Arc 8, Chapter 13 - 'To Each Their Wounds”

Arc 8, Chapter 13 - “To Each Their Wounds”

???: [――You also came, Rem.]

Rem looked up quietly, as a voice called out to her from her side.

At the connection of the coupled dragon carriage, calling out to Rem, who was leaning her back against the wall of the car, was a silver-haired girl who had opened the door of the next car―― Emilia.

She had a beautiful face with a soft look in her eyes; by her side was a girl holding her hand. It was Beatrice, who had rushed to Subaru during the chaos at the Imperial Capital.

It was a touching sight, but Rem’s feelings toward them were extremely complicated.

Of course, this was partly because these women were related to Rem’s lost Memories that she herself had no knowledge of, but that was not the only reason.

Unlike Ram, who she had instinctively known was her sister, and the other people who had called themselves her companions, these two people were special. ――They were special in that they were deeply connected to Subaru.

Both of them felt a particularly strong connection to him during the situation surrounding the Imperial Capital, during the retreat, and afterwards when they were visiting Subaru while he was unconscious.

Rem did not know why it bothered her so much――.

Rem: [Emilia-san, and Beatrice-chan...]

Beatrice: [Rem is also concerned about where the discussion is going, I suppose.]

Rem: [Concerned... Yes, right, concerned I might be.]

When asked by Beatrice, who had addressed her by name, Rem looked down slightly.

The reason Rem stood in the empty passageway was to watch over the cabin a short distance away―― the cabin assigned to Natsuki Subaru as his sleeping quarters.

Subaru and Abel were now confronting each other in a quiet cabin after the large crowd of visitors had left.

Abel’s face was grim, and when he was seen, he was often wearing an oni mask, so it was refreshing for Rem to see his true face.

However, as far as Rem knew, Abel always had a scowl on his face when unmasked. But today, his already grim face looked even more stiffened than before.

Emilia: [Rem, you’ve been around Subaru and Abel... Err, Emperor Vincent for a while, haven’t you? Are they good friends?]

Rem: [Emperor Vincent, I’m not used to calling him that. And I don’t get the impression that the two are very friendly with each other. I would say that even though they had agreed on some ideas, they didn’t get along...]

Emilia: [Ugh, that’s what I thought...]

Beatrice: [Well, that was predictable, in fact. Abel’s way of thinking and Subaru’s go like oil and water, I suppose. Betty prefers the sentimental way Subaru thinks, in fact.]

Emilia: [Jeez, Beatrice is so quick to spoil Subaru. You have to give Abel’s side of the story a proper listen... Umm, Emperor Vincent’s side of the story rather!]

Emilia’s shoulders slumped at Rem’s answer, but her lips pouted at Beatrice’s subsequent assertion.

In front of Rem, who thought her expression seemed to change from one moment to the next, Emilia added a surprised “Ah” and looked at her.

Emilia: [Oh, and, Rem, since we’re in Vollachia, you have to call me Emily...]

Rem: [...Um, is there a point to that?]

Emilia: [Eh, of course there is. No one thinks I’m Emilia. Right, Beatrice?]

Beatrice: [Since Betty also spoils Emilia, to give no answer is a kindness, I suppose.]

Emilia: [Huh!? What does that mean!?]

Emilia’s eyes widened at Beatrice’s kind misdirection as she held her hand.

Rem felt that her feelings were at the mercy of the two as she saw their hard-to-dislike interactions, but she soon grew fond of Emilia and Beatrice.

In the first place, if what she had heard was true, they had risked a lot to come to this country to look for both Rem and Subaru. There was no way she could dislike them.

Rem: [Unlike him, there’s nothing suspicious about them.]

Subaru carried a stench that inspired fierce, instinctive alarm. While a large part of Rem’s hostility was due to that, there was no sign of it in Emilia and the others.

So, like with Louis, the People of Shudraq, Flop, and the others, there was no reason to bother snapping at them.

Although――,

Rem: [...That person’s smell suddenly becoming fainter is also scary.]

She was concerned about Subaru, who had lost his strong stench while they had been separated.

Since she did not know what exactly it was, and since it was better that it did not exist rather than the opposite, she wanted to say that things had improved.

And, as she had been thinking that.

???: [Huuuh~? It’s Rem-chan, Emily-chan, and Beatrice-chan!]

The door of the carriage on the opposite side from where Rem and the others were standing was opened, and the other party who had appeared called out the names of the three in a loud voice.

Waving her hands vigorously, a tall woman strolled towards them―― her long golden hair was freely arranged, her skin was exposed like a dancer’s, and above all, she had fully grown arms and legs appropriate for her age.

She was――,

Emilia: [――Medium-san.]

Medium: [Yahoo! Perhaps, are you all worried about Abel-chin and Subaru-chin too?]

Emilia: [Yes, that’s right. Medium-chan was as well?]

Medium: [Yeah, yes! See, I finally have a big body again, don’t I? Now, unlike when I was little, I can stop adults from fighting, so I thought I could be useful.]

With her chest puffed out, Medium answered as such―― they had not seen her for long, but like Subaru, she was one of those whose appearance had changed from that of an adult to a child.

The childish Medium was also very endearing, retaining her lively personality, but her charm remained the same regardless of the length of her arms and legs, so the familiar figure calmed Rem down.

It seemed that Medium had also been very frustrated for having become smaller, and she seemed to be enjoying being back to her large body as much as she could.

In any case――,

Rem: [To stop a fight... that is, between that person and Abel-san?]

Medium: [That’s right~? It’s been a while since the two of them talked properly, aren’t they going to go wild?]

Rem: [I don’t know... Setting aside that person, I can’t imagine Abel-san going berserk.]

With a stern face and a harsh voice, she had the impression that Abel was one who would verbalize painful things.

However, unlike Rem, who had frowned at Medium’s concerns, Emilia and Beatrice’s opinions seemed to be closer to Medium’s side,

Beatrice: [Betty agrees with Medium, in fact. At the very least, Subaru has a lot to say to that Emperor, so he will probably snap at him, I suppose.]

Emilia: [That’s true. I, Emily, am a teensy bit worried too. A fight is not only about hitting each other, but also about hurting each other with words.]

Rem: [...Is that how it is?]

Certainly, it would not be a scuffle, since there was no indication that Abel would raise his hand, but it was quite possible that Subaru could become emotional, and that the argument could intensify.

Because Abel was rational, Rem felt that he talked circles around Subaru comparatively more often, but Abel may not have much leeway now. She had not exchanged many words with Abel, who had regained his position as Emperor, but she could understand the concern of Medium and Beatrice.

And that speculation was immediately verified to be correct.

???: [――Okay? Anyways, let’s sneak over to Garfiel. If it’s him, he should be able to understand our unavoidable circumstances.]

???: [What, the scandal of how a Knight of the Kingdom raised his hand against the Emperor of the Empire?]

???: [Don’t forget, if that goes to trial, I’ll talk about everything you’ve been up to as a last resort...!]

And so on, the door of the cabin opened as they continued the hushed exchange.

The eyes of those in Rem’s group, who were waiting for the discussion to be concluded, met the black eyes of the two men as they peeked out to see whether there was anyone in the aisle.

Subaru opened his mouth with an “Ah”, while Abel frowned with a “Ugh”.

However, that was not the extent of the reactions of Rem’s group when they saw the state of the two of them. After all, both Subaru and Abel, who showed their faces, were covered in blood.

Rem: [Unbelievable...]

Medium: [You two were having a much bigger fight than I thought you would!?]

Emilia: [O-oh no! Beatrice! Quickly, heal him...!]

Beatrice: [It’s as you see, in fact! Betty should have been there, I suppose!!]

Subaru and Abel met their gazes at the group of women who had welcomed them with a flurried commotion. Then Abel sighed, and Subaru raised his hands in resignation.

After that,

Subaru: [Um, you’re definitely going to get mad, so before that happens I gotta tell you... We’ve made up.]

With a wry smile on his pitiable face, he said that as if he had at least some good news to tell.

△▼△▼△▼△

――In the end, their injuries were just a small cut on their hands, nothing impressive.

Medium: [But, the cabin’s a mess now and... We don’t have another cabin that we can prepare.]

Subaru: [No, I’m not going to tell you something as self-important as to prepare another cabin. I’ve seriously reflected on what I... Ah! Medium-san! You’re back to normal!]

Medium: [Hehe~, that’s right, Subaru-chin! Ah, no, that’s no good! I’m happy that you said that, but I’m also angry at you. The two of you are hopeless~.]

Saying that, Medium put her hands on her waist and scolded Subaru for his poor attempt to change the topic of the conversation.

Subaru’s shoulders slumped in remorse; however, instead of the depressed Subaru, it was Abel, whom Subaru had fought with, that received the brunt of Medium’s scolding.

Medium: [Abel-chin as well, while Subaru-chin is small, you can’t act immature, okay?]

Vincent: [...You, do you understand what you just did? You raised a hand against the Emperor.]

Medium: [Because you’re so great and all that, and no one has ever scolded you, Abel-chin, you’ve grown up to be like this, haven’t you?]

Vincent: [――――]

Abel frowned and crossed his arms, meanwhile Medium was giving him a reproachful glare. As one could understand from the exchange that had just happened, surprisingly, Medium had slapped Abel over the head.

Looking at the disastrous state of the cabin, it was reasonable to want to scold Abel for fighting with the young-looking Subaru, but Rem was impressed by the absurd act.

Rem: [If it’s okay with Medium-san, may I also hit him?]

Vincent: [Do not join her. We do not have the leisure to look over each instance of disrespect one-by-one at this time. Do not do something that would make me have to take my time after the war to decide whether I should punish you by comparing it to your achievements.]

Rem: [That’s a shame.]

Of course, she had not expected to receive permission, but for Rem, it was fruitful to hear the words “after the war” come from Abel’s mouth.

At least, Abel was looking towards the future. Although she did not know what had been said during their conversation inside, compared to before he had visited this cabin, it felt like the light and color within his eyes had improved.

Emilia: [――Okay, this is good. But you need to change your clothes or else everyone will worry about you, you can go see everyone after you’re dressed properly, okay?]

Beatrice: [Truly, you’re so troublesome, in fact. You can’t allow Betty to have any peace of mind, I suppose.]

Subaru: [Sorry, sorry. But it’s been a while, it feels so fresh. For a while the only people who worried about me were, except for Tanza, all men.]

Having wiped off the blood on Subaru’s face and hands with the hand towel she carried, Emilia patted him on the head.

Beatrice, with her hands held out and seemingly trying to heal his wounds, shrugged her shoulders, appearing to feel not only a sense of relief, but also a sense of joy.

Both of them seemed to feel happy to be looking after Subaru.

Looking at this, for some reason Rem felt her chest tingle.

Medium: [Hey, hey, Abel-chin, do you think you can manage?]

Not having noticed that which occurred in Rem’s heart, Medium tilted her head as she asked Abel this question.

Abel narrowed his black eyes at her question, and then nodded his head after a moment.

Vincent: [There is no problem. In fact, it is foolish to point at me and question whether I can work hard. Ever since I decided that I would assume the seat of Emperor, I lost the right to act haphazardly.]

Medium: [――? Does that mean that you’re going to continue working hard as the Emperor?]

Vincent: [――. That is a foolish way of saying it, but roughly, yes.]

Medium: [I see! Then I also agree! Let’s work together~!]

Medium’s face suddenly brightened up and she held her hand out towards Abel. Abel glared at Medium’s hand, and proceeded to turn his face away.

At Abel’s cold attitude, Medium withdrew her hand and clapped her hands together, producing a snapping sound.

Medium: [Well, should we go to meet the others? Big bro also wanted to talk with Abel-chin.]

Vincent: [I do not have the time to talk with that thing, but Serena Dracroy’s flying dragon ship should also be back soon. Either way, I need to talk with the main players now.]

Rem: [――Ah, please wait.]

Towards Medium’s urging, Abel drew back his chin.

For Abel, who liked to take care of things quickly, she knew that from now on, important discussions would have to be held to discuss how to deal with the problems occurring in the Imperial Capital.

Naturally, as people who were important to that discussion, it was already decided that Subaru and Emilia would be present, but before that, Rem had something important to say.

Half of the reason Rem stood there was because of her concern about the twisted relationship between Subaru and Abel, but the other half was because of that.

Subaru: [Abel, I also have something that I want to do before I meet everyone... Something that I absolutely must do. So, let me go do that first.]

Rem: [Ah...]

Stopping the exchange, Rem tried to tell them her reason for coming. However, Subaru interrupted Rem as he began to speak, turning his gaze towards her.

That gaze made her understand that what he absolutely had to do was the same thing as what Rem had tried to say. So, Rem pursed her lips, and nodded.

And then――,

Subaru: [――Rem, take me to Katya-san.]

△▼△▼△▼△

???: [What the fuck, brat? This ain’t no place for you.]

When he visited his intended cabin, Subaru’s eyes widened as he was greeted by a vulgar voice.

Standing behind the open door was a man with a rough greeting voice that matched his eye-patched face――for a moment, he had a difficult time opening his memory drawer, but then it hit him.

Subaru: [Jamal... right?]

△▼△▼△▼△

???: [Heeello~, Subaru-kun, you’re looking well, areeen’t~ you? You’ve been looking more youthful, I wooonder~ if it’s thanks to the food of the Empire?]

Subaru: [Amazing. The only person that could make such a gaudy joke after seeing me like this is Roswaal.]

Roswaal: [Oh my, no one else was calm enough to do that, were theeey~? By the way, for the time being, in this place I go by the name Dudley—— From now on, let’s get along, okay?]

With his blue eye closed, leaving his yellow eye winking towards him, it was an expression that Subaru had not seen in a while—— Roswaal’s, that was, and coming face-to-face with him made Subaru break into a smile.

As expected, Roswaal was unphased as he looked at the shrunken-down Subaru, but Subaru decided not to mention that his style differed from his usual clown costume. It was a little vexing, as it reminded him of when he changed his tone of voice and intentionally omitted explaining anything.

After Subaru had informed Katya of Todd’s final moments, Subaru had goneto the middle of the coupled dragon carriages to a larger passenger car that had been prepared for him.

The coupled dragon carriages—— According to Subaru’s prior knowledge, they were similar in structure to electric and railway trains, the likes of which could only be found in the Vollachian Empire, which was flatter than most other countries.

Of course, when it came to who held the larger number of ground dragons, that went to the Kingdom of Lugunica; thus, he decided he would keep in a corner of his mind that it would probably be possible to lay out something similar, provided he chose the right terrain.

Roswaal: [This coupled dragon carriage, I dare say that it appears to be one of the secrets of the Empire. From what I’ve heard, it was invented by a member of the Nine Divine Generals known for their wisdom...]

Subaru: [I knew it. I’ve never seen something like this in the Kingdom... Thinking about it, we’ve seriously seen a lot of the inner workings of the Empire.]

Roswaal: [Hahaha, it’d be disastrous if we’re prevented from returning just because we peeked at the dark side of the Empire too much. From now on, I think it may be wise if we spend some time with our eyes closed.]

Subaru: [That’s, no laughing matter either...]

Roswaal gave a hearty laugh in agreement as Subaru grumbled this. Otto wore a dismayed expression as he overheard their conversation.

The passenger carriage in question was a dining car with a lot of tables, designed with enough space to accommodate roughly twenty people. However, the purpose for all these tables was not for having a meal, but rather for discussions such as assemblies and war councils.

In fact, Subaru and Roswaal were not the only ones there; there were many other faces as well.

Of course, Emilia and Beatrice, who had come here earlier, were sitting at the same table as Ram.

Ram gave a scornful gaze to Subaru, who had come alone.

Ram: [Little Barusu, what happened with Rem? Shouldn’t she be with you?]

Subaru: [You really didn’t need to use that prefix... Right now, Rem is with Katya-san. For this discussion, I don’t think we’ll be seeing her face.]

Ram: [——. Ah, yes.]

Spilling out a sigh, Ram did not dig any further into Subaru’s answer.

At last, Ram had managed to meet her younger sister, Rem, but apparently they were not as clingy with each other as Subaru had thought they would be. From the get-go, he had the impression that the two of them were quite close with one another, so Subaru had hoped that the two sisters would be constantly holding each other’s hands.

Ram: [Ram and Rem are both their own person. Don’t be forcing your own selfish feelings onto us, young Barusu. It’s disgusting.]

Subaru: [Don’t read other people’s minds! I’m not being disgusting!]

Ram: [While Ram couldn’t be around, it was the people around Rem that supported her. Don’t think of belittling those relationships. Shameless, undeveloped Barusu.]

Subaru: [Let’s see how long it takes for you to use up all of your variations of my nickname, nee-sama...!]

As his cheeks twitched at the various things Ram said and did, Subaru took a deep breath.

Ram had a point; it would be no good to rush. First of all, the sisters had been successfully reunited, so they should not rush and should advance forward slowly.

There was no need to worry, as there was a bond between Ram and Rem that no one could get between.

He was able to believe this from the atmosphere that he had felt when they had come to visit Subaru together.

Subaru: [But, are these all our members? What about Petra, Frederica, and Garfiel?]

Emilia: [Petra-chan and Frederica are taking care of the soldiers that are fighting. Garfiel as well, he’s also busy with the wounded.]

Subaru: [The fighting, that’s still ongoing?]

Emilia: [Yes, it is. Subaru, I think you saw a lot of them in the Imperial Capital...]

In regards to the whereabouts of the missing members, Emilia slightly hesitated with her answer.

What she was about to say, Subaru could guess what it would be.

Subaru: [The zombies...]

Otto: [W-what is that, that strange name?]

Subaru: [A dead person that can move around. In my hometown, we call them zombies. I thought it’d be better if they had a name, so I called them that for the sake of convenience.]

Otto: [Do you not have way too many weird things in your hometown, Natsuki-san?]

Otto turned a reproachful look towards Subaru, whose mouth curved into a smile.

In this case, he thought about whether he should argue that this world in which zombies had actually appeared was the stranger one, or whether it was his world, in which zombies were the subject of so many works of fiction, but did not actually exist. Truly an incomprehensible matter of dimensions.

Roswaal: [I see, that’s good, zombies. At least, we can avoid calling them “corpse soldiers”.]

Then, Roswaal cut in between Subaru and Otto’s conversation.

Subaru ruminated on the words “corpse soldiers” that had come from his mouth.

Subaru: [Something like that, it seems like it’s connected to some bad memories, huh?]

Roswaal: [That is indeed the case. It’s one of the memories that I don’t wish to remember.]

Beatrice: [As discussed in the Imperial Capital, it’s safe to say that this is the result of the Sacrament of the Immortal King, I suppose. According to the records, it was used most recently during the Kingdom’s civil war, in fact.]

Subaru: [So that’s why it’s a bad memory.]

At Subaru’s gaze, Roswaal gave a vague smile as he declined to say anything further.

Roswaal had a deep knowledge of the past. Even if he himself had not participated in the civil war, he still might have had a bad experience with the Sacrament of the Immortal King.

Beatrice: [But, as far as Betty knows, that secret art is meant to be an unstable product, I suppose. To create such a great number of zombies and reproduce it so well, it should be impossible, in fact.]

Subaru: [But, they were actually moving and talking, so there must be some reason for it, right?]

Beatrice: [...Betty is also scratching her head, I suppose. Dudley, you shouldn’t be slacking off, in fact.]

Roswaal: [My oh my, I’m upset that you think that I’m slacking off. Since this also involves me, there’s no reason for me to cut any corners. Besides, all of your lives are also at stake.]

Beatrice: [Betty doesn’t know how much to trust you, I suppose.]

Roswaal: [I understand. Because your life is also at stake.]

Beatrice: [What do you understand, in fact! You’re just cracking even more jokes, I suppose!]

With his chin resting on his folded hands Roswaal gave this answer, causing Beatrice’s face to become red as she shouted at him.

Beatrice exploded with frustration at the tease from Roswaal, but even Subaru was not sure what Roswaal was truly thinking. However, since Beatrice was Subaru’s partner, he pulled down his eyelid and stuck his tongue out at him.

Emilia: [Well, I’m not really sure of the details, but is it alright if I call them “zombees” like Subaru?]

Otto: [I see no problem with it? It is shorter than saying corpse soldiers.]

Subaru: [That way of agreement is just like Otto...]

And so, just like that, as Subaru’s conversation with the others came to a close,

???: [——Your Excellency, according to a report I received from General Second-Class Kafma, they will remain in the Gairahal Tropics to keep an eye on the stragglers as much as possible.]

???: [Also, from General First-Class Olbart, he is using delaying tactics with the shinobi under his command! However, he said that since their opponent has no need to resupply water or food rations, it seems that what he can do decreases by about half!]

???: [As for Kafma Irulux and Olbart Dunkelkenn, tell them to continue their operations as they have been doing. Serena Dracroy, what of your flying dragon ship?]

???: [It has yet to return. Hopefully the fact that it’s taking longer than anticipated doesn’t mean that the Fortified City has fallen.]

???: [...If it performs the purpose it was built to do, the Fortified City should not be unprepared.]

And so, with the flurry of several footsteps and important talk flying around, Abel and three of his retainers—— an old man, a large man, and a beautiful woman, arrived within the carriage.

Subaru did not know any of their names.

Otto: [The old man is the Prime Minister Berstetz Fondalfon, the tall man is General First-Class Goz Ralfon, and that woman is High Countess Serena Dracroy.]

Subaru: [You saved me there... Goz, I think he’s the guy that was arrested for letting Abel escape.]

Otto guessed the reason for Subaru’s frowning profile and made his comment. Among the names Subaru had heard from him, was the name of one of the Nine Divine Generals whose survival was supposed to be uncertain.

He was someone who had been stated of being able to be considered an ally to Abel supposing he had survived, so he was honestly happy to see him actually at Abel’s side.

Vincent: [All of you are here? Good, then we can begin the war council.]

Subaru: [Hey, what about Flop-san and the others?]

Vincent: [If there was a shortage of manpower like at the Fortress City, it would be a different story, but what value would the addition of a peddler provide to this war council?]

Otto: [That is true. I wonder, why am I even here...?]

Beside Subaru, who had tilted his head, Otto also tilted his head at what Abel said.

But the reason for which Otto had tilted his head was not known by the Emilia Camp, Subaru included. It was only natural for Otto to be present here.

He was even laughed at scornfully by Ram with a “Ha”.

Subaru: [And Taritta-san, Mizelda-san, and the others are positioned in the passenger car at the rear, so they won’t be here for this discussion, right?]

Berstetz: [Indeed. That is what we have heard from the People of Shudraq. They have given me a really reassuring reply that when the time comes for them to utilize their power, they will do so fully.]

Goz: [Certainly, I never thought that I would get the opportunity to stand side-by-side with the People of Shudraq, renowned for their bravery and courage! If this were not a struggle for the survival of the Empire, I would be all the more excited! Damn!]

Vincent: [You make too much noise. Keep your mouth closed.]

Abel silenced Goz, causing him to clinch his fists, which were the size of a child’s head, as he restrained himself. It was an inconsiderate remark, but since nobody paid it any attention, it was probably just a typical exchange between them.

At any rate, he now understood why Flop and the People of Shudraq were not present.

Emilia: [Subaru, your friends from the Empire are...]

Subaru: [I’ve already told everyone in the Battalion that I’d speak as their representative. Ummm, there’s something I want to discuss with everyone. Especially with Beako.]

Beatrice: [With Betty...? This doesn’t feel like it’s going to be good, in fact.]

Subaru: [There, there, there.]

For the time being, he had asked his comrades from the Pleiades Battalion to refrain from attending this meeting.

After all, Subaru and Abel were both in the same cabin. With one wrong move, Weitz could have attacked Abel in an attempt to hand over the throne to Subaru.

The lie that Subaru was the illegitimate son of Abel―― of Vincent Vollachia, that he was the black-haired Crown Prince, was still ongoing. He eventually needed to resolve that issue as well.

Subaru: [Though, it would’ve been nice at least if Tanza were here...]

Subaru was the only one attending the meeting as a member of the Battalion. He did not feel comfortable taking her out of her cabin, as she was not looking well.

As was the case when she had visited him, he would definitely have to talk to Tanza later.

Subaru: [Also, I haven’t seen Louis around...]

Ram: [That girl is with Medium and Flop. You seem to have a lot of feelings for her, but what do you intend to do with her, Barusu?]

Subaru: [――. We can talk about that later, too.]

Ram’s light-crimson eyes narrowed, and Subaru felt compelled to reply.

Ram knew that Louis had been present at Pleiades Watchtower right before Subaru and Rem had been sent to the Empire. Naturally, from Ram’s mouth and from Abel’s, Louis’s true identity would have been shared with everyone.

Still, she would like to know who, along with what kind of work and effort, had made it possible for her to be on board this coupled dragon carriage.

In addition, they needed to find the best compromise for Louis.

Vincent: [Now that you have finally caught up, we shall start this war council, Natsuki Subaru.]

Subaru: [You, don’t forget that I’m holding onto an enormous scandal, okay? I mean, I guess it’s like that, but not quite.]

Abel’s attitude had not changed on the surface, even though he vividly remembered him meekly bowing his head. Using disparaging words at his attitude, Subaru put a stop to him.

Still, there was a companion whose movements had not yet been confirmed.

That was――,

Subaru: [――What about Priscilla? She must have been in Guaral, and wasn’t she also at the Imperial Capital? Besides, Tanza mentioned Yorna.]

Subaru asked this, as if he were saying “she should have been there” while looking at Abel’s face.

Somehow, Priscilla and her merry band of companions had come to the Vollachian Empire. Al had even accompanied him to the Demon City of Chaosflame, so he was sure that they had been involved in the battle for the Imperial Capital of Lupugana.

As for Yorna, Subaru and his group had also received information that she had joined the rebels. Tanza had likewise felt Yorna’s presence in the Imperial Capital.

Naturally, such faces would certainly be on board the coupled dragon carriage as well.

Speaking of a face he had not seen, he also had not seen Cecilus either, but Cecilus’s moodiness was the same as it was before they had left Gladiator Island, so he was not concerned about him――,

Subaru: [――Hey?]

However, once Subaru did ask about them, Abel fell silent and closed one eye.

Suspicious of his reaction, Subaru furrowed his brows as he looked around to see that Abel was not the only one who’d had such a reaction.

For some reason, nobody was saying anything about Priscilla’s group’s movements.

If Priscilla and the rest of her group had heartlessly returned to the Kingdom before the siege of the Imperial Capital, then Emilia and the others would have been surprised to hear Priscilla’s name.

That was not the case. And, the answer to this uncomfortable silence was――,

Beatrice: [――Subaru, that was kept secret to avoid agitating you, I suppose.]

Subaru: [Beako?]

Before he could react, Beatrice took action, and squeezed Subaru’s hand. Subaru’s cheeks tightened at Beatrice’s preamble.

Then, Emilia turned her attention towards Subaru, who unconsciously held Beatrice’s hand tightly,

Emilia: [Stay calm and listen to me, Subaru. About Priscilla and Yorna-san...]

She paused for a beat.

Emilia continued with what felt like a drawn-out answer to the anxious Subaru.

That was――,

Emilia: [When we were all fleeing together from the Imperial Capital, we didn’t find those two. ――But, I want to believe that they’re safe.]

――It was definite proof of the wounds inflicted to their side during the siege of the Imperial Capital.