Re:Zero kara Hajimeru Isekai Seikatsu web novel

"--Donaa!!"

　Of the three, only Otto was able to react quickly to the threat that was approaching right before his eyes.

　He raised both hands in front of him and chanted, interfering with the world—a torrent of mana shattered the floor of the mansion and raised the earthen walls, covering the wide corridor and standing as an obstacle to the jet black shadow.

　but,

"obstacle"

"One hit?!"

　A short voice and two curved blades were swung.

　The arcing slash easily cut the earthen wall into pieces like paper, and the pieces were kicked by the long legs and collapsed in an instant.

　Particles of mana scattered, the remains of a crumbling earthen wall. A sadistic smile was carved into the image, and a dull, shining silver blade.

"I'll have to slit your throat first and shut your mouth before you can behave."

"Don't say scary things!"

　In the one second gap Otto created, Subaru picked up Petra and tumbled into the room next door. A moment later, Otto dashed into the same room, slammed the door, and immediately afterwards grabbed his head and dodged to the other side of the bed.

　The slash cut the door diagonally, and as it slid down, half of it was kicked into the room.

"Even this, take this――!"

　Subaru swung a wooden clothes rack down at Elsa, who was slipping in through the gap in the door. Elsa leaned back to avoid it, and the swinging blade cut the clothes rack in half. The return blow was aimed at Subaru's throat, but thanks to Petra jumping towards him, it only grazed him.

"Oh, bad boy."

"A proud, good boy, you idiot!"

　Subaru stepped back, clutching his neck, where blood was spurting from a shallow cut, and pulling Petra towards him.

　Elsa had a terrifying smile on her face and tried to attack the retreating Subaru.

　but,

"How about this――!"

　Otto raised his sword and threw the magic ore, aiming at the side of Elsa's face.

　Glowing slightly red, it was like an explosive bullet imbued with the mana of "fire." It was literally a trump card of higher purity than the one that had been useful in the final battle with Garfiel.

　Otto's hidden weapon exploded on the defenseless Elsa, right beside her.

　Halfway between Otto and Elsa, the power of the shattered magic ore explodes in a red light.

　Sound and light swept through the room, and Subaru watched as a hot wind blew past him.

　In a field of vision so focused that it felt like time was passing slowly, the magic ore that Otto had thrown was countered by a throwing knife that Elsa had thrown without even turning around.

　An explosion occurred at an unexpected location, and Otto's eyes were burned, causing him to cry out in agony and fall backwards.

　The toes of Elsa's long feet dug into the bank of his stomach, sending Otto flying in an U-shape and slamming him into the wall. Without even looking at Otto as he collapsed, Elsa turned towards the gasping Subaru and suddenly raised her brows.

"Oh? You're the face I saw in the royal capital, right?"

"Oh, I'm honored that you remembered me. Since we're related, could you please let me off the hook for this one time?"

"If I miss an intestine, I always take the time to look at it."

"Wow, what a collector's spirit!"

　Feeling Petra tightly grip the hem of his shirt, Subaru's thoughts became heated.

　I feel like the gate inside my body is dead. No matter how much I pray or burn my soul, neither mana nor gates say anything. It's impossible to deploy Shamak here, and I'm a fool who only knows one thing and can't move even before that.

　In that case, there is only one thing to rely on - Invisible Providence.

"――――"

　The moment he decided to use it, something mysterious and black began to crawl inside Subaru's body.

　The thing, which had stopped moving, immediately began to assert its existence the moment it realized it had been summoned by Subaru, clamoring for the moment when it would be able to demonstrate its power.

　I was struck by a sinister feeling, as if I was feeding a horrible monster.

　Consciously ignoring this, Subaru poured orders into the newborn black power, resolving to carve out a path from the inside to the outside world.

　The pain is so intense it makes one shed tears of blood, and there is an aversion to using this power.

　Still, we cling to what we can, use what we can, and live to make the most of everything.

　None other than to save everything that Subaru wishes to be saved.

"Ahh... that face gives me goosebumps."

"I'll show you something better."

"Yes, it's fun."

　Aiming at the center of Elsa's sword, Subaru pulled the trigger.

　All that was left to do was release it, and I should be able to tear open that thin body and penetrate it.

"--Ooooh."

　The viscous, wriggling fluid flows into my veins and runs throughout my body.

　He had the illusion that his breath was colored, that he was extremely hot, and he could predict a future in which black, mysterious claws would grow out and slice Elsa in half.

　Just like this, I'll give it all, and then――

"Subaru!"

　A painful cry and a numbing pain as if someone was scratching my side.

　I frowned in surprise, and the horrible emotion in my stomach instantly vanished.

　All that remains is a trace of black tainted residue and the same jet-black murderous intent that continues to radiate.

　As Elsa made her move to dive, Subaru hurriedly realigned his aim, but it was too late―― Then,

"--That's dangerous."

"--Are you dodging it?!"

　With a split second of foresight, Elsa dodged the strong wind approaching from behind.

　He interrupted his slash at Subaru, twisted his body, and danced around to avoid the strike of the claws that dug into his back.

　His body flipped over and kicked Frederica in the side, taking her by surprise, then used the momentum to hit Subaru with his elbow, then he did a backflip between the two of them, sending them flying, and landed leisurely on the bed at the back of the room.

　Elsa had an ecstatic look on her face as she placed her hands on his back, her palms soaked with blood.

　Then, looking at Frederica on her knees, she tilts her head in amusement.

"One more person... no, two more people. This is a beautiful mansion."

"Even that surprise attack didn't reach me properly... that's not a human reflex."

　Frederica groaned in frustration and was unable to hide her shudder.

　Subaru, having been hit hard in the chest, coughed as he crawled sideways towards Frederica.

"Frederica, thank you for your help. And Petra, too."

　Subaru called out to Frederica, who had reunited with him, and then thanked Petra, who was holding his hand. Petra shook her head with tears in her eyes,

"I, I'm sorry. But, Subaru… you looked dangerous just now…"

"Honestly, it looked like I was on the verge of being swallowed up. It might have been dangerous if I hadn't been pulled back. I can't be so careless as to rely on Invisible Providence..."

"In... what is it?"

　It was no longer a surprise to Subaru that his trump card was a double-edged sword.

　The problem is that its uses are becoming increasingly limited - one can only hope that the current defect is at least due to continued use.

　At the very least, he had a feeling that relying on Invisible Providence in this battle would mean losing too much in exchange.

"Sister Frederica..."

"Petra, that must have been very scary. But you managed to hold back and not cry."

　Petra called out Frederica's name while still holding onto the hem of Subaru's skirt. Frederica looked towards Subaru with a stern look, appreciating the efforts of her precious little sister.

"Subaru-sama, I am sorry. Taking Rem-sama and escaping the mansion was what you wanted me to do... but I was unable to complete that task."

"Well, it can't be helped considering the situation. I hear it's even more dangerous outside… What about Rem?"

"This way."

　Frederica was holding nothing in her hands, but was equipped with claw-shaped gauntlets.

　Subaru grew worried that he couldn't see Rem, so Frederica turned her back to him, and there he saw Rem, securely fastened by straps and being carried on Frederica's back.

　Although they are tightly bound, this is still a surreal sight.

"I know it's an emergency, but if you move too much like this, I'm afraid Rem's neck will get torn off!"

"Fortunately, I'm not sure if I can call it that, but Rem-sama's body is separated from the normal flow of time. Therefore, even if we treat her a little roughly, it won't affect her..."

"But even so, please treat it with as much care as possible, okay...?"

　This was the result of Frederica trying to do her best.

　I don't want to complain about that without coming up with an alternative. It would mean that Rem would have to put up with some uncomfortable feelings.

　Anyway, here we have,

"There's no one else who can fight besides Frederica. Petra and I are out of action. Rem is asleep. Otto fought with all his might, but his efforts were in vain and he is already…"

"I'm not dead! Can you please stop telling scary stories while someone is hitting their head and spinning their eyes out!?"

　Otto, who had been rolling around in the corner of the room, revived, speaking to the downcast Subaru.

　Shaking his head, Otto joined them, crawling across the floor, shuddering at the sight of severed doors and clothes racks.

"I never thought the magic ore would be shot down like that... but it worked fine on Garfiel."

"They have different combat experiences, and probably different intelligence as well. Don't compare them. It's a shame."

"Gaaf... I thought so, you were just growing up the way you saw it. Because I wasn't watching..."

　Subaru stops Otto from making such a cruel comparison in his assessment.

　Frederica also seems to have many thoughts about Garfiel, whom she met again for the first time in ten years. She may also feel guilty for turning a blind eye to her younger brother's growth into a real thug.

　I'll have to work out how to fix that in the future as we build our master-disciple relationship.

"We need to come together and solve this problem for now."

"Maybe we've had enough of pleasant conversation for now?"

"Sorry for making you wait. Are you prepared to be completely beaten down five against one?"

"It seems like there are about three or four children who you're unsure about including in the count?"

　In response to Subaru's bold provocation, Elsa accurately counted the non-combatants and smiled faintly.

　Elsa shook the curved blade in both hands and slid her body lightly off the bed. Watching her, Subaru noticed something.

　--There's no more blood dripping from Erza's back.

"It looked like it was pretty deep, right?"

"What about the wound? There's nothing to worry about. Well, look at that."

　Saying that, Elsa spun around on the spot.

　And just as Subaru had glared, the wound on his back that Frederica had dug earlier had completely disappeared. There were claw marks on the back of the costume, so he was not seeing an illusion.

　Everyone else except Subaru, including Frederica, had stiffened faces and held their breath.

　Subaru, on the other hand, could only sigh deeply and curse his bad premonition coming true.

"I knew he wouldn't die even if he was killed... but he can even heal his wounds? He's practically a monster."

"I don't recall ever abandoning my humanity, and I think it's a bit odd to say that after capturing a woman. Besides, where did you find out about my constitution?"

"Anyone would think that something must have happened if Reinhard hadn't cut him in half."

"That experience is quite rare. It nearly split me in two. I wonder what a hero's intestines are like. I'm very interested."

　Despite witnessing such fighting power, Erza shows no signs of being discouraged in the slightest.

　She should have just followed Reinhard, who doesn't seem likely to die even if killed, so why does she continue to bother Subaru and the others so relentlessly?

　No matter how much I complain about my resentment towards Roswaal, it's not enough.

"Subaru-sama...that woman is here, then what about Garf?"

　Frederica asked timidly, her expression stiffening.

　Seeing the abnormal state of Erza's body right now, he was worried about the safety of his younger brother who wasn't here with them.

　However, Subaru also didn't have the answer to dispel Frederica's anxiety.

　If there's one thing I can say,

"Unfortunately, I can't explain why he's here. But I can't believe Garfiel was taken out so quickly."

"From what I saw, their strength was pretty even... but Garf seemed to have a slight advantage."

"That's what I think too, but in the end the answer is..."

　Unable to find her, Subaru glanced towards Elsa and involuntarily held his breath.

　Drawn by Subaru's gaze, Frederica and the others looked in the same direction and similarly held their breath.

　Elsa frowned in confusion at that reaction and looked up at where Subaru and the others were looking.

　I saw the ceiling of the guest room almost sinking and falling down.

「Fuck you, se――!!」

"Kya, ah――!?"

"That idiot!!"

　The moment the ceiling cracked open with a loud noise, Subaru and the others all rushed towards the door of the room.

　Cursing at the voices they heard, the five of them flew through the severed door, and immediately afterwards the ceiling of the guest room crushed the entire room, and the agonizing sounds of furniture and wood breaking echoed around.

　There was an explosion-like sound and a violent wind blew by, the aftereffects of which were swept into the corridor outside the room.

　White smoke rose, and Subaru rolled down the corridor, biting gravel-like dust into his mouth, as he retreated from the scene. It seemed that none of his allies had been caught in the collapse.

　And from the other side of the smoke,

"Don't do such boring things! Now, go ahead and spin around!"

　A familiar, rough voice shouted excitedly.

　The voice was accompanied by the sounds of blows and steel clashing with steel, and soon a shadow tumbled into the corridor, sending up a trail of smoke as it was blown away.

"Oh?!"

　Seeing the rolling shadow, Subaru involuntarily let out a cry of surprise.

　It was nothing like what he had imagined, a quadruped with thick fur and sharp claws on its paws - a mottled animal resembling a hyena.

　However, its size is no match for a hyena. Its body is twice as big as Subaru's.

　For a moment, Subaru braced himself for the appearance of the enormous beast, but he soon saw that there was no light in the hyena's eyes, and that it had lost its life. Looking closer, he saw that its neck was twisted and broken, facing the opposite direction from the correct one.

　There was no doubt that his cervical spine had been twisted and broken with some incredible force.

　And now, if there was anyone in this mansion who would turn against the beast and do so――,

"Hey, boss. You're still in there?"

　Kicking away the smoke, Garfiel appeared calmly in the hallway.

　He notices Subaru and the others standing in the hallway, staring blankly at the hyena's corpse, and bursts out in laughter.

"There's no need to be scared. I killed that guy after all."

「I see, that helps…no, it doesn't! Why did you take your eyes off him? I thought you were going to die because of him! It was scary! I thought I was going to die!」

"Sorry, sorry, I didn't have the slightest intention of letting you escape either. While I was getting tangled up in all the trouble along the way, you just ran off somewhere."

"You're such a hassle, you know..."

　Garfiel's face contorts in disgust and he gnashes his fangs.

　Could the troublesome thing he had mentioned be this hyena-like beast? Combining what he had said earlier, it was definitely a magical beast - and then...

"Oh! I can't believe it! Erza! Erza! Do something!"

"I'd love to, but weren't you the one who told me to leave it to myself and figure out what to do with the others? I'm not saying that I'd be happier if I had more stomachs to cut."

　Two resonant female voices resounded, one high-pitched and one calm.

　Immediately afterwards, the wall of the room that Garfiel had smashed to pieces shattered from the inside, and once again a shadow appeared in the corridor, passing through the billowing smoke.

　Heavy footsteps echoed, followed by lighter boots. To call them two was hesitant, as there was too much of a size difference.

"...Hmm, what is it?"

　Otto had been silent up until this point, but he could no longer bear it and pointed at it.

　Subaru heard this and felt a cold sweat cover his entire body.

"From what I can see, it looks like a slightly large hippopotamus."

"A little, I guess?"

"Yeah. Hippos are big animals to begin with."

　A hippopotamus, which is already large, would probably become roughly the size of the creature in front of me if it were to grow three times larger.

　It has jet black skin, thick and hard like rock. Its round eyes shine red with wicked hostility, a large mouth that looks like it could swallow Grandpa Rom in one gulp, and flat teeth like a millstone.

　At first glance it resembles a hippopotamus, but it is perhaps three times as ferocious and vicious.

　And the sense of oppression emanating from its enormous grandeur was extraordinary,

"Madaroo dog is dead! He's been defeated! What a shame! No way! No way!"

　A high-pitched, tearful voice cries out from atop the enormous hippopotamus, lamenting the death of the hyena-like beast.

　Climbing her legs on the hippo's back is a petite girl with brown hair in a braid, a simple face, and an innocent expression of emotion.

　Subaru felt that the girl's face looked familiar.

"...of the magical beasts, of the forest."

　This happened previously, when Subaru had been caught up in a loop that had started at the mansion.

　The reason why Subaru entered the forest to rescue the children of Arlam Village who had gotten lost in the Forest of Magical Beasts, and ended up going deep into the forest. And above all, he was the main factor that led the children into the Forest of Magical Beasts.

　Roswaal had told him that he had disappeared after the commotion had ended,

"That girl...that time!"

　Petra also seemed to have caught up with the idea Subaru had arrived at.

　If only Subaru had noticed, it might have been dismissed as a misunderstanding or something, but with Petra's memories also involved, there was no choice but to accept it.

　The girl was someone who was involved in the magical beast incident.

　And considering the current situation, even the commotion surrounding the mansion with the demonic beasts――,

"Roswaal's plan...!"

　Given that he was cooperating with Elsa, even the beast incident was probably something that Roswaal brought about.

　So, what happened in the royal capital, what happened at the mansion, everything was in Roswaal's hands. Was everything Subaru had fought for the future that had been foretold by the black prophecy?

"How can I accept such a stupid idea...!"

　I don't wish my fate was preordained.

　At the very least, it was different from here on out. I was going to question Roswaal about the beast incident, and now I had one more reason to punch that clown-face in the face.

　Subaru was filled with anger and rebelliousness, and the girl atop the beast finally noticed his gaze.

　The girl blinked her round eyes and waved at Subaru,

"Oh, it's the big brother from back then. Petra's here too. It's been a while."

"Wow, you're talking to me without any shame. Do you even understand the situation?"

　Subaru couldn't hide his excitement at the girl who cheerfully called out to him.

　The girl tilted her head at Subaru's obvious wariness,

"I know, I'm at work. If I don't do my job properly, Mum will scold me. But Elsa is so selfish."

"It's wrong to order me to do something boring like backing up. I can enjoy life much more vividly than being fed to beasts. I'd rather be the one to be killed, you know?"

　Hearing the sulky girl's words, Elsa stepped next to the beast and pointed the water in its direction.

　Subaru sighed at what the weirdo had to say, then raised one finger.

"Okay, then I'll give you a super cool suggestion. Hold the knife you're holding in your other hand. Then stab yourself in your stomach. Move it to the side. Your innards will be so happy I'll be happy and you'll be happy. It's a seppuku challenge. Cool, right?"

"Pfft! Ahahahaha! That's so amazing! Hey, Erza, why don't you give it a try? Erza, you're not very fond of organs. I'm sure it'll be fun! It'll be fun!"

"Unfortunately, I've gotten tired of doing that ever since I got this constitution."

　When I heard that my too-cool proposal had already been put into action, a cool feeling of fear ran down my spine.

　Either way, there's no doubt that we're faced with two dire situations.

"I don't know how it works, but can we assume that she is controlling the magical beasts?"

"There's no doubt about it. The monsters surrounding the front and that big dog from earlier are both obediently listening to what they're told. What are you going to do, General?"

　As Subaru checks, Garfiel asks if the plan should continue.

　To be honest, the situation has changed drastically from the original plan. Not only Elsa, but there is another enemy - a beastmaster who commands a giant beast.

　As long as the monsters outside remained, it would be difficult to escape the mansion peacefully. Above all, Subaru and his friends had not yet managed to grab hold of all of the people who needed to be rescued.

　Even if he could get Frederica, Petra, and Rem outside, it still wouldn't be enough.

"Garfiel... can I ask you to do something incredibly unreasonable?"

"Just tell me, General."

"I'd like to stop both Elsa and the girl at the same time."

"――――"

　Garfiel remained silent, and Subaru realized that he had made an unreasonable request.

　Just looking at the strength of Erza, she is a formidable opponent to face normally. While trying to stop her, he also needs to keep his attention on that gigantic magic beast.

　Subaru had been painfully aware of the threat of magical beasts ever since coming to this world.

　that's why,

"Fine. Leave it to me. I'm getting fired up."

"--?! Wh-is that okay? Seriously? Can I do it?"

"That's what I'm here for. I've been talking like that for a long time. Even if the number of enemies increases or they get stronger, I can't complain. It's like, 'Miden has no way to escape with his back to the cliff.'"

　Saying this do-or-die motto, Garfiel clapped his shields together in both hands.

　Even Subaru knew that this was merely an example of bravado, and not backed by overwhelming confidence.

　But even so, right now there is no one I can rely on but Garfiel.

"Garfiel. I told you so many times on the dragon carriage..."

"Wha-t th-that? Even I have no intention of letting myself die in a place like this."

　Subaru was about to confirm the point, but Garfiel interrupted him, pushing him with his shoulder.

　Garfiel's attitude indicated that there was no need for further exchanges.

　Subaru swallowed his words and pushed them away, knowing that this was yet another disrespectful response to his resolve.

　That alone forces an intense trust on him.

"Now, hurry up and get going. If anyone gets in my way, I won't be able to show my true strength."

　Garfiel bared his fangs and cursed at the remaining members of the group.

　Hearing this, Otto and Frederica exchanged looks at each other,

"Garfiel, please don't die. I don't want to have to run around cleaning up Natsuki's mess by myself."

"There are so many things we haven't talked about yet. That would be great. We'll definitely talk together, grandma and the three of us."

"Hey, big brother with a scary face, do your best."

　Garfiel nodded with a wry smile at what the three had said.

　Subaru felt like this conversation was piling up death flags, but conversely, with so many of them piling up, it was a reassuring survival flag, so he decided to accept it and cling to hope.

「And so, your opponent will continue to be me. This time I won't let you look elsewhere or cheat on me. Get crushed by my claws, fangs and shield and cry!」

　Garfiel turns around at the sound of footsteps and roars.

　Taking the brunt of that burst of fighting spirit head-on, Erza smiled, while the beast she was riding let out a low roar, its throat trembling.

"Meili, please don't get in the way this time."

"That's you, Elsa! I'm just doing what mom told me to do!"

　While arguing, Elsa and the girl aimed their attacks at Garfiel, who roared.

　Garfiel braced himself, blocking heavy and sharp blows with both his shields, sparks flying everywhere, and Subaru sprinted backwards.

"Otto! Frederica! The situation has changed! Since we can't just leave the mansion, we'll escape by a different route to avoid being bitten by the magic beast!"

"Even if you say a different one, the result will be the same if you go out the back door, right? If Garfiel can't even force his way through, then what are you going to do?"

"How about you desperately negotiate with the demonic beasts using the 'Divine Protection of Words' and use diplomatic means to get them to give way and then escape? That'd be your turn as the main character."

"Most magical beasts only say, 'Me, you, Marukajiri,' so it's impossible to have a conversation with them...!"

　Otto, standing next to him, responded with a pathetic look on his face to the suggestion that was unlikely to meet his expectations.

　Even if you can communicate with someone using words, there are still people with whom you fundamentally cannot communicate. This is true for both humans and animals. Elsa is good proof of this.

　In that case, Subaru could only think of one way out――

"Subaru-sama, I have an idea of ​​an escape route."

"I know, Frederica. The place I suggest would probably be the same. It's just…"

　There are problems along that path.

　As he tried to point this out, Subaru gasped as he ran down the hallway.

"No matter where you're escaping from, it stinks it's not going to be easy, damn it!"

　--Two hyenas notice us from the front and jump at us.

　The battle for Roswaal Mansion saw a change in cast, but it continued to look like a fierce battle.