The violent sound of water flows from top to bottom, obeying gravity, following the flow direction, and following fate, a waterfall falling straight down.
It was a constant roaring sound in the ears, or in the skull, the fierce turbidity stirred the brain, there was light, the light could be seen, and then, it opened up——
"Ahem! Aha! It's back again..."
Gently stroking the non-existent wound on his stomach, the scene before death is still vivid in his mind
"ah……"
Raise your head and look around carefully
It's still this familiar darkness, the cold air and the atmosphere that doesn't belong to this world.
Here are the stone chambers in the ruins, the rough and uneven stone floors, and the stone doors leading deep into the darkness.
——And, lying beside him, the pitiful silver-haired girl
"The rebirth position has not changed..."
Not far away, the sound of shoes stepping on the ground came - Natsuki Subaru was back in the grave again
"——Sure enough, we are back to the starting point."
Subaru couldn't help but caress his chest with his left hand, which was still alive and had not been crushed. Look at his right wrist, which was still tied with Petra's handkerchief. It was pure white without a trace of blood.
After confirming, exhale a long and deep breath
"In short, wake up Emilia first, and let's talk about some things after we get back..."
Yuexing stood up, wiped off the dust on his body, and said to Subaru
To clarify the situation, confirm the information brought by the "return of death", and formulate countermeasures to eliminate problems and obstacles, these are put aside for now.
The priority now is to wake up Emilia, comfort her who cried bitterly after escaping from the nightmare, and take her outside.
Subaru himself didn't notice it at all - his face showed no emotion.
…
After Waking Emilia in the Grave, little has changed.
Comfort Emilia, who is tortured by the past and collapsed in grief, anger and remorse, and take her outside
Ram and Jaffier, who were worried about the two of them outside the tomb, met each other, and then returned to the temporary residence together.
"——? Why do you keep staring at Ram's face, Barus?"
"...Nothing, I just want to say that you are very beautiful."
"obscene"
On the way, after hearing Subaru's reason for looking directly at him, Ram looked at him with contempt and snorted.
Because of the "return of death", everything returned to its original state, but seeing Ram safe and sound made him feel secretly relieved, and her sour and soft-spoken attitude also made Subaru even more reassured.
"————"
Returning to the Ryuzu house where he was staying temporarily, he took Emilia to the bedroom and did what a man could do. Although he felt sorry for Emilia who was suffering from nightmares, he still gently put her on the bed.
"--ah"
Lying on the bed, Emilia, who noticed that Subaru's hand was about to leave, shouted, smiled at her uneasy face to reassure her, and then left the rest to Ram.
Tonight, just leave Emilia to Ram, Ram will definitely make her relax
Then, before the scheduled conversation with Roswaal——
By the campfire outside the room, the two exchanged information.
"So, what happened in the Forbidden Library? You looked like something was wrong in the "Tomb"..."
Subaru looked up at the dark night sky, and after letting out a long sigh, he slowly said:
"After entering the Forbidden Library, I got my wish and met Betty... But, everything was too late..."
"When I was about to commit suicide and prepare to "retrospect" - Betty stopped me, and then, falling next to the remains of the broken step stool, I saw something I could never have imagined."
"What is it?"
"--Gospel"
When he said these two words, Subaru didn't show any expression on his face.
"Then I learned that everything Betty did was actually just following the instructions of that book - the gospel... and in the end she was killed by Elsa who broke in."
"————"
Yuexing did not expect such a plot, but it seems that Subaru does not know the relationship between Beatrice and "Gospel"
It seems like I need to find time to explain it.
"——Hey~ Excuse me?"
The person who showed up at the entrance of the temporary residence was Javier. He walked over while clicking his canine teeth. Subaru, who had calmed down, scratched his head and said:
"It's Javier...you are also a guy whose action patterns are quite unpredictable."
"Ah~? What nonsense are you talking about?"
"I understand, it's very troublesome to deal with a guy with a cat-like temperament."
Faced with Subaru's vague answer, Javier wrinkled his nose in displeasure.
His temperament is as unpredictable as a cat's. This is Subaru's evaluation of Javier, but this is not a lie.
This night was already the third time for Subaru, and each time Gafir's attitude was different.
Of course, depending on Subaru's actions, the reactions of everyone except him, including Emilia, will change slightly, but only Gafir's changes are very special.
His opinions turned 180 degrees, his likes and dislikes were completely reversed, and his ability to understand people's words alternated with his stubborn attitude. This change was so strong that it made people wonder if he had changed as a person.
Just like this time, he deliberately came to talk to Subaru in person, and it was a reaction he had never had before.
"Obviously, if I didn't call you before, you would have gone back immediately... What, what do you want to talk to me about? I have something very important to do later."
"The important thing is to come up with some treacherous plots with that guy. I don't think there is anything to look forward to."
"I'm surprised to be accused of being accomplices in conspiracy, but I don't deny that I had nothing to look forward to."
Subaru and Jaffier agree on not trusting Roswaal.
"Hey, are you okay? What do you want to talk about?"
"Oh~ yes, change the place and come with me."
There was no room for explanation. Jafier didn't even listen to a response, so he walked up high. Subaru, who scratched his head at his back, whispered helplessly.
"Spare me...it's a different development."
Jaffier walked in front, Subaru and Yuexing followed, and the three of them entered the depths of the forest.
It is common knowledge that the forest at night is dangerous. Among them, the "Cremaldi Lost Forest" is particularly dangerous, so this night walk is really unsettling.
"Please, don't leave me"
"Don't say any disgusting words, just walk in the forest at night~"
"You'd be surprised how many people think it's dangerous to walk in the forest at night. Not only is my wrist strength strong, but my nose is not strong enough to smell outsiders in the distance."
"Huh! I'm talking about what happened during the day. Are you still holding a grudge?"
"No, after all, the only real victim was Otto, who was shot in the forehead."
And for Subaru, what happened during the day happened a few days ago. Even assuming that Subaru and Otto were friends, it would be too long to be angry now.
"What's more, I'm not related to that guy, I'm just his savior."
"That little brother is also working very hard..."
He sympathized with Otto for some reason. Subaru just continued to observe Gafir.
He is short and looks thin, but in fact his body is very well-trained. Although his physique is not beyond the common sense of ordinary humans, this is his personal opinion and it is not very reliable.
Therefore, while Subaru was staring at Jaffier's back, he was thinking about other things.
"——How long has it been since you last met with Frandelica?"