The Sanctuary, before the plaza of the Witch of Greed's tomb.
A cold wind blew gently, sweeping up the scattered snow on the ground and landing on the stone monument at the edge of the plaza, where it slowly melted into tiny droplets of water.
"Say, Roswaal and Beatrice have been gone for a long time, haven't they?"
Emilia sat on the cold steps, her hands cupping her cheeks, her amethyst eyes blinking as she gazed at the busy figure in the center of the plaza.
"Well, an opportunity like this is pretty rare, after all."
Natsuki Subaru was holding a small shovel, trimming the outline of a snow sculpture in front of him. Hearing Emilia's words, he paused his work, straightened up, and glanced in the direction Beatrice and Roswaal had gone before turning back to reply,
"Beatrice was trapped in the Forbidden Library for four hundred years. This is the first time she's truly stepped outside of it. And now, she's in front of her mother's grave. She must have a lot of pent-up feelings and wants to have a proper talk with her mother. It's only natural, so it's fine if they take a little longer."
At this moment, the plaza was already dotted with over thirty snow sculptures of various shapes. Not only were there round-headed, round-bodied figures, but there were even a few vaguely recognizable humanoids. Among them, one was unmistakably the sleepy-eyed cat form of Puck.
"Hehe, you really do trust Beatrice," Emilia said, watching Natsuki Subaru's serious expression. A slight curve formed at the corners of her mouth, her tone carrying a hint of understanding,
"But then again, it makes sense. You two had a connection from the very beginning, always able to understand each other's thoughts. So I can completely understand why you ended up forming a contract."
Emilia's way of seeing things was always so pure and direct, as if it could filter out all complex impurities.
"Let's just say we were lucky to have met the right person."
Natsuki Subaru finally stopped, straightened his back, and patted the snow from his hands, his voice tinged with emotion,
"Beatrice guarded that empty Forbidden Library alone for four hundred years, missing out on so much... It's long past time for her to have her own, brand-new life."
As he spoke, Natsuki Subaru's gaze moved past the snow sculptures and fell on Emilia's chest. The shattered blue pyroxene crystal rested quietly against her collar, refracting a faint light in the reflection of the snow.
"...Is that Puck?"
It was worth noting that not long ago, to allow Emilia to successfully pass the Witch's trials, Puck had resolutely and unilaterally broken their contract.
Afterward, he had recklessly overdrawn his mana to protect the residents of the Sanctuary, desperately stalling the terrifying Sin Archbishop's advance. In the end, his power was completely depleted, and he fell into a slumber with no known return date.
"I really want to thank Puck properly," Natsuki Subaru said, his gaze fixed on the cracked pyroxene crystal.
"But it's impossible in this state, right?"
He paused, as if to shake off the somber mood, then added,
"Still, Puck really did a great job this time. He deserves some praise."
In the original story, Puck was known to be timid against enemies but heavy-handed with his own allies, earning him the title "God of Civil War."
After all, Puck's way of thinking was vastly different from an ordinary person's. His one and only, and most resolute, obsession was to ensure that Emilia could live a safe and happy life. He had little interest in almost anything else.
Within the contract Puck signed with Emilia, there was an extremely special clause: if Emilia were to unfortunately die, Puck would immediately be released from his current restrictions and transform into the legendary "Beast of the End" to begin destroying the world.
And according to the experiences from various loops in the original story, once Puck manifested as the Beast of the End and began his rampage, the Sword Saint Reinhard would always appear in time.
Facing Puck, who possessed world-ending power, Reinhard didn't even need much of a fight. He could kill him with just two sword strikes, completely ending the crisis of annihilation.
However, this in no way meant Puck was weak.
The power of the "Beast of the End" was enough to throw the entire world into a panic. It was just that Reinhard, as the Sword Saint, operated on a power level far beyond conventional understanding—one might even say he was the pinnacle of the current world's combat strength—which was why he could suppress Puck so easily.
Of course, Natsuki Subaru also knew that not all of this could be blamed on Puck.
As the contracted spirit closely bound to Emilia, Puck's source of mana was almost entirely dependent on her.
But Puck's own mana consumption was extremely high, far beyond that of an ordinary spirit. This meant the time he could maintain a physical form in the real world each day was drastically shortened, forcing him to follow a strict, almost "nine-to-five" schedule.
Every morning, he would awaken from the crystal on Emilia's chest and stay by her side. But around five in the afternoon, as his mana depleted, he would have to voluntarily return to the crystal to rest and absorb power, just to ensure he could manifest normally the next day.
This wasn't because he was unwilling to stay with her longer, but an objective limitation imposed by his mana consumption.
Another key restriction stemmed from the contract Puck had signed with Emilia.
Puck had no memory of the process of his creation. Most of his experiences before the contract, including his own origins, were gone, as if that past had never existed.
Not only that, but the contract also directly suppressed his power.
Even if Puck wanted to draw upon stronger magic, he would be constrained by the rules of the contract, making it impossible to fully unleash his true strength.
Because of this, Puck usually appeared in the small form of a little cat.
This form consumed the least amount of mana and best fit the constraints the contract placed upon him.
And in this form, the magic he could use was limited to a basic level. These abilities were vastly different from Puck's true power at his peak and simply couldn't compare.
In short, Puck's existence was, most of the time, that of a mascot for Emilia's emotional support.
He could chat with Emilia to relieve her boredom and provide companionship in daily matters, but in a truly critical, life-or-death moment, or when facing a high-level enemy, it was often difficult to count on him to step up and turn the tide.
Fortunately, Natsuki Subaru had long and thoroughly learned of Puck's "unreliability."
From daily life, seeing Puck return to the pyroxene crystal early many times due to insufficient mana, all these experiences made him aware of Puck's limitations.
So, deep down, Natsuki Subaru never truly placed his hopes of turning a situation around on Puck. Every time he faced a crisis, he would prepare in advance for the possibility that Puck couldn't provide strong support.
At this moment, Natsuki Subaru's eyes rested on the dim pyroxene crystal on Emilia's chest.
That was Puck's current dwelling. The surface of the stone was cracked, and its luster was much duller than before, clearly not yet recovered from its previous exertion.
Just then, a thought entered Natsuki Subaru's mind without warning:
"With my current power as a Level 64 Shadow Monarch, if I were to actually face Puck at his peak, without the contract's restrictions, would I even have a chance of winning?"
This thought carried a faint hint of a fighting spirit, as well as a measure of his own strength and curiosity.
Natsuki Subaru knew very well that even with his contract restrictions, Puck could display considerable power at critical moments. If the restrictions were lifted and he entered his peak state, he could even be ranked among the "second-tier powerhouses" of this world.
In his view, if he could defeat such a version of Puck, it would mean his own strength was already among the best in the world. It was a very direct benchmark for his power.
Of course, these were just Natsuki Subaru's private thoughts. After all, he had never truly fought a peak-form Puck, and all his judgments were based on rough estimates of their respective strengths.
But when it came to confidence, it wasn't like he had none.
If it really came to a fight, I'd probably have a 50/50 chance, right?
"Even if I can't completely beat Puck in the end, with my current strength as a Level 64 Shadow Monarch, just holding my own against him and ensuring my own safety shouldn't be a problem."
Natsuki Subaru thought to himself.
"Yes, it's true." Emilia's voice pulled Natsuki Subaru back to his thoughts. She raised her hand and gently touched the blue pyroxene crystal on her chest, her fingertips feeling the faint warmth from the stone, before nodding lightly.
"Puck was really pushing himself too hard back then. His mana was already on the verge of collapsing, but he kept holding on. Now this pyroxene crystal, as the medium he's attached to, can't be used to wake him up at all. To hear him talk to me again like before, or watch him do silly things to make me laugh... that's impossible now."
"But we'll be able to wake him up someday, right?"
Seeing Emilia's somewhat dejected expression, Natsuki Subaru took the initiative to comfort her.
"I will definitely wake Puck up... This time, it's my turn to help Puck."
Emilia opened her eyes, her purple pupils full of determination. Her resolute expression at this moment was exceptionally noble and beautiful.
"Puck also contributed a lot to resolving the Sanctuary crisis. When he wakes up, let's treat him to some delicious sweets."
Natsuki Subaru added with a smile.
"Mhm! Puck would be so happy."
Hearing this, Emilia smiled along with him, the sadness in her eyes gradually dissipating.
"Lady Emilia, and Subaru, you are both heroes for quelling this disturbance."
Ram, dressed in her maid uniform, walked over, her tone carrying a hint of a reminder.
"Yes, Ram is right." Emilia nodded in agreement, then turned to Natsuki Subaru, her expression very serious as she said,
"I'm really grateful to you, Subaru. Without you, there were so many things I couldn't have done. But, while you were away, I also worked hard to deal with various problems, so I didn't hold everyone back."
"Emilia-tan, you've really changed," Natsuki Subaru said slowly, gazing at Emilia.
"The old you was already cute, always thinking of taking care of others but worrying you weren't doing a good enough job. The you now hasn't lost that kindness, but you've gained a strength to face difficulties head-on."
It was likely due to successfully overcoming the trials; Emilia's attitude and expression now held a confidence she previously lacked.
For someone who was always self-critical and prone to looking down on herself, this was undoubtedly an excellent change.
After all, Natsuki Subaru alone couldn't have handled all the problems in the Sanctuary, from fighting the magical beast threat to solving the trial's riddles and calming the residents' emotions.
Now that Emilia had passed the trials and liberated the Sanctuary, leading to this peaceful situation, he was grateful for this miracle from the bottom of his heart.
"To have achieved a result like this, it must be thanks to Subaru and everyone else," Emilia said earnestly, looking at Natsuki Subaru.
"I'm always receiving help from you all, so I have to find a way to repay it soon. I can't always be the one just receiving."
"If we're talking about receiving help, it's the same for me," Natsuki Subaru said candidly, looking at Emilia.
"When I first got here, if you hadn't been willing to believe in me, if you hadn't helped me out of jams, I wouldn't have been able to last... This time, too, it was only possible because everyone worked together. I couldn't have done it alone."
"Subaru... for everything, thank you..."
Emilia looked up at Natsuki Subaru, a faint blush instantly spreading across her cheeks, even the tips of her ears turning slightly hot as her voice became softer.
She's clearly embarrassed!
Emilia, who was usually either gentle or determined, blushing all the way to her ears and even stumbling over her words just from being embarrassed, was simply too adorable.
Thinking this, Natsuki Subaru feigned concern and said to Emilia:
"Um... E-Emilia-tan! Why is your face so red? Are you feeling unwell somewhere? Are you okay?!"
"N-No! I'm perfectly fine!"
Emilia waved her hands hurriedly, her eyes darting around as she tried to hide her predicament.
"Emilia-tan..."
Looking at Emilia's flustered, crimson-cheeked appearance, Natsuki Subaru felt the softest part of his heart being gently touched, a warm smile almost overflowing.
To get this shy just from a simple, honest thank you—that purity and lack of defense was just overwhelmingly cute, making one want to protect her.
Just as he was about to say something more, the sound of footsteps came from the distance.
Beatrice and Roswaal emerged from the entrance of the Witch's Tomb, their appearance conveniently breaking the slightly awkward atmosphere.
"Beatrice, you're out."
Natsuki Subaru's gaze first fell on the small Great Spirit Beatrice, his voice carrying a natural concern.
"Mhm. Betty has said her final farewell to Mother." Beatrice's voice was softer than usual, yet exceptionally clear. She lifted her chin slightly, blinking her bright, clear blue eyes as she looked at Natsuki Subaru, as if announcing a grave and solemn decision.
"The four-hundred-year wait... is over. From now on, Betty's life will be lived for herself, and for her contractor."
On the other side, Roswaal's mismatched eyes flickered between the two of them. Then, in his characteristic tone that drew out the end of his words, he broke the slightly heavy atmosphere:
"It's all oooover—! Ooooh my Subaru-kun and Lady Emilia have done veeeery—well"
"Over?" Natsuki Subaru shook his head, his eyes locking onto Roswaal. "It's not over yet."
"Oh myyy—what could you mean by that? Subaru-kun..."
Roswaal tilted his head slightly, the trademark smile still on his face, but a flicker of imperceptible doubt flashed through his mismatched red and blue eyes.
"What I mean is—"
Without giving Roswaal any more time to react, Natsuki Subaru suddenly took a large step forward, his right hand clenched into a fist, and swung it without warning towards Roswaal's face.
The fist, carrying immense force, smashed brutally into the clown's face, which had always been plastered with a fake smile!
______
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