The distance she'd covered on foot in a single day was nearly what Beatrice had walked in a whole century. A child's stamina really was impossible to comprehend—and yet, the moment she decided she was done walking, she'd simply shifted into cat form and leapt into Beatrice's arms to be carried home.
Her true form—the human one—wasn't even that big, so why couldn't she turn into a dainty little kitten like Nii-chan when she shrank down?
Back at their temporary lodging in the Royal Capital, the first thing she saw was Emilia cupping Natsuki Subaru's face and healing it, while Subaru wore an expression like he was badly constipated.
Neither of them said a word. The awkward air alone made it obvious at a glance—they'd had a fight.
"What are you two doing?"
Beatrice didn't much care what had happened, but Emilia was, after all, the 'daughter' her Nii-chan worried over most.
"Subaru got into a fight with someone," Emilia answered in a low voice.
Natsuki Subaru wasn't exactly a hothead. It had started because the other party was badmouthing Emilia behind her back—but just because he didn't throw the first punch didn't mean the others wouldn't swing at him.
And he'd actually won, thanks to the power Yimi had given him—though since it cut in and out, he'd taken a few humiliating hits along the way.
Not that winning was the point. There was nothing to be proud of in beating up ordinary townsfolk.
"But they were saying awful things about Emilia—"
"Stop saying it was all for my sake!" Emilia clapped her hands over her ears and shouted him down.
Beatrice covered Yimi's ears. At least now that she'd turned back into a kitten, covering them was a lot easier.
Subaru took a step back, looking at her uncomprehendingly. "Why would you say that? They started it. I was only defending Emilia's honor."
Emilia rubbed at the spot on his face she'd just finished healing. "I don't understand. Subaru, you're always doing things that make no sense—before, and now too. You only ever do it for your own sake."
Subaru reached a hand toward Emilia. The words 'without me, you'd have died back then' lodged in his throat—and with Yimi, the very person involved, right there, he couldn't cough them out. His composure hadn't crumbled quite that far yet.
In Emilia's eyes, this was simply who he was: he'd shown up out of nowhere in Rom-jii's shack, insisted on helping her recover her insignia for no reason, called her by a discriminatory nickname, and then, for no reason at all, gotten close to her and pulled a stunt like this.
No matter how you looked at it, it was strange, wasn't it?
And in the end he'd even caused her trouble—he'd nearly been hauled off by the guards, saved only at the last moment when Rom-jii, together with the thief girl, spirited him away. If he'd actually been arrested for brawling, it would have been disastrous for Emilia.
It seemed the mere fact that "the half-elf candidate's supporter got into a public street fight" had already dragged down the crowd's impression of Emilia. Damn it—he'd only wanted...
"Tomorrow, Subaru, you can't come along. People with no business there aren't allowed inside."
This wasn't just anger talking; Emilia had intended it from the start. Letting Subaru sit beside her in that setting would be as good as announcing his allegiance to everyone. Even if he'd happily agreed, she wouldn't have let him get tangled up in that kind of trouble.
"...I'm sorry." Subaru muttered the words, dejected, then turned and walked back to his room.
Emilia watched his back until the closing door hid it from view, then sank into a chair and bowed her head. "I told you, I just don't understand."
His behavior made no sense—but Subaru really was different in her eyes. He didn't look at her the way everyone else did, and he was oddly patient with all the things about her.
"Where's Nii-chan?" Beatrice set Yimi down on the table and rolled her wrists.
"Puck's already asleep." Emilia stroked the crystal hanging at her neck a couple of times.
She reached out and patted Yimi's head—but even with Puck to learn from, her cat-petting technique was clearly not very good.
Emilia took hold of Yimi's front paw. "I'm sorry you had to hear us fight. Tomorrow, could I ask you two to stay here and look after Subaru—protect him? I'll bring you back a sweet when I get home."
"But Rem, told me to protect you." Yimi pressed against Emilia's chest, kneading like a kitten.
"It's fine in the Royal Capital. I have Puck with me. And if you showed up, the others might count you as part of my camp—and then maybe you'd never get to eat anything nice again." She finished with a small, entirely unrelated threat.
In truth, even if Yimi didn't go, her earlier meeting with Felix had probably already counted her as part of Emilia's camp.
No dedicated knight, no supporter—not even Roswaal present—and a half-elf debuff hanging over her besides. Whatever happened tomorrow, Emilia was going to look like the most pitiable candidate of them all.
Early the next morning.
"There's no way I can just sit here and watch!"
Subaru, roused on schedule by his phone alarm, threw his clothes on in a rush. "Even ordinary people are acting like that—if Diego isn't there, I can't even imagine what kind of harassment Emilia-tan is going to face from the others!"
"So you want to go over there right now and make her even angrier? You promised, yesterday." Beatrice sat in the living room, leafing through a book titled Habits of the Felidae.
Subaru's movements stiffened. "That may be true, but I still can't stop worrying."
"You'd break a promise over a one-sided 'I'm worried'? You really are arrogant. Not that Betty can be bothered to lecture you. Do whatever you like—just don't fight where Betty and that child can see it."
"Nnh~" Yimi came padding out of the bedroom, rubbing her eyes.
"You were too loud." Beatrice shot Subaru a displeased look.
Subaru wavered a moment at Beatrice's earlier words. "I'm going. I don't know what'll happen with Diego there—but if Diego isn't there, and Emilia gets shut out and ganged up on, that's something I refuse to just let happen."
"So who on earth is this Diego, anyway?"
"If it turns out to be all in my head, that's for the best. Either way, I'm ready for Emilia to chew me out."
Subaru bolted out the door.
"The sweet's getting away!" Yimi ran out after him, still remembering what Emilia had said the day before.
"Wait—your hair isn't even tied." Beatrice grabbed Yimi's ribbon and hurried after them too.
Deal with today's problems today; leave tomorrow's for tomorrow. That had always been Subaru's way of doing things.
He'd already set off on foot toward the somewhat distant venue—but he clearly hadn't given a single thought to how to get in without embarrassing Emilia, and now he was stuck at the entrance.
The reason for today's summons was simple enough. The current Sword Saint—Reinhard, also acknowledged as the world's strongest—had, during the confinement of the thief Felt he'd arrested earlier, accidentally discovered that she reacted to the Royal Selection insignia. She was the fifth Dragon Priestess.
Very possibly she was also an orphaned remnant of Lugunica's old royal family—though since the royal family had all dropped dead together, no one could confirm it.
With that, the roster of royal candidates was finally complete.
"Oh, little guy. We meet again."
Perhaps Subaru's luck really was good: just as he was fretting over how to get in, he ran into someone he knew. A hunched but powerfully built old man—none other than Rom-jii, who'd been with Felt before, and who had carried Subaru off to safety during yesterday's brawl.
"Rom-jii? No, wait—sorry, I don't have time right now. I've got somewhere to be at the Royal Selection assembly."
"You're headed there too?" Rom-jii looked at him in surprise.
After parting with Subaru the day before, he'd asked him about Felt's situation.
"Too? Don't tell me there's more to you than meets the eye, Rom-jii?" Subaru looked him up and down in wonder. "Then could I hitch a ride with you? Honestly, I've been stuck on how to get inside."
Rom-jii gave him a disappointed look. "What are you on about, little guy? I was hoping to use you to get in. Never mind—this way I'd only drag you into it. Looks like the only option's that route."
He turned to leave.
"Wait—what do you mean, 'that route'? Can you take me with you?" Since their first meeting had involved passwords and inspecting goods, Subaru had assumed the old man was planning some shady scheme to bribe the guards.
"But, you know..." Rom-jii looked at him, puzzled.
"Please! Magic tools, whatever else—whatever it is you need from me, just name it! I have to go help that child!"
"A strangely stubborn determination. I don't need any payment. I've no idea what you're trying to do, but when the moment comes, just make good use of the opening I create." Rom-jii glanced left and right.
He's asking me for a way in—looks like this little guy's got his own dubious agenda.
"An opening?" Subaru looked utterly blank.
The next moment, he watched Rom-jii pull out a smoke bomb.
Subaru: "?"
What are you doing?!
Rom-jii lobbed the smoke bomb at the guards watching the gate, then shoved the door open, lit a second one, and hurled it straight inside.
"Who goes there?!"
Uproar—but a cheap trick like this had zero effect on the people inside. Reinhard simply lifted the Dragon Sword—still in its scabbard, of course—and with a casual sweep in front of him, blew the smoke and dust clear across the hall.
Seizing the moment, the guards hurriedly pinned the would-be thieves trying to snatch Felt, along with Rom-jii and the nearby Subaru, to the floor, weapons trained on them.
Subaru turned his head toward Rom-jii. "?"
You set me up!
"Reinhard...?"
But the focus wasn't on them. The nobles on the platform stared, dumbfounded, at Reinhard—more precisely, at the Dragon Sword he'd drawn.
Except it hadn't quite been "drawn." During that last swing, in a way Reinhard himself hadn't anticipated, the scabbard had gone flying off. That should have been all but impossible. There'd been no intent to draw in that motion, and it hadn't been aimed at any enemy.
Only one person could make the sentient Dragon Sword behave so abnormally.
"Oh dear. This is quite something." Felix, standing beside Crusch, murmured under his breath.
Reinhard looked, uncomprehending, at the blood-red spear leveled directly ahead of him—more precisely, at the one holding it.
Because Subaru had been pinned there, and Yimi—who'd promised Emilia she'd protect him—had planted herself in front of him. She'd very nearly taken the flying scabbard to the head.