Chapter 57: Facing the Future
Subaru opened his eyes and found himself once again in a ghost-like form.
In an instant, he realized he was back in the long-missed observer's perspective.
Accustomed to this, he calmly surveyed the surroundings.
The version of himself lying on the bed was clearly more mature than he was now.
Beside him sat a child who looked almost identical to how Subaru himself looked at five years old.
"So that's it… The past, the present, and the future? That means the final trial shows a possible future!!"
A conclusion formed in Subaru's heart instantly. And as it did, the scene changed.
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.
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"Subaru, time to get up."
A familiar voice answered his growing anxiety.
The view shifted to the door, where Reinhild stood wearing a kimono.
However, more striking than the unfamiliar attire was the dramatic change in Reinhild's presence.
The Reinhild in Subaru's memory had always been an awe-inspiring, gallant youth.
But the one before him now resembled a fragile, sickly young woman who could collapse at any moment.
Subaru momentarily thought it was a hallucination.
But when he saw how gently his older self treated Reinhild, along with her deathly pale complexion, it all confirmed the truth of what he was seeing.
Then, the perspective rotated again, showing the outside of the room: a city filled with demi-humans and Japanese-style buildings.
Subaru realized at once—they were in the western nation of Kararagi.
—What happened? Why did Reinhild end up like this? And why did she leave the Dragon Kingdom of Lugunica?
Confused and uneasy, Subaru had no time to explore it further before dizziness overtook him. The familiar stone ceiling of the trial chamber appeared before his eyes.
"Damn it!"
Before he could even voice his frustration—
"—Face the inevitable calamity."
The familiar voice echoed, and the same wave of dizziness struck once again.
Compared to the previous ambiguous future, the scene now before him truly deserved the title "disaster."
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.
.
The earth was stained with blood. The skies burned crimson.
Corpses piled up like mountains. Crows turned the heavens into black clouds.
This wasn't just in one location—the vision moved from place to place: the northern Mathers Territory, the plains beneath the great Flugel Tree, the dazzling royal capital, the Astrea Domain in the south, and even the deserts to the east—all of Lugunica had become a literal hell of death.
The view shifted again to a pitch-black cavern, cloaked in deathly silence.
As the vision moved deeper, familiar figures began to appear—more than a thousand Witch Cultists in robes.
As the perspective advanced, Subaru saw many familiar people—Wilhelm, Julius, Ricardo…
All of them were now corpse soldiers, lining the corridor like decorations.
At the end of it stood a throne, in front of which sat a man surrounded by monsters: a white-haired fiend, a blonde-haired devil-woman, a bandaged freak, and a green-haired lunatic.
"Gluttony seems to be dead. She's coming."
The person who spoke—was "Subaru."
No—he looked like Subaru, but the aura he radiated filled Subaru with sheer dread.
If this cavern was the demon realm, then the one sitting on that throne was surely its Demon King.
—What could have happened for things to come to this?
Hearing the words from the "Demon King," the crowd grew restless.
Invisible hands slaughtered those who made the loudest noise without hesitation.
"How shameful. This is a trial for us. How can we show fear? How can we run..."
The green-haired lunatic hadn't even finished before a devastating sword strike blew open the thick rock walls, annihilating all corpse soldiers and cultists in its path, even extinguishing the soul of the Sin Archbishop of Sloth—until it finally reached the source of evil.
"Really now… Entering without permission, attacking without warning… You're trampling on my rights, my existence..."
A white-haired man casually raised his hand in the path of the overwhelming attack.
That unguarded hand, somehow, seemed harder than anything in the world. The full-force blow of the Sword Saint had failed.
Reinhild, the red-haired Sword Saint, stepped into the 10-meter-wide opening.
She looked at the Subaru on the throne with a heartbroken expression.
"So it really was you… Natsuki Subaru. Everything that happened up to now… Was it all just a performance?"
She ignored the ramblings of the others and fixed her gaze on the friend she once trusted, seeing around him friends turned into puppets.
"Regulus, let us talk for a moment?"
The white-haired fiend froze, then nodded. Subaru turned to Reinhild and spoke calmly.
"There's no act involved. Just as I've always said—everything I've done has been for the real you."
"What are you saying?"
The girl would never understand him—and Subaru didn't expect her to.
He stood from his throne and spread his arms wide.
"I… am the Witch Cult's Sin Archbishop of Pride—Natsuki Subaru."
"...I see. Then I have nothing more to say."
Reinhild drew her dragon sword.
A flash of brilliant light followed—and then Subaru was staring again at the familiar stone ceiling.
"—Face the inevitable calamity."
Before he could even curse out loud, the third trial had already begun.
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The tyrant who unified the entire continent. A puppet who could kill himself just to check the weather. A knight who lived forever in repentance…
Each possible future was brief.
But even so, Subaru could clearly see—every version of himself was miserable.
Perhaps because of Return by Death, he saw more futures than anyone else could. Yet none were truly understandable, none made sense.
—What a sick joke.
Subaru understood that this was the point of the trial.
He didn't know what he'd been through, or what his thoughts were in those worlds—but he now knew how easily a single mistake could doom everything.
And the worst part? He didn't even know what to be careful of.
"Even so, do you still have the courage to face the future?"
Minerva swung her fist through the air, then locked eyes with Subaru, her own eyes filled with fierce light.
"Of course. Because I believe—we can find the best possible future."
He answered without hesitation, firm and unwavering.
Minerva understood that this boy would never let the shadow of tragedy stop him from moving forward.
She smiled.
"Yes… That's the answer that best fits someone like me."
Minerva, who had never known the meaning of giving up, grinned in approval.
"But if you ever hurt yourself to reach that future—then I'll heal everything!"
Subaru returned once more to the familiar stone room.
He stood up and walked out of the tomb.
He first smiled and patted the worried great spirit and the land dragon on the head.
Ignoring the glaring contest between the two non-humans, Subaru assessed the situation.
On the right, a second sun had appeared—the Sanctuary's barrier was breaking. On the left, a new ice tower had arisen.
—Yeah. There really was nothing left to be afraid of.
"Beatrice, lend me your strength."
"Don't let yourself be blown away by how powerful Betty is!"
Beatrice said, grabbing the hand Subaru held out to her.
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