Sky Curtain
[The snow-white space around them vanished, replaced by countless bookshelves towering all the way to the ceiling.
After confirming that the monolith he had just touched was gone, Subaru knew his idea had been the right answer.
But-
"Wonderful! Subaru, you're amaz-"
"Whoever came up with this riddle is the worst!!"
"Whaaat!? Why that reaction!?"
Seeing the third floor, "Taygeta," open up, an overjoyed Emilia widened her eyes.
Subaru, however, scrunched up his entire face and launched into a tirade.
"Sure, I was the one who figured out the answer and solved it... but solving it this way is a huge problem in itself. No, actually, it's just plain unfair."
"Really? I thought we were lucky Subaru knew so much."
"It's less that I solved it because I know a lot, and more that it would be impossible to solve without someone like me. That's the big problem."
Subaru scratched his head, while Emilia tilted hers, her face full of questions.
He wondered how to explain it, but even a detailed explanation would leave the solution a troublesome matter.
The "trial," as mentioned earlier, concerned the story of Orion. That alone made him want to put aside thoughts like "Whoever came up with this was far too romantic" and start swearing, but the biggest problem was that knowledge of "Orion" simply could not exist in this world.
Not just Orion, but Shaula being the name of a star, the arrangement of the constellations, and everything else were all astronomical knowledge exclusive to the world Subaru had originally lived in.
-in other words, whoever devised this question knew the same starry sky as Subaru.
To put it more harshly, anyone who posed a riddle that only someone thoroughly familiar with another world's stars could solve definitely had a personality problem.
And the most likely candidate at present was the "Sage," Flugelgel.
"Your master seems like someone with a pretty nasty personality."
"No, no, no, no, what are you saying? Bad-mouthing yourself isn't like you, Master! Though I won't deny the nasty personality part, it's awesome that the riddle can actually be solved! If Reid had set the question, it definitely would've been impossible... he'd put a copy of himself there or something, and you couldn't pass without beating him."
"That would be a pain too, but I'm not sure which possibility I'd prefer..."
In any case, the heroes who had once driven off the "Witch of Envy" all seemed to have difficult personalities.
Given that lineup, perhaps merely being tested on knowledge from another world was relatively reasonable.
"Anyway, that's a ridiculous number of books."
Ignoring Subaru and the others' review session, Anastasia spoke as she surveyed the surrounding shelves.
Stroking her fur scarf, she gazed at the bookshelves crammed with books.
"Thanks to Natsuki, we cleared the 'trial'... that's good, but what's this library here for? What kind of books does it have? I'm mighty interested."
"According to Miss Shaula's explanation-this is a treasure trove of knowledge."
"Judging by that one's reaction, this is the first time 'Taygeta' has opened. We'll just have to look around and see."
"Right... are you secretly excited?"
"Well... perhaps, I suppose."
Beatrice walked over and pinched the hem of Subaru's clothes, speaking faster than usual.
Her eyes shone curiously as she looked around the library with keen interest-when the reason occurred to him, Subaru forgot their situation and couldn't help smiling.
"I thought the Forbidden Library only left you with bad memories."
"...It's true that not all my memories are happy ones. But whatever kind of place it was, it was where Betty spent four hundred years. Besides..."
"Besides?"
"It's where Subaru convinced Betty to 'choose me.' So it's a place I couldn't forget even if I tried."
"You're so cute~"
"Mgyah-!"
Affection welled up, and Subaru rubbed Beatrice's head vigorously, making her let out a catlike wail.
Satisfied with her reaction, he immediately began rummaging through the library.]
Watching Subaru and Beatrice interact on the Sky Curtain, Otto couldn't help smiling in relief, the corners of his mouth lifting so slightly that others would have struggled to notice.
He knew that feeling well-before Subaru disappeared, scenes like this had been common in the mansion.
Subaru always reached into people's hearts in that half-joking, half-serious way, letting his warmth seep into them when they were completely unguarded.
Beatrice was clearly angry, yet her voice rose slightly at the ends of her words. That was a sign she was happy.
Precisely because he understood, he realized all the more clearly that, during Subaru's absence, those warm interactions had been missing from their everyday lives for a long time.
He missed that feeling more than he was willing to admit.
Petra stood beside Otto, her gaze fixed on the image of Subaru stroking Beatrice's hair on the Sky Curtain.
Her breath caught slightly, as though that simple gesture had touched some feeling even she had yet to sort out.
She said quietly, "Lord Subaru could still smile at Lady Beatrice at a time like that. He'd been through so many terrible things, but he still patted Lady Beatrice's head and joked with her. How does he do it? I really wish Lord Subaru would pat my head too..."
As Petra thought this, a faint blush spread across her cheeks.
Beatrice curled up slightly in Emilia's arms. She wasn't looking at anyone, but her voice was lower than usual, as though something were slowly settling deep within her chest:
"That idiot Subaru is always like that. No matter what he's been through, he never forgets to pat my head. Betty hates that about him, because it makes it even harder to let him go. But Betty loves that about him too, because he's the one Betty chose."
[With the "trial" over and the monolith gone, the third floor revealed itself as a cylindrical level.
Its structure was the same as the floor below; the way it had seemed to extend infinitely before had apparently been an illusion. The entire floor was cramped and filled with bookshelves, with more shelves stacked atop them, creating an endless expanse of shelving.
Although the Forbidden Library had held a considerable collection, this place won overwhelmingly in sheer numbers.
"I really want a computer so I can search for the books I need~"
"In the Forbidden Library, Betty remembered perfectly where every book was, I suppose."
"That's amazing~ Are you a genius!?"
Marveling at Beatrice's little boast, Subaru approached a nearby bookshelf. A glance around showed Emilia and the others approaching shelves of their own, though they seemed hesitant to take any books.
"You were the one who solved the riddle, right, Subaru? So we're worried about whether anyone besides you can touch them."
"Ah~ True, we don't know what might happen. But if only the person who answered correctly could read them, wouldn't it be strange that all of you who just watched me solve it got into the library too?"
"Oh, that's true. We could think of entering here as being given permission."
"Yeah, that's what I think... wait, Emilia-tan!?"
Emilia readily accepted Subaru's words, then pulled a book from the shelf before her and began flipping through it in front of the startled Subaru.
"Hmm~ This book... is normal. Subaru, what's wrong?"
"Nothing, I've fallen for Emilia-tan's incredible nerve all over again... I know I'm the one who said it, but I'd still rather have gone first, you know?"
"-? Since you said so, it should be fine, right? Huh, did I say something strange?"
Emilia genuinely didn't understand, leaving Subaru at a loss for words. Overcome by an indescribable feeling, he could only cover his face with his palm and groan, "Ugh~"]
In the hall, Priscilla gently closed her folding fan with a crisp snap. Tilting her head, she looked at the shifting Sky Curtain, her tone carrying that distinctively casual sharpness of hers:
"That half-devil girl certainly has nerve. Reaching for those books without confirming their safety-courage of that degree is less recklessness than some deeper kind of trust. She trusts Subaru's judgment, trusts that Subaru will not put her in danger."
The corner of Priscilla's mouth curved upward,
"Being trusted so excessively by a half-devil must be quite exhausting for that boy."
Ram stood at the edge of the hall's shadows, her pale red eyes lowered as though she were looking at something she was unwilling to acknowledge.
She knew-that unreserved trust Emilia now showed was one of the reasons Subaru could keep holding on.
But she also knew that the weight of that trust was sometimes an indescribable pressure on that fool. He was afraid of letting others down.
He was always afraid of that. She spoke softly, so quietly that almost only she could hear:
"...That fool is already on the verge of being crushed himself, yet he still makes that face when someone believes in him. As though he doesn't know whether he deserves that trust, but still wants to do his best to answer it."
She said no more, because she knew that continuing would make her unlike herself.
["The knowledge you've accumulated proved its worth. And the fact is, you solved the mystery of 'Taygeta' that no one else could solve. That accomplishment should not, and must not, be denied."
"It was just luck. I happened to know it, that's all."
Julius shrugged at the bewildered Subaru. His words made Subaru avert his eyes.
Emilia's trust, Beatrice's affection, Julius's sincerity-each was something Subaru wanted, yet he couldn't shake the sense of incongruity when they were offered to him.
Subaru often wondered whether he truly deserved to be treated that way.
"Just as Lady Emilia said, they're ordinary books. There don't seem to be any dangerous traps."
"The material of the books... I can't tell. Nor their age. But the contents...?"
Following Emilia's proactive attempt, the others also reached for books.
That said, the world wasn't so accommodating that reading one or two books would tell them everything.
"Beako, how does it look?"
"As far as I can see, their dimensions are uniform and orderly. But all the titles are different. This one is 'Noah Libertas.' This one is 'Aikon Vara'... even the way they're shelved is a complete mess, I suppose."
Her librarian's heart cried out; Beatrice was displeased that the books had been shelved so carelessly.
Although he couldn't recall seeing her organize books in the Forbidden Library, she must have kept them properly categorized. Setting Beatrice's indignation aside, Subaru looked at the spines and finally noticed.
"The titles of these books... could they all be people's names?"
"Hmm... it seems so. This one is 'Palma Ellen,' and this one is 'Kayuti.'"
"They're all names I don't recognize. I wouldn't claim to be widely knowledgeable, but within the scope of my knowledge, I've never heard them. Of course, if I looked around some more, that might change..."
"If even you don't know, probably no one here does."
If even Julius, who had been giving off an increasingly strong history-nerd vibe lately, didn't know them, perhaps these titles weren't people's names? Subaru also took a random book and flipped through it, but the writing on it was merely the ordinary "i-script," "ro-script," and "h-script," all unique to this world.
"Let's check with Miss Anastasia too, just in case... are there any names you recognize?"
"-Hmm~ Nope, none?"
Although he addressed Anastasia, Subaru was actually checking with Scarf Dona.
As an artificial spirit, her knowledge might surpass Julius's.
But that hope also came to nothing. If she was lying here, the only possibility was that Scarf Dona was an enemy.
"It's too early to throw up our hands. They say the best place to hide a tree is in a forest... a book packed with important information might be hidden somewhere on these shelves. What a pain."
"Don't give up halfway through. Unlike a riddle we couldn't solve, we have something to work with now. Let's do our best!"
Faced with the enormous number of books, Emilia lightly clenched her fists and rallied their spirits.
Whether her victory pose had worked or not, Subaru turned back to the shelves and, as he traced the titles with his finger, found a lead.
"Oh?"
Silently reading the titles, his finger suddenly stopped on one book. He hooked his finger around its cover and pulled it from the shelf. Its title was a name he had seen before.
"-"
Subaru involuntarily reached out, took the book, and opened it. Then, just as he was about to read this book bearing the name of someone he knew-it happened.
-His consciousness went black, and the scene changed.
Subaru's mind and body entered another story entirely.
Pain, repressed emotions, sin, and notions of goodness battered him relentlessly until the story ended.
After witnessing the origins of the "Witch of Pride" he had met, Subaru's consciousness returned painfully to his body.]
Watching Subaru collapse in pain on the Sky Curtain, Garfiel nearly crushed the chair back he was gripping. His voice came through gritted teeth, low and heavy:
"The Captain gets attacked even when he's readin' a book. What the hell did that 'Witch of Pride' do to him? Look at his face-that's real sufferin', deeper than any pain I've ever seen."
Otto offered an explanation, his gaze carrying that characteristic caution he only showed when analyzing something:
"Mr. Subaru read about the origins of Typhon, the 'Witch of Pride'-it was some kind of experience of her memories. He wasn't merely reading words, but personally living through that person's life. An impact like that could easily make someone lose themselves. Someone weak-willed might become trapped in the book and never return."
He paused,
"Mr. Subaru could return because his will is stronger than most people's-but that doesn't mean an experience like that won't leave its mark."
Petra's fingers clenched her skirt, and her breathing grew shallow and rapid. The moment she saw Subaru fall on the Sky Curtain, her heart nearly stopped.
It was different from the scenes she had witnessed at the mansion-Subaru hadn't fallen with a smile, nor had he rushed out to protect someone.
He had merely opened a book, and then his expression had changed.
It had become that of someone drowning.
She said quietly:
"Lord Subaru, his soul seemed to be caught by that book. He thought he was going to be swallowed-he was afraid he would disappear. That fear looked so real. These books are terrifying. I'm so worried about Lord Subaru."
["Gah-!!"
His consciousness tore free of the book with a cry.
It felt as though blood had dried and stuck him fast, only for someone outside to forcibly peel him away. It wasn't his head or body that hurt, but his soul.
His soul had adhered to the book, and being peeled away came with pain.
"Subaru!"
A voice pierced through from beside him, and the book fell from Subaru's hands.
Still open, the book landed facedown on the floor, while Emilia supported the shoulders of the utterly drained Subaru.
"Oh, ohh...?"
"A-are you all right? You looked reeeally uncomfortable just now..."
"N-nothing was taken from me, right... hey? I'm still here, aren't I?"
His heart pounding, Subaru pressed a hand to his chest and took repeated deep breaths. His gaze wandered everywhere before finally settling on Emilia.
"Ahh, seeing Emilia-tan's face calmed me down. Let me borrow your hands a little longer."
"Of course. But what happened?"
Readily accepting Subaru's need for comfort, Emilia asked as she supported his shoulders. Beatrice also moved, reaching for the book on the floor.
"Just now, your expression turned strange after you touched this book..."
"Wait, Beatrice! Don't touch it!"
He tried to stop her, but the girl had already picked up the book and was holding it. Without having looked inside at all, Beatrice seemed surprised by Subaru's alarm as she read its title aloud.
"-Typhon. Is that a name you know, Subaru?"
"Yeah, it is... do you..."
At that question, Subaru had been about to ask in return, "Don't you know her?"
But whether her answer was yes or no, he would struggle to respond, so he frowned, considering what to say. Meanwhile, Beatrice opened the book and checked inside.
"You idiot-!"
"Calling me an idiot is terribly rude. There's nothing wrong with this book, just like the others."
The same shock Subaru had suffered would strike Beatrice too-or so he had thought, but the girl showed no reaction to the book's contents.
She even said it was as ordinary as the other books.
"But to Subaru, this book was different from the others... That seems to be what happened."
"...Yeah. But why only me?"
"Could it be that, just like the room's riddle, only Subaru can understand it? Or maybe it only works on Subaru because he solved the riddle..."
"If that's true, whoever set the question has an even nastier personality..."
Emilia's thoughtful suggestion gave Subaru a bad feeling, and he shook his head furiously.
-What flashed through his mind were the terrifyingly dense, intensely vivid memories of that "woman." Her presence, her scent, the feel of her-the weight he had felt in that shattered life.
It was a miracle he had returned after experiencing "someone's" memories so intensely.
He could have been swallowed up by someone else's life. The fear and revulsion that experience had brought him were that clear and vivid.
"Subaru, where did you learn about this person called Typhon?"
"It's hard to explain... No, maybe it wouldn't be for you, Emilia-tan? I didn't know her and had never met her, but I encountered her in the tomb."
Those words made Emilia and Beatrice freeze at the same time.
"Typhon was one of the 'Witches' of the past. She was the 'Witch of Pride,' a brown-skinned little girl who looked about Beako's age. But she was a child who embodied innocent cruelty."
After Subaru's explanation, Emilia and Beatrice shook their heads, showing no recognition.
Apparently, Echidna's Witch exhibition had been a special arrangement just for Subaru.
Even if it had served her own purposes, she had put considerable effort into arranging it.
"Innocent cruelty... huh."
Saying it aloud, Subaru recalled Typhon, whom he had only briefly encountered.
Even if it had happened in a mental world, having his arms and legs shattered by her was hard to forget. Though they had been healed immediately, that had done nothing to lessen the shock of losing his limbs. Still, his earlier "reading" had offered a glimpse into her utterly unconventional thinking.
Of course, whether he could understand it was another matter entirely.
"Anyway, I read that book just now, and it contained that girl Typhon's... memories? Life? Origins? Whatever it was, I experienced that part of it. It just felt really awful."
"Experiencing someone else's memories. That makes it even more like the tomb's 'trials.'"
"Back then, we had to face off against our own memories. Well, I won easily enough."
"Y-yes. Easily."
Pretending they had never cried and screamed until their faces were covered in snot, or suffered repeated failures that crushed their spirits, Subaru and Emilia looked at each other and nodded.
"Leaving your brave fronts aside, a book that lets you experience another person's memories... In other words, there is a way to recall the past. In that case, a library where you can learn what you wish to know-"
Beatrice pondered what had happened to Subaru and what he had experienced, muttering to herself. But just as Subaru was about to ask a question, another voice interrupted.
"-Urgh!"
The sound came from Julius and the others, who were investigating another bookshelf.
Turning toward what sounded like a scream, they saw Julius down on one knee, a book in his hand.
Beside him, Anastasia looked startled. She shook the knight's shoulder, then finally snatched the book away.
"Julius? Julius, get ahold of yourself-! Can you hear me?"
"...Lady Anastasia."
"That's right. Nice and slow, take a deep breath... There, you all right?"
Just as Subaru's had earlier, Julius's consciousness slowly returned to reality.
Even exhausted, he looked like a painting, and Anastasia's expression relaxed with relief.
"Hey, hey, did you give yourself a fever reading too many difficult books? I know how you feel... I mean, ow!"
"Don't automatically say things to pick on him. Julius, are you really all right?"
Emilia gently but firmly tugged the deliberately obnoxious Subaru's ear. At her concerned question, Julius shook his head, his complexion having improved slightly.
"My apologies for worrying you. I am ashamed to have reacted so dramatically... But that experience truly was bad for the heart."
Julius hid his mental distress and answered Emilia gracefully, but he could not entirely conceal the cold sweat on his forehead. As he put on a brave face, Anastasia gently pressed her handkerchief against it.
"Putting on a brave face might come naturally to boys, but say so when you're feeling unwell, all right? Pushing yourself too hard only causes trouble for the people around you."
"Yes. Thank you for your concern."
"Yes, yes. Just as Miss Anastasia says. Right, Subaru?"
"I don't know why you're asking me to confirm it, but sure!"
Once the masters and servants of both camps finished speaking, their gazes turned to the book Anastasia held against her chest. Julius had probably seen something like Subaru's experience. Looking at the cover, the name written there was-
"-Balleroy Temeglyph. Do you know him?"
"I've never heard of him. That much I'm sure of."
Emilia read the title and glanced sideways at Subaru. Subaru answered confidently and nodded. He trusted his memory.
If he knew someone, he remembered their name clearly, from Arlam Village to the fruit stall in the royal capital.
"That name rings a bell. If I remember right... Mm, yes. Wasn't there a general in the Vollachian Empire by that name?"
"-A former general, to be precise."
Anastasia offered an answer from her hazy memories, and Julius added that correction.
Simply listening made it clear that Julius had some connection to the man.
"But Vollachia's the country to the south, right? You know a general from there?"
"A former general. Surely that is not surprising? I belong to the Royal Guard. The Kingdom of Lugunica borders the Vollachian Empire, so there are plenty of opportunities to learn its generals' names."
"I see, someone you only knew of... Huh."
Subaru narrowed his eyes and nodded at Julius's explanation. Then he signaled Anastasia with a glance and took "Balleroy" from her. After a moment's hesitation, he opened it. But-
"Now I know his name too, but nothing happened when I opened it."
"...Subaru."
"What matters most between us right now is trust, isn't it? As for whether you and I have any... It's not like we don't, but am I the only one who thinks so?"
"-What an underhanded way to put it."
Under Subaru's stare, Julius lowered his lashes and answered.
"Apart from those of you here, I currently have no one I can trust. I cannot even trust Reinhard. Right now, you and Lady Anastasia are my only emotional support."
"...Hearing you put it like that makes my skin crawl."
"I also found it rather embarrassing once I said it."
Subaru scratched the tip of his nose, while Julius pinched his bangs and closed his eyes. Then he sighed and promptly bowed to Anastasia and Emilia.
"I apologize for my discourtesy, Lady Anastasia, Lady Emilia. My earlier answer was colored by personal feelings. When we ought to be sharing the contents of these books, that is difficult to excuse."
"Whether we forgive you depends on how generous Emilia and I are. What do you think?"
"Subaru and Miss Anastasia already said everything I wanted to say. So now I want to know what happened. That's all."
The two quickly accepted his apology, and Julius bowed deeply again. Someone who apologized desperately after doing something wrong became much more agreeable once forgiven. Subaru often felt that way himself, so he could hardly regard it as someone else's problem.
Unaware of Subaru's feelings, Julius began to recount the story. In retrospect, it was much like reopening an old wound.
"-Balleroy Temeglyph. The nine strongest generals of the meritocratic Vollachian Empire are known as the 'Nine Divine Generals.' He was once one of them."
"The Nine Divine Generals... Now that's a title that gets your blood pumping. I don't dislike that taste."
"Every one of the Nine Divine Generals is immensely powerful... In terms of national strength alone, the Vollachian Empire rivals the Kingdom of Lugunica, if not surpasses it. Militarily, without the covenant with the Divine Dragon and Reinhard, the kingdom would surely face a grueling war."
"It feels strange to assume there'd be a war..."
Subaru scratched his cheek with a finger as he considered Julius's assessment of their military strength. Thinking about it, he knew far too little about the situation in countries outside the Kingdom of Lugunica-
"Anyway, since you keep talking about that Balleroy guy in the past tense..."
"Yes, he has already passed away. He possessed rare strength and was a soldier of noble character, a man worthy of respect. The one who took his life was none other than myself."
His expression suggesting there was more to it, Julius revealed the foreign general's fate.
"You killed a foreign general? That's quite a surprise."
"Lady Anastasia... No, you do not remember now."
At her reaction to hearing it for the first time, Julius lowered his eyes. Judging by his earlier attitude, Julius had probably shared that information with Anastasia before everyone forgot him, and before Scarf-dona possessed her.
"Um, if the books I've read weren't wrong, Lugunica and Vollachia get along ve~ry badly..."
"You killed a powerful neighboring country's general, and it didn't turn into a war?"
Looking slightly relieved at their straightforward, simple questions, Julius nodded.
"It was the result of a complicated situation. Reinhard and Ferris were involved as well... To put it plainly, the former general attempted to stage a coup in the empire. We met because we happened to be in the empire at the time."
"Those two were there too? Weird, isn't Reinhard banned from export?"
"An exception was granted because the emperor wished to meet him... However casually you speak, do you not think calling it 'exporting Reinhard' is inappropriate?"
"I couldn't think of a better way to put it on the spot. What should I call it, smuggling?"
In the sense that he could not be moved around, it was not wrong. In fact, Subaru had been reminded of Reinhard's extraordinary nature in Pristella, the Water Gate City.
So it was easy to imagine that, in a war against another country, having Reinhard as a main fighting force would be an absolute nightmare for the enemy.
He was not permitted to approach national borders.
It was hardly surprising that such a treaty existed.
"In any case, that former general's name was Balleroy Temeglyph. As you can see, I survived our duel, but I escaped death by the narrowest margin. A single misstep, and our positions would have been reversed... He was a man whose passing was regrettable."
"You really think highly of him, huh? Wasn't he someone who tried and failed to stage a coup?"
"I was not told the full details. However, having fought him, I am certain Sir Balleroy was not a man who would instigate a coup for personal gain."
The force of that rebuttal showed what a thorn the man had left in Julius's heart.
Feeling that keenly, Subaru tilted his head in puzzlement.
"I get how much you respected him. But if that's the case, I don't really know how to put this, but wouldn't hearing that from the winner make your opponent unhappy?"
"What do you mean?"
"There's no hidden meaning. Just what I said."
With Julius's personality, once he acknowledged an opponent's strength, he would want to praise them lavishly, all the more so if they were a soldier, because the outcome had already been decided.
"Forget all the other stuff. If the winner just boasts about winning, wouldn't that make things easier for the loser too? Well, personally, if you'd lost back then, I wouldn't have ended up getting beaten to a pulp in front of everyone at the start of the royal selection, so I can't just let that slide."
"-In that case, the task of disciplining you at the training grounds would have fallen to Reinhard."
"I'd have been annihilated!"
Julius, whose expression had been gloomy, finally smiled at Subaru's banter.
Satisfied with that, Subaru silently shrugged.
"We have strayed from the subject. That was my connection to Sir Balleroy. My apologies. In principle, that incident was not to be made public, and it is also a bitter memory for me."
"Yeah, that's definitely not something you can talk about publicly. I get it. I'll keep my lips zipped for now."
"Mm, understood. I'll keep my lips... zipped?"
With Julius's circumstances explained, Subaru and Emilia also promised to keep his secret. And so the identity of the person in the book Julius had "experienced" became clear-
"I think I understand. In other words, the books here let readers experience the past of 'someone they have met.'"
"A 'Witch' for me, a 'former general' for Julius. That does seem to fit."
"Oh dear, I think I just heard a word I can't ignore. Natsuki, you know a Witch? How awful~ With connections like that, you're practically in the Witch Cult."
"I think it's pretty terrifying myself, but I'm not that distinctive. Having no personality is one of my worries."
Subaru shrugged off Anastasia's jab.
Instead, Emilia and Beatrice looked displeased, and eventually even Julius did too.
"We've more or less figured out what the books in this library mean. Now that we know, shall I mention something frightening?"
"I don't really want to hear it. What is it?"
"The titles of all the books in this library are people's names, right?"
Anastasia pointed to the books "Balleroy" and "Typhon" as she spoke. Subaru felt that listening further would only make things scarier, but he nodded in agreement anyway.
"Books about an imperial general and Natsuki's 'Witch' friend."
"We're not friends."
"If there's even a book about your 'Witch' friend, that means these are books about the deceased."
Calling Typhon deceased felt a little strange.
Still, now that the tea party's space had disappeared from the tomb, they could probably be considered completely dead.
As for Echidna, there were too many suspicious factors, including Scarf-dona, to feel at ease.
Setting aside Subaru's misgivings, Anastasia spread her arms and turned in a circle, indicating the whole library as she spoke.
"The books here have the names of people from all over the world, past and present, right? In that case... how long would it take to find one particular person's book?"
Her words made Subaru gaze at the countless books and think. He wanted to correct himself. This library's creator did not have a nasty personality.
-Their personality was twisted to the absolute extreme.]
"That friend of yours... certainly knows a lot of Witches."
"If Ubilk hadn't insisted on jumping out at a time like this to vouch for Natsuki Subaru's identity as the 'Sage' Flugel, it really would be hard to explain his relationship with the Witch Cult."
Wearing his demon mask, Vincent waved a hand, indicating that it no longer mattered.
After all, Natsuki Subaru had far too many identities now. A person from another world, the "Sage" Flugel, the lover of Satella, the "Witch of Envy"...
By comparison, his identities as "Natsumi Schwartz," his own former strategist, and as the knight of a certain candidate in the neighboring country's chaotic royal selection seemed less important.
So, at this point, Vincent could no longer regard him as a certain long-vanished Sin Archbishop of "Pride." On the contrary, he had to rely on this "savior" and these outside forces to break the empire's current deadlock.
Because some things could not be accomplished simply by settling who would occupy the throne...
As for the cause of death of Balleroy, the "former" Ninth of the Nine Divine Generals, and the truth of that rebellion-whenever Vincent thought about those matters, his body felt unwell. His head either grew drowsy or ached violently, as though something always refused to let him investigate the truth.
Originally, in his memories, all the rebels had been executed, and naturally, he had personally sentenced their leader, Balleroy, to death.
But in the facts shown in the Sky Curtain, he had been slain by a knight from the neighboring country-even though Vincent himself did not know the name Julius at all.
"We knew this matter was not so simple... No wonder the original account recording that rebellion was so short..."
To further verify the truth, Vincent asked the members of Emilia's camp about Julius.
"Julius... He's also a victim of 'Gluttony,' and what was devoured was his very existence..."
Emilia could not help clenching her fingers, and everyone's eyes involuntarily turned toward the Sin Archbishop of "Gluttony" right there.
Feeling the threat in their many gazes, Louis instinctively shrank back in fear and hid behind Medium, who had already regained her original figure.
But since the decision to postpone dealing with it had already been made, only a helpless sigh came from the crowd that loathed Gluttony.
Then, over in Kararagi City-
"That friend of yours isn't really Flugel, the 'Sage' from four hundred years ago, is he?!"
The tall figure who followed Anastasia and Julius like a phantom revealed himself of his own accord.
After seeing the contents of the Sky Curtain, even he, who should have been as solemn and dignified as a werewolf, unmoved by honor or disgrace, could not help exclaiming.
They, too, were hurrying toward the Empire at full gallop-because of Natsuki Subaru's special identity and ability.
"Well, I don't have any solid proof yet, but since Natsuki Subaru has this ability called 'Return by Death,' he must have an identity none of us expected. As for being Flugel the 'Sage,' even Shaula, the watchtower's guardian, acknowledged his identity, after all."
Anastasia spoke cheerfully to the man concealed beside her, within the flickering shadows.
"I also have to thank you for being willing to come with us, Halibel~ But is it really all right for a powerful fighter from Kararagi City to head into the Empire? Though your ability to conceal yourself is certainly absurdly strong..."
"Rest assured. I'm quite interested in that friend of yours myself, and naturally, I won't do anything out of line in the Empire. After all, compared with Lugunica, the Empire's relations with Kararagi are much less strained. Besides, from what you've said, quite a few things are bound to happen there, even involving a former member of the Empire's Nine Divine Generals. Offering some assistance at a time like this would hardly be unexpected."
"Subaru-kun... You truly are a man I admire from the bottom of my heart. Thank you for all your efforts, all this time. You're the true knight, Subaru-kun!"
Julius considered himself Subaru's friend and believed he understood him fairly well. They truly had become acquainted through a fight.
So he also knew very well what sort of person Subaru was-a true knight who was kind, impulsive, and would never abandon a single companion.
He did not know how many times Subaru had sacrificed himself for his companions, or how many times he had activated Return by Death. The hardships along that journey were beyond anything he could compare himself to or imagine.
"I'll go help Subaru-kun out of the mire! It's just..."
"After 'Gluttony' devoured my existence, I don't know exactly how the information concerning Balleroy in the Empire might have changed... Everything is unknown."
Although Julius himself greatly admired the character of this general from an enemy nation, as a member of the order of knights serving in a neighboring country's delegation, he naturally had no way of knowing the specific details of that rebellion in the enemy nation.
"I can only hope these few scraps of information I know will be useful to Subaru-kun in the Empire."
Julius sighed. He had the feeling this journey to the Empire would inevitably involve bloodshed.
"It's a shame Subaru-kun isn't on my team. That really is a little regrettable."
"Are you the enemy who killed the dragon's beloved? Human! What exactly is going on?! What is that thing in the sky? Even the flying dragons can't touch it. That damned thing is nothing short of an insult to dragons!"
The dragon girl Madelyn had actually seen what was on the Sky Curtain from the imperial capital as well.
Her first instinct had been to summon flying dragons to tear this thing invading their airspace to pieces, but no matter how high they flew, they seemed unable to touch it.
Then she, too, had angrily leaped into the air and flown up, only to discover that the faster she flew, the farther away the thing became. She could never touch it.
She had intended to take further action, but then Madelyn heard the people in the Sky Curtain talking about Balleroy.
This was very different from her original memory of Vincent directly putting Balleroy to death. What the knight named Julius in the Sky Curtain told her was-"Balleroy died in an honorable one-on-one duel with a knight from a neighboring country."
"If only I could find that human... Julius... Julius! What is the truth? Damn Vincent, damn those insect-like humans!"
The flying dragon girl Madelyn angrily stamped her dainty feet in midair. Despite her cute, little-girl figure, it seemed as though even the air would be shattered beneath her feet.
After seeing the enormous Sky Curtain overhead and that angry figure, Flop could not help falling into thought himself.
"That person on the Sky Curtain certainly looks like Master. Mistress is up there too, and so is Mistress's older sister... Though Mistress looks like 'Sleeping Beauty' on the Sky Curtain."
"So Master had so many companions. Being separated from so many companions really is a sad thing. Especially since the relationship between Master and Mistress isn't quite so... symmetrical?"
"And there's the truth behind my 'sworn brother' Balleroy's death. If even a knight from an enemy nation could show him such respect in a duel, and thought he wasn't the sort to launch a rebellion, then there must have been more to that rebellion. Just what role did Emperor Vincent play in it?"
"I really wish I could grow ten brains all at once. Oh, never mind. Since I'm already locked up here, I should focus on looking after Mistress and waiting for everyone to rescue us."
"At least with this Sky Curtain, staying here won't be particularly boring... I wonder how my little sister Medium and the others are doing..."
Flop, who had originally been leaning by the window, was now lying on the bed again, continuing to rest and recover from his injuries, while those brief but beautiful memories from his childhood kept flashing through his mind.
Everyone was digesting that information in their own way-the information about altered memories, about buried truths, about the names and stories collected in that tower.