Sin Archbishop of Sloth

After that line appeared, the discussion area suddenly fell silent.

Natsuki Subaru looked at that line, his fingers tightening slightly.

Before the light screen appeared, this question would never have been raised, and there would have been no answer to speak of.

He could not have said it, either.

Even if he merely wanted to tell someone, that invisible hand deep in his chest would mercilessly squeeze his heart.

But things were different now.

Betty's grip on Natsuki Subaru's sleeve grew tighter and tighter.

She did not urge him on, only lifted her head and stared fixedly at him.

Only after a long time did Natsuki Subaru's words slowly appear.

[Natsuki Subaru: Yeah.]

Just one word.

But everyone who saw that line understood its weight.

[Natsuki Subaru: I've died many times.]

Emilia's eyelashes trembled slightly.

[Natsuki Subaru: The royal capital, the mansion, the demon beast forest, the White Whale, Sloth, the Sanctuary, and here, too.]

[Natsuki Subaru: I've died in all of them.]

No one in the discussion area interrupted.

Those lines were like wounds peeled from Natsuki Subaru's body, laid out before everyone bit by bit.

[Natsuki Subaru: I've had my stomach sliced open.]

[Natsuki Subaru: I've been bitten by demon beasts.]

[Natsuki Subaru: I've frozen to death.]

[Natsuki Subaru: I've been crushed to death.]

[Natsuki Subaru: I've also ended my life with my own hands.]

This time, even Garfiel did not immediately send any words.

Only after a moment did his words forcefully appear.

[Garfiel: Damn it.]

[Garfiel: Captain, just how much have you been carrying all by yourself?]

[Otto: ...]

[Otto: I've been analyzing Mr. Natsuki in the light screen, analyzing what cards he holds and how far he'll go.]

[Otto: But now it seems that perhaps what I should fear more isn't that future in the light screen.]

[Otto: It's that the Mr. Natsuki here has already gone through it alone more times than we can imagine.]

[Emilia: Subaru...]

Natsuki Subaru looked at that line and tugged at the corners of his mouth, wanting to say something lighthearted as he usually did.

[Natsuki Subaru: But I'm different from that guy in the light screen.]

[Natsuki Subaru: I didn't have to die eighty-eight times before finding Reinhard.]

[Natsuki Subaru: And I didn't treat Elsa and the Witch Cultists as cards in my hand back then.]

[Natsuki Subaru: So don't look at me with those strange expressions, everyone.]

He paused, then seemed to add a word of reassurance.

[Natsuki Subaru: I'm still here now, aren't I?]

After that sentence appeared, Betty finally could not hold back.

"That isn't reassuring at all."

She clutched Natsuki Subaru's sleeve, her voice trembling a little.

"Subaru, you make it sound as though just because you're standing here now, all those Subarus who died before don't count."

Natsuki Subaru froze for a moment.

Betty looked up at him, her eyes reddening as tears slid down her face, drop by drop.

"How could they possibly not count?"

In the discussion area, Emilia's words slowly appeared as well.

[Emilia: I'm sorry.]

[Natsuki Subaru: Emilia, this isn't your fault.]

[Emilia: But I didn't know.]

[Emilia: I didn't know anything.]

[Emilia: Even though you were always beside me, even though you always said you were fine, I didn't know anything.]

Looking at those words, Natsuki Subaru found himself at a loss for an answer.

[Shaula: Master...]

[Shaula: The Master in the light screen found so many people to help him, but he still looks so lonely.]

[Shaula: Are you the same way now, Master?]

Natsuki Subaru's fingers stopped.

This time, he did not pause for very long.

[Natsuki Subaru: No.]

[Natsuki Subaru: Because I stopped being alone a long time ago.]

Betty held his sleeve.

Shaula stood beside him.

Emilia, Garfiel, Otto, and everyone else watching the light screen said nothing more.

The Natsuki Subaru in the light screen did not stop.

He had even begun walking farther and deeper into the abyss.

And turning back was even less possible.

Within the light screen.

In a dim room, candlelight flickered in a corner.

Old drapes hung on the walls, and the floor was covered with a carpet so thick it had grown somewhat damp. The air carried a mixture of rotting wood, burning candle wax, and dried blood.

Natsuki Subaru sat in a chair at the back of the room.

Two months had passed, and the conspicuous tracksuit he had worn upon first arriving in another world was long gone, replaced by a black cloak that made it easy to blend into a crowd. Shadows covered half his face, leaving only his bloodshot eyes exposed.

He had already lived here for two months.

Accepted by the Witch Cult.

Respected by those black-robed figures.

Even regarded by them as some special being favored by the Witch.

There were few restrictions on his daily life.

Food was delivered, information was delivered, and his quarters were more comfortable than he had imagined. All he had to do was speak, and someone would bow their head and carry out his orders as though they were divine decrees.

But the restraints on his mind were more unbearable than any cage.

There were no normal people in the Witch Cult.

In Natsuki Subaru's eyes, not a single being here could truly be called normal.

Some believed only in their Gospels, some regarded pain as a blessing, and some were immersed in self-intoxicated fanaticism. Every one of them constantly spoke of the Witch, favor, trials, and faith, like monsters wearing human skin.

And Natsuki Subaru had to stay among them.

He had to understand their mad ravings.

He had to go along with their madness.

When necessary, he even had to pretend to be a madman just like them.

Because even madmen had their uses.

Just then, the door was pushed open.

A pale-faced man staggered inside.

His frame was almost sickly thin, his green hair lay against the sides of his face, and his eyes were deeply sunken, yet an almost deranged smile hung on his lips. With each step, his body swayed at an unnatural angle, as though his bones and flesh did not belong to the same person.

"My brain is trembling!!"

The man abruptly raised his head and pressed both hands to his temples, his shrill voice seeming ready to tear the air apart.

"Ahh, how slothful! How very slothful!"

The Sin Archbishop of Sloth.

Petelgeuse Romanee-Conti.

Natsuki Subaru watched him approach without the slightest panic in his eyes.

Although this man looked like a madman in every respect, he was undoubtedly very useful. A Sin Archbishop appearing here in person could not possibly have come merely to meet him.

"One favored by the Witch! At last, at last I can meet you!"

His voice carried a sob, yet also sounded as though he were laughing wildly.

"The favor upon you is so rich, so profound, so tremor-inducing! This is precisely the Witch's guidance! This is precisely the path the diligent must follow!"

Natsuki Subaru listened quietly.

He listened as Petelgeuse proposed attacking the Mathers Domain.

The silver-haired half-elf.

A royal selection candidate.

Emilia.

In Petelgeuse's eyes, a silver-haired half-elf participating in the royal selection was an affront to the Witch of Envy. He could not tolerate that being who resembled the Witch taking center stage in the kingdom, much less tolerate the world turning its eyes toward her without offering the reverence due.

So he wanted to sacrifice Emilia.

He wanted to bring [Satella the Witch of Envy] back into the world.