The journey back to the mansion was a blur of shadows and heavy steps. The forest, once a death trap saturated with malevolence, now felt strangely empty. The thick atmosphere had dissipated with the lead Ulgarm's death, leaving behind only the scent of wet earth and the echo of our own breathing.
My shoulder burned. The wound from the Capital, though treated by the System's intervention, throbbed with a dull rhythm that marked my every move. But the mental exhaustion was worse. `[Advanced Combat Perception]` didn't come for free; it was like forcing my mind to live a thousand lives in a single second. My temples pounded with an icy pressure.
"Subaru-kun is forcing his limits," Rem said.
Her voice broke the forest's silence. I glanced at her. She walked beside me, her flail already stowed away and her posture regaining the unshakeable elegance of a Roswaal housemaid. Yet, her gaze never wavered from me.
"Power has a price, Rem," I replied, forcing a smile that likely looked like a grimace. "Maintaining that level of focus drains every last drop of will."
"Subaru-kun is saying strange words again."
"It's my way of saying my head is about to explode."
Rem stopped suddenly. Before I could ask what was happening, I felt her small, firm hand gripping my arm. Her skin was cool, but the pressure was comforting.
"Rem will carry Subaru-kun. It is inefficient for you to collapse before reaching the gates."
"I can walk, Rem. I'm not an invalid."
"It is not a question," she stated.
Without giving me time to protest, she draped my arm over her shoulders. Her strength was absurdly superior to mine—a blunt reminder of this world's power hierarchy. I felt small, yet strangely secure.
The remaining distance felt shorter. As we crossed the mansion's threshold, the heat of the torches and the scent of candle wax hit me like a physical wall. My eyes were closing on their own.
"Subaru! Rem!" Emilia's voice echoed in the hall.
She appeared running from the end of the corridor, Puck floating beside her. Her face was pale, worry etched into every line of her features.
"You're okay! Please tell me you're okay. Petra hasn't stopped crying and... Subaru, you're hurt!"
"It's just fatigue, Emilia-tan," I managed to say, though my voice sounded like I'd swallowed sandpaper. "My body just needs... time to adjust to what happened."
"Adjust?" Emilia frowned, confused. "Rem, take him to his room immediately. Puck, help with basic healing."
"Right away, Lia," the spirit cat yawned, flying toward me.
Rem didn't need to be told twice. She guided me up the stairs toward my room. The movement was rhythmic, almost hypnotic. When we entered the room and she let me fall onto the bed, the relief was so intense I nearly lost consciousness right then.
A blue window flickered in my vision.
> [SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]> [Status: Tactical Recovery Initiated]> [Rest Bonus: +15% Mana Regeneration Speed in Roswaal Mansion]> [Achievement Unlocked: 'The Silent Shield' - You protected a key ally without taking casualties.]
Rem knelt by the bedside. She began unbuttoning my jacket with a mechanical, cold dexterity, yet her fingers brushed my skin with a delicacy that didn't fit her usual tone.
"Rem will handle the deep wounds," she murmured. "Subaru-kun must sleep."
"Rem..." I called out, opening one eye with difficulty. "Thanks for trusting my lead out there. Most would have called me insane."
She paused for a second, her hand suspended over my chest.
"Rem does not place her faith in insanity," she said, looking me straight in the eye. "Her confidence belongs to what is tangible: the results. And Subaru-kun brought results that Rem could not foresee. That is... respectable."
"Logic is the only thing that keeps us alive in a world without sense," I whispered, feeling sleep pull at me. "This has nothing to do with heroism. It is, simply, applied survival."
"Subaru-kun is lying." Rem finished removing my jacket and covered my body with the blankets. "Survivors usually run alone. Subaru-kun ran toward danger for a child and for Rem. That transcends logic. It is something... warmer."
I couldn't respond. Darkness claimed me completely.
I slept without dreaming. Or perhaps I dreamed of golden mana threads intertwining with those of absolute blue. The System was at work, rebuilding my muscle fibers, sealing the micro-tears in my channels.
When I woke up, sunlight filtered through the curtains. I felt different. Denser. More... real.
> [STATUS UPDATE]> [Level: 15]> [Soul Essence: 620]> [Tier 2 Fully Unlocked]> [Skill Developed: Pain Resistance (Passive - Level 1)]
I tried to stand and noticed my shoulder no longer throbbed. The scar was there—a silver mark the System refused to erase completely, like a warning of a past error that must not be repeated.
On the nightstand, there was a glass of water and a small note written in perfect calligraphy.
*"Breakfast will be served in ten minutes. Subaru-kun has slept for fourteen hours. Do not be inefficient and arrive on time. - Rem"*
I smiled. The coldness in her words no longer sounded hostile. It was the language of someone who had finally recognized me as an equal.
I stood up, feeling energy course through my veins. Arc 2 was ending, but the real game was just beginning. The elements of the Royal Selection were in motion, and the System was already calculating the odds of the oncoming storm.