Subaru reunites with his parents after more than a year apart, but he's not alone.
How will they react to the fact that he didn't actually disappear into thin air, but was summoned to another world?
— Shadow Garden —
In a world full of darkness, where the very concept of existing was confusing, where there was no light or sound, there was a woman with silver hair and a black dress, who seemed to be suffering.
It was not possible to know clearly if she truly suffered, as her face was covered with a black veil, which revealed nothing except the lower part of her face. But that was enough to confirm any kind of suspicion.
There were tears falling from her face, falling into the darkness, disappearing as soon as they fell from her face.
"Where are you?"
She kept crying, while her hands were on her face, she kept repeating the same phrase over and over again.
"Where are you? Where are you? Where are you?"
She kept repeating the same phrase, for what seemed like an eternity, although it could not be known exactly how much time had passed, as the concept of time also did not exist in this place.
"Why? Why? Where are you? Where are you? I love you. Who was it? Where are you? Why? Why? Why? I love you. Where are you? Where are you? I love you. I love you. I love you. Where are you?"
The woman in the black dress kept crying, saying words with apparent nonsense over and over again, without stopping.
The reason for the suffering she was going through was a woman, it was because…
Because the person she loved the most, the only person she loved in this world, the only one who had told her that she loved her madly, the only person who had been with her for so long, the person who suffered again and again for her.
That person had disappeared from this world without a trace.
...
...
— Pleiades Watchtower —
In the Sand Dunes of Augria, a desert that seemed to stretch into infinity, with the end of it seeming not to exist, a desert with nothing but sand, if you did not count the countless beasts that resided in the place or the miasma that plagued the entire desert, which would drive anyone mad.
In the midst of this endless desert, there was a watchtower, made of white bricks and confusing architecture, but definitely magnificent, that seemed to reach the skies or even beyond, as the clouds were not as high as that magnificent tower.
Inside the tower, on the fourth floor, Alcione, there was only darkness. A shadow seemed to begin consuming the entire tower, sparing nothing, even the spirit of the Green Room was exempted from being consumed by the shadow.
At the epicenter of the floor, a figure made of pure darkness was in the midst of the darkness. Despite being made of pure darkness, by the outline and silhouette of that figure it was obvious that it was a woman. Also, anyone with a minimum of common sense knew that this figure was responsible for the shadows that were consuming the fourth floor and quickly descending to the fifth, Celaeno, where the entrance of the tower was.
"Where are you? Where are you? Where are you? Where are you? Where are you? Where are you? Where are you? Where are you? Where are you? Where are you? Where are you? Where are you? Where are you? Where are you? Where are you?"
The only thing that figure said over and over without stopping was a question, apparently to nothing.
At the entrance of the tower, which connected with the Sand Dunes of Augria, a giant door about 10 meters tall, seemed to struggle against something that was pushing it, but a few seconds later it was consumed by darkness and disappeared.
The shadow had left the tower and began to advance little by little across the desert, contaminating it with darkness as it passed.
"Where are you?"
...
...
— Natsuki's house, more than 1 year ago. —
On a cold and silent night, with the wind passing in front of the houses, and the streetlights illuminating the entire area, which otherwise would be so dark that nothing would be seen.
In a quiet neighborhood in Japan, in front of a two-story house, there was a police patrol with its lights on, and there were many people around.
???: "So, that would be all we need. Don't worry, we will definitely find your son as soon as possible, your son has already been declared a missing person, and any information about his whereabouts will reach us. Take care, Mr. and Mrs. Natsuki."
???: "Don't worry… We appreciate your time and apologize for the inconvenience…" A low female voice was heard with deep sadness, of middle age, with brown and terrifying eyes and brown hair tied in a ponytail, Natsuki Naoko, the mother of Natsuki Subaru.
???: "I say the same, I don't know what happened to that idiot of our son… When he comes back, I'm going to give him a good beating for giving us such a big scare." This time, a male voice, from a tall man with glasses, who looked like he exercised, as he had quite considerable musculature, also commented a farewell to the police officer, it was Natsuki Kenichi, the father of Subaru.
The police officer said goodbye with a slight bow and got into his car along with his partner who was holding a notebook, writing things down. When the police patrol moved away, leaving only a slight cloud of carbon dioxide that their car emitted from the exhaust, the parents remained staring with a lost look.
One of the people who was in the crowd surrounding the Natsuki house approached Kenichi with concern.
"Kenichi… I understand how difficult and how badly you are going through this, don't worry, I am sure that Subaru will come back soon, so please, don't be so hard on yourself, it wasn't your fault that he disappeared."
The ordinary-looking man patted Kenichi on the shoulder and gave a look to Naoko, said goodbye, and with him, the whole crowd dispersed.
Kenichi: "This idiot son of ours… making a whole show for attention, huh?" Although Kenichi said those harsh words, it could be seen that he wasn't serious, as tears began to fall from his eyes.
Naoko: "Subaru… where are you…" Naoko said that, already crying with her hands on her face, but still the tears fell from her hands to the street.
Kenichi noticed and quickly approached to hug his wife, calming her down a bit.
Kenichi: "Naoko… don't worry, I am sure he will come back to us soon, he surely did it to get attention, and then we can give him a big scolding, right?" Kenichi forced a smile to not worry his wife.
Naoko hugged her husband tightly and continued crying.
The reason why a police patrol was here and the couple was so devastated was because their only son, Natsuki Subaru, had disappeared without a trace three days ago.
When Subaru had gone to the convenience store and hadn't returned, his parents became nervous and called his cell phone, one of those old flip ones, since the phone he used every day he always left at home, as he insisted that it could be stolen if he took it out every time he went out. But due to his parents' insistence, who were worried that something might happen to him and he couldn't let them know where he was, they bought him another one that only had the basics: internet, calls, a clock, and that.
Even so, they thought he might have gone to a friend's house or something like that, so although worried, they went to sleep.
The next day, since he hadn't answered the call, his parents began calling the families of all of Subaru's "friends," hoping he would be there.
Everyone said that he hadn't been there and that they hadn't seen him either, so they began to really worry about whether something had happened to their son.
They were terrified by the idea that Subaru had been kidnapped, but they remembered that their son was a teenager at that age, so they thought he could simply be at some hotel spending a day without them, wanting to be alone.
So despite being in constant fear and glued to the house phone, they didn't call the police.
They expected him to return tomorrow, since the last time they saw Subaru, he seemed somewhat depressed. Naoko noticed it because when he said goodbye to him, he did not respond or say anything, and just left through the door.
On the second day, as there was still no response regarding Subaru's whereabouts, they went to the convenience store to ask if they knew anything about him. Fortunately, the worker had seen him that night, and his parents began to have hope that they knew where he was.
Their mood darkened again when they said they did not know where he was, but they told them everything they knew to help them. Apparently, Subaru had bought some instant noodles and a bag of corn chips, and had left without more.
Subaru's parents kept bombarding them with questions, so the manager intervened and let them review the cameras. When they saw the footage from that day on the cameras, they were in shock.
It showed Subaru entering the store, looking at some light novels and saying something, although it was not heard on the cameras, but it was known by the movement of his lips. Then he went to the instant noodles section and was looking at them for a while, grabbed Natto with miso, but quickly turned around regretfully and left it behind, changing it for other instant noodles.
He approached the register and paid for the items he had grabbed, 363 yen, and left with the things in a plastic bag from the store. Everything seemed normal according to what the cashier had said, so they began to despair when the camera had not recorded anything else.
The manager, noticing how they started to despair and become very nervous, told them that he had recently installed a new set of cameras outside the store, so they went to check them with hope of knowing what had happened.
The new cameras, with better resolution than those inside, showed Subaru exiting the store. Nothing seemed strange, except that the wind began to blow very hard and a black blur appeared in a corner of the street.
The manager was a bit puzzled by this, since the cameras he had installed were high resolution, and he mentioned it to the parents, who seemed confused, and resumed the recording.
Subaru began to rub his eyes with fatigue, something that also made sense since according to Kenichi, he had been in a video game marathon.
They continued watching the recording, and the black blur slowly moved towards Subaru, and the wind began to blow stronger. Kenichi thought it looked like a hand, but the image was so blurry that saying it would only be imagining it.
A car passed in front of Subaru and the image turned black for a few seconds, and then Subaru had disappeared.
The parents and the manager opened their eyes wide and froze for a few seconds. It was not a kidnapping or robbery, he simply disappeared, out of nowhere. He vanished without a trace, as if he had never been there in the first place.
The manager quickly rewound the recording and put it in extremely slow motion, and they were able to notice some strange things. The black blur that seemed to be moving slowly, in the next frame of the image was in front of Subaru, and the image turned black from the center outwards, meaning that the recording had not been cut off due to a failure, but rather that what it recorded was simply darkness.
They quickly called the police, who arrived in a few minutes and explained the situation about Subaru's disappearance, along with the security camera video.
The police were stunned to see the scene, and quickly took the couple, who thanked the manager very much for showing them the camera recording, and went to the station to talk about the situation.
They were filling out paperwork to declare Subaru a missing person and went home devastated, although with hope since they said they would send a patrol to ask them more questions at their house the next day.
They did not eat anything or talk for the rest of the day, and when they went to bed to sleep, their minds only wondered one thing.
*What happened to you, Subaru? Where are you?*
...
...
… — Present, Natsuki's house —
In front of an average house, in a quiet neighborhood and late at night, there was a rather strange group.
A boy with black hair wearing clothes that seemed to come from a desert.
A girl with silver hair in white clothes, with a beauty and colors that did not seem of this world.
A girl with golden hair in pigtails shaped like drills, so long that they passed her shoulders and reached the middle of her back.
A girl with pink hair who also seemed to come from the desert, carrying another girl just like her but with blue hair.
A girl with blue hair and emerald green eyes, who seemed to be the only normal one in the group, if it weren't for the fact that they all looked young and there was no one who appeared to be a responsible adult.
A girl with purple hair and white clothes, shorter than average, accompanied by a handsome boy with purple hair, wearing a kind of white uniform and cape, in addition to a sheathed sword at his waist. If knights still existed in this world, he would seem like a real one.
And a… horse? Or something like that, it couldn't be seen very well because a cloth was covering it, but by the size, height, and shape of the silhouette, it was a fairly reasonable and probably correct assumption. After all, what else could it be besides a horse, right? Right?
Subaru was in front of the door; it was very easy to just knock and let them know he was back, but he couldn't.
He hadn't been here in over a year, and he wasn't even sure what would happen when he saw his parents again.
Would they hate him? Would they yell at him about where the hell he had been? Would they call the police to have him arrested? Would they kick him out of the house? Would they cry non-stop? Would they not believe him and think he was someone pretending to be their son? Would they believe him when he said he had been summoned to another world?
Although most of those things didn't make sense, Subaru remained worried, he couldn't know what would happen, but he had to do it.
He had to protect his friends.
His friends came from a world so different and wonderful, where magic existed and all kinds of things, people so strong that anyone would think he was making it up and just telling the plot of an average isekai story.
The cold was getting stronger, even more than normal as he remembered, since only the nights in winter were so cold, and if his calculations were correct, the season of the year should be summer, something that seemed strange to him, but he decided to ignore it.
The group stepped back, as they also felt they should respect the intimacy of the moment they were about to witness, as they knew how difficult it must be for Subaru.
Emilia: "Subaru, I know how strong and incredible you can be, so don't worry, I'm sure your parents have missed you a lot and are very happy to see you again."
The rest of the group nodded at this statement, responding with similar feelings.
Subaru: "... You're right, Emilia-tan, I'm going to be strong, thank you, I really appreciate it."
Beatrice let go of Subaru's hand and moved back with the rest of the group.
Even Ram remained silent, as she knew it wasn't right to joke about Subaru's long-awaited reunion.
Subaru: "Well… Here I go!"
Subaru said that before slapping his face with both hands, to give himself strength, and knocked on the door 3 times.
…
For a few moments, nothing was heard, so he thought they must be asleep, something expected since it was very late, but it was also something that would make the situation very uncomfortable, as Subaru didn't want to intrude like a stranger and force the lock.
Subaru prepared to knock on the door again, but suddenly the light turned on, as he saw through the window next to the door, but he couldn't see very far inside as there were curtains blocking the view.
Subaru tensed immediately, and a female voice was heard.
???: "I'm coming!, Who could it be at this hour?"
Subaru recognized that voice immediately; it was his mother, whom he had not seen in over a year.
— More than a year ago, minutes before Subaru was summoned to another world —
Naoko was in the living room, sitting on the couch, while flipping through a fashion magazine.
Subaru had been in his room on the second floor and came down to the first floor with an empty cup of hot chocolate that he had prepared and drunk in his room while playing video games, and he left it in the sink without washing it.
He had been playing video games all day and was hungry, so he took some money from his parents that he had not earned, and headed to the door intending to buy some things to eat at the convenience store.
Naoko: "Subaru?"
Subaru was at the door, searching for the keys in his pockets, when his mother noticed his presence and began to speak to him.
Naoko: "Subaru, are you going out? It's very late already, is something wrong?"
Subaru did not turn around and said nothing.
He did not want to turn around and have his mother notice that he had not washed his face and start a conversation.
He did not want to start talking to her simply because he did not want to wash the cup he had just used.
He did not respond to his kind mother who was worried about a piece of trash like him, just for not wanting to wash a cup.
Subaru put the key in the lock and opened the door, preparing to leave.
Naoko: "Subaru, I'm not going to force you to respond now, you can take all the time you need but… when you're ready, talk to us, okay?"
Subaru continued without turning around and left the house. Before closing the door, he was able to hear the last word that his mother said to him before being summoned to another world.
Naoko: "Be careful, okay?"
— Current Events —
Subaru's heart began to race as he remembered that scene.
What would happen if his mother hated him for not having bothered to respond? For not having cleaned that cup after using it? For having abandoned them for more than a year without even saying goodbye? He was a real piece of trash; at that moment, he was nothing more than a burden to them, he was the definition of laziness, something that Petelguese would not hesitate to remind him.
He began to sweat cold when the door opened.
And he saw her.
His mother, still with her hair tied in a ponytail on her shoulder, with terrifying eyes, the origin of Subaru's, but with a warm and loving gaze. She looked a little thinner, and with dark circles that were hidden by makeup, but since Subaru did the same, he recognized her instantly. Time seemed to move slower, and Subaru couldn't say anything; despite having his eyes and mouth open, the words wouldn't come out.
Naoko: "!!!"
Naoko opened her eyes as wide as possible, threatening to pop out of her face, and covered her mouth with her hands, unable to contain her surprise. Her son, her only son who had disappeared without a trace more than a year ago, was here back at the door of their house. He seemed taller and healthier, despite wearing strange clothes; it looked like he had gained considerable muscle, and he had a whip at his hip, something even stranger.
But Naoko didn't care.
That was definitely her son, Subaru.
Naoko: "Su-su-su-Subaru?! IS THAT Y-"
Naoko asked a question to confirm her suspicions, but Subaru didn't let her finish and hugged her tightly.
Naoko: "Subaru?!"
Naoko was surprised by the hug, but Subaru started to cry and snot came out of his nose while he screamed.
Subaru's legs lost all their strength and he fell to the floor on his knees, his mother quickly bent down to talk to him, hugging him back, while both were on the floor.
Subaru: "MOM, MOM, MOM, I'M SORRY, FORGIVE ME, I, I, I—"
Subaru could not finish what he was going to say as he continued crying, but he forced himself to continue with his apology.
Subaru: "THE LAST TIME, WHEN YOU TOLD ME TO BE CAREFUL AND I DIDN'T RESPOND, IT WAS JUST BECAUSE I DIDN'T WANT TO WASH THE CUP, I'M SORRY, I'M SORRY, FORGIVE ME, DON'T HATE ME PLEASE, I—"
Subaru kept hugging his mother's chest, and he could not continue because he started to scream, and he was staining his mother's clothes with tears and snot.
Naoko stayed frozen for a few seconds, but immediately came to her senses, and tears started to come out of her eyes, tears that seemed to have been held back for a year.
Naoko: "Idiot."
Naoko gave a little tap with her fingers on Subaru's forehead, interrupting him.
Naoko: "You disappear for more than a year without saying goodbye, and the only thing you think about is a cup?"
Naoko started to cry, but continued speaking.
Naoko: "Do you really think we would hate you for a cup? How silly… Your father and I would never hate you for that… the important thing is that you are back, Subaru."
Naoko said that while smiling at him and tears continued flowing from her eyes.
Subaru looked at her and returned to her chest to cry even harder.
Naoko did not know what had happened to Subaru. She did not know where he had been during the year he had disappeared, nor did she know what he had gone through, but that did not matter now.
Subaru was back with them. He had returned. And that was all that mattered now.
Naoko: "It's okay Subaru, let it all out, okay?"
Subaru cried even louder while hugging his mother with such strength, as if by letting her go, he would lose her once more, a thought that terrified him as much as any other death he had experienced.
Upon seeing Subaru still crying, Naoko smiled and began to gently stroke his head, a gesture of love that only a mother could give to her child.
Naoko then lifted her gaze and opened her eyes in surprise.
There was practically a bunch of people in strange clothing, who did not seem to be from this world.
There was a girl with silver hair, two girls who looked identical except that one had pink hair and the other blue, a girl with blonde hair styled in a way that looked like two drills, a girl with blue hair in pigtails who seemed the most normal of the group, a girl with purple hair who was shorter than average, a boy with elegantly cut purple hair, and… a horse? She wasn't quite sure, as it was covered with a cloth, but the shape definitely looked similar from the point where she was looking at it.
All the strange people were looking at her in surprise, but they gave her a nod, waiting for Subaru to finish so they could speak. Naoko seemed to notice this, so she nodded back at them and looked at Subaru again. She knew she couldn't speak now, so she waited until he let out all the tears he had to shed.
After a few minutes, Subaru finished crying, and although he was still sobbing slightly, it was nothing compared to how he had been before.
Naoko: "Are you feeling better now, Subaru?" she said in a compassionate and loving voice, though a bit worried.
Subaru: "Yes… I'm better now… thank you, mom."
Subaru got up, and Naoko did too, and they continued looking at each other. Subaru, a bit embarrassed now, continued the conversation.
Subaru: "Ummm, Mom, I know you have A LOT of questions to ask me, and I will answer them all, I promise, okay? But could we go inside first?" Subaru slightly averted his gaze, feeling a bit shy, but his mother responded immediately.
Naoko: "Of course! Come in quickly, it's cold, but umm, who are they?"
Subaru: "Ah! No, no, don't worry, they are my friends, could they come in too please?"
Naoko: "Friends...? Oh-, yes, of course, come in quickly before you freeze."
Naoko remained confused and surprised by that statement. Friends...
Subaru had no friends since she began her life as a shut-in, completely stopping going to school and spending all her time in her room. So hearing that she had friends, and so many (albeit very strange ones), filled her with pride and happiness.
Subaru: "Oh, by the way, take off your shoes everyone, its just a thing from here, ok?"
Although they found it a little strange, they trusted Subaru, so they quickly complied with the request and left their shoes at the entrance to the house.
They all entered slowly, saying "Excuse me" in a low voice, to which Naoko just smiled at them. Everything would be explained now, so she let them in.
Naoko: "Um, Subaru's friends, don't be shy, please sit down, my house is your house."
They were all a little embarrassed, but they did so.
When it was Patrasche's turn to enter (still covered in a cloth), he could barely get in, to which Naoko, intrigued, asked.
Naoko: "Umm, Subaru, what is that? A horse? And why do you have one?" she said, frowning.
Naoko: "He's going to suffocate with that cloth on, let me take it off."
Naoko approached Patrasche with the intention of removing the cloth, but Subaru quickly stopped her.
Subaru: "Ummmmmm, Mom, ehhh, don't worry about her. Remember I have a lot to tell you? Well, she's one of those things, but for now, don't take it off, as it could cause a lot of problems, okay?"
Naoko: "Hmmmm, all right if you say so, I'll trust you."
While mother and daughter were arguing, the group was amazed.
They were in the living room, which had wooden floorboards and was very comfortable. Everything was VERY strange. There were some pictures of plants, and in the center there was a low table where you had to kneel to be comfortable, with cushions where they thought they should sit. Around the room, there were some leather-covered armchairs with enough space for four people, and in the other adjacent corner there was another one just like it, where Rem, Ram, Anastasia, and Julius sat on the right, and Subaru, Emilia, Beatrice, and Meili sat on the left (think of them as being in the corner of the house), which was next to the one on the right.
Patrasche lay down next to the armchair, which surprised Naoko and made her even more curious to see the strange creature that was definitely not a horse, but then, what was it? She really wanted to know, but she decided to respect Subaru's wishes and slowly explain the MANY things she needed to explain, such as where the hell he had been for over a year, and that when he returned, he brought with him a bunch of...
Cosplayers?
The truth was that it was a rather irregular group, and I wanted to know everything about them, especially if Subaru considered them friends.
Subaru: "Umm, mom, by the way, where is Dad?"
Naoko: "Ah? Your father is upstairs sleeping; he came home very tired from work."
Subaru: "Can you go wake him up and bring him here, please? I will take responsibility for any anger that might fall on me."
Naoko: "Alright, alright, I'll go wake him up now; in the meantime, you and your friends make yourselves comfortable."
Subaru: "Yes… Thank you, mom."
Naoko simply smiled and went up the stairs, in the direction of his room.
Subaru: "Well… guys, now I'm going to have to explain a lot of things to my parents, so I hope you can help me with some things."
Emilia: "Of course, Subaru, I will help you with everything I can, to lighten your load even if just a little."
Rem: "Rem will do her best to help her hero with the talk about his future in-laws…"
Rem publicly expressed her support for Subaru, although she said the last part blushing in a lower tone.
Beatrice: "I suppose it is Betty's duty as your spirit to help Subaru, as always."
Ram: "Ram will do her best not to emphasize Barusu's numerous defects, especially his lust, in front of his parents, but she promises nothing."
Julius: "Although I don't know exactly how I can help, you have my full support, Subaru."
Anastasia: "Same here, but remember that this will cost you a favor, okay?"
Meili: "Onii-san's mom has some terrifying eyes…"
Subaru was eternally grateful for the help his friends were giving him for the uncomfortable and long talk that awaited them.
Subaru also thought he heard something strange at the end of Rem's statement, which he couldn't quite catch because it was so low; he thought he heard something like "in-laws," but concluded that she must have said something else, so he decided not to think about something so embarrassing, although he didn't dislike the idea.
Emilia, however, did manage to hear the last part of Rem's words due to her semi-elf heritage, and she completely blushed.
Emilia: *I-i-in-laws?! Does that mean… Rem wants to marry Subaru? I…*
As Emilia blushed even more at the thought of a wedding with Subaru, Subaru took her hand.
Subaru: "Emilia-tan, are you okay? You look a bit red… do you feel unwell?"
Emilia: "Kyaaa!, ummm, unwell? Me? Nooooo, I'm fine, don't worry about me, Subaruuuu," Emilia replied, clearly nervous.
Subaru seemed to notice, so he started to gently stroke her head.
Subaru: "Okay, but if you feel unwell or anything, tell me, please, I will do everything I can to help you, Emilia-tan."
Subaru raised his thumb with his other hand, and Emilia nodded still blushing, but very happy about the situation.
A few minutes passed, and from above, voices could be heard talking, which were Kenichi and Naoko, surely discussing Subaru's unexpected return, which also brought many unexpected guests.
A few more minutes passed, and more footsteps were heard on the stairs, from 2 people now.
Subaru, preparing for the arrival of his father, stood up, waiting for him to arrive.
Then, a middle-aged adult also appeared, with the musculature of someone who exercised regularly, but thinner than Subaru remembered.
The group, even if they did not know who was coming down, would have immediately related him as Subaru's father, as they were practically identical, due to the hairstyle, eye color, and their easy similarities, although Subaru did not wear glasses, and Kenichi did, but aside from that, they were very similar.
Kenichi saw Subaru and stared into his eyes intently.
Kenichi had not seen Subaru for more than a year, something that had left both him and his wife, Naoko, devastated.
Subaru shuddered, but approached his father until he was 1 meter away.
Subaru: Umm, uhhh, hello, dad, ehh…"
Subaru was very nervous about reuniting with his father, a figure he totally idolized, like a hero from legendary stories or something like that. Even from that great admiration, Subaru wanted to be just like his father in every way, but when it didn't happen, it was one of the reasons for his depression and isolation, besides hating himself for blaming his father even a little for not being able to be like him, although he would never say it, since he also found that feeling a bit repugnant.
Kenichi continued to stare intently at Subaru, with a serious expression, something that scared Subaru.
Subaru: "Ehhh, dad, I…"
Subaru didn't know what to say. He hadn't seen his father for more than a year, and he had immense love and respect for him. The reason he wasn't hugging his father or crying like a baby (again) was because there were literally no tears left in his body. He had cried with the return of Rem, and now with his mother, he had let out everything he had left.
Seeing that his father still wasn't responding, Subaru knew he had to say something or they would stay like that all day, since he knew his father was very stubborn (like him).
Subaru: "Dad… I… I'm really sorry, I truly am sorry, it wasn't my intention to disappear without explanation for more than a year, although it wasn't my fault, I will take full responsibility, but now I am going to explain everything to you and mom. Please, listen to me, dad."
Subaru opened up to his father, and he was completely honest with him.
Kenichi closed the distance, and out of nowhere.
Subaru: "WOAH?!"
Kenichi hugged Subaru tightly, something that Subaru did not expect in any way.
Kenichi: "Stupid son… you disappear for more than a year, and now you come back and bring a bunch of cosplayers with you? It's so ridiculous that if it weren't for your mother telling me, I would have thought they were crazy and would have hit them."
Subaru: "You… aren't you furious with me? I thought you were going to hit me or do some martial arts move—"
Kenichi interrupted Subaru by putting him in a martial arts hold, grabbing Subaru's arm and pulling it back.
Subaru: "WAAAAH, IT HURTS, IT HURTS, YOU'RE GOING TO RIP MY ARM OFF! STOP, STOP!"
Kenichi: "Yes! You were right, it has been more than a year since your mother and I have seen you, and as soon as you disappeared, I promised myself that I would hit you for this, so be a man and take it!" Kenichi said while applying even more force.
Subaru screamed in pain even louder, to which Subaru's friends stood up, intending to protect Subaru.
Emilia: "Subaru!"
Naoko: "Dear, don't worry about their antics, they are like this all the time, it's their way of reconnecting after so long. I'm sure Subaru also did silly things with you, right?"
Emilia relaxed and sat back down, as although she did not feel malice in Subaru's father, it was a natural reflex to protect Subaru.
Emilia: "I understand, I apologize for my behavior, ma'am…"
Naoko: "I'm Naoko dear, and my husband is Kenichi."
Emilia: "Y-yes! I'm sorry, Naoko-san."
Naoko: "Just call me Naoko dear, and what is your name?"
Emilia blushed, remembering that she had not introduced herself yet.
Emilia: "I'm sorry! My name is Emilia. Just Emilia."
Naoko: "A pleasure to meet you, Emilia."
Emilia: "T-the pleasure is mine, Naoko!"
Naoko smiled and went to bring 2 chairs from the dining room, preparing for the long conversation that awaited them, and they would not leave until they got all the answers they wanted.
Kenichi finally let go of Subaru, who started to hold his arm (Just in case, he had grabbed the arm that did not have dragon blood) and began to catch his breath.
Kenichi: "That is only 1% of your deserved punishment, so hold on."
Subaru: "You're crazy! You could have almost broken my arm or something!"
Kenichi: "Bah, you're exaggerating, it seems you're still a crybaby, huh? From what your mother told me, you were cuddled up to her for a long time!"
Subaru: "Mom, why did you tell him that knowing he would mock me! Traitor!"
Naoko only laughed a little while covering her mouth with her hand and looking away, as if she were not the one who told Kenichi that.
Kenichi: "In any case, Son… Thank you for coming back, we missed you a lot."
Out of nowhere, the comedic atmosphere turned melancholic and sad, although love was evident throughout the room.
Subaru: "I… Yes… I understand. I missed you both too, dad, mom." Subaru said while looking at both of them, with an expression of pain but strong.
Kenichi: "Heh, well, anyway, you have a lot to explain, so why don't we start now? It's a Saturday night, so we have time."
Subaru: "Yes… you're right, but first things first, we should do the introductions, right?"
Kenichi: "You're right, guys, I am the father of this idiot, my name is Kenichi. I'm sure you have suffered a lot for taking care of him, so I thank you as a father." Kenichi joked a little at the end, but his feelings were sincere.
Naoko: "Hehehe, I am Naoko, his mother, it's a pleasure to meet you all and I hope we can get along well."
Everyone nodded and the introductions began little by little.
Emilia was the first to introduce herself.
Emilia: "Hmm, I am Emilia, just Emilia, a candidate from the royal selection. It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Natsuki." She said while bowing and sitting back down.
Kenichi: "Wow, how polite and lovely you are, miss. In any case, the pleasure is ours."
Naoko: "I say the same, dear, you are very beautiful, but you don't seem to be from around here, where are you from?"
Naoko asked with curiosity, since although it should be obvious that it is some kind of cosplay and role-playing, she had a feeling that told her she was wrong.
Emilia: "Umm, this…"
Subaru quickly intervened, as he still couldn't say that she was a half-elf from another world where magic existed.
Subaru: "Mom, I know it all sounds VERY strange, but please wait until they finish their introductions, okay? Emilia-tan, don't worry, we will tell them now, alright?"
Emilia: "Y-yes, Subaru!"
Emilia blushed a little at the intervention of her knight, and sat down embarrassed quickly.
Subaru just smiled and looked back at his parents.
Naoko seemed to agree, and nodded, although she was looking at Emilia with more attention, as her maternal instincts noted that their relationship was… peculiar… at least, but she still didn't want to jump to conclusions.
The next to introduce herself was Beatrice:
Beatrice: "I guess it's my turn, I am a Great Yin spirit, and Subaru is my contractor, my name is Beatrice, I suppose."
Kenichi: "What? Contracted spirit? And what about those butterfly contact lenses? What is that Subaru, some kind of role-playing game? Besides, she's just a little girl, where are your parents, little one?"
Beatrice: "I suppose Betty's adorable appearance can deceive common eyes, but Betty is older than you, I suppose."
Kenichi: "I admit you are quite adorable, but I am definitely older than you, little one."
Subaru: "Dad, please, just let everyone introduce themselves, and don't interrupt, okay?"
Kenichi: "Okay, okay, I got it."
Naoko: "It's a pleasure to meet you, Beatrice-chan."
Kenichi: "Same here, Beatrice-chan."
Beatrice: "I guess my contractor's mother has better manners than her father, I suppose. But the pleasure is mine, I suppose."
Kenichi felt slightly offended by that statement, but he couldn't think of anything to refute it since deep down he knew she was right.
Meili was the next to introduce herself:
Meili: "Ummm, hello, parents of onii-san, I am Meili Portroute, the beast tamer and ex-assassin."
Meili said with a radiant smile and her eyes closed, her natural tenderness splendidly highlighted, though that last statement was somewhat disconcerting. Her parents said nothing, as they knew it was some kind of role-playing game (albeit a rather murky one). However, Kenichi couldn't resist the temptation to ask.
Kenichi: "onii-san? Subaru, don't tell me she's 400 years old too. She looks like a totally normal girl. Where even are your parents, little one?"
Meili: "Umm, my parents... I don't know! Maybe they're dead or something after abandoning me... Unless you mean the beasts that raised me, then I'd say Elsa killed them all!" Meili replied with complete confidence in her words, while continuing to smile.
Kenichi: "Um... son, don't you think the role-playing is getting a little out of hand?"
Subaru: "Dad, please just let everyone finish introducing themselves so I can explain properly, okay?" Subaru said, a little uncomfortable, scratching the back of his neck.
Naoko: "Honey, please stop embarrassing our son in front of his friends, will you?" Naoko simply smiled at Kenichi, who began to sweat a little.
Kenichi: "Hmmm... okay... it's nice to meet you, Meili-chan." He said with a sincere smile, although he was still bothered by the issue of her parents. It was late at night and her parents should have come to pick her up, but at Subaru's request, he swallowed his concerns.
Naoko: "Yes, it's nice to meet you, Meili-chan." Naoko kept smiling as she greeted Meili.
Rem was the next to introduce herself, although unlike the rest, she did not stand up to greet them, which Subaru's parents found strange, but they did not say anything as they thought she might be tired from the trip.
Rem: "Umm, it's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Natsuki. I am Rem, a maid at Count Roswaal's mansion and the personal maid of—"
Subaru: "OKAY, OKAY, THAT'S ENOUGH, REM."
Subaru interrupted Rem before she introduced herself as his personal maid, because even though it was technically true, it was too embarrassing to admit, especially in front of his parents.
Rem just laughed slightly as she blushed, a scene that both parents noticed, and they began to theorize about the possible relationship between this beautiful girl and their son.
Kenichi: "Hmmm, maid, you say? And who do you mean by personal maid?" Kenichi smiled mischievously as he began to piece things together one by one.
Rem, realizing what she had said unconsciously, felt embarrassed and her whole face turned red.
Rem: "Ah, um, this..."
Naoko: "Honey, please don't embarrass our guests with stupid questions, okay?"
Kenichi: "Ouch, ouch, that hurts! Yes, OKAY, I GET IT!"
Naoko was smiling as she pulled her husband's ear, which was red when she let go, and he rubbed it with tears in his eyes.
Naoko: "Dear, the pleasure is all ours. Please forgive my silly husband, but you must have experience being with my son, right?" Naoko gave a mischievous smile, as her maternal instincts told her that this girl had feelings for her son, but she confirmed her suspicions by the girl's reaction, who became very nervous, as well as by Subaru's reaction when they said "personal maid." Although it still seemed a little strange to her, she assumed it was some kind of role-playing game or something like that.
Kenichi: "Yes, yes, the pleasure is ours, Rem-chan," Kenichi said with a sincere smile, even though he was still rubbing his red ear.
Ram was next to introduce herself.
Ram: "Well, I guess it's my turn. I'm Ram, and as is obvious from the resemblance, I'm Rem's twin sister. I'm also a maid at the Roswaal mansion, where Barusu causes a lot of trouble." Ram stood up and bowed, showing considerable class and good manners.
Kenichi felt a STRONG urge to make a comment about his son's nickname and tease him, but just before he did, his wife glared at him with a smile on her face, something he knew was a sign that he shouldn't go against her.
Naoko: "It's a pleasure to meet you, Ram. You and your sister are very pretty, you know that?"
Ram: "Of course. Ram gained all her prettiness from being Rem's sister."
Rem: "Nee-samaaa" Rem blushed at the compliment and hid her face behind Ram's back. She wanted the ground to swallow her up at that moment, as she was a bundle of nerves in front of her hero's parents, something that embarrassed her greatly.
Kenichi noticed that Subaru nodded with his arms crossed and a serious look on his face, but it seemed more like an unconscious act than a conscious one, and his desire to tease him was growing enormously, as he knew there was chemistry there.
Kenichi opened his mouth again, but was interrupted by his wife's grip on his back, which squeezed him in a subtle but strong way, which scared him and made him give up on his plan.
Kenichi: "Haa, it's a pleasure to meet you, Ram-chan."
Ram: "...I guess that's where Barusu gets his nonsense from."
Subaru: "Nee-sama!"
Kenichi couldn't imagine how much this new information would upset his son, which was basically that his son was just like him, and he tried to open his mouth for the third time, but his wife's grip became so tight that he could swear he felt a bone break, so he gave up on his plan (again).
Naoko kept her eyes closed and a smile on her face, making her look like the devil in disguise.
Next was Anastasia.
Anastasia stood up and began to introduce herself.
Anastasia: "Allow me to introduce myself. I am Anastasia Hoshin, director of the Hoshin Trading Company, and like Emilia, I am one of the five candidates for the Royal Selection. It is a pleasure to meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Natsuki." Upon finishing her introduction, she gave a quick but polite bow.
Julius introduced himself immediately after his lady, being the last to do so.
Julius: "I am Julius Juukulius, spiritual knight of the Dragon Kingdom of Lugunica, and knight of Lady Anastasia. It is a pleasure to meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Natsuki." Julius finished with a grand formal bow, worthy of the finest knights.
Naoko: "Oh wow, you guys are really serious about this role-playing thing, huh? It's a pleasure to meet you too, Anastasia-san and Julius-kun." Naoko ended her statement with a slight laugh.
Kenichi: "By the way, Anastasia-san, you have a Kansai accent. You're not from there, are you?" Kenichi asked a question, as the accent was noticeable.
Anastasia: "Interesting... Natsuki-kun mentioned that too. It must be somewhere in this
world."
Kenichi: "Huh? What do you mean?"
Anastasia had spoken softly, but Kenichi was able to hear something, though he didn't know what.
Anastasia: "Oh, don't worry, Mr. Natsuki, and no, I'm not from Kansai like you think, I just use the Kararagi accent."
The married couple simply assumed it was another part of her role-playing game, so they decided not to bother her further.
Kenichi: "Well, anyway, it's a pleasure to meet you all. Thank you for being friends with our son. I know he's an idiot who causes a lot of trouble, but he's not a bad person." Kenichi laughed and also gave a brief bow.
Ram: "Ha! Even his father, who hasn't seen him in over a year, knows what an airhead his son is, although I suppose like father, like son."
Rem: "Nee-sama!"
Beatrice: "I suppose even if Betty's contractor's father is right, Betty's contractor is even cooler than he thinks." Beatrice said as she crossed her arms.
Emilia: "It's true! Subaru has shown his awesomeness many times this year, even before he became my knight!" Emilia said with a smile, as she liked it when people emphasized how wonderful her knight was, even though he was reluctant to receive praise, always belittling himself and giving credit to others, something Emilia didn't like.
Rem: "Emilia-sama is right, Subaru-kun is very incredible, although it's natural since he's her hero," said Rem enthusiastically, joining in the chain of praise for Subaru.
Subaru: "Beako, Emilia-tan, Rem..." Subaru began to blush with embarrassment, as he didn't like giving compliments, especially to the girls he loved in front of their parents!
Kenichi laughed when he saw how popular his son was with women, as it was obvious that it was a role-playing game, and the feelings of affection towards his son were undoubtedly genuine.
Naoko also laughed a little, enjoying her son's embarrassment around the girls.
Kenichi realized that they were done with the introductions... No, someone was still missing... the figure that was covered in cloth, which he knew was a living being because it moved when he entered and positioned itself next to the armchair, and was breathing, as he could see the cloth rising and falling.
Kenichi: "Hey Subaru... can we ask what that animal under the cloth is...?" Kenichi was dying of curiosity, and he really wanted to lift the cloth by force and find out what it was, but he also had a deep feeling inside that told him he didn't want to know.
Naoko nodded, as she also wanted to know what the animal under the cloth was, since she assumed it was a horse, but slightly smaller.
Subaru: "Ohhh... Right... Um... Look, first, so you can fully understand who she is, I should start by telling you about... what happened during the year I was missing.
Her parents swallowed hard, as they knew it was a serious subject, since Subaru had also become quite serious when talking about it.
Although they also noticed how he referred to the animal as "she," they didn't give it much thought for now.
The group from the other world also tensed up, as they knew this was not an easy topic to bring up.
Subaru began to feel a little nervous, as he didn't know where to start.
Emilia noticed his concern and gently took his left hand, immediately calming Subaru down.
Subaru: "Emilia-tan..."
Emilia: "Don't worry, Subaru, I'll help you with the story if you need it, so go without any worries, okay?"
Subaru blushed, but immediately composed himself and looked at his parents.
Rem also wanted to take her hero's hand and ease his worries, but unlike Emilia, who was sitting next to Subaru and could slip her hand into his more or less discreetly, Rem would have to stretch her arm to take his remaining hand, something that would be easily noticed by his parents, which would fill her with embarrassment, so she settled for giving Subaru a smile and a few words.
Rem: "Subaru-kun, Rem will also do her best to ease your burden, so do your best too."
Subaru: "Rem... Yes... you're right. Thank you, I really appreciate it."
Rem nodded, and Subaru began his explanation.
Subaru: "Well... where to start, huh..."
Kenichi: "Why don't you start by telling me what happened when you disappeared for a year and came back with a whole group of cosplayers?" Kenichi made an obvious statement, to which Subaru scratched the back of his neck.
Subaru: "Well, first, before I start, please, Mom, Dad, I want you to trust that EVERYTHING I'm going to tell you is true, no matter how crazy and absurd it sounds, okay?"
Naoko: "Subaru... you're scaring me a little... what do you mean by trusting what you say? We're your parents, and we'll believe you no matter what you say." Naoko appeased Subaru's concerns, even if only a little, it served to reassure Subaru.
Kenichi: "Yeah, you talk like you're about to tell us you were summoned to another world and became the hero who returned home after slaying the Demon King." Kenichi laughed as he made his joke, trying to lighten the mood, though he had no way of knowing that the first half was actually true.
The group was confused by the term "Demon King," but assumed it was just another one of Subaru's things, something that only made sense in this world.
Subaru: "Of course not... but..." Kenichi noticed Subaru's concern.
Kenichi: "...But what?" Kenichi became a little nervous, as he didn't want to believe that something that only happened in anime or manga was true.
Subaru: "I... a year ago, after going to the convenience store, I went..." Subaru swallowed hard and finished dropping his bombshell.
Subaru: "I was... summoned to another world."
Subaru's parents were shocked, their mouths agape, even though they weren't saying anything.
Kenichi: "Son... we'll trust everything you tell us, but this... is a difficult revelation to take in. It's not that we don't believe you, but..." Kenichi was the first of the married couple to speak, although you could still hear the slight fear and concern in his voice, which he tried to hide, but it was there.
Naoko: "Subaru, it's not that we doubt you, but... Are you sure that happened, and you're not confused?" Naoko was just as worried about her son as her husband, since it was quite absurd for a person who had been missing for over a year to say that he had been summoned to another world.
Subaru: "I know it's hard to take in, but it's true. I was summoned to another world, where magic and other races exist, just like in manga and anime. In fact, everyone here also comes from there." Subaru said seriously and with concern for his parents, as he knew this was something difficult to take in.
Kenichi: "So you're saying that... you're an Isekai protagonist?" Kenichi said, laughing a little at the end, even if it was forced.
Subaru: "Right... I know! It would be much faster to show you something from another world, so as not to waste any more time explaining. Emilia-tan!"
Emilia: "Ah! Subaru? What's up?" Emilia was a little confused that Subaru was talking to her in the middle of their conversation, so she caught her off guard.
Subaru: "Can you make an ice soldier, please? Ah! But make sure it doesn't break anything, I don't want us to be left homeless!" Subaru made a request that made perfect sense, although he expressed genuine concern at the end, as he didn't want the house to be destroyed or anything like that.
Emilia: "Got it! Leave it to me!" Emilia was happy that Subaru trusted her, so she stood up and began to accumulate mana in her body.
You could see Emilia begin to glow, and then she pointed her hands in front of her, ready to cast the spell.
Emilia: "Ice Brand Arts, Ice Soldier!"
The next moment, an ice soldier was created in front of everyone, greatly surprising her parents.
Naoko: "Oh my god..." Naoko put her hand over her mouth, her eyes wide open.
Kenichi had a similar reaction, which was completely natural and exactly what Subaru had expected.
Kenichi was about to say something similar to his wife when he noticed something.
The ice soldier was like a humanoid figure, but if you looked closely, its appearance became obvious.
Although it was made entirely of ice and had no color, its face was that of...
Subaru. Subaru: "See?! I'm not lying, I really did go to another world!"
Kenichi, who already suspected that Emilia was in love with Subaru, due to her repeated gestures and trust in him, as well as the fact that she had been holding his hand a few moments ago, found that this revelation took away all his natural fear of learning about the existence of another world, and he began to smile mischievously, as he would not miss such a valuable opportunity to tease him.
Kenichi: "Hehehe, son... I didn't know you'd grown up so fast, huh? You're all man now."
Naoko, who also noticed the soldier's face and had come to a similar conclusion as her husband, also wanted to play with her son a little.
Naoko: "It's true... I didn't know we'd have grandchildren so soon."
Subaru: "Huh? Mom? Dad? What do you mean?" Subaru was confused, since a moment ago they were terrified and in shock over the revelation, and now they were acting super
weird.
Kenichi: "Hehehe, son... didn't you see the ice soldier's face?" Kenichi said as he looked at his son, waiting to see his reaction, which, given his confusion, was obviously not what he expected the soldier to have.
Subaru: "His face? He's an ice soldier, he doesn't have a face—WHAT!" Subaru had gotten up from the couch to get a better look at the soldier. He had seen ice soldiers before, which were just humanoid figures made of ice carrying weapons, such as swords or axes also made of ice, since Subaru had helped Emilia create this technique in the first place, in the year after the events of the Sanctuary.
Ice soldiers didn't have faces, so he was very confused about what had prompted those strange comments about grandchildren and such, but when he turned his head and saw the soldier, he felt like the whole world was falling on him.
It had his face, and although it was made of ice and it was a little difficult to see his features, it was undoubtedly him. The ice soldier was smiling and giving him a thumbs up.
Subaru: "E-E-Emilia-tan? Can you tell me why the ice soldier has my face...?" Subaru pointed at himself and turned to look at Emilia, his embarrassment growing with each passing moment.
It was one thing to make the ice soldier with his face in front of his friends, who would tease him a little, but it would stay there. But with his parents, it was totally different, as it would be like confirmation that he and Emilia were...
Emilia: "Ah! Umm, t-this... I discovered that it was easier to control the ice soldiers if they had the shape of someone close to me, so..." Emilia was looking away while playing with her fingers, embarrassed by the situation she had gotten herself into.
During her stay at the Pleiades Watchtower, on the top floor, Maia had encountered the Divine Dragon, Volcanica, who, although brain dead, was still ridiculously strong. To fulfill the mission entrusted to her by Subaru, she had to pass the final test, which required her to get past Volcanica first. In it, Emilia used her magic and created Subaru's ice soldiers, who greatly helped Emilia to overcome that trial.
Subaru never knew that she had made ice soldiers in his likeness, as it was the first time she had done so, because after that, she fainted and they were summoned to her world.
Emilia was blushing deeply as she fidgeted with her fingers, having unconsciously made an ice soldier of Subaru, and to make matters worse, in front of her parents.
Rem also felt a little jealous, as at the Roswaal mansion's snow festival, she and her sister had also made a Subaru snowman, well... almost.
Naoko: "Ohoho, don't worry, dear, we were just joking, don't take it badly, okay?"
Emilia: "This..."
Subaru: "Ahem, anyway, I'd better continue telling you what happened, right?"
Kenichi: "I'm just saying we have plenty of time, eh, son?" Kenichi was laughing because he found the situation very comical and amusing, since his son's love life was something a father should at least be aware of.
Naoko would usually scold her husband for his nonsense, but this time she said nothing because, to tell the truth, she was also interested in the relationship between her son and this girl, who was from another world.
Subaru: "Well, now that you know I come from another world, you should meet the last person who has yet to introduce themselves."
Subaru approached the cloth and placed a hand on it.
Subaru: "Okay, before I reveal who is here, please prepare yourselves mentally, as you will need it. Just keep in mind that she is NOT dangerous, and that I have complete confidence in her."
Both parents were taken aback by the need to clarify that it wasn't dangerous, but they took a deep breath, and after a few moments they both nodded, ready to meet the last person.
Subaru: "Well... meet my faithful friend, Patrasche!" Subaru lifted the cloth abruptly, revealing the obsidian earth dragon.
Patrasche: "Kyaaaaa!" Patrasche stood up, surprising his parents, who jumped a little, but managed to remain standing without running away or screaming, thanks to Subaru's warning.
Kenichi: "Th-th-that's a..."
Naoko: "A-A dinosaur?"
Both parents were trembling with fear, as it looked like a predatory dinosaur, 2 meters tall, and similar in size to a horse, only... with fangs, claws, and yellow eyes.
Subaru began to stroke his earth dragon, and mentally thanked himself for being so cautious and telling them to get ready, as it saved him a lot of trouble, such as them starting to scream and alert the neighbors, who might even call the police.
Subaru: "No, it's an earth dragon, the equivalent of horses in this world. She's a friend who has helped me since I first arrived in the other world, and I am eternally grateful to her for that."
Patrasche continued to purr as she enjoyed her rider's caresses.
Subaru owed Patrasche a lot, since she would literally die for him (and did so many times), even when he forgot her and hurt her, she never attacked him (except in a certain lost loop that didnt happen!), and always protected him until the end (also literally!). So the least Subaru could do for her was to trust her unconditionally, just as she did him.
Subaru: "Come and pet her, don't worry, she won't attack you, I promise." Subaru reassured his parents, who swallowed hard and slowly approached the dragon.
Kenichi: "H-Hello P-Patrasche, we're your rider's parents, so please don't eat us."
Naoko: "Same here, we don't want to hurt you, okay?"
Patrasche was an earth dragon of an extremely proud breed, who would not even allow other people to approach without her permission, but she let herself be petted.
Kenichi: "Oh..."
Naoko: "Wow, her skin is like a horse's, only rougher and harder."
Patrasche allowed herself to be petted by these strangers, something totally unheard of and unbelievable, especially for Patrasche's breed, but she allowed this because their scent was similar to that of her rider, and because of their appearance, which was similar to her rider (especially Kenichi), she recognized them as her parents. (Patrasche was actually quite an intelligent girl!)
Kenichi: "But Patrasche sounds familiar... wasn't that the name of a dog in the cartoons you used to watch as a child? HAHAHAHAHA, YOU NAMED A DINOSAUR AFTER A DOG!" Kenichi began to laugh out loud, which irritated Patrasche a little.
That act annoyed Subaru... but he knew he was right, since "Patrasche" was the name of a dog in a cartoon he used to watch as a child.
Patrasche, unlike his rider, didn't seem to take the joke so easily and bit Kenichi's hand, hard enough to send the message but not so hard as to tear his hand off.
Patrasche: "KYA!"
KENICHI: "AAAH, THAT HURTS! YOU SAID YOU WON'T BITE!"
Subaru: "You asked for it, though..."
Naoko: "Unbelievable... Patrasche-san, did you understand that? Can you understand human language?" Naoko continued to pet the earth dragon, who in turn rubbed against her hand while purring, but glaring at Kenichi.
Subaru: "That's right! She's very intelligent, as well as cute and reliable! Although she is also a very proud breed, so I'm surprised she only gave you a light bite, but I would recommend that you apologize, Dad." Subaru said, stifling his laughter, as the scene of Patrasche biting his father and him screaming was undoubtedly one of the funniest moments of his life, easily making it into his top 15!
Kenichi: "OKAY, OKAY! I apologize, Patrasche. I promise I won't joke around with dogs near you again, so will you forgive me?" Kenichi bowed while putting his hands together above his head, a gesture of sincere apology.
Naoko: "Don't worry, Patrasche-san. I know he can be a bit of an airhead, but he didn't mean any harm, I assure you." Naoko said as she smiled at him, which seemed to calm the proud earth dragon, who approached her rider's father and let him pet her, although she was still grumbling softly under her breath.
Subaru: "Good girl, Patrasche." Subaru was glad that she and her father were able to reconcile, and he was also surprised at how well she and her mother got along, even though they had only just met.
Subaru: *It must be something girls do that I don't understand, I guess.* Subaru shrugged and let out a sigh.
Meili: "Umm, big brother, I don't mean to interrupt, but there's still someone who hasn't been introduced yet." Meili said in a shy voice.
Subaru: "Huh? What do you mean, Meili?" Subaru stopped petting Patrasche and went over to Meili.
Subaru: "We've all introduced ourselves, right? Who's missing?" Subaru was confused, because according to him, everyone had already been introduced, even Patrasche!
Meili: "Umm, I think it would be quicker if you saw her, ah! And Onii-san's parents, don't be scared, she's not dangerous and she's not going to kill you! At least not anymore..." Meili said with an innocent smile.
Subaru felt his body become heavier out of nowhere, and he began to remember.
Subaru: *Someone is missing... the only person I can think of is...*
A movement in Meili's hair interrupted Subaru's thoughts, but also confirmed them.
A crimson red scorpion crawled out from Meili's back, climbed up her neck, and landed on top of her head.
Everyone was surprised by the revelation, though it was more because they had forgotten about the little scorpion than because they were shocked.
Subaru opened his eyes in surprise, because even though he knew the scorpion was Shaula, he had forgotten that she was with Meili.
Subaru: Cor Leonis.
Subaru used Cor Leonis to quickly confirm his suspicions, and sure enough, the light from the red scorpion was the same as Shaula's.
Subaru: *I had completely forgotten about her... I know it was because of the shock of being swallowed by Satella and returning to my world, but even so, I'll apologize to her later.*
The married couple was startled and let out a small scream when they saw a scorpion on top of a little girl's head, and they approached to remove it from her head, but Subaru stopped them in time.
Even though they had been warned beforehand, it was their parental instinct that had made them act the same way.
Subaru: "Don't worry... you're right, she's the last one to introduce herself." Kenichi: "Wait, is the scorpion one of your friends too?"
Naoko: "And it's another... woman?" Naoko narrowed her eyes when Subaru referred to the scorpion as "she."
She was thinking that her son might be a womanizer, but those thoughts vanished as quickly as they had come.
Naoko: *It must be a case like Patrasche-san, yes, that must be it.
Subaru: "Huh? I mean, yes, it's a woman, but what does it matter? Either way, she's Shaula." Subaru put his hand in front of the scorpion, which climbed onto his hand. It seemed slightly smaller to him, but he didn't think much of it.
She placed her hand in front of her parents and continued with her introduction.
Subaru: "Shaula, these are my parents. You're probably confused about where this place is, but I'll explain everything later."
The red scorpion stared at the couple, and after a few seconds, it leaned forward and jumped onto the man's stomach.
Kenichi: "WAAAH!" Kenichi shuddered at the strange sensation of the scorpion's legs climbing up his body until it stood on his shoulder.
Subaru: "Don't worry, she's friendly, maybe even too much so... but anyway, she would never hurt you... well, not intentionally, hehehe." Subaru scratched the back of his neck with that last statement.
Kenichi and Naoko were confused because they had been told twice that the scorpion would not intentionally cause harm.
The red scorpion caressed Kenichi's cheek with its head, then jumped onto Naoko's shoulder and did the same to her.
Naoko, unlike Kenichi, who despite multiple warnings that it was harmless, remained frozen with fear, as it was still the first time she had seen a scorpion in person, Naoko's reaction was more relaxed.
Naoko gently stroked the scorpion as it rubbed against her cheek.
Naoko: "Hello Shaula-san, it's nice to meet you, let's get along, okay?" Naoko smiled at it as she continued to stroke the scorpion, which seemed to nod in agreement with that last statement, and jumped again, only this time onto Subaru's shoulder.
The couple was amazed at how a small scorpion could jump so far for something its size, but since they knew from Emilia that magic existed, they weren't that surprised.
The red scorpion, which was on Subaru's shoulder, began to rub aggressively against his cheek, nothing compared to what it had done to the married couple.
Meili: "Onii-san, when the half-naked onee-chan turned into a scorpion, she became strangely friendly with me, and when you fainted, she climbed onto my head and fell asleep on my back. I don't know how she managed not to fall off, but she just woke up now."
Subaru removed the scorpion, which was still struggling to rub against him, and put it back on Meili's head, where it seemed to be comfortable.
Subaru: "I see... I guess it makes sense, since she's technically a mabestia now, your Divine Protection must be affecting her, but somehow she still retains her consciousness. Subaru began to think about the possibilities of this being what had happened, but an uncomfortable question from his mother took his mind off it.
Naoko: "Subaru... What do you mean by half-naked...?" Naoko's voice was low.
Subaru: "Oh, no, don't worry about it, Mom! It's just a joke between us, right, Meili?" Subaru began to sweat coldly as he answered fearfully.
Meili: "Well..." Meili began to play with her braids as she looked up at the sky, debating whether she should save Subaru or not. But someone was quicker, someone who couldn't pass up such an opportunity to annoy Subaru.
Ram: "Well, it's no joke, that scorpion is a perverted woman who only wears underwear, who is crazy about Barusu and even calls him master, something that Barusu enjoys with his impure lustful thoughts." Ram said in an amused tone, as she was enjoying every moment of it.
Rem: "Subaru-kun...?" Rem said that almost in a whisper, her tone colder than usual.
Rem: *Subaru-kun found another woman...? And she even calls him master..." Rem remained silent, processing that information.
Subaru felt like he was dead. He was in a salvageable situation, he was about to fall off a cliff, he could still save himself if he explained it correctly. But Ram pushed him off the cliff, inevitably falling into an impossible situation, but a fallen angel straight from heaven came to save him when all seemed lost.
Emilia: "Ram! Don't bother Subaru! Shaula is just... um, Shaula! And Subaru was just being nice to her, right, Subaru?"
Subaru: "Yes, yes! Please, Mom! We don't have any kind of inappropriate relationship, it's just the way she is!" Subaru put his hands together above his head, and he was eternally grateful to Emilia for getting him out of the trouble he was in, which he would be sure to thank her for later.
After this scene, Kenichi remained silent and backed away a little, just enough so that his wife couldn't see him.
Then, he crossed his arms and maintained the most serious expression he had ever made in his life, and the light from the living room was shining directly into his glasses, preventing his eyes from being seen.
Then Subaru saw his father, who, after standing still for a few seconds, gave him a thumbs up while swearing he could see sparks of light coming out of his thumb, as if to say, "I'm proud of you, son."
Subaru's fear vanished instantly as he thought one thing.
Subaru: *Idiot.*
Naoko sighed and agreed to hear the explanation later, as she was uncomfortable with the idea that her young son, apart from having two beautiful girls clearly interested in him, had a third who looked like a prostitute or something.
Naoko: "All right, I'll let you explain later, but first, it's already very late, so shouldn't we eat something first?"
Subaru: "That's right! Guys, you're hungry, right? Now you're going to try food from another world, literally!"
Everyone was excited about the big news, and following Naoko's gesture, they sat down at the dining table, where there were 8 chairs in total, arranged in a formation of 2 chairs on each side.
Subaru: "Wait, there are only eight chairs, so two people will have to eat on the couches." Subaru noticed the ratio of chairs to people and commented on it.
Kenichi: "Oh no, don't worry about that."
Naoko: "That's right, we ate about 30 minutes before... they arrived." Naoko said that last part with some difficulty, as it was unthinkable that her son would return after a year, saying that during that year he was in another world where magic exists, and returning with eight friends, among them two girls who were clearly interested in him, and he was also interested in them.
Subaru: "I see, then I'll help you in the kitchen. What ingredients do we have?" Subaru quickly tried to help in the kitchen to lighten his parents' burden, even if only a little.
Kenichi: "WAIT!" Kenichi tried to stop him from opening the cupboards, but he was too slow, as Subaru saw that they were full of instant noodles and things like that.
He immediately connected this with the fact that his parents looked thinner than he remembered.
Subaru: "Dad, Mom? What happened?" Subaru asked, concerned about his parents, demanding an explanation.
Naoko: "Subaru..." Naoko couldn't finish her sentence before her voice ran out of breath.
Kenichi: "Haa... there's no point in hiding it. Since... you disappeared, the costs of... the search operations, apart from those carried out by the police, cost a lot of money, and we had to cut back on something, and... it wasn't like we really felt like cooking after... you know." Kenichi said everything with difficulty while trembling.
Naoko: "I'm sorry, Subaru, we didn't want you to worry about us and—" Subaru hugged them both quickly, as they were both about to break down.
Subaru: "It's not your fault, please don't blame yourselves. I know it must have been awful, and I'll probably never understand how much you suffered because of me, but know one thing. I'm here now, and even if I disappear at this very moment, at least you'll know it wasn't because I wanted to abandon you, because I could never do that to you. I love you. Both of you, so please... Love yourselves too." Subaru said as he hugged them tighter, and his parents let out tears of relief.
Breaking the embrace, the family looked into each other's eyes.
Naoko: "Subaru... yes, I understand. We'll listen to you, don't worry about us, you should rest, you were in another world after all, weren't you? I can't imagine what you had to go through..."
Subaru froze upon hearing those words, and unconsciously placed a hand over his heart, as they reminded him of what he had been through in another world.
Horrors that no human being could ever comprehend, he suffered through it all, silently, unable to tell anyone.
Naoko: "Subaru?" Naoko noticed that her son began to breathe heavily and started to shake.
Kenichi: "Are you okay, son?
The rest of the group also noticed this, and they were about to get up and go help Subaru with whatever was happening to him.
Subaru noticed this, quickly calmed down, and, breathing deeply, looked at them all again.
They were worried about him, but he didn't want them to worry about him. He was fine; he was used to it, after all.
Subaru: "Mom, Dad, everyone... Don't worry, I'm fine, really! I just remembered some slightly unpleasant things, but that's all, anyway, let's eat!" Subaru intentionally avoided the subject, which everyone noticed, but they decided to ignore him.
However, Rem, who already had experience with Subaru suddenly starting to suffer, and who prided herself on knowing when he was lying, knew that this was definitely a lie. She would make sure to talk to him later and find out why he was suffering.
Emilia, on the other hand, was not used to seeing Subaru suffer out of nowhere, and her intuition told her that something was wrong.
Emilia: "Subaru... are you sure you're okay?" Emilia said with concern, as she cared deeply about Subaru and didn't want him to suffer.
Subaru: "Waah?! E-Emilia-tan! So much warmth makes my heart beat so hard I could die! Don't worry, I'm fine!" Subaru said as he smiled at her and gave her a thumbs up.
Emilia: "Well, if you say so..." Emilia was still worried, and although she felt that Subaru was still hiding something, she decided to talk to him later.