[ "Rem, who are you talking about?"
"…What?"
"I mean, who is the Rem you mentioned? If I remember correctly, there wasn't anyone by that name among the merchants who scattered and fled… Who are you talking about?"
Otto, on the screen, tilted his head, looking very confused. ]
.....
〜Inside, the Theater〜
"Miss Rem is…"
Wilhelm whispered.
"Her 'name' was taken by the White Whale…"
Yuriusu added.
"Mmm…"
Ram gritted her teeth.
Although Rem was devoured by the Sin Archbishop of Gluttony, it was essentially the same as being devoured by the White Whale.
Rem disappeared just like that… Abandoned by the world.
Then, a punch drew everyone's attention to the screen.
—
[ "Are you kidding me!" Subaru, furious, punched Otto.
"What, what are you saying… I'm talking about Rem, who got off the carriage to let us escape, and you're asking who she is? Are you kidding me! Bastard, do you want to die!"
"What are you guys doing?! You still have time to argue now! Let's get out of the fog first…"
The man walking beside them quickly stopped them, but the next moment…
"Roar—"
The man and the entire dragon carriage he was driving were swallowed by the White Whale.
The White Whale attacked again. ]
.....
〜Inside, the Theater〜
"Is this all we can do… Subaru-kun!"
The two Rems' hearts skipped a beat.
"Always chasing after Barasu… Is it still because of that terrible smell?"
Ram sighed.
"It seems the end is here. Subaru will die here, and time will turn…"
Puck said.
He couldn't think of any other way Subaru could possibly have at this moment.
The end was undoubtedly being eaten by the White Whale.
—
[ "Why are you chasing us relentlessly… It's already so dark… Why… Could it be, there's some kind of mark…"
Otto, on the screen, shouted in despair.
Then, Subaru seemed to be thinking about something.
"Could it be… that monster… is the White Whale also a magical beast? Could it be… my body attracts the White Whale? How could this be, Rem… I, how could I… It's all my fault…"
"Natsuki-san…"
Otto patted Subaru's shoulder from behind.
"Otto, I…"
"Please die for me."
The next second, Otto pushed Subaru down.
"It's all your fault! Since the White Whale is chasing us because of you, because it's all your fault, then you have to take responsibility! Ahaha! Go to hell, go to hell! Die to save me!"
Otto laughed maniacally. And Subaru rolled onto the ground. ]
.....
〜Inside, the Theater〜
"Huh?! Me?!"
Otto, outside the screen, saw himself going mad and pushing Natsuki-san down.
And no one present had any reason to blame him.
Otto was caught up in it, and Subaru was the one who attracted the White Whale.
What he did was understandable.
I remember Natsuki-san didn't treat me too harshly… Does this mean he didn't even care about this?
Natsuki-san is too good…
Then, everyone saw Subaru on the ground, desperately saying he didn't want to die.
—
[ "I, I don't want to die… No, ah…, I don't want to die. Help me, I, I don't want to die… I don't want to die, I don't want to die, I don't want to die… No, no, no… Help me, Rem, help me… I, I don't want to die, ah…"
Subaru lay on the ground, begging powerlessly. ]
.....
〜Inside, the Theater〜
"It's okay, Rem is here."
How much Rem wanted to say this to Subaru-kun.
But neither she nor the Rem in the screen could.
"Should the clown's performance end now?"
Priscilla was already very displeased with Natsuki Subaru's pathetic display.
"Begging to survive…"
Yuriusu was silent.
He didn't think there was anything wrong with it, nothing to criticize.
But Subaru's appearance was truly unsightly…
"Ah? Frufoo?"
Otto was surprised.
—
[ "How… how are you…" Otto's ground dragon, Frufoo, slowly approached, pulling the dilapidated dragon carriage.
"How… Where is that guy? Otto?"
But Frufoo said nothing; naturally, it couldn't speak.
However, the short sword with a cross shape inserted in the dragon carriage clearly indicated what had happened.
The Witch Cult had attacked Otto.
"…Let's go."
Subaru weakly climbed onto the driver's seat and headed in that familiar direction… towards Roswaal's mansion. ]
.....
〜Inside, the Theater〜
"Frufoo…"
Otto showed a pained expression.
How did Frufoo return? He didn't need to think that she must have gone through many unbelievable things.
And I… was also killed by the Witch Cult.
This time, there was no help from Natsuki-san or anyone else.
"Is… everyone?"
Emilia said.
—
[ "…Is that Subaru?"
"It's Subaru after all."
"What's wrong, Subaru?"
"You're so dirty, Subaru."
"You stink, Subaru."
The children of Aram village surrounded Subaru.
"You guys…" Subaru smiled, then collapsed on the ground.
The screen darkened, seemingly having fainted.
"REM!" When the screen lit up again, Subaru quickly grabbed the hand of the girl in front of him.
A familiar environment, Subaru had returned to Roswaal's mansion, and that girl was Ram.
"How vulgar."
"Ah… That's right. How can I still have the qualifications now…"
"…? Barusu, please don't do things that make Ram uncomfortable."
Ram was puzzled by Subaru's reaction and stepped forward to gently stroke his head.
After a brief understanding of the situation, Subaru asked:
"Who healed me…"
"It was Emilia-sama."
"…Um, Rem, she's dead. I… I couldn't do anything. The fog… The White Whale appeared on the street. Then, Rem, in order for me to escape… But I was abandoned in the fog… As a result…"
Subaru cried tears of blood, speaking incoherently.
To this, Ram's response was—
"Who is Rem?" ]
.....
〜Inside, the Theater〜
"…How disgusting…"
Ram knew this scene would come sooner or later, but she didn't expect it to happen so soon.
She felt disgusted by her own words.
"…"
And the two Rems were silent.
Others didn't care, but seeing their elder sister forget them was bound to shake their hearts.
"The boss is still confirming…"
Garfiel said.
—
[ "Lend me courage, Rem."
In the screen, Subaru said so, then opened Rem's room.
But the result was…
"Subaru?"
Emilia was in this room.
"…Why are you back?"
Emilia, with vacant eyes, trembled and asked Subaru.
"Let's go, we can't stay here any longer."
Subaru tried to force her to leave.
"Go? Go where… No, why should we go?"
"Only by leaving here can we go anywhere. If you ask why, I will definitely answer it's for you. I came back for you…"
"Why are you saying this again, Subaru. You suddenly ran back, all injured, making everyone so worried… Shouldn't Subaru be receiving treatment in the capital? Why are you here?"
"A lot of things happened! In short, we can't stay here, you'll definitely regret it!"
"What are you talking about… Subaru, I don't understand."
"It's completely futile. You can't do it; you will definitely fail. You can't save anyone, and no one can save you. You will repeat rash and arbitrary actions, and at the same time, you will implicate countless people, and ultimately witness mountains of corpses… This is your future."
"…Why is Subaru crying so sadly?"
That's right, Subaru was shedding tears while grinning.
"…Alright, I'll tell you everything. It's better to vomit blood. I'll tell you everything."
Then Subaru seemed to have made up his mind. ]
.....
〜Inside, the Theater〜
"Death Return."
Roswaal said from outside the screen.
It seems Subaru was about to talk about that matter.
That matter that couldn't be spoken of.
—
[ "Emilia. I have witnessed the future. I know very well what will happen next. If you ask why, it's because I… I through 'Death Return'…" ]
.....