilia is just learning to control hers.

Subaru restarted time.

"OK, here's the plan," Subaru said, "We're going to sneak over there," Subaru pointed at a small grove of trees not far from the Guiltylowe. I want the three of you to wait there."

"What?!" Emilia demanded.

"You're all going to wait there," Subaru repeated firmly, "I have a plan."

However, it is a shit plan because those are the only ones I can come up with these days.

"I'm going to approach the Guiltylowe and it should think I'm a helpless easy meal and jump at me. Then I use Indomitable to shatter its head."

"Subaru! That's stupid!" Emilia hissed, "Why don't we all fight it together?"

"Because one, if we all attack it won't take the bait and it might go after any one of us, three of whom can not become temporarily indestructible; and two, I don't want those people in the cave to see a silver haired half-elf. I have a nagging suspicion that their gratitude for saving them won't prevent them from reporting you. Let me try to coax it into a rash attack," Subaru explained.

"What if it doesn't work?" Beatrice demanded.

"Then you three will need to conjure up whatever magic you've got and hopefully kill the thing," Subaru said simply, "I'll risk the frost flowers over being that thing's chew toy."

"Subaru, Betty and I are still pretty weak," Puck warned him, "We can probably kill that thing but it won't be a quick fight. We'd have to chip away at it. You wouldn't last long enough for us to do that."

"I know. That's why I'm counting on Mili and her magic if I get into trouble."

"Betty doesn't love this plan, in fact," Beatrice grumbled.

"Don't worry, Beako, Emilia has never let me down yet," Subaru replied.

Emilia swallowed hard.

The four crept over to the grove without the Guiltylowe seeing them. The creature sounded immensely frustrated that digging the people out of the cave was taking so long.

"Alright, you guys wait here. I'm going to try to get close to it before it sees me. Then I'll get my shot. If it doesn't work just throw your magic at it, Mili. I survived the frost flowers before I can do it again," Subaru said calmly.

Emilia looked almost sick.

"OK, wish me luck," Subaru said sneaking off toward the Guiltylowe.

The three watched him go.

"If anything happens to Subaru because you can't control your magic, witch, I just might have to kill you," Puck muttered.

"If anything happens to Subaru because my magic runs wild, Puck, I just might ask you to," Emilia replied watching Subaru intently.

Subaru crept closer and closer to the enormous monster. The creature had to be twelve feet at the shoulder and including its long tail it might have been twenty feet long.

Subaru sneaked close to the monster without issue. This was due less to Subaru's skill at stealth and more to the monster's single minded focus on the cave and its frustration with it.

Subaru had gotten close enough that a rush might have been possible when the Guiltylowe stiffened and sniffed the air.

The monster whirled around and saw Subaru standing there. It let out a savage roar.

Subaru braced himself for a rush but the Guiltylowe stood there, considering.

This thing is intelligent. It recognizes me as food but food that isn't afraid of it. That makes it cautious. That's bad for me.

Rather than run and pounce as Subaru had hoped, the Guiltylowe got low to the ground and slowly crept over toward Subaru growling, apparently waiting to see what he would do.

Subaru took a step closer and the creature froze tensing itself.

It's a cautious hunter. Not sure what something this big could be afraid of, and maybe I don't want to know, but it's not going to make a move until it's sure.

The creature could be all over Subaru in a heartbeat and the stress was intense.

"Go away!" Subaru ordered.

The creatures' glowing red eyes narrowed a bit.

Well, it was worth a try anyway. Apparently my Authority doesn't let me command these things.

Subaru stared into the monster's eyes.

What is this? Is it playing a game or does it really think I might be a threat? Can it sense my Authority? And if it thinks I am a threat, why doesn't it just back off? Is it really too hungry to give up the men in the cave? Or maybe it's just too pissed off.

The tension mounted and Subaru became frustrated.

OK, I can't take this. I need to make something happen here. If I make it happen at least I'm ready for it. If I sit here and wait I'm just giving this thing a chance to catch me off guard.

Subaru took another step toward the Guiltylowe and it sprang at him almost too fast to see.

Subaru triggered Indomitable just as the beast's jaws closed around his head. It bit down hard but the teeth wouldn't pierce his skin. Subaru drove his fist into the monster's chest and the creature flew upward a good twenty feet, its chest cavity ripped wide open and bits of viscera raining down.

The creature crashed into the earth making no attempt to soften its landing. It was dead.

Subaru let out a huge breath.

I hope I can find another pond to bathe in tonight. That thing's breath smelled like a garbage truck in summer.

"Thank you, stranger. Your action was most heroic. We are all deeply in your debt," A man called emerging from the cave.

A man in full armor.

Shit! Subaru, you fucking idiot! Why didn't you consider this possibility?! That man is wearing Crusch's colors. He's from the army that's searching for you!

Subaru quickly spun away and tried to cover as much of his face with the robe as he could.

"Think nothing of it, young man," Subaru replied trying to make his voice sound old and wheezing.

"Is something wrong, sir?" The man asked. His voice sounded vaguely familiar.

"I'm afraid I have recently come down with a terrible illness," Subaru coughed and crouched down rubbing his chest, "I am attempting to isolate myself so that I don't pass it on to any of my loved ones. Please sir, do not come too close. I would truly lament having given this disease to the country's fighting men."

The soldiers muttered among themselves.

That's right. You don't want an epidemic in camp. Just go away guys, you thanked me, you're done.

"Silence," The leader said firmly.

Oh, fuck! I know that voice. It's Captain Falric! If he sees me I'm toast!

"Grandfather, we are all deeply in your debt. You have saved our lives. To have slain a Guiltylowe single handed is a feat that should be sung in many a hall. You are truly a man of great power! I would invite you back to our base to be honored and rewarded for your valor by the Lady Karnstein. We have extremely capable healers back at our army camp. It would be my pleasure to escort you back there and offer you treatment for this illness," Falric offered.

"I am grateful for you kindness, sir," Subaru wheezed, "But I have lived out in these wilds for a long time and I have no desire to leave them. I am happy to have done you gallant gentlemen a service but now I must suggest you depart quickly. There are more mabeasts in the area and something strange is affecting them. They all appear to be agitated recently. Something has stirred them up. It's dangerous to be out here right now."

Falric paused, "Thank you for your gracious warning, grandfather. However, all the more do I urge you to accept our hospitality. You must be extremely vulnerable out here."

"I'm far from vulnerable, young man," Subaru said coughing again, "I simply came out to try to save your lives. But please depart this place quickly. I might not be able to save them a second time and there are worse creatures out here than the Guiltylowe."

I have no idea if that's true or not. I fervently hope not but it might get them to leave quicker.

Subaru felt a huge shadow fall on him and he looked up he see an enormous bird at least forty feet from wingtip to wingtip with burning red eyes, diving at him with talons outstretched.

Subaru leapt to his feet.

"Stormcrow!" Falric shouted. "Get ready men!"

Subaru triggered Indomitable as the bird dove at it him but the bird simply grazed him as it flew by.

Fuck! It saw me fight the Guiltylowe so it's feeling me out before attacking. I just used Indomitable! Thirty seconds before I can use it again.

"Fall back into the trees, men!" Falric shouted, "Let the grandfather handle this monster! He has the power!"

Gee, thanks so much, Falric. Oh well, I guess at least I don't need to worry about you guys now.

Subaru felt someone stepping up next to him, "Grandfather, it will be an honor to fight at your side," Falric proclaimed drawing his sword.

Oh, great. The worst of both worlds.

The enormous bird had made a lazy circle and was now diving at them again full speed.

Shit! It's figured out I can't hurt it! Twenty seconds until Indomitable!

The bird plunged toward him with talons outstretched, each talon was bigger than Subaru.

Falric raised his blade and Subaru prepared for what he knew to be a futile dive for cover.

The bird suddenly lunged forward striking the rock face and falling down in front of the cave.

An enormous icicle at least eight feet long had embedded itself in its back.

The bird staggered to its feet but more icicles pelted the bird. It screamed in agony as the icicles were driven like enormous stakes clear through its body.

The bird was battered by the spell and it crashed against the rock face again and again as it futilely tried to regain its feet and take off.

Finally a large chunk of ice resembling a buzz-saw flung itself at the birds neck neatly decapitating it.

It's body crashed to the ground not far from the Guiltylowe and lay still.

Subaru looked up and saw Emilia standing there surrounded by the spirits. Her hood was thrown back and her silver hair fairly glowed in the dim light. Her entire body was luminous, the magic surging through her making her glow like a radiant star.

Oh my God… She looks like an angel. A goddess. If somebody set up an altar, I'd bow down!

Then Subaru noticed the large patch of frost that Emilia was standing in and the delicate frost flowers growing inside.

Shit! …OK, I guess those flowers are still a trigger for me. Fuck. Well, at least the frost isn't coming close to anyone so the flowers won't hurt anybody.

Alright, Emilia still has some issues to resolve with her magic but being able to control that much power sure seems like good progress!

"It's the witch!" Falric cried out, "To arms, men!"

Shit! Subaru thought rushing back over to Emilia's side in order to protect her and the spirits.

"Grandfather! Get away from-" Falric stared at him for a long moment, "Lord Subaru?!"

Shit, again! Subaru realized that his hood had fallen back during his frantic rush to Emilia. He started to pull it up then let it go as pointless.

Subaru sighed, "Hey, Falric, how have you been?"

Falric stared at him, "Lord Subaru, do you realize who this is?!"

"This is Emilia, Puck, and Beatrice. They are my family," Subaru replied.

"Lord Subaru, this is Satella the Witch of Envy and you have been bewitched by this woman! You must come-"

"Falric, I have in no way been bewitched and I have prior obligations so I will not be going with you. Incidentally, this 'witch' did just save your lives which might be something for you to think about," Subaru said flatly.

Falric hesitated for a moment, "Lord Subaru, I," He shook his head clearing his thoughts, "I have strict orders to kill this witch!"

Emilia took a step back but Subaru didn't budge.

"You will die trying," Subaru warned him, folding his arms, "You have no chance against us. None whatsoever. Surely you all can see that?"

"Lord Subaru," Falric gasped, "Would you truly-"

"Anyone who seeks to bring harm to Emilia is my enemy. It's just that simple. Attack her and you will die," Subaru said simply, "You are a man who cares about the soldiers under his command, Captain Falric. I saw that time and time again during the Whale Hunt. You are not a man who will blindly follow orders that force his troops into a meat grinder for no true reason. I think I know Crusch Karnstein pretty well. She'd much rather you all go back and report that you saw us, that's valuable intelligence after all, rather than you all die here pointlessly."

Falric digested that, "Lord Subaru, am I to understand that you're letting us go?"

Subaru sighed, "Yes," He said, "I won't cross the line into butchering good men that I have no quarrel with. You will return to Crusch and you will report to her that you saw us. That's just how things will be," He said ruefully.

Falric stared at Subaru, "Lord Subaru, I am in your debt and not for the first time today but I implore you not to be fooled into giving the dragon blood to this witch!"

"The dragon blood?" Subaru echoed in surprise, "Why? What's so bad about giving Emilia that?"

"The dragon blood will restore the witch's true power! She'll be able to end the world completely this time! Lord Subaru, she must not acquire it!" Falric said.

Puck drew in a hissing breath, "Is that why you wanted the blood?!" He demanded.

"Puck!" Emilia snapped. For the first time that Subaru could recall, Emilia looked truly angry with Puck, "Even if the blood could make my magic stronger, why would I want it? My magic has brought nothing into my life but misery. If Subaru offered me a potion that could remove my magic forever, I'd drink it without a second thought!"

Puck blinked in surprise.

Falric stared at Subaru's family in confusion.

"Look, Falric, it doesn't matter anyway. The blood is all gone. I couldn't give it to Emilia if I wanted to," Subaru sighed.

"Gone?"

"All gone," Subaru replied, "Otherwise they would have used it to heal the king and his family. Unless I want to go dragon hunting, and no I don't particularly want to do that, I'm not getting any more blood so you don't need to worry about it."

Falric didn't reply.

Subaru sighed, "Look, we're not going to come to an agreement so we might as well just go our separate ways. However I'd like you to deliver two messages when you return to the camp."

"Very well," Falric said in a cautious voice.

"During your report, please make it a point to tell Crusch Karnstein that your lives were saved by 'the witch,'" Suabru said pointedly.

Falric looked awkward but he nodded.

"Also, please tell Miss Felt that I am truly sorry for everything that has happened to her. She's right, it was all my fault. She needed me and I was too distracted by other people's problems to help her. I can't do anything about it right now but I promise I'll try to find a way to make it up to her," Subaru whispered, looking away in shame.

Falric stared at Subaru then hurriedly nodded.

Subaru sighed, "Alright, then we have come to the parting of the ways. I don't really care which way you go, but don't try to follow us."

Falric nodded.

Subaru put Beatrice on his shoulder and took Emilia's hand. They passed the soldiers and continued moving to the northwest. The soldiers watched them until they were out of sight.

Subaru waited until the soldiers were far out of sight and then changed course. If he kept going this way he'd probably wind up back at the army camp. He'd only gone this way to mislead the soldiers. Rather than going north toward Gusteko, Subaru swung north east hoping to get out of the likely search area as quickly as possible before marking a dash for the safety of the border.

"You really were amazing back there, Mili," Subaru told her.

"You think so?" She smiled.

"I don't think you've ever used that much magic before and you kept control of it. Also, you looked amazing! You were glowing like a star!" Subaru cheered.

Emilia shook her head with a laugh.

"I'm really proud of you, Mili," Subaru said, "I know you didn't want to use magic but you did and you saved a lot of lives."

"Like you said, when someone you love needs you to succeed, failing isn't an option," She said proudly.

"Oh, does that really work?" Subaru asked, "I thought I was just bullshitting you."

Emilia scowled at him, "Subaru, I will hit you," She warned, "Actually, I will hit you twice just so I know that Indomitable is off for one of them!"

"Something tells me I should consider that a legitimate threat," Subaru mused.

Emilia snorted looking annoyed at him but Subaru saw a smile in her eyes.

"Yeah," Puck murmured, "You used a lot of magic and you mostly kept control of it. It was… impressive."

Emilia's face lit up, "Thank you, Puck!"

"I was scared that the Stormcrow was going to hurt Subaru. I knew that Betty and I didn't have enough mana to stop it," Puck added, "If you hadn't killed the Stormcrow, Subaru might have been badly hurt so… thank you, Emilia."

Emilia smiled and her eyes became watery.

"OK guys, this is going to be a long night," Subaru apologized, "I doubt that Crusch will send out search parties this late in the day but we need to be miles and miles from here by morning."

"I can go as long as you can, Subaru," Emilia promised.

"Great, then we just need to worry about how far I can go at this point!" Subaru snickered.

Subaru glanced at Beatrice and Puck sympathetically. They were clearly exhausted.

Subaru took Beatrice off his shoulder and cradled her against his chest.

"What's all this about, I suppose?" Beatrice asked.

Subaru kissed the top of her head, "Emilia and I need to walk but you and Puck are tired. So try and get some sleep if you can," He said cradling the spirit as he walked.

Beatrice yawned, "Beatrice isn't sleepy yet, in fact," She said as Puck drifted down into her arms and cuddled against her.

"I know," Subaru said keeping the smile out of his voice.

A moment later Beatrice's face pressed against his shoulder and she began to gently snore.

Subaru smiled down at the sleeping spirits, "They're so cute," He mouthed to Emilia.

Emilia smiled back.

"Well, it looks like Puck is finally warming up to you," Subaru commented.

Emilia had a broad smile even though her face was wet with tears, "I know that it's going to take a long time for Daddy and Beatrice to learn to trust me."

"We have all the time we need for that," Subaru shrugged. "We either undo whatever this is and they'll both remember you, or they'll just spend some time with you and realize what a wonderful person you are."

Emilia chuckled, "It's really hard being around Puck when he wants you dead."

"Oh, cry on my shoulder!" Subaru snorted, "Do you have any idea all the crap that Puck did to me when we met? He threatened to kill me the moment we met!"

"He did not!" Emilia protested, "You just passed out."

"He absolutely did! He knocked me out and then as soon as I woke up he told me that I had better behave myself cause next time he wouldn't let me wake up!"

Emilia looked shocked, "Why would Puck do that?"

Subaru coughed, "Um. There's just the slightest possibility that I was having… inappropriate thoughts about his daughter."

Emilia gave him an annoyed look.

"What?! It was love at first sight," Subaru protested.

"No, that was lust at first sight," Emilia corrected. "It serves you right. You're just lucky I love you or I wouldn't have the patience to put up with all of these lewd comments of yours."

Emilia realized that Subaru was grinning at her.

"What now, Subaru?" Emilia said rolling her eyes.

"Nothing," Subaru replied. "It's just that you just said you love me."

"I've said that lots of times, Subaru."

"And it always makes me smile," Subaru replied.

Emilia smiled back at him and took his hand.

"Subaru," Emilia murmured, "When did you and Puck start to get along better? Was it when we got engaged?"

"No. That made us get along much worse," Subaru replied. "Honestly, I thought he was going to kill me the moment we told him about that."

"Then what did it?"

"Well, a couple of days after we got engaged I went to talk to him. You'd gotten pretty sad about all the fighting that we were doing so I decided to go and try to make peace him. He was pretty annoyed at me at first but after a while I convinced him that my goal was to make you as happy as I possibly could. I convinced him that I didn't want to take you away from him because I knew that Subaru and Puck would make Mili happier than just Subaru could. He thought it over and he finally decided to accept me."

Emilia stared at him, "You never told me about that."

Subaru shrugged, "Well. It was… I don't know. I guess it was a special moment between the men in your life, if that makes any sense."

Emilia looked off in the distance, deep in thought.

The two walked hand in hand long into the night.

"How much further before we reach the border, do you think?" Emilia asked quietly.

"I'm not sure. Three days at least. If we keep going this way we should reach the King's Highway and that leads up into Gusteko. Maybe if we're lucky we can pay someone to give us a lift," Subaru said.

"Oh, that sounds heavenly," Emilia sighed.

"Yeah. If we walk most of the night I think we can reach the highway by morning. Then we can try to bum a ride and sleep on the wagon," Subaru said.

"Will people be willing to take us?" Emilia asked.

"For a few gold coins? I think so. You'll probably want to keep your hood up though," Subaru said ruefully.

Emilia sighed.

"I'm sorry, Emilia," Subaru said helplessly, "I wish I could do something about all this."

"What? Subaru, you're doing everything you possibly can," Emilia replied.

"No, I mean… the prejudice. The way people look at you and think 'witch.' It's not fair. I know you talked a lot about demi-human rights and the abuses they suffer but… I guess I never realized how bad it was until this happened," Subaru sighed.

Emilia shrugged and gave Subaru a half smile, "I'm used to it."

"Yeah, and that's another tragedy," Subaru replied.

They walked in silence for a moment.

"It might be even worse in Gusteko," Emilia commented, "I should probably stay in hiding while we're there."

"Well, we'll all be in hiding while we're in Gusteko to some extent. But yeah, you should probably stay out of sight as much as possible. If we don't think we can come back to Lagunica for a while, then we should probably buy a wagon and go to Kararagi. I think you could expect better treatment there."

"Maybe," Emilia replied, "Kararagi is friendlier to demi-humans on the whole but no matter where we go I don't think I'll be very welcome."

Subaru sighed, "I wonder if there's any way to bring us back to my world."

"Do they not have witches where you come from?" Emilia asked.

"Hm. You know it suddenly occurs to me that I never told you much of anything about my world," Subaru replied.

"I suppose I never really asked," Emilia shrugged apologetically.

"Well, in my world, there are no demi-humans, no magic, and no spirits," Subaru said.

Emilia stopped in her tracks looking at Subaru in shock.

Subaru gave her a tired smile, "I'm not playing a prank on you. My world doesn't have any of these things. Where I come from, all of these things are storybook fantasies," Subaru sighed, "I remember I told Beako once that I need to remember to be more grateful to be here. Even in this mess…"

Emilia started walking again, "I can't even imagine a world like that. What's wrong with your world that it doesn't have any magic?"

"No clue," Subaru replied, "There's plenty of shit wrong with it but I don't think most people would claim that 'no magic' is particularly high on the list."

"They don't miss it?"

"Well… they don't really know it. Like I said magic and elves and things are only known from books and people's imagination back home. They can't miss something that they never knew," Subaru replied.

Emilia looked off in the distance thoughtfully, "I know that I said I'd love to be rid of my magic, and I meant it, but a whole world with no magic just sounds wrong. It feels like something is missing there. Like something is broken."

Subaru shrugged, "I don't know. I've only ever seen two worlds. One has magic and one doesn't so your guess is as good as mine as to which world is 'normal.'"

Emilia thought for a moment, "Subaru, how do you think I'd fit in on your world?"

Subaru laughed, "I don't know why you're asking me. I never fit in there!"

"I was just wondering."

"Well, you'd be the only elf in the world which might make fitting in difficult," Subaru admitted, "On the other hand you'd unquestionably be the most beautiful woman on the planet so me trying to keep all the other guys away from you might end up being a full time job."

"Subaru, quit teasing me," Emilia complained.

"I'm not! You're the most beautiful woman I've ever seen! If I brought you home you'd redefine the standard of beauty for an entire planet!"

Emilia stared at him, "Subaru. You're not joking, are you? You really believe that."

"Yes, in the same way that I believe that fire is hot, rivers are wet, and that Garf isn't too bright," Subaru replied.

"Subaru," Emilia muttered reproachfully.

"Oh, come on, Mili. We're on the run from whole kingdoms right now. We need to take our laughs where we can get them," Subaru said.

Emilia looked off in the distance.

"Subaru, do you really think we'll be safe in Gusteko?" She asked.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, what's stopping everyone from following us there?" Emilia asked.

"Well, if the Lagunican army comes after us in Gusteko, that's called an invasion and I don't think the locals would be amused," Subaru chuckled, "Reinhard isn't allowed to cross the border by law so really the only people we'd need to worry about finding us is the Witch Cult. That's still a big problem but it's one problem instead of three. I suppose Felt, Garfiel and maybe the twins might come looking for us, but I think that they'd come looking for a parley not a fight. Alone, their odds against us aren't very good."

"But what if Lagunica just tells Gusteko that the Witch of Envy is wandering around in their kingdom? Wouldn't they try to hunt me down too?"

"Maybe," Subaru admitted, "They might also think that it's a trick or some kind of practical joke. Besides, once we cross the border our trail should go cold so even if they do tell… whoever runs Gusteko about us being there, they'll have no idea where we are or where to start looking for us. I'm not saying that we can stay in Gusteko long term but we all need a break. Even a couple of days to rest and recover would do us a world of good. If we detect that the wind is shifting against us, we'll get out of there before the heat comes down. We should have plenty of time to come up with exit strategies."

Emilia shook her head, "Subaru, how do you do it?"

"Do what?"

"How do you come up with all these plans? If you weren't here, I don't know what I would have done. I'd probably have tried to go back to Elior, gotten lost, and ended up wandering around in circles until I got caught," She sighed.

"Err, I think maybe you're giving yourself too little credit, Mili. I think if you were in that situation you'd surprise yourself. You certainly surprised everyone at the Sanctuary," Subaru said.

"After you got there," She pointed out.

"Hey all I did was provide some extra motivation to complete the trails. You did the work all on your own," Subaru said.

"No, it was you, Subaru. You showed me how to beat the trial."

"I did?" He asked in confusion

She smiled at him, "Yes, you did."

Subaru scratched his head, "Umm, how exactly did I do that?"

Emilia laughed, "Maybe I'll tell you someday. I like it when you feel confused."

"No wonder you like me so much then," Subaru chuckled.

That evening, Crusch stood over the map in her command tent. It was marked with numerous pins connected by a thin red string.

Felix stood next to her. Felt and Garfiel stood on the other side of the table.

"Alright," Crusch murmured, "Let's go over this one more time. Subaru and the witch left the trailer here and headed off to the north west when last you saw them," Crusch pointed at a yellow pin in the map.

"Yeah," Felt agreed.

Crusch looked at the map, "Assuming he kept going in that direction he would have reached Miseri in a couple of days. Could the witch have had some reason to go to Miseri?"

Felt shrugged, "I guess so but if she did, she picked a weird time to sneak off. We passed way closer to Miseri a day earlier."

"Well," Garfiel scratched his chin, "Maybe it was like Marty and Emmett after the lightning struck."

Crusch stared at him, What is this buffoon talking about now?!

"Translation, Garf," Felt sighed, "We didn't all grow up reading those weird books in the Sanctuary you keep talking about."

"You know, maybe the witch needed to go someplace really badly but Subaru was unconscious after the fight with Ley and the frost flowers-"

Felt shuddered.

"And that meant that she couldn't leave until Subaru woke up," Garfiel finished.

Crusch mulled that over, "Possibly," She admitted.

"Hey, what's this pin?" Garfiel asked pointing at a red pin to the northwest.

"That's where Reinhard fought Regulus the other day, nya," Felix replied, "Currently the site of a very large crater. The blue pins nearby are where Reinhard searched for him after the fight but he didn't find anything."

"So," Crusch continued, "After the fight, Reinhard van Astrea searched all across the north for Regulus and for Subaru Natsuki," Crusch pointed at a forest of blue pins between the trailer, Miseri and Priestella.

"And he found nothing," Felt added, "The next day Subaru and the witch manage to sneak through this whole frigging army camp undetected. We wouldn't know about it at all except that Rem told us that she smelled a cultist."

Felix raised his hand, "Question: if Rem had no intention of letting you confront Subaru Natsuki and his witch, then why did she tell you about smelling the witch in the first place, nya?"

Garfiel growled.

"Apparently, Rem wasn't sure at first," Felt grumbled folding her arms, "Originally, Rem thought it was a witch cult spy. It wasn't until we had found the cave that she told us that it smelled like Su… the witch."

"Anyway," Crusch sighed, "We inform Reinhard of this incident and he travels down south to search," Crusch taps the map at a group of blue pins in the north Kremaldy forest.

"And then, three days ago," Felt added, "Reinhard passes through Arlem to check on everybody and Petra told him that Subaru and the witch had been there."

"Although apparently, this 'Petra' had been warned by Subaru not to reveal this information," Crusch muttered, "I don't like faithless people."

"Whose side are you on, Crusch?!" Felt objected. "Besides, it's not her fault. She's a child! She knows that Red is Subaru's best friend and a hero besides! He said he was trying to rescue him and she took him at his word!"

Crusch shook her head, "Well, whatever the reason, now we know that Subaru headed further south so Reinhard investigated there and I repositioned my scouts," Crusch grumbled pointing at a swarm of blue pins between Arlem and Costuul and around the surrounding mountains.

"Then last night, Captain Falric and his troops were investigating the mabeast disturbances in the area. He's attacked by a Guiltylowe and trapped in a cave. He and his men almost die but Subaru Natsuki rescues him and kills the Guiltylowe with a single blow."

"That's our Captain," Garfiel chuckled.

Crusch glared at him, "Then," She continued, "A Stormcrow attacks them and the witch intervenes, killing the beast."

"Do different kinds of mabeasts usually hunt together like that?" Felt asked.

"Nya, Stormcrows don't hunt with other mabeasts. They try to poach their kills," Felix explained, "The Stormcrow probably wondered what the Guiltylowe was so interested in inside that cave so it waited for the mabeast to dig it out and then planned to steal it."

"In any event," Crusch said, "Subaru tells Falric that the dragon blood is all gone, which is a ridiculous statement-"

"Actually, he told me the same thing," Felt murmured.

"What?" Crusch asked.

"He told me that the blood was all gone and he seemed pretty upset about it," Felt explained.

"Yeah, Capella told him that during the fight," Garfiel elaborated, "The Captain looked shocked. The bitch told him about the blood like she thought it would break him and it looked like maybe it did but I don't know why."

Crusch's mind spun. The blood is gone… What does that mean? Didn't the royal family get more blood from the dragon regularly as part of the pact? How could the Kingdom have run out of blood like this? And couldn't Subaru Natsuki just get more blood once he becomes King?

Crusch shook off the questions. They weren't relevant right now.

"Finally, Captain Falric reported that Subaru was deep enough under the witch's spell to offer violence against anyone attempting to harm her. Falric last saw Subaru headed back toward the northwest," Crusch finished pointing at a red pin.

Felix studied the map, "If he kept going that way he'd miss our camp and eventually get to Miseri, nya."

"Possibly," Crusch sighed, "He might also have changed direction as soon as he was out of sight so that Falric wouldn't know which way he was going."

Felix pushed blue pins into the area near the latest red pin, "Scouts have been dispatched to the surrounding area, fifteen miles in every direction. However the swampy grasslands are bad terrain for riding earth dragons so our scouts are on foot and the grasslands also make for bad tracking. The area is too wet and green to have many marks of their passing. The scouts haven't come up with anything yet. Reinhard should return soon and we can brief him on the new information, nya" Felix said.

Crusch slammed her fist into the map, "Damn you, Subaru Natsuki. What are you planning?" She whispered.

"Don't you mean what is the witch planning?" Felt asked with an edge in her voice.

"Yes, of course," Crusch replied in a repentant tone, "I did indeed misspeak."

Felt glared at her suspiciously.

"Hey, what does the witch want anyway?" Garfiel mused.

"What do you mean?" Felt asked.

"Well, what is she trying to do? The witch is just wandering aimlessly in the woods as far as I can tell. The only time she pokes her head out it's to rescue somebody from a mabeast. Maybe… maybe she's not as bad as we thought," Garfiel suggested diffidently.

"Garf!" Felt yelled in exasperation.

"I"m just saying, shrimp!" Garfiel held up his hands in surrender, "Falric says that the Captain convinced her to save his men's lives. Maybe the Captain can control her."

"Garf, listen! I know that you're stupid. Frankly that's one of the only endearing things about you but this is dumb even by your standards. The witch has Subaru under a spell that dominates his mind and twists his memories! Who do you think is controlling whom? On top of that, do you remember what she did to us?!" Felt demanded.

"Of course I remember! I was there too! But the flowers that attacked you also attacked the Captain and the witch seems to care about what happens to him if nothing else!" Garfiel said helplessly.

"What are you saying?" Crusch asked.

"I'm just saying, maybe the witch was telling the truth, you know? Maybe the frost flowers were an accident and the spell just got out of control when she tried to save us from Lye," Garfiel shrugged.

"And what? That just makes it OK?!" Felt demanded.

"Shrimp, I'm not saying that! Look, all I'm saying is that… if the Captain can make her behave herself, then maybe we can negotiate with her… with him. Convince the Captain to come in out of the woods and then we could all solve the problem together," Garfiel shrugged.

"Garf! Subaru is freaking enchanted by the witch! He's her puppet and will probably say whatever she wants him to say!" Felt glared at him and Garfiel shrank in on himself.

Garfiel looked hurt, "So, what then?! If the Captain isn't the one calling the shots then explain what happened to Falric. The evil witch made the decision to rescue those soldiers?!" Garfiel demanded.

Crusch looked at him coldly, Garfiel's loyalties are impressive. Normally I would respect that but Garfiel's dedication to Subaru goes beyond the point of reason. If Subaru says the Witch of Envy is under his control, then Garfiel seems to be willing to take his word for it. Then again, the even more concerning possibility is that Subaru's statement might not be a lie. I need to make sure that Garfiel doesn't go off looking for Subaru alone. If he met his 'Captain' without Felt there to hold his leash, I'm worried that Subaru Natsuki could convince him to switch sides.

"Before we can do anything, we need to find them," Crusch said in a conciliatory tone, "My scouts are in the field. Hopefully they can pick up the trail. We'll brief Reinhard as soon as he gets back."

"We can't keep using Red this way, Crusch, " Felt complained, "He's barely sleeping! The poor kid is going to burn out!"

"This is an emergency, Felt," Crusch replied, "We need to get control of this situation before the witch regains her power."

Felt glowered at Crusch but didn't respond.

Crusch sighed, "It's getting late. We'll all think better in the morning."

Felt nodded and left the command tent with Garfiel and headed back to their own tent, now with only two sleeping rolls inside.

They both sat down on their rolls with a sigh.

"I think Crusch is losing it," Garfiel confessed, "What kind of evil witch goes skipping through the country side doing good deeds? What kind of evil witch rescues soldiers from mabeasts?"

"Fleabag, will you please stop talking about the witch like she's the good guy? It drives me crazy!" Felt growled.

"I'm just repeating what actually happened, shrimp!" Garfiel snapped back.

"The witch completely rewrote Subaru's memories! What kind of 'good witch' does that?" Felt demanded.

"What if the Captain was right? What if it's all of our memories that got warped and his Authority thingy protected him?" Garfiel asked.

"Oh Gods," Felt said, covering her face and barking a bitter laugh, "Do you really admire him that much, kid? If he told you that you could fly by flapping your arms really hard would you believe him?"

"You know, what? Fuck you, shrimp!" Garfiel snapped.

"Nobody remembers the stuff he talked about. Not us, not the twins, not even Crusch who on the other fucking side of the kingdom when we found the witch. If Subaru was right then there is some kind of ridiculous magic that modifies the memories of everyone in the fucking world except for him. So you tell me, how likely is that?" Felt asked him with an exasperated sigh.

"I don't know!" Garfiel spat, "I'm just saying, if this witch is so evil then why is she devoting so much time and effort to doing good things?"

"So that idiots like you, fleabag, will do exactly what you're doing!" Felt snapped, "She wants us to think that she's OK so that we'll lower our guard and stop chasing her! Then she has all the time in world to use Subaru to carry out her plan!"

"Yeah, what plan is that again? Cause it seems like all the witch is doing is following the Captain around the woods," Garfiel said sarcastically, "You keep talking about the evil witch and her evil plan but it doesn't seem to me like you have any idea what that plan is-except for the fact that it's evil. You're obviously very clear on that point."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Felt demanded.

Garfiel stared at Felt and then took a deep breath, "I've been thinking-"

"Oh man, Garf's been thinking. I'm sorry that Ram isn't here to see this," Felt snorted.

Garfiel glowered at her, "I've been thinking that maybe you're not seeing things clearly anymore, Felt" He suggested quietly.

"Excuse me?!" Felt gaped at him.

Garfiel sighed, "Look! You're not acting like the Felt I know. You're not using that enormous brain of yours to view the situation objectively. This whole thing has gotten personal for you."

"You're goddamn right it's personal!" Felt shouted, "The witch tortured me, kidnapped Subaru, and is now doing who knows what to him!"

"That's the problem, Felt! She didn't kidnap him! He decided to leave with her and she followed him. We've got no evidence that she's doing anything to him at all. If anything the reports seem to indicate that she's following his lead, the same as she did when we were in the trailer!" Garfiel yelled back, "You've lost perspective, Felt, and you're not thinking clearly. You're frustrated, angry, and exhausted! You've barely slept in three days! You need to get some fucking sleep and take a fresh look at things."

"I can't sleep, you enormous blond prick!" Felt screamed.

Garfiel blinked. He was used to having screaming arguments with Felt. They were all in good fun. But now that he looked closely at Felt, he saw her big red eyes were filled with tears.

Felt bit her lip, "I can't close my eyes, Garf. Every time I try, I feel those horrible flowers creeping all over me, turning my body into a briar patch as they eat me alive. I'm not sleeping because I fucking can't! Every time I try to close my eyes I just want to start screaming!" She shook her head. "Felix says there's nothing more he can do for me. Physically I'm fine but the nightmares…"

Felt wrapped her arms around her body, trembling. She took a ragged breath.

Garfiel opened his mouth but he couldn't think of what to say.

"Good evening," Reinhard said walking into the tent, "I heard your discussion when I entered the camp, as did most of our comrades I expect, and wished to bid you both goodnight before retiring to my own roll."

"Red," Felt said with a tired smile.

"Nice to see you again, Reinhard," Garfiel said standing up to shake his hand.

"To you as well, Master Garfiel. And you, of course, Miss Felt," Reinhard replied.

Garfiel looked at Felt and he thought hard for a moment. It took a rather long moment.

"Hey, Reinhard, do you think you could do me a big favor?" Garfiel asked slowly.

"Of course, my friend. You don't even have to ask," Reinhard replied smiling.

"Mind if we swap sleeping rolls tonight? See, I need to sleep on that side of the camp tonight because, uh, reasons," Garfiel finished lamely.

Reinhard blanched and then looked at Felt with a blush, "Please understand, I'd love to accommodate you, my friend-"

"Great! Thanks, Reinhard!" Garfiel said, walking out of the tent.

"…But I am not altogether certain that this is appropriate," Reinhard murmured to Garfiel's back.

Reinhard looked at Felt in confusion, "Why did Master Garfiel do that?"

"Maybe the dumb lug just wanted to do me a favor," Felt shrugged.

Reinhard looked puzzled and Felt hid a fond smile behind her hand.

Reinhard cleared his throat as he turned to Felt, "Miss Felt, it is a warm and clear night. I can simply take my roll outside and-"

"Knock it off, Red," Felt snickered, "You're not going to sleep outside, there's plenty of room right here."

Reinhard frowned looking awkward, "You are certainly right, Miss Felt. However, even though I would die before pressing attentions on you that would be unwelcome, I am concerned for your reputation if I sleep-"

"You'd be amazed how hard you'd have to work for your attention to be unwelcome to me, Red," Felt replied.

Reinhard blushed.

"Besides I don't have a reputation. I'm a girl from the slums," Felt shrugged.

"Anyone who dismisses you as such will answer to me personally, Miss Felt. You are gracious in victory and defeat, kind to the undeserving, and steadfast to friends in need or in plenty. You are a remarkable woman and you stand second to no one," Reinhard assured her.

Felt wrapped her arms around her knees and pressed her face against them, "Reinhard, could you do something for me?"

"Of course."

"Could you… could you just hold my hand while I fall asleep?" She asked.

Reinhard hesitated for only a moment, "Of course, Miss Felt. It would be my deep honor."

Felt laid down on her sleeping roll and Reinhard knelt down beside her.

Felt rolled her eyes, "Jeez, Reinhard! Just lie down!" She ordered.

Reinhard looked awkward but he laid down on his sleeping roll as he was directed.

Felt reached out and took Reinhard's hand. Reinhard blushed as red as his hair.

"Gods, Red," Felt whispered, looking up at the dark tent's roof, "You're so awkward about simple things. You're just lucky that you look so cute when you blush."

"Miss Felt?" He asked in confusion.

She sighed, "Reinhard, did I ever tell you about… what the witch did to me?"

"I don't believe so," Reinhard replied.

"I guess I didn't really want to talk about it," She took a deep breath, "We were fighting a Sin Archbishop named Lye. Well, Subaru and the others were. I was standing in the trailer helplessly. The witch threw a spell of some kind at the Archbishop but she wound up cursing me and Subaru too…"

Reinhard gasped, "What happened?"

Felt squeezed his hand tight and bit her lip, "It," She choked and then took a deep breath, "It spread frost flowers all over the area. Beautiful delicate flowers of ice that grew out of the frozen ground in seconds."

"This was a curse?"

"And then they started growing on me…"

Reinhard looked at her in concern.

Felt swallowed, "I felt them growing inside of me, Red. They started by bursting out of my skin and then their roots dug deep into my body and," She swallowed hard, "I watched my blood flow up into the stems until the ice blossoms turned red from my blood. Their roots," Felt chocked, "They sank deep inside of me and they started to crack open my bones the same way the roots of a tree split stone. And they… they… I could feel them sucking out my marrow…"

"Miss Felt…" He whispered in horror.

Felt squeezed her eyes shut and began to sob, "I can't live with it, Red. I see it, I feel it every time I close my eyes. I felt them growing all over me. One grew from my tongue and another grew out of my eye. A few grew out of my finger tips and their roots cracked through my nails like they were breaking a cracker! One of the largest grew out of my back and I heard… I actually heard my spine crack open. I thought I was going to die but I just kept living and more and more plants kept growing all over my body. They were everywhere, touching me everywhere, drinking me, sucking me dry. I stopped being afraid that I would die and started to pray for it. I just wanted it to stop!"

"Miss Felt, please don't speak so!" Reinhard urged.

Felt took a moment to steady herself, "Reinhard," Felt whispered, "Could you do something for me?"

"Of course, Miss Felt," He swore, "You have my word as knight. No matter the challenge, I will not falter!"

Felt bit her lip, "Could you… could you just hold me tonight?"

Reinhard looked shocked.

Felt's eyes were swimming with tears. She knew he would reject her request as completely inappropriate and she had no strength to insist.

She saw his mouth open to refuse and then close it again.

"Of course, Miss Felt," He replied, "Not even the Witch of Envy herself can harm you so long as you are in my arms."

Felt choked back a sob and Reinhard awkwardly wrapped his arms around her.

Felt buried her face in his chest and began to cry, "Red, what the fuck am I doing?" She demanded, "I don't cry! I don't think I've cried since I was five years old!"

"A wise man once told me that we are the sum of our tears. Too little and the soil is barren; nothing can grow," Reinhard whispered as he awkwardly stroked her hair.

Felt lay there sobbing into his chest.

"Miss Felt," Reinhard whispered, "This entire matter is all my fault. If I had been by your side, none of this ever would have happened. Subaru would not have been bewitched and abducted by that woman and her curse would never have afflicted you."

"It's nobody's fault but the witch's, Red," Felt whimpered, "She's the one who cursed me and bewitched Subaru. Besides," She half chuckled, "I could never stay mad at you for anything."

"Why not?"

Felt took a deep breath and then let it out slowly, "Reinhard, you are very, very stupid."

"What did I say?"

Felt lay there quietly for a time.

Felt sighed, "Reinhard, do you ever think about the future?"

"Not really, why?"

Felt sighed, "I don't know I… I guess the witch's curse has just made me feel more fragile than I used to. I'm starting to realize that if I don't tell people certain things now, I may never get another chance to tell them..."

"Words of wisdom, Miss Felt. You should unburden your mind about such things."

Reinhard felt her smile against his chest, "You really think so?" She asked in evident amusement.

"I sense that I am once again missing the joke. Or perhaps am the butt of it."

"No to both," Felt replied, "I was just realizing that there's something we need to talk about when things settle down."

"I am ever at your call, Miss Felt."

"I know," She whispered, "Thank you, Reinhard."

They were quiet for a moment.

"Reinhard, I think… I think maybe I can go to sleep now but…"

"I will guard you all night, Miss Felt," He promised.

"Don't do that, you dummy. You're tired too. Just let me rest here while we sleep, OK?"

"… Of course," Reinhard replied.

"Reinhard?"

"Yes?"

"I'm still afraid of the nightmares…" She confessed.

"Alas, Miss Felt. I can not enter your dreams and protect you from them unless you dream of me as well," Reinhard answered helplessly.

Felt looked up at him with a broad smile, "You know what? That's a great idea. Thanks, Red," She chuckled, "It's weird, Reinhard. I've only know you for a couple of weeks but somehow… I can't imagine my life without you… Or maybe I just don't want to…"

Felt laid her head back down on his chest and drifted off to sleep.

Reinhard lay there stroking the back of her head until her breathing became deep and even, a steady drone that lulled him off to sleep as well.

Subaru and Emilia walked long into the night.

God, I'm exhausted! How is Mili doing this so easily? Oh, she's probably using mana to sustain her muscles.

Crap. Why can't my Authority do that? Or can it do that but I just don't know how?

Great.

God, this has been the week from hell. Marching all day everyday, barely any sleep, lousy food, and always worried that we're about to be caught.

I can't handle much more of this. A few more days like this and I'm just going to collapse just from the stress. Every time I close my eyes I jerk awake when I hear any sound. I worry anything could be someone coming to take Emilia.

I keep imagining a group of soldiers surrounding us late one night. Or Reinhard stumbling over us.

Or Regulus.

OK, knock it off! You need to stay focused right now! You can go all to pieces later but first you need to get your family to safety. Then you can have your big breakdown and cry yourself to sleep in Emilia's arms.

Just keep picturing what will happen if your enemies or your friends catch up with Emilia. That should keep your legs moving.

You have one priority right now: You have to keep Emilia safe.

You have to keep Emilia safe.

You have to keep Emilia safe.

A few hours later Reinhard was awakened by Felt struggling in his arms.

He opened his eyes in shock and saw Felt sound asleep but thrashing, whimpering, and moaning. Tears streaming down her face as she slept.

Reinhard stared her at helplessly. He had no Blessing that could soothe her wounded heart and his skill with a sword was useless. No blade could slay the demons in her mind.

In desperation he held Felt closer, "I am with you, Miss Felt. Nothing can hurt you so long as I'm here. I give you my word as a knight of the kingdom."

Felt murmured in her sleep and then began to settle, "Reinhard," She whispered and a faint smile flickered across her face as she quieted.

"Miss Felt," He whispered, "What kind of demon could do such horrors to a noble hearted woman like yourself? Much less bewitch and enthrall one of the kindest and bravest men it has ever been my good fortune to know. I will resolve all of this, Miss Felt. The witch will pay for her crimes. I give you my world as a knight."

Reinhard looked at the tent ceiling, his thoughts dark.

This entire matter is all my fault. If I had not left Subaru alone, none of this ever would have happened. Could the witch have been planning this? That vast dark power that Subaru possesses, I know that it can be tamed under his will, I've seen him do it. But that same power must make him an extremely tempting target for the witch. Perhaps she'd been waiting for someone like Subaru for centuries.

Subaru Natsuki has the power to change this world. I've seen the evidence of it with my own eyes. Miss Felt has seen it as well. When she told me about Subaru's 'engine' I initially dismissed it as a toy but Miss Felt instantly understood the world shattering potential of this device. What would Subaru Natsuki be capable of in just another year? Ever since the attack at Arlem, I've been beset by visions of Subaru changing this world into a paradise, leading whole nations into harmony, prosperity, and justice. But under the witch's influence, what if my dear friend Subaru was corrupted and sought to set the world aflame?

No. Things haven't gone that far yet. All the reports I've received suggest that even under the witch's influence, Subaru has preserved his integrity. He lured the Sin Archbishop Capella away from his friends, he spared the lives of Captain Falric's company when it would have been far easier (and perhaps objectively wiser) to have done otherwise.

Subaru can still be saved. I sense it. I simply need to separate him from the witch and give him time to recover.

However this is easier said than done. If Subaru has truly fallen so into her thrall as to choose the witch over Miss Felt, his treasured friend, then I must assume Subaru will also be unwilling to listen to me.

Such thoughts lead me to a dark place. Subaru being lost to shadow would be a catastrophic loss, both to his loved ones and for the world at large. And that doesn't even take into consideration the consequences of granting the Witch of Envy access to his staggering well of magical power and his considerable genius.

Given the extreme consequences of failure in this case, there can be no half measures. The needs of the world outweigh the concerns of my own heart and even those of my cherished friend. Subaru must be separated from the witch, even if it is against his will. Even if he Subaru comes to hate me for it. There is no other solution.

The witch must die.


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