When Subaru, accompanied by Rem, ran into the parlor, he found Crusch, Ferris, and Wilhelm, who had entered the mansion one step ahead of Subaru.

　Crusch looked at Subaru, who came rushing into the room, out of breath and shaking his shoulders, and narrowed her eyes in her gallant countenance.

Crusch: "From the looks of you, I'd say you've already heard what I have to say."

　As if to say that he had saved herself the trouble of unnecessary preamble, Crusch announced this with an emotionless gleam in her guileless face.

　Subaru shakes his head, unable to deny the feeling that he has made the first move.

Subaru: "We haven't talked about the details yet. It seems that even Rem only has a vague idea."

　Subaru turns his head and looks at Rem, who is standing right beside him. In response to his intention, Rem pulls her chin, a look of slight tension visible on her expressionless face.

Rem: "Because what Rem felt was only through my sister's senses. —Unlike my sister, I didn't see it concretely. It would be different if I could use clairvoyance."

　Rem's eyebrows furrow in frustration as she bites her lip and regrets her own lack of strength.

　But Crusch, watching him, is impressed by his appearance and exclaims, "Oh,”

Crusch: "I had heard about the twin maids that Margrave Roswaal had in his charge. I see, so it is possible to exchange some information even though they are as far apart as the royal capital and the territory."

Rem: "As I said, it is vague. As a non-talented person, that was all I could do."

　Rem bends at the waist and humbles herself in response to Crusch's praise. With their exchange at the side, Subaru stepped forward and waved his hand and said, "Wait, wait, wait,"

Subaru: "I don't care about that right now. I want to hear about the important part. From the way you just said that, I'm assuming you have a few more details?

Ferris: "I don't trust this one either, in terms of the accuracy of the information. It's information that has passed through the cracks of syo many different people.”

　Ferris gave his usual mischievous glare to Subaru, who can't hide his feelings. Subaru returns the glare, and he tilts his head adorably with a finger to his lips and says, "Buuut,”

Ferris: "That vague feeling, combined with Rem-chan's sixth sense from earlier, will start to come together nicely, won't it?"

Subaru: "Don't procrastinate, end of story."

　Subaru puts his hand on the reception desk and threatens Ferris, who does not break his attitude of making fun of him, by thrusting his face at him.

　However, it was not Ferris who clapped his hands and drew his attention to Subaru's demand,

???: "I can understand your anxiousness, Natsuki Subaru."

　The one who called Subaru by his full name, shook her green hair, and looked at him was Crusch.

　The sharpness of her gaze made Subaru feel as if he were being doused with water, and he involuntarily gulped and backed away.

　The difference in height between the tall Crusch and Subaru is about five centimeters at most, but even so, Subaru is definitely taller. Even so, Subaru felt oppressed, as if he were being looked down upon by a woman who was supposed to be standing parallel to him.

　The difference in the size of the capacities may be the cause of the difference in the way they feel about each other. Subaru was reminded of the difference in their status as creatures in an unnecessary situation, and Crusch was oblivious to his inner feelings.

Crusch: "What if we tell you that there is no reason for us to disclose this information to you in the first place?"

Subaru: "What...?"

Crusch: "Isn't that what you should have expected? Sir, you are now a guest in my family's custody. Your position does not guarantee anything more. There is no way that a mere guest can be involved in the progress or failure of the royal election, including my family's."

　Subaru's lips curled up in a grimace as he was smashed head-on by an argument that was too good to be true.

　At the same time, he was angry at his own shortsightedness and shallow naivete.

　He had been aware of this just the other day. This is the bosom of the «enemy», and if anything happens to them, they would turn on them without warning.

　Naturally, Crusch and Ferris would also turn to them in a similar manner.

　There was no way we could just show up and ask for information.

Wilhelm: "Crusch-sama, Ferris-sama—no more tricks."

　Subaru, with a flame of hostility in his heart, was thinking about how to get the information out of them. The one who interrupted this turn of events was Wilhelm, who had remained silent until that point.

　He turned a reproachful eye on his master and her followers.

Wilhelm: "In times of peace, there would be room for that, but right now, we both know that the situation is urgent. A needless quarrel will be a disaster later on."

Ferris: "If there is a lyater time, that is."

Wilhelm: "Ferris-dono..."

Ferris: "Okay, I'll be quiet. Mm, I’m scared now…"

　Sitting bouncing on the couch with pursed lips, Ferris covers his ears and eyes and falls silent. Wilhelm lets out a sigh at his childish attitude, and Crusch chuckles.

　Subaru, unable to follow their attitude, blinks his eyes.

Crusch: "I apologize for my rudeness, Natsuki Subaru."

Subaru: "Huh?"

Crusch: “I was just testing you for a moment. It didn’t mean much. I'm not sure how much I can say about this, but I hope you'll note that this is a place where you have to be aware of such things.”

　Subaru responded in a hushed voice, and Crusch expressed her gratitude, but she did not fail to warn him. Subaru was made aware of his position once again by these words, and his consciousness was awakened.

　In short, whether he wants to or not, Subaru is now in a position where it is no longer permissible for him to simply take advantage of the environment he has been given.

　Although his mind was a little too restless to say that he had regained his composure, Crusch pulled her chin back as if she had gained her own composure when she saw Subaru changing his mind.

Crusch: "There has been some troubling activity in and around the territory of Margrace Roswaal. The territory has been put on alert by order of the Margrave..."

Subaru: "Troublesome activity? Alert?"

　Subaru raises his eyebrows and questions as the word "troubling" is uttered.

　In response to his question, Crusch nodded and crossed her arms.

Crusch: "Originally, these situations were expected. When the Margrave announced that he would support Emilia as a candidate for king—in short, when he announced that he would support a half-elf."

Subaru: "What, a strike—is there going to be an outcry of discontent from the people?"

Crusch: "Of course, there will be one. As long as the notoriety of the Witch of Envy is spreading, being a half-elf will inevitably lead you to fight against these prejudices."

　When he mentioned the concern that immediately came to his mind, it was easily affirmed.

　Again, Subaru could not allow Emilia's origins to become a fetter for her. It was not her own fault, but the world continuously pulls her down.

　And he hated those faceless people, the «population», who spoke only with prejudice without knowing her own character.

Crusch: "It's a path that she was prepared to take. It's not right for you to be angry."

Subaru: "It's not wrong. It's not about whether she's prepared to be talked down about or is used to being talked down about. In the first place, there is no reason why she should be talked about badly.

　Subaru replied to Crusch's words with a grim look on his face, "Anyway," he said, pulling the conversation back to its original direction,

Subaru: "Is there trouble in the territory of Roswal because of that trivial thing? And if it goes wrong, it won't be just a blur, it'll be a firestorm?"

Crusch: "That's an interesting expression, but it's right on the mark. The details of the situation aside, the general idea is correct. It would also explain the feeling of your servant, wouldn't it?"

　The room's attention is drawn to Rem when the question is posed to her.

　With a poker face that gives no hint of expression, Rem looks at the most familiar gaze—Subaru's—and nods as if responding to the intent of the gaze.

Rem: "The feeling I got from my sister was some impatience and a lot of anger ...I don't think it was something she was trying to convey, but it leaked through unbearably."

Crusch: "Is that synesthesia something you feel with each other that often?"

Rem: "No. It is a very frequent feeling. To some extent, we consciously control it. But if the feelings are too strong, they can overcome that and be transmitted to each other."

　In the latter half of the interview, Rem's words lose their power.

　To put her words in perspective, this wave of emotions transmitted from Ram to Rem is irregular. If Ram's reason for using synesthesia was to ask Rem for relief, it would naturally arrive in a more obvious way, and intermittently at that.

　Nevertheless, this time the synesthesia leaked through only once and did not continue after that. This means.

Subaru: "Are you trying to keep me from getting involved…?”

　Muttering only in his mouth, Subaru feels himself almost hurt by his own imagination.

　If Ram's intentions were as we imagined, it was not hard to imagine who had ordered Ram to do so, or whose intentions were behind it.

　Subaru is currently undergoing treatment at the Karsten residence. Rem is accompanying him. If Rem is informed, it is synonymous with Subaru being informed.

　—She was so reluctant to let Subaru get involved in her own path.

Subaru: "But you're in trouble, aren't you...?"

　The situation was so bad that even Crusch, who lives in the Royal Capital, could feel it.

　And the situation is so bad that Ram, who should be a few steps ahead of Rem in terms of self-control, is unable to hold back her emotions and spills them out.

　There is still little she can rely on, and her enemies are unreasonably numerous. Under such circumstances, how many people can she count on to be her ally?

　Yes, that's right.

　That's why...

Subaru: "I have to help her, don't I?"

　Subaru, who looked up and muttered this to himself, now had eyes on him.

　Crusch closed one eye, Ferris squinted his mischievous gaze slightly, Wilhelm's wrinkled face still showed no wave of emotion, and Rem continued looking at him.

Rem: "No, no, Subaru-kun..!"

　Pulling back his sleeves, Rem's large eyes push open with a small quiver of her lips.

　The color in her eyes was impatience, confusion, and desperate pleading.

Rem: "I have to follow Emilia-sama's and Roswaal-sama's orders. Subaru-kun is to stay at Crusch-sama's mansion and concentrate on his medical treatment. Rem, Rem agrees. Healing the injured body is the top priority for Subaru-kun right now..."

Subaru: "What if something irreversible happens while I'm doing so? The most important thing to remember is that you can't just take a look at the actual product or service and expect it to be good.”

　Pushing aside Rem's clinging attitude, Subaru steps forward and looks at Crusch's face. He quietly stares back into those twin amber eyes and straightens his posture.

Subaru: "You heard me right, Crusch-san. Rem and I are going back to Roswal's mansion... and will return to Emilia's place. We'll hold off on the treatment until things are settled..."

Crusch: "—If you leave here, you will be my enemy."

　Interrupting Subaru's attempts to talk about the future, Crusch calmly told him so.

　The sharpness of his words made Subaru feel as if he had actually been cut. And then, as the meaning began to spread, as if pain was being transmitted from a cut.

Subaru: "Which, what kind of...?"

Crusch: "Let me correct one thing. The only reason I treat you as my guest and allow you to receive treatment from Ferris is because of a contract."

Subaru: "Contract...?"

　Subaru nodded, and she held up one finger at the end of her crossed arms.

Crusch: "The contract made is between Emilia and I… and the content is that Ferris will treat you. We have mutually agreed to it and I have you as my guest. However, there is a reason why I am keeping this contract."

Subaru: "— —"

Crusch: "I uphold my contract with Emilia because this was made before the royal election. After the king's election, Emilia and I, our relationship with each other, are political enemies. Therefore, there is no warm-heartedness to give Emilia's camp anything to do with me. But a contract is a contract."

　Repeatedly, Crusch uses the word «contract» to emphasize the matter.

　As he listened, Subaru felt uncomfortable because the word sounded like the word, «promise», and that word was connected to the last conversation he had with Emilia.

　Crusch prioritizes the fulfillment of the «contract» over Subaru's failure to keep his «promise».

　Subaru, who was trying not to show the bad feeling of his inner punishment, was particularly keenly aware of her gaze, and she said to him

Crusch: "If you leave this family, then the contract will be considered as having been let go in the middle. If you leave my family, the contract will be considered as having been given up in the middle of the agreement. And Sir, who is acting in Emilia's camp, is naturally also an enemy to me."

Subaru: "So if I leave, that's the end of the treatment. …You're being very, very impatient, aren't you? 

Crusch: "I hope I'm not mistaken.

　Subaru was trying to cover up his inner feelings with a light provocative remark.

　Ferris, who had been silently watching over the situation until then, interrupted with a slightly stern look in his eyes and a bright chestnut-colored fur.

Ferris: "Whyat Crusch-sama is doing to Subaru-kyun now is nyot malicious, but kind. I'm not sure if it's a good thing if Subaru and his friend go back to save Emilia-sama, byut it's not a loss to us at all. But we're still holding them back."

Crusch: "Ferris, don't."

Ferris: "No, I'll say it. You're a little bit too much in the wrong, and you need to be corrected in that area.”

　Ferris shakes his head at the Lord's brief words of protest and looks at Subaru again.

　Then he slowly bites his lip.

Ferris: "Even if Subaru-kyun goes, it won't change the situation. It's useless to go. The promise of treatment that Emilia-sama paid the price for will also be in vain. If you're going to do that, it's better for you to stay quiet and watch what happens while your body heals."

　—There was a sound.

　Subaru heard a sound like something snapping in his head. Subaru almost bit his lip in unimaginable humiliation when he realized it was the mouth of the bag in which he had been holding his tantrum.

Subaru: "I've made up my mind."

　Subaru spins the words quietly, not letting all of these emotions show on the surface.

　The passion still flared up in his heart, but it did not choose to erupt outwardly, but instead burned and scorched Subaru's inner self, leading him to a conclusion.

Subaru: "I'm going back to the mansion ...to Emilia. Thanks for your care."

Rem: "Subaru-kun!"

　Subaru clearly said goodbye, and Rem shouted in a voice as if clinging to him. Subaru silenced her with his palm and looked down at the Crusch camp in front of him.

　Subaru's words were heard, but it was impossible to tell what was going through Crusch's mind as she meditated. However, Ferris, who lets out a long, deep sigh next to her, is understandably reluctant.

　He shakes his head and looks at Subaru without any pretense of hiding his dismay.

Ferris: "I think accepting advice with an open mind is also a measure of a person's character, don't you think?"

Subaru: "Your advice helped me make my decision. Thanks."

　Subaru, who responds clearly and sarcastically, shrugs his shoulders, and Ferris seems to have given up trying to formulate further words. Instead, he took over the conversation.

Crusch: "Natsuki Subaru."

　Crusch calls out his name and looks up at Subaru with wide-open twin eyes.

　Crusch’s dignified gaze held Subaru's attention, and Subaru tightened his focus so that he would not succumb to the gaze. No matter what he is told, he has no intention of changing the words he once uttered. Even if he were to be slandered as helpless and foolish, what good would that do?

　But...

Crusch: "I'm sorry, but all of our family's long-distance dragon carts are out of service. The only ones we can lend out are the slow ones for transport and the ones that are designed to be driven over medium distances while replacing the land dragons."

　Aside from Subaru's inner gasp, Crusch spoke on a completely different topic—or rather, words that in a sense affirmed Subaru's decision.

　For a moment, Subaru's eyes were black and white, not understanding what was being said. Crusch looked at him with slight suspicion and looked back at Ferris, who was standing beside her.

Crusch: "Ferris, did I say something funny?"

Ferris: "Ferri-chan has always been so impressed with Crusch-sama's ability to switch fryom one situation to another, but this time, you know, Subaru-kyun didn't think you'd even talk about lending him nyour dragon carriage, did he?"

　Putting her hand on her cheek, Crusch let out an “Ah,” of agreement as she nodded her head. With that, she once again looked at Subaru.

Crusch: "I respect your decision, and if you are going to bear the responsibility, you should do what you want to do. Do not be ashamed of your soul. —Don't you agree?"

Subaru: “...Yes, that's right. That's right. My soul is screaming at me not to be ashamed. It's not like I’m just going to sit back and take care of myself when she's in trouble.”

　Subaru responds to Crusch's affirmation of Subaru's intentions and enjoys the change in his inner mind. With unexpected reinforcements, Subaru's judgment is no longer in flux.

　This must have been conveyed to Rem as well. She closed her eyes and chose silence, as if chastising herself for a moment, and when she opened her eyes, she had regained her usual expressionless face.

Rem: "On behalf of the Lord, I would like to thank you for your hospitality to date."

Crusch: "No matter. We have our own interests at heart. I would like to talk about the leg of the journey to your estate."

Rem: "I hope you will be able to help us, with all due respect. For now, I would like to return to the territory and help the Lord as soon as possible."

　Bowing his head, Rem tries to accept Crusch's offer of help.

　Subaru raises his hand and interjects, "I'd like to ask you a few questions.”

Subaru: "Let me ask you something, how far is it from the royal capital to the mansion in Roswal’s territory?"

　If Subaru's memory serves him correctly, he remembers that the journey from the mansion to the royal capital took approximately seven or eight hours. It should be that way, since they left early in the morning and arrived there even later than mid-afternoon.

　The trip should have taken at most half a day.

Rem: "Considering that we had to take the dragon car, it should take… two or even three days."

Subaru: "Three days! But it didn't take half a day to come!"

　There was talk of not having dragon cars for long-distance travel, but even if that was the reason, the difference in the time it would take was too great. It is hard to imagine that if they continued to drive day and night, the difference would be that great.

　Subaru's natural doubt, however, was negated by Rem's shaking of his head. She made a difficult face with her eyebrows raised just a little bit in her neat features.

Rem: "The Lifaus Highway, which was usable when we came here, is not usable now. We are in a bad period of «fog» ...so we have to bypass the road."

Subaru: "What's with the fog? You can just cut through that stuff..."

Ferris: "It's the Hakugei that creates the fog, nyokay? If you run into it, you'll lose nyour life. It's not like we need to tell you that.”

　Ferris, who interrupted, dismissed it as if it were a matter of course.

　Subaru frowned when he heard the word «Hakugei» again, but they proceeded with their discussion in order, leaving Subaru, who did not understand, behind.

　As a result, Crusch and Rem's negotiations settled on «borrowing a dragon carriage from the Karsten family and changing it at a village on the way home».

　Subaru gritted his teeth and wished that they could just keep running, but as long as the vehicle was pulled by a living creature, there was no escaping the reality that it would become fatigued.

　This is different from a car, which can keep running as long as it is fueled. In this respect, he was made painfully aware of the difference in convenience between our former world and this one.

　In any case, things had started to move.

　There was no more time to waste in confusion.

※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※

　—Once they had decided on a policy, they moved quickly.

　Originally, Subaru and Rem did not have much luggage with them at the Karsten house. When they left the mansion, which they entered fully clothed, they had only enough luggage for Subaru to carry in both hands.

　When the two had quickly gathered their luggage and left the mansion, a dragon carriage had already arrived by the gate separating the outside from the Karsten Estate inside the lined iron fence.

　When Wilhelm, who was sitting on the dais, noticed their approach, he lightly jumped down from the dais with his hands on the reins and landed on the ground at the same height. He hand-combed his hair and said,

Wilhelm: "This one will be the fastest-footed earth dragon among the remaining dragon carriages in our family. Even so, it is far below the rank of the dragons used by the Margrave, but I hope you will forgive me."

Subaru: "It's a big favor just to be able to borrow it. I will definitely return it ...is already difficult after this, isn't it?"

　Lowering the tone of his voice, Subaru accepted the reins offered to him and looked at Wilhelm.

　The old man was the only one to see them off at the gate—Crusch and Ferris had parted as soon as they left the entrance hall of the mansion, and there was a definite sense of farewell.

　At least, there was no doubt that they were reluctant to return the borrowed dragon after the matter was settled.

　At Subaru's words, which revealed such uneasiness, Wilhelm turned his wrinkled face down and said, "Yes, I suppose so.”

Wilhelm: "I have no other choice but to follow your decision, Crusch-sama. After leaving the mansion, the relationship between my Lord and Subaru-dono's Lord will be as I said before. —The dragon carriage is at least a parting gift, including treatment and the fact that my sword instruction will end halfway through."

Subaru: "I didn't think you said a word about that ...when we left the mansion."

　The words that the squire said to the two leaving the mansion were a greeting that was too typical.

Crusch: ‘I wish you good luck. Strive to make choices that do not shame your pride and soul.’

Ferris: "Since you're keeping me away from Crusch-sama's kindness, you'd better quickly make up with Emilia-sama. Hurry up and go."

　What is most impressive is each of those last words.

　I didn't sense any sign of consideration there as Wilhelm had said.

Wilhelm: "I am also a servant of Crusch-sama. I can understand some of the Lord's thoughts."

Subaru: "By the way, how long have you been working here?"

Wilhelm: "About six months, I think..."

Subaru: "You've been working here for less than I thought! Are you communicating well with your housemates?”

　It would not even be funny if he had borrowed the dragon chariot based on Wilhelm's words and this had led to a deepening of the rivalry between Crusch and Emilia. It was the beginning of the «Battle of the Moochers». It would be very painful to have the name engraved in the history books.

　While Subaru and Wilhelm were talking, Rem rushed to the dragon carriage and was busy checking the body and the dragon itself.

　She grabbed the reins from Subaru and jumped onto the driver's stand, then quickly got off to check the condition of the dragon pulling the car.

　As far as I could tell, the dragon on the loaned dragon carriage was about one size smaller than the one that left from the Roswaal residence. The dragon chariot itself is also smaller, so there should be no problem with horsepower, but the difference in foot speed is still a concern.

Rem: "—All right, do what I say. Yes, good boy, good boy."

Subaru: "Rem, how do you feel?"

　The ground dragon bowed its head as Rem instructed. She reached up to the lizard's snout and gently stroked its hard reptilian skin as she looked back at Subaru.

Wilhelm: "He was a little feisty, but I've taught him which way is up now, so it's not a problem. I'm sure he'll follow Rem's instructions."

Subaru: "Oh, so ...you've got a tight hierarchy. You're more athletic than I thought."

　It seems that while Subaru was talking with Wilhelm, Rem was also having a «talk» with the earth dragon. He didn’t know the details because he didn’t have the courage to ask, but he couldn’t help but feel some sympathy for the earth dragons that would be used from now on.

　However, there was no room for compassion to slow down the speed of the march.

Rem: "If we bypass the plains to avoid the fog, we should pass through two villages before reaching the Margrave’s territory. Of these, I think we can arrange for a transfer dragon car in the village of Hanumas, which is closer to the territorial side."

Subaru: “By the way, how far is this Hanumas village?”

Wilhelm: "It would take about 14 to 15 hours. If you are prepared to crush the replacement vehicle, I think you can reach the territory in about half a day from there.

　Either way, it would definitely be a frustrating journey that would take more than a day and a half.

　Subaru scratched his head, biting his teeth at his reluctance, but bowed to Wilhelm and said,

Subaru: "I'm sorry for everything. Well, you went to the trouble of giving me training, but that was halfway through..."

Wilhelm: "I think I told you the most important thing. If you want to improve your sword skills further than that, then all you have to do is to keep on swinging. Good luck."

　Subaru and Wilhelm shook hands firmly.

　Subaru then followed Rem's lead and leaned forward toward the back of the dragon carriage. Looking at the mansion from the top of the cart, two figures standing on the terrace across the garden from the gateway could be seen from a distance.

　From their silhouettes, he assumed that they were Crusch and Ferris.

　Thinking they would be able to see him, Subaru waved his hand at them, then called out to Wilhelm one last time and said,

Subaru: "Well, I'm going. If we meet again, please be a good friend."

Wilhelm: "If you like the welcome of a wooden sword to smash you to bits, I'll be happy to do so."

　Wilhelm looks away, smiling gentlemanly and then politely bending at the waist.

　The earth dragon whined, and the dragon wheel bit the ground and began to move, gaining a slow initial speed. The house and its inhabitants begin to move away little by little.

　Subaru kept bowing his head until they could no longer see us and decided to give the white-haired figure in the distance at least a shot next time.

　Going down the hill, passing through the entrance to the aristocratic district, crossing the guard’s station, and going straight down the main street of the lower district, passing through the main gate connecting the royal capital and the outside world, they were on their way to their destination.

　Feeling a slight tremor under his buttocks, perhaps due to the blessing of the earth dragon, Subaru could not hold back his feelings of agitation and let his gaze wander to the scene outside the small window.

　Since he had been unconscious when he arrived at the royal capital, this was the first time he had been able to see the surroundings of the royal capital. However, the streets surrounding the royal capital were not so different from those that he had just left the Roswaal residence.

　At best, the well-developed streets were wide, and the cityscape of the royal capital with a strong sense of presence can be seen in the far distance behind. After only a dozen or so minutes of marching, they could no longer see the city completely.

　Once his field of vision was dominated by nothing but the open green plains and blue sky, Subaru was instantly left with nothing to do but lean his back against the wall inside the car.

　On the way to the destination, there were passengers in the dragon car, so there was less boredom, but this time the only passenger was Rem, who was sitting on the driver's stand. The only thing Subaru could do was to sit in contemplation, as he could not distract her from her concentration on controlling the earth dragon.

　For a dragon carriage used by the duke's family, the seat in the back of the carriage on which Subaru was sitting did not feel good. The small size was probably not for a person of high status like Crusch, but for a person who would be her servant.

　Considering the constant comings and goings of her residence, it is understandable why the long-distance dragon chariots and other vehicles were out of service.

　Participation in the king's election brings with it a certain amount of interaction with the people around you.

　A ducal family must have a considerable number of friends, and if they aspire to the throne, they will need to seek a wider and larger circle of acquaintances.

　Emilia will have to deal with such political issues from now on. And she had an ordeal ahead of her that should have been unnecessary.

Subaru: "So, quickly, I have to go."

　Of course, Subaru does not overestimate himself to the extent that he thought he could be involved in political matters or in the task of gaining influential supporters.

　Even in his former life, he had no interest in politics or economics. Even in the case of a change in the prime minister of Japan, Subaru was the type of person who thought, "If they keep changing the prime minister so many times, it doesn't matter who is in charge..." and had no further interest.

　Therefore, there was no concrete vision for Subaru to rush to Emilia's side.

　However, a small sense of frustration, which Subaru himself was unaware of, was distracting him from these issues that he should be thinking about.

Subaru: "If you don't have me, you can't… so they'll understand."

　There was only an unfounded certainty—no, a desire.

　Emilia was in a tight spot. There was a faint hope that if only he rushed to the scene, everything would be all right, that it would be blown away like that.

　He wanted to prove his worth, he had to.

　If Emilia was running into difficulties, Subaru could do it.

　No, it must be so. In order for Subaru to find his value, to make it known, he was in a predicament—and she was in a predicament.

Subaru: "Right, ...without me, it's not good enough. Absolutely."

　Muttering, Subaru alone sinks into thought.

　In his mind's eye, he sees a girl with silver hair, the girl he is supposed to love. Her smile is covered by an unidentifiable darkness, buried by the malice that tries to crush her noble heart.

　Subaru bit his lip and closed his eyes as he saw this scene.

　Alone in the back of the carriage, Subaru quietly waited for the time to come. He was alone in a place where he did not feel the presence of anyone other than himself, except for Rem, who was on the driver's stand.

　Subaru turned his head and meditated.

　Even he did not notice that his mouth was slightly twisted upwards.