Subaru and Emilia sat down together as Subaru had a giddy smile on his face.
Emilia: [Subaru...]
Subaru: [Yes Mili?]
He responded with a skip in his tone.
Emilia: [I've told you all of the good news, but now...]
Subaru gulped.
Subaru: (Of course, there is bad news.)
Subaru: [Just tell me everything that happened after me and Beako got sealed. I'm worried about everyone. I'm even worried about Otto.]
Emilia chuckled at Subaru's need to tease Otto even when he wasn't here, when Kenichi, Naoko and Beatrice walked over.
Beatrice: [Betty is sick of waiting, I suppose.]
Kenichi: [Hope we gave you enough time.]
He smirked as Subaru blushed.
Subaru: [Um... yeah.]
Kenichi raised an eyebrow but then smiled.
Kenichi: (Looks like everything went well.)
Subaru: [Ah, great timing. You should hear this too.]
※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※
A man woke from his sleep. His eyes felt strange as he sat up. He reached out to rub his eyes, but he found them to be moist. He was crying. Why was he crying? Was he hurt? Those were the thoughts running through the mind of Otto Suwen, but then came a more important question...
Otto: [Who am I?]
Every time Otto Suwen cried, it would mark a rebirth in his life, but this version of Otto Suwen would not know this, for this would mark the final time he was reborn.
???: [He's awake. He looks kind of dumb.]
Otto: [What kind of first impression of me is that?]
Otto looked towards the voice to see a cat staring outside his window.
Cat: [Stop staring at me, you perv.]
Otto: [I'm not a perv.]
Cat: [How can you even understand me? What a wierdo.]
The cat jumped away. That's when a different kind of cat entered Otto's room. She was a demihuman. She was tall and blond with razor-sharp teeth, wearing a maid's outfit.
Frederica: [I hope you're recovering well.]
Otto looked at her, confused.
Frederica: [Hm... right, the others did say that you've lost your memories.]
Otto: [Um, might I ask who you are?]
Frederica: [Oh, my apologies.]
Frederica did a curtsy.
Frederica: [My name is Frederica Bauman. I'm a maid under the service of the Lord Margrave Mathers Roswaal L. Mathers.]
Otto: [Apologies, but I'm afraid that since I don't have my memories, I don't have a name to offer you back.]
Frederica: [There is no need. We are already acquainted.]
Otto: [We are?]
Frederica: [You were the Internal Affairs officer for our faction in the Royal Selection.]
Otto: [I see...]
Otto winced in pain as his whole body was sore. Frederica walked over to him, forcing him to stop moving.
Frederica: [Please stay in bed. You overused your Divine Protection Of Soul Language. You need time to recover.]
Otto relented, resting as Frederica let go of him.
Frederica: [I'll return with some food for you.]
Otto: [Um... thank you, Frederica-san.]
Frederica left the room and returned with a trolley. She sat down next to Otto.
Otto: [I'll just get up and... huh?]
He could even sit up.
Frederica: [Even without your memories, you fought hard for everyone. Subaru-sama is lucky to have a friend like you.]
Otto: [Well, um, he seemed like an interesting character. I thought I'd place my bets on him since everyone else had as well.]
Frederica smiled as she took a spoon and lifted Otto's head slightly to feed him. Otto blushed in embarrassment at a girl feeding him.
Otto: [Hey... wait. This is...]
Frederica: [It's alright. Just leave this to me.]
Otto: [But...]
She began feeding him as Otto chose to give up on resisting.
Otto: [Can you tell me? About Natsuki Subaru. The man whom I bet on?]
Frederica smiled.
Frederica: [Of course.]
※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※
Subaru, Emilia, Beatrice, Kenichi and Naoko sat together. Subaru had explained everything, telling them he could turn back time, but he never mentioned anyone dying or that he had to die to use it. His parents were still tense from finding out that their son had to fight assassins, monsters and cultists, along with being thrust into a civil war and great calamity. Kenichi saw the way Naoko was looking at Subaru, so he tried to lighten the mood.
Kenichi: [Two girls, huh?]
Naoko: [That's not good, Subaru.]
Subaru: [I can't let go of either of them. Even right now, I'm feeling kind of depressed that I'm not going to see Rem again. The only thing that helps is that I know her memories are back and she's with her sister.]
Emilia: (Subaru... I'll make sure you're happy with me.)
Kenichi grimaced, realising his attempt to lighten the mood had failed, so he attempted to shift the conversation again.
Kenichi: [So, um... time travel, huh? That's pretty overpowered, son.]
Subaru: [Not really. I struggled a lot, even with this ability. I made up my mind at the sanctuary that I'd move forward without using this power unless the present I came to was unacceptable. Honestly, it's not really that useful at all. All it's good for is being a last resort.]
Beatrice: (Why wouldn't it be useful? Does Subaru dislike it for some reason, I suppose?)
Beatrice: [Why did you never tell us about this? Why not Betty at the very least?]
Subaru: [Let's just say that my ability forces me to go back if I ever tell anyone about how it works.]
Beatrice: [Then why isn't it activating now, I suppose?]
Subaru: [I was never sure how much I could talk about it without being forced to go back. Maybe it's because I haven't explained it in detail, or maybe it's because I'm too far away from the one who gave me this ability? Or maybe it doesn't even work in this world?]
Subaru felt for Cor Leonis.
Subaru: [My other authority is working, so it should still work. So, it's the first or second option.]
Naoko: [You've been through a lot.]
Naoko hugged Subaru with some tears in her eyes.
Subaru: [Emilia. I think I've caught them up on what I know. It's your turn.]
Emilia nodded but stopped herself.
Emilia: [But um, Subaru... if you could turn back time, why didn't you use it to save Priscilla like Al asked?]
Subaru: [I can't control what time I go back to, and turning back time isn't a pleasant experience.]
They looked shocked.
Emilia: (He can't control to what time he goes back? That's...)
Emilia: [Wait... does it hurt you?]
Emilia looked distressed.
Subaru: [Um, yeah. It hurts.]
Betty: [To not know what point in time you'll be sent back to, and it hurts when you use it... That's a very dangerous thing. Betty's Subaru should avoid using that ability for its own safety, I suppose.]
The parents of the black-haired boy looked concerned, but looked surprised when Emilia grabbed his hands. They smiled, knowing they didn't have to worry.
Emilia: [Subaru...]
Subaru: [I'm okay, Emilia-tan. I learned my lesson from Otto not to try to figure everything out on my own.]
Emilia smiled.
Naoko: (My poor boy. He's been suffering this entire time.)
Kenichi: (Subaru... damn it. Of course, such an ability has such shitty drawbacks. Who the hell decided to put my son through this bullshit?)
Emilia: [After Priscilla passed away, I went to the capital to tell the council about it. I told Subaru to rest for a while, but he insisted on helping Al find Priscilla's Book Of The Dead.]
Naoko: [Those things with the memories of people stored in them, right?]
Subaru: [I thought I needed to do something for him. Anything to make up for my failure.]
Emilia: [You shouldn't say that. You fought reaaally hard. So many people would have died if it weren't for you.]
Subaru: [I know, but... I wanted to do more.]
Naoko: (My sweet boy. You're too kind. That makes me even more worried for you.)
Kenichi: [Then do more. Keep doing more, but move forward like you said you would.]
Subaru: [Dad?]
Kenichi: [Maybe you messed up. Maybe you didn't, but regardless, those moments have passed. There's nothing you can do about it now, so do more today and here.]
Subaru breathed out and smiled.
Subaru: [Yeah. You're right.]
Subaru looked around.
Subaru: [I still have a duty to make you all happy.]
Subaru thought of Rem.
Subaru: (I'm sorry I can't be there to make you happy, but I'm glad you have Nee-sama with you.)
Kenichi ruffled Subaru's hair.
Kenichi: [Coming back to us is enough to make me happy, but if my son wants to spoil me more, who am I to say no?]
Subaru sighed.
Emilia: [We're going to be doing our best to make you happy, too, Subaru.]
Subaru looked to Emilia and smiled. Emilia then looked to Subaru's parents.
Emilia: [After Al kidnapped Subaru, Garf and Ezzo-san tried to stop him, but they couldn't. For some reason, Volcanica attacked them.]
Subaru: [Volcanica what? Is Garf...]
Emilia: [He's okay. Um... Petra said that the reason Volcanica attacked is something only you or Al would understand.]
Subaru: (Could it be that Al's ability is exactly the same as mine? No... probably not the exact same. Still, does that mean he also has his own Books Of The Dead?)
Subaru: [I think I understand.]
Kenichi: [You understand why a senile dragon would suddenly attack them?]
Subaru: [Al probably showed it a Book Of The Dead. Since Volcanica is senile, the memories from the Book Of The Dead gave him back a personality even if it wasn't his.]
Kenichi: [So, like body possession? Creepy.]
Subaru: (I know it. So creepy, that there's no way I could tell you that it happened to me too.)
Emilia: [Reinhard arrived to try to stop Al, but suddenly the Witch of Envy was summoned, and Reinhard was forced to hold her back.]
Kenichi: (That Witch... Subaru avoids the topic whenever we ask questions about her. Hm...)
Subaru: (Must be because Petra read my book. Al must have been stalling Reinhard using his version of Return By Death, cause there's no way someone like me or Al could hold on against Reinhard as long as Emilia told me he did. Even with Volcanica on his side, I can't imagine it. After stalling for long enough, Petra read my Book Of The Dead, and then Satella appeared. Does that mean that Al can choose his checkpoints? Lucky bastard.)
Subaru sighed.
Subaru: [So he got away from Reinhard. How exactly did Rem's memories come back?]
The Natsuki parents were cautious of this girl, "Rem". Subaru had described Rem as a girl who was deeply untrusting of him in the beginning. So much so that he decided to go back in time to fix their relationship. However, he had also told them about Rem saying that she loves him. That she helped him move past his self-hatred. They didn't know how to feel about her. A part of them wanted to be suspicious and cautious of her, while another part wanted to thank her for loving their Subaru and helping put him on the path to loving himself.
Emilia: [Al went to the capital and broke Roy Alphard out of his jail cell.]
Subaru's eyes showed veins as he gritted his teeth in anger.
Subaru: [He what? He freed that bastard?!!]
Emilia: [Kind of. They teamed up. I tried to stop him, but Roy spat out Rem's name, and I got confused for a second. Al used that and sent huge rocks down on the city to escape me. I... I stayed behind to stop them from hurting the...]
Subaru: [It's okay, Emilia-tan. You made the right choice. He's a cunning bastard.]
Emilia: [But Subaru... he got away with you and... ]
Suabru: [It's alright. Just continue.]
Emilia: [We regrouped. All of us except Otto.]
Naoko: [Otto-kun?]
Naoko had grown fond of this boy, Otto. She appreciated how reliable he was whenever Subaru needed him.
Emilia: [Otto didn't stop chasing after Al. He got captured and his memories were eaten.]
Everyone seemed shocked.
Subaru: [What... Otto is...]
Emilia: [He's okay. It was part of his plan. He knew that we'd be nearby, so he used himself as a distraction. That's what Petra told me at least.]
Subaru: [Damn it. I hate to say it, but you're awesome, Otto.]
Subaru looked to Emilia.
Subaru: [Is Otto alright?]
Emilia: [Even after losing his memories, he tried to help us. He got exhausted, so he fell unconscious.]
Subaru: [Damn it. He's just such an Otto.]
※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※
Otto nodded in understanding.
Otto: [Natsuki-san must have been an amazing guy if everything you said is true.]
Otto suddenly sneezed.
Frederica: [Bless you.]
Otto: [Oh, thank you, Frederica-san.]
Otto: (Something about that sneeze makes me feel uneasy.)
Frederica nodded.
Otto: [I'll assist in acquiring the Dragon's Blood.]
Frederica looked surprised.
Frederica: [For people you don't even know?]
Otto: [Natsuki-san saved me. He called me a friend and relied on me. Even if, from what you said, he was a bit mean to me at times, I want to place all my bets on him. Even without my memories, I have an instinct that says I should believe in him.]
Frederica looked surprised.
Otto: [I want to meet him. Natsuki Subaru. My friend.]
Otto made a determined look.
Frederica: [Oh, um... very well... I... I'll inform the others.]
Frederica left the room as she closed the door behind her, leaning on it.
Frederica: (Otto-sama seems different from before.)
She had a blush on her face.
Frederica: (No. What am I thinking?)
She shook her head before running off to tell the others that Otto had decided to help them.
※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※
Subaru looked wide-eyed.
Subaru: [You're telling me Ros-chi is dead?]
Emilia: [He died fighting Volcanica.]
Subaru: (Roswaal died? Him of all people?)
Subaru: [And Al looks like an older version of me?]
Keinichi: [That is weird.]
Subaru thought for a second, contemplating it.
Subaru: [Aldebaran... is the name of a star following the Pleiades Star Cluster.]
Kenichi: [The star cluster we named you after...]
Emilia: [Eh? Reaaally?]
Kenichi: [Those... Archbishops had the same names as some stars from our world, too. This is all really weird.]
Subaru: [Since names of stars from this world are associated with the Witch Cult over there, then maybe they're more accurate to say they're associated with Witches?]
Subaru thought for a second.
Subaru: [Echidna.]
Naoko: [That pervy lady?]
Emilia: [She's very mean, too.]
Subaru's sweat dropped.
Subaru: [She definitely knew I was going to arrive in that world. She'd been preparing for it for a while, using Ros-chi as the one to get his hands dirty.]
Kenichi: [So she tried to clone you? Is that what you think?]
Subaru: [It could be. It could explain why Al knows so many things as well. Echidna is the Witch Of Greed after all. The one with the most knowledge over there. Her tome of wisdom gave Ros-chi a massive advantage before, so who knows if she did the same for Al.]
Beatrice: [This all feels strange, I suppose.]
Subaru: [I know Beako, but...]
Beatrice: [Betty remembers that man calling Betty Beako, I suppose.]
Subaru: [Right, Al did that... just a clown or something made in my image wouldn't be able to know that nickname]
Subaru: (What the hell are you, Al?)
Subaru sighed.
Subaru: [I think we should relax for now.]
Subaru: (It'll take time to figure all this out. For now, we should take a break. This whole week has been way too hectic, and I've been asleep for most of it. I can't imagine how drained Emilia must be feeling. Mentally and physically.)
Emilia nods, but she turns to Kenichi and Naoko.
Emilia: [Um...]
She blushed.
Emilia: [I'll make sure to take good care of your son from here on out.]
Subaru blushed profusely as Kenichi snortled, and he began laughing while Naoko smiled.
Kenichi: [Yeah, he's a handful, so be careful with him.]
Subaru: [Huh?!!! Don't just...]
Emilia: [You can rely on me to take care of him.]
Subaru: [Eh? Emilia-tan? That's something I'm supposed to say to your parents!]
Emilia: [Mother Fortuna and Guese are already gone, Subaru. I don't know who gave birth to me or who my father is.]
Subaru looked to her, wanting to comfort her.
Emilia: [It's okay, Subaru. I'm fine. I really am.]
Subaru still hugged her.
Subaru: [I still want to hug you. Even if you're alright]
Emilia: [You... dunderhead.]
—————————————————————————————————————
To Be Continued
—————————————————————————————————————
Rating Out Of 10 For This Part:
—————————————————————————————————————