Outside the screen, no one truly breathed a sigh of relief.
They finally understood why the Natsuki Subaru on the screen had done that.
He had not killed for the sake of killing, nor had he turned his blade on the village without reason.
He wanted to recover his memories.
He wanted to read the lives of those who knew "Natsuki Subaru" into his mind, then use Return by Death to take everything back to the beginning.
That reason was understandable, but it also sent a chill down their spines.
Because the Natsuki Subaru on the screen truly treated Return by Death as an authority he could use.
As long as he could start over in the end, all the deaths along the way could be undone.
As long as everything could be undone in the end, all the pain now could be endured.
As long as he could return to the right place in the end, even an entire village of corpses could become a tool on the path to "the hero Natsuki Subaru."
Because he discovered that he could actually understand that person.
If Return by Death really could be used at will, if everyone who died could come back in the end, if all suffering was merely something that had to be crossed before reaching the right ending-
Then the version of himself on the screen had not simply "gone mad" out of nowhere.
He had merely taken one wrong step, then convinced himself that he "could still start over" and taken the next.
By the time he came to his senses, his hands were already covered in innocent blood.
The person on the screen was no different from him.
Quite the opposite: he understood "his" thinking very well. He could even understand why that person would think that way.
He seemed to be standing at the entrance to that same path.
Only this time, someone had taken his hand. Emilia had not said, "It's all right," and Betty had not said, "This isn't your fault."
Julius had not defended the version of him on the screen, Otto had not immediately forgiven him, and Ram had bluntly called him a fool.
Yet precisely because of that, Natsuki Subaru slowly lowered his head instead. They were telling him he must not take that path.
[Otto: But the people who were killed aren't numbers. Even if they can come back in the end, you can't say that moment never existed. Even after Return by Death, this would still place an immense burden on Subaru's mind.]
[Julius: Subaru, I was too hasty to say you had already gone mad.]
[Julius: Comparing you to a Sin Archbishop before understanding your objective was not a judgment befitting a knight. For that, I apologize.]
As Natsuki Subaru looked at those lines, he felt an awkwardness he could not describe.
He did not remember Julius, did not remember what relationship this person had with him, and did not remember what had happened between them.
Yet for some reason, seeing that person apologize so earnestly made him feel rather uncomfortable instead.
As though this was exactly how this person ought to be: earnest and upright.
Even his apology seemed to come with him standing perfectly straight, laying out his own mistake first before continuing with what he needed to say.
[Julius: However, Subaru.]
[Julius: I still cannot approve of that future path.]
[Julius: I understand why you would do that.]
[Julius: You want to recover your memories, save everyone, and use Return by Death to take everything back to the beginning.]
[Julius: But precisely because I understand, I cannot pretend I have seen nothing.]
[Julius: If one day you treat Return by Death as a sword that can cut through everything, then we should also be the ones standing before you to stop you.]
Natsuki Subaru merely repeated that name in a low voice.
"Julius..."
It was unfamiliar, yet somehow felt familiar, too.
[Otto: The same goes for me. I really did think too badly of Mr. Natsuki earlier.]
[Otto: When I saw Reikin dead and the village gone, I could no longer think calmly.]
[Otto: All I can say is that I understand why Mr. Natsuki did that.]
[Otto: But I don't want to see Mr. Natsuki reach that point again.]
[Ram: Barusu really is a fool.]
Ram's words appeared out of nowhere.
[Ram: You clearly don't have much of a brain, yet you always like putting yourself in the most troublesome position.]
[Ram: If you dare treat Return by Death as something like that, Ram will beat some sense into you first.]
Natsuki Subaru instinctively touched his face.
Ram was not even in the room, yet he already felt his cheeks beginning to hurt.
[Betty: Betty will lock idiot Subaru up first, until you truly trust us.]
[Betty: Return by Death is no reason for you to suffer alone.]
Emilia was not looking at the comment area.
She was only looking at Natsuki Subaru.
Then she released his hand.
Natsuki Subaru instinctively glanced down. A little warmth still lingered in his palm. But Emilia did not step away. She merely took half a step forward and stood between Natsuki Subaru and the screen with her hands on her hips.
Cold light fell over her, caught by her long silver hair and scattered into a faint sheen. She stood there, her figure not particularly imposing, her shoulders still tense from the scenes she had just witnessed, her violet eyes fixed firmly on Natsuki Subaru.
Natsuki Subaru suddenly felt a little dazed.
He clearly remembered nothing.
He did not remember what he and Emilia had been through, nor how the person named "Natsuki Subaru" had made his way to her side, step by step.
Yet at that moment, he seemed to understand a little.
If the first thing he had seen upon arriving in this world had been a silver-haired girl like this.
If, in a place so unfamiliar that it made him want to run away, someone would turn back like this and look at him earnestly, choosing to step forward even though she was afraid herself.
Then perhaps there was nothing strange about him being drawn to her.
She stood before the screen just like that, blocking the Natsuki Subaru who was reading the Books of the Dead.
Natsuki Subaru understood what she meant.
If one day he truly tried to go there, she would no longer stand behind him, crying as she waited for him to return.
She would stand in front of him, stop him, and then keep walking alongside him.
Betty came closer then.
She slowly wrapped her arms around Natsuki Subaru's arm and gently rested her forehead against it.
"Idiot Subaru."
Betty's voice was muffled.
"Don't look as though you might disappear at any moment, I suppose."
Natsuki Subaru looked down at her.
Betty did not look up. Her curls brushed his sleeve, but her grip on his arm tightened a little.
"Whether Subaru forgets Betty or forgets the contract, Betty will be very angry."
She paused.
"But Betty hasn't forgotten Subaru."
The room fell quiet. Emilia stood in front of him, and Betty leaned against his side.
As Natsuki Subaru looked at them, he suddenly felt that perhaps he could no longer reach the path shown on the screen, no matter what.
The bonds left behind by the "Natsuki Subaru" of the past were holding back his steps in ways still unfamiliar to him.
Leaving him unable to keep walking forward alone as though nothing had happened.