“—I’m here.”

Clenching his teeth, Subaru tightly shut his eyes and braced for the intense pain that was about to come.

However, despite his grave determination,

“…Huh?”

Nothing out of the ordinary happened to Subaru.

“…Hmm.”

Raising his face and feeling his chest to confirm no abnormalities, he saw Echidna in front of him, crossing her legs and slightly furrowing her perfectly symmetrical brows just like before.

He quickly observed her, but there were no prominent changes in her demeanor as she looked back at him. Her breathing and mannerisms remained composed. Anticipating the worst, he scrutinized the area around her chest in mourning attire.

“I’m not sure if I can meet your expectations, but I don’t have much confidence in my胸の大きさ (chest size). If it were Sekhmet or Minerva, I could’ve enjoyed the physical defect of heavy shoulders, but… I guess I’m disappointed in that aspect only out of curiosity.”

“…That’s not why I was staring. No, more than that—”

Echidna nonchalantly continued her words, halting Subaru’s thoughts mid-air. Subaru placed his palm over his mouth, desperately suppressing his quaking voice to kill his emotions.

“I— I die and go back in time, reliving the world. I’m doing ‘Return by Death.’”

“I’ve heard. And even read before that. That’s quite a rare situation, huh?”

With an air of carefree acceptance, Echidna nodded as she processed Subaru’s confession.

Yet, her nonchalant attitude was an abnormality akin to a bolt from the blue for Subaru.

—Once those words left his lips, no matter how strong he tried to keep his heart, that very resolve could easily be shattered at the judgment’s hand.

Breaking that taboo meant either he or the person he confided in would suffer, entwining Subaru in an inescapable trauma.

Thus, for Subaru, doing something like ‘testing’ that was impossible. Without Echidna’s encouragement, he wouldn’t have been able to muster the courage for such a final decision.

It was a monumental resolution. Yet it was so easily brushed aside—

“Why haven’t those hands come out…?”

“It sounds almost like you’re lamenting their absence. If that’s the case, it feels like you missed your chance to kill me. That stings a bit, you know?”

“I didn’t mean it like that…!”

“I know. When you’re agitated, it’s easy to get pushed to this extent.”

Ignoring Subaru’s shock, Echidna maintained her pace. Unable to contain his rising irritation, Subaru clicked his tongue, sharpening his gaze even more.

“Be straightforward. No matter how many times I say I’m doing ‘Return by Death,’ will those hands of yours— the witch’s hands— never come here? Can I take that as a yes?”

“You understand that’s a witch’s hand, huh? …Ah, yes, indeed. This is my dream, my castle. A phantom I saw while dying. No one can enter here without permission.”

“Can you guarantee that?”

“Being cautious, huh? —I can guarantee it. The only witches that can exist here are the six witches: ‘Greed,’ ‘Gluttony,’ ‘Lust,’ ‘Pride,’ ‘Wrath,’ and ‘Sloth.’ There’s no room for ‘Jealousy.’”

Echidna’s strong reply followed Subaru’s reiteration.

Taking a breath, Subaru paused for a moment in silence before slumping into his chair, shoulders drooping, gaze lowered, letting out a long, deep sigh.

“Is that… really true?”

“——”

Covering his face with his palm, Subaru repeated the same phrase over and over again. Again, and again.

As if verifying it. As if not wanting to let it go. As if clinging to it.

After all, being liberated from the witch’s fingertips, and being able to speak of the taboo he had been carrying all along, was something that had never happened to him in this otherworldly life.

“You look quite emotional,”

Echidna remarked lightly while observing Subaru buffeted by unrelenting waves of emotion. She swept her fingers through her white hair.

“It’s only natural to have caused you such distress. Given the obsessive affection directed towards you, it’s somewhat expected.”

“Sorry, I definitely feel a bit overwhelmed. Gotta calm down… Alright, I’m calmed down. Since I’m calmed, I have a lot to say. So many things I want to talk about!”

The restrictions on speaking about ‘Return by Death’ were lifted.

It took him some time to process that reality, and now, his mind was buzzing with a flurry of thoughts.

The burdens he had carried until now, and those he currently bore, all the liberating feeling of being able to voice them—bright glimmers of hope pierced through the suffocating darkness. However,

“You seem to have misunderstood something.”

“—Huh?”

“It’s true that in my castle, the hands of magic which bind you cannot intervene. So I understand your eagerness to disclose the secrets you couldn’t share with anyone before. But you know… whether I lend an ear to your circumstances or conveniently cooperate with you or give advice is a different matter altogether.”

“Eh…”

It was like a bucket of cold water splashed on Subaru’s eagerly soaring spirit.

Before the stunned Subaru, Echidna wore an expression of nonchalance. Her unexpected response left Subaru unable to hide his confusion and disappointment.

He let out a sound akin to “ah” or “uh,” his gaze wandering.

The hope he thought he saw vanished, the liberation he expected to come from breaking out of a dead-end slipped away. Not knowing what to do left him at astandstill.

“Looking at you with a face like a forsaken child makes me feel troubled. I’m not asking for anything that difficult, you know?”

As she said this, she tilted her head in a way that suggested mild concern, tapping the white table with her extended finger three times. Directing his gaze towards it, Subaru noticed her finger pointing at an untouched cup he had been served.

“You’ve been invited to a witch’s tea party. If you intend to engage in delightful discussions at the gathering, shouldn’t you first show proof of your invitation?”

“…It’s hard to understand you.”

“I think I stated it as clearly as I could from the start.”

Reflecting on her words, Subaru suddenly recalled that Echidna had voiced her discontent when he had raged without paying attention to the cups.

Putting it bluntly, one might say that the psychological scar from being rebuffed was too much.

“Damn it, I get it!”

He snatched the cup from the table, gulping down the amber liquid inside in one go. Despite having been poured a while ago, it still retained its ideal temperature, which was typical of a witch’s tea party.

Chugging it down so quickly that he couldn’t even taste it, Subaru wiped the drops that spilled at the corner of his mouth roughly with his sleeve.

“There, I’ve downed it. Will you finally recognize me as a participant of the tea party?”

“When you drain my bodily fluid so eagerly… Huh, it makes my body feel warm.”

“Gah, I totally forgot—!”

Subaru fell into the same trap of the Dona-tea as he had at the first tea party.

But as he pressed his hand to his mouth staving off the urge to vomit, Echidna watched in amused delight.

“Very well, I recognize you. With your inquiry of ‘why’ as your qualification, the doors of the tea party have opened. You, who imbibed the tea offered by a witch, are now a proud participant. As the host of this tea party, I have a duty to welcome you. —Now, do speak.”

Clapping her hands lightly, Echidna’s eyes glimmered with curiosity.

“Dedication to coming up with answers makes me feel blissful as well.”

※※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※

—This was the beginning of the tea party, more like the beginning of a Q&A session.

Echidna, the witch with enormous knowledge due to the book titled ‘Knowledge of the World.’

Being able to articulate the previously unspoken matter of ‘Return by Death’ and the information gained from it without a hitch was an incredible blessing.

In front of Subaru, who had someone who could penetrate to the core of the matter, various questions that had been put off felt futile to pursue now bubbled over. The first spark was lit by

“So the one causing my ‘Return by Death’ is…… the Witch of ‘Jealousy’, right?”

“That understanding isn’t incorrect. I can’t really know how ‘Return by Death’ works unless I personally observe your death. However, I can assure you that within my castle, I cannot take your life, so that condition is impossible.”

“So I won’t die here?”

“It’s merely an ephemeral dream, a temporary resting place that draws in the mind. Do you think you would actually die just because you died in a nightmare?”

“If you have a really traumatic dream, there’s a chance of shock death… that seems plausible.”

Many works of fiction often feature narratives where dying in a dream reflects in reality. Therefore, it wouldn’t be strange if death in a witch’s dream world led to a real death.

“Well, arguing that you’d die just because they say you can’t die is a silly concept anyway. Regardless, here you don’t have to worry about dying no matter how foolish you behave.”

“Although, there’s a chance I might return with a shattered psyche and become a shell of a human.”

“Being a living corpse would mean the same as dying… hence, wouldn’t that be even worse since you can’t ‘Return by Death!’”

There was a point in the loop that began at the royal capital where Subaru almost had a mental breakdown. Whether it was his self-preservation instinct at work, or he was merely acting out while his ego shattered, even he couldn’t discern how it fell apart; he just floated along the situation until he regained himself through anger.

However, he could intuitively feeling that getting his sanity shattered here wouldn’t resolve itself through any kind of shock therapy.

“I would gladly pass on circumstances where I couldn’t even choose the timing of my own death. …But really, not dying altogether sounds like the best option.”

“Thinking of ‘death’ as just a tool to bring victory conditions is a value I find unfathomable. Even for me, I cannot observe and retain knowledge of my own death.”

“…? But you, in reality, have died and are like this as a restless spirit, so don’t you remember anything about the time you died?”

She had explained that her soul was trapped and sealed by Volcanica the divine dragon, but she was indeed a being who passed away.

“Not exactly like that. It’s true my body, the vessel of my soul, has been lost to death. However, my soul itself was sealed away by Volcanica before facing death.”

“…In other words, while the body has died, the soul hasn’t. Because I’ve never actually experienced ‘death,’ it’s slightly different than what ‘death’ feels like?”

“That’s correct. Therefore, I guess it’s a selfish thought, but I envy your current state. To be able to observe your own death—to experience it not once, but multiple times—is not something anyone is permitted.”

“…From a certain perspective, that sounds like a completely masochistic statement. I’ve never felt good about dying not even once.”

Though she likely meant no ill will, Subaru felt wearied by Echidna who appeared clearly fascinated.

The end result of his actions is ‘death,’ all of which was merely evidence that he’d constantly fallen short of his goals.

The aversion towards ‘death’ didn’t lessen, that feeling remained unchanged since before his first experience. While he wouldn’t deny feeling a bit more accustomed since then, the mental baggage remained.

Echidna chuckled softly at Subaru’s impressions, saying, “That’s quite a harsh way to put it.”

“Your state allows you to redo your ‘death.’ No, the power that prevents you from having peace through ‘death’ surely belongs to the Witch of ‘Jealousy.’ When did you realize that?”

“Numerous people have commented on it as being related to various scenarios. Honestly, I don’t have a specific memory of meeting that envious witch face-to-face… but if her name keeps coming up at every turn, then it’s easy to imagine that the ‘hand model’ appearing in limited situations is probably related to her.”

The black shadow whose arms and vaguely defined form had become visible.

A contradictory entity that inflicted pain as it lovingly behaved towards Subaru when he uttered forbidden words. Inflicting pain and yet loving him—this was utterly devoid of gratitude to him.

“I have absolutely no idea why a person I’ve never met would care about me so much… Do you know anything about it?”

“Who’s to say? Understanding her mental state is likely impossible for anyone, even for me. Even if it could be done, I wouldn’t want to.”

“The vast desire for knowledge you espouse seems sparing when it comes to the Witch of ‘Jealousy.’ Well, considering the harm she has done to you, it might be justified.”

Echidna appeared somewhat detached from the situation. Indeed, she existed on a higher plane, one unreachable for mere mortals.

In her form, creating a world as such, exhibiting the same demeanor alive or dead, and possessing a reservoir of knowledge capable of effortlessly responding to Subaru’s queries.

All combined were evident markers of her being the ‘Greedy Witch.’

Yet even a transcendent being like her was not free from emotions of love or hate. It was something Subaru could sense painfully.

“People tend to overrate witches, but remember that they began as humans. They can’t escape the joys, angers, sorrows, and pleasures. Even their likes and dislikes are influenced by who they’re interacting with. Compared to the other witches, I pride myself on having a broader tolerance range.”

“Well, if you are so endlessly curious about others, you probably want to be mindful of their preferences so you don’t stifle your curiosity, right?”

“That’s true. Thus, I can usually tolerate most beings. Even those utterly lacking in merit still warrant my effort to show some understanding of their inner workings. I endeavor to learn all there is, to fill myself with knowledge. However—”

Echidna paused, looking mildly downcast before changing her expression.

Her habitual smile faded momentarily, her eyes observed Subaru deeply.

“One exception exists; the Witch of ‘Jealousy.’ Those feelings of aversion and my effort to tolerate her are completely abandoned. She’s an unforgivable presence, someone I can’t accept after everything that time has passed, both in life and death, as I viewed the ‘Memories of the World.’”

“…It’s not just because you were killed, is it? You’re furious.”

“’Death’ doesn’t hold great significance to me. Given that I can exist like this, it hardly matters. However, that witch committed acts against me far worse than just death. While I believe every action should earn some result, there are things that I simply refuse to accept.”

After unleashing those pent-up feelings, Echidna looked away, shaking her head.

With that single gesture, any indication of her earlier fury vanished. The smile of that unyielding observer resurfaced.

“Let’s stop discussing that witch. Speculation about your ‘Return by Death’ principle exists, but I lack conclusive evidence. Moreover, even if I understood it, it wouldn’t hold any sway over your death itself. Do you have any questions outside of the cause?”

“When you say ‘outside of the cause’…”

Being so abruptly validated in regards to the core of ‘Return by Death,’ Subaru’s mind became tied in knots. The power he possessed stemmed from reasons beyond mere speculation; he was, in fact, leveraging that power while agonizing over the pain it brought.

It was infuriating that there were numerous results he could never have attained without that power.

Undoubtedly, he would need to rely on it even more moving forward. With that in mind,

“—Do you think my ‘Return by Death’ ability has a limit on how many times I can use it?”

“Hmmm… I see. Certainly, that’s a question that arises when considering the power to redo ‘death.’”

Subaru recalled that he had already died sixteen times in this world.

Each instance came with excruciating pain and a haunting sense of loss, but even in those moments, Subaru had returned time and again to relive the world.

So he had grasped results, but the fear that had always loomed over him—was this the one where he would finally meet his end?

“That makes perfect sense.”

‘Death’ should have been a final stop that had already been traversed multiple times.

Because he couldn’t have carved out a space in this world without that power, he couldn’t help but feel powerless at the thought of losing it.

Until that moment right before he ‘Returns by Death,’ Subaru remained uncertain if this truly marked his end.

Those crushing feelings of despair when all he had rightfully pursued crumbled to nothing—what a terrifying fate ‘death’ must truly be.

“I’ll preface this with the fact that this is merely my conjecture. I’m just formulating vague estimates based on the principles behind your ‘Return by Death,’ so allow me to express my thoughts accordingly.”

“…Okay, please share.”

“Regarding your ‘Return by Death.’ It’s presumed to have conditions but—”

Gasping.

Meeting Echidna’s eyes directly and holding her gaze, Subaru found the brief pause felt like an eternity.

That was how desperately he yearned for a conclusion—and then,

“—It probably has no limit.”

“……”

“Your ‘death’ holds no end. No matter how many times you die, no matter how brutally you perish, with every instance, your soul is permitted to rewind time until you break the fate that brought about your ‘death.’ No matter how gruesomely you may be killed or how shattered your body and mind become.”

Echidna’s conclusion resonated within Subaru, leaving his thoughts momentarily blank.

As that emptiness washed over him, it was soon filled with—

“—I see.”

He calmly accepted the truth before him, attempting his best to control the trembling that surged through his body.

With his hand over his mouth, Subaru’s gaze was lowered.

He showed no sign of disturbance, yet a flicker of relief at the news that ‘Return by Death’ had no restrictions was evident in him.

Noticing that reaction, Echidna lightly furrowed her brows.

“You don’t seem as surprised as I expected.”

“……..”

“To you… no, for anyone, overturning the absolute nature of ‘death’ should have been something of massive significance. Especially since you remain powerless while the obstacles before you are daunting. I thought you would react more.”

“Sorry for not meeting your expectations with my reaction… but,”

The potential for infinite retries was indeed an optimistic conclusion Subaru had formed around ‘Return by Death.’ Hence, when someone validated it, he felt no overwhelming shock.

Rather, it was—

“Yet, it doesn’t mean that I’d immediately come to the silly conclusion of ‘No matter how many times I die, it’s all good! This otherworldly life is a complete cakewalk now!’”

“You are intuitively seeing beyond the answer you’ve been given. Surprisingly, you seem to think faster than I expected. Whether that’s good or bad is another matter.”

“Every time I repeat ‘Return by Death’… or rather, each time I try to reveal it and feel the witch’s presence closer, I can sense that black shadow drawing near.”

The first fragment of shadow Subaru had seen came as an arm brushing against his heart.

Yet, with each utterance of those forbidden words, that shadow had gradually morphed into a more defined figure, to the point where he could now see its whole form vaguely.

When the time comes that shadow takes a clearer shape, what will that portend?

“The moment that figure becomes concrete, that’s where my ‘Return by Death’ reaches its limit. The moment that shadow becomes real, I can’t imagine I would be able to reject it.”

“Oh? What’s the basis for that?”

“Just a hunch.”

At his brief two-letter response, Echidna widened her eyes.

Leaning on the table, Subaru gazed at her from below, saying,

“It’s a feeling only someone who’s actually met that shadow would have. If anyone else could understand it, it’d be…”

Only a madman who had tasted the same pain and had finally shattered would have a comparable understanding—yet he no longer existed.

The sentimental ache blooming within Subaru was observed intently by Echidna, as she peered into his depths, only to shrug her shoulders a moment later.

“While it’s frustrating I can’t comprehend that perspective, my speculation generally aligns with that. Your ‘Return by Death’ indeed has no limits. However, it is under conditional circumstances.”

“Conditional circumstances?”

“What allows you to ‘Return by Death’ is the witch’s obsession. Until that source of obsession is severed, you won’t be allowed to meet an end.”

“The source of the obsession… you mean?”

“To kill the witch who’s stalking you or have her grow weary of you… Either way, based on what I see, both seem to be stratospherically difficult pursuits.”

The killing of the Witch of ‘Jealousy’—a world dream that the dragon, sage, and sword saint couldn’t achieve even with their cooperation four hundred years ago.

It meant surpassing the great deed of merely sealing the witch who had cloaked half the land in shadow.

“It’d be a lot easier if I were to be abandoned, though…”

“I imagine you can somewhat grasp that it’s in fact extremely unlikely for that to happen, can’t you?”

“……..”

“Though you have a feeling for the shadow of the witch itself, having been experienced in encounters that legacied you with the past, I can’t help but think the same way.”

Echidna wore a bitter expression. Four hundred years ago, the animosities between her and the Witch of ‘Jealousy’ must have run deep, and despite the passage of time, it would have afforded them no reprieve; it was likely an issue as complex as time itself had made it unearthly profound.

Unable to deny her statements, Subaru let out an exasperated sigh through his nose as he slumped back into his chair.

As Echidna noted, it was far-fetched to think that the Witch of ‘Jealousy’ would simply grow tired of him.

There was no thought as to how someone who had never seen his face or even truly met him could blindly love him like that. A person capable of defiling the very world itself.

“You seem to accept that rather readily.”

“—Huh?”

“I hesitate to say this, but everything we’ve discussed up to this point constitutes a mound of my speculation. I can’t provide you with basis for it, and there’s simply not enough evidence to convince you.”

With one eye closed, Echidna found Subaru’s ease in digesting her opinion perplexing.

Subaru himself thought it was indeed odd.

His relationship with her was brief, and above all, she was a ‘witch.’ Considering that point, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say there was hardly anything to trust.

Yet—

“Yet that’s still my hunch.”

“…A hunch.”

Subaru realized that he strangely had this belief that he could trust what she spoke.

Perhaps it was because that in the short time of their conversation, whenever she unveiled her own knowledge, it felt as though she was a being deserving of his respect.

Despite showing utter curiosity that often bordered on dullness or atrociousness, shortcomings that had been glaring at times in their conversation—

“Put that aside, and I think you wouldn’t lie to me, you know— I think that’s it.”

“… Is that also your hunch?”

“Yeah, a hunch. Well, if someone were to say a hunch from someone who’s died sixteen times isn’t something to fully rely on, there it is.”

Jokingly, Subaru scratched his head, attempting to diffuse the atmosphere with self-deprecating humor.

At that moment, Echidna held her breath. She then reached for the cup on the table, brought it to her lips, tasted it, and then smiled in a manner entirely different from before.

“You might indeed have a talent for seducing witches.”

This was the first time her lips formed a distinct smile.

 

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