—Once, there was a woman. A single woman.
This woman had been oppressed — despised and shunned by her family, her clan, her own beloved kin.
Before she was born, expectations had been placed upon her. Her birth had betrayed them.
All that remained was disappointment and dismay. All that was given to her was contempt and ridicule. These were the woman's only possessions.
The clan had harbored a sacred wish. A testament to their former glory and prosperity — the return of their divine progenitor, the ancestor who had been called a god.
Every forbidden art and every atrocity, the taboos broken numbered beyond counting, and she — the woman — was their culmination.
But the woman who was born had betrayed that sacred wish, and the clan cast her aside in disappointment and despair.
"Live and die wherever you will. That is your penance."
Abandoned by family and kin alike, she was cast out into the wild as an infant.
Thrown into the wilderness without means of survival, a girl-child could not possibly endure.
And yet, though the woman possessed no means to survive, she had the strength to live.
Ironic as it was, that strength came from the forbidden arts she embodied, the sins accumulated, the negative feast born from the clan's sacred wish.
Knowing no words, possessing no wisdom, following only instinct, the woman endured the wild and survived.
She killed beasts and lapped at their blood, crawled across the earth, and licked at muddy water.
Time passed. The infant became a girl; the girl became a woman. And even living in the wild grew difficult.
Word spread of a woman who rampaged through the mountains like a wild beast, and men came hunting for her life. She was captured.
The captured woman was beautiful. The men did not take her life — she was kept.
While doing as the men bid, gradually the woman's consciousness descended from the wild to human settlement.
No longer needing to struggle to survive, exposed to the men's desires — days of mere existence.
Before long, in bed, the woman began to acquire from men things she had never known.
Language. Knowledge. Ways of living. And emotions.
Before long her treatment changed. She was given adornments to wear and treated like a jewel.
During those days, the woman came to harbor a strange feeling toward the men.
She did not realize, at the time, that it resembled gratitude or a sense of debt.
Harboring that feeling, the woman broke the necks of every man in the dwelling.
Easily, in a single breath, without causing pain, in an instant — she buried them all at once.
Leaving the dwelling, heading into the wild, without a moment's hesitation, the woman returned to her homeland.
Among the kin who lived there, among those who shared her blood, among those with bodies far larger than her own — the woman felt a strange emotion rise within her.
She did not realize, at the time, that it was hatred and the thirst for vengeance.
The cries and pleas for mercy, however, were quite satisfying — and the woman laughed heartily for the first time.
"Die here. Die crushed and pathetic. — That is your penance."
To obtain that joy, the woman proceeded to crush her kin, her blood relatives, and the clan's sacred wish one by one.
Carefully, carefully, without leaving a single one behind, sparing none, taking her time, one by one, with certainty.
When at last every last kin had perished and everything was done, the woman returned to the dwelling where she had lived with the men.
She left the corpses of her kin discarded. But the men's corpses she buried every last one with care.
And then, alone in that dwelling, the woman let out a long, long sigh.
She realized for the first time that it was peace, that it was solace — and the woman felt happiness.
No one would disturb her ever again. Thoughts and actions both unnecessary, she fell into sleep.
And so the "Slothful
— — — The staircase to the Second Floor "Electra" boasted a grandeur befitting its name as a Great Staircase.
Compared to the long spiral staircase that connected the Sixth Floor to the Fifth, and then the Fourth, the Great Staircase was considerably wider and taller in each of its steps.
In fact, the entire room had been rewritten as a staircase chamber, so its sheer overwhelming presence was, as they say, something you had to experience to understand.
The Great Staircase that had appeared in the empty room that should have been blank — Subaru stood before it with arms crossed and let out a long sigh. And then— "I feel like I've been standing around here for a really, really long time…"
"Eh? We just found the staircase. What brought that on all of a sudden?"
Subaru shook his head with a "nah," then turned around. There, assembled behind him, were the companions who had discovered the Great Staircase and now shared an understanding of the tower designer's twisted sense of malice.
Seeing the same familiar faces, Subaru felt a strange sense of relief.
"…? Subaru, why are you kneading Betty's hand?"
"I wanted to feel like you're actually here… ahem, never mind. Sorry."
Subaru offered
Then, turning back to face everyone in the room, he pointed at the Great Staircase behind them.
"So, putting that aside — this Great Staircase, it wasn't here from the start and we all somehow missed it, was it?"
"That would be difficult to imagine — overlooking something this conspicuous. However, if we limit the scope to this room alone, that possibility cannot be denied."
"So…?"
"It's about that sense of unease we noticed during our exploration. I know that feeling."
Receiving Subaru's question, it was Anastasia and Julius — master and retainer — who nodded in agreement. Subaru tilted his head at their unified response, but then Emilia raised her hand.
"While you were sleeping, Subaru, we'd all gathered here on the Fourth Floor.
"And this room, we all kind of avoided it unconsciously. But looking back now…"
"Like, some kind of perception-inhibition effect was keeping us away from it?"
Beatrice took over Emilia's thought, and Subaru gave voice to the conclusion. Emilia and Beatrice nodded, and Anastasia and Julius assented as well.
Having discovered the Great Staircase, everyone now realized — come to think of it — that the room had been subject to perception interference. If that were the case, then perhaps the Great Staircase had been here all along. The staircase had been rendered invisible by some form of magic — a camouflage to prevent anyone from noticing.
"Well, otherwise, when the riddle on the third floor was solved, someone who happened to be in this room could've been crushed by the staircase suddenly appearing…"
"Subaru, it's a monolith, not a stone tablet. Let's avoid confusion. Keep the terminology consistent."
"Monolith monolith monolith! Happy now? Let's move on."
Subaru caught the dissatisfied look on Julius's face out of the corner of his eye but ignored it, weary of the correction. He turned his gaze to the two who had yet to join the conversation —
"Hm? What is it, Master? Ha! Could it be — is it finally my chance to be useful?! I'll do anything for you, Master! I'll even co-sign a guarantee!"
"You don't have the slightest idea what you're saying, do you?! Even if a close friend or family member asked me, I'd say no. But just to check — you know about this staircase, right…?"
"I've been living here for a couple hundred years, Master, and this is the first time I've ever seen it, ssu!"
"It's fine if you just play, Meili. Pull her scorpion tail."
"Like I needed you to tell me to play, big bro."
"It hurts, it hurts, it hurts, ssu!"
As ever, utterly useless for conquering the tower — Shaula. Delegating her chastisement to Meili, Subaru looked up at the Great Staircase once more.
Unlike the staircase that led up to the Fourth Floor, the Great Staircase did not spiral. Like a conventional staircase, it went straight upward. However, given the tower's structure, a staircase going straight up would seem to extend outside the tower — the one connecting the Third Floor through to the Second— "Maybe that's handled by some kind of mysterious power…"
"Or maybe it only looks like it connects to the Second Floor but actually leads somewhere else entirely… That'd be too mean, wouldn't it?"
"Being in this tower risks corrupting Emilia-tan's pure heart. She'll start thinking like mean-spirited people before long. We need to conquer it quickly."
"—?"
Emilia tilted her head, not quite following. But it was ultimately her words that had led to discovering the Great Staircase, and had provided the crucial hints needed to clear the Third Floor.
The
Having Emilia unravel them one by one was reassuring, but Subaru also worried about whether her personality might warp in the process. He wanted her to live healthy, wholesome days.
"That said, our pace isn't bad, right? The Third Floor's 'trial' — if we're splitting hairs, I cleared it on my first attempt. You could say we've finished a third of conquering the tower in three days."
"Considering there had been no progress for over four hundred years, the pace is extraordinary, wouldn't you say?"
"When you put it like that, yeah, that's insane. …But honestly, I'm a guy who has a track record of moving history that's been stagnant for centuries. 'The man who moves history' — that sounds like a pretty powerful catchphrase."
Looking back, he had contributed to the subjugation of the
"If I strip away the process and just list the accomplishments, I look like an idiot…"
During that time he had died spectacularly many times over, so there was no room for chest-thumping, but even so, he had moved the world's history too much in the past year.
He hadn't intended to do so, but at least going forward, he would need to settle accounts with the Sin Archbishop of Gluttony and the Sin Archbishop of Lust — so the world should brace itself for having its history moved two more times.
"…Huh? What's wrong, Emilia-tan? You suddenly grabbed my hand."
"…No, it's just — I think you should be a little kinder to yourself, Subaru. Just a little more."
"There's nobody as spoiled rotten as me, and with Emilia-tan and Beako being so kind to me, that's already more than enough luxury."
When Rem awakened, she would surely join those ranks too. Strict, but kind.
Add in Petra and Patrasche, Garfiel and Otto — there would be absolutely no room left for Subaru to go easy on himself.
"……"
In response, Emilia's lips trembled as if she wanted to say something, but the words eluded her, and she simply gazed up at Subaru.
The strength of her grip on his hand increased ever so slightly, and Subaru tilted his head.
However— "Master Natsuki, this is a problem that goes all the way down to his roots, I think. I can't imagine it'll be fixed in a day or two. It'd be a different story if Miss Emilia used everything at her disposal to teach him, but…"
Anastasia clapped her hands together and cut into the conversation, glancing at Emilia. Emilia wore a serious expression, but apparently that wasn't the attitude Anastasia was looking for.
"—That sounds like a long shot. She's not suited for it, and honestly—"
"—? I don't really understand, but if you teach me the method, I'll do my best?"
"That would be absolutely terrible… I have no desire to be kicked by an earth dragon."
"Being kicked by an earth dragon… is that like being kicked by a horse?"
A new page was added to the collection of otherworldly sayings that occasionally surfaced, separate from the Garfiel Lexicon.
In any case, Subaru found much to tilt his head at in the exchange between Emilia and Anastasia. While the two of them happily tilted their heads together in confusion, Anastasia let out an exasperated sigh and pointed at the Great Staircase.
"Now then, instead of standing around — shall we go on up? We might need to rack our brains like on the Third Floor, and Master Natsuki might solve it in no time, who knows?"
"If it's on the same level of nastiness as the Third Floor, I can't say I'm confident, honestly."
Bluntly speaking, the only reason Subaru had cleared the Third Floor "Taigeta"'s trial was that the content happened to relate to stars and constellations, striking critical knowledge in Subaru's mind.
Constellations — questions requiring knowledge of the original world Subaru knew. That fact had led Subaru to the realization that
On that front, there was a high probability that the Second Floor's trial would require modern knowledge, where Subaru could prove useful — but— "Unlike the Third Floor, if they ask for knowledge I don't have, I'm in trouble… And if it's Flugel, I wouldn't know anything about German history or whatever…"
Despite these vague anxieties, he couldn't voice them because of the expectant gazes around him. Emilia, Beatrice — Subaru was weak to those looks from them.
Even if he was lacking in knowledge about Germany or anything else, he'd pull it out and try to make it work.
"—Can't be helped. The staircase to the next floor is literally right in front of us. If we don't take it from here, we're not men. Let's rush in and tear through it!"
"Unfortunately, apart from you and me, everyone present here is a woman."
"It's about spirit! Don't douse the flame! Alright, let's go, Beako!"
"N-Not that I care!"
Clenching his fist and delivering his rallying speech, only to have cold water thrown on it, Subaru pouted in return. Then he lifted Beatrice up, cradled her light body, and stepped onto the staircase, beginning to charge upward in one go.
"Ah, Subaru, wait!"
Emilia hurriedly set off after the rapidly ascending Subaru. Julius and Anastasia exchanged weary looks and followed.
"Aren't you going, naked sis?"
"Don't call me naked, naked, Pipsqueak Number Two! I'm not naked, ssu! I'm dressed in a perfectly hot-and-cute outfit, ssu! Don't go criticizing Master's selection, ssu!"
"It's not a criticism — but you'll get left behind. Come on, hurry, hurry."
"Just riding on my back and acting all high and mighty, Pipsqueak! I'm gonna have Master discipline you properly later, ssu! I want to be disciplined too, ssu~!"
Shaula swung her Scorpion Tail back and forth, her cheeks flushed red as she reluctantly stepped onto the staircase. With a lightness that belied the girl on her back, she bounded up the Great Staircase, leaping five steps at a time to catch up with the group.
"Gya gya gya gya gya gya—!"
Ignoring the commotion behind him, Subaru charged up the staircase with Beatrice in his arms. Halfway up, deftly shifting her position within his arms, Beatrice was now embracing him in a princess carry. Her blue eyes narrowed.
"As I thought, I can only conclude that the space is twisted. Going straight up like this and there's no sense of the tower's exterior approaching."
"Maybe the tower is just shaped differently than it looks from outside."
"Just this staircase portion sticking out? That would create a discrepancy when viewed from outside, defeating the purpose of hiding the staircase."
"Yeah. I was just saying."
Agreeing with Beatrice's reasoning while breathing hard, Subaru looked upward.
Strangely, even as they charged upward, there was no sense of nearing the upper floor. Despite running so hard, it felt like running in reverse up a descending escalator — pure futility.
"Don't tell me Emilia's idea about a prank is becoming a reality…"
The possibility that the staircase was there but didn't actually connect to anything above — at that chilling thought, Subaru shuddered. And almost simultaneously, the space above opened up.
"Wha—!?"
"Hyah!"
What he had thought was a dark, stone-walled stairwell turned out to be suddenly flooded with white light. Subaru and Beatrice both cried out.
Unable to stop himself, Subaru stumbled forward, nearly tripping, only to find that the staircase had ended without warning and they had set foot on a new floor.
It was— "The white room again… huh?"
"I suppose."
Subaru stopped and slowly set Beatrice — still in princess carry — down on the floor.
The staircase had been a longer journey than expected. Even with his improved stamina, he couldn't stop his knees from buckling and his breathing from growing ragged.
As Beatrice tapped her toes on the floor and surveyed the room while gently stroking Subaru's back, Subaru followed her gaze and swallowed hard.
What the two of them had reached after climbing the staircase was a white space remarkably similar to the scene where the Third Floor "Taigeta"'s trial had taken place. The floor and ceiling seemed to stretch endlessly, a strange structure that threw depth perception into chaos from the ground up.
The only thing that gave the impression this white space was fixed as a location was, just like on the Third Floor, the staircase portion connecting to the floor below — a gap left open.
"Whoa, this room again?"
From that staircase entrance, the others appeared one after another, following Subaru and Beatrice. They were equally startled by the welcoming white vista, their shoulders dropping in unison.
The feeling was clear: the trial was about to begin again.
"We didn't accidentally go back up to the Third Floor, did we?"
"I don't think so. From the Fourth to the Third Floor, there were fifty-four steps. But here there were four hundred and forty-four. We went up roughly ten times that many."
"You — you counted the steps, Emilia-tan?"
"Hehe, counting staircase steps has secretly become a recent hobby of mine… Why are you petting my head?"
Beaming with pride as she confessed her secret hobby, Emilia was rewarded by Subaru and the others taking turns stroking her head. Even Julius and Meili, who had not participated, looked at Emilia with subtle traces of sympathy.
"This feels really, really strange…"
"W-Well, either way, this is Emilia-tan's great achievement. Thanks to her, we now know we've gone up roughly ten times the distance of the Third Floor. The theory that we skipped a floor and went up two levels isn't out of the question, but for now, let's assume this is the Second Floor…"
"The trial should be starting. That's probably what triggers it."
Setting aside Emilia's doubts for the moment, Subaru followed the direction Beatrice was pointing — directly ahead from where the staircase opened up, where an object asserted its presence.
On the Third Floor "Taigeta," something similar had occupied the center of the room. The moment you touched it, the trial began. If the same conditions applied here, then that was likely— "It's not a monolith. —It's a sword."
Julius narrowed his yellow eyes, staring at "it" standing in the center of the room, and spoke.
As he said, what existed in the white space was not the monolith they had seen on the Third Floor.
—It was a sword.
An unsheathed blade, its tip driven into the white floor, standing upright.
With its hilt pointed skyward, standing perfectly straight, the sword struck Subaru as achingly beautiful.
There was no ornate decoration. Subaru couldn't tell good material from bad.
But the absence of excessive ornamentation, its restraint to the bare minimum of steel — that was what made it beautiful.
"It even has the air of a 'Sword of Selection'…"
"———"
"Oh, good restraint. Well done, well done."
Hearing Subaru's mutter, Julius raised his eyebrows and somehow held himself back. Anastasia praised his self-control, while Subaru turned his attention to Shaula. She stood with arms crossed, chest thrust out proudly, her face a portrait of supreme confidence.
Her expression practically screamed "I'm fully prepared to say I don't know no matter what you ask!", so Subaru decided to simply move forward without asking.
"Subaru."
"I think it'll be fine. Considering the Third Floor's example, it's unlikely a lethal trap activates immediately."
He nodded toward the worried Emilia, then slowly advanced toward the Sword of Selection. Emilia and Beatrice, as a matter of course, followed close behind. The rest of the group remained near the staircase, poised to react instantly if anything happened.
"When we escort Anastasia, be careful. The staircase is long — if someone gets pushed off by accident, they'll tumble all the way to the bottom and die."
"Understood. See to your own attention toward Lady Emilia and Lady Beatrice."
"I've got Subaru. I'll protect him."
"Yeah, protect me."
Subaru gave a thumbs-up, and at Emilia's fully motivated display, Julius let out a sigh. Confirming that, Subaru stood before the Sword of Selection.
A single hand's reach away. At this point, the sword carried the undeniable weight of reality. It didn't feel like a strange object, the way the monolith had.
"Still, this sword's been sticking here since the tower was built. The fact that it hasn't even deteriorated is abnormal enough in itself."
Muttering before the Sword of Selection, Subaru took a single breath — and reached for the sword's hilt.
He gripped it firmly. Feeling a faint resistance, he applied upward force.
For a fleeting instant, his mind flashed with the possibility that if this truly was the "Sword of Selection," he might not be able to pull it free. But that concern was immediately dispelled.
"———"
With barely any effort, the tip embedded in the floor slid free.
With the fluid grace of a sword being drawn from its sheath — as if that was exactly what was meant to happen.
And then, it came.
*—Fool who has reached the Divine Sword, obtain that one's pardon.* "—!"
The voice penetrated his eardrums and resonated directly in his brain, announcing the nature of the trial.
Since he had anticipated this development, Subaru at least didn't do anything as pathetic as dropping the sword. But the inexplicable phenomenon still left him deeply unsettled.
As before, the voice that echoed in his mind bore a strong resemblance to his own.
"I feel motion sick… did everyone else hear that just now…"
Not just Subaru, who had drawn the sword — had everyone heard it? During the monolith, the voice had been heard by others besides the one who touched it.
So this time too — turning around with that intent, Subaru noticed.
"———"
—Everyone was holding their breath, their eyes fixed on a single point.
"———"
Drawn by their gazes, Subaru looked in the same direction. They were staring at a point directly opposite the Sword of Selection — at precisely the same distance from the sword as the staircase.
There, a shadow had appeared.
*—Fool who has reached the Divine Sword, obtain that one's pardon.* The voice was barely a murmur, yet to Subaru it sounded deafening.
The same words he had heard the instant he drew the sword. But this time, it was not his own voice echoing in his mind — it was unmistakably the voice of someone else, emanating from the figure before him.
*—Fool who has reached the Divine Sword, obtain that one's pardon.* The voice repeated the phrase like a parrot with one trick.
Mechanically, perhaps instinctively — or was it something more primal?
The unsettling repetition of the phrase and the disparity in its delivery sent a shudder through him. The figure's voice was disturbingly direct — like a sword tip caressing his heart.
"———"
He couldn't tell if the shudder was fear, excitement, pleasure, or despair. To have one's emotions toyed with so freely by another being was proof of an absolute gap between species.
At this distance, with nothing but his voice, his life was being toyed with.
*—Fool who has reached the Divine Sword, obtain that one's pardon.* —He was a man with red hair flowing freely down his back.
He was remarkably tall — a full head taller than Subaru, and his body was covered with muscular bulk proportionate to his height.
What he wore was not armor but a red kimono that served no protective purpose whatsoever — the right sleeve was torn away, exposing his bare torso, and Subaru could make out a white loincloth wrapped around his midsection from afar.
His flame-colored hair reached the center of his back, and his left eye was covered by a black eyepatch bearing an unseemly pattern. His right eye, the one uncovered, was the color of a sky reflected in depths beyond reach.
Undoubtedly, if he stood quietly and composed, his features were refined enough to make every onlooker turn and want to capture him in a painting — but all that was ruined by a savage, cruel, maddening grin.
He was a ferocious beast cloaked in devastating beauty.
The most beautiful fiend in the world — at the sight of this existence, Subaru forgot to breathe.
"Hh…"
The first thing to break the illusion of time standing still was a whimper.
A light sound — *thump* — and then a girl's cry of "Kyah!" His vision locked in place, barely catching the sight at its edge: Shaula, the black-haired woman, collapsing onto the floor on her rear, Meili's eyes spinning beside her.
"H-hh…"
Shaula was so shaken she looked on the verge of wetting herself.
Her already large eyes were wide open, her beautiful face frozen in an expression no lovely girl should ever make — the sheer magnitude of the turmoil raging inside her was written plain.
If she could have, she would have fled this room on pure instinct.
Her trembling legs simply wouldn't allow it.
—Shaula, who had dispatched a centaur single-handedly, was too terrified to move?
*—Fool who has reached the Divine Sword, obtain that one's pardon.* The voice continued repeating itself, even with the terrified Shaula clearly in sight.
The situation grew ever more eerie — yet simultaneously, a realization dawned.
Despite radiating this much pressure, the man had not moved a single step from where he stood. —No, the man wasn't radiating pressure at all. He was simply standing there.
By merely existing, this creature gave off a presence that rivaled that of a "Witch."
"———!"
Subaru caught his breath, forcibly closed eyelids that had forgotten to blink, and steadied himself for a moment.
Then, without taking his eyes off the man, he took a single step backward. In his right hand, the Sword of Selection. His left hand clasped Beatrice's hand, bringing the frozen girl with him as he retreated.
"Em… Emilia…"
"I — I know…"
He couldn't leave her behind. Subaru called out to Emilia, who was equally frozen. At his call, Emilia nodded with a trembling voice. Unable to keep her knees from shaking, she began to move slowly, and Subaru retreated with her.
*—Fool who has reached the Divine Sword, obtain that one's pardon.* The distance grew. The man still didn't move. He simply repeated.
*—Fool who has reached the Divine Sword, obtain that one's pardon.* Subaru drew back with every nerve focused, reaching the spot where Shaula had collapsed. Shaula's face was still locked in a mask of terror, and Meili clutched her arm, unable to move.
Could they withdraw, taking these two with them? Subaru's arms — his fingers gripping the sword and Beatrice's hand — were locked stiff with no sign of loosening. He couldn't even envision grasping Shaula and Meili's arms and pulling them to their feet. And would that man even allow it? What was his purpose? Why had he come here, what was this "trial," what was this sword for— *—Fool who has reached the Divine Sword, obtain that one's pardon.* The repeated phrase, the words — this was the Second Floor "Electra"'s trial proposal.
What meaning was there in the man repeating it? The content of the trial he had heard the moment he drew the sword, and the man repeating it — the fool, and the pardon— *—Fool who has reached the Divine Sword, obtain that one's… par… don…* "—Hh?"
His thoughts accelerating, a terrible conclusion taking shape in Subaru's mind — and at the same moment, the man's voice, which had been repeating without pause, developed a stutter.
Subaru couldn't help but gasp at this. Emilia and Beatrice tensed, but this had no effect on the situation.
—More importantly, the man's change was unmistakable.
"The Divine Sword, the fool's… pardon… Aaah, oh, oh-oh, aah—"
"Wh-What? What's happening, what's going on?"
"Aa, aah, aaaaahhhh—!!"
"Skreee!"
"What the—!?"
The stutter was the least of it.
The man who had been standing stock still — his speech developing a strange hesitation — and in the next instant, he exploded. Clutching his head with both hands, violently raking through his hair, he let out a piercing scream.
At his sudden outburst, Shaula let out a pig-like squeal and, finally pushed past her limit, lunged at Subaru. Naturally, he couldn't catch her. With her arms wrapped around him in a crushing embrace, Subaru was knocked flat on his back, unable to even brace himself.
"——!"
The impact sent sparks dancing across his vision. Through the ringing in his ears, he could still hear the man's screams and Shaula — clinging to his waist, shaking her head in protest — crying.
"Ahhhhhhhh—!!"
"Hyaaaaah! Master, Master, Master, save meee! I don't want this, ssu! Save me, ssu!"
"Y-You — what have you been—"
"—Shut up, will ya?! It echoes in a hangover head! Stop screaming!"
"Owph…"
Before the words to calm her could reach her, Shaula's mind reached its breaking point.
All that ferocity from before — in an instant, Shaula's eyes rolled back, and with her arms still clamped around Subaru's waist, she went limp.
She had lost consciousness from mental overload.
"You're kidding me…"
"Blub blub blub blub…"
Shaula helpfully conveyed her unconscious state in the most obvious way possible, completely removed from the battle. As the examiner, expectations of her contributing to the tower's conquest had been low, but this reaction was frankly beyond prediction.
After all, her combat ability was beyond reproach — and for her to be this terrified— "She is no ordinary individual, I would say."
"Nnh?"
A single step — the resounding click of a high-heeled boot — and the man's irritated grunt had the same cause.
It was Julius, the elegant knight, tapping the floor with the heel of his white boot as he stepped forward. In his hand was the sword Subaru had dropped in the tumble, his cheeks tight with tension.
At the sight of Julius, the corner of the man's mouth twisted with irritation.
"What's with you? And where even is this? Are you messing around?"
"No, I am not messing around. We too are taken aback. You appeared here without warning. —I hope you'll understand our caution."
"What's with you? Don't go talking all complicated, don't go talking like one of my underlings! Are you my underling or not? If not, don't go acting all confusing, got it?"
Julius's words — guarded behind strict propriety — only made the man more irritable, and he clicked his tongue.
This was far more human than the mindless repetition of earlier, but that didn't mean the conversation was going smoothly.
"Good woman, good woman, sexy woman — small fry, small fry, underling, small fry."
"Regrettably, I am not your underling."
"Tch! That's exactly what my underling would say! Don't you go imitating!"
At Julius's retort, the man broke into a grin for the first time.
Abnormally white teeth, an unnervingly refined face, and a madness of a different caliber — all blended into a shark's smile.
"———"
At last, through that smile, a glimpse of humanity could be detected in the man's figure. Or perhaps it was more accurate to say that confirmation had finally been obtained that this was an intelligent being with whom communication was possible.
"Hey, you. Explain it to me. What is this place? What are you doing to me? Don't go getting cocky on me, ya hear? Spit it out."
"You appeared out of nowhere… and you're awfully full of yourself."
"Nnh?"
The man stuck a hand into his exposed chest and casually scratched himself. Facing him, Subaru finally pushed himself upright, wringing out words.
The man opened his single right eye wide, glaring down at the prone Subaru.
"What's with you? Why are you lying down? Must be nice, lying around while you have women serving you — a meat blanket, is it? Let me have a turn."
"Sorry, but I must respect her wishes, so I'll have to decline that request…"
Burning his trembling knees, Subaru managed to stand. When he did, he forcibly pried Shaula off. His handling lacked finesse — her head hit the floor — but he had no luxury to spare on that.
But— "Aah, aah, aaah? What's with you? Is that it? Are you messing with me?"
"…That's a rather rude greeting, isn't it?"
"Tch!"
The man grinned fiercely, clamping down hard on his molars with a sharp sound.
Then, ignoring the bewildered Subaru, the man surveyed the white room with his single eye. He nodded as if satisfied, murmuring "Oh, oh, I see, I see."
"Got it. —Well then, let's start."
"Start? —Wait a minute! You've been running the show on your own this whole time!"
"Shut up. I already explained everything in my sleep. Listen to what people say, will ya?"
"What do you mean 'already'…"
*—Fool who has reached the Divine Sword, obtain that one's pardon.* Unable to keep up, Subaru's eyes spun — and in his place, it was Emilia who recited the repeated phrase word for word.
Finally, the frozen paralysis of the others began to loosen. Following Julius and Subaru, Emilia and Beatrice managed to shake off the time-freeze, and so did Anastasia and Meili.
Shaula alone remained completely unconscious— "Tch! That woman over there is different from the small fry. If she were flesh and blood, she'd be tonight's companion, ya hear? …On second look, damn — what's with that face, way too cute."
"Too cute…?"
"You! You're the examiner here, right? That's what this is about?"
Glancing at Emilia, something lecherous flickered in the man's eyes. Subaru stepped between them and jabbed a finger forward, saying just that.
At Subaru's confirmation, the man's shark smile deepened.
"—No idea. I don't care what title some other people pinned on ya. I'm me. You're you. What else is there? If you want a real conversation with me, then take me on — move me one step from this spot."
"———"
His words, delivered while standing undefended, casually, as if it were nothing.
The reason Subaru couldn't laugh it off was because the condition the man had presented was, in fact, worthy of being called a "trial" — of sufficient difficulty to qualify.
*—Fool who has reached the Divine Sword, obtain that one's pardon.* If the man standing before him was the "Fool who had reached the Divine Sword," then the method for obtaining pardon had been made clear.
All that remained was whether it was actually possible.
"I am
Before the battle — no, before the "trial" began, Julius formally announced himself.
On equal terms, showing minimum respect to the opponent with whom he would decide matters.
At this, the man narrowed his blue, single eye with amusement, trailing a bizarre aura of sword intent, and said: "No name worth announcing. —I'm just a Stick-Swinger."
The Great Library Pleiades, Second Floor "Electra" — Trial.
Time limit: Conditional Unlimited. Attempts: Conditional Unlimited. Participants: Conditional Unlimited.
—Trial, begin.