3
The seventy-seventh emperor of the Holy Volakian Empire.
Subaru’s thoughts blanked as the weight of Abel’s title settled in. From the moment he had encountered Abel in the jungle clearing, Subaru had known he wasn’t just some ordinary guy. But discovering that Abel was the emperor? That was far beyond anything Subaru had imagined.
“Assuming what you’re saying is actually true…” Subaru said, narrowing his eyes.
“You doubt my words?”
“Of course I do. Why would the most important dude in the entire country be wandering around in the jungle? Sure, you’ve got emperor-class guts, but…” Subaru scowled, pointing at Abel’s oni mask. “Like I said before, how can I trust someone who hides his face?”
The accusation brought back a hazy memory for Subaru—a memory of when they had looked down at the burning camp together. At that time, Abel had wrapped his face in rags instead of wearing a mask. Subaru had made a similar remark then, and Abel had responded by revealing his face.
“You fixate on the most inconsequential things,” Abel said with a sigh, removing his mask and setting it aside, just as he had done before.
“…”
“What is that insolent gaze? My face is no different from yours.”
“…The building blocks maybe, but the difference in how they were put together convinces me that the gods are fickle,” Subaru muttered, averting his eyes.
Abel’s face was striking—his glossy black hair and sharp, dignified eyes exuded an aura of authority. It was a face that commanded respect, so imposing it felt almost magical. This was the face of an emperor.
Yet it didn’t look familiar to Subaru. As a knight of one of Lugunica’s royal candidates, he’d expected to at least recognize a neighboring nation’s ruler.
“Is that just how it is? You’re a head of state, but I wouldn’t…”
“You have no reason to know my face. It is not something that should be seen beyond the capital. There are far too many in this country who would have my head.”
“Self-defense? You pissed off that many people?”
“No. In Volakia, power is everything. The weak, the frail, and the cowardly deserve death. The strong take all. The throne of the emperor is no exception.”
Resting his chin in his hand and his elbow on his knee, Abel explained the ruthless creed of Volakia. After living among the soldiers in the imperial camp, Subaru knew it wasn’t a lie. Todd and the others fully embodied this ideology.
It was the imperial way. They would make whatever sacrifices were needed for…
“Wait, that’s weird,” Subaru said, a thought striking him.
“What is?”
“If, for the sake of argument, you really are the emperor, then why would you attack an imperial camp? Couldn’t you just meet with their commander and—?”
“Fool. Unlike you, I have no desire to die.”
“I don’t want to die either, but…why is that suicidal?” Subaru paused, confusion mounting. Why would an emperor meeting with his own soldiers be a death sentence? Unless…
“…You said earlier you’d been removed from the throne. Is that right?”
“So you did not miss that. As I said before, do not make me repeat myself.”
“Quit joking around! This is important! If the emperor has been deposed, then…” Subaru hesitated as it dawned on him. If his guess was right, Abel’s situation was dire beyond belief.
“Your line of thought is correct,” Abel said calmly with a nod, confirming Subaru’s suspicion.
Subaru’s breath hitched. Abel’s gaze dropped slightly, and he stared into the fire between them. A log cracked and burst, the noise echoing the tension in the air.
“The force stationed outside of the Badheim was sent by my political enemies. Their mission was to eliminate me. You and your woman were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
“But…the people in the camp didn’t mention anything about that. They said their goal was to negotiate with the Shudrak.”
Subaru had no ability to detect lies, but it seemed implausible that dozens of soldiers came up with an elaborate ruse and went to the effort of getting all their stories straight just to deceive a few outsiders. Most likely, they genuinely believed that they had come for the Shudrak.
“If their real goal was capturing you…”
“Do not embellish. You said yourself they planned to attack. To protect yourself and your woman, you placed the Shudrak and the soldiers on the scales.”
“You’re wr—”
“I am not mistaken. Battles happen, and those who die do not return. The dead do not speak, nor can they influence the living.”
“…”
“The dead do not come back to life.”
Subaru shut his eyes tightly against Abel’s harsh words.
That’s a lot of shit coming from a guy who doesn’t know anything. There is a way to bring back the dead.
Subaru’s unique power allowed him to reverse death itself. If he had died, there was a chance he would have returned to a point before the camp was destroyed and warned the soldiers. He might have saved them. But that would have put the Shudrak in danger.
He couldn’t stand on both sides at once. Saving everyone was impossible.
And more than that, Subaru lacked the resolve to use his power in this case. What were the odds of a better outcome, even if he tried again? It had not gone the way he had wanted, but he and Rem were safe. There was no telling what it would take to get a better result.
How far would I have to grind myself down to make that happen?
“You are a foolish man gripped by strange anguish,” Abel said, interrupting Subaru’s spiraling thoughts.
Subaru’s eyes snapped open with astonishment. Abel was watching him from across the fire, his expression almost sympathetic.
“Why do you wish only to curry favor with others?”
“Curry favor… Me?”
“You focus solely on others. You have intentionally honed yourself, cloaking it in the guise of charity. It is no different from a warrior honing his skills—you’ve blotted out your own heart.”
“Shut up! Don’t act like you know me!” Subaru snapped, anger flaring.
There’s no way someone like him—someone who doesn’t know about Return by Death—could understand even a fraction of what I’ve endured.
“Answer my question! The soldiers were looking for the Shudrak, and there wasn’t one word about you…”
“It is not the sort of thing that would be shared with common soldiers. Word of the emperor’s exile must not leave the capital. My enemies cannot afford to let the empire waver.”
“…”
“And the Shudrak were a natural target. They are the only group an exiled emperor could ally with. Killing the Shudrak would be the same as cutting off my arms and legs as I struggled to keep my head afloat.”
Abel’s explanation resolved Subaru’s lingering doubts—about the soldiers’ motives, their encirclement of the jungle, and their attempts to either negotiate with or annihilate the Shudrak.
“Why the Shudrak, though?”
“Long ago, an emperor of Volakia saved the Shudrak during their time of need. They do not forget such debts. That, along with the ritual of blood, makes them my chance at reclaiming the throne.”
Abel’s gamble had been audacious, relying on the Shudrak’s loyalty to ancient obligations and their respect for rituals after he escaped from the capital. His enemies in the government had deployed the army to the jungle to eliminate him before he could capitalize on them, but Abel had won this round.
“However, this battle isn’t going to end just because the first wave of the enemy was driven back, right?” Subaru asked.
“Of course not. If I die, that is the end. Yet I still live. I will do everything in my power to reclaim those things that were stolen from me and are rightfully mine,” Abel replied calmly.
That was Abel’s—Vincent Abelks’s—choice as the emperor of Volakia.
When he spoke, Subaru could tell that “things” meant his country. That was a scale far beyond what Subaru was used to considering.
“So what, then…? You’re going to lead the Shudrak into war?!”
“That’s right. They have promised their support in accordance with the result of the ritual of blood and in honor of the oath sworn with the emperor of old. Those who celebrate pride and honor are simple to use. They will fight alongside me.”
“With all they’ve already done…that still isn’t enough?!” Subaru’s voice rose sharply.
Retaking the throne meant countless more battles, an endless cycle of conflict. That was war—a fierce, unrelenting struggle that left a trail of untold suffering and countless deaths.
“…”
As far as Subaru knew, there had been over a hundred soldiers in the burned-out imperial camp. In the few hours he had been unconscious, more than a hundred lives had been snuffed out.
“Why do you kill…?” Subaru muttered.
“Because there is no other means. Nothing more.”
“…Is that really true? Have you seriously tried looking for another way?” Subaru’s voice trembled as he asked, “Any other way before you killed someone and robbed them of all possibilities?”
Abel’s eyes narrowed.
His gaze didn’t suggest serious consideration of Subaru’s question. Instead, it seemed to ask why Subaru would even question the necessity of such actions.
It was a fundamental clash of values.
Until now, Subaru Natsuki had been fortunate. He hadn’t been forced to navigate relationships with people whose values were fundamentally at odds with his own.
Most of the people he’d met in this world, despite their differences from him, had been rational. The witches and Archbishops were exceptions—extremes whose values were so alien that Subaru didn’t even attempt to engage with them meaningfully. He defined them as clearly wrong and acted against them accordingly.
But Abel was different. So were the Shudrak. And the soldiers in the camp. They weren’t evil. They didn’t treat life and death as sport, nor did they wield power out of gross self-interest. Aside from their differing views, they were people much like Subaru himself.
And yet…
“…I just want to take Rem and go home.”
Abel’s battle to reclaim the throne was beginning. If this were a page out of a legend or a history book, it might be thrilling. But this was reality, and Subaru had no desire to participate in a historic battle in a land where he had nothing to rely on.
His goal was to return Rem to Lugunica. To meet up with Emilia, Beatrice, and everyone else at Roswaal Manor. To celebrate Rem’s recovery and plan their next steps together.
He couldn’t afford to deal with anything else.
Slapping his cheeks with both hands, Subaru forced himself to focus. He narrowed his objectives down to a single, unshakable goal.
“Can you please tell me the closest town or village? I’ll figure out a way back myself from there.”
“Ho,” Abel breathed out softly. “A sensible decision. However, the path you choose will not be an easy one.”
“I’ll walk whatever path I have to, easy or hard. Preferably on a paved road, though,” Subaru said, biting the inside of his cheek. The pain helped sharpen his thoughts.
He turned to Abel—the solitary emperor determined to continue his fight.
“I didn’t thank you yet… The method aside, thank you for rescuing Rem. I am grateful for that.”
“I did not just save her; I saved the other one, too,” Abel said dryly.
“That was uncalled for… Thanks to that, my worries have to stick around awhile.”
Of course, if Louis had been lost in the camp, Subaru’s already tenuous relationship with Rem might have become even more precarious. He couldn’t say which outcome would have been better.
So…
“I’ll choose the path I can live with… Anyway, it sounds like it’ll be complicated, but good luck with whatever road you go down. Just…don’t…”
“Do not get the Shudrak involved?” Abel finished for him. “If neither of us had intervened, their fate would have been to burn along with this jungle. This is already their fight.”
Subaru couldn’t deny that. The Shudrak had no choice but to fight for their survival.
But…
“It’s impossible for me. I can’t ever become like you,” Subaru said, shaking his head.
Abel looked at him and blinked—but only with one eye. Subaru had noticed this quirk. Abel never closed both eyes at once, even for a moment.
Subaru realized it was a survival instinct, a habit born from a life spent in the highest halls of the swordwolf empire. He was awed by the emperor who lived in a world where such vigilance was required to survive. And he was terrified.
“Of course. Neither you nor anyone can take my place,” Abel said, his voice quiet but firm.
That was the only response he gave Subaru.
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