If that was so, then Roswaal might understand just why Beatrice had had that sad look on her face.
“Before I reply to that question, there is something I wish to ask for myself.”
“…What, then?”
“To aid Lady Emilia, you entered the tomb. By whatever twist of fate, it seems the tomb’s punishment did not go into effect… Did you meet someone within the tomb?”
The question Roswaal posed made Subaru sink into thought for one brief moment.
Despite hearing that it was dangerous, Subaru had rushed into the tomb to rescue Emilia. Though Subaru had, in fact, undergone the trial, he hadn’t spoken a word of that to Roswaal.
One reason was that the flow of conversation hadn’t given him much of a chance, but the biggest reason was Subaru’s lack of trust toward him.
Roswaal had decided to use even the Witch Cult’s onslaught to increase Emilia’s popularity. If he knew that Subaru had challenged the tomb, Subaru couldn’t even fathom what schemes he might come up with this time.
In the first place, it was unclear to whom he was referring. Subaru hadn’t metin the tomb, or anyone else.
“What are you talking about? It was inside a tomb. Like there was room to meet anyone. A zombie, maybe?”
“I do not know what you mean by ‘zombi,’ but…no, that answer is suffiiicient. Thus, my reply to your question is simple: it is not yet time to speak about the matter.”
“Ha! So that’s your story in the end. When will you be able to talk about it, then?”
“That depends on you. Though, if possible, I would like tonight’s pact to be invoked as soooon as possible.”
“—?”
His manner of speech was deeply suggestive, but Roswaal did not seem ready to explain any further.
Thinking back, Subaru felt deeply despondent at how evasive Roswaal had been from start to finish. Everything, even the prestige that came with the title of knight, had been for the purpose of setting up a favorable conversation with Subaru.
“Well then, Subaru. Let us share pleaaasant conversation again.”
“…”
Subaru, showered by Roswaal’s sarcastic-sounding words even on the eve of his departure, vengefully slammed the door shut.
5
“Subaru?”
Subaru scratched his head at the fact that he’d been addressed by name despite entering the room with great care. When he quietly closed the door and turned around, the girl on the bed—Emilia—seemed to have just awakened from a deep sleep as their eyes met.
“Sorry, did I wake you?”
“No…I woke up a little earlier. I was surprised you were sooo quiet, Subaru.”
“Keeping the noise down when I walk has become a habit. But my scheme has been foiled. I was actually thinking I’d play a prank on Emilia-tan while she slept…”
“A prank…? You mean like writing on my face?”
“You got me! I definitely don’t have the courage to try a worse prank, either…!”
The way Emilia tilted her head, the thought of other things between boy and girl not even crossing her mind, took the wind out of Subaru’s sails. Regardless, now that she’d awoken, he sat by her side and checked the state of everything else.
The color of her face and her breathing were both normal. Her face was cute, too. She’d returned to her normal self without any noticeable issues.
“I’m sorry, Subaru. I reeeally lost it when I woke up in the tomb.”
“Eh, ah, that’s fine, that’s fine. More importantly, I was worried you might have bumped something when you first fell down. It really is a lot easier on both of us if I can watch you without being separated.”
“…Yeah, it might well be.”
“Mm?”
Subaru, replying in what he thought was his usual flippant tone, narrowed his brows at Emilia’s reaction. She lowered her eyes, looking as if she was thinking about something as she clutched Subaru’s sleeve.
It was as if she were unconsciously grasping his hand to allay her worries. Subaru stared at the gesture when—
“—? Ah!”
Following Subaru’s gaze, Emilia was startled when she realized her fingers were grasping the sleeve of his tracksuit. She proceeded to release her fingers, her face reddening as she waved her hand to and fro.
“I-I didn’t mean to. Huh, that’s strange. Why did I do something like…”
“My, my, Emilia-tan finally wants me enough to subconsciously reach out her hand. Hey, if you want to rely on me for everything, you can just come out and say it.”
“That’s…totally not it. My hand probably just…slipped.”
“You sure denied that fast, and what do you mean by slipped?!”
Emilia shook her head at the half-joking assertion, wearing a strained, embarrassed smile. Subaru did not press the issue. After all, she didn’t seem to want to talk about the worries subconsciously connected to her actions just then.
And naturally, those were related to the trial that night…
“Can I ask you something about the trial? What kind of past did you see inside?”
“—!! Subaru, how do you know about…?”
“If it’s tough to talk about, I won’t ask about the details. I have a past I don’t wanna talk about, too.”
“Th-that’s not what I… How…do you know that the trial showed me my past?”
As Emilia’s violet eyes opened wide, her words made Subaru let an ah! out of his throat.
Certainly, no one was supposed to know the details of the test within the tomb before entering, and even then, they would only find out if they were challengers themselves. Of course, Subaru could have just told Emilia that he’d undergone the trial just like she had, but—
“”
Looking back at Emilia’s trembling eyes, Subaru swallowed the words with which to convey that fact. Given that she was already shaken and discouraged, he feared that telling Emilia he’d taken the same trial, but had overcome it, might push her farther into a corner. Nor was this the only reason not to tell her.
Accordingly, Subaru closed his eyes, pushing the role of the villain onto someone absent from that place.
“That jerk Roswaal was keeping quiet that he knew about the trial. He said something about facing your past, but, ah, I don’t really know the details past that…”
“Is that so… Did Roswaal…say anything else?”
“Err, maybe that it’s three parts in all, and seeing the past is the first one?”
A barefaced lie, Subaru’s reply made Emilia look dispirited. “Three parts…,” she echoed.
At least she didn’t question Subaru’s assertion that Roswaal was the source of the information. In reality, he’d heard it from , but he avoided such a problematic explanation.
“Setting the number of problems aside, today’s challenge…didn’t go all that well, did it?”
“…Mm. So it would seem. I tried hard, but it suddenly ended midway…”
“Sorry, I think that’s because I woke you up. Seems being touched from the outside wakes you up. Come to think of it, I feel like I got told that from the start.”
“Who…told you that?”
“…Who was it, I wonder.”
The creases of Subaru’s brow deepened as he tried to wrap his head around it. The thought easily rolled off his tongue, but where had the idea come from? When he thought about it, nothing came to mind, so he put off forming a conclusion.
“Let’s switch topics. Tonight was no good. But that just means you can take it again. You can take it as many times as you need to… So the rest is up to how you feel, Emilia-tan.”
“How I…feel?”
“I could tell from the look on your face as you slept that it wasn’t a warm, fuzzy past. But if it’s not you who liberates this Sanctuary, there’s no meaning to it… That’s what I think, anyway— For that, are you going to challenge it again?”
“”
When pressed to choose, Emilia took in a de
ep breath and fell silent. Her trembling fingers went to her own neck, touching the green crystal that dangled from it…but her only family made no response.
Emilia was hard-pressed for an answer as Subaru watched her, silently awaiting her decision.
If, for example, by any chance, Emilia recoiled from challenging the trial again, too afraid to face her past, Subaru did have an idea.
It just took someone else qualified to do it instead. And that would be Subaru Natsuki. But—
“—Subaru, you idiot.”
“Hey, I’ll accept any answer you… Wait, what’s with the sudden insult?!”
“If you say that with gentle eyes and a gentle voice, there’s no way I’ll say I can’t, is there? I’m not a very smart girl…but even I know that this is my duty.”
“Emilia…”
“Don’t pamper me. Trust me… Maybe I don’t sound very convincing saying that after today, but…”
Right after speaking with such strong resolve, Emilia flushed as she lowered her eyes. However, her words made Subaru exhale at length. “That’s not true at all,” he said, shaking his head.
Emilia had said she’d do it. Then she certainly would. From all the time he’d seen her, not just that night, Subaru genuinely trusted her.
“Hey, I’m with you for makeup tests or anything else. I trust you. I’ll wait.”
“Mm, thank you.”
When Subaru smiled at her, Emilia finally regained the strength to send a charming smile back at him. It was a small, fleeting smile, but the resolve it contained made Subaru lose himself in the sight of it for a moment.
“But the one thing that pains my heart is…the trouble it must be for the people of Earlham Village…”
She’d promised them she would definitely liberate them from the barrier and return them to their village. She hoped that they were not people to shun someone upon learning of her failure, but she couldn’t help its weighing on her mind.
But Subaru had an idea where that was concerned.
“Can you let me handle that part?”
“You have something in mind?”
“I do. I don’t plan on causing Emilia-tan or the villagers any trouble.”
“…Understood. I trust you, Subaru.”
When Subaru thumped his hand on his chest, Emilia narrowed her eyes and immediately nodded. Subaru was a little surprised at the instant decision, whereupon Emilia gave a tiny, pleasant smile.
“As if I’d doubt you now, Subaru—I trust you.”
“…”
Those words left Subaru quietly closing his eyes, thinking hard in his own mind.
Emilia’s trust was a product of Subaru’s actions to date—and even if those had proceeded according to the sketch drawn by Roswaal’s own hand, it would not be that way from here on.
“—No way I’m gonna let everyone dance on top of your palm.”
He would not permit Roswaal’s will to intervene as it had so far.
And, there in the Sanctuary, it was Subaru Natsuki’s job to prove it.
6
Three days later, Subaru executed the plan that he had mentioned to Emilia.
“I must say, I am impressed you managed to persuade Garfiel.”
Otto shared his thoughts while Subaru checked the condition of the dragon carriage with Patlash, his favorite land dragon, hitched to it.
Subaru’s back was turned as he responded with a “Yeah” before continuing. “It took a little time, but it’s a big help that I somehow got through to him.”
“Though from my perspective, it was difficult to believe he would listen to what we had to say…”
“…You might be a merchant, but you’re not a good judge of people, are you?”
“I suppose not! Having associated with all kinds of company to date, and never earning even the slightest bit of profit without a great deal of toil, it’s enough that even I doubt my own eyes!”
Otto responded to Subaru’s barb with a shrill, resentful comment of his own. But Subaru understood why he felt that way. To begin with, the point of taking Otto to the Sanctuary was that Subaru could fulfill his promise of granting him an audience with Roswaal.
“And yet, to think I would go three, no, four whole days without meeting him once, only to return to the village where we started…”
“I’m sorry about that. But you won’t be able to talk to Roswaal until the heat dies down. If you want me to introduce you with a ton of sparks flyin’ in the air, I can force the issue, but…”
“No, no, no! Please, there’s no need! I do not want to become involved in a strange situation like that!”
Otto’s recoiling like that had been partly responsible for the delay in introducing him and Roswaal.
Scratching his cheek, Subaru focused on what lay ahead of their dragon carriage—the other carriages for evacuating the villagers assembled at the entrance to the Sanctuary. There were a total of fifty villagers and cooperating traveling merchants in seven dragon carriages, all moving in one rather large convoy.
Subaru and Otto had arranged to bring them along on their return to Earlham Village.
The condition that was required for it to happen—that the barrier enveloping the Sanctuary be lifted—remained unmet, but…
“Lady Emilia ain’t got a choice. From the moment she stepped inside the barrier, she either lifts it, or she ain’t leavin’. They ain’t got no value as hostages no more, so go ahead and return ’em to their village…”
“—Garfiel.”
As Subaru watched the villagers prepare to embark, a figure with blond hair and a bad attitude approached. The man who always had a dangerous look in his eyes glanced over, glaring at Subaru and Otto as they stood side by side.
“Waaah!”
That gaze made Otto let out a small cry as he meekly retreated to the other side of the dragon carriage. Even considering the impact from their first meeting, it was quite an attitude.
“Don’t boss him around too much. He’s a super-important… Wait, why is he important again?”
“If you’re wonderin’ out loud, how the hell am I supposed to know? Besides, him actin’ like a chicken is his problem.”
Garfiel crinkled his nose as he sourly folded his arms. But though his actions were frequently crude, Garfiel was a man unexpectedly attentive to details. Subaru had learned that thanks to having come into contact with him repeatedly over the last few days.
“Who’d have thought you were taking care of the villagers who’d evacuated…”
“What’s that? Can’t be helped, damn it. Not like I can have the old hags pushin’ themselves too hard, and a lot of ’em don’t wanna get friendly with strangers either… The less trouble the better.”
“Meaning my suggestion put us in the same boat?”
“Pretty much. ‘It’s the Maringo Island way’ and stuff.”
Subaru was tempted to ponder how he was managing to hold such a normal conversation with Garfiel. But Subaru ignored that and lightly bowed his head to Garfiel once more.
After all, without Garfiel’s cooperation, the freeing of hostages wouldn’t have been possible.
“Cut that out, it’s embarrasin’. I told you not to bow your head an’ stuff.”
“Even if you say that, I have to do this much. I know you guys have your own circumstances, and you accepted this because it suits your own interests, too, but…”
Welcoming strangers into the Sanctuary meant exhausting some resources.
The settlement did have its own fields, and Roswaal had arranged for the regular delivery of supplies, but a prolonged emergency situation wasn’t good for either population.
That was why Subaru had brought the matter up with Garfiel, who had in turn spoken with Ryuzu and the other residents, resulting in that morning’s freeing of the hostages.
“That’s why I’m grateful. The villagers, their feelings are a little mixed, but they’re happy, too—besides, we really stuck it to Roswaal.”
“Yeah, that
makes me feel good, too. I’ll accept yer thanks, then.”
When Subaru gave a mischievous grin, Garfiel revealed his fangs and let out a hearty laugh.
Not only had the proposal been Subaru’s idea, but Roswaal had approved when he had been informed after the fact. From what Subaru had picked up through Ram, that had to have given Roswaal plenty of heartburn.
Ever since the nighttime discussion a few nights earlier, Subaru had stubbornly resisted meeting Roswaal again. At the very least, he didn’t intend to forgive Roswaal until the latter made a proper apology.
That was unfortunate for Otto, but—
“Subaru!”
Just when there was a tiny break in the conversation, a voice clear as a bell called out Subaru’s name. When Subaru looked back, Emilia was waving as she walked toward them.
“…We’ll talk again later. When we’re on the road.”
Noticing her approach, Garfiel whispered only that into Subaru’s ear before moving off from his side. He walked off with an exaggerated swagger as Emilia arrived, cocking her head to the side as she posed a question.
“Err, did I butt into your conversation with Garfiel?”
“Oh, that’s all right. It’s not like it was anything important, and Emilia-tan’s my top priority.”
“I’m reeeally happy to hear that, but right now the villagers should be your top priority.”
When the corners of Emilia’s eyebrows lowered as she gave a conflicted smile, Subaru nodded in reply to her request. Then she turned her mind’s attention toward the villagers’ dragon carriages, where preparations to return were underway.
Subaru had a strong grasp on the complex feelings Emilia harbored inside.
“I really do think lifting the barrier and heading out like a big parade would be great, but…”
“…I’m sorry. It’s because I haven’t overcome the trial even after several days. But I don’t think it’s right they shouldn’t be reunited with their families because of me.”
Her voice full of feelings of self-reproach, Emilia bit her thin lips in apparent regret over her own powerlessness.
—In the three days since they’d first challenged the trial, the tomb’s methodology had become clearer bit by bit.
Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World-, Vol. 10 Page 25