[ "Ah!"
"Waaaa!"
Subaru was repelled, flipping backward and crashing heavily onto the ground. ]
.....
〜Inside, the Theater〜
"Beatrice's hurt expression looks so pitiful, nyaa."
Puck orbited around Beatrice.
Whether it was learning of Geuse's death or repelling Subaru, she wore such a sorrowful expression.
"After all, I wasn't there, so I didn't know about any of this."
"Ah? Eh? Not there? So, you weren't there starting from this point,"
Otto said.
To be honest, Otto's memories of Puck were almost zero; they came entirely from other people's accounts.
Since Puck disappeared at a time like this, it was normal that Otto had never met him.
"Whoa, boss pinned Otto-bro down!"
Garfiel, on the other side, remarked.
"Ah? What?!"
Rem hurriedly looked at the screen.
—
[ "Why… why did Natsuki-san come flying out of the toilet I just used…"
In the scene, Subaru had not only been repelled but had landed right on top of Otto.
"Hey, how long are you going to sit on me? Can you move?" Seeing Subaru remain silent, Otto pressed him again.
"Will everything become clear if we just go to the 'Sanctuary'?"
"I don't know what on earth happened, but could you please hurry up and get off me?" ]
.....
〜Inside, the Theater〜
"To be honest, I'd completely forgotten about that, ahahaha."
Otto scratched his head, laughing awkwardly.
—
[ … "Please speak the truth, Natsuki-san. Why did you come rolling out of the toilet? Don't tell me something terrifying like there's a secret door or a hidden passage in the toilet."
"Idiot, it's not like that. It was just a little miracle triggered by my desire to pee together with you."
"How is that even an answer? An answer that isn't an answer is way too scary!"
The farce finally ended, and now it was time for serious business.
"The Cremaldy Forest of Confusion—the 'Sanctuary' is protected there by a special barrier. The barrier repels outsiders, causing them to lose their way; that is how the Forest of Confusion got its nickname. To neutralize the barrier's influence, I need two days of preparation. Furthermore, when you arrive there, there is one name you must never forget: Garfiel. Please be careful of this person. In the 'Sanctuary,' he is the one you all need to approach with the most caution." Frederica spoke, her expression turning complex at the end. ]
.....
〜Inside, the Theater〜
"Saying I need to be approached with caution? Is it really that bad, haha?"
"It really is, how could it not be? Back then, to make Garfiel behave, it took a huge amount of effort,"
Emilia said, pouting.
"Yes, yes, exactly. It really took a lot of effort."
Otto agreed; if anything, he was the one who had put in the most effort regarding Garfiel.
"Er…"
Garfiel was somewhat speechless.
"What's with the 'er'? Garfi is just a troublemaker."
Ram snorted.
—
[ "Honestly, just waiting makes one anxious… By the way, the 'Sanctuary' is a place that takes in demi-humans with specific backgrounds…."
After waiting for two days, Frederica's preparations were mostly complete.
Subaru briefly recounted the situation of the Sanctuary.
"According to history books, the civil war known as the 'Demi-Human War' occurred less than a hundred years ago. Come to think of it, I've heard Liliana sing songs about it… And now I realize, the title 'Sword Demon's Love Song' is very similar to Mr. Wilhelm's nickname. Maybe his 'Sword Demon' nickname actually came from that song…" ]
.....
〜Inside, the Theater〜
"Ah, speaking of which, it's been a while since I've seen Liliana,"
Emilia said.
Liliana was that bard.
After the mansion incident was settled, she came to the Roswaal territory.
That was when Subaru, Emilia, and the others had met her.
"Natsuki is really something; what do you mean the nickname came from the song? The male protagonist of 'Sword Demon's Love Song' is Wilhelm."
Anastasia laughed.
"Ah! So Petra-san became a maid during this period?"
Otto pointed at the screen.
—
[ "Ah, Subaru-sama, you were here after all." The sound of a door opening rang out, and Petra, dressed in a maid uniform, spoke to Subaru.
Using both "Sama" and "You," according to Frederica, Petra had only just become a maid at this time and was not yet proficient in honorifics.
"You came to say goodbye to Rem-san, right?"
"Yeah, pretty much. I don't plan on staying long over there, but I still wanted to see her face. While I'm out, I'm leaving Rem in your care, Petra."
"Subaru-sama, it's almost time to depart."
.....
After saying goodbye to Rem, Subaru, Otto, and Emilia prepared to head for the Sanctuary.
"Emilia-sama, I leave the 'Sanctuary' to you. Also, please do not forget what I said. Please be careful of Garfiel."
"Yes, I understand. I'll be careful of Garfiel, absolutely." Emilia put on the pyroxene necklace Frederica had given her.
With this pyroxene, they could pass through the barrier.
"Um! Subaru-sama… could you accept this?"
Petra, her face flushing red, handed a pure white handkerchief to Subaru.
"I wish you all a safe journey. Please give my regards to the Master and Ram."
Frederica gave a final bow. Then, Otto drove the dragon carriage, taking Subaru and Emilia toward the Sanctuary. ]
.....
〜Inside, the Theater〜
"Ohhh, I'm finally about to make my debut!"
"You're quite happy, aren't you, Garfi? Based on Garfi's initial attitude toward Barusu, you could be considered a villain."
"That's also pretty cool!"
Ram was speechless at his words.
"Subaru… take care,"
Beatrice whispered.
Roswaal would bring down heavy snow in the Sanctuary in a few days, attracting the Great Rabbit.
That alone was terrible enough. She hoped Subaru wouldn't be… by the Great Rabbit during his loops.
—
[ "The stone is glowing… Subaru!"
In the scene, Subaru and Emilia had already entered the Cremaldy Forest of Confusion.
But strangely, the pyroxene on Emilia's chest was emitting a blue light.
"What's going on… I have a strong bad feeling! Emilia, I'm taking it! If nothing happens, we can just pick it up later! For now, throw it—"
The intense sense of foreboding made Subaru grab the pyroxene to throw it away, but in the next moment—
"Ah…" Emilia collapsed weakly in the dragon carriage, losing consciousness. ]
.....
〜Inside, the Theater〜
"Is Emilia-sama alright?"
Otto asked worriedly.
"I'm fine,"
Emilia replied.
After all, this scene reminded everyone of the time when Subaru tried to force out "Return by Death," resulting in Emilia's heart being crushed on the spot.
—
[ "Emilia?!" Subaru seemed more concerned about Emilia's safety.
Instead of throwing the pyroxene, he moved to Emilia's side to check her condition, but in the next moment—
The pyroxene burst with an even more intense light, enveloping Subaru.
Then…
"Where is this place?" Subaru was transported to an unfamiliar forest. ]
.....
〜Inside, the Theater〜
"Hmm? Where is this?"
Anastasia asked.
"Oh, the forest just now was the edge of the Sanctuary, and this place is the center of the Sanctuary, protecting the graveyard in the nearby ruins. So, that's how the Boss arrived. I was wondering how he suddenly showed up there,"
Garfiel answered.
In any case, this meant Subaru had completely arrived at the Sanctuary.
—
P.S: Folks, this chapter was released way back in late 2024, so expect some of the information here to be outdated, like Al's true name. It will be in the future chapters if the chapter catches up on the updated LN of the Re0.