I ran out of the room, down the hallway, and leapt down the stairs.
He landed on the landing in three steps, then spun around and instantly jumped, stepping firmly on the ground on the first floor, and with that he turned his face up――,
"--Ram! Rem! There's something I need to talk to you about!"
Saying this in a voice that could be heard throughout the mansion, Subaru headed towards the entrance hall.
Subaru looked as if he was going to run outside at full speed, but Ram, who had already arrived at the front door, stopped him in his tracks.
Rather than getting there first, it was likely simply because she was close to the scene. It could also be said that she had more free time than Rem, who was in the kitchen preparing dinner.
Subaru was so hot-blooded, and Ram, wondering what he saw in that expression, let a hint of surprise show in her handsome face.
"What's wrong, Barus? Are you in such a hurry…"
"Sorry, but I'm heading to the village now. There's no point in stopping me, and even if you stop me I'll go, but I thought it would cause confusion if I went without telling you."
"To the village? To do what? No, before that, didn't you listen to Lord Roswaal's orders? Ram and the others have been left in charge of the mansion tonight. Do you not understand what that means?"
Ram's gaze sharpened as she argued with Subaru.
Above all else, her stance was to prioritize Roswaal's will. Subaru's disdain for his master's orders must have struck a chord with her.
However, Subaru was not in the mood to back down just like that.
"I don't have time to argue, so I'll get straight to the point. There's an evil wizard in that village. Now that I know his true identity, I have to go."
"...You want me to accept it because of that kid's excuse?"
"There's no other way to say it. If you ask Bearko, she'll attest that it's true. And the rest..."
"Sister――"
While she was arguing with Ram, whose suspicions were only deepening, the large door behind her opened and Rem appeared. Seeing the two of them arguing at the entrance, she glided alongside her sister,
"Sister, this is..."
"I'll get rid of the evil wizard in the village, so please tell him to let me out. --I wonder what we should do, Rem."
The younger sister was left dumbfounded as her older sister succinctly summarized the current situation.
Then, as if having completely digested it, she turned a suspicious look towards Subaru,
"Sister, sister. Subaru-kun, you make some pretty lame jokes."
"Rem, Rem. If you say so, I'll tell you that your talent as a clown is top-notch."
"Ram, Rem. I'm always joking around, but there are times when I get serious."
Subaru's words overlapped with the two who were speaking in unison, causing them to simultaneously stutter.
As if to add to their reaction, he stepped forward,
"I admit that it's a hard story to believe, and I also understand that it's difficult to trust me when I suddenly start moving in the current situation. So I won't say that I sent you off unconditionally."
This is where things will become an important crossroads for Subaru.
Moistening his lips with his tongue, he made a suggestion to the silent pair. He pointed his finger at them.
"I'm going to the village now. If you're suspicious, feel free to follow me. Just make sure you can figure me out. However, you can't leave Emilia-tan alone. Only one of you can follow me."
"You're just making your own decisions… In the first place, if we are to follow Lord Roswaal's orders, the reason why Rem and my sister are following Subaru-kun is…"
"Yeah, sure. That's just to follow Roz-chan's orders for the evening. But are those the only orders she's given me?"
"――――"
As if she had been hit in a sensitive spot, Rem was at a loss for words.
It seems that what he had just said, which had been nothing more than a bluff, was right on target.
The two of them had received orders from Roswaal to keep an eye on Subaru's location, something that could be guessed from the fragmentary information from previous loops.
Rem continued to look around, searching for words to refute, but it was Ram who interrupted the conversation with a sigh.
She raised her hand slightly,
"I understand, Barusu. I acknowledge your arbitrary actions."
"Sister――!?"
Rem was astonished at her sister's attitude of raising the white flag so easily. However, Ram also turned her palm towards her younger sister and continued speaking, "However..."
"As you know, Barusu cannot go alone. If we allow Barusu to act independently here, it would be going against Lord Roswaal's orders."
"That's right. So, what's the compromise?"
"—This is annoying, but I have no choice but to accept Barusu's offer. Ram will stay behind at the mansion. Rem will accompany Barusu. As long as we don't do anything suspicious… that's the condition."
"It's a dream come true."
He raised his fist to show his agreement with Ram's conditions.
Ram sighed softly and turned to look at her younger sister, who seemed to have been left behind in the conversation.
"Rem, that's why I ask you to please confirm with Beatrice-sama and that Ram will protect Emilia-sama. —I'll be keeping a close eye on you too."
"Sister, don't look at me like that..."
"This is not the time to be saying this. Use it if necessary. Rem, do the same."
Rem couldn't say anything more about her sister's matter-of-fact tone.
After an exchange that only the two of them understood, Rem swallowed her words and turned a gaze that was by no means friendly towards Subaru,
"Subaru-kun, I'd like to hear more details."
"On the way. There's a chance that something very bad might be happening."
If Subaru's worst-case scenario was correct, the damage would be far too great to be laughed at. And not just to Subaru personally, but from a much larger perspective.
He tapped her lightly on the shoulder and expressed his gratitude to Ram for letting him through.
Then, dragging along a still-unconvinced-looking Rem, Subaru headed to the entrance.
and,
"--Subaru, are you going somewhere?"
The sound of silver bells came down from the top of the grand staircase in the entrance hall.
He instinctively turned around to see Emilia standing above him, her silver hair swaying. She must have heard Subaru's loud voice earlier.
She was breathing heavily and looked at the three people standing together in the entranceway.
"I heard a loud voice so I came downstairs... did something happen?"
Subaru: "Something might be happening, what is it, Emilia-tan? Well, don't worry about me. Ah, but I'm glad you're at least a little worried about me."
Subaru behaved this way on purpose, to avoid causing Emilia any unnecessary stress.
Subaru's attitude remained unchanged and frivolous, but what did Emilia see in it?
"You look like you're about to do something dangerous again."
Emilia saw right through it and made a face as if she wanted to say something. Subaru was puzzled by her insight and tilted his head in confusion,
"That argument just finished..."
"Is it useless to stop me?"
"Well, I guess that's the case. On the contrary, if it's stopped, it will cause problems in various situations..."
"Okay, okay, I understand. I won't stop you."
Emilia came down the stairs, came down in front of Subaru and the others, and put her hands on her hips.
Her amethyst eyes stare straight into my eyes, and I'm suddenly drawn in by their brilliance, unable to take my eyes off them.
She reached out towards the immobile Subaru, and lightly touched his chest,
"Even if I tell you not to do anything reckless or push yourself, it seems like it's no use."
"It depends on the situation. No, I don't want to do any of that either."
Words like "effort," "trying hard," and "desperately" are all things I don't want to do.
Still, if he was the only one who could change the situation, Subaru had no choice but to act. Why had he become so troublesome? Perhaps it was the influence of the girl in front of him that was the major factor, he thought, and a wry smile appeared on his face.
"May the spirits' blessings be upon you."
"What?"
Subaru tilted his head in response to her muttering while still touching his chest. Emilia then gave him a sly smile,
"It's a farewell message. To make sure you come back safely, that's what it means."
Subaru: "Ah, so it feels like sending me off with a flint. In that case, I must answer as well. Emilia-tan, may the glory of victory be with you――"
"Yes, yes."
Ignoring Subaru who saluted, Emilia turned her gaze to Rem. She had been silently watching the exchange between the two, but then straightened up when she saw his gaze.
"Rem, be careful too. And keep an eye on Subaru so he doesn't do anything reckless."
"Yes, Emilia-sama. Understood."
"You can't trust me."
"What are you talking about? I don't think we're talking like this because I trust Subaru as a person."
"What's with that trust? It can be taken in both a good and bad way. That's crazy."
Emilia was in lecture mode with her hands on her hips.
There were probably many things she hadn't said yet, but that was the end of her conversation. Understanding Subaru's hurry, she gave him a push,
"Take care"
"Yees, I'm off!"
Subaru responded by raising his fist and running out of the mansion, leaving Emilia and Ram behind. Rem bowed and left the mansion behind, following behind, and he could see her leisurely lining up next to him as he ran off.
"So, I'd like to hear more details..."
"There's a sorcerer in the village. Beatrice managed to remove the curse, but I was cursed as well. If things go wrong, the village could be destroyed."
"--Are you serious?"
Rem asks, eyes wide, taking a breath as she runs.
Subaru replied with a silent nod and headed straight for the village.
If the sorcerer was a rational person, there would have been no need to imagine such a method. However, if Subaru's guess was correct, the worst case scenario could occur.
And so, Subaru ran through. Running alongside him, Rem also ran in silence, aware of the gravity of the situation.
Their figures cut through the night, heading for the village in the distance beyond the trees.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
"--Subaru-kun, that is."
Subaru heard Rem shout with some tension in her voice.
Rem's voice was now coming out, well ahead of Subaru's gaze. She was pointing in the direction where the outline of the village was becoming clearer, and her expression indicated,
"The village is really bright..."
Subaru had the same thought, and sensed something strange happening.
His steps were heavy, and his pace had slowed down to one that was too slow to be called a run, but too fast to be called a walk.
Unable to contain her excitement, Rem looked at Subaru impatiently, but even with him urging her like that, her side hurt and she couldn't even yell.
"Go ahead, go ahead..."
He gestures for her to go ahead, but Rem shook her head.
That was the reason why she was accompanying Subaru in the first place. It was to keep an eye on him, so splitting up now would have been counterproductive.
Perhaps he was fed up with Subaru's lackluster attitude,
"There's no other way. Don't bite your tongue."
"Eh, wait, Remrin, what are you doing――!?"
Rem ran back to Subaru's side and stretched out her arms, grabbing the limp Subaru by the scruff of his neck and lifting him up with ease.
This was the same overwhelming difference in physical strength that was shown during the sake barrel battle.
Still carried on Rem's shoulders, Subaru's body was upside down and caught in the wind.
Experiencing Rem's full-on sprinting speed, Subaru is left speechless by her incredible physical ability, but at the same time, he is convinced that he made the right decision in bringing her along.
Just how much could a powerless and incompetent Subaru accomplish by jumping into the vortex on his own? Including the bluffing at the entrance, it was probably a good decision to secure Rem as a fighting force.
"We've arrived. Subaru, are you okay?"
"That was quick, as expected... Now, the situation in the village... I'm confused."
Subaru puts his hands on the wall and is overcome with the urge to vomit due to fatigue and the shaking.
Rem ignored Subaru's embarrassment and looked around. A villager who happened to be passing by noticed the pair's striking appearance.
"Aren't you the two from the mansion? At a time like this..."
"Just in time. Did something happen?"
Rem grabbed the young man who had rushed over and asked him from above. He seemed a little surprised by her strong tone, his eyes widened, and he replied with a high-pitched "Uh, yeah."
"The truth is, I've been missing some of the children from the village. I know they were playing until dark, but after that..."
Rem opened her mouth to ask further questions after hearing the young man's unclear words.
However, it was Subaru who made the first move. Breathing heavily, he put his hand on the young man's shoulder and turned him around,
"When you say they're not there, does that mean Luca, Petra, or Mildo?"
"Yes, that's true, but do you have any idea where he went?"
Subaru clicked his tongue and kicked the ground, crying out "Damn it!". He then looked towards the outskirts of the village - in the direction of the wall leading to the forest,
"You and I are looking for the children?"
"The whole Youth Group and Muraosa."
"The children are in the forest. I've searched the whole village but they haven't come out."
The young man's expression changes upon hearing Subaru's assertion. It seems he still has something he wants to ask Subaru, but Subaru taps him on the shoulder and starts running,
"I'll go into the forest first. You tell everyone. The children are in the forest!"
A young man raised a questioning voice behind him, but he paid no attention to it and ran off again.
Rem followed him in a panic. She couldn't understand Subaru's confident attitude.
"How could that be...?"
"I know. I've heard it cry out alone in the depths of the forest twice."
The village was surrounded by a tall wooden fence. The two climbed over the fence, which was built in the area adjacent to the forest, and landed on the ground, entering the forest.
Weave through the gaps between the trees, being careful of branches and the muddy ground, as we go deeper.
"Even if it's in the forest, the area is too large. Subaru, do you have any idea…"
"If what those brats said is true, then we should head this way..."
I walked forward relying on my memory, but my steps were heavy as I was merely following what I had heard. What's more, it was pitch black, and there was no way to be sure I was going in the right direction.
However,
"--The barrier has been broken."
As Rem let out a cry of surprise, Subaru clenched his fist, knowing that his judgment was correct.
Right in front of her, Rem pointed out, was a crystal embedded in the great tree. It was a mysterious object that seemed to have lost its light a long time ago, and she had seen it several times in the forest.
Subaru remembered the few times the topic of the barrier had come up, referring to the forest. When had Ram directly pointed this out to him, telling him not to go deep into the mountains?
"What happens if the barrier is broken?"
"The 'Demonic Beasts' would cross the border. That's why it's the villagers' duty to make sure the barrier is maintained...!"
"There's no point in saying it, what's in front of me is the truth. Anyway, what are magical beasts?"
Although Rem was still shaken by Subaru's question,
"Magical beasts are magical beings that are the enemies of mankind. It is said that they were created by witches to harm mankind."
"Another witch here..."
Subaru grimaced at the frequent appearance of words he couldn't miss, but the first half of Rem's words confirmed his knowledge: the true identity of the sorcerer, and the omen of the disaster that was about to strike the village.
"--! Subaru-kun, what are you doing?!"
Surprised, Rem shouts to stop him.
In front of her, Subaru was seen crossing the tree that was called the barrier and heading deeper into it. Turning to look at her in surprise, Subaru held out his left hand,
"The kids are in the back. I have to go and help them."
"Are you sure? You need Roswaal-sama's permission to cross the barrier..."
"The scars on the back of my hands are proof."
He points to the back of his left hand - there is a scar there from when he visited the village earlier in the day.
The children surrounded him, and Subaru also bore the marks of their canine teeth having baptized him.
--Beatrice said, pointing to this wound.
The being who created this scar was the one who had placed the curse on Subaru.
The first time, the second time, and now this time.
It is an entity that was involved in all of the cases in which the curse befell Subaru. It is also something that may potentially befall Rem in the fourth world.
There is no other being that has the potential to encompass everything.
"It's the dog that the kids loved. What if that dog-like thing wasn't a dog at all, and instead cursed anyone who bit it?"
It's not man-made, it's more like a natural disaster.
Just as there have been infectious diseases that spread through rats, it is not difficult to imagine what would happen to a village like this if the disease were to spread explosively through animals.
The same is true of the safety of the children who chased the dog into the forest.
"The longer it takes, the worse it gets. I don't know if the kids are cursed or not, but we need to take them all to the mansion to have the curse lifted."
"Please wait a moment. You can't just make that decision on your own - in the first place, the situation is far too suspicious."
"ah?"
As Subaru was about to enter the forest in his excitement, Rem continued to press him. She pointed in the direction of the village, and then the mansion,
"Could this problem have arisen while Lord Roswaal is away? I can't believe this wasn't targeted at the mansion..."
"So, what should we do? We should abandon these brats who are undoubtedly in a pinch right now, and return to the mansion to strengthen our defenses. If we don't mind all the villagers being dead by the next day, then that's an option."
Subaru said this, knowing even himself that it was an extremely cowardly thing to say.
Rem is simply trying to avoid risk. That is a natural emotion, and there is absolutely no reason to blame her.
However, no matter how silent you are or how silent you are, the time will come when you will be forced to make a decision.
No matter how limited the options, one must choose one of the cards presented before oneself. Of course, one can choose not to choose at all. However, the fact that he would have regretted doing so was still engraved deep in Subaru's heart.
"Rem, let's go. We have to figure something out."
"Why are you going that far… How much does this village have to do with you, Subaru-kun…"
Perhaps because she was still undecided about what to do, it was the first time Subaru had heard Rem muttering such a girlish tone.
However, when she is forced to make a decision without her trusted master and sister present, she regains her fragile appearance as a girl her age.
Subaru felt a deep sense of empathy for her human weakness, but right now, the two of them had no time to lick their wounds.
This applies to having free time, as well as free time for mental issues.
As he encouraged Rem to rise up, Subaru couldn't help but feel his legs trembling for reasons other than fatigue. Of course. He knew that the being that had taken his life twice, and Rem's once, was probably lying in wait ahead.
Moreover, his companions, who were his greatest strength, were not keen to go deeper with him. Considering the possibility that he might have to go deeper alone at worst, how could he resist the cowardice he had been trying to hide?
However, Subaru slaps him on the cheek to make him forget about his own weakness.
Rem raised her head at the sudden burst of dry sound. Catching her gaze, Subaru took a deep breath and spoke in a low voice,
"--Petra, when she grows up, she wants to work making clothes in the capital."
"...picture?"
"Luka said he wants to follow in his father's footsteps, who is the best lumberjack in the village, and Mildo wants to make a crown out of the flowers he collected in the flower garden and give it to his mother as a present."
"..."
Counting on his fingers, one by one, the faces that came to mind behind his eyelids, Subaru continued.
"Maena was excited that she'll soon be having a little brother or sister, and the brothers Dyne and Cain are fighting over who will marry Petra."
A small laugh escaped me involuntarily.
Then, as Rem fell silent, he shook his head.
"How can it not matter? I know their faces, their names, and what they want to do tomorrow."
Subaru doesn't like kids.
They are noisy, overly familiar, speak in an informal manner, and most of all have no manners.
It's rude, disrespectful, reckless and unreserved - like looking at someone else in a mirror.
Subaru is far from being a fundamentally good person.
Even when we see a horrific crime reported on the television news, no matter how big the numbers seem on paper, if it is not something that touches us personally, we are so heartless that we forget about it as soon as we fall asleep.
So it doesn't matter what happens to children I don't like and who aren't close to me.
That's exactly what Rem said, and I think that prioritizing Emilia and the others and staying in the mansion would be much more like Subaru.
but,
"I promised myself that we'd do the radio exercises again tomorrow."
Subaru must have thought the same thing during the loop on the first day of his summoning.
It would be easy to just abandon them, but that's why I ran.
Look at Rem.
She is unsure of what to do. She is confused.
A weak figure. A figure lamenting its lack of strength. That was Subaru himself.
Seeing her now being weaker than him, he feels disgusted with himself for making up his mind.
Even though he is scared and intimidated, he still manages to use someone else to protect himself, and I really hate how he is like that.
If you can use even your own cowardice to your advantage, then use it.
"I'm the type of person who keeps my promises, and makes others keep theirs. I'll definitely do radio exercises with those brats again. So, let's head further in."
I never knew courage could be so frightening.
Subaru was so busy trying to keep his trembling hands down that he didn't even notice his trembling voice as he spoke.
Looking at Subaru's back, Rem quietly closes her eyes.
If she doesn't want to come with me, then I suppose that can't be helped. Going back now to call the villagers would be a huge waste of time. I would like to at least tell Rem that much, but--
"There's no other way."
"Rem?"
Suddenly, Rem loosened her lips and looked up at Subaru.
Looking towards the surprised Subaru, she showed a look that revealed clear emotion for the first time,
"Rem's job is to keep an eye on Subaru-kun. If she lets him go off on his own here, she won't be able to do that."
Subaru was stunned for a moment by her teasing words, then shook his head,
"Yeah, that's right. Make sure you keep a close eye on me to make sure I don't do anything suspicious."
"Yes, I will. So, shall we go?"
Rem glided next to him, and Subaru straightened up, feeling as if he had finally stood side by side with her in a true sense.
Feeling an itchy sensation, I was about to thank her when I suddenly realized something.
--Rem, walking next to me, had suddenly begun to grasp an iron ball in her hand. Tied to an iron handle with a chain, it emitted a soft metallic sound in her hand that was out of keeping with its weight.
"Um, Rem-san, what is that?"
"It's for self-defense."
"No, but that's..."
"It's for self-defense."
As Rem and I had this conversation, we continued our steps into the unexplored forest.
The courage that I had managed to muster up with such great effort began to fade again, but with a desperate determination I managed to somehow rebuild it.