Chapter Text
Wait! I can still use the future sight again!
Clock
The sound of the clock hands echoed once more in Subaru's mind.
With a dramatic movement, Subaru fell to his knees in the carriage.
“Subaru!?”
Emilia sounded concerned by Subaru's sudden emotional shift. She walked over and placed a hand on his shoulder, as if to make sure he was okay, when she noticed Subaru's trembling fist out of the corner of her eye.
“Damn it!” Subaru shouted out of nowhere.
“Subaru?! What’s wrong? Did you feel so bad about losing in Rock, Paper, Scissors? I can use rock next time, and when you win, you’ll feel better?”
“Emilia-tan, in sympathy mode, is cute too, but I'm not a child!”
Emilia said it with the utmost sincerity in the world. Subaru knew it, but he couldn't help but feel that she was treating him like a little kid again, and that hurt his pride.
“It’s nothing, Emilia-tan; my power to see the future failed, and I lost it before I could use it again.”
“Did it fail?” Emilia asked, confused.
“It showed random futures, but my bad luck made it show none.” Subaru lowered his head, embarrassed.
Subaru could have sworn he heard a condescending “Ha!” outside the carriage, but he thought it must have been the wind.
Emilia's eyes narrowed in concern.
“That means you have a new power! Maybe it’s even better! Cheer up, Subaru!”
Emilia said as quickly as she could, trying to get her new friendly acquaintance out of his sadness as best she could. Emilia was a little nervous that Subaru was sad and that she wouldn't be able to help him due to his social shortcomings, but honestly, she shouldn't have worried.
“Ah! Emilia-tan’s positivity, beauty, and warmth warm my soul, heart, mind, and body! I can face anything right now!”
Emilia was confused by Subaru's sudden emotional change but was relieved that he was no longer sad.
“If you can joke around like that, then you’re already better off. What’s your current divine protection, then, Subaru?”
"Right!"
People are unable to see me as a threat?
Not cool! Not cool at all! What's with Stellar Gear and its evil powers lately? Although Emilia doesn't seem any different from before. Shit, should I just say it?
At that, Subaru noticed how surprisingly close Emilia was to him. Not in the sense of a best friend or anything like that, but a barrier Subaru didn't even know existed had collapsed between them.
That hurts a little.
Subaru felt a pang in his chest, not so much because of how Emilia kept a certain distance from the man she didn't know. Subaru understood that, as a stranger, it would be weird if Emilia trusted him completely right away. No, what really bothered him was how the distance had closed because of a manipulative power he'd never asked for. Subaru felt like he'd somehow tainted his relationship with Emilia.
Subaru understood that the purpose of the power is to allow the user to do whatever they want. He knew for a fact that if he started hitting Emilia right now, she wouldn't react at all because she wouldn't notice that any action Subaru took could be a threat to her. It was a disgusting power. That's why...
I won't do what you want.
With a sigh as if to gather his courage, Subaru began to speak slowly.
“Emilia-tan, no, Emilia… I deeply apologize.”
Subaru lowered his head in a full bow, his face looking down at the floor of the carriage.
“Subaru?” Emilia said worriedly.
However, Subaru knew. She wasn't worried about Subaru's actions for herself at all; she was worried about Subaru's well-being. Subaru had thought this would be her reaction even without the power affecting her, but now Subaru doubted everything.
“My current divine protection means no one can see me as a threat. I’m sorry.”
“Mm?” Emilia tilted her head, confused.
“And what’s the problem with that, Subaru? I’d never think of you as a threat. Doesn’t that mean it's not doing anything?”
Emilia seemed to sincerely believe this, but her change in behavior, the closeness she displayed, made Subaru believe that wasn't true. No, what's happening is something else.
“You can’t even tell why it’s bad that you don’t see me as a threat, can you?”
Subaru said this slowly, as if it weighed heavily on his heart. Even though he didn't directly warn Emilia, how his power was affecting her way of thinking, Emilia wasn’t even able to see through it. Emilia was completely and utterly captivated by her newfound power, and Subaru hated himself for it.
Unbeknownst to Subaru, Ram, who was driving the carriage, was having thoughts similar to Emilia's. The magic she had prepared in case of an emergency had been forgotten as she snorted in her mind over the silly words of the stray dog the kind Emilia had taken in. Ram was fully aware that Subaru was a weakling with no halfway decent combat capabilities. Sure, he had a strong-sounding divine protection, but between the Divine Protection of Salt (Why didn't she believe it before? Obviously someone as weak as him would receive that kind of nonsense), and now this. Ram was certain it was harmless. However, Ram's greatest confidence lay in the fact that she was certain Subaru was just a nice guy. Someone nice who wouldn't hurt a fly, that was never in doubt.
Back in the carriage, Subaru was unable to meet Emilia's gaze. He had separated himself from Emilia at a distance as safe as the one they had shared before the shift. That seemed to have hurt Emilia, but if she didn't turn him into a pancake when Stellar Gear worked its magic, then he would apologize for it.
So please just take this thing off me.
“Um, Subaru? Did I do something to upset you? I don’t know why it upsets you so much, but I’m sorry if-”
Clock
It just takes an instant.
“Oh…” Emilia said.
Her voice wasn't like the usual silver chimes; it sounded bewildered, confused, but at the same time enlightened and, to Subaru's pain, scared.
“I-I will need some time to collect my thoughts, Subaru.”
Subaru remained silent and simply nodded his head.
Subaru stared out the window, trying to keep his gaze away from Emilia. He'd gained a new power, but he honestly couldn't care less at this moment.
He didn't have an opportunity to think much more either.
The maid outside wasn't much better. Her thoughts were racing, and using her photographic memory and verified genius intellect, she was analyzing each of her previous thoughts word by word. She could clearly remember how each of her thoughts twisted to justify whatever reality was imposed by that divine protection. She analyzed the damage that was possible with such a thing, and the conclusion she came to was far from good.
Ram knew that if Subaru threw her from the carriage, attacked her loved ones, and burned down the mansion where she served, she wouldn't even blink. Her mind would be unable to comprehend that Subaru could do such a thing. Her certainty in that unimaginable fact... it was disgusting. Ram's mind, freedom, and pride, one of the few things she had left, were completely swept away by the will of Subaru… no, that thing.
It was when she thought about what someone with such power could do to her sister that Ram's magic acted before her conscious mind could even properly consider it.
Suddenly, Subaru's eyes went from staring at the featureless landscape to moving and spinning at high speeds through the air. Subaru was unable to comprehend what was happening. His field of vision spun around and around. Subaru could have sworn that during one of those spins he had seen the carriage speeding by, but he couldn't be sure, because less than a few seconds later he felt his thoughts slowing down. His eyelids grew heavy, and his eyes closed as a cold but familiar sensation assaulted his senses.
Subaru understood.
I'm dying.
Subaru, unaware of how or why, had been decapitated, and his head had flown out of the carriage.
Natsuki Subaru had died once again.
Subaru was in a dark space—well, dark; that wasn't the right way to define it. Empty, perhaps, was more fitting. Subaru was barely a consciousness in that place, without a body, senses, or any form of feedback received from an environment. Even as a pseudo-consciousness, whatever this Subaru was could sense one thing quite well: pain.
He felt his soul being squeezed, bent, torn apart, readjusted, fixed, and destroyed over and over again, while unbeknownst to him the whole world around him was being totally and completely destroyed.
This lasted for an amount of time that, for Subaru, could very well have been a second or hours, but it all ended when the first familiar sound finally reached his consciousness.
Clock
“I won! Huh? Subaru?!”
Emilia's previous excitement disappeared the moment Subaru began to pant desperately. From Emilia's perspective, Subaru went from excited to test out his new power to sweating as if he'd just run a marathon. His eyes were squeezed shut, his face was pale, and he was clutching his chest in pain.
Subaru's mind didn't remember that empty space, but his soul? His soul did, and it was powerful. That pain was the worst thing Subaru had ever felt, and it's worth mentioning that...
I've felt it before... That moment, in the Loot House, I thought it was a power to see the future, but...
Subaru slowly opened his eyes, remembering the last thing Emilia said.
Just before using precognition? So what I saw, that power, that look of pain and fear, was it all a vision?
Subaru wanted to believe it, but-
It was too real. The pain, the emotions, the wind on my face, the earth… I don't know what's happening anymore. Do I even know what the hell that sudden change in view was? One second I was in the carriage, and the next I was flying across the place before.
“Subaru? Are you okay?”
That's right! I'm not alone here!
Subaru leaped to his feet. His vision was different, seeing details he'd previously entirely ignored, but he ignored them for now. With all the emotion he could muster, he answered Emilia as quickly as he could.
“Of course, Emilia-tan! Your victory was so incredible that it completely stunned me, almost as much as your incredible beauty, of course!”
Emilia snorted a little.
“If you can joke like that, then you’re fine." Emilia said.
Emilia didn't really believe him. Puck might tease her for being clumsy, but Emilia wasn't stupid. She knew Subaru was hiding something, and she had a good idea what it was. Emilia remembered perfectly the reason they played Rock, Paper, Scissors in the first place: to see the future. That meant Subaru should have seen something, and judging by his reaction, not something good.
Emilia thought Subaru had a good reason for hiding his vision of the future, so she decided to let it go. She didn't completely trust Subaru and his motives, but she trusted that he wasn't a bad person. She hoped that if they ever became good friends, he would tell her what he saw.
Ram, too, came to the same conclusion, but she was far more suspicious of the reasons for his concealment. Still, she said nothing, preferring to let Subaru believe he had gotten away with it. Later, Ram would be sure to let her master know about their guest's possible knowledge of the future.
And in that mental chess match was Subaru, who was genuinely relieved when he noticed that Emilia realized something was wrong but looked suspicious at his lack of response.
That power is gone. Well, this view, which seems like the perspective of someone with serious OCD, was probably ample enough.
If the anti-threat power had still been in effect, Subaru didn't doubt for a moment that Emilia would have genuinely accepted his excuse. The fact that she was cautious was strangely relieving.
Our relationship can still continue!
With that, a genuine smile spread across Subaru's face. Emilia seemed surprised by it but also pleased that she seemed to have made the right decision.
“Ah! I lost my power to see the bright future Emilia-tan and I are destined to share! However, I have something new!”
Outside, Ram sighed in relief. She knew a power that allowed him to see the future could be a nightmare for information leaks, so the change made her less nervous, though she was still ready for Subaru's supposed new power. The truth was, Ram still didn't believe 100% he had any powers of any kind. He hadn't done anything yet beyond taking credit for some light magic that Ram hadn't seen. He could very well be lying (though she doubted it), but she would still be cautious.
“Amazing Subaru! I’m really excited to see what you do next.”
Okay, Stellar Gear, this view can't be the only thing this power does! Time to impress Emilia-tan!
“I have the power to…! Make elaborate plans? This is no good! What about OCD vision then?!”
There has to be something else! Plans that are almost impossible to follow? Who would follow a plan of mine in the first place?! Do you need information? I'm not even sure where I am! Making incredibly precise constructions that follow defined patterns? Works for me!
“Isn’t it very good?”
“No, no, no, it’s amazing! They all are! I’ll show you!”
"Fine?"
Subaru began quickly to scan the carriage with his gaze. His new vision allowed him to capture every measurement of the space down to the millimeter and allowed him to plan incredible analog machines.
If I had the right materials…
Subaru looked away from the carriage and at his things, and with that, an idea came to his mind.
Without thinking, he ripped open the plastic bag containing the grocery supplies. Using his teeth, he separated one of his nails and then took a few oddly finely chopped pieces from his instant ramen cups. He was going to do something about his cell phone, but knowing there were powers that could give his phone infinite battery life, he decided not to touch it for now, instead focusing on something else.
Emilia watched curiously as Subaru used his fingernail to remove seemingly random threads from his tracksuit, then moved them millimeters or centimeters in certain directions. Using the plastic, he created more threads that were also added to the mix, along with the pieces of plastic. Five minutes of adding and removing threads later and…
“Ta-da!”
Clock
Just in time! I'll give it a quick once-over... Another craft power? Good! I'll see what I can do with my phone, though, first...
Emilia tilted her head because...
“Is it the same?”
Yes, the jacket looked the same. It was a bit odd considering all the changes and additions Subaru seemed to be making, but it wasn't anything out of the ordinary.
Subaru, however, moved his index finger from right to left while clicking his tongue as if disappointed in the half-elf's naivety.
“Why don’t you try it on, Emilia-tan?”
“H-huh? Me?”
“Of course! You’ll notice it then.”
Still a little confused, Emilia took the jacket from Subaru. She'd noticed it was made of materials she'd never seen before, but the feel of them was entirely different. The quality was incredibly good considering how mundane and strange it looked. The strange locking mechanism in the center was also something she'd never seen before.
It took her a while, but when she finally put on the jacket, it was a bit like what she expected. It was a bit big due to the difference in muscle and height with Subaru, and only the last part of her fingers was visible through the sleeves. Although she was surprised at how warm it was, besides being even more comfortable inside, she still didn't understand what Subaru had done.
“H-huh~?”
That didn't last long. Almost magically, the jacket began to shrink until it fit Emilia's size perfectly, as if it had always been that way. Not only that, every wrinkle and imperfection began to straighten itself, and although Emilia hadn't noticed, every millimeter of difference between one half of the jacket and the other half was perfectly adjusted, making it a microscopically symmetrical jacket.
“Did you enchant the jacket?!” Emilia said, looking at the jacket in a new light.
That was the only conclusion Emilia could come to after seeing how the jacket shrank perfectly after a few touches with thread. She knew it was possible, considering her own cloak, and she also knew that only a few mages could do something like that. The fact that Subaru could make her think that his last divine protection was something very impressive.
“I’d like to say yes, Emilia-tan, but I’d be lying. It’s just a clever trick with threads. I moved and wove the threads in a certain way so they would automatically adjust to the size of whoever wears the jacket." Subaru said, dismissively.
Honestly, doing something like that was a feat of tailoring that would require such ridiculous planning, precision, and knowledge that it might as well be magic, but to Subaru, who knew so little about what he was actually doing, it might as well be a parlor trick.
Ram also couldn't imagine that something like this was humanly possible, but she guessed that if he really had divine protection, then it's not something out of the realm of possibility.
“Oh~! You could do it with my clothes!” Emilia said innocently.
The mental image of Emilia taking off her clothes at that moment flashed through Subaru's mind like lightning, causing the boy from another world to blush like never before in his life.
“S-Sorry, I lost power as soon as I finished making the jacket.” Subaru said, totally flustered.
“Oh? No problem! What’s the new one then?” Emilia asked, placing a finger on her chin.
She was also a little disappointed by the lack of flashy powers, but she found the jacket trick pretty impressive, so she wanted to see what he had in store next.
This new power is a bit like the previous one, but more sci-fi nonsense than analog. Basically, it allows me to improve the efficiency of any technology. That means there's only one option here.
“It is the Divine Protection for Metia’s Creation!”
To lie.
“Oh~! Let’s see! Let’s see!” Emilia sounded a bit like a kid in a candy store.
Ram, on the other hand, wasn't surprised. By this point, she thought she'd gotten used to whatever nonsense Subaru was currently up to, and the fact that the new power wasn't something that could be tested as divine protection didn't help her lack of enthusiasm at all. She was even starting to think she was seriously overestimating Subaru's power, even more so since Ram was fully aware that 80% of divine protections were useless, so Subaru's power shouldn't be much different.
Subaru was happy to fulfill Emilia's request, so he took out his phone. Immediately, immediately without even uncovering it, he was aware of all the design flaws that made it less effective than it should have been. The weight of the cover was poorly calibrated, the buttons were not properly positioned, the screen, the speaker, the camera, nothing was in its place.
And that's just on the outside...
Honestly, Subaru just wanted to give it a little shiny change, something to entertain Emilia, but Subaru realized how perfect this building power could be and how much it could improve his cell phone.
He knew it was an opportunity that he couldn't pass up.
“Emilia-tan, this might take a while, but I'm going to work on my Metia for a while. Wait for me, okay?”
Emilia nodded, not knowing what she was agreeing to.
As soon as Subaru had permission, repeating the technique of using the cue stick as a screwdriver and lever, Subaru opened his cell phone and…-
Oh boy, I have work to do.
Those cables don't look right; they should be like this, right?
What kind of use does a working battery have? How is it? No, no, no, this should be…
These lights can serve many functions; I just have to move this micro-conductor…
It's normal that the camera barely works if I simply...
Who was the gorilla who tweaked the paths of these chips? Give me a few seconds; I'll make this phone powerful enough to display the entire internet at once...
Normally, I wouldn't be able to do anything with the outer material, but I do use the heat from the battery to adjust the heat from a certain temperature to a specific frequency…
A little hair, some saliva, and toothpaste. This screen should withstand hammer blows and look a little better.
Clock
With that, Subaru finally finished improving his phone. It was considerably lighter, and its design was stripped of all decoration. Subaru had recycled the buttons, much of the plastic, and the radio antenna; now the phone was a rectangle that was all screen. There wasn't even a visible spot for the camera, though Subaru knew it was somewhere on the back. To Subaru, it looked like those smartphones that were recently becoming popular on Earth, but even those models seemed overly decorated compared to the strangely light, dark block now in Subaru's hands.
That's not even counting the internal functions. Its battery would last 100 years running at full power, so it saved space by not needing any kind of charger; a camera equal to any professional camera; more power than any computer even 10 years in the future; a bright, high-quality screen; a 10,000-lumen flashlight; a projector; compasses; all kinds of sensors for health or whatever you need; waterproof and dustproof; tough as a brick of steel; and a map that he'll have to make at some point—it was ridiculous, even for Subaru.
And he didn't have an opportunity to add an AI like he wanted.
“Hey, Emilia-tan!”
Before he could say much more, Subaru began to cough dryly. His voice felt cracked. This continued for a while, until Subaru finally took notice of his surroundings.
“Huh?” Subaru said, his voice like a dusty penguin.
Subaru's confusion was entirely justifiable. Subaru hadn't noticed it while flipping through his phone's functions, but a large amount of light was entering through the floor of the carriage where he had inadvertently sat.
It had become day.
“What?!” That scream sent him into another coughing fit.
“Nee-sama, nee-sama, it seems our dear guest has awakened.”
“Rem, Rem, it seems our dear guest has decided to stop hogging the carriage like a rat.”
Subaru didn't recognize the first voice, but the second was clearly familiar.
When Subaru turned around, he found himself facing a sight he hadn't expected, at least not entirely. The bold maid, with pink hair and red eyes, was standing at the entrance of the carriage. That was what Subaru had expected; what he hadn't expected was another person who was basically a mirror image of the maid. Her clothing, build, and hairstyle were identical to Ram's. If it weren't for her hair and eye color, as well as her posture, Subaru would think he was seeing an illusion.
“Ram?” he said, this time careful not to strain his throat any further.
“It seems our dear guest has learned to control his voice, which makes him more competent than Ram gave him credit for. Congratulations.”
“W-what happened?”
“That should be Ram’s question, dear guest. Taking over Master Roswaal’s carriage for so long by playing with dangerous things. It seems being a sparrow taking advantage of Lady Emilia’s kindness wasn’t enough for you.”
“So long?” Subaru asked, not wanting to know the answer.
This time it was Rem who answered.
“According to nee-sama, you have been locked inside the carriage for more than half a day, dear guest.”
Subaru's brain came to a complete stop at that statement.
Half-day? Like, twelve hours? Even more than that? It's impossible!
As if defying his own thoughts, a sudden feeling of hunger and exhaustion assaulted Subaru's body. Finally, Subaru understood where the dryness in his throat was coming from: thirst. At this point, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that Subaru had basically gone two days without a sip of water; he might as well be dying right now. His eyelids were getting heavier and heavier, and he felt like he was about to faint at any moment.
Shit.
“Nee-sama, nee-sama, what are the chances of survival for our dear guest?” Rem asked.
However, the answer came from an unexpected source.
“68.1849 percent.” Subaru said before finally collapsing.
Subaru didn't know it, but that was his new power acting up. It's a power that allows him to define the future using percentages, an incredible power that could very well have changed the entire journey he's about to take. The only downside is that it forces Subaru to answer other people's questions. Easily the best power Subaru has obtained to date; however…
Clock
Fate won't make it so easy.
Ram and Rem stood in front of a fallen Subaru. Rem was confused about the numbers mentioned at the end, but Ram immediately understood.
“Another divine protection to see the future? Calculate the future? Something more to report to Master Roswaal.”
“Lady Beatrice will be willing to attend to him, nee-sama?” Rem asked her sister.
“We’ll see…”
Ram carefully approached the unconscious Subaru's body and took the Metia he was holding using only two fingers. A thin layer of windshield protected her slightly just in case, but Ram was relatively certain the most dangerous part was over. Rem, on the other hand, clearly reluctantly, picked up Subaru and carried him to the bathroom, where he would be prepared to receive the mansion's master later.
Ram looked closely at the dark rectangle Subaru had been working on all this time. The material it was made of was shiny and reflective, almost like a mirror, but Ram could tell it was also sturdy. There was no indication of how it worked, and unlike another mirror Metia she knew, there was no opening and closing mechanism that Ram could see.
Overall, a total mystery.
If Ram hadn't seen it created herself along the way, she wouldn't have believed doing something like this was even remotely possible, but that divine protection made it happen.
When they started working on it, both Ram and Emilia expected a small upgrade, maybe a light show to impress. What they didn't expect was that Subaru would just keep working, and working, and working...
Emilia was patient, but when they reached Fleur Village about four hours later, where they were supposed to stop for a break since they weren't really rushing, and Subaru was still working on his Metia, Emilia decided he'd gone too far. Emilia was about to try to wake Subaru from his trance when Ram stopped her.
Normally, Ram wouldn't care, but as she watched Subaru work, she realized she had no idea what Subaru was doing. At one point, she saw him connect his strange stick to a gray box that heated the tip of the stick to a high temperature, then use that stick to rhythmically tap the Metia's exterior, which went from a brittle blue to a sturdy black in minutes. To Ram, it might as well have been magic, and if Ram knew one thing, it was that magic was dangerous.
After a bit of discussion with Emilia, they agreed that it was safer to let Subaru finish whatever he was doing and thus avoid any accidents.
Ram didn't care much, so she simply went to his room to sleep. Emilia, on the other hand, was worried. She brought Subaru some food and water from dinner and stayed with him for most of the night but eventually fell asleep beside the carriage while Subaru continued working.
The next day, Subaru was still at work, and they continued their way to the mansion at dawn (much to Emilia's dismay).
Along the way, Puck finally woke up, only to find Emilia asleep from staying up late and a Subaru working on his Metia. Ram explained the situation to the great spirit. Puck knew what Subaru was doing wasn't exactly magical, so it wouldn't really be a problem if they stopped him, but he founds amusing all the caution in Ram so he didn’t say anything.
Even though he decided to secretly check Subaru's thoughts, just in case, only to be stopped by the headache caused by all the nonsense racing through his mind.
The journey continued uneventfully. Emilia finally managed to fully wake up, much to Puck's amusement. What wasn't so amusing for the cat was seeing Emilia worrying about a Subaru that still wouldn't stop, though he didn't stop teasing her for it. With Puck to distract her, the rest of the trip was much more bearable for Emilia, and a few hours later they had arrived at the mansion.
During the night, Rem had warned her master of her sister's and Emilia's arrival. Somehow, her master concluded that they would be bringing an injured guest. Rem was forced to seek out the pink-clad hidden librarian in the early hours to prepare her for the treatment of a serious wound; however, it was all in vain when Rem noticed that her sister had stopped in what she assumed was Fleur's village.
Rem's master seemed puzzled by Rem's news for some reason but quickly hid it behind his usual enigmatic smile.
A few hours later, closer to noon than dawn, Ram arrived with Emilia and the aforementioned guest.
Rem was waiting for them at the entrance of the mansion and greeted them with a formal bow of welcome. A grumpy Beatrice was also there. She was so angry at being disturbed during the night that she felt she was owed something, so she went to see this supposedly injured guest to let him know her opinion.
Rem and Beatrice receive an explanation from Ram and Emilia was dragged into her room by Puck. Ram went to Roswaal’s dorm to give him a detailed explanation about what’s happened.
A time later, Ram brought the two of them to the carriage door to show them Subaru still working, and their reactions could very well have been opposite. As soon as Rem approached the guest, her expression darkened into a horrifying blankness. His appearance, the strange object in his hands, and most of all his scent, all of these combined horribly to make Rem come to only one conclusion: Subaru is a threat.
Beatrice, on the other hand, had a very different impression. For starters, she completely ignored Subaru's unpleasant smell. It was nothing compared to her mother. His strange clothes? Interesting, but little more. The "Metia" in his hands? Beatrice couldn't sense even a hint of magic from that thing, just as Puck knew it had nothing magical about it, something that would normally be fascinating to her, but she ignored it in favor of something far more interesting. That throbbing in her heart that she thought had died before Puck's arrival, the unparalleled attraction, Beatrice's hopes began to grow, and it terrified her. With all her will, she crushed the mere thought and, with a habitual snort, turned back to her room.
The situation bothered her so much that she forgot to mention that the Metia wasn't magical, and therefore, there would be no problem bringing Subaru out of the trance. The result? Subaru was once again left to his own devices until evening, when the lack of stamina finally forced him to wake up.
Emilia's camp's response to Subaru was, to put it mildly, full of mixed reactions.
Clock
An unknown roof.
That was Subaru's first thought as soon as he woke up. A closer look at his surroundings and he realized he was in a very elegant room. The decor was simple, but just looking at the intricacy of everything and the materials used, Subaru knew for a fact that it was a very subtly opulent place.
Subaru also noticed that he had new clothes, and compared to the seconds he had been at work, he felt strangely clean.
I don't understand why my forehead hurts a little, though. Anyway! I guess I'll go explore a bit. First, though...
Just in case, Subaru decided to check out his new power before leaving the place. In case it would be useful in finding Emilia or something.
Hmm? This power isn't bad. It allows me to create phantom limbs anywhere.
Just as a test, Subaru created a hand on top of the table that gave him a small salute.
Subaru couldn't feel the hand, but he could give it instructions perfectly. He could also make them bigger or smaller, and he knew they were incredibly powerful. With a thought, a giant hand appeared from the ground and lifted Subaru off his feet.
"Nice!"
Subaru played with his power a bit more, trying to create eyes or ears to spy on, just like that girl from a certain pirate anime, but it seemed he was limited to just limbs. Still, Subaru didn't care and left the room without fearing anyone.
Outside his room, he found himself in a vast hallway. The hallway was decorated in a minimalist yet opulent style, demonstrating the richness of the space in the most subtle details.
This must be the mansion Emilia mentioned, where Ram works and, I guess, her sister, Rem, I think.
Subaru walked around admiring the place but stopped when he realized something.
This is the third time I've seen this painting. It must be a loop in the hallway I can't get out of until I solve a riddle. I'll probably need clues or some object to even try to solve it. For now, I'll go back to my room to plan.
A normal person, in a normal place, would think they were in an unexpectedly long hallway with an ordinary painting. Subaru wasn't that person. Subaru was an otaku in a fantasy world with the often mistaken belief that many of the fantasy clichés from his home world applied here. Luckily for him, though not entirely, this time he was right.
Subaru headed to the door he remembered as his room; however, as soon as he opened it, he wasn't greeted by the guest room. What he found, instead, was a vast space with shelves filled with books that seemed to touch the sky. The layout of the space was fundamentally different from the rest of the mansion, as if it had been added or glued onto the space after being ripped from another space. The smell of old books was constantly present, but the space didn't feel as old as it was; rather, it felt ancient yet preserved at the same time. Subaru knew at a glance that he wasn't in a normal space, and he felt a certain awe, like the kind you'd feel in a church or temple.
“First NPC encountered!” Of course, Subaru wouldn’t allow himself to look intimidated.
Much less in front of the only person other than Subaru in the place.
What appeared to be a small girl sat on a small stool in front of the entrance to the place. Her height probably only reached Subaru's stomach, or less. She was wearing clothes that could be considered gothic lolita, but she made them pink: a long dress full of lace, striped stockings, a small crown adorning her head, and cute round Mary Jane shoes. Her best feature was her hairstyle, long blonde hair separated into two drill-shaped pigtails. Although if Subaru had to define her most notable feature, it wouldn't be her hair, which you would see in the archetype of a noble girl in any visual novel; it would be her eyes: a deep blue, whose pupils were shaped like a pink butterfly.
It was Beatrice.
“You are dreadfully loud, bursting into Betty’s precious library spouting nonsense, I suppose.” Beatrice said.
Those were her first words to Subaru. Her tone was quite neutral, which made for a strange contrast to her shrill voice. To Subaru, it was a little girl's attempt at sounding like an adult, and naturally, he didn't take her seriously at all.
“Come on, little loli, smile, smile; your cuteness would be wasted if you stay so bitter.” Subaru said.
“Betty doesn’t know what that word means, but don’t call Betty that; it sounds completely irritating, I suppose." Betty said, tightening her grip on the book.
“So? What is this place? Your playroom?”
“This is the mansion’s library and Betty’s multipurpose bedroom, I suppose.”
“That someone of your age and height managed to get a library like this is quite an achievement for a loli.”
The girl's eyebrow twitched. Subaru continued, completely ignoring him.
“Is this where you sleep? It must be terribly sad to be cooped up in this library all day. It’s fine; I completely understand wanting to fully defend your home. I was once a shut-in myself. I should still get out once in a while, though. It’s not good for a growing girl like you to be kept out of the sunlight.”
Subaru's long speech, slash reprimand, slash monologue, was interrupted by the snap of Beatrice's book slamming shut.
“That’s enough! Betty can’t stand any more of your nonsensical ramblings! Betty will teach you a lesson, I suppose.”
With slow but steady steps, the apparent librarian of the mansion stood up from her small stool and headed in Subaru's direction. Subaru, sensing the danger of the situation, took a step back as cold sweat ran down his forehead. Subaru hadn't been in this world long, but something told him that this angry girl was bad news.
When Beatrice was a few steps away from being able to touch Subaru, to both of their surprise, almost as if acting on instinct, phantom limbs shot out of the ground, pinning the girl's feet to the ground.
Beatrice looked completely shocked by that. She knew Subaru didn't possess the presence you'd expect from some kind of fighter or mage decent enough to do something like this. Her thoughts raced. Divine protection? That was her first thought, but unlike the half-elf and the pink demon, someone like Beatrice knew there was something more to it, something that also accounted for a certain scent coming from the boy. Besides, to her, a power to summon hands was something that felt familiar; they were different from the ones she remembered but still disturbingly possible.
The librarian's eyes narrowed on something dangerous. If this was what she thought it was, this might be more dangerous than she thought.
“Hah! Take that, loli-drill! Of course, I’d never hurt a little girl, but you didn’t have a good face there, did you? I hope this serves as a lesson to you not to attack your elders-”
Clock
Not now, Stellar Gear!
The hands, like Subaru's arrogant speech, disappeared, the hands were replaced by air and the speech was replaced by the cold sweat that now covered the young Japanese man's forehead. The girl looked at the idiot in front of her and wondered if maybe she had been mistaken. She told herself that if someone like the idiot in front of her had one of those things, the world might very well end as far as she was concerned.
Still, she decided to dish out her punishment sooner rather than later to avoid any nasty surprises, and unfortunately for Subaru, his newfound power was basically useless in this situation.
“Argh!” Subaru’s cry of pain echoed throughout the venue.
At the touch of Beatrice's hand, Subaru felt part of his lifeblood disappear without a trace. It felt disgusting, as if a part of what keeps you breathing had been forcibly ripped away—not to mention painful.
Subaru first fell to his knees before finally hitting the ground with the rest of his body. Subaru couldn't move, but he didn't feel like he was going to faint anytime soon or anything. Beatrice approached his fallen body and looked down at him with her usual expressionless gaze; however, there was something cold there that wasn't there before.
“W-what did you do to me, Loli d-drill!?”
“Betty only took a little of your mana, I suppose. Betty has a question for you, though. What did you do with Sloth?”
“W-who?” Subaru really had no idea what he meant; his screaming body didn’t help much either.
Beatrice stared at Subaru for a while before deciding he wasn't lying. She was secretly relieved that she hadn't lost anyone else, but for now, she ignored that feeling to try to form a decent theory about what was going on with the boy. She knew he had to have one of those things to do something, like summoning hands; it just didn't explain how, which, or why. Unless the boy was one of those... However, she didn't want to believe it, so she pushed the possibility out of her mind.
“Y-you’re not human, are you? And I don’t mean your personality either.” Subaru said.
That brought Beatrice out of her thoughts. She looked at the human lying on her bookshelf, his body trembling with pain. She felt a little guilty for treating him so harshly but hid it with a smile.
“It took you a while to realize it, human.”
The girl touched him once more, draining (much more gently this time) enough of his remaining mana to cause Subaru to lose consciousness within moments.