“I’ll save myself the grief, then… If you’ll excuse me. See you tomorrow.”
“Basuru, what are you doing later?”
“I’m just heading off to sleep. Morning comes early after all? Damn it. Those mornings are really tough.”
At Subaru’s reply, mixing rebelliousness with weakness, Ram nodded a bit and closed her eyes.
Subaru was just about to ask the silent Ram if there was something she wanted to say when she opened her eyes.
“Wait in your room, then. I’ll be there later.”
Subaru’s response sounded very obtuse.
“—Huh?”
5
Subaru Natsuki, as he’d declared several times over, was firmly in Emilia’s corner.
Perhaps it was because he’d never encountered such beauty, either in this new world or the one from which he came, but Emilia stood out in Subaru’s mind.
It was partly pure physical beauty, but also the beauty of each and every action.
Consequently, there was simply no room for anyone else in his heart, no matter what she looked like.
“That’s why this perfectly made bed has one purpose: for me to get a good night’s sleep!”
Subaru forcefully thrust an accusing finger at his bed, venting to no one in particular.
Subaru, having returned to his room after leaving the bath, had wasted all the intervening time on putting his bed in order. He’d abandoned his laundry, working up quite a sweat in spite of having just bathed.
“There’s no deep meaning to it. No deep meaning to it! Mundane thoughts out, mundane thoughts out. Calm down, calm down. One Emilia, two Emilias, three Emilias… Is this Heaven?!”
“Be quiet, Barusu. It’s night already; do be quiet.”
“Yikes!”
He made a large leap and slammed into the wall. Ram, having opened the door without a sound, was standing at the entrance to the room.
“And just after I told you to be quiet. You are hopeless.”
“What’s with rules that apply for only you?! Anyone would jump from that! What do you want from me here?!”
Ram made a muted hmph at Subaru as he vented. Subaru, struck by the humiliation of not being worth a proper word, had no good option left but silence.
Then, cutting in front of the silent Subaru, Ram entered the room—and headed straight to a writing desk in the corner.
It was something every room was supplied with, but to Subaru, who couldn’t read that world’s books, it was a worthless piece of junk, so he had not turned in the desk’s direction until then.
“What are you standing there for? Come here, Barusu.”
Subaru made a dispirited face at being spoken to like a dog being taught manners, but he was resolute to not get wrapped up in Ram’s pace. Besides, screwing around was Subaru’s job.
He headed toward her with a steely resolution to not be swayed no matter what wacky statements she might dish out. Subaru felt like he was going to war as he stood before Ram, puffing out his chest.
“And? What impossible trial awaits me this time?”
“What are you talking about? I told you, sit down quickly if you want me to teach you how to read.”
“That’s news to me!”
His steel heart was instantly shattered.
Subaru could not hide his unease at having his hardened resolve so easily broken. He sucked in his breath as he beheld the pure white note page spread atop the table, joined by a feather pen and a reddish-brown bound book.
Apparently, this was neither a joke nor a prank; she truly intended to teach him how to read.
“But why now, all of a sudden…”
Ram’s reply to the bewildered Subaru’s question was extremely straight and to the point.
“I realized while watching you work today that you could not read. So I will teach you. If you cannot read, I cannot send you to buy groceries or leave you notes.”
Ram showed Subaru the red-bound book as his mouth flapped like that of a fish caught off guard.
“We shall begin with a simple picture book meant for children. I will accompany you for study every night from now on.”
No doubt it was an offer he should be grateful for, but Subaru’s bewilderment was stronger than his gratitude at that moment.
Like the events that unfolded in the bath, this situation was one that was unthinkable last time. And, according to Subaru’s senses, his intimacy with the twins still fell far short of what he’d experienced on the fourth day last time.
“Why are you being nice to me like this?”
“It is obvious. I… No, it is to make things easier.”
“Man, you’re hard-boiled. You didn’t even say what you corrected…”
“It is only natural. As your work increases, mine decreases. If my work decreases, Rem’s work will naturally decrease as well. It’s all for a good cause.”
“That means a ton of work falling on me, though?!”
“…?”
Ram tilted her head like she couldn’t understand what he was getting at. He was at a loss for words.
But even if he was at a loss like this, he was happy that Ram was showing him such concern.
“Okay, roger that. Let’s get this studying started, shall we?”
“Since you already have the spoken language down, it should not be all that difficult. After all, now is the time to correct your vulgar word selection.”
“Tossing in insults with your help, huh?”
As he spoke, he sat down at the desk and completed preparations, feather pen in hand. With light and rather smooth and speedy strokes, he wrote his first words one ought to use to commemorate a visit to another world.
“Subaru Natsuki enters stage left… There we go!”
“You do not have the free time to be scribbling. Time is limited. Morning comes quickly, after all.”
“Well, this is actually my mother tongue… Guess it wasn’t obvious, huh?”
He’d held out hope that their being able to talk might mean she’d be able to read his writing, but nothing so convenient unfolded. Just like Subaru, she was unable to read the other side’s language.
“First, we’ll begin with basic I-script, moving on to Ro-script and Ha-script after you’ve perfected I-script.”
“So there’re three types, huh? Sucks to hear that.”
It was tough to have your spirits discouraged right before a lesson in a new language. He recalled how foreigners felt when trying to clear the high hurdle of the hiragana, katakana, and kanji when learning Japanese.
“You can read the picture book by grasping I-script. Time is limited to one hour. Tomorrow is another day, and Ram is sleepy, too.”
“That last bit sounded like the real story. Not that I mind…”
“I think my honesty is one of my selling points.”
He didn’t know if her unhesitant reply was serious or a joke. It really felt like she meant it, so Subaru dove right into the script lesson.
Fundamental to learning any new language was grasping the characters through repetition of the writing process. He copied the basic characters Ram wrote down, filling the page with them. It was enough drudgery to break him, but it was necessary, indispensable labor. Subaru felt fatigue and sleepiness pile up when, seized by a somewhat mushy feeling, he conveyed his honest thoughts to Ram.
“Y’know, even if you said it’s to make things easier for you, I’m still glad.”
The feather pen made a faint sound as it ran along the paper. Subaru thought back to the four days from last time while writing down the same characters page after page.
Now that he thought about it, he was chasing after Emilia every day whenever he had the chance, but he’d spent the most time with Ram during that period.
Subaru was basically an amateur at all the chores of the mansion. Of course teaching him was bone breaking, all the more so because Ram was doing that on top of her regular duties.
The burden naturally fell on Rem as well. In ad
dition to that, he hadn’t had much contact with Rem during those four days. Subaru knew that the highly competent Rem was covering for a portion of her sister’s chores, so Subaru owed her for indirectly shouldering his burden, too.
“Honestly, I didn’t think you liked me that much.”
It was natural that educating a useless newbie like Subaru was a pain. Certainly that was the opinion Ram voiced, but Subaru felt used to it already.
“I hate to weigh you down, but thanks. I want to be useful as soon as possible.”
Subaru was thanking her from the bottom of his heart for then and for the future. For her part, Ram quietly went…
“Guu.”
…making a cute sleeping sound atop the immaculately made bed.
The feather pen made a sharp sound as it snapped.
6
Subaru, surrendering to his sudden impulse, opened his mouth wide and yawned.
He brusquely wiped away the wetness from the corners of his sleepy eyes and stretched all the way up. The sinking sun of the evening sky had left an orange tint as its parting gift to the leisurely passing clouds, thanking them for another day’s work.
Subaru watched the clouds as he rotated his arms, legs, and neck to make sure everything was in working order. Effects remained from heavy labor, but he didn’t feel the same fatigue that he had on his first night.
No doubt it wasn’t that his body had grown tougher; rather, he’d become more accustomed to his chores, the greater efficiency leaving him less beat.
Since his body didn’t get any stronger with Return by Death, he had to rely on learning through experience.
“Sorry to make you wait, Subaru— Are you all right?”
“Mm. Yeah, I’m totally okay. Finished your shopping, Rem?”
“Yes, no holdups. It seems you were rather popular.”
Holding a carry bag containing the things she’d bought and complimenting Subaru was the blue-haired girl—Rem.
Wearing her maid uniform, Rem was holding down her windblown hair as she looked at Subaru—his servant’s outfit stained with mud, dust, tears, and snot—with a slightly hardened expression.
“Kids have taken a liking to me since way back. I guess they really fell for, you know, motherly stuff that I just can’t keep bottled up?”
“It’s because children are just like animals and naturally decide a hierarchy. They instinctively recognize whether it’s appropriate to make light of a person or not.”
“That doesn’t sound much like praise!!”
Sharp comments like that were what made him accept that Rem and Ram were actually sisters.
Ram was direct; Rem was roundabout. You had to have a thick skin to stick around them. Of course, their job was one that could not be accomplished without physical toughness as well.
The village closest to the mansion where Subaru and Rem were at was called Auram.
Though Roswaal dwelled in the hinterlands, he was nonetheless a minor lord possessing several pieces of land. Everywhere within them, and Auram Village was no exception, the residents welcomed Subaru and Rem like it was the natural thing to do, speaking to them in a very friendly manner.
Apparently, just the fact that the twins spent a lot of time in contact with them in the course of shopping meant word of Subaru’s existence had passed around. The shock at the speed rural rumors traveled surprised Subaru, but still, though it was awkward, Subaru was happy for the warm welcome.
“Having said that, what’s with those brats getting all clingy like that… Don’t they know that touching everything just gets your fingers burned? Can’t they tell I’m putting out a hard-boiled aura here?”
“It seems your pretending to be a ‘motherly’ adult kept you quite busy all by yourself.”
“The ‘by yourself’ part sounded a bit sharp there, but it would’ve been nice being busy without getting mobbed like that. I really should’ve stuck with you going shopping…”
Since Subaru’s inability to tell ingredients apart made him useless, Rem had him kill time in the village while she was shopping. The kids found him and he was immediately abducted.
“Man, they just don’t have any respect. That’s why I can’t really get to like kids.”
“When it comes to lack of respect, you look plenty childish to me…?”
“A very sound theory! Having said that, I think taking someone for granted from the get-go is a little different… Ram’s really good at that, though.”
“Sister is incredible.”
They were speaking past each other somewhat. The way Rem seemed full of herself as she boasted about her sister, plus the fact that her sister wasn’t watching, made Subaru surmise they were her true feelings.
“Feels like Ram’s personality causes a lot of conflict, though.”
“Her unflinching demeanor is part of her charm. It is not something I can pull off…”
Subaru, hearing a sad undertone to the words she added at the end, knit his brow but didn’t press the point.
With Subaru suddenly at a loss for words, Rem seemed to snap back to normal as she changed the subject.
“Come to think of it, how is your studying going?”
“I’d like to say…steadily, but it’s not as simple as that. Stuff like this needs time to slowly nurture and develop…just like love!”
“As long as you don’t give up midway.”
“There wasn’t much tenderness in that comment just now!”
Seeing that his shout brought a slight smile to Rem’s face, Subaru also smiled in relief.
—It had already been four days since Ram had offered him personal lessons. He’d heard Rem might take over, but she hadn’t actually assumed the instructor’s position as of yet.
Ram being that busy meant that the burden on Rem was all the greater.
Subaru kept smiling and waved to Rem, who was acting slightly hesitant for once.
“Don’t worry about it. I’m not going to give up or disappoint Ram. I just wish she wouldn’t fall asleep on my bed in the middle of the lesson. It’s really distracting.”
“Sister is probably acting that way to spur you forward.”
“Man, your total worship of your sister is way past normal. Totally demon possessed.”
“Demon possessed…?”
Rem tilted her head at the latest word trend Subaru had coined.
“Like possessed, except by a demon instead of a divine spirit. Demon possessed. It works, huh?”
“Do you like demons?”
“Better than gods. I mean, gods don’t give you anything, but a demon will have a good laugh with you over a chat about the future.”
Talking about the last year seemed especially popular with them. Subaru remembered the image of the Red Demon and the Blue Demon hugging each other as they laughed themselves silly, when he suddenly realized there was a definite smile carved upon Rem’s face.
“Whoa…”
He’d seen her faintly smiling several times over, but this was the first time he’d seen a real smile on her face. Subaru didn’t know what had tickled Rem’s thoughts, but he snapped his fingers.
“That smiling face is worth a million-volt skyline.”
“I will tell on you to Lady Emilia.”
Subaru straightened himself and meekly pleaded for forgiveness.
“I wasn’t trying to hit on you!”
Rem lightly raised her eyebrows toward Subaru.
“What happened to your hand?”
“Mm? Oh, that mangy mutt with the kids went all chomp-chomp on me.”
His left hand, covered in bite marks, had already stopped bleeding, but it still looked somewhat pathetic.
Incidentally, it was only after he returned to the mansion that he realized that the middle of the back of his servant outfit was stained with snot.
“May I heal that wound?”
“Eh? What, you can use healing magic, too, Rem?”
“Only simple magic up to first-aid level. Perhaps you prefer Lady E
milia?”
“Mm, that is a pretty attractive suggestion, but…I’ll pass on both.”
Subaru declined her offer while gazing at the bite marks on the back of his left hand.
He’d decided that scars, in a way, were a good thing. The fact that everything, up to and including his scars from the previous loop, had vanished when he’d begun this play-through weighed heavily on Subaru’s mind.
The presence or absence of scars was a great way to tell if he’d done a Return by Death or not. If the dog hadn’t happened to bite him, he’d have been forced to cut himself with a sharp feather pen.
“Well, it’s a mark of honor. No one lives as prettily as on the day they were born.”
“It is said that scars are a man’s medals, though all you accomplished on the battlefield were mistakes.”
“That might have a kernel of truth, but don’t say stuff so cold, geez!”
The way Rem tilted her head and looked at him indicated she didn’t realize what a venomous tongue she had. That was even scarier.
“Besides that, I’ve cut my hand lots of times in front of you before, so why offer to heal me all of a sudden? I mean, you never offered to do it before?”
“That’s because I thought you’d forget if it didn’t hurt, so you should keep the wounds as a warning.”
“That’s educational policy straight outta Sparta… So why’d you offer now, then?”
He wanted to know the reason why this case was different from the others, making her unable to let this one go.
After Subaru posed his question, Rem kept her silence for a while.
Looking at her face from the side, Subaru thought it might have to do with the little smile from earlier.
“The futon flew on. The kitten catnapped. Who’s the one who said a pun?!”
“Did you suddenly go wrong in the head?”
“You’re jumping to conclusions. No, I thought I’d find out for sure why you were all smiles earlier.”
Though, considering her reaction to the demon talk earlier, he thought it could be that, too…
“I thought you’d really go for cheap gags. So I wondered if I tried it, maybe it would put you in a good mood and make you want to be nicer to me, or something like that.”
Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World-, Vol. 2 Page 12
