Subaru's Choice
The morning sunlight shone on Subaru's face.
The moment he woke up, he nervously opened his eyes, then noticed that his hands were tightly holding someone else's hand.
Subaru's gaze followed the arm to its owner—it was Reinhild, sitting upright and asleep.
Subaru slowly sat up, then noticed the book titled The Epic of Hoshin lying face down on Reinhild's lap.
He understood that the girl had stayed up late reading last night.
Subaru became even more cautious.
He observed the magic lamp beside her giving off only a faint light due to its nearly depleted magic power.
Then Subaru glanced at the magical clock in the room; the time was a little after 8 a.m.
"Good morning, Subaru."
Although Subaru moved very lightly so as not to disturb Reinhild's rest, the moment he released her hand, the girl woke up.
She looked around groggily, then noticed something was off.
Reinhild stopped stretching, sat upright again, and nodded a greeting to Subaru.
"Sorry, did I disturb you?"
"No, I've already recovered. What would you like for breakfast?"
"Anything is fine."
Though he had little appetite, thinking about last night's events, Subaru did not refuse the girl's kindness.
"Then wait for me a moment... Don't worry, I'll be back soon, and no one here can hurt you."
Subaru was momentarily stunned hearing Reinhild's words.
Then he realized he had reflexively grabbed the sleeve of the standing Reinhild.
He hurriedly let go.
"I'll be back soon."
The sound of Reinhild's footsteps disappeared as the door closed.
Even though Subaru knew it was due to a magical barrier, panic momentarily overwhelmed him.
Time passed bit by bit.
Subaru stood several times, wanting to open the door to look for the girl but never gathered the courage to do so.
Only when a knock came did Subaru realize he was drenched in cold sweat.
Checking the time, he saw that only a few minutes had passed.
With Subaru's permission, Reinhild pushed in a food cart. On it were bread, milk, and other Western-style foods, as well as porridge, buns, and even typical Japanese miso soup.
"Subaru, this is the 'Orthodox Silver Crown'... so from now on, make sure you eat well, okay?"
Subaru looked at the ring Reinhild had placed on his hand.
It was a ring to detect poison.
Looking at the girl's kind smile and the steaming food before him, a rush of emotions filled his heart—gratitude, guilt, self-reproach.
"I am Roswaal L. Mathers. Though I am glad to see you alive, it seems your condition is not good, Natsuki Subaru."
Dressed in his familiar jester outfit, shortly after breakfast, Count Roswaal came to visit Subaru's residence as usual.
But this time, due to Subaru's mental state, he was brought directly to the room where Subaru was staying.
Subaru watched him warily.
Whether it was his imagination or not, Subaru felt as if Roswaal was appraising him with a measuring gaze.
Subaru wasn't sure if this was only this loop or if it happened every time but he hadn't noticed before.
For some reason, Subaru suddenly remembered Reinhild's warning in the second loop to be cautious of Roswaal.
"Lord Roswaal is..."
The girl obviously noticed Subaru's confused look directed at her, but lacking memories from previous loops, she misunderstood Subaru's intent.
She began to explain Roswaal's influence and power. Subaru suddenly regretted not asking clearly during the second loop.
"...So Lord Roswaal is one of the kingdom's top strongest."
During Subaru's moment of regret, Reinhild finished her detailed introduction of Roswaal—much more detailed than before—including that he supports Emilia, who is relatively weak politically, his personal strength, even his preference for demi-humans, and so on.
This change made Subaru realize Reinhild already knew about his plan.
"The matter is as you heard from Reinhild. To repay you for your kindness toward Lady Emilia, I wish to offer you compensation."
Roswaal spoke the words Subaru had desperately hoped to hear yesterday.
Now, all he had to do was say he wanted to leave Astrea; then he could escape this hell.
Yes, all it took was to speak, just one word—but Subaru hesitated.
He had already done his best. He had given three lives. He had already told the mansion's people about the information he obtained with those three lives. He owed them nothing more. Reinhild had also tacitly accepted his request.
"..."
Subaru opened his mouth but only uttered one word after a long time. No matter the reasons, Subaru knew he was only avoiding reality.
He couldn't help but blame Reinhild in his heart—if only she had given up on him yesterday, then he could have left without hesitation.
Should he have Roswaal take him away from the Astrea mansion to avoid the upcoming conflicts, or should he accept Reinhild's protection as a form of repayment?
Subaru hesitated, struggled, and suffered...
Suddenly, a gentle touch came from his hand. Subaru sharply raised his head to see the worried expression on the girl's face.
"Are you okay? Do you want to... rest for a bit?"
Subaru lowered his head, avoiding her gaze, then blankly stared at her holding his hand. He noticed the 'Orthodox Silver Crown' on his hand and recalled the moments from yesterday.
She had responded to him countless times. Couldn't he trust Reinhild just once?
"I'm fine now. Lord Roswaal, the reward I want is the information on those demi-humans with horns on their heads."
Subaru made his decision.
Ultimately, he chose to heed the warning from the second loop Reinhild gave him.
He decided to trust the Reinhild before him to protect him.
Whether it was a delusion or not, Subaru felt Roswaal's aura emit a sense of joy.
"Oh~~, the Oni tribe? They are one of the strongest demi-human factions, but were wiped out by the Witch Cult over ten years ago."
Hearing Roswaal's answer, Subaru finally understood their anger from the previous loop.
"Are there any survivors? The ones with blue and pink hair, the kind that grow one horn?"
"Only the one-horned Oni?"
"Yes."
"Normally, that's impossible. Because in the Oni tribe, a single horn means a defective individual, and those born defective are killed by the tribe elders. But I will investigate for you."
After Roswaal promised this, he left the room.
Subaru looked at Reinhild.