About five minutes after bolting down the rough road—while being pulled along by the arm, Subaru staggered and struggled to take a step forward.

“Hurry up, or we’ll get caught! Is this really a time to be playing around?”

“That’s rich coming from you… Just hold on a sec, seriously…”

At first, Subaru had been the one leading the charge, but due to exhaustion, their roles had completely reversed.

The girl in front ran effortlessly, while Subaru, unable to endure the prolonged sprint, was already in a pitiful state.

However, to Subaru’s credit, his exhaustion could be attributed to the fact that he wasn’t completely recovered yet. His condition was still fragile from his rehabilitation process, making him even weaker than his usual already-low stamina.

“What a disgrace. Falling behind a delicate lady like me, do you not feel ashamed?”

“I’m just trying to use the excuse of being sick to explain my suffering here… but honestly, things look pretty grim.”

Behind them, the thugs chasing Subaru and the girl remained a persistent threat. Thankfully, the distance between the two and the group that had started off behind them was significant, but the alleyways were narrow paths; slowing down made it clear they would eventually catch up.

Ideally, they should make it to the main street before that happened, but—

“Why are we heading deeper into these darker, deserted places… Do you have a plan or something?”

He asked the girl with orange hair, who was striding confidently ahead. She responded breezily, “Ha ha ha, no clue!”

“What I do is entirely according to my own convenience. Therefore, there’s no need to think too deeply about it now or ever. Just trust that I will do what I do.”

“I’m in awe… Seriously, is there any way out of this…?”

So far, it was undeniable that her knack for avoiding dead ends was impressive. It seemed hasty to deem the current state of moving towards a potential dead end as worsening the situation instead of simply not yet hitting a wall. Still—

“Unless we see some positive signs… my stamina is going to run out.”

“Hmm, this has become quite troublesome.”

Breathless, Subaru munched on the second half of his comment, and suddenly, before him, the girl halted. Subaru, who had been pulled along, also came to a stop.

“Hey! We can’t afford to stop! If we don’t create some distance, we’ll get caught!”

He tried to coax her into moving while jogging in place, but the girl tilted her head at Subaru’s words and then fixed a bored look on him.

“I’m bored.”

“Bored… huh?!”

“I said I’m bored! Why on earth should I run? My actions are decided by me—not dictated by the raucous antics behind us!”

“Well, it’s easy to say that, but in reality, this isn’t the best situation…”

With the lady’s whims on full display, Subaru panicked. Honestly, they didn’t have time to waste on such a back-and-forth. If he were only thinking of himself, the best choice would be to leave her behind and run away quickly. But then, he’d completely lose sight of their original objective.

Subaru found himself caught between ideals, reality, and escape. Just then, upon finding amusement in his flustered expression, the girl cracked a smile and said,

“Okay, I’ve decided. I shall grant you the honor of carrying me.”

“No thanks!!”

He crossed both arms to refuse her ridiculous proposal. The girl frowned, clearly offended by his quick dismissal.

“Such an honor as lifting me is not so easily offered to everyone, you know? To reject it so carelessly, what a reckless man you are!”

“Do I look like a muscular hero who can run while carrying someone? Even at my best, I struggled to carry a girl with a lower build than you! Right now, I’m already at the point where my legs feel like a newborn deer, come on!”

He pointed dramatically at his trembling legs, barking assertively.

Looking down at his pitiful display, the girl sighed in disbelief and muttered, “How unfortunate.”

“—Aklah.”

“Huh?”

As soon as she muttered that incantation, a faint light suddenly enveloped Subaru. As he was taken aback, the golden glow wrapped around him like a veil.

The golden aura that completely covered his body prompted Subaru to raise both hands in front of his face.

“What’s this?! I can see my aura… Whoa, I’m feeling pumped now!?”

Confused by the strange occurrence happening to him, Subaru was oblivious to the fact that the girl had elegantly moved behind him.

“If you hate carrying me, how about this?”

“Whoa… hey!”

In an instant, the girl deftly leaped onto Subaru’s back, wrapping her arms around his neck. He braced his legs to withstand her weight—only to be relieved by the unexpected ease, because—

“Whoa, what’s with you? You’re as light as a feather! And, my body feels incredible!?”

Even with the girl on his back, it felt as if her weight were non-existent. To top it off, the weight of the bag of Lingas in his hands had vanished, and his legs felt as if they had been replaced with brand new ones.

“When one receives my blessing, everyone becomes as hardworking as a draft horse. You shall do the same.”

“Whoa whoa, I’m not entirely okay with this. But with this, I think I can do it! Natsuki Subaru, let’s go—!”

He placed one hand on the girl’s waist to secure her and took off running.

Light as a feather. His feet felt lighter than air, as if he had shed the constraints of his body, and each stride matched the running of five steps just moments before.

The distance that had been building during their stall vanished, and now there was no threat of being caught.

The presence of the retreating men—Subaru’s sharpened senses picked up even that, enhancing his feeling of omnipotence as all functions of his body soared to their limits.

“What is this?! This feels amazing! My body feels light! I’m not scared of anything anymore!”

Lowering himself to reduce air resistance, Subaru transformed into the wind. As his vision narrowed, he sped through the cramped alleyways, glancing back at the girl.

“Now that we’ve put some space between us, I can afford to ask… why were we getting chased in the first place?”

With how weak the crowd looked, someone like this girl, who stood out so much, shouldn’t be so easy to mess with. She certainly didn’t look like the average city dweller.

Though, considering how ridiculous they were, perhaps they didn’t give it much thought.

The girl wrinkled her nose as she answered Subaru’s inquiry. “It’s nothing major.”

“I was just watching the sights out of boredom and got separated from my comrades. So while I was exploring this filthy alley I don’t usually see, I just so happened to bump into those guys.”

“But getting into trouble for that…”

“I laughed at their bizarre outfits, so that’s how it turned out.”

“Blame it on you!”

“I can’t deal with people who have no patience!”

“Can’t you just hold your tongue for a little?!”

A stormy girl, and amid this disaster, Subaru couldn’t help but feel a twinge of sympathy for the thugs. That said, he was the one who bore the brunt of it all.

While they were arguing, Subaru came across a right-angled corner ahead. He kicked off the wall with intent to slow down, using the momentum to turn right—just as that thought flashed in his mind, a brilliant idea struck him.

“If I keep following the path, we’ll never shake them off! Instead, I’ll make my own path—!”

“Are you okay? Did your brain finally fry?”

“Don’t say that! Just watch and be amazed!”

And so, Subaru barreled down the path with gusto, charging headlong toward the wall.

The girl likely understood that his momentum was prone to lead to a crash.

She tightened her arms around his neck, exclaiming, “Hey! What are you thinking?! If you keep this up, we’ll crash!”

“Shut up and watch! Fire! This is the wall-climbing style inspired by the peculiar thieves of the Poor District—directly learned from Felt!”

He rapidly kicked off the gray wall, defying gravity with a second step. His body soared—a wall walk so slapstick it might make Newton weep—

“I’m gonna make it!”

—didn’t happen.

On the fourth step, his foot suddenly slipped, sending him flipping backwards and crashing onto the ground. He was unable to brace himself, and his face slammed into the ground with painful force, rolling around in agony.

“Owwwwww!”

“What are you doing?!”

The girl jumped down just in time to witness Subaru’s painful display. In her hands was the now untouched bag of Lingas.

Relieved to see it unharmed, Subaru pushed himself up from the ground, muttering, “Damn it, that was a total fail… That Felt should be ashamed for giving me such unrealistic expectations…”

He cursed the absent blonde girl, though it felt unjust considering she hadn’t given him false hopes. While it was true that she was the one who had successfully climbed walls, she had never claimed to have taught him.

As he wallowed in his self-pity, Subaru shook off the pain and tried to stand up. But—

“Wait, wait, did I twist my ankle…? It really hurts!? Oh man, it hurts like hell! Just twisting it feels like it’s broken!”

“Your body is in an overstimulated state. It’s natural that your limbs can move effortlessly; hence, being overly sensitive to pain is to be expected.”

“That’s not supposed to be natural!”

With an aloofness typical of her, the girl explained the gravity of Subaru’s buffs. Showing no sympathy for his pain, she urged, “Get up, now.”

But Subaru childishly whined, “It hurts, it hurts! I’m gonna cry!” refusing to get back on his feet.

The time and distance they had gained now wasted, the thugs’ raucous presence began closing in again.

At that moment—

“I thought I hadn’t seen you in a while. What are you doing?”

A voice rang out as a large figure emerged from the right side of the alleyway.

Subaru lifted his gaze. For a normal person, his head would’ve been at that height. But from the new figure’s perspective, it was still at chest level. As he looked up further, a man with a beard and a bald head appeared.

“Y-you!”

A familiar, muscular old man glared down at Subaru and the girl.

“Grandpa Main has arrived! We’re gonna win now—!!”

“Long time no see, you infuriating little brat. I’ll leave you behind if you don’t hurry.”

“Help me, seriously! My virtue is at stake, along with my insides!”

The former was a crisis for the girl, the latter for Subaru.

Based on his prejudice, he assumed the bad guys were selling off organs. Upon hearing this, the old man—Old Man Rom—glanced between the girl and Subaru, and frowned.

“What’s this? Having trouble again? You can’t just bring a girl along for trouble; seems you’re not a complete fool.”

“I don’t need your perverted old man comments right now! Help me!”

He bore the pain, hopping up toward Old Man Rom. The old man stroked his bald head with an expression of mild annoyance while glancing at the silent girl beside him. The expression on her face clearly showed her displeasure.

“Don’t look at me with those rude eyes, you filthy old man!”

“Me, but more importantly, you have a foul mouth! What did I ever do to make you say such terrible things, to an old man like me who’s just trying to help? I’m not just an old fool, you know!”

“You’ve a talent for ruining people’s motivation, as always! Hurry and hide!”

Before the girl could hurl more insults, Old Man Rom interrupted and jumped in the direction he pointed. There was a stack of waste materials leaned against the wall, which provided enough room to hide two bodies if they bent down.

He shoved the girl in first, with Subaru following closely behind her. The girl seemed like she wanted to complain about the dusty place, but Subaru quickly covered her mouth in desperation.

“Old Man Rom, we’re all set!”

“What do you mean ‘all set’…? I’m hiding behind to cover you two, so don’t move. If we get found, I’ll be in just as much trouble as you boys.”

Just like he spouted curses, Old Man Rom cloaked them with his large frame. The two held their breath behind the wall, their backs against it.

Only a few seconds after hiding, multiple footsteps rushed into the nearby alley—

“Hey, what the hell! I thought it was a kid, but it’s just an old man!”

Was one of them ready to pounce on the presence of life nearby? The man who had raced to the front bellowed curses at Old Man Rom’s bulk. Throwing a glare at the man, Old Man Rom silently pierced him with his gaze—and just like that, the man flinched and took a step back.

“What’s all this noise? I don’t like to be startled; you should keep it down, you know.”

It wasn’t said with any particular weight or intimidation, but when a giant like Old Man Rom said it with a grouchy tone, that quickly became a threat.

That effectively cranked up the fear in not just him, but the men who had been chasing Subaru as well. Yet—

“Well, look who it is; it’s the old man Cromwell!”

One of the men from the group called out to Old Man Rom.

At the unfamiliar name, Subaru raised an eyebrow, but the one who reacted the most was Old Man Rom himself.

He carved deeper furrows into his wrinkled face and growled vehemently,

“I hate it when people call me that.”

“Do you think you’re in a position to make demands? I’ve heard you’ve fallen out of favor from wrecking the Thieves’ Repository. The people in the Poor District don’t look fondly on you either.”

“That was a place piled up with years of grime. With it gone, it’s rather refreshing now… For better or worse, I’m free to do as I please.”

To that grinning fool of a man, Old Man Rom replied with nearly no change in his expression.

Perhaps thinking they wouldn’t get more out of this, the man shrugged.

“Well, do as you like. Just make sure to bow to Russell when you see him. The slower you are, the worse your position gets.”

He merely spat those words out before turning to leave with his friends once again. Just before disappearing from sight, he looked back and added,

“Oh, and Cromwell? Did two kids come this way?”

“I can’t say. How about you lot; have you seen the blonde girl who is a friend of mine?”

“Don’t know her. Huh, so what if a kid gets tangled up? Just don’t get senile about it, okay?”

Waving dismissively, the men finally left.

With a gaze lingering on their backs, Old Man Rom bit his lip, as if suppressing anger.

Peeking at his profile through the gaps in the waste, Subaru couldn’t help but feel uneasy. While it was heartening to see Old Man Rom finally friendly after such a long time, his demeanor strayed a bit from what Subaru had known of him.

“Hey…”

“Hm?”

As a whisper fanned out, Subaru interrupted his thoughts and glanced next to him.

The beautiful girl he had been hiding with had leaned in so close he could feel her breath, her hand still pressed firmly against her mouth.

She began to mouth words, straining against the pressure applied to her lips.

“Is it… a white patch…?”

Then, with a sudden bite, her fangs pierced into his hand—a sharp pain—

“—YOW!!!”

Subaru’s shrill scream echoed quietly through the alleyway.

※※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※

“Thanks for hiding us, Rom. I thought you hit your head too hard and were getting senile; I’m glad to see you’re all right.”

“You… those thugs’ still wandering the streets, you know. It’s perfectly reasonable if I suddenly change my mind.”

“Don’t be so petty! I’m the only small fry here, yeah!”

Flashing thumbs up, Subaru grinned widely—prompting Old Man Rom to sigh tiredly.

They had moved from the cramped alleyway and entered a slightly wider street. Old Man Rom had guided them to a nondescript spot where they could hide well away from prying eyes.

Now that the threat of the men chasing them had subsided, Subaru and the girl could breathe a sigh of relief. The liberation they felt prompted Subaru to say the first thing that came to mind.

“Hey, who is this old guy you’re chumming around with? Explain!”

Finally breaking his silence, the girl tugged at Subaru’s sleeve impatiently. Subaru nodded and answered,

“This old man here is the behind-the-scenes player in the royal capital’s Poor District and a former merchant with sticky fingers—Old Man Rom, the stingy guy. His specialties are being blind and doting on grandchildren, and also being a punching bag!”

“So you must be thrilled to see me, but don’t you think you’re going a bit overboard there, kid?”

Old Man Rom waved a finger at Subaru, who had pointed at him. Subaru responded with a nonchalant, “My bad, my bad. I swear, the insults have been piling up, but that doesn’t mean they’re all false!”

“Truth mixed in here, huh? So you’re saying I’m a miserly old man who’s lived in the Poor District with sticky fingers and bad eyesight? How terribly sad to be judged like that at this age.”

“Your partner is pretty irritable, too!”

Subaru shrugged in sync with the furious old man standing in front of him.

Then, Subaru turned to the heavily deflated Old Man Rom and stated,

“Regardless, I’m really glad we met again, Old Man Rom. Honestly, I was also in dire straits back then, and when the situation changed, I had no means of checking what happened.”

“Your adaptability is astonishing, but you’re quite an unpredictable kid. I heard you got your stomach sliced open, but you’re looking well.”

Old Man Rom gazed at Subaru with a slight smile, scanning from top to bottom with his critical eyes. He noted the scars left on Subaru’s exposed skin, frowning sympathetically.

“I can’t speak for anyone else’s sake, but it looks like you were really put through the wringer by that knife wielder.”

“Yeah, but the places where I got hit by Molt-chan are mostly my stomach, so all these marks are from that incident.”

“It hasn’t even been a week since then—what happened to you?!”

“I don’t really feel like recounting a long and miserable tale. As long as I’m alive to share it, that’s enough for me. So going back to what I wanted to ask…”

As Subaru concealed his scars from the startled Old Man Rom, he pointed toward what was assumed to be the Poor District and questioned,

“What happened after the ruckus at the Thieves’ Repository? Since the workplace is gone, are you being fed properly? Or are you still stuck munching on nothing but dried vegetables?”

“Not sure what the latter part means, but I’m getting by. It’s not like I just sat around drunk at the Thieves’ Repository; I’ve been living in the shadows of the royal capital all these years, so I’ve got my share of connections.”

By heaving a sigh like a worried mother, Old Man Rom addressed Subaru.

In reality, it would be impossible for one to take control of stolen goods without getting some trust in the Poor District. Those connections likely weren’t bluff.

In any case, if there were no worries about the aftermath of the injuries incurred during that incident or about living conditions afterward, it was reassuring news for Subaru. Admittedly, compared to Emilia, Roswaal’s mansion, and the others, it was a matter he didn’t dwell on much.

“Not like I was really worried about you, you know!”

“While I don’t want to bother you, I do have some questions I want to ask you.”

As Subaru displayed his usual tsundere attitude, Old Man Rom unexpectedly lowered his tone.

His serious demeanor prompted Subaru to straighten his posture. Just then, the girl tugged on Subaru’s sleeve from behind.

Turning around, Subaru found her leaning in uncomfortably close, and hearing her declared beauty startled him.

“I’m bored.”

“Don’t shove your complaints on me right now!”

“It’s not complaining; it’s the absolute truth of the world.”

“Calm down. Here’s a riddle. In this world, which is more common, uphill roads or downhill roads? Let’s think on that!”

He tossed her into the depths of contemplation indiscriminately and turned his attention back to Old Man Rom. He then gestured for him with a sense of encouragement.

Letting out a sigh in response to Subaru’s attitude, Old Man Rom shook his head and refocused.

“Kid, do you happen to know where Felt has gone?”

“…You don’t know? I heard Reinhardt took her with him.”

“Reinhardt… You mean the ‘Sword Saint’? Why would ‘the knight among knights’ take Felt with him?”

The naive look on Old Man Rom’s face made it apparent he genuinely didn’t understand the situation. Seeing his puzzled reaction made Subaru sympathize with the old man and realize the circumstances around the Thieves’ Repository needed clarification.

Recalling that incident, Old Man Rom had lost consciousness before Reinhardt showed up. During the timeframe until Subaru lost consciousness, he hadn’t been in a state to engage with Reinhardt at all. This meant that—

“Poor old man left behind at the Thieves’ Repository was left clueless—when he woke up, no one informed him what happened, so he just stood freezing in front of his ruined home.”

“That kind of sad fate hasn’t befallen me. When I awoke, it turned out to be in the soldier’s station. Though they treated me, it was a quick exit from there.”

“Oh right, I see—now that’s a bit awkward.”

Waking up in a police hospital as a suspect in wrongdoing was an unsettling experience. It wouldn’t be surprising for someone to escape as soon as they were able.

In other words, Old Man Rom never managed to glean details before leaving the station, and due to that, he missed out on an encounter with Reinhardt, who had rescued Felt, leading to his presently unresolved situation.

“So that’s why our stories don’t add up. Okay, for now, I’ll fill you in on what happened up to when I passed out and what followed after.”

With a brief preamble, Subaru animatedly recreated the grand confrontation at the Thieves’ Repository, depicting the legendary ‘Sword Saint VS the Intestine Hunter’ duel.

Impressing even Old Man Rom with his unreasonably extravagant performance, the girl who had previously shown boredom now sparkled with interest, begging Subaru to continue.

“And I told her, with a look of astonishment—‘Please tell me your name.’”

“Whoa! You said it, you really did!”

“Well, how poetic of you. I don’t completely dislike it myself.”

As the story took a slight detour, they finished recounting their adventures.

The heat from the tale left all three in an exuberant state, but soon, Old Man Rom was the first to come back to reality.

“This isn’t a time for storytelling! Wait, you don’t know anything other than that Felt was taken by the ‘Sword Saint?’”

“Well, that’s about it… What’s wrong?”

“Uphill roads and downhill roads are exactly the same in number!”

“BAMU-KUHEN!”

The girl of sudden insight smacked Subaru in the gut, causing him to cringe and squat down. After landing that blow, she clasped her fist with satisfaction and declared,

“Now you lot can do whatever you want!”

Old Man Rom stared at Subaru, who moaned on the ground, with a pitying look while shaking his head, “I think you should choose your companions better.”

“I’ve made my choice a long time ago! Now I’m just waiting to see if they pick me! I’m currently in the midst of a massive endeavor to not vanish from view, okay?!”

Subaru leaped up, correcting Old Man Rom’s misinterpretation with a pose. He then cleared his throat and reverted to the main topic.

“Isn’t there a way to get straight to the Astrea household directly through your connections?”

“If that were the case, I wouldn’t be living off of scraps in my shack. But then, that becomes quite a troubling story—of all places, to the Astrea family.”

Toward the end, the murmur left Old Man Rom’s mouth without reaching Subaru’s ears. Subaru looked up, noticing a serious expression on Old Man Rom’s face, shrugging as if to say whatever would be.

“Then, I might have a connection to Reinhardt. If something comes up, I’ll let you know, Rom. Originally, I wanted to check what was happening with Felt.”

“That would be a helpful arrangement…but you do seem to have some strange connections. That girl’s related, right?”

Evidently remembering Subaru’s identity from their last encounter, Old Man Rom inferred that the source of Subaru’s confidence came from those around him.

While that assessment wasn’t entirely wrong, thinking it stemmed from the girl was slightly amiss.

“Nope, totally different! I don’t even know that girl’s name!”

“What kind of situation could you possibly be going through with someone whose name you don’t even know?!”

“Looking back, I had been in dire situations with Emilia without even knowing her name, so it wouldn’t be that strange for me!”

Subaru’s nonchalant revelation seemed to tire Old Man Rom, who raised his finger to his forehead in frustration and sighed, “It’s pointless to even think about it.”

When Old Man Rom turned his serious gaze back to Subaru, he asked, “Even if it’s not that girl, it’s still possible you could arrange something with the ‘Sword Saint.’”

“I think that’s a better possibility than you, old man. Give me some faith like you’re trying to cross a dilapidated bridge!”

“I’m all for testing bridges along the way, but damn… what did I do to deserve this?”

Old Man Rom stroked his bald head, resolute as he nodded at Subaru.

“Well, I understand. I’ll rely on you. Please inform me if you learn anything about Felt. I’ll be sure to repay you if I can.”

“Don’t go overboard now. You got some grandfatherly tendencies or something?”

“—That’s right. That girl is like my very own granddaughter. So please.”

“Got it, I’ll oblige.”

Subaru accepted the request that was laid out so straightforwardly, leaving no room for argument. Enthralled by the pleasant affirmative response, he couldn’t help but smile.

How would that blonde react if she heard how much she was cherished? Given her nature, she’d probably put on a stubborn front with a rosy blush, probably!

“If I find out, how do I contact you, Rom?”

“Well, there’s a shop on the trading street called ‘Kadmon.’ Just mention my name to the tough looking guys there, and they’ll put you in touch.”

“Okay, okay. Kadmon… Kadmon?”

Subaru cocked his head, feeling a strange sense of familiarity with the name.

For now, as long as he knew the location of the trading street, he could manage. He’d likely find the shop eventually through a process of elimination.

Nodding to show he understood, Subaru and Old Man Rom firmly shook on their agreement.

For Subaru, it was a pleasant way to earn a bonus while simultaneously fulfilling a previous promise. The fact he could help the limited time of the old man meant he were making a solid return.

“Would Emilia come up with excuses to maintain this stance, like saying doing it’s just for herself?”

“Did you mutter something?”

“No, nothing at all. Speaking of which, Rom, I need you to step up, like, immediately!”

Turning to face Old Man Rom with finger pointed, Subaru swung his hips to grab his attention.

Old Man Rom’s expression turned sour at the quick request, but given the promise they had just made, he remained stony-faced.

“What is it?”

“Well, it’s nothing major, but both I and that girl are completely lost. More importantly, if things keep going like this, it’ll mean my adventure will end right here! I need you to guide me to the street!”

“Is that all? Fine, leave it to me. Which street are we heading to?”

“Let’s start by getting to the station!”

“Did you hear that I booked it from the station?!”

Old Man Rom’s exclamation echoed into the sky above the alley.

It had been nearly an hour since he separated from Emilia.