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Chapter Text

He closed the door on his way out of his family’s house that night. He heard his mother say something to him. “Take care,” she had said. He didn’t respond, though. The words were lost on him then.

He was going to the convenience store again. He did this several times a week. It was the only reason he would ever leave his family’s house.

In those days, he had become a shut-in. He had been for about a year, ever since the first morning he had decided to watch the clock turn over to eight o’ clock, realizing it was already too late to make it to school for the day. He idly stewed in his hobbies instead of furthering himself in any meaningful way. He was going nowhere fast.

But he was going to be going somewhere soon enough.

He got his usual supplies: a cup of instant ramen and a bag of potato chips. He nearly paid with a chipped one yen coin. He used a different coin instead, some deep-seated, childish superstition urging him to do so. Aside from this banal detail, this series of events had been textbook for him, painfully procedural.

Emerging from the convenience store, he was a reasonably short walk away from returning home, back into the melancholic comfort of his bedroom. There, his games, manga, and favorite shows awaited him, distractions with which he could pacify himself, numbing the ever present faintly burning ennui his life had become.

He began walking across the small, vacant parking lot of that convenience store. He began to feel oddly drowsy.

“… the hell?”

He rubbed at his eyes. They were irritated in the way they could only be from grogginess. But he hadn’t just been asleep, nor had he felt drowsy before making this routine trip.

He rubbed his eyes some more, hoping to achieve some clarity. His vision only became blurrier. The world around him became incomprehensible. And then, just as his eyes widened enough, and clarity began to return –

***

A young man with golden blonde hair was taking a leisurely stroll through a garden. He was a regal young man, born into royalty, no less.

He leaned down to inspect a flower, one all too familiar to him. It was a bloom that had been inspected before, though not by him. He sighed wistfully, lost in reminiscence. It was such reverie that had brought him to this garden, that of the Royal Palace. He looked over both shoulders, hoping not to be overheard by anyone.

“Ah, what a day that had been! She should wear dresses more often…”

Still cradling the bloom in one hand, he smiled softly, lost in that nostalgic daydream. It was this place, nearly eight years ago, that he had first met the girl of his dreams at knife point. A girl he seemed hopeless to get closer to, despite having become the best of friends.

It was even more absurd to him given that their two families, House Lugunica and House Karsten, went far back. They were about as inseparable as the covenant to the Divine Dragon Volcanica was unbreakable.

So why, then, did he struggle so?

“I wonder if she’ll wear a dress at her birthday again this year… it’s coming up pretty soon. I certainly hope she does… and that there’s no disturbances. No girl deserves to have their birthday encroached upon by matters of business, least of all her!”

He still found it annoying that this girl’s birthday had been so rudely interrupted almost a year prior. It had been no ordinary interruption, though.

When one of the Three Great Witch Beasts comes wreaking havoc in your family’s lands, you take notice. He could hardly fault her for taking action. It had been that decision that had made her, Crusch Karsten, the new duchess of her family’s lands. Her knack for leadership had been obvious back then. Her father could hardly rationalize continuing to hold the reins for himself.

The young prince’s worries were understandable. Given his station, though, there were other worries he really should have been prioritizing. At least, this is how most everyone else in the kingdom saw it.

Though he was only the fourth prince, rendering his prospects for ascending to the throne effectively moot, he still had other duties to attend to. Matters of courtship should really have been more prescient in his mind. He preferred to focus on the diplomatic efforts he had begun throwing himself into. Such efforts were always just distraction for him, though. His mind always found a way to wander back to a familiar, more pleasant place.

His reverie wouldn’t remain undisturbed for long, however. He heard a loud splash come from the fountain behind him.

“What in the…?!”

Time and place are curious things. These two factors alone affect outcomes on the smallest and largest of scales. They can determine which paths will cross and which will not.

They can also determine things as simple as how graceful an entrance is or isn’t.

Emerging from thin air about three meters off the ground, a black-haired young man tumbled through the air for only a moment. He hadn’t even had enough time to scream, yelp, or shout.

The prince cautiously approached the fountain. He knew he probably shouldn’t just in case it was something dangerous. This piece of wisdom was the only thing keeping him from approaching the fountain more readily. It never would have prevented him from doing so at all, though. His curiosity compelled him too much.

There was silence for a moment as the water in the fountain settled. Then –

“Kuuuuuuuh!”

“Ahhhhhhhh!”

The black-haired stranger gasped for air as he emerged from the fountain, coughing out the water he had inadvertently gulped down upon impact. Meanwhile, the prince was given quite a scare, falling backwards onto his rear and yelling in surprise.

The black-haired stranger climbed out of the fountain slowly, shaking and struggling to get his bearings as he continued to cough. He fell onto his back, lightly dazing himself in the process. This caused the prince to back up further, crawling backwards away from the soaked stranger.

All of this commotion had been enough to get the attention of some guards. They wore white uniforms with red and black accents and had straight-edged short swords with rapier hilts on their hips.

“Your Highness, are you… who the hell is that?!”

The first guard to enter had assumed some harm had come to the fourth prince of Lugunica, Fourier Lugunica. Seeing a black-haired young man wearing unfamiliar clothes and bearing a suspicious bag in his hand, however, had a way of diverting his attention. It also told his fellow guards where they ought to be looking there and then.

“Apprehend him, quickly!”

A second guard snapped into action, rushing toward the stranger, who was still coughing on his back.

“H-Huh? Wait a minute! Augh!”

This second guard flipped the stranger prone and held his hands behind his back, pressing him into the ground and holding him in place.

“Ah, owowowow, dammit! This is… some sorta mistake!”

He wanted to protest further, but then a third guard drew his sword, pointing it at the stranger’s face. It was only a few centimeters from his nose, causing his pupils to constrict in terror.

“Quiet, you! It should be obvious to all in this kingdom that sneaking into the Royal Palace is a grave offense!”

One of the other guards looked him up and down, assessing the stranger on the garden floor. He frowned.

“I’m not sure this boy is even Lugunican. Look at his clothes, his hair… he looks like a foreigner…”

“To think, a foreign agent could find themselves in the heart of the palace… the commander is going to love this…”

“You don’t have to be quite so rough with the poor fellow, you know!”

“Your Highness ‒?!”

The third guard who held Subaru at the point of his sword was taken aback by the prince’s interjection. He had stepped into the fray, chastising the guards for their conduct. Though he had been startled mere moments earlier, he had collected himself enough to realize at least some of what was going on.

Unfortunately, his words fell on deaf ears.

“Please, Your Highness, stay back! We don’t know what this young man is capable of. He could be a spy or an assailant sent from Vollachia or perhaps Gusteko.”

The second guard urged the prince to remove himself from the situation out of fear for his safety. A breach of the Royal Palace’s security was already bad enough as it was. A prince being harmed or even killed would certainly turn the Royal Guard on its head at the very least, if not outright break it. There were already cracks in the foundation from the not too distant past.

“Don’t be ridiculous! The Vollochian Empire would be foolish to make an attempt on the life of a member of the Royal Family. That would provoke a war they would stand no chance of winning, not while we have the Divine Dragon and Sword Saint in play!”

“But –“

“As for Gusteko, I assume you are up to date on current events? Overtures of trade have been on the rise between our two nations. Why, a member of our kingdom’s nobility married the daughter of the Archbishop of the Holy Church of Gusteko not that long ago! What would they stand to gain by sullying such burgeoning relations?”

He was of keen insight, this fourth prince. He could tell this stranger from a strange land hadn’t meant any harm. He took the second guard’s possible explanations for this stranger – fears, more than anything – and dismantled them on the spot. The guards didn’t have much they could say in defense of their rough conduct.

“Forgive them, Your Highness. They act with good intentions, and according to proper procedure given the… unique circumstances.”

It was as these guards had entered this stalemate with the fourth prince that a new guardsman entered the scene. He wore the same uniform as the others, though he possessed an aura of elegance that none of them did. He had violet hair and yellow eyes that gleamed like gold.

Despite the tension in the air, he remained composed, wearing a slight, dignified smile on his face. The first guard that had called for the dark-haired stranger's apprehension was taken aback by the sudden appearance.

“Sir Julius. You’ve arrived rather quickly.”

“But of course. One of my buds alerted me to a brewing situation in the Royal Palace’s garden. I invoked In to offer me greater reflexes and Nes to lighten me, allowing me to arrive in a timely manner.”

“… astounding. But what’s this you say about ‘proper procedure?’”

The prince was indeed impressed with Julius’s demonstration of proficiency in the Spirit Arts, though not enough to chase his curiosity again.

“Regardless of the intentions of the interloper, they are to apprehended and questioned, should it be possible. Of course, were he a Witch Cultist, he would’ve been killed on the spot.”

Hearing Julius say this caused the guards to become alarmed. They had snapped into action, seemingly assuming apprehension was the correct move to make. Maybe they had desired to spare the prince from witnessing a violent death, that they actually intended to kill him out of the prince’s view.

At any rate, the stranger they held pinned had been undoubtedly spared death either from a coin flip decision on the part of these guards or by Julius’s timely intervention.

The prince sighed, rubbing the back of his neck in vexation as he turned his attention to the stranger.

“Fear not, friend! I’m sure Julius here will sort everything out. I only wish I could be of more help…”

“Your helpful nature is admirable, Your Highness, but this falls under the purview of the Royal Guard. Please, rest easy. That said, we shall indeed uncover what is going on here.”

“I shall take my leave, then. Returning to my chambers, reading more letters…”

The fourth prince sounded despondent at the notion of reading these “letters.” The guards present could only guess what this meant. The stranger, meanwhile, watched their benefactor slowly depart from the garden. His pace matched the tone in his voice. The stranger somehow doubted the prince was actually going to read those letters, whatever their contents were.

“Right then. I’ll take it from here, gentlemen.”

“… understood, Sir Julius.”

The third guard that had been pointing his sword at the stranger returned it to its sheath, sounding slightly disappointed as he did so. Perhaps he had wanted to be the one to question the stranger, or worse. It wasn’t clear to the stranger. Nothing here was.

The guards carefully got the stranger back onto his feet, placing manacles on his hands after doing so and handing him off to Julius. The manacles looked nothing like those he recalled seeing back home. Julius then began walking the stranger out of the garden. Their destination was uncertain to the stranger, though they had a bad feeling in the pit of their stomach.

***

The dark-haired stranger had been placed in a gloomy room within the palace’s dungeon. It was illuminated by what appeared to be glowing green rocks on the walls, providing a cool tint to the room. There was a solitary wooden table at the center. He sat upon an uncomfortable wooden stool. There was another one directly across from him, unoccupied for the time being.

The person who would sitting there, a knight named Julius, wasn’t present in the room. Just after leaving the stranger in their seat, he had mentioned needing to report this to his commander – possibly the same one the second guard from earlier had groused about – before they could begin. The door had been locked after Julius had left.

This musty room of stone was no doubt an interrogation chamber. Across from him on top of the table sat his plastic convenience store bag. His stomach grumbled as he remembered its contents. He reasoned he could still manage to reach it and open the chips at the very least.

“‒ guess that’s all probably “evidence” now, though, huh?”

He sighed, feeling defeated. He stared at the table, then up to the ceiling. A drop of water dripped and hit him the forehead, riling him up.

“‒ dammit! What the hell am I doing here?! How the hell did I even get here?! I could be eating in my room right now… my room…”

Remembering his room back home made his flared temper come down. He recalled his parents back home, who were entirely unaware that their son had been taken prisoner.

“‒ will I get a free call? No, wait, something tells me this place doesn’t even have phones…”

He reasoned that the manner of dress, the architecture he had seen on his way to the dungeons, and the presence of knights meant he was certainly not in modern times anymore at the very least. Moreover –

“‒ that purple haired knight… Julius? The way he was talking almost made it sound like he could use magic of some sort… am I even on Earth anymore…?”

As he mumbled out his question in an attempt to reason things out himself, there was a sound at the door. It was unlocked, and Julius stepped back inside, closing the door behind him. He didn’t lock it behind him, which gave the stranger some small comfort.

“Alright. I have done my due diligence and relayed this situation to my superior. Now, we may begin. First, I must ask that you state your name and land of origin.”

“My name’s Natsuki Subaru. I’m a Japanese citizen.”

“‘Japanese?’ I’m unfamiliar.”

The knight grasped his chin, puzzled. Subaru issued another weary sigh. It had only been a few hours, but he felt like he had been in this strange place for at least a day already.

“Right, guess this means we really aren’t in modern times. Otherwise you’d have heard of the third largest economy in the world.”

“Were such a boast true, I would be certainly remiss to not be aware of this country’s existence. However, among the four kingdoms, none bear that name. Furthermore, there are no countries further east of Lugunica.”

“… okay, so that answers a few questions.”

As Julius doubled down on the apparent nonexistence of Japan in this world, he also mentioned the name of the nation he found himself in: Lugunica. Subaru’s understanding was slowly but surely improving, but not fast enough for his taste.

“Odd. I should be the one getting answers from you.”

“S-Sorry! Look, there seems to be a terrible misunderstanding here, as that prince guy was saying.”

“That ‘prince guy’ is Prince Fourier Lugunica, the fourth son of King Randohal.”

“Oh, so he’s named after the kingdom, then? Er, wait… is it the other way around?”

Julius stared on incredulously at Subaru as he tried reasoning in a chicken-or-the-egg fashion. The latter took notice of this response, then felt awkward.

“Is… is that supposed to be common knowledge?”

“Yes. Very. You definitely seem to be a foreigner in these lands…”

Julius made this observation, looking at the hair and clothes of the interrogated. He then turned his attention to the plastic bag. He touched it, rustling it as he rubbed the bag between his forefinger and thumb.

“This material is rather flimsy…”

“Okay, so no plastic in this place… I didn’t even care if that were the case, but answers are answers…”

“‘Plastic?’”

“Oh, it’s a synthetic material made from petroleum. Uh, oil.”

Julius stared curiously at Subaru for a moment, then returned his attention to the bag and its contents. He untied the handles, pulling out the food goods inside.

“And what are these, exactly?”

“Those are food items. The bag is full of potato chips, thinly cut potato fried in oil until nice and crisp. The cup is a full of instant ramen.”

Julius stared curiously at him once more, awaiting elaboration.

“Uh, ramen is a noodle-based dish. It usually has meat and veggies, maybe a soft boiled egg and some seaweed… this one is very simple. All you need is boiling water in the cup, then let it sit for a bit as it cooks. Add a seasoning packet, and you have your ramen.”

“I see… so these are harmless food items. None of them poisoned, I trust?”

“Well, I sure hope not! I bought those for myself…”

“Wherever it is you purchased these goods must have been quite far away, indeed. I have never seen such goods for sale within Lugunica, nor have I seen such clothing…”

“This? It’s a track suit. It’s meant for athletic wear.”

“Athletic wear, you say? You are a sportsman?”

“Ah, no… I just… like how it looks…”

Subaru shrank a bit as he honestly answered the knight’s question. He felt a bit sheepish to admit he was no athlete. Granted, he was in decent shape for one his age, easily above average. Considering he had nothing else taking up his time beyond his hobbies, he had no excuses not to stay fit. It was one of the few good uses of his time he engaged in as a shut-in.

“I see. I suppose I shall move on to the primary question at hand, then: how did you manage to sneak into the Royal Palace? Was it some form of magically induced invisibility? Perhaps you possess advanced knowledge of Yin Magic?”

“‘Yin Magic?’ I don’t anything of any sort of magic! I just sorta… showed up there.”

“You’ll forgive me for finding that rather difficult to believe.”

“I can’t exactly blame you… but I’m telling the truth! I don’t belong here! Please, you have to understand!”

He became frantic, knowing full well he had no means to readily exonerate himself. Sneaking into the Royal Palace, even if unintentionally, was a “grave offense.” He could only imagine what punishment would match that degree of offense.

Julius sighed, clearly trying to be sympathetic, though too mired by the incomprehensibility of the situation to fully commit.

Then, there was a knock at the door.

“I’m sorry, but I’m in the middle of questioning a suspect.”

“Forgive me, but I couldn’t help but overhear your conversation…”

The voice at the door, that of a kind man, caused Julius to turn his attention to the door. He got up from his stool and opened the door, revealing another knight, at least based upon his uniform.

He had flaming red hair and piercing blue eyes. The sword on his hip appeared different than those of the guards that had apprehended him in the garden. It was larger and had a more ornate sheath. It gave Subaru the impression of profound power.

“Reinhard? What brings you down here?”

“I ran into His Highness Prince Fourier earlier. He mentioned what had happened and asked for me to assist you in your task. It seems you have made some progress, but…”

“… I’m rather uncertain how to proceed. I lack the gifts you and Lady Crusch can use to discern the truth. Based upon what this young man has told me, my instincts are telling me he is innocent of any wrongdoing.”

He glanced over at Subaru as he relayed his observation, then returned his attention to Reinhard.

“His presence in the Royal Palace’s garden seems to have been purely incidental, not the work of a foreign agent. His ignorance of our kingdom seems too genuine for me to dismiss. His possessions are distinctly lacking in lethal potential. Unless he is a skilled mage, I see no way how he could have been a threat to the prince.”

Julius uneasily offered the remainder of his assessment of Subaru to Reinhard. He seemed to take no pleasure in any of this. Despite the feeling of injustice Subaru had in his chest, he couldn’t help but sympathize with the knight.

“And it’s that last point that has you wondering, isn’t it?”

Reinhard looked Subaru up and down, then stared into his eyes for a moment. It made him a little uncomfortable, until the knight smiled.

“Given his bizarre outfit and possessions, his ignorance of our kingdom, and earnest claims of hailing from a land neither you nor I have heard of… he may be from beyond the Great Waterfall.”

Julius’s eyes widened in response to Reinhard’s assessment.

“… Reinhard… you must be aware of how this sounds.”

“Can you refute it, though? I can’t.”

Reinhard had offered his hypothesis for Subaru’s situation, one which seemed completely beyond the pale to Julius. Subaru himself was still as lost as he had been since his arrival. He just wanted things to settle down so he could more fully get his bearings. The few answers he had gotten from talking with Julius simply weren’t enough for him.

Reinhard then pulled Julius aside, just out of interrogation room. He began to whisper to Julius, seeming to believe that whatever they were talking about now was not something they needed to trouble Subaru with. Subaru, meanwhile, watched them, on edge and somewhat put off.

“He should be monitored for the time being, until it is sufficiently determined that he isn’t a threat. A legitimate case of someone hailing from beyond the Great Waterfall is so unprecedented.”

“Agreed. I can take him into my family’s old manor. It’s far from the Capital, so it should make for a good place to hold him for the time being.”

“Wouldn’t that be quite an imposition?”

“Hardly, friend, hardly.”

Reinhard waved a dismissive hand before himself. In truth, it would be quite an imposition, and not just for him. Still, he felt it was the best course of action.

“I see… very well then. That only leaves the matter of explaining his circumstances. He can’t just be kept hidden, after all. People will see him in your presence. They will have questions.”

Julius had severe concerns about his friend taking in a complete unknown, especially knowing the unwanted attention it could draw. Reinhard peered over Julius’s shoulder at Subaru, noticing him staring over at them with a fraught look on his face. Returning his gaze to Julius, he then smiled.

“We’ll just have to swear those guards that caught him to secrecy, then.”

Julius stared at his comrade, astonished.

“… we’re going to cover this incident up?”

“I understand your misgivings. Believe me, if we had any better options that wouldn’t also trample on our new acquaintance’s rights, I would choose one of those in a heartbeat. I’m sure Commander Marcus would agree that this is the best course of action.”

“True… it would be a black mark on the Royal Guard were it let known that someone had so easily infiltrated the Royal Palace, confidence in our rank would be called into question. Such transparency would doubtlessly cause more harm than good…”

It pained Julius to admit that being virtuous in this case wasn’t perfectly possible. He could do right by Subaru or by the people, but he couldn’t do both without sweeping this incident under the rug. He took minor solace in that this lie – one just short of a white lie in his eyes – would keep the people at ease.

“Um… hello? I’m still over here, y’know…”

Subaru raised a hand as he called over to the two knights. The suspense was officially overstaying its welcome for his taste.

“My apologies, Subaru. We’ve arrived at a course of action that we believe to be amenable to all parties involved.”

“Oh yeah? And what would that be, exactly?”

Reinhard finally entered the room, placing his hand over his heart in a display of cordiality.

“Would you care to come stay with me? You seem to be a bit out of your element in our homeland. You can rest up there and get your bearings.”

Subaru was unsure of what to make of this offer. He wasn’t sure what other options he had to choose from here. He somehow suspected he wasn’t going to be able to return home, something he didn’t wish to dwell upon for the time being.

Being a stranger in a strange land, he had little to no recourse here. Being so thoroughly lost, he felt he would be a fool to reject a lifeline when it was thrown his way.

As such –

“… yeah, okay. Not like I got any better options…”

The two knights seemed uncomfortable with the tepid response. While they could sympathize with his situation, they found it difficult not to feel terribly off about this. No one was particularly happy about any of this.

Fortunately, this unease and discomfort wouldn’t stay forever. Slowly but surely, he would make his way in this new world, starting a new life. A grand life. A very different life. Different from the life he had known as well as from the one which he had never even imagined.

Chapter Text

Reinhard had briefly left Subaru and Julius alone in the interrogation chamber while he ran his plan by their commander, a knight named Marcos. Subaru hadn’t yet seen the man, but imagined he must be quite an imposing character given the allusion offered by the guards back in the Royal Palace’s garden.

His imagination and his thoughts were all he really had to occupy him while they awaited the Sword Saint’s return. It was awfully silent in that room.

“… I apologize for the circumstances, Subaru.”

“Huh? What for? Not like you brought me here…”

“‘Brought here,’ yes... I still can hardly believe we’re actually considering this to be the case…”

Subaru had been leaning forward on the table, resting his chin on his open palm in a bored manner. Julius’s mention of disbelief had him straighten his posture, though. He crossed his arms indignantly.

“Look, I’m not lying here, okay? I didn’t come here intentionally. I hadn’t even heard of a place called Lugunica before today.”

“Please understand things from my perspective. I have no way of confirming the veracity of your claims at the moment. Even Reinhard can’t do so. There are many possibilities that could be true.”

“Oh yeah? Like what? I just sorta sleepwalked all the way into a far-off kingdom I’d never even heard of before?”

He issued a sarcastic retort to the knight. He didn’t care for the distrust on display, even if it was well-reasoned. He just wanted to be believed and to feel secure, wants which were themselves reasonable, considering he had been removed from anything familiar to him.

“Well, we can’t rule out some sort of fugue state, I suppose. We’re not yet aware of the full extent of your abilities, either. You were able to sneak into the Royal Palace so easily. Again, please understand that we’re only being as cautious as our station demands. You’re an unknown, and the safety of the Royal Family is paramount.”

“Right, right… that blond guy I saw was a prince, right?”

Subaru returned to his previous bored posture. He was too tired to continue arguing, especially since it seemed his captors had already made up their mind as it was. He spoke very casually about his brief encounter with the fourth prince, to Julius’s slight displeasure. The knight frowned at his captive’s flippant attitude.

“Again, that was Prince Fourier Lugunica, fourth in line for the throne of the Dragon Kingdom.”

“‘Dragon Kingdom?’ So, there’s knights, magic, and now dragons…”

“But of course. Our kingdom’s security is ensured by the Divine Dragon Volcanica. The Royal Family formed a covenant with Volcanica centuries ago. That’s why their safety is of the utmost importance.”

“What, so this dragon wouldn’t defend the kingdom without them? Seems like you’re putting all of your eggs in one basket…”

He shifted again, leaning back in his seat and again crossing his arms. He tapped a finger on one of his arms, mulling over what he was hearing and forming impressions on the fly.

“Were it just the Divine Dragon defending us, then yes, you would be correct. However, we also have the Sword Saint and the Royal Army to defend the kingdom, as well.”

“The way you just mentioned this Sword Saint… it’s almost like they’re an army unto themselves.”

“Indeed, Reinhard is likely so capable.”

“Huh… wait, that guy is the Sword Saint?”

“Yes. He represents the best among us knights.”

Suddenly, the door opened again, and Reinhard walked on through, almost as if on cue. He was smiling in as friendly of a manner as he had been when he had first appeared. Given what Subaru had just heard of the man, and given his general demeanor, it seemed to him that if anyone was the protagonist of this fantasy world, it would have to be him.

“Remind me, Julius, but aren’t you the one everyone refers to as the ‘Finest Knight?’”

“Pure flattery, I assure you. What has the commander said? Do we have clearance?”

Reinhard gave a nod of assurance.

“We have permission to transfer Subaru from here to my family’s historic estate. It will be quite a trip, I’m sorry to say.”

“Does this mean we can get rid of these cuffs already? Or is that premature?”

He lifted his hands, rattling the chains of his manacles. To be rid of them would be a great step closer to the sense of security he so desired to return to him.

“Well… forgive me, Subaru, but… I’d actually asked Commander Marcos if I could keep you in binds.”

Subaru sighed with disappointment. He knew he was getting hopes up even asking for what he felt was the bare minimum.

“Right, right… because I’m an unknown and all that…”

“Forgive me. I just don’t know what you’re capable of yet. For all I know, you could be stronger than me, or even the Divine Dragon.”

“Somehow I sincerely doubt that…”

Part of him wanted to laugh. To be so thoroughly overestimated was certainly laughable. The greater part of him knew it would only be in self-deprecation to do so.

“At any rate, the commander said it wouldn’t be necessary to keep your hands bound so long as you’re in my company.”

“Yeah, guess it would be pretty foolish to… wait, what?”

He had appeared understanding yet let down all the same for a moment, only to double take once he properly comprehended what Reinhard had said. The Sword Saint continued to smile pleasantly.

“He left it to my discretion whether you would remain in binds or not. I sensed he trusted my judgment and abilities, so I’ve decided to remove them. If we must come to blows, though, please don’t go too hard on me.”

Reinhard folded his hand over his heart as he made this humble request. Subaru couldn’t tell if the humility on display were genuine or feigned. He couldn’t even tell if it were truly humility or something else entirely. He was too surprised, happily so, to process such things.

“Do you truly suspect him to be so powerful, Reinhard?”

“The possibility can’t be discounted, can it?”

Julius could read between the lines well enough. Considering their prior private conversation just out of Subaru’s hearing, it was clear Reinhard was referring to their plan to cover up Subaru’s inexplicable appearance in the Royal Palace’s garden. The implication was that this was a matter of national security, to assume that the threat was worse than it may actually be just in case.

“Again, I think you may seriously be overestimating me here… don’t get me wrong, I’m reasonably fit, but if you’re as strong as Julius here says, you could probably wipe the floor with me just by blinking.”

“That’s quite a comical overestimation of your own.”

“It isn’t far from the truth, actually… anyway, I shall trust your judgment.”

Julius muttered this statement, then sighed. Reinhard’s humbleness seemed as limitless as his strength to him.

He withdrew a key from a pocket in his uniform, releasing Subaru’s hands from his manacles. He rubbed his wrists, as they had gotten to be ever so slightly uncomfortable in the time since he had been apprehended.

“Y’know, I’ve imagined scenarios of being summoned to another world before. None of them involved me being arrested the second I arrived, though…”

“‘Summoned,’ you say? What leads you to believe you were summoned?”

Julius arched an eyebrow at this phrasing. Mentions of being “brought” to their world had already piqued his interest. The mention of a possible “summoning,” however, had struck more directly.

“Well, I dunno… do people appear out of thin air every day?”

“We can’t discount the possibility of Yin Magic having been used. If not by you, then by someone else.”

“It’s definitely not me… not that I can demonstrably prove that, anyway.”

“So, you’re beginning to understand our predicament?”

Julius sounded almost hopeful, though to Subaru’s ears, it was more akin to condescension.

“I’ve understood for while now, alright?! Geez…”

Julius looked from Subaru to Reinhard, as though to say “was it something I said?” Reinhard let out an exhale of minute laughter as he gestured toward Subaru.

“Right this way, Subaru. Please don’t forget your belongings.”

He had risen and taken a step toward Reinhard before the latter had reminded him of his grocery bag of snack foods. He picked up the bag, which sat in front of Julius. As he did, the knight looked at the sleeves of his tracksuit.

“You said your attire was a vestment typical of athletes from your homeland. What material is it made from, though? It appears unfamiliar.”

“Oh, there’s a tag in the collar here…”

He sat the bag back down for a moment, removing his jacket to read the tag to Julius. The situation felt just a little absurd.

“Let’s see… 100% polyester.”

“‘Polyester?’ Is that another material endemic to your homeland?”

“Yeah, though “endemic” makes it sound natural. It’s a synthetic material, kinda like petroleum. Actually, polyester is derived from petroleum, just like this bag here.”

He picked up the bag as he illustrated his point. Julius seemed quite curious about these otherworldly materials.

“A material that can be used to make virtually anything… your homeland must be quite advanced in magic.”

“Oh no, we don’t have magic where I come from. This stuff was made through a process called ‘science.’ It involves rigorous study, forming and testing hypotheses, reiterating on what works and tossing aside what doesn’t.”

“That sounds quite a lot like magic, at least as far as its continued development is concerned.”

“Huh. Reminds me of that old Asimov quote… how did it go again? ‘Any technology that is sufficiently advanced is indistinguishable from magic?’”

“So, there is magic in your world, then?”

“No, no, only in works of fiction… the shirt is cotton, by the way. Pretty sure my socks are, too, though they also have some elastic in them that probably is also some sorta plastic… oh, and the pants are the same as the jacket. Not sure about the shoes. I’d have to take them off… do I need to take them off?”

Julius raised a hand of stop Subaru before he did so. He was already balancing on one foot, his hands prepared to remove a shoe to determine it’s material makeup. The knight couldn’t tell if this strange boy was trying to make light of his curiosity or if he were trying to preempt it. He supposed these weren’t mutually exclusive.

“That won’t be necessary. I hope your travel to the historic Astrea Estate is uneventful.”

“‘Uneventful’ sounds nice, though it could also just mean boring…”

“I promise I will do my best to prevent you from becoming bored, Subaru.”

The Sword Saint gestured towards the door, and the group all left the interrogation chamber. Subaru had the sneaking suspicion most people who came here didn’t leave on such amenable terms.

As they emerged from the murk of the Prison Tower, he found himself blinded by the sun. It was high in the sky, as it was now mid-afternoon. They had been down there since late in the morning, the interrogation having lasted a few hours all told.

“I hate to return so late in the day. I don’t like putting out Carol and Grimm like this…”

“You aren’t the one putting them out. That would be your father. He really doesn’t need to take them with him when he wants to be away from the Capital. Ah, though I ought not to speak so critically of my superior.”

The elegant knight appeared troubled, torn between his sense of duty and his sense of justice. His words had carried a faint whiff of indignation on behalf of the two people Reinhard had mentioned. Subaru assumed them to be servants of House Astrea.

Shaking off this airing of grievance, Reinhard offered an assuaging wave of his hand.

“Don’t worry, we’ll keep that between us. I’ll see you the day after tomorrow, Julius.”

“Ah, tomorrow must be your day off then. Try to enjoy it.”

“I will. Keep the city safe for me, okay?”

The two waved as Julius took his leave, heading back to the Royal Palace. A carriage then pulled up, drawn by a creature completely alien to Subaru. He had been transported to the dungeon by foot previously.

“What is that?!”

“Hm? It’s an Earth Dragon.”

“An Earth Dragon? Guess it’s like the flightless bird equivalent of a dragon… can it still breath fire?”

“No, only the most powerful dragons can do that.”

“So, only flying ones?”

“No, not even Sky Dragons are capable of breathing fire. Only dragons of sufficient caliber, such as Volcanica, can do so. There once was a dragon named Valgren who could do so, as well, though it was defeated handily by Volcanica.”

“Woah… must have been like a kaiju battle…”

Subaru’s imagination ran wild upon hearing this brief tale of grand dragons fighting one another. He imagined it must have been a lot like Godzilla versus King Ghidorah.

While nostalgic movie scenes played out in his mind, Reinhard stared at him curiously.

“‘Kaiju?’”

“Oh, that refers to giant monsters. They can destroy whole cities in a matter of hours.”

“Goodness, so your homeland has such creatures, as well? I suppose nowhere is truly safe…”

The Sword Saint’s demeanor took a grave turn. He appeared to be offering his sincere condolences to those of Subaru’s world.

“Oh, no! They’re just works of fiction where I come from. Y’know, like in movies and books and stuff.”

“‘Movies?’”

The Sword Saint offered his hand to Subaru to help him into the carriage. He wore a look of confusion tinged with interest. Subaru sighed, feeling worn out already.

“… I’ve got a lot to explain, huh?”

***

The trip to the old Astrea Estate was spent roughly as Subaru had predicted. He explained a variety of concepts, objects, and phenomena from his world to the best of his ability. It wasn’t like he had been an expert in anything.

It wasn’t just him explaining such things, though. Their trip served as a mutual cultural exchange.

“So, the title of knight isn’t just hereditary?”

“Correct. Though those born into knightly families are given the opportunity to join the ranks of Lugunica’s knights, they must demonstrate their worth. This is especially the case if they are to be admitted to the Royal Guard, such as Julius and myself.”

“And you’re not their leader?”

“No, that would be Commander Marcos. My father is the vice commander, though. I maintain the title of the Sword Saint, which is hereditary, though not to every member of the Astrea family.”

“Oh? Why’s that?”

“The Divine Protection of the Sword Saint is the only one in existence that is hereditary. It is what makes one the Sword Saint, and it transfers to the strongest Astrea at that time. My late grandmother had been the previous Sword Saint. I became the Sword Saint when I was five years old.”

Subaru’s eyes widened as his jaw nearly hit the carriage floor.

“You were already the strongest when you were that young?”

“Well, it’s when I acquired the Divine Protection. I’m not sure I agree with the assertion that I was truly the strongest Astrea at the time…”

Reinhard became somewhat distant as they delved deeper into this topic. Subaru could tell his host-to-be was becoming uncomfortable. A change of topic was necessary.

“Er, so… this place we’re headed to… what’s it like?”

Reinhard took notice of the obvious attempt to ease the situation. He regained his composure as his typical pleasant smile returned.

“My family’s historic estate is located within the town of Hakuchuri, due north of the major city of Flanders. You’ll likely see more Earth Dragons there than you ordinarily would in a town of its size.”

“Why’s that?”

“The raising of Earth Dragons is one of the town’s key industries. It makes sense, as it’s close in proximity to Flanders, the Earth Dragon capital of the kingdom. It’s said to be where Earth Dragons originated.”

“Huh… must be a lot of space in the region if raising Earth Dragons is so important to these places.”

“It is quite spacious. Another key industry in Hakuchuri is agriculture, as is raising livestock. The area around the town is rather rural.”

“Rural, huh? Guess it wouldn’t to get some fresh air… I’ll be able to do that, right? I mean, I won’t be cooped up all the time, will I?”

Reinhard understood Subaru’s concern. He was being taken to an unfamiliar environment, in a land where he knew no one and no one knew him. The suspicions surrounding him had been made abundantly clear to him.

Therefore, it was all too easy for Subaru to realize that he wasn’t merely going to be a guest at the Astrea Estate. He would be a de facto prisoner there.

“You’re rather sharp, I see.”

“Yeah, well… who better to watch over a complete unknown than someone like you? If what Julius said is correct, you’re the natural warden for me.”

Reinhard winced at the mention of being considered a warden. Of course, he could hardly refute this would be the case. Still, he wanted to do better here.

Much like Prince Fourier, he felt this young man wasn’t the grave danger everyone else in the Royal Guard had made him out to be. Truthfully, he was only acting as he was to assuage the concerns of his fellow knights and prevent the Royal Family and public from panicking.

“Though your freedom of movement will be largely restricted, you will be treated as a guest within my family’s home. I assure you of that. In fact, I would prefer not to be viewed as a warden. Perhaps we may even become friends?”

“That’s a nice sentiment and all, but you have to understand that this is a weird situation I’m in. I won’t say ‘never,’ though.”

Reinhard simply continued to smile as Subaru offered a tentative compromise to the Sword Saint’s earnest proposal. He figured it would be unrealistic to expect his guest to trust him so soon. It would need to be earned with time.

“I appreciate that. Once the situation settles down in the Capital to a sufficient degree, your freedom of movement will become less restricted, perhaps even completely unfettered, depending on how the powers that be rule.”

“So, it’ll be up to the royals as to whether I can be truly free?”

“They will have the final say, though they will also receive counsel from the Sage Council.”

“‘Sage Council?’ Who are they?”

“A collective of the wisest men in the kingdom. They act as advisors to the king, should any important matters requiring deliberation arise. They also are meant to identify the next Great Sage.”

“There’s a ‘Great Sage,’ too? Why aren’t they already on this council? Is it some sorta Dalai Lama kind of thing…?”

Reinhard again appeared confused and fascinated in equal measure. His guest had said something curious again.

“I’m unfamiliar with this ‘Dalai Lama’ you mentioned… are they wise?”

“Er, he’s supposed to be. I dunno, I never met the guy! The Dalai Lama is a spiritual leader from… well, not my homeland, but a… well, it isn’t a neighboring nation per se… anyway, they’re meant to be found by the Panchen Lama, who is second only to the Dalai Lama in that nation’s religion. They both reincarnate upon their deaths, only to be identified by each other.”

“I see… I believe I follow. The Great Sage doesn’t reincarnate, at least not as far as anyone is aware. The Sage Council is instead seeking someone of similar potential to the Great Sage. You’re unfamiliar with the Great Sage, too?”

“Well, yeah… I’m not from this kingdom, remember?”

“Forgive me. It’s just… it’s difficult to comprehend someone not knowing of the Three Great Heroes at all. You weren’t familiar with the station of the Sword Saint, either. I take it you don’t know of the Divine Dragon’s significance, either?”

“Julius gave me all the details on that one. Something about a covenant the kingdom has between the Royal Family and the dragon, a sort of defense compact.”

“That’s correct. If you’d like to know more, there’s a book in our family’s library on the matter. It is a book of fables, though. I hope that wouldn’t feel too infantilizing?”

“What’s so infantilizing about reading fables? What, are these intended as bedtime stories?”

“Yes, actually.”

Subaru pondered for a moment whether he could even read this nation’s language or not. He hadn’t been paying attention to any road signs up to this point, being too preoccupied by his conversation with Reinhard.

He sincerely hoped his situation was like that of those found in manga and light novels, where upon being summoned to another world, said other world would inexplicably use Japanese as its lingua franca. Having to learn a new writing system could take months. The very thought of that much effort made him frown.

At least he wasn’t struggling with spoken language. He hadn’t had any issues conversing with anyone despite the obvious cultural differences. The writing system, however, remained a mystery.

“At any rate, the counsel of those sages will likely influence King Randohal’s decision regarding your freedom. Until then, the situation must be contained. Those guards need to be sworn to secrecy regarding your seemingly unintentional trespassing. Some time to gain distance from this incident would also be safest, wouldn’t you agree?”

“Can’t exactly argue with that, no…”

As much as it annoyed him to admit, Reinhard spoke wisely. Despite not having had any intention of ever arriving in that garden, despite not bearing any ill will to House Lugunica or the Lugunican people, he had appeared there. Before the fourth prince, no less.

The optics weren’t great, though their extent was fortunately quite limited. Damage control could be performed. Meanwhile, all he would need to do is lay low.

It was as this annoyance subsided that another reared its head. His stomach grumbled again. He clutched his stomach, embarrassed.

“… sorry. I, uh… didn’t have much to eat before arriving here.”

“It’s quite alright. We’ll be sure to have dinner upon our arrival at my family’s estate.”

“How long until we get there?”

“It will be another few hours, I’m sorry to say.”

Subaru was disappointed to hear this. Then, he remembered his grocery bag.

“Guess these aren’t evidence anymore, right? No water or microwave for the ramen, though… the chips will have to do.”

The grocery bag softly rustled as he pulled out the bag of potato chips. Reinhard looked at it curiously, observing Subaru as he opened the bag. He appeared almost surprised as it practically popped upon opening.

“So, this is what food is like from your homeland… does it always come in such packaging?”

“Not always just like this, no. There’s a ridiculous variety of this kind of food alone where I come from, though. I couldn’t list them all if I tried. There’s a lot of other foods from my homeland, too. Kinda sucks this is the food that represents my home here…”

He lamented the fact that potato chips and instant ramen would come to define Japan’s cuisine from the perspective of Lugunicans. He internally apologized to his beloved homeland for doing it such injustice in this regard.

Unfortunately, there would be no remediation of this, either. He hadn’t cooked very much prior to arriving in this world. He could prepare simple foods, but other more involved foods that typified his country’s cuisine were beyond his ability.

“Maybe I could introduce them to mayo, at least…”

“‘Mayo?’”

“Ah, that’s short for ‘mayonnaise.’ It’s a condiment comprised of egg yolks, oil, and lemon juice, though sometimes vinegar is used, instead. Er, those things exist here, right?”

“‘Lemon’ sounds pretty close to lemom, and ‘vinegar’ sounds pretty close to vinegee. I’m guessing they may be the same or similar to those ingredients?”

“… man, I really am in another world. Wait, duh, of course I am… what, Subaru, the knights, magic, and dragons weren’t your first give away?”

He smacked his forehead after marveling at a difference between this world and his own that was considerably more mundane relative to those that he had learned before it. He then shifted the bag of chips over to Reinhard, giving it a shake.

“Want one?”

“Sure, why not?”

The Sword Saint grabbed a potato chip from the bag, handling it delicately as he carried it to his mouth. It was a somewhat absurd sight to Subaru, seeing someone so dignified, who appeared to be the very image of a Hero, take such an awkward approach to his land’s food. He chalked it up to cultural differences.

“It’s quite savory!”

“Yeah, salt is pretty much the original flavor of potato chip.”

“‘Salt?’ Ah, you mean solte.”

Subaru sighed as the differences kept coming. It did make him wonder what other foods existed in this world, and what kind of cuisine he could expect to encounter here. He only hoped they didn’t eat anything terribly offensive to his palate.

“I’m curious about your homeland’s food, Subaru. I get the impression this isn’t the best representation of your people’s cuisine?”

“No, it really isn’t. My people are probably best known for sushi and ramen. Ah, but not this instant stuff. I mean homemade stuff, with a closely guarded recipe and everything.”

“I see. What is this ‘sushi?’”

“It’s a seafood-based dish with a lot of variety, usually using rice and seaweed to rap them into bite-sized rolls.”

The Sword Saint stared in bewilderment. It was a sight Subaru had become too familiar with during this trip.

“What is a ‘sea?’”

“… okay, so they don’t have seas… probably no oceans either, then.”

“‘Oceans?’”

Subaru sighed. This world was more different from his home than he had anticipated. He briefly considered that the lack of seas and oceans would prevent the development of some of his favorite foods in this world.

“Do you at least have lakes? Rivers?”

“Well, yes, of course.”

“Oh, thank goodness…”

“You must really like the water, I take it?”

“No, no. Just the food that comes from it.”

“Such as?”

“Sashimi. Any kind, really. Tuna, salmon, mackerel, yellowtail… man, these chips are just disappointing by comparison…”

He stared inside of the bag of chips with a frown as images of his favorite seafood came to the fore of his mind. He sincerely hoped such foods existed in this world.

“Hmm… is it possible you’re from Kararagi?”

"… what?"

He looked at Reinhard as though he had two heads. Reinhard got the distinct impression he had said something weird to his guest.

“The Kararagi City-States, due west of this kingdom.”

“… there are whole city-states devoted to karaage in this world? I like fried chicken as much as the next guy, but that seems excessive…”

He pinched himself to determine whether he were dreaming or not. It sure felt like he had suddenly stepped into a fever dream upon hearing what he thought he had heard.

Reinhard stared at the foreigner in his charge, attempting to interrogate an apparent point of confusion. Then, he was struck by insight.

“I see. It seems there has been a misunderstanding. It is Ka-ra-ra-gi, not ka-raa-ge.”

Subaru chuckled at his own misconception. He almost smacked his own forehead again.

“Ohhhhh, my bad! Thought you stuttered for a moment. Not sure why, you seem way too collected to do that…”

He rubbed the back of his neck as a wash of embarrassment came over him. He was a bit rusty with interacting with those outside of his immediate family these days, a direct symptom of his time as a shut-in.

Before long, the bag of chips was spent, and he crumpled it up and put it in his grocery bag. He looked out the window near his seat in the carriage’s cabin. It felt perfectly still within it.

“Odd, we’re traveling fast enough that I should hear the wind whistling past us…”

“The smoothness of our ride is owed to the ground dragon’s Divine Protection of Wind Evasion. It eliminates wind resistance while they run. The same applies to any passengers they carry.”

“Huh… seems to have really made the ride smooth, yeah. This path is pretty winding and hilly, yet my stomach feels fine. Ordinarily I’d be carsick by now…”

“‘Carsick?’”

“Oh yeah, guess modes of transportation are pretty different here too, huh? A car is a lot like a carriage, only it doesn’t require a ground dragon or anything to pull it. It runs on petroleum, which is burned to produce tiny explosions that cause pistons inside something called an engine to move. This converts that energy over to kinetic energy, allowing it to move forward. I probably botched that description, sorry… I’ve, uh, never driven one.”

“My, your people are quite advanced. That sounds perhaps even more advanced than the magicreation tools coming out of the Mathers Domain these days.”

“At this point, I feel like we’re just trading things we’re unfamiliar with back and forth.”

He stared blankly at the Sword Saint as he heard two things he was unfamiliar with be delivered so matter-of-factly. He was struggling to keep in mind that he was the foreigner here, and that his culture and its qualities and achievements were the obscure ones.

“Still, cars are about the most mundane form of travel available in my homeland. There’s also boats and planes.”

“I’m familiar with boats, at least. They are often used to ship goods down the Tigracy River, and gondolas are used in the canals of Priestella quite frequently. Some are pulled by Water Dragons.”

“Oh, cool. So, there are Water Dragons, too. Bet they’re serpentine creatures without arms and legs. Maybe they have fins…”

“They do, as a matter of fact. What are the boats of your world like? And what are these ‘planes?’”

“Oh boy, let’s see… so we have some pretty ridiculously large boats where I come from. Some are as big as that castle we were in earlier. Some are for leisure purposes, others for transporting goods. As for planes, they’re these cylindrical vehicles with wings that fly through the sky at great speeds. They’re used to fly hundreds of miles in a matter of hours.”

Reinhard’s eyes were wide with wonder. The prospect of flying so fast was one thing, but the necessity of such a mode of transport implied a world far larger than what he was used to.

“That kind of speed and coverage is said to only be achievable by the Divine Dragon. The people of your homeland must live hectic lives to require such speedy transportation.”

“Sorta? Remember when I mentioned seas and oceans earlier?”

“Yes, though you didn’t mention what they were. Since you also asked about rivers and lakes, am I to assume those are bodies of water?”

“Yup. Huge ones, actually. They can span hundreds, even thousands of miles. That’s why part of why planes are necessary in the place I come from. It’s an interconnected land I come from. Seven continents, millions of islands, hundreds of nations… all with people traveling and trading with one another.”

Reinhard’s sense of wonder only became more evident. He placed a hand to his mouth, appearing to be deep in thought as his mind struggled to grasp the scale Subaru described. The world he knew was orders of magnitude smaller by comparison, and in various ways.

“Amazing… now I’m even more convinced for the need for Lady Crusch’s assistance in verifying your claims.”

“I get they might sound a bit outlandish… well, actually, they’re quite literally outlandish, huh?”

He rubbed the back of his neck, staring up at the ceiling of the carriage

“If what I suspect is true, then it would be. Of course, many have claimed to hail from beyond the Great Waterfall before. They were all proven to be either charlatans or madmen, though.”

Subaru became a little agitated as he crumpled up his now-empty bag of chips. His eyes narrowed into a glare.

“Hey, who’re you calling crazy?”

“Sorry! I will admit I can’t deny the straightforwardness with which you speak. Aside from what sounds like tall tales that you’re spinning, you seem well-composed, mentally speaking. To truly understand your circumstances, verification will be necessary. Only Lady Crusch, with her Divine Protection, can afford us that.”

“And there’s that name again…”

He recalled how Julius had mentioned a “Lady Crusch” before while he was being questioned, just after Reinhard had shown up at the interrogation chamber. Given how it had been mentioned that she possessed the ability to “discern the truth,” he was given the impression she was an oracle or seer of some variety.

“She’s a duchess of this kingdom. Her domain lies west of here. I believe I’ll send word for her early tomorrow morning. I just hope she’s not too busy tending to her day-to-day activities.”

Subaru wasn’t so sure what to expect from a visit from this duchess, though it sure sounded as though he was in for another interrogation. He felt tired. He was tired from the whirlwind day he had just had, but he was also already tired just thinking of what the next day would bring.

Fortunately, the most tiresome part of the day was behind him now. Their carriage pulled up before a grand mansion.

Well, grand in terms size at least, and even then only by Subaru’s standards. The historic Astrea Estate was actually rather modest compared to others in the kingdom. It was also undeniably showing its age. Subaru decided to withhold comment on this, though.

“… okay, I know you mentioned your family having an estate, but… c’mon!”

“We have two, actually. For the most part, we live in the Capital. This is the historic estate.”

“How can you possibly drop that kind of info so casually, huh? ‘Yeah, my family has two mansions. This is just the older one.’ Most people don’t even have one!”

Reinhard chuckled as Subaru flippantly remarked on the excess on display.

“Yes, it is an awful lot, I must admit. The ostentation can be a bit wearisome, but… it is what it is.”

Reinhard sounded oddly resigned to his station and his family’s lot in this kingdom. Subaru stared incredulously at the Sword Saint in response, finding such an attitude rather incomprehensible.

“Y’know, a lot of people would kill to live in the lap of luxury.”

“Would you, Subaru?”

“No, I wouldn’t! It’s just a figure of speech, man. Geez…”

Subaru was taken aback at his statement being turned into another point of interrogation. He couldn’t imagine himself killing anything, save for small insects like flies or mosquitoes.

“I take it you weren’t of noble lineage in your homeland?”

“No, I wasn’t. My family was firmly middle class, and I was born and raised in a small town. Well, small for my homeland, at least. Hakuchuri seems more rural by comparison to the suburbia I came from.”

“There’s another unfamiliar term… am I to take it that there is something in between the city and the countryside in your homeland?”

“Yeah, the suburbs. Places where a lot of family homes are located. There are some amenities around, though fewer than a big city would have. At the same time, fields where farming and whatnot happen are usually not close by.”

He recounted the nature of his hometown as he returned his attention to the mansion they were pulling up to. He supposed the castle had also been a first for him, or at least, one in that style had been. The Royal Palace looked like it wouldn’t have been out of place somewhere in Europe. He had only ever seen a Japanese-style castle before when on a class trip to Kyoto in middle school. He didn’t like thinking back on those days, though.

Coming to a halt, he saw a butler at the door of the mansion beginning to make his way towards them. He had short white hair and wore a beaming smile. He struck a delicate balance between boyishness and agedness. He opened the door to the carriage, gesturing with a courteous bow for them to emerge from it.

“It’s good to see you again, Grimm. Apologies for dropping in unannounced.”

He performed an introductory wave of his hand toward Subaru standing beside him.

“This is Natsuki Subaru. As of today, he will be staying with us as a… hmm. Well, ‘guest’ isn’t quite the word. But he will be staying with us.”

The butler – evidently named Grimm – eyed Subaru for a moment. There was a flash of confusion, but his smile returned just as quick. He bowed in Subaru’s direction.

“Oh, uh, nice to meet you… er, what’s his family name? I can’t just call him by his first name, can I?”

“I suppose that would be rather awkward, having only just met. His surname is Fauzen.”

“Right… nice to meet you, Fauzen-san.”

He bowed in kind, though he didn’t get any words in return.

“Ah, I forgot to mention. He doesn’t talk very much. His vocal cords were severed while serving the kingdom in the Demi-Human War long ago.”

Subaru stared at the scar on the butler’s throat. Without looking away, he voiced a query to the Sword Saint.

“… does war happen often in this place?”

“Another interesting question… how about we head on inside? I can tell you all you want to know. Well, to the best of my ability, at least!”

The Sword Saint spoke humbly yet confidently as he ushered Subaru into his family’s grand home. Thus began his stay as a “guest” within the Astrea household.

Chapter Text

Stepping into the grand, aged manor, Subaru quickly found that the interior was just as rococo as the exterior.

“Woah… guess I could do a lot worse for a place of imprisonment, huh?”

“Please try not to view it like that. While your freedom of movement will be greatly restricted for a time, you have free rein within these walls. Follow me, I’ll introduce you to the others staying here.”

Before they could move much further beyond the foyer, the family butler, Grimm, tapped Reinhard’s shoulder to get his attention.

“Hmm? What is it, Grimm? Is something the matter?”

The butler began hastily scrawling something within a notebook he had withdrawn from the inside of his tailed coat. It was a red-brown leather bound journal, smaller than most books. With it came a fountain pen, one with a metal nib tip, not unlike those used for Western calligraphy in the world Subaru had come from. His scrawling was quite audible due to his writing pace, artfully dragging the nib across the coarse paper of his journal.

“Guess quills aren’t the standard writing implement here…”

“Not quite. This was a special gift we procured for him. He communicates mostly through writing.”

As he finished explaining Grimm’s means of conveyance, the butler showed Reinhard his finished message. He made sure to keep it out of Subaru’s view, intending it for Reinhard’s eyes only.

“Free rein” may not be perfectly accurate, Reinhard-sama. There is the matter of your mother’s room. Speaking of, are you sure you wish to introduce him to everyone?

“… ah! You’re right, Grimm. Sorry, Subaru, but there are some rooms you won’t be permitted to access. I can tell you more about that in a bit. As for meeting people… well, let’s start with Grimm’s wife, shall we?”

Grimm seemed slightly put out with the Sword Saint, though he was too polite to say so. He laughed faintly and hoarsely. Perhaps Reinhard hadn’t perfectly addressed what it was the butler had written down for him to read? That, or the fact they would be starting by introducing their new guest to his wife was something he was unsure of.

“Where is Carol right about now, Grimm?”

The butler wrote in his journal again, quickly returning it to Reinhard for viewing.

She is in the kitchen, preparing dinner. I believe our granddaughters may be assisting her.

“Oh? But they don’t need to do that. We have no shortage of help here that could do so in their stead. Or has father only brought you all here?”

Grimm promptly wrote a response to Reinhard’s confusion.

Correct. Sir Heinkel allowed the rest of his servants to remain in the Capital, maintaining the estate there.

“Oh, I see… yes, traveling with all of the servants would surely have been too cumbersome. If he had to bring servants along, it makes sense to bring the head servants and their family.”

Subaru himself was less sure of this logic. It seemed like Reinhard was making a convenient excuse for his father. As he teased out said logic, Grimm wrote out a quick follow-up.

I don’t doubt they would’ve insisted to assist Carol at any rate. I’ll bet they wish to emulate their grandmother. Even your grandmother was known to cook for herself and your grandfather from time to time, you know.

“Oh? Was she…?”

He trailed off with the mention of his grandparents as a wistful expression overcame him, though only for a moment.

Grimm took notice, bowing the second something dawned upon him. He didn’t write anything in his journal this time, though he didn’t need to. Even to Subaru, a stranger in this space and to these people, it was clear the butler was apologizing for some perceived slight.

“Hmm? Ah, it’s fine, Grimm. Chin up, alright?”

Grimm slowly returned to his natural posture, as though to say, “are you sure?” His smile from earlier had disappeared while he had been bowing, but after Reinhard assured him, it returned soon enough.

“Wow… you got a great read on him, Reinhard. You must have known him for quite some time.”

“He’s served my family since as far back as I can remember. I view him as family, actually. Carol too, for that matter. Follow me to the kitchen. I’ll introduce you to her, and the Remendis Twins, as well.”

“‘Remendis Twins?’ You mean those grandchildren you mentioned? Wait, but his last name was Fauzen, right?”

“That it is. His wife’s maiden name is Remendis.”

“Oh…”

He hadn’t known any men from his hometown who had deferred their surname to that of their wife instead of passing on their own surname. To him personally, eschewing his own family name in favor of that of someone else seemed practically unthinkable, and not just because it was one of the last remaining vestiges of his home. For Grimm to have seeming done so himself –

“She must be something else.”

Reinhard and Grimm looked at him curiously. Grimm in particular seemed somewhat guarded, arching an eyebrow of both suspicion and concern.

“I-I mean she must be pretty impressive to… well, y’know, pass on her name like that. I didn’t mean anything untoward, I swear!”

He couldn’t believe he was saying such things, yet here he was, claiming not to have said something unsavory or perhaps even lecherous about a woman many times his senior.

Reinhard and Grimm both laughed at his expense. Reinhard’s was a polite chuckle, while Grimm’s was more labored and wheezy sounding. His old war injury was almost certainly to blame for this.

“It’s quite alright, Subaru. Your intentions are well understood. It’s worth noting that she tends to go by Fauzen herself. I’m sure you’ll find Carol every bit as impressive as you have suspected.”

Still sheepish from his verbal stumble, he followed along behind Reinhard and Grimm. He was still somewhat confused by Carol’s choice of surname but decided it would be best to shelve the matter.

He wanted to rub his neck or perform some other means of self-soothing but found himself fidgeting fruitlessly. He settled on sticking his free hand into one of the pockets of his tracksuit. He still had his convenience store bag in hand, containing the bowl of instant ramen and a now empty bag of potato chips. Dinner sounded pretty good there and then.

Entering the kitchen, they found it appeared rather rustic in comparison to the rest of the mansion he had seen thus far, which admittedly hadn’t been much. He figured this was because ordinarily only servants would appear in this room, so aesthetics had been kept simpler. It had its charm, though. He imagined himself cooking in such a place, until he remembered he had precious little cooking ability beyond preparing mayonnaise.

At the stove top was an elderly maid. She had eyes that gave off Subaru an impression that she was a non-nonsense kind of woman. She possessed an aura of austerity which, if she was who he assumed she was, contrasted rather sharply with Grimm. She seemed slightly older than the head butler, as well, though her hair was just as ashen as the butler’s.

“Hmm? Reinhard-sama, what are you doing in the kitchen? Dinner will be ready before long. Surely you haven’t become impatient?”

“I’m aware you have… eight minutes left on the roast, Carol. Impatience is not what’s brought me to the kitchen, I assure you. I merely wish to introduce you to a guest we shall be entertaining for the indefinite future.”

“‘Indefinite future…?’”

Carol seemed perplexed by what she had heard. She had only been half paying attention to Reinhard’s entry into the kitchen, but hearing a guest was to be staying there with no end in sight had caught her off guard.

She looked from Reinhard to the black-haired stranger in his company. His foreign origin was immediately apparent. She looked back to Reinhard.

“Reinhard-sama, what has happened?”

“It’s a long story, I’m afraid. Perhaps dinner would be a suitable time to share it? For now, I would like to introduce you to Natsuki Subaru.”

“Nice to meet you!”

Subaru bowed in introduction. The maid stared on for a moment, then returned her attention to Reinhard.

“… where is he from?”

“Ah, that is also a long story…”

“Is any part of this not a long story, Reinhard-sama?”

“I suppose not!”

The Sword Saint put a hand to his head, as though his options had been exhausted. Of course, there was little about this situation that was simple. Delaying the explanation until dinnertime wouldn’t help much really, as it wouldn’t become any easier accompanied by food.

Near Carol were two young girls, likely no older than twelve by Subaru’s estimation. They had peach hair, though one had lighter hair than the other. In fact, most everything about their respective appearances seemed just different enough to be considered distinct without truly deviating. To Subaru, it was like he was looking at a palette swap of a character in a fighting game.

The twins looked at each other, though they said not a word. Despite this, it seemed as though they were having a conversation. They seemed to be as startled as their grandmother had been.

“I take it these are the Remendis Twins you mention earlier?”

“Reinhard-sama mentioned them, did he? Their names are Flam and Grassis. Flam has slightly darker hair than Grassis. That’s how you tell them apart.”

“Gotcha. Huh… are they –“

“Talking? Only to each other. They both possess the Divine Protection of Mindspeak. It allows them to speak to each other no matter how far away they are. Well, once a day, anyway.”

“Huh. Well, you have some real cuties as grandkids, Carol-san!”

“Cute though they may be, don’t let looks deceive you, Subaru. They could defeat most men in a fight.”

“Eh? Seriously?”

He looked at Reinhard incredulously upon hearing such a claim, then returned his attention to the twins. He had been smiling amiably just before, but now he didn’t know what to think. Carol proudly planted her fists on her hips.

“They were raised to be strong women in every sense.”

“R-Right…”

The maid’s mention of them being raised in such a manner made him wonder where their parents were. Perhaps they were out of town. Perhaps they were back in the Capital with the other servants of House Astrea. Perhaps they were elsewhere in the mansion. Perhaps they were deceased. He didn’t know which was the case, though he felt it wasn’t his place to ask.

He hoped the lattermost of these possibilities he considered wasn’t the case. He figured losing one’s parents so young couldn’t be easy to contend with.

It made him think of his own situation, having been separated from his own family. He hadn’t had a free moment to try using his cell phone yet, wanting to be alone first before doing so. Until then, he decided to bury that issue. It was only making him feel sad.

“So, uh… could I help you with anything? Maybe getting the table set for dinner?”

Carol was only made more confused by this proposition.

“No, that won’t do. Seeing as you’re a guest, it would be unbecoming of me to accept your aid, especially since this service is intended for your benefit.”

“O-Oh… guess we’ll just take our seats, then?”

“That would be best, Subaru-dono.”

He was unused to being referred to in such formal terms. He almost wanted to press the matter of helping set up the table but decided that he shouldn’t. Being in a foreign land, he needed to be mindful of his etiquette, adapting it to fit local customs. He only hoped there was a decent amount of overlap between their respective cultures, lest this become more difficult of a situation than it already was.

“Grimm will help Carol with the preparation, Subaru. Come, we’ll take our seats in the dining hall. It might be a bit spacious for your tastes, since you said you weren’t of noble birth. I must say, though, I’m not sure what ‘middle class’ really refers to. Were you parents merchants, perhaps?”

“Er, no, not really. My mom was a homemaker. That is, she didn’t have a job aside from tending to our home and raising me when I was little. My dad… well, this is embarrassing.”

“What is?”

“… I dunno what my dad really did for work, to be honest. I never talked to him about it, and he didn’t elect to tell me about his job. He was well respected in our hometown, though.”

“Hmm… perhaps he was a civil servant, then?”

“Maybe? I kinda doubt it, though. He never wore business attire. He generally dressed pretty casually…”

He hated he had been so easily brought back to the topic he had wanted to bottle up. He decided to just follow Reinhard to the dining hall without another word.

The dining hall was much larger than where Subaru was used to eating. Since he had become a recluse, he had taken to eating in his bedroom more often than not. That said, even his family’s kitchen and dining area paled in comparison to this room. In fact, he imagined his family’s house could have fit within the old Astrea mansion several times over. He could only imagine how big the mansion back in the Capital must have been by comparison.

The table, running roughly five meters by his estimation, was lined with a white linen cloth that ran across its breadth. It was so long that it conjured images of the kinds of carpets laid down for star-studded events back in his world.

Silver candelabras were evenly spaced along the table, with white candles lit. Such lighting was unnecessary, though, as a crystalline chandelier glowed from the ceiling above, giving off warm light. It seemed to be a different form of the crystals that saw use in the Royal Palace’s dungeon, though more carefully cut by comparison. Silver plates and cutlery sat before the few seats that saw frequent use.

It was easily the fanciest place Subaru had ever been. Well, the fanciest he had spent any meaningful amount of time within. The Royal Palace was still far finer, and rightfully so, though he had been rushed out of it by the guards that had escorted him to the dungeons for questioning earlier that day. It was still hard for him to believe it was still the same day.

While he had been taking in the room’s extravagance and ruminating on how long the day had felt up to this point, Grimm began serving the food. The roast smelled so good it almost made Subaru drool. He wasn’t sure what the meat was, but he wasn’t too picky. It was served with a sautéed greens of some variety, though he didn’t know specifically what.

If his trip from the Capital to the old Astrea Estate had revealed anything to him, there were clear differences yet also striking similarities between the foods of this world and his own. From what he knew of other countries in his world, the food he was presently being served wouldn’t have been out of place in an upscale restaurant from the West. He knew his own nation had such dining options as well, though not in his hometown.

The dinner was paired with what looked to be a red wine of some variety. Subaru stared with discomfort at the carafe, something not lost on his new warden.

“Is something the matter, Subaru?”

“I know things are different in other countries and all, but… am I allowed to drink this? I’m only seventeen.”

“Well, I can’t speak for our neighboring nations, but here in Lugunica, the drinking age is fifteen.”

“Fifteen?! It’s twenty where I come from…”

“Oh? To my knowledge, none of the other nations have such stringent limitations on the consumption of alcohol. I suppose this only further proves you’re from beyond the Great Waterfall…”

Reinhard then turned his attention to Grimm, who was accompanied by his wife and their grandchildren. Subaru almost commented on the fact that servants would be dining with the lord of the house but remembered what Reinhard had said earlier about Grimm being like family. This naturally extended to his wife, who seemed to be the head maid of the house, and their grandchildren. He imagined Grimm was something of an uncle figure to Reinhard, with the Remendis Twins being akin to cousins for him.

Of course, there was one thing he was wrong about.

A man staggered into the dining hall, a round bottle of wine in hand, though only barely. He leaned against the door frame, only just preventing himself from falling over completely.

“Boy. Who the hell’s that?”

“… father. You’re back.”

“Father…?”

Subaru looked at the man closer, and the man glared back. He couldn’t deny the man looked a lot like Reinhard, though was also a far cry.

Both had flaming red hair, though Reinhard’s had more luster. Both had blue eyes, though his were angrier. He had rough facial hair, unlike Reinhard, who was clean shaven. The man’s facial hair was more than a five o’clock shadow, but less than a full beard. Frankly, he appeared disheveled.

Subaru hadn’t paid it much mind before, but Reinhard wasn’t sat at the head of the table, the lord’s seat. Rather, he was sat immediately to the right of it. He had only assumed Reinhard was the lord of the house. Evidently, this man was the family’s patriarch, its true head.

“Didn’t say who he *hic!* was… looks like a foreigner.”

The man said the word “foreigner” with snarling derision. He made his feelings well known, though he seemed to be losing focus. Subaru could smell the reek of alcohol from where he was seated.

“M-My name’s Natsuki Subaru, Astrea-san. It’s nice to –“

“Hah? ‘Astrea-san?’ You really must be a foreigner if you don’t know the head of the Astrea family when you see it. It’s ‘Sir Heinkel,’ to you, kid.”

“Oh right… you’re a knight…”

Subaru had mixed impressions of the knights so far. The guards that had apprehended him had left a bad first impression, one narrowly salvaged by the competence demonstrated by Julius and the kindness demonstrated by Reinhard.

This man was even worse than those knights that had tackled him in the Royal Palace’s garden, though. An obvious alcoholic, he somehow doubted the man demonstrated chivalric virtues. The fact that he was the vice commander of the Royal Guard, something Reinhard had mentioned on their way to the estate, was unbelievable.

“Make it sound like you’d forgotten or something… *hic!*”

“Father, please. Perhaps you would like to lay down for a while? It seems that you’ve been out all day.”

“Ohhhhhh, surrrrrre. That’s why you want me to take my leave. I can take a hint, you –“

“I must agree with Reinhard-sama’s advice, Heinkel-sama. Please. Go rest.”

Carol seemed about as distraught as she could muster, which admittedly wasn’t very much. She was a rather resilient woman, though matters pertaining to the family she served did bring her discomfort when they welled up.

“I won’t go rest until I know what this kid’s doing here.”

“Subaru appeared in the Royal Palace’s garden earlier today. And by appeared, I mean out of thin air.”

Heinkel practically sobered up on the spot. His eyes bulged with shock and terror.

“H-He what?! How? And why are we hosting him if he’d do such a thing?! Do you know nothing of this family’s history, boy?!”

The father bellowed at his son, his tone indicating he truly believed his son to be a fool. Reinhard winced. Most everyone in attendance did.

“It has been determined that he hadn’t done so on purpose. It is heavily suspected he hails from beyond the Great Waterfall.”

Heinkel scoffed as he steadily simmered down. He was still clearly disoriented by both his drunkenness and the situation at hand. He shakily stood himself back up from leaning against the door frame.

“Pfft. What kind of fool do you take me for, boy?”

“Father, didn’t Commander Marcos tell you any of this? About why Subaru is to stay within this house in particular?”

Heinkel’s eyes widened again, though not from fright. His eyes were laden with shame and resentment. All the same, his son looked on with confusion and concern.

“Is it because you haven’t been in the Capital as of late?”

“… I don’t have to explain myself to you.”

With this, the vice commander turned around and left without another word, presumably to go lay down.

“But he should have been in the Capital today…”

“Reinhard-sama, it’s very sweet of you to assume your father cares for his duty. He often does. However, in his lower moments, he feels the need to get away. I wouldn’t doubt that he had spent the day in Flanders again…”

“… oh. I see. I guess I just thought he may have swung by Flanders on his way back to carouse in one of the taverns there.”

After wallowing for only a moment, Reinhard snapped back into the moment. He returned his attention to his guest.

“I’m terribly sorry about that! My father and I… we aren’t on the best of terms, I’m afraid.”

“Hey, it’s not you who should be apologizing! Enough about that, though. Don’t want the food to get cold, yeah?”

Reinhard smiled, watching as his guest heartily went about scarfing down the high-class dinner before them. Carol was utterly dazed by what she was watching. Grimm found it a funny sight, wheezily laughing again. Though the others didn’t notice it, Reinhard saw Subaru deliberately ignore his wine glass.

The Sword Saint could tell his guest had spared him the ordeal of delving deeper into the sensitive matter that was his family’s tenuous dynamic. He suspected he would enjoy having this guest for however long his stay was to be.

***

The next day was the Subaru’s second day in this new world. He had slept in a bed easily twice the size of his modest futon back at his house. He had done so in pajamas that were effectively now his and were far nicer than what he usually wore to bed back home.

“… could I stop thinking of home already?”

He tried checking his cell phone again for any sign of change. He had first done so the night prior, after he had gone off to bed. He had hoped that he could at least call his parents and let them know he was alright, knowing they would be dreadfully concerned. Unfortunately, his phone lacked any signal whatsoever that night.

“… still not a single bar… battery’s holding well enough, though. I’ll power it down. Who knows, maybe this part of the country just has really, really bad cell reception.”

He chuckled somewhat bitterly. Deep down, he suspected there was no such thing as a cellular network in this world. He imagined most modern technologies he was familiar from his homeland would prove to be foreign concepts here.

He got up and stretched as the morning light drifted through his window. As he did so, he continued to think aloud about his circumstances.

“Of course, there’s a lot about this place that suggests they may not even have cell phones… maybe I’m just hoping against hope here…”

He stared down at his phone’s screen before powering it down. His parent’s names, and those of some neighbors, were all he saw. No friends from school. He grimaced and sighed as he powered it down, stowing it in one of the pockets of his tracksuit, which he had draped over the nightstand.

“Guess I’ll see what my prison’s got in store for me…”

Establishing a morning routine seemed like a necessary first step. He did what he usually did to remain limber: radial calisthenics. After completing this regimen, he raised his hands in the air. It was difficult for him to take much pride in this most basic of accomplishments.

“… this feels lonely.”

Lowering his arms, he decided to get changed into his “outlandish” clothes for the day. After changing into his clothes, he opened the door to his chamber. Whether he was ready or not, he would greet the new day.

Walking to the dining hall for breakfast, he heard groaning behind one of the doors. It was one of the larger doors in the mansion, leading him to believe it was perhaps the master bedroom, where Heinkel slept.

“Must be hung over… guess he won’t be going to the Capital today, either.”

Though he hadn’t slept particularly well last night, he knew he was doing better than Heinkel was this morning. He almost felt sorry for him, though he felt more sorry for the servants who would need to tend to him. He would almost certainly be in an unpleasant mood. He wondered if it was perhaps the man’s default to be so ornery. For his part, Subaru decided to avoid him as much as possible.

The rest of his morning routine went about almost like how the lives of many had back home. He ate breakfast, though it was what he would describe as a strictly Western breakfast rather than the cultural hodgepodge his mother would make back home. He was surprised by who joined him.

“Reinhard? I thought you’d be going back to the Capital for your knightly duty and whatnot.”

He spoke casually about the knight’s responsibilities as a member of the Royal Guard. Reinhard didn’t make a fuss over it as his violet-haired peer would have. He understood by now that his guest’s homeland seemed to lack any notion of knighthood.

“Even us knights have days off every so often. Once a month, generally speaking.”

“Oh? You don’t really look like you’re on your day off…”

Reinhard wore an outfit just about as formal as his Royal Guard uniform he had been wearing the day before. Instead of red accents, his garb had lilac accents, and there was black fringe along the tall collar of his coat. The right arm had a golden crest upon it.

“I must always dress in a manner that would bring pride to my family name.”

“I see… is that your family crest on your arm?”

“Indeed, it is.”

“Man… that sounds like a lotta responsibility.”

“That it is, though it’s one a bear happily.”

He faltered almost imperceptibly regarding his responsibility. Though he wasn’t the head of House Astrea, he was practically its face due to his role as the Sword Saint. That carried with it at least as much responsibility as being the head of his house, if not more.

“Being the Sword Saint… you mentioned it was a hereditary station, one that goes to the strongest in your line. What does it entail, though?”

“The Sword Saint is… I guess you could say it is something of a champion for the people of Lugunica. The role dates back to over 400 years ago, back to the very first Sword Saint, Reid Astrea. Along with the Divine Dragon and the Great Sage, the three heroes sealed away the Witch of Envy and saved the world from certain destruction.”

“Woah…”

It sounded like mythology to his ears, or like the plot of one of the RPGs he had played back home. A narrowly averted apocalypse. Three great heroes.

“If you’re interested there is a book in the library here on the subject. That is, if you don’t mind reading a book intended for children.”

“Hey, it’s something to do. I may as well.”

He wasn’t particularly enthusiastic in his response. While he was enthralled by the notion that he had truly found himself within an actual fantasy world, he wasn’t all too interested in things like history or politics. Still, it was either this or wasting away.

He would read back home, though it was mostly manga and light novels. He somehow doubted he would find such things here. He knew for certain he wouldn’t find video games in this world.

With this being the case, learning there was a library within the mansion was a lifeline for him. After finishing their breakfast, the two went to the library, a place Subaru would soon be spending the majority of his time. Of course, “soon” was relative. There was a major hurdle he would need to surmount before he could do so.

Entering the library, Reinhard guided him to the shelf where they would find the book he had mentioned at breakfast. He seemed to know precisely where to go.

“Here we are. This is a book of fables. Bedtime stories, really.”

Subaru accepted the book from his host and nearly did a double take when he saw the writing on its cover. Contrary to what he had hoped, it wasn’t Japanese he saw on it.

“What language is this? I’m not familiar with these runes…”

“Yet another piece of evidence… though I suppose whether this is truly evidence of your status as one from beyond the Great Waterfall is yet to be confirmed. So, you mean to say you can’t read?”

“Hey, I can read my language just fine! This… this isn’t it.”

“I didn’t mean to offend. It’s just that this script is what is used by all four of the great nations.”

“Oh… no offense taken, then.”

“Perhaps Grimm and Carol could help you get a grasp on reading and writing?”

Subaru sighed. Hearing this made him feel like he were truly illiterate. He really was within the context of the runic script this world seemed to use universally, though he could read and write his own language without any issues. Of course, it was entirely possible he was the only Japanese person in this world.

“If so, then I guess my written language is as good as making one up for just myself…”

“Hmm?”

“Ah, nothing! I think learning this script could come in handy. I have no idea how long I’ll be here, so it could help to be able to read and write the lingua franca.”

“What a bizarre phrase… I can’t say I’m familiar with it.”

“Oh, that was term from my world. It refers to a language that can bridge cultures together, usually to facilitate trade.”

“I see. How apt.”

Reinhard seemed to enjoy learning more about his guest’s otherworldly origins. Both here and in the carriage, he listened very intently to everything Subaru said regarding his faraway home. It gave off the impression that he wasn’t just gathering information on this anomalous young man, but that he was learning about a friend.

“Guess it’ll be a while before I’m making regular use of this library… I can read in here, right?”

“Of course! There’s only two rooms I would have you avoid. One is my father’s room.”

“That seems like a given…”

He trailed off as he considered what would happen were he to be found in the master bedroom. He could tell even from the brief exchange the night prior that Heinkel at the very least distrusted him. Worst case scenario, he was scorned outright.

“The other room is my mother’s.”

“Oh, he brought the missus with him, too? I don’t recall seeing her yesterday, though.”

“Yes… there’s a reason for that.”

The Sword Saint became tense. Subaru could sense this was a sensitive subject. He didn’t want to push his luck with a new acquaintance so soon. Not with his warden, at least.

“Well, whatever that reason may be is of no concern to me. I wouldn’t go snooping in another person’s room as it is, anyway.”

“I see… that’s very considerate of you, Subaru.”

He bowed out of gratitude for what to Subaru felt like a rather basic social norm. From where he came from at least, it was heavily frowned upon to enter another person’s room without their expressed permission.

Reinhard had paused before expressing his gratitude, though. It did make Subaru curious, though much like delving further into matters with Heinkel the night before, he decided to keep it to himself.

“Oh, also, if you are to return to the kitchen, the staff will have to monitor you.”

“That’s probably for the best. I barely know a thing about cooking!”

The two laughed as the joke assuaged a concern that Reinhard hadn’t articulated, and that Subaru didn’t need him to expound upon.

He knew all too well poisoning was a likely concern for a noble family, even one like House Astrea that was steeped in martial prowess. With help like Grimm and Carol, Reinhard wouldn’t need to worry about a thing. If Carol’s prior boast about her grandchildren were to be believed, even they could act as deterrence against Subaru.

The two exited the library after this conversation. From here, Subaru continued seeking more he could do while within Reinhard’s custody.

“Reading is one thing, but it’ll get old after a while if it’s all I got. I hate to ask too much here, but is there anything else to do here?”

“Hmm… well, honing one’s skills could be a nice way to preoccupy oneself, wouldn’t you agree?”

“Yeah… guess I could practice my sewing some… assuming there are supplies to do that.”

“I’ll be sure to keep you stocked on fabrics, thread and yarn. I’m surprised to hear that you sew.”

“It’s convenient to know how to repair your clothes yourself.”

“Self-reliance is important, yes.”

The Sword Saint said this matter-of-factly. It wasn’t just agreement, though. To Subaru, it almost felt as though the notion of relying upon others was something alien to this knight.

He was just happy his host was too distracted to pick up on the fact that his rationale had been a feint. Truthfully, he had other uses for sewing he would ordinarily consider practicing.

Feeling the need to keep this to himself made him get cold feet in following this hobby, for the time being, at least. His uncertainty was apparent to Reinhard, though the source wasn’t. He ordinarily was a man of keen perception.

“Perhaps there are other skills you would care to hone? Perhaps Grimm and Carol could teach you a thing or two beyond how to read and write?”

“Maybe… I dunno. I’d hate to put more on their plate than they already have. Tutoring me in reading and writing sounds like a lot on its own.”

“Well, don’t be afraid to ask. Neither would begrudge you for wishing to further yourself.”

“Thanks, Reinhard. Maybe I will.”

He smiled, feeling less trepidation about asking anything of the people with whom he would be staying.

The rest of the day was spent considering means by which he could keep himself entertained. Keeping the Boy from Beyond the Great Waterfall preoccupied seemed like a relatively low-cost way to manage whatever potential threat he possessed, or so was the estimation of the Sword Saint.

He disliked framing matters in this light. He really did want Subaru to view him as a friend, not a warden.

***

After another dinner not too different from the last (save for the lack of interruption), Subaru was to receive his first lesson in reading and writing the bizarre runic script of these lands. He was met at the door of his chambers by Carol. Her gaze was as sharp as it had been the night before. She was holding a stack of books that gave him pause.

“… we’re not gonna go through all of that tonight, are we?”

“We will get through however much we are able. There should be a notebook in your desk there, along with an ink well and quill.”

“Okay. Right down to business, huh?”

“I’m not one to idly chat. Reinhard-sama has given me a duty, and I will carry it out accordingly.”

“I-I see…”

He took the books from Carol’s arms and carried them over to the desk. The ink well and quill were already atop the desk. He pulled out the notebook in his desk. It was bigger than that which Grimm was seen using. The pages were perfectly blank. There weren’t even lines to guide him as he wrote.

She began giving him the rundown of each rune and its corresponding phoneme. After about half an hour, he had that much down, putting him on par with a child of about four or five in this world.

From there, he began chaining them to make words in this world. Despite the difference in appearance, the way these rune operated was surprisingly familiar. It wasn’t a perfect one-to-one to the various ideograms he was used to using, but it was easier to pick up than he had expected at first glance.

Carol watched over him with a sense of pride. He imagined she hadn’t taught anyone like this since perhaps her own grandchildren, or maybe even her own children. She could tell he was making a genuine effort, and he was making better progress than she had anticipated for that evening.

“Reinhard-sama seems to be warming up to you rather quickly.”

“Hmm? What do you mean?”

Her comment caught him off guard. He could have sworn she had said she wasn’t one for idle chatter at the before their lesson had begun. Aside from this, there was also the matter of her comment itself. Did Reinhard find it difficult to make friends?

“Aside from a select few within the Royal Guard, Reinhard-sama doesn’t have very many acquaintances. It may be good for you to be here. Of course, time will tell.”

“I assumed I was just being held here for security purposes. Both he and Julius view me as some sort of unknown. If one really wanted to make perfectly sure that such a person wasn’t gonna be a security risk to the kingdom, then it’s only natural they’d entrust such a task to someone like the Sword Saint.”

As he said this, he flicked through the pages of the book of fables Reinhard had shown him earlier, landing on a page detailing Reid Astrea. He could only make out a few words, though. He still had a ways to go.

“What do you know of the Sword Saint, Subaru-dono?”

He cleared his throat before speaking. He wasn’t used to being referred to in such a way.

“They’re a champion of the kingdom, is what Reinhard told me.”

“I see… leave it to him to undersell his own station…”

She had a slightly exasperated grin on her face. She knew Reinhard far better than Subaru did, though this was only natural. She had more than likely been with House Astrea since at least his birth, perhaps even longer.

“I was close to the station myself. I was the attendant to the previous Sword Saint, Reinhard-sama’s grandmother, Theresia.”

The way she spoke that name was permeated with reverence, but also love. She appeared doleful, lost in the reminiscence of this person who Subaru surmised was no longer living.

He thought back to the previous night, when Grimm had been apologetic to Reinhard over something he had written within his journal for the latter to read. He recalled how Reinhard had mentioned some “she” in the past tense, then became briefly affected similarly to how Carol was presently. He couldn’t help but think there was a connection here.

“… would you mind telling me more about it? The station of Sword Saint, I mean.”

Carol snapped out of her reminiscence. She seemed grateful for the gesture.

“The Sword Saint appears to help the kingdom during times of great strife. During the Demi-Human War, the kingdom had been divided against itself. The collapse of the kingdom as we had known it was entirely possible.”

“Sounds pretty serious…”

The weight of those days was almost palpable to him as she spoke. He had never lived through a civil war, or any kind of war, for that matter. He had heard of civil wars occurring in far off lands, or those of centuries past, but he had never been immersed in such an experience. Here, he had what seemed to be an eyewitness account.

“‘Pretty serious’ wasn’t even the half of it. My lady, Theresia… she was averse to such conflict. She lost her brothers to it. She nearly lost the love of her life, too, who had foolishly decided to defend his home by himself.”

Her voice transitioned from woeful to a tone teetering on scornful as she began speaking of this lover of the previous Sword Saint. She clearly had her misgivings about this man, and this was likely only scratching the surface.

Subaru wouldn’t pry, though. He figured if these people wanted him to know, they would tell him themselves. It wasn’t as though he needed the information desperately. All it did was help to contextualize the role of Sword Saint for him, which was enough.

“She won that war. I had been there, fighting by her side. I saw her push herself to rise to that occasion. She saved this kingdom, though at great personal cost. If there is anything I can say I’m grateful for about that man she married, it was that he spared her from having to hold a sword again. At least, for a while…”

There was an underlying vicarious pain to her words as she spoke of Theresia’s role in that civil war. Then, a nostalgic smile emerged.

“I suppose that was a silver lining to that conflict. I also met my husband during those dark days. Shame he had to be a friend of that Sword Devil, but… at least that man had made my lady happy.”

The war had been more than just a time of national strife. There had been deeply personal narratives interwoven and obscured by the scale of it all, of which only those who had taken part would have been privy. It made him wonder how many such stories existed in his world, how many had been buried and forgotten by the scale of war. He found himself more curious about such matters than he had ever been before being removed from his home.

“So, this ‘Sword Devil’ was her husband… and Reinhard’s grandfather? Is he… gone, too?”

He stumbled as he tried to find the right words to say, not wanting to come off as insensitive. He was putting the pieces of House Astrea together.

“No… he isn’t. He’s elsewhere these days…”

She seemed gravely disappointed as she uttered this response. Her misgivings from earlier were amplified, indicating he had gotten closer to their source.

He wouldn’t go any further than this in his questioning, though he could take educated guesses.

The first thought he had was that this Sword Devil had walked out on House Astrea somewhere down the line. Considering how Carol had made it seem like Theresia and this man had been happy together, he figured either something had occurred to change that dynamic, or the man had fled following her passing.

He wanted to change the subject now, before his curiosity got the better of him. Before he could do so, however –

“… perhaps an outsider is just what is needed to remediate the situation. Grimm and I have done all we can at this point. Maybe someone not so close to the situation could have the perspective needed…”

She had spaced out as she thought aloud, only to suddenly realize what she was saying. She returned her attention to her pupil, her guest.

“… forgive me, Subaru-dono. I shouldn’t foist such unrealistic expectations upon you. And so soon, too…”

“Well, I can’t say I’m very sure of my ability to play such a role myself… but I do appreciate the sign of trust. Not sure what I did to earn it, but I’ll do my best to live up to it.”

Carol smiled hearing this from the young man she would be tutoring for the foreseeable future. Truthfully, she had been reaching in her spoken thought. She wanted to see House Astrea be whole again, if only out of care for the woman she once served, her dearest friend. As such, she was desperate, teetering on losing hope, and she knew it.

When this strange young man showed up, she couldn’t help but see it as a possible sign. Hearing him say he would do his best to live up to her tenuous trust did serve to reinforce it in kind. Though she lacked any means of confirming the sincerity of his claim, she had a good feeling about this young man.

“Well, it has gotten late. We will pick up where we left off tomorrow evening.”

“Sounds good! Maybe I’ll review some of this tomorrow during the day or see if I can read anything in the library at all. Baby steps…”

Looking down at the page of his repeated scrawling of runic characters, he felt as though he were making steady progress. He knew he had never been the most studious person back in his world. He considered perhaps this was a nice sink or swim opportunity to change that.

Carol took her leave from his chamber. He considered reviewing further into the night, but realized he could stand to catch up on sleep, having slept poorly the previous night. He shut the notebook, snuffed the candlelight between his thumb and index finger, and changed into a fresh set of pajamas that had been left for him on his bed.

Thus ended his second day in this new world. From here, he would only continue to grow. In the back of his mind, he felt it necessary.

Chapter Text

It was a beautiful day at the old Astrea Estate. The sun shone brightly in a nearly empty blue sky. The flowers out front were all in bloom, adorning the front drive of the manor with a variety of colors. It was one of the most impressively curated displays of flowers in the kingdom.

“They almost remind me of the gardens in the Royal Palace, though that may not be a fair comparison.”

“Mew’re as discerning as ever, Lady Crusch!”

Having just arrived at that front drive was a carriage from the west. It had crossed the breadth of the Lifaus Plains to get here, about half a day’s journey. To arrive at a reasonable time, it had left early in the morning before the sun had even fully risen. As such, these visitors had arrived in the afternoon.

Crusch Karsten, head of the venerable House Karsten, wasn’t unused to rising early, though not as early as she had this day. It was an important request that had brought her and her attendant, Felix Argyle, to the old Astrea Estate this day. One made days prior.

***

“Ah, I see I’ve found you at just the right time yet again! My sense of timing is truly uncanny, is it not, Crusch?”

The prince made his bombastic entrance into the study of Crusch Karsten. She seemed only barely surprised at the prince’s sudden appearance at her door.

“You phrase it as though this were a coincidence, yet you’ve been popping in rather frequently as of late.”

“Oh, I’m sure no one’s telling him when mew’ll be in your office or anything, Lady Crusch! It’s surely his Lion King instincts!”

“Hmm? Hold on a second…”

Fourier approached one of the two red chairs with large backs across from Crusch’s desk. The size of the chair’s back had perfectly concealed the petite frame of its occupant from his view. He had thought he was alone with the duchess in her study, only to be greeted by a familiar feline face as he peered from over top the chair’s back.

“Ferris! I thought you would be on the campus of the Royal Institute of Healing today. Yet here you sit!”

To his surprise, it was indeed Ferris. The healer’s talents had grown so rapidly and to such an extent that he had earned the title of Blue, denoting him as the most skilled user of Water Magic in the kingdom. As such, he was in rather high demand in those days.

“Ferri had the day off! We were just discussing her birthday plans for tomorrow.”

“That’s true, that is tomorrow… damn, I’d hate to trouble you with a request before such a jubilant occasion.”

“It’s quite alright, Your Highness. What is it you require of me?”

“Actually, it’s quite fortuitous that you’re here, as well, Ferris! I require the talents of both of you for this request.”

Ferris’s ears became pricked at the mention of his name.

“Hmm? You need Ferri, too? What for? Does someone need healing?”

“Not quite. It pertains to recent reports I’ve received from Reinhard.”

He took a seat in the other chair across from Crusch’s desk as he began explaining the details of his request. He maintained his cheerful aura while also exerting an air of gravitas. To those outside of himself, it appeared like an effortless exertion on his part.

“Do you mean to say the Sword Saint needs our aid?”

“Gosh, it’s hard to believe him needing help from anyone.”

“Though it may be difficult to believe, even he has his blind spots as far as knowledge and skill are concerned. The situation he has reported to me perfectly highlights this very fact.”

“What does his situation entail, Your Highness? You’re being rather guarded on the details…”

“Well… part of me doesn’t wish to spoil the surprise.”

“‘Surprise?’ Is this some sort of roundabout scheme for a birthday gift?”

The feline healer touched an inquisitive finger to his mouth, trying to ascertain the prince’s cryptic speak. Said prince threw up his hands.

“Oh, no, no, it’s nothing like that! That does make me think, though…”

Fourier stroked his chin ponderously as he looked off into space. He seemed to be lost in his imagination. Crusch sighed, her almond eyes taking on a look of faint weariness. She had great patience for the fourth prince, perhaps more so than anyone in the kingdom. However, even she had her limits.

“Your Highness, please. This situation?”

“Ah! Sorry, Crusch! Reinhard has requested the aid of your Divine Protection and Ferris’ medical knowledge to assess… let’s say an anomalous man in his custody.”

“‘An anomalous man?’ Your Highness, I hope you plan to elaborate on that.”

“I can’t, unfortunately. Part of me wishes for this to be as surprising to you as it was for me. Besides, I could tell you all I know of the matter, but you wouldn’t believe it unless you witnessed this man for yourself!”

“You think I wouldn’t believe you?”

Her voice became tinged with slight disappointment, a quality which carried over into her amber eyes. Fourier gulped.

“I-I didn’t mean it like that! I don’t think many would believe his particular tale… ahhhhh, you just have to witness it for yourself, I tell you!”

He ruffled his golden hair in frustration, trying to recover the situation while also maintaining the surprise. His frustration was certainly understood by the duchess.

“Please calm down, Your Highness. Ferris and I shall assess this ‘anomalous man’ for you and Sir Reinhard. I must say, you seem rather worked up over this matter. With Sir Reinhard being the source of this request, it must be very important indeed.”

“It is! Oh, but… please be discreet, you two. This anomalous man isn’t exactly public knowledge yet. For the time being, Reinhard and I believe this is for the best, especially pending yours and Ferris’ assessments of him.”

“Understood. We will be the very soul of caution and discretion.”

“Ferri swears, too! ‘Anomalous man,’ huh? Sounds mysterious! I hope he isn’t dangerous. I wouldn’t want Lady Crusch to have to fight so close to her birthday. She should be able to take it easy after having to host so many people…”

Ferris tensed up for a moment as he imagined an undue conflict. The prince could sense his friend’s worriment quite easily. He held up an assuaging hand.

“I can assure you it won’t come to that. From what I hear from Reinhard, this man is rather docile. A bit snarky and eccentric at times, but otherwise benign. At any rate, he should have a free day soon to be on site just in case. Personally, I don’t foresee there being any need for such supervision. All the same, I wouldn’t want to expose you two to any potential threat, regardless of how remote it may be.”

“D’awwww, he cares about us, Lady Crusch!”

“Prince Fourier cares for all people, Ferris, though I do appreciate his concern.”

She smiled softly as she expressed her gratitude for the prince’s thoughtfulness. His heart skipped a beat, prompting him to force a cough to try and regain composure. It didn’t help that he knew the duchess would always be able to see through such a cheap tactic.

“Anyway, I’ll be taking my leave for today. I’ll see you both again tomorrow night for the party!”

“Oh? Sure mew won’t be too busy with your duties? You’ve been pawfully occupied as of late.”

“Yes… yes, I should be fine. No, I will make it! I declare it right now! I wouldn’t miss it for the world!”

“That’s much appreciated as well, Your Highness, though I would hope that were the fate of the world truly in the balance, you would prioritize accordingly.”

“Oh, it’s a figure of speech! You know I wouldn’t gamble the safety of the world over a party… though I would be terribly tempted.”

Crusch sighed and Ferris rolled his eyes as the prince bade them farewell. In three days time, they would be traveling to the old Astrea Estate to perform their assessments.

***

The two were greeted at the door of Astrea manor by Grimm. He had his usual pleasant smile as he wrote in his notebook to greet the guests. Crusch was unfazed by this, though Ferris seemed curious about the butler’s action. Looking to his mistress for cues, he wondered if they had met.

Welcome, Crusch-sama, Felix-sama. Reinhard-sama said to be expecting you today. I trust your trip was a peaceful one?

“Yes, it was. Thank you, Grimm-san.”

“Hmm? You know him, Lady Crusch?”

“Only in passing. He is a veteran of the Royal Army. He served in the Royal Guard and was awarded the title of Great Knight for his efforts in the subjugation of the evil dragon, Valgren.”

“Oh? Really? That’s impuressive!”

Grimm smiled as Ferris was schooled on the former knight’s illustrious past. In truth, he had been quite the warrior in those days, able to deflect even powerful vaporizing Yang Magic with his shield, which was lovingly adorned with the sigil of his wife’s noble house.

“My apologies, Grimm-san. Ferris is more well-versed in healing than history.”

The duchess stood contritely before the butler. He was moved by her apologetic tone and thoughtfulness. His friendly smile remained as he began to write with nostalgia in his yellow brown eyes and a faint blush of pride on his surprisingly boyish face.

It’s quite alright, Crusch-sama. I must admit, it does get me thinking of the old days… though my dear wife would certainly throw a fit were I to get any ideas!

“Oh, would she now?”

Grimm practically jumped out of his skin with the sudden appearance of said wife right behind him as he was writing his response. Carol had glanced over his shoulder just before he showed his response to Crusch and Ferris. He appeared sincerely penitent toward his wife as he began bowing profusely.

“It’s alright, Grimm. You aren’t wrong in your estimation. Welcome Crusch-sama, Felix-sama. It is a pleasure to have you here this day.”

She bowed to both of them in turn as she greeted them. She seemed slightly stiff in her response to Ferris. It didn’t escape the duchess’s notice. The wind around her never could have.

“Is something the matter, Carol-san?”

“Eh? You knyow of her, too?”

“Yes. She served as the previous Sword Saint’s attendant.”

“Oh, then she’s not too different from me then, huh?”

“I suppose the comparison is rather apt. Please forgive me for that awkward display. It was just…”

“Mew were caught off guard by my appearance, right?”

“… yes. It is… rather unorthodox. Ah! Please forgive my impertinence!”

The maid bowed remorsefully as she caught herself once more. Ferris wore an understanding smile on his rather feminine face.

His face was certainly not the only aspect of his appearance that gave off an air of femininity. He wore a short white dress with blue accenting, blue leggings, and white arms covers. He had white and blue ribbons in his short flaxen hair.

It didn’t stop with looks alone, either. His voice was rather high and squeaky, and he spoke very playfully. His walk was also rather dainty, especially when compared to the typical no-nonsense gait of his mistress.

In fact, the duchess stood as quite the contrast to her own attendant. She did have feminine features to be certain, but her appearance and the way she carried herself betrayed such impressions.

She preferred military fashion, wearing a navy long coat with white trimming, golden epaulettes, and burgundy accenting on the cuffs and interior. On the left collar was a red flower, which was attached to the coat with golden aiguillettes. She wore matching navy trousers, which tucked into black knee-high boots. She wore a navy hat that completed her semblance of military officer status and a burgundy armband on her right arm that bore her family’s crest.

They were quite a pair, that no one would deny. Many had referred to their relationship along similar lines as Carol had let slip a moment prior.

“It’s alright, Miss Carol! I’ve heard way worse. Ferri may look fragile, but don’t let that fool you!”

“I see. That is good to hear, Felix-sama. You would do well to maintain that disposition of yours.”

As they were being welcomed by Carol, she received a tap on her arm from her husband.

“Hmm? What is it, Grimm?”

He showed her his journal. Evidently he had been writing while she floundered in her dealings with Ferris.

There are other duties I must tend to, dear. Could you lead them to where Reinhard-sama is? I believe he is in the courtyard again.

“Of course. See you at dinner, then. Crusch-sama, Felix-sama, if you would follow me.”

Grimm split off from the group gathered in the foyer as Carol began leading Crusch and Ferris to the opposite end of the manor to exit to the courtyard outside.

“I wonder what kind of person the Sword Saint is?”

“I haven’t had many dealings with him. He has been busy with his role for a while now, and his father kept him rather close to home for the most part. I’ve only heard favorable things, though.”

“I’ve heard he has a million Divine Protections and could punch someone into the stars.”

“Those are some bold claims. Part of me would like to verify them, but the better part of me knows it isn’t my place to do so.”

“Reinhard-sama is indeed quite powerful and gifted. Those claims aren’t precise, though they aren’t embellished, either.”

“Really? Not even a little?”

The healer tiled his head in curiosity. The aid glanced back, her eyes sharp.

“There is a reason he is forbidden from traveling freely.”

This statement gave Ferris pause. It implied that the Sword Saint needed express approval just to travel anywhere within the kingdom. He imagined Reinhard was absolutely forbidden from international travel.

“Truthfully, I’m more curious about this “anomalous man” Prince Fourier told us about, if only because he was so elusive in his details.”

“True. We’ll be finding out about this mystery man soon enough!”

“Be on your guard, Ferris. Though the Sword Saint is with us, we may very well be dealing with an absolute unknown entity.”

“Will do! Though I’m not sure what you want me to do if anything goes wrong…”

Ferris looked down at his petite hands as he mused on what he could do in an emergency situation. As far as he considered, healing magic was all he had. He lacked any martial prowess or skill whatsoever. He figured his chief talent would only come in handy if things went very sideways, something he didn’t wish to think possible.

“Here we are.”

Emerging outside, they saw the courtyard was as beautiful as the front landing had been. A dazzling array of flowers and expertly trimmed hedges were abound. As nice as it was, it wasn’t the first thing they noticed.

“W-Woah!”

Subaru, the “anomalous man” alluded to by Prince Fourier, was on the back foot in a training spar with Reinhard. He was tripping about as he desperately trying to find an opening to strike with his wooden practice sword. Though he had trained in kendo some prior to his arrival in this new world, he found such knowledge had little bearing in the swordplay of this world.

Reinhard, meanwhile, didn’t need to move an inch. He didn’t even have a weapon in hand, seamlessly repelling Subaru’s advances with his bare hands or merely leaning this way or that. It was the very picture of effortlessness.

“Your footing seems rather uneven, Subaru.”

“It’s the grass! It’s still all dewy from this morning…”

“Really? But the sun is high in the sky now. The dew surely would have evaporated by now.”

Subaru grimaced. His poorly thought out excuse fell apart almost immediately.

“… okay, so my footing sucks. I’m working on it, though!”

“It does show, though. Carol has been working with you, hasn’t she?”

“Well, yeah, she has. How can you tell?”

“Your technique is rough around the edges, but it is indicative of her style of fighting. That, and Grimm was more of a defensive warrior in his day, whereas you’re taking more initiative in going in for strikes.”

Subaru had been training for a couple of weeks at this point, though he was unable to do so under Reinhard’s tutelage with much frequency due to his duties as not just a member of the Royal Guard, but as the Sword Saint. He would occasionally train with him in the late evening, but Subaru usually felt bad about making Reinhard do so after having been away all day as it was.

As such, it was likely to fall to Reinhard’s off days. Filling in for him the majority of the time was Carol, who was no slouch with a sword even in her old age. Having served as the attendant to the previous Sword Saint, she couldn’t have afforded to be average or even just decent. There had been few outside of the august House Astrea, who acted as though they were swords themselves, that held the degree of skill she once held. With her as his primary teacher, Reinhard believed Subaru was in good hands.

“I’ll admit, when you first approached me a couple weeks ago inquiring about training in the sword, I suspected you would quickly lose interest.”

“Under ordinary circumstances, I probably would’ve. But when you’re in a country of chivalry, it feels like the right thing to do. That probably doesn’t make much sense, huh?”

He scratched at his head. He realized his logic wasn’t exactly the best fit for this world. Logic steeped in folklore, myths, fiction.

“I feel you should temper your expectations of the knights some, Subaru. Chivalric virtues haven’t been strictly adhered to for some time. Actually, I’m surprised you have such a high opinion of the kingdom’s knights, given your initial treatment by them.”

“Well, those weren’t real knights. Not like you and Julius. You two are a lot closer to what I’d imagined a knight to be like.”

“Though they don’t adhere to chivalric virtues as dutifully as Julius, those men were no less knights, Subaru. In fact, Julius is more of the exception, not the rule.”

“Funny, you didn’t mention yourself in that comparison at all…”

“I don’t believe I’m very exemplary of proper knightly conduct myself, at least not as much as Julius.”

“What do you mean you don’t exemplify proper knightly conduct? You’re the Sword Saint, man! You’re the knight!”

“Actually, Julius is known as the Finest Knight in our order.”

“Well, he did seem pretty collected, I guess… hmm?”

It was only at this moment that he realized they weren’t alone in the courtyard. The Sword Saint smiled.

“Good, they’re here.”

It was this precise scene that the duchess and her attendant had been lead into by Carol. She planted her fists on her hips, having watched enough of their spar to frown.

“Subaru-dono, I’m reasonably certain I trained you better in footing than that.”

“Y-Yeah, you did… I’ll, uh… I’ll work on it.”

“That’s a rather tepid attitude to have toward one’s improvement.”

“I’ll work on it, ma’am!”

Subaru straightened like a board and offered his teacher a salute. His eyes then trained upon the two that had accompanied her. Both were girls to his eye, one in military dress and the other a cat-girl, by his estimation.

It had already been embarrassing enough to have fumbled as much as he had in that fight. The fact that the former appeared to have military ties – and presumably combat training of some variety – only compounded his bashfulness.

“When I was told you were keeping an ‘anomalous man’ in your custody, I didn’t anticipate it meant you were offering him martial training.”

“I knyow you think it somewhat concerning, Lady Crusch, but given that display… I don’t think he has anything to worry about with this guy.”

“Oh great. Guess you saw all of that then, huh?”

He spoke in a deadpan manner as he lamented his luck. The first girls his age he sees, and of course they witness such a poor show of his budding skill.

“We’ve only been here for a few minutes. It looked like you had already been engaged in that spar for some time before our arrival.”

“‘Spar’ is being generous…”

“Ferris, it won’t do to belittle earnest effort.”

“R-Right, sorry…”

Ferris gave a slight bow to Subaru to accompany the apology. He felt somewhat better knowing these two wouldn’t continue to dwell on this matter.

“So, you must be Lady Crusch and her attendant, Blue?”

“Eh? The Sword Saint told you of my reputation?”

“But of course. You’re only the most renowned healer in the kingdom, after all. Meanwhile, I can’t use magic at all. I think your talent is quite impressive.”

Subaru was beside himself as he watched Reinhard heap his praises upon Ferris. He didn’t interpret it as just praise, though.

“Woah, you don’t waste any time, do you, you smooth talker, you!”

“Hmm? I was merely complimenting my guest.”

“Sure, sure… I get it, don’t you worry.”

“Pardon the interjection, but it seems you are mistaken about one thing… Subaru, was it?”

The duchess raised her hand to get Subaru’s attention, cutting into the exchange to put it on hold. She had some clarification to offer.

“Yeah, that’s my name. What am I mistaken over, exactly?”

“Sir Reinhard’s intentions truly were to be sincerely complimentary toward Ferris. There was no ulterior motive that you seem to be implying. What that might be, though, I’m unsure.”

“Oh, I think I have a good idea… I think we’re going to have a lot of fun, Subaru-kyun!”

Subaru tensed up hearing the cutesy honorific thrown his way. He felt like he was being toyed with.

“A-Anyway, you mentioned they were here for some sort of… assessment?”

The word “assessment” left him uncomfortably. It felt suddenly loaded given the present context. He had known such plans had been arranged, and that he would need to eventually be subjected to this nebulous “assessment.” He felt very self-conscious all the same.

“Correct. Lady Crusch possesses the Divine Protection of Wind Indication. She actually just demonstrated its use just a moment ago when she correctly ascertained the intentions behind my words to Ferris.”

“Oh, so she read you like a book, huh? Guess you intend to have her read me, too? I do vaguely recall you bringing up her name with Julius back during the interrogation…”

“In a manner of speaking, yes. Apologies, Subaru, but further confirmation of your claims are necessary. I can only get so far in that aim with my abilities. Lady Crusch can confirm what I can’t.”

“Hold on a moment. ‘Interrogation?’ Sir Reinhard, you took this man in for questioning? For what purpose?”

“We can get into that during the assessment, Lady Crusch.”

“First Prince Fourier is cagey with the details, and nyow the Sword Saint, too? Geez…”

“My apologies. Subaru himself can give you all the details. From there, it will be up to you to decide what you make of his story.”

Crusch furrowed her brow. She felt as though she were being strung along. She was generally more of a straightforward person. Consequently, such a roundabout breadcrumb trail scenario was naturally grating to her. Still, she maintained her composure.

"Understood. Shall we move this inside, then? It seems Subaru could stand to rest, as it is."

"Yeah, that sounds good. The lounge should do well, I think."

"I was about to suggest the same. Carol, would you put on some tea for our guests?"

"Of course, Reinhard-sama."

The old maid dutifully bowed as she took her leave from the group. Reinhard then gestured for the rest to follow him to the lounge, where Subaru’s assessment was to be performed.

***

The four sat in the lounge. Subaru flapped the collar of his black t-shirt trying to cool off. He still felt sweaty from his bout with Reinhard, though it was also partially from nervousness. If it weren’t for the presence of guests, he would have asked to take a bath first. He didn’t want to make them all wait on him, though.

Reinhard sat beside Subaru on one coach, while Crusch and Ferris sat on one opposite of them. The Sword Saint’s presence was reassuring for the other three. If this anomalous man were to try anything, Reinhard would be right there to quickly deal with the issue.

Subaru, meanwhile, was just be sitting next to someone he had become familiar with. He thought Crusch was nice enough, though she was very businesslike. He could tell something about this situation had her on guard, and he knew it was probably him.

Ferris, meanwhile, had him on guard himself. The feminine healer seemed to have an impish personality, given how many teasing quips had been thrown his way back in the courtyard.

Far from relaxing, the lounge felt a lot like that interrogation room. Reinhard really was the only source of small comfort here.

“Right. Shall we begin?”

“I guess… what would you like to know?”

“I would like you to tell me about yourself. Your name, place of origin.”

“This again?”

He sighed as the duchess began her questioning. He understood perfectly well why this was deemed necessary, but it was still aggravating.

“My name is Natsuki Subaru. I’m from Japan. I’m seventeen years old. My birthday is April 1^st.”

The Sword Saint arched an eyebrow at his guest.

“You hadn’t mentioned those other details before.”

“Yeah, well you didn’t ask, either.”

Crusch had her hand on her chin, listening intently to Subaru’s answers.

“I’m unfamiliar with ‘April 1^st.’ Am I to understand those to be units of time?”

“Yeah. I’ve learned as of late that this world doesn’t use the calendar system my people use. I’m not even sure if we’re our worlds are on the same timescale.”

Crusch and Ferris stared at him perplexed. Even Reinhard was unsure of what this meant.

“T-That is, I dunno if time flows the same for both your world and mine. It could be slower or faster relative to my world, or vice versa. The calendar system here is at least somewhat similar to the one I’m used to. Seasons seem pretty comparable.”

The duchess peered at him harder for a moment.

“… the air of confusion around you is genuine. You certainly do seem to be an outsider. I’ve never heard of a nation called ‘Japan’ before, though. How did you get here from there?”

“Well, I… I guess I technically walked?”

“How does somebody ‘technically walk,’ exactly?”

Ferris’s eyes narrowed. The healer seemed skeptical of what Subaru had claimed, and naturally so. It isn’t often that someone walks to another country, let alone from one no one has ever heard of.

“I don’t know how else to describe it! One moment, I was walking out of a convenience store in my hometown… er, that’s something like a market here… Next thing I know, I’m falling into a fountain and spooking a prince…”

“Wait. When you say you ‘walked’ here, you mean it was as though you stepped from your hometown and right into… a fountain…”

Crusch paused a moment to consider. Her brow furrowed. A thought had come to mind that evidently wasn’t to her liking.

“… you were in the Royal Palace’s gardens?”

“Yeah. How’d you know? Did Reinhard tell you?”

“No. Prince Fourier has frequented the Royal Palace’s gardens for as long as I’ve had the privilege to know him. Its fountain is rather prominent. If I had to guess, given his habits, you met him there. My only question is how you found yourself within the Royal Palace’s grounds at all, and why.”

He sensed an undercurrent of hostility or perhaps protectiveness from the duchess. She had stated her question more than she had asked it. Her almond eyes sharpened and became fixed upon him.

“Look, I didn’t want to be there! I had no choice in the matter. I was just… there. Like I was summoned or something…”

“… summoned? Is it possible you hadn’t used some form of magic to travel to that fixed point in space?”

“What, like Yin Magic? That’s what it’s called, right, Reinhard?”

The Sword Saint nodded to affirm Subaru’s question.

“Yeah, I don’t know any magic. Even if I did, I wouldn’t have thought to use it to infiltrate a castle of a foreign land. Only an idiot with a death wish would do something like that!”

“You say that, but an infiltration had occurred in the past. I can see why you and Prince Fourier kept this closely guarded, Sir Reinhard.”

She looked to Reinhard with a grave look. He reciprocated, eager for a verdict.

“So, what do you think? Do you believe he may be from Beyond the Great Waterfall, Lady Crusch?”

She adopted a pensive pose again, her brow creased as she frowned. She was utterly vexed.

“He is very forthwith. The wind around him is only disturbed in that he is agitated, which is completely understandable considering his circumstances. At the very least, he believes what he is saying is the truth. Confirming it absolutely may be beyond us, I’m afraid. For now, it may be best to take him at his word.”

Subaru felt relieved to hear her words of sympathy and acceptance. He could breathe easier knowing he had one more person who had at least a modicum of trust in him in this world.

“Then again, couldn’t it also be pawssible that he’s just insane? Can’t rule that out!”

“Ferris, please. He is clearly in a thrown state. Though now that you bring it up, I unfortunately can’t discount the possibility… my apologies, Subaru.”

“Two steps forward, three steps back… it’s alright, I get it.”

He rubbed the back of his neck. Now he didn’t know where he stood with this girl. She at least was more consoling than her feline friend.

It was possible the duchess sensed this uncertainty in him. Her countenance softened as an idea came to her mind.

“However, Ferris, I’m positive that if anyone could confirm such a thing, it would be Blue.”

“Lady Crusch…”

The healer blushed at the high compliment from the duchess. The radiating pride was unmistakable.

“Right! Guess it’s my turn to assess the mystery man, huh?”

Ferris stood up, gesturing for Subaru to do the same.

He began to feel sheepish. He felt like he had suddenly stepped into a doctor’s office and was about to receive a physical exam in front of these people he had only just met. The gender of his examiner and one of onlookers was impossible for him to overlook.

“I’ve, uh… never really enjoyed situations like this…”

“Hmm? What, are mew scared of healers or something?”

“No, it’s not that…”

“Then what is it?”

“Look, don’t make me say it out loud!”

He got beet red in the face as he protested explaining himself any further. It didn’t help that Ferris was smiling mischievously. He figured he was about to be humiliated or possibly even tormented.

“I’ve… always been kinda embarrassed around lady doctors, okay?”

Ferris’s smile broadened further. There was a punchline coming. Subaru could feel it. He winced as he braced himself for impact.

“Well, that shouldn’t be an issue then. Ferri is a boy, after all!”

“… eh?”

Ferris was struggling not to laugh at Subaru’s expense. He did a double take as the reveal washed over him.

He looked around him to ensure he wasn’t alone in his befuddlement, but no one else seemed surprised. Not even Reinhard, who hadn’t formally met Ferris yet, seemed surprised. He was momentarily stunned by his warden’s perceptiveness, but it wasn’t enough to shake him from the matter at hand.

“B-But you’re the very picture of femininity!”

“Nyaw, thank you! That was the goal. Nyow then, time to see if you’re any different from us.”

“Oh… okay…”

He was still dumbfounded as he stretched out his arms and stood still, posturing ideal for a physiological examination.

“Well, he’s obviously human in terms of appearance. Two arms, legs, eyes, and ears… black hair is admittedly pretty rare in these parts, but not entirely unheard of elsewhere…”

The healer trailed off as he looked Subaru up and down. Even after the reveal, he found it unnerving. Actually, he found it more so.

“His eyes seem kinda scary, but that’s hardly enough to denote mew as entirely other.”

“Gee, thanks.”

He frowned. If he had one-hundred yen for every time he had heard remarks about his eyes over the years, he believed he would have been filthy rich.

“Based solely upon external views, I’d say he’s as human as you or most other people in the kingdom, Lady Crusch. Without looking inside him, there’s no way of telling if there’s anything truly different about him.”

“Y-You’re not gonna vivisect me, are you?!”

Ferris began laughing at last. He had done well in stifling his laughter through the exam but found he could resist no longer.

“Does it look like I brought anything to do something like that? Well, Lady Crusch does have her sword, I guess…”

“Ferris, that jest is a bit grotesque for my liking.”

“Sorry!”

Ferris played it off as a harmless jape, adopting an air of cutesy innocence in spite of his blatant teasing. Subaru breathed a sigh of relief knowing a vivisection wasn’t in the cards for the day.

“We can try something else if Lady Crusch and Sir Reinhard are willing.”

“Oh? You possess some other means of assessing him internally?”

“Are we really talking about this right now?!”

“It would be noninvasive, I assure you!”

Ferris cheerily clapped his hands together, perhaps seeking to lighten Subaru’s mood. He tilted his head, offering a cutesy smile on top of it. All it earned was a frown from the “anomalous man.”

“… noninvasive, sure. But how about painless? Or at least not too uncomfortable?”

He knew he wasn’t really in any position to make demands. He could ask for fair treatment, but insisting upon conditions ideal to him wasn’t likely to get him far.

As such, he was willing to compromise somewhat. He believed he had pretty decent pain tolerance. He could stomach some discomfort. He just didn’t want to be tortured.

“It’s something Ferri just thought up! I don’t knyow if it’ll hurt or not, but I promise to try to be gentle!”

“That’s… not very reassuring.”

He frowned with bitter disappointment hearing Ferris qualify what he had in mind to examine Subaru’s internals. He doubted this was going to be pleasant, whatever it was.

“What exactly is it you have in mind, Ferris?”

“Well, people are mostly comprised of water, nyeah? And water takes the form of whatever container it is placed within. Conversely, it also outlines whatever three-dimensional object it passes over. Think of water passing over a boulder in a waterfall. It kind of masks the shape of the boulder, right?”

“So, you intend to use Water Magic to feel around inside of him and see if everything one would expect a human to have is in place?”

“Nope! Nope, nope, nope! That’s a bridge too far!”

Hearing Crusch’s description of Ferris’s theoretical noninvasive in vivo examination method terrified him. He pictured tendrils of water writhing under his skin like snakes. There was no doubt in his mind that any initial test of such a method was almost certain to be excruciating or nauseating, or possibly both.

He was at least somewhat impressed with Ferris’s medical imagination, at least. He knew the method the healer had described was loosely similar to how MRI machines operated in his world, using the resonance of magnetic fields to produce images of internal organs using the water content of the body as a medium.

This was as far as his appreciation could go, though. Ferris seemed to take glee in making him squeamish.

“It’s okay, Subaru-kyun! I was mostly just kidding anyway. Instead, we can move on to assessing your mental state and gate.”

“Your use of the word ‘mostly’ is deeply upsetting, Ferris. Also, what’s a gate?”

He hadn’t read much about magic yet. His ability to read the runic script of these lands was still developing.

He had asked Reinhard if he knew any magic himself, but Reinhard had revealed that he was completely unable to cast magic. With this being the case, he had felt asking for further details wouldn’t have been worthwhile.

“The gate is an unseen apparatus that dwells within us all. It is where mana is processed from the environment. The channeling and directing of mana is what allows us to cast magic.”

“Well said, Lady Crusch! By assessing your gate, we can determine the likelihood of mew casting magic. We may even be able to rule out you having used magic to infiltrate the Royal Palace. That would be nice, right?”

“… if it’ll help clear my name… alright, let’s do this.”

Ferris placed his hands on Subaru’s core, and a faint blue-white glow emanated from his hands. He felt a light tingling where the light touched, but otherwise he felt fine. It was his first personal experience with magic, aside from Reinhard’s demonstrations of Divine Protections. It almost made him feel better about the healer’s off-color jokes. Almost.

“Well? How’s my gate? Does it even exist?”

“Oh, I wouldn’t want to imagine what kind of miserable creature would lack a gate! As for yours, it’s healthy, but fragile. As it is, it’s highly doubtful mew used some magic to infiltrate the Royal Palace. Things like becoming invisible or teleporting would require large amounts of mana. If your gate tried to pull off such feats as it is nyow, it’d collapse, without a doubt.”

“His gate is that unsteady?”

The duchess spoke with grave surprise. It gave Subaru a bad feeling.

“What does it mean for a gate to collapse, exactly? Given your prior comment on lacking a gate, I’m guessing it could only bode poorly.”

“Mew’d be correct! If one’s gate collapses, the person no longer has a means of channeling the mana they passively absorb from the environment. If left unchecked, the person would develop mana poisoning, which would prove fatal if left untreated.”

Subaru instinctively placed his hand over where Ferris’s hands had just been. He privately supposed the gate was like a muscle. If overexerted, it would be damaged, possibly even beyond repair. The only difference here was that where a permanently damaged muscle would only debilitate, a collapsed gate seemed certain to kill.

“… is there any sort of therapy for that?”

“If the mana could be displaced somewhere else, then nyeah, you could be safe. But it’d need to be performed regularly and promptly. Otherwise…”

“Right. Got it. Guess I won’t be practicing magic anytime soon…”

He became visibly despondent. Magic was one of the few things he had to look forward to now that he had been cut off from his home. Even that seemed hopelessly distant now.

“Hey now, Ferri never said that! If mew decide you want to learn magic, I suggest you receive guidance from a highly skilled caster, preferably one that shares your elemental affinity.”

“Okay… what’s my affinity, then? Your mention of elements makes me think of the fundamental elements of fire, water, earth, and wind…”

"Those are correct, though there are two others, as well."

“I also know of Yin Magic thanks to Julius… is there an opposite to it? Yang?”

“That is also correct. Both affinities are exceptionally rare.”

Hearing Crusch’s explanation, he returned his attention to Ferris. The healer was unsure of why he was being stared at expectantly.

“Well? You read my gate, yeah? Did you see what my affinity is?”

“Well, that’s the thing… it’s Yin.”

“…”

Subaru looked around him to gauge the responses of the others. Reinhard seemed deep in thought. Crusch seemed conflicted. Ferris reflected his mistress’ demeanor, having broken the news as gently as possible. The healer clearly saw the contradictory evidence at play.

“So, on the one hand, his gate is too fragile to utilize the sorts of magic he would need to be able to use in order to infiltrate the Royal Palace. On the other hand, he possesses the precise affinity one would need to most easily do so. I don’t like to assume this of him, especially given the air of earnestness surrounding his prior testimony on this matter…”

Crusch turned to Ferris. Her urgent gaze made her attendant’s ears become alert.

“Ferris, is it possible his gate is in such a fragile state due to overuse of such magic damaging it?”

Subaru was nervous. He had said all he could to explain himself, but it seemed like fate was out to get him. The fact his magical affinity just so happened to fit the description he had provided of his arrival in this world was too uncanny.

He looked at Ferris and gulped. He was beginning to feel like he was about to be implicated in a crime he had never intended to commit.

“No, no. When I said his gate was fragile, that was referring to the innate nature of his gate’s structure. It requires strengthening as it is. He could never have cast the magic we’ve hypothesized.”

“I see… then we truly can safely rule out that possibility.”

“As for his mental state, there is something of a heuristic we can use to get some insight into that. The flow of mana becomes more erratic the more unstable one’s mindset becomes. That is, it becomes harder to control yourself if mew lose your head!”

“I knew we could count on you in this matter, Ferris. How was the mana flow within his gate?”

Crusch’s compliment clearly went to Ferris’s head, who was now proudly smiling. Subaru imagined haughty steam billowing out of the cat-human’s nostrils. He could tell Ferris took Crusch’s attitudes very seriously and was keen on seeking her approval whenever and wherever he could. He chalked this up to his role as the duchess’ attendant, though he believed it likely ran deeper than some sense of duty.

“Well, given the frailty of his gate, he would have a hard time controlling his mana flow. With minimal or no instruction, I’d be willing to bet he’d let all of that pinned up mana out in one big rush! Certainly nyot something sustainable. As for how it's circulating within him, though, it seems stable enough for me to say he isn’t completely insane.”

“Wow, what a glowing endorsement.”

Subaru sarcastically quipped as he heard Ferris’s verdict. He interpreted it as being mostly serious, though there was also a touch of teasing involved.

“When you say he isn’t completely insane, do you mean to imply he is at least partially insane?”

“Oh, Ferri was mostly just kidding about that! It does seem somewhat irregular in terms of flow, being rather slow and lethargic. That speaks to depressive tendencies more than anything. He could be struggling from issues of self-esteem, but that’s none of Ferri’s business!”

This teasing insight struck him much deeper than the healer had likely intended. Subaru appeared a tad sullen hearing this. He wanted to look on the bright side, as this meant he wasn’t some insane, irrational, unpredictable threat to the kingdom now. He was only being further cleared of any potential wrongdoing.

He wanted to be happy about this, but now that he had gotten thinking about his personal woes, he found it difficult to allow himself to do so.

“Well, it seems there is no reason to be concerned about him being mentally unstable, and we can rule out his use of magic to intentionally infiltrate the Royal Palace. It is highly unlikely he even unintentionally did so, considering the status of his gate. I’m rather pleased with these findings.”

Crusch crossed her arms, indeed quite satisfied by her attendant’s findings. All told, it seemed Ferris’s testimony would prove the more useful in his exoneration. Despite this, she didn’t seem annoyed by her own performance in this examination. If anything, she was quite proud of her attendant.

Reinhard seemed pleased himself, as though a weight had been lifted.

“As am I. Thank you both very much for performing this assessment. Will you be staying for tea this afternoon?”

The duchess held up a polite hand of refusal.

“I’m afraid not, Sir Reinhard. Ferris and I should report our findings to Prince Fourier post haste. No doubt he is pacing about in his chambers as we speak…”

“Yeah, that’s a puretty safe bet!”

“We shall be taking our leave for the day. Thank you for your hospitality, Sword Saint.”

“The pleasure was all mine. I wish you both safety in your travels.”

There was an exchange of cordial bows. Following this, the two guests were escorted to their carriage. From there, they would be returning to the Capital to relay what they had uncovered about the “anomalous man” that was Natsuki Subaru.

Subaru joined Reinhard in bidding them farewell from the front door of the manor. He had mixed feelings about that meeting. It had been nice to meet new people outside of the old Astrea mansion, but he was left with a feeling he found impossible to ignore. He had some introspection to do, and he wasn’t looking forward to it.

***

“I see. So he isn’t much of national security risk, is he?”

Prince Fourier was indeed within his chambers. When Crusch and Ferris had arrived at the Royal Palace early that same evening, they had walked in on the prince pacing frantically. It looked like his thoughts must have been flying through his head at speeds so brisk that it was difficult to imagine they were coherent.

Despite this, the prince also appeared perfectly sound in his rumination. Or at least, he had been before he had heard the rapping on his door.

Now sitting at his desk, Crusch and Ferris stood before him, offering their testimony of the day’s meeting at the old Astrea Estate.

“That is correct, Your Highness.”

He clapped his hands, quite pleased with this confirmation.

“Good to hear! This should make the matter of clearing things up here in the Capital much easier. Thank you both for your service!”

“Your Highness, if I may make ask you a question.”

“You needn’t ask for such a thing, Crusch! Ask, and I shall answer!”

“I get the feeling this wasn’t strictly a matter of risk assessment for the good of the kingdom. Was there another reason you had Ferris and I meet this man?”

Fourier smiled, flashing his trademark yaeba as he laughed.

“My, you are perceptive! In truth, there was another reason I wanted you to investigate this man for Reinhard and me…”

He walked over to his window and looked out. The sun had nearly set over the beauteous city, of which he had a spectacular view from its highest point. He smiled as he reflected upon its safety, but also upon something he now felt clear to try.

“… I think I’d like to officially meet this Natsuki Subaru for myself.”

Chapter Text

“You wish to meet Natsuki Subaru, Your Highness? Are you sure that’s wise?”

Crusch, Ferris, and Fourier were gathered in the prince’s chambers, where he had been pacing. Pacing out of impatience. Pacing out of worry. Pacing out of boredom.

He had been waiting with heated anticipation to learn more about the mysterious stranger that had given him a start in the Royal Palace’s gardens a few months prior.

He had also been worried for his dear friends, whom he had asked to assess the strange man. Even with Reinhard present, he had his concerns regarding this unknown quantity.

And of course, the prince was bored. His daily activities consisted of reading reports and letters of courtship from within and without the kingdom. He prioritized the former, as the latter he found deeply uncomfortable to even think about.

There was a noticeable stack of unopened letters on his desk. Truth be told, Fourier never really read most of these letters. Most days, he simply didn’t have it in him. It was just as well, as his answer to these proposals was always the same.

He had been pacing, but now that he was in the company of his dear friends, safe and sound, he found he could relax again. Having heard their report regarding their assessment of the dark-haired stranger known as Natsuki Subaru, his curiosity naturally got away from him.

“Well, it’s as you said, and as Reinhard had said before you. The man seems to pose no danger to the kingdom or myself.”

“Your Highness, he appeared in the Royal Gardens while you had been isolated. If he had wanted to…”

“Don’t worry, Crusch, don’t worry! That security breach is already being looked into by the Royal Guard and the court mage. They’ll think of something, I’m sure.”

“Your Highness puts a lot of faith in others…”

“Should I not?”

He rebutted his feline companion with a smile containing equal parts snark and friendliness. He truly did put a lot of faith in the Royal Guard and the court mage, as well as the Sage Council. This was despite the Royal Guard’s failure to prevent the kidnapping of his younger cousin when he was just a young boy. He suspected there had been extenuating circumstances at play back then that most anyone would have struggled against. While his uncle understandably bore heavy lingering resentment to that order, the fourth prince didn’t begrudge them in the slightest.

“… very well then. When do you plan to visit?”

“As soon as possible! Why not tomorrow?”

Both Crusch and Ferris were given pause by his flippant suggestion, responding in unison.

“Tomorrow?”

“Hmm? Too soon?”

The prince hadn’t even batted an eye in his brazen suggestion of returning to the old Astrea Estate the exact next day. Audacity was a signature quality of His Highness, one his friends ordinarily appreciated. This time, however --

“Yes! Definitely too soon!”

“Could you not just wait until Reinhard’s next day off? Then at least we would know that the Sword Saint would be on the premises.”

-- his friends weren’t exactly so appreciative. Crusch’s counter-suggestion in particular chafed on him.

“What? But today was his day off! He won’t have another one for a month! No, no, I wish to meet this man from beyond the cascade sooner!”

“I’m afraid I must insist that you wait, Your Highness.”

“Ferri agrees with Lady Crusch. Sorry, Your Highness!”

“But… but…”

The prince fumbled. He was trying to formulate some means of response here. He wanted to satisfy his curiosity as soon as possible. He didn’t wish to bother with his usual duties when such an exciting thing had happened. A person manifesting from beyond the Great Waterfall was utterly unprecedented. How could he sit idly? How could he not meet this person?

He considered lying to placate his friends, but he knew better. Crusch’s Divine Protection would always see clean through him. He had learned that mistake years ago, though it also didn’t stop him from making more lighthearted, inconsequential lies.

The prince didn’t even need to say a word for her to read him, though. She could see him struggling to respond. She knew perfectly well that he fully intended to visit sooner rather than later. She sighed, knowing there was no persuading him when he got like this.

“Would you allow Ferris and me to accompany you, at least?”

“Yeah, that sounds purrfect!”

The prince’s face lit up upon hearing this new suggestion.

“Of course! The more the merrier! Ah, but aren’t you two terribly busy, what with your responsibilities as a duchess and healer, respectively?”

“We could ask the same of you, Your Highness.”

His friends glanced over at his loaded desk. The asymmetry of his diplomatic reports against his mountain of letters of courtship was hard to ignore.

“I can respond to those after tomorrow!”

“It won’t do to leave them unanswered for too long, Your Highness.”

“I… I know that…”

Fourier sounded almost pained in his response to the duchess’s firm reminder. He felt guilty with every rejection he returned. It didn’t matter if he would never see their faces, or if they were only submitting their letters out of political necessity rather than anything approximating love.

He felt guilty all the same. The stack would occasionally hit critical mass, at which point he would always decide to swallow his guilt and do what he felt he had to.

“I’ll take care of it the second I return tomorrow! I’ll even work into the night if I have to!”

“Okay, maybe don’t work that hard. Just so long as it gets done! If we’re going to return tomorrow, we better turn in nyow. Ferri could use a cat nap…”

“True. You’re unused to rising as early as you had today, and it will be necessary tomorrow, as well.”

“Then you two should stay the night!”

“Prince Fourier… are mew looking to start a scandal, nya~?”

Ferris squirmed in a teasing manner in an attempt to knock the prince off balance. It was perhaps his favorite pastime. However, the prince had become quite perceptive towards these attempts. Now, he was rarely knocked off stride.

“Hardly! If we’re going there tomorrow morning, then there’s no sense in you two returning to the Karsten Estate tonight. You have your pick of the spare rooms!”

“That is very generous, Your Highness. Thank you.”

“No thanks necessary! Now, it’s as Ferris said. We’ll need to start early tomorrow, and the sun has practically set as it is. Off to bed!”

Crusch and Ferris smirked at the enthusiastic command given by their dear friend. He tended to behave in such a bold way, though his ego was far outweighed by his munificence and affability.

With a bow from Crusch and a curtsy from Ferris, the two took their leave from Fourier’s chambers, making their way to the aforementioned spare rooms for the evening.

“It’s been a while since Ferri saw Prince Fourier so keyed up over something.”

“Indeed. I only hope he isn’t getting his hopes up. When unknowns become known, they often lose their luster.”

“Oooooh, mew sound so wise, Lady Crusch!”

The two turned in for that evening. Crusch suspected it would be harder to waken the prince in the morning than his enthusiasm let on.

***

It had certainly been a rough start to the day.

“Your Highness?”

“Huh? Oh, what is it, Ferris?”

“Pardon Ferri for saying so, but… mew look terrible.”

The prince appeared as though he hadn’t slept so much as a single wink the night prior. His enthusiasm had indeed played a factor, though not as Crusch had predicted. She had considered that the prince would merely be difficult to remove from the comfort of his bed.

“I hadn’t considered that he would be too excited to fall asleep… try and nap while we’re en route, okay, Prince Fourier?”

“Easier said than done…”

The prince was indeed finding it rather difficult to fall asleep. He had originally been hoping to do just as Crusch had suggested. It wasn’t as though the ride was a rough one. Given the Divine Protection possessed by Earth Dragons, it was quite smooth. Even then, it was his excitement keeping him awake.

“I’m sure I’ll be refreshed when we get there.”

“Oh? What makes you say that, Your Highness?”

“I’m banking on the sense of the extraordinary giving me a second wind. To meet someone from beyond the cascade… such a thing never happens!”

“Wow, sounds like he’s impurroving already!”

The trip to the old Astrea Estate, bumpiness aside, was pleasant for the trio. The rolling green hills of the idyllic countryside was a sight for sore eyes for the prince, who hadn’t left the Royal Palace in some time. The only fresh air he tended to get was within the Royal Gardens.

The only other opportunities for travel he got was the odd diplomatic mission, which never included his friends in his entourage. This isn’t to say he didn’t enjoy the company of the Royal Guardsmen that would accompany him on such missions. In his mind, he could be friends with just about anyone in the kingdom. Still, he knew who his truest friends were.

“It’s been some time since the three of us got to spend such time together.”

The duchess’s lips curled into soft smile.

“Indeed. We’ve all been busy in our own ways.”

“Yeah. Ferri’s glad to have this change of pace!”

“Hear, hear! I savor every moment like this I can get these days.”

In some way, he couldn’t help but feel as though his most cherished bonds were perilously close to slipping through his fingers. His greatest fear was that the three of them would drift apart. Perhaps Crusch would become betrothed to some far off duke or count or the like. Perhaps Ferris would never have a spare moment again as his reputation only continued to grow.

He shook his head. He didn’t wish to think of such awful things.

“Are you alright, Your Highness?”

“Oh, I’m fine! Just a little chill, that’s all.”

Crusch frowned. She could feel an off wind around the prince.

“A little chill indeed. What’s wrong?”

“Nothing I care to trouble you or Ferris with. Forgive me, I don’t wish to bring down the mood. This rare moment shouldn’t be allowed to go to waste, no?”

He dismissed the need to discuss his troubles any further, staring out his window with a smile. It was almost as bright as ever. Almost. He was really banking on the novelty of meeting the Boy from Beyond the Great Waterfall lifting him away from these intrusive thoughts.

The prince was able to hold these thoughts at bay long enough for them to arrive at the Astrea mansion. The sight of an unexpected carriage sent the servants inside the manor into a frenzy, not that the trio inside of said carriage were aware. They had purposefully chartered a carriage that was unaffiliated with the Royal Palace’s stables to keep a low profile. This meeting was intended to be strictly off the record, since Natsuki Subaru’s existence was meant to still be a secret.

The door to the manor opened as the trio began to emerge from the carriage, revealing a bewildered Carol and Grimm. Being the head maid and head butler of the old Astrea Estate respectively, they would take the reins under such circumstances.

“Crusch-sama, Ferris-sama? You’re back so soon…?”

The duchess and her attendant had emerged from the carriage first. With the prince’s exit, however –

“-- !!!”

Alarmed at the unexpected appearance of a member of the Royal Family, they immediately curtsied and bowed, respectively. Their nervous energy was palpable.

“That’s rather unnecessary, now! Please, hold your heads high! I’m here on a visit. A secret visit!”

“Your Highness, declaring it to be a secret like that makes it feel distinctly less like a secret…”

“Prince Fourier isn’t really one fur secrecy.”

“Now that’s simply untrue! Besides, I’m certain these two can contain a secret between us, yes?”

“If Your Highness wills it, we won’t say a word to anyone, not even Reinhard-sama or Heinkel-sama.”

The prince paused to consider Carol’s offer of secrecy, holding a contemplative finger to his lips.

“Hmm… Reinhard I’m fine with knowing about this. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind. Heinkel, though… I can see him taking issue with this. I hate to ask this of you, since he is the head of House Astrea and all, but… if you could keep this from his awareness, it would be much appreciated!”

“Understood, Your Highness. Fortunately, he is in the Capital today on duty.”

“Indeed. Just as planned!”

“Your Highness…”

There was that off wind again. It wasn’t a bitter wind relative to what she had sensed while on the road, at least. Still, she knew a lie when she saw it.

“I’d say that was just a jest, but I know you’d know better… anyway! May we come in?”

“But of course, Your Highness. Though we must admit, your visit has come as quite the surprise. Reinhard-sama didn’t mention you would be visiting, and he certainly wouldn’t have forgotten to mention such an event.”

Grimm nodded emphatically at his wife’s polite admission, conveying his shared confused astonishment. Had they known Prince Fourier was to visit this day, they certainly would have pulled out all the stops to make it amenable to someone of his caliber.

“I’m not too fussy, madame. A friendly welcome is all I ask, and I believe that has been fulfilled quite well. You two bring honor to House Astrea as fine servants. Let no one tell you otherwise!”

Carol softly smiled at the generosity on display. Every last word felt kinder than the last, and each one was equally sincere. Grimm shared his wife’s reaction. Neither of them had ever met the fourth prince personally before.

Grimm had previously known and served Fourier’s grandfather, Gionis, and his father, Randohal. While Fourier fell under the umbrella of the Royal Family, those the Royal Guard were sworn to protect, he had never interfaced directly with Grimm. This was likely because by the time Grimm was retiring from the Royal Guard, Fourier was but a young boy.

To be in the presence of royalty once more after so long almost made the semi-mute former knight nostalgic.

“Please, right this way. I am not bold enough to assume why you are here, though given your company…”

The head maid waved them inside, though not before catching herself just short of self-contradiction. Despite swearing she wouldn’t deign to try and assume the rationale of royalty, she nearly went and assumed anyway. Fourier smiled at her as her hand rushed to cover her mouth to contain her near miss.

“It’s quite alright! You know my dear friends had been here just yesterday to assess the one known as Natsuki Subaru on behalf of myself and Reinhard. As such, seeing as they’re in my company, you must have inferred I am here to see this anomalous man for myself. Am I correct?”

“Yes, Your Highness. Your perception is very astute.”

The prince issued a playful wave of his hand, downplaying his complimented capacity.

“Oh, most anyone could draw that conclusion! That’s why I wouldn’t have been insulted in the slightest were you to presume in such a manner. So long as you aren’t presuming anything scandalous or slanderous, I see no reason for you to restrain yourself so heavily.”

“I see… this is not how I remember dealing with royalty being. How about you, dear?”

Grimm happily wrote a reply to his wife’s query.

It has been some time, though I recall King Gionis being of quite a similar disposition. King Randohal is, as well. Perhaps amiability runs in the family?

“Yes, perhaps so.”

His wife chuckled at his half-joking response. He did hold the Royal Family in high esteem, especially given the role King Gionis had played in the union of two of his dear friends.

“May I ask then why it is you are so curious about this young man, Your Highness?”

“I’m not sure if Reinhard has relayed this to you yet or not, but I was actually technically the first to meet him. Well, I suppose two people haven’t truly ‘met’ until they have spoken, though. In that regard, I suppose Julius holds that honor. Still, I was the first to see him! That should surely count for something, no?”

“I’m sure it does, Your Highness.”

Crusch slightly chuckled as she offered the prince her support.

“Ferri is less convinced… honestly, you’re not missing much. Like Lady Crusch and I said, he’s a normal guy.”

“Yes, yes… almost deceptively so, perhaps?”

“Oh brother…”

Ferris rolled his eyes at Fourier’s animated postulation. He really hoped the prince wasn’t letting his expectations run too far out of his control. Though he possessed keen insight, his zeal could occasionally prevent this capacity from being properly actualized.

This was more of a problem when he was younger, though. Now, having been on a few diplomatic overtures, he was more tempered and even. This didn’t mean his fire had been completely squelched, though. Far from it.

“Reinhard-sama had mentioned roughly how it was Subaru-dono had made it into this kingdom, more specifically inside of the Royal Palace. Did it frighten you to have the safety of your home intruded upon so easily?”

“Ah, yes, well… it was certainly a shock.”

“Mew screamed, didn’t you?”

Ferris adopted a smug, teasing expression. The prince was unamused, half-frowning.

“See, this is precisely the sort of assumption I was referring to! How rude!”

“Though seemingly not inaccurate, Your Highness…”

That pesky off wind of his was at it again. He sighed, frowning facetiously.

“You know, you really should be careful not to overexert that Divine Protection of yours. Some can have deleterious effects!”

“While I appreciate the surprisingly genuine concern, I can tell you have an ulterior motive…”

“‘Surprisingly genuine?’ Hey now!”

The prince planted his fists on his hips in indignation.

“He takes exception to his genuineness being called into question, but not the possession of an ulterior motive. That’s just like you, Prince Fourier!”

Fourier could tell he was getting nowhere with his friends. There was no breaking free once these two started playing off of each other against him like this. Of course, he knew this was their way of having fun with him, and that they meant no ill will by it. He decided to just laugh it off instead.

“Setting that aside, I could tell quickly enough that this Natsuki Subaru hadn’t intended to sneak in there. Had he done so, I believe he would have tried far harder not to almost accidentally drown himself in the only body of water within the palace.”

“Goodness, I hadn’t heard that part.”

“Oh, yes. He fell right into the grand fountain. He made quiet a splash. Ha, in more ways than one!”

“Good one…”

The healer barely refrained from groaning at the joke. The prince shared his father’s sense of humor, it seemed.

“Alright, alright! So that wasn’t my finest material.”

“So long as Your Highness is pleased.”

“That’s just a nice way of saying, ‘at least he can make himself laugh!’ The impertinence, I swear… impertinence is supposed to be my thing! Just ask Lord Miklotov.”

“Your Highness.”

“Ah, yes?”

The prince had been lost in his conversation with his friends, too much so to realize how far into the mansion they had been guided. Carol gestured toward a large wooden door, one which Crusch and Ferris appeared to recognized.

“We are here. If my assumption is correct, Subaru-dono is likely within.”

“The library? He must spend much time with his nyose in a book. He seemed pretty at home in their while we were assessing him, huh Lady Crusch?”

“True, he did. He must be quite studious.”

“He does spend a lot of time within the library. He didn’t know our runic script prior to receiving instruction from me. Now, he seems engrossed in reading as often as he can. He does spend time walking the courtyard outside and practicing with a wooden sword, though.”

“Oh? He’s a warrior?”

Carol chuckled upon hearing Fourier’s query, then cleared her throat. She knew it to be rude to laugh at such a question, and yet she found she couldn’t stifle it.

“No. He was a complete novice when Reinhard-sama and I began to teach him. He still isn’t even on par with a squire. That said, he is making steady progress.”

“Oh, I see… still, that does take dedication! I know the struggle of training in the sword all too well…”

Fourier recalled the events of roughly a year ago, just ahead of Crusch’s 17^th birthday. He had been training in the sword for six years at that point, dueling the girl that would soon become known as the Valkyrie often during that time.

He won the day before her birthday, if only barely. Truthfully, it had been on a technicality. While both of their swords had been broken, only Crusch had cast hers to the side, declaring Fourier the rightful victor. Had she really wanted to, she could have deprived him of it and the stake it had carried. Instead, she had relented, and in accordance with their wager, she wore a dress for her 17^th birthday.

Fourier had been dumbfounded that day. He hadn’t even been able to fully relish his victory, fainting from exhaustion not long after. It was this torpid experience that full ingrained within him a deep-seated respect for those who carried the sword.

This was all in the past, though. The present and the anticipation pervading it stood behind the door before them.

“Well then, I believe it’s high time we greet the man!”

With his enthusiasm taking hold over him, he lead the way, opening the large wooden doors to the Astrea library.

***

Sitting in a leather chair surrounded by stacks of books, Subaru yawned. He had been reading for hours, taking notes in a notebook intermittently. He did this nearly every day these days.

“I miss the internet…”

Prior to his “summoning,” Subaru would often go down rabbit holes online, learning an absurd amount of trivial information as he did. It was easier to just click around on webpages, saving them in his bookmarks if he found them particularly interesting. He had his own personal library, all within his computer.

He still had access to what was effectively his own personal library. Now, he had to dig through physical tomes to glean the information he sought. Despite having only been there for a little over a couple of weeks now, he was already filling the pages of his notebook.

Admittedly, many of those pages were just from writing practice. By now, he was able to read and write at the level of a preteen in this world. Reading came to him more easily now, though there were still many books within the library beyond his present level.

“Maybe soon I can start getting to the good stuff…”

“The good stuff” was, of course, magic. While he was able to read some elementary books on the subject with little difficulty, the more advanced works – those he was actually interested in – were just too far out of his reach.

“Maybe that Ferris was right. Maybe I need a teacher… hmm?”

The sound of the door opening disturbed his reading. He was frequently interrupted like this, though, so he didn’t think much of it at first. He didn’t bother looking up.

“You’re home awful early, Reinhard. Or is it Carol-sensei?”

“Neither!”

His eyes widened. That voice sounded awfully familiar to him. He hadn’t heard it since he had arrived in this world, and it had barely said much at all to him at that time. He recalled what few words had been said were kind words of reassurance, the first arguably the first kindness he had been shown in this world.

He looked up to see who it was.

“… hey, you’re that prince guy!”

“Hahaha! What a way to refer to me! Such a casual reception… why, it’s refreshing!”

“It won’t do to be so lenient on casualness being directed your way, Your Highness. Ordinarily, I would be gravely insulted on your part for such a reception. However, given your response, I will overlook it this once.”

“So austere, Crusch! Besides, you and Ferris act rather casually with me quite frequently. Sure, you refer to me by title or with similar reverential references, but you two tease me in such away that could scarcely be called ‘formal!’”

“I see… I shall revise my conduct accordingly, Your Highness.”

“I don’t think that’s what Prince Fourier’s getting at, Lady Crusch…”

Ferris was a little put out with Crusch’s density at times, especially as it pertained to Fourier. She had her blind spots, and while they were fun for him to exploit from time to time, they could just as easily prove vexing to her attendant.

“And you two are back, too? Don’t tell me you’ve changed your mind about invasive procedures!”

“While Ferri really wants to try out that technique we discussed yesterday, sadly that won’t be happening today. We’re here on Prince Fourier’s account today.”

“Prince Fourier’s…?”

He looked at Fourier curiously. Why had someone as important as a prince come all this way to see someone as obscure as him?

“The casualness I can easily forgive. Actually, I wholeheartedly approve! It is rather rude to stare though, Mister Natsuki. I am flattered, though!”

“‘Flattered?’ You sure aren’t lacking in confidence…”

He sincerely hoped the prince was joking about such flattery. The tone of his response earned him some unpleasant attention.

He gulped. Without making eye contact with her, he could tell Crusch was glaring at him. Clearly a digging comment at the prince’s personality was a step too far for the duchess.

“I was just confused as to why you’re here. Shouldn’t you be doing… princely things?”

“Why, I came to meet you, of course!”

“Why would you wanna meet someone who’s broke beyond compare?”

Fourier laughed again. He was finding this stranger from a strange land amusing already. The flippancy he demonstrated complimented the absurdity of the situation perfectly to the prince.

“What a curious way to refer to oneself!”

“It’s not inaccurate, though. All I have to my name is a groove-edged ten. Pretty sure that’s not gonna be honored in this kingdom. Or anywhere, for that matter…”

“‘A groove-edged ten,’ you say? I take it that is currency?”

“Yeah. It’s Japanese yen.”

“‘Yen?’ May I inspect it?”

“Suit yourself.”

Pulling the coin out of his pocket, he flipped the coin in Fourier’s direction in a clean arc. It was one of many useless skills he had developed in the time he had idly wasted prior to his “summoning.” It landed cleanly in the prince’s palm.

He picked it up between his index finger and thumb, holding it to the light to better inspect it.

“Such odd runes inscribed upon it…”

“That’s Japanese. Kanji, specifically. In addition to that script, there’s also hiragana and katakana. Hiragana is used for words not covered by kanji. Katakana is used for transcribing foreign words and names.”

“Fascinating… what does it say?”

“The front says, ‘state of Japan’ and ‘ten yen,’ while the back just spells out its year of issuance.”

“I see… and this. Is this a palace on the front? A temple?”

“A temple, yes. A Buddhist one, specifically. Er, that’s a religion from my world. Long story on that… this temple is called Phoenix Hall, though.”

“Phoenix Hall? What an enchanting name!”

The prince rolled the coin between his forefinger and thumb, feeling the aforementioned grooved edge.

“What’s the significance of it being a ‘groove-edged ten?’ Is it rare?”

“Relatively speaking. These were only issued during the 1950’s, decades before I was born. Every one minted since has had a smooth edge. There are millions more of the latter than there are the former. Growing up, my dad told me these were good luck.”

“Is that so?”

“Well, that’s what he said. It probably isn’t, though…”

He ruminated upon this supposed good luck charm and its efficacy, reflecting upon how fortunate he had been thus far. Few would say being torn from their home was a stroke of good luck. Fewer still would say as much about being imprisoned upon arriving in a strange new world.

Still, he was fortunate enough to have been taken in by Reinhard. He could have had far worse of a warden by comparison. He felt like how he had heard white-collar criminals get treated in prison. His house arrest and sequestering at the old Astrea Estate hardly felt like imprisonment, even if it were the truth of his circumstances.

“Hmm… well for your sake, I hope it is. Here!”

The prince flipped it back to Subaru effortlessly. The latter was slightly irked with this ease. He had worked over the course of a day working on improving the range of his coin flip. He doubted this prince had done the same.

“So, how have you been managing since your arrival, Mister Natsuki?”

“You can just call me Subaru, y’know.”

“Ah, I see. The question remains!”

The prince was difficult to knock off stride. Once he had chosen a course, he stayed it until it had been seen through, regardless of any distractions or tangents. This may make him sound inflexible, until one considers that the courses he chose were correct more often than not.

“So, you believe me? That I’m from another world?”

“Indeed! As a matter of fact, I’ve suspected as much since day one. Still, it’s thrilling to have such a rumored phenomenon be proven true, no?”

“Maybe from your perspective, sure… meanwhile, I’m just some guy.”

“Ha! Comedic and modest! Almost to the point of worry, though. Tell me, would it be excessively imposing were I to ask you some questions myself?”

“So, it’s okay if it’s a little imposing, then…? Ah, whatever. Sure, sure. Ask away. I’m sure I’ve probably answered these questions several times already.”

“Do be more mindful of your tone, please. You are speaking to royalty.”

Subaru’s posture stiffened at the duchess’s interjection. He had been lounging in his leather chair as he studied but found the duchess’ commanding tone made this impossible.

“Ah, but he’s not just any ordinary person himself, now is he, Crusch? I’m still willing to overlook it.”

“Very well, Your Highness.”

“Just don’t let this stranger walk all over mew, though…”

“I’m not gonna do that!”

Subaru groused at the notion of him running roughshod over anyone, let alone over a prince. He also recalled how Fourier had spoken up in his defense that first day, without having even said a word to him personally at that point. It lent credence to the prince’s claim of having suspected Subaru’s otherworldly status from the very beginning.

Though he was growing tired of playing Twenty Questions, he wasn’t about to ignore the mercy that had been shown to him. He imagined any number of other nobles would have had him executed on the spot for his “transgression.” He shuddered at the thought.

“Now then! Tell me about those bizarre clothes you’re wearing. The style is absolutely foreign, and there appears to be a sigil on your chest. Is it a symbol of your homeland? Your family?”

The prince pulled up a chair directly across from Subaru to begin asking him as many questions as he could imagine. He sat there with great anticipation, wondering what outlandish answers he would receive. Given what he had heard from Reinhard’s reports, he had high expectations.

“It’s a brand logo.”

“A what now?”

The prince tilted his head to the side, curious and confused.

“It’s a symbol for a company. Where I come from, this company is known worldwide as a purveyor of textiles, mostly for athletic wear.”

“Ah, yes. Reinhard had mentioned the supposed athletic connotations of your wardrobe. Does it possess enchantments to make athletic endeavors easier?”

He shook his head. He almost laughed. He found it rather amusing how he was beginning to acclimatize to hearing things like enchantments as though they are commonplace.

“No. Magic doesn’t really exist where I come from. These clothes just breathe nicely, and the shoes get good traction on pavement. That’s all.”

“No magic? I see, I see… what is life like in such a land?”

“We get by with technology. Let’s see… like the internet, for example. My world possessed a system of communication that connected almost every nation together, almost a world unto itself. There were also… ah!”

He reached into his pocket to pull out his cell phone. He couldn’t believe he hadn’t pulled it out to show Julius or Reinhard sooner. For Prince Fourier, this was to be a treat.

“What is that?”

“It’s called a cell phone. It allows you to speak with someone across great distances, provided you have cell service. Ah, that is, this little antenna has to be able to pick up radio waves to transmit your signal.”

“‘Radio waves?’”

“Er, their a form of electromagnetic radiation… energy that radiates everywhere.”

“Like mana?”

“… sure.”

Subaru had no idea how similar the two things were with any real certainty. He was now beginning to wonder just what the laws of physics were in this world. His phone didn’t work in this world, though now he couldn’t tell if this were simply because of a lack of cell towers or because of a more fundamental difference between his world and this one.

He had already read that this world was flat and was wondering if it simply hadn’t been proven to be spherical or if he were truly living on a disk world. As others asked him questions about his world, he found he only became more curious about the world he now found himself within.

“Anyway, my people discovered at some point that you could use that energy as a medium to transmit signals, and messages with them. But that’s not all this thing can do!”

“Oh?”

Subaru held his phone out before him, its camera aiming in Fourier’s direction. Crusch and Ferris were flanking him just behind his seat.

He clicked a button --

“Ah! My eyes!”

“Your Highness! What have you --?!”

“Ferri can heal his eyes if he’s been blinded!”

Ferris rushed to Fourier’s side, placing his hands on the prince’s temples while Crusch reached for her sword.

“Woah, woah! He’s not blind! Look for yourself!”

He reversed his phone to show them its screen --

“Is… is that us? Hey, it made their eyes as red as mine!”

“Yeah, red eye is a common issue with cameras of this model’s age. Newer ones don’t have that issue.”

“‘Camera?’ I thought you referred to that as a ‘cell phone’ earlier.”

“Well, there’s a lotta ways to refer to them. Cell phones, camera phones, cellular devices, mobile phones… they all refer to devices like this. Not only can this device be used to converse with people from great distances, but you can also use them to capture a moment in time! No portrait artist required!”

Fourier’s eyes widened at the marvel in Subaru’s hand.

“What an impressive metia! Most only have singular uses, but this one has multiple!”

“And that’s not all! You know that internet thing I was telling you about earlier?”

“Yes, what of it?”

“Some versions of this device could even connect to it. The sum total of my world’s knowledge, at your fingertips.”

“The sum total of… that’s incredible!”

There were stars in the prince’s eyes. He had recovered from being blinded by the camera flash. He was utterly astonished by what he was hearing, by how lifelike the image this “metia” had captured was.

“Crusch, what do you make of all he has said?”

“‘Incredible’ seems apt. I only wish we could confirm what he told us of his world. As of now, all we can really do is trust he is telling the truth and not just mad, albeit in a benign sense.”

“Do you have access to that knowledge right now, Subaru?”

He regretfully shook his head.

“If I had to guess, no. Without cell service, I’m dead in the water here. Newer ones could be used to browse more easily than mine anyway.”

“Oh, I see… what a shame. Given what you’ve told us thus far, it seems there is much we could stand to learn from your world.”

“Maybe so. No use in regretting it now, though.”

“Oh? What makes you say that?”

“Well… I get the feeling there’s no going back for me. I mean, I have no idea how I got here in the first place, so how could I even begin to try finding a way back home?”

The library became still following this unanswerable question. Crusch, who had been on edge before after the photo session, now seemed sympathetic to the wayward outsider. Ferris’ ears became folded back in dismay. It was as though Subaru’s sudden despondency had become contagious.

Fourier was most sympathetic of all. He was leaned forward, his hands folded, concealing his mouth. His eyes were a little misty from the pathos contained within that question. He could scarcely consider what being separated from his home felt like. Separation from his dear friends, from his family, from all he had ever known.

“… forgive me.”

“H-Huh? What for?”

“Your Highness? Are you alright?”

“Not quite. I could slap myself, honestly.”

He looked up, having been staring at the floor for a moment following Subaru’s doleful rhetorical question. He returned his attention to the person he had been referring to as something of a sideshow act for a while now.

“I had come here today for diversion, Subaru. Only now do I realize the cruelty therein. I lost sight of the person, became too wrapped up in the extraordinary. Please, forgive me.”

“L-Look, man, it’s fine! I’m… I’m fine.”

The jury was still out as to whether he really were fine or not. He could certainly be doing worse right now, but he knew full well what he was missing.

“Getting hung up on that will do me no good. The best I can do is move forward.”

“I see. That’s some commendable spirit you have there, Subaru! Were I in your position, I’m not sure I could recover as well as you. Tell me, if you wouldn’t mind indulging me in one last question… what is it you want?”

“What do I want…?”

He was given pause by the prince’s question. It was the first time he had been asked this question since he had been in this world. He hadn’t had any real ambitions prior to his “summoning.” He looked to one of the books he had been reading on the fundamentals of magic.

“… well, this world will have to be my home now. I guess I wanna experience as much as I can of it. Magic seems pretty cool.”

“You knyow, you reeeeeally should get a highly skilled tutor. Your gate is rather fragile, remember? Guess it’s not too difficult to see why, though, if you say magic didn’t exist in your homeland. Maybe there was no mana to process there?”

Ferris looked to Crusch for agreement. The duchess mulled over this explanation for a moment.

“That would seem like a sound assumption, Ferris. In a world without mana, it would naturally follow that any society that develops there wouldn’t be able to develop magical talent. If so, then his gate is severely underdeveloped by comparison to ours…”

“Yeah, so you two have told me… it’s like a muscle though, yeah? With enough practice, it’d become stronger, wouldn’t it?”

“Sure, but if you don’t know what mew’re doing, you’ll ruin your gate! Remember what Ferri said about that?”

“That it’d lead to fatal mana poisoning…”

He grimaced as he muttered his response. He disliked being lectured, though he could at leas appreciate it was coming from a place of concern.

“Which is why you need a highly trained purrfessional! Don’t go doing anything stupid!”

“Alright, I get it! I appreciate your concern. So, where could I find someone of my affinity to help me? I remember you saying Yin Magic users are pretty rare.”

“Actually, Subaru, I believe Ferris may be trying to dissuade you from magic use entirely.”

Fourier became alert hearing Crusch’s interpretation of Ferris’s “concern.”

“Ferris, don’t tell me that’s true!”

“What? He’s only going to hurt himself! Even if he doesn’t, what if he uses that magic for ill?”

“I see. So this stems from distrust then, does it?”

“Eep!”

The prince’s tone became admonishing as he continued to address Ferris. He rarely spoke to his friends in such an authoritative manner. It caused Ferris to make an anxious squeak.

“… sowwy…”

“Well, at least you apologize. There, there.”

Ferris had bowed his head deeply in Subaru’s direction, sounding truly miserable. Fourier patted his friend’s head, acknowledging the gesture in much the same way a parent would towards their child.

“I will admit, finding such a tutor for you will be difficult, but I’ll do my best!”

Subaru was blindsided by the prince’s declaration. His jaw hung open for a moment as he struggled to understand.

“Wait, what? Why? You don’t have to go through that kind of trouble on my account.”

“I feel I must! You’re new to our world. It would be right and just to ensure you aren’t left as a leaf caught helplessly in the wind. Besides…”

Fourier stood as he spoke magnanimously. Frankly, he seemed to be the living embodiment of the virtue. He smiled proud standing there, his trademark yaeba on display. He planted his left fist on his hip, pointing a declarative finger in Subaru’s direction.

“I wish to see what you can make of yourself, Natsuki Subaru!”

Subaru stared at the fourth prince, mouth ajar from stupefaction. An emotional energy emanated from him. It was aimed at Subaru, but it traveled in all directions. That is to say, anyone who viewed the young man would feel what the energy he was putting out.

Inspiration, plain and simple. Subaru felt inspired, though he couldn’t really pin down why.

Crusch similarly felt inspired at the sight, and she hadn’t even been the intended audience. Unlike Subaru, she had a faint suspicion behind this aura of inspiration he exuded. Even then, this suspicion was too hazy to be articulated. She was simply too close to the prince to do so.

Even without a word, Ferris could read this much from his mistress’ face. It frustrated him to no end. He wanted nothing more than to spell it out in no uncertain terms for her, to put the obvious pieces together already.

“Ferris, are you alright? You seem more on edge than you had been a moment ago. Was it having to apologize to Subaru?”

“No reason.”

The cat boy became aloof. It was futile against Crusch, of course. She could always read the wind around her attendant. However, she would never force the issue. If Ferris wanted to elaborate, he would do so in his own time.

“Say, this makes for a fine task for me to pour my time into! Subaru, I’m afraid we must leave post haste! I will begin this search immediately!”

“‘Immediately?’ There’s no rush, man…”

“If there’s presently no rush, that only means there’s room for there to be a rush! I’ll be sure to pay you another visit soon.”

He paused a moment, turning to face Crusch. He realized he had gotten ahead of himself.

“Er, or should I say ‘we?’”

“I must insist as much, Your Highness. Barring that, you should travel with a Royal Guardsman or two. Or three.”

“I don’t know if they would go for this sort of arrangement… technically, we aren’t supposed to be here right now. Do recall we chartered a carriage that was unaffiliated with the royal stables.”

“Then it’ll be us!”

The healer chimed in, offering a suggestion he knew Fourier would want to hear. The prince’s smile affirmed this intuition.

“Very well, then! Ah, the days yet to come! Until next time, Natsuki Subaru!”

The trio took their leave of the library, the prince waving farewell all the while. Subaru waved back absent-mindedly. As the trio left, Carol entered.

“My, what was that all about?”

“I… think I just made a friend?”

“Truly? With Prince Fourier Lugunica?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, it seems you are moving up in the world, Subaru-dono.”

“Yeah… I think I’m gonna take a nap…”

“Oh? It’s the middle of the afternoon, though.”

The maid glanced at a pocket watch she removed from her apron. She then looked at her sword student with faint concern.

“I know… but I’m pretty wiped after all of that.”

Having never held a conversation with Fourier before, he felt remarkably tired mentally. The enthusiasm on display had been enviable. Deep down inside, he thought to himself, “he sure felt familiar,” thinking back to the Natsuki Subaru he used to be before closing himself off.

Thus, the Boy from Beyond the Great Waterfall had met with royalty. Purely by chance, of course.

Chapter Text

“Ah, damn! I fell right into that trap! Now you’re maybe just a couple checks away…”

Fourier didn’t comment, only smiling uneasily. He had been in this position before. Victories against this opponent had become unpredictable and were far from guaranteed.

During his visits with his new friend, the two would often play chess. He had rarely been so challenged by another player, nor had Subaru.

At first, Subaru floundered against the prince, losing several games. The first one Fourier had won handily. The second and third were less breezy. By the time they played their fourth game, Subaru only narrowly lost. These days, they seemed to trade wins and losses in almost equal measure. They often stalemated.

In this present game, Subaru played black, while Fourier played white. His queen had become dangerously close to being encircled by two white pawns and a knight. Two more checks, and he was due for defeat.

His knights had been expended, as had a couple of pawns. Fourier himself had lost a knight, a bishop, and three pawns. Subaru had been making decent progress against his foe, until he had fallen into that trap.

Fortunately, the challenge his foe posed got his mind racing. Both players were thusly engaged. They were secretly yet pleasantly annoyed with the skill of their opponent.

The prince had already beaten most everyone in some game or another in his family and the court. He had initially feared Subaru was similarly no challenge after their first game, but this fear was swiftly discarded. Subaru had been quick to demand a rematch, in a more assertive manner than anyone Fourier had ever played against.

His new friend also differed in that he refused to give up. Where past opponents had politely declined the prince’s invitations to further rematches and given up entirely on seeking them for themselves, Subaru would almost immediately demand a rematch upon loss. Whenever Fourier himself lost, he was sure to do the same.

Back to the game at hand, Subaru’s eyes darted across the board, looking for an opening. He then found it.

Two moves had been all it took to turn certain defeat into stalemate. No legal moves remained. While Fourier had kept his king well-defended, he could do nothing to project against Subaru’s king on the opposite side of the board.

Subaru’s queen had been moved in such way that it was positioned right beside Fourier’s remaining bishop, making it impossible to be removed from play. Subaru then slid one of his bishops to close the escape of Fourier’s king, at the cost of any further maneuverability on his part.

Fourier stared at the board for a moment, perplexed.

“… well, I’ll be. It seems we have stalemated again.”

“You almost had me there! Rematch?”

“I was about to request the same thing!”

They began setting about resetting the board. Rather than being mentally fatigued, they both seemed to still be raring to go. Ordinarily, this would have left Ferris terribly bored. Though Crusch would have enjoyed watching such high level play, she would also have hated to leave her dear friend and attendant in such a state of ennui.

It was quite favorable, then, that neither were present this day. They had decided that on Reinhard’s days off, their presence wasn’t necessary. Fourier wished they could have come along all the same, yet realized they had their own matters to tend to. He himself had taken to procrastinating his own princely duties, which had become less diplomatic over time. Instead, he was having to read more letters of courtship, to his great displeasure.

Reinhard himself was elsewhere in the mansion. By now, roughly a month after Fourier’s first visit and a little over two months since he had first met his “guest,” he had come to trust Subaru almost implicitly. Crusch and Ferris’ assessments of him had cleared this up.

Fourier’s unannounced arrival had surprised the Sword Saint at first, as had the prince’s request for secrecy regarding his visits. The knight could tell right away why the prince sought such conditions. If anyone knew he were visiting someone in the Sword Saint’s custody, it would likely not go over well.

He at least wasn’t traveling alone, always being accompanied by Julius, the only other knight he could trust in this matter. They were all chiefly responsible for covering up Subaru’s arrival in the first place. Reinhard just conversed with Julius during the visits where Crusch and Ferris didn’t accompany Fourier. This left Subaru and Fourier alone, usually in the library.

“Those moves were inspired. Using my own defensive arrangement to contain me!”

“Glad I can offer you a challenge. I’ll admit, chess isn’t really my game.”

“Oh? Well, you did struggle when we had first started playing. That said, you’ve come a long way in relatively little time! If chess isn’t ‘your game,’ then what, pray tell, is?”

“I usually prefer Go or Othello.”

“… the fact you continue to bring up such things I’ve never heard of so casually continues to astound me.”

The prince had indeed been given pause at such a seemingly innocuous statement on Subaru’s part. The games he had named simply didn’t exist in these lands.

“Huh. Well, at any rate, you’d probably pick up the rules pretty quickly. Maybe I could even show you shogi! It’s like chess, but you can promote pieces to give them more power on the board.”

“Oooh, I would appreciate that extra dimension of strategy!”

The prince beamed at the idea of playing something new. Subaru almost got caught up in that excitement too, until he looked down at the board they were resetting.

“Ah, but I’d probably need to at least make the pieces for the game myself…”

“Nonsense! I’ll commission a set. Just describe them or draw them for me at some point, and it will be done!”

“Sure! I’ll just need to track down some more ink for my quill.”

“Oh? I take it you’ve been applying yourself in your continued studies?”

Subaru meekly nodded. He had progressed nicely in reading and writing the runic script of these lands, certainly better than he had in his swordsmanship. He could now read books which Carol claimed to be appropriate for his age.

He was taking as many notes on magic as he could, though this library did sorely lack in such material. House Astrea had never really been known for magical prowess, after all.

Though his swordsmanship paled compared to his scholarship, it couldn’t be denied that he was progressing on that front, as well. By Carol and Grimm’s estimates, he was approaching squire levels of aptitude. His form was less rigid and shaky than it had been before. Now it was just a matter of honing his reaction time and acrobatics, techniques which now served as his newest roadblocks.

With the board set up, the two began playing once again. In between moves here and there, they would chat.

White pawn to D4.

Black knight to F6.

“You know, given your docility, it’s surprising you’re still being restricted to the historic Astrea Estate. Have you even left the mansion yet?”

White pawn to C6.

Black pawn to G6.

“I leave it every day to practice with Carol-sensei.”

White knight to C3.

Black pawn to D5.

“Now, now, you know what I’m really getting at, I’m sure.”

White queen to B3.

Black pawn to C4. White pawn captured. First blood.

“If you mean heading into Hakuchuri or Flanders, no. I haven’t left the manor’s immediate grounds.”

White queen to C4. Black pawn captured. Eye for an eye.

Black bishop to G7.

“Surely you wish to go elsewhere by now? It’s been over two months since Reinhard took you into his custody.”

White bishop to F4.

Black pawn to C6.

“I get that… but I also understand the caution. Even if I’m not very threatening…”

White rook to D6.

Black queen to E5. Within spitting distance of white.

“Besides, there isn’t really anywhere I could go. I’m broke, remember?”

White bishop to B2.

Black pawn to B5.

“Beyond compare, yes. I remember. It’d certainly be unethical to cut you loose and leave you to your own devices.”

White queen to B3.

Black pawn to B4.

“Yes, yes, I have no prospects.”

White knight to A4.

Black knight to A6.

“Honestly, I’m beginning to feel guilty being a nigh permanent guest for Reinhard. I know Heinkel hates me being here…”

White pawn to E3.

Black bishop to E6.

“Don’t let that get to you. Perhaps you could become Reinhard’s attendant?”

White queen to C2.

Black abstains. White’s words tripped him up.

“What good could I do him as his attendant? Would he even need someone like that?”

White pawn to B3.

Black rook to B8.

“Well, your teacher had been the previous Sword Saint’s attendant, had she not?”

White bishop to D3.

Black rook to C8.

“True, but my understanding is that Reinhard and his grandmother are rather difficult to compare in terms of caliber.”

White knight to E2.

Black pawn to C5.

“Hey now, she ended the civil war almost single-handedly! That’s not something to be discounted.”

White bishop to A6.

Black queen to A6. White bishop captured. He had a rebuttal to offer.

“From what I’ve heard from Carol-sensei, her position hadn’t been necessary because of power so much as it was for an emotional reason.”

White knight to C5. Black pawn captured. A rebuttal of his own, though only on the board.

Black queen to B5. That rebuttal wouldn’t go unanswered.

“Oh? Would it be prying to ask what that might have been?”

White knight to F4.

Black bishop to G4. He was getting more aggressive, though only on the board.

“Reinhard’s grandmother hated violence. She had this terrible Divine Protection aside from that of the Sword Saint that made wounds bleed indefinitely in her presence. She tried to swear off the sword because of it, and Carol became her attendant.”

White pawn to F3.

Black pawn to E5.

“Tried to swear off the sword, huh? A shame that hadn’t actually panned out as she had intended… though I suppose the Sword Devil made up for that.”

White knight to D3.

Black pawn to D4. White pawn captured.

“Yeah… haven’t seen much of him since I’ve been here. I get the feeling he doesn’t get along well with his grandson?”

White pawn to G4. Black bishop captured.

Black pawn to E3. White pawn captured. He sought to give as good as he got.

“I believe that to be a sensitive matter… one which you seem to be using to dodge my suggestion.”

White bishop to E3. Black pawn captured. He didn’t seem to appreciate his suggestion being avoided, though he remained chipper.

Black knight to G4. White pawn captured. He wanted to continue to avoid that matter. If only he were doing as well in the conversation as he was on the board.

“Like I was saying, Reinhard doesn’t have the avoidance toward violence his grandmother did. Not to insinuate that he enjoys it, of course.”

White bishop to F4.

Black bishop to C3. Check. He was pushing forward to victory.

“So therefore he wouldn’t require an attendant? Is that your reasoning?”

White rook to D2.

Black rook to C5. White knight captured. He was feeling confident.

“Yeah. Why, doesn’t that make sense?”

White knight to C5. Black rook captured. Another rebuttal was incoming.

Black queen to C5. He didn’t really want to hear it.

“Look at Crusch and Ferris. Crusch is a capable swordswoman. She could even beat me in a fight! Then there’s Ferris, her attendant. Love him though I may, he isn’t much of a fighter, is he?”

White bishop to B8. Black rook captured. This rebuttal wouldn’t be shrugged off so easily, it seemed.

Black queen to E7. Another check. If only he could secure such a foothold in the conversation.

“Yeah, but Fourier’s a healer. The best in Lugunica. He at least has something he can offer in lieu of fighting strength. Me? I don’t have anything I can offer Reinhard.”

White king to D1.

Black knight to E3. Yet another check. He was now winning in both situations, though he felt the conversational victory he was closing in on felt pyrrhic by comparison.

“I think you’ll find there may be things even he might require help with from time to time.”

White king to C1.

Black knight to C2. White queen captured. The pressure was mounting on white, yet he exuded no nervousness. If anything, he seemed exhilarated.

“… yeah, you’re probably in the minority on that opinion, Fourier…”

White rook to C2. Black knight captured. He refused to bow to pressure.

Black pawn to H5.

“Now that I mention it, I do wish you could be my attendant like Ferris is for Crusch.”

White rook to D1.

Black bishop to G7. A possible retreat? White could sense his apprehension.

“Of course, it probably wouldn’t be allowed, by virtue of our present circumstances. ‘It’s too much of a security risk,’ I’m sure they would say.”

White pawn to H3.

Black pawn to A5. Not quite the retreat that had been expected.

“Gee, I’m flattered you’d want me as a secretary. Let me guess, I’d be responsible for sorting through your mail and getting you refreshments?”

White bishop to F4. A retreat of his own, an attempt to reconsolidate his pieces.

Black queen to E4. His retreat had never really been genuine. The piece had been carried forward along with his facetious supposition.

“… well, that would be expected of you by the courtiers, yes.”

White bishop to C7. A rally.

Black queen to E3. Yet another check. Victory was within sight.

“Never mind their expectations, though. I would just want someone to chum around with more consistently. My position gets dreadfully boring…”

White king to B1.

Black pawn to A4. A near total encirclement of his foe.

“You know, many men would be pretty annoyed to hear another complain about having to turn down countless women.”

White pawn to A4. Black pawn captured. He did so with a slightly disgruntled frown, though not because the momentum wasn’t in his favor on the board.

Black pawn to B3.

“Actually, I was referring to my diplomatic concerns, thank you very much.”

White pawn to B3. Black captured. His disgruntlement almost certainly inspired the move. He wasn’t really talking about his preferred duties. He wasn’t even really bored so much as he was tired of being unable to pursue what it was he really wanted.

Black queen to B3. White pawn captured, and yet another check. Black wouldn’t bow nor be fooled by his opponents words, even if he didn’t know the truth inside the man.

“I guess I can see how that’d get old after a while. And with Crusch and Ferris so busy with their own duties, you would end up alone with your work a lot. That sounds like a drag.”

White king to C1.

Black bishop to H6. Another check. His foe was running out of options.

“Enough about that. Tell me more about the games of your world. Are there any others you would recommend that I try?”

White rook to D2.

Black queen to A4. White pawn captured.

“Well, the games I’d like to recommend the most are those I don’t think I could replicate here. They’d require technology that just doesn’t exist here.”

White bishop to E5.

Black king to H7. He saw what his opponent was doing, both on and off the board.

“Oh? What kind of games are these?”

White bishop to C3.

Black queen to B5.

“They’re called video games in my world. Interactable visual media that you can manipulate using external devices like a controller or a keyboard. They had buttons on them that would execute simple commands in the game. I mostly played RPGs and visual novels.”

White bishop to D4.

Black queen to E2. Terrifyingly far behind white’s lines.

“‘RPGs?’ ‘Visual novels?’ What are these bizarre-sounding things?”

White pawn to G4.

Black queen to E1. Yet another check. Was his opponent’s heart really in the game anymore? Perhaps he was too distracted by what black was talking about.

“RPG stands for ‘role-playing game.’ You assume the role of a character in a world and interact with that world and the other characters within it. It’s a lot like putting yourself in a book. Visual novels are similar, except they emphasize character interactions way more. The most popular sub-type of that genre would be the dating sim.”

White king to B2.

Black bishop to D2. White rook captured. He was so close to victory he could practically taste it.

“‘Dating sim?’ You have no shortage of strange verbiage, you know that? What is ‘dating?’ What is a ‘sim?’”

White rook to C8. A desperate gamble to get within striking distance of black’s king.

“Dating is like courtship, only a lot less formal and with way less pressure… supposedly. Sim just means ‘simulator,’ so a ‘dating sim’ is just a game where you play out the romantic pursuits of fictional characters. There are set routes with specific requirements that need to be fulfilled in order to achieve your goal; that is, to get the girl.”

Black bishop to C1. Check.

White stared at the board for a moment. There was no escape.

“If only such matters were so simple in reality…”

“Yeah, I get that. Believe me, I do…”

Prior to becoming a shut-in, Subaru had experienced a few crushes of his own, though he had never acted upon them. The fear of rejection became too real after middle school. Even after trying to reinvent himself in high school, he had found his courage lacking. Perhaps a new world would be a blanker slate through which he could succeed?

“Of course, my chances of meeting a girl are about as close to zero as it gets, being cooped up in here like this… checkmate, by the way.”

“Hmm? Ah, yes, yes, indeed. I lost. Say, why don’t we don disguises and visit Flanders?”

Subaru had been resetting the pieces on his side of the board for later use, only to be stopped in his tracks. Surely he had misheard.

“… you’re joking, right?”

“Oh, I’m quite careful in my tone. Believe me, you would know if I were joking!”

“Fourier, it may have somehow escaped your notice, but I’m under house arrest here! Forget that, though, because you’re a prince! You’re not even supposed to be here right now!”

“If we are caught, I will explain the situation amicably. I would be the only one at fault. Rest assured, no harm will come to you. I won’t allow it.”

The prince spoke pragmatically and with self-assurance. It was as though he firmly believed the situation were one he could control. His guarantee of no harm coming to Subaru would have sounded unconvincing coming from most anyone else. From Fourier, though, it was believable. He would certainly do his utmost to protect his friends.

Subaru mulled it over for a moment. Then, a smile emerged on his face. He would eschew his reluctance, bolstered by his friend. He felt something he had thought long gone return to him in this moment, something he had possessed in spades as a kid. He couldn’t say precisely what this “something” was.

“… alright, sure. Sounds like fun! The most readily available disguises we have to work with are butler uniforms.”

“Oooh, I see. Then we’ll be disguising ourselves as servants of House Astrea?”

“Yeah, yeah… we’re, uh… ‘new hires,’ running an errand for Grimm.”

“I like it! Hmm… unfortunately, we both have rather distinctive appearances, huh?”

The prince’s assessment was quite apt. Subaru’s black hair and sanpakugan gave him an air of otherness and rarity in these lands. As for Fourier, his golden blonde hair and crimson eyes made him immediately recognizable as a member of the Royal Family. His yaeba only made narrowing down his identification further.

Subaru rubbed his chin cogitatively. They would need some way to conceal their standout looks. He looked to the fireplace near the reading area. There was some soot in it from having been lit during an unseasonably cool evening several nights back.

“… maybe we can dye your hair with the soot? Give it more of an ashen look instead, maybe style it slightly differently, too.”

“Say, that’s rather resourceful!”

The prince seemed genuinely amazed at Subaru’s on-the-fly thinking. He could tell there were hidden talents his friend harbored.

“What about yourself, though? Could soot help here, too?”

“Maybe? It’s still be pretty dark, though. I doubt we have the materials on hand to make more potent dyes or a wig, either. Maybe a hat? Butlers wear hats, right?”

“I’m sure some do! I wouldn’t know, myself.”

The two sneaked out of the library, to ensure no one would see them. Fourier took a handful of soot with him. They made their way to a grand closet where the uniforms of servants were stored. It was here where new hires would be fitted.

They both found butler uniforms that were closest to their own sizes. Finding a needle and thread, Subaru took in the hemming enough to make them fit just right. The House Astrea butler uniform was black with a soft violet bow tie, the same hue found on the family’s crest, the very same found on the shoulder of Reinhard’s “casual” attire.

Under Subaru’s instructions, Fourier wetted the soot and used the improvised hair dye to make his hair a gray-white hue. As for Subaru himself, he tucked his hair neatly into a bowler hat, one of the few he found in storage. There was little he could do about his eyes, but at least his outlandishly colored hair would be concealed.

With their disguises settled, there was only one matter left to settle.

“Flanders is pretty far by foot. It would take us several hours to get there without a ground dragon carriage.”

“Do you know how to drive?”

“Well, I’ve ridden a ground dragon before… but driving a carriage is likely rather different.”

Subaru paused to consider this distinction for a moment, then shrugged.

“Well, how hard could it be?”

It was with this unfounded confidence that the two then made their way to the stables of House Astrea.

***

“Too fast, too fast, too fast! I thought these things had a Divine Protection for a smooth ride?!”

“Well, they do, but it only eliminates wind resistance! Traveling across a bumpy road at breakneck speeds will still make the experience rather intense!”

Subaru struggled to rein in the ground dragon pulling their carriage as they inadvertently raced towards Flanders. He nearly lost his hat several times, not from the wind that would ordinarily be around them, but from the jostling of the carriage as it rolled across the bumpy road. Such speed was meant for flat, open terrain, not this road. A more leisurely pace would have been ideal.

It was only after arriving at the outskirts of the city that he managed to gain true control. While cruising up to the city’s entrance, there was another detail he realized they needed to account for.

“What if someone asks our names? We need aliases.”

“True, true… in that case, call me Leon for the day!”

“Leon, huh? Kinda like the Lion Kings?”

“Oh-ho, you’ve read of them, then?”

“Crusch lent me a book of hers on the subject a few weeks back. From what I’ve read, they were wise kings who ruled during times of strife.”

Fourier beamed hearing this succinct description of his proud lineage.

“You’ve read well! I’ve, er… taken interest in them.”

“Oh?”

“Well, yes! They’re my ancestors, after all. Why wouldn’t I take interest?”

“Huh. First I’ve heard you talk about being interested in your ancestors…”

He could tell the prince was hiding something. He wouldn’t pry, though he had to admit he was very curious about the real reason behind this fascination with the Lion Kings of old. He just knew there was a real reason.

“What about you? What will be your alias?”

“… Schwarz.”

“Schwarz, you say? May I ask what the story is behind that name?”

Subaru tightened his grip on the reins. He was uncomfortable talking about the origin of this alias. Rather, it was only part of the alias he had made some time ago.

“I can’t tell you.”

“Oh, come now, Subaru! I told you the reason behind mine!”

“I guessed that myself!”

“Well, you still have me at a bit of a disadvantage here, do you not? You know the inspiration behind mine, but I don’t know the one behind yours.”

Subaru groaned. He somehow felt like he would come to regret what was to follow.

“Fine, fine… but you better not laugh!”

“I solemnly swear that I shall not laugh! Not even a giggle!”

The prince placed a gloved hand over his heart as he swore this promise. Subaru sighed, worn down by the enthusiastic prince.

“It’s, uh… it’s my crossdressing alter ego. Natsumi Schwarz. Just, y’know… without the feminine name.”

“Oh, I see… I hadn’t suspected you would crossdress. Considering your sewing skill you demonstrated earlier, I wouldn’t doubt you sewed your own dresses!”

“… I did…”

“Truly? I would like to see that alter ego sometime, perhaps with Ferris in the room for comparison.”

Subaru was dumbfounded at the prince’s openness and casualness. It took him a moment to realize that Fourier had been around a crossdresser for years now, as he and Ferris had been friends for some time. Given this fact, it was no surprise Fourier was perfectly accepting of such a hobby.

Inside the city proper, Subaru found the architecture similar to that he had seen in the Capital. It was broadly Western European to his eye. He further supposed that it appeared no more advanced than the 18^th century.

“Lovely city, isn’t it? It’s one of the most important in the kingdom.”

“It’s where ground dragons originated. Reinhard told me about it while on the road towards his family’s estate way back when.”

“Oh, good! Then you’re already aware of its significance. Does the place not just impress you?”

“It certainly has a charm to it.”

Subaru smiled as he took it all in. There was a rustic charm to the city, seeing everyone mill about going through their daily lives.

“We should park and join them, don’t you think? See the city from our own perspective rather than from the captivity of this carriage!”

“Sure, sure. Let’s just find a stable to park at for the time being.”

In doing just this, Subaru and Fourier – that is, Schwarz and Leon – set about checking out the town on foot.

“Now, you’re not going to try and set me up with someone while we’re here, are you?”

“Hmm? What do you mean?”

“Well, before you suggested sneaking off to Flanders, I’d been talking about how hopeless my chances of meeting anyone are.”

“Oh my, did I hear you right, sweetheart?”

Subaru and Fourier turned toward the source of an unfamiliar feminine voice. On the street corner was a woman with russet hair, likely in her mid- to late twenties, by Subaru’s estimation. She wore a rather revealing green dress with a taupe scarf draped across her bare shoulders. He gulped, uneasy with the situation he feared they had just walked into.

“You say you’re having troubles looking for someone? Well, look no further!”

“Hey now, look at your luck, Schwarz! It’s not every day love finds you on a street corner!”

“Four- er, Leon! Don’t you think we should get moving? We have that important errand to run for Grimm-san, right?”

“Huh? But wait a- bwah!”

Fourier was about to protest leaving so soon, but Subaru grabbed him by the wrist to keep them moving. The woman unfolded a fan to conceal an annoyed pout.

“Now listen here! If you’re really wanting to find love, you need to take some chances, friend!”

“Do you realize what the woman was doing there on that corner?”

“Hmm? Perhaps she was waiting for you! Perhaps it was fate!”

“… damn, you’re sheltered…”

Fourier adopted a confused expression at Subaru’s exasperation and bewilderment.

“Leon, that woman back there was a prostitute.”

“A prosti‒ …? How could you possibly know?”

“She stopped just short of saying she could show us a good time!”

Fourier: [What’s so bad about a good time?]

He stared blankly at his sheltered friend for a moment.

“… how the hell are you so pure?”

He didn’t have the heart to tell Fourier what “a good time” meant in this context. While the prince had keen insight in most matters, street smarts were apparently not part of them. Subaru himself hadn’t been the most street savvy prior to his arrival, and even he was more knowledgeable than Fourier.

“Look, I appreciate the attempted assist, but… maybe wait for me to express interest in a girl first? A good wingman doesn’t just start throwing his friend at any random woman!”

“‘Wingman?’”

“Leon” looked at his friend with some bewilderment, blinking several times as he tried to comprehend the foreign word.

“It’s someone who’s supposed to help their friend get the girl.”

“Ah, like in one of those ‘dating sims’ you mentioned?”

“Yeah, sorta. I guess some of those games did have a wingman character that offered hints and advice to the player character… uh, Leon? You good?”

The prince in disguise had tuned out from the explanation. His eyes were cast up above.

“Those clouds… they look troubling, don’t they?”

“… yeah, they do.”

Above head, the sky was slate gray. In the rush over to Flanders, they had barely paid the weather any mind. The clouds had been there the whole time, seemingly waiting for a chance to foil Fourier’s disguise.

“Let’s hope the weather holds.”

“Yeah… anywhere you wanna check out? We probably shouldn’t stay too long, unless we wanna tempt fate…”

“Hmm… nowhere in particular. Oh! I know!”

The prince turned their attention to a nearby farmer’s market.

“… you wanna shop for produce?”

“No, no! We should pretend to be butlers! That’s our role, right? We should inhabit that role! It would be a waste not to, having come so far!”

“Pretend to be a butler, huh?”

Subaru had only seen butlers in the media he had consumed prior to his arrival. Fourier, meanwhile, had likely dozens of servants serving his family in the Royal Palace. Still, could being served serve as a suitable window into that role?

Only if the one being served was paying attention. As affable and kind as Fourier was, he was still royalty. He rarely conversed with those so substantially beneath his station. Subaru was perhaps the one furthest beneath him that he had fraternized with, though this would be a dubious assertion to the prince. Being such an anomaly, from Fourier’s perspective, Subaru was in class all his own.

At any rate, it was easy to see who made for the better butler. Fourier nearly blew his cover on several occasions just by virtue of his regal mannerisms and the difficulty he had putting himself in the mindset of a servant.

Subaru, meanwhile, was almost the very picture of a butler. The media he had consumed certainly had prepared him mentally for such a role. However, observing the work of Carol and Grimm had done even more for him. Such observations had been almost entertainment for him, a palette cleanser between bouts of studying and practicing his swordplay. When left with so little freedom, he had to find entertainment where he could.

In this regard, he and Fourier were quite similar. Neither had been free to travel on a whim, prisoners of their own circumstances. Fourier, at least, could travel if accompanied, and he possessed great privilege. Subaru himself, despite being a prisoner, was treated more as a perpetual guest of House Astrea, being treated with the respect one would show a foreign dignitary. Aside from a lack of variety in his life, he could scarcely call himself a prisoner at all.

The two had managed to carry out their “errand,” having acquired a variety of produce. None of it seemed to logically go together, though. Several merchants had raised an eyebrow at the foods they were buying.

What was more was the fact that they knew they couldn’t take it back to the mansion with them. It would only serve as evidence of their forbidden outing. It was thusly decided that they would “donate” the food to a local shelter. When asked what the reason for this gracious donation was, they simply smiled and said it was a gift from House Astrea.

Walking through the streets on their way toward the stables, Fourier had to concede.

“I suppose between the two of us, there is no competition. You’re clearly the better butler.”

“Maybe it’s got something to do with a difference in upbringing? I was firmly middle class where I came from. You’re a prince. In a competition of who can be the better servant, it was never gonna be a fair… hey, when did this become a competition?”

“Perhaps you could give me some tips? Hmm…?”

The prince became suddenly distracted. He held a hand aloft, confusing Subaru for a moment. Then, he, too, understood. He felt a raindrop hit his nose.

The rain wouldn’t hold off any longer. In fact, it was a microburst. The rain came pouring seemingly out of nowhere. The wind began to pick up. They should have seen this coming, really. The crowds in the streets had been thinning out as they were. They had simply gotten too wrapped up in their impromptu competition.

The rain washed the soot out of Fourier’s golden locks. The wind blew away Subaru’s bowler hat. Their disguises were effectively ruined.

Though the crowds had thinned, they weren’t gone entirely. There were still enough people around to take notice of the prince and his strangely foreign friend, standing their in the middle of the square, dressed as butlers.

“I guess we should get going! Our errand is complete now, right Schwarz?”

“I think we can drop the act now, don’t you think?!”

The two began booking it for the stable at which they had parked their carriage. All the while, the prince laughed heartily. Subaru had been terrified for a moment once their cover had been well and truly blown. Hearing his friend laugh without a care in the world, he couldn’t help but join in. They laughed almost the entire ride back to the old Astrea mansion.

Chapter Text

It hadn’t taken long for word of Subaru and Fourier’s impromptu outing to Flanders to get out. Once it did, there was no hiding from the ramifications.

True to his word, Fourier took the brunt of the fallout. He was scolded by Crusch and Ferris, of course, but he also had his father, the Sage Council, and the captain of the Royal Guard to contend with. Discussion of the national security implications – not to mention his own safety as a member of the Royal Family – went on for hours in the throne room after word had reached their ears.

“My dear son, you must understand the cause for concern. Ford couldn’t even bring himself to show up for this discussion due to its connotation.”

The king of Lugunica himself chastised his son from his throne. He bore some similarities in appearance to his son, having golden hair and a matching golden beard. Said beard consisted of a mustache which connected with the king’s sideburns, the chin being shaven. His facial hair accentuated the severity and joviality the man tended to exude, depending on the circumstances.

He had sharp crimson eyes like his son, made sharper by the crow’s feet around his eyes. He was a man of middle age, something not surprising when one considered that his youngest son was eighteen years old.

“Yes, indeed, I do. I trust you understand that I mean no insult my dear uncle when I say that I sincerely doubt a grown man would be kidnapped in broad daylight.”

The glib remark caused the surliest sage, Bordeaux Zellgef, to pinch his forehead. He was already thoroughly irked.

“Any ordinary man would likely not have to worry about such a fate, yes. A prince is far from an ordinary man, however. This you must understand.”

“I do, Lord Bordeaux. It would be a terrible burden to my family to have to pay the ransom.”

“Oh, son…”

The fourth prince knew he couldn’t just come out and say what he really felt. From his perspective, it would be of little consequence were the fourth prince to go missing. He wasn’t destined for the throne, and even without him, diplomatic efforts and the continuation of the family line were still quite possible without him.

He stopped just short of saying this. His father and those in attendance could read between the lines, though. While the king was preoccupied with his youngest son’s expression, the wisest sage, Miklotov McMahon, would press forward.

“Discounting the fact that no such monetary conditions had been stipulated for even the possibility of the return of your cousin, a ransom is far from the only distress your family and friends would incur. Surely you understand this?”

“I do, I do. Crusch and Ferris would be terribly distraught over my disappearance, I’m sure. I’m also sure my family would miss me, as well. I was merely making a grave joke, is all.”

“Prince Fourier, this is hardly the time for comedy.”

The ill-tempered sage felt this personally. Having been a member of the Royal Guard in the past, anything that could prove disastrous for their reputation was a sore topic for him. It was even more so for the present captain, Marcos Gildark.

“I must agree with Lord Bordeaux, Your Highness. Please take this seriously. You clearly know what such a tragedy would mean for those outside of yourself.”

“I only speak so flippantly because I knew there was nothing to worry about. I was perfectly safe with the company I kept that day.”

Bordeaux leaned to one side in his seat, resting a cheek against his fist. He still appeared irate, though the reason why had changed. This much was detectable by the not-so-subtle narrowing of his stern eyes upon Fourier’s mention of the company he had recently kept.

“Ah yes, you’re referring to that foreigner.”

“Natsuki Subaru, per reports from the Royal Guard. His existence was supposed to be kept secret.”

“Indeed. Not only was his existence exposed to the kingdom at large, but you have been secretly meeting with this foreigner for roughly a month now.”

Each utterance of “foreigner” was brimming with scorn. Bordeaux’s suspicions of this anomalous man were patently obvious to everyone in the throne room. Was this “Natsuki Subaru” an insidious agent, seeking to infiltrate their ranks and undermine the security of the kingdom? The hawkish sage couldn’t help but view the Boy from Beyond the Falls through such a lens.

The knight commander was similarly affected. He became crestfallen with the shift in topic.

“To learn Julius and Reinhard were complacent in these illicit meetings with such an unknown… it is disheartening.”

“Now that is a step too far! They were “complacent” because they see the truth as I see it: that Natsuki Subaru is harmless to our fair kingdom.”

Bordeaux sighed, mulling over this testimony.

“The word of the Sword Saint and the Finest Knight… I cannot discount that their judgment holds considerable weight, but it is far from the last word on this matter.”

“Well, how kind of you to overlook my own judgment on this matter! Furthermore, do you claim to possess finer judgment than our Sword Saint? Are you not aware of his keen perception? And what of Sir Julius? Do you deem him to be a poor judge of character?”

“I am aware of both Reinhard’s perception and Julius’s judgment. Neither of them are advisors to the king, however.”

“I see. Then you require further proof of his benign disposition? Fine. Why not bring him here and see for yourselves?”

The prince stood before his father, arms crossed defiantly. He had offered his suggestion, though there was little indication that he would accept any refusal.

Bordeaux straightened his posture with this proposition, bewildered by the audacity therein.

“Bring him here? To the Royal Palace?”

“He had been here before, as I’m sure you’re acutely aware. You can even have Reinhard escort him here. Would that be secure enough for you, Lord Bordeaux?”

Bordeaux looked toward Miklotov, uneasy. The latter stroked his beard, his curiosity piqued. The king similarly seemed curious, though he shared Bordeaux’s unease.

“I’m sure it was inevitable that news of this Natsuki Subaru’s existence would get out at some point. We could hardly have kept him confined to the old Astrea Estate indefinitely.”

“I don’t see why not. It seems Reinhard was more than happy to have the foreigner there.”

“Vice-Captain Heinkel is less than pleased with the arrangement…”

Marcos spoke up. Ordinarily, he was perfectly willing to stand by as the sages deliberated. This was a matter he heard more than enough about as of late, however.

“Well, of course he is. He has that unknown entity under his roof.”

“You are aware you can’t have it both ways, are you not?”

Bordeaux frowned. He knew he had just spoken through both sides of his mouth. He had hoped this would be overlooked, perhaps written off as a quip. This was not to be so long as Fourier was present. He knew a joke when he heard it, even more so when it was disguising posturing.

“I’m not hearing any sufficient objections.”

The prince playfully put a hand to one of his ears. The sages regretted they could think of no objections strong enough to write off the prince’s suggestion. None of them could fathom anyone being more powerful than the Sword Saint. With him escorting Subaru to the Royal Palace, there was little concern that anything could go wrong.

The king held his face in his palm, his head drooping forward. Of all of his sons, Fourier was easily the most rambunctious. Further resistance hardly seemed constructive at any rate.

“I hope I don’t regret this, son… Captain Marcos.”

“Yes, Your Highness?”

“Send word to Reinhard to retrieve this foreigner. It is high time we review the facts and put this matter behind us once and for all. If after reviewing this evidence we find that he is – contrary to prior testimony – a danger to the kingdom… a proper sentence will then be levied.”

Fourier froze. His father’s response had started amenable enough for his liking. His father’s final statement, however, had taken the wind from his sails. His cocky attitude from a moment earlier evaporated almost immediately.

“‘Sentence?’ Father, this man is no threat to us!”

“That will be for the sages and I to decide, son.”

“… very well then.”

And so word would indeed be sent to Reinhard. While this was unfolding, Subaru was receiving some scolding of his own from his teacher.

***

“Really? ‘New hires?’ Running an errand for my husband?”

“I’m… sorry…”

He was panting hard. The scolding had taken the form of some particularly intense training. Under such circumstances, he was performing surprisingly well.

In the two weeks that had interceded since their outing, she had been the first to find out about it. Such training was his punishment, though it served only to benefit him. He was progressing far more rapidly than before.

At this point, he was nearly as good as the regular soldiers of the Royal Army. He was still many worlds apart from the likes of Reinhard and Julius, though. Even Carol, in her twilight years, was beyond him.

Despite this, he performed admirably. He dodged with reflexes that surprised even himself. He parried strikes that used to make his wrists burn, though they were sliding off instead of making direct contact. It took him a little longer to recover from such parries, though he managed to stay just ahead of her next strike, usually by dodging again.

He hadn’t lasted so long in a spar before. At the beginning of this “punishment regimen,” he had been swiftly put into check by Carol. Now, after a fortnight of intensive sparring, he was lasting easily twice as long against his teacher as he had prior to this intensification.

“After all of my tutelage, my good graces, you decide to behave so frivolously.”

“Look, I’ve told you –!”

“Please do not blame His Royal Highness Prince Fourier again.”

A stronger blow than usual followed. He managed to block it, though it sent him sliding backwards on his heels. He narrowly regained his footing, though not before needing to dodge an incoming acrobatic overhead strike from his teacher.

It was only a matter of time before he ran out of breath. Once this happened, Carol would pin him to the lawn again.

“It was his idea, though! He even said… he’d accept responsibility… if we… if we…”

Fatigue was getting to him. He was finding it difficult to string a sentence, not that it mattered. Carol already knew precisely what he was trying to say, the same “excuse” he had been giving since they had been found out.

He took a knee, shakily bracing himself with his wooden sword. Sweat dripped from his brow. It got into one of his eyes, causing it to sting and close shut. It shot open wide in conjunction with the other one upon seeing Carol’s sword point at the tip of his nose.

“You’re improving well. Take the rest of the day off.”

“How… how long are you gonna keep this up?”

“Until either you apologize for lying or until you are proven to be telling the truth.”

“… where’s Crusch when you need her…?”

He collapsed from exhaustion, again. This made fourteen times in fourteen days.“At least I set a new high score” was the final thought on his mind before he fell unconscious.

***

“Rise and shine, Subaru.”

“… Rein? Is that you?”

Coming to within his quarters, Subaru rose slowly. He did so rather unsteadily, being sore from the day’s “punishment regimen.” It had been late morning during that spar. Looking out the window, he could see it was nighttime.

Standing over his bed was indeed Reinhard, in full Royal Guard uniform.

“I see Carol has been running you ragged as usual?”

“Yeah, guessing Grimm carried me back here again… what’s up?”

“I’m afraid we must leave immediately. You’re wanted in the Capital.”

“‘Wanted in the…?’ Oh no… he didn’t…”

“Wanted” was immediately associated with criminality in his head. The thought that followed was that he had been sold out, that Fourier had thrown him under the bus to pettily avoid any fallout he might receive for going out unattended. Said fallout would invariably be orders of magnitude harsher for him, being a commoner. In fact, being a foreigner, it could be worse still.

“Oh my, it seems you have the wrong idea after all… Prince Fourier thought you might leap to that line of thought, though he had hoped you wouldn’t.”

“Then… he was true to his word?”

“His Highness recently met with his father, the Sage Council, and the captain of the Royal Guard. He admitted his role in being the instigator of this “outing,” though they remain largely unconvinced of your benignity. Fourier parlayed on your behalf, though.”

“Oh? Well, crap… now I feel like a jerk.”

The Sword Saint smiled in an attempt to lift the spirits of his guest-turned-friend.

“You can make it up to him by speaking before the king and the Sage Council. They will decide for themselves from your testimony. Lady Crusch will be reprising her role as the examiner of truths in this hearing.”

“‘Hearing’ sure makes it sound like I’m already in trouble…”

“Yes, well, this could’ve been avoided if you had only talked Fourier out of it.”

“You think there’s any talking him down?”

The Sword Saint paused, considering the point Subaru had raised.

“… that’s a fair point. Shall we?”

“As per usual, it’s not like I have a choice. Either I go and try and clear things up, or I stay here and get automatically sentenced to… hell, do I wanna know?”

“Likely not.”

Reinhard offered his friend a hand. Standing up wasn’t coming easily to him. He needed to recuperate at least the rest of the night, and even then the soreness would linger. That day’s spar had been even more intense than usual, if only because he had put more effort in than usual. The Sword Saint braced him all the way to the carriage.

“Thanks, Reinhard.”

“Any time… though please don’t make a habit of it.”

“Tell that to Carol-sensei…”

The carriage began to move as fast as it could on the rough country roads without becoming too bumpy. They needed to make haste towards their destination.

Subaru had never been in the carriage at night before. Back home, there had been street lights to illuminate the roads. Out here near Hakuchuri, there was no such illumination. Only the stars and the moon in the night sky above.

“It seems you’ve been really coming into your own under her tutelage.”

“Yeah… despite feeling like total garbage right now, I actually feel pretty good on the whole.”

“Truly?”

Subaru nodded, a faint, weary smile adorning his face.

“Yeah. Like I’ve got a new lease on life. I only ever dreamed of this kind of growth back home.”

“What was stopping you from achieving it back there if you don’t mind me asking?”

“Well, for one, I didn’t have a teacher like Carol-sensei.”

“‘For one?’ Are there other reasons?”

“… yeah. Those I kinda do mind getting into though. Sorry.”

He knew it wasn’t just the lack of a good teacher keeping him from achieving the growth he had attained in this new world. He had his own issues he had been sorting through, the processing of which had been sidestepped entirely in favor of his present endeavors. Eschewing emotional growth in favor of learning new talents was something that hadn’t escaped his notice, though he wished it had.

“I see. That’s completely fine. Just so long as you’re forthwith during the hearing.”

“Like I’d lie in a courtroom!”

Tired though he was, Subaru became more animated for a moment. He wished his friend hadn’t felt it necessary to offer such obvious advice.

“Well, it is to occur in the throne room, not a courtroom. Though I grasp that it isn’t the location that matters.”

Reinhard chuckled at his own joke. Subaru rolled his eyes, being too tired to humor the Sword Saint. He needed more rest.

“You could sleep on the way. We won’t arrive until past midnight, more than likely.”

“I’ve never been able to sleep on the move like this. I get the feeling this is gonna be a long night...”

This thought, once verbalized, lingered in the cabin of the carriage all the way until they arrived in the Capital, all the way until they arrived at the castle gates. It was terribly late in the night. It was already tomorrow, the wee hours of the morning.

He was escorted into the palace by Reinhard. As they passed by the castles guards, it couldn’t be ignored how nervous they appeared.

“What gives? These guys remind me of the guards who tackled me without so much as a second thought way back when, except they’re all skittish. Why the sudden nerves?”

“If I had to guess, the rumors of your origin having spread over the past couple of weeks may have gotten to them. Fear of the unknown is a universal fear, after all.”

“‘Fear of the…?’ Oh, brother…”

He facepalmed as they made their way to the throne room. He couldn’t believe how things had changed since he had arrived. To think that the likes of the guards that had once hastily apprehended him would now be so nervous “knowing” just what it is was they had been dealing with that day.

They didn’t really “know” anything, of course. Subaru was only an unknown to them because none of them would ever give the effort to understand and relate to him. Reinhard’s lack of fear of Subaru wasn’t born of his absurd prowess. He had already supposed that Subaru may be in some incomprehensible way more capable than him. He lacked fear of Subaru because he had talked with him at length.

The same could be said of Prince Fourier, though he had been forbidden from sitting in on the hearings. The rationale was that his presence, let alone participation, could potentially introduce biases. Julius had similarly recused himself from the proceedings, knowing his complacency in Subaru and Fourier’s meetings would make him ill-suited for such a thing.

“I should apologize to Julius sometime.”

“For what reason? It was Prince Fourier who had asked him to conceal the true nature of his outings as of late. He has already apologized, as well. Profusely, I might add.”

“Yeah, but I was involved, too. It doesn’t sit right with me.”

“I suspect you’ll be just fine in this hearing, Subaru.”

“Huh? Where did that come from?”

Reinhard wore a confident smile as he patted his friend on the back. The reason behind the gesture escaped Subaru’s understanding. He gave a slight frown accompanied by a look of suspicion, as though he were trying to see through the Sword Saint.

“We’re here. I’m afraid I can’t say anything on your behalf while we’re inside.”

“Yeah, I know. You’re here for security purposes. In case I, the ‘Man from Beyond the Falls,’ try something.”

He struck a dramatic pose upon facetiously stating the appellation that had been bestowed upon him. His chuuni tendencies were on display, causing Reinhard to wonder if he had perhaps been premature in stating his confidence in Subaru’s performance in the hearing.

“I could have sworn the people referred to you as the ‘Boy from Beyond the Falls…’”

“I’m not a kid, though! Hell, by Lugunican standards, I’ve been a man for nearly three years now!”

He became animated again. His moniker hadn’t escaped his notice. He wondered what it was about himself that gave credence to this unfortunate perception.

“Please be mindful of your disposition when speaking before the king, Subaru.”

“Yeah, yeah. I’ll be on my own. Let’s just get this over with…”

The Sword Saint nodded, then pushed open the doors to the throne room himself. They were massive doors, yet Reinhard opened them effortlessly. Subaru didn’t doubt the man could blow them off their hinges were he to sneeze.

Inside, an audience awaited. The Royal Guard, headed by Marcos. The highest nobles, among them a clownish man who looked on with interest. The Sage Council, with the wisest of them, Miklotov, sitting in the middle. To his right was his outspoken junior, Bordeaux.

Sat upon the throne was the sovereign himself, King Randohal Lugunica. He was a broader man than his youngest son. It was uncertain how much of his bulk was muscle and how much was fat. Subaru felt profoundly uncomfortable trying to guess.

He had been before nobility and even royalty before. He had been in the company of the kingdom’s highest champion for roughly two months. He had met an esteemed duchess, the most capable healer in the kingdom, and a bonafide prince.

The man sat upon the throne was different for him. He exuded primacy in ways that none of these others had. He possessed the majestic aura of a lion, or something resembling it, at least. Perhaps it was the red and gold crown atop his head, or the flowing red cape with golden ornamentation that he wore over his fine white vestments.

Given this majesty, it would have made perfect sense for the king to have been the center of attention.

Yet all eyes were on Subaru.

***

“Sir Reinhard has arrived with the foreigner, one ‘Natsuki Subaru.’ Step forward, you two.”

“R-Right…”

Subaru began walking forward, shadowed by Reinhard. As they did, murmurs could be heard on either side of the aisle. The precise words were too low in volume, but he didn’t need to hear to know what – or rather who – they were talking about. No doubt they were speculating.

They stopped before the steps to the throne. To the right of the throne were the seats for the Sage Council, the advisors to the king.

“Duchess Karsten, step forth. Your services are required for this hearing.”

Sitting among the robed nobles was Crusch, who bowed her head in acknowledgment of the knight commander’s summons. She approached the stairs to the throne, bowed before the king, and then approached the left hand side of that highest seat in the land.

Subaru wanted to wave hello to her. In the times she and Ferris had accompanied Fourier to the Astrea Estate, they had gotten along rather well. However, now wasn’t the time for such friendly displays.

Marcos looked to the king, nodding to confirm that the stage had been set for their proceedings. The king nodded in return, then returned his gaze to Subaru.

“You are the one they call Natsuki Subaru?”

“Yes, that’s my name.”

“You seem worse for wear.”

“Yes. I’ve been training hard with Carol-sen‒ er, Miss Remendis.”

“Hmm…”

The king cupped his chin in his hand ponderously. This awkward young man was not quite what he had expected, even with reports from his Royal Guardsmen.

“And you claim to hail from beyond the Great Waterfall?”

“That’s the conclusion others have drawn for me. My homeland is Japan, a nation of some one-hundred and twenty million people that should be due east of here…”

Laughter of varying volumes emitted from the nobility. Some were laughing out loud. Some snickered. Some managed to stifle. The minority remained unfazed by Subaru’s statement, including the clownish noble, who continued to smile. The Royal Guard remained stoic in the face of what to many must have sounded ludicrous.

The sages similarly were not laughing.

“I must say, I am fascinated at the possibility that you may be truly from beyond the known world. There have been many charlatans and madmen throughout the years who have made the same claim, however.”

“He hasn’t spoken any falsehood, Lord Miklotov. Furthermore, Blue has examined him both physically and mentally. His conclusion was that he was sound of mind and of no threat to the kingdom by virtue of his apparent capabilities both physically and magically.”

The duchess spoke up, referring to her attendant by his prestigious, prodigious title. It was evident to all she intended to place respect on her attendant’s abilities while also stressing the ironclad nature of their assessment of the man presently being examined.

“Yes, yes, we’ve heard the report. Sir Reinhard had relayed this to Captain Marcos, who relayed it to us in kind. I find your qualification of ‘apparent’ to be rather concerning. After all, can we so easily discount the threat this boy poses, having so easily infiltrated the Royal Palace?”

Ironclad though it had seemed to her, their assessment would always face the highest scrutiny from Bordeaux. The sage spoke in rather dismissive terms that put her on the defensive.

“As I said, the greatest healer in the kingdom has assessed his gate to be insufficient for the type of magic that would be required for such a feat. It is too unstable.”

Bordeaux stroked his chin, his brow furrowed. He wasn’t fully convinced of the foreigner’s benignity. The king, however, appeared less concerned upon hearing Crusch’s testimony.

“Yes… regarding potential dangers to my family and me, I must wonder if this is something we ought to worry about. While it seems he himself wasn’t responsible for his sudden appearance in the castle, someone had to have done it. People don’t just appear out of the ether.”

“Rest assured, Your Highness: the Royal Guard is already adjusting patrols to fill in any potential gaps in our defenses, and your court mage is formulating a magical response to such infiltration methods.”

The sage gestured to the clownish noble in the audience, who bowed his head politely.

“I see. That is much appreciated, Lord Roswaal. I’m certain that if anyone in the kingdom can address such a concern, it would be you.”

“You are much too kiiiiiiind, Your Highness.”

Subaru was slightly off-put by the stilted cadence with which the court mage spoke. He spoke every bit bizarrely as he looked. His blue and yellow heterochromatic eyes gave an otherworldly impression, despite being an actual native here relative to Subaru himself.

“Concerning the Royal Guard’s state of high alert since the incident of this man’s arrival, I have to wonder if they may grow fatigued.”

“I can assure you this won’t be the case. The rounds occur in carefully scheduled shifts. None of my men will be tired out.”

“Then we are reasonably certain of this man originating from beyond the Great Waterfall in earnest? That he isn’t another fraud or lunatic?”

The king turned to address Crusch. Though he was aware of her bond with his youngest son, he knew he could depend on her to deliver unbiased judgments. She folded a hand over her heart as she responded to His Highness.

“I am certain of the former, and Felix is confident in the latter.”

“What say you, Natsuki Subaru? What are your intentions in our fair kingdom?”

All eyes returned to Subaru. Beads of sweat were forming on his brow. He had never been good before a crowd, at least not after a certain point in his life. Despite this, he was feeling rather good. Even though Reinhard had said he would be on his own, he definitely felt as though Crusch was advocating for him.

Of course, she was merely offering the testimony afforded to her by her Divine Protection. It was entirely coincidental that it happened to be favorable towards him, though this was not to say Crusch herself was indifferent to him.

“Intentions” seemed like a loaded choice of words to him. It seemed to imply he had chosen to come here with a specific purpose in mind. Of course, he couldn’t deny he had developed intentions after having gathered himself in the weeks following his arrival.

“I only want to improve myself and get along with everyone. Maybe in time I can be seen as a Lugunican myself? I think I’d like that.”

“‘Improve yourself’ how, exactly? Are you referring to the reports of you having received training? I still question your judgment in humoring this foreigner in such a manner, Sir Reinhard.”

“I understand, Lord Bordeaux.”

The Sword Saint placed his hand over his heart, bowing apologetically before the sage. The latter sighed, rather tired. He had evidently been deliberating with his fellow sages on this matter for some time now. A foreign element receiving martial training from one of the most esteemed noble houses in the kingdom had certainly pushed the envelope.

“Well, looking at him, we know the boy can swing a sword now. Wonderful. How can we trust such a person, who appeared out of thin air?”

“That may be short-sighted, Master Bordeaux. Recall the reports we received from Captain Marcos, the tales of this ‘other world’ Sir Reinhard had heard from this young man. What might we learn from him?”

“I agree, Lord Miklotov. There is possibly much we could staaaaaaaand to learn from him.”

The court mage spoke up. His countenance hadn’t changed once that whole time. His eyes at least contained volumes of interest, all issued toward the Boy from Beyond the Falls.

“Not to do a disservice to the duchess’s gift, but I still find it rather difficult to believe the contents of those reports. They sound like tall tales to my ears.”

“But if the duchess’ Divine Protection reads no deceptive intent on this man’s part, how could you remain so stalwartly opposed? Could there perhaps be something holding you back, good sage?”

A voice called out from the noble side of the aisle. The nobles looked among themselves to ascertain who it was that had spoken in defense of Crusch’s assessment, and by extension, Subaru’s credibility. None of them could identify who among them had spoken, however.

“Oh? Someone wishes to levy criticism against me without showing themselves? How cowardly.”

“Perhaps. Still, it cannot be denied that your apprehension – understandable though it may be – is counterproductive, Master Bordeaux.”

The king folded his hands before him, nodding in accord with the eldest sage.

“Agreed. It would be more productive to work towards a consensus as to what shall be done with this young man.”

Subaru gulped. He didn’t like the king’s phrasing. He irrationally feared being summarily executed for the simple fact that he had appeared in the kingdom apropos of nothing. Considering his initial reception had been getting tackled and taken to the dungeons for interrogation, this wasn’t as irrational of a fear as it could have been.

Reinhard sensed this fear. He found he was unable to remain silent. Without being addressed –

“Your Highness. If I may?”

“Yes, Sir Reinhard?”

“It would be no trouble for him to remain in my family’s custody.”

“No trouble to you, perhaps. Think of your father, Sir Reinhard. The vice-captain has made his displeasure with having a foreigner under his roof abundantly clear.”

Reinhard’s heart appeared to sink hearing this counter to his proposal to maintain the status quo that had been established roughly two months ago. He was held in high esteem as the Sword Saint, but he wasn’t the head of his noble house. His father’s position within the Royal Guard also couldn’t be discounted.

“I understand, Lord Bordeaux. I would just like to add that I’ve been impressed with Subaru’s commitment and docility.”

“Your testimony is appreciated, Sir Reinhard. I’m sure it will be taken into consideration.”

The Sword Saint bowed his head in gratitude towards Miklotov. He had done all he could for his friend.

Silence filled the throne room. No nobles were raising any objections or proposals, nor were any Royal Guardsmen. Marcos remained silent, perhaps seeing himself as little more than an officiator. The sages weren’t deliberating. Perhaps they had done enough of that already.

“I see. So there will be no further consideration?”

Even with the king offering the floor, no one spoke. This didn’t make Subaru feel good. He figured that his best case scenario was remaining in the custody of House Astrea, though this was seeming less likely following Bordeaux’s objection. What other fates could befall him?

He could be formally imprisoned within the Prison Tower, possibly for the rest of his life. It would be a long-term drain on resources, though. Other more macabre options would prove far more expedient.

He could be exiled, though releasing such an unknown into a neighboring country would almost certainly sour relations once it were found out. Furthermore, there was likely fear that this anomalous young man could return for vengeance, assuming he were as dangerous as some wildly speculated.

He could be executed. It would be all too tempting to sweep this fiasco under the rug in brutal fashion.

Then again, this wasn’t terribly likely now that word of his existence was spreading throughout the kingdom following his and Fourier’s outing in Flanders. The people would almost certainly have questions about why a seemingly innocent man was executed, even if he were a foreigner. This “Boy from Beyond the Falls” had begun to capture the imagination of many commoners. He was becoming something of a celebrity, just outside of his own notice.

Frankly, these were all rather unlikely fates. Subaru only feared them because he had nothing else he could do but let his imagination run wild. It wasn’t as though he could propose how he was to be treated.

“I will say it pleases me to hear that this young man is one of discipline and benign demeanor. I am also glad measures are being taken to prevent any further infiltration of the palace – intentional or otherwise – from ever recurring.”

Subaru wanted to express his thankfulness for what sounded like approval from the king, though he had the feeling it would have been out of step on his part. It was sounding like the situation was practically sorted out. The only remaining issue was the foreigner at the center of it all.

“You know, it had been suggested by my son that this young man be allowed to become his attendant…”

Bordeaux sharply turned to look at the king. He appeared apoplectic, utterly stunned by the king’s line of thought.

“Your Highness, you can’t possibly be considering such a thing! This foreigner could be an unsightly influence on the prince!”

“Preposterous! If anything, his benefit could be a benefit to the prince! No, to the kingdom!”

The throne room became an uproar as the same voice from before emitted from the noble side of the aisle. This time, it positively erupted, making the task of identifying the person it belonged to that much easier.

A noble none of the others appeared to be familiar with emerged from the crowd. Their robe differed from the others in that it had a cowl that largely concealed their face. Only the mysterious noble’s mouth was visible underneath. Upon entering the aisle where Subaru and Reinhard stood, they removed their cowl.

The uproar only intensified.

“Son?! How?! What are you doing here? I thought I had made myself perfectly clear!”

It was indeed Prince Fourier, making as dramatic of an appearance as he could imagine within the reasonable limits of this hearing. His trademark yaeba was on full display as he laughed boisterously.

“Indeed you did, father! Yet here I stand, in support of my friend!”

“… now I really feel like a jerk.”

In the midst of this scene, Subaru couldn’t fathom how he could possibly have ever doubted his friend. He sighed, exasperated with himself.

“Hmm. If I had to guess, you probably thought I had sold you out for a moment? That’s alright, I forgive you. Take heart, Subaru! I’ll always stay true to my word.”

“Son, you have yet to answer my question!”

The king was obviously displeased. He had been the one to tell his son to recuse himself from the hearing, despite him being the first person to come into contact with Subaru.

“Right, yes! You’re curious as to why I’m here. The answer is simple: I’m here to advocate for the precise proposal you mentioned not but a moment ago!”

He placed his hands proudly on his hips. He certainly possessed a commanding presence, even standing before his own father sat upon his throne. Subaru now felt he had underestimated the primacy inherent to Fourier Lugunica upon seeing his father at the outset of this hearing. He was every bit as regal as his father.

“Your father the king also asked ‘how,’ I believe, Your Highness. I cannot say I am surprised you would engage in such an impertinent act, though! Hohoho!”

The eldest elder chuckled with familiarity, stroking his white beard as he did so. It implied this “impertinence” was something the two had discussed before. His jollity further implied this “impertinence” wasn’t necessarily a negative against Fourier.

“‘How?’ The ‘how’ is simple! I procured it from Lord Roswaal. He certainly lives up to his reputation as our kingdom’s court mage, no? Not a soul in the room recognized me!”

“My, you’re as kind as your father, Your Hiiiiiiighness.”

The harlequin court mage bowed in gratitude toward the prince. The nobles around him seemed on edge. Just how many people were in on this princely plot?

“That serves well as a disguise, true, though you would need some means of entering. An unknown noble is no noble at all.”

“An astute point, Lord Miklotov! I must confess I had taken some cues from my friend here as to how to blend into a crowd more seamlessly. As it turns out, if you dress the part and behave as though you belong in the environment you find yourself within, most people won’t sense even a whiff of suspicion!”

“Pardon?”

“Put simply, I walked in.”

The prince shrugged coyly at Bordeaux’s stupefied query, understating how he had managed to sneak into the throne room. He had taken to heart the “contest” between him and Subaru cosplaying as butlers in the markets of Flanders. Subaru had acted the part, and while dressing the part, had been more believable than Fourier, who had dressed the part but scarcely acted it. With this lesson in mind, the prince had devised his plan to intervene.

“Of course, I needed to wait for the perfect moment to lift the veil, so to speak. Lord Bordeaux’s rather insulting objection against my friend was the perfect moment! My thanks, good sage!”

The prince offered the surly sage a facetious bow as though he were an actor in a play. The latter gripped the arms of his chair so hard that they would have snapped had he been in his prime.

“Lady Crusch, as my son’s friend, you weren’t aware of this scheme of his, were you?”

“I’m afraid not, Your Highness. Your son is quite crafty and wily.”

“Hey, now! You make me sound like a persistent pest stealing from a farmer’s larder!”

“I wouldn’t deign to make such a comparison, Your Highness.”

She bowed politely before the prince, who blushed momentarily. He felt he had perhaps made the duchess feel bad.

“Ah, well… in that case, I forgive you.”

“Enough! Prince Fourier, have you no respect for decorum?!”

“Oh, of course! Just not when it is used as a gavel against one of my friends. I again insist that Subaru could only serve as a positive influence on myself and the kingdom.”

Bordeaux held his face in vexation. He must have felt like the only sane person left in these proceedings.

“You just admitted he advised you in the art of disguise! How could such subterfuge not be seen as a corrupting influence?”

“Come now, Lord Bordeaux, that’s far too naïve for you! I’m sure you’re aware of the import of such tactics on the world stage, yes? Or are you merely trying to win an argument by seizing some supposed ‘moral high ground?’”

The splenetic sage could only stare at the prince. He was genuinely displeased to be arguing with a member of the Royal Family, much more so to be so thoroughly on the ropes.

“A diplomat who can consider such tactics and more crucially detect their use in others is one who is more capable on the world stage. And this is but one lesson I’ve taken from my newest friend! I could provide further examples if need be.”

The prince sauntered about the crimson carpet of the aisle, quite pleased with himself. Bordeaux was struggling to keep up. This much was noticed by his peers and the king.

“I do not believe that shall be necessary, Prince Fourier. Truth be told, I agree with you. I believe this young man could be quite the benefit to you, perhaps even the kingdom, as you suggest. Of course, I do believe it necessary to mediate the possibility of any negative influences associating with him may pose.”

“As shrewd as ever, Lord Miklotov! My close bonds with Crusch and Ferris certainly could achieve the mediation you describe. They would never let any foul influence seize control over me. Having Subaru here in the palace would further facilitate such mediation.”

“I suppose that would allow us to keep a closer eye on him, given the proximity of the totality of the Royal Guard to here…”

“Hey, look who’s on board! That’s the spirit, Lord Bordeaux!”

“But!”

Bordeaux cut Fourier off as his enthusiasm achieved crescendo. He wouldn’t relinquish the last word to his opponent in this debate, even if said opponent were a prince. The crowd leaned in, curious as to what the sage’s stipulation would be.

“… but?”

“I must place two conditions.”

“Hmm… we shall consider these concessions. What are they?”

The prince took on an authoritative tone. It stood in sharp contrast to his bombastic attitude from just a second before. It was time for business. This was evidently how he tended to conduct himself diplomatically.

“First: his appearance. It’s too foreign. He must alter it.”

Everyone looked at Subaru. His black hair, sanpakugan and track suit definitely made him stand out in a crowd.

“I can change clothes, I guess…”

“Don’t worry, friend! I’m sure Ferris can help you pick out more amenable attire!”

Fourier patted his friend on the back, softening the impact of the first concession somewhat. He agreed to it with a hint of reluctance. Giving up his track suit and sneakers, some of the last remaining vestiges of his home, stung more than he could have expected. Without them, all he would have left would be his cellphone.

Bordeaux smiled. He figured this first concession would be the easier of the two to accept. Having sensed such resistance to such a minor request, he figured he had Subaru right where he wanted him.

This was no longer a statement of conditions. It was a test of Subaru’s character.

“Second, and this is the more important condition… as Prince Fourier’s attendant, you must be willing to lay down your life for him. Both of these conditions must be agreed to before I will concede.”

“Now that just seems excessive!”

“I’m afraid it isn’t, Your Highness. Felix has sworn to do the very same for me, should push come to shove.”

Crusch spoke up, issuing an unfortunate assist to the sage’s second condition. She was consistent in her honesty. This much Fourier could appreciate. Adore, really. Even so, it did feel as though it would come at a cost here.

Fourier: [… that just…]

The prince disliked such a dynamic to exist among friends. He wanted them all to live as equals. He looked toward his father pleadingly.

“I’m sorry, son. I must agree with this condition, as well. It is a critical role of any attendant worth their salt.”

Fourier despaired at the idea of anyone laying down their life in his name. He looked again to Crusch, who appeared sympathetic to the prince. It hurt her to see him so stricken.

“I’ll do it.”

“Huh? Subaru, you ‒”

“Truly? You would lay down your life for the prince?”

Before the prince could inquire further, he was cut off by Bordeaux. The sage had found himself rather pleasantly surprised, at least in part. Some part of him doubtlessly was still annoyed to have been proven wrong.

“Look, if you’re trying to scare me… well, it’s working. I mean, look at my hands! Shaking like crazy…”

He was indeed shaking at the thought that he would be undertaking such a responsibility. It did little to convince himself he possessed the conviction to do so. He tightened his grip, taking a deep breath as he did so.

“Even still, I’d do it.”

Bordeaux stared on at the resolve on display. The aura he could sense around that young man was rather familiar. It was the sort he had known in those he had once held as comrades. He wouldn’t concede so readily, though.

“Why?”

“Well, it’s not like I’ve got much going for me in this world outside of this opportunity.”

“It’s true. He’s broke beyond compare, you know.”

“You know, I was about to say ‘besides, he’s my friend.’ C’mon, man…”

“Ha-ha, what? It was your own wording!”

The prince smacked his friend on the back as he laughed at his expense. It couldn’t be denied that he was sorely lacking in finances. If left to his own devices, even with the training and education he had received from Carol, he had to wonder how long he could make it.

“Whatever! If swearing I’d die for this guy is enough for you, then I swear it! I swear it on the Dragon!”

There were some gasps in the audience. Many in attendance doubted this foreigner fully comprehended the degree of importance of the promise he had just sworn.

There were no doubts from Fourier or Crusch, though. They knew all too well that he had been studying Lugunican customs extensively during his stay at the Astrea Estate. He knew all too well what it meant to swear anything on the Dragon.

The king was impressed with the dedication on display, as were Miklotov and Crusch. Bordeaux was almost as floored as most of the nobles. Roswaal watched the scene with keen intrigue.

“To go so far… and here I thought it might be more agonizing of a decision for you. Why, it almost seems as though you place more weight on the decision of your attire than on your own life.”

Subaru made no comment. Something about this remark from Bordeaux stuck into him deeply. It brought about unwanted thoughts that he was quick to bury within his mind.

Bordeaux was beyond vexed at this point. He threw up a hand in defeat.

“Fine. I see no reason why he shouldn’t be the prince’s attendant if he adheres to these conditions.”

“Nor do I. It shall be so. Natsuki Subaru.”

Upon hearing his name, he instinctively took a knee. He did so rather suddenly, hitting his knee rather hard on the hard marble floor of the throne room. He stifled a grunt of moderate pain.

“Y-Yes?”

“From this day forth, you are to be the attendant to my youngest son, Prince Fourier Lugunica. Take well to your duty.”

“Yes, Your Highness!”

He almost squeaked out his response, his voice cracking under the duress of being spoken to by a king. The pain in his knee didn’t help, either.

The king rose from his throne, raising a hand before the assembly.

“This matter has been settled. I offer my sincere gratitude for your attendance, everyone. Captain Marcos.”

The knight commander bowed toward the king before addressing the assembly.

“Right. This hearing has concluded. You may all return to your estates. Those Royal Guardsmen who are to be on duty soon shall return to the barracks.”

The audience began to disperse upon the captain’s decree. Discussion among them of what had just transpired began almost immediately thereafter. Subaru couldn’t help but feel self-conscious, knowing everyone was talking about him. At this early hour, it seemed his celebrity status had only begun to increase.

Chapter Text

He could still hardly believe what had just transpired in the throne room as the crowd continued to disperse. He, Natsuki Subaru, someone who considered himself a nobody, had just accepted the offer to become the attendant to none other than Prince Fourier Lugunica.

It wasn’t as though he had any better options available. Being effectively handed a job was clearly preferable to whatever alternatives existed. He didn’t wish to consider these any longer, nor did he really need to. So long as he performed his role satisfactorily, said alternatives would remain firmly in the hypothetical.

“Congratulations, Subaru. It seems you’ve just secured quite the position within the Royal Court.”

“Huh? Oh, thanks Reinhard. Guess I did, huh?”

He was still gathering himself, still shaking off the nerves he had been rapt by throughout the hearing. He was so convinced he was treading the thinnest ice. Had he known of Fourier’s plan to intervene on his behalf in advance, he probably would have felt much more assured.

Of course, it had to remain secret to achieve the maximum effect. He knew this as well as the man himself.

“Oh, I wouldn’t say that Reinhard. Being the attendant to the fourth prince is at best no more glamorous than being the attendant to one of my elder brothers. In fact, it may actually be the least glamorous of such roles… ah, not to diminish the moment.”

“It’s a bit late for that, don’t you think?”

The prince laughed mirthfully at his friend’s expense, patting him on the back as he did.

“Pardon the jest! It’s intended as more of a jab at myself than it is to you.”

“I wish you wouldn’t speak of yourself in such a way, Your Highness. You still possess considerable value not just to the kingdom, but as an individual.”

The duchess wandered over to the three as everyone else in the room continued milling about towards the exit. She wore a worried smile on her face as she strode over to them, having heard Fourier’s self-deprecating humor.

“Ah… thank you, Crusch. I can always count on you and Ferris to be my strength when even I falter. Say, where is Ferris, anyway? Some attendant he’s being today!”

“He wanted to be here today, if only for my sake. However, he had duties to tend to with the Royal Institute of Healing. You wouldn’t happen to have shared your scheme with him, did you?”

“Oh, this?”

He flapped his cloak, the very one Roswaal had given him to conceal his own identity and enable a more seamless infiltration of the proceedings.

“No, dear Ferris wasn’t involved in this little plot, rest assured, Crusch. This was all between me and Lord Roswaal. He and I have been in talks as of late, you see.”

“‘In talks?’ Whatever for, Your Highness?”

“I wish I could say, but present company won’t permit me to reveal! I’d prefer it to be a surprise.”

“‘Present company…?’ Ah. I see.”

The duchess briefly had an inquisitive look as she examined who all could qualify as “present company.” As her gaze panned over to Subaru, she quickly put the pieces together in her head. Not wishing to spoil her dear friend’s surprise, she stifled further response.

“Eh? What? What do you see? I know I may appear a little bruised up, but… oh.”

Subaru looked at his hands, calloused from the fierce grip with which he had held his wooden sword while training with Carol. He could only imagine how rough the rest of him appeared.

“I probably looked pretty bad in front of all of those people, huh?”

“The more petty among them certainly would see it that way. Others may be able to connect the fact that you’ve been receiving training with your appearance. Doing so, they would likely conclude that you’ve been applying yourself quite hard as of late.”

The prince nodded his head in enthusiastic agreement.

“Indeed! Anyone with senses could tell you’re a man of diligence, Subaru!”

“I can personally attest to this. Whether it’s his studies or training in swordsmanship, Subaru has been applying himself consistently throughout his stay at my family’s manor.”

“You guys really know how to pour on the praise… geez…”

He rubbed the back of his neck. He wasn’t good at handling compliments. It was something he had struggled with ever since a certain point of his life, prior to becoming a shut-in.

He then turned to face Reinhard. The knight seemed concerned, picking up that something was bothering his friend and guest.

“Is something the matter, Subaru?”

“Well… it’s just… it sounds like I’m gonna be moving here soon… very soon.”

“True. You’ll be living here in the Royal Palace now.”

“All I have back at your family’s manor are the note’s I’ve taken, so the move shouldn’t be too difficult at least…”

“Subaru.”

The duchess cut in with a firm yet kind voice, as though to offer a gentle reminder.

“Ah, yes?”

“If there is something you wish to express to Sir Reinhard, you could be more straightforward. He is your friend, after all.”

“More straightforward, huh…? That Divine Protection of yours doesn’t ever take a break, huh?”

He knew full well she had read the stilted wind around him as he clumsily navigated a necessary farewell. He sighed as he realized this, looking at the duchess blithely. He returned his attention to Reinhard.

“She’s right, though. This probably can wait until after the move is done, but… I don’t think I can thank you enough for taking me in, Reinhard. If it weren’t for you, I’d probably still be in the Prison Tower right now…”

“It was no trouble, Subaru. I could tell at a glance your situation was unique within the experience of anyone in the kingdom. It felt like the right thing to do.”

“And it was, in more ways than one! Now then, I suppose you’ll be wanting to retrieve your notes from the old manor?”

“That’s one reason to return, sure. I also wanna say my goodbyes to Carol, Grimm, and their grandkids. Well, I didn’t really talk to them much. They were pretty shy around me…”

“If it makes you feel better, they’ve been like that with most everyone as long as I’ve known them.”

“Part of me wants to take solace in that, though another part of me recognizes they’ll have a hard time in life if that stays the case. Can’t help but see some of myself in them in that regard.”

The others became silent hearing this blurted confession. It occurred to him all too late that he had just mentioned something he had never mentioned to any of those he had met here, even Fourier and Reinhard.

He had never broached the topic of him being a shut-in before now. Part of what felt so natural about his stay at the old Astrea Estate was the fact that he was confined there just as much as he had confined himself back at home. In place of his own library of games, anime and manga were copious books with which he had filled his days. He could even make the claim he had been improving himself rather than building a hoard of trivia. This was undeniably the case, though it hadn’t been his primary reason for doing so.

He needed an escape from having to explain himself at this moment. The curious looks he was getting from his friends made him uncomfortable. He was fortunate that he felt a yawn building naturally, the perfect cover to escape this awkward moment. At least this was the hope.

“… ah, but enough about that! Let’s head back to the manor, Reinhard. I could use some rest…”

The Sword Saint smiled, as did the others. Some worriment accompanied them. None of them had needed the duchess’s Divine Protection to detect his not-so-subtle evasion.

“I’m sure you could. Between your rigorous regimen and this hearing going through the night, I’m sure you must be exhausted.”

“Yes. You could use the rest. We’ll be expecting you tomorrow.”

“‘We?’”

It was now Subaru’s turn to look questioningly at his friends. Crusch appeared somewhat surprised herself by his reaction.

“Oh, perhaps I’ve assumed something… Prince Fourier mentioned Ferris would be helping you find some new clothes to adhere to Lord Bordeaux’s conditions. I suppose I thought if Ferris would be there, then I would be, as well.”

“Of course you would be! And you will be! We should all go out on the town tomorrow to help our friend look more the part!”

The prince wasted no time reassuring Crusch. She had seemed almost nervous in hearing Subaru’s questioning of who exactly “we” entailed. The fact he would be needing new clothing now that he was Fourier’s attendant had nearly escaped him. He looked down at his tracksuit again and frowned. The duchess was the first to pick up on his concern.

“You’re going to miss your old clothes, aren’t you?”

“Yeah… probably seems stupid and overly materialistic. Sorry…”

“Don’t be. They’re a piece of where you come from. I must say while I understand why Lord Bordeaux stipulated that you change your attire, it feels oddly cruel to me for you to have to eschew a piece of your identity.”

“It is. I wish we could’ve contested that. Unfortunately, I believe my father would be inclined to agree with the sage. No amount of protestation on my part would change the stance on this matter.”

Subaru was at a loss for words. Even though they were just talking about something mundane like clothing, the sympathy from these two was undeniable.

Furthermore, he hadn’t forgotten the two months of kindness Reinhard had shown him, being one of the two people who shielded him most from any hasty reprisal. He felt something stir in his chest, along with a slight tightness in his throat.

Friends. He had forgotten what having friends, good friends, felt like.

He gulped then cleared his throat, trying to compose himself once more.

“Thanks, you two. I’m hoping the new clothes will come to me naturally.”

“I’m not sure what that is supposed to mean, but I hope so, too! We shall see you tomorrow, Subaru. Or should I say, ‘attendant?’”

“I should hope not. You know I don’t refer to Ferris as such.”

“Ah, yes, well… that was just a jest! Yes, a little raillery!”

“Man, that’s not convincing even to me…”

With a chuckle, he waved to his friends as he and Reinhard made their way out of the throne room.

Dawn was fast approaching. By this point, the throne room had been entirely vacated. Even the king had left at that point, having left with the Sage Council. Subaru suspected they had their own discussion to hold over how the hearing had gone.

The ride back to the old Astrea Estate was rather quiet. It seemed Reinhard needed no sleep whatsoever, whereas Subaru struggled to try and fall asleep. His host noticed this difficulty.

“Would you like for me to induce sleep, Subaru?”

“You can do that? Wait, you once told me you can’t use magic.”

“I can’t, true. But I can absorb mana. I’ll just need to absorb a portion of your mana to induce sleep.”

“… is it gonna hurt?”

He placed his hand over his navel, recalling to be where Ferris had examined his gate in the past. He also recalled the other planned examinations the healer had only half-joked about trying.

“Not at all.”

“Okay, sure. Hate to leave you awake alone like that, though. That’s gonna be boring for you, won’t it?”

“I’ll be fine. Quiet moments are good for reflection.”

The Sword Saint gestured for him to lean forward. He placed his white-gloved hand up to Subaru’s forehead. In a moment, Subaru felt completely enervated as he fell unconscious. His host, his friend, eased him down onto the carriage seat to rest.

The ride only got quieter after Subaru fell asleep. Reinhard stared out to the moon, now fading away as the morning sun was slowly beginning to rise. He was of two minds as he reflected on the past couple of months.

On the one hand, he was pleased to see his friend coming into his own and furthering himself. He was even more glad he had managed to come out of this fiasco safe and sound. He knew it could have gone so many different ways, most of them far worse than a couple months of house arrest.

At the same time, some small part of him was jealous of Subaru for how he had grown as person. Growth had happened for Reinhard almost from the moment he had come into the Divine Protection of the Sword Saint as a child. He hadn’t had to work for a thing. Being so deprived of that experience made him wonder what it must be like to try hard and succeed at something, anything at all. Effortlessness was a unique curse all its own for him.

His mind was also divided two ways on another matter. On the one hand, having come out of that hearing, he wanted to believe that things would be peaceful for a while. He suspected this would be the case, though he knew that peace wasn’t eternal. At some point, the scales would tip back in favor of conflict once more. It was only a matter of time.

For now, he decided to enjoy the peace as his friends and colleagues were. He wouldn’t be the dour voice of dissent to ruin their enjoyment of it. From his perspective, his very existence had already soured life enough for more than enough people as it was.

***

Despite the trip having only taken a few hours, Subaru was surprised at how restful his induced sleep had felt. He remembered reading stories online about anesthesia, how some people described it as the best sleep they had ever had.

He had never required a surgical procedure before, but he imagined this mana absorption induction method was quite similar to it. He considered bringing it up with Ferris when he saw him next, even though the healer may have already thought of it. He was Blue, after all.

His reception upon return took him by surprise as the Remendis Twins rushed to hug him.

“W-Woah! Where’s this coming from, you two?”

“They were concerned for your safety, thinking you may receive some unimaginable punishment. They’re happy you’re unharmed, as are we.”

Carol and Grimm had followed not long after Flam and Grassis had barged out of the door to nearly tackle him. They had relented at the last second. If they hadn’t, he would have flown back several meters from their impact.

“Wow… thanks for worrying about, you two. I’m fine! More than fine, actually.”

“Oh? You do seem to be in good spirits for someone who’s been out all night. Shall we take it that you have good news from this hearing?”

Carol seemed equal parts curious and anxious. Though she wouldn’t admit it herself, she did see Subaru as something of a grandson after all of the training and education she had provided for him. While she would be happy for him to no longer be confined to the old Astrea manor, she would miss her sole pupil.

“We do, indeed. As of very early this morning, Subaru is a free man. More importantly, he has been made Prince Fourier’s attendant.”

“Prince Fourier’s…? Truly?”

Grimm, too, appeared stunned, too much so to even write in his notebook. In fact, he rasped out a gasp in his surprise. Flam and Grassis looked at each other, unsure of what this meant for their now-former guest.

“It’s true. Fourier sneaked into the hearing and intervened on my behalf. It took some convincing, but in addition to securing my freedom, I have a job now, too. My, uh, first job, actually.”

“Yes, well for most who become attendants, it is their ‘first job.’ And typically their only, unless they aren’t good at it.”

“… nope. Not gonna ask what happens if you’re really bad. And you’re not surprised to hear he sneaked in?”

“He was the one who came up with the brilliant idea for a prince and a prisoner of the state to have a day on the town…”

“Wait, you mean you knew?!”

Carol looked at him with a wry smile. Of course she had always been aware of the truth, or rather, that Subaru had always been telling the truth. She had a better read on her pupil than to disbelieve him. Her husband mouthed “I’m sorry” to him behind her back.

“Unbelievable… well, whatever. As you can imagine, I’ve been invited to live in the Royal Palace moving forward.”

“I see. I take it you’ve come to retrieve your notes from the library?”

“Well, yeah… but I also wanted to thank you, all of you. For everything.”

He bowed before the head servants of House Astrea. They had done much for him during his stay at the estate. He wagered he wouldn’t be half as capable as he was now without Carol’s tutelage, and her husband Grimm was always there to take over whenever she was too busy.

“Subaru-dono. Please raise your head.”

“… er, yes?”

He shot up quickly, his spine becoming straight as a board the second her authoritative voice reached his ears.

“As of today, your station has become less nebulous. You’re among the nobility now, the attendant to the fourth prince himself. You bow to no one of our station anymore. Understood?”

“Even if you’re my sensei?’

His innocent words struck her more than either of them had expected. From his perspective, a teacher was always to be respected, even after they were no longer your teacher. From her perspective, it didn’t matter how much she had taught him. She was the help, and he was higher than her in station by virtue of who he now served. Neither of them could understand the perspective of the other, being worlds apart.

It took a moment for them to realize the situation was rather absurd. She began to laugh, the most she had laughed in some time. Subaru had never seen his teacher laugh before. It brought a bright smile to his face as he joined in too. All the while, the others looked on happily, none more so than Grimm, who had worried about how his wife might handle this situation.

He was welcomed inside so that he might gather his things and spend his last day there as a guest. He visited the library to gather his notes, several notebooks worth of them pertaining to magic, history, and various other topics he believed may help him get by better in this new world. Hundreds of pages of notes, meticulously taken by hand and largely written in the native runic script.

Only his earliest notes had been written in Japanese. He looked at them and smirked. It felt as though he were staring at his earliest writings from when he was a kid. The notebooks were carefully loaded into a leather bag that he would take with him to the Royal Palace the next morning.

The rest of the day felt almost like any other. Despite having been put through the ringer the day prior, he trained with Carol as hard as he had been those last two weeks. He felt less frazzled than he had been in previous escalated training sessions, having really entered his element. He was still rough around the edges, but his emulation of his teacher’s acrobatic style of swordplay was undeniable. He was still less limber than his teacher, but he would only improve further in time.

After the longest bout he had ever experienced, Grimm called them in for dinner, a special meal in Subaru’s honor. They almost felt like family to him, sitting around a corner of the absurdly long dining hall table. Reinhard was quite pleased to see the full extent of just how well Subaru had acclimated as a stranger in a strange land. And then –

“… father. You’re back.”

“Of course I’m back. It’s my house… not that it’s felt that way in a while.”

He eyed Subaru as he made this remark. Staring at the young man, he decided to finally have a word with him in his sober state.

“So, you’re Prince Fourier’s attendant now, eh? Been palling around with royalty for so long now… you lucked out, boy. Don’t ever forget that.”

“I don’t plan on taking my blessings for granted.”

“Blessings… yeah.”

The very word instinctively made his eyes wander over to his son, someone he scarcely viewed as such these days.

“Everyone’s so happy down here. Take it your grandfather’s still not joining? No, wait, don’t answer.”

“Heinkel-sama, please.”

There was an undercurrent of strain in Carol’s voice as she stopped just short of reprimanding the vice-captain. He looked at her, his eyes narrowed in irritation. They usually were. He sighed, tired from the day he had just ended.

“Whatever. Had to have a long meeting today after that stunt the prince pulled. One you inspired. Of course, Lord Roswaal was largely complicit in it. He seemed awful keen to avoid you taking any of the blame.”

The vice-captain griped as he took the head seat at the table, between Subaru and Reinhard. Beside Reinhard was Grimm, and across from her was Carol. Dinner had largely already been eaten by this point, so the Remendis Twins had already gone off to bed. It was fortunate they had, by Carol’s estimation. Heinkel and Reinhard in the same room seldom ended well.

“Oh?”

“And you don’t have a clue as to why?”

“No. Hadn’t even seen the guy before today.”

Heinkel’s typical scowl only became more sour hearing Subaru’s response. He wasn’t sure how much he believed him, but this wasn’t his primary concern.

“You know, you speak of those higher than you awfully casually, boy. You’d best learn fast. Mistakes get punished severely at your level.”

“I’m sure they do. I’ll do my best to remember that.”

“Tch, your attitude says otherwise.”

The head of House Astrea poured himself a goblet of wine from the carafe at the table, taking a swig immediately after. He let loose a satisfied gasp, having consumed nearly a third of the goblet in said swig.

“At any rate, that stunt has caused even more security concerns that we’ll now need to examine. Fortunately the court mage has decided to step up to produce measures that counter such garments as the one the prince had used.”

“That’s good. Glad to hear they’re taking steps to keep the Royal Family safe.”

The vice commander swirled the contents of his goblet and rolled his eyes.

“Ohhhh, well look at you, taking to your role so quickly. I hope you realize that Lord Bordeaux wasn’t joking around when he stipulated that you be willing to lay down your life for the prince. Or any of the Royal Family, for that matter.”

“Well, I assumed that last bit would likely be the case. My answer remains the same.”

“Hmph. Good.”

He grunted out his laconic reply as he went in for another swig of wine, though the goblet stopped just before his lips. He seemed to stare into the wine for a moment, then to Subaru. He sighed deeply, sitting the goblet down.

“… so, you’re pretty far from home, huh boy?”

“Er, yes, I am. Why are you asking now of all times?”

“… nothing. Forget it. Forget what I said about his grandfather, too.”

The vice-captain rose from his seat, seeming rather subdued all of the sudden. He had seen something he hadn’t expected to see at that table, in those faces. He took the goblet of wine with him. He almost grabbed the carafe too, but he relented after seeing that neither his son nor Subaru had been partaking. In fact, only he had touched the carafe at that point. The others had only had water.

“Do a good job. You’ve got a lot to prove. That goes for both of you.”

He gave these parting words without even looking at either Reinhard or Subaru. The tension in the air released. Grimm wrote in his book, pushing it to the center of the table after completing his thought.

Well, that went better than expected.

“No kidding. What was that all about? Was it a guilt trip? A thinly veiled threat? ‘Fatherly advice?’”

“I believe it was his own way of bidding you farewell. Gruff though he may be, some part of him likely appreciates having had you here.”

“Could’ve fooled me…”

“I understand Heinkel-sama can be… difficult to get along with. Please understand…”

She wrung her hands nervously, knowing this subject matter was sensitive within House Astrea. She knew why relations were strained between Reinhard and Heinkel, between Reinhard and Wilhelm, and between Heinkel and Wilhelm. The Astrea men had possessed a fraught dynamic for over a decade at this point.

She also knew that though relations were rough between Heinkel and Reinhard, the man still possessed some sliver of affection for his son. Granted, it had faded considerably from the time his boy had truly been a child.

Seeing his son have a normal friendship with an ostensibly normal person was strangely refreshing to the man, though he refused to fully comprehend it. He was stubborn, holding onto the foul, painful emotions in his heart, those born of absence and loss.

“It’s alright, Carol-sensei. No need to say anything more. I know a sore subject when I’ve stumbled onto it. Thank you for the dinner, Grimm. It was even better than usual!”

Grimm smiled, nodding in gratitude towards the fourth prince’s attendant. Carol herself was thankful to Subaru for his understanding in this matter, even if he didn’t really understand why the subject was so sore. He wouldn’t come to understand this for some time to come.

“From a former attendant to one who has just started on the path, I toast to the promise of your success, Subaru-dono.”

“Huh? A toast?”

She poured herself a goblet of wine, and Grimm and Reinhard followed suit. They raised their goblets –

“To the Boy from Beyond the Falls.”

Grimm rasped out a laugh, and even his wife chuckled at the Sword Saint’s teasing reference. Subaru feigned a sigh of annoyance, then gave a regal bow as his friends imbibed.

***

The next morning, Subaru was seen off by the denizens of the old Astrea manor.

He gave Carol a hug. She and her husband had become like surrogate grandparents to him, and the impression was mutual. He had never really been terribly close with his grandparents back in his homeland. It felt like he had gained something he hadn’t realized he was missing.

He patted Flam and Grassis on the head. He still hadn’t really spoken with them much, but he appreciated the concern they had for him all the same. He also did feel some vague kinship with them by virtue of his surrogate bond with Carol and Grimm.

Lastly, he shook Reinhard’s hand. He knew he would likely see the Sword Saint again. He was certainly more likely to run into him in the Capital than he was any of the others from the mansion. Still, it felt wrong to not offer any sort of parting gesture. He was one of his best friends now, after all.

Grimm sat in the driver’s seat of the Earth Dragon carriage, ready to take Subaru to his new home. He took one last look at the manor before filing into the ground dragon carriage that morning. It felt surreal to be leaving a place where he had spent the majority of his time in this new world. It certainly felt like he was turning the page onto a new chapter of his life.

As he looked back at the manor house, he noticed to windows were populated. One he recognized belong to Reinhard’s mother’s room. The other was his grandfather’s.

Heinkel stared out the former. Subaru couldn’t tell from ground level, but he assumed it was an ireful stare.

The patriarch of the Astreas made regular visits to his wife, Louanna. Subaru had learned from Carol that she had a condition referred to as Sleeping Beauty Syndrome, an aberrant comatose state.

No healer in Lugunica could heal her, as there was nothing apparently wrong with her beyond her lack of consciousness. Even Ferris had previously been called upon to examine her, to no avail.

Wilhelm stood in the other window. He had been largely absent during Subaru’s time in the mansion. Whenever he was actually home, he kept to himself. Subaru was aware that Carol and Grimm, more so the latter, would occasionally go to speak with him.

He wasn’t sure where the former Sword Devil went when he left the mansion. He assumed it was to visit his wife’s grave, wherever it may be, or perhaps to visit his former home, which he learned had been razed in the civil war.

Subaru looked up at these two men of House Astrea. Both were patriarchs, one of the past, the other present. One the vice-captain of the Royal Guard, the other the former captain. Both were swords in their own right. Neither were on good terms with Reinhard.

In his heart, Subaru promised he would aim to reverse this state of affairs however he could. He had made a promise to his teacher, after all, and the Sword Saint was a dear friend to the Boy from Beyond the Falls.

With a final wave goodbye, he filed into the carriage, and he and Grimm were off.

The ride was uneventful. Unlike previous trips to the Capital, he was essentially alone. Being mostly mute, Grimm couldn’t really converse with Subaru while also driving the carriage.

“The guy could probably just run to the Capital and get there in the same amount of time as a carriage. Hell, he could probably just jump there… though I bet the kingdom puts limits on that kinda stuff. Wouldn’t wanna weird out the people.”

As he imagined the absurd feats the Sword Saint surely was capable of performing, he stared out the window. It was mid-morning. The sky was mostly clear. The ride had become smooth after getting out of the hinterlands of Hakuchuri. Though he wanted to enjoy the pleasant ride, the wait was killing him. Starting today, he would be joining his friends in the Capital, free at last.

“Fourier said that Ferris was gonna be helping me pick out new threads… I hope he doesn’t try to lead me astray. I can totally see him picking something and swearing it’s the latest fashion of the elites, only for it to be something utterly garish. Hmm, though maybe that’d be a step too far for him, if it violates the condition of dressing like a native Lugunican…”

He was glad Fourier and Crusch would be accompanying them in this endeavor. Their company was appreciated, as would be their judgment.

Arriving at the Royal Palace, he turned to give one last farewell to Grimm. The butler had preempted him, however, having written a farewell of his own while Subaru had been staring at the castle.

“Hmm? What’s this?”

It was nice having you at the manor, Subaru-dono. Please take care, and don’t be a stranger.

“I’m not sure when the next time I’ll be able to visit will be… but I’ll definitely try to find the time. It was nice staying with you all, Grimm-san. Thank you for everything!”

He gave Grimm a hug. He wasn’t about to bow, taking Carol’s words to heart. The butler then made his way back to the driver’s seat of the House Astrea carriage, making his way back through the city. Subaru watched it until it was no longer in view, then turned back to face the castle. The guards at the gatehouse station ushered him through.

They took him through the castle to his quarters.

“… and here I thought my room back at the Astrea manor was big… what am I gonna do with all of this space?!”

The room was certainly larger than his previous accommodations, which had already dwarfed his bedroom back home. The bed was a full king size with burgundy curtains, unlike his prior bed which had been more basic. Even that had been a far cry from the futon he had been accustomed to back home. He supposed there was at least plentiful space for pacing about as he thought.

He placed his leather bag of notebooks down on his desk.

“So this is where I’m gonna be doing paperwork on Fourier’s behalf. I wonder how well I’m gonna take to being a glorified secretary…”

He wandered over to the wide picture window, which stood atop a landing. His bedroom seemed more like an apartment unto itself. Unfurling the curtains covering the window he saw he had a magnificent view of the city down below.

“Woah… you can see almost everything from up here. Wonder how high up I am…”

As he was wondering this, there was a knock at the door.

“Ah, yes?”

It swung wide open, revealing Prince Fourier within its frame. He grinned brightly as he stepped right on in without a second thought.

“Good morning, Subaru! Actually, it’s turned over to afternoon now, hasn’t it?”

“Yeah, it has. Hmm? Oh, guess everyone’s here.”

He hadn’t noticed them before, given Fourier’s explosive entry. Behind the prince were Crusch and Ferris. They had met up with him to assist in finding Subaru more attendant-appropriate attire.

“Sorry to intrude. Prince Fourier insisted it would be no imposition.”

“It’s nyot like we were going to walk in on him changing clothes or something. All he’s got are the clothes on his back!”

“Well, you’re not too far off…”

The duchess looked about Subaru’s new chambers.

“Were you just unpacking?”

“Yeah…”

They all glanced over at the solitary leather bag on his desk.

“… I’m basically already done, though. So, where are you all taking me?”

“There are some boutiques in the Noble District we’ll be taking you to today. No more outlandish clothes for you!”

“Not to imply you’ll be disposing of them, of course. You’re free to hold onto them.”

“Really?”

The pleasant surprise was palpable in his voice. This news from the prince had brightened his spirits more than he could have anticipated.

“Of course! Why, if someone forced me to eschew my typical attire for something foreign, I’d be put off to say the very least!”

He knew one day his cell phone would be sapped of power, whether it was from overuse or the battery running dry. The thought of not being able to see the contact info of his parents on his phone screen, of being unable to hear that familiar ring tone, really provoked the homesickness in his heart. Taken with his groove-edged ten, his tracksuit represented something that would remain unchanged from his homeland.

“That won’t be all, though. You will also be getting a sword.”

“A sword? As an attendant? I guess Carol needed one as the previous Sword Saint’s attendant, but this is a bit of a different case, isn’t it?”

“Lord Bordeaux stipulated that you must be willing to lay down your life. He never said you shouldn’t be willing to defend it, however. I know you’ve been training in the sword, Subaru. You would do well to use it in defense of yourself and Prince Fourier.”

“Nyot that he’s a slouch with a sword himself!”

Subaru recalled Fourier mentioning having fought Crusch in a sword fight in the past, though the specifics were left vague. He couldn’t imagine them coming to blows. He wondered whatever it was that could have caused them to take up swords against one another. For what it was worth, their friendship didn’t seem to have suffered any long-term consequences from the incident.

“But of course. Still, a prince shouldn’t be fighting. It would be much appreciated if you would take up the sword in his stead.”

“Right. Not sure what to look for in a sword, though.”

“I shall assist. Rest assured, you will be well-equipped by day’s end.”

“Oh… gotcha.”

Having heard this day described as a day on the town, Subaru had been excited before. He imagined it would feel like hanging out with friends at a shopping center on a weekend.

Crusch’s regimental tone didn’t quite jibe with this fantasy. He supposed he shouldn’t have let his imagination run too wild here. He was being prepared for his new role, after all.

“Well-equipped, sure, but let’s not forget to enjoy ourselves today! It’s his first day of genuine freedom since he has arrived here. Let’s show him what our fair kingdom has to offer!”

“Yes, of course, Your Highness.”

“Rrrrright! Let’s get started then, shall we? Ferri has a few shops in mind already!”

Subaru was surprised at how quickly his fantasy of friendship had been salvaged. He wondered if Fourier had sensed some shift in his disposition, or if he was just used to Crusch being so serious. This wasn’t to say he didn’t appreciate Crusch’s attitude towards this outing. He was glad someone was looking out for him like she was.

***

Leaving the Royal Palace and heading to the Noble District, the four walked from shop to shop to find Subaru’s outfit first.

“Let’s see… mew should wear something befitting of a servant… like this!”

Ferris pointed to the window display of a uniform store for servants. The uniform on display appeared not too different from that worn by Grimm.

“That’s a butler’s uniform, Ferris.”

“N’yep, it is!”

“Hold up. You’re an attendant too, here! Why aren’t you wearing a maid outfit instead of a pretty dress?”

“Aw, thanks for the compliment, Subaru-kyun!”

“You’re dodging the question!”

Ferris played dumb, laughing as he feigned facetious flattery. In truth, he saw Subaru’s role as little more than being Fourier’s personal butler.

“Ferri may be an attendant too, but Ferri’s a special case!”

“Ferris.”

Crusch’s firm voice returned, though less kind than when she had employed it with Subaru the other day. The intent was to chide, not to encourage.

“Aw, c’mon, Lady Crusch! Ferri was just having some fun with a fellow attendant!”

“You can’t have it both ways! Though I sorta get what you’re getting at when you say you’re a special case. You’ve got healing magic, the best in the kingdom. What do I even have?”

Crusch looked at Ferris sternly in the same way a parent would at their child. No words were necessary this time. Ferris knew he had to mend the situation.

“W-Well, mew can use a sword! Ferri can’t do that too well at all. Maybe you could teach?”

Ferris cozied up to Subaru, flustering him in the process. Even being aware of Ferris’s true nature, the feline healer knew how to use the wiles.

“K-Knock it off, would you?! I don’t think I could teach you, at any rate. I’ve still got a ways to go before I could dare to even think about teaching someone else.”

“Well, I’m sure you’ll apply yourself. For now, it seems Ferris’s judgment isn’t helping as much as we’d hoped, using it for jokes instead.”

“Ferri’s sorry, Lady Crusch, honest! How about I buy you some ice cream to make up for it, nyaaa~?”

Crusch sighed. She could at least appreciate the mending attempt that had been made.

“Fine. I suppose I could be so persuaded. Back to the matter at hand, though. Perhaps it should be more in line with Prince Fourier’s attire, at least in terms of color?”

“Hmm… but I wear an awful lot of white and red. Those don’t really seem to be his colors, wouldn’t you agree?”

“Mew’re right. Darker colors seem to befit him more, purrhaps with some lighter colors to accent?”

“My thought exactly! How about this?”

The prince pointed to another display a couple stores down from where they had just been. It was a long-sleeved shirt with a standing collar and two columns of brass buttons from neck to hem.

“You could insist upon it having some accents here along the buttons and hemming. Orange seems to suit you well. We could even request a matching cape for fitting occasions!”

“Huh… looks kinda like a gakuran.”

“Pardon?”

Crusch looked at him curiously as he offered a foreigner’s description of the garment on display.

“It’s a type of school uniform for boys in my homeland. I wore one in middle school – er, schooling for those 12 to 14 years of age. Sometimes older students wear them too, though.”

He leaned in to get a closer look. Having worn a gakuran several years ago, he could envision himself wearing this more formal lookalike. He could imagine the design changes Fourier suggested. He appreciated that they seemed to incorporate nods to his tracksuit.

“Let’s request a fitting. Inside!”

Fourier led the way, grabbing his friend by the arm and almost dragging him in with Crusch and Ferris taking up the rear. Over the past month or so, Crusch had been pleased to see Fourier making a new friend for a change.

Ferris, however, was less than pleased with the rapidly building rapport between the prince and this foreigner. It wasn’t simple xenophobia like others who had objected to Subaru’s presence in the kingdom. It was something more personal for him, coming from a place of insecurity.

The tailor took to the task of customizing the outfit with astonishing speed, likely because it was a member of the Royal Family making the request. Subaru’s measurements were taken, the outfit was taken in as needed, and he tried it on. Looking in a mirror afterward, he had to say –

“Not bad. I could get used to this.”

“Ah, the threads of nobility! Ferris found some boots for you to accompany the trousers before they took off. I think he wants to try dressing you somewhat like Crusch, though don’t tell him I said that.”

The prince handed over the boots for Subaru to try on. He had never worn such boots, the kind that nearly reached his knees. He could tuck his trousers into them. Doing so made him feel as though he were a student of some military academy. All he was missing was a cap or perhaps a beret, but he wouldn’t ask for too much more.

“Wouldn’t dream of it. Where are they, anyway?”

“Getting ice cream. Ferris made a promise, you see. An attendant always keeps their word.”

“Naturally. I’ll be sure to note that.”

“Your attendant attire is coming together splendidly! Hmm, but something is missing… ah!”

He removed a pin from the red cloak he wore draped across his shoulders. It was the House Lugunica crest. It was red and gold, depicting to dragons flanking a sword at the center. He pinned it on the left side of Subaru’s chest.

“There we go! Now then, the cape can wait for the time being. We’ll also want to get you more formal attire for grand occasions. Otherwise, I’d say you look every bit the part of a prince’s attendant!”

“Thanks! Guessing this all is coming out of my pay?”

“Naturally!”

The two shared a laugh over the bizarrely businesslike discussion. Subaru had expected he would be footing the bill one way or another.

Following this exchange, Ferris and Crusch rejoined them.

“Ooooh, all dressed up, are you?”

“He cleans up nicely. That isn’t to imply your homeland’s clothes are distasteful, of course.”

“I mean, a tracksuit is far from formal attire. This is definitely an upgrade in that regard, at least. I will miss being able to wear it freely, though.”

“Maybe someday, friend. Now then, the sword! We must make haste to the smithy!”

“But furrrrrrst… here!”

“Hmm?”

The healer presented them with cones of ice cream. Subaru had thought it odd that Crusch had been holding two herself. Two were chocolate, two were vanilla. It was quickly decided that Crusch and Subaru would eat the chocolate and Ferris and Fourier would eat the vanilla.

He gripped the waffle cone in one hand. It was one of the mundane things of his world he had thought he would never be able to experience again in this world. He briefly thought this style of cone to be unique for a place he equated with 18^th century Europe.

“Well, I guess an edible cone isn’t too difficult to make, though.”

“Ah, so they had these in your homeland, too? And here Ferri thought he was presenting mew with a real delicacy…”

“Hey, it’s still appreciated! I haven’t had freshly made ice cream in… man, how long has it been?”

“Evidently too long for you to remember. You seem rather displeased to be eating chocolate.”

The duchess’s Divine Protection was at work again. He couldn’t quite hide his mild displeasure with the flavor resting in his cone.

“I mean, it’s good, don’t get me wrong. There are just so many other flavors I enjoy instead.”

“So many others? How many? Ahhhhhh, my head!”

The prince was lapping up his cone far quicker than the others, so excited he was to visit a blacksmith and procure his attendant a sword. An ice cream headache rapidly set in, the prince clutching his head with his free hand, eyes squinting in discomfort.

“Too many to count, really. Choco-mint was pretty divisive where I come from. Some said it tasted like something you’d clean your teeth with. Cookie dough was always a crowd pleaser… ah, and then there are some more common to my homeland, like sweet red bean, matcha…”

“Goodness, that’s a more robust selection than anywhere I’ve ever heard of.”

“Maybe he could be fair and share some of that otherworldly knowledge of his. Ferri wants to try this ‘choco-mint’ stuff!”

“Really? Even after that description?”

He laughed as Ferris remained adamant in his hope to one try mint chocolate chip ice cream. All the while, Fourier suffered through the rest of his cone. Ferris eventually took notice, and touched his hands to the prince’s temples, alleviating his headache.

With this diversion finished, they all made their way to the blacksmith to finish Subaru’s ensemble.

He wanted to ask Ferris why it was he didn’t carry a sword in Crusch’s name. He had long noticed that Ferris was always unarmed, whereas Crusch always had a sword at her hip when she traveled. He refrained from asking, though. He figured there was a reason they would elect to tell him someday if it were relevant. He also didn’t wish to question their dynamic.

“The form of swordsmanship your teacher has been training you in is fast and acrobatic. A light blade is what you’ll need to employ that style to its utmost potential. One similar to the standard issue sword of the Royal Army would be best, I think.”

“I see. So, it’ll look like this one, then?”

Subaru pointed to a sword hanging on the shop wall. It had an elegantly swept hilt, with thin curves of steel guarding the black leather grip. It had a rounded pommel and a long, thin, needle-pointed blade.

“Precisely. I’ll go ahead and fill out a form for the commission.”

“Ah, allow me! He will be my attendant, after all.”

The prince approached the smithy’s counter, filling out a piece of parchment with the precise specifications they had discussed for Subaru’s blade.

“There, all done! This will take some time, of course. There is simply no rushing the forging of a grand blade. Fortunately, we can have it delivered to the Royal Palace. This smith is contracted with the Royal Army, so such deliveries aren’t unheard of.”

“Right. Guess that’s all for today?”

Subaru looked about his friends for confirmation. He wasn’t sure if any other preparations were needed. He also hadn’t ended an outing with friends since he had entered adolescence.

“Indeed it is. Let’s all return to the palace. Crusch, Ferris, will you two be able to stay for dinner?”

“I’m afraid not, Your Highness. Today makes two days in a row I’ve been away from my duties. I can’t afford to fall behind any further. I hope you understand.”

The duchess bowed apologetically before the fourth prince, frazzling him internally. He didn’t like seeing someone so dear to him prostrate before him. He hadn’t liked it when she had learned her mistake in pulling a dagger on him when they had first met, and he didn’t like it now.

“Of course I understand! I’m glad we were able to spend the day here with friends. I’m also glad you got to see me in action the other day!”

“Yes, that was quite enjoyable, Your Highness. Your cunning never ceases to amaze me.”

She had appeared subtly dour before, as though she were sad to disappoint. Having received Fourier’s reassurances, however, her countenance softened into a smile.

“I suppose if she won’t be able to join us, then you won’t either, Ferris?”

“Ferri wishes he could! Unfortunately, I will be needed for rounds on campus bright and early tomorrow. Such a pain, nyaaa~…”

Ferris stretched into a yawn just thinking of the drudgery of performing rounds at the Royal Institute of Healing. While it was the perfect place for him to serve, it kept him from spending time with those he held most dear.

“Ah, well. Do your best, Ferris!”

“If Prince Fourier says so, how could Ferri fail to uphold such a command? It will be so!”

Ferris struck a dainty yet proud pose in affirmation of the prince’s faith in him.

With this, they returned to the Royal Palace. Crusch and Ferris departed from there, due back to the Karsten Estate. Being mid-afternoon as it was, they would need to leave now if they were to return at a reasonable enough time. They, too, would need their dinner, and plenty of time for Ferris to sleep before commuting by carriage back to the Capital to ply his trade as a healer.

Subaru and Fourier would simply join the others for dinner. Unfortunately, most of his family were elsewhere. It was a rather empty table, especially for its magnificent size. The evening wore on uneventfully, though this observation stuck with Subaru.

***

Several days had passed since their outing with Crusch and Ferris. Subaru had been doing well in his role as attendant thus far. He sorted the letters for Fourier. The prince bounced ideas off of him for upcoming diplomatic forays and celebratory events. They played shogi, the prince having commissioned the crafting of a board based on Subaru’s specifications. The only thing that differed about them were the runes on the pieces, which replaced the usual kanji.

Then, several days later, they got a delivery, one which they had both been eagerly awaiting. The prince barged into his attendant’s chambers, something he was already making a habit out of.

“Subaru! Great news! It’s here!”

“Well, let’s see it then!”

He excitedly left the chair in front of his desk. He had been sifting through messages for Fourier as per usual, most of them letters of courtship. Behind Fourier stood a page from the Royal Army, who had been tasked with picking up the finished order and delivering it to the Royal Palace as part of his duties.

“Here you are, Mister Natsuki.”

“Ah, just Subaru’s fine with me, man. Thanks a bunch for the delivery!”

The page meekly nodded as he handed over the sword, wrapped in fine red fabric, then promptly took his leave.

“Goodness, he was wary of you, wasn’t he? Maybe he isn’t used to addressing others so casually?”

“Maybe… could also be the obvious.”

He gestured at himself with his free hand, noting his appearance. Even in more fitting clothes, he still appeared rather foreign due to his black hair.

“Never mind that! Open it up, open it up!”

Without another word, Subaru unfurled the red fabric, revealing his sword. It was a lot like the style of sword used by Julius, as Crusch had advised. The material was unfathomable to Subaru. It felt light as a feather to his arm, being even lighter than the wooden sword he had practiced with. He inspected his reflection within the narrow blade, the craftsmanship of the metallic lattice around the grip.

It was then he noticed the pommel.

“Hmm? ‘N?’ Looks oddly familiar…”

“Well, I should hope so! It’s your family sigil, Subaru!”

“My family…? Oh, oh Fourier, that logo from my tracksuit doesn’t mean that!”

The prince’s shoulders slumped, dumbfounded.

“Oh… truly?”

“No, no! I’m getting déjà vu over here. I could’ve sworn I’ve talked about this before… wait a minute.”

He had been looking down at the floor as he tried to recall who he had previously discussed this specific matter with. His eyes shot back up to meet Fourier’s as he remembered.

“It was you! I told you this ages ago, man!”

“Hmm… ah, now that you mention it…”

“So, my sword just has ‘N’ emblazoned on it now, huh?”

“We can get another forged!”

“Wouldn’t that also be coming out of my pay?”

Subaru frowned with an annoyance tinged by the comedy of his circumstances. For him, it was like the psychic equivalent of striking his funny bone. Oddly painful, yet it induced a laugh within his soul as he recognized the benign ridiculousness.

“Ah, well… about that…”

The prince shuffled about, apparently unsure of how to proceed. This was rather uncharacteristic of him, at least based on Subaru’s impression of him.

“Oh? What is it now?”

“The sword was actually a gift from Crusch.”

“Huh? What for?”

“I’m not entirely sure myself. Something about it being a show of her appreciation for having someone else watching out for me so close by. She’s a worrier, you know.”

He scratched his cheek as he stated the duchess’s rationale for the gift. Subaru had been concerned for a moment there that the prince was perhaps not keen on her giving him this gift. Hearing the rationale cleared this up immediately. Even as a gift to someone else, it tied back to Fourier.

“I see. Well, seeing as it’s a gift, I’d hate to seem ungrateful and get another one behind her back. Hopefully I’ll never have to put it towards its intended use.”

“Are you averse to violence, Subaru?”

“Of course I am! Just because I took up practicing the use of a sword doesn’t mean I wanna get into fights. It’s just… a matter of preparedness.”

“Right, right… you also thought it would be pretty entertaining though, surely.”

“… yes, there was that, too.”

He could hardly deny that he had taken up the sword to entertain himself. He had read plenty of fantasy manga and light novels back home that involved cool sword fighters. Finding himself within such a similar setting, how could he not at least consider it?

“Well, that’s perfectly understandable. What man hasn’t seen a sword and wanted to swing it?”

“True. I remember as a child finding big sticks in the park and pretending I was a samurai. Er, that’s a type of swordsman from my homeland.”

“Is that like a rōnin?”

“Oh, so that term exists here? That can’t be a coincidence…”

“Yes. I’ve heard them described as wandering swords for hire in the Vollachian Empire to the south of our kingdom. You mean to say you’re familiar with them?”

“Not personally, no. I’ve only read about them, and not in the books back in the old Astrea manor’s library, either.”

“So you suspect you may not be the first of your kind?”

Subaru paused a moment to consider Fourier’s query, one which he had been wondering about almost immediately after hearing the martial term.

“Well, if one can make it over here from my world, who’s to say someone else hasn’t already? Who’s to say someone else won’t make the one-way journey someday? What if they could come from a world other than my own, even?”

“My, that’s a lot of questions! We don’t have very much in the ways of confirming or refuting any of them though, now do we?”

“Yeah, guess you’re right. No sense worrying about it.”

Subaru sighed as he read between the lines. The prince appreciated his attendant’s ability to readily pick up his intentions. Based on this alone, he suspected his friend would excel in his new role.

“Come now, cheer up! I know what will put a smile on your face! How about we travel down to the training grounds? It’s mostly occupied in the morning, so it should be empty now. We can set up dummies and practice our strikes! What say you?”

The prince positively radiates enthusiasm. It was infectious, too. Subaru found the unease from before gently slip away from him as a smile came to his face. He nodded in silent affirmation to the prince’s suggestion.

He followed the prince out the door with his sword contained neatly within a white scabbard he fixed to his belt. As he followed, he thought to himself, “I wish I could do that.”

In time, he certainly would.