First Arrival in the Royal Capital

"Subaru, what's wrong?"

Emilia sat in the carriage, watching Subaru Natsuki stand by the door. Her voice was full of concern.

Subaru came back to himself and glanced at her, still uneasy.

"It's nothing, Emilia-tan. It's just that I've been with Master ever since I first came to this country.

"He's always calling me useless, but I know he's taken my training seriously. Now that I'm suddenly leaving, it feels like something's missing."

"Oh my! Subaru's going to miss Hane! Just like Emilia misses her father when I'm away!"

Puck flew out of Emilia's crystal pendant. Covering his cat face, he wriggled as if embarrassed.

"Haha, you're not wrong, Puck. Master looks even younger than me, but I always feel safe around him. Like I've got someone solid to lean on."

A shadow passed through Subaru's eyes.

What was it like when I first met Master?

He turned toward the window, remembering the first time he had seen Hane.

He had just used Return by Death. The pain of dying still haunted him, and he had been on the verge of breaking down.

He had wanted to run, feared the pain, wanted someone to save him. If not for his determination to save Emilia,

he would have fled that place and abandoned everything.

But then he had seen someone who had not been there in the previous loop.

At first, he thought something was wrong with his special ability, or that it had some unexplained restriction. The thought frightened him.

What happened next felt like a dream. Desperate and suffocating, he had found something to cling to.

Subaru touched his stomach.

How long has it been since I last died?

These days have been so full that I've almost forgotten I can use Return by Death.

*And my eyes—what did