Natsuki Subaru was born in Heisei Japan, and belongs to the so-called ‘Yutori’ education generation.

To recount his seventeen years of life would indeed take another seventeen years.

To simplify, he could be described as ‘a high school senior who is a recluse.’

To elaborate, he is ‘a hopeless loser who shut himself away, disregarding his parents’ expectations, right at the crucial time leading up to entrance exams.’

There wasn’t any particular reason for his reclusiveness.

One ordinary weekday, he just happened to think, “Getting up today feels like a hassle,” and thus began his journey of skipping school.

As time went on, he steadily increased his self-imposed absences, and before he knew it, he had become a proper recluse, leaving his parents in tears.

Day after day, he indulged in laziness, sinking deeper into internet escapism—

“And as a result, here I am, summoned to another world… tee-hee.”

“Subaru?”

As he groaned, trying to piece together his current situation, his cheeks were suddenly grabbed by white hands. Looking up, he saw it was a Silver-Haired Beautiful Girl right in front of him.

— Honestly, she was an incredible beauty.

Her long silver hair sparkled like moonlight, framing her gemstone-like purple eyes.

With long eyelashes fluttering, her worried gaze was breathtaking, making it feel as if she were an artwork so divine that every artist in the world would drop their brushes in awe.

And yet, this beautiful girl was even leaning in close enough that he could feel her breath, examining him as she said, “Hmm?”

“Subaru?”

“Y-yes, that’s me. Natsuki Subaru!”

Once again being called by that silver bell-like voice, Subaru responded with a strained smile.

Not only his face, but his voice was probably shaking too. Also, his smile might have seemed a bit creepy. For some unclear reason, this beautiful girl seemed overly friendly with him. Otherwise, she wouldn’t be staring and chatting with him so up close.

“You’re Subaru, right? Sorry if I seemed to look at you strangely,” she said.

“W-wait, strange…? Do you mean in terms of my… eyes?”

“No, that’s not it! Your eyes always look very bad, but I was just worried if you banged your head or something.”

“My eyes always look very bad!?”

Trying to lighten the mood with a joke, Subaru was struck by an unexpected comment. His voice cracked in reaction, and the beautiful girl stuck out her tongue and apologized softly, saying, “I’m sorry.”

So cute. What on Earth is this incredible beauty? She’s not just friendly, but very affectionate.

While he was a little concerned about her remark of “always,”

“—Emilia, it’s premature to conclude that there’s nothing going on just based on that,” she suddenly interjected. “There still seems to be some sort of discrepancy.”

“—? But I think Subaru’s eyes are the same as always.”

“Stop talking about Subaru’s bad eyes! Bringing up a person’s weak points isn’t a good hobby! What’s the matter with you guys… wait, no, you two are just too cute to be pulling this kind of nonsense!”

Jumping up with momentum, Subaru was about to raise his voice toward the beautiful girl and the one she had spoken to—a little girl in an extravagant dress who exuded a whimsical charm — but his tone dwindled off.

He intended to come out strong with his usual boldness, but of course, these were beautiful girls he had just met. Even if he were to snap at them, he was clearly lacking the gauge.

— Besides, this situation felt strange.

If this was indeed what Subaru imagined it to be, then these two were quite significant keys for him. They weren’t just ordinary villagers; they were of much higher importance.

Thus, Subaru took a step back, adjusting his posture, prioritizing his first impression.

“Ahem.”

Clearing his throat, he turned back to face the two girls.

With the black dragon lurking ominously behind, he took a step back to ensure both of them were in his sight.

“I’ll reintroduce myself. My name is Natsuki Subaru!”

He pointed dramatically to the ceiling with one finger, while resting the other hand on his waist in a striking pose.

Unfortunately, there was no spotlight or disco music, but undeterred, Subaru beamed brightly, giving it his all.

“I’m a clueless drifter, uneducated and invincible! I’m a troublesome one, so please be kind to me!”

“——”

As he declared his introduction with grandeur, the two girls and the dragon behind them were left flabbergasted.

In the face of their stunned expressions, Subaru held his pose, thinking that whoever moved first would lose this ridiculous duel.

Eventually, after several seconds of silence, the beautiful girl and the little girl exchanged glances.

“Um… you do know who we are, right?”

“You really gave a way-too-late introduction!”

“Huh!?”

So much for the passionate introduction—those were their reactions.

※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※

— The magnitude of the situation became undeniably clear shortly afterward.

With Subaru’s introduction met with lackluster responses, he scratched his head in confusion. However, as the two began to explain their situation, a shocking revelation unfolded.

The memories of Subaru and the beautiful girls crossed paths—these girls, who were supposed to be meeting Subaru for the first time, already seemed to know about him.

Naturally, Subaru had no recollection of such memories. Hence—

“So you mean to say that… you don’t remember anything? Not about this tower, not about what happened in Pristella… not even about Ram or Beatrice… or… me?”

“Um… right, it seems that’s the case, yes.”

“——”

As Subaru bowed his head apologetically, the beautiful girl stared at him in disbelief. The intense turmoil reflected in her eyes made Subaru feel an overwhelming sense of guilt.

And the shock didn’t just affect the beautiful girl.

“Memory… missing? No way, that can’t be true…”

The little girl, her face pale, muttered in disbelief.

Possibly even more bewildered than the beautiful girl, the younger one couldn’t process the shock.

Sitting on a bed woven with vines, Subaru felt the little girl gently tugging at his sleeve. Her slender fingers trembled slightly, and once again his heart ached.

“——”

While he desperately wanted to say something to the astonished and panicking duo, Subaru himself was at a complete loss. To be frank, the downpour of surprise was so heavy he felt he might drown.

— Initially, Subaru had thought that what had happened to him was merely ‘a typical otherworldly summoning.’

Perhaps calling it ‘typical’ was already far beyond the bounds of common sense, but his assumption was neither entirely off the mark nor too far-fetched— he could safely say it was almost correct.

This was not the world Subaru knew, a world he had inhabited for seventeen years.

It was clear from the two girls with their outrageous outfits and otherworldly beauty. If that wasn’t enough, the massive black lizard—that was likely bigger than a horse— stood as undeniable evidence of a distorted reality.

Clearly, he was in an extraordinary world, a realm of fantasy that was utterly unknown to him.

The next question was, why had Subaru been summoned to this world, and who was the summoner?

He naively thought it would be the two girls standing before him, typical heroines from this sort of story, but that’s when the narrative took a dubious turn.

The discrepancy in memory between Subaru and the two girls, who claimed to know him and his present amnesia.

“So despite the fact that we’ve already met, I’m the only one who forgot… wait a second…”

As he processed the newfound information from their earlier exchange, Subaru’s expression became serious.

Surely, from the moment he was whisked away to this otherworld, his mental capacity was already stretched to its limits. Now that he realized he had experienced interactions after his summoning and that he had forgotten them— it sent his mind spinning into an overwhelming state of confusion.

In all honesty, it was easy for Subaru to brush off as “That can’t be true!”

Yet, the expressions of the beautiful girl and the little girl were entirely genuine and serious— they didn’t appear to be lying. Sure, Subaru himself had no hint nor memory of what they said, still he felt guilty denying them.

Moreover, if he had to choose between his beliefs and those of the beautiful girl, it was hard to disregard her claims; he didn’t have much trust in his own self.

Of course, it wasn’t just a gut feeling. — A stronger suspicion lay within his physical state.

“…… This body definitely doesn’t feel like it did right after I left the convenience store…”

Muttering as such, Subaru lifted his right arm and opened and closed his fist.

He felt his arms had gained some unexplained muscularity. He noticed several calluses that he had no recollection of acquiring. They weren’t from swinging a bamboo sword, as he hadn’t practiced with one in over a year.

And the changes didn’t stop at just that.

“Gross…”

Flipping his arm, he looked at the back of his hand and frowned.

Though his arm had become slightly more toned, its appearance was nothing short of grotesque. The dark mottled patterns running from his elbow down to his wrist— they looked like swollen veins emerging, festooning his arm like a tasteless tattoo.

Perhaps if they appeared more non-biological, he could pass them off as tattoos. But no matter how you drew it up, it was undeniably a part of his arm, and the grotesqueness only amplified.

“——”

He dug his nails into the black mottled skin.

The texture felt no different from normal skin. There wasn’t any pain, or any strange tingling—all that returned was a semblance of pain from digging into it.

If he were to dig in all the way, would blood flow out?

— And would the blood truly be red?

“Subaru…”

“Ah! N-no, wait! There’s nothing to worry about! I was just thinking about how I might be a little too well-done after sunbathing!”

It was a bit of a shocking change, but Subaru tried to brush it off with a joke in response to the beautiful girl’s worried voice.

Thank goodness, he wasn’t one to dwell much on bodily injuries. While there was some guilt about marring the body given to him by his parents, he had accrued so much of it already, he couldn’t feel bad at this point.

That said, this was definitely beyond reasonable limits. “Wearing long sleeves and possibly gloves would help spare others from feeling uncomfortable,” he thought absently.

“Always wearing long sleeves, and having legally-approved fingerless gloves equipped. When danger strikes, I can just remove the gloves to reveal my dark arms… No way that guy doesn’t end up being ‘The Black Arm’…!” He felt a bit thrilled at imagining such a scenario.

“——”

While swinging his right arm playfully, Subaru licked his dry lips.

This change in his arms, together with the eerie aspects, lent a lot of credibility to the beautiful girls’ explanations.

In fact, for Subaru, the most recent memory was that of having left ‘the convenience store.’

He was supposed to have finished shopping in a tracksuit, yet now he was dressed in garments reminiscent of adventurous travel— far removed from that comfortable tracksuit. He no longer wore sneakers, and his heavily tanned arms bore no trace of carrying a convenience store bag.

It was quite true— he had not only jumped worlds but had also leaped through time.

Having stepped out of the convenience store, one blink later, it felt like he awakened— that was Subaru’s perception.

If that was the case, then when had he lost consciousness? He was up and in the middle of slumber, having awakened here. So what then about the gap in memories?

— Summoning him to another world, spending time afterward, and losing that memory.

The phenomenon of being summoned to another world, truth be told, was an exhilarating thought he had often fantasized about — yet to be thrown into it so unceremoniously was quite the twist of fate.

There existed a segment of time that Subaru spent in a realm he had no knowledge of, and within that time, there lay facts of having deepened relationships with these girls he didn’t remember.

Could he trust their kindness, and could he consider them a refuge?

“——”

“Um, aah… I know it’s a bit of a downer, but let’s try to stay positive!”

Caught up in complicated thoughts, Subaru suddenly voiced this while attempting a cheerier tone.

He felt the urgency to lift the spirits of the two girls, who bore worried expressions beside him.

That fact was clear; these girls were absolutely distressed by how it was, and they felt troubled because Subaru had a role in it.

So he extended his palms toward the flabbergasted girls, trying to act a bit playful.

“From what I gather, this type of temporary amnesia can spontaneously return at any moment, so you shouldn’t worry so much. If this were a movie, it would all get wrapped up within two hours, with everything returning to normality. Tragedy is just a spice for a grand conclusion!”

“I’m sorry, but I don’t quite get what you’re saying,” the beautiful girl replied.

“Huh? Well…”

“But…”

Despite Subaru’s rapid spontaneous rhetoric, the beautiful girl was still struggling with her reply. He felt a sense of defeat, yet she shook her head.

Then, while she lightly rubbed the corners of her eyes, she smiled and said, “Subaru really is just Subaru… Hm, I feel reassured by that.”

“Oh. R-really? Hearing that makes me feel a bit more at ease too…”

“Wham!”

“Hey! What the—?!?”

Alongside a voice that brimmed with enthusiasm, the beautiful girl smacked her own cheek with surprising force. A dry sound echoed as her cheek flushed bright red.

Subaru, startled, rushed back in surprise, but the beautiful girl shook her head lightly and said, “Alright, I just injected some energy! I need to get my act together. Subaru is the one having a rougher time, after all. I can’t allow ourselves to look so distressed.”

“This girl is surprising with how brave she can be despite her appearance…”

“Hey, Beatrice too!”

With her face flushed, the lively beautiful girl glanced at the frozen little girl beside Subaru and called out to her.

That fiery enthusiasm made the girl in the dress slightly hesitant, but—

“I understand you’re startled and feeling sad, but… we need to think about who’s feeling the most pain right now. We have to do something to help!”

“B-betty…”

“——”

With her mouth agape, the little girl hesitated, unsure what she should say.

But the beautiful girl remained silent, gazing at her intently while waiting for a response.

There was the option to layer words or forcefully nudge her feelings. However, she chose not to. It was likely because the beautiful girl trusted the little girl.

There was something unnamable that existed between them, a trust that Subaru—with his lack of memories—could not comprehend.

“Subaru… is now, definitely in trouble…”

“Well, yes, in that sense, I could say that’s true?”

A touch of stubbornness and quick wit had Subaru admitting that. The little girl gazed at him, clearly not accepting his words. Hence, Subaru scratched his head and said:

“Ah, to be honest, yes. I actually do want help right now.”

“——”

When he candidly shared his feeling of being beset, the little girl’s eyes widened in shock. The strange pupils floating in her softly-colored blue eyes— it felt to Subaru like the fluttering wings of a butterfly.

“… ahh, goodness! You’re a truly troublesome contractor, Subaru!”

In an instant, the girl’s demeanor changed dramatically, as if a whirlwind had whipped up around her. She crossed her short arms and shouted in exasperation.

That outburst caused the beautiful girl to smile, while Subaru felt his shoulders jump in surprise. Just then, the tiny girl jabbed her finger directly at Subaru’s nose.

“You’re always bringing in all sorts of trouble! Betty is done with this! If this is going to keep happening, I might just lose patience!”

“W-wait… So, what you’re saying is?”

“Considering you finally admitted you needed my help, maybe this time I’ll let it slide. — After all, Subaru can’t go a day without Betty, or else he becomes a feeble, lonely being!”

“Do you really mean that!?”

Subaru was stunned by the sheer boldness of the little girl’s unexpected declaration. Were he truly that reliant on her? It sounded absolutely ridiculous.

“Hmph, even if you say you forgot, I’ll remind you. — My contractor is a noisy, overly persistent guy who will never fade into sepia tones within his memories.”

“Though I don’t understand why, if that describes me, it certainly is an incredible exaggeration!?”

There were so many phrases about being a ‘contractor’ thrown around, it made Subaru feel wild, but glancing at the little girl, she only offered a slight smile while waving her hand dismissively.

The truth of the matter aside, the idea of a child assassin was purely fantastical— that was something best left to consider for later.

“So with that said, we’ve introduced ourselves with Ram, Shaula, and Meily…”

Setting aside thoughts of the latter concern, Subaru directed his gaze at the two remaining individuals—a beautiful girl in a scarf with lavender hair and a young man with an elegant countenance.

To this point, they had said nothing in response to Subaru’s elaborate explanation. He felt he had high hopes for the boy, being the only other male among so many beautifully feminine characters.

“——”

The tension flared from the young man as he trembled lightly, making it difficult for Subaru to approach him with conversational softness.

Normally, he had a good knack for breaking the ice, but this time the man’s aura strongly dissuaded him from engaging.

It almost made Subaru feel as if this young man was the one most stunned in the room.

“I’d like to give him a bit of… time to gather himself. Does that sound okay?”

The beautiful girl in the scarf spoke up, raising her hand on behalf of the young man. She donned heavy clothing that contrasted with her cute exterior, exuding a boyish charm.

It was a relief to hear her appeal. Subaru and Emilia were pondering their next move when she spoke, allowing them to breathe a collective sigh of relief.

“Sure, that sounds good. We did catch him off guard…”

“I suspect it’s more than just that…”

“What, are you a boy too?”

Indeed, she was, and she confirmed it, even as she expressed a puzzling seriousness in her tone.

“Well then, for now, let’s call myself Anastasia. I was planning to make a shocking confession in response to yours, but it seems the roles have simply reversed.”

“A shocking confession, huh?”

Subaru couldn’t help but ponder what she was initially going to confess, but the amused smile on Anastasia’s face held her secrets close. Meanwhile, he noticed the puzzled looks exchanged between Emilia and Beatrice as well.

Anastasia’s supposed “confession” clearly evoked a different vibe than the two of them had anticipated.

“Regardless, if Julius needs time to settle his nerves… let’s prepare breakfast in the meantime. Emilia, can we borrow Balus for water fetching?”

“Eh?”

Standing up while brushing off her knees, it was Ram who voiced that plan.

She was keen on avoiding stagnation in their circumstances and wanted to put their time to good use. Nonetheless, Subaru felt a bit wary of how rational her thinking was; Emilia looked surprised by the unexpected offer.

Most notably, the judgment of taking Subaru— still suffering from amnesia— along to fetch the water was rather concerning.

“I— suppose Balus should find it easier to rest if he isn’t pressured to remember…”

“There’s no guarantee that resting will help him remember. That’s what he just said! Furthermore, regardless of his memory, Balus has a role as Lord Roswaal’s attendant. It won’t do for him to be lazy just because he is a tad forgetful.”

“What a rough line, Ram… I mean, really, rough…”

Subaru felt himself shrink under Ram’s scrutinizing stare, yet there was some validity in her words. Though he was all too aware of the tricky position he was in, being fussed over felt uncomfortable too.

And then—

“——”

Upon noticing Anastasia supporting the slumped young man, Subaru felt he would be better off excusing himself until he sorted himself out.

Or perhaps Ram took note and had intended to usher him outside for that reason.

“Looks like I misjudged you, Ram…”

“Regardless, let’s move, Balus. I don’t expect much from your other abilities, so please at least manage to fetch water.”

“Ah, how about we…”

“Oh, don’t coddle him too much. It won’t be beneficial for him!”

Not sure if calling him by his first name made things alright, Subaru quietly retracted what he was about to say as Ram dismissed him without further hesitation. Instead, she side-stepped to stop Emilia, who had been attempting to accompany them.

Though Emilia was about to retort, Subaru jumped in, commenting, “Well, Ram has a point to him too. Regardless of what’s in my head, my body should be fine. Besides, from what I’ve heard, I’m supposed to be a servant? A maid? Considering that, I really should get going and fetch the water.”

“… Subaru’s not just a servant; he’s mine.”

“Mine, what do you mean? –Ooooh! W-wait, does that imply we’re… like, c-c-udding together…?”

“N-no, not really…”

“Not really? Well… that makes sense.”

Subaru puffed out breathlessly, feeling a sense of surprise as he watched Emilia drop a bombshell of her value.

While her purity was undeniable, she was far too much affection for someone unattainable; whether he had memories or not, it felt out of reach for Subaru to touch such tender petals.

“Specifically, I’m okay with it; so please take care of that over there. I hope you can recover before we come back…”

“… yes, right. Understood. I’ll try communicating somehow.”

Amid jokes, Subaru pointed discreetly toward the youth they left behind, who still seemed fragile.

As they discussed, Emilia and Beatrice seemed to care a lot and would help him get through this tough spot.

Yet he had the nagging sense that he shouldn’t hope for help from Shaula and Meily.

“All the more reasons to rely on you, Betty. I leave it to you, Contract Kid.”

“——. It’s not what I want to be called!”

“—-? Is that it? Then, how about Beatrice?”

“Let’s stick with that for now. I’ll take care of Subaru, without failure.”

Having lifted her hand, Beatrice answered back quietly. After that appeal, Subaru sensed he may have made a miscalling somewhere but couldn’t quite grasp it.

Once he broke away from Beatrice and proceeded to nearby Ram, he continued talking with her.

“Hey, so what was the deal behind this?”

“About Knight Julius? Well, that’s a rather cruel thing for Balus.”

“Cruel…?”

As he began discussing the departure with Ram while they walked down the hall, Subaru brought up what he had been puzzled about regarding the stunned young man left behind.

Ram’s response was harsh, giving away the name of the young man— Julius, a name that seemed sophisticated as well.

“Emilia and Beatrice can deal with him, but the reason why we stepped out here isn’t just for fetching water, is it?”

After they walked a little away from the room, Subaru dug in for a subtle confrontation, returning to his inquisitive self.

“——”

She remained silent. Subaru recalled he wasn’t expecting her to answer him with confidence either, but—

“——”

“Wait, really, was it just to fetch water? If so, please forget my preceding comments, and say differently. I’d rather avoid overstepping with a smug face, like ‘What do you have planned?’”

“——”

With no reply, Subaru stiffened, finding himself in a moment riddled with uncertainty. Left wondering where he stood, he observed at last as Ram suddenly pinned him to a halt.

Having taken two paces ahead, he turned back toward her.

Then she tossed her pink hair lightly at her side, saying,

“— Enough of this petty act, Balus.”

“Wait, an act?..”

“Since we deliberately changed the location, you should know what a foolish move it is to shame a girl in that way.”

“A foolish act?”

What was she even saying?! Confounded, Subaru felt protests churn in his mind as he gazed at her. Yet throughout this stage, Ram merely folded her arms and shook her head in slight exasperation.

“Seriously, since it’s you, I can well imagine you would pull some ridiculous idea out of thin air. It’s not just Emilia, who can’t figure things out, nor Anastasia from a different faction, and all the other trust issues with Shaula, so— You at least should show me what’s up.”

— So I can react when the time calls for it.

The nuances in her speech all pointed to revealing what mischievous plans he had in mind.

In response, Subaru shifted his uneasy gaze while weakly ruffling his hair with his black right arm.

“Uh, so… Ram, I see where you’re coming from and I understand what you’re saying but…”

“But…?”

“I… I honestly can’t tell you any of that. I genuinely don’t remember a single thing! So I can’t possibly meet your expectations.”

“Stubborn as always. You tend to carry everything alone, which makes this situation far worse. Ram is concerned about Rem too. You need to let her in on it.”

“No, that’s…”

Subaru was befuddled in turn by Ram, who flatly had zero intentions of backing down from the conversation.

He had no doubt accepting this startling fact of his amnesia was tough. Still, for Ram to get all bent out of shape about it made it impossibly hard for him to follow through with his own logic.

How would acting like he had lost his memories even help in their current situation?

“I can’t possibly guess what Ram thinks about this, but Balus likely has a plan to manage it. Better for you to talk it over properly. I’ll keep it under wraps,” she suggested.

“Sharing a secret between just the two of us sounds thrilling, but…”

Subaru genuinely struggled to decipher Ram’s true intent, knowing full well she believed he might have some idea brewing—

And he couldn’t shake his sense of dread internally.

But Ram didn’t let the passage of time slip away quietly.

“Balus!”

He startled, realizing that she had come a literal step closer, swinging her arm to swipe at the bucket he’d been holding in his left hand, sending it crashing to the stone floor in a clanking ruckus.

Subaru, bewildered and ready to yell out asking what she was doing, was swiftly interrupted—

“Whoa!”

Before he could fully understand what was happening, she had seized him by his shirt, pinning him against the wall.

A cry of pain escaped from his back colliding hard against the wall while he slowly registered the identity of his attacker— a petite girl right before his eyes.

Even in surprise, Subaru had no idea what she was after.

“What do you think you’re doing?”

“Just explain yourself! Try and be sensible, Balus! Otherwise, I’ll have my ways of dealing with this!”

“What?! I’ve been saying it all along! I don’t remember a thing! I’m not kidding!”

All at once, Subaru’s ire sparked, which clashed impressively against the feisty girl’s aggression as he took a stand. All that got him was focusing on calming her.

“— Then speak up! Do it! I can only think of my own strategy if you stay this unfocused!”

“——”

A fierce, growling bark she directed at him left Subaru speechless, his anger seeping away unexpectedly.

This was not merely astonishment—there was something deeper he felt at that moment.

His incredulity was equally deep not only due to the shock of her words impacting him in such a manner but something else altogether he simply couldn’t grasp.

“Tell me everything…”

“W-wait, Ram?”

“Please, tell me everything…”

In a trembling voice, Ram pressed her forehead against Subaru’s chest.

The defiance that burned in her was completely extinguished, morphing into genuine pleading.

A voice not laden with tears could still carry overwhelming emotion—a sincere desire not to be coddled or coddled, rather a wish to understand.

— Even deeper, a cry of anguish of sorts clung to it.

— Aimlessly showing the way, pushing the shock throughout with steady beats of sound with clear meaning.

“Balus, forgetting meant Ram is… Rem is…”

“——”

“Rem, that child is…”

The name Rem echoed in Subaru’s mind—reminding him of the slumbering girl who lay in the green room.

Having been deemed ‘Sleeping Beauty,’ resting upon the bed with a face so reminiscent of Ram’s.

What history lay between Subaru, that girl, and the sister before him was utterly lost on him, but the seriousness in Ram’s eyes painfully conveyed just that she was on the brink of despair.

“… I’m so sorry…”

Letting his arms drop limply to his sides, Subaru murmured a quiet apology, pressing his head bashfully against the little girl at the very constrained angles.

Was he apologizing for forgetting? Or was he apologizing for being unable to provide answers?

It was very likely, somehow both—and then some.

“——-.”

Ram didn’t dictate any further, nor did Subaru feel inclined to say more for the time being, both were silently ensnared within one another’s grips.

In that deadlocked moment, only the rolling bucket could bear witness to the turmoil inevitably echoing throughout.