“Ah, you’re awake! I’m so glad!”

The tall figure with deep blue hair exclaimed joyfully as he looked at Subaru.

He was a towering individual, easily surpassing Reinhardt in height, probably reaching about one hundred eighty centimeters. His physique seemed to be far removed from any laborious work, giving him an impression that was not so much agile as it was pure skinniness.

His eyes were an odd pair, one yellow and the other blue, and paired with his sickly pale skin, he had a somewhat ephemeral charm.

By general standards, he would definitely be called a stunning beauty.

However, being shown such beauty at an extremely close distance would certainly make anyone weary, regardless of how handsome they were.

“Your face is too close!!”

“Sorry, sorry! But when I first saw you brought here, you looked like a corpse all bloodied and drained of life. So seeing you walking around healthy like this makes me emotional!”

The tall man—who introduced himself as Roswaal—playfully patted Subaru on both shoulders while continuing to loom over him at such a close distance.

Subaru instinctively thought to himself, “He looks like a noble scoundrel in his mid-twenties.”

“No, no, there’s bound to be a sharp mind hidden under this outrageous appearance…”

“Ah, that’s a nice compliment! You can look at me more intently if you want. Do I feel sharp-minded to you? Huh?”

Roswaal struck a pose in front of Subaru, spinning around and posing dramatically. Subaru was shocked to realize he had involuntarily taken a few steps back.

“No way… I’m being forced to step back!? His character is way too intense… This is going to interfere with my daily life!”

“To me, they’re both just baffling.”

A sigh came from behind, as Emilia stepped forward in Subaru’s place, facing Roswaal with a respectful bow.

“Welcome back. Was everything okay?”

“I’m fine, fine! Ah, it makes me so happy that you addressed me first; it’s been about four days, three hours, and nineteen minutes! I must write this in my diary.”

With exaggerated hand movements, he was presented with a pen and notebook from either side, presented by the twin maids in pink and blue. Using the paper and pen handed to him, Roswaal began to write fervently.

“On the 15th of Tamuz…—Emilia spoke to me first! Roswaal, so happy! We will surely become good friends! …And done!”

With a satisfied expression that closed the book, Roswaal turned back to face Emilia, whose smile was slightly strained.

“No, seriously… I’m kind of freaked out here.”

Glancing quickly at the notebook in Roswaal’s hands—it looked more like a diary—it was filled to the brim with writing. Given it seemed to be approaching the latter half of the notebook, if it was filled with similar contents, it would genuinely be terrifying.

Roswaal thumped his knee with enthusiasm.

“Freaked out! That’s a nice word! It’s the first time I’ve heard it, but I like it! Hmm, that feeling of having a different perception from others… Ah, it’s wonderful!”

“Ugh, I somehow relate to that, and I kind of hate it. Hey, you mean to tell me you can get along with this guy?”

Facing the eccentric man clutching his own shoulders, Subaru turned to Emilia, conveying his dissatisfaction about being compared to the weirdo.

Emilia pondered for a moment, bringing her finger to her lips.

“Well, I guess even in the country, a certified weirdo like Roswaal is not exactly on the same level as Subaru…”

“This is barely a distinction, isn’t it!? Am I really compared to that guy!?”

Even though the saying goes, “Look at others to correct yourself,” being put in the same category as the squirming human before him was truly disheartening.

Resolving to pay careful attention to his words and actions moving forward,

“For now, just come back. Just come back! And make sure to thank me for the trouble caused! Thank you for lending me your bed, sincerely!”

“This is just ridiculous…”

Subaru’s over-the-top praise didn’t seem to faze Roswaal at all, who responded by whistling nonchalantly. Meanwhile, Emilia, crushed between the two, also seemed overwhelmed. By the way, the twins weren’t participating, quietly standing aside, and Pack remained hidden beneath a pile of silver hair, completely absent.

“And so…”

Roswaal returned in a disgustingly exaggerated motion and began to survey Subaru from head to toe.

To Subaru’s discomfort, he commented,

“You really seem quite ordinary. That’s a bit disappointing.”

“Hey, hey, you think I’m ordinary? That’s neither here nor there and is definitely an insult! I demand a retraction!”

“Was it really that big of a deal…?”

Roswaal responded with a perplexed expression.

To Subaru, that was an unbreakable line. Noting Subaru’s brave demeanor, Roswaal replied, “Ahaha, sorry, sorry,” waving his hand dismissively.

“When I say ordinary, I mean it in a species-related sense! After all, I’m known as a ‘Subhuman Lover’!”

“The fact you can declare that shows you’re pretty far gone, huh? This is alarming; I’m starting to like you just a little!”

Roswaal gleefully watched Subaru, who was clutching his head, and then pulled the twins to him, hugging them from either side.

“These girls are the same, and I help Emilia for the same reason. But honestly, I can smell a similar scent from you too, you know?”

Roswaal began to stroke the twins’ chins in a strangely ominous manner. The twins, complying with him, had reddened cheeks, already seemingly in his poisonous grip, making Subaru involuntarily glance at Emilia with a bad feeling.

Perhaps sensing Subaru’s gaze, she hurriedly waved her hands,

“Don’t misunderstand! I have no interest in weirdos!”

“Ordinary is great. After graduating high school, I’ll go to college and work steadily for my family, just like any normal person.”

He retracted his previous opinion, dreaming of a typical life. But of course, he reminded himself that all dads living the usual life are working hard out there, self-reflectively.

Then, he suddenly picked up on a lingering question from Roswaal’s previous statement.

“By the way, what do you mean by supporting Emilia? I don’t get what your relationship is about.”

“Well, don’t you know the situation? Hmm, strange indeed.”

Releasing the twins, Roswaal approached with hands clasped behind his back, smoothly strolling over to close in on Subaru.

Subaru confronted him, not taking a step back this time.

Their gazes locked, igniting sparks in the air—well, not really, but more like they curiously eyeballed each other, which felt uncomfortable.

However, looking away would feel like admitting defeat, so Subaru steeled himself to face Roswaal’s penetrating stare.

Just as they continued to stare each other down, gradually closing the distance, Subaru tried to muster his resolve.

“Don’t lose… I can’t lose!”

As he focused his gaze and glared, glaring—

“Mwah!”

“Hooogyaaaaaaa!!!”

Out of nowhere, Roswaal delivered a peck on his forehead, prompting an involuntary uppercut.

The no-mercy strike sent Roswaal tumbling back, and the twins rushed forward to catch him. Subaru didn’t even witness the fallout, roughly rubbing his expelling forehead.

“What the heck is this… What the heck is this, really!?”

“Ah, it hurts! Ow! It’s just that your eyes looked so innocent, pure—like a shivering maiden, I couldn’t help it!”

“That gaze is making me tense! Seriously, stop that!”

With a forehead that felt like it’d been scorched, Subaru glanced at Roswaal and stood in front of him with clenched fists, but the twins were blocking him, their eyes filled with enough hostility.

Roswaal being assaulted like that didn’t seem like something they could brush off as a joke. With their irritated stares, Subaru felt his resolve weaken.

“Stop it, Ram, Rem. That was humorously inappropriate. He had no fault; it’s my fault for being too girlish!”

“Don’t compare me to that girlish description! The only time I was a flower was in kindergarten! Since then, I’ve gone straight to a buzz cut!”

To their son who despised being mistaken for a girl, the parents’ answer was strikingly simple: “shave his head.” Now, he couldn’t feel at ease unless his back wasn’t coarse to the touch, but during those days, he cried a lot.

–His personality formation was surely heavily influenced by his parents.

Primarily by his mother, who never listened to others, and his father, who was excessively stubborn.

The twins stepped back reluctantly at Roswaal’s request. Then, while rubbing his jaw which had just been punched, Roswaal stood up.

“That last one was my fault; I apologize. With that said, how about we have breakfast together to show my apologies? It’s on me!”

“Just so you know, I eat pretty heavily—even if I don’t work! When it’s free, I’m gonna eat a ton!”

“That’s a good thing! Eating well leads to living well. Hmm, what a lovely statement! I’ll have to write that in my diary.”

As he reached out again, the twins presented him with the pen and notebook.

Watching him write smoothly, it seemed the entries in that notebook weren’t filled with bizarre entries about “Emilia-chan’s love diary” or anything.

“If he’s just chronicling his daily things, then it’s probably akin to a poetry collection. I feel like I might choke up reading it later, but if he’s writing at that age, there’s no chance for recovery.”

The resident of the flower field wouldn’t regard being in a flower field as unfortunate, right?

Subaru settled his mind, then revisited the invitation for breakfast.

“Anyway, I’d be happy to accept your offer for breakfast. I haven’t eaten anything since probably yesterday before noon!”

“That’s splendid! Then, let those two guide you. Ram, Rem, you’re up!”

““At your service, Roswaal-sama.””

The twins chorused in stereo, flanking Subaru. Each took one of his arms, binding him tightly.

“Hey, hey, what’s with this vibe like I’m being escorted? I wouldn’t be fleeing even without this. The dining table wouldn’t run away either… Ow, hey, that hurts!”

“We will guide you, dear guest!”

“Now, allow us to show you the way, dear guest!”

“Hey, listen! And this elbow is crammed in… Wait, you two, you’re not still mad about that uppercut, are you!? But there’s no way you can hold that against me when it was clearly his fault—ow, ow, ow! Elbow! Elbow! Both of you stop pressing harder!”

As an uproar ensued, Subaru was escorted off with his joints locked.

Emilia watched with a pitying expression as the three figures disappeared from view.

“—So, how did it actually go, Emilia-sama?”

Though worded the same way, the question had a slightly different vibe.

Emilia accepted this change without surprise.

“Pretty much the same as your assessment. Pack concurs as well, right?”

At her request for agreement, the cat that emerged from the silver hair nodded in response. Satisfied with that answer, Roswaal narrowed his eyes, while Emilia pressed her chest lightly, feeling a slight tinge of guilt.

“How unfortunate that I must doubt even my benefactor—what a terrible story, really.”

With that self-mocking thought, she let it slip.