Chapter Text

The Capital:

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Emilia's tired feet carry her through the cobble streets, racing the very wind to the established location where that boy will be at.

Her sword clinks with every step, announcing her presence to the throngs of people who swarm the pavements, urging them to make way for the silver-haired knight.

She has to make it to the loothouse before sunset, or that kind boy will die... again!

In the half-elf's previous loops, she'd been tasked with the transport of an Insignia to the one of the Royal candidates. Unfortunately, during the delivery she'd been robbed from beneath her nose by a blonde girl—Felt.

In her haste, she hadn't even noticed at first!

It wasn't until she reached the candidate's estate with empty pockets, then left and happened upon a loot house with a few tips from store vendors, that she'd found the missing emblem, alongside a brutalised boy. One that she did not yet know the name of. Not long after, she herself had been stabbed and forced to reset by a black-haired women.

The loops after that had been unfortunate too. Being rewound to moments after the robbery had taken place had been reeeaaally frustrating. And then, once again, the raven haired women, now proclaimed as 『The Bowel Hunter』, had taken her life. Leading to yet another demise, as well as the boy's.

After the initial loop, she'd had time to actually speak to the boy and actually find out his reason as to why he'd also made his way to the loothouse, despite the slums being so dangerous.

His explanation was: I couldn't just let something so nasty happen before my eyes and not do anything!

In that loop, his answer then had momentarily stunned her. Those were pure, unhardened words—naive and untainted by the intolerant, selfish attitudes of the Lugunican population.

Going out of one's way to stop a robbery? 「Well that's a job for the knights...!」is what the average citizen would reason. Who's to say that the robber isn't a rogue mage—one capable of obliterating you with a few well-casted spells?

Life is fickle in such an unfair world, where the scales of power are tilted in favour of the ones the world itself adores. It wouldn't even be crazy to say that Od Laguna has favourites at all—「Exhibit A: The Sword Saint」

To cut it short, jumping into conflict as an unskilled, average-level magic user is a death wish if you don't know your opponent. That's why heroic acts are left to knights, or those with self-assured power. And on first glance, the boy doesn't seem to be that strong.

So the fact that this unnamed boy is so ready to risk his life and actually lose it, purely due to his kind conscience, is amazing to Emilia. It reminds her of her own martyr-esque tendencies, natural instincts buried beneath her training as a responsible knight to evaluate situations before blindly jumping in.

Such an altruistic mindset is a major breath of fresh air, enough to make Emilia revere the boy in burgeoning adoration and awe. He's just so kind..

Despite the people in the streets staring openly at him with barely concealed hostility, most likely due to his black hair and sharp eyes—features belonging to Him of all people—he pushed through with a smile, determined to be of help to those in need, including Emilia.

He'd also helped a lost child along the way, despite being new to the area himself.

She couldn't help but fall for him a little, right then and there. Even spirits flocked around him lovingly as they walked over a bridged lake. He's just so pure...!

Clenching her fists, she too grows determined to help the boy, just as much as he wanted to help her and others. In this loop, she technically hasn't met him at all yet, so she'll have to introduce herself again to him...! Not that she minds too much, the ability to redo first impressions to perfection has always been a small treat.

She marches through the slums with purpose, ready to save him.

"...........!"

She blinks out of reminiscing as she finally reaches the door of the loothouse, and Puck floats out of her hair after waking up from his cat nap.

The very building that was once her tomb looms over her imposingly, casting shadows over her pale form.

Gulping heavily, her breath thins out into shallow sighs as her throat constricts in apprehension. She's much earlier this loop after taking an alternative route... Things will be different. This time, nobody will die, and Emilia, the Great Spirit Knight will make sure of it.

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"Puck! Behind me, shield my blindspot please...!"

"Sure thing, Lia!"

The grey spirit swerves behind her head, forming a barrier before the murderer's axe can comfortably lodge itself in her skull. After multiple loops, she's grown more accustomed to Elsa's underhanded tricks and fighting style, so she was able to predict that hit.

"That was super cool, silver-haired girl! Keep it up!" The strange boy exclaims from the sidelines, holding his thumbs up beside Old-Man Rom and Felt.

She notices that they side-eye his uncommon black hair and eye shape from time to time with subtle fear, no doubt comparing his notorious features to the detestable『Warlock of Envy』.

The boy himself doesn't seem to notice, happily chattering with the two as he cheers on Emilia. They surprisingly respond despite their fears, albeit a bit awkwardly.

Rom and Felt must be on edge, questioning why not just one, but two black-haired strangers have come out of nowhere, bringing nothing but violence and oddness with them. Dark hair doesn't exactly have the best rep, after all....

"My name's Emilia, just Emilia!" She informs, dodging another blade by a hair's breath. "But thank you, black-haired boy!" She flashes him a radiant smile.

The fact that she still hasn't learnt his name herself is irking her, but all is well. His identity will be a small gift to her when she eventually survives this. Because she will survive this, and she absolutely rejects another failure.

"My, my. Flirting with a young boy during this high-stakes fight? Are you taking this seriously at all, 'Just Emilia'...?" Elsa inquires, a cold smile stretched across her lips.

"——! Eh? By 'young boy' do you mean me by chance? I'll have you know that I turn eighteen soon!!"

""—Really?"" Both Emilia and Elsa ask at the same time, incredulous expressions tightening their eyebrows.

"Wha— You don't believe me!?!?" The boy cries, jaw slackened and a hand clutched over his heart.

Elsa shrugs, jumping away from a lethal bombardment of icicles. Emilia sends an apologetic smile his way, ducking beneath airborne taloned metal.

He groans out, muttering something nonsensical and crossing his arms, then blushes with embarrassment as he snaps at Felt, who mercilessly teases him for the unintentional bullying.

Emilia and Elsa reach a stalemate as the fight draws on; with every foretold (and therefore avoided) attack, a new ambush is concieved, pushing Emilia further back to square one. Alongside these setbacks, Puck's potency is also growing weaker by the second.

Ice blasts are easily parried by the nimble woman, and the freezing of her feet to the floor is only enough to keep her grounded for a few seconds. Emilia attacks, Elsa evades. Elsa attacks back, and Emilia knows how to avoid it. It's a frustrating exchange of assaults, no doubt even encouraging the three bystanders to join in, just to put an end to this seemingly never-ending loop.

Growing wearied, Emilia begins to inwardly panic. Not only is it getting darker and more difficult to see and stay awake after so many loops of fighting, Puck himself has also become visibly drained.

"Puck, can you keep going?" Emilia asks, though she already knows his dreaded answer. Her palms are still outstretched in warning to the assassin, albeit with exhausted tremors.

"I'm sorry, but I'm sleepy! My mana's gone so I'm done for the day..." The cat spirit yawns for emphasis, stretching his adorably short limbs beside the half-elf knight.

She smiles fondly, proud of how much he's helped her regardless, despite all this action cutting it so close to his bedtime. He's truly tried his best.

"Thank you, Puck... I'll handle it from here."

Offering her final words of morale, he retreats back to her gem with a few more yawns. Sighing, Emilia turns back with what she hopes is a frightening glare towards The Bowel Hunter.

"Hmph!"

"Oh, has your precious spirit left you? What a bummer, I really did want to see what they look like on the inside." Elsa's eyes grow impossibly colder. "I do hope you can still keep up."

"Please don't underestimate the ability of a Mathers Knight!" Emilia steels her resolve. Even with Puck gone she'll be sure to wrap this up.

Eyeing the steadily increasing danger, the bystanders turn back to one another.

"I know this is pretty Interesting, Felt, but we can't afford to sit around and watch anymore." Old-Man Rom warns the girl.

"Yeah, yeah, I know! If we're gonna make a run for it then we've gotta' start moving soon," she hisses.

She then turns to the young man, hands on her hips.

"And you. You may be shady but I can't deny that you kinda' saved my life earlier. So, thank you."

He winks at her, shooting her a grin. "You're welcome, little girl!"

He once again earns her ire. "Little girl—!? Don't call me a little kid, ya jerk! I barely look younger than you—"

"Oi, stop exaggerating!"

"I'm not!!!"

The chilling, sharp screech of yet another blade shakes them out of their mutual ribbing, reminding them of the hazardous environment they're stuck in. Emilia catches her breath, close to collapsing as she shakily tries to regain her strength.

She falls to her knees.

To others it may have been just an hour or two of fighting, but to her it feels like it's been half a day of running, attacking, and dodging.

"Shit! Here I go!" Rom runs into the fight in Emilia's stead, his large wooden club in hand.

"Oh! How rude. Don't cut in on someone else's dance." Elsa complains, still smiling.

"If you wanna' dance then I'll show off my moves too...!"

He rushes in, weapon raised in threat. Unfortunately, Elsa is too fast and dodges, close to slicing him with her own weapon of choice.

"Not so fast!" Felt yells, throwing her own knife at Elsa.

The assassin side-steps from the path of the hurled metal with ease, allowing the serrated edge to dig itself into the gargantuan man's shoulder behind her.

"Hk——!"

He cups his shoulder and falls to his knees too.

With the two strongest contenders out of the way, Elsa strides squarely towards the last ones who remain standing, teasingly ripping apart Felt's confidence with insults that Emilia can't make out through the ringing of her ears. Then, she raises her carver.

"Ugh..." Emilia groans, fingers outstretched with desperation.

"—Not a chance...!" The boy jumps in and hoists Felt away.

"Hm." Elsa sighs, veering through another onslaught of icicles from a floor bound Emilia.

The mysterious boy and Felt argue beneath hushed breaths, but she eventually relinquishes and follows through with his quiet request.

She runs, sending back a worried glance to the boy as he waves her off with an assuring smile.

Elsa tries to stab her as she dashes past, but the boy, now armed with Old-Man Rom's cub, quickly parries the attack.

"Looks like you let one get away!" He teases.

"For once, I'm feeling a tiny bit annoyed." Elsa states calmly, jumping back to put a safe distance between them.

"Hey! Don't forget about me...!" Emilia yells, dragging herself back onto her feet. She sure as hell can't let him fight alone.

He brightens at the sight of her getting up once again, serving as further motivation for her to finish this fight as the victor.

"Thank you so much, for doing your best and fighting alongside me!" She exclaims.

She remembers their fond, forgotten memories together, how his valiant heart and virtuous words were truly admirable. He's... the very essence of what a knight should be!

"Me? Oh, I haven't done much! All I know is that we've gotta take this sicko down." He pumps his fist.

Emilia nods. Hopefully this will all be resolved soon.

She just needs to have hope, like this amazing boy does, and all will be fine...!

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A powerful, blue glow dims as Reinhard lowers his sword, the Bowel Hunter most likely extinguished.

"'Hunting monsters is your specialty' my ass! Look at this place, you're a monster yourself, you freak!" The black-haired boy cries out, outraged at the fallout left behind.

"Even I'm a little hurt by a comment like that..." Reinhard frowns, offering condolences to the standard-issue sword that withers away in his hand, simply unable to withstand his unnatural strength.

Courtesy of the Sword Saint's skilled assault on Elsa, half the building has been blown away by his sheer power. The knight had been called on by Felt—who the strange boy had told to run and find help outside earlier.

"There's not even a shadow left, let alone her body. He did all that with just one swing of his sword...?" The black-haired boy mutters in awe.

"It looks like it's all over now." Emilia stands, satisfied with her healing of Old-Man Rom.

She stares at the boy, and strangely enough, tears start to spring in her eyes.

"E-eh!? Where are these waterworks coming from...!?!?" His eyes nearly bulge out of their sockets.

Shaking her head, she wipes her face with her sleeves.

"I'm reeeeeally sorry. I'm— I'm just so relieved! You still have your arms, and your legs, and your bowels, and—"

He hushes her rambling with a warm hug and kind words: "Strange things to point out, but I'm relieved that you're safe too! You're my hero, Emilia!"

"Oh, and Reinhard!" Subaru yells, turning behind him. "I haven't thanked you yet, you saved my ass back in the alley and here too... It's like you always know when I'm in trouble... So thank you!"

The Sword Saint smiles humbly. "If I had the ability to do that then I'd certainly be proud."

He then brings the young girl lingering in the doorway to their attention. "This young girl came to me, frightened and scared, and I knew I had to help."

"Oh, right! Felt!" Emilia's brows furrow, remembering that this is the girl who stole from her and threw them into this predicament in the first place.

"Emilia, wait, please spare her! Who knows if we'd even be standing here if she hadn't had a change of heart in the end? She could have run away and got away scot-free!"

He presses his hands together in mock prayer, his lips upturned in a cute, apologetic smile. "So let her off the hook, and don't turn her into an ice statue as punishment, okay...?" he pleads.

Emilia huffs, deterred by his adorable display. Even now, he's still so, so kind. "I would never do something so violent!" She whines.

All too suddenly, the wooden wall behind the boy blisters and shatters into fragments. A black crown of hair emerges from the cracks.

"——Behind you!" Reinhard shouts.

Before Emilia or the boy can even react, Elsa charges at his stomach with her blade in tow, ready to slice him in half. It's only last second that her soon-to-be victim blocks the knife with the club he hastily picked up again.

"That boy's getting in my way again..." She growls, face bleeding and her composure along with it.

"That's enough, Elsa!" Reinhard commands, reassuming a fighting stance

She throws a dagger his way, but it nonsensically veers out of the Saint's path, avoiding him entirely. The black-haired boy's jaw slackens at that.

"Before long, I'll disembowel every last one of you here in this room..." She threatens, teeth bared.

Emilia thinks she can hear the boy beside her mutter, "Does it even count as a room anymore...?" with a sidelong glance cast at Reinhard.

"Until, that moment comes," Elsa drawls, "be sure to take care of yourself!". She singsongs, leaping off into the night sky.

They all release their bated breaths.

The Sword Saint turns to Emilia with a concerned, "Are you alright?"

She frowns at him, pushing past.

"My being alright is not what's important right now." She makes her way to the boy who's now kneeling on the ground, clutching his stomach.

"Are you alright...!? That was far too reckless, and now you're hurt!" He must have gotten cut somewhere along the fight.

"Ah, I'm fine so don't worry about it, okay?"

"'Oh-keh?'" She repeats the foreign phrase.

"Yes, it's all good! We're all alive and breathing, so that's all that matters, okay? If anything, I should be worried about you."

He rubs a faint scar on her cheek gently, one that she most likely received from Elsa.

"I've said it before but I'll say it again. Thank you for being my hero, Emilia. I went and got myself into trouble on my first day here, trying to stop a thief like the reckless idiot I am. But there you were, swooping in to save the day like the knight you are, fighting to the bone!"

He winks and snaps his fingers towards her, his smiling white teeth gleaming in the moonlight.

"I don't know how I'll ever repay you, Super Emilia!"

He looks adorable. His onyx hair flutters in the calm breeze of twilight, framing his adorably happy face in an ethereal fashion. He looks so.....

Emilia giggles, cheeks glowing pink.

"I know one way that you can make it up to me..." She whispers, hiding her beaming lips behind her hand.

"Mhmmm?" He leans in, eyebrows waggling.

"Please... Please tell me your name!" She requests.

"——!" Blinking and stunned into silence he stares at her.

She blinks back. "Hello...?"

"Oh, wow! I actually haven't told you my name at all, I just realised!" He jumps to his feet. Emilia scoots back on the floor, surprised by his renewed vigour.

"Well, listen up!" He grins.

"My name is..." He juts his finger towards the sky, his other hand resting on his hip. "Subaru Natsuki! —And I am a massive idiot for forgetting to say that earlier! It's nice to meet you~."

Emilia laughs, surprised by his dramatic flair. Subaru Natsuki... Truly a strange name for a strange boy.

Subaru lowers his finger and redirects it at a certain blonde thief. "Alright, before I forget. Felt!" He calls for her, beckoning her from the side of a recently-healed, yet unconscious, Old-Man Rom.

Slowly, she gets up from her knees, reluctant to be any further from Rom. Her fingers rifle through her pocket.

"In an official capacity I cannot overlook what you've done here. However, as luck would have it I just so happen to be off duty today." The Sword Saint assures her.

Feeling just a little less scared, she walks toward them, facing the ground in shame.

"Considering what I did I'd figured you all would be a lot harder on me... Instead, you all saved my life... So I'll return what I stole, alright?" She takes out the Insignia, gaze averted. With the emblem resting in her palm, she holds it out to the two knights.

""——Hk!"" Reinhard and Emilia startle, causing Felt to drop the jewelled crest.

It's glowing!?

"Eh? Why are you two pissing your pants all of a sudden?" Subaru bends down and picks up the dropped item. He attempts to hand it to Emilia as well, only to elicit yet another gasp from the two knights.

""What the——!"" The knights stare open-eyed at each other.

It's glowing, again???

"Reinhard, I'll take Subaru to my place! We have multiple healers for his injuries. As for Felt, she can go with you!"

"Got it..! We'll have to notify the courts as soon as possible."

Subaru and Felt back away, confused and nervous.

"But I thought that you said that you're off duty? And why am I being involved? And what's that about courts, are we going to jail——!?" He shudders, ready to take Felt by her shoulders and run away with her if he has too. Being imprisoned in a fantasy world? No can do!

"............"

Reinhard stalks towards them, and Emilia sends him a silent signal in the form of a permissive nod.

"H-hey! Back up!" Felt cries, and Subaru instinctually shields her with himself.

"Please forgive me, you two." Reinhard smiles, before tapping the backs of their necks with small karate chops. They both pass out immediately.

Emilia sighs, rubbing her tired eyes. This is all just too troublesome.

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