"I get that you're worried, but I think everyone's being a little too obvious about it."
Inside the
They had already been at the tower for half a day, and with a three-day limit on their stay, there was no time to waste. Subaru and the others had thrown themselves into the library, scrambling to find the book they were after.
In the meantime, Petra was hard at work on dinner for everyone, who would surely return hungry. But the mood in the library just beyond was, to put it mildly, awful.
"Subaru and Garfiel can't focus on the book search at all. Hey, are you even listening?"
To Petra's question, Meili responded with a listless "Mm-hmm." She dipped a small spoon into the pot Petra had set over the fire, tasting it with a soft lap of her tongue.
"Mmm, delicious. Petra, you've gotten even better at cooking."
"Thanks. But I'm still nowhere near Frederica's level, so I have to keep at it. And with
"A rival, she says. But
"You never know. Once someone's fallen for you, they could fall for you all over again. …Actually, I'd say things are already looking pretty suspicious."
Petra lowered her voice, eyeing the dynamic between Subaru and Rem with suspicion.
Rem, who had been asleep for so long—Petra was glad she'd woken up. Subaru had been worried, Ram too, and Petra had been tending to her every day while she slept. She knew full well just how precious Rem was to everyone.
And honestly, she'd also been thinking that if Rem didn't wake up soon, she wouldn't be able to gauge how formidable a rival she really was.
Having finally met Rem face to face, exchanged words with her, and seen her earnest, hardworking demeanor, Petra had taken a liking to her—but something felt off. With no memory, Rem had apparently caused quite a fuss with Subaru, and even now she seemed to keep him at arm's length with a cold, stern attitude.
"Still, something's off."
"Hmm, I see. But you know, your brother kind of has that effect on people. No matter how fiercely you glare at him for whatever reason, he just makes you feel silly about it."
"Exactly! That's exactly it! I thought Subaru was weird at first, too… Hey, the way you just said that—didn't that sound suspicious?"
"Cut it out, you're overthinking things."
Meili stuck out her tongue, making a face of distaste and raising both hands in surrender. Petra glared at her with a "Hmph," then decided to hold her suspicions in check for now.
When they'd returned from the Pleiades Watchtower before heading to the Empire, Meili had told her she was overthinking things, but in Petra's view, staying this vigilant around Subaru was never a waste.
Anyone who spent a little time with him would see how wonderful he was. And once they saw it, the odds of that turning into something more shot way up.
"Even in the Empire, while we were apart, he went around being charming to all sorts of people… He probably added about a thousand people to his list of admirers."
"Oh, come on. A thousand is a stretch…"
"He did! Most of them were men, so that was a relief, but you can never let your guard down."
Meili, having never seen the real thing, laughed it off as a joke. But Petra wasn't in any mood to laugh.
Clenching one fist bravely while stirring the pot with the other to keep it from boiling over, her thoughts were constantly, attentively on Subaru.
If she didn't stay watchful, he'd inevitably drift toward someone else in need of comfort in some place beyond her sight, and shatter his heart all over again.
Just like right now, coming to this tower to help Al find a way forward.
"So, about this Al of yours."
"Oh, the obvious thing you mentioned earlier. What's that about?"
"It's exactly what it looks like. Subaru and Garfiel are practically wearing their 'keeping an eye on Al' expressions on their faces…"
"Those two really don't seem suited for surveillance work… Al is the guy with the helmet, right? Was there someone else I'm missing?"
"Meili…"
Having finished her tasting, Meili left the pot and settled onto some luggage nearby. She propped her chin on her hands, looking thoroughly exasperated, and Petra puffed out her cheeks with a "Geez!"
It wasn't Meili's fault she'd only joined midway and heard about the Empire secondhand, but— "Stop looking like you've already clocked out. You're one of us now, Meili, so show some proper interest."
"Even if you say that, I don't have any work until the trip home. I can't help looking like I'm done. …And I'm not so sure about being 'one of us,' either."
"Don't doubt that part. You got permission from the
"Yes ma'am, pretty face."
Meili pressed both hands to her cheeks with a perfectly blank expression and no hint of a smile. Petra sighed.
Meili wasn't a bad person at heart, but she'd lived so long trying to appear as one that it had become second nature. Even she probably couldn't tell anymore whether it was her true self or an act. Probably.
"Haa… There are so many people I need to teach from scratch…"
"You're always so busy, Petra. Doesn't it wear you out?"
"You're one of the reasons! And besides…"
"Besides what?"
"I can't afford to be tired. The one person I want to rest the most is the one who never does. It makes it even harder to bring up, doesn't it?"
"———"
"Oh, the person I want to rest isn't Otto, by the way! Otto needs to make time to actually sleep. At least six hours a day!"
Otto had made not sleeping a habit, but unlike Roswaal, it wasn't some innate trait that let him get by on less sleep—he was just pushing himself too hard. Proof of that was the fact that once he finished a big job, he'd sometimes collapse and sleep for over half a day like he was dead.
"He keeps trying to compete with Roswaal, who cheats at the whole constitution thing, and he won't listen at all."
"Giggles… You really don't like that lord, do you, Petra? You were probably relieved he wasn't coming along?"
"Honestly, yes. It meant Frederica and I had to split up, but it also means they trust me with the responsibility."
A one- or two-day trip was one thing, but this was the first time Petra had been the sole caretaker for a journey of over ten days. At the Western Borders Summit and during the trip to the Empire, either Frederica or Ram had always been there. This time, the task had fallen to her alone.
That meant her motivation was even higher. She had to keep a close eye on everyone.
"That's why I'm worried about Al, too. …The helmet guy. There's nobody else it could be."
"Sure, sure, the conspicuous one. Right, he came to the tower for that, didn't he?"
"That's right. He insisted there was a Book of the Dead he absolutely had to read. …I hope reading it will lift his spirits."
"Hmm? That's an odd way to put it. Are you that worried about Al?"
"No, it's not Al I'm worried about so much as Subaru and Garfiel."
At Petra's response, Meili tilted her head. "Your brother and the others?" She seemed more interested than she'd been about Al, furrowing her brow as she looked at Petra.
Meeting Meili's gaze, Petra continued: "Both of them are taking it too hard—as if it were their own problem. You know how, when a family member or friend is feeling down, you try to comfort them and end up sinking into the same darkness alongside them?"
"…Do people do that?"
"Asking you was probably a mistake…"
When Petra sought empathy, Meili looked completely blank. Getting nothing from the exchange, Petra turned six-tenths of her worry toward Subaru and Garfiel.
She'd heard from Subaru about her suspicion that Al was searching for Priscilla's Book of the Dead with the goal of bringing her back.
Petra couldn't even begin to imagine whether that was actually possible, but if it was, she understood why Subaru and the others were so fixated on Al's movements, keeping such close watch.
"But originally, I wanted to let Al read the book because I thought it would help. Now having to do the exact opposite of that—my head and my heart are all out of sync."
When the head and heart, reason and emotion, were misaligned, performance plummeted dramatically—Petra knew this well. It wasn't just Petra; anyone produced better results when their sense of purpose and their actual actions were aligned.
Right now, was Subaru's really in sync?
"———"
"If you ask me, Petra, you're overthinking things just as much as them. …Oh?"
Meili, who'd been studying Petra's profile as she brooded, suddenly noticed something and raised her voice. Petra said "Huh?" and followed her gaze to spot a figure peeking in from the doorway.
On the fourth floor, where numerous rooms lined the halls, the visitor to the room where Petra and Meili were preparing dinner was, fittingly, the very person they'd been discussing— "Hey, I smelled something good and figured you two would be in here cooking."
Al raised a hand casually as he lumbered over. Perhaps not wanting to leave him alone, Flam trailed quietly behind him.
The unexpected combination caught Petra off guard for a moment.
"Yep, we're getting dinner ready… Though really, I'm just watching. Meili's the one doing the actual— oh wait, no, the cooking's all me."
"Thought so, straight-up loafing, huh? Well, I can't exactly give you grief—Meili here already did plenty of heavy lifting getting here. Can't complain."
"Exactly. While we're here, nobody can boss me around."
"No argument here, no argument here. Thank goodness, thank goodness~"
Al bowed to Meili with just his right hand in a gesture of gratitude while she preened. Meanwhile, Flam approached Petra, who was stirring the pot.
"Thank you for your hard work. I'm sorry to leave the meal preparation to you."
"Oh, no worries, no worries! You were looking after Ezzo this whole time before we arrived, weren't you? It's fine to hand some things off."
"Thank you. Ezzo-sama has a dreadful habit of forgetting to eat and sleep the moment something catches his interest. It's quite trying."
"I know that feeling all too well…"
Flam's earnest remark drew a deep nod of sympathy from Petra.
Flam shared Petra's position as a servant, though she was probably a year or two younger. Born into a family that had served
Petra thumped her chest and declared as much to Flam in a big-sisterly tone.
No matter how much her skills improved, Petra would remain the youngest in camp. No matter how hard she tried, age was the one thing she could never catch up to—that was the disadvantage of being the youngest.
Of course, there was also
Which was why opportunities like those in the Empire, interacting with clearly younger people like Shult and Utakata, were so precious to Petra.
"Thank you, Petra-sama. Right, then, if I may—"
"Mm-hm, what is it?"
"No matter how many times I say it, Waka-sama can't seem to stop treating my sister and me like children. What should I do?"
"Waka— oh, you mean Reinhard."
The very first thing Flam brought to her happened to be about the biggest name imaginable, and Petra was deeply torn on how to respond.
She'd never met
In Petra's opinion, Subaru was the more impressive knight—but she'd feel guilty making that judgment about someone she'd never met.
In any case— "But I know how it feels to be treated like a child when you don't want to be. For starters, you should probably get him to stop patting your head."
"My head… I don't mind personally, but Grassis doesn't seem to mind being patted by Waka-sama. At least I don't."
"I don't exactly hate it either, you know? The act itself doesn't bother me—it's the distance of the relationship when he does it that's wrong."
Petra herself was trying to correct the stagnation in that dynamic. That was why her answers to Flam's question were so detailed and specific.
As Petra finished with a clenched fist, Al let out a low chuckle.
"Hm? What is it, Al?"
"Sorry, sorry. But as far as advice for Flam goes, I think you're a bit off the mark. You and Flam have pretty different… vectors, shall we say."
"Huh? You mean you're not in love with Reinhard?"
"I do care for Waka-sama, but as a romantic interest, he gets a failing grade."
"Oh… I see…"
Petra winced at her premature assumption and stuck out her tongue. Then she looked at Al and, somewhat surprised, continued: "I didn't realize you were perceptive about that sort of thing, Al."
"Hey, I'm a grown man, y'know? I've chewed through my share of bitter and sweet. Other people's business, but still."
"Other people's doesn't really count as bragging, does it?"
"That's why I'm not bragging. It's self-deprecation, self-deprecation… Right, right."
Al shrugged, and his stomach growled with a sudden declaration of hunger. Petra's lips softened.
"Just a little longer. We'll have it ready soon."
"Ahh, sorry for rushing you. That wasn't me just now—that was my stomach bugs."
Petra responded to Al's shameless quip with an "Uh-huh," and continued preparing.
As she exchanged lighthearted banter with Al, Petra couldn't help but worry that Subaru's and Garfiel's attitude toward him really was excessive.
With all the complicated circumstances tangled up together, she understood why they were growing anxious. But Al, at least, seemed to be putting up a good front. A person truly drowning in despair couldn't manage that kind of consideration for others.
"You need to eat properly, mister."
Meili must have read some of Petra's thoughts, because she addressed Al directly with that remark. Al toyed with the seam of his helmet with one finger and replied as though it were the most obvious thing in the world: "What doesn't kill you— I mean, going without food and water just tanks your performance, which puts you even further from your goal, don't you think?"
"True. But you could also choose not to eat, not to drink, and not to sleep, right? You only have three days, after all."
"Meili…"
"Nah, it's fine. I know about the time limit. And honestly, seeing you lounging around like that, it's fair to wonder if you're even serious."
Al didn't reprimand her for the blunt words. Instead, he scratched at the helmet with his nails and continued: "But I'm her Highness's clown. Going wide-eyed and fighting like my life depends on it… That's not exactly my style, you know?"
"Al…"
"And anyway, yeah, three days is the agreed limit. But it's not like there's an hourglass ticking down exactly, right? If I shed a few tears, beg a little, maybe I could stretch it another half day or so—don't you think?"
"Pff."
Al had been speaking so earnestly that the sudden proposal of such a convenient loophole caught Petra completely off guard, and she burst out laughing.
Honestly, if Al really broke down crying and clinging to them, they might just extend the stay by half a day.
But— "That's not how this works. You need to drink water, eat your meals, and make time to sleep. Then we'll manage from there."
If they counted on that kind of mercy from the start, setting a deadline would be meaningless above all else. Petra's role here was to be the one who could say the hard things that the kind Subaru and the others couldn't bring themselves to say—even if she knew she'd probably be overruled in the end.
"Over these three days, I'll be right here with Subaru and the others, helping you out. —There, it's done."
"Pretty tough, huh. Right, right."
As she spoke, Petra scooped the pot's contents into a bowl and gently offered it to Al for tasting. Al took the bowl, lifted the chin of his helmet, and brought it to his mouth.
"Hot hot. …But damn, that's good."
His soft murmur was enough to fill Petra with a deep sense of satisfaction.
△▼△▼△▼△ "If we exclude the Sage who built this great library, I would likely be the person who has read more Books of the Dead than anyone else in the world. Allow me to share what I've learned: the ultimate purpose of this library, I believe, lies in the re-experience of lost history."
After dinner, Subaru and the others re-entered the Tigetta library.
There, while helping Al search for his target book—and keeping an eye on him in the process—Subaru and the others listened as Ezzo delivered his lecture, albeit with their attention somewhat divided.
In the high-ceilinged library, Ezzo's voice, surprisingly deep for his relatively short stature, carried well.
Despite belonging to a different faction with no shared objective, the fact that he was willing to accompany them like this spoke well of his sociability. Though it was possible that, since Flam had refused to engage with this particular topic, his desire to lecture had simply exploded.
Either way, it was an interesting topic, and none of them were bored.
"Still, saying 're-experience of lost history' is quite the bold claim. I know the Books of the Dead allow you to glimpse a person's life, but this sounds like something on a different scale entirely."
"Precisely, Lady Beatrice—your understanding is impeccable. But that's only the perspective you get from a single book. When you're dealing with multiple books, the situation changes entirely."
Because they were combing through the shelves separately, conversations naturally tended toward raised voices—carrying a faint sense of impropriety, like talking loudly in a school library.
Chatting across the shelves, Subaru tilted his head at Ezzo's reply.
"Come to think of it, Ezzo, you've read over a dozen. …The Books of the Dead should only work on people you know, right? Isn't your hit rate remarkably high?"
"Even for a shut-in, that does seem like a lot. I've been watching for over half a day and I haven't seen a single name I recognize."
"That's low in a different way, I suppose. …You'd probably recognize a name here and there. But that's a separate issue from knowing someone personally."
Holding hands with Subaru as they scanned the same shelf, Beatrice murmured softly.
In truth, as a four-hundred-year-old font of knowledge, Beatrice did occasionally spot a familiar name. Whether out of consideration or discretion, she never pointed them out herself, but Subaru could tell from the way her hand tightened in his each time she found one.
Subaru didn't press her about the names she kept quiet about.
"If I were trying to boast about being a lucky boy here, I don't think Ezzo's the type to lie about it. If there's some secret to his good fortune, mind sharing?"
"I'm flattered, but it's not exactly 'good fortune,' Al. Natsuki and the rest of you should also be more flexible… You should start by questioning your assumptions."
"Questioning our assumptions?"
"You want us to doubt them?"
Either Ezzo was an engaging speaker, or the premise he'd laid out had Subaru and Garfiel furrowing their brows in genuine thought. Ezzo, seemingly pleased by their reaction, brightened his tone.
"As Natsuki says, to fully utilize the Books of the Dead, you must already know the person featured in the book. There are several reasons for such a restriction, but they're all speculation, so let's set that aside. What matters is that this limitation makes it extremely difficult to re-experience the lives of those who died long ago—for instance, from the age of the Witches."
"I wouldn't really want to see that anyway… But, question the assumption?"
"What? You mean the Books of the Dead can actually work on people you don't know?"
"If that loophole existed, Ezzo wouldn't have stopped at just twelve books."
"Ha ha ha! I appreciate having my curiosity validated so readily!"
Beatrice didn't sound like she was praising him, but Ezzo was in high spirits nonetheless.
With a demeanor suited to teaching, Ezzo had Subaru genuinely pondering his words, though no answer came to mind right away.
Instead— "I did think of one… possibility."
"Oh, wonderful! Then would you care to share what you've come up with?"
"The assumption is, basically, that you can only read the books of people you know. That's why you can't read the books of people who died long ago. —But if you knew someone from that long ago, you could read them."
"Well, yes, but that's the whole problem, isn't it?"
"Is it? Here, at least, it should be possible."
Al gestured widely, sweeping his arm to indicate the Tigetta library around them. It took Subaru a moment to catch on, but once he connected the idea of breaking the assumption with Al's phrasing, the implications clicked into place.
In other words— "If you read someone's Book of the Dead, you re-experience their life. That means, before reading even a single additional book, your circle of acquaintances has expanded. So then…"
"If you keep re-experiencing lives and expanding the number of people you know, the range of books you can read—and the span of history you can trace backward—grows with each one. I think I've finally grasped what Ezzo meant."
"The re-experience of lost history…!"
Picking up where Al's reasoning left off, Subaru and Beatrice found in this a method of utilizing the Books of the Dead and looked toward Ezzo.
Stepping out from behind a bookshelf, Ezzo spread both hands wide and nodded.
"Magnificent. There are few joys greater than witnessing the young arrive at a solution through the power of their own reasoning. As one who walks ahead of you, my heart swells with pride."
"Uh, sorry to break it to you, but I'm older than you, Ezzo."
"And Betty would also take issue with being called 'young.' You underestimate a Great Spirit who has lived four hundred years, perhaps."
"Ahem, my apologies! But Natsuki and Garfiel are still young, yes? Looking at the comprehension on their faces…"
"Gurrr…"
Ezzo's high spirits came to an abrupt halt at the uncomfortable expression on Garfiel's face.
Garfiel was counting on his fingers, his emerald eyes clouded with confusion as he struggled to chew through Subaru and the others' discussion, having short-circuited somewhere along the way.
"Read a book and… you know more people? You know more people, and then… you can read fewer books? More people? What the hell's going on…"
"…It's fine, Garfiel. It's not like any of this is about what we're doing right now, and nobody's saying you need to understand it."
Subaru patted the furrowed-brow Garfiel consolingly and managed a wry smile.
In any case, they now understood why Ezzo had managed to read twelve Books of the Dead. He hadn't just been extraordinarily lucky in finding readable books—he'd used a brute-force method: re-experiencing the lives within the Books of the Dead to expand his pool of acquaintances, thereby creating more books he could access.
And as Ezzo had hypothesized, repeating the process could let him trace back a hundred years, two hundred years—even peer into the age of the Witches he'd mentioned, four hundred years in the past.
Subaru had no particular interest in that era, but— "—
A name flickered through his mind, and Subaru closed his eyes to banish the thought.
He'd said he had no interest in four hundred years ago, but there was one name that gave him pause. That said, the person in question wasn't dead—she was sealed away.
So her book wouldn't exist in this library, and even if it did, it was unclear whether Subaru could read it. —More accurately, he had no way to verify it, and if he was being honest, he didn't want to.
"But even knowing the method, twelve books is suicidal. How do you manage it?"
"Of course, even with techniques for emptying the mind, it is no easy feat. After finishing each book, I must separate myself from the information that has flooded in. For safety's sake, a rest period of at least two days between books is necessary."
Al was doing something reckless, but the fact that his recklessness was calculated recklessness gave Subaru some measure of relief. Though if he'd been taking rest days between books and still managed twelve, the math was a little questionable.
In any case— "That's probably not the right way to say it, but… that was a fascinating lecture. Thanks."
"Interest and enjoyment are separated by a paper's thinness. So long as you're mindful of how you express it, there's no need to fault yourself for how you feel. Thank you for listening."
Watching Al's polite response to Ezzo's lecture, Subaru felt that he was gradually regaining some composure.
At first, when Al had recklessly reached for the Book of the Dead, Subaru had worried—but even with Priscilla's book still unfound, that volatile aura that had seemed to cling to Al had noticeably thinned.
He still fell into self-deprecating remarks now and then, but Subaru was starting to hear Al's trademark quips again, and honestly, it was a relief.
"Continuing to suspect people really takes a toll on you mentally."
As Subaru muttered this, his mind drifted back to the early days in the
That time when he'd known no one—a period spent in constant, trembling fear over who could and couldn't be trusted. It had been mentally exhausting. Eventually, the Pleiades Battle Fleet had joined him from the gladiator island, and finally Emilia and the others had arrived, dispelling those sources of anxiety.
With that weight beginning to lift from his shoulders, Subaru refocused on the bookshelves— —and found a Book of the Dead inscribed with the name
"———"
Holding his breath, Subaru stared at the book.
There had been the incident before. It was only natural that a Book of the Dead bearing his name would exist in this library, and reading it had been the key to the memory-wiped Natsuki Subaru becoming himself again.
Even so, confronting it once more made something heavy and dense settle deep in his gut. His every instinct screamed to look away from that book and leave—but— "No…"
Wait. Subaru told himself to wait.
Having his Book of the Dead here was one thing. But turning away from it and leaving it where it was—wasn't that dangerous? —Al was here, someone who, like Subaru, had been summoned from the original world.
The book's title was written in kanji: Natsuki Subaru. But Al might be able to read it. And if Al happened upon the book and carelessly opened it, an incredibly complicated situation could arise.
Al learning that Subaru's life in this other world had started from absolute zero—that was one thing. The real problem was what happened if that revelation overlapped with the penalty of Return by Death. There was no telling what kind of disaster could follow.
"———"
Subaru had to admit, grudgingly, that Satella—the
Wouldn't it be safer to hide the book before any accidents could happen?
"Subaru? You've been fidgeting for a while now—what's wrong? Do you need the restroom?"
"No, that's not it… It's just, I found a Book of the Dead that's, um, rather inconvenient, and I'd like to move it somewhere less obvious if I can."
"Inconvenient… Did you find Priscilla's book?"
"I can see why you'd jump to that, but no."
At Beatrice's question, Subaru shook his head vigorously.
He couldn't confide in Beatrice about Return by Death either. He'd managed to dodge the topic until now by riding on the power of their bond, but this was a tricky moment.
Of course, Beatrice couldn't read kanji either, so the title Natsuki Subaru was meaningless to her. But casually hiding the book without explanation felt dishonest.
So— "Betty, you absolutely must not read this book. If you're not careful, the Witch of Envy might reach out from the shrine again."
"A-Atrocious things you've said all of a sudden…! Reach out from the shrine—like when you got flung to the Empire? Absolutely not!"
"That's what I'm afraid of, and honestly, it might not be a joke. So…"
As he spoke, Subaru carefully extracted the offending book from the shelf. Making sure not to accidentally open it and trigger a self-experience, he whispered to Beatrice.
Hearing his explanation, Beatrice frowned but nodded repeatedly.
"Murak."
Beatrice's shadow magic activated, and Subaru's body became as light as a feather. Released from gravity's grip, he made a small leap onto the top of the bookshelf and quietly tucked the book up there, hidden among the others.
"Feels like something a brat pulling pranks in a library would do…"
Leaving the book hidden rather than returning it would trouble the librarians—but after years of service as the head librarian of the Forbidden Library, Beatrice had seen worse. And Subaru was beyond the point of worrying about divine retribution.
Three days from now, right before leaving the tower with Al, he'd need to remember to put it back.
"If Ezzo's curiosity uncovers it and he reads it, that's that. …Actually, wouldn't it be better to just destroy it? Nobody should read that thing."
"Destroy it? What thing, brother?"
"Gwaaah!"
Having returned from the shelf and still agonizing over what to do with the book, Subaru screamed when a voice suddenly came from behind.
Turning around in the aftermath of his echoing shriek, he found Al standing there, visibly startled by the overreaction.
"Whoa, easy there. I just made conversation."
"S-Sorry, you scared me. I was way louder than I meant to be."
"No, I mean, that's not even what bothers me—aren't you the bigger problem here?"
"The bigger problem?"
Subaru followed where Al was pointing and found Beatrice crouched on the ground, eyes brimming with tears, both hands clamped over her ears.
"S-So—so unforgivably LOUD! My ears—Betty's ears are ringing! Ringing!"
"Sorry! I didn't mean to! I love you!"
"I can't hear you! Say it louder, why don't you!"
"Betty's lovely! Betty's pretty!"
As Beatrice half-cried her way toward him, Subaru desperately professed his love. Beatrice, cheeks puffed out, fell silent for a long moment at his words before letting out a long breath.
Then: "Well, I suppose I'll forgive you—out of love for Betty. Be grateful for my magnanimity."
"Grateful, grateful, a thousand thanks. I love you always. —Anyway."
Petting the now-composed Beatrice's head, Subaru turned back to Al. Al had been watching the whole exchange with a bemused air, fiddling with the seam of his helmet.
"Oh, you done? You're always going at it with your spirit, aren't you, brother. Sorry to interrupt the honeymoon."
"Don't worry about it. Compared to getting back and putting off time with Emilia-tan and the others—wait, no, sorry!"
Subaru instinctively tried to respond in his usual bantering tone, then caught himself, clapping a hand over his mouth as he realized how thoughtless that had sounded.
But before he could dwell on it, Al gave a wry smile.
"Nah, you're not wrong. You're right, brother. In fact, let me properly thank you. Cutting your trip short to three days on my behalf—must've been rough."
At Al's quiet gratitude, Subaru struggled to find the right words.
It was Al himself who had proposed a three-day limit on their stay at the Pleiades Watchtower to search for the Book of the Dead. Of course, that was partly to raise the odds that Subaru and the others would accompany him and ensure he actually reached the tower.
But Subaru also saw it as proof that Al couldn't bring himself to be that selfish.
"And sorry to Betty, too, for dragging your brother along. Thanks for coming."
"———. Betty being with Subaru is the natural order of things. Also, Betty is not merciful enough to repeat the same warning. Do try to correct yourself properly."
"Got it, got it. —What a gentle kid you've got there."
"Yeah, I do. Betty's this soft, fluffy cotton-candy body stuffed to bursting with gentleness and adoration."
Subaru retook Beatrice's hand as he answered Al's quiet remark. At their exchange, Beatrice turned her face away with a "Hmph," as if hiding her embarrassment.
Smiling at her adorable reaction, Subaru exhaled and: "Al, how's the library search going?"
"As you can see—not much to show for it. I figured three days would be enough, but this number of books is truly hopeless. It's like finding a needle in a desert."
"———"
Al swept one arm around to indicate the library. His assessment wasn't wrong.
Since this world—no, since the Pleiades Great Library had been built, who knew how many lives had been lost. To go through them one by one was an overwhelming task.
And as Ezzo had said, the books were growing not by the day but by the second.
"But don't give up. We're going to help you properly."
"Brother…"
"That's right. We've already gone so far out of our way before even returning to the mansion—I will not accept 'I couldn't find it, so my spirit broke' as an ending. So don't give up."
"———"
At Subaru and Beatrice's consecutive words, Al slowly lowered his head. Watching his right hand clench and unclench, Subaru sensed hesitation there.
It was the very reaction he had hoped—or perhaps that was too cruel a word—something close to it, that he'd wanted to draw out from Al.
Al had come to the Pleiades Watchtower seeking to read Priscilla's Book of the Dead.
But now, having seen the actual library and immersed himself in the concentrated effort of processing Priscilla's death through reading, wouldn't he realize he could calm down even without reading the book?
The proof was right there: Al's self-destructive remarks had clearly decreased, and his demeanor had softened.
And Subaru knew that this very change would give Al a sense of guilt.
So he added: "When we say don't give up, Betty and I aren't talking about finding the book. We're saying—don't give up until you've reached a conclusion you can live with."
"A conclusion I can live with…?"
"That's right. Not 'because I got tired of it' or 'because there wasn't enough time'—but a conclusion you arrive at through your own thinking. That's what it means to be at peace."
If he failed to convey this properly, Subaru knew it could come across as terribly insensitive. Depending on how it was received, it might sound like he was telling Al to accept Priscilla's death. But that wasn't what he meant. Rather, it was about feeling that you had truly confronted Priscilla's death itself—not the question of whether she lived or died, but the reality of her passing.
To mourn her. To think of her. To find some closure, somewhere. —That was what was needed.
For that purpose— "Let's give it everything for these three days. We'll back you up with everything we've got."
"But that doesn't mean a reckless all-nighter, does it? You'll end up like Otto."
Beatrice added with a wink, and the two of them spoke with such conviction that Al quietly caught his breath. Slowly tilting his helmet upward, he exhaled. It was a long, deep sigh—as if a great weight were falling away from him.
"Three days, huh."
"That's right. No extensions. …Well, okay, if you really begged I might reconsider, but you can't count on that from the start!"
"If we get back late, Emilia will give you an earful."
"Emilia-tan's earful! …Though honestly, even that would be cute to watch."
Whatever the emotion, whatever the expression, whatever the angle—Emilia would be so adorable it might blind him. But he'd already put her through enough worry.
From now on, he wanted to see nothing but smiles, blushes, positive faces.
"Though, to be fair, her E.M.T. factor is unshakable regardless…"
Saying this, Subaru shrugged at Beatrice's exasperated look and turned back to Al.
Meeting Subaru's gaze head-on, Al nodded—and: "Or Shamak."
——In the next instant, Natsuki Subaru's world went dark.
△▼△▼△▼△ "Three days. When you've got three days, you start getting suspicious that something's bound to happen on the third."
A sharp clatter sounded as something struck the floor of the Tigetta library. Al pressed it down with his toe to keep it from rolling away.
"That means the night of the first day—right after a good conversation—is when your guard is lowest."
Crouching down, he picked up the small black sphere he'd pinned with his toe.
It was cold and hard to the touch, like a glass marble, though it was far more durable than that. It had to be. —This was the prison that could contain even a Witch.
"I know, brother… No—Natsuki Subaru. —I'm not going to kill you."
There was apparently someone who had tried to kill Natsuki Subaru with reckless, single-minded obsession—but that wasn't it. Doing so would mean nothing.
If he did that, it would be Natsuki Subaru's battlefield.
Natsuki Subaru must not be made to fight on his own battlefield.
In other words— "Let's begin, sensei. —To be who I am."
Therefore, Al—Aldebaran took up the purpose he had once abandoned, and set his plan in motion.
—The battle to remove Natsuki Subaru from this world.