The forest that surrounded the Mathers Mansion was well known by the locals. For Subaru, this was his second time actually going in. He ran without direction; the only objective he seemed to have was getting as far away as he possibly could from the mansion.
Subaru was exhausted. His legs were barely responsive; he had run for several kilometers already. Being used to the hikikomori lifestyle was proving to be quite the burden. Barely able to breathe, he fell to the ground, powerless.
"What choice did I have!? What could I… and I was… having so much fun!"
...
Once he got back on his feet, he continued his runaway mission. While passing through the forest, memories of previous loops flooded his mind. The place he was in looked awfully familiar to the place where he had died…
"Where I died…?"
His running stopped.
"He has thought of something, I suppose."
Beatrice, with her hand placed on her chin, stated that. But what could he do in a situation like the one he was in? She didn't have a clue.
"That's good… but… it won't work, won't it?" said Emilia.
The loop was a failed one. They knew that; therefore, whatever he was thinking of doing right now…
"…It will fail."
Subaru checked his surroundings. Something was on his mind, but the people of the theater wouldn't know unless he put it into practice or simply said it out loud, which is exactly what he did.
"If I die… will I be saved from this whole situation?"
That question was one to which he already knew the answer.
"Of course… If I die, everything will change."
Subaru's eyes had lost their light. That shine that had accompanied him when he arrived to this new world was long gone by this point.
His gaze shifted…
"The old mansion's cliff…" murmured Beatrice. "He's planning on killing himself."
"Natsuki-san…"
"Boss—"
Subaru slowly made his way to the cliff's edge. The height was more than enough to end someone's life. He trembled; looking at the ground from such a high place was something he had never done before. Nothing was holding him back. Nothing in this loop had gone the way he wanted. Nothing at all.
If he were to jump, he would certainly—
...
He couldn't do it.
His legs simply wouldn't listen to him.
Instead of jumping forward, Subaru fell backward.
"It's just one more step… I can't even… I can't even do something so simple…"
The tears wouldn't cease. Subaru sobbed, lying on the floor like a kid.
Unable to correct this loop, and unable to start a new one.
The screen lost color, marking a loss of consciousness. Whether it was sleep, passing out, or death, the answer remained unknown.
"What does this mean? What happened to Natsuki-kun?" Otto asked.
"I didn't see anything attacking him or being hostile. Maybe he's just asleep. But taking into account how he died the first time in my mansion, we can never be sure," responded Roswaal with his usual extravagant tone.
"I… don't know what's best for him anymore," Emilia's voice cracked. "Is it better if he died…? I don't want him to die. I want Subaru to live—keep on living with me, not… this… What could he have possibly done to deserve this hell of a life…?"
◇
"Finally found you."
With the video still dark, a voice could be heard. The voice of the little girl spirit. Beatrice next to Emilia was quiet; therefore—
"He was sleeping, I suppose."
The sky had now adopted a red-like color. A few hours must have passed since he fell asleep. In contrast to the red sky was Beatrice, her dress softly shaken by the wind along with her bangs.
"Why…?"
"What, I suppose?"
"Why did you come for me? I—"
"The contract I entered into was to protect you."
"I thought you were only supposed to be my bodyguard until this morning."
"You must be mistaken, I suppose. I don't remember discussing a time limit. Clinging to faint hope only serves your own convenience, I suppose. What was lost can't be reclaimed. You'll have no more chances to explain yourself to the older sister. You threw that away. No matter which is lost, those sisters will never be complete again, I suppose."
"But I cared about those two… and I wanted to protect them."
"What do you know about them, I suppose? No matter which was lost, they'll never be restored to what they were. They can't."
"So, in the end, I was just making a selfish, disgraceful fuss without knowing anything?"
Beatrice extended her hand toward him.
"At the least, you need to die where I can't see you, or I'll have bad dreams, I suppose. So I'll help you escape this domain."
Their hands linked—yet Subaru…
Subaru noticed something. His hand… He looked at it as if it were the first time seeing it.
"Come to think of it, back then, someone was holding both my hands…" His eyes glittered with hope.
They had been there. They were the ones who had calmed him during that hellish nightmare. Subaru's hands… Rem and Ram—
The memories of seeing Ram crying in that room, her screams—all of it came to his mind. How could he be so selfish? The only thing on his mind had been himself.
"And after I managed to save this life… That's right. I saved my life, so…"
Finally, he gained his resolve. Natsuki Subaru was ready to commit to his plan.
"You were too slow."
As those words left Beatrice's mouth, a new presence could be sensed on that cliff.
"I finally found you." Her whole body emanated mana. "I won't let you get away."
Ram got closer and closer, with no sign of stopping anytime soon. Killing Subaru—that was the only thing she had left to do with that life of hers.
"Stay back, I suppose. So long as my contract exists, I won't hold back, not even against you." Beatrice positioned herself between Subaru and Ram.
"And you, Beatrice-sama, seem to forget that we're not in the mansion now. We're away from the Forbidden Library, in the forest. Are you certain you can protect him from me?"
But in that moment, Subaru did the last thing anyone would expect—
"Boing!!!"
He grabbed Beatrice's hair and stretched it as far as he could, letting it go all at once. From there came the boing sound.
"Oh yeah, that feels good!" said Subaru as he nodded.
"Wh-Wh-Wh-What are you doing!? D-Do you want to die!?"
"Don't be dumb. I don't want to die in the slightest. I'm fine with dying just once at the end of a long life. That's how I really feel."
"Wueh? Why does the boss suddenly have that attitude?" asked Garf, confused.
"He's made his decision, I suppose," answered Beatrice. "He will jump and go save everyone."
Subaru walked past Beatrice and faced Ram.
"You've got some guts," she stated. "So you finally accept your fate?"
"I wouldn't call it that… If anything, I'd say I've made up my mind." Subaru bowed to Ram. "I'm sorry. I caused a lot of grief for you guys by being such a loser."
Ram froze. "So you do know something about Rem!?"
"No, sorry, but I don't know a thing. Frankly, there's too much I don't know. But… I decided to learn more about the things I don't know."
"How can you say that now!? Rem is already dead! What can you do by learning anything now!?"
"I won't make any cool statements about what I'll be able to do. This is what happened when I couldn't do anything, after all. I know better than anyone that my words aren't convincing in the least. But I do remember. I know the parts of you that you have forgotten!"
Her anger grew by the second. To Ram, Subaru was only speaking nonsense.
"What do you know about Rem and me!?"
"You're right. I don't know anything that's really important. But you don't know either, do you!?"
"Know what!?"
Then, from the bottom of his heart, he let go of his feelings.
"That I love you guys!"
Subaru turned around and started running.
"Wait!" screamed Beatrice.
But the decision had been made a while ago. There was nothing that could shake Subaru's resolve.
Every memory made in the mansion was so precious to him. Subaru would never give up on them. Subaru would fight as many times as he had to if that meant the survival of those he cherished, and for that reason…
"This is something only I can do!"
…Subaru jumped off the cliff.
"I'm going to save you!"
◇
…
Black again.
No one moved a muscle.
There were those who wondered…
Is this a good thing? Subaru having died—is it good? It certainly was an awful loop, but celebrating the death of a dear person like Subaru was something they would never be able to do.
"I'm sorry, I'm really sorry."
Someone's cries were heard. A person who, until a moment ago, had been passed out. That would be—
"Rem!? Since when have you been awake? What happened?" Her sister, who was holding her tight, started firing questions at Rem, yet she didn't seem to listen to them.
"I killed Subaru… I tortured him—I had no reason to do it, and I did. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm really sorry." Rem cried. She was completely hopeless. Every word that came out of her mouth made her voice crack. "If only I had asked first… he wouldn't have cried in vain. He wouldn't have had to go through all that pain!"
Emilia couldn't take seeing Rem like that. Even after seeing what she did. "Rem, I'm sure Subaru doesn't hold a grudge against you."
"But he does. He wouldn't listen to me. When I was with him, h-he was definitely mad, and I don't blame him. I'm nothing but a monster, and I… I deserve to die, the same way he—"
"Shut up!" Ram covered her sister's mouth.
"Do you even realize what you're saying!?" Ram continued. "And what's this on your forehead? Did you do it to yourself!?"
Slowly, she removed her hand, allowing Rem to talk again.
"I… I deserve it! I'm sorry, sister. You were kind enough to spare his suffering! I only made him suffer again and again! I shouldn't be allowed to liv—"
"Shut up, I say! Don't you realize how selfish you're being!?"
As the sisters continued their argument, something they said made the rest of the group confused.
Beatrice was the one who spoke in everyone's name.
"Did you two… see Subaru?"
END OF ARC 2