“Otto. Didn’t you mention before something about using wind and water magic to make footsteps sound farther away?”

“…Now that you mention it, I think I did say something like that, but you remember it well. Sure, with some simple magic like that, I can manage it even in this mana-depleted state… but how are you going to use it? It’s really only good for making someone turn their back.”

“The way you just said is exactly how I’m going to use it. I’ll make some noise to attract attention and get them to come down to the trap I set. —Then, I’ll blow them away with the essence of science.”

“You’re quite full of confidence, but what exactly is this essence of science you speak of…?”

“It’s the ultimate convenience, dust explosion! It’s super simple and mysterious. As long as you have fire and some flour, we can make it. With the kind of power you’d understand, we could take out a monster and still have change to spare.”

※※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※

“Because you said something like that, I believed you and gave it a shot, and look what happened!”

“Shut up! Sacrifices are part of scientific progress! Why did it fail? Was there not enough powder, or was the fire too small…? Maybe the physical laws are just subtly different in this world? Maybe that’s why the dust explosion…”

“Enough already! Just hit it properly! Ah—not that! Stop!”

Subaru and Otto were shouting, while Petra interjected, yelling something.

The three of them were in the dining room on the first floor of the mansion, which was now illuminated by the blazing flames.

“Did you use too much oil? How are we going to put this out? It’s spreading rapidly!”

“I couldn’t hold back when hunting such a huge beast! If we can’t take it with us, whether we burn it or leave it behind, the result is the same! I’ll definitely get a proper buyout for this!”

“Both of you shut up! This isn’t the time for this! We can’t put it out now! We have to escape!”

“That sounds like the kind of statement a middle schooler would make when their fireworks mishap becomes irredeemable…”

With a troubled face, Subaru remarked, realizing that the tablecloth he was holding had also caught fire. He saw that no matter how much they tried to put it out, the flames wouldn’t flicker back, so he reluctantly tossed it into the blaze.

The fire from the storage warehouse was now rapidly spreading toward the kitchen in the dining room, likely about to explode, involving the cooking magic stones and all.

“The sacrifice has become too much…”

Looking down, Subaru saw the charred corpse of a beast that had collapsed at the boundary between the supply warehouse and the dining room. Otto’s sneak magic had lured it downstairs, only for it to be doused in oil from the warehouse and burned alive, resulting in the current situation.

It had been a straightforward brawn with no suspicion, helping them out by falling for all of their traps. Fortunately, it had a weak constitution against fire, and once it caught flames, it panicked and flailed about until it burned out.

When the planned dust explosion had failed, Otto and Petra’s preparation of the stored oil had turned out to be a lifesaver.

No matter how much Subaru explained, they just couldn’t grasp the horror of dust explosions, and this time he ought to thank the duo for their dim understanding.

However, if a problem emerged, it was that the flames they had used to burn the beast wouldn’t extinguish even after they had fulfilled their goal of defeating it.

The walls of the mansion were burning, the food in the warehouse was cooking, and the flames were nearing the legs of the dining room’s large table.

Black smoke and the deadly scent of a burning world filled the air. Visibility started to worsen, and without fire trucks, there was a severe shortage of water magic users for any sort of fire fighting.

“Honestly, I knew renovations were inevitable due to the battle between Garfiel and Elsa and the magical beasts wandering about, but I never thought it would escalate to a level of rebuilding.”

“This isn’t the time to be saying things like that, Natsuki. We have to escape after Frederica! Before the stairs to the third floor get burnt!”

“Hurry! Hurry!”

As they witnessed a familiar scene engulfed in flames, the somewhat detached Subaru was tugged along by the two.

The only ones present here were Subaru, Otto, and Petra. Frederica, who had accompanied them, and Rem, whom she carried, had split off from the moment their traps on the beasts began to take shape—and, waiting for the beasts to move from in front of the door, had been tasked with securing safety in the back office’s hidden passage.

Though he felt some anxiety in leaving Rem in charge of the injured Frederica, considering the strength comparison alone, this was a reasonable outcome. Compared to Frederica with one arm out of commission, Subaru and Otto would probably be at a disadvantage.

In any case, they had successfully repelled the magical beast.

Praying for there to be no other enemies in the back office and hidden passage, Subaru and the others burst out of the dining room, racing back up the stairs to the top floor.

“What if Garfiel burns to death?!”

“Garfiel isn’t that stupid; he’ll be fine! Besides, if it’s just him, he can kick away the magical beasts outside and escape!”

Subaru was anxious upon realizing that they ended up unintentionally creating a fire to thin the battlefield. Otto’s shout was on point, but what would actually happen…

“Frederica!”

While Subaru was lost in thought, the three of them reached the top floor.

Panting, Petra waved to Frederica, who stood in front of the back office. Frederica, seeing Petra’s state, seemed to conclude that the plan had been successful, her face softened with relief.

“I’m glad you’re safe. It’s such a relief that no one is missing.”

“Excuse me, why do you say that while staring at my face? Are you implying that I would be the one to be missing? Come on, I might end up crying soon, even I!”

“Okay, okay, calm down. We’ll tackle the immediate issues first, and we can work on improving your treatment later. Frederica, how did the hidden passage fare?”

“It operated without a hitch. I verified the path, at least to the small room…” By the way, does anyone else smell something burnt?”

Frederica squinted her narrow eyes, asking about the reason for the roasty smell wafting in. Subaru grimaced and looked at Otto and Petra, but the two shook their heads in unison.

“Uh, well, there was a tiny mishap and the fire got a little out of control while we were dealing with the magical beast, so… the result is…”

“The mansion is starting to burn… I was not expecting it to be entirely engulfed, even though I had little hope of it surviving… but I suppose it can’t be replaced.”

“Ah, I can see you understand what I’m saying. It can’t be helped that there are sacrifices.”

“I have little attachment to the main residence. But in exchange, Ram is utterly attached, so prepare yourself for the scolding later on.”

“Ugh…”

Imagining endless scolding left him feeling heavy-hearted about their reunion.

However, being able to think about the future in such a manner was a good thing. Frederica smiled ruefully at Subaru’s demeanor, spreading an atmosphere of relief.

“Now, since we’ve put this unnecessary time constraint upon ourselves, let’s move to escape swiftly. Frederica in the lead, followed by Petra and Otto. Once we clear the evacuation route, we’ll reach safety in no time… in this case, it’s hard to tell which side of the barrier we should enter is correct, but just follow Frederica’s lead. Ideally, we want to regroup with Patrasche and the villagers we let escape.”

After finishing his jest, Subaru quickly summarized their future plans.

Frederica and Otto tightened their expressions and nodded at his plan. However, it was Petra who furrowed her brow upon hearing this explanation.

Raising her small hand, she called out, “Subaru?”

“W-wait, that sounds a bit strange, doesn’t it? The way you’re saying it makes it seem like you’re not coming with us…”

“—Ah, that’s correct. I’m sorry, but I can’t escape with you from here. I’ll be going off on my own.”

“Why!?”

Petra gasped at Subaru’s affirmation of her confusion.

Her hand reached out to grip the hem of his clothes, trembling her fingertips to keep him from leaving.

“Let’s just escape already! The mansion is burning, and there are scary people and plenty of magical beasts! You can’t win against them, Subaru! Let’s flee!”

“Yeah, well, I can’t really argue against that, but I’m not here to fight. In a way, maybe I am fighting, but…”

While feeling grateful for Petra’s intentions of stopping him, Subaru gently pried her fingers away one by one. He could see the sorrow spread in Petra’s large round eyes, and it pained his heart.

He lightly tapped Petra’s shoulder from behind to avoid Otto causing a ruckus.

“Petra-chan. Natsuki-san has a job that needs to be done. As long as that isn’t fulfilled, he can’t leave the mansion.”

“But! Subaru is weak! It’s dangerous! Otto-san can stay behind!”

“That’s not because you trust my strength, is it!?”

Shaking his head, Otto responded as Petra looked up at Subaru with watery eyes. Subaru crouched down to meet her gaze and patted her head.

“Sorry, Petra. I’ll make sure you, Rem, and Frederica all escape safely from the mansion. But that alone won’t fulfill my reason for coming back. There’s one more person I have to bring out.”

“B-Beatrice?”

“Yeah. Have you ever met her?”

Petra shook her head.

It had only been about ten days since she began working in the mansion. That reclusive girl hadn’t shown herself to anyone who lived and worked in the mansion at all. She was stubborn like that.

Even Subaru had come out of his room at least to use the toilet.

“Is… is there really someone like that? Maybe you’re imagining things or being overly dramatic…?”

Though she hadn’t meant it that way, Petra was now beginning to doubt the girl’s existence.

Could it be that this character only exists in your mind?

“She’s painful and needy, but also takes care of everything all on her own, suffering without any resolution, wanting someone else to bring it to an end.”

“…”

“I’d rather not visualize such a person and wish they only existed as a figment of my imagination. If I’m going to create a character, I’d make them sweet and have max affection points.”

The girl in reality wouldn’t do anything as he visualized, and she couldn’t understand either party’s desires or wants, trying to give up thinking about them all, and that was a tremendous nuisance.

So, he had to tell her.

“Beatrice is about your age, Petra. In many ways, you might be similar to her first friend.”

“First friend?”

He recalled the past recounted by Ryuzu and Theta.

A girl named Ryuzu Meier who once forged a friendship with Beatrice, leaving an indelible wound in her heart.

Though perhaps they had not been conscious of it, from an outside perspective, it was obvious that there had been a certain friendship between them.

“Petra, once I bring Beatrice back, I’m sure you two will become friends. You’ll undoubtedly like her; she’s a real handful to tease.”

“More than Otto-san?”

“Yeah. You might not even need Otto anymore.”

Otto seemed like he wanted to say something, but Subaru consciously ignored him.

Then, Subaru pulled his hand away from Petra’s head as he stood up.

“I’ve told you what’s up. I’ll go look for Beatrice. I’ll do my best not to get burned alive, but if I get burned, make sure to note that the cause of death was a fire created by Otto’s oil.”

“I really hope it doesn’t come to that, so you better come back safely, or I’ll really give you a beating.”

With a spiteful expression, Otto responded, then pulled Petra closer to him to draw her away.

As if marking a line between Subaru and the other four.

“Frederica. I’m counting on you.”

“I’ll put myself on the line and carve out a way.”

“Be cautious. Even if you can’t get it back, I won’t have come for nothing.”

Frederica’s eyes went wide.

Seeing her surprised expression felt like witnessing something rare and slightly satisfying.

Lastly, Subaru glanced at Rem, whom Frederica was carrying. The still-sleeping princess didn’t show any indication of acknowledging Subaru’s determination.

That was fine. Rem wasn’t in a position to see him off. It was Subaru who was supposed to be the one to fetch her.

“Subaru, be careful!”

Turning his back on the four, Subaru took off running.

As he left, Petra’s voice called out behind him. But Subaru didn’t look back anymore. Petra didn’t seek that either.

The flames slowly began to engulf the mansion.

—Will these flames reach the Forbidden Library? With his hand on the unscathed door, Subaru couldn’t help but think so.

※※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※

The shield took the descending blade, the sound of steel scraping and sparks flying as the slash was deflected.

Slipping through the gaps that formed, a kick wrapped in a fierce wind swept at Elsa’s body, causing her to spin to diffuse the impact, and in the motion, her opposite hand swung the blade toward Garfiel’s temple, driving it toward a decapitation—

“Too soft!”

“Oh dear, how painful.”

Her large jaw clamped down on the blade, executing the fourth catch with her jaw this day.

In an instant, her jaw’s power crushed the knife as Elsa recoiled, her smile deepening at being deprived of her weapon.

“Almost lost your head, yet you’re quite soundly doing it.”

“I’ve got the hang of it. Your fighting style is getting dreadfully boring now.”

“Such a cold response. You act like you’ve understood everything about women in such a short time.”

“…You’re a little too easy to get hung up on things, huh?”

Garfiel grimaced and stuck a finger in his ear, suddenly realizing something, and sniffed.

Then directing his gaze toward the far hall, he smirked.

It seemed that Elsa and the others hadn’t noticed yet, but Garfiel had caught the whiff of an unusual smell. It was the scent of burning wood and stone—meaning, the scent of flames.

“—Ahh, what a shock! I can’t believe it!”

Just after Garfiel laughed, a girl watching the fight from above the magical beast puffed out her cheeks.

“What are you doing, brother? It seems the shadow lion that was supposed to hold them back has died. They were a bit hard to treat since they never listened and always got heated too quickly, but… why do they die just by taking a nap in front of the door?”

“Why did you even bring such a useless magical beast here?”

“When it’s not the breeding or hibernation season, this one and the shadow lion were all we had. But now it’s dead, can you believe that?”

As she lamented, Meily threw another knife at Elsa. Looking at it and feeling its weight, Elsa seemed indifferent to the report.

Meily didn’t seem to be too affected by the death of the beast either. How unfortunate for that magical beast.

In any case, Garfiel wore a vicious smile, having eavesdropped on their conversation.

“How cute, a scary-looking handsome brother wearing a wicked grin.”

“The general’s got nothing on my awful looks. But as I said, your crafty plan isn’t one bit clever in the face of a general and his merry friends.”

“Certainly, our plans have exceeded expectations, but then what does it change? We still have plenty of magical beasts left here despite losing just one useless one, and you’re still being held down as a key force… the plight of those kids isn’t going to change at all.”

“True enough.”

After trading glances with Elsa through dozens of clashes of steel, Garfiel crossed his arms.

He sniffed, recalling the fight with Elsa up to this point—and made his decision.

“It’s about time I’m able to move the situation, don’t you think?”

“What do—”

“Elsa!”

Elsa frowned at Garfiel’s attitude, but before her question became words, Meily’s sharp voice rang out.

Looking over, Meily’s rock pig became excited, its eyes changing color, stomping with its massive body in excitement. While gradually gaining control over its excitement in response to Meily’s call, it seemed the beast had finally picked up the scent of flames just like Garfiel did.

Calming the rock pig’s excitement with her palm, Meily then gave a serious look toward Elsa.

“Elsa, the building is burning. It seems someone set it on fire.”

“—“

“What someone? Let’s drop the futile nuances there. —It’s obvious it’s the general. Huh, this simple makes it easy to understand. Magical beasts are still beasts. It’s the quickest way to create an escape route by scaring them with flames.”

“That’s… we came to help those inside and you’re suggesting we burn the mansion and run?!”

The decisiveness of her action left Meily speechless. Elsa appeared to struggle aligning her thoughts with the image she had of Subaru.

But against their shock, Garfiel was remarkably calm.

He hadn’t been informed that Subaru would go this far, of course. Although he had thought of Subaru as a person to take bold actions, he had never imagined it would go this far as to burn down the mansion. That’s why Garfiel felt pleased with the man who had chosen to be at his side.

Above all, knowing that this scenario had been prepared stirred a fire within Garfiel.

“A burning mansion. Outside, there are swarms of magical beasts.”

“—?”

“There are still those who need saving, and there are powerful foes we need to hold back. The only one who can fight is me, and the general left his words: ‘This one is up to you.‘”

“What the heck are you talking about?”

“It’s exactly what it seems, ain’t it?”

Both Elsa and Meily looked at Garfiel with tilted heads, both appearing to view him as something unearthly.

In contrast to the doubts of those two, Garfiel revealed his sharp fangs with an invigorated feeling.

His body felt light. He now feared nothing.

“With conditions like these stacked up, how could there be a guy in this world who wouldn’t burn? Ah, I’m gonna make it happen. ‘The sword saint, Raid, draws his sword and laughs in front of a dragon!’”

“Isn’t that a saying for a madman?”

“I know that! So what? Ain’t no mistake in a place with me and you!”

With an almost refreshing vigor, Garfiel affirmed his own foolishness, and for a moment, Elsa appeared surprised at his remark.

But just for a few seconds.

She quickly broke into a smile, tongue flicking over her lips as she softened her eyes.

“That’s right. It truly is. Just as you say.”

Accepting this, Elsa aimed her crossed blades at Garfiel standing in front of her.

Crossing blades, she swayed her long black hair and tilted her head,

“But what will you do now that you have shifted your mindset? You won’t suddenly become stronger, and you are aware firsthand of my unique traits after clashing multiple times, right? Our injuries lean heavier on your side, yet it’s undeniable that this is becoming a fruitless exchange.”

“True.”

The fight between Garfiel and Elsa had raged for over ten minutes.

They had exchanged blows well over a hundred times, grinding each other down.

In terms of power, Garfiel held a slight edge. Physique, speed, and fighting skills all slightly surpassed Elsa, never relinquishing the initiative.

However, Elsa possessed a healing ability that could heal injuries in seconds and her intrinsic nature to view pain as pleasurable and trivial, leaving no hesitation in their exchanges.

When she charged in with injuries on her mind, even Garfiel risked sustaining wounds. He needed time to recover from his injuries, while Elsa needed none.

Given she outclassed him in terms of endurance, should the match fall into a stalemate, Garfiel was bound to find himself caught up again by her blade.

“Five times… no, six times? The number of times I’ve pierced through you.”

“Was that so? And?”

Striking with precise kicks or slamming fists through the shield, or gripping her leg to throw her headfirst into the floor, there had been several occasions where Garfiel had dealt fatal damage to Elsa.

Though each injury was quickly healed, they hadn’t brought the actual feeling of achievement down to reality—

“There could be no more than four or five times, in truth.”

“—“

“Even vampires aren’t invulnerable monsters. Once they incur fatal wounds… they can expire when their time is up. It’s a matter of before the mansion burns down, that’s all.”

Spreading his feet wide, Garfiel bared his fangs with a wild grin.

In response, the smile faded from Elsa’s face as she silently absorbed Garfiel’s words. Playing with the end of her long braid with her fingers, she let out a small sigh.

“Meily… —send that over. You’re on pursuit.”

“Elsa… are you serious?”

“If a reason has arisen for that, then it would be a disservice not to proceed with it. It’s a shame that it might get messy when extracting a clean intestine.”

In her closed-eyed answer to Meily, she didn’t add any more words.

The girl dropped the holder holding the spare knives she had been passing and pulled out another holder—this one only containing two knives—and tossed it to Elsa.

“Whoa…”

As Garfiel watched Elsa draw the blades from the received holder, he excitedly clicked his tongue.

The two knives Elsa now held emanated an aura different from the ones she had used up until this point.

The blade she gripped in her left hand was entirely dyed black from the handle to the blade. At a glance, its form appeared the same as the previous curved blades, but the wicked edge manifested distortions with an array of razor-sharp spikes sprouting like a beast’s fangs, designed more for gouging than slicing.

Meanwhile, the blade gripping her other hand turned the black form into a thick pure white one. This too shared a familiar curved shape, but its substantial width seemed designed to smash through the bones themselves, clearly enhancing the violent impression in tandem with the black blade.

“Could that be your trump card?”

“I’ll use this only when I prioritize killing the opponent over gutting them. This will be only the third use, aside from my mother.”

“That’s a pretty damned unwelcome evaluation and an envious family background, huh?”

Garfiel grimaced at the unpleasant confession.

Before Garfiel, Meily, who had delivered the knives to Elsa, commanded the beast to turn away. The slow-moving beast stomped its hooves on the ground and moved toward the main building, unable to break the walls as they shattered. —But,

“Well, since you showed me your trump card, it’d be unfair if I didn’t show mine too, right?”

Garfiel stomped the ground as if to knock it down.

In the next moment, a tremor shook the floor through Garfiel’s foot, rushing down the corridor, through Elsa’s feet, and directly beneath the magical beast—where an explosion occurred.

“—!?”

“Rock pig!?”

The floor collapsed beneath them, throwing the rock pig off balance, and it slammed into the wall. The shock reverberated through the mansion, causing Meily, who had been riding on top of the beast, to lose footing and fall to the corridor.

As she stroked the collapsing pig’s rear, she glanced down at the unnaturally sunken ground before looking back.

“No way, did you do this, brother?”

“Uh-huh, sort of. Let that be my declaration of intent that I won’t let you escape. As long as your feet are planted on the ground, you won’t escape my sight.”

Activating the power of “Earth Spirit’s Blessing,” Garfiel could raise and sink any spot he could perceive as “ground.” Of course, the scope varied based on size and distance, but it was more than enough for intimidation.

The more troublesome things got, the more he recalled what Subaru had taught him: laugh boldly.

“Meily, just a bare minimum up top. Gather the others and wake that magical beast.”

“…Mom’s gonna be mad at me.”

“If we don’t eliminate the threat, she’ll be the one in a world of trouble. Besides, it seems we don’t have any time to worry about the aftermath.”

“You’ve finally started to understand.”

At Elsa’s words, Meily ceased to hold any semblance of ease and nodded, whistling with her fingers.

The thin sound echoed throughout the mansion. If their words held any truth, the magical beasts that had been previously unleashed should soon come pouring in.

More flames blossoming around them.

“I’ll rip off limbs and carry them home lightly. Seems like getting a long encore would be too much to ask for.”

“Isn’t the option to abandon the intestines a no-go?”

“Better than breathing, thank you very much.”

Cracking his neck at her exasperated stance, Garfiel began to crouch to welcome the enemies.

Elsa swayed her upper body lightly before gently lowering her right white blade behind her, focusing her strength at it,

“—I’m sure I’ll love you more than anyone else could to the marrow of your bones.”

A bewilderingly lascivious smile and a chain of sounds from the blades scraping together.

And then—

“—Gah!?”

A white blade cut diagonally into Garfiel’s left shoulder, shattering bones.

—The gut hunter and the shield of the sanctuary’s battle reached its final stage.

※※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※

His shoulder throbbed, his waist pained, and his head ached.

He had rolled over countless times, slammed into each part of his body, swallowing groans of pain with every instance.

Running, running, running, breath growing ragged, knees wobbling, vision blurring but pushing on.

His breaths were labored. He lowered his head to avoid inhaling smoke. Inside the structure that was catching flame, he dashed for an unopened door.

“—“

Spotting an un-opened door, Subaru desperately lunged for the handle to push it open.

Inside sprawled an unchanging guest room, and it would soon be swallowed into a sea of flames.

Leaving sentimentality behind, Subaru flung the room’s door wide open and made his way to another room. One room over, the next room over, opening every door that caught his eye—

“—Found it!”

Relieved from the smell of char, he caught the scent of ancient tomes and bundles of papers wafting out.

Nose wrinkling familiar crumminess, Subaru violently stepped into the room.

Then he looked up and called out to the person inside.

“Hey! Cut the sulking already and let’s talk!”

“Are you coming out or not!”

A shockwave blasted through, and Subaru’s body felt as if it would be blown away by unseen force. But he managed to thwart this by hooking his fingers into the carpet.

Even in the oppressive feeling that he was being forced back entirely, he grinned maliciously and sneered,

“Hah! Don’t underestimate me too much. In such a short time, I’ve faced the same trick multiple times and been thrown out before—”

“Twice won’t be repeated!”

“Gah!?”

A thick book launched on the wind collided squarely into Subaru’s forehead, sending him reeling backward and rolling out of the room.

He crashed against the wall in the hallway. Shaking his head, he was met with the door swiftly closing in front of him, but by the time he dashed to grab the handle, it was already too late. The room before him had once again severed its connection to the Forbidden Library.

“That wickedness…! Who did you take after, that girl…!”

Kicking the door open rudely, Subaru darted to search for another door.

This time, he was moved to the second floor of the east wing—the way it stopped him from flying close to Garfiel’s battlefield might be considered Betelgeuse’s last grains of kindness.

“I’ll ensure you listen to me at the very least, you stupid girl!”

Deep in thought about the undeniable truth, Subaru continued to seek doors leading to the Forbidden Library, being repeatedly turned away.

The fight in the west wing was reaching its conclusion, as the flames ignited from the main building spread throughout Roswaal’s Mansion—it was simply a matter of time before it crumbled to ashes.