Volume 4 - CH 66.2

[Roswaal: ――We~~ll now, you two ce~~rtainly look a~~ngry]

Laying on the bed in his allotted residence, Roswaal greeted Subaru and Garfiel with these words, cheerfully smiling in his usual clown makeup.

[Subaru: Yeah. I’m super pissed right now. And this one over here wants to jump on you this minute, you know? So you might wanna be careful what you say]

Standing there blocking the doorway, Subaru spread out his arms and nudged his chin at the person beside him. On the other end of his gesture was Garfiel, who was quietly growling.

The sound of his bestial breathing was proof that he was using the last of his rationality to maintain his human form. Although they were indoors, the coldness had penetrated the masonry of the walls and passed inside. Both Subaru and Roswaal were breathing white, while only Garfiel’s were bordering on red from the sheer heat of his breaths.

[Roswaal: This is an i~~nteresting pairing, no? I was sure I remember Garfiel saying something about ri~~pping Subaru in two when he comes back?]

[Garfiel: Things’ve changed a bit. I’ll have to put off decidin’ who t’crush into paste till I figure out what’s true or not]

[Subaru: Don’t say such scary things so naturally. Roswaal too, you shouldn’t accept that kind of scary statement like it’s normal, you know]

Subaru’s exchange with Garfiel as he left the Sanctuary for the Mansion had left him with a deep sense of self-loathing. Unable to forget that humiliation, Garfiel’s resentment towards Roswaal and Emilia wasn’t too difficult to understand.

Seeing Subaru furrow his brows, Roswaal shook his head with [No~ no~~o], as he turned his single yellow eye between Subaru and Garfiel,

[Roswaal: I was simply telling it as it i~~s, Subaru-kun]

[Subaru: Sounds like I’m pretty despised. I’m hurt, Ros-chi. Weren’t you gonna do anything even if Garfiel ate me up?]

[Roswaal: A~aya aya, now isn’t that too hard on yourself? If Subaru-kun went head to head with Garfiel, I’m not so sure that Garfiel would come out on to~~p?]

[Subaru: You think I have a chance? If you heard my combat record you’ll be shaking in your boots, you know]

Ever since being summoned to this Parallel World, Subaru had just been constantly taking damage, without barely a single combat victory to his name.

He did manage to beat up the weird trio in the alley, kill a few Wolgarms, and finish off the dying Petelgeuse, but that was about it.

[Subaru: Actually, that’s a lot better than I thought… but if I’m pitted against a pissed-off Garfiel, I won’t last two seconds before I get turned into meat cubes. I can at least see that much]

[Roswaal: I wonder. Perhaps, under the right conditions, you could put up a good fi~~ght, I think]

Narrowing his eye, Roswaal looked Subaru up and down as he spoke. Unfortunately, no matter how Subaru tried to reflect on those words, he just couldn’t seem to agree.

Subaru shrugged and decided to set Roswaal’s statements aside for now, while almost simultaneously beside him, Garfiel stomped down his foot, shattering the floorboard beneath it.

[Garfiel: None’a that crap matters right now! Ain’t there somethin’ more important here, hah!? Are y’two assholes asleep?]

Leaving a deep footprint in the center of the floor, Garfiel bared his fangs and shouted at Subaru and Roswaal.

He didn’t seem too fond of their little sparring match before moving into the main topic. But then again, it didn’t suit Subaru too well either.

Following Garfiel’s prompt, Subaru gave a single nod, and,

[Subaru: You’re the one making it snow outside, aren’t you, Roswaal]

He cut straight to the chase.

[Roswaal: ――――]

Hearing Subaru’s question, Roswaal closed his mouth.

Subaru followed suit, and quietly waited for Roswaal’s answer. Silence descended on the room, as the only sounds audible were the howls of the freezing wind outside the window, the rhythmic ticking of the clock hand, and the clicks of Garfiel’s gritting teeth.

[Roswaal: Subaru-kun]

[Subaru: Yeah?]

[Roswaal: ――Did you hear that from me?]

[Subaru: ――――]

What kind of question was that?

Subaru had run multiple simulations in his head about what Roswaal’s response might be.

Perhaps a boldfaced laugh like [Aha, you got me], or a pathetic [W-what a ludicrous…… proof, where’s your proof!]. Most likely, it would have been an evasive [I’m afraid I have no idea what you’re ta~~lking about], or something along those lines.

But Roswaal’s reply was completely different from anything Subaru had imagined.

[Subaru: What? We just got here, how are you supposed to have told us? You sure you’re not confused?]

[Roswaal: Hm~ mm……is that so. Is that so. I~~s that so. ……Unfortunate]

Despite chewing over the meaning of his words, Subaru only looked at Roswaal with an expression of non-understanding. After leaving him those words, Roswaal cast down his gaze, and let out a feeble sigh.

The side of his pallid face seemed even more devoid of strength than usual. And Subaru could see that it was not a result of his injuries, but a reflection of the state of his heart.

[Roswaal: ――I~~n that case. I misspoke, I misspoke. I said something strange just now]

Lifting his face again, Roswaal revealed a faint smile as if taking back what he had just said.

Somehow, Subaru just felt like there was something off about that red-painted smile.

But, paying no heed to Roswaal’s subtle change, Garfiel stepped forward,

[Garfiel: Y’ain’t denyin’ it, oy?]

[Roswaal: Don’t you think that if I throw up a bunch of excuses when I’m already under suspicion, it’ll just sound like I’m lying? But on the other hand, my u~~sual behavior hasn’t earned me any trust from you two ei~~ther]

[Garfiel: So y’fuckin’ noticed? Then y’can probably guess what I’m about t’do next……yeah!?]

Exhaling a sharp breath, Garfiel instantly erased their distance from several steps to zero.

Approaching the foot of the bed, Garfiel reached out his hand to grasp Roswaal by the throat. The split-second movement happened so fast that Subaru didn’t even have the time to call out to stop him.

But,

[Garfiel: ――You]

[???: I will not permit such insolence in front of Roswaal-sama, Garf]

Flying out of the adjacent room, Ram caught Garfiel by his torso and the wrist of his reaching hand.

With his right arm restrained to his chest, Garfiel leered at Ram with a growl.

Subaru was surprised that he hadn’t noticed Ram’s presence in the house until now, but, with a sigh of relief, he was at least grateful that she had managed to avert needless bloodshed.

Then――

[Roswaal: Ram. You really are an excellent servant]

[Ram: Yes, Roswaal-sama――]

Subaru couldn’t find anything strange about their exchange.

Ram had placed herself in harm’s way to protect her master, and Roswaal praised her. There should be nothing wrong about this. Ram was simply carrying out her duty.

So where was the problem? Subaru looked up, furrowing his brows, wondering.

Standing near the door, Subaru could see Garfiel’s back in front his eyes, and Ram’s delicate figure opposite him. Beyond them, was the bed which Roswaal had taken for his recuperation, but,

――Since when was Roswaal standing?

[Subaru: ――――]

It must have happened in an instant.

In the time it took Subaru to blink, Roswaal had stood up from his bed, and walked up to the standoff between Ram and Garfiel.

And,

[Subaru: ――――]

What the hell is that?

Protruding out of Garfiel’s back was what looked like a human arm.

Penetrating from the front of his chest to the center of his back, it had five writhing fingers, and Subaru was certain that it was someone’s right arm.

[Garfiel: Hhg, bh……h]

Before his eyes, Garfiel’s body violently convulsed.

Little by little, crimson blood stained into the back of his jacket as his legs dangled from his torso. With nothing to support his body, Garfiel dropped to his knees as the arm disappeared into his back.

And, having lost its plug, mass volumes of blood instantly spouted from the hole.

[Garfiel: ――Hh]

Garfiel collapsed to the floor. Looking down at him, were Ram and Roswaal.

And sticking out of Ram’s chest, was,

[Ram: ros……]

[Roswaal: You truly were an excellent servant]

Ram tried to call his name in a feeble voice, but Roswaal gently interrupted her.

He tenderly stroke his left hand on Ram’s peach-colored hair, while Ram seemed to accept it with a soft blush on her intoxicated expression.

――From the corner of her smile, a belated trail of fresh blood leaked out.

But of course.

Since her chest had been pierced through from behind.

The arm was drawn out.

And Ram’s delicate body, unable to withstand the slightest force, fell forwards onto the floor.

[Garfiel: Gh……Ros……ch. r, am……Ram, Ram, Ram, RAM RAM RAM RAM RAM!!]

The instant of hatred dominating his heart was drowned to nothing by the sight of the one he loved.

Again and again, Garfiel screamed the name of the girl in his arms, roaring blood as he emitted pale-blue light from his hands.

Subaru knew that vivid glow was from the channelling of healing magic.

While it wasn’t Garfiel’s specialization, he was still capable of casting it.

Right now, despite the fatal wound through his chest, Garfiel was pouring his everything into healing Ram in his arms.

As he did so, with each beating of his heart, his body pulsed and transformed.

Fur covered over his exposed skin, his fangs began to grow, and his pupils instantly narrowed into slits. His muscles swelled by magnitudes, as his clothes burst apart from the overwhelming mass of his body.

He was transforming into that mindless tiger, and his bestial instinct to protect his body was furiously clashing with the rational human desire to save the life of the one he loved.

But,

[Garfiel: ――――]

[Roswaal: It would be troublesome if you were allowed to morph]

Slightly tilting his head, with these words Roswaal kicked his leg towards Garfiel.

His long, sweeping leg became wind, and smashed directly into Garfiel’s skull――with the sound of eggshell cracking, like some slapstick prop, Garfiel’s head exploded into a spray of red.

Garfiel’s body lost everything from the neck up. Blood spouted like a fountain from the severed stump of his neck, filling the room with its bloody stench as his corpse fell on top of Ram.

Underneath, the faint smile on Ram’s expression remained unchanged.

Garfiel’s healing magic had had no effect. Ram’s pulse had already ceased the moment Roswaal pulled his arm from the cavity of her destroyed heart.

Garfiel had simply failed to notice it as he wrenched out his lifeforce to save her.

[Roswaal: E~~ven I have trouble casting magic while sustaining a weather-interference spell of this magnitude. ――For a court wizard, it really is an unsightly display]

Roughly scraping his blood-drenched leg on the nearby bed sheet, having murdered Ram and Garfiel with his bare hands, Roswaal turned to the immobilized Subaru.

And, with a tone and bearing completely unchanged from usual, he spoke.

[Roswaal: Now――shall we begin our talk? Natsuki Subaru-kun]