"There's no magic that convenient in this wooorld."
Inside the dragon carriage, Roswaal shook his head as he supplemented Subaru's magical education.
Over the past few days, he had occasionally found time to act as Subaru's magic teacher.
"Mana is fundamentally tied to the life force within living creatures."
"When a person's vitality weakens, the mana within them also becomes weaaaker."
"If too much mana is consumed, the body becomes exhausted."
"Push the consumption even further, and the person simply passes ooout."
"So magic that can only activate when someone is about to die simply doesn't exiiist."
"Teacher Roswaal!"
Subaru cried out with the reverence of a devout believer witnessing a miracle.
His eyes even filled with tears as he stared at Roswaal.
"What if it isn't magic?"
With his head buried comfortably in a soft pillow, Shiro offered another possibility.
"There are other kinds of supernatural powers in this world besides magic, right?"
"For example... Divine Protections?"
"From what I understand, Divine Protections can have all sorts of bizarre effects, and even the people who possess them might not completely understand what they can do."
"Take Reinhard."
"He has a Divine Protection that makes him stronger after he gets injured, doesn't he?"
As he spoke, Shiro suddenly narrowed his eyes.
"Or... do you know about some other kind of power that's different from both Divine Protections and magic?"
The instant those words left Shiro's mouth—The atmosphere inside the carriage seemed to freeze.
A sharp gleam flashed through Roswaal's eyes.
But the next moment, he acted as though nothing had happened and maintained his usual smile.
"I wouldn't knooow."
"I'm merely an ordinary little magic user, after aaall."
"I don't know very much about things outside magiiic."
"Unless our guest happens to have some clues?"
"If you do, why not share them with all of uuus?"
"An 'ordinary' magic user who simultaneously holds the three highest titles of [Red], [Yellow], and [Green] in Lugunica?"
"If you count as ordinary, every other magic user in the kingdom is going to cry."
"Hm... Ha... Hahahahahaha—!"
For some reason, Roswaal suddenly burst into hearty laughter.
The abrupt reaction startled Subaru badly.
Still tied to the seat, he wriggled himself upright and shifted as far away from Roswaal as possible.
Yet within that laughter—Shiro somehow detected a trace of bitterness.
"Those so-called titles are merely names bestowed on me by people who have never truly seen how vast the world iiis."
"Compared to the real peeak..."
"I'm still far, far awaaay."
Roswaal gazed through the carriage window.
There was a faintly mocking look on his face, as though he were reminiscing about his past self.
"However..."
"Now that you mention iiit, something does come to mind."
He withdrew his gaze and rested his right hand against the window frame.
His index finger tapped against it rhythmically.
"The Witch Cult."
"You've heard of them, haven't yooou?"
The moment Roswaal said those words—The entire carriage fell silent.
Even Emilia, who had been smiling while watching everyone talk, froze.
That reaction was only natural.
The Witch Cult might not be treated as a forbidden subject in Lugunica to the same extent as the Witch of Envy—But their reputation was even worse than that of terrorists.
The atrocities they had committed over the years alone would have been enough to earn them ten thousand executions over.
It was even said that many adults in Lugunica frightened disobedient children by invoking the name of the Witch Cult.
Worse still—The organization openly proclaimed that its goal was to resurrect the Witch of Envy from centuries ago.
Naturally, Emilia, who had suffered discrimination all her life because she looked identical to that Witch, possessed no favorable feelings toward them.
Ignoring the sadness that appeared on Emilia's face, Roswaal continued—
"Rumor has it that the Witch Cult does, in fact, have leaaaders."
"According to less reliable information, they're called [Sin Archbishops]."
"They act in secrecy, and their abilities remain unknooown."
"To date, there have been almost no reports of any of them being defeated."
"Being able to conceal both their appearances and abilities this thoroughly is something even Beatrice, despite her mastery of Yin magic, cannot easily dooo."
"Sooo..."
"It's entirely possible that what they use is some special power different from both magic and Divine Protections."
Roswaal's implication was obvious.
If they excluded magic and Divine Protections—Then the "cheat ability" Subaru desperately wanted might only be obtainable through powers associated with the Witch Cult.
"Well, this is merely speculaaation."
"We won't know whether Subaru possesses some unusual power until we actually teeest it."
"How about it, Subaru?"
"Want to try?"
"If you really possess such talent, leaving it unused would be such a waaaste."
As he spoke, Roswaal turned one palm upward.
Red.
Blue.
Yellow.
Green.
Mana of various colors condensed above his hand.
It looked as though the instant Subaru agreed, those colorful magic projectiles would be fired directly into his face.
"Teacher Roswaal?!"
Subaru cried out with just as much emotion as before.
The meaning behind it, however—Could not have been more different.
"Juuust kidding."
"Subaru doesn't look like someone who would have anything to do with the Witch Cult, after aaall."
Roswaal continued smiling.
Combined with his clown makeup, it made it nearly impossible to tell what the man was truly thinking.
At least the magic gathering above his palm dispersed harmlessly into the air.
"Alright, we've reached the royal capital."
"You guys should stop messing around."
Emilia forced a slight smile and pulled up her white-and-purple cloak.
Its hood resembled a pair of cat ears and concealed her appearance.
The moment she finished speaking—The dragon carriage began slowing down.
Within a few minutes, it came to a gentle stop.
Directly ahead stood a sturdy stone fortress blocking the center of the road, almost as though it were designed to stop every uninvited intruder from advancing farther.
The structure gave off a bold, practical impression.
It stood in stark contrast to the elegant and lavish buildings lining the wealthy district.
Part of the building connected directly to the outer wall.
At its top was a platform wide enough for several people to stand upon.
From there, one could probably overlook most of the royal capital.
But it had not been built so tourists could admire the scenery.
Its purpose was surveillance—Allowing guards to quickly spot trouble anywhere in the city.
This was one of the guard stations responsible for patrolling the royal capital.
Besides serving as a base for the guards, it also functioned somewhat like customs from Shiro's old world.
Anyone entering or leaving the noble district normally had their identity checked here.
Of course—With Emilia, a Royal Selection candidate, personally vouching for them, those troublesome procedures could be skipped.
The only reason their dragon carriage had stopped here—Was because Shiro needed to get off.
"Are you two really alright visiting the Astrea family alone?"
"Should I come with you?"
After Shiro untied Subaru and stepped down from the carriage with him, Emilia leaned out through the window and looked at them worriedly.
With the concerned expression on her face and the white-purple hood resembling cat ears—She strangely resembled a house cat standing at the entrance and anxiously watching its owner leave for work.
"No need."
"Your position is too sensitive right now."
"It wouldn't be appropriate for you to visit the territory of another Royal Selection candidate's knight."
"If word got out, it would cause more harm than good for both you and Felt."
Shiro shook his head and rejected her kind offer.
Everyone present already knew that Reinhard had sworn himself to Felt.
It simply had not yet been announced publicly.
Shiro visiting the Astrea family alone was not particularly suspicious.
After all, candidates only selected their knights after being identified as Dragon Maidens.
There was nothing strange about Shiro having known Reinhard privately beforehand.
But if Emilia accompanied him—Then when Reinhard publicly declared his allegiance to Felt during the Royal Selection, news that "Emilia secretly visited the Astrea family beforehand" would likely appear on the desks of every other candidate almost immediately.
They would naturally suspect Emilia of secretly forming an alliance with another Royal Selection candidate behind their backs.
And if the others became sufficiently wary of Reinhard to unite against Emilia—That would become troublesome.
"Then be careful."
"If anything happens, remember to contact us through the conversation mirror."
"Don't worry."
"I've got it right here."
Shiro pulled a mirror-like object from his Gift Card and waved it in front of Emilia.
It was a magical tool from this world.
Its function was similar to a video call on a cellphone.
Because the devices were relatively common, Roswaal had given Shiro one before their departure so they could stay in contact.
After that, Emilia continued fussing over the two of them for quite some time.
Only when one of the guards finally emerged from the station to urge them onward did Emilia reluctantly leave in the dragon carriage toward their temporary residence in the royal capital.
"Alright."
"We should get moving too."
Once the dragon carriage driven by Rem, with Ram beside her, disappeared from sight—Shiro turned toward Subaru.
As he spoke, his gaze remained fixed on a certain location near the royal castle in the distance.
That was their true destination.
The Astrea family estate.
...
As the family of Sword Saints within the Dragon Kingdom of Lugunica, the Astrea family's residence was located deep within the wealthy district.
Perhaps to allow them to quickly support the royal family—Their estate stood quite close to the royal castle.
If Shiro had been alone, he could have run from here to the Astrea estate within several minutes.
Unfortunately—There were no such convenient "ifs."
Cruel reality dictated that because Subaru had to accompany him, unless Shiro was willing to carry the man on his back—He had no choice but to stroll through the wealthy district at a pace that, from his perspective, was slower than a crawling turtle.
"Shiro."
As they walked, Subaru admired the lavish mansions of another world while asking about their destination.
"Why exactly are we visiting that guy who looks like the protagonist of a hot-blooded battle manga?"
"Hmm?"
"Didn't I tell you?"
Shiro looked at him in surprise.
Then he thought about it.
He had only explained why Subaru had been dragged out of Roswaal Mansion.
He had indeed never told him what would happen afterward.
Suppressing the urge to grab Subaru and simply sprint to the Astrea estate, Shiro patiently explained—
"For the next while, both Roswaal and I will be busy with the Royal Selection."
"Neither of us will have much time to keep an eye on you."
"So for your own safety—"
"Since Reinhard happens to owe me a favor because of Felt, I plan to temporarily leave you with him."
In truth—Shiro had decided on this long ago.
The Royal Selection had simply given him a convenient excuse.
After all—If Subaru suddenly died the moment Shiro stopped paying attention to him, causing the timeline to reset all the way back to his battle with Reinhard—Then all the effort Shiro had invested over the past several days would not be completely wasted.
Only about seventy or eighty percent of it.
Reconstructing an entire network of relationships exactly as before was far more troublesome than simply meeting someone again.
So from a certain perspective—Shiro might actually care about Subaru's safety even more than Subaru himself did.
As for whether Felt's side might suspect Subaru of being a spy?
Shiro only had one thing to say.
Reinhard carried the fate of an entire world on his shoulders.
An ability as simple as detecting lies?
If Reinhard genuinely wanted one, the world itself would probably hand him the appropriate Divine Protection immediately.
Combined with Reinhard's terrifying combat strength and his deeply ingrained sense of chivalry—
No matter how Shiro considered it, Reinhard was the best possible person to entrust Subaru to.
"You want me to live with that refreshing handsome guy who looks like he's already won at life?!"
Subaru pointed at himself in disbelief.
"Absolutely not!"
"I'm planning to make my grand debut in this world!"
"How can I let him hold me back?!"
"You keep talking about making your grand debut..."
"You still can't even read more than a handful of words in this world, can you?"
Shiro's words transformed into a sharp arrow—And pierced directly through Subaru's fragile pride.
Ignoring the curious gazes of people around them, Subaru grabbed his head and wailed miserably in the middle of the street.
"SHUT UUUUP!"
His shrill voice repeatedly assaulted Shiro's eardrums.
Shiro covered both ears with his hands and sighed helplessly.
"Weren't you planning to make a name for yourself in this world?"
"Your magical talent isn't great."
"So maybe your cheat ability lies in swordsmanship."
"You probably won't find a better swordsmanship teacher anywhere in the world than Reinhard."
"Look at all those Divine Protections he has."
"For all we know, he might secretly have something like a [Divine Protection of Teaching] too."
"Swordsmanship..."
Seeing visible hesitation appear on Subaru's face—
Shiro immediately pressed his advantage.
"Once your cheat ability awakens and you combine it with Reinhard's swordsmanship, won't the whole world be yours to explore?"
"Maybe you'll finally encounter that damsel-in-distress flag you've been waiting for."
"You save the girl—"
"And before you know it, people might start calling you something like the Great Swordsman of Another World."
It was common knowledge—People from that country tended to possess at least a little chuunibyou deep in their bones.
Subaru, who had come from there, was naturally no exception.
Shiro's mixture of coaxing and deception—Combined with the overwhelmingly chuunibyou title "Great Swordsman of Another World"—Hit Subaru with a devastating one-two punch.
He was practically dizzy with excitement.
Another little push and Subaru might have dropped to his knees on the spot and shouted—
'Coach! I want to play basketball!'
At the very least—By the time they reached the Astrea family estate, Subaru was still completely immersed in the glorious future Shiro had painted for him.
…