(A/N: Finally got new specs and my eye allergy is healing!)
...
{3rd Pov}
Natsuki Subaru's life had never been what one would call easy.
In fact, if someone were to write a book about it, the earlier chapters would probably just be filled with despair, pain, and endless cycles of suffering.
However, in the past year, things had taken a sharp turn for the better.
For the first time since his arrival in this strange world, Subaru's days had been filled not with fear or agony, but with something far more valuable—genuine happiness.
At some point during this peaceful stretch of life, Subaru had even begun to wonder whether he would ever have to rely on that dreaded ability of his again—the cursed power known as Return by Death.
The very thought of being forced to use it again made his chest tighten, but for an entire year he had managed to live without the world throwing him into that spiral of suffering.
He had even taken a step forward in the most important area of his life: love.
Subaru had managed to confess his feelings to the woman who held his heart.
Not only that, he had kissed her too—a small but monumental victory in his eyes.
Of course, she had told him that she needed time to sort through her own feelings before giving him an answer.
To anyone else, that might have been discouraging, but Subaru had accepted it with a smile, more than willing to wait.
After all, just being by her side, knowing his emotions had finally been voiced, was enough for him to feel at peace.
From what was once a pathetic, clueless level 1 commoner who barely knew which way to swing a sword, Subaru had, through blood, sweat, tears, and countless deaths, managed to climb his way up to what he proudly referred to as a "level 100 crooked knight."
Sure, the words were a little self-deprecating, but that was just how Subaru was.
Even though his actual parameters hadn't magically skyrocketed, even though his magic gate was still broken beyond repair, and even though the countless mental scars he carried would never truly fade, he had still managed to become something more than the weak boy who first stumbled into this world.
And strangely enough, despite all the flaws that remained, he was… happy.
He had built a family of sorts too.
Subaru had somehow managed to gain a little sister in the form of a Great Spirit who had become his contracted partner.
Having such a powerful existence calling him "contractor" was surreal, but also one of the greatest sources of warmth in his life.
On top of that, he had formed bonds with people he never would have imagined befriending: a blonde, sharp-tongued, murderous tiger of a boy who could terrify even the bravest men, and a perpetually unlucky, perpetually stressed-out merchant whose life seemed cursed by misfortune.
They were strange companions, but they were his companions nonetheless, and Subaru valued them deeply.
Now, after one entire year of living a life that could almost be called peaceful—a year filled with stress-free days, nights of proper rest, and a much-needed process of trauma recovery—something finally broke the pattern.
Something new, something troublesome, something Subaru should have expected but really, really didn't want to deal with.
The cause? Julius' brother.
Yes, that Julius.
The same Julius who had beaten Subaru into the dirt back during the Royal Selection.
The very memory of that one-sided beating was enough to make Subaru twitch.
And now, his brother had suddenly appeared, apparently because of some "important matters."
As expected, those "matters" concerned the three-way alliance between their factions.
The alliance was crucial in order to deal with large-scale threats—enemies like the Witch Cult, roaming assassins, political rivals, and plenty of other disasters waiting to happen.
It was such a big deal that even Felt had been invited to participate.
Subaru, of course, fully understood how important it was to keep the alliance strong.
Without it, their already shaky standing in the kingdom could collapse in an instant.
But there was one small detail Subaru couldn't ignore: Joshua, Julius' brother, was an absolute fanboy for his older sibling.
It was actually ridiculous how much admiration he poured into every word whenever Julius' name was mentioned.
And, well… when it came to Julius himself, Subaru's feelings were complicated, to say the least.
On the surface, Subaru and Julius had already made amends.
They had shaken hands, settled their differences, and moved past their ugly history.
At least, that was how it looked.
But deep inside, Subaru still couldn't stand the guy.
The moment he laid eyes on Julius, a chill ran down his spine, his skin crawled, and irritation bubbled up for no real reason.
Just seeing him was enough to make Subaru feel like grinding his teeth.
It definitely, definitely wasn't because Julius had once humiliated him and beaten him senseless in front of a crowd.
Nope, not at all.
That had absolutely nothing to do with it. Okay?!
Anyway, with no chance to refuse, the group departed for the meeting place—the grand Watergate City of Priestella.
And despite all of Subaru's complaints and worries, his heart was instantly stolen the moment he saw the city with his own eyes.
Priestella's beauty was breathtaking.
The intricate waterways, the sprawling bridges, the lively streets—it was unlike anything he had seen before.
And when he learned that their lodgings would be in a traditional Japanese-style onsen inn, Subaru nearly broke down crying from joy.
A little piece of home, right here in another world.
If only he hadn't made a mess of the meeting earlier! Ahem. Best not to think about that too much.
But even putting that aside, the trip just kept getting better.
The food served was authentic Japanese cuisine, the kind Subaru hadn't tasted in what felt like an eternity.
When he saw the dishes lined up, steaming bowls of rice, crisp tempura, savory miso, he couldn't hold back a tear or two.
For a brief moment, he felt like he had been transported back to his old world.
And then, as if to absolutely destroy what was left of his sanity, Subaru saw her.
Emilia-tan. Wearing a kimono.
The sight was so overwhelmingly beautiful that Subaru thought his heart might actually stop.
And as if that wasn't already unfair, even Beako looked ridiculously adorable dressed up in her own little outfit.
Subaru could barely handle that much concentrated cuteness in one room.
His chest felt tight, and he honestly thought he might die—not from Return by Death, but from sheer moe overload.
Finally, after indulging in that sumptuous dinner that left Subaru so full he thought he might explode, the group settled down to actually begin their discussion.
And, as expected, the atmosphere grew tense almost immediately.
The smiles and pleasantries from earlier evaporated, replaced by sharp looks, cautious words, and the heavy air of politics that Subaru hated so much.
The Crusch camp and the Emilia camp both had their sights set on the Sin Archbishop of Gluttony, and for very obvious and very personal reasons at that.
Crusch's faction wasn't just interested in hunting him down for the sake of justice or political gain; no, their very leader and Royal Candidate, Crusch Karsten herself, had been a direct victim.
She had lost her memories to the cursed authority of Gluttony, and while she stood strong on the outside, everyone knew the damage that had been done to her life.
On the other side, things weren't any better for Subaru's camp.
In Emilia's faction, Rem—the maid who was more than just a comrade, the girl Subaru loved—had also been targeted by Gluttony.
Or rather, she had been completely erased from the memories of everyone around her.
To make matters worse, she was left trapped in an unending coma, a sleeping beauty without a way to wake up.
For Subaru, that wasn't just another casualty of war; it was personal.
It was a wound that wouldn't heal until Gluttony paid for what he had done.
But of course, politics being what they were, things couldn't just stay simple.
Anastasia, the cunning merchant and schemer, had in her possession information regarding Gluttony.
And in true Anastasia fashion, she wanted to sell that information to Crusch for profit.
Now, Subaru wasn't dumb.
He completely understood where Anastasia was coming from.
She was a merchant, and merchants lived by making deals.
To her, information was just another commodity to be traded.
And yet, even though he got it, he couldn't help the anger boiling inside him.
This wasn't just business, this was Rem's life on the line.
Thankfully, before Subaru could completely lose his temper, Crusch herself stepped in and agreed that she would share the information.
That little gesture of goodwill instantly diffused the worst of the tension.
For a moment, it seemed like everything was finally moving in the right direction.
And then, just as the meeting was starting to smooth out, the fake, self-proclaimed favorite child of "Od Laguna," along with her circus crew, decided to make their grand entrance.
That's right—it was none other than Priscilla Barielle. She waltzed in with her usual arrogance, accompanied by her ever-loyal knight Al—helmet man without a bike—and their newest addition, none other than Heinkel Astrea.
Yes, that Heinkel.
The drunkard dad with negative parenting skills, who was somehow Reinhardt's father.
And, true to form, the moment Heinkel laid eyes on Reinhardt and Wilhelm, he opened his mouth and started badmouthing them.
Loudly. Repeatedly. Without pause.
The insults poured out nonstop, and each word made the already fragile relationship between Reinhardt and Wilhelm tremble. Subaru was seconds away from flipping a table.
But then, in what could only be described as cosmic justice, even Priscilla—who could tolerate a lot of nonsense—got fed up.
She grew so annoyed with Heinkel's endless yapping that she personally smacked him hard enough to knock him unconscious on the spot.
For a brief second, everyone in the room silently agreed it was the most merciful act she had ever performed.
Still, the damage had already been done.
Even though Wilhelm and Reinhardt had been slowly, painfully, awkwardly mending their relationship after years of tension, Heinkel's poisonous words had ripped the scab right open.
The grandfather and grandson, who had only just started moving toward reconciliation, now found themselves pushed apart again, and the air between them was heavy with unresolved emotions.
As for Subaru, he had lost control during the exchange as well.
His temper had flared, his words had flown out sharper than he intended, and afterward, he couldn't help but regret it.
It wasn't that his anger wasn't justified, but he hated letting himself be dragged down to Heinkel's level.
Surprisingly, Wilhelm of all people consoled him that night.
The old man explained that Subaru losing his composure actually helped prevent everyone else from falling apart.
By being the one to snap first, Subaru had unintentionally allowed others to hold themselves back.
After everything that had happened, Subaru somehow ended up having what could only be described as a "grandpa and grandson moment" with Wilhelm.
It wasn't intentional—Subaru wasn't exactly out there trying to adopt himself into someone else's family tree—but the way Wilhelm spoke to him, steady and reassuring, and the way Subaru instinctively responded with respect and trust, made the atmosphere feel almost familial.
It was one of those rare, strangely tender exchanges that seemed completely out of place in the middle of a tense political gathering, yet at the same time felt absolutely necessary.
The old Sword Demon's calm words soothed Subaru's regrets about losing control earlier, and for a brief moment, Subaru felt like he was being guided not by a mentor or a superior, but by a grandfather figure he never had.
The warmth in that scene could have melted steel.
And honestly, it was a good thing Reinhardt hadn't been there to see it.
If the Sword Saint had walked in at that exact moment and witnessed Subaru taking up the spot of Wilhelm's "grandson" in spirit, he probably would have keeled over on the spot, dead from sheer jealousy.
The strongest man in the world, defeated not by a blade or by magic, but by the sight of his grandfather bonding with Subaru like he is his real grandson.
The next day, Subaru and the rest of his group decided to take some time to explore the city. After all, they had just arrived in Priestella, and it would have been criminal not to check out the sights.
While wandering through the lively streets filled with the sound of chatter, music, and rushing water, Subaru ended up running into two familiar faces: Priscilla Barielle and Liliana, the bard from the previous day's performance.
What caught Subaru off guard wasn't the fact that they were there, but rather the scene unfolding before his eyes. Priscilla—who normally radiated arrogance like a furnace, the kind of woman who would rather order others around than join in their fun—was actually dancing.
And not just dancing randomly, but moving to the rhythm of Liliana's music.
Subaru almost rubbed his eyes just to make sure he wasn't hallucinating.
To him, the sight was so absurdly out of character that he didn't even know how to react at first.
Even more surprising was the fact that Priscilla didn't throw a tantrum or get offended when Liliana turned down her offer to join her camp.
Subaru had half-expected fireworks or at least a verbal beatdown, but instead, Priscilla brushed it off as though it didn't matter.
This was such a stark contrast to how she had acted back when Subaru himself had gone to her, desperately seeking help.
Back then, she had dismissed him in a way that stung so badly it still echoed in his mind.
'Of course that was my fault… I really am an idiot,' Subaru thought to himself bitterly.
He was painfully aware of just how often he stumbled, how often he failed to measure up.
No matter how much he tried, he couldn't escape the fact that, on his own, he wasn't capable of much.
He didn't have overwhelming strength, he didn't have powerful magic, and he definitely didn't have the kind of charisma that could bend people to his will.
Without the support of others, Subaru was, in his own eyes, almost worthless.
And yet, despite knowing all that, he still made a decision.
He had resolved to push forward and do the best he possibly could with the little he had.
If it meant throwing himself into danger again and again, if it meant dying over and over so that others could live, then that was what he would do.
That was the role he had chosen for himself.
But ever since the events in Sanctuary, that decision had grown more complicated.
The memory of the "Unthinkable Present" still haunted him, a heavy weight pressing down on his mind.
It was a constant reminder that Return by Death was not something to be used casually.
He had made a promise to himself to treat it as a true last resort, not as some cheap trick to be pulled out whenever things got tough.
After a bit of idle chatting with Liliana and Priscilla, Subaru eventually moved on and decided to buy some snacks for everyone.
He figured it would be a good way to lighten the mood and bring something back to share.
That was when he encountered Chin.
Well, technically, his name was Sachin, but Subaru being Subaru, he couldn't resist messing with him.
What followed was a round of playful banter, Subaru joking around in his usual silly way, enjoying the lighthearted moment.
But as always with his cursed luck, peace never lasted long.
Out of nowhere, Subaru crossed paths with yet another Sin Archbishop.
Because of course he did.
That was just his brand of luck.
No matter where he went, no matter what he tried to do, trouble had a way of sniffing him out.
And once again, it was the kind of trouble that wasn't going to end well for him.
Things spiraled fast.
Subaru met a painful end—one of those deaths that seared itself into his memory and made him grit his teeth just thinking about it.
After reviving, he immediately tried to come up with a better plan.
He decided to reach out for help from Reinhardt, the Sword Saint himself.
Surely with someone like Reinhardt at his side, the Archbishop would be dealt with swiftly.
Except… it didn't work out like that at all.
Instead, things went horribly wrong.
Subaru and everyone else caught in the Archbishop's authority ended up dying, one after another, their lives snuffed out before they could even comprehend what was happening.
Even with Reinhardt there, victory slipped right through their fingers.
In the end, Subaru had to turn to Beatrice for help.
But there was a cruel catch to that decision.
If he asked Beako to intervene, he couldn't also ask Reinhardt for assistance.
It was one or the other.
Subaru had to make the kind of choice that always made him sick to his stomach—the choice of who to rely on, and who to leave out.
Since Reinhardt was basically a walking mana vacuum, using magic in his presence was close to impossible.
The guy didn't even have to try—his very existence just drained the mana out of the area, leaving spellcasters feeling like they were trying to light a fire in the middle of a rainstorm.
Subaru naturally cursed his luck for being forced into a situation where even Reinhardt's overwhelming strength came with such a ridiculous drawback.
Beatrice, meanwhile, kept her own thoughts to herself.
Deep down, she couldn't help but think, 'If only I still had access to a massive mana supply or… if I had the four hundred years' worth of mana I once stored, I could still force my magic to work, even with someone like him nearby.'
But she didn't dare say those words aloud.
She knew Subaru too well.
If he ever found out, he would only feel guilty, convinced he was dragging her down, pathetic and useless compared to everyone else.
Beatrice had already realized how fragile Subaru really was beneath his loudmouth exterior.
She could see the scars of his mental trauma, the self-loathing he tried to hide behind his jokes and bravado.
She understood that her beloved contractor carried an almost dangerously low level of self-esteem, and as his loyal spirit, she resolved never to add more weight to that burden.
That was why she discarded her thought immediately, deciding that it was something she would never, ever speak of for as long as she lived.
While Subaru and Beatrice were still deep in discussion about how to handle the Archbishop threat, the situation suddenly got more complicated.
Emilia, who had secretly followed after Subaru despite his efforts to keep her away from danger, finally revealed herself and barged in.
Subaru had been trying his hardest to keep her safe and uninvolved, but in the end, her stubbornness won.
He could only sigh and accept her decision when she insisted on joining them to confront the threat head-on.
She even went so far as to tease him, joking, "Even if I get kidnapped, you'll just come and save me anyway, right?"
Subaru's heart skipped a beat at that.
He couldn't tell if he should laugh or cry.
'Damn it,' he thought, 'isn't that the definition of a giant red flag?' Still, considering how many standard isekai tropes had already failed to play out the way they were "supposed to" in his life,
Subaru desperately hoped this one would flop too.
Once the decision was made, Subaru quickly got to work forming a plan.
He knew full well that he was far too weak to contribute meaningfully to direct combat.
If he wanted to be useful at all, it had to be with the one ability he had: Return by Death and the knowledge it gave him.
Using information from his previous loops, he began piecing together a strategy.
He wasn't a master tactician, and he knew his plans were more like patchwork gambles based on what he had already seen.
Still, that didn't matter.
Subaru's only goal was to make himself useful, to prevent the innocent people of Priestella from dying needlessly.
So, while Subaru rushed to save the young boy Lusbel, Emilia stepped forward to take on the Sin Archbishop directly.
Thanks to Subaru's earlier guidance and his suggestion over the past year, Emilia had trained herself in the Ice Brand Arts, refining her control and turning her magic into a weapon of frightening precision.
And when she finally unleashed it, she was an unstoppable force.
Her icy attacks hammered down on the Archbishop relentlessly, and for a moment, Subaru felt a spark of hope.
Emilia wasn't just holding her own—she was demolishing her opponent.
But as Subaru had learned time and time again, enemies like the Archbishops never fought fair.
The Sin Archbishop suddenly put a hostage: a terrified little girl named Tina, clutched in her grasp like a human shield.
With the hostage in play, Emilia was forced to stop her attack cold.
And in that single moment of hesitation, disaster struck.
The Archbishop's counterattack was brutal.
Even though the blow barely grazed Emilia, it was more than enough to overwhelm her.
Just like that, the glass cannon that Subaru loved so dearly collapsed, her strength drained in an instant.
She fell unconscious, leaving Subaru's heart lurching in panic as the battle spun wildly out of control.
Just when Wrath was about to deliver the finishing blow to Emilia, a smug white-haired bastard appeared out of nowhere and intercepted the attack.
And this wasn't just any random guy—no, this was the Sin Archbishop of Greed, Regulus Corneas, a lunatic who had already, without hesitation and without permission, declared Emilia as his self-proclaimed wife.
Subaru's brain short-circuited for a second.
On the one hand, he was relieved beyond belief that Emilia hadn't just been slaughtered in front of him.
On the other hand, the fact that her savior was a Sin Archbishop, and an absolutely eccentric one at that, was enough to make Subaru want to bash his head against a wall.
'Of course,' he thought bitterly, 'of course this is how things go for me. Saved by the bad guy. Again.'
But things got even stranger.
Instead of attacking together, the two Archbishops—Wrath and Greed—suddenly turned on each other.
Wrath still wanted Emilia dead, burning with obsessive hatred, while Greed, Regulus Corneas himself, apparently didn't want his "next bride" turned into nothing more than a pile of ash.
In his twisted logic, he decided to protect her, clashing with Wrath in the process.
Subaru, ever the opportunist when death was breathing down his neck, decided this was his chance.
With the two monsters distracted fighting each other, maybe he could actually land a hit.
He gripped his whip tightly, steeling himself to attack—
When suddenly a voice bellowed from above.
"I am landing on the ground!"
The voice echoed across the battlefield, bizarrely clear and loud.
"Like a normal person!"
And then, as if reality itself had given up trying to make sense, a figure dropped straight out of the sky and came crashing down directly on top of the Sin Archbishop of Wrath.
The impact was brutal—Wrath's body was slammed into the floor so hard the ground cracked beneath her, and in one single, ridiculous move, she was knocked completely unconscious.
Subaru froze mid-action, whip hanging uselessly at his side.
"Huh?!" was all he could manage, his brain once again failing to keep up with the insanity of the situation.
Regulus Corneas was no better; the usually smug Greed Archbishop actually looked thrown off for once, his mouth gaping in disbelief at what had just happened.
Seizing the moment, Subaru snapped out of his shock and lashed out with his whip, aiming straight at Regulus—only for things to spiral even further out of control.
Before the whip could connect, Regulus was suddenly sent flying backward by a devastating kick.
At the same time, Emilia was snatched up by the mysterious attacker, who effortlessly dodged Subaru's strike and retreated a few steps, carrying her with him as though she weighed nothing.
Subaru's eyes widened, his head spinning as he tried to process who or what this lunatic was.
Then, standing proudly over the unconscious body of Sirius, one foot planted on her head like some kind of bizarre trophy, the man raised his voice and shouted for all to hear:
"Introducing myself! I am the Witch Cult's Cardinal! Sin Archbishop of Pride! Zero!"
The declaration rang out with dramatic flair, his tone smug and self-satisfied, as though the world itself should bow before the absurdity of his presence.
Subaru's eyes darted to the figure who had Emilia in her grasp, and the sight made them widen almost comically.
The one holding her wasn't some hulking monster or deranged lunatic like the Archbishops he'd met before, but a woman with striking beauty.
Her raven-black hair shimmered faintly under the light, flowing down past her shoulders, and her eyes were a vivid emerald green, sharp and captivating enough to pierce right through him.
'Damn! Another one?!' Subaru screamed internally, nearly tearing his own hair out.
'And this one even managed to knock Wrath out like it was nothing?! What kind of cheat characters keep spawning in this world?!'
His brain scrambled to make sense of it, but at the end of the day, it didn't matter much.
The only thing that mattered was that yet another Sin Archbishop had appeared, and this one came with her own terrifyingly competent sidekick.
Subaru's luck was trash as usual.
He did notice, briefly, that the mysterious woman standing obediently beside the newly-declared Pride looked… Japanese.
Her features, her posture, even the way she carried herself—it tickled something in the back of his mind.
But there was no time to dwell on that.
Right now, Emilia was in danger, and that was more important than anything else.
"You bastard! Let go of Emilia!" Subaru roared, his voice cracking slightly from desperation.
To his shock, Pride tilted his head at the command as if he was actually considering it.
Then, with a casual tone that made Subaru's blood boil, the man replied, "Ah, okay. Frill, let go of the woman."
Even more shocking, the woman—apparently named Frill—nodded without hesitation and obeyed.
But the way she carried out the order was anything but gentle.
Instead of carefully setting Emilia down, she simply tossed her forward like discarded luggage.
Emilia's unconscious body hit the ground face-first, her mouth filling with dirt while her backside stuck embarrassingly up in the air.
Any shred of dignity she had as a proud half-elf candidate for the royal selection was instantly obliterated in that moment.
"Why… WHY like that?!" Subaru grabbed his head with both hands, practically screaming in frustration and rage.
He was torn between rushing to Emilia's side and staying ready for the unpredictable maniacs in front of him.
His heart pounded as anger surged through him. "Bastard! Why did you let go of her like that?!"
Pride turned his hooded face slightly, confusion dripping from his voice. "Huh? Didn't you ask for her to be let go? Frill, did I hear him incorrectly?"
The black-haired woman, standing calmly by his side as though none of this chaos fazed her, gave a firm nod. "No, Master. That is exactly what he said. Word for word."
Her tone was flat, matter-of-fact, and respectful—but to Subaru, it felt like salt being rubbed right into his wound
"I meant gently! Gently!" Subaru screamed, practically hopping in place with frustration as he pointed furiously at Emilia's dirt-covered, face-planted body.
Zero, or rather the so-called Sin Archbishop of Pride, didn't miss a beat.
He jabbed a finger toward Subaru, his tone filled with righteous indignation.
"Liar! You never said anything like that! Not a single word! Aren't you the unreasonable one here? How can you possibly expect other people to understand you if you don't explain everything clearly and properly?!"
The sheer absurdity of the moment hit Subaru like a punch to the gut.
He blinked rapidly, his mouth hanging open.
Of all the insane things he had endured—dying in agony, fighting monsters, suffering the Witch Cult's madness—this was new.
He was being reprimanded by a Sin Archbishop.
Not just any Archbishop either, but one of the heralds of destruction, one of the killers of innocents, standing there scolding him like a nagging teacher lecturing a lazy student.
And the worst part? His words actually made sense.
The irony was so thick Subaru could choke on it.
He wanted to yell back, to argue, but part of his brain was too busy processing the surreal logic of the situation.
'What kind of messed up timeline was this?!'
Before he could spiral further into confusion, he felt a small tug on his sleeve.
Subaru glanced down and saw Beatrice pulling at him with her tiny hands, her round eyes sharp with intent.
That look alone was enough for Subaru to snap back into focus.
He gave her a quick nod, silently acknowledging her unspoken message.
Together, they were ready to use magic, to combine their strength and recover Emilia before things got any worse.
But fate had other plans.
Out of nowhere, a massive chunk of stone came crashing down between Subaru's group and the Archbishops.
The rubble smashed into the street with deafening force, carving through a nearby house like it was made of paper.
Dust and debris exploded everywhere, cutting off visibility.
"Bastard!" a familiar, pompous voice rang out through the chaos. "How dare you attack me and steal my wife! That is a direct violation of my—my—cough—my rights?!"
It was Regulus Corneas, of course, storming onto the scene like the spoiled man-child he was.
His voice dripped with outrage and self-importance, as though the universe itself had offended him by allowing this situation to happen.
But then, mid-rant, he froze. His words stumbled as something warm and wet dripped down from his nose.
Confused, Regulus reached up and rubbed at it. When his fingers came away stained with red, his eyes went wide with shock.
Blood.
He was bleeding.
The almighty Sin Archbishop of Greed, a man who considered himself untouchable and invincible, was staring at his own blood in utter disbelief.
For a split second, silence filled the air.
Then, panic erupted in his expression.
Regulus frantically wiped at his nose, his movements growing more and more erratic as he tried to erase the evidence.
At the same time, the realization of pain, actual pain, began to spread across his face.
It was as if his entire worldview had just been shattered in an instant.
"Impossible? I… I'm bleeding? Why?!" Regulus' voice cracked as horror spread across his face.
The Sin Archbishop of Greed, the so-called invincible monster who believed himself untouchable, was staring at his own blood with confusion and disgust.
His mind couldn't comprehend it.
Why was he injured?
Why was something so trivial as blood dripping down his face?
Desperation clawed at him, and he immediately checked the only thing that mattered to him—his Authority.
His ability had to still be working.
To test it, Regulus stomped his foot into the ground with all his arrogance and fury.
The earth cracked and split beneath him as a shockwave burst out, throwing Subaru completely off balance like a ragdoll.
Beatrice, thankfully quicker on the uptake, had to use her magic to stabilize them in midair, or else they would have been hurled straight into the wreckage.
"It's still working…" Regulus muttered in relief, his breathing evening out as his confidence crawled back.
His panicked expression hardened once more into that familiar mask of condescension and rage.
He snapped his head toward the ones who dared defy him and snarled, "Who the hell are you?!"
Zero tilted his head, his voice dripping with mockery as he spread his arms dramatically.
"Oh, man. Do I seriously have to introduce myself again? Are your ears clogged, old man? What, can't hear others properly? Or maybe—" he smirked beneath his hood, "—you didn't drink enough of your Mommy's milk when you were a baby!"
The jab landed like a knife, and Subaru almost choked.
Did he just watch a Sin Archbishop roast another Sin Archbishop with a your mom joke?
Regulus, on the other hand, was absolutely livid. His face turned red with fury as his entire body trembled. "How… dare you! To insult me—ME—like this is a violation of—"
Thud.
Mid-sentence, his body dropped heavily to the ground, cutting his tirade short.
"Huh?!" Regulus gasped, eyes widening.
The same reaction mirrored Subaru and Beatrice, who were still midair trying to process what just happened.
Zero's chuckle cut through the chaos.
He tilted his head with that same smug tone.
"What? Can't feel your legs anymore? Oh wait—" he clapped his hands together with mock realization, "—that's because they're dead."
Regulus' glare was filled with rage, but also… a hint of panic.
"What… what the hell did you do to me?!"
Before he could even comprehend the situation, his hands went limp as well.
He looked down at his fingers, trying desperately to move them, but nothing responded.
It was like his body was shutting down piece by piece.
Zero's laughter echoed in the air, filled with arrogance.
"And now, your hands too, right? Can't feel them either?" His voice was playful, mocking, but underneath it was something crueler.
For the first time, genuine fear broke through Regulus' arrogance.
His breathing quickened as his eyes darted around wildly, searching for control, for power, for anything.
He clenched his jaw and immediately tried to activate his Authority, to stop time itself and crush this insolent Pride.
But then—his eyes went wide again.
He gasped, his chest heaving.
He was breathing.
He was breathing again.
Time had resumed for him.
The realization hit him harder than any physical blow.
"What… what have you done to me?!" Regulus screamed, his voice cracking as pure terror finally overwhelmed his usual arrogance.
All the pomp, all the majesty, all the smugness that normally dripped from every word he spoke—it was gone.
The Sin Archbishop of Greed, who never once doubted his own invincibility, was reduced to a trembling wreck.
He desperately tried again and again to activate his Authority, to summon the unstoppable power that had always made him untouchable.
But no matter how much he strained, no matter how loudly he screamed inside his own head, nothing happened.
His Authority refused to respond.
Subaru and Beatrice, wasting no time, seized the opportunity.
With Beatrice's help, Subaru darted forward, scooping Emilia up carefully and pulling her away from the chaos.
The two of them retreated several steps back, Subaru's heart hammering so loudly he could almost hear it in his ears.
"Emilia?! Hey—Emilia, are you okay?!" Subaru asked in a frantic voice, his hands trembling as he cradled her.
His panic only eased when he pressed his fingers against her neck and felt the steady beat of her pulse, her chest rising and falling faintly as she breathed.
Relief crashed over him like a wave, and he let out the breath he hadn't even realized he'd been holding.
She was alive. She was safe… for now.
But then Subaru looked up again, his eyes widening at the scene unfolding before him.
The great Sin Archbishop of Greed, a man who bragged endlessly about his supremacy, was staring at Pride—no, at Zero—with sheer despair etched across his face.
"Well, well…" Zero's voice rang out, smooth and mocking, carrying an infuriating smugness that only made the scene more surreal.
Underneath his hood, his golden eyes glimmered, shining faintly in the chaos like predatory orbs. "I suppose I should be a good sport and explain it to you. After all, you're probably dying to know."
He paused deliberately, savoring the moment like a performer on stage about to reveal the punchline of a cruel joke.
Then, with a grin audible in his tone, he declared:
"My Authority allows me to kill whatever I want. No matter who it is, no matter how strong, no matter how far away. If I want you dead—you die. If I want a single part of your body dead—then that part of you dies. If I want your magic to die—it dies. If I want your precious Divine Protection, or even your sacred Authority itself, to die—then guess what?" Zero spread his arms wide in a theatrical gesture.
"It dies."
The words hung in the air, chilling, suffocating, undeniable.
Regulus' face twisted in horror, but he wasn't the only one.
Subaru felt his stomach twist violently as cold sweat drenched his back.
Beatrice's usual confidence wavered for just a moment, her wide eyes reflecting her unease.
The ability to kill anything? No restrictions, no weaknesses, no countermeasures?
'What the actual hell?!'
That was the only thought pounding inside Subaru's skull.
"Damn it! You—you cheater! You absolute monster! How the hell can you even have an ability like that?!" Regulus shrieked, his voice breaking as he glared at Zero with a mixture of hatred, disbelief, and uncharacteristic fear.
His usual arrogance was still there, but it was fraying at the edges, cracking apart like fragile glass.
Zero tilted his head, his tone mocking but steady, like he had all the time in the world.
"Ah? Monster? That's what you're calling me? Oh, that's rich. That's ironic enough to make me laugh. You've spent your life parading around, crushing anyone weaker than you, treating everyone like dirt, and now you dare to point that word at me?"
He gave a short chuckle under his hood.
"No, no, no. You're wrong. You're the bigger monster between us. Though, if I'm being honest, the title does fit me better than you. You? You're nothing but a pathetic loser hiding behind a cheap Authority."
The casual cruelty in his words made Regulus' blood boil.
His eyes bulged with fury, veins popping on his forehead as he pointed a trembling hand at Pride.
"Yooooou!!!" he bellowed, his voice hoarse from screaming.
Zero, however, rolled his eyes with exaggerated annoyance, as if Regulus' tantrum was nothing more than a child whining in the middle of a store.
"Yap, yap, yap… that's all you ever do. Bark and whine. Honestly, I've tolerated listening to your nonsense long enough." His tone suddenly hardened, dripping with cold finality.
"Now—die."
With a snap of his fingers, the fight ended. Just like that.
Regulus' eyes instantly lost their luster, the arrogant fire inside them extinguished in a heartbeat.
His mouth opened slightly in shock, as if he wanted to scream one last time but the voice never came.
His head collapsed limply to the ground, lifeless, like a puppet whose strings had just been cut.
The impossible had just happened before their eyes—Regulus Corneas, Sin Archbishop of Greed, was dead.
Zero's hooded head then turned slowly, his golden eyes shifting focus onto Subaru, Beatrice, and the unconscious Emilia cradled in Subaru's arms.
The weight of that gaze alone was enough to make Subaru's spine stiffen and Beatrice's small body shiver.
Neither of them needed words to understand—now they were next.
"Shamak!" Beatrice quickly chanted, releasing the familiar spell in desperation.
But almost instantly, her expression froze.
The spell never even manifested.
The mana she had drawn simply dissipated into nothingness the moment she tried to release it.
"Beako, if that was supposed to be a joke, it's not funny!" Subaru shouted, his voice rising in panic as he clutched Emilia tighter.
"And this is really, really not the time to be pulling stuff like that!"
Beatrice's lips trembled with frustration as she snapped back, "It wasn't a joke! The Betty's magic—it dissipated as if—" She cut herself off, her eyes widening as the realization dawned.
Slowly, she turned her gaze toward the woman standing obediently at Zero's side.
The raven-haired woman was perfectly calm, her green eyes unwavering.
But Beatrice felt it—no, she didn't feel it.
That was the problem.
Around that woman, there wasn't a single trace of mana in the air.
It was as if the very concept of magical energy had been erased from existence in her presence.
"A… a mana vacuum?" Beatrice whispered, horrified, her voice almost cracking. "It's just like Reinhardt's… how did I not notice this until now?!" Her mind raced with self-recrimination, panic tightening in her chest. 'How could she have missed it? How could she have overlooked something so critical?'
She clenched her small fists, despair washing over her. 'Damn it… damn it all… Betty is useless now!'
"Ah, I suppose my partner hasn't given her introductions yet," Zero said casually, as if this was the most normal time in the world to be doing formalities.
The raven-haired woman beside him took a graceful step forward and bowed deeply, her movements precise and elegant, like she had practiced etiquette all her life.
"I am Frill Shiranui, also known as the Sword God. It is an honor to meet you."
Her polite tone carried no arrogance, no hostility—just calm sincerity.
"Uh—nice to meet you as well," Subaru muttered automatically, bowing his head out of sheer reflex before immediately scolding himself in his thoughts.
'Damn it, Subaru! This is not the time for pleasantries! She just introduced herself as the Sword God and is standing next to a brand-new Sin Archbishop! Focus, idiot! You need to find a way to escape, not exchange business cards!'
Zero, ignoring Subaru's inner panic, tilted his head and asked smoothly, "Won't you both introduce yourselves as well?"
Subaru's teeth clenched.
Every fiber of him wanted to spit on the ground and tell Pride to shove his introductions where the sun didn't shine, but fear and instinct told him otherwise.
With a shaky breath, he forced himself to answer. "I am Natsuki Subaru! Knight of Emilia! And this here is Beako—the cutest spirit in the entire world!"
Beatrice gave a small "hnn" sound, cheeks flushing slightly, but her serious eyes never left Zero.
Zero gave a satisfied nod, as though introductions were the most important part of this deadly encounter.
Then, without another word, he finally stepped away from Sirius' crumpled body.
That was when the impossible happened.
Both Regulus' corpse and Sirius' half-unconscious body began to rise into the air, floating as if invisible hands were carrying them.
Beatrice's sharp eyes instantly darted to the scene.
No mana was being used—none at all.
It wasn't magic.
Subaru also noticed there were no shadowy hands or indicators of an Authority.
This was something else entirely, something outside anything they understood.
"Very well," Zero said cheerfully, his tone as if he was simply rescheduling an appointment.
"Let's meet again later. I am a new Sin Archbishop, and since I only joined the Witch Cult today, I still have to make my introductions to my dear colleagues. Once I've finished all that boring paperwork and greetings—well, then I'll begin my real work as a Sin Archbishop. Until then… enjoy yourselves~."
He gave a mocking wave, and then, together with Frill and the floating bodies of Regulus and Sirius, he simply vanished.
One second they were there—and the next, they were gone.
No teleportation circle, no flash of magic, nothing.
Just gone.
It took less than a minute for Subaru to finally move again.
His legs gave out, and he collapsed onto the ground, panting heavily as if he had just run a marathon.
Only now did he realize just how much fear had gripped him throughout the entire encounter.
His body was drenched in cold sweat, his muscles stiff, and his heart still thundering in his chest.
Meanwhile, the unconscious Emilia stirred in his arms.
Her eyelids fluttered weakly before she slowly opened them, her silver-blue eyes scanning his face.
"Subaru?" she whispered groggily, before suddenly jolting upright. "Huh?! Where are the Sin Archbishops?!" She jumped out of his arms, wobbling slightly on her feet but immediately looking around with sharp, panicked eyes, as though expecting enemies to appear at any second.
Thankfully, they had evacuated most of the civilians earlier, so despite the devastation around them, there were no casualties among the people.
That small fact was the only saving grace of this nightmare.
Subaru forced a weary smile onto his face, though inside he still felt like his stomach was twisting into knots.
He looked at Emilia—safe, alive, awake—and then back at the empty space where Pride had stood.
Because deep down, he had just realized something terrifying.
Perhaps today, he had met the strongest opponent he would ever face.
To be continued...
(A/N: Don't tell me you are not excited for this Arc?! Because I am as excited as you! This going to be an hell of an Arc!)
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