--Oh, Subaru, it's a shame you have to die.
Subaru shook his head, which had been lying there in a daze, and sat up, looking around.
I should be fine when I wake up, but I'm not sure what I'm thinking because I'm not really asleep. As I rack my brain to remember what happened before I lost consciousness, the first thing that came to mind was something familiar about the place I was in.
"The mansion's living room...right?"
"Ah, Subaru, are you awake?"
Immediately after he murmured something as if to confirm, Emilia opened the door and peeked her head in.
With her silver hair tied up in a braid, her expression brightened slightly as she walked over to Subaru, who was reclining on the couch, and bent down to meet his gaze.
Staring intently into those round eyes, Subaru shrugged his shoulders slightly,
"Um, what happened, Emilia-tan?"
"As soon as we entered the mansion, we heard Subaru scream. Both Otto and I were shocked. So we jumped in and…"
"Was I asleep?"
"That's a bit misleading, but... the general outline is probably correct."
Emilia places her finger over her lips and tilts her head, but her attitude doesn't convey any sense of urgency about the situation Subaru has mentioned.
Subaru had determined that the situation wasn't urgent given that she had been relaxed immediately after waking up, but even so, he couldn't shake the feeling that it was strange.
If I remember correctly, just before I lost consciousness, I saw some creature with sharp fangs――,
"Emilia-sama, may I have a moment?"
There was a knock on the door from outside, and a woman's voice called out to Emilia. She turned her gaze in that direction and replied in the affirmative, "Yes," and the door slowly opened.
As Subaru casually stared at the door as it opened, a question suddenly occurred to him.
--Hmm, that voice just now seemed like one I'd never heard before.
However, his doubts were soon cleared up by what was on the other side of the door.
"Something to drink and a spare towel -- aah, you've woken up."
Subaru's eyes were glued to the smiling figure who said this.
She had long, clear, golden hair and stood tall. Her posture and mannerisms were all refined, and her movements were flowing smoothly without a single moment of waste.
Her outfit was the familiar waitress uniform seen at Roswaal Mansion - a maid's outfit, cute yet functional, worn with perfect decency.
As he had said, the tray he held in his hands contained a pitcher of water and a towel, and he placed them silently and quietly on the table in the center of the living room. --If I had to rate it, it would be perfect, full marks.
That is, except for his intimidating build and smile.
Though the waiter's uniform was worn neatly, the wearer was slightly taller than Subaru and had a muscular build. If it were a man, it would pass for strength, but if it was a woman, it would no longer be simply muscular.
Furthermore, the smile that formed as the culmination of his perfect posture - the mouth that graced the smile was ruined by a group of sharp fangs that were clearly visible from the outside. Looking back, the sharpness of his narrowed eyes was extraordinary, and the pupils of his green eyes shone like a feline carnivore stalking its prey.
"It's nice to meet you. I am Frederica Baumann, a servant at the mansion of Margrave Roswaal L. Mathers."
"Your face is scary――!?"
Subaru interrupted her polite self-introduction as he blurted out his overly frank opinion. The expression of the woman who had heard it in front of her stiffened slightly, and after blinking several times, her evil eyes slowly began to well up with tears.
"Huh..."
"Huh?"
"Subaru, you idiot!!"
Subaru was stunned as the woman stammered and turned her face away. Immediately afterwards, he was hit with an angry voice and a painful tug on his ear.
"Ouch, ouch!" I screamed and turned my gaze to see Emilia, her gentle brows sharpened in anger.
"What a thing to say to a girl. How devoted Frederica is to Subaru…"
"Please, stop, Lady Emilia. It's fine. I, it's my fault. I was so happy to be called back to the mansion that I got carried away… I even forgot that I'm not the kind of person who would be liked by others."
Pulling at the angry Emilia's sleeve, the woman - Frederica - shook her head. She covered her mouth with the hand opposite that of the one pulling Emilia.
"I apologize for startling you. Also, I was extremely rude earlier. To think that I would have mistaken the returning Natsuki Subaru-sama for a suspicious person."
"Suspicious person... Ah, wait. I'm starting to understand what you're saying."
Temporarily freed from Emilia's torture, Subaru rubbed his ear as he carefully considered what Frederica had said. And he came to a general understanding of the situation that had led up to now.
In other words, the mysterious person Subaru encountered as soon as he entered the mansion was――,
"Frederica-san, who had returned to the mansion, mistook me for a suspicious person and drove me off. Then, Emilia-tan came in later and we talked, and the misunderstanding was cleared up, and that's how we got to where we are now…"
"That's absolutely correct... you have a very quick mind."
"It's hard to read that part because of the flow... no, before that."
Confirming that his thoughts were correct with Frederica's affirmation, Subaru looked behind her at Emilia, who jerked her chin and pointed to Frederica. He understood the meaning of that gesture, and the thoughts of Emilia, who had her arms crossed, all too well. And so, Subaru got off the couch and faced her,
"I'm sorry for saying such rude things to you out of the blue when we first met. I think I did something that a woman wouldn't tolerate, like waking up and messing around. I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't hurt me too much, whether that be boiling or roasting me."
Subaru bows his head in a manner that seems a little too weak to be called respectful.
It was true that their first contact did not leave a good impression on each other, but unlike her intention to intercept the suspicious person, Subaru's remarks were a complete mistake.
As she said, I must accept whatever treatment I receive if it will clear up her anger. Ideally, I would prefer no physical pain, and more like the abuse I receive to tear at my heart.
However, Subaru's manly yet feminine resolve to apologize was,
"--Fufu, you're an interesting person."
But then, Frederica put her hand over her mouth to hide her smile, and her smile was washed away.
In front of Subaru, who had a questioning expression on his face, Frederica bowed her head with her clear blonde hair, and took the same stance as Subaru, apologizing,
"I must apologize. I followed Emilia-sama's words and tested Subaru-sama."
"A test?"
Subaru and Emilia simultaneously tilted their heads to the side at Frederica's words. They didn't understand what she meant.
Subaru could understand, but if he believed her words, it didn't make sense for Emilia to have doubts as well. However, Frederica's smile deepened as she saw the two of them behaving in the same way,
"Although I felt a sense of duty to protect the mansion, I was rude to my guest, Subaru-sama. At this point, I have decided that the only way to take responsibility is to offer up my neck."
"No, it's too early to make up your mind about that. I'm the kind of man who can understand if we talk it through, right?"
"And so Emilia-sama insisted. She spoke so much, using flowery words for Subaru-sama, that it made me blush just listening to her…"
"Huh?!"
Shocked by Frederica's unexpected words, Subaru lets out a strange cry and looks at Emilia, who is blushing and trying to cover it up.
"Hurray deli ka."
Instead, Emilia, with her hands on her hips, glared at the maid with a menacing look that was uncharacteristic of her. Frederica responded calmly, "Oh, that's scary,"
"As usual, Lady Emilia is not cute at all. Normally, in this situation, it would be normal for you to blush and become flustered, regardless of the truth of what I said."
"Oh, really… I mean, I won't be fooled today. Even I will learn if I am fooled all the time. That's right, Frederica's eyes move closer to you when she is lying!"
"I was not aware of that. By the way, Lady Emilia, are you aware that your ears get longer when you tell a lie?"
"No way!?"
Emilia, who had been pointing at Frederica with a triumphant look on her face, hastily grabbed both of her ears at her words. However, the moment she elicited that reaction, Frederica had already won.
The panicked Emilia still didn't seem to realize that she had been defeated, but Subaru, who had been watching her every step of the way, sighed and shrugged his shoulders,
「It seems like I've been completely defeated. …My name is Natsuki Subaru. Should I introduce myself?」
"Yes, of course I will accept it. Let's get to know each other a little better."
Saying this, Frederica removed the hand that was covering her mouth and revealed a smile that revealed a row of fangs. Unlike her previous reaction, seeing her strength, even using that smile as a weapon, Subaru was truly overcome this time.
※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※
"Now that I think about it, I heard something about it. That there was a maid who quit shortly before I came to the mansion. I've been here for a month now, so… maybe it's been about three months since she quit?"
"That's true. I resigned for personal reasons. I remember feeling terribly sad to leave here... Although, I ended up coming back sooner than I expected."
Frederica was smiling, hiding her mouth with her sleeve. With her mouth hidden, her beautiful blonde hair and her barely perceptible, dignified gaze made her the very image of a beautiful woman.
However, this element is inevitably negated by his mischievous personality and the fangs of his mouth.
The location remained the same, in the living room of the Roswaal mansion, where Subaru and Frederica had just briefly exchanged information other than their names. Then, as he listened to her self-introduction, he remembered that the name sounded familiar.
"Three months ago, so you must have met Emilia-tan before?"
"I see. That's right."
"You don't hear things like that anymore these days. And the way you sulk is so old-fashioned and cute, hey."
Emilia didn't even look at Subaru as he asked her a question, instead sitting on the couch and directing her hearing in his direction but not seeming to take part in what he was saying.
Ever since she had belatedly realized that Frederica had tricked her, this was how she had been.
Anyway,
"When you say 'returned,' you mean the past two or three days. Three days since we left the village… No, four days including travel time. It seems like we've missed each other quite a bit though."
"When I returned and came to the mansion I was surprised to find it completely empty. Fortunately, there was a note left in Master's office so I wasn't too confused."
"A note left?"
"Yes, from Ram. Even though she summoned me to come to the mansion, she handled the communication duties like that… I guess it's just too much to think that this is typical of her."
Frederica's bitter smile had a seasoned feel to it, and Subaru assumed that she had known Ram for quite some time. At the same time, she must have also spent a similar amount of time with Rem, who had also disappeared from her memory.
"What do you mean Ram called Frederica back?"
"I don't know the reason clearly. However, I think that if you, Emilia-sama, are here, you will understand."
As the water was poured over her, Emilia also attracted the gazes of both of them. The girl herself still had her face turned away, maintaining her attitude of "I'm super angry right now". However, it was obvious that she was aware of their gazes and kept glancing in their direction with half-closed eyes.
Subaru: "Emilia-tan, cheer her up… I mean, it wasn't my fault for making her angry in the first place, so Frederica should be the one apologizing properly."
"Please forgive me, Lady Emilia. I am sorry about what happened earlier. I was so happy to be able to meet you again after such a long time, that Frederica was tempted as well."
"...You won't tease me like that anymore?"
"Yes, I will not. I will never again tease Lady Emilia in this manner."
Subaru was still suspicious that Frederica's excuses were sophistry. However, our Goddess, Emilia, seemed to have readily believed her, and her sulky expression softened to one that said, "Well, it can't be helped,"
"Okay, I'm not angry anymore. Is this okay?"
"Yes, I'm sorry, Lady Emilia. --It was easy."
For some reason, only Subaru heard the latter part of the mutter, and in shock, he looked at Frederica, but she pretended not to notice. And, unaware that she had been deemed easy, Emilia put her finger up to her cheek and said, "So,"
"Umm, that's the reason why Ram called Frederica back to the mansion... right?"
"I, I. You called the person you just fired out of your job in a hurry, so there must be some urgent business… Wait, do you have any idea what that might be?"
There was no urgent matter at all; until recently, this mansion and Arlam village had been under threat from the Witch's Cult. Judging by the skill she displayed in instantly stealing Subaru's consciousness, Frederica, like the suspicious maid of Roswaal Mansion, must have some combat skill.
In other words, the reason Ram had summoned her was to serve as a fighting force for the mansion in an emergency――
"Ram's housekeeping skills were catastrophic, and the mansion fell into a terrible state… right? After just a few days, it gradually became impossible to live in."
"It was a sincere reason! And he really didn't live up to his words... No, he analyzed himself and realized he wasn't good enough! He was right, but at least put in some effort to get back at him!"
I read too much into it and the reason was so earnest that it made my heart burst.
Emilia gave a wry smile at Subaru's shout, then looked around the living room - no, through it she looked out over the entire mansion,
"But, the mansion has been beautifully restored thanks to Frederica's return. Rather than making things worse with some weird stubbornness, I think Ram's decision to leave it to someone capable is the right one."
Subaru: "I don't think Emilia-tan has any such feelings, but those words really hurt my heart! And yet, I don't think that's a reason for her to give up right away!"
"Regardless of Ram's opinion of me, it's been a long time since I've had the opportunity to do a job that's worth doing. Luckily, everyone was away, so I was able to use the time I would have spent looking after them to clean and tidy up the mansion."
There was something impressive about Frederica, who gave a glimpse of her hard work. While Subaru was taken aback by her abilities as a house helper, he couldn't help but feel a sense of accomplishment.
The power of 『Gluttony』 gives rise to the power to compensate for the world by erasing Rem's existence.
"Ram can't run the mansion by herself, so it's only natural that she has to rely on someone else… huh?"
Therefore, Ram contacted Frederica, who had resigned from her position, and invited her back to the mansion. The Roswaal Mansion would not be able to function without Rem's presence, so in order to keep it functioning, she brought Frederica in as a replacement for Rem.
However, only Subaru knows this sad truth. Frederica complies because she is needed, and Ram is left unsure of why there is such a large difference in capacity between her and the mansion that she suddenly needs her powers. That is all.
However,
"I know I'm being sentimental on purpose, but... is it possible that you have to be a bit of a joke to be a maid at Roswaal's mansion?"
"…? What are you saying, Subaru-sama, when you are already his employer?"
"What an awful, nasty way to persuasion!"
That alone is a stable answer that will settle all the questions you have up until now.
Hearing this, Frederica nodded in satisfaction, then straightened up and gazed at Subaru. As Subaru stood there wondering what was going on, Frederica lowered her voice and said, "By the way,"
"The dragon carriage is parked in front of the mansion, and the driver has been left alone for nearly an hour... is that okay?"
"Hmm? Ah, you mean Otto. Right, leaving him alone for an hour... well, I guess it's fine. I'd like to give Patrasche a proper stable to rest, but you don't need to worry about Otto."
"We were close friends when we nearly died together, so how callous of you are, Natsuki-san! I never thought I'd be a lower priority than the earth dragon!"
As he spoke, the person who opened the living room door with a flourish was Otto, the man they had just been talking about. With his shoulders hunched in anger, he glared at Subaru with a fierce look on his face, his displeasure clearly showing.
Upon seeing him, Subaru slowly stood up, shook his head, and let out a sigh.
"No, you're wrong, Otto."
"What is it? It's too late now to try and retract what I said earlier…"
"It's not that they have a lower priority than earth dragons. They have a much lower priority than earth dragons."
"It's the second lowest! Isn't that even worse?"
Satisfied with Otto's stomping reaction, Subaru turned his gaze towards the window. That was the front gate, which meant that was where Patrasche's dragon carriage should be parked.
Following her gaze, Otto realised her intention and his expression darkened.
"Patrasche-chan is kept in the stables. She's a proud girl and difficult to handle, but she's obedient and doesn't want to cause any trouble for Natsuki-san."
"Hearing it from you makes me doubt the effectiveness of the divine protection of 『Soul of Words』. If you were to personify it, wouldn't you be heading straight for a kuudere type, Patrasche? When was that flag raised?"
"I don't know anything about that. Anyway..."
Subaru was puzzled, unable to understand the source of Patrasche's feelings for him, so Otto brought up a different topic. It continued to be about the treatment of the dragon carriage, which meant――
"What should we do about the girl sleeping inside? It would be a shame to keep her cooped up in the dragon carriage forever, so if you're busy, I could take her to her room..."
"--Don't touch Rem."
Otto had offered without any ill intent. However, the coldness in his voice as he responded was so sharp that even Subaru was surprised, and he found himself taken aback.
The whispered words were low and dark, and reflected a heavy, sticky will. Luckily, it didn't reach the ears of the women, but Subaru was slightly shaken by the strangeness of the voice that came from his own throat,
"…I'll carry her in, so you don't have to. I don't want you to have to carry a girl and make her scream on your hips."
"Just so you know, as a peddler, I have to carry heavier goods as well, so I don't think I'm as weak as you think, Natsuki."
After a moment of hesitation, Otto joins in on Subaru's flippant remark, which seems to cover up his previous statement. Subaru sighs, grateful for his kindness.
No matter how you look at it, that was an overreaction. Even though it was unintentional - no, the fact that it was unconscious was precisely the problem. Her nerves had become too sensitive, and she began to feel hostility towards anyone who tried to interfere with Rem, regardless of whether they had good or bad intentions.
"This is not a good trend... Shit, this is pathetic. Why am I always like this..."
Just when you think you've overcome one obstacle, you trip over another. Why can't you have something strong enough to stand upright forever?
If Rem was there, if she could gaze upon Emilia――if she could be with the two of them, then surely she would have had that unwavering hope in her hands.
"It's my own fault… No, I'm making Rem pay the price. I'm such a gigolo."
Surely there had to be a better way to do it.
Subaru had believed that he had done the best he could, right up until the end of the loop a few days ago. But surely, somewhere there was a more perfect, flawless, highest and best outcome. Subaru had missed the path to find it, and could only reach an imperfect future by taking a so-so path and being willing to compromise. Rem's sacrifice was the price he had to pay for that.
If Subaru had been smarter, he would have noticed.
Before evacuating Emilia and the others from the mansion, the letter that Subaru had given Crusch's messenger was blank. He had assumed that the Witch Cultists accompanying the messenger had switched it, in an attempt to confuse them, but that was odd.
There is no way that the Witch Cult was aware of the threat that Subaru and his group posed at that point, and it is hard to imagine that they would resort to such roundabout methods as switching the letter to sow distrust in Emilia's camp. Above all, if they were to do that, wouldn't it be much more effective to falsify the contents rather than leaving it blank?
If that wasn't the work of the Witch Cult, there could only be one answer.
"Rem wrote the contents of the letter. I was the one who asked for it to be delivered, and Crusch-san was the one who gave it to him, so only the fact of its delivery remains, only the contents have disappeared."
Such was the fate of a being whose memories and name were devoured by the Authority of 『Gluttony』.
By erasing its existence from the world, we are left with a world full of incomprehensible patches. The discomfort that we would not notice unless we were conscious of it is gone, and by erasing its existence, we are unable to even be aware of it.
If that is the case, then what is its purpose and for whom?
If he had taken the fact that the letter was blank more seriously, if he had thought about it more carefully and seen through the truth, perhaps something could have been done.
Thinking back to what Emilia had said, the letter arrived the night before the final day. If the contents had become blank at that point, it would have been around that time that Rem was attacked by Gluttony. If that was the case, not much time had passed since Subaru had been separated from Rem. There should have been a chance, however small, that they could be reunited.
But in reality, Subaru missed that chance. Why he missed it is unclear now. Didn't he feel something was off?
Emilia should have known that the siscon Ram had left Rem behind in the royal capital with her, but the two of them hadn't mentioned her at all, so why――
"--a"
And then I suddenly realize.
The moment he realized this, Subaru let out a silly noise and put his hand to his forehead, then in one smooth motion walked over to the wall and slammed his head into it with all his might.
Shock and pain. But once is not enough, it happens again and again.
"Hey, Subaru?!"
The three were stunned by Subaru's strange behavior, but Emilia was the first to come to her senses and called out to Subaru in surprise. She grabbed Subaru by the shoulders from behind and turned him around as he hit his forehead,
"What's wrong all of a sudden? Subaru's been doing weird stuff for a while now, but what you just said was a bit too much… ah, look, your forehead is really red."
"I was just completely dumbfounded at how stupid I was, seriously."
Feeling the coldness of Emilia's fingertips touching his forehead, Subaru shook his head in self-deprecation. Just as he'd said, he couldn't bear to look at his own stupidity.
Subaru looked straight at Emilia,
"Emilia-tan, I have a favor to ask you."
"Wh, what is it? Wait, Subaru, your face is too close and your eyes are scary..."
"Could you please scold me a little for being so hopelessly stupid?"
"picture?"
Emilia's eyes widened in shock. Seeing her refusal, Subaru reached out to both of her shoulders and held her firmly so as not to let her slip away, then he moved his face even closer,
"Please. Please don't forgive me, just curse me."
"I, I can't do that. I don't think Subaru is in the wrong..."
"Do something about that!"
"Even if you say something..."
「Please! If you do it, I will dedicate my soul to Emilia-tan…!」
"It's troubling when you say such serious things! There's nothing I can do about it."
After much hesitation, Emilia reluctantly nods to Subaru's desperately perverted request. Then she clears her throat, glances up at Subaru,
"Subaru, you idiot."
"Ugh."
"Naughty boy, stubborn, selfish, naughty, mean, gets carried away easily"
"Urgh ugh."
"Even though I didn't ask you to, you're always thinking about other people's things and you don't know your place in the world. You're such a softy that you even took sides with the unpopular half-elf. I was scolded and felt down, but you stepped forward instead, behaved recklessly, and got treated badly."
"Ugh...yeah?"
"He's a coward who doesn't answer clearly when someone asks him, and tries to get away with it with vague words. He's a big idiot who comes to help when you're in trouble after a big fight. He's a coward who gives you the answer you want when you're at your wit's end and need someone to do something about it. He's lazy and falls asleep while everyone else is running around cleaning up after everything is over. Subaru's an idiot."
"I haven't heard of Otankonas these days… Emilia-tan, by the way."
Though she had expected a barrage of insults, the abuse she received was different to what she had expected. Instead of leaving ugly wounds that tore into Subaru's heart, the abuse was deep and gentle, hurting not only Subaru's heart, but Emilia's too.
Emilia looked up as Subaru called out to her, her lips pursed,
"what"
"I mean, did you really think of me like that?"
Subaru: "Really, it feels like my true feelings just blurted out unexpectedly. I got carried away and don't even know what I was saying. …Do you think that's what I really think, Subaru?"
"I don't know. Whether what came out on impulse was his true feelings or not... I think it's difficult to judge."
At the very least, Subaru had the experience of regretting words he had spoken in the heat of the moment.
Was it really something he had always thought, and yet was it his true feelings that came out, or was it merely an expression of emotion that came out in the moment, carried away by impulse?
I don't think anyone knows the answer to that question.
"Thank you, Emilia-tan."
"I just complained to Subaru. And now you're thanking me for that… Subaru, are you a pervert?"
"I'm a pervert who specializes in Emilia-tan. If you send messages towards me, whether they be insults, slander, or haikus about road safety, it stimulates my pleasure center."
Subaru: "I don't understand the last part, but it seems like it's something I really don't need to understand, so I'll just ignore it. --So, are you satisfied?"
After responding with a wry smile, at the very end, his eyes turned sad.
It's unfair that he shows us those kind of sides to him so we can't leave him.
Subaru grinned at her gesture, showing his teeth.
"Oh, it's okay. No, maybe it's no good after all. If Emilia-tan could give me a kiss of courage or something, then maybe…"
"Unfortunately, today's request reception desk has closed."
"Damn! I failed! Why am I always... too late...!"
Emilia gave a wry smile at the sight of Subaru collapsing in frustration. Anyway, after a period of frustration, Subaru stood up and looked around the room,
Emilia: "That aside, I have a bit of personal business to attend to. I'm sorry about Emilia and the others, but I need a little bit of time. I don't think it will take that long though… what's with that face, Otto?"
"Having witnessed that embarrassing exchange right before my eyes makes me want to demand compensation, but let's put off negotiating the price for later… what are you going to do?"
Otto, who had been standing outside the mosquito net, muttered this in dissatisfaction, and Subaru crossed his arms and tilted his head in confusion.Come to think of it, Otto was unaware that there was probably another person he had not yet met hiding in the mansion.
What words would be appropriate to explain to him where Subaru was headed from now on?
Subaru thought for only a moment, then quickly uncrossed his arms, and,
"Hey, I'm off to see Drill Loli who's holed up in her moldy room."
"Oh, no," he said, completely abandoning any responsibility, leaving Otto confused.