Subaru woke up to an unfamiliar ceiling, his eyes slowly opening as a dull ache spread through his body.
Did I die again…? But didn't he say I was gonna win…?
As he slowly shifted his gaze from side to side, he realized he wasn't in the mansion. He wasn't greeted by the two maids who were usually there every time he reset.
"Ha…" He let out a laugh—one completely devoid of humor.
"I didn't die. I was sure I was a goner…"
So, I barely survived… and got patched up afterward.
He slowly sat up in bed, noticing a sleeping Emilia in a chair beside him. Her beautiful face looked peaceful in sleep, the tips of her pointed ears tinged pink, her silver hair softly falling across her cheek. The corners of Subaru's mouth lifted into a tired grin.
"Emilia… I'm in your debt again, huh."
Beside her, a high-pitched, childlike voice suddenly chimed in.
"It's a reward that matches the results. Lia might feel like she owes you something."
A small beige-and-white cat spirit materialized midair, striking a laid-back pose—one paw behind his head, the other waving lazily.
Subaru, looking a bit embarrassed, said, "I don't remember anything after the dogs got chompy…"
The cat spirit floated inches from Subaru's face.
"That's a cute way to put it, but it was more like…"
The spirit's face shifted into a grotesque expression.
"Gnash, gnash. Grind, grind. Rend, tear, and swallow," he said, imitating the ma-beasts while baring his pearly white, razor-sharp teeth.
Subaru flinched at the disturbingly accurate imitation.
The cat, clearly amused, continued, "You were in pretty bad shape when they brought you in. That blue-haired maid was a mess from taking the damage you didn't."
Subaru's eyes widened, his expression suddenly tense.
"That's right—Rem!"
The cat floated in lazy circles around Subaru's head, looking thoughtful.
"Her oni form makes her wounds heal pretty quickly. By the time we got here, she barely had a scratch."
Subaru let out a deep sigh of relief.
"Don't scare me like that…"
"So, Rem returned to the village, and Emilia spent the whole night here?" Subaru asked, glancing back at the sleeping girl.
The cat looked baffled.
"I told her to be patient and wait, but she wouldn't listen. She even wore down her mana to heal you. So… could you let her sleep?"
The spirit floated toward Emilia, pressing his small face gently against her cheek and rubbing affectionately.
Subaru, watching the scene, let out a small smile.
The cat turned and flashed Subaru a cheeky grin.
"Betty and I are taking good care of the children you brought back. We'll be removing the curses on them. No problem."
Then his expression shifted—his eyes narrowing into suspicious slits.
"By the way… I heard you were helped by someone. Were they a villager?"
Subaru tensed.
"I… don't think so."
He responded quickly, feeling a strange hesitation to mention Toyota. Something inside him instinctively warned that it would be a bad idea.
"Hmmm… okay."
The spirit's casual demeanor returned.
Gently, Subaru pushed off the gray wool blanket covering him. With a careful hand, he draped the blanket over Emilia instead, tucking her in softly.
With one last glance at her sleeping face, he turned and quietly left.
Immediately after leaving the house, he noticed Ram walking nearby with a basket of steaming sweet potatoes. His eyes locked on them, and he started drooling.
Noticing someone's gaze, Ram turned.
"Oh, you're awake, Barusu."
"Y-Yeah…" he stammered, still eyeing the sweet potatoes. His stomach let out a loud growl.
Ram, unimpressed, frowned.
"After your grave wounds made us worry, you wake up with a ravenous hunger? How unsightly. Perhaps you caught something from the bites."
"What do you mean 'caught something'?" Subaru's tone shifted to something more teasing. "But hey, really now… are you actually worried about me?"
Ram, clearly annoyed, grabbed a sweet potato and chucked it at Subaru's face.
"Just eat already."
The sweet potato landed perfectly in his open mouth, causing him to choke on it. He quickly spat it out, steam wafting as he fanned his tongue.
"Koff koff—I thought I was gonna die. Tastes great though…"
Turning her back to Subaru, she said, "Of course it tastes great. I made them."
Then she glanced back over her shoulder with a smug pose.
"Or rather, I steamed them."
Her face was full of pride.
Subaru looked annoyed at the posing Ram.
"What's with that proud face…?"
Ignoring him, Ram gave him a thoughtful look.
"Well done. I really should thank you, concerning last night's events. At that rate, the children would've fallen to the Urugarum pack. I believe your actions were correct, Barusu."
"Urugarum… so that's what they're called," he mused. "While, I am happy by your praise. It's not like I did it alone. Rem and a stranger helped."
"Stranger?" she asked, her tone turning suspicious.
"He had some unique clothes that I think you would've noticed."
Ram's face darkened.
"Ah yes. Your stalker."
"Stalker?" Subaru echoed, suddenly looking nervous.
"Yes. There was someone your age, hiding behind a tree in strange clothes. Watching you."
Subaru began to shiver.
"How long was he there…?"
"How should I know?" Ram replied flatly. "Just be prepared to be kidnapped."
She said it with a completely serious face.
"You're joking with me, right?" he asked, his voice rising in unease.
He looked again.
Her expression hadn't changed.
"…Right?"
***
Toyota sat on the ground, staring at the listed prices. Most of the things he wanted were ridiculously overpriced, especially for his budget. But he wasn't going to be some idiot protagonist who blew all his points on the first cool thing he saw. Instead, he decided to be practical.
"This looks useful, and I really need it. Otherwise, I'll have to ask someone for healing."
His arm had been killing him ever since that devil dog sank its teeth into him. It pained him to waste points that could go toward an awesome ability, but sacrifices had to be made. Or, as Thanos would say: "The hardest choices require the strongest wills."
"And because of that, my will is weak," he thought bitterly, caving to the pressure.
With a deep sigh, he bought Minor Heal—500 points down the drain. But I can always earn more points, right?
Immediately, a warm sensation spread through his arm as the pain dimmed. His flesh slowly began to mend, skin regrowing over the wound. Some of the deeper damage remained, leaving faint scars. An itching sensation spread across his arm, and he scratched at it absentmindedly.
"So, it's like a +50 HP potion," he muttered to himself. Only a true gamer would understand.
It didn't seem to heal everything—just some of his HP. Since this whole system worked in a video game style, he wondered… Can I see my stats?
What he did next was both ridiculous and, at the same time, completely expected. Bracing himself for the cringe, he yelled out:
"Status!"
Five seconds of silence.
Nothing happened.
A wave of secondhand embarrassment crashed over him, and he wanted to crawl into a hole and die. But then—
[Status screen is not available until you complete your first world mission.]
Toyota blinked. So, I have to get Subaru to admit that he's my friend? That might take a while…
"System, can you respond to my questions?"
[Yes, Host.]
"Really? Then why haven't you been talking to me so far?"
A long pause. Then the automatic voice responded:
[You never asked.]
"Screw you!" he yelled.
After a short moment of brooding, he hesitantly asked, "Is there a way I can earn more points other than through favorability?"
[Yes, Host. Through normal missions, you can acquire various points based on difficulty. Would you like to see available missions?]
"Yes, please."
His iPhone screen suddenly turned holographic, the letters escaping from the device and expanding outward. The list of missions appeared before him:
Basic Missions 1: Kill Sin Archbishops → 100,000 points per Archbishop
Mission 2: Kill the Three Great Disaster Beasts White Whale → 200,000 points Great Rabbit → 250,000 points Black Serpent → 300,000 points
Mission 3: Save Those Destined to Die 1,000 points per person Special Missions: Become Reinhard van Astrea's friend. Help Reinhard overcome his guilt. Reward for both missions: Unique ability
Mission 4: Help Beatrice, the Great Spirit, leave the library permanently. Reward: 50,000 points
Mission 5: Become Otto's friend. Reward: 10,000 points
Mission 6: Help liberate the Sanctuary. Reward: Unique ability
Toyota stared at the missions, his mind racing. That's a lot of points… but also a lot of risk.
"Yeah," he muttered to himself, "this is gonna be a pain."
The strangest thing, though, was that he already wanted to do almost all of these things. Just from watching the anime, he understood some of these characters' struggles—probably better than they understood themselves.
That didn't make solving them any easier.
Some missions, like dealing with the Black Serpent, were going to be a nightmare. He had no idea where to even start with that thing. All he knew was that it spread its venom like a plague and had something to do with Pandora.
The other two Great Beasts were a little different. He knew where they would be at a specific time, but not how to actively find them.
And then there was Reinhard.
Having a long conversation with the Sword Saint and helping him absolve his guilt? That was a challenge in itself. Reinhard was probably one of the hardest people to get to, given his status. At the same time, though, he was also one of the easiest to talk to.
He was one of the kindest characters in the entire series—the very definition of a perfect person. If not for his family issues, he might have been one of the most morally righteous figures in all of fiction.
And the only reason he even had guilt was because he was such a nice guy.
Toyota sighed, running a hand through his hair. "I didn't even think it was his fault."
Reinhard's grandmother's death—was that really on him? Technically, yes, but only because he had unknowingly taken the Divine Protection of the Sword Saint while thinking about how much he wanted to protect his family.
Which, ironically, did the exact opposite.
He paused for a long moment, then muttered aloud, "I wonder what these unique abilities are…"
Would they be something like an Authority? A Divine Protection? Maybe some sort of curse ability ?
Since this is Re:Zero, I wouldn't be surprised.
***
After wandering around for a while, Subaru decided to check in on Petra. He knew where her house was—she had invited him over countless times.
Her parents welcomed him warmly, practically trying to push an entire basket of fruit into his arms as thanks for saving their daughter. He kindly refused, exchanging a few more pleasantries before heading back out.
That's when he saw her.
Under a nearby bridge stood a small girl, no older than six, dressed in an elaborate pink, red, and white gown. Her blonde hair was styled into two drill-like pigtails, and she stood there as if she had been waiting for him.
"There you are. Just in time."
Subaru blinked. "Beako?"
It took a moment to process what he was seeing. What was Beatrice doing here?
"You're the one who helped lift the curses on the children, right?" he asked. "Thank you."
"Tch. It was nothing. Puckie asked me to, I suppose."
After a brief pause, her expression turned more serious. "More importantly… in less than half a day, you will die."
Subaru's smile faded, his expression growing more solemn. But despite the weight of her words, there was no fear in his eyes.
"The curse?" he asked. "You haven't been able to lift it yet?"
Beatrice folded her arms. "The demon beast pack added a great many more. It is simply too complex to remove, I suppose."
She gave him a pointed look before explaining, "Think of a curse as a knot. Lifting a curse is as simple as untying one."
Subaru nodded. "Yeah… but if a bunch of knots are tangled together—"
"—Then it becomes impossible to unravel, I suppose."
He exhaled through his nose. "And the 'less than half a day' part?"
"Simple. In less than half a day, the demon beasts shall activate the curse in search of mana."
Her voice was calm, almost indifferent, but the words were anything but.
"The curse is designed to steal mana, I suppose," she continued. "You will be demon beast food."
Subaru muttered to himself, "So they attack people out of hunger. That's wild animals for you… Guess I should be thankful they aren't hungry yet."
At that, Beatrice's expression shifted slightly—concerned, yet confused.
"I have given you a death sentence… Are you not afraid, I suppose?"
Subaru smiled. "Of course, I'm afraid."
Then, crouching down to meet her gaze, he added, "But you left the Great Library just to tell me that? To personally deliver my death sentence?"
He smirked. "You don't seem that mean."
A soft blush crept onto Beatrice's face.
"W-what do you know about Betty, I suppose?" she huffed.
Grinning, Subaru leaned in slightly, his voice teasing.
"Four times more than you think, I suppose."
He said, mimicking her speech pattern.
(AN: Extra long chapter, I have finished watching season 3 of Re:Zero and I am sick of the whos Julius memes already😭 But season 4 is announced so yay,
I have an official release schedule Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Bonus chapters will be released on Saturday if my demands are met 🔫
Trade deal: give me 50 power stones, and I will give you a bonus chapter.)