Chapter Text
"Satella..."
"I will save you..."
"I will definitely save you!"
At this moment, Natsuki Subaru, already collapsed on the floor, couldn't care less about the massive amount of blood flowing from his abdomen. He stared fixedly at the silver-haired girl lying on the ground before him.
He wanted to speak, to scream, to cough. But all he spat out was blood and clots...
He wanted to get up, to leave, to... grasp her hand. But his soul and body refused him; there was no longer any way...
In the next moment, Natsuki Subaru died here. His consciousness sank into darkness, and within this darkness, Natsuki Subaru saw a "monster." Its head had no eyes and had four wing-like appendages on both sides, a tail attached to the back of its head, a sword on its right arm, and a helm-like wheel attached to its head and back.
Mahoraga—this was the monster's name. Natsuki Subaru didn't know why he knew its name, nor did he know if his arrival here had anything to do with it. Because his consciousness was currently becoming increasingly fleeting and illusory, unable to think about any questions.
*Click—*
In a place Natsuki Subaru hadn't noticed, a wheel identical to Mahoraga's appeared above his head, and at this moment, the wheel had already spun once.
【Death Adaptation】
Cause of Death: Blood loss.
Adaptation Complete: Rapid Blood Recovery.
...
"Hey, hey, what's wrong, kid? Standing there with a blank stare, are you okay?"
"Ah? Ah! Furube..."
Looking at the stern-faced, middle-aged man in front of him, Natsuki Subaru responded instinctively, to the point of saying words he didn't even know the meaning of without any hesitation. He felt like he had a dream, but this dream was a bit too real, so real that there was still a faint warmth in his abdomen.
"Ah? What did you say?"
Seeing Natsuki Subaru's still-blank expression, the middle-aged man seemed a bit impatient.
"So, are you going to buy an appa or not? You've been standing here staring for so long, you must really want to eat one, right?"
"Um, I don't have any money..."
"Huh? Then move along, don't disrupt my business here!"
"Ah... Yeah..."
Not minding the man driving him away, Natsuki Subaru quickly left the spot.
"Satella... Loothouse... Mahoraga... What on earth is going on?"
Natsuki Subaru muttered to himself as he walked aimlessly. He looked around at the familiar scenery, recalling that increasingly real dream. The street was still the same, with lizard carriages coming and going, crowded pedestrian pathways, various races, and the sun shining brightly in the sky. Everything was so familiar yet unfamiliar.
"Aaaaah, so what is going on with all of this? Can't anyone explain it?"
Natsuki Subaru scratched his head with both hands, looking extremely troubled. His actions attracted many glances from around him. Seeing this, Natsuki Subaru stopped. He was all too familiar with this feeling.
"It's exactly the same, this feeling... this feeling of being watched. The same gazes, the same sun, even the wound on my body is gone! It was clearly night just now, but in an instant, it became day!"
Although an instant transition from night to day might happen in another world, this sense of déjà vu was vivid in Natsuki Subaru's memory.
"No, being summoned to another world is strange enough in itself. Coupled with this feeling of everything resetting to the beginning, could I have come to some game world? Did I revive after dying?"
No one answered Natsuki Subaru's self-questioning. He thought that since his wounds could be healed, dying and reviving might be commonplace in this world.
"Maybe I was saved by Satella when I was on the verge of death? No, maybe it's worse..."
Recalling his previous memories, Natsuki Subaru frowned deeply.
"Right! I wonder how Satella is doing!"
At the thought of her being in deep danger because of him, Natsuki Subaru's expression grew increasingly grim. In the darkness, he had indeed seen Satella collapse in front of him. If so, who saved him? And how is Satella now?
"Didn't you say Satella is in your hands? But why did it turn out like this?"
Thinking of the confident words he spoke before the small cat Puck disappeared, only for things to still end up this way. To the point where he was now standing on the street, completely clueless about the situation and ignorant of Satella's safety.
"No! Now is not the time to be dejected. I must find them and figure out what happened."
Although he didn't want to admit he had no redeeming qualities, even so, Natsuki Subaru did not want the girl who had helped him and the unpredictable spirit to meet with any accidents.
"At least, I must confirm their safety!"
Thinking this, Natsuki Subaru decided to head to the Loot House immediately to figure out the situation there. But just as he was about to set off for the Loot House, a familiar voice reached his ears.
"Yo, kid, if you've got nothing to do, why don't you hang out with us for a bit?"
Seeing the trio of thugs blocking him right at the alley entrance, Natsuki Subaru felt a wave of speechlessness.
"I'm really busy right now. If you want revenge, can it wait until later?"
"Huh? What are you talking about?"
"Does this guy not understand the situation? Let's just tell him straight."
"That's right, kid. You're being mugged. Hand over whatever valuables you have on you."
"Even though you got beaten and ran away earlier because you deserved it, I really don't have time to mess around with you guys right now."
"What are you talking about? Is there something wrong with your head?"
"I said stop annoying me, you three pieces of trash!"
At this point, Natsuki Subaru was at the end of his patience. Of all times, these three nonsensical, mob-like characters had to block his path when he was in the greatest hurry.
Natsuki Subaru's fury also shook the trio of thugs. They had thought Subaru was an easy target, but they hadn't expected to push him to his limit before they could even say much.
"Are you crazy? We have weapons!"
"Right, right, exactly... What are you... what are you going crazy for!"
"This guy isn't right. Maybe we should leave first?"
Facing Natsuki Subaru, whose adrenaline was surging and who was already in a state of fury, the trio of thugs already wanted to retreat. But thinking about how there were three of them, giving them the advantage in numbers, they temporarily regained their courage.
"We were almost scared by you! Bastard! Don't look down on us!"
Saying this, the three of them rushed at Natsuki Subaru together.
And Natsuki Subaru, instinctively sensing danger, couldn't help but clench his hands into fists, raising them one above the other in front of him. At the same time, a string of nonsensical words appeared in his mind and burst from his mouth:
"Furube, Yurayura (With this Treasure... I Summon), Eight-Handled Sword Divergent Sila Divine General Mahoraga!"