ーAs they continued glaring at each other for an excruciating amount of time, Subaru became uncomfortably aware of the droplets of sweat running down his brow.
What a big room. There were two beds on the far side, and near the door was a s.p.a.ce that could easily fit Subaru’s room from his home world. In that s.p.a.ce was packages brought in and neatly organized, but the s.p.a.ce could easily accomodate those things without becoming crowded.
If Subaru stood in the center of the room and enacted a fight, he’d encounter no obstacles at all.
“You don’t plan to let me pa.s.s no matter what, do you?”
Subaru asked, painfully aware of his dry lips and throat that had gone rough out of nervousness.
It was a deep voice, to hide his trembling. Then as a response, the obstruction in front of him, the one blocking Subaru’s path, opened his arms, firmly blocking the door from Subaru’s view.
Recognizing the futility of trying to get past that posture, Subaru latched onto a glimmer of hope, putting out an entreatying look. For a second, Subaru could see a slight wavering in her eyes, but her professionalism quickly recovered and any hesitation vanished.
“Even if that were your request, Subaru-kun, you cannot leave here.”
The one blocking the wayーRemーlooked straight at Subaru, and said bluntly. Subaru sighed at her obstinance, and jokingly shrugged his shoulders.
“Well, just calm down and think about it. I’ve already been left behind, and moreover it’s not as if I have any big power or influence. Therefore, even if I left this room, there’s not much I could do. You get it, right?”
“Repeating himself, Subaru presses Rem urgently in an effort to ease Rem’s anxiety.
Hearing Subaru’s words, she said, “yes,” smiling cutely.
“Certainly if you think about it normally, Subaru-kun’s wish wouldn’t come true if you were to just leave this room. It’s not as if it’s an easy place to find, and hypothetically, if you were to make it there, I still can’t think of anything you could do.”
“Right?”
“But that is merely the conclusion Rem can draw from common sense.”
Shutting him down flatly, Rem looks at Subaru unsmilingly. Having been scrutinized from head to toe, Subaru adjusted his posture. Then the girl continued.
“But in Subaru-kun’s case, it is impossible to tell what kind of strange methods you will use to achieve your goal. It could be a solution that is beyond Rem’s imagination.”
“You sound like you’ve been taken over by a demon; I can’t tell if you trust me or you don’t trust me. It’s not like I’ve done anything above your expectations!?”
“If Subaru-kun thinks so, then that must be. From your perspective, that is.”
Subaru tried to gently correct Rem’s thoughts, but Rem, who had already solidly constructed an image of Subaru, was unswayed.
Either way, it was quite the difficult situation, having to persuade her to let him pa.s.s using his words. Maybe it was better to create a path a different way.
“That’s quite a high level topic. It’s the same as what you said in the beginning.
Scratching his head while sighing, Subaru narrowed his eyes as if thinking while looking at Rem. No, his line of sight was actually beyond him–to beyond the door to the room where Emilia and Roswaal had left Subaru behind.
※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※
“–What? Housesitting!?”
Breakfast had just ended, and everyone was about to return to their rooms when Subaru, who was just told his task for the day, shouted in surprise.
In front of the shocked Subaru was Emilia and Rem.
And the one who had caused Subaru to yell in the first place, Emilia, put her hand on her hip, saying, “isn’t it obvious?”
“You haven’t forgotten why you’ve come all the way to the capital, have you? You’ve come to check on the welfare your acquaintance, and to recuperate. That was a promise.”
“Yeah well that second half is up to interpretation…”
“DEFINITELY not! It’s not fun and games, so we can’t allow any outsiders. We can’t even bring Rem.”
To the Emilia who had adopted an unusually threatening tone, it was bad for Subaru, who had made a mistake yesterday, to protest with a slip of the tongue. As if to look for help, he looked to Rem, who was standing in the corner of the room, but the blue-haired maid only shook her head to his supplication.
“All the same, Rem cannot be Subaru-kun’s ally in this situation. Roswaal-sama has made his intentions known, and Emilia-sama’s opinion is correct. Please listen to them.”
“s.h.i.+t, I’m alone in this, huh. But if I think of yesterday’s mishap, I can’t even say anything. This sucks!”
Even Rem, who generally took Subaru’s side, had her priorities in order.
With yesterday’s failure–in short, because of the stray child incident when he disobeyed command, Subaru had his movements severely limited within the capital.
Regarding this, Subaru had little to say by way of excuse because he too recognized his own failures, and hoping for another meeting with Rom-jii and the fruit stand man was not a big problem. Though it was a bit of a shock to himself that the people he most wanted to see where a bunch of dirty old men.
“Nah, I was just thinking I wanted to see Felt again, so that shouldn’t be a problem. People connected to the throne are 3/4ths men…though 6/7 of them are absurd!
There was no way to increase the porportion of girls in the group of people he wanted to see again without including Elsa. It’s an alternate-universe fantasy, after all, so why the heck were there only flags for male character story routes?
“It’s fine, at least I have the main heroine flag…”
“If you keep grumbling to yourself like that, I’ll start to get reallyyy suspicious.”
The one who was the main heroine, Emilia, said this with reproachful eyes, and all Subaru could do was stay silent without a peep. Seeing that Subaru had run out of refusals or hair-splitting arguments, Emilia gave a satisfied nod, saying,
“It won’t take that long… at least I’d like to say that, but I have no idea how long it will take today. So have your meals with Rem. If you wait for us, we’ll definitely keep you for a while.”
“Humph. Well if Emilia-tan says so so sternly, I have ideas of my own. Right, Rem? Let’s dine like kings today!”
“Negative. Today’s menu is roast appas followed by appa salad. Appa pie made with plenty of appa jam. After the meal will be juice extracted from appas that I’ve also prepared.”
“What is this endless appa?! Dance, Scarface!!”
[T/N: Idk]
Blind to the fact that he was the one that had carried nine or so appas home himself, Subaru visualized the scary face of the fruit stand man floating in the air. Returning the thumbs up of the vision who was smiling brightly at him, Subaru smilied with his teeth showing, as it had come to this.
“That’s fine. Appas are my favorite fruit, after all! Seriously, it’s Appa Night Fever! The two of us will eat them all up!”
[T/N: Reference to Luka Night Fever?]
“Definitely not. Rem is a maid with sense, so I will not hinder Subaru-kun, who likes appas so much. All of the food will be served to Subaru-kun.”
“Why is it you’re so merciless when it comes to me?!”
Subaru yelled at Rem, who always bore in mind her position, or rather, bore in mind how to use her position to her advantage. While watching their comedy sketch-like exchange, Emilia looked thoughtful, then turned her head to the side as if trying to shake off an idea.
“Anyways, I’m entrusting everything to Rem. Though I think she was also told the same thing by Roswaal, but I’ve left strict instructions. –I’m serious, okay?”
“For you to have thought this through so much, you must really care about me, Emilia-tan!”
For emphasis, Subaru made a thumbs-up at Emilia.
Emilia, who was already used to his gestures, used her palm to push down his outstretched hand. Subaru caught his breath at the sudden contact. And with that, any opposition he had to the previous conversation they were having became extraordinarily weak.
As if she hadn’t noticed the change in Subaru’s att.i.tude, Emilia said,
“Subaru. I’m not asking for much.”
“Y-yeah?”
“Please, just let me trust you.”
She said closing her eyes, as if supplicating him. For that moment, Subaru lost the ability to think.
Her words reverberated in his head, as he mulled them over, replayed them, until he understood exactly what she meant and felt by those words, then said,
“Ah, aah! All of it, I’ll do it all! I’ll succeed your expectations! As if I only live for them!”
He responding with resounding positives, as if he hadn’t understood what she was talking about. As long as he agreed to it now then fulfilled it later.
And Emilia fixed her purple-blue eyes at Subaru, whose a.s.surances were undeniably flippant, and looked at him unhappily, quietly grumbling,
“Alright. –I trust you.”
※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※
And now, the story returns to the events of the beginning of the chapter.
Emelia and Roswaal had made their way to the capital, and Subaru, who had been left behind at their lodgings under Rem’s surveilance, spent some time copying writing.
At this time, Subaru had basically mastered all of the “E writing system,” and was now working on the “Ro writing system.” If “E-moji” was the equivalent of the j.a.panese hiragana system, the “Ro-moji” appearred to be similar to katakana, as they were similar to the E-moji but with slight differences, and therefore would not appear to take as long to learn as E-moji.
Around an hour and a half after Subaru had begun copying the Ro-moji, Subaru, who usually enjoyed studying, had gotten tired. Not so much of the studying, but more of having to stay in one place.
To Subaru, studying how to write was letting this alternate world into himself, and wasn’t a bad feeling at all. This is why he looked forward to studying every day without a single complaint.
However, if the thing on the other end of the scales was Emilia, it wasn’t even a question as to which one was more important.
Subaru stood up, and prepared to walk slowly towards the outside of the room, was deftly intercepted by Rem.
The maid, who had be concurrently in charge of cleaning the room, taking care of the lugage, and interfering with/tutoring Subaru in his studies, heard the real meaning behind Subaru’s words, “I’m going to pick some flowers,” and moved to swiftly obstruct his movements.
That is, his scheme to excape the lodgings and head for the capital.
There was no small amount of guilt that he would be breaking his promise with Emilia.
Rem had observed Emilia’s uneasiness–which was for good reason, and watched Subaru’s movements carefully as she ordered.
And, while Subaru understood all of that, he could not stay waiting in the residences.
“She only has bad memories of the capital, so she’s probably scared stiff…”
Last time Emilia went to the capital, she suffered just as much hards.h.i.+p as he worried she would.
Probably, in spite of having arriving at the capital secretly, enemies who want the insignia would probably take it, and perhaps her life, from her.
Subaru knew that if hadn’t been there, she would have met that fate.
–If he recalled the day they met, Subaru couldn’t place himself if he wasn’t aware.
Having suddenly been summoned to an alternate world, Subaru hadn’t been given a single thing that could be called a mission. On the surface, his insolence was disguised by positivity, but on the inside, you could only call him rash and reckless.
In short, he was basically the same inside and out, so it was undeniable that the developments up til now that let to him being in his current situation were not in his control.
However,
“People who just go with the flow should swim to and choose which currents to follow.”
Without denying that he had simply followed along up to this point, he could also have chosen options that did not lead to this point. And the reason he was here now, was because he had chosen so.
Subaru, who was dropped into an alternate world without so much as a goal.
It’s because he had that perspective that he was now thinking about turning his powerless situation around.
If he wasn’t given a mission, he simply had to decide on one himself.
“Let’s go save Emelia.”
It wasn’t just because he had been saved by her.
It was because the feeling of wanting to become Emilia’s strength brimmed over from the bottom of his heart.
“That is, it’s the power of love!”
[T/N: Subaru says Rabu Pawaa]
“What did you say just now?”
“Sorry, it was kind of serious, so having to say it again is embarra.s.sing,”
was Subaru’s one-sentence answer to Rem, who had asked him with her head tilted. Then, Subaru collected himself by clearing his throat, and set his mind in full operation in order to break through the obstacle in front of him.
Even if he managed to escape this place, he couldn’t think of a single way to get to the capital. But none of that mattered if he didn’t manage to escape this place first.
And regarding that, it was more Subaru’s style to force it rather than go with the flow.
“Although the situation’s badness doesn’t really change.”
Getting past Rem, who was standing imposingly with arms outstretched, was like clearing the last boss of a video game.
[T/N: Writer actually uses “murige-,” which is slang for “impossible game”]
The difference between their physical ability was evident, and Subaru wasn’t even in perfect condition. An attack from behind would probably be rendered inaffective by that huge difference in strength, and Subaru had nothing up his sleeve to change that power imbalance either.
He also considered casting Shamoc and running away under the cover of the black smoke, but he would definitely faint after breathing in the smoke because he didn’t have any Bocco fruit with him. After all, the use of Bocco fruit was strictly banned in every corner of the residence.
Because of this, Subaru was boxed in. Subaru, who wasn’t using any cheat codes to make his brain faster and sharper, was all out of ideas.
That is –,
“Woa…no way, it’s!”
“Subaru-kun?”
Subaru’s face suddenly lost all color, as he clutched his forehead, trembling furiously.
Seeing Subaru in this unusual state, knees trembling and breath rough, Rem panickingly outstretched her arms and gently supported him by the shoulder.
“What has happened, Subaru-kun? Don’t tell me you’re despairing at the recklessness of your ideas…?!”
“How low would my score be if you gave my worth to you a number? I can’t, I can’t… Ugh, so painful…”
Even while being supported, Subaru clutched his chest as he went to his knees, gasping at the pain. Seeing this, Rem too kneeled and nestled closer to him, saying,
“Now it’s not your head, but your chest? Are you alright?”
“Huh, was it my head? No, my chest hurts… It must be that…”
“The shallow atmosphere is showing a little, but do you know the cause?”
Seeing Subaru’s shallow anguish, Rem’s worries were sky high. Hearing this, Subaru gripped Rem’s collar as if holding on for dear life, brought their faces close, and opened his mouth tremblingly,
“–ma”
“Ma?”
“–Mayonnaise deficiency.”
He asked himself if this was really the only idea he had, and why was he circlejerking himself.
However, once he had said it, he had to see it to the fullest. This was Natsuki Subaru’s unwavering policy. The unwavering spirit of an uninteresting male.
“This deficiency happens to mayonaise lovers who don’t get enough mayonaise…Thanks to you, Rem, it was alleviated til now, but now that the house has been empty for a day… the symptoms advanced.”
“No way… What should I do…?”
Make me some mayonaise…If I just could just suck on some mayonaise, you could save my life…Oof, it hurts…”
[T/N: Mayochuchu is this thing where people drink mayonaise straight from the container.]
Subaru, who couldn’t even raise his body to a standing position, fell over sideways even as he was clinging to Rem. Putting Subaru’s head on her knee, while stroking the suffering Subaru’s forehead, she murmered softly,
“Mayonaise…I’d have to prepare the eggs, oil, and other ingredients, but…”
“It hurts…I’ll die. Please, Rem. Only you…I can only depend on you…”
“–You can only depend on Rem?”
She couldn’t look at the suffering Subaru. So she wouldn’t know if anything changed during the time she had averted her eyes.
Hung out to dry between her own feelings and the orders she received, Rem was wavering, but but it seemed as if Subaru’s final words were the decisive blow.
“Only Rem!” She balled her hands into hard fists, muttering with force,
“I understand! Please, leave it up to me, Rem!”
“Aida! and Ugeba!”
[T/N: Can’t figure out what this means. Can only a.s.sume that they’re short for real words.]
Rem stood up suddenly. Because of that, Subaru’s head fell from her knees, and he hit the back of his head, and moreover, his rib was crushed by the overeager Rem’s heel. It didn’t seem that Rem, whose enthusiasm had reached maximum levels, had noticed her own act of violence. Just like that, she put herself in order speedily, saying,
“Well then, Rem will quickly go get the ingredients and make mayonaise! Subaru-kun, don’t sleep there on the floor, please rest properly in bed.”
“The fainting…is connected…to mayonaise…”
“Huh? Yes, I know. Rem will do her best for Subaru-kun. And the dawn…fufu, I look forward to it.”
She interpreted Subaru’s words as he was fainting in agony, and leaving behind an unusually cute smile, Rem fled the room.
Clutchin his chest in pain, Subaru watched her backside recede, comfirming his success. He confirmed it indeed, but due to the accident earlier, he was unable to move for a while.
By and large the pain started to disappear, and while patting the back of his head which had begun to swell, Subaru stood up, then dusted his clothes that had been in contact with the floor, looking around,
“I can’t believe such a bad plan worked out. I’m a little worried about Rem’s future, but I’ve been saved by her simpleness today.”
His rib and the back of his head were necessary sacrifices.
Having gained a pathway simply by exchanging a bit of pain was surely a good deal.
“All that’s left to do now is to leave a note to Rem, then run away quickly. It’d be bad if I ran through the door and b.u.mped into her…”
He left a scribbled note on the table, then opened a window and looked down. The room was on the second floor, so it wasn’t extremely dangerous to climb down by tying a sash to something. Under the window was a fairly empty alley, so there was probably little chance he would be mistaken for an underwear thief as he climbed down.
“Well, better get going. It’s not like climbing into my old house through the balcony to surprise my parents when I was young was just for show, anyways.”
He was an expert at climbing up and down the plumbing and such that went around his house. His window was barred with iron, so he also developed the skill of squeezing his body through the s.p.a.ces. He dubbed this skill “labarmen” (plural).
Digging up these old memories, Subaru grabbed the sides of the window, and jumped down tumbling towards the capital’s road with little hesitation.
※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※
–These are the events that happened immediately after Subaru jumped out his window.
“…Even so, to think that he felt so captured is a little bit of a shock to Rem.”
In the middle of the otherwise unpopulated room, Rem, who had just returned, muttered to herself while touching the table.
She retrieved the note left on the table she was touching. There, in hastily scribbled, barely legible E-moji was written, “I’ll b back soon.”
[T/N: Subaru’s note actually says “chichikitokusugukaeru.” This phrase is a bit of a running joke on the j.a.panese speaking internet, as in “My mom left this note on the table. What does it mean?” and then people give really contrived explanations.]
Although she didn’t understand it, she could tell from Subaru’s personality that it was meant to be some obscure reference or joke.
“He didn’t really have to jump through the window…I didn’t really try to stop him from leaving the room.”
This was the result of her pretending to have left through the door and hiding herself in the depths of a corridor. Once she had sensed that there was no human presence in the room and returned, she discovered the wide-open window and the note–and realized he had left through a rather dangerous method.
“…Geez, Subaru-kun really can’t be helped…”
The murmuring Rem’s expression, contrary to her words, looked a little happy.
She was Subaru’s note left behind. The message, anywho, was unmistakenably addressed to her, so she folded it carefuly and put it in her maid uniform’s pocket to keep.
“–But, what is Roswaa-sama thinking.”
Tilting her head, hands on her cheeks, Rem ruminated over her master’s order. This was the order that she was given this morning by her just-awoken master.
Specifically, it was, “Do not interfere with Natsuki Subaru’s movements. Even if you were to be ordered to by Emelia.”
When she tried to ask what that meant, she was merely given a silent refusal. Thus, as a servent, Rem had no choice but to comply without another word. She felt some amount of guilt for going againts Emelia’s orders, but her priorities in terms of orders was a definite Roswaal>Emilia. Although as an exception, Subaru was somewhere in that hierarchy.
Anyhow,
“–please, come back safely, Subaru-kun.”
The youth had dashed off without so much as a plan, without thinking about much, only that he was willing to do it for someone else while putting his own wellbeing second.
All that Rem could do was to hope for Subaru’s wish to succeed, and that Subaru come to no harm more than necessary during the fullfillment of that wish.
–Rem put too much store into the first wish, and too much sentimentality in the second.
Rem, who generally held Subaru in higher regard than he was worth, closed the window he left from, turned around to face the room, shook her head as to forget their conflict up to now, then immersed herself in the work of a maidservant.
Like this, Natsuki Subaru, who may or may not be in the palm of someone’s hand, was released to the capital for the second time.
※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※
“In conclusion, this has been Natsuki Subaru, who’s been running aimlessly,”
the Labarmen Subaru who had jumped down into the capital without a scratch thought to himself–his mind refres.h.i.+ngly empty of thought.
He didn’t have a way to make it to the castle alone, and there was a low chance of him being able to break into a guard station on the way to the n.o.ble district.
He considered breaking into the guard office using his reliably trusty Shamoc, but rejected it because of the conclusion that he would inhale smoke and faint by the roadside.
He had a bit of a problem of considering Shamoc to be an all-purpose tool.
“Shamoc is pretty versatile, but it’s just that I don’t have enough power. If I could at least improve my mana pool for when I use magic…”
Since the uproar with the demon, he had been recieving some lessons on the use of magic from Roswal.
If the Royal Mage was right, for Subaru to learn some magic, and learn how to use his mana for that magic, would take two years. If he trained limited by his own natural talent, it would take Subaru twenty years to become a second-rate mage. And, in the first place, it would take over half a year for his overused body to return to the condition it previously was in.
“It’s not as if there was any way to do it without using magic, and I don’t regret it one bit.”
The next time he overuses a gate, there’s no telling what would happen to Subaru’s body.
Therefore, currently, he had no choice but to remove the use of Shamoc from his list of options. Although it’s not as if using Shamoc was ever a viable choice to begin with, it still stung.
“Being able to use magic, saying goodbye to romance is lonely, though it’s regrettable.”
Was Subaru’s strong feelings on the topic.
Subaru didn’t place much emphasis on the responsibility Roswaal and the sisters Ram and Rem felt in regards ot this situation. To Subaru, who had little connection to mana and magic in the first place, having lost something he never had was an extremely bitter feeling.
At least now, that feeling did not last long.
“In conclusion, the question becomes how I can get into the castle without relying on anything magiclike. Only with my knowledge and my hook-ups. Lending me anything is okay, so please.”
“…And just what am I supposed to do after hearing that?”
“But before that, don’t talk about dangerous stuf near someone else’s store. This is a respectable business that won’t draw the eye of the crown, so what am I supposed to do if strange rumors surface?”
“It’s too late for your store to be respectable when the shopkeeper always has such an ugly expression. And for this store to have connections with an old man from the back-alleys, rumors can’t help but spread.”
“You don’t know when to shut up, do ya, brat…”
Making a grim face at Subaru’s rude retort was Scarface, who had a long white scar running from his forehead to his chin. And also, an old bald man, whose immense muscular body was squeezed into the narrow store.
Imagining that including him, the body odor had increased, Subaru sighed, saying, “Anyways, the store that Rom-jii had connections with turned out to be that old man’s shop. It’s a small world–or rather, it’s a small capital…or is it that birds of a feather flock together?”
“Don’t group us up like that.”
“Don’t talk in unison like that. Unlike the pretty young maid siblings I know, if a baldy and a blemished face like you guys do that, no one wins.”
[T/N: Subaru calls it a “daretoku” action, which is j.a.panese net slang. Basically, it’s something neither the doer or the viewer profits from. Of course, this isn’t a phrase that anyone else will understand, as usual.]
The two look at each other, exchanging disagreeable looks. By the way, currently the merchant’s store was definitely still open, but unrelated to Subaru and Rom-jii’s presence, the number of customers was low.
It was a merchant street, yet because of the location of the store, as well as the shopkeeper’s face, he was playing on hard mode. Subaru, who always encouraged self-inflicted handicaps, felt a great affinity for the shopkeeper on this point.
[T/N: The writer uses the phrase “s.h.i.+bari-play,” which is slang for giving yourself extra handicaps when gaming.]
“What’s that, oi. What’s with that hand on my shoulder.”
“Both of us would like to live while playing on easy mode, so we’re the same. But the G.o.ds aren’t fair, ya know.”
“Don’t rope me into your pessimism. Unlike you, I have a wife and a daughter. I’m on the winning team.”
“Liar, liar, pants on fire!”
[T/N: Subaru says “That’s a lie, don doko do-n!” “Don doko do-n” is a kind of catch-phrase type thing you say after a short statement.]
Shocked at having been betrayed by someone of his own ilk, Subaru’s speech became wild.
Subaru took a step back, and turned his face towards Rom-jii in order to ask Rom-jii about what was just said. The bald old man looked straight into Subaru’s wavering black eyes, saying,
“It’s the truth. Moreover, a beautiful wife and cute daughter.”
“s.h.i.+t! It’s the first time I’ve received this kind of treatment since arriving in this world!!”
Came all the fury he had since he was summoned into this world.
Giving way to all the dark feelings he had pushed deep down into his stomach, Subaru flew at the shopkeeper, and was instantly met with a counterattack by way of a strong arm to his forehead.
“I’m… I’m powerless…”
“You’ve got to handle things situation by situation, but do you have anything to say here besides sore loser complaints?”
Looking at the Subaru who was sulking after having his angry outburst put to a stop, Rom-jii touched his chin thoughtfully.
When he was summoned, he was joyful, sure that it would have something to do with Felt. It was natural that he would be mad once he found out that it was only Subaru trying to rope him into a s.h.i.+fty plot, but it was a mark of the old man’s character that instead of being upset, he troubled over Subaru’s problem with him.
Softened by that show of kindness, it’s not as if he couldn’t remember the things he had saved to use against him later, but it was Subaru’s strength to be able to put those feelings on the backburner and focus on his own ego.
Therefore,
“I’ll ask your opinion again. How should I enter the castle quietly without fuss?”
“What if you commit a felony and get shut up in the dungeons under the castle? That’d also achieve your goal, though your head would have to say goodbye to your torso.”
“Give me some more constructive ideas. It’s not as if you or your shop is busy, after all.”
“Don’t say that, brat. It’s because Kadomon’s shop isn’t popular that we can talk secretly. If you thing about it this way, it’s not a bad quality. Right, Kadomon?”
“Do you two have a grudge against my shop?”
Subaru and Rom-jii met the eyes of the shopkeeper–Kadomon, who had been glaring at them, then shook their heads, with an “of course not.”
As if to chastise the two for their angering behavior, Kadomon stroked the scar on his face, saying,
“Stop thinking dangerous thoughts like planning to slip into the palace. There is no emperor right now, so the security is not that high, but it’s not as if you won’t be punished if you’re caught.”
“Well then, the risk is just as high as we imagined, isn’t it. If you’re spotted, brat, you’ll die,”
said Rom-jii, agreeing with Kadomon.
The two had concluded Subaru should give up on his plans. But of course, to those two, there was no reason to try so hard in the first place.
“Well, even if I say that, it’s not as if the reason I have to do something so risky is entirely clear…”
Unlike up til now, Subaru currently didn’t have much of a reason to put his life on the line.
He had one additional option–to stroll back into the lodgings, stay in bed, suckle on the mayonaise that Rem had maid, and wait for Emilia’s return.
There was no mistake that Emilia and company would be much happier if he did that.
Having said that, however,
“Why do I have to try so hard?”
Subaru half-thought of it as his mission that he had to be at Emilia’s side.
He didn’t know how much help he could be to her. Even though he didn’t know, he still thought that as long as he stayed by her side, the opportunity to help her may arise.
If he wasn’t near her, these chances wouldn’t appear. That being the case,
“Even if it’s conceited, I want to be with her, that’s what I think.”
Although he was only a little ways separated, he felt a terror so deep it felt like it was burning him up.
Weighed against the other option of his own life, it was his reason for moving forwards now.
“Well, it’s the truth that I will break the jinx that surrounds the capital.”
In a place where dark premonitions regarding the candidates to the crown didn’t die, Subaru’s unease was bottomless.
If it was a place where he could only decrease the possibility that Emilia might get hurt when he wasn’t around by a little, he wouldn’t have had a reason to be so impatient all this time.
“It’s fine if I can’t be by her side, but I at least want to be where I can see her face. Somehow.”
“It’s not as easy as that. If it’s a guard post, you could get past with a bribe, but all the way inside the castle?”
Although it’s not impossible Subaru’s att.i.tude wasn’t impacted deeply, it could only be seen that he did not look like he was going to give up. After being left alone to run wild, he would only be arrested and given the death penalty–and that left a bad taste in Rom-jii’s mouth, so he too began to seriously formulate a plan to get into the castle. Compared to Rom-jii, who was not self-conscious about his own position as an accomplice, Kadomon’s relations.h.i.+p with Subaru was not so deep.
He eyed the conspiring twosome amazedly, and threw out,
“Whatever you do, make sure it doesn’t cause me trouble.”
He couldn’t say that that was impossible because it chipped away at his earnestness, but Subaru pursed his lips at the uncooperating man, saying,
“Don’t say that. You do your best operating this store even if you have no customers even though you’re on a merchant street. We might get a hint out of your willpower.”
“First of all, even though I’m not feeling that well today my store is still popular, ok? …Instead of using hard to understand tricks, why don’t you go to the guard station and ask about it. Your companion is in the castle, right? …hmm, what did she look like?”
Having stated his honest opinion, Kadomon scowled as if to search his memory. It seemed that no matter what, that silver-haired beauty’s appearrance would not surface from within his memories. It was the result of the hood made to make facial recognition difficult.
Anyways, unfortunately, his decent proposal was not even considered as an option.
“If we do that, we’re guaranteed to be caught by Emilia-tan! It’s ideal to watch and protect her quietly from the shadows, even better if is undetectable. I’ll name this strategy “The Super-Strong Me Under the Floorboards.”
“What a violent, self-praising name for hiding.”
“How troublesome. Well, what if you hid yourself inside packages that are send into the castle? Coincidentally, today’s market day so they will send food in, and if you’re lucky…”
Kadomon said smiling, as if he was just chit-chatting. But his scarred face soon hardened.
It was because the instant Subaru heard that information, his two eyes shone.
He shut his own mouth as if ashamed of his slip of the tongue, then held out his palms, and started to say, “forget what I said just now!” but was interrupted by
“That idea–it’s a YES!”
It was way too early for Subaru to smile brightly with a thumbs up and wink.
Rom-jii lamented at the sky at this recklessness.
The sun’s rays shone down on that bald head, making it glow a pale white.