🟩 You know Subaru from Japan

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 1 (Day 1 since arrival) 🕰 Afternoon · 📍 Lugunica Capital — Market Street ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Only a moment ago, the pavement beneath your shoes was the familiar street outside the convenience store. A plastic bag of chips and cola rustled in your hand. You blink once—and the night is gone.

The sun beats down. Cracked cobblestones lie beneath your sneakers, and the noise of an unfamiliar city swirls around you: vendors calling out, wheels creaking, someone haggling over apples. A carriage passes, pulled not by a horse but by a huge lizard with green-metal scales. At the corner, a woman with cat ears and a tail counts coins.

Subaru stands beside you with the same shopping bag in his hand and his mouth hanging open. Then, slowly, a huge grin spreads across his face.

Subaru: "Bro… tell me you see this too. Lizard carriage. Catgirl. Medieval market." Subaru: He grabs your shoulders, eyes shining. "We got transported to another world! This is it! The classic opening! We’re the chosen heroes!"

A burly man with a scar across his face watches you suspiciously from behind a fruit stall.

Kadomon: "Hey, you two in those strange clothes! Are you buying something, or just blocking my stall?"

Subaru rummages through his pockets and pulls out a wallet of Japanese coins and a phone. He looks at you hopefully, as if you might know what to do next.

Somewhere farther down the street, someone shouts. Quick footsteps pound across the stones, and a flash of silver hair vanishes into the crowd.

🟩 You know Subaru from Japan

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 1 (Day 1 since arrival) 🕰 Afternoon · 📍 Lugunica Capital — dead-end alley by the market ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

A minute ago, Subaru was shouting beside you in raptures over a catgirl. Then a lizard cart split the crowd, and his white tracksuit vanished among hundreds of heads.

Your search led you into a dead-end alley. The way out is blocked by three men: a skinny one, a short one, and one as huge as a door.

Rachins: "Weird clothes. Empty your pockets." Gaston: He pulls out a knife. "And make it quick. We don’t like waiting."

Behind them, a fan clicks open.

Priscilla: "What an ugly sight. Vermin blocking my path."

At the mouth of the alley stands a young woman with fiery orange hair and a crimson dress. Her red eyes regard the three men like a stain on a carpet. Behind her, leaning against the wall, waits a man in a black iron helmet who has only one arm.

Al: "Princess, weren’t we supposed to be shopping? These guys don’t look anything like a market stall."

The huge one lunges at her. Priscilla doesn’t even flinch. A sword flares to life in the air, radiant as a small sun, and the knife falls to the cobblestones, sliced in two. A moment later, all three are on their knees.

Priscilla: "Crawl. It befits worms."

Then she snaps her fan shut and points its tip at you.

Priscilla: "You, however, are not trembling like them. That is either courage or stupidity, and both amuse me. The world is arranged for my convenience, commoner. So I shall ask only once: who are you, and where do those ridiculous clothes come from?"

🟩 You know Subaru from Japan

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 1 (Day 1 since arrival) 🕰 Afternoon · 📍 Lugunica Capital — side alley by the market ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Subaru has latched onto Kadomon’s stall, arguing about whether apples here are called "ringa." You took three steps toward the shady alley—and the world slammed into your shoulder.

A blonde girl with red eyes whirls past you like a gust of wind. For an instant, something with a red stone glints in her hand. Then she vanishes around the corner.

A second later, a breathless young woman in a white hooded cloak skids to a stop. Silver hair spills out from under the hood, and her eyes are violet, like a sunset.

Emilia: "Did you see her? A blonde girl, really fast! She stole something very important from me!"

A small gray cat with a pink nose, no bigger than a palm, rises out of her hair and yawns.

Puck: "Lia, we’ve lost her. The wind favors her—that girl has a divine protection." He looks you over with his little black eyes. "Oh? Now, these clothes are interesting. You don’t look like you’re from around here."

Emilia: Blinks, as if only now noticing you. "Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to shout at you." She hesitates, then lifts her chin. "I’m… you can call me Satella. Just tell me which way she ran."

From behind comes the slap of sneakers and a familiar voice.

Subaru: "Bro! Don’t just disappear like that, there’s no GPS here…" He stops dead at the sight of the silver hair, the cat spirit, the violet eyes. "…Wait. You met the main heroine. BEFORE ME?!"

Puck: "Lia, does he always shout like this?"

Emilia turns back to you, hopeful and impatient.

🟩 You know Subaru from Japan

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 1 (Day 1 since arrival) 🕰 Night · 📍 The slums — Old Man Rom’s loot house ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Everything went wrong in a single second.

Emilia pointed at the badge on the counter and quietly said, "That’s mine." Felt swore. And the tall woman in the black cloak, with a long black braid, simply smiled, as if someone had served her dessert.

Elsa: "So the owner is here. What a pity. The deal is off." A curved blade appears in her hand as if out of nowhere. "Then I will gut everyone."

The blade whistles toward Felt’s throat. A wall of ice springs up in midair; the blade bites into it, and the ice cracks with a crash.

Puck: The little gray cat floats above Emilia’s shoulder, ice spikes dancing around him. "You have bad taste, ma’am. And bad manners."

Rom roars like a bull and grabs a huge spiked club. Emilia spreads her arms, and dozens of ice spears fly at Elsa. She dances between them along the walls and shelves, laughing.

Subaru grabs you by the sleeve and pulls you behind the overturned counter. His face is white as a sheet, and his eyes follow Elsa as if he knows where she will step before she does.

Subaru: "Bro, listen to me. That woman goes for the stomach. Always the stomach. Don’t stand in front of her, you hear me? And Puck… Puck won’t last long."

Rom swings and misses. Elsa’s blade flashes, and the giant collapses with a cry, clutching his arm. Elsa turns. Her dark eyes come to rest right on your counter.

Elsa: "And you two. I wonder what you have inside you?"

🟨 You know Subaru because you appeared at the same moment

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 1 (Day 1 since arrival) 🕰 Afternoon · 📍 Lugunica Capital — Market Street ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

A second ago, you were walking down a night street back home. You blink—and the sun blinds you. Cracked cobblestones lie beneath your feet, a market clamors all around you, and a cart pulled by a huge green lizard rolls past.

Right next to you, literally a step away, stands a black-haired boy in a white zip-up tracksuit. A convenience-store bag rustles in his hand. He looks at the lizard, then at the catgirl on the corner, then at you. His eyes go wide.

Subaru: "You… did you just appear here too? Right now? Just like that?"

He looks at your clothes, at the phone in your pocket, and a wide, almost hysterical grin slowly spreads across his face.

Subaru: "You’re Japanese! You’re Japanese, right?! I’m Natsuki Subaru! Ignorant, incompetent, and penniless!" He points a finger at the sky. "So it’s true! We’ve been summoned to another world! And there are two of us! Co-op mode!"

From behind a fruit stall, a burly man with a scar across his face scowls at you both.

Kadomon: "Hey, you two in the costumes! Are you buying something, or are you just going to scare off my customers?"

🟨 You know Subaru because you appeared at the same moment

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 1 (Day 1 since arrival) 🕰 Afternoon · 📍 Lugunica Capital — the wide street leading to the noble quarter ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

You blink, and the night street back home disappears. In its place are sunlight, white stone, and a roar—a deep, scaly roar right in your face.

A dark red ground dragon rears up on its hind legs, and behind it a gilded carriage sways. Beside you, on the same patch of cobblestones, a black-haired boy in a white tracksuit has appeared.

Subaru: "Wait, wait! Who lets a dinosaur loose on the sidewalk?!"

The coachman yanks the reins, and the dragon’s claws dig into the stone a step away from you. People draw back into a circle and whisper. No one helps.

The carriage door opens. The first to step out is a man in a black iron helmet with an empty left sleeve. He looks at the boy’s tracksuit and freezes for an instant.

Al: "…Well, well. Princess, a couple of weirdos stopped your carriage. Want me to get rid of them?"

After him, slowly, as if the whole street were waiting for her, a young woman with orange hair and a blood-colored dress descends. She opens her fan and looks you both over from head to toe.

Priscilla: "Standing in front of my carriage is punishable by death. Standing in front of it in such clothes—that is almost amusing." Priscilla: "There are two of you, so I shall hear one. Whoever makes me laugh lives. The other will be trampled. Who goes first?"

The boy swallows and slowly, very slowly, turns to you.

Subaru: "Listen, fellow countryman I’ve never met… I’m Natsuki Subaru. Are you by any chance into stand-up comedy?"

🟨 You know Subaru because you appeared at the same moment

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 1 (Day 1 since arrival) 🕰 Afternoon · 📍 Lugunica Capital — narrow alley behind the market ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Half an hour ago, you were walking down a nighttime street back home. Now the boy in the white tracksuit, who appeared beside you in the very same second, has already decided that the two of you are a "team." That is how you ended up in this alley. And there is no way out of it.

Three men stand in front of you. A skinny one, a toothless runt, and a giant with arms like barrels.

Gaston: "Chin, Kan, look at ’em. Two of ’em in costume clothes. Double the profit." Camberley: Cracks his knuckles. "Pockets. And shoes."

Subaru: Steps in front of you, his knees shaking. "Listen, stranger from back home. By the rules, this is where the main heroine shows up and saves us. If she doesn’t—run, and I’ll… distract them. Somehow."

Up above, on the inn’s balcony, a folding fan snaps.

Priscilla: "What rabble. Your shrieking spoils the taste of my wine."

A young woman with fiery orange hair leans on the railing. She does not come down. A man in a black iron helmet, one sleeve empty, vaults over the railing and drops to the ground with a thud and a sigh.

Al: "Princess, why am I always the one cleaning up? Boys, run while she’s in a good mood."

Kan swings. Al sidesteps, hits him behind the knee with the flat of his sword, and the giant crashes to the ground. The other two drag him off and vanish.

Priscilla: Looks over Subaru’s tracksuit, then you. "Your lives are mine now. Whichever of you crawls over and kisses my shoe receives my protection for the day. The other stays in the street."

Subaru opens his mouth, closes it, and turns to you.

🟥 You do not know anyone yet

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 1 (Day 1 since arrival) 🕰 Afternoon · 📍 Lugunica Capital — Market Street ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Six years in the capital’s city guard, and you still hate market day. Heat, crowds, thieves on every corner. Your mail shirt sticks to your back, and your halberd weighs twice as much after noon.

Your colleague, a burly man with a graying mustache, nudges your elbow and nods toward Kadomon’s stall.

The Guard says: "Look at that one. Where’d he come from?"

In front of the stall stands a black-haired boy in a strange white garment with a zipper, unlike anything you have ever seen. In his hand he holds a rustling bag made of some unfamiliar material. He takes in the ground dragons, the cat demihumans and the buildings with a huge, almost foolish grin, then digs through his pockets and goes pale.

Kadomon: "Hey, kid! Either buy something or get away from my stall!"

The boy raises his hands, mumbles something about an "empty inventory" and "no starting bonus," and wanders off toward the side alleys that lead to the slums. Newcomers there don’t last an hour before someone robs them.

Somewhere farther down the street, someone shouts, "Thief! Stop her!" and a blonde girl with red eyes rushes past you, swift as the wind.

🟥 You do not know anyone yet

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 1 (Day 1 since arrival) 🕰 Afternoon · 📍 Lugunica Capital — tavern next to the market ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

One year. That’s how long it has been since you woke up in the middle of a field outside the capital, with no phone, no money and no explanation whatsoever. You learned to read I-script, to count silver coins, not to stare at demihumans’ ears, and not to say "Japan," because no one has ever heard of it.

Now you’re sitting in the tavern next to the market, finishing your lunch after yet another job — guarding a caravan from Kararagi. The mercenary across from you counts the coins and frowns.

The Mercenary says: "Staring out the window again? What’s so interesting out there?"

Out there, in front of Kadomon’s stall, stands a black-haired boy in a white zip-up tracksuit jacket, holding a plastic convenience-store bag. He gazes around the market with wide eyes and a big, silly grin — the same one you had a year ago.

Your heart leaps. He’s from Japan. No doubt about it.

The boy digs through his pockets, pulls out a wallet full of yen and a cell phone, stares at them helplessly, and heads for the narrow alleys that lead straight to the slums.

The Mercenary says: "Hey, where are you going? You haven’t finished your beer!"

🟥 You do not know anyone yet

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 1 (Day 1 since arrival) 🕰 Afternoon · 📍 Lugunica Capital — the slums ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Only a moment ago, you were walking down a night street back home. You blink, and everything vanishes.

All around you are narrow, muddy alleys, ramshackle wooden houses, and the smell of rot. Laundry hangs on lines between the windows. Someone watches you from a dark doorway, then disappears.

You call for help. No one answers.

Suddenly, a blonde girl with red eyes and a sharp-toothed grin bursts around the corner. She runs so fast you can barely see her, and she slams right into you. You both go down in the mud. Something rolls out of her hand: a badge set with a jewel that glints red the moment you touch it.

Felt: She springs to her feet in an instant and snatches the badge off the ground. "Hey! Watch where you’re going, pumpkinhead! This one’s mine, got it?"

She looks you up and down: the strange clothes, the sneakers, the plastic bag.

Felt: "Hmph. Where’d you come from in those goofy clothes? Got anything valuable on you? That shiny thing in your pocket, for example?"

From somewhere in the distance, over by the main streets, come footsteps and a girl’s voice shouting, "Stop! Give it back!"

Felt: She grins. "Well, no time. If you wanna sell something, come see Old Man Rom. The big loot house at the edge of the district. You can’t miss it."

And she vanishes across the rooftops.

🟥 You do not know anyone yet

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 1 (Day 1 since arrival) 🕰 Afternoon · 📍 Road to Lugunica Capital — about an hour from the city gates ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

You blink, and instead of the lights of the convenience store, there is a dusty road beneath you. Endless green fields stretch out around you, and on the horizon rise the white walls of an enormous city.

Behind you comes a clatter and a creak. A huge lizard with green scales is pulling a covered wagon straight at you. You barely manage to jump aside.

The wagon stops. A hulking figure nearly two meters tall leaps down from the driver’s seat—with a wolf’s head, shaggy fur, and a big scimitar on his back.

Ricardo: "Whoa-ho! We nearly ran you over, kid! What’re you doing in the middle of the road in those funny clothes? Run away from the circus or somethin’?"

Behind him, three children with cat ears peek out of the wagon, all with identical orange tails.

Mimi: "Hey, hey, Ricardo! He smells weird! Like nothing I’ve ever sniffed before!" Hetaro: "Sis, it’s not polite to tell people they smell…"

The canvas of the second wagon is flung aside, and out steps a young girl with lavender hair, a white fur collar around her neck, and the smile of someone who has just spotted a deal.

Anastasia: She speaks with a strong, singsong Kansai accent. "Oh my, oh my. What have we got here? Unfamiliar clothes, unfamiliar fabric… and that thing in your hand. Allow me to ask: how much is it worth?"

🟥 You do not know anyone yet

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 1 (Day 1 since arrival) 🕰 Afternoon · 📍 Lugunica Capital — terrace of an inn in the noble quarter ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

You have served House Bariel for three years, and you know the main rule: the mistress must never be bored. Yesterday, a footman served her tea that had gone cold. Today, he no longer works for the house.

After the long journey by dragon carriage, Priscilla lounges on a couch on the terrace, and her fan taps against the armrest slower and slower. A bad sign.

Priscilla: "The capital. So much noise, so many people, and not a single interesting one. Even the air here is mediocre."

Al sits on the railing with his legs dangling outward, as if there were no drop beneath him. His only hand tosses an apple, and his iron helmet is turned toward the street.

Al: "Come on, Princess. Down there it’s full of colorful characters. Over there, a catgirl’s stealing sausages. Over there, some kid in a white…" The apple freezes in his hand. "…huh. In some really weird clothes."

Priscilla snaps her fan shut and points it at you.

Priscilla: "You. I am bored. Go down and bring me something worthy of my attention. An object, a person, a piece of gossip — it makes no difference to me. If I am still bored by sunset, I shall decide that the fault is yours."

Al: He lowers his voice, speaking only to you. "As a friend: if you’re bringing a person, at least make sure they’re alive. And that they don’t smell."

Down the street, a blonde girl with red eyes dashes past. Behind her runs a young woman in a white hooded cloak, silver glinting beneath the hood, shouting, "Stop! Give it back!"

🟥 You do not know anyone yet

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 1 (Day 1 since arrival) 🕰 Late morning · 📍 Lugunica Capital — Tailors’ Street in the noble quarter ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

You step off the curb back home—and find no ground. You fall half a meter and land on your knees on warm white stone. Around you, people in cloaks and feathers gasp. Someone drops a basket.

Right in front of your nose is a pair of red shoes trimmed with gold. You look up: a crimson gown, fiery orange hair, red eyes gazing down at you as if you were a curious insect.

Priscilla: "Hm. The heavens send me a gift. How considerate of them."

Behind her appears a man in a black iron helmet with an empty left sleeve, a pile of parcels balanced on his shoulder. He sees your clothes, and the parcels slide from his arm.

Al: "…Is that a tracksuit? No, no, no. Princess, don’t touch it, it might be cursed."

Priscilla: "Nonsense. Everything that falls at my feet is mine by right. The world is arranged for my convenience, and today I was bored." She snaps her fan shut and lifts your chin with its tip. "From now on, you are my servant. Or my plaything—I have not decided yet. It depends on how well you amuse me."

The people around you quickly scatter. No one wants to argue with a woman who has just declared a person her property.

Al: Bends down to gather the parcels and whispers so that only you can hear. "A fellow countryman, huh? Advice from a former rookie: don’t tell her ‘no’ in the first five minutes."

Priscilla: "Well? Does my plaything have a name, or shall I give it one?"

🟥 You do not know anyone yet

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 1 (Day 1 since arrival) 🕰 Afternoon · 📍 Lugunica Capital — rooftops above the market ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

The roof tiles burn under your palms. From up here, the market looks like an anthill: stalls, lizard-drawn carts, guards sweating in their mail. You know every gutter and every chimney between here and the slums. Felt showed them to you when you were both eight.

Now she lies on her stomach beside you, chewing on a piece of straw, her red eyes unblinking.

Felt: "Over there. The white hooded cloak, by the cloth stall. See it?"

You see it: a slender figure asking a merchant something and smiling awkwardly, as if not used to people. On her chest, under the cloak, something flashes for an instant—a badge with a red gemstone.

Felt: "That’s the one. The client, that tall one with the black braid, is paying ten holy gold coins. Ten! You hear me? With that much, we can get out of this pigsty for good." She grins, baring her sharp teeth. "And if Old Man Rom haggles right, we’ll get even more."

She rises to her knees and dusts off her shorts.

Felt: "Same plan as with the spice merchant. You make a racket down there—fall, yell, knock something over, your call. I swoop in, grab it, and vanish on the wind. We meet at Rom’s tonight; you know the password."

Below, the cloak turns, and for a moment silver glints under the hood. Felt narrows her eyes.

Felt: "Weird. I’ve got a feeling this one’s gonna bring us trouble." She shrugs. "Eh, whatever. Ready, partner?"

🟥 You do not know anyone yet

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 1 (Day 1 since arrival) 🕰 Evening · 📍 The slums — Old Man Rom’s loot house ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

The loot house smells of dust, rust and cheap liquor. The lagmite crystal on the counter casts yellow light over shelves of stolen plates, swords and silver candlesticks. For two years you have swept this place, kept the accounts, and opened the door only to those who know the password.

Old Man Rom, huge and bald as a boulder, pours milk into a wooden cup and pushes it toward the guest—a black-haired boy in a white tracksuit who knocked an hour ago and claims he came to buy something.

Rom: "Drink, kid. You look like death." He glances at you and raises an eyebrow. "You hear that? He wants Felt’s badge. Before she’s even brought it in."

The boy holds up a small, shiny slab. It goes off in a blinding white flash, and Rom curses.

Subaru: "A metia! It freezes time into a picture! The only one in the world. For that badge—deal?"

The door bangs open and Felt walks in, grinning from ear to ear. She tosses something onto the counter: a badge with a gemstone that glows red.

Felt: "Well, gramps, we’re rich! The client’ll be here any minute." She notices the boy. "And who’s this guy?"

A knock. Three light taps, polite as a guest’s. Rom nods at you to go check.

Elsa: A soft female voice from behind the door. "I have come for my order. I believe you are expecting me."

The boy suddenly goes white as a sheet. His hand clutches the edge of the counter. Rom doesn’t notice. You do.

🟩 You know Subaru from Japan

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 2 (Day 2 since arrival) 🕰 Morning · 📍 Roswaal Manor — guest room in the east wing ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

You wake up slowly. First you feel the softness of a real bed, then the smell of starched linen and wax. The ceiling above you is high and decorated with carvings, and golden morning light seeps through the heavy curtains.

The last thing you remember is the darkness of Old Man Rom’s loot house: the flash of Elsa’s curved knife, Subaru’s shout, the blinding light of Reinhard’s sword… and the pain. Your body is still stiff, but the wounds are gone, as if someone had closed them with magic.

And something else won’t leave you alone. Yesterday, in the loot house, Subaru looked at Elsa as if he already knew her. He shouted at you to get back a moment before she swung, as if he knew what she was going to do. You’ll have to ask him about it.

Subaru isn’t in the room. There is only one bed here—yours.

There are two knocks on the door, and it opens without waiting for an answer. In the doorway stand two girls in identical black-and-white maid uniforms. Twins, like reflections in a mirror, except that one has pink hair and the other blue.

Rem: "Sister, sister, the second guest has woken up." Ram: "Rem, Rem, the second guest has woken up."

The pink-haired one looks you up and down with undisguised disdain.

Ram: "This one seems tamer than the first. That one shot out into the corridor without even putting his shoes on." Rem: "Lady Emilia asked us to inform you that Master Roswaal will receive you at breakfast. Can you stand, dear guest? If you need help, we will assist you."

Somewhere far off, through several walls, a familiar voice is yelling something about an "endless corridor" and a "door that leads nowhere."

🟨 You know Subaru because you appeared at the same moment

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 2 (Day 2 since arrival) 🕰 Morning · 📍 Roswaal Manor — guest room in the east wing ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

A soft bed, the smell of starched linen and wax, a high carved ceiling. The last thing you remember is Rom’s loot house, Elsa’s knife, and the blinding light of the red-haired knight’s sword.

Yesterday morning, you didn’t even know this world existed. Yesterday morning, you didn’t know the black-haired boy you appeared alongside. And now the two of you have lived through a night that nearly killed you both.

The door bangs open. Subaru stands in the doorway, barefoot and out of breath, in a butler’s uniform that someone has clearly dressed him in.

Subaru: "There you are! You’re alive! Thank God, I thought they’d thrown you in some dungeon or something." He steps in and closes the door behind him, then lowers his voice. "Listen. Are you okay? That woman with the knife… I thought we weren’t going to make it." He falls silent and looks away, as if he had meant to say something else entirely.

Out in the corridor come light footsteps and two identical girlish voices.

Rem: "Sister, sister, the first guest has escaped from his room." Ram: "Rem, Rem, the first guest is in the second guest’s room."

🟥 You do not know anyone yet

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 2 (Day 2 since arrival) 🕰 Early morning · 📍 Roswaal Manor — the kitchen ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

The manor kitchen smells of freshly baked bread. The sun has not fully risen yet, and you have already peeled half a basket of potatoes. You have worked here for years—ever since the margrave took you in as a child—and you know every sound this old house makes.

Rem stands by the hearth, stirring the soup with flawless, precise movements. Without turning around, she speaks quietly.

Rem: "The guest in the east wing is still asleep. Lady Emilia tended to him all night. He was badly wounded."

Ram walks in with an empty tray and sets it on the table with a theatrical sigh.

Ram: "A layabout with black hair and strange clothes. He smells of something unpleasant. Master Roswaal says we are to treat him as an honored guest." She glances at you. "You will take him his breakfast. Ram is busy with more important things."

Rem: "Sister, you simply don’t want to go."

Somewhere upstairs, quick footsteps race along the corridor, followed by a shout: "Where am I?! Is this an endless hallway?!" Rem stops stirring the soup, and her fingers tighten slightly around the ladle.

🟥 You do not know anyone yet

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 2 (Day 2 since arrival) 🕰 Dusk · 📍 Roswaal Manor — a room in the servants’ wing ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

First comes the smell of wax and soap. Then—a hard bed, coarse linen sheets, and an ache in every joint. The last thing you remember is an endless forest, darkness falling, and your legs giving way in the mud.

The room is small and clean, with a single little window through which you can see an orange sky above the treetops. On the chair by the door sits a girl with blue hair in a black-and-white maid’s uniform. Her hands are folded in her lap, and her gaze does not leave you for a moment.

Rem: "You are awake. My sister and I found you at the edge of the forest on our way back from the village. You were unconscious." She tilts her head slightly. "Rem would like to know who you are and how you came to be on Master Roswaal’s lands."

The door opens, and a pink-haired girl in the same uniform comes in carrying a tray with a bowl of soup.

Ram: "Rem, let them eat before you interrogate them. The second layabout in two days. The manor is turning into a shelter."

Somewhere down the corridor, quick footsteps sound, and a boy’s voice cheerfully asks someone whether "maids have affection points too." Ram sighs deeply.

🟥 You do not know anyone yet

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 3 (Day 3 since arrival) 🕰 Morning · 📍 Arlam Village — the home of Petra’s family ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

You wake to the smell of freshly baked bread and hay. Your head feels heavy, and your throat is as dry as sand. Above you are low wooden beams hung with bundles of dried herbs. You are lying on a narrow bed under a rough woolen blanket.

The last clear thing you remember is the street back home at night and a bright light. Then darkness, a forest, cold, and feverish dreams in which nothing was familiar.

The door bangs open, and a girl of about twelve, her chestnut hair tied with a red ribbon, peeks into the room.

Petra: "You’re awake! Mom, Mom, the stranger woke up!" Petra: She steps up to the bed and studies you with enormous curiosity, as if you were a rare bird. "Dad found you two days ago at the edge of the forest, by the fence with the crystals. You were burning with fever and saying some strange words. I’m Petra. What’s your name?"

She crouches beside the bed and lowers her voice, as if telling you a secret.

Petra: "You know, you’re wearing almost the same weird clothes as that funny big brother from Lord Roswaal’s manor. The new servant. Yesterday he came to the village with Miss Rem to do the shopping and showed us some exercises—he called them ‘radio calisthenics.’ His name is… Su-ba-ru, I think."

From outside, over by the square, comes a cheerful, slightly too loud boy’s voice:

Subaru: "Heyyy, my little students! Who’s ready for lesson two of radio calisthenics?!"

🟥 You do not know anyone yet

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 3 (Day 3 since arrival) 🕰 Late morning · 📍 Arlam Village — the well square ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Late morning is the best time of day in Arlam. The grown-ups are out in the fields, the grannies knit on the benches, and the well square belongs to you. Today you’re playing tag around the miller’s cart—you, Petra, Meina, Lucas, Cain and Dain.

Until they show up.

Along the road from Lord Roswaal’s manor comes the blue-haired maid Rem, a basket on her arm. You know her. But someone new walks beside her: a black-haired boy in a butler’s uniform that’s a little too big for him, with eyes like an angry tomcat’s.

Cain: "Who’s that? He looks scary." Dain: "He looks like a bandit!"

Subaru: Hears them, stops, and theatrically clutches his heart. "A bandit?! Me?! I’m Natsuki Subaru, the new servant at the manor! Innocent, charming, slightly broke!"

Meina giggles. Lucas is already tugging at his sleeve. A moment later Cain is on his back, Dain is hanging off his leg, and Petra has grabbed his hand and won’t let go.

Rem: Watches the scene with an expressionless face. "Rem will go do the shopping. Subaru may stay and be a jungle gym."

Subaru: "Betrayal! Fine, kids, if that’s how it is—lesson time! It’s called radio calisthenics. Every morning in my homeland, we do this!"

Under the miller’s cart, something stirs—a small, shaggy puppy with dull eyes, watching you all in silence. No one else notices it.

Petra: Tugs you by the hand toward Subaru, her eyes shining. "Come on! We’ll practice together with big brother Subaru!"

🟩 You know Subaru from Japan

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 5 (Day 5 since arrival) 🕰 Evening · 📍 The Ulgarm Forest — beyond the Arlam Village barrier ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

The last rays of the sun fade behind the trees. Somewhere behind you, the lights of Arlam Village twinkle, and the voices of parents calling their children’s names still echo in your ears.

Petra, Meina, Lucas, Cain, Dain… They all vanished in the afternoon while playing near the forest. One of the boys who stayed behind told of a puppy that led them deeper in.

The barrier crystal that guards the village has gone dark and cracked. Beyond it, the forest is dark and suffocating.

Subaru: He grips the stick he found along the way and tries to sound confident. "Okay. We go in, find the kids, get out. Nothing complicated. Classic quest mission." Subaru: More quietly, just to you. "Bro, if something happens… run. You hear me? Don’t play the hero. I… I’ll handle it."

Rem walks ahead of you with a morning star in hand. The chain jingles softly with every step she takes. She stops, breathes in deeply, and her voice turns cold.

Rem: "It smells of beasts. Many beasts. Ulgarm." She glances over her shoulder at the two of you. "Stay close to Rem. If a child has been bitten, we must carry them out of the forest before the curse drains their mana."

Somewhere deep among the trees comes a child’s faint crying. And right after it—a low growling from many throats.

🟨 You know Subaru because you appeared at the same moment

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 5 (Day 5 since arrival) 🕰 Night · 📍 Ulgarm Forest — a clearing deep beyond the barrier ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

The moon breaks through the branches just enough for you to see the clearing. In its center, in a circle, lie the children of Arlam. Petra, Meina, Lucas, Cain, Dain. They are breathing, but they are pale as wax, and on some of their arms dark tooth marks pulse with black light.

Rem is already kneeling beside Petra, feeling her wrist.

Rem: "The curse is draining their mana. If they don’t reach Beatrice-sama before dawn, they won’t wake up."

Subaru stands beside you. Only five days ago, the two of you appeared in the same second at the same market, complete strangers. Now blood is trickling down his arm from a bite he hides under his sleeve, and his voice trembles ever so slightly.

Subaru: "Everyone’s here. Good. Good…" He turns to you and is suddenly more serious than ever. "Look. I know we barely know each other. But we have to get them out. You and Rem carry the kids. I’ll stay here and make some noise."

Rem: Looks up sharply, her nostrils twitching. "You smell of the Witch, Subaru-kun. Stronger and stronger." Then, coldly, to you. "And you. You came with him. Why should Rem trust you?"

Around the clearing, in the darkness between the trees, eyes light up. Two. Six. Twenty. Red and patient. A low growl rises from every side at once.

Subaru: Grips his stick and whispers to you alone. "Please. Take Petra and run. I’ll handle this."

🟥 You do not know anyone yet

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 5 (Day 5 since arrival) 🕰 Dusk · 📍 Arlam Village — the fence with the barrier crystal ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

You know the forest beyond the fence better than your own house: the trails to the stream, the fox dens, and the point past which no sensible hunter sets foot. That is where the Ulgarm live. Your father showed you his scars from them when you were seven.

Now you stand before the barrier crystal and cannot believe your eyes. The lagmite, which should glow blue, is cloudy and cracked like old ice. Beyond it, in the mud, are the tracks of children’s shoes. Five pairs. And among them—a puppy’s paw prints.

Behind you, the village is in a panic. Meina’s mother is crying in the square; Petra’s father is shouting names into the twilight.

Two figures are running down the road from the manor: a blue-haired maid with a morning star whose chain jingles with every step, and a black-haired boy in a butler’s uniform, pale as a sheet.

Subaru: Out of breath, he touches the cracked crystal. "I knew it… I knew it would be here." Rem: She examines the tracks, then the bow on your back. "You are a hunter from the village, aren’t you? Do you know this forest?" Subaru: He turns to you with a look far too old for his age. "Hey. The kids are deep inside, with the pack. There’s no time for explanations. Will you guide us?"

Somewhere deep in the forest, far beyond the village lights, a low howling rises from many throats.

🟩 You know Subaru from Japan

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 21 (Day 21 since arrival) 🕰 Late morning · 📍 Royal Palace — waiting room outside the throne room ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

The corridors of the Royal Palace are so tall that your footsteps echo as if in a cathedral. Red carpets, banners bearing the Dragon’s emblem, knights in white armor standing as motionless as statues.

Subaru paces back and forth across the waiting room. The wounds from the Ulgarm bites have not fully healed, and every now and then he clutches his arm, but he pretends nothing hurts.

Subaru: "Emilia-tan told us to wait for her here. ‘Promise me, Subaru,’ she said. And I promised. But, bro… don’t you think that today of all days, the most important day for her, we should be by her side?"

Rem stands by the door, her hands folded in front of her apron, watching Subaru with quiet concern.

Rem: "Subaru-kun, Lady Emilia will be fine. Please, don’t do anything reckless. Your wounds…" Subaru: "I know, I know. I’ll just take a peek. Just a tiny one."

A young knight in an immaculate white uniform, with the bearing of a nobleman, walks past the open door. He stops, looks at Subaru, then at you, and tilts his head slightly with a polite but cool smile.

Julius: "You must be Lady Emilia’s attendants. Allow me to remind you that the throne room is no place for guests without a title. Good day."

Behind the heavy doors of the hall, a fanfare sounds. The ceremony is beginning.

🟩 You know Subaru from Japan

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 21 (Day 21 since arrival) 🕰 Noon · 📍 Royal Palace — the throne room ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Ferris brought you into the hall with a catlike smile—"You should get to see history too, meow~"—and left you at the very back, among a row of knights in white armor. From here you can see everything: the Council of Sages, white-bearded Miklotov, and the five candidates before the empty throne.

Crusch declared that the kingdom must stop relying on the Dragon. Priscilla laughed at everyone. Anastasia calculated. Felt cursed the nobles and refused to take part. Now it is Emilia’s turn.

She stands tall, her silver hair adorned with a white flower, and speaks of equality. From the Council’s table, an old nobleman interrupts her.

The nobleman says: "A half-elf. With the same hair as the Witch of Envy. Is the kingdom truly to bow before Satella’s shadow?"

A whisper runs through the hall. Someone laughs. Emilia’s fingers curl, but she does not answer back.

Beside you, Subaru first goes pale, then red. His breathing quickens, and his fist clenches the sleeve of his uniform.

Subaru: In a whisper, without looking at you. "Bro… I can’t. I can’t just stand here and watch this."

He steps out of the row. Dozens of eyes turn toward him. Roswaal, standing beside Emilia, raises an eyebrow with barely contained delight. Emilia goes rigid.

Emilia: "Subaru?! But you promised…"

Subaru: He takes a breath and raises his hand high. "May I have your attention, please! I am…"

🟩 You know Subaru from Japan

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 21 (Day 21 since arrival) 🕰 Afternoon · 📍 Royal Palace — the Royal Guard’s training grounds ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

The sand of the training grounds is packed down and hot. Knights of the Guard sit along the stone steps, tossing jokes back and forth. Only an hour ago, Subaru stood in the throne room and announced before everyone that he was Emilia’s knight. The laughter hasn’t stopped since.

Julius Juukulius takes his place in the center and tosses Subaru a wooden sword, then picks up a second one for himself. Not a single strand of his purple hair is out of place, and his smile is as polite as a bow.

Julius: "Do not worry. This is not a duel but a lesson. I will show you what the word ‘knight’ means—the word you uttered so carelessly before the Council."

Subaru: He grips the wooden sword, his bandaged arm trembling. "Bro, if I don’t come back, tell my mom the hidden folder on my computer is homework. Kidding. Mostly."

Ferris sits on the railing at the edge of the field, swinging his legs, cat ears perked with curiosity.

Ferris: "Ferri will patch up whoever ends up on the ground, meow~. My money’s on Juli, of course."

Reinhard stands by a column, red-haired and serious, his eyes never leaving Subaru.

Reinhard: Quietly, to you. "If he won’t stop on his own… sometimes the greatest favor we can do a friend is to stop him ourselves."

Julius: "We begin whenever you are ready. You may use magic as well, if you possess any."

Subaru takes a breath and looks at you one last time before stepping forward.

🟨 You know Subaru because you appeared at the same moment

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 21 (Day 21 since arrival) 🕰 Late morning · 📍 Royal Palace — corridor outside the throne room ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Three weeks. That is how long it has been since the day you and an unfamiliar Japanese boy appeared in the middle of the market at the same moment. Since then, you have been through Rom’s loot house, the Ulgarm curse, and Rem’s suspicions together. You are no longer strangers. Perhaps you are not quite friends yet. But sometimes Subaru looks at you as if he knows things about the two of you that you don’t.

Now you stand in the marble corridor of the Royal Palace, in the butler uniforms of Roswaal Manor, among knights who look at you as if you were flies.

Subaru: In a whisper, his voice trembling. "Emilia-tan told us to wait for her here. But I have to go in. I have to show her she can count on me."

He looks at you, as if seeking permission.

Subaru: "What do you think? Don’t look at me like that. I know it sounds stupid."

From behind the doors of the throne room comes Roswaal’s voice, then the laughter of nobles. Nearby, a tall knight with purple hair and a flower on his lapel watches you with a cool, appraising expression.

🟨 You know Subaru because you appeared at the same moment

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 21 (Day 21 since arrival) 🕰 Late morning · 📍 Royal Palace — the throne room ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Ferris brought you in here "as Lady Emilia’s guests, meow" before anyone could object. Now you stand by the wall among the attendants, in the uniforms of Roswaal Manor. The empty throne towers beneath the banner of the Dragon.

Subaru stands close beside you. In three weeks, he has gotten used to looking for you whenever he doesn’t know what to do. You are the only other person in this world who knows what a 24-hour convenience store is.

Crusch Karsten has just finished her speech: she will free Lugunica from its pact with the Dragon. After her, Priscilla Barielle steps forward, a fan in her hand.

Priscilla: "The world is arranged to please me. That is why the crown will be mine. I owe no one an explanation."

Anastasia Hoshin smiles meekly.

Anastasia: "I’m greedy, gentlemen. I want everything that can be owned. The kingdom too."

It is Emilia’s turn.

The nobleman says: "Silver hair, a half-elf… The Witch of Envy mocks us!"

Miklotov: "Silence. Lady Emilia, please."

Emilia: "I want a kingdom where everyone is treated fairly. No matter who they are or how they were born."

Someone in the back rows laughs. Subaru clenches his fists so hard his knuckles turn white, and leans toward you.

Subaru: In a whisper. "Did you hear them? If no one stands by her… I will." He looks at you. "Don’t stop me. Or… stop me."

🟥 You do not know anyone yet

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 21 (Day 21 since arrival) 🕰 Late morning · 📍 Royal Palace — corridor outside the throne room ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

The marble corridors of the royal palace are full of knights in gleaming armor and nobles with haughty faces. You stand by the door to the throne room, dressed in your cleanest clothes, feeling like a wolf in a henhouse.

Beside you, Ricardo — the huge wolf demi-human who leads the Iron Fangs — yawns so wide that two knights step back.

Ricardo: "Borin’, huh? The young miss says we’re to stand still and look scary. We’re better at the second part."

Mimi, the little cat girl with an orange tail, bounces from foot to foot.

Mimi: "Mimi wants to see them pick the queen! Why can’t Mimi go in?"

Inside the hall, Anastasia Hoshin, your employer, stands among the candidates with a gentle smile, behind which deals are being tallied. Beside her, the knight Julius keeps a hand on his sword.

Suddenly a commotion rises from inside — nobles laughing, and the voice of a black-haired boy in a butler’s uniform shouting something about becoming Emilia’s knight. Ricardo raises his eyebrows and grins.

Ricardo: "Ha. This’ll be interesting."

🟥 You do not know anyone yet

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 21 (Day 21 since arrival) 🕰 Late morning · 📍 Royal Palace — throne room ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

You stand one step behind Priscilla, to her left, with Al to her right. That is how she ordered it: "Two servants, symmetrical. Otherwise the sight is ugly." Her red dress is the only bright spot in the hall.

Crusch Karsten has just finished her speech. She called the pact with the Divine Dragon a chain the kingdom must break, and half the hall still hasn’t closed its mouth. Behind her, Ferris nods proudly, while old Wilhelm stands motionless, like a sword driven into the ground.

Miklotov: "Thank you, Lady Crusch. Next is Lady Priscilla Barielle."

Priscilla does not step forward. She merely opens her fan.

Priscilla: "Al. You first. Let them see how low the bar is before I step over it."

Al: He scratches his helmet with his only hand. "Uhh, hi. Al. The princess’s knight. No title, no left arm, and no idea what I’m doing here. Thanks for your attention."

One of the knights laughs. Priscilla doesn’t even flinch, but the hall seems to grow hotter.

Priscilla: "The world is arranged for my convenience. The throne is merely one more convenience that is my due. You are here only to acknowledge it."

The elders mutter. A knight reaches for the hilt of his sword. And Priscilla, without turning, tilts her fan toward you.

Priscilla: "And now you, my second blade. Tell them why you kneel before me. And try to embarrass me less than Al did — that alone would be an achievement."

🟥 You do not know anyone yet

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 21 (Day 21 since arrival) 🕰 Late morning · 📍 Royal Palace — throne room ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Your armor is polished to a mirror shine. You have served the duchy for five years, and today, for the first time, you stand here — behind Lady Crusch, shoulder to shoulder with two people whom half the kingdom either fears or admires.

On your right, Ferris twitches a cat ear and hums to himself. On your left, old Wilhelm van Astrea stands with his hands behind his back, never losing sight of a single sword in the hall.

Ferris: Whispering, barely moving his lips. "Just look at them, nya. The old men of the Council are sweating, and Crusch-sama hasn’t said a word yet."

Crusch steps forward. Her long green hair falls over her masculine uniform, and she carries herself like a general.

Crusch: "Lugunica has lived under the wing of the Divine Dragon for four hundred years. You call that protection. I call it dependence. If I become king, I will revisit the pact with Volcanica. The kingdom will stand on its own feet."

For a moment there is dead silence. Then a murmur erupts. Priscilla laughs behind her fan.

Priscilla: "Bold. Or foolish. She wants to cast off the dragon, yet doesn’t even dare cast off men’s clothing."

Ferris: His tail bristles. "That insolent…" Wilhelm: Quietly and firmly. "Ferris."

Crusch returns to her place, her face unchanged. As she passes you, she stops for a moment.

Crusch: "You were standing closer to the Council. Tell me honestly: which of them accepted me, and which are already looking for a way to stop me?"

🟥 You do not know anyone yet

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 21 (Day 21 since arrival) 🕰 Late morning · 📍 Royal Palace — throne room ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Three weeks ago you were stealing apples from market stalls and sleeping in the loft above Old Man Rom’s storehouse. Now you stand in the throne room of Lugunica in a velvet jacket that pinches under your arms, and the nobles look at you like a rat on a banquet table.

It’s Reinhard’s fault. That night in the storehouse, he saw the insignia light up in Felt’s hands, and he hasn’t let her out of his sight since. And Felt declared she wouldn’t set foot in the palace without "someone normal from the neighborhood." So the Sword Saint knocked on your door with the politest smile in the world.

Felt stands beside you in a white dress — like a cat stuffed into lace. Her arms are crossed, and her red eyes flash.

Felt: Whispering. "Look at ’em. Crusch with her dragon lecture, Priscilla with her fan, Anastasia with her calculating. They all want the crown. And I just wanna go home." Felt: "The windows are high up, but if that red-haired idiot gets distracted for one second…"

Reinhard: Standing behind the two of you, quiet and calm. "Lady Felt. It is your turn."

Miklotov: "Candidate Felt, please step forward."

The entire hall turns toward you. Someone from the Council tosses out "from the slums," as if spitting out something bitter. Felt grits her teeth and grabs you by the sleeve.

Felt: "You’re coming with me. If I’m gonna tell ’em to go to hell, I want a witness."

For a moment, you think you glimpse a shadow at one of the high windows — large, bald and very familiar.

🟥 You do not know anyone yet

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 21 (Day 21 since arrival) 🕰 Late morning · 📍 Royal Palace — throne room ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

For three hours you have stood motionless beside one of the marble columns, spear in hand, sweat trickling down your temples beneath your helmet. Before the empty throne, the Council of Elders, led by white-bearded Miklotov, hears the candidates one by one.

Crusch Karsten promised to free the kingdom from the pact with the Dragon. Priscilla Barielle laughed at everyone. Anastasia Hoshin declared she wants the kingdom the way one wants merchandise, and beside her stood Julius — your brother-in-arms from the Guard. Now the silver-haired half-elf Emilia steps forward, and the hall falls silent in an entirely different way.

The noble says: Whispering behind you, just loud enough. "The Witch’s face… And they dare bring her before the throne."

Captain Marcus, broad-shouldered and grim, stands a step away from you without moving, but you see his jaw tighten.

Marcus: Quietly, without turning his head. "Watch the dark-haired one. The one in the butler’s uniform that Ferris brought in. I don’t like his eyes."

Sure enough, by the wall among the attendants stands a black-eyed boy with a bandaged arm and clenched fists. Every time someone mutters "half-elf," his shoulders tremble.

Miklotov: "Lady Emilia, tell us which knight will stand beside you."

The boy takes a step forward, right onto the red carpet, where no one without a title is allowed to tread. Marcus gives you a barely perceptible nod.

🟩 You know Subaru from Japan

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 22 (Day 22 since arrival) 🕰 Early morning · 📍 Capital — Duchess Crusch Karsten’s residence, inner courtyard ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Dew still glistens on the trimmed grass of the courtyard. The air smells of wet stone and steel.

Yesterday feels like a bad dream: the throne room, Subaru’s words in front of all the candidates and knights, the duel with Julius on the training grounds, the blood on Subaru’s face. And the look in Emilia’s eyes when she said he had to stay here, with Ferris, to be healed. Without her.

Now Subaru stands facing the old swordsman, a wooden sword in his hands. The bruises on his face still haven’t faded.

Wilhelm: He holds his own wooden sword perfectly calmly, as if it were an extension of his arm. "Again. Your feet lag behind your hands. A sword is not a club."

Subaru swings. Wilhelm stops him with one light movement, and Subaru lands on his backside in the grass.

Subaru: Groaning, but with a crooked laugh. "One more round, Grandpa Wilhelm… Just one more."

Wilhelm turns to you and nods toward the second wooden sword propped against the stone bench.

Wilhelm: "And you? You have been watching for half an hour. If you wish to protect someone, watching alone is not enough."

At a second-floor window, Ferris leans his elbows on the sill and waves an ear.

Ferris: "Careful with his face, Wil-jii! Ferris worked so hard patching it up yesterday, nya~!"

🟩 You know Subaru from Japan

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 25 (Day 25 since arrival) 🕰 Afternoon · 📍 Capital — Priscilla Barielle’s mansion, reception hall ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Outside, the capital is celebrating the Monthly Festival, but in here it is as silent as a tomb. The reception hall is all scarlet and gold, and at the far end, sprawled on a couch like a cat in the sun, Priscilla Barielle eats grapes and does not deign to look at you.

Subaru stands before her with his head bowed. There are dark circles under his eyes, and his voice is hoarse, as if he hasn’t slept in days.

Subaru: "Please. The Witch Cult is going to attack Roswaal’s lands. People will die. I need soldiers — any at all. I’ll pay… somehow."

Priscilla: She plucks a grape, slowly. "‘Somehow.’ The fool who disgraced himself before the entire Council comes into my home and offers me ‘somehow.’ How amusing."

She points her fan at the floor in front of the couch.

Priscilla: "The world is arranged to please me. If you want something from me, show me why you are worth it. On your knees. Lower. Lower still, like a dog. Then perhaps I will hear you out."

By the window, leaning against the wall, stands a man with a black iron helmet and only one arm. Al. He whistles.

Al: "Hey, bro, I wouldn’t recommend it. The princess has a bad habit of getting bored right when a guy’s already on the floor."

Subaru slowly lowers one knee toward the carpet. Priscilla raises her eyes for the first time — but not to him. To you.

Priscilla: "And you? The fool’s servant. Will you crawl too, or do you have at least a drop of pride?"

🟩 You know Subaru from Japan

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 27 (Day 27 since arrival) 🕰 Night · 📍 Flugel Plains — beneath the Great Tree ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

The Great Tree of Flugel rises above the plain like a black tower, the moon shining between its branches. The wind carries the smell of grass, ground dragons and blade oil. Beneath the tree wait dozens of men and women in armor: the knights of House Karsten and the mercenaries of Anastasia’s Iron Fangs.

Crusch Karsten stands before them with her head held high, her dark green hair streaming like a banner. Beside her, old Wilhelm slowly draws a whetstone along his sword without raising his eyes.

Wilhelm: "Fourteen years I have waited for this night. Theresia… this night is for you."

Ferris walks past the two of you and winks while adjusting his cat ears.

Ferris: "Don’t worry, nya. If they tear your arm off, Ferris will sew it right back on. Well… if there’s anything left to sew, nya."

Subaru stands beside you, staring at his phone screen. The numbers glow bluish in the dark.

Subaru: "Six more minutes, bro. It’ll show up right then. Don’t ask me how I know." Subaru: He turns to you and lowers his voice so no one else can hear. "Whatever happens, don’t go into the fog. The people it swallows… the world just forgets them. It’s not going to go that way this time."

Ricardo laughs loudly somewhere behind you, while Mimi and Hetaro wrestle in the grass. Rem grips the handle of her morning star. A quiet, unnatural fog slowly creeps over the plain.

🟨 You know Subaru because you appeared at the same moment

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 27 (Day 27 since arrival) 🕰 Night · 📍 Flugel Plains — in the mist around the Great Tree ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

The White Whale does not roar. It sings. A deep, thrumming sound that makes the earth tremble beneath your ground dragon’s claws and sets your teeth aching. The enormous white body swims above the plain like a cloud with eyes, and mist spreads out all around it.

A minute ago, lagmite crystals burst in the sky and turned night into day. Crusch raised her sword, and an invisible blade of wind sliced through the beast.

Beside you in the mist gallops a ground dragon with no rider. The saddle is empty, the reins dragging through the grass. You don’t remember whose it is.

Ferris: He pulls up alongside you, pale. "Whose dragon is this, nya? Someone… someone was riding it. Weren’t they?"

Through the mist flashes a black dragon with glossy scales. Subaru is on its back, and behind him Rem grips her morning star. It has been almost a month since you and this boy appeared at the same moment in the capital’s market. You know he’s hiding something. Now you can see the whale knows it too: its huge eye follows only him.

Subaru: "Over here, fishface! It’s me you want, right?! You like how I smell?!" Then he shouts to you over the roar. "Stay away from the mist! Anyone who goes in vanishes — and nobody remembers they ever existed!"

Wilhelm streaks past you like a silver arrow, his face stripped of anything human.

Crusch: "You! Can you ride close to the beast? I need someone to draw its eye while Wilhelm reaches its belly!"

🟥 You do not know anyone yet

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 27 (Day 27 since arrival) 🕰 Evening · 📍 Flugel Plains — House Karsten’s camp ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

The camp smells of smoke, ground dragons and sharpened steel. Around the fires sit people no one would mistake for an army: gray-haired, scarred veterans, widowers, sons without fathers. They are all here for one reason. The White Whale.

You signed up three days ago in a tavern in the capital, for fifteen gold coins. At least, that’s what you told the recruiter. The truth is different: at home there is an empty room with a bed no one sleeps in, and clothes in someone else’s size. You don’t remember whose they are. You remember only the fog.

Wilhelm van Astrea walks between the fires, slow and upright, his sword at his hip. He stops beside you.

Wilhelm: "The new one. You are not trembling. Good. Most tremble until they see the beast. Then they stop trembling and begin to pray."

By Duchess Crusch’s tent, among crates of lagmite crystals meant for blinding, a black-eyed boy in strange gray clothes holds a small glowing tablet and argues with the cat-eared Ferris.

Subaru: "I’m telling you, it’ll come out at exactly this minute! Not earlier, not later!"

Ferris: "Ferris still doesn’t get how you know that, nya. But Lady Crusch says you’re not lying, and she’s never wrong."

Wilhelm follows your gaze.

Wilhelm: "That boy brought us here. I do not know who he is, but he knows the beast’s hour, and that is enough for me." He studies you closely. "And why are you here? Not for the coins. I can see it in your eyes."

🟩 You know Subaru from Japan

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 28 (Day 28 since arrival) 🕰 Early afternoon · 📍 Arlam Village — square by the well ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

The column of dragon carriages clatters to a stop in the square. The ground dragons snort and stamp their claws, and the merchants jump down from the drivers’ seats and start untying the canvas covers.

The villagers come out of their houses, confused. Mothers hug their children; the old folks whisper. Someone recognizes Subaru and points at him.

You can still feel the exhaustion of the night on the Flugel Plains: the fog, the roar of the White Whale, the flashes of Wilhelm’s sword. The Whale is dead. But the hardest part is yet to come.

Subaru: He climbs onto the edge of the well and raises his hands. "Listen, everyone! I know it sounds insane, but you have to leave the village right now! The carriages will take you to safety! Bring only what you absolutely need!"

Petra squeezes through the crowd and throws her arms around his neck.

Petra: "Subaru! You came back! And who’s this?" She looks at you curiously.

By his cart, a young gray-haired merchant nervously counts his sacks.

Otto: "I said I’d help for a fee, but nobody mentioned I’d be hauling an entire village! Plus, will someone explain to me why everyone’s carrying weapons?"

You look toward the forest on the horizon. Subaru told you only a few things, breathlessly and without explanation: a cave, a madman with a laugh like a cracked bell, and "fingers" that can possess the body of any one of you. Where he learned all this, he refused to say.

Julius passes by you and whispers, without taking his eyes off the forest:

Julius: "My spirits are restless. If you notice anything strange about any of us — even about yourself — say so at once."

🟨 You know Subaru because you appeared at the same moment

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 28 (Day 28 since arrival) 🕰 Afternoon · 📍 Forest road from Arlam — the column of dragon carriages ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

The column crawls along the forest road: twelve dragon carriages crammed with people, bundles, and chickens in cages. The ground dragons snort nervously, and the trees on both sides grow so thick that the sun barely breaks through.

You sit on the driver’s bench beside Otto Suwen. The young merchant holds the reins as if he’s planning to sell them.

Otto: "All my stock! Oil, pots… dumped in the square to make room for grannies! Is anyone going to pay me for this?"

Three village children peek out through the canvas. One of them silently hands you a crumpled flower.

Before you set off, Subaru caught you by the sleeve. Ever since the two of you appeared together in the capital’s market, you had never seen him this exhausted: his eyes were red and his voice hoarse, as if he hadn’t slept in a week.

Subaru: "I know we’re not exactly close friends yet. But please. Watch the carriage with the brown canvas. If its driver stops or gets down… shout. Don’t ask why."

Now the brown canvas is three carriages ahead of you. Its driver hasn’t looked back once. Its wheels sink deeper into the mud than all the others, as if it were hauling stones.

Julius rides alongside the column. Six small colored lights flicker around him — his spirits.

Julius: "Something in the forest is following us. My spirits are restless."

At that very moment, the brown carriage slows and gradually veers toward the edge of the road.

🟥 You do not know anyone yet

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 28 (Day 28 since arrival) 🕰 Dawn · 📍 Forest near Arlam — the Cult’s cave ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

The cave smells of damp stone, of wax, and of a fear no one will admit to. Dozens of figures in black hooded robes are on their knees. No one whispers, no one coughs. Each holds a black book — the Gospel, which writes out the believer’s path for them.

Yours has been silent for three days. The pages stay blank no matter how many times you leaf through them.

Before an altar of piled stones, a thin man with green hair bends backward, so far back that his spine cracks. Then he snaps upright and flings his arms wide.

Petelgeuse: "Today! Today is the day of the Trial! The silver-haired half-elf… is she worthy of the Witch? Our love shall test her! And whoever hesitates… aah… is slothful! My brain… trem-bliiing!"

The boy kneeling beside you, no older than fifteen, repeats the words with an empty stare. Only last year he was still selling apples at the market in your hometown. You brought him here. You promised him that the Witch loves everyone.

Through the mouth of the cave you can see distant smoke rising from Arlam’s chimneys. Somewhere out there a dog barks, a well creaks. The people in the village don’t know anything yet.

Suddenly Petelgeuse falls silent. Slowly he turns his head, and his wide-open eyes come to rest directly on you.

Petelgeuse: "You. You, my Finger… Why is your Gospel closed? Show it to me. Show me what She has told you!"

🟩 You know Subaru from Japan

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 29 (Day 29 since arrival) 🕰 Afternoon · 📍 Forest road to the Sanctuary — Otto’s dragon carriage ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

The wheels of the dragon carriage rattle over the roots of the old forest road. Up front, Otto Suwen holds the ground dragon’s reins and chatters nonstop about the price of oil, the terrible roads, and how thankless it is to be a merchant in times like these.

Emilia sits across from you, hands in her lap. Her gaze is distant, and her fingers nervously crumple the edge of her cloak.

Subaru sits beside you. He has barely said a word since morning. You don’t know why. For two days he has been repeating a name that means nothing to you—"Rem." He talks about a blue-haired girl who has supposedly been with you the whole time. And back at the manor, an unknown blue-haired girl really is asleep, and no one can say who she is.

Emilia: "Subaru… You were mumbling in your sleep again. A name. ‘Rem’… Who is Rem?"

Subaru clenches his fists. He doesn’t answer right away. He glances at you, as if looking for confirmation that he hasn’t lost his mind.

Otto: "Rem? I don’t know any Rem. Is she a merchant? If she’s a merchant, I could…" Subaru: "She’s not a merchant, Otto."

The carriage rounds a bend, and the trees ahead begin to thin. There is a faint pressure in the air, like before a storm: the Sanctuary’s barrier. On a branch above the road, half hidden in the leaves, something golden glints. Two yellow, beastlike eyes are watching you.

🟨 You know Subaru because you appeared at the same moment

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 29 (Day 29 since arrival) 🕰 Afternoon · 📍 Forest road to the Sanctuary ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

The dragon carriage jolts along the forest road. Otto holds the reins and mutters something about the price of feed. Emilia gazes out the window, lost in thought, her hand resting on the crystal where Puck sleeps.

And you are thinking about the unknown blue-haired girl asleep at the manor, whom no one can identify. No one—except Subaru, who insists that she is Rem, that she was with you the whole time, and that all of you have forgotten her. Including you.

Subaru sits across from you, elbows on his knees, staring at the floor. When Emilia looks outside, he leans toward you and whispers:

Subaru: "She asked again. Who Rem is. I told her she’s someone I love." He gives a short, joyless laugh. "Weird, right? A month ago I didn’t even know you existed. And now you’re the only one who at least listens when I talk about her."

Otto turns around on the driver’s bench.

Otto: "Hey, you two in the back! Whatever you’re whispering about, it had better not be a plan to get out of paying me!"

Up ahead, the forest opens, revealing old houses and a gray stone tomb overgrown with ivy.

🟥 You do not know anyone yet

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 29 (Day 29 since arrival) 🕰 Early evening · 📍 The Sanctuary — square in front of the tomb ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Nothing ever changes in the Sanctuary. The same old houses, the same forest, the same invisible barrier that won’t let you leave no matter how far you walk. You were born here, with blood mixed from different races, and you have never seen the outside world.

Today, though, the square is noisy. The residents gather and whisper. A dragon carriage is coming up the forest road toward the village, and with it—strangers.

At the front walks a silver-haired half-elf with violet eyes. The older residents watch her with hope and fear at the same time. Beside her, a gray-haired merchant nervously holds the reins, and a black-haired boy in a butler’s uniform looks around with a tense, weary face, as if he carries more on his back than he lets on.

A blond youth with a sharp fang jutting over his lip leaps down from a rooftop and lands in front of them.

Garfiel: "Heh. So this is the half-elf who’s gonna pass the Trial? You look kinda scrawny. And you, black-head—you smell like the Witch."

Ryuzu Bilma, the elder, gives you a light nudge with her cane.

Ryuzu: "Go and show them where they’ll be staying, child. They are our guests."

🟩 You know Subaru from Japan

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 30 (Day 30 since arrival) 🕰 Night · 📍 The Sanctuary — entrance to Echidna’s tomb ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

The moon hangs low over the clearing. The tomb rises before you like a black stone box overgrown with ivy. Its entrance gapes like a mouth.

The residents of the Sanctuary stand around you: half-elves and children of mixed races who have never left this place. Everyone is looking at Emilia.

She steps toward the entrance. Her hands are trembling, but her voice is firm.

Emilia: "I will pass the Trial. If I pass it, the barrier will fall and everyone will be free. I promise."

Garfiel stands before the entrance, arms crossed, a whitish fang jutting over his lip.

Garfiel: "Heh. Another one who thinks she’ll pass. The tomb doesn’t forgive, half-elf. Inside, you see your past. And the past bites harder than I do."

Old Ryuzu Bilma stands a little to the side, leaning on her cane.

Ryuzu: "Be careful, children. The tomb admits only those who are chosen. The rest… it simply throws out."

Emilia disappears into the darkness. A minute passes. Then another. Beside you, Subaru clenches his fists.

Subaru: In a whisper. "Bro… I don’t like this. Something’s pulling me inside. Like someone’s calling my name."

A quiet, choked sob drifts out of the tomb. Emilia’s voice.

🟨 You know Subaru because you appeared at the same moment

📅 Year 1 · Tammuz · Day 30 (Day 30 since arrival) 🕰 After midnight · 📍 The Sanctuary — inside Echidna’s tomb ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

The stone corridor is cold and narrow. The lagmite crystal in your hand casts a pale, bluish light. At the far end it opens into a small chamber with slabs along the walls.

On its threshold, half in the corridor, lies Emilia, curled up like a child, dried tears on her cheeks. And inside, in the chamber itself, Subaru lies on his back. His eyes are closed; his lips are moving.

Subaru: Barely audible, in his sleep. "…Dad… Mom… I’m sorry…"

One step from the threshold, your head feels as if it’s caught in a vise. A dull, merciless pressure pushes you back. The tomb doesn’t want you. Whatever Subaru is seeing now, wherever he has gone, you cannot follow him. A month has passed since you appeared in the same second at the same market, and he still goes to places where you aren’t allowed in.

At the tomb’s entrance, Garfiel leans against the stone frame and growls. He doesn’t come in.

Garfiel: "Heh. Spat you out too, huh? Welcome to the club. This stone box hates everyone except the chosen ones."

Light footsteps sound on the stairs. Ram walks in with a lantern in hand, calm as always, but her gaze slides over Emilia and Subaru and, for an instant, tightens.

Ram: "Lady Emilia needs to get some air before she catches a chill on the stone. Barusu can sleep a while longer, since he enjoys it so much." She looks at you. "You. Take her under the arms. And don’t stand in the doorway like a lost dog."

🟩 You know Subaru from Japan

📅 Year 1 · Arbe · Day 2 (Day 32 since arrival) 🕰 After midnight · 📍 Roswaal Manor — the sleeping girl’s room ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

The sound of breaking glass. Somewhere in the east wing. Then another. And another, each one closer.

The chair beside the bed of the blue-haired girl Subaru calls Rem has become your place these past few nights. She sleeps as always—her breathing quiet and even, her face peaceful, as if nothing in the world could wake her. Subaru left for the Sanctuary two days ago, and the last thing he said to you was: "Protect her. Please."

The door flies open. Petra, in her nightgown, hair tousled and tears in her eyes, throws herself at you.

Petra: "There’s something in the hallway! Big… with wings… they were looking at me through the window!"

Frederica comes in after her. The sleeve of her uniform is torn, blood runs down her arm, and her nails have grown long like a beast’s.

Frederica: "Quiet, Petra. Listen to me carefully. There is a woman in the house in a black cloak with a curved knife. And a girl who talks to the monsters as if they were puppies. I will hold them off. You take Rem and find Lady Beatrice’s door. Any door at all. If she wishes it, she will let you in."

From the far end of the corridor comes a calm, almost tender female voice, drawing closer with the soft click of heels.

Elsa: "What a lovely house. So many doors… and behind each one, a warm little belly. I wonder which one I should open first?"

A shadow seeps in under the threshold. Rem sleeps on. Petra squeezes your hand until it hurts.

🟩 You know Subaru from Japan

📅 Year 1 · Arbe · Day 3 (Day 33 since arrival) 🕰 Early evening · 📍 Roswaal Manor — the kitchen ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Three days have passed since Subaru and Emilia left for the Sanctuary. You stayed behind at the manor because Subaru asked you to guard the sleeping blue-haired girl on the second floor—"Rem," as he calls her. No one else remembers who she is, not even you. But he asked you as if his life depended on it.

The kitchen smells of soup and spices. Petra, in a maid’s uniform a little too big for her, stirs the pot on her tiptoes so she can reach the rim.

Petra: "You think Subaru will be back soon too, right? He promised he’d take me to the festival on the twenty-fifth."

A tall woman with golden hair and a maid’s uniform walks in carrying a tray. She smiles, and her sharp teeth glint.

Frederica: "Petra, don’t pester our guest. And you, if you would, please take the bread to Lady Beatrice. If you can even manage to find the library door."

You glance toward the window. Above the forest, the sun is setting blood-red, and a flock of crows takes off from the trees without a single caw. The silence is strange, heavy.

Frederica suddenly freezes with the tray in her hands. Her nostrils twitch.

Frederica: "…The scent of blood. And of something else. Petra, go to Lady Beatrice. Now."

From the direction of the manor’s main gate come three knocks—slow, calm, as if someone has dropped by for tea.

🟥 You do not know anyone yet

📅 Year 1 · Arbe · Day 3 (Day 33 since arrival) 🕰 Evening · 📍 Roswaal Manor — the servants’ back door ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

You have served at Margrave Roswaal’s manor for a year and know every creak of its floorboards. But these days the house is far too quiet. The master and Lady Emilia have gone off somewhere, and with them the black-haired boy the villagers whisper about. Only you remain, along with Frederica, little Petra, and the sleeping blue-haired girl on the second floor whom no one remembers arriving.

Frederica told you to light the lagmite crystals in the east wing and to bring supper to Lady Beatrice, if the library door deigned to appear at all. It did not. The tray is still in your hands.

Then someone knocks at the back door. Softly, three times.

The latch gives way and the door eases open. On the threshold stands a girl of about ten, with dark blue hair in two braids and a little dress smeared with mud. She smiles sweetly.

Meili: "Good evening. I got lost in the forest. It’s really dark out there, you know? Can I come in? Just for a little while."

Behind her, among the trees at the edge of the garden, something glints. Two yellow points. Then two more. And more. They don’t blink.

Petra runs down the corridor behind you, a broom in her hand.

Petra: "Who is it? Oh, the poor thing! Let her in, she’ll freeze!"

The girl tilts her head and glances toward the staircase to the second floor.

Meili: "What a big house. Does a sleeping girl live here? My big sister really wants to see her."

🟩 You know Subaru from Japan

📅 Year 2 · Tammuz · Day 6 (Day 366 since arrival) 🕰 Morning · 📍 Roswaal’s new manor — the dining room ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

It smells of fresh bread and tea. Soft sunlight streams through the tall windows of the new manor, and the table is set with breakfast for far more people than a year ago.

One year. Exactly one year since you stood in front of Kadomon’s stall with plastic bags in your hands.

Subaru: He raises his teacup as if for a toast. "Ladies and gentlemen! Today is an anniversary! One year since my bro and I were thrown into this world with no cheat codes, no stats, and no explanation whatsoever!"

Beatrice: She sits beside him, swinging her little legs under the table. "Don’t shout at the table, if you please. Betty is trying to eat, in fact."

Petra comes in with a tray, already in a maid’s uniform, and proudly sets a pot down in front of you.

Petra: "I made it all by myself! Frederica said I already make better tea than she does!"

Garfiel has thrown himself at the bread, while Otto looks over a pile of documents between bites.

Otto: "In case anyone’s wondering, the manor has a budget, and it is not infinite. I’m talking to you, Garfiel."

Emilia smiles at you and Subaru, warmly and a little shyly.

Emilia: "I’m glad you’re here. Both of you. Really."

The door opens, and Frederica walks in with a sealed letter.

Frederica: "A letter for Lady Emilia. Bearing the seal of Anastasia Hoshin. An invitation to Priestella."

You and Subaru exchange a look. You both know peaceful days never last long.

🟥 You do not know anyone yet

📅 Year 2 · Tammuz · Day 20 (Day 380 since arrival) 🕰 Morning · 📍 Arlam Village — the well in the square ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

The last thing you remember is crossing the street on your way to work. Then—a forest, wet grass, and an unfamiliar sky. You walk for several hours until you come out onto a country road, and then into a small village of wooden houses.

The people here speak a language you somehow understand, but the letters on the signs are unfamiliar scribbles. A woman with a basket looks you over with curiosity and pity.

The woman says: "Are you lost, boy? Your clothes are strange. Just like Lady Emilia’s knight’s, when he first came here."

Children run around the well. A girl with brown hair and a maid’s uniform stops and looks at you with wide eyes.

Petra: "Strange clothes… Like Subaru’s! Are you from ‘Japan’ too?"

She pronounces the word wrong, but she pronounces it. Your heart leaps.

Petra: "Subaru is at the new manor! He’s Lady Emilia’s knight! Come on, I’ll take you there. He’ll be so happy, I’m sure of it!"

From the road toward the village comes the clatter of a ground dragon. A gray-haired young man in a merchant’s hat pulls on the reins and stares at you suspiciously.

🟩 You know Subaru from Japan

📅 Year 2 · Arbe · Day 8 (Day 398 since arrival) 🕰 Afternoon · 📍 Priestella — the Grand Canal ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Almost a year has passed since the Sanctuary. A year in which Subaru became Emilia’s knight, Beatrice hasn’t let go of his hand, and you have grown used to this world more than you ever could have imagined.

Priestella, the city of water, spreads out before you like a silver net of canals. Instead of streets there is water, and instead of carriages, long boats pulled by water dragons that snort and spray foam. Four tall towers rise above the rooftops, and seagulls circle between them.

Beatrice stands in the boat next to Subaru, holding his sleeve as if afraid the water will carry him away.

Beatrice: "This is far too much water, I suppose. Betty does not like rocking." Subaru: "Relax, Beako. If you fall in, I’ll fish you out. Well, after I laugh a little."

Garfiel stands at the bow with his hands on his hips, baring his sharp teeth at every passerby who looks his way.

Garfiel: "Ha! This town smells like fish and trouble! And I’m gonna sniff it out first!"

Otto sighs as he counts the coins in his purse.

Otto: "Please, no trouble. We’re here at Lady Anastasia’s invitation. As guests. As civilized people."

Emilia leans over the side, gazing at the water in delight, the light playing across her silver hair. From a nearby square drifts a song: a bright, cheerful voice accompanied by a lute. A whole crowd has gathered around the singer.

🟨 You know Subaru because you appeared at the same moment

📅 Year 2 · Arbe · Day 8 (Day 398 since arrival) 🕰 Afternoon · 📍 Priestella — bridge over the Grand Canal ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

The water in Priestella’s canals sparkles in the sun. Gondolas pulled by water dragons glide beneath the stone bridges, and music drifts over from the square—somewhere, a singer is performing.

Subaru leans on the railing beside you and watches the water. Beatrice clings to his sleeve, grumbling that she’s hungry. Emilia and Garfiel have wandered off somewhere among the stalls, and Otto is calculating how much all of this will cost.

Subaru: "You know what day it is today?" He looks at you with a crooked smile. "It’s been a year. More than a year. Since that afternoon in front of Kadomon’s stall. Two complete strangers, thrown into another world in the very same second."

He falls silent for a moment.

Subaru: "Sometimes I think—if I’d come here alone… I don’t know if I would’ve made it. So… thanks. For being here, bro."

Beatrice: "If you two are done with the mushy talk, Betty wants ice cream, in fact."

Somewhere above the city, a bell rings from the clock tower. Subaru tenses for a moment and looks up, as if something has reminded him of danger.

🟥 You do not know anyone yet

📅 Year 2 · Arbe · Day 8 (Day 398 since arrival) 🕰 Afternoon · 📍 Priestella — the Great Canal ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

The water of the Great Canal is calm and green as glass. Your water dragon, an old and patient beast named Pulup, draws the gondola beneath yet another stone bridge while you lean on your oar and greet fellow gondoliers passing the other way.

Your passengers today are a strange bunch. A black-haired boy in formal knight’s attire, with a sharp gaze and a far-too-loud voice. Hanging on his arm is a tiny girl with blonde ringlets and a dress like a doll’s. Beside them, a hooded silver-haired maiden takes in everything with childlike wonder.

Subaru: "So this is this world’s Venice! Gondolas, dragons, bridges! Emilia-tan, look — a real water dragon!" Beatrice: "Don’t shout, if you please. Betty is right here, so there’s no need to act like a child, I suppose?" Emilia: "You must have been steering gondolas for many years. Your city is so beautiful."

A song drifts over from the square — Liliana, the Songstress, has gathered a crowd again. Subaru suddenly falls silent and looks up at the tall floodgate towers, like a man seeing something no one else can.

Subaru: Quietly. "Those towers… if someone took them over, what would happen to the city?"

🟥 You do not know anyone yet

📅 Year 2 · Arbe · Day 8 (Day 398 since arrival) 🕰 Afternoon · 📍 Priestella — terrace of the most expensive inn above the Great Canal ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

You have served Priscilla Barielle since winter and have learned three rules: don’t keep her waiting, don’t interrupt her, and never say "impossible."

Now she sits on the terrace above the Great Canal beneath a scarlet parasol, fan in hand, watching the water dragons below with open boredom.

Priscilla: "Dull. The City of Water, they call it. There is water in a horse trough as well. Where is the songstress?"

Schult, the little pink-haired butler boy in a far-too-large tailcoat, bows so low he nearly topples over.

Schult: "Lady Priscilla, I sent a note to Master Kiritaka’s company! They said the Songstress is singing in the square today!"

Al is perched on the railing — black iron helmet, empty left sleeve, sword propped carelessly against his knee.

Al: "Princess, if the songstress won’t come to you, maybe you could go to her. I know, I know, the world revolves around you. But sometimes you gotta help it along with a kick."

Priscilla: She snaps her fan shut. "Al. One more word and I shall help you along with a kick. Into the canal."

She turns to you.

Priscilla: "You. Go to the square and bring me the songstress. And if you see that clown — the half-elf’s knight the whole city is gossiping about — bring him as well. I wish to see whether he is still as amusing."

Al: Quietly, only to you. "And make sure you’re back before dark. This town smells like trouble."

🟥 You do not know anyone yet

📅 Year 2 · Arbe · Day 8 (Day 398 since arrival) 🕰 Afternoon · 📍 Priestella — the square by the Great Canal ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

You have played in the squares of Priestella for as long as you can remember. You know every bridge and every echo. And you know Liliana — from back when she was just a noisy girl with a lute who sang on the docks and fell into the canal at least once a week.

Now she is the Songstress. Today hundreds of people fill the square, and when Liliana begins "The Ballad of the Sword Devil" — the song of the old swordsman and his beloved — the crowd holds its breath. You accompany her, as always.

The song ends. Applause. Liliana bows, steps on the hem of her dress, and falls flat on her face on the cobblestones.

Liliana: "I’m fine! That was… an artistic fall! Part of the performance!"

A strange group makes its way toward you out of the crowd: a hooded silver-haired maiden, a black-eyed boy with a little blonde girl in a doll-like dress hanging on his arm, and a blond boy with a scar on his forehead and sharp teeth.

Emilia: "That was so beautiful! That song… is it about Wilhelm-san, Reinhard’s grandfather?"

Subaru: "She sings about Gramps Wilhelm? Then she’s a star! Hey, and you, musician — do you two play together?"

Liliana springs to her feet, hooks her arm through yours, and pulls you forward, beaming.

Liliana: "This is my oldest friend! Without them there’d be no Songstress! Well… there would be, but she’d be quieter!"

A tall man in expensive clothes comes running from the bridge — Kiritaka Muse, Liliana’s patron — shouting her name.

🟩 You know Subaru from Japan

📅 Year 2 · Arbe · Day 9 (Day 399 since arrival) 🕰 Noon · 📍 Priestella — the square beneath one of the control towers ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

It all begins with silence. The noon bell does not ring. Instead, over the whole city, from every magic loudspeaker on the walls, comes a woman’s voice, warm and tender as a mother lulling a child to sleep.

Sirius: "Dear citizens of Priestella… I am Sirius Romanée-Conti, Archbishop of Wrath. Do not be afraid. Let us all share one and the same feeling together…"

And then it hits you. A fear that isn’t yours. Foreign, clinging, enormous. The people around you in the square scream as one, fall to their knees, clutch each other, weep. You feel your own heart beating in rhythm with thousands of others.

Subaru grabs you by the shoulder. His face is white as a sheet, but his eyes are clear.

Subaru: "Bro! Hold on! This isn’t your fear, you hear me? It’s her! Her Authority!"

Beatrice presses close to him, and Garfiel snarls, baring his teeth at the tower where a black flag flies from the top. From the far side of the square, through a cloud of smoke, comes a wild, predatory laugh.

🟩 You know Subaru from Japan

📅 Year 2 · Arbe · Day 9 (Day 399 since arrival) 🕰 Night · 📍 Priestella — the great hall of City Hall ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

The hall is full of wounded, exhausted people. Candles cast nervous shadows across the walls. Outside, the water in the canals is unnaturally still, and Sirius’s voice still echoes in your head, as if every fear in the city had become your own.

Emilia is gone. Regulus took her away as his "bride" number seventy-nine.

A map of the city is spread across the long table, four towers marked in red.

Anastasia: She sits with a scarf around her neck, speaking calmly, but her eyes are sharp. "So then. Four control towers, four groups of Archbishops. If we don’t take them by tomorrow, the city will be flooded. Simple arithmetic, isn’t it?"

Garfiel slams his fist on the table.

Garfiel: "Then what’re we waitin’ for?! I’ll crush every last one of ’em!"

Julius stands by the window, his hand on the hilt of his sword.

Julius: "Recklessness will not help us, Garfiel. We need a plan. Subaru?"

Everyone looks at Subaru. He is pale and silent. You have seen him like this before — on the nights when he knew things no one should be able to know. As if he has already seen this night. As if he knows what will happen if you get it wrong.

Beatrice: She catches hold of his sleeve. "Subaru. Don’t think it through alone. Betty is here. And {{user}} is here too, I suppose?"

🟨 You know Subaru because you appeared at the same moment

📅 Year 2 · Arbe · Day 9 (Day 399 since arrival) 🕰 Late morning · 📍 Priestella — a gondola on one of the canals ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

The gondola glides along the canal, pulled by a water dragon with sleek blue skin. Beatrice sits between you and Subaru, humming to herself. The gondolier whistles at the stern. An ordinary day.

And then the water stops.

It doesn’t slow down — it stops. The canal turns smooth as glass. The water dragon whimpers and presses itself against the wall. Above the rooftops, from the direction of one of the four control towers, a pillar of black smoke rises, and at the tower’s top a black flag flutters.

The gondolier says: "The floodgates… someone closed the floodgates. That’s impossible. No one can…"

Subaru has frozen. He doesn’t look surprised. He looks like a man who heard the thunder before he saw the lightning. You know that look. A year ago, you and he appeared in the same second at the capital’s market as strangers. Now you know that when he goes this pale, you need to listen.

Subaru: "Bro. Listen to me. Things are about to get really scary. If you feel fear that isn’t yours… don’t trust it." He squeezes Beatrice’s hand. "Emilia-tan is on the other side of the city. I have to get to her."

Beatrice: "Subaru, that tower reeks of the Witch. Very strongly, I suppose."

Along the bank, people have stopped and are pointing upward. Somewhere a little girl who lost her mother in the crowd is crying.

The gondolier says: "I’ll drop you off at the pier — I’m not going any farther. And you’re not crazy enough to head toward the towers, are you?!"

🟥 You do not know anyone yet

📅 Year 2 · Arbe · Day 9 (Day 399 since arrival) 🕰 Afternoon · 📍 Priestella — the stone shelter under the old bridge ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Priestella’s shelters were built centuries ago, for times of flood. No one ever imagined they would be used to hide from people. In the cramped stone vault under the old bridge there are more than fifty of you: fishermen, washerwomen, children, a merchant who won’t let go of his purse. The air is hot and heavy. Above your heads, through the thick stone, water rumbles.

You have lived in Priestella your whole life. You have never heard the canals sound like this.

The voice from the loudspeakers seeps in even here, gentle as a lullaby.

Sirius: "Don’t cry, my dears… Let us all feel together… one heart, one fear…"

And the fear comes. Not as a thought, but as a wave. The woman beside you screams, and in the same instant everyone screams. The scream pushes its way up your own throat too, as if it isn’t yours. A small boy clings to your leg. His heart beats in the same rhythm as yours.

A burly dockworker leaps up and throws himself at the iron door.

The dockworker says: "I can’t! I can’t stay in here! Let me out!"

The washerwoman says: "If you open it, they’ll get in! Stop him!"

His hand is already on the bolt. And just then, through the cracks in the stone, ever so faintly, another sound drifts in. The twang of a string. Then a woman’s voice, breathless and wonderfully alive.

Liliana: "Hey, Priestella! Can you hear me?! The Songstress asks you for one minute! Just one! Wipe away your tears and listen!"

The dockworker freezes with his hand on the bolt. The boy lifts his eyes to you.

🟥 You do not know anyone yet

📅 Year 2 · Elul · Day 1 (Day 421 since arrival) 🕰 Evening · 📍 Mirula — the guides’ tavern ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Sand gets in everywhere — in your boots, in the beer, in the folds of your clothes. Mirula is the last town before the Sands of Augria, and everyone here makes a living from one thing: leading fools into the desert and, if they’re lucky, bringing them back alive.

You are sitting at your usual table in the corner when the door opens and a group walks in that looks like no one else here. A girl with lavender hair and a white fur stole around her neck. A black-haired boy in knight’s clothes. A silver-haired maiden, an elegant knight with purple hair, and a pink-haired maid with a disdainful look.

Anastasia: She sits down across from you without asking. "I was told you’re the guide who’s come back from the sands more times than anyone. We want to reach the Pleiades Watchtower. How much will it cost us?"

Silence falls over the tavern. Someone drops a tankard. The old guide at the next table lets out a hoarse laugh.

The old guide says: "To the tower? No one makes it there. And whoever does gets killed by the star from the sky."

The black-haired boy doesn’t laugh. He looks you straight in the eye.

Subaru: "We’re not asking you to take us to the tower. We just want you to help us survive the sands. The rest is our job."

🟩 You know Subaru from Japan

📅 Year 2 · Elul · Day 2 (Day 422 since arrival) 🕰 Midday · 📍 The Sands of Augria — the dragon carriage ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Sand. Nothing but sand as far as the eye can see, and a murky yellow sky from which the sun beats down like a forge. The wind whips up whirlwinds that hiss against the carriage canvas, and there is something rotten and heavy in the air — miasma that makes your head throb.

Patrasche pulls the carriage with her head lowered, her black scales gleaming like obsidian. Subaru sits on the driver’s bench with Beatrice beside him, talking soothingly to the ground dragon, but his voice is hoarse with thirst.

Inside the carriage, Ram sits perfectly upright, as if she were in the manor’s drawing room rather than in the middle of a desert. Beside her, wrapped in a blanket, Rem sleeps.

Ram: "Barusu. If you get us lost again, I will bury you here personally. Sand makes for convenient graves." Subaru: "We’re not lost! The map’s just more optimistic than reality."

Julius watches through a gap in the canvas in silence. Ever since Gluttony ate his name, no one in the world remembers him… no one except Subaru and you. Anastasia, wrapped in her fox stole, talks quietly to herself — or rather, to the spirit in the stole.

Erida: "The sand whirlwinds are moving against the wind. That isn’t natural."

Emilia tries to cool the air with a little ice magic and hands you a canteen. Meili, a girl with dark blue hair, sits cross-legged on the floor, humming to herself, while outside a giant scorpion crawls alongside the carriage, obedient as a puppy.

Meili: "Big bro, the mabeasts around here are pretty jumpy, y’know? Something’s scaring them."

There, on the horizon, through the curtain of dust, something impossibly tall takes shape: a slender white tower piercing the sky.

🟩 You know Subaru from Japan

📅 Year 2 · Elul · Day 5 (Day 425 since arrival) 🕰 Early evening · 📍 The foot of the Pleiades Watchtower ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

After days in the sands — days of thirst and whirlwinds, nights without sleep — the Pleiades Watchtower finally stands before you. Up close it is even more impossible: smooth white stone rising so high that its top disappears into the clouds. All around, the sand is strangely quiet.

Suddenly a shriek rings out from above. Not frightened. Joyful.

Shaula: "Maaasterrr!"

Something — someone — flies through the air from a window high up the tower, crashes into the sand a few meters away from you, and throws up a cloud of dust. When the dust settles, a tall young woman stands before you, her long black hair tied in a ponytail, wearing a grin so wide it almost makes you uncomfortable.

Paying no attention to anyone else, she throws herself at Subaru and hugs him so hard his bones creak.

Shaula: "Master, you’re finally back! I waited four hundred years for you, y’know! Four hundred!" Subaru: "W-wait! Who… what master?! Bro, help!"

Ram raises an eyebrow. Emilia blinks in confusion. Beatrice turns red with anger and yanks Shaula by the ponytail.

Beatrice: "Let go of him this instant! He is Betty’s contractor, I suppose!"

Shaula finally notices you. She tilts her head and looks you over from head to toe with curiosity.

Shaula: "Hm? And who are you? Master never brought anyone like you before."

🟨 You know Subaru because you appeared at the same moment

📅 Year 2 · Elul · Day 5 (Day 425 since arrival) 🕰 Afternoon · 📍 The Sands of Augria — the last dune before the Pleiades Watchtower ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

The first beam comes without a sound. White, thin as a needle, it falls from the sky, and the sand twenty paces from the carriage erupts in a fountain of glass. The second lands closer.

Ram: "Someone is shooting from the tower. And the misses aren’t on purpose."

Patrasche leaps aside without waiting for a command, and the carriage jolts so hard that the sleeping Rem nearly falls off her bedding.

Subaru is on the driver’s bench, fingers dug into the reins. More than a year has passed since you and he appeared in the same second at the capital’s market. You’ve seen him run from all kinds of things. But never straight toward something firing at him from the clouds.

Subaru: "Emilia-tan, wall! Beatrice, shield! Straight ahead, Patrasche! The closer we get to the tower, the harder we are to hit!"

An ice wall springs up in front of the dragon, and the next beam shatters against it into a thousand sparks. Beatrice spreads her arms, and the air around the carriage darkens. Meili laughs while her giant scorpion burrows into the sand in fear. Julius rides alongside with his blade drawn, and the fox spirit in Anastasia’s scarf whispers:

Erida: "The beams are coming from a single window. There’s only one shooter."

Suddenly the beams stop. Silence. From a window high, high up on the white tower comes a piercing, happy voice.

Shaula: "Masteeer! Is that you?!"

Subaru slowly turns to you, pale.

Subaru: "…Bro. Tell me I’m not the only one who heard that."

🟩 You know Subaru from Japan

📅 Year 2 · Elul · Day 6 (Day 426 since arrival) 🕰 Daytime (no outside light reaches the tower) · 📍 Pleiades Watchtower — the third floor, Taygeta ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

The floor has no end. The shelves rise so high that their upper rows vanish into the gloom, and they stretch in every direction as far as the eye can see. The air is dry and smells of old paper.

Every book is black. No titles. No authors. Only a name, written in silver on the spine.

Shaula: She bounces ahead of you with her hands behind her head. "Master, Master! This is Taygeta! All the books of the dead are here! Shaula can’t read ’em, but there’s lots and lots of ’em!"

Julius opens a book and immediately shuts it, pale.

Julius: "This… is not mere text. I saw a man’s memories. I felt what he felt, as if I had been there."

Beatrice: She frowns, staring at the shelves. "The Books of the Dead. If there are books here for everyone who has died… then there might also be books for those Gluttony has eaten, I suppose?"

Subaru walks slowly along the shelves, scanning the names. He doesn’t say what he is looking for. But every time his fingers stop on a spine with a familiar name, his shoulders tense, as if he is afraid of finding a book here with his own name on it.

Emilia touches your arm.

Emilia: "Be careful. If one of the books calls to you louder than the others, don’t open it alone."