Roughly dragged to the front of the graveyard, I was thrown down near the entrance and rolled over.

Was it snow or frost? I spat out the unpleasant sharded substance that had entered my mouth, and Subaru turned his head back, feeling the painful numbness creeping into his exposed skin.

“This treatment… is pretty rough.”

“I don’t have the mind to care for you. At least you’re better treated than I am. Or do you want to be treated worse than this girl here?”

Looking down at Subaru from above, Garfiel exhaled a white breath and flaunted Rem, who was in his arms.

I wasn’t sure if Garfiel even thought of her as a hostage, but she certainly served as a leverage against Subaru.

“Don’t do anything weird to Rem.”

“As long as you’re willing to comply with our demands, I’ll refrain from doing so.”

Speaking in a calm voice, Subaru placed his cold hands on the thin layer of snow on the ground and somehow managed to stand up. Standing beside him, Ryuzu’s Replica was absentmindedly looking in Subaru’s direction.

As always, she wore nothing but rags. In this cold, her outfit felt too pitiful for proper equipment.

“Can’t we do something about how these kids are dressed? They look freezing; it’s hard to watch.”

“You know who they are, right? They don’t even have the capacity to feel cold. If you just want to buy time, I have no reason to humor you.”

“Don’t pick at me. I never thought time would change the situation either.”

Amidst the blizzard-like visibility, Subaru heard Garfiel’s warning from behind him and faced towards the graveyard.

In a white, foggy world, a stone ruin floated alone. Even before the ferocity of nature, Echidna’s graveyard loomed ominously, its mouth wide open, waiting for challengers.

Emilia should be inside there.

“How long has Emilia been in there?”

“Since the night before last, so it’s approaching two days now. Honestly, as long as she’s not dead, I don’t care what happens.”

“From your position, I suppose that’s true… But couldn’t you have considered the option of going in and pulling her out?”

“I can’t enter the graveyard. That’s part of the contract.”

That statement captured the entirety of Garfiel’s position.

How many residents of the “Sanctuary” knew about it? Garfiel has indeed entered the graveyard and met Echidna, obtaining rights as an apostle of greed, thus qualifying him to command Ryuzu’s Replica.

Why he hides that, and why he won’t allow the “Sanctuary” to be freed—those reasons remain unclear.

“If I could go in and ask Echidna… maybe I would know.”

“Quit mumbling. I told you to get in there. Pull out the half-demon inside and end this snowy scenery. If you don’t, I’ll have to start doing things I don’t want to do.”

Garfiel lightly lifted Rem in his arms and contorted his cheek into a sharp grin. It was a smile that didn’t suit him, but Subaru knew he was someone capable of making that threat a reality. No matter how he felt, when it came to protecting the “Sanctuary,” making a sacrifice of one or two girls with the same face as his beloved would be a trivial act.

“Don’t do anything to Rem. —That’s my condition.”

“…Go.”

In the cold wind, I left those words as cold and unemotional as possible, then turned my steps towards the graveyard. Behind me, Garfiel was staring at my back.

I didn’t understand his true intentions. And then I remembered there was something I had forgotten to tell him.

I had neglected to mention the death of Frederica to her brother, Garfiel.

The cold, the anger—I could only think that my head was in a mess.

Was I normal right now? If I was normal, then why could I be so calm?

Petra is dead, Frederica, whom I doubted, is innocent, and this is the state of the returned “Sanctuary.” My relationship with Garfiel is at its worst, and I have no idea about the safety of the others left in the “Sanctuary.”

With such a terrible environment continuing, why was I still able to remain normal?

I couldn’t stop thinking. I mustn’t give up. I have to look forward, look up, and gather everything to seize the future I must grab hold of.

Otherwise, why would Subaru—

“———”

Only Subaru’s footsteps echoed intermittently on the dry floor of the graveyard.

Unlike outside, inside the graveyard, the fierce chill felt nearly nonexistent. It wasn’t an illusion of warmth; it was a real fact that the cold’s influence was minimal.

Upon entering the graveyard, the graveyard’s function to welcome worthy ones activated—faint light began to glow in the dark interior of the ruins.

As the dim light led him further inside along the walls, Subaru moved clumsily, as if the blood within him was freezing, using all four limbs to navigate through the graveyard.

And beyond the long corridor, there lay an open space that felt vast.

The First Trial, the “Trial” room where one must confront the past.

Upon arriving at that place,

“—Subaru?”

The long-awaited voice with a silver bell ring welcomed Subaru softly.

In the darkness, called by name, Subaru focused his eyes on the shadow in front of him.

As his eyes adjusted to the ruins’ darkness, a long, silver hair and captivating purple eyes entered his sight, and he couldn’t help but call out her name.

“Emilia.”

“Yes, that’s right, Subaru… It’s me.”

Subaru felt like collapsing at the fact that a mere four characters received a response.

It may seem exaggerated, but it was an emotion he couldn’t hold back.

Fatigue, weariness, a sense of loss.

Although Subaru had been struck down by many emotions, facing Emilia caused the tension and consciousness he had so tightly maintained to finally snap.

Just as he was about to fall forward, an arm reached out and caught him.

It was a soft, warm touch. Looking up just ahead, a beautiful white face gazed at Subaru, causing him to hold his breath in surprise, forgetting the situation.

Right now, Emilia was gently holding him.

“Ah, I’m sorry… I lost my strength…”

“It’s okay. I don’t suspect you did it on purpose. Even if you did, I caught you this way.”

Overlapping Subaru’s excuses, Emilia blocked any chance of retreat.

Rather than blaming him, her words were gentle support, and Subaru let out a deep sigh of relief—only to quickly realize something was off about Emilia.

Emilia was just as she always was.

She was gentle, calm, a little ditzy, full of empathy, cute, and had a childlike charm that was appealing—she was just too unchanged.

Emilia’s current normal was similar to when they were enjoying peaceful times at Roswaal’s Mansion.

It was not the same as when she had been unable to overcome the “Trial” and was filled with a sense of duty.

“Um, Emilia… while I was away, did something… happened to change your feelings?”

Subaru tried to choose his words as he wondered how to ask that question.

But before those words came out of his mouth, Emilia murmured.

“—I felt lonely.”

“…Huh?”

Subaru couldn’t quite catch Emilia’s mumble, so he frowned and asked her to repeat herself.

Her silver beauty was close enough to feel her breath. Staring into those eyes so close, Subaru sharpened his focus, determined not to miss a single word.

Looking directly into Subaru’s eyes, Emilia spoke.

“I felt lonely, Subaru… Because you left me behind.”

“Ah… no, that’s… it’s not like that. I didn’t intend to abandon you…”

“———”

“I think I wrote about it in my letter… I had some things I needed to do. So I couldn’t be with you for a bit. I truly regret making you feel lonely. To have put you through that, and not to accomplish what I had to do, and now I’m…”

“Hehe.”

Subaru, speaking fast, layered his excuses in the gaze of Emilia’s fixed stare. But before he could finish his excuses, Emilia suddenly burst into giggles.

Subaru could hardly believe what he was witnessing.

In the middle of such a tense conversation, Emilia laughed?

Where was the humor in this? Furthermore, she was not supposed to be the kind of girl who would select such a reaction.

“You don’t have to make such a fuss over an excuse; I’m not angry, you know? Look at you; your face is turning blue… hehehe.”

“Huh, Emilia…?”

“It’s okay, Subaru. You left me a letter, and you wrote so much, so very much, for me. I felt lonely, and there were times I wanted to cry… but I read your letter so many times.”

Saying something so endearing, Emilia deepened her smile.

A charming smile that could captivate anyone, along with sweet whispers that tightened around Subaru’s heart. Just hearing that she cherished his letters, treating them like a support for her heart, filled Subaru with an overwhelming warmth.

However, suppressing that tidal wave of emotions for his self-awareness, Subaru couldn’t shake the bad feeling that had been bubbling about Emilia’s unusual behavior.

Something was off. Something was not right. The uncomfortable feeling he had sensed earlier hadn’t been corrected at all as they made their way to this point.

What was wrong? Where was the feeling of discomfort? Despite how precious Emilia was.

Despite how precious she was, Emilia was responding to Subaru with that earnestness.

“Emilia… what happened with the ‘Trial’?”

“The Trial…”

“Yeah, the ‘Trial.’ That’s why I came in here, right? I’m sorry for making you go through something so tough alone. I want to apologize for that and know what happened. It doesn’t matter if you failed; I won’t mind. But since you’re here now…”

“No, no, I failed, didn’t I? I couldn’t overcome the First Trial, the past I had to face. I’m sorry that I put you in a position where you had high hopes and worries.”

“Ah…”

At Emilia’s response, a hoarse sound leaked from Subaru’s throat, and he began to regret it.

That sound might have been perceived as disappointing to Emilia. If so, it meant Subaru had betrayed her right after saying “don’t worry about it.”

Driven by that sense of anxiety, Subaru suddenly felt a smooth sensation on his head.

Emilia had inserted her fingers into Subaru’s short black hair and was lovingly patting his head.

Not understanding the intent behind this action, Subaru could only look dot-eyed. When Emilia saw that expression, she beamed a smile, blushing as she said,

“You know, Subaru? Sometimes you want to touch my hair, don’t you? So, since I’ve thought about it occasionally, I wanted to do this to you too. Hehe, you really let your guard down!”

“Emilia…?”

“I was so worried about what would happen if you abandoned me and didn’t come back… I couldn’t stop thinking about it. I felt really, really scared. So when you came back just now, it made me really happy.”

Just after saying she failed the “Trial,” Emilia’s gaze was entirely focused on Subaru. Her eyes were warm and glistening, fixed on him.

How long had Subaru waited for a day when he would see himself reflected in her eyes like this?

Being called by name with that warmth and gazed upon by those passion-filled eyes, how much had he yearned for this moment?

Everything was for now, for this instant, to savor this burning passion.

So—.

“Subaru, let’s stay together forever, okay? Just stay with me? If you’re here, I don’t need anything else—”

Subaru had never imagined that there would come a time when he would feel so fearful of Emilia professing such blind affection.

“———”

Still holding Subaru in her arms, Emilia continued to spill forth her passionate words.

“At first, when I heard Subaru disappeared, I felt so pained. I was scared because I wasn’t able to handle things properly… then I thought you might have been disappointed in me. That thought terrified me, and I just couldn’t stop trembling…”

“———”

“But then I realized I had your letter, and when I recognized your handwriting, I felt all the fear melt away. Subaru is amazing. Despite how fearful I was, you made me feel that way completely vanish… Yes, I’m always being saved by you, Subaru.”

“———”

“The contents of the letter made me happy. You wrote so much so I wouldn’t worry. It must have taken you quite a while. I was delighted that you spent that time for me and that you continued to think of me throughout.”

“———”

“In the letter, you said you loved me so many times. When you said that in the dragon cart, I was so happy I ended up crying… but even when I read your letters, I felt like crying again. It was that big and important to me… I realized that.”

“———”

“So when I saw Subaru return, I could no longer hold back. Deep inside my chest, a little me was calling your name. And then I just wanted to reach out and touch you; I couldn’t help it…”

“———”

“Now, Subaru, I’m sorry for all that. I’ve always been cruel, haven’t I? I kept you waiting while feeling this way about you, and that was incredibly unkind of me.”

“———”

“Holding these feelings and still being patient is tough, isn’t it? I acted so selfishly in front of you while I should have wanted to think about you and understand you, but I didn’t truly get to know you at all.”

“———”

“But it’s different now. I’ve been thinking about you all along. I’m always thinking about you. Just as you said you loved me… just as you felt that way, I too want to feel the same about you, maybe.”

“———”

“No, I’m sorry. That’s a cowardly thing to say. Even if I’m scared and don’t know what I’m thinking, you told me honestly, didn’t you?”

“———”

“So I’ll properly express it. —I will convey it.”

“———”

“Hey, Subaru. I love you. I really love you. I think about you, just you, and I want to stay together with you forever, that’s how I feel.”

“———”

“I’d be so happy if you felt the same way about me… Just thinking about it makes me happy.”

“———”

“Hehe, yes, yes… I love you, Subaru… I love you so much.”