Re:Zero kara Hajimeru Isekai Seikatsu web novel

--After finishing his secret conversation with Lewes, Subaru was walking alone through the forest.

　Ryuzu remains in front of Crystal, saying that there is something she wants to think about. What is it like to be thoughtful in front of a girl with the same face as her - an original, at that?

　It was an extremely interesting topic, but he wasn't sure how far he should go. Either way, the person he had just spoken to, Ryuzu, was on Subaru's side.

　There are four of them, clones of Ryuzu.

　From what Ryuzu had said up until now, there were two people who had never taken the Tomb's Trial, and two Ryuzus who had taken the Trial before.

　Subaru believes that Lewes, who took on the Trials, is somehow giving Garfiel some advice.

　It's possible that the four clones are not united in their will.

　Because they were all playing the same character, I had thought of the four Ryuuses as the same person, but this backfired. Although they were all playing the same character, they were all separate beings with their own ways of thinking.

　So if one of them, especially one who has had an experience that the other Ryuzu has not had, then there is nothing strange about him coming to a different conclusion.

　For convenience, the four crowns will be referred to as α, β, θ, and Σ.

　The crowns that do not know the "trial" are α and β. The crowns that know the "trial" are θ and Σ.

　What I actually wanted was to call them Ein, Zwei, and Drei, which sound cool in German, but I couldn't think of a fourth name, so my plan fell through.

　Anyway,

"It seems we won't be able to meet the two in question until at least two days from now..."

　The time limit for the Great Rabbit to attack the Sanctuary - to be precise, the time limit for using the large-scale magic of Heavy Snow to lure the nearby Great Rabbit - was five days away.

　Since a solution wouldn't come out immediately after talking about it, the three days left was by no means a very long time.

　In order to prevent the liberation of the "Sanctuary," Garfiel ends up massacring the villagers.

　If he had gone to such lengths, the intentions of Lews θ and Σ would not be easily shaken. Considering that they had tried to persuade him, I had to say that the future looked bleak.

"However, in exchange for the increased obstacles... has Garfiel seen a breakthrough? In other words, if he can somehow persuade the two Ryuzus who are getting in his way, he can remove the problem."

　If Crown θ and Σ were influencing Garfiel's reckless actions, then their persuasion was equivalent to the condition for defeating Garfiel. Since she hadn't seen a way to directly taunt Garfiel, it was a weak and unreliable hope, but it was undoubtedly a ray of hope.

　Currently, Garfiel not only has individual fighting forces, but also twenty copies of Lewes other than the representative - pure copies without a will of their own, but he also has command over these twenty.

　The copies were mechanical fighting forces that were not afraid even of their own death, and Garfiel had no particular reservations about using these unwilling creatures.

　That compromise seemed too harsh to Subaru.

　Even if such sentimentality is a separate issue, I want to avoid a clash with Garfiel.

　It was obvious, but it was impossible to silence Garfiel through force.

　If Garfiel, who had led them and been instigated by θ and Σ, were to turn completely against them, it could be said that Subaru and his friends' chances of victory would become even slimmer.

"Now that I've made such a bold claim and even signed a contract with Roswaal, I can't fail. I have no intention of doing so. Putting aside the question of whether the insurance will work, I need to hold my own where I can."

　Slapping his cheek, which was beginning to tilt in defeat, Subaru shook his head and admonished himself.

　Then, looking at it from the front,

"Either way, the only way to deal with Lew's θ and Σ is to go for a quick hit. I could give Garfiel a shot and get a feel for it, but... that's for later."

　We left the forest and returned to the Sanctuary settlement.

　The sun had fully risen, and all around the village, residents and refugees from Alam village were starting their daily lives.

　Glancing at them from the side, and raising his hand to return the occasional greeting, Subaru made his way straight to a place isolated from such activities.

　The place is a little distance away from both the cathedral and the village.

　--To the bedroom assigned to Emilia where she will be staying.

※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※

　If I close my eyes, I can still remember that moment vividly.

　It was a white, white world.

　Young Emilia was walking alone in a world covered in silver.

　-Don't remember!

　A voiceless voice rose up, but it did not reach the small Emilia who was walking with her head bowed.

　He looks around anxiously, then, disappointed that his hopes have been dashed, drags his feet through the snow.

　--Come back! Please! Don't do anything again!

　The young Emilia exhales white breath, gazing curiously at the mist that comes out of her mouth. Emilia exhales again and again. Her only clothes are a thin undergarment and a cloak-like garment that completely covers her body.

　It was a rather thoughtless outfit to wear in such a freezing cold world, but there was no other way.

　After all, this was Emilia's first time seeing snow and experiencing such a cold world.

　The world she was familiar with was a forest filled with greenery and warm light, a world completely different from the present, where everything is buried under snow and ice.

　Places that should be familiar to me now have an unfamiliar look.

　This was strange to the young Emilia, causing her to forget how she should react.

　--No! Don't go any further! Go back! If not, then just...!

　Even though he begged her so hard her throat felt like it was being torn, so hard she felt like she was being crushed, and so hard she vomited blood, the young Emilia did not stop. Her voice went futilely unheard, and the girl mercilessly continued to move forward.

　It was painful to walk barefoot on the unfamiliar snowy road, having lost my footwear.

　Her bare feet, no longer feeling the cold or pain, are cut by branches and stones hidden under the snow, and dripping with blood, leaving markers on the girl's path.

　But why does he still try so hard, forget the pain, hide his fear of the unknown world, and forge ahead alone?

　--Stop it, please... I don't want to see it anymore... please...

　Pleas go unheeded. Wishes go unfulfilled. Hopes are simply dashed.

　The reality he should have known was that, but even in the world of dreams, a cruel truth was forced upon him, showing him his past self and the form of his greatest mistake.

"----!"

　The amethyst eyes of the young Emilia sparkle as if she sees hope beyond the smoke and snow that blocks her view.

　What she was looking at was the trunk of the tallest tree in the world, as far as the young Emilia knew. This tree, known as the "Great Tree of Prayer", is a sacred tree where prayers are offered to an invisible divine being, and is an irreplaceable presence that everyone in the village cherishes.

　Even the young Emilia stubbornly believed that simply by touching the trunk of that great tree, she could feel its great blessings on her skin.

　How reassuring it must have been for Emilia at that moment, knowing that the great tree was still in its usual place, maintaining its majestic form.

　As the familiar scenery transformed into unfamiliar places, I was so saved by the large tree that simply continued to maintain my daily life.

　Breathing out copious amounts of white breath, Emilia ran unsteadily towards the great tree. The falling snow reached the young Emilia's knees, and in the short distance it took to reach the tree, the girl fell over and over again, leaving marks of her body on the pure white snowy field.

　Eventually, Emilia, whose nose was red from falling face-first so many times, reached the base of the great tree.

　With relief, his expression, which had been tense up until then, relaxed slightly, though even that was only a slight waver, as his muscles had become stiff from the cold.

"---?"

　And so, reaching out for one of the great tree's roots, the young Emilia looks as if she has just realised something. Her hand slides along the root, tracing it, and with her frozen fingertips she digs up the tip of the root that's buried in snow.

　--Stop it!!

　Dig it up, dig it up.

　Driven by a sense of impatience, the young Emilia simply digs through the snow.

　--Stop! Stop, stop, stop, stop, stop!

　I don't want to see it. I don't want to remember it.

　I want to turn my face away, cover my eyes, crush my ears, and tear the world apart with my voice.

　But you can't fool a non-existent face, non-existent eyes, non-existent ears.

　Young Emilia's fingertips reach something in the snow.

　And then, the girl slowly picked up the last flake of snow with her own hands.

　--Stop it!!

　....

　....

　..........

"--I shouldn't have helped you."

"――――"

"Proof of sin. Proof of impurity. Cursed, cursed, cursed, to the end of suffering..."

"――――"

"Just die. --You little witch."

※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※

"--Emilia? Emilia? Hey, are you okay!?"

"Uh... Uh... Subaru...?"

　As he continued to call out to her, shaking her shoulders, Emilia opened her eyes slightly and called out his name. She shook her head for a moment, as if trying to regain consciousness,

"Why is Subaru here...?"

"You have to have a reason to come, right? I could stare at Emilia-tan's face all day and never get bored."

"That's not it...um."

　Perhaps her consciousness was still unclear, as Emilia's responses left me feeling uneasy.

　Subaru wanted to dispel Emilia's anxiety, so he slapped her knee, stood up and smiled,

"It bothers me when you act so defenseless in front of me. I'm glad you trust me, but I'm also a man who keeps a ferocious wolf under the cloak of reason. I want you to be more conscious of the fact that I'm a human being, Emilia-tan."

"...? I've never forgotten about you, Subaru. I just woke up a little, so my reply was a bit strange... but, before I knew it, I was dozing off..."

　Although it felt like his true intentions hadn't been conveyed, there was a clear hint of awakening in Emilia's voice as she answered. After confirming that, Subaru jerked his chin in front of Emilia, who was frowning in confusion,

"I know you're tired, but if you're going to sleep, you should sleep in a bed. If you sleep on the floor like now, my heart will stop the moment I get in."

"...Ah, I'm sorry. I made you worry, right?"

"Just when I had renewed my resolve, a new event occurred and I was honestly worried that everything would be ruined. I can safely say that seeing Emilia-tan's sleeping face today was even more moving than usual."

　In fact, the shock Subaru felt when he entered the bedroom and found Emilia was indescribable.

　He knocked but got no response, so considering the possibility that no one was there he entered the room, only to find Emilia collapsed on the floor in front of the bed, her silver hair spread out.

　No one could blame Subaru for being cold and in despair at this.

　However, when I picked him up and felt how warm his body was and I could hear his breathing and heartbeat, I quickly realized that this was just a needless worry.

　just,

"If that was all, I would have just let him sleep, but... he seemed like he was really tormented. Did I do something bad by waking him up?"

　In Subaru's arms, Emilia was sleeping, sweat running down her forehead, and writhing about in her sleep with a painful expression on her face. Subaru had experienced it before, but from truly painful nightmares there was no way to escape. The only way to quickly escape the pain was to hear a voice calling out to him from outside the dream.

　When Subaru exercised that power, Emilia shook her head and said, "No."

"Thank you so much for waking me up. I just... no, I had a really bad dream so... yeah, thanks."

Subaru: "What a terrible dream to make Emilia-tan suffer. I'd like to tell you a little bit about it… but it seems like even remembering it is unpleasant."

"――――"

　Seeing the silent, bitter smile that followed, Subaru pondered the cause of Emilia's nightmare.

　It was probably a nightmare that occurred as a result of a series of negative circumstances. I don't know if it was accompanied by a specific image, but

"...I see, then I won't force you to find out."

　Judging from Emilia's attitude of averting her gaze from Subaru and avoiding further questioning, he concluded that it was probably a vivid nightmare.

　If it were only a vague nightmare, it would be easy to deflect it with words, but the fact that this was not possible was proof that the nightmare had a clear shape.

　This is an unlucky start to the encounter with Emilia, but considering how the story will proceed from here on out, this will also be difficult.

　Emilia looked up at Subaru, who was touching the tip of his nose and with a difficult expression on his face, struggling with how to start the conversation.

"So... what happened, Subaru? You didn't really come to see me for no reason, did you?"

"I don't think it's that surprising a move though."

"No, that's not true. I mean, Subaru is always busy running around and it's hard. He can't spend all his time thinking about me like that, right?"

"Just how hardworking do you think I am, Emilia-tan? I'm a man known for being so materialistic that I wholeheartedly agreed with the creation of 'Lazy Appreciation Day', you know?"

　This was neither a joke nor an exaggeration, Subaru knew that he was a hopeless lazy person. Without some kind of role to play, Natsuki Subaru was the kind of person who would endlessly degenerate.

　That's why, even in his former world, he never neglected his daily muscle training or the training of his many silly hobbies and skills. Because he knew that the moment he slacked off, he would become a hopeless person.

　--A person who can continue to make such efforts without any purpose would never be called lazy, but Subaru doesn't realize this obvious fact.

　Emilia's gaze grew warmer after hearing his answer, as if she had something to say about Subaru's underestimation. Subaru frowned at his response, but in the end Emilia didn't say anything more about it.

"It's fine. Anyway, Subaru, tell me what you're here for. Hurry up."

"I don't know why I'm suddenly acting so childish... Ah, I see. Maybe I should go for a walk outside to change my mood..."

"――――"

"I mean, isn't that a nice change of pace?"

　As Emilia shuts her mouth, Subaru scratches his head, realizing his mistake.

　Thus, as can be seen from the fact that she is the only one whose bedroom is located away from the rest of the village, Emilia's treatment in the "Sanctuary" is by no means good.

　The residents of the Sanctuary and Emilia could be described as outcasts who had strayed from their original races, but even between them, the negative image surrounding half-elves was something special.

　For the refugees of Aram Village, the credit for escaping safely from the Witch Cult goes to Subaru, and it doesn't directly change their opinion of Emilia.

　Emilia is treated just as much in the Sanctuary as she is in the Royal Capital.

　She may act strong when she's with Subaru, but that's not a pleasant experience. How does she deal with the stares she receives from those around her when she's alone?

　As the situation had not yet been improved, taking Emilia outside would only put more strain on her than necessary.

"This is why I am..."

　Angered at his own insensitivity, Subaru punches him in the forehead.

　Subaru shifted his focus to the pain of the bone in his forehead being struck by the fist, then turned to face Emilia, whose eyes were wide at what he had just done.

"Emilia."

"--Yeah"

　Seeing Subaru's expression change, Emilia must have realised that his mood had also changed, as she straightened up and gazed back at him with calm emotion in her amethyst eyes.

　Seeing her attitude and expression, Subaru understood the futility of trying to hit her in the wrong direction. He thought for a moment about what to say first, and then,

"Are you willing to tell me what you saw during the Trial at the Tomb?"

　--Subaru had certainly seen those amethyst eyes moist with fear and grief.