The cold sand's mockery, and the warmth of
Both were reality for
"...Ram."
"What?"
"Your fingers are so soft and nice to feel... Whoa—!"
"Don't get carried away. You fool."
She struck his cheek for his careless remark, and Subaru looked at her with tear-stung eyes as he protested. But Ram, camp lantern in hand, paid him no mind and briskly put distance between them.
Just moments ago, she had shown him a rare, almost unseen tenderness—now she was cold as ice. Then again, if she'd stayed like that, the embarrassment would have made conversation impossible, so returning to her usual self was probably what she genuinely wanted.
"Where are we...?"
"Complete darkness with no landmarks. The sand sea's scenery fractured and we, carriage and all, were swallowed into the fissure—you should remember that much. I'd rather not explain further."
"No, that's enough. I've got a vague picture."
"...Good."
Ram gave him a rough summary of the situation, and Subaru took a deep breath as he absorbed it.
That he had "returned by death," and that the "return point" had already been shifted.
On this dune, this was now the third time Subaru had met his "death."
Two of those times had been on the surface, probably killed by beams of light fired from the Watchtower. But this third time was entirely different—he had been attacked and killed by a creature underground.
When he recalled the moment just before his death—merely a minute ago—he couldn't suppress a full-body shudder.
"And yet that's how I died..."
This time, Subaru's cause of death was what you'd call death by immolation.
He'd been thoroughly scorched by crimson flames across his entire body, burning to death while sinking into total incomprehension. The searing tongue lapping over every inch of his body, every part of him more melted than burned—that was not something he could forget.
He knew intellectually that the human body was a lump of fat, but had it really been that easy to melt into goo? The reason burned corpses looked so ghastly suddenly made perfect sense.
"Barusu, are you done calming down? If you're alright, I'll explain."
"Ah, yeah. I'm... fine. Are we the only ones here?"
"If it were just us, Ram would have left you behind and fled for her own safety. The fact that I haven't—you should understand what that means."
"So you've pulled off your second act of rare kindness?"
"To speak so disrespectfully to Ram, who is the very embodiment of benevolence and mercy.—We've run out of time for idle talk. They're back."
Ram swung the camp lantern to her left—Subaru's left, her right—and from the depths of the cavern, another light was approaching. The lantern that swayed at roughly a head higher than their own belonged to Anastasia, mounted atop
"Seems like you two have finished talking, then?"
"...Anastasia. And Patrasche."
The same greeting as before came from Anastasia as she rode up on Patrasche, smiling. Upon her words, Ram once again pinched her skirt and curtsied.
"Thank you for your concern, Anastasia-sama. And how are things around us?"
"I only went a bit further ahead, but I didn't spot anyone else. It looks like the three of us—and this one—were the only ones thrown in here."
"I see."
"We need to keep spirits up. It might not be much comfort, but still."
"Thank you for your consideration. Yes, I'm... trying to stay composed."
From her seat atop the dragon, Anastasia showed concern, and Ram seemed to respond in her usual manner—though even her usual was different from normal. This time, since Ram was the one carrying the lantern, Subaru had a clear view of her profile.
As Anastasia had mentioned before, Ram's faintly haggard expression betrayed the fact that she'd been thrown into disarray by her separation from
"So right now, only our group of four has regrouped. ...The lack of combat power is a real problem."
"You don't seem as panicked as I'd expect, Natsuki-kun. Or did Ram-san work some special spell on you?"
"I'm afraid that if you leave Ram and Barusu alone, nothing happens. The next day, Barusu would simply be found as a sliced-up corpse. That's all."
"What is that? Are you some kind of werewolf with werewolf-game-type abilities? Scary."
It wasn't false bravado, but given that Subaru had just woken up, Anastasia and Ram both remarked on his composure. Since it was only the second time, he was simply quicker to grasp the situation—but he wanted to treat his ability to move out right away as an advantage once more.
"Ram, just to confirm—you still can't sense Rem's location through your synesthesia, right?"
"That's right, I can't. There's a connection, so at least I know she's alive without a doubt... but beyond that, I can't tell anything. All I can do is hope she's not alone."
"If good fortune in life is related to daily conduct, then Rem's actions were nothing but good deeds. ...I'm absolutely certain she's safe."
If this theory was correct, then Subaru's constant exposure to unreasonable suffering was his own fault—but he'd rather turn a blind eye to that.
"Besides..."
There was a deep anxiety Subaru could never reveal to Ram or Anastasia.
The possibility that someone he wanted to save might slip through the cracks because the "Return by Death" checkpoint had been updated.
Just as he'd been unable to retrieve Rem—whose name had been consumed—through Return by Death.
What if the updated checkpoint meant that something terrible had already happened to his separated companions?
"That's the one thing that absolutely can't happen...!"
He prayed that nothing unfortunate had befallen them.
That beyond the reach of Natsuki Subaru's hands, they were unharmed.
"Barusu.—You haven't been able to connect with Beatrice-sama?"
"I tried, but no luck. If the pathway was open, Beako should be able to sense me on her end... but even when I tried to call her, the connection was faint."
"Could be the miasma. Even spirits can hardly keep going—our
"So Beako is the same way?"
Given Beatrice's pride, even if she was unwell, she probably wouldn't reach out on her own. In that case, Subaru should have been the one to notice.
Beatrice's condition affected the safety of all their companions. When they reunited, he'd have to give her a proper scolding.
"That's all the more reason to find the others.—Let's go, deeper into the cavern!"
Pushing deeper meant a possible second encounter with the monster that had burned him alive.
But even so, there was no path forward except to advance.
To reunite with precious companions, there was no choice but to keep moving forward.
* * * "Natsuki-kun, you're the only one on foot—are you sure you won't stumble?"
"I'm fine. You watch yourself—Patrasche only lets me handle him up close. Beako nearly lost one of her twin tails' curls every time."
"Ahaha, what a joker. Patrasche-chan's a good boy—he wouldn't do something like that. Right?"
"— — —"
Pressing deeper into the cavern with Patrasche leading the way, the horse let out a small whinny. It was indeed the sound she made when she had no particular complaints.
Perhaps because this was an emergency, Patrasche was on her best behavior despite carrying passengers other than Subaru. As expected of the capable mare of Emilia's camp.
Patrasche carried Ram and Anastasia while Subaru alone traversed the sandy labyrinth on foot. Following the same arrangement as last time, the four headed into the depths of the cavern.
The departure might have been some ten minutes earlier than last time, but since there was no way to know how long that monster had been stationed at its lair, it was well within the margin of error.
"That thing's lair... or maybe its feeding ground, or playground..."
The reason he couldn't quite bring himself to say "feeding ground" was the sheer number of burned corpses in that space.
The charred body Subaru had grabbed was probably an animal's—judging by the shape, the hind leg of some quadruped. But there were no signs of it having been eaten. And there were countless charred bodies just like it scattered around that place.
If it simply used flames to cook its meals, you could at least evaluate the beast as a gourmand monster with some appreciation for culinary culture. But burning prey and then just leaving the corpses suggested a cruel temperament that enjoyed watching its prey die by fire, and that space was best understood as the venue for that entertainment.
Its firepower far beyond normal limits, and its grotesque form.
When Subaru recalled the instant of his own burning death, he also felt genuine terror toward the monster itself—a creature that existed in a form that was fundamentally wrong.
"From what I can tell, we're definitely still under the dunes... but could this be underground? What do you think, Natsuki-kun?"
"— — —"
"Natsuki-kun?"
"Huh? Oh—yeah, I think so too."
"Were you even listening? A vague answer like that is just rude."
Caught deep in thought, Subaru had nodded casually, and Ram instantly saw through it. He waved his hands and head frantically to both sides, denying it.
"I was absolutely listening, and I wholeheartedly agree."
"When you sleep, you should take off your bra to keep your bust from losing its shape—that's what we were discussing. Are you agreeing? How perverted."
"Who brings up that kind of topic with me!? Wait, that wasn't even what we were discussing, was it!?"
Turning to Anastasia for help in his exasperation, she offered a wry smile. Then she continued, "There's nothing to worry about,"
"That was just Ram-san messing around. Nobody would bring up a topic like that in a crisis like this."
"R-right? Yeah. I panicked. Besides, neither Ram nor Anastasia really has enough going on to worry about losing shape—"
"Oops, sorry, Natsuki-kun. My hand slipped."
"That was way too specific!?"
The camp lantern pressed against the back of his neck, searing his skin with the residual heat of the magic stone's glow. The sensation of burning to death surged back and he shuddered, though he managed to avoid rolling on the cold sand and screaming.
Subaru had toppled backward onto the sand, and from the ground he glared up at the two on the dragon's back.
"Isn't that way too sudden!? I at least deserve a chance to explain myself!"
"Making fun of someone's physical features is absolutely off-limits. The only person you're allowed to do that to is yourself—never anyone else. If you did that in
"Ram doesn't mind. Besides, Rem is quite well-endowed, so it balances out. There's no problem."
If he brought up something like "beautiful sisterly harmony," he'd only dig himself deeper, so Subaru kept quiet.
He grimaced slightly at the lingering pain on the back of his neck, stood up, brushed off the sand, and cleared his throat.
"Anyway, let's get to the real topic. You're saying this place might be underground?"
"Oh, so you were listening after all. That's right—that's what I think. The air is heavier than on the surface, and the temperature is lower."
"Underground beneath the dunes... I hope it's not a sandworm nest."
"...There might be something even worse."
Anastasia clutched the edges of her robe together to emphasize her chill, and Ram nodded in agreement. Subaru went along with their assessment, though he carefully mixed in a bit of truth.
Of course, even sandworms would be extremely difficult to repel with this group's limited combat power, but at least sandworms had a somewhat visible strategy. That made them preferable.
The monster that was—temporarily let's call it a "centaur"— Subaru had been incinerated the instant he encountered it, so he knew nothing about its fighting power, let alone how to fight it.
If he charged at it head-on the same way as last time, he was confident he'd die in the same manner.
"Honestly, regardless of the sandworms, there's always the possibility of running into other monsters. We should discuss countermeasures for the beasts in this dune."
"Agreed.—Though I should say, Ram only has her own limited knowledge and whatever Meili told us along the way. And that's probably just general monster ecology."
"The monsters of the Augria Dunes have been driven feral by the miasma's influence, and some species shouldn't even exist here in the first place. Still, any knowledge is better than none."
When Subaru proposed this, Ram and Anastasia both nodded.
As a result, while continuing their search deeper into the cavern, the three discussed monsters.
"Sandworms look hideous and reek terribly, but despite their ferocity, their bodies aren't actually that tough. They're big, but Ram's magic can kill them easily.—If anything, Barusu's whip might even be effective."
"Seriously? The whip actually does damage?"
"Apparently their temperament is surprisingly timid—there are cases where they retreat after feeling pain. Depending on how much pain that encompasses, I'd say it's not a zero possibility."
"I really don't want to run into a bag mouse."
"A mouse that's ferocious despite the name?"
"Not exactly—it has no real combat power. But its fighting method is disgusting. It inflates its own body with air until it's swollen like a balloon, then explodes near the enemy. It splatters its own blood and guts everywhere."
"...Is the blood poisonous or something?"
"Nothing like that. It's just harassment.—But once one does it and you get covered in blood, the rest of the pack comes and does the same thing. You'll be drenched."
"Terrifying!"
As expected of these unknown monsters—just hearing about their ecology made you grimace. After having a fairly straightforward discussion about monsters for a while, Subaru felt the moment had come to bring up his topic.
"So, next is a monster I spotted from a distance in the dunes. Do you know anything about a beast with a horse's body and a human torso attached, with flames shooting from its back?"
"— — —"
In the natural flow of discussing monster ecology, Subaru revealed the centaur.
It was such a distinctive creature. Even if that thing was an unusually feral individual of an existing species unique to this dune, knowing its origins could provide a breakthrough.
If it had some obvious weakness like being vulnerable to water—since it used fire—that would be perfect. But— "...Sorry, I've got nothing. What about you, Ram-san?"
"Ram doesn't either. It sounds like a monster that would only inspire revulsion from hearing about it."
"You don't know, huh..."
That was the answer from both of them.
They apparently had no leads on anything resembling a centaur or its variant form. But this was almost certainly the monster he'd run into. He didn't want to give up searching for a weakness based on their current lack of knowledge alone.
"You really don't know? Like, the upper half of Patrasche but with a human torso stuck on, complete with two arms. Then the torso splits vertically from chest to stomach, forming a mouth there. And above the human torso's neck, instead of a head, there's a horn growing—"
"Eww... what is that? That's so disgusting..."
"Honestly, I'm creeped out."
The more he described it in detail, the more the women's approval dropped. Even Patrasche, involuntarily used in the description, seemed to wear a displeased expression. Subaru's shoulders sagged.
It looked like they were truly starting from zero.
"If you'd spotted a monster like that, you should have reported it immediately. Why would you let something that dangerous slip by?"
"Well, the thing is... it was at night. Maybe because of Meili's blessing, it didn't approach us—I only caught a glimpse from far away. It was right around when you were being treated in the carriage by Emilia."
"How perverted."
"You only wanted to say that, didn't you?"
Subaru tried to smooth it over with a halfhearted excuse, but he was disheartened by the lack of any leads.
If they had no way to prepare for the centaur in advance, all he could do was warn them of the danger and search for a way to avoid encountering it.
"In any case, I'm calling it a centaur... but I think it's probably extremely dangerous. It had a mane growing from its human torso's back, and that was burning like fire. Its expression seemed incredibly tenacious... well, I couldn't see its face since it didn't have one, but that's the impression I got. There's a real possibility it might even be chasing us."
"Then why did you just leave it alone? Do you want to die?"
"I admit my explanation was a bit misleading there."
He couldn't deny that his attempt to impress the danger upon them had led to a somewhat reckless argument.
Still, as long as he'd conveyed this much, they could maintain a sense of crisis about the potential centaur encounter.
And besides—it wasn't just about应对 an actual encounter.
Subaru was also thinking about a more fundamental approach.
That was— "Natsuki-kun, Ram-san.—Let's put the chatter on hold for now, shall we?"
Anastasia said this and instructed Patrasche to stop. The clever earth dragon had already halted before being told, and as if understanding the intent, it lowered its head.
Then Anastasia held the camp lantern out before them.
"It's a fork in the road."
—The first countermeasure against an unwanted encounter lay right before them.
* * * As always, the fork in the road emanated a dread that made you want to grimace.
And it was abundantly clear that the unease was flowing in from the right passage.
"Left or right—which way do you want to go?"
"According to Kurapika's theory, the right is the correct answer."
"Whose theory?"
As always, Subaru's knowledge from another world was an oddity in this one.
But he'd already experienced firsthand that it wasn't baseless.
"In situations like this, people tend to unconsciously choose the left side. Various factors come into play—dominant hand, dominant eye, and so on—but with no specific condition given, behavioral studies have confirmed this tendency."
"Behavioral studies—that sounds like a very clever-sounding term... But are we just going to ignore the bad feeling coming from the right path? Doesn't that count as a condition?"
Whether the right path being the "correct" one or not, this time they needed to go that way.
Subaru had made that judgment, but even so, the aversion to the unsettling sensation drifting from the right was strong. Not just Ram—even Anastasia looked like she didn't want to go right if she had any choice.
Convincing the two of them to head right was Subaru's job.
Having gained this opportunity even through "Return by Death," he couldn't just let them walk into "death" willingly.
"There's obviously a bad vibe coming from the right. But that's a little too obvious, isn't it? It's like it's saying 'don't come here.'"
"— — —"
"Same as the mechanism for the 'Sand Time' we got through, and the monster flower field in front of the Watchtower. Those were all too elaborate for something natural. Didn't you think so?"
"So you're saying the Sand Time, the flower field, and this cavern are all artificial?"
While Ram fell silent, Anastasia traced the deeper meaning behind Subaru's words. He snapped his fingers and nodded.
"They want to keep us away, so they've set various traps. If this place wasn't artificial, why haven't we encountered any monsters in the past hour? We all know this is part of the Augria Dunes. Without Meili here, it would be unnatural not to encounter beasts in their habitat."
"So you're saying this place has been touched by human hands... no, by a sage's hands."
"And we already know the sage's personality isn't exactly stellar."
"— — —"
It was an opinion half-held together with rationalization, but as Subaru voiced it himself, he realized it actually carried some real weight.
Looking back at the journey through the Augria Dunes so far, those numerous scenes that could be called traps were all obstacles to reaching the Watchtower—they could even be called "trials." And the fact that they hadn't encountered any monsters in this cavern was itself a telling detail.
Of course, since he already knew they would eventually encounter the centaur, Subaru's conclusion was ultimately flawed—but then again, perhaps that centaur was the final guardian. The mechanism demanding that, to enter the Watchtower, one must demonstrate strength in the end.
In that case, the selection was undeniably malicious.
"...I have to admit, Barusu has a point."
"—! Really?"
"Why are you the one sounding surprised? Isn't that weird?"
Ram, who had been sunk in thought, spoke up, and Subaru couldn't help but be startled. Seeing his reaction, Anastasia smiled wryly, then lifted the pom-pom on her hat decoration with both hands.
"Truthfully, I absolutely don't want to go right. But when you put it that way—being guided into all three of us agreeing on left... I can see the appeal of going along."
"That's not like you, living by your gut instinct all this time. Getting swayed?"
"All I'm saying is that if there's an opinion I can agree with, I'll agree."
Her wry smile deepened because, in truth, Echidna's "gut instinct"—her sharp instincts—couldn't fully be replicated by the Anastasia persona. It was a reluctant compromise for her too, and deciding whether to ride with Subaru's argument had been a genuinely difficult moment.
"And Ram?"
"Just as I said. Considering the nature of this dune so far, Barusu's reasoning is understandable. Setting aside the sage's terrible personality, the awful environment where people keep failing to reach the Watchtower—that alone is enough to accept that someone has been tampering with things."
"Hard to buy that it's all natural, I guess..."
"So I'm not fully endorsing what Barusu says, but I'm not dismissing it entirely either. In that case, I have no objection to checking the right path."
"...In other words?"
"It's a pain to follow what Natsuki-kun says, but I'll go along with you."
Ram's reluctant words were neatly decoded by Anastasia.
The translation was accurate enough that Ram didn't correct it. In short, both Ram and Anastasia were willing to go along with Subaru's reasoning.
"—! Great, thank you. I won't let either of you regret this."
"You chose it, so take responsibility yourself. Don't go trying to shoulder Ram's burden too. Save that pointless chivalry for Rem."
"Oh, I'm fine with you taking responsibility if I end up regretting it. As for how much that'll cost, we can calculate the bill later."
"You're both so harsh!"
His moment of elation was cut short as his offer to take responsibility was promptly kicked aside by the two of them.
How serious Anastasia's Echidna impersonation truly was remained unclear, but Subaru was determined to make sure things didn't turn out in a way that would cause regret. That much was genuine.
"Besides, the challenge doesn't end with just convincing us."
Right. That was right.
What Subaru had gained was merely the right to attempt it—the actual trial was yet to come.
—The fork radiated an overwhelming aura of negativity as it waited for a decision.
He was about to step into the right passage, where the air was visibly heavier and fouler.
If this was the sage's trial, what would they think upon having their path chosen right from the start?
"If someone's waiting up ahead, they'd better be prepared for a surprise. —I'll smack that smug face, make them apologize for everything, and then they can point me toward Emilia and the others."
With that resolve, Subaru raised the camp lantern toward the right passage and declared his intent.
Behind him, Ram let out a soft sigh.
"Though it is possible that Emilia-sama and the others are all together and have already reached the Watchtower before us."
"This really wasn't the place to strike a cool pose, was it?"
Subaru grumbled bitterly even before the trial had begun.
* * * After that exchange, the three of them—and one mare—four in total, entered the right passage.
The bad feeling was still there. The sand underfoot felt unpleasantly different, as though even its texture had changed, and Subaru wiped the cold sweat from his brow as he smiled at Patrasche.
"Come to think of it, I'm sorry for deciding the path without asking your opinion."
"— — —"
"What? Wherever I go is where you want to go? No matter how rough the road, you'll carry me through, so just trust you? Ha, way too cool—am I supposed to fall for you or something?"
"It's nonsense, but it's also frustratingly close to accurate.—What exactly is good about you, anyway?"
Ram muttered with exasperation, interpreting Patrasche's silence on Subaru's behalf. But since Patrasche, who usually wouldn't tolerate his casual remarks, was staying calm, he clearly hadn't said anything wrong.
Or perhaps she was conserving energy because squandering it on this sort of thing was pointless, saving her strength for calmer conditions. The latter might be more likely.
"If that's the case, go easy on me, okay?"
"— — —"
"Was that a no just now?"
Having maintained silence all this way, Patrasche suddenly responded negatively, and Subaru tensed up. Still, it was encouraging that she had the spirit to punish him if they made it out safely.
Patrasche believed they would escape this place alive.
"— — —"
Their formation remained the same as before: Subaru in front, Patrasche behind. Illuminating several meters ahead with the camp lantern, they continued exploring while checking their footing.
Their speed, however, was noticeably slower compared to the path before. This was far slower than when he had taken the left passage before his "Return by Death."
The reason was simple.
"My body... feels heavy..."
It wasn't that he'd gained weight or that some invisible spirit was sitting on his back. And in physical terms, nothing was actually weighing him down.
The heaviness in his body and the reluctance of his feet to move—it was all psychological.
The right passage was, as expected, filled to the brim with negative sensations that paralyzed their legs.
He had held onto the hope that this was merely one part of the sage's unpleasant trial, and that once they passed the fork, a stable space would be waiting. But that hope was cruelly shattered—the curse-like negative sensations only grew stronger.
"— — —"
Without a word, Subaru swallowed and forced his heavy legs to pull free from the sand.
It wasn't as though his legs were paralyzed or he couldn't move. Even a heart aware of its own fragility like Subaru's wouldn't cower in terror on a sand corridor where nothing had yet happened.
Right—his heart wasn't afraid, and his mind was clear.
The problem was that his limbs wouldn't obey his will. His body alone rebelled against the direction of his reason and soul, displaying an instinctive rejection that tried to halt his advance.
To move straight ahead—for just that simple act, he needed double the time, double the physical and mental energy, and Subaru couldn't help but feel the fatigue.
"Pathetic. I'm not going to whine about this much."
He shook his head roughly, trying to shake off the exhaustion weighing down his body.
He was the one who'd chosen the right path. For him to be the first to mutter complaints in front of the two behind him—that was absolutely unacceptable.
"What, it's a little hard to walk, but nothing major. We might even be close to the goal, actually..."
"Barusu."
"What, what's up?"
"Shut up."
"Ah, right..."
He tried to chase off the weakness with forced cheerfulness, only to be shot down by Ram's curt venom.
Their pace had slowed dramatically, and the surrounding dread only intensified. Ram was probably feeling the psychological strain as well—that was why her barbs were shorter and sharper than usual.
"Hey, I get how you feel, but silent walking is pretty boring too, you know."
"Are you walking for fun? Remember why we're here."
"That's not what I meant..."
"Shut up. And keep walking."
An utterly unapproachable stubbornness.
Of course, Ram was right in principle, but Subaru had his own reasons.
Right now, the heaviness in his body was synchronized with the heaviness in his spirit. In other words, he was in a vicious cycle where feeling low physically made him feel low mentally. To break that, he needed to lighten the mood a bit.
Vigilance was important, and consideration was appreciated, but he wished they'd understand that much. Or rather—Ram should understand. She usually did.
She was really having a hard time.
"We should probably hurry, right?"
"— — —"
"Ram?"
He called out to check how dire her situation was, but Ram never responded. The camp lantern illuminated the path ahead of Subaru and, via Patrasche's neck, their general surroundings—but it couldn't reach fine expressions.
Ram, head bowed slightly behind Anastasia with her hood pulled up, was invisible.
"Ram?"
"Natsuki-kun, that's enough."
"Huh?"
Subaru stopped and turned to face her, but the stubborn Ram refused to show her face. Worse, Anastasia came to her defense.
Looking at Subaru with a troubled expression, Anastasia scratched her cheek.
"I hadn't mentioned it, but when Ram-san first woke up underground, she was in quite a state. She seems to have pulled herself together since then—being the strong type—but I think she's still not fully recovered."
"—! You didn't have to say that...!"
"Leave this to me?"
It was a remark that showed awareness of Ram's feelings—and then completely lacked that same awareness. Subaru could hear Ram grinding her teeth at having her hidden emotions exposed, but Anastasia didn't spare her a glance.
She raised a small hand and indicated the path ahead for Subaru to see.
"For now, it's better if neither of you talks. When your heart is in tatters, nothing good comes from talking with anyone about anything. Right?"
"— — —"
"Right?"
It galled him, but Anastasia—Echidna's—words had merit.
In his eagerness to move forward and escape the cavern safely, Subaru had indeed been inconsiderate of Ram's feelings this time around. That inattention might have come back around and manifested in Ram's attitude.
If that was the case, placing all the blame on Ram was premature.
"...Fine. You're right. That was my fault."
"You should reflect on that."
"—! You—!"
"Hey, no fighting.—Come on, Natsuki-kun, move, move."
Ram's attitude showed absolutely no willingness to compromise, and Subaru's heart bristled. But Anastasia intervened and directed him forward.
She nudged the camp lantern at Patrasche's neck with her foot, and watching the shadows on the sandy corridor waver, Subaru clicked his tongue.
Her behavior was out of line, but a falling-out here would accomplish nothing.
Fortunately, he could blame this unpleasant atmosphere for his irritability. As long as he had something to attribute it to, there was no need to worsen their relationship over something unnecessary.
Her current attitude could be talked through once they escaped this place safely.
"...Let's go."
The guided exploration resumed with Subaru once again in front.
But the progress remained agonizingly slow. His attempt to enter a positive mental state and remove the physical burden had ultimately failed.
Since nothing had improved, there was naturally no hope for the situation to get better.
Still, there was one change.
It wasn't on their end, but rather a change in the sandy labyrinth itself.
"The path is clearly getting narrower."
They had been following the right passage for what must have been close to another hour.
The sand corridor was narrowing from every direction—top, bottom, left, right—and its height and width were approaching dimensions where a large monster couldn't possibly fit through.
There was just barely enough room for Patrasche to pass. But not wide enough for the dragon carriage Giant had been pulling, and certainly not passable for a sandworm or the centaur.
In other words, at least the worst-case scenario of the centaur lying in wait at the end of this path seemed to be off the table. Compared to that, whatever was ahead couldn't be worse.
"But a narrowing path means we need to be even more careful. In a pinch, we won't be able to move—you two keep your guard up."
"...!"
"—Hey."
Thinking ahead, Subaru's remark was met with a sound that made him narrow his eyes. He turned and looked up at the two on Patrasche's back, illuminated by the lantern.
There was no verbal response. But he could see that Anastasia, seated in front on Patrasche, had covered her face with her hand.
Of course she'd want to smooth things over—they both wanted to keep moving.
After all, what Ram had just done was click her tongue in response to Subaru's words.
"What exactly are you doing?"
"Nothing."
"It's not nothing! I'm asking what you intend!"
Unable to hold back, Subaru's voice rose. He kicked the sand wall beside him. The brittle surface crumbled away in flakes, but he paid no mind to the scattering sand.
Right now, only Ram's insolence registered in his mind.
"I've been hearing it this whole time—click, click, click, clicking! And that wasn't the first time, was it?! Hey, what the hell are you doing?!"
"I'm not doing anything. Ram has nothing to say to Barusu."
"Oh, so you just go click-click-click all day for no reason? You don't! If you don't normally do it, then doing it now means there's a reason!"
In contrast to Ram's cold demeanor, Subaru's heat had been rising steadily.
Of course. Against all of Subaru's efforts up to this point, everything Ram had shown him was far too cold and one-sided.
There was no reason for him to be lectured or looked down upon.
"If you have something to say, then say it! I'm listening, so go ahead!"
"—So, I have nothing."
"You're lying! Are you stupid!? If you're going to hide something, hide it all! Showing a little then saying 'nothing'? What kind of idiot logic is that, you old hag!?"
"— — —"
Subaru spat his words with viciousness, and Ram's aura shifted.
She, who had been holding on behind Anastasia, leaned forward and glared at Subaru. He didn't like the positioning either—hiding behind someone else and looking down on him from above.
Was she borrowing some authority to act all high and mighty?
"My, Barusu seems quite enthusiastic about moving forward?"
"Of course I am! What do you think we're here for?! To see the Sage, right?! What's wrong with pushing through all this hardship for that?!"
"That's not it.—We're not here to meet the Sage."
"Huh?"
"Ram came here to restore Rem's memories."
Ram's words rang out with clarity as she stared directly at Subaru. The sharpness and pressure of her gaze momentarily pierced through his overheated thoughts.
Resting Rem = meeting the Sage. Wasn't it the same thing?
"It's the same thing! Meet the Sage, help Rem! Same deal!"
"It's not. Helping Rem comes first. Meeting the Sage comes after. The priority is different.—Yes, the priority is different."
At the end of those words, Ram's voice trembled. The raw emotion behind it, combined with everything before, amounted to a furious blaze of rage.
In the frozen underground of the dunes, Ram carried that burning fury within her cold words.
"Ram came here for Rem—to remember her sister. And what are you doing now? Rem isn't even here, and you're just bumbling around in this place... Don't be ridiculous."
"Nobody's being ridiculous...! This is how things turned out, and since they did, we can only do what we can do right now. Isn't that right?"
"Yes, maybe so. But before confirming how things turned out, have you once—just once—worried about Rem?"
"...Huh?"
"When you woke up underground, did you worry about Rem? About Emilia-sama? About Beatrice-sama? Did you properly worry about the people you couldn't find?"
Faced with her barrage of words, Subaru fell silent.
True enough, this time—upon waking as a result of "Return by Death"—Subaru hadn't panicked and tried to check on everyone's safety the way he had before.
But that was absolutely not because he didn't care. It was because he knew Ram and the others didn't know about his ability. It was Subaru's own form of consideration. His way of caring.
And yet— "No, you didn't. Barusu didn't. Barusu doesn't care about Rem at all. His mind is full of Emilia-sama and Beatrice-sama. That's fine—you're that kind of man, and that's all there is to it. But poor Rem."
"...Shut up."
"Rem believed in Barusu, didn't she? Oh, but since that's just what Barusu told me, I can't be sure. For all I know, you might just be saying whatever sounds good. Men always say what's convenient in front of women. Poor Emilia-sama and Poor Beatrice-sama too—deceived by a man like this!"
"Shut up!"
"No, I won't. I'll say it as many times as it takes.—Barusu doesn't care about Rem. Even if she's never found, he'd be relieved, wouldn't he?"
"—Don't you dare joke about that!!"
His vision went red. The reckless words set every nerve in his body alight.
Rage exploded toward the arrogant woman who looked down on him from above and hurled selfish words.
Grabbing her, dragging her down—there was no time for such steps.
"Invisible Providence—!!"
"—Kuh!?"
Subaru channeled the dark feelings surging through his mind directly into his chest and released them.
The black hand that materialized gave a cry of exhilaration, extending and climbing up onto the earth dragon's back, then hurling the pink-haired girl who had been standing in judgment down below.
Screaming, Ram tumbled violently onto the sand.
With an expression that couldn't comprehend what had just happened from the invisible blow, Ram lay on the sand. Subaru was already rushing to her side.
And then— "Don't joke around."
As if he didn't care about Rem. As if Rem meant nothing to him. Not a chance.
Blinded by rage, his thoughts overheating as if everything had gone mad— "—Ugh"
—Subaru pinned down the supine Ram and wrapped his hands around her slender neck.
Gripping. Gripping.
Gripping. Gripping. Gripping.