...
{3rd Pov}
Subaru let out a quiet sigh as he walked forward, his hair swaying slightly with the movement of the wind around him.
"My liege, the entire city is now completely under our control, just as you instructed," Reina reported, stepping forward and performing a small, respectful bow before him.
Subaru reached out and gently patted her head, as he usually did.
The gesture was familiar enough that Reina did not react outwardly, though her expression softened slightly.
His attention then shifted towards Emilia who stood a short distance away, watching the interaction.
There was a slight hesitation in her posture as her eyes followed the simple gesture.
She seemed unsure of how to react, as if caught between expectation and uncertainty.
Subaru noticed her cute expression.
He smiled faintly and walked toward her.
Without saying anything at first, he raised his hand and gently patted her head as well, making a small blush form on her face.
"You did well, Emilia," he said calmly.
"In fact, all of you did wonderfully."
As he spoke, his gaze briefly moved across the others present, acknowledging their efforts.
"Hmph!" Priscilla scoffed, folding her arms slightly before opening her fan with a sharp motion.
"Such results are only natural for my divine self. It is only expected that rabble would bow before me."
She waved her fan elegantly as she spoke, her tone full of pride.
The fan itself had a style reminiscent of what might be called Chinese design, though in this world it would be more accurately described as Kararagi-inspired.
The others glanced at her, some of them unable to hide the slight twitch in their expressions at her usual arrogance.
"As I can see, your arrogance still hasn't gone away… Baroness," Anastasia Hoshin said as she followed after Natsuki Subaru, her tone carrying a hint of irritation.
"If this isn't the merchant," Priscilla replied with a grin, clearly amused.
"Welcome to our side."
Anastasia's eyebrows twitched slightly in frustration at the remark.
She had already spent a considerable amount of time explaining the situation to the soldiers, along with Crusch, trying to make sense of everything that had happened.
Dealing with Priscilla's attitude on top of that was not helping her mood.
Eventually, Crusch made the decision to withdraw, given the current state of her forces, it was the most practical choice.
The army needed time to reorganize and re-equip, especially since most of them had lost all of their gear.
At the moment, the only thing preserving their dignity was the makeshift coverings Subaru had provided.
With that in mind, Crusch began leading her army toward the nearest city where they could rest, recover, and prepare properly for what was to come.
Meanwhile, Anastasia chose a different path.
She decided to meet up with the rest of the Emilia camp.
There were too many things that needed to be discussed such as political strategy, control over Lugunica, and how to handle the aftermath of everything that had just happened.
The situation had escalated far beyond a simple competition for the throne.
Now, it was about taking control of the entire nation.
"Well, it's more like the Great Sage's side," Anastasia replied, correcting Priscilla as she crossed her arms.
Her tone carried a subtle edge before she turned her gaze toward Emilia.
"Half-elf, you're really lucky that the Great Sage is favoring you," she added, a faint hint of jealousy slipping into her voice despite her usual composure.
"I am not favoring just you," Subaru's voice suddenly cut in as he shifted his attention toward Anastasia.
"I am extending my support to every royal candidate."
His words immediately drew everyone's attention.
"My goal is to make Emilia the Queen," Subaru continued calmly, "but for you, Anastasia, I intend to make you the Finance Minister of the country. You will oversee all commercial laws and financial decisions."
He did not stop there.
"I want Crusch to lead the army," he added.
"As for Felt, she will act as the Prime Minister, the bridge between the common people and the nobility."
Then his gaze shifted slightly.
"And Priscilla," he said, "I have already promised her that I will make her the Queen of Vollachia."
The moment those words were spoken, silence fell over the group.
The scale of what he had just laid out was far beyond anything they had expected.
"E-Eh?! Really? But isn't that a bit too—" Anastasia began, clearly overwhelmed by the sudden declaration.
"Too shocking?" Subaru interrupted, bringing a hand to his chin as a smirk appeared on his face.
"Too outrageous? Too much to process at once?"
He let out a small breath before continuing.
"My promise to Emilia still stands," he said. "She will become the Queen."
Then his tone grew more serious.
"But a queen alone cannot rule effectively. A ruler needs capable people around her, just as people need someone to make the final decisions on their behalf."
His gaze moved across each of them.
"However, there will still be people needed to take control of the country after the purge," Subaru continued, his tone steady as he explained further.
"And who would be more suited to manage the nation's finances than the Merchant Queen herself?"
He added a slight bow toward Anastasia, not out of submission, but as a deliberate acknowledgment of her abilities.
"I—well, hearing something like that from the Great Sage does feel good," Anastasia replied, placing a hand on her hip as a faint, amused smile formed on her face.
"But aren't you worried? What if my greedy self ends up surpassing your newborn company once I get such a position?"
Her tone carried a challenge, but also curiosity.
Subaru did not hesitate even for a second.
"If you surpass me, then I will simply surpass you again," he replied calmly.
"And then you will push past me once more. That cycle will continue, and both of us will improve because of it."
He paused briefly before adding,
"And in the end, the public will benefit the most from that competition."
His answer caught everyone off guard.
It was not defensive, cautious but showed how confident he was in his conjecture.
"And as for Crusch," Subaru continued, shifting his gaze, "even if she can be a bit of an airhead at times, she is still a highly capable leader."
Anastasia's expression twitched slightly at that, but she did not interrupt.
"She has the qualities needed to lead an army," he went on.
"What she lacks is not ability, but refinement but more knowledge in certain areas, better strategic depth, and more experience in large-scale warfare."
His tone was direct, but not disrespectful.
"I have no doubt that she can improve in those areas."
Then his attention shifted once again.
"And Felt," Subaru said, "is someone who understands a side of this nation that most rulers completely ignore."
He folded his arms slightly as he spoke.
"She knows what it means to live in the slums. She understands the struggles of the common people and not from observing from a life in luxury, but from experience."
His voice carried a clear sense of certainty.
"That perspective and empathy is something no noble can replicate."
He looked at the group again.
"That is exactly why I want her to act as the link between the Queen and the people. Someone who can ensure that those at the bottom are not forgotten."
Subaru nodded once, as if finalizing his thoughts.
"She is perfect for that role."
Anastasia could not help but clap her hands lightly, clearly surprised by what she had just heard.
"Tis is truly an eye-opener," she said, shaking her head slightly in amazement.
"I already knew you were the Great Sage, but hearing you lay things out like this really shows the difference. It explains exactly why you stand as a great hero, while the rest of us struggle just to remain united among ourselves."
Her tone carried genuine admiration now, far less guarded than before.
"The way you think, the way you plan, and especially the way you refuse to discriminate, even after everything that has happened in the past, it is honestly baffling," she continued.
"You are not acting out of pride or vengeance. You are simply trying to make things better for the nation as a whole, and you are even willing to overlook our faults to achieve that."
Anastasia looked at him seriously.
"That level of perspective is not something most people can reach."
"Well, he is the Great Sage for a reason," Reina said proudly from the side.
This time, her tone carried more than just respect for her lord, it sounded like a wife openly proud of her husband.
"And Reina is the Sword Saint for a reason as well," Subaru replied with a small chuckle.
He reached out and gently caressed her cheek.
Reina's face turned slightly red as she instinctively glanced at the others, clearly aware of the attention.
Despite the faint embarrassment, there was also a strong sense of pride rising within her at the open display of affection.
She did not pull away.
If anything, she stood a little straighter, clearly pleased.
"This is unacceptable, I suppose! Betty hasn't received any head pats today, I suppose!" Beatrice declared immediately, clearly dissatisfied as she looked at Subaru being openly affectionate with Reina in front of everyone yet again.
Her tone carried a mix of jealousy and expectation, as if this was a matter that needed to be corrected immediately.
"Hehe, don't worry, my imouto," Subaru replied with a light laugh.
"Not only do I have enough head pats reserved just for you, but guess what else I have?"
He raised his hand slightly.
"Cookies."
In the next moment, a tray of freshly baked cookies appeared in his hand as if summoned from nowhere.
A warm, sweet aroma spread through the air almost instantly, drifting toward everyone present and making the scent impossible to ignore.
A few of them visibly swallowed.
"Daddy! I want cookies too!" Sylphy chimed in excitedly, raising her hand as she stepped forward without hesitation.
"I have more than enough for both of you cuties," Subaru said with a smile.
With another casual motion, he summoned a second tray of cookies directly into existence.
"What about me, Father?" Gloria asked curiously, tilting her head slightly as she looked at him.
Subaru's grin widened at that.
"For you," he said, "I have something special."
With a small gesture, he summoned a cup of tea.
"My own handmade tea," he added.
"Something I prepared earlier and kept stored so I can treat my friends and family whenever the moment calls for it."
The warm steam rose gently from the cup, carrying a rich and comforting aroma.
Gloria smiled faintly as she stepped forward and took the cup from Subaru with a composed and elegant motion.
Holding it carefully by the handle, she gave it a gentle swirl, watching the liquid inside move before bringing it closer to her lips.
She took a small, measured sip.
"Spicy… just the way I like my tea," she said with clear satisfaction.
Meanwhile, Sylphy and Beatrice wasted no time at all.
Both of them were already busy eating the cookies as if their lives depended on it.
Their earlier complaints and demands had completely vanished the moment the sweets appeared.
The sound of quick bites and quiet satisfaction filled the space around them as they focused entirely on the treats.
On the other side, Anastasia Hoshin and Priscilla stood watching the scene unfold.
Both of them were visibly surprised.
Just moments ago, Subaru had been speaking like a commanding figure, presenting himself as the Great Sage and laying out plans that would reshape an entire nation.
Now, in contrast, he had casually shifted into the role of a caring father and older brother without any effort.
The change was abrupt and yet, it did not feel unnatural.
If anything, it made his presence even more difficult to understand.
Anastasia narrowed her eyes slightly, clearly trying to process the contrast, while Priscilla remained silent, observing everything closely.
As Priscilla watched the way Subaru treated Reina, the gentle care he showed toward his spirit daughters, and the attention he gave to Beatrice, she felt something stir within her.
A faint twinge of jealousy.
It was subtle, but unmistakable and it did not sit well with her at all.
She wanted that same level of attention.
The same closeness, the same kind of affection that he showed so naturally to the others.
Priscilla knew very well that the world had always bent in her favor.
Things aligned for her without effort, and opportunities naturally came to her without needing to be chased.
That had always been her belief, and until now, it had always proven true.
But this time felt different.
For the first time, she did not want to simply wait for the world to arrange things for her.
She wanted to take the first step herself and that was exactly where the problem began.
A small part of her hesitated since despite her overwhelming confidence and boundless arrogance, she lacked experience in this particular area.
This was not something she could handle the same way she handled politics or authority.
This was personal and she did not want to ruin it by making a mistake.
For perhaps the first time in a long while, Priscilla found herself genuinely confused about what she should do next.
Simply waiting for the world to favor her no longer felt acceptable.
Because she did not want to wait anymore.
Subaru had become something far more dangerous than she had expected.
Once someone experienced even a small part of his presence, his attention, his care, his affection it became incredibly difficult to let go.
It was almost addictive.
The more one experienced it, the more they wanted and eventually, it created a desire to drown in it completely.
The same effect was not limited to her.
Emilia, Ram, and even Rem found themselves stealing occasional glances at Subaru as he casually spoiled his spirits.
Each of them reacted differently, but there was a common thread between them.
A quiet sense of jealousy.
For Ram and Emilia especially, that feeling was becoming harder to ignore.
As for Rem… she was still Rem.
In a way, it almost felt like it was part of her nature to fall in love with Subaru.
That tendency did not simply disappear because circumstances had changed.
If anything, the current situation only made it easier for her feelings to grow.
The man standing before her was the same person who had saved her sister.
The same person her sister had already developed feelings for.
That alone was enough to make things more complicated, but also, in a strange way, more natural.
Even if this Subaru had changed significantly…
Even if the timeline itself had diverged from what it was originally supposed to be due to the interference of an outsider…
Even if they had never formed that deep emotional bond that might have existed in another version of events…
He was still the kind of man Rem would choose.
If given the choice, she would still see him as someone worthy of being her partner.
That fundamental part of her had not changed.
Meanwhile, Subaru stood there, quietly aware of something most people could not perceive.
Through his senses, he could feel the emotions directed toward him.
From nearly every woman present.
Their affection, love and admiration as clear as sky to him.
It was all there, flowing toward him in different forms and intensities and honestly, he did not know what to say about it.
Except for Beatrice, every woman around him seemed to hold some level of romantic interest in him.
Even Priscilla.
That already was enough to make the situation complicated.
At the very least, however, there was one small relief.
Anastasia was different.
Unlike the others, she did not seem to develop romantic feelings for him.
While she clearly respected him and had come to admire him, especially after learning about his true identity her emotions did not cross into that territory.
Just like Crusch, her feelings remained grounded, limited to respect and acknowledgement of his position.
'Phew… for a moment, I thought I was going to turn into one of those cliché harem protagonists who somehow makes every woman fall in love with them and ends up marrying them all,' Subaru thought, quietly celebrating this as a small victory in his mind.
Being loved was not something he disliked, instead far from it.
It was something anyone would naturally feel happy about.
However, he was also aware of a simple truth.
He did not love every woman back in the same way.
And more importantly, he understood that managing something like a harem was far more complicated than it appeared in stories.
It was not just about receiving affection, but it involved responsibility, balance, and the emotions of multiple people who all mattered.
Right now, he had not even figured out how to properly resolve the situation between Reina and Gloria.
That was already complicated enough.
Trying to make them accept sharing him, while also maintaining their trust and feelings, was not something that could be handled carelessly.
If he made even a single wrong move, it could damage everything.
When it came to his own feelings, Subaru was clear with himself.
He did not hold romantic feelings for Rem or Emilia.
For Ram, however, things were different.
There was something there, something that could develop into genuine romantic affection if given time.
As for Priscilla, his attraction toward her came naturally.
She was undeniably strong, confident, and attractive in her own way, which made it difficult to ignore.
But above everything else, there was one thing Subaru was absolutely certain about.
He did not want to hurt Reina.
No matter what happened, that was something he refused to do.
Even considering everything that had already happened between him, Gloria and Reina back in the carriage, he did not want to repeat past mistakes.
If things were to move forward in any direction in the future, it had to be done properly.
With clear understanding and with mutual agreement and most importantly, with Reina's consent.
Unlike his parents, who believed that the best way to deal with problems was to wait and hope they resolved themselves over time, Subaru had no intention of taking that path.
He wanted a direct approach.
From his perspective, leaving things unresolved only allowed them to grow worse.
He had experienced that firsthand.
The self-loathing and frustration he once carried had not appeared out of nowhere.
A part of it had come from being treated kindly on the surface, while the deeper issues he was going through were never truly confronted.
His parents had cared for him, he knew that.
They had loved him in their own way.
But at the same time, they had failed to push him when he needed it most.
They never forced him to face himself, never challenged him harshly enough to break him out of that downward spiral and those had consequences.
'Maybe… that could have saved the other Subarus from a lifetime of pain and suffering,' he thought, letting out a quiet sigh.
Still, he did not blame them.
He understood that they had done what they believed was right.
No one could have predicted what would happen to him and no one could have imagined that he would be dragged into another world by a Witch.
'Well… kidnapped—no, summoned,' he corrected himself mentally with a faint sense of irony.
Pushing that thought aside, Subaru shifted his focus forward.
'There's also Satella… I need to take the next step there as well,' he thought.
Compared to Reina, Satella was different.
She was far more patient.
From what he had observed, she seemed content simply being near him, basking in whatever affection he showed her.
She did not demand more, nor did she try to force anything and for now, that made things easier.
Subaru was also relieved about one important detail.
He had already been honest about this situation with Reina long before their relationship had fully formed.
He had made sure there were no hidden truths between them when it came to Satella.
Because of that, at the very least, the situation between him, Reina, and Satella was something that had been acknowledged and accepted beforehand.
It did not solve everything.
But it gave him a foundation to move forward without betrayal.
He also could not help but acknowledge something else.
The norms of this world were very different from the one he originally came from.
If this had been his previous world, there was no way a modern woman would so easily accept the idea of sharing the man she loved with another woman, let alone multiple women.
The cultural expectations, personal boundaries, and social standards would have made such a situation nearly impossible.
But here, things worked differently.
The values of this world, combined with the unique circumstances surrounding power, status, and relationships, made such arrangements far more… acceptable.
In a strange way, that worked in Subaru's favor.
So, while Subaru internally celebrated what he considered a small victory of his "rizz" not being completely omnipotent, he remained blissfully unaware of a rather ironic truth.
Even if this version of Anastasia and Crusch did not hold romantic feelings for him…
That did not mean every version of them shared the same stance.
Somewhere else, in another variation of events, there were versions of Anastasia and Crusch who were far more emotionally invested in him than he would be comfortable with.
In other words, he was not escaping this situation so easily.
"Rizzbaru" was not getting out of this pit that quickly.
In fact, without realizing it, the very outcome he feared the most seemed to be slowly taking shape around him.
Step by step.
Bit by bit.
He was moving closer to becoming exactly what he did not want to be.
A typical, white-haired, overpowered, harem anime protagonist.
Ahem.
To be continued...
(A/N: Did you guys forget I have promised bonus chaps if you get me powerstones? Like at the very least it is not that difficult to get into top 30)