After wiping away his tears, Subaru left with Emilia, and this time, the hallway he walked through had a proper end. He was then led to a familiar-looking garden outside the manor.
The maid twins also had some work to do around the manor, so they slipped away while they were on the way to the garden.
"Wow, it's huge…! The mansion is big too, but this is more of a field than a garden, huh."
The garden of a well-off person's mansion—a place that was often used as the setting for lunch or dinner parties in manga and anime. Subaru let out a sigh of admiration as he looked around the large garden and immediately began doing stretching exercises to get himself back into shape.
"Those are some odd movements. What are you doing?"
"HUH!? Is warming up not a thing here? If you don't loosen up your muscles before moving your body, you'll damage your ligaments before you know it! You could tear your Achilles tendon, or something like that!"
"Hmm, I don't think I've seen something like that. But it's true that you can easily get injured if you move suddenly without warming yourself up."
"I didn't know people in this world don't do warm-up exercises. Oh well…then how about I teach you? The authentic warm-up exercises of my homeland, passed down through the generations!"
Impressed by the confidence of Subaru, Emilia hesitantly replied with a "O-okay, then just for a little bit, then."
Subaru asked her to stand next to him. After the two of them were lined up side-by-side, facing away from the manor, they took deep breaths with the sun pouring down on them. "Radio Calisthenics Exercise Twooo! Go! One-two one-two one one-two."
"Uhh, what, no way!?"
"Hold your hands out in front of you and touch the sky! Follow my movements, follow me!" While encouraging the puzzled Emilia, Subaru performed his homelands famous Radio Calisthenics Routine. In the beginning, Emilia seemed perplexed and tried imitating his movements, but she gradually became more motivated and was absorbed in the exercises with a serious look on her face. Once the exercises were over, she took a deep breath, and… "And at the end, hold your hands up high and say, victory!"
"Bi…bictory!"
"Alright, that's the spirit! Not bad for your first time. Emilia-tan is awarded the title of "Calisthenics Novice." Keep up the good work! Fight!"
In another world, Subaru's life as a radio calisthenics instructor began. Emilia, his memorable first apprentice, exhaled with a blank look on her face at the ever-so-enthusiastic Subaru.
"Despite what you just said, Subaru, it's true that these exercises were effective, because I can feel my mana circulating in my body."
"Then I hope you can spread the word! But only on the condition that the song and victory! are spread too."
The song and victory! had to come in a package. That was non-negotiable for Subaru.
Feeling pressured by Subaru's uncharacteristically serious attitude, Emilia nodded her head. "Let's see…wan-to wan-too?"
"No! It's one-two one-twooo!"
They spent some time saying "one-two one-two" to each other, but Subaru decided to write the lyrics down on paper in the end.
After he reached that decision, Subaru came to the realization that the people in this world might not understand the words he wrote down. At least for now, he couldn't read the letters of this world.
"Maybe I should check it out later, huh. I can only write in Japanese, a little English, and some gal characters, but…"
Subaru had mastered the Gal alphabet after spending a surprisingly enthusiastic amount of time learning it. Although, never actually being able to use it makes it feel like he just wasted his time.
"Even so, you are pretty fit, Subaru." Emilia suddenly muttered that to Subaru, who was turning his wrists and ankles and popping his joints.
For Subaru, despite already having been seen naked by her, even if it were for the purpose of being treated, he couldn't help but feel embarrassed when Emilia looked at him from top to bottom.
Recalling the extreme embarrassment he felt ten minutes ago, Subaru scratched his head. "Well, sort of. Since I'm a shut-in, I should at least exercise a bit."
"Well, I don't know what "shut-in" means, but I'm sure Subaru comes from a reaaally good family. Weren't you taught martial arts?"
"No, I'm seriously from a normal middle-class family, but where did that come from? Do I give off some noble-like elegance?!"
"You must be reaaally curious."
Subaru said, "Let's hear it." and raised his hands up in a playful manner.
Then Emilia quickly grabbed both of Subaru's raised hands. The girl fiddled with his hands vigorously, and he emitted an "ahh" as his throat froze up. "Like these fingers, it's because of the way your skin and hair look. These hands look sooo different from the hands of a commoner. And these muscles don't look like they came from working…" She continued to fiddle with his hands, causing him to blush constantly, but he felt satisfied regardless.
Aspects about his hair and skin, and other things he had never mentioned before, were pointed out to him, and he was greatly reminded of his own foolishness.
Subaru's mind was spinning at a dizzying pace as she talked about aspects of his appearance that were not usually seen among commoners here. Meanwhile, she continued, "Black hair and black eyes. It's a common trait among migrants from the south, and it can be seen in Lugunica too. I've never seen anyone with these traits, but maybe there were some servants before…? Even that outfit was made with a material I've never seen before… Am I right?"
At the silent Subaru, Emilia smiled as if she were proud of herself.
While being captivated by Emilia's beautiful appearance, Subaru nodded solemnly, and examined the content of her words. "If I were to say whether it's true or not, it isn't, but how can I explain it without hurting you?"
"Even if I'm wrong, you need to say it clearly, or I'm reaaally going to feel embarrassed."
"It's all good. I don't mind, I've been showing a lot of ignorance for some reason or another. How about we just be friends and be embarrassed together!"
"I don't remember our relationship being sooo close that we can casually embarrass each other without fear. I'm not making any progress by speculating, so I'm just going to ask you frankly. Where did you come from, Subaru?"
—A question that blew the shame and outrageousness of the situation away, and Subaru could only think, hmm.
Subaru felt like he could honestly say "I was summoned from another world" here, but saying he was summoned from another world would make him sound like a crazy person.
In a world full of opportunities, a crazy person would not be thrown out, but looking at the seriousness of Emilia in front of him, Subaru had a feeling he'd get turned into an ice statue if he gave a poor answer. "So… I guess it's best to go with Deflection Plan B here."
"It's reaaaally disgusting to be muttering like that. You're not going to answer my question?"
"I do have an answer for that! And it's super! But unfortunately, I don't have the answers to these questions… Uhhh, because I have amnesia and don't know anything about myself!"
"You said your name was Subaru Natsuki."
"Oh, shit! You're not letting up! You keep pushing forward without wavering!"
"Soooo, you're not going to give me a straight answer. —Well, I won't try to pry if you don't want to answer."
Emilia surprisingly let Subaru off the hook without much trouble while he was engrossed in his thoughts about her behavior. She let out a single word, "Now…" and took out a green crystal that was attached to her blouse.
"Oh, that's—"
"It's a crystal for spirits to inhabit. You already know about Puck, right?"
"The gray cat that disappeared when we needed him most, right? And it doesn't know what I did after that because it was taking a nap, huh?"
It was the crystal that housed the spirit that disappeared during their battle with Elsa. This was the first time Subaru had seen it in this world, but he caught a glimpse of it before in a previous loop.
The green crystal suddenly started glowing as if in response to Subaru's mean criticisms. And then… "Unfortunately, I heard all about it from Lia after that mess was wrapped up. I don't sleep all the time, Subaru."
The light leaking out of the crystal came together and gradually formed a small outline. The head was formed, the torso emerged, and then the limbs appeared, fully equipped with fur. And a few seconds later, a small bipedal cat appeared in Emilia's palm.
"Hiya. Good morning, Subaru. Nice day today."
"It was a rather wild night and morning for me, though. I had to deal with looping hallways and the need to pee, and worst of all, my purity was stolen from me, so I can't marry Emilia-tan anymore…"
"Don't use such harsh words."
After being told that, Subaru replied with a vague "Sure!" She closed her eyes as if resigned to it, then looked at Puck, who was still in in her palm. "Good morning, Puck. I'm sorry I put you through all that last night."
"Good morning, Lia. But I feel bad about what happened yesterday. I almost lost you. I can't thank Subaru enough for that." Puck looked up at Subaru with those round eyes, tilting his little head back. "I should thank you. If there's something you want me to do for you, just let me know. I can do most things for you."
"Well, then let me touch that fur of yours whenever I want." Subaru also responded immediately to Puck.
The speed of the reply was the same, but perhaps the content of the reply was a surprise as well. It wasn't just Puck who rolled their eyes, but also Emilia, who was listening. She seemed a bit flustered. "Wait, can't you think about it a little more? I know he looks small and weak, but Puck's level of power is really quite something."
"It's a little awkward, but yes. I'm a pretty powerful spirit, despite my appearance, so I don't mind if you're a little greedy."
"For a top fur lover like me, the right to pet your fur whenever I want to pet it is absolutely priceless. The right to pet your fur is something that can lead a person's mind to a higher level and purify even the most desolate of souls."
As he said it, Subaru took advantage of his newfound rights and continued to play with Puck in Emilia's palm to his heart's content, starting with his belly, then his chin, and his ears too. "Wow, these ears are amazing! I can't get enough of this fluffiness!"
"Hmmm, the great thing about Subaru is that he's serious. I can read your mind vaguely, so I can tell," Puck said with amusement as he played freely with his fingers.
Emilia gave a distinct sigh of dismay at their playfulness. "It's soooo tiring trying to understand you, Subaru."
"You can't give up. Things in life, like interpersonal relationships, are built on a spirit of mutual understanding. But don't think it'll be easy to understand me, alright?"
"What's that? This is reaaaally frustrating," Emilia replied.
Subaru folded his arms and turned his face away while looking at Emilia with one eye open. Seeing her attitude, which showed her displeasure, Subaru made his mind up about the future.
And then she saved Puck from Subaru's barrage of petting attacks. With a light wave of her hand, she turned her feet toward the outskirts of the garden. "Well, I'll go talk to the spirits now then, and Subaru, ummm, can you go over there and weed quietly?"
"Alright! Weeding is so exciting, so I'll do my best! But I didn't come down to the garden to do that, right?!"
"I'm kidding, I'm kidding" he said, laughing as he watched her silver hair disappear into the distance. Then Subaru got on the ground before doing some exercises.
Subaru had already completed his morning exercises, so other than that, he can still do his daily muscle workout regime. After having skipped yesterday, it would make sense for him to do two days' worth of exercises to make up for it.
A hundred push-ups, a hundred sit-ups, and a hundred squats.
This was the type of workout regime Subaru did every day at home even though he was a shut-in living with his parents. Sometimes he would even swing a sword, or something similar, but he would mostly just do those three sets of exercises.
—In the meantime, Subaru did push-ups, sit-ups, and squats, all while sweating profusely.
After resting for a bit, Subaru did another round of exercises. Doing each set of exercises only took around ten minutes, but he was very serious about his training and would do them every day.
"I feel like I'm missing something. If only I had a wooden sword or something to train with…"
"Here, dear guest."
"Please use it, dear guest."
The maid sisters had appeared out of nowhere and offered Subaru a wooden sword to train with.
Subaru was stunned by their thoughtfulness, and, after receiving the sword with a respectful "thank you," they disappeared without a trace. Regardless, he now had a wooden sword to train with, just like he had wished for.
The shape of the sword was in the style of the commonly used two-handed swords in this world, which was slightly different from what he was used to. However, a sword was a sword, and the fundamentals of using it were the same no matter what shape, material, or size it came in.
He swung it lightly to make sure, and decided that the weight was just right.
"Thank God that all-in-one maids exist. Anyways, I haven't swung a sword in a long time, so let's go!"
Ready, and swing! Ready, and swing!
Subaru had only been a member of the kendo club when he was in middle school, but he had stayed long enough to get to the first dan, or graded rank, so he was at least proficient in it and could make progress by practicing. After having those thoughts, he continued to swing over and over again, and as far the sharpness of his swings was concerned, it was still as good as it was when he was in the club.
"This is a fantasy world where magic is used along with swords, so I wonder if this will be useful."
As Subaru continued his training, he could feel sweat running down his forehead like a waterfall and spilling onto the lawn.
Subaru recalled the battle that took place at the Stolen Goods Warehouse. —The sight of Reinhard and Elsa clashing blade against blade with sparks flying.
He then envisioned himself swooping in with his two-handed sword.
"Take this, Elsa! Your evil acts end here!"
He sprang into action and went in for a strike, but then got instantly defeated with a slash to his gut.
He gave it another go, but this time, he imagined being in the line of fire of Reinhard's powerful sword slash… It didn't end well either, as he saw himself being turned into ash as if he had been instantly cremated.
Subaru concluded that no matter how hard he tried, it would be impossible for him to beat a cheater—or overpowered character—as a normal person.
"Is it even worth the effort…? Well…"
Carrying the wooden sword on his shoulder, Subaru paused in order to look over at Emilia to check how she was doing.
He could see that she was sitting on the green grass with her feet sprawled out in front of her, and talking about something with Puck, who was on her arm.
Subaru thought that the person she was talking to was Puck, however, "If my eyes aren't deceiving me, it looks like Emilia-tan is surrounded by dim lights."
Within the reach of the seated silver-haired girl, Subaru could see that the space was enveloped in a hazy, faint glow. Around her, dim multi-colored lights were floating around and flickering like the light of a firefly.
It was a mysterious and fantastic sight to behold.
It wasn't a scene that mortals should tread upon. —It was like a sanctuary for the divine where only heavenly beings were allowed entry.
"Wow, this is amazing. So are all these fluffy things spirits then?"
"Huh?"
Subaru casually spoke to Emilia while she was talking to the spirits as if it were the most natural thing to do.
Emilia couldn't help but be surprised by Subaru's sudden appearance, and her eyes moistened with tears as if they were responding to her astonishment.
—And her sudden change in feeling spread to the spirits around her.
"Uh oh, I'm in trouble now…"
Many dim lights could be seen fluttering from side to side, trying to move behind Emilia in an attempt to escape from Subaru's view.
Subaru felt as if he had made a flock of pigeons flee from him in a park.
"You are amazing, Subaru. Normally it'd take a lot of courage to even try to touch a spirit," Puck said.
"So you're saying, 'you're lucky to have me around', right? I know! I can't imagine my life without you, tickle, tickle, tickle."
Subaru ambushed Puck, who was still on Emilia's arm—which had stiffened in response to his actions—and began his tickle attack. While doing so, he tilted his head towards her, who was still speechless, and enjoyed the feeling of her silver hair with his fingers. "What's the matter? Your insignia will get stolen again if you aren't careful."
"Don't poke people where it hurts! That's not what I meant. I was just suuper surprised." Emilia blamed Subaru for her own shortcomings while wiping away her tears with her fingers. The spirits swayed up and down as if agreeing with her, and Emilia replied with a "Well, aren't you all in a good mood." while watching the reaction of the spirits.
"Weeelll, this is the first time seeing a spirit in my life, so it's a bit exciting for me. They didn't look dangerous to me, either."
"I was keeping them under control, so it was okay. If it were an inexperienced spirit arts user, they would cause the spirits to run away and…bam!"
Emilia tried to scare them with her voice, but she only managed get let out a 'bam' at the end of her sentence, as if her vocabulary wasn't broad enough to find a better word to use. Subaru listened intently and ended up shrugging, and then looked over at Puck. "Totally exaggerating, huh."
"What's so dangerous about a fluffy-looking light like that?"
"Mhm. For example, I could turn you into dust in a matter of seconds."
"I'm soo sorry if I offended you!" Subaru dived into a prostrating position and expressed his gratitude.
Puck laughed with a wave of his little hand, and Emilia pouted her lips due to the difference in treatment. "Why don't you treat me like that…Hey! Puck?"
"Is it the difference in age…?" he replied calmly, stroking his beard. Emilia sighed and gave up on pursuing the issue, perhaps due to how calm and gentle Puck was.
Emilia sighed as she looked down at Subaru, who was still prostrating himself, and put a finger to her lips as if she had just remembered something. "That reminds me…"
The gestures she made sometimes looked strangely childish and cute in the eyes of Subaru. As he leapt up off the ground, Emilia removed her finger from her lips and pointed at her eyes. "You've never seen a spirit before, right? So do you know how to use mana then?"
"How do you use mana?"
"It's as simple as focusing your eyes, right? What else is there…"
"Lia. It's not that simple. You've only ever seen humans who are pretty good at using mana. Well, apart from that, Subaru's situation is a little bit special."
Emilia tilted her head and asked, "Special?"
Puck crossed his arms and nodded at Emilia. "From what I've seen after taking a quick glance, Subaru's Gate is basically shut tight. Even if he has never seen a spirit or magic before, isn't it too closed? It's on that level."
"That's strange… Even if you only lived a normal life, that wouldn't happen, right?"
"Yep, that's why it's strange. Subaru didn't live a normal life."
After they nodded to each other with their gazes linked, they looked at Subaru at the exact same time with bated breath. Subaru, who was being stared at by them, responded. "I can't help but hesitate to interrupt you two when you're in your own little world… I'm sooo jealous."
"Well, well, I know it's not normal."
"Your definition of normal is totally wrong! I mean, isn't it pretty rude to look at someone's face and say they're normal or not normal? How about your daughter then, huh?"
"I'm happy to say that she is growing up to be a kind and honest girl."
"The stupid cat-parent has arrived!" Subaru covered his face with his palm at Puck's attitude, which was nothing short of sweet to his daughter.
When Emilia saw that overreaction, she said, "I'm not sure why, but they seem really close." Murmuring that, she looked at them back and forth.
After they heard her murmur, Subaru and Puck looked at each other, nodded, and then gave each other a high five. "Ohhh, definitely, we're best buds! We're on the same wavelength. Why don't you come join me and then aim to be the world's best comedy duo!?"
"You say that, but I'm sure you're only after my body, right?" Puck replied.
"Whether it's for love or your fluffiness, they are two different things, but I'm sure I'll come back to you in the end. I'll even tolerate a little bit of cheating if I'm feeling generous, tickle tickle tickle."
They were interrupted by the touch of someone's palms, and Subaru seemingly forgot about the conversation they were having since he was fully focused on playing with Puck with a grin on his face. Emilia then decided to leave Puck with Subaru for a while. "Puck, go play with Subaru over there. I'm going to go talk to the spirits now. I reaaally don't want to be disturbed anymore, okay?"
"She's thrown us away…"
"We've been thrown away…"
Emilia silently ignored the two of them who shrugged their shoulders in a joking manner. As soon as she gained some distance, she began to immerse herself in the spirits she brought along with her, which seemed to be the continuation of what she was doing before.
The scene of her talking to the spirits was just like the one he saw before—a fantastic sight to see. Subaru wanted to get a glimpse of it, which was why he had acted like that.
"Anyways, that wasn't my real intention, so please understand that."
"Don't worry about it. Well, I don't want to keep getting scolded, so I'll just tell you about it myself. She's in the middle of an important ceremony with the spirits, so I can't overlook it any longer."
"But you just can't seem to stop yourself from interrupting it, though… What's the big deal with it, anyways?"
"The ceremonial pact with a spirit—the forging of a covenant."
Subaru scowled in confusion in response to hearing a lot of unfamiliar words. Puck, as if trying to find the right way to explain it, started by saying, "Let me see…"
"First of all, a spirit arts user needs to form pacts with spirits before they can use spirit magic. And the content of the pact varies from spirit to spirit. Are you still with me?"
"So it's different from interest and collateral for a bank loan. OK."
"My name isn't OK, but I'll proceed. The content that the spirits ask for is different for each individual spirit, but when it comes to minor spirits, they only want simple things like direct access to the caster's mana. That's why it's rather easy to get them to cooperate with you."
"OK, got it. But based on what you said, true spirits are different, right? How about explaining that one, Mr. Spirit?"
"Smart kids talk fast and are helpful…but we won't get very far if you keep going off on tangents, though."
Subaru scratched his head in embarrassment. Then Puck looked at him warmly while stroking his whiskers. "As you said, spirits who have minds of their own are more demanding, like me for example. Although, I'd like to strike a good deal with the pact maker if I can. Even so, I'm still a powerful spirit in my own right, so the pact conditions with Lia are rather strict."
"I've been thinking about that for a while now, but Lia is a pretty cute nickname."
"Your Emilia-tan is even cuter. Maybe I'll call her that next time."
"—I'm begging you, please don't do that." Puck agreed with Subaru's choice of nickname, and then Emilia cut into their conversation with an angry look on her face.
While they were looking at her, the dim glow of the spirits that had been surrounding her disappeared as she glared at them.
—Looks like the Spirit Talk Show is over.
As Subaru stood up, he brushed the grass off his butt. "Is the party over? That felt like a piece of cake."
"I cut it short because you two were interrupting me and it was sooo distracting. You're able to get on people's nerves even when you're far away from them… It's quite the talent."
"Two people who shouldn't have met have now met… I have a feeling that something is about to happen. I can't stop thinking about it and my heart is pounding."
As Subaru pounded his chest to the rhythm of his own heartbeat, Emilia held out her hand to him, and Puck jumped up from where Subaru was and landed there. He looked up at Emilia with his round black eyes with a somewhat satisfied smile on his face.
"It's okay. From what I've seen so far, I don't sense any malice, hostility, or ill-intent in Subaru. His personality is a bit weird, but he's a good boy."
"Wha…?" Emilia was at a loss for words after hearing Puck's poor assessment.
She snapped at Puck in a hurried tone while she looked at Subaru to see how he reacted. "Why did you make that kind of comment in front of him… And even if it's true, wouldn't it be hurtful to be told that?"
"Oh, that's alright. I must be a complete stranger to you, so it makes sense. It's only natural to be suspicious of a nice guy like me whose name cannot even be verified… Though that part at the end really hurt, Emilia-tan!"
Emilia quickly covered her mouth with her hand, and Subaru chuckled bitterly at her honest reaction.
Subaru had expected this to happen, which was why he spent so much time with Puck in order to prepare for this exact moment. They were not so careless as to accept him, who hadn't given out a single piece of decent information so far, without caution. The sudden appearance of Ram and Rem earlier, too, was a trick that was probably due to the fact that they were keeping an eye on his movements from somewhere.
"Although, I'm really not sure how to explain it." The Subaru of this world existed in people's memories, but no preexisting records existed. It was difficult to explain, and there was a good chance he'd be treated like a lunatic. With that being the case, letting Puck give his own judgement was the best choice.
Subaru hoped that with the help of the exchange just now that Puck, being able to read minds to a certain extent, would be able to convey his situation more convincingly than he himself could.
It was a gamble of sorts, but Puck laughed after realizing what Subaru was trying to do. "It's alright, Lia. I mean, Subaru knows that too. You're a naughty boy for taking advantage of my mind reading skills like that, you know."
"It's an honor. Let's just get along perfectly, my friend."
A look of shock appeared on Puck's face after hearing Subaru address him like that. Then he burst into laughter and grinned. "It's been a really long time since I've been treated like that. I like it."
Subaru could understand why Puck was so happy, but before he could even mention it, Puck floated up in front of Emilia's face. Then their foreheads met as she closed her eyes, which made for a strangely surreal sight.
"Eat this! Puck's super mysterious technique called 'Cat's Forehead Impact'!!"
Subaru couldn't help but feel lonely when the two of them remained silent, and in his own desolation, he tried to get their attention. But the two of them were in such a deep state of concentration that they didn't react, so his loneliness increased exponentially.
"Damn it! I feel so helpless… I can't think of any more ways to get your attention. I'm starting to tear up."
"…Mhm, I get it. Wow, and I 've been thinking a lot about you too… Why are you sitting on the ground crying like a girl?"
"Don't—worry—about—it! So what was that, anyways?"
"It's more like a shared consciousness. It's easier to explain things to you if you just feel what I feel, rather than having to explain it with words, right?"
Having answered Subaru's question in a straightforward manner, Puck sat next to the silver-haired girl. She put her hand on Puck's shoulder and nodded with, "That's how it is."
"It was through Puck, but I got the message about you… I'm soooo sorry for doubting you. I know the truth now, and I feel reaaally bad about it."
"The thought of being explored by a beautiful woman is rather exciting, isn't it? Next time, by all means, you, not Puck, can enter my mind directly." Subaru gave a thumbs up and flashed his teeth, and Emilia looked so disappointed in him at this moment. Seeing her reaction, Subaru's inward regret began to run full speed ahead, and he thought, oh no…I've done it again.
Subaru had a bad habit of spitting out nonsense when he was in a good mood. "No, no, no, not in a perverted way, but yes…in our industry, that kind of pain is a reward."
It was also Subaru's bad habit to screw up his own follow-up.
With a tight smile, Subaru felt a cold sweat flowing down his face. Sweat, tears, rain, or slobber, a liquid that was sure to make him feel like a donkey in three quarters of a second, was now running down his chin.
Emilia tilted her head slightly at Subaru, who was a terrible actor. "—You are really strange, Subaru."
"Huh?"
"Playing with a real spirit as if it's normal, and…even setting your sights on a half-elf like me."
"It surprised me, even if it was just a joke," she chuckled quietly.
Would you be that surprised if it wasn't a joke? Subaru thought to himself, but he even forgot about that and just admired her charming smile in silence.
That smile was as clear and pure as the one he'd seen in that alleyway in the royal capital. It was neither fleeting nor sad, and he was very happy to see it.
—Subaru realized how much he loved her expression for the first time. "Oh no!"
"What?"
"No, I mean, I haven't felt like this in a long time… No, seriously."
Subaru's heartbeat quickened, his mouth became dry, and his breathing became labored.
Subaru's eyes began to lose focus and he had difficulty holding his head up. Then he lost control of his emotions and felt like he was burning up, which caused his neck and face to turn bright red.
"What's the matter? Are you okay?" Emilia, who asked Subaru that question, looked up at his face from below. That face, which wore a worried expression, looked absolutely adorable to him. "Woooooohoooooo!"
After that loud shout, Subaru suddenly jumped backwards and tried to do a backflip to escape the situation. He landed on the ground in an upside-down position with his hand beneath him to break his fall, but his hand slipped due to the grass still being wet, and he fell on his head. He then slid across the grass on his head for a few feet before coming to a stop.
"Woah, what happened to you all of a sudden?!"
"Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow. Holy crap, I'm not bald now, am I…? Oh…they're white."
Emilia rushed to Subaru, who was rolling on the ground holding his head, and fumbled with her hands trying to figure out what to do. He had said those words when he looked up at her from the ground.
Emilia's face, which had originally looked puzzled, instantly turned bright red as she realized what it meant. It was because she had walked in front of him wearing a short skirt while he was rolling on the ground.
"Force majeure, force majeure! That wasn't what I was trying to do!"
"Are you telling the truth?"
"—Thank you for the eye feast." Sitting in a seiza position, Subaru clasped his hands together and bowed his head to the silver-haired goddess.
When he looked up, Emilia smiled at him. —Unlike the smile from earlier, it had a sadistic nature to it. "That kind of face is also lovely—oh shit."
"—Reflect on what you've done."
Even considering what he had done, Subaru felt like the balls of ice that rained down on him were rather large.
△▼△▼△▼△
"Ah, that hurt…. I wonder if I'm really starting to go bald now. Is it gonna be okay?"
"It's just a little bump on the head. —I think you should reaaaaally be thankful for my kindness."
Subaru stroked his injured head while sitting on the ground. He was on the verge of tears, and Emilia, who had turned away from him, had responded in a cold manner.
They were separated by a distance of several yards now, and it was as if the gap created by his earlier actions was reflected in reality.
Subaru glanced at her white profile and then turned his face away.
*Glance*, *turn away*. *Glance*, *turn away*. *Glance glance*, *turn away turn away*.
"Don't play around. I'm still mad at you."
"C'mon, it was just an accident. It's just a minor misunderstanding that got blown out of proportion."
If he were to use manga terms, the bump was so big that you would want to put a band-aid on it.
Subaru felt like he really did see his life flash before his eyes at the moment of impact with the ground. It was so powerful that he thought he might get sent back the convenience store if he wasn't careful.
Subaru felt fine now, but he had felt really dizzy after it happened. It was possible that she thought she had overdone it, but Emilia was looking down at the collapsed Subaru, and he thought she looked like an adorable little animal.
When Emilia discovered that Subaru was looking at her out of the corners of his eyes, she became angry again. "Your personality is sooo hard to deal with. I wish you could make it easier for me."
"I'm the type of guy who cuts corners in life to live comfortably. You're too optimistic."
Just ahead of Subaru's envious gaze was Puck, who was relaxing in Emilia's lap. He had been the size of a person's palm just a moment ago, but was now the size of an infant, and she was petting him in her lap.
"Such disgusting feelings have nothing to do with me."
"Shut up and don't read people's minds. It's in the mind of a teenage boy, you know, and it's a great thing. Emilia-tan is no exception."
"If you have too many dirty thoughts about my daughter, I'll erase you."
"You would try to kill me just because I made you angry?!" Subaru was just joking, but he had a feeling that Puck was being serious.
Subaru looked at the two of them. "Even so…"
"Make sure you groom yourself every morning, okay? You know, it seems like the obligations of the spirt in this pact are too small."
"Not really. Some spirits are more demanding than others. They may demand many times the amount of mana that a normal person has, or they may ask for one kill a day if it's a really aggressive one."
"That comparison is way too brutal…and you spoil your daughter too much."
Compared with his example, the terms of the pact were way too good. Subaru wondered if it was the same in every world when it came to giving family members favorable terms in business contracts and such. Long live nepotism!
Subaru gazed at Emilia and Puck's playtime in a rare moment of silence as he thought about the concept of nepotism.
The reason why Subaru kept chattering on and on about whatever came to mind in the first place was because it was hard for him to be silent when he was around other people.
Subaru's silence in the presence of others gave him a "Since you've decided to stay quiet, then stay quiet" kind of feeling. It was strange how his usual personality was nowhere to be seen at this moment.
—It was just completely silent.
It was perhaps because of how heartwarming the scene in front of him was.
The movement of Emilia's fingers as she combed Puck's fur was very gentle. She seemed to be forgetting about her altercation with Subaru since her expression was starting to change, and the way she looked as she immersed herself in the grooming process was serious yet calm, and was absolutely mesmerizing.
Oh, I think I'm going blind, Subaru thought.
"*Grinning*"
Subaru really hated that mind-reading cat who was looking at him with a grin on his face. That cat, which could pick up on people's emotions without touching them, would know the true nature of Subaru's complex feelings that occupied his heart at this very moment. His weakness had been discovered unexpectedly, and he didn't think it was funny at all.
—Subaru felt as if he had chosen a very thorny path.
Her beautiful, flowing silver hair was as magical as dew in the moonlight. Her white skin was as pale as fresh snow, and her amethyst eyes seemed to capture his attention as if he were under a spell. He was also aware that her delicate body equipped with long, thin limbs was so fragile that it might break if he were to hold her in his arms, but he also knew she had a heart of gold wrapped around an unbreakable core. She was noble, beautiful, and an ideal woman.
No matter how Subaru looked at it, there was no way she would show interest in a smelly shut-in from another world. "Just doing this is a luxury, isn't it?"
Subaru began experiencing strange emotions that left him in a stupor just thinking about them. Soon after, he stood up and started swinging his wooden sword again in an attempt to shake those feelings off.
The last time Subaru had felt an emotion like this was in elementary school. What's more, even after 10 years, he had kept his feelings bottled up and never told anyone about them.
Every time he thought about those bottled-up feelings, the speed of his swings became quicker. "Disappear! Fuck you, stupid regrets! I don't care if there are a 108 of them! I'm gonna destroy them all! Bring it on!" Subaru cut down his invisible regrets and made a bullish comment after each strike.
It wasn't like Subaru to have regrets. It was in his nature to make choices without looking back. That was what the man named Subaru Natsuki was all about.
"Ohhh, this boy. Hee-hee-hee, I never get tired of watching him."
"Yes, yes, it doesn't seem to be working… But you can say that again."
The two of them looked at Subaru, who continued to cut down his invisible enemies, and made such comments.
Emilia gently loosened her lips as she looked at his back. On that face of hers, the awkward anger from earlier was nowhere to be seen. The reason she seemed to have forgotten about it was because of Subaru being Subaru. "Huh. What's going on with those two?"
At the sound of Emilia's voice, who seemed to have noticed something, Subaru stopped his mock battle and looked in the direction of the manor. The twin maids with their prominent pink and light blue hair came towards them from the mansion. They both calmly gave formal bows.
""Master Roswaal, lord of the manor, has returned. Please come to the mansion.""
They spoke in perfect unison without making a single mistake.
Their perfect combination surprised Subaru, but what surprised him even more was their change in demeanor.
Unlike before, when they had joked around with each other, the two girls standing in front of him now looked like proper servants of a mansion. In short, they went from private-mode to work-mode.
"I see. Roswaal… Then we had best go see him then.
""Yes, and he said to bring our dear guest as well, if he is awake.""
Puck shrank and dived into Emilia's silver hair. She patted down her hair and accepted it, and then got up with a slightly calmer expression on her face.
Subaru, who had been brought up in the conversation, wiped the sweat from his face due to being uncomfortable with his appearance. Shortly after, the blue-haired maid quickly moved closer to him, brought out a handkerchief from her bosom, and finished tidying up his appearance for him. "Sorry."
"No, as a servant, it's my duty, dear guest."
"No, as a servant, it's my job, dear guest."
Even though it was the blue-haired maid that did it, the pink-haired maid butted in as well as if it were only natural. Subaru felt relieved that their demeanor had returned to what he had seen earlier, and then said, "So, who's Roswaal?"
"The lord of this manor… Ah, I guess I never explained it." Emilia put her palm to her mouth as if realizing her mistake. Then she frowned and wondered how she should respond. "Well, yes. Roswaal is… You'll understand when you meet him."
"You're giving up too soon! What, he's too plain to describe?!"
""""No, just the opposite.""""
After that four-person rebuttal, Subaru was so shaken that he dropped his wooden sword.
The blue-haired maid kicked the wooden sword up with her foot and caught it and then solemnly bowed before meeting up with her sister. Then the pink-haired maid standing next to her motioned towards the mansion. "There's no point in trying to describe him with words. You will understand Master Roswaal's personality once you meet him, dear guest. It will be okay."
The pink-haired maid and light blue-haired maid looked at each other and nodded, and Emilia reluctantly agreed with them. While Subaru was still in a perplexed state, Emilia lightly tapped him on the shoulder as she headed towards the mansion. "—I'm sure you two will get along just fine, Subaru. He's just a bit of a headache, though."
Subaru could only murmur a "yes" with a depressing tone of voice in response.