Re:Zero ― The Scapegoat's Oath: If Subaru Vowed to Put Emilia on the Throne - I'll tell you everything.

Natsuki Subaru walked through the corridors of Roswaal Manor. His bandage-wrapped body screamed in protest. His broken ribs ached with every breath. But his feet wouldn't stop. *(I can't end this as Roswaal's pawn.)* The resolve he'd clenched his teeth over on the cobblestones last night still burned hot in his gut. Dancing on the clown's palm was over. Subaru stopped in front of the door leading to the courtyard. He traced the small wound on his left temple with a finger. A scar from his first Return by Death. He remembered the pain of death he'd tasted for the first time. He'd been alone back then, too. "…Here goes." He pushed the door open. The early afternoon courtyard was quiet. The green of the lawn was gentle on the eyes. Seasonal flowers bloomed in riotous color in the flowerbeds. The sky stretched high and clear, a tranquility that was the complete opposite of Subaru's inner turmoil. In front of the fountain, a silver-haired girl turned around. Emilia. Her waist-length silver hair swayed in the breeze. Her large violet eyes wavered as they took in Subaru's bandaged form. As always, those eyes were so clear they seemed to see right through a person's heart. "Subaru." The softness in her voice made his chest tighten. At the same time, footsteps sounded from another direction. Light blue short hair. Large blue eyes. Rem. She caught her breath for an instant when she saw Subaru. Then, she looked back and forth between Emilia and Subaru, tilting her head in confusion. "…Lady Emilia was called here too." "Yes. Subaru said he had something important to discuss." Both of their gazes turned toward Subaru. Subaru scratched his head with his bandage-wrapped hand. "Yeah, that's right. Something important. I'm going to tell you everything, right now." At those words, Emilia's face lit up. Rem still furrowed her brow warily. But her eyes were fixed firmly on Subaru. Subaru took a breath. "You might not believe me, but—" At that moment. "Caw!!" A bird let out a huge cry from a tree in the courtyard. Subaru's words were cut off mid-sentence. "…What?" Emilia brought a hand to her mouth and giggled. Rem's eyebrow twitched, too. The tense atmosphere loosened, just for a moment. "…Let me say it again." Subaru cleared his throat and turned to face the two of them again. The bird in the tree had stopped crying. "What I'm about to say might not make any sense to you. But it's the truth." Emilia nodded. Rem stared in silence. Steeling his resolve, Subaru opened his mouth. "I—have this power called Return by Death—" His words stopped midway. From deep in his throat, a violent pain shot through him, as if his heart were being seized by a claw. An impact so strong he thought his eyeballs might pop out. "…Gah…!?" Blood sprayed from his mouth. The red liquid scattered across the lawn. "Subaru!?" Emilia screamed and rushed over. But Subaru raised a hand to stop her. *(Not yet. Like hell I'm stopping over something like this.)* "…I die, and I return. Over and over. Time rewinds. And that—" Again. This time, a pain that surged up from the pit of his stomach. The sensation of his internal organs being squeezed relentlessly from the outside. "Gahah…!" Blood overflowed from his mouth. His knees buckled and dropped. "Stop! Subaru, stop! Please, stop!" Emilia's voice trembled. She reached out both hands, trying to support him. But Subaru, still on his hands and knees, raised his face once more. "…Not yet." "Subaru, please stop! I don't understand what's happening, but any more than this—" Rem shouted. Her blue eyes wavered with terror. Wiping the blood from his mouth with the back of his hand, Subaru forced a smile. "…This is why I had no choice but to carry it alone." His voice was hoarse. His throat burned as if on fire. "When I try to explain it with words, this happens. So, to get you to believe me, I had no choice but to put my body on the line." Once more, Subaru opened his mouth. The third time. "Return by Death is—" This time, a shock ran through his entire body. It was as if fire had been poured into every blood vessel. His vision dyed crimson. "Gofuh…!!" Blood spread across the lawn. Subaru placed both hands on the ground, somehow managing to support his body. His arms trembled. His broken ribs throbbed with sharp pain with every breath. "Enough, that's enough, Subaru…" Emilia grasped Subaru's hand in both of hers. Her hands were cold, but that coldness felt good against his feverish body. "I've known all along. That your eyes are eyes that can't lie. So I've always thought… you weren't saying those things because you truly meant them." Those words struck Subaru straight in the chest. *I've known all along.* *Your eyes are eyes that can't lie.* Those were the same words Emilia had said when she visited his room, back on the day in EP2 when Subaru had coldly pushed her away. She had believed in him all along. "Why… why did you believe in me that much? Even after I said all those horrible things…" His voice shook. He desperately tried to hold back the tears welling up. But he was already at his limit. Tears streaming down her face, Emilia squeezed Subaru's hand tightly. "Because every time you hurt someone, your eyes looked the saddest of all. I could tell… you were trying to protect something, even if it meant hurting your own heart." Subaru couldn't lift his face. He couldn't shake off the hand holding his, yet he also couldn't look directly at Emilia's face. He just stared at the ground. The warmth of her hand seeped slowly into his chilled fingers. The center of his chest grew warm. This kind of closeness—he hadn't had it in so long. He'd been fighting alone all this time. A short distance away, Rem watched the scene. Her expression was complex. She bit her lip, clenching her fists as if holding something back. Then, Rem slowly stepped forward in front of Subaru. And knelt down. "Subaru." Her voice sounded like it was barely managing to come out. "Rem said there was no such thing as her hero. That night, Rem said that. She was wrong. Rem was mistaken." Her words were calm. But her voice trembled more and more. "Subaru was suffering so much. He was trying to protect something, even to the point of hurting himself. And Rem… Rem did the most terrible thing…" Her voice broke midway. Tears spilled in streams from Rem's large blue eyes. She covered her face with both hands and cried like a child. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, Subaru… Rem is… Rem is…!!" Subaru hurriedly placed a hand on Rem's shoulder. "No, you've got it wrong, Rem. I'm the one who's sorry. Saying it was for the plan, I kept everything bottled up alone. I didn't trust you. I was selfish." "That's not true! Subaru isn't at fault! It's all Rem's fault!" "No, I'm the one at fault! There's no way you're at fault!" "It's Rem! Rem is at fault!" A battle over who would apologize first began between the two of them. When Subaru said he was at fault, Rem retorted that Rem was at fault. Emilia, tears still streaming down her face, watched the two of them with a bewildered expression. "You two are apologizing so much the conversation isn't going anywhere…" When Emilia cut in with a troubled look, Subaru and Rem looked at her simultaneously. Subaru's face was a mess of tears and blood. Rem was crying while sniffling. The sight was so utterly pathetic that Emilia couldn't help but let out a small laugh. "…Pfft." The laughter was contagious. Rem hurriedly wiped her tears and giggled. Subaru's mouth relaxed into a smile too, caught up in it. "Okay, okay. Everyone together: I'm sorry." When Subaru said that, a warm silence fell between the three of them for the first time. Only the sound of the fountain's water echoed quietly. After a while, Subaru slowly stood up. His whole body ached. But it was different from the lonely pain he'd felt until just moments ago. Now, the two of them were here. "Listen." He looked straight at Emilia and Rem. "From now on, it won't be Roswaal's plan. I'll put you on the throne my own way. It'll be a roundabout path, and honestly, I still have no idea how to do it. I've got no backing, and it's nothing but enemies. But—" Subaru took a breath. "I won't do it alone anymore. I'll fight together with you." Tears spilled from Emilia's eyes again. But this time, they weren't the sad tears from before. "I don't have to carry everything alone, either." At those words, Subaru's eyes widened. "…That's the line I wanted to say." With a wry smile, Subaru muttered quietly. Wiping her tears, Rem stepped forward. "Rem is here too. She is Subaru's ally. That goes without saying." It was a short statement. But her eyes were red, the oni blood quietly gleaming within them. The resolve to fight no matter what enemy came dwelled in those eyes. Between the three of them, there were no lies, no acting. The bond that had connected for the first time was undeniably there. — At that same time. A room in one of Roswaal Manor's towers. Roswaal L Mathers stood by the window. His long, deep blue hair swayed in the breeze from the window. His odd eyes—yellow on the left, blue on the right—gazed down steadily at the three figures in the courtyard. "So it turned out that way, after all~." His syrupy, drawn-out voice echoed in the empty room. Subaru stood surrounded by Emilia and Rem. Roswaal had witnessed everything—the moment a bond free of lies and acting was born between the three of them. "…Fufu." The smile plastered on his lips deepened further. "Fufufu, hahaha, ahahahahaha!!" Laughter welled up and he couldn't stop it. Roswaal began laughing, clutching his stomach. A great laugh that nearly brought tears to his eyes. Whether this development was also within his calculations, or whether his aim had missed for the first time—no one could tell from that laughter alone. When the laughter subsided, Roswaal stepped away from the window. On the desk, an old notebook lay open. The pages were yellowed with age, the ink faded. But the letters written there alone retained the handwriting from 400 years ago. His teacher's handwriting. Roswaal dropped his gaze to the notebook. His hand trembled, just slightly. "…Just a little more~. A little more, and everything will end." A soliloquy addressed to no one. Then Roswaal looked down at the courtyard outside the window once more. Subaru was declaring something, and Emilia and Rem were nodding. "Now then, the real show starts from here~. Subaru-kun. How much you can struggle from this point on… I look forward to seeing it~." Roswaal's odd eyes narrowed like a snake's. The next move was already prepared. A new plan, one that had already factored in Subaru's breakaway and the bond between the three, was quietly beginning to stir into motion.

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Episode 7

Name: Re:Zero ― The Scapegoat's Oath: If Subaru Vowed to Put Emilia on the Throne
Author: Novelia

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