Emilia pulled her chair out from the table with the greatest of care. She wasn't sure what the penalty would be if Regulus heard it scrape against the floor, but she didn't want to find out.
Emilia stepped around her chair in sync with all the other women. She nearly sat down, but she remembered 246 's warning and froze in her tracks, waiting for a signal.
She kept her head bowed, staring intently at her empty plate. She could see the two wives standing beside her out of her peripheral vision.
At some signal, the wives all sat down so Emilia did as well. She saw that they lifted their hands to their chests and folded them together. Emilia copied them.
The room was absolutely silent.
A moment later, Emilia heard a gentle 'splat' sound that seemed to be getting closer.
Emilia didn 't dare lift her eyes to look, but as the sound approached, she realized that two of the wives were serving food to the others, walking around the table with an enormous pot and ladle.
They served the wife to Emilia 's left, who immediately lowered her hands into her lap. They dumped the food on Emilia's dish and she also lowered her hands. Then, the women moved on.
Emilia looked at the meal served to her with dismay. In spite of her hunger and in spite of working all day with nothing to fuel her, dinner looked distinctly unappetizing. If the meal had been prepared with a little more love and care, it might have been a savory stew.
Instead, it was slop. A collection of vegetables and a few meat parts thrown into a pot and served with the same care and consideration that would be given to putting food in the trough for pigs.
I have a sneaking suspicion that this is deliberate, Emilia thought with a sigh. The women that Regulus has captured clearly have gifted chiefs among their number. They could have served us any number of tasty dishes that would have required minimal effort.
The only reason I can think of for why dinner looks so unappetizing is that Regulus wants it to.
Regulus 's side of the table was piled high with delicious, mouth-watering delicacies.
Emilia wasn 't dumb enough to wonder if any of the wives would get a taste.
"What a delicious meal!" Regulus declared in a great voice. Emilia involuntarily cringed as his voice lanced through the silence. "You've prepared a banquet for me! Did you work hard, 42?"
"We worked very hard, Master," The pink-haired bunny-girl answered, sounding giddy with excitement. Emilia noticed that despite her savage beating last night, the marks of 42's torment had almost completely healed. Emilia wondered if 78's healing magic was responsible. "We worked hard all day to try to make you happy. We hope you enjoy it. It's just a small way for us to thank you for rescuing us from our meaningless lives."
Regulus chuckled, and Emilia heard the sounds of him eating. None of the wives moved to take a bite of their food.
"128," Regulus said through a mouthful of food. "Did all my wives work hard today?"
"Yes, Master," 128 said calmly. "Everyone's labors were completed on schedule. We can't thank you enough for making time in your busy schedule to share this meal with us."
This is revolting! He 's forcing people to fawn all over him!
It 's not enough that Regulus abuses and brutalizes these women; they're forced to thank him for it, too?!
"Acolyte."
Emilia jerked at hearing that name and looked up at Regulus apprehensively.
Regulus stared back at her with a considering expression. "So, how have you enjoyed your first day among us?"
Emilia trembled, terrified of being dragged back to the Mirror Room.
She swallowed hard and tried to think of what to say. "It was wonderful, Master," Emilia fought to keep her voice steady. "I never imagined that a paradise like this could exist. Thank you so much for… rescuing me from the outside world," She struggled to finish.
Regulus looked thoughtful. "I saved you all, didn't I?" he said to the wives. "You were each wandering alone and lost in that dark, empty world out there. But then I found you. I rescued you, and I brought you here to be part of a real family. It took a great deal of work to show you the truth and reveal all the lies that you 'd been telling yourselves all those years, but I'd do it all over again," He finished modestly.
"We're eternally grateful for your kindness, Master," 128 said at once. 128 sat at Regulus's right hand, and she stared at her Master with unfeigned adoration.
Regulus thought about it. "You know, at times like this, I think that it's wise to take a moment and reflect on what brought us here together and how grateful we all are for the blessings I gave you. Why don't we go once around the table? You can all tell me something that you're grateful that I rescued you from."
Emilia struggled to keep the incredulous look off her face.
"Master," 128 whispered. "I was raised in the Order, but I never dreamed that one day I'd be so honored as to serve one of the Blessed Ones directly. You fulfilled a wish that I didn't even know I had. I will forever be grateful to you, Master."
Regulus gave 128 a thin smile. "And you, 42?" He turned to the tiny bunny girl.
42 's enormous smile was clearly painted on. "When I was a girl, I worked in my parents' bakery. I cooked food for worthless and misguided people. But ever since you brought me here, Master, I get to feed wonderful people like you and your wives every single day! Thank you so much, Master! "
Regulus 's smirk broadened. "246?" He asked the redhead that Emilia had scrubbed floors with.
246 thought for a moment. "Before I met you, Master, I was a Circle Mage," She recalled. "I'd just graduated with honors, and I wasted all my time doing equations and trying to solve mysteries about the nature of magic. I really believed that those things mattered. It was only after I came here that I finally understood how pointless they are.
"I know I was difficult and willful when I first arrived and that you and 128 were tempted to lose patience with me, but no matter how badly I behaved, you never gave up on me. You saved me from myself, Master, and I'll always be grateful for that."
"17?"
The brown-haired girl next to 42 swallowed hard. She looked to be one of the youngest women at the table. "I… When I first met you, Master," She said awkwardly. "My mother had caught your eye. You thought she was beautiful, but she was willful and arrogant, and she made you angry. She… forced you to kill her, depriving you of your prize. Then you saw me, and you decided that … I would be good enough. You had 128 train me so I wouldn't grow up as willful as my mother. You saved me from turning out… like her , so thank you very much, Master, " She said weakly.
Regulus 's face was stony. He drummed his fingers on the tablecloth, and Emilia felt all the wives tense up.
"17," Regulus grated. "Did I ask you to spout pretty lies to flatter me?"
"I-"
"I demand sincerity, 17. I saved all of you from your worthless lives, and all that I demand in exchange is a little appreciation. A little gratitude. I've let you stay here for half a decade, and this is how you repay me? Does that seem fair to you? Does that seem equitable?"
17 swallowed hard. "No, Master," She squeaked as she bowed her head.
Regulus glared at her. "128," She snapped.
"I'm sorry, Master," 128 said contritely. "This is all my fault. I've been too indulgent with her."
"Then I trust you will remedy the situation," Regulus growled.
"Right away, Master," 128 swore. She looked sternly at 17. "17, you will not be fed tonight. And after dinner you will report to me for discipline. I've been too soft on you up until now. The Master demands and deserves perfection, but you are content to simply coast along. You shame the Master and all of us. I expect you to work hard every single day to improve and to be worthy of our Master. Tonight, I will teach you proper respect for the Master's august majesty."
17 trembled in her chair. Emilia thought she saw 42 discretely take her hand underneath the table.
The litany of forced gratitude went on and on.
"Master, I'm forever grateful that you saved me from my past sins. Before I met you, I was reckless and selfish. Only when I met you did I realize I needed someone as wise as you to teach me discipline and order."
"Thank you, Master, for saving me from myself. Without you, I would never have known what it means to truly serve, to be part of something greater than my own meaningless goals. You saved me."
"I could never have found a purpose if not for you. Thank you for rescuing me from a life of insignificance, Master. Only you could give me a reason to exist."
"I was lost and unloved before you brought me here, Master. Thank you for saving me from a life without meaning or devotion. I could never have known love if you hadn't chosen me."
On and on it went, Emilia struggling to repress her revulsion as the kidnapped and abused wives were all forced to bow and scrape before Regulus 's ego.
Only 128 and a few others seemed genuinely sincere in their praise. Everyone else trembled when it was their turn, and they spoke their prayers of thanksgiving in a desperate, pleading voice, terrified of saying anything that might trigger Regulus 's wrath.
"And you, Acolyte."
Emilia swallowed hard as she turned to face Regulus. His face was friendly and kind, but his eyes were hard as agates.
"What did I save you from?" Regulus murmured.
Emilia froze.
Why wasn 't I thinking of something while the others were speaking?!
"Well…" Regulus growled.
Emilia felt the wives on either side of her tense.
Emilia took a deep breath. "You… When you came for me… Master … I was lost in Vollachia, " She said, grasping at straws. "I was a criminal in every country. I was lost and afraid. But you rescued me and gave me a place I could stay when the entire world wanted to kill me. So… thank you, Master."
Regulus just stared at her.
Emilia tensed, wondering if her abasement hadn 't been convincing enough.
Regulus studied her coldly. "I think you can do better than that, Acolyte," He said dismissively.
Emilia swallowed hard.
"Aren't you forgetting something, Acolyte?" Regulus grated. "Remember how you cursed that little patch of trees that you used to call home? I was there, remember? I came to you, and I tried to take you away to somewhere safe where you couldn't hurt anyone. I went there to try to help you."
Emilia 's hands clenched as she fought to keep her face smooth and even. "Yes, Master."
"I tried to save you," Regulus pressed. "I tried to save all of the poor innocent elves who were sadly trapped there with you. But you were selfish, and you only made things worse, didn't you?"
"Yes, Master," Her nails dug into her palms.
"You even blamed me for the incident, didn't you? You were selfish enough to spread lies about me and make it sound like I was responsible."
"Yes, Master," Emilia struggled to avoid growling.
"But you've admitted the truth now, haven't you, Acolyte? Go on. Tell everyone whose fault the curse was. I'm being generous tonight and granting you the opportunity to finally come clean. Admit, for once, that none of this is on me. Tell everyone what monster destroyed her own people."
Emilia trembled. If Emilia had possessed her magic, she would have thrown every bit of it straight into Regulus 's smug face. Even if it cost her her life, she would have fought back.
Now, the terror of being taken back to the Mirror Room or Regulus 's punishments pressed Emilia forward.
"It was… my fault," She said in a barely audible whisper.
"Louder, Acolyte," Regulus demanded.
Emilia 's face twisted in suffering. "I… I was selfish," She cried out, tears leaking from her shut eyes. "If I'd listened… if I'd just gone with you willingly, none of it ever would have happened. The forest and the elves… it was all my fault…"
It 's not true. These are just empty words that I'm saying. They don't mean anything.
But Emilia 's mind and heart recoiled from them all the same. Although they might be lies, they were close enough to reality and to Emilia's deepest fears about herself to be genuinely painful to say out loud.
"And who saved you from yourself? Say it, Acolyte. You owe it to everyone here to be honest with them."
Emilia 's lips trembled, but she felt the gaze of the other wives' nervous gazes, as well as Regulus's expectant stare, bearing down on her.
"You did," She squeaked, forcing the words out. "I… I'm grateful that you…saved me and brought me here. Not to save myself, but because…I'm too dangerous to be anywhere else."
Regulus clapped his hands together, his face twisted with smug satisfaction. "There we go! Finally, some honesty. You are a danger, Acolyte. You are a danger to everyone around you. You do nothing but cause suffering wherever you go. Any other man would have murdered you by now simply as a public service. But unlike you, I 'm not selfish. I'm generous enough to keep you here, in this safe place where you can't hurt anyone else."
He turns to the other wives, smiling triumphantly. "It's always difficult for a new Acolyte to accept the truth, but with steady hands and careful nurturing, their eyes open. Now she admits it: without me, without my kindness, my grace, my unspeakable compassion, she'd have just brought more pain and suffering to everyone around her. I think that she should thank me again, don't you?"
The wives all nodded obediently, and Regulus leaned over the table, smirking at Emilia.
Emilia 's face twisted in misery.
"Go on, Acolyte," He whispered, daring her to refuse. "And this time, let's try for some sincerity. Thank me for saving you from yourself. For bringing you here, where you'll stop making everybody around you miserable."
Emilia 's heart pounded with a mix of shame and anger, but she knew that resisting would only make things worse. She forced herself to meet Regulus's gaze, her voice barely rising above a whisper.
Emilia let out a shaking breath. "Thank you…for saving me. For protecting the world… from me. Thank you for protecting everyone from my selfish decisions. Thank you for protecting Subaru from me," She finished with a whimper, bowing her head.
"What did you just say?"
Emilia blinked and looked up. Regulus was staring at her with blazing fury in his eyes.
Emilia blanched. What did I do?!
"You're grateful that I took you away from that… worthless nobody?" Regulus hissed. "That I made sure you couldn't hurt him?"
Emilia froze, uncertain of what to say to pacify the furious Archbishop.
Regulus slowly got out of his chair and walked silently over to Emilia.
Emilia swallowed hard, and the girls beside her trembled.
"I saved you," Regulus said like a rumbling volcano. "I rescued you from a worthless, meaningless life. I brought you here to give you the chance to share in my sainted existence. And you have the unspeakable audacity to mention that speck of dust in my beautiful home?"
"I'm sorry, Master," Emilia whispered through dry lips.
Emilia 's head exploded in pain, and she fell. Regulus had struck her in the temple hard enough to knock her chair over and send her crashing to the ground.
Emilia lay crumpled on the floor, the room spinning around her.
Emilia screamed as Regulus grabbed her hair and pulled her to a half-standing position.
"Do you think that you're special?" Regulus seethed.
Emilia 's hair felt like it was about to be ripped out by the roots. "No, Master! The only thing that makes me special is that I was lucky enough to be chosen by you!" She said desperately.
Regulus frowned, and he dropped Emilia to the ground. She landed on her face and lay there whimpering.
Regulus leaned back, gravely considering Emilia 's statement.
Emilia 's head throbbed, and her eyes filled with tears from the pain.
Maybe that 's enough to placate him?
Regulus glared at her with ice-cold eyes. "You are a very slow learner, Acolyte, " He growled. "And perhaps we all need to share the blame for that. The only reason that you could possibly be so stupid is because you 've had such terrible role models. And stupidity has a price. Fools like you think that your ignorant and selfish behavior only hurts themselves, but selfish and disobedient people like you hurt everybody around them. And it 's time that you fully understood that."
Regulus glowered down at her. "Acolyte. Pick one."
Emilia hesitated. "Forgive me, Master," She said haltingly. "I… am a very slow learner. I don 't know what you mean."
Regulus gestured toward the table. "Pick the wife who will suffer for your mistake, " He said in a voice like ice.
Emilia 's face went white. She bolted to her feet. "I pick me! I'll take it all! I'll take extra ! " She begged.
Regulus gave her a slasher smile. His fury vanished, transformed into sheer delight from Emilia 's groveling, "No."
"Please, Master!" Emilia said with tears in her eyes. "Punish me! Teach me! Train me! I promise that I can be a good wife to you! Just give me a chance! I'll never make another mistake, I promise! Punish me!"
Regulus got right up into Emilia 's face. "Choose the innocent wife that will be punished for your mistake, Acolyte, " He whispered. "Or I will choose ten . "
Emilia stared at Regulus, her face a graven mask of horror and despair.
He 's forcing me to take part in torturing these women…
I can 't… I can't do this. This isn't fair. Why is this decision on me? No matter who I choose, somebody will get hurt. And it'll be all my fault.
It 's always my fault…
But if I don 't do it, then he'll just torment more people…
Emilia slowly raised a trembling hand. She labored and struggled even to lift her hand.
She bowed her head and screwed her eyes shut, pointing at an innocent woman who sat across the table from her. Emilia had no idea which wife she had picked.
"You heard her, 14," Regulus said with savage satisfaction.
Emilia heard a sharp gasp from across the table.
"This stupid Acolyte chose you to be punished for her mistakes! Oh, 14, you just keep screwing up tonight. Now you're up to two punishments for your poor behavior."
Emilia 's eyes widened in horror.
Oh no. I must have accidentally picked …
"Get over here!" Regulus demanded.
Emilia trembled, tears streaming down her face as the wife rushed to Regulus 's side. Emilia recognized her as the young woman sitting next to the bunny girl. The one who had already been reprimanded once that night. She was the youngest woman at the table, and she trembled as she stood before Regulus and looked up into his grinning face.
Regulus seized 14 's trembling shoulders with a painful grasp that made her wince.
"Acolyte," Regulus grated. "Shouldn't you thank 14? After all, she's suffering to make up for your mistake. That deserves some mention, does it not?"
Emilia thought that her heart might burst from hate and self-loathing. But she knew she had to play along, or the others would suffer even more.
Emilia took several ragged breaths. "Thank you, 14," She choked out.
"And what do we say, Acolyte?" Regulus pressed.
Emilia screwed her eyes shut. "Thank you, Master, for correcting us," She whimpered.
"We've tried to be patient with you, Acolyte, but you never appreciate the fact that your selfish and short-sighted decisions have consequences!" Regulus snapped. "You never think of anyone but yourself! It never matters to you who pays for your selfish mistakes! Because of you, 14 will suffer! It's all your fault!"
Emilia flinched as the words hit her like blows.
Regulus gave 14 a savage blow that nearly knocked her to the floor.
Emilia winced and turned her face away.
"Look at her, Acolyte!" Regulus shouted in a voice that shook the rafters. "She's suffering for your education! Watch and learn! Watch every single blow!"
Emilia cringed and forced herself to open her eyes.
Regulus pulled 14 to her feet, and then he slapped her, breaking her nose. The woman screamed in pain. A splash of blood landed on Regulus 's white suit, but rather than stain, it ran off like water.
Regulus beat 14 relentlessly. With each blow, Emilia could hear something crack in 14 's slender body.
"Look, Acolyte!" Regulus demanded. He slammed his fist into 14's jaw, dislodging a tooth. "Look at what you caused! You did this! You chose this!"
Emilia flinched with every blow, tears streaming down her face as Regulus beat the poor young woman senseless.
He 's right. I picked her to suffer. I wasn't strong enough to protect her. She's suffering because of my decision and my mistakes.
Emilia cringed at every blow that Regulus delivered to the helpless girl.
I 'm sorry… I'm so sorry…
People are suffering because of me again. Because I was too weak and too stupid to protect them.
This is all my fault …
Regulus never even glanced at the young woman he was torturing. His gaze was locked on Emilia, and his face wore an expression of vicious satisfaction.
As soon as the sun set, Pompey ordered the men into the swamp.
Despite Horatius thinking the plan was absolutely ludicrous, he did his best to make it work. He organized the men in three columns so that the most experienced men were on the outside, and he put scouts a few yards out to hopefully spot any trouble before it arrived.
Then they marched into the swamp, Garfiel reluctantly following along.
I don 't have any better idea how to get out of here if I strike off on my own. And I kind of like Horatius, so if nothing else, I'd like to make sure that at least he makes it out of the jungle in one piece.
Garfiel had no position in the legion, so he just stumbled along after Horatius through the murky swamps, trying to keep an eye out for trouble.
They waded across a stagnant river that came up to their chests. More than half of the army was already across, and Garfiel and Horatius were accompanying the back half as they started their own crossing.
A piercing scream echoed out across the swamp, and one of the men was dragged underwater. Then, another man and then another were pulled under in seconds.
Garfiel leaped back onto the muddy beach as the seemingly peaceful waterway erupted with enormous mabeasts with massive, snapping jaws.
The mabeasts were covered in scales as black as coal, and their burning red eyes glowed in the darkness. A strange 'sail' ran down their backs from their heads to the top of their long gnashing tails. They were at least fifteen feet long, and a quarter of that was long jaws full of sharp teeth.
The monsters came out of nowhere, and there were dozens of them, dragging the men under or crawling up on the banks and snapping at the ones who had escaped.
Garfiel looked around desperately for Horatius, but he couldn 't spot him.
A great black shape surged out of the river in front of Garfiel. Its jaws gaped hungrily, and only a desperate leap backward prevented those jaws from snapping his head off.
Garfiel crashed down on the muddy bank, and he scrambled away.
The mabeast didn 't give up. It chased after Garfiel, running down the bank on stumpy legs that should never have permitted the monster to move so quickly.
Garfiel ran away as fast as he could. The dying screams of the soldiers slowly faded into the darkness behind him.
Garfiel didn 't dare to look back. He still heard the stomping sounds as the great beast crashed after him through the thick underbrush.
Garfiel felt hot breath on the back of his neck, and he put on a burst of speed, pushing his muscles to move like he 'd never pushed them before.
The hot breath faded, and the sounds of the pursuing monster fell back slightly.
Garfiel was racing through a dense jungle in the middle of the night and could barely see where he was going.
He broke through a patch of deep brush and found himself falling. The ground on the other side of the brush became a steep drop. Garfiel went over the edge, rolling down the hill.
Garfiel skidded down the hill, crashing through the underbrush and bouncing off the rocks.
He landed at the bottom as a bruised and battered lump.
Garfiel wearily rubbed his head and opened his eyes.
Clustered around him were a dozen demi-humans, all of them looking at him suspiciously.
Several wore the purple robes and triangular hoods of the Witch Cult.
"Oh… shit," Garfiel muttered.
When 14 was nothing but a broken husk of a woman, struggling to even breathe, Regulus declared that dinner was over. He 'd eaten only a few tiny bites of the enormous feast, but he seemed to have no interest in eating any more food.
Because of Emilia 's error, Regulus denied the wives their meal. None of the wives had eaten anything but a small bowl of gruel for breakfast, and now they would have nothing to eat until tomorrow morning. Emilia hadn't even had that.
Then again, it was possible that none of them would have been able to bring themselves to eat anything anyway. The dinner table was now covered with drops of blood from 14 's savage beating.
As soon as Regulus had stormed out of the dining hall and disappeared into the mansion, 128 leaped to her feet and snapped into action.
"18, 27, and 9," 128 ordered. "Clean up the blood on the carpet and the tablecloth before it stains! 78, heal 14. The rest of you, clean up the food and then get to bed!"
As soon as she received permission, the elven woman 78 picked up 14 's broken and quivering body, and she quickly carried her away. The pink-haired bunny-girl 42 watched them go with a whimper.
Emilia felt numb as she helped the wives clean off the table and throw all the uneaten food into the garbage.
Emilia tried to scrub a dish in the kitchen. 128 and her cronies were elsewhere, and 78 had gone to heal 14. None of the remaining wives in the kitchen seemed willing to even look at Emilia.
42, in particular, gave her a venomous glare. "She thinks she's so clever, " The tiny bunny girl whispered heatedly to a dark-haired cat-girl. "Picking on 14 of all people! Targeting the one that was already in trouble! "
Emilia flinched. "I… I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking-" She whispered in a broken voice.
42 snorted. "Oh yeah! It was just an accident that you happened to pick her! It 's not like you're trying to curry favor with the monster or anything!"
Emilia bowed her head. "I…" She trailed off, realizing that she had nothing to say in her defense.
42 gave Emilia a look that wished her a painfully slow death. "117," The bunny-girl whispered to the dark-haired cat-girl. "I'll be right back. I'm going to go check on 14."
117 shivered. "No," She whispered in a resonant, purring voice. "If you get caught-"
"I won't be. I'll be right back," 42 said as she scurried off.
Emilia kept scrubbing the dish as 117 brought a pot over the huge sink and started to wash it. The cat-girl pointedly ignored Emilia.
Emilia took a deep breath. "Will… 14 be OK?" She whispered.
117 didn 't answer her.
Emilia sighed and kept washing the dish.
"You're not the first, you know," 117 spat.
"Huh?"
"The first who thought that she could stay safe by becoming the monster's favorite," 117 said in a cold voice as 42 slipped back into the kitchen.
42 's expression was coldly furious when she looked at Emilia, but her eyes were less worried than before. Emilia took this as a good sign for 14's chances of recovery.
117 continued, "There have been many over the years who thought they were his favorite. They all ended badly. " She finished as 42 returned to the sink and started washing the dishes.
Emilia was confused. "Favorite?" She whispered. "Are you talking about me ? "
42 glared at her. "If any of us had made that kind of mistake, the monster would have beaten us bloody! " She hissed. "When you make a mistake, we 're the ones who end up suffering for it! "
Emilia realized that the other wives had all stopped cleaning. They were now all glaring at her.
"I'm sorry," Emilia said in a small voice.
42 snorted. "Well, that makes everything better. The monster gave me a concussion, and he knocked out most of 14's teeth, but at least you feel bad about it! "
"I… I tried to get him to punish me instead," Emilia whispered in a defeated voice.
"Hm. Well, aren't you just a precious little hero?" 117 spat, her long black tail gnashing in frustration.
Emilia didn 't know what to say. "I'm… sorry. I'll… try harder."
117 just scoffed, and the wives slowly resumed cleaning up. The wives kept whispering to one another and glaring daggers at Emilia.
Emilia tried to ignore them, but their venomous barbs hit hard.
They 're right. They're all suffering because of my mistakes. They have every right to hate me.
But they 're wrong if they think that Regulus is showing me some sort of twisted favoritism. I can see it in his eyes. Regulus hates me. He despises me in a way that I haven 't seen any sign of toward the other wives.
Possibly, it 's because of Subaru.
Regulus isn 't holding back out of a desire to do me any sort of kindness. He may have realized that I'd actually prefer he beat me rather than beat them. He's holding their lives over my head and trying to use them to force me to submit.
It 's… actually a good plan. I don't know what I can do about this.
Regulus threatening to kill me for disobeying him is one thing … but him threatening to kill the others?
It 's almost like the Forest all over again. My mistakes are putting everyone around me in danger.
Even without my magic, I 'm still a threat to everyone around me…
128 and 246 entered the kitchen, and the other wives stopped talking immediately.
Emilia was about to throw away a completely untouched slab of ham encircled with a garnish of grapes. Emilia 's empty stomach rumbled, and she reached out to take a grape.
"Don't," The red-headed 246 whispered to her. "It's not worth the risk. The monster always catches people who try to do that."
Emilia looked at 246 and started to say something, but the woman turned her face away and pretended to ignore her.
Emilia sighed and threw away the untouched food.
Morin stood by awkwardly as Subaru slowly tidied up Priscilla 's broken glass. The old man watched in astonishment as Subaru did something as banal as cleaning . The old servant was too well-trained to object, but he cleared his throat several times to remind Subaru that the Emperor still wanted to speak to him.
Is this guy stupid, or does he not care that I 'm trying to give Vincent and Priscilla some time alone together? They don't have much time left.
Although considering what they 're trying to force me into, I'm not sure why I care.
No. Stop that. Priscilla doesn 't want this. She's as trapped in this mess as you are. Vincent is the one to blame.
I need to keep this carefully separated in my mind. If helping Priscilla is the price for saving Emilia, I 'll pay it cheerfully.
But if we 're going to have any chance of not slowly tearing each other to pieces over the years, I should at least try to meet Priscilla halfway.
And maybe this is for the best. Felt was right. We didn 't have anywhere left to hide. And Priscilla can certainly help me recover the spirits and find a passage to the Od Laguna. Priestella is probably out of the question at this point, but there must be other ways.
The real problem is Emilia. All of Priscilla 's optimism aside, how do I explain to Emilia that I agreed to marry another woman?
'Emilia, I loved you too much to lose you, so I married Priscilla.'
Yeah. She 's going to be furious…
What if she doesn 't understand why I did it? What if she thinks this is the ultimate betrayal? What if she leaves me?
I could save Emilia only to lose her all over again. For good this time.
But no matter how carefully Subaru cleaned up the broken glass and wiped up the spilled wine, there was only so much cleaning he could do and so much time he could kill.
After a few minutes, Subaru permitted Morin to lead him to Vincent 's bed chamber in the pavilion.
Morin bowed to him and left, leaving Subaru to stand in the hallway and fidget as he waited.
I don 't want to be here right now. Even ignoring the fact that I'm sitting still and doing nothing while Emilia is in danger, I can hear everything that Priscilla and Vincent are saying, and I feel like I'm intruding on a very private moment.
"Prisca," Vincent's voice was barely audible. "We've had so little time together."
"I know, brother," Priscilla's voice sounded unfamiliar, raw, and painful. "And please… it's 'Priscilla' now. I've grown more attached to the name I've adopted in exile than to the name of my birth."
Vincent took a moment to struggle for breath.
"Vincent. Is there… anything I can do to… bring you comfort?" Priscilla whispered.
Vincent 's chuckle was rueful. "I'm afraid not. I fear that… comfort is rather beyond me at this point."
Priscilla was silent.
"Do not grieve for me, Prisca," Vincent said calmly. "I have been many things in my life. I have been wise and foolish. I have been alternately kind and cruel. I have been silent when I should have spoken, and above all else, I have wasted far too much time. Time that we could have spent together. But in spite of all that, Prisca, I am Emperor. And I am not afraid."
Subaru heard Priscilla sobbing quietly.
"When I am gone," Vincent whispered. "The fate of the Empire will rest in your hands. I have no fears regarding this. Yours are among the most capable hands that I know. Remember, in times of doubt, that you are a Vollachias. Yours is the blood that gave birth to the Empire. And remember that you alone determine what is the correct course of action. Many will question your right to rule: because of your gender, because of your long exile, and for other reasons still more foolish. Crush them. Tear them apart. If you are to be the last of our line, show them that even at the very end, our family rules with strength and with certainty. A true ruler… must have no regrets."
Priscilla took a ragged breath. "I will not be the last of our family, Vincent. I swear it. When I fall, a strong and vigorous Vollachias will rise to the throne after me. Our dynasty will yet endure a thousand years. "
Vincent made a small noise of contentment. "That's my girl, Prisca," He whispered. "You must prepare for the commencement. All of the remaining loyal generals and high-ranking functionaries of the Empire will be here at sunrise to see the passage of power. Be ready. Be unflinching."
Priscilla whispered something incoherent, and she slowly made her way out of the room. As soon as she emerged, Subaru saw that her face was pale and drawn. Her eyes were full of tears, and she was trembling.
Subaru hesitated. "Are you alright, Priscilla?" He asked kindly.
Priscilla glared at him, but her fire was dimmed. A flood of emotions played out over her face until she finally just looked exhausted.
"Of course, I'm alright, Subaru Natsuki," She muttered. "I'm fine. I'm just… taking a moment to contemplate that I'll soon be the last remaining member of my family…"
Subaru opened his mouth and then slowly closed it.
All that I can say to Priscilla is 'I'm sorry." And she has no interest in hearing that right now.
Priscilla took a deep breath and squared her shoulders. "I've just finished discussing our plan for Morenth with my brother. I have his blessing to proceed. And so, I am informing you that I will be traveling to Morenth the day after tomorrow."
"You're going?" Subaru asked in surprise.
Priscilla looked faintly amused. "As I said, there are very few people left whom I can unequivocally trust right now. And since I have no one else whom I can trust, I must go myself. Vincent agrees that my presence at Morenth will only sweeten the bait for Octavian. He'll be anxious to either take me as a bride in order to strengthen his own claim to the throne or to kill me," She said carelessly.
Subaru frowned. "If you don't know who to trust in Morenth then you could be in very serious danger. You've made plans to marginalize or eliminate General What's-his-name, but Octavian could have more conspirators in the city."
Priscilla gave him a faintly patronizing look. "I am aware. I'm bringing a large contingent of my brother's praetorian guard. If I can rely on anyone, I can rely on them."
Yeah. If you can rely on anyone, Subaru thought.
"I'm also bringing Al with me," Priscilla added.
Subaru raised an eyebrow. "Al's here?"
"At the moment. He's been traveling all over the Empire on my behalf. Since I arrived, he's been acting as my messenger. He has an uncanny ability to evade traps and arrive safely at his destination. My mother always told me that fate looks after fools," She muttered.
Subaru nodded. "Well. It's good to know that you have at least one person on this trip that you can trust. "
Priscilla lifted her chin. "Don't forget, Subaru. I am blessed with remarkable talents and incredible good fortune. Failure for me is an impossibility," She said, her words sounding more wistful than confident.
Subaru gave her a sad smile. "When are you leaving?"
"I take a wyvern the day after tomorrow before dawn. There's little time left before Octavian marches but I must first attend the… funeral," She ended in a whisper.
Subaru started to offer his condolences, but Priscilla cut him off. "I know that you're here to speak to my brother," She said, her eyes full of tears that she refused to let fall. "Do so now, or you may never get another chance."
Subaru wasn 't sure how to respond, so he just nodded.
Priscilla stared at him and pursed her lips. Her expression grew helpless as if she wanted to say something that her pride would never let her admit.
She struggled soundlessly for a moment, but then her pride won, and her face became smooth and even.
Priscilla swept from the hall without looking back.
Subaru slowly entered the darkened room, which echoed with the sound of labored breathing. The familiar smell of decay pervaded the room, but now it was overpowering. As Subaru 's eyes adjusted, he saw an enormous canopied bed filled the room. There was a small chair beside it.
Subaru quietly walked toward the bed and sat down.
I don 't know what to say. Vincent and I barely know each other. We're certainly not friends. He's deliberately trapping me in this mess with Priscilla. But I can't help but feel miserable for him anyway.
To tell the truth, I think I feel more miserable for me. Dad once told me: 'Every man who looks at another's deathbed sees his own.'
This is how all of our lives inevitably end and it just feels incredibly unfair. No matter how much I accomplish or whether I live well or poorly, this is my ultimate fate.
Vincent drew a ragged breath. "Subaru Natsuki?" He whispered. "Is that you? Everything's gone dark."
Subaru blinked. "Then… how did you know it was me?"
Vincent started to laugh, but it instantly broke into a coughing fit, which left him panting. It took more than a minute for the Emperor to catch his breath.
"Prisca just left," Vincent murmured. "And no one else would dare to enter my chambers without declaring themselves and receiving an invitation. Logically, you are either Subaru Natsuki or an assassin. Or both," He said with dry amusement.
Subaru hesitated, uncertain of how to respond to this. "I'm here to discuss your offer."
"Mhm," Vincent said in a noncommittal voice.
Subaru took a deep breath to steady himself. "I'll accept your terms."
"Then we have an agreement. Give me the staff."
Subaru slowly reached into his satchel.
I don 't know why, but giving Vincent the rod suddenly makes me nervous.
I really don 't know why. Vincent has hours to live at best, and while my opinions of Priscilla are… mixed, I don't believe she would start using black magic to conquer the world or anything like that.
There 's no point in putting this off. Either I make the deal, or I don't. And that means that I need to give Vincent the staff.
I just wish I knew why this bothers me so much …
Subaru sighed and placed the staff on the night table beside a heavy goblet full of red wine. The rings chimed faintly before becoming still.
"Thank you," Vincent whispered. "The weapon you seek is hidden deep within the Gandahar jungle."
Subaru 's eyes narrowed. "You mean where Sphinx and Octavian are based?"
"Yes. And I doubt that this is a coincidence. They likely seek to claim the weapon for themselves."
"But I thought that if we went inside the jungle, we'd be trapped there," Subaru said sharply.
"True. But the Arcani managed to capture a strange artifact the other day. A strange lantern that we've seen all of Octavian's units carrying in and out of the jungle. We believe this will allow you to part the enchantment that traps you inside the jungle."
"You believe," Subaru echoed. "So, you haven't tested it yet?"
"No. This will be the test. On my orders, Brador has gone to retrieve the lantern from the Arcani. Once he returns with it tomorrow, you and your companion will ride a wyvern into the heart of the jungle. From there, you can make your way to the vault and retrieve the weapon. It will permit you to crush Regulus and anyone else in your path…"
Vincent sounds funny. Maybe he just realized that he doesn 't trust me enough to put this kind of power in my hands.
Vincent struggled to take a breath. "You will leave tomorrow night under cover of darkness. The shadows will be your only protection while flying across the jungle. Sphinx's forces have shot down wyverns before."
Subaru sighed. "Alright. If we have to wait that long, then… we have to wait," He said bitterly.
"Then it is agreed. Now, would you be so kind as to give me a sip of wine? My throat is parched, and I wish to sleep."
Subaru hesitated. "I'll have to help you sit up first," He said deferentially. "Otherwise, you'll choke on the wine."
"Use the spoon," Vincent sighed.
Subaru looked at the night table and saw a teaspoon beside the goblet. He filled the teaspoon and gingerly lifted the pathetic amount of wine to Vincent 's mouth.
"Here it comes," Subaru said awkwardly.
Vincent gave a weary grunt of acknowledgment.
Subaru poured the tiny amount of wine down Vincent 's throat, which he swallowed with nary a cough.
"More," Vincent murmured.
Subaru had to repeat the process four more times before the Emperor was satisfied.
"Thank you," Vincent whispered almost inaudibly. "I think that perhaps… I can sleep now."
Subaru nodded and turned to leave the room.
Vincent hissed.
Subaru turned around and saw the Emperor struggling to breathe.
"Hey! Doctor!" He shouted. "Doctors! Get in here! We have a problem!"
Subaru heard a cry of alarm and the sounds of running in the hallway, but it was running in the wrong direction.
I can assume that some functionary heard me and is off looking for the healers, but that 's no help right now!
Vincent continued to rasp, a long, strangling sound that failed to bring any air into his lungs. As Subaru watched, his withered, emaciated hand floated up from the bed as if trying to reach for the air that eluded him.
Then his hand fell back onto the sheets, and the room became utterly silent.
"Vincent!" Subaru called out, grabbing his arm. His skin felt slimy as Subaru searched for a pulse. Perhaps his arm was coated in some kind of medicine.
There was nothing.
Subaru swallowed hard.
He 's… dead. Since coming to this world, I've seen a lot of death. I've killed a lot of people. But this feels different. It feels… more inescapable somehow. More final.
Someday, assuming I even make it that far, I 'll be lying in a bed just like this, struggling to breathe. And then there'll come a moment where I'm desperately reaching out for air, and I'll be denied.
And then I 'll be no more…
A moment later, he heard the sound of many feet running in the hallway.
Subaru quickly stepped back and wiped his hands off on his pants, irrationally worried that he might be blamed for this.
A half dozen men raced into the room, examining Vincent 's body, calling his name, and calling for assistants to bring medicine.
Subaru stood back and just watched with a sickly feeling in his stomach.
After the wives cleaned up, most went upstairs to prepare for bed. A few stayed downstairs, continuing to work into the night. The wives all pointedly ignored Emilia.
Emilia followed silently at the end of the line, her thoughts consumed by the guilt for her mistakes and her failures.
Emilia was exhausted. She hadn 't slept in close to thirty-six hours, and she'd had nothing to eat since last night. Emilia's body was utterly out of fuel, and she was desperate to sleep.
Because of her exhaustion, Emilia climbed the long stairwell slowly, and the other wives quickly outdistanced her. As Emilia plodded up the stairs, 128 fell in step beside her.
"You've had a long day," 128 said kindly. "The first day is often the hardest."
Emilia gave 128 a defeated look, too exhausted to even respond.
As they reached the top floor, Emilia started to follow the other wives down the hall, but 128 stopped her, guiding her in the opposite direction.
"The Master has ordered you housed separately until you finish your initiate," 128 explained. "He shows you great kindness," She emphasized.
This sent a chill down Emilia 's spine.
Regulus would never do me any sort of kindness. Why is he doing this? What does he hope to gain?
128 led Emilia down the hall and quietly opened the door. The room inside was tiny. It had a small bed and no windows, just a tiny skylight. It could have doubled as a prison cell.
Emilia didn 't care. The bed would undoubtedly be as hard as a rock, but Emilia felt like she could sleep on broken glass right now. She started to move past 128.
"You are fortunate, my dear," 128 said gently, stopping Emilia in her tracks. "Even if you don't realize it. So many would give anything to serve the Goddess's vision, let alone someone so close to divinity as the Master. Not everyone gets the chance to stand so close to the divine."
She 's insane! Emilia thought in despair. What kind of lunatic could ever regard Regulus as someone holy?!
128 waited patiently for a response, and then she continued. "Remember, you are never alone here. Each of us has our place beneath the gaze of the one true goddess: Satella, our eternal guide. She watches over the faithful, and even though our Master is but one of her holy Archbishops, he is her chosen instrument. Through him, we serve her."
Satella?! Emilia was so shocked that she froze and could only stare at 128.
128 looked over her shoulder to make sure that they were unobserved, and then she lowered her voice. "The Goddess loves the obedient. Her will is in all things, Acolyte. One day, she will return to us, and all of her children will rejoice. Until then, those of us blessed with the chance to serve a holder of Authority must give our whole selves to them: our names, our lives, everything. Only then are we worthy of her grace."
Emilia wasn 't able to keep the incredulous look off her face.
128 's face grew somber and resigned. "The truth is often seen as impossible. Especially by the willfully foolish," She admitted. "You must see it by now, dear," she'd say softly, "How much easier it would all be if you just stopped resisting. Fighting the Master only brings more hardship on yourself and onto all of those around you. Each day that you hold out is a day that you distance yourself from the grace that he so generously offers."
128 looked at her pityingly. "The others… they fought, too, at first. They all thought that they knew better. But in time, they each came to see that his way was the only way to find salvation. You can join us, Emilia. With us, you could finally rest and finally stop struggling. Don 't you want that?"
Emilia stared at 128, her jaw hanging open.
128 sighed as she started to walk away. "There is a place for you in his holy light if you choose to accept it. Only those who fully submit can ever know the blessing of his love. And I know that, in time, you will come to see this as the great gift that it truly is. "
Emilia swallowed hard, and she slowly started to close the door.
"Acolyte."
Emilia jumped. She opened the door and found the elven woman, 78, slipping into her room and closing it behind her.
Emilia was ready to collapse. "What is it?" She muttered weakly.
78 sighed. "Listen. I just wanted you to know that nobody blames you for what happened at dinner. Not even 14."
Emilia sighed. "I… I think that you're wrong about that."
78 took a deep breath. "No matter what the monster tries to convince you of, he was the one who inflicted that violence, not you. There was nothing that you could have done. You had to pick one of us. Trying to take the punishment yourself was foolish, but … it was also very brave," She finished.
Emilia felt sick to her stomach. "78, I don't know what to do," She admitted. "If Regulus were only hurting me… that would be one thing, but… he's willing to hurt all of you for my mistakes! I don't know how-"
"Stop it," 78 snapped. "You're not listening to me. I told you, this is not your fault."
"The others disagree," Emilia murmured, folding her arms across her chest. "And I don't think that I can argue with them. They are suffering because of me."
78 's expression grew worried. "The monster… has been acting strangely since you arrived, " She admitted slowly. "He's been much more on edge than normal. I've told the others that this has nothing to do with favoritism. It's clear to anyone with eyes that he despises you. He's looking for excuses to hurt you. And yet he seems to hold back when doing it, punishing you lightly for your mistakes."
"Lightly?" Emilia said in surprise.
"Lightly," 78 said firmly. "Remember, he hit you, but he utterly brutalized 14."
"Don't forget the Mirror Room!" Emilia hissed, shuddering at the memory.
78 hesitated. "… I know. And I know how terrible that place can be. But he seems reluctant to hurt you physically. Perhaps it's that bomb collar of yours. He'd survive the explosion, but it might still damage his beautiful mansion."
Emilia stared at 78 in disbelief.
78 gave her a small smile. "Not comforting, I assume."
"Not really."
78 frowned. "I don't know why he's treating you differently. Any other wife would have either been completely cowed within the first twenty-four hours, or she'd have been killed for annoying the monster."
Emilia took a ragged breath. "How can we possibly live like this?" She whimpered.
78 sighed. "You'd be quite astounded with the kinds of things that you can learn to live with. That's the beauty of life. Of course, it's half the horror of it, too."
"We need to escape," Emilia choked.
"We can't," 78 said in a tired tone. "I told you. His talisman lets him find us, no matter how far we run or where we hide. I've watched dozens of women try to escape over the years… maybe even hundreds," She added in a defeated voice. "After all these years, it's hard to even remember all the helpless young women who I've watched get murdered by that monster. None of them ever escaped. It might take him hours or days, but Regulus always dragged their dead bodies back to this house of horrors just so that we knew that they hadn't escaped him."
Emilia struggled to come up with a plan. "But what if we got that talisman away from him?" She suggested
"It never leaves his person," 78 sighed. "He holds onto that book like a lifeline."
That word penetrated Emilia 's exhausted mind. "A book?" She said slowly.
78 nodded absently. "Yes. Whenever he's not abusing us or demanding that we fawn over him, he's reading that strange book at all hours of the day and night."
"A little black book?"
78 looked surprised. "How did you know that?"
"Because I've seen them before," Emilia murmured, wondering if there was any way that she could turn this information to her advantage.
If he uses the Gospel to find us, maybe we can find a way to fool it. Anri said that the Gospels could be manipulated. And the Gospels didn 't seem to help the Archbishops very much after we fled the Sanctuary. A group of Archbishops were all trying to hunt us down, but the only one who found us was Lye, and that might have been luck as much as anything else.
If the Archbishops could use their Gospels to find us, you 'd think that they would have done it by now. Since they haven't, maybe they can't?
I remember Subaru telling me that Lye mentioned something about him being protected from the Gospels ' power. But is that just Subaru, or does that apply to me, too?
It seems like a stretch to assume that Subaru 's protection would apply to me, but then again, if all anyone ever had to do to find Subaru was to ask their Gospels to look for 'Emilia' instead, you'd think they would have tested that idea by now. Or maybe I was only protected just as long as I stayed close to him?
On the other hand, if the Gospels didn 't let the Archbishops find us, how did Regulus locate me in the first place? It can 't be a coincidence, can it?
…No, definitely not a coincidence. Regulus said that he'd been 'looking' for me before he attacked. So he came looking for me, and he found me, but how?
…I guess I'm not going to figure this out right now. I don't have enough information. I should stay focused on finding a way to escape and just hope that regardless of how Regulus managed to find me the first time, he can't repeat the trick.
78 gave Emilia a despairing look. "I've seen those eyes before."
78 's comment broke Emilia out of her reverie. She looked up at the older elf in confusion.
78 sighed. "The eyes that refuse to give up. You'll be dead before the month is out. Possibly before the end of the week," She muttered in a dead voice. "There is nothing that I can do about that. But it was nice to speak to another Daughter of the Old Blood after all this time. I haven't seen another elf in decades. Have you?"
Emilia briefly considered if the Ryuzu clones should count but then shook her head. "No. Not for a long time," She admitted.
78 nodded, not much surprised. "Let me know if there's anything I can do to make your stay here more… bearable , " She muttered as she turned to leave.
"There is one thing," Emilia said at once.
78 turned around. "What is it?"
Emilia studied her closely. "78. What's your real name?" She whispered.
78 's eyes widened. "I told you. We can't ever speak of that. The monster-"
"He's in bed."
"No. He never sleeps," 78 said in a frightened voice. "While we sleep, a few wives are assigned to serve him and keep him company until morning. We all take turns working the night shift. He hasn't slept once in the forty years I've been trapped here."
There was a beat as Emilia digested that. "Well. He isn't here right now," She said calmly, refusing to break eye contact. "I know full well how terrifying he is, but if we're petrified by the mere thought of him, then we are broken beyond all repair. We need to find something to hold onto in this madhouse. Please, 78. As another Daughter of the Old Blood. Tell me your real name."
78 stared at Emilia in disbelief. "You don't know what you're asking…"
"Yes, I do," Emilia said simply. "These things are important. If they weren't, he wouldn't take them away from us. He wants to strip away our identities until there's no 'us' left that can exist independently of him. We can't let that happen. Even if it's just in a dark room where nobody else can see, we need to start taking these things back."
78 stared at Emilia in silence.
Emilia stared back, refusing to blink or to let 78 turn away.
78 licked her lips. "Sylvie," She said softer than a whisper. "Once upon a time… I was Sylvie of the Greensward."
Emilia gave her a faint smile. "It's nice to meet you, Sylvie. I'm Emilia."
Sylvie swallowed hard. She looked behind her as if expecting to see Regulus looming out of the shadows. Then she scurried out into the hall and shut the door behind her.
To Emilia 's own disbelief, she found it within her to smile slightly as she lay down on the bed.
Emilia took a deep breath and tried to muster what courage she had left. She wasn 't beaten yet.
She closed her eyes and passed out without ever getting undressed.