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{3rd Pov}
Subaru looked down at the Witch Cultists kneeling before him, their heads bowed low, trembling with reverence and fanatic devotion.
The sight was almost absurd to him—so much that he couldn't help but smirk at the irony.
'The Witch of Envy… the very being these lunatics worship as their goddess,' Subaru thought, amusement lacing his expression.
'And now that she's under my command… what does that make me? Their god? Their master's master?' The thought made him let out a quiet chuckle, one that carried more bitterness than humor.
But as he continued to look at them—these same people who, in countless loops, had butchered innocent villagers, slaughtered Rem, and reduced everything he cared for to ashes—his amusement faded.
The warmth in his expression vanished entirely, replaced by something far colder, far darker.
His eyes hardened, the flicker of rage buried beneath calm control.
He stepped closer, his boots pressing against the dirt with deliberate slowness, each step echoing through the still air.
The cultists dared not move.
"I want every Witch Cultist in this region gathered," Subaru said, his voice steady but carrying an unmistakable edge of authority—an order that tolerated no refusal.
"And one of you…" He paused, his gaze narrowing sharply as his tone turned icy. "...will guide me to Petelgeuse Romanée-Conti."
The mention of the name made a few cultists tremble.
One of them immediately lowered his head even further, pressing his forehead against the ground in submission.
"As you command, my lord," he rasped, his voice quivering with fanatical reverence.
Without another word, several cultists vanished into the woods, their figures melting into the shade of the thick growth as they went to carry out his command.
Only one remained—still kneeling, still silent.
After a moment, the cultist rose slowly, keeping his head bowed low.
Without daring to meet Subaru's gaze, he turned and gestured forward, motioning for Subaru to follow.
Subaru's cold eyes followed the man for a moment before he began walking, his steps calm and deliberate.
The forest grew denser, darker, and quieter as they proceeded deeper into the domain of madness.
He was being led to Petelgeuse Romanée-Conti—the Sin Archbishop of Sloth.
They finally reached a small clearing where a low hill rose from the earth, its side split by a dark tunnel that swallowed the light.
The place smelled faintly of damp earth and old rot—an appropriate stage for the madman waiting within.
"Believer of love! Oh! Believer of love! It is nice to meet you! Nice to meet you, oh believer of love! The Witch's love is so thick on you! Such exquisite love! Such sloth!" Petelgeuse greeted Subaru in that erratic, high-pitched cadence he always used—words tumbling over one another like a broken song.
He bounced on the spot, eyes wide and manic, his voice ringing out across the clearing.
Seeing Petelgeuse up close—hearing that insane cheerfulness again—stirred something vicious in Subaru.
The sight of the man who had done the unthinkable to Rem ignited a fresh, burning rage inside him.
Every memory returned with sharp clarity: Rem's snapped bones, the way she had crawled on broken limbs just to reach him, the tiny, pained smile she gave as she whispered those words she always said.
Images of her suffering played like a film behind Subaru's eyes, each one pouring fuel onto the hatred coiling in his chest.
Subaru wanted, with a raw, immediate intensity, to end Petelgeuse on the spot.
He could feel his hands clench, his breath shorten, the urge to move forward and make it over.
But he forced himself to stop.
He had to be smarter than that. Killing him quickly would be too easy, and would not satisfy what had settled into Subaru's mind like a cold, precise plan.
No—he decided, coldly and clearly: he would not take the quick route.
He would not hand Petelgeuse the mercy of an instant death.
Instead, Subaru told himself he would make the man suffer in ways that would be more fitting punishment.
He would break him.
He will make his freaking brain tremble.
He would enjoy making Petelgeuse feel the weight of every crime he had committed.
So Subaru kept his composure, letting the rage sit under his skin like a coiled wire, waiting for the right moment to be cut loose.
He would savor the control.
He would make this count.
"Oh my sloth! My sloth! I forgot to introduce myself! How slothful of me! How terribly slothful!"
Petelgeuse crowed, then began tearing at the skin on his own face with frantic, almost ritualistic movements, smearing his fingers as he rubbed and tore like a madman performing some grotesque ceremony.
The sound of flesh pulling and his ragged breathing filled the clearing for a beat, then he stopped as if struck by an idea, tilting his head to the side with exaggerated curiosity.
"This one is… Petelgeuse Romanée-Conti," he announced at last, voice bright and unsettling, "Sin Archbishop of the Witch Cult, representing Sloth!" He proclaimed the title with theatrical pride, as if introducing himself at a performance rather than standing in the dirt before a man who had every reason to hate him.
Subaru's fists clenched so tightly that the skin around his knuckles split; a thin line of blood welled up and trickled down.
He did not lower his gaze.
His face remained outwardly calm, but only he felt how hot the hatred in his chest burned, how every memory of Rem's suffering tightened his jaw.
Petelgeuse, after a long, ecstatic pause, fixed his eyes on Subaru and — for the first time since his arrival — adopted a serious expression.
"Now, let me ask you, believer of love… Are you the Pride?" His tone dropped into a dangerous, probing whisper that did not suit his previously manic cadence.
Subaru rubbed the back of his head with a short, tired motion and let out a dry laugh that had none of its former warmth.
"Ah… you see, I'm new to this business," he said casually, deliberately playing the part of an inexperienced fool.
"Why don't you explain to me what I'm supposed to do… as Pride?"
Petelgeuse's smile faltered for a fraction of a second, then returned even wider than before as he rifled through something that he took out from his robe — his gospel, his dogma, whatever madness he cataloged in his mind.
His eyes narrowed, scanning like those of a man checking a list, and suddenly his face contorted with suspicion.
"You're not in my gospel," he hissed, the words sharp and accusing.
He took a step closer, dangerous and sudden, and pinned Subaru with a stare that promised violence.
The cultist's hand hovered near his weapon as if ready to end the conversation with blood if the answer he received did not satisfy him.
"The gospel, huh?" Subaru said with a smirk that didn't quite reach his eyes.
"That little book of yours might record the names of peons like you, but not me… After all," his grin widened, his tone filled with quiet, terrifying confidence, "I am the Master of Envy."
"Blasphemy!" Petelgeuse howled, his voice echoing through the clearing with deranged fury.
His body convulsed as countless shadowy hands burst out from behind him, thrashing and striking like serpents.
They lashed toward Subaru with murderous intent — but before they could even graze him,
Subaru leapt back with effortless agility, evading every strike as though he could see the invisible force itself.
Petelgeuse froze mid-motion, disbelief written all over his trembling face.
"I-Impossible! How can you?!" he stuttered, his eyes wide, his mind refusing to accept what it was seeing.
"How can you see it?! My gift from her! The Witch's love for me! It should belong only to me — to me, to me, to me, to me!"
His voice rose to a deranged pitch as he bit into his fingers, gnawing them violently until blood spurted and dripped down his chin.
"Her love?" Subaru muttered, his voice low but venomous.
He glanced around — and noticed movement.
The trees and shadows shifted, and soon dozens of Witch Cultists emerged, surrounding him in every direction.
They had obeyed his earlier command to gather, but now, after hearing Petelgeuse's accusation and Subaru's defiance against their so-called divine Witch, they turned their weapons and hatred toward him.
Their masked faces twisted with fanatical rage, whispering their prayers like curses.
Petelgeuse laughed hysterically, raising his hands as if orchestrating their madness.
"Do you see, believer of falsehood? The Witch herself rejects your lies! Her children will tear you apart for your insolence!"
But Subaru only grinned wider, the shadow beneath him rippling unnaturally as his eyes glowed with a predatory gleam.
"Wonderful," he said, his voice dark, unshaken, almost gleeful.
"How wonderful. All of you lambs gathered in one place… only to be slaughtered."
A low, manic laugh escaped his throat — one that grew louder, deeper, and more unrestrained with every passing second.
Surrounded by dozens of murderous cultists, facing the Sin Archbishop of Sloth himself, Subaru didn't falter.
He laughed like a man who had already accepted the world's madness and decided to surpass it.
"Hey, Petelgeuse…" Subaru called out, his tone oddly calm, almost casual, as he looked straight into the madman's eyes.
"You keep saying the Witch of Envy loves you, right?" he asked, his voice carrying a sharp, mocking curiosity.
"Yes! Yes! Yes! She loves me! She adores me! Her love sustains me! Her love drives my every breath!" Petelgeuse screamed, his eyes wide and bloodshot, veins bulging across his forehead.
His head jerked in erratic motions as he pointed a trembling finger at Subaru.
"But you! You, who dares to blaspheme her sacred love! Why?! Why is her love so thick around you?! Why is her scent—her divine scent—drowning you! Why does she shower you with her affection?! You are unworthy of her love! Unworthy! Unworthy! Uhh! My brain trembles! Trembles! Trembles!!" he shrieked, clutching his skull as blood leaked from his bitten fingertips.
The realization tore him apart — Subaru carried the Witch's scent stronger than he ever had, thicker than the supposed chosen apostle of Sloth himself.
It was something Petelgeuse could neither comprehend nor accept.
"Oh?" Subaru tilted his head slightly, his grin widening with every word.
"If you're so curious about it… why don't you ask her yourself?"
Those words hit harder than a curse.
For a brief second, every Witch Cultist present froze in place.
Their chanting stopped, their madness silenced.
A heavy stillness spread through the forest.
Then—
The world changed.
The sky darkened in an instant, as though someone had torn away the sun and replaced it with a suffocating void.
The forest dissolved into nothingness, swallowed by creeping shadows.
In its place emerged a realm engulfed in thick, purple fog that seemed alive, pulsing and swirling like something sentient.
The air turned cold, oppressive, heavy enough to crush lungs.
Confusion flashed across Petelgeuse's face as his body trembled.
"W-What is this?!" he screamed, eyes darting around in wild disbelief.
But Subaru didn't answer.
His shadow beneath him began to twist and writhe unnaturally, spreading like spilled ink across the ground.
Its color deepened to pure, suffocating black — then, from within that abyss, two glowing purple orbs appeared, staring back at the world with an eerie, divine stillness.
The shape of the shadow began to change, morphing, stretching upward, forming a distinctly feminine silhouette.
And then… she rose.
The Witch of Envy emerged from Subaru's shadow.
The moment her presence filled the place, an indescribable wave of miasma exploded outward, blanketing everything.
The very air thickened with her essence — pure corruption, pure anti-divinity — and the Witch Cultists, those who worshipped her, instantly collapsed to the ground.
Their bodies convulsed violently, blood streaming from their noses and mouths.
Just being in her presence broke them.
Their eyes rolled backward, their minds shattered by the sheer density of her existence.
They couldn't breathe; they weren't allowed to breathe.
The miasma crushed their sanity, suffocated their lungs, and invaded their very souls.
Only Petelgeuse — the holder of the Sloth Witch Factor — managed to remain standing amidst the chaos.
The other cultists lay writhing and twitching on the ground, their sanity stripped away by the miasma.
Petelgeuse, however, was barely holding himself together.
His Witch Factor granted him resistance to the suffocating presence of the Witch, but that resistance was only physical.
Emotionally, mentally, spiritually — he was breaking apart piece by piece.
He dropped to his knees, his body trembling violently.
Tears poured down his cheeks in thick streams as he looked up at the dark figure before him — the very being he had worshipped, adored, and sacrificed for all his life.
The Witch of Envy herself stood before him, real and undeniable.
"My Witch! My beloved Witch!" Petelgeuse cried, his voice cracking as he reached his arms toward her.
"I have waited! Waited so long! So long, so long! Centuries! Years! Endless prayers! Endless devotion! All for you! For you!" His voice trembled with both ecstasy and despair, his face twisted between madness and longing.
But the Witch didn't even glance at him. Not even once.
Her gaze was locked solely on Subaru — the one who stood calmly amid the chaos, her "Master."
Ignoring Petelgeuse's cries and the suffering of her own followers, she stepped forward.
Her movements were slow, almost mechanical, yet each step carried overwhelming weight, pressing down on the world itself.
The miasma followed her like a living shadow.
Then, before anyone could comprehend what was happening, she wrapped her arms around Subaru.
The Witch of Envy — the entity the entire world feared — embraced him gently, almost tenderly, pressing her face against his chest.
"I love you! I love you! I love you! I love you! I love you!" she repeated, her voice echoing through the corrupted air.
Each declaration reverberated like thunder, shaking what little remained of Petelgeuse's sanity.
Subaru stood still, expression unreadable, while her words poured endlessly, consuming everything else around them.
And in that moment, even through the haze of his deranged mind, Petelgeuse understood.
He understood exactly what he was seeing — and it shattered him completely.
The Witch he had worshipped for decades, the divine being whose affection he believed was meant for him alone, had just openly shown love — not to him — but to another man.
To Subaru.
The supposed "Sin Archbishop of Pride" who had stolen everything that defined Petelgeuse's existence.
"No! No! No!" Petelgeuse screamed, his voice breaking into distorted echoes.
"My brain… trembles! Trembles! Trembles! How can it be?! How can it be?! She's mine! Only I deserve her love! Only I! Only I! Only I! I! I! I! I!!"
He clawed at his face until blood smeared across his skin, his nails tearing into his flesh as his entire body convulsed.
His mind collapsed under the weight of betrayal and disbelief, the truth too unbearable for his obsession-driven madness to comprehend.
"Hey, Envy," Subaru said with a grin that didn't reach his eyes.
"He said you love him?"
The moment the words left his mouth, Satella froze.
Her body went completely still for a second, her expression unreadable — then her entire form trembled violently.
"No! No! No! No! No! No!" she screamed in a distorted voice that echoed through the void.
Her head snapped toward Petelgeuse, and instantly several shadowy arms burst out from her back, writhing like serpents before launching toward him with terrifying speed. In an instant, they grabbed him mid-air, crushing through his defensive spells like paper.
The next moment, a sickening sound of bones breaking and tearing flesh filled the air.
"CRRRAAAACK!"
Petelgeuse's body twisted grotesquely as his arms and legs were bent in directions they were never meant to move.
Blood splattered across the ground, bone fragments and chunks of flesh scattering everywhere.
"ARRRRHHHHHHHHH!" Petelgeuse howled in unbearable agony.
Normally, a Great Spirit like him, even when possessing a body, shouldn't be able to feel physical pain.
But these were her hands — the shadow hands of the Witch of Envy, brimming with the corruptive power that defied logic itself.
For a Spirit like Petelgeuse, that corruption was torment beyond imagination.
It burned into his very essence, amplifying his pain several times over what a human could endure.
His screams became shriller, more animalistic with each second.
"How does it feel, huh?" Subaru asked, his grin widening, his tone mocking yet seething with hatred.
"Having your bones snapped? Feeling them crush one by one? Tell me, how does it feel to be on the receiving end?"
He chuckled darkly as Petelgeuse's shrieks filled the air.
Every cry of pain only reminded Subaru of how Rem had suffered — her broken bones, her blood, her trembling voice in those final moments before she died in his arms in that cursed loop.
The memory only made his rage burn hotter.
Petelgeuse's body convulsed violently as he screamed, "No! No! I want— I want! Her love! Her love is mine! MINE! MINEEEE!" His eyes rolled back, his face contorted in madness and disbelief.
Subaru's grin faded into a cold smirk.
He tilted his head slightly and said one word — softly, but with absolute command.
"Kneel."
But it wasn't directed at Petelgeuse. Nor at the other Witch Cultists writhing on the ground.
It was directed at her — at the Witch of Envy herself.
She immediately knelt without a second of hesitation, her movements smooth and filled with reverence.
Subaru raised his hand and extended a single finger before her, his eyes cold yet oddly calm.
"Lick it," he commanded, his voice firm, carrying no warmth — only authority.
Without question, the Witch of Envy obeyed.
She leaned forward slowly, her expression crazy and filled with adoration.
Her lips brushed against his finger as she lovingly ran her tongue along it, her every action displaying the same kind of devotion that bordered on worship.
Petelgeuse stood frozen, unable to process what he was seeing.
The Witch — his Witch, the divine being he had followed for centuries, the one he believed loved only him — was now lowering herself before another.
Not hesitating to do something so shameful.
His eyes trembled, disbelief and jealousy twisting his face as he stammered incoherently.
Subaru looked at him with a cold grin and said, "Sorry, bud…but your goddess is my bitch."
The words hit Petelgeuse like a hammer.
His entire body convulsed with rage, veins bulging across his face as he screamed, his voice filled with both fury and heartbreak.
He was experiencing the ultimate betrayal, the kind of despair only those who watch their faith crumble could understand.
It was the same feeling those Chinese Main Characters and Netorare Protagonists experience— the kind who dedicate everything to someone they thought divine, only to learn that their so-called goddess found joy in serving another.
That the one they put into pedestal, didn't gave a shit about them, instead she simped for someone else who barely put her into eyes, doing nothing but using her for selfish gain.
She knows it yet does nothing against him, as she loves him deeply, and she would be prefer being someone's second option she loves than being the treasure of someone whom she doesn't gives a fuck about.
Petelgeuse's mind snapped further, his expression twisting into something unrecognizable.
"No! No! No! This can't be! Her love is mine! Only mine!" he cried, his voice breaking apart with every word.
Subaru just stood there, watching him fall apart, his smirk never fading.
Hundreds of shadowy hands burst violently from Petelgeuse's back, writhing like monstrous tentacles of darkness as they shot toward Subaru with terrifying speed.
The air itself seemed to distort from the sheer spiritual pressure he unleashed.
However, before those hands could even get close, an equally massive swarm of shadow hands emerged from Satella's body — each one darker, thicker, and infinitely more oppressive.
The two waves of shadows collided midair, creating a booming impact that rippled across the entire space.
But the difference in power was absolute.
Satella's shadow easily overpowered Petelgeuse's, consuming his attack and swallowing it whole before surging forward, striking his body directly with crushing force.
"̶͖͎͕̗̳͖̬̾̏̈́̾͊̈̓̐͋̉̕͜͝͠͝N̸̛̥͓̺̗͎̙̊́̍̒͛́͂̒̆̿͊͗͝Ȏ̴͎̹̠͎̹͚̮͜ ̸̨̛̺̩̰̫̗̝̟͖̱̗̩̤̣̅̃̈́̔͐̃̀͌̾͋̊̚͘͝O̴̧͙̥̱͛̓̿͋͋̓̎͗̐̂͗͑̀͋̕͠N̴̼̓̒̄͆̃́̆͗̌̋̐̐́̾̽̚̚͝͝ͅE̴͎̬̭̘̹̱̪̐͌̉̀͂̑̆̾͂̆̒ ̵̢̠͔́̿͛̅̏̍̀̈́̔̃͘̚͝H̸̨̫̝̫̝̻̿̃͌͛̕͜Ư̷̮̘̪̠̟̜̔́͌̏́͐̂̊̚̕̕R̵̡̧̜̼͖̹̼͓̝̦̹̲̜̟͓̱͎̣͆͜T̸̨̨̲̤͚͔̪͎͉͎̆̇́̐̒̔̆̿͒̉̈́̅͑͂̃͂̂̾̾͛͜S̸̡̡̨̨̫̠̼͎̼̻̦̭͓̟̳̤̫̐͛̉̾́̈́͜͠ ̴̛͈͔̪̳͑͂̈͐́̓̓̔͆̈́͗̈́̒̃̚͘̕͠M̷̢̮͕͔͔͉̠̠͌̀͒̐̒̈͂̔̉̑̎͌͋͌̚͝Y̸̢̢̲͚͚̣̥̫̬̥̮̭͓̬̥͚̝͈̾̔̔͒̕ͅͅ ̶̖͚̥̟̱͖̱̼͓̯͊̐̊͋̆̏̓͗̐̅̆̕͝M̵̨̧̘̫̟̺͍̲̰̗͈̺̤̖͇̠̩͚͇̎͛̎͒̌̕̕ͅA̵̦̽́Ş̶͙̥̫͈̩̟̤̱̺͕̜͉͛̌̊̽͋͐̂̓̄̋̈́̌͑̚͜͠͝T̸͔̤̜͚͈̺̀̀́̒͌̀͛̑͛͛̆̒̐̊Ḙ̵̢̜̥̦̱̀̈̽̄̿̀͌̌̆̎͜͝͝R̸̳̪̲̼̹̦̲̣͙̲̠̺̞͈̊̀́̌͒̐̄͊̈̽̎̐͜!̵̟̀̏̉̆̏͑̈͆̆"̵̤̔̃̂͑̊̾ ̴͍̳̖͚̠̼̙͑͛̇̂̀͂̒͌͗̊̇̎̕͝͝
Envy's voice erupted across the field — distorted, layered, and inhuman.
Her cry wasn't just sound; it was a wave of raw madness, echoing through the shadows and shaking the very ground beneath them.
The meaning of her words was broken, yet the intent was unmistakable.
Her rage and possessiveness left no room for mercy.
Petelgeuse's scream was drowned out by the overwhelming roar of darkness consuming him.
His body convulsed violently as the shadows wrapped around him, crushing him, twisting, tearing, and corrupting him from within.
It wasn't merely a physical death — it was something far more horrifying.
His soul, the very essence of his existence, began to rot.
The corruption of the Witch Factor turned against him, and under Satella's dominance, his spirit withered away, erased completely.
No light remained in him.
Not even Od Laguna could reclaim his soul or grant him reincarnation.
His end was total, his very being erased from every cycle of existence.
He had met the worst possible fate — not death, not destruction, but complete erasure.
Subaru watched it happen, frozen for a moment, then burst out laughing.
It wasn't a laugh of cruelty — it was something broken, something human.
It was the laughter of someone who had endured too much, seen too much, and finally saw one of his tormentors meet justice.
As the last of Petelgeuse's form disintegrated into black mist, Subaru's laughter turned shaky.
Tears began to stream down his face — not of sorrow, but of relief and release.
He remembered everything — every humiliation, every pain, every death he had suffered in this cursed world.
Every insult, every betrayal, every time he was made to feel powerless.
And now, seeing one of the monsters responsible vanish into nothing, he couldn't stop himself from crying.
They were tears of victory, of vindication, and of the fragile, burning joy that came from finally winning — even if just once.
For a long moment, Subaru stood there silently, his breathing steady but his mind completely clouded with mixed emotions.
He looked down at the Witch of Envy, who was still clinging to him tightly, her arms wrapped around his torso as if afraid that he would disappear the moment she let go.
Her muffled voice echoed softly against his chest, repeating the same phrase again and again like a broken record — "I love you, I love you, I love you."
If only things were different. If only she wasn't the same woman — no, the same entity — who had dragged him through hell, the one who cursed his existence and made him live through countless loops of despair… maybe, just maybe, he might have felt something other than irritation or disgust.
But that wasn't the reality.
She was the reason behind everything.
The one who had ruined him, remade him, and left scars so deep even death couldn't erase them.
Before he could say or even think further, something unexpected happened.
A small, pulsating black orb suddenly materialized in the air right in front of him.
It glowed faintly, releasing a sinister hum that felt both powerful and dangerous.
Then, without warning, it shot toward him like a bullet.
"Wait, what the—!" Subaru barely had time to react before the orb slammed into his abdomen and vanished into his body, leaving behind a faint ripple of dark energy.
"Fuck!" Subaru cursed loudly, clutching his stomach where the orb had disappeared.
His face twisted in pain and confusion as he looked down, half-expecting to see a hole or a mark.
There was nothing — just the faint residue of black smoke that dissipated within seconds.
He raised his head sharply and glared at Satella, his tone laced with anger.
"What the hell was that supposed to be?!"
The Witch flinched instantly.
Her body trembled like a frightened child caught doing something forbidden.
Then, in a panicked voice that echoed with anxiety, she stammered, "Witch factor, witch factor, witch factor, witch factor!"
She repeated the words again and again, her tone rising each time as if saying it more would somehow make him less angry.
"Okay! Okay, I got it!" Subaru interrupted loudly, waving his hands.
"Stop repeating it like some broken radio, damn it!"
Satella fell silent immediately, lowering her head, her long shadowy hair covering her face.
Subaru exhaled heavily, rubbing his temples as frustration began to rise again.
'Witch Factor, huh…' he thought to himself, his inner monologue kicking in as he tried to piece together everything.
'From what I know, if my old-world otaku logic still counts for anything, then Witch Factors are most likely the core sources of power for Sin Archbishops and possibly even the Witches themselves. It's probably what gives them their authority or "Divine Protection" level abilities. Whether it comes with a cost or a curse though… that's still up for debate.'
He frowned, thinking deeper, the gears in his mind turning rapidly.
'Wait a damn minute… if that's true, then does that mean my Return by Death — that cursed ability that restarts time — also comes from a Witch Factor?'
Slowly, he turned his eyes toward Satella, who had been standing silently, still watching him with that strange, obsessive gaze filled with affection and guilt.
"Hey, say…" he began, his tone softer but still suspicious, "is my Return by Death also something that's connected to, or maybe derived from, the Witch Factor?"
The moment he finished asking, Satella nodded rapidly, almost too eagerly.
"Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes!" she confirmed with desperate enthusiasm, her voice echoing through the void of her realm.
Subaru let out a long, resigned sigh, rubbing the back of his neck.
"Ah… I see. Yeah, I get it now," he muttered under his breath, though truthfully, he didn't get it at all.
'So that means those creepy shadow hands that come out whenever he used or triggered that power… they're part of this Sloth Witch Factor's ability set too, huh? Then… does that mean I might gain similar powers as these Archbishops? Or maybe something entirely different?' he wondered, though no answer came.
The more he thought about it, the more questions surfaced.
Honestly, he didn't understand much about Witch Factors or how they worked.
And Satella — well, she wasn't exactly the easiest person to have a proper conversation with.
Her obsession and broken speech patterns didn't make explanations any clearer.
In the end, Subaru simply exhaled again and reached out, giving Satella a brief, almost awkward pat on the head.
"Yeah, whatever. We'll deal with this later," he muttered.
Then, with a final glance around the endless purple void that served as her private space — the one he had personally nicknamed the "Shadow Realm" — he prepared to leave.
The shadows rippled around him, and a faint light began to open like a portal.
A second later, Subaru stepped forward, leaving behind the suffocating darkness of Satella's domain, returning to the world he actually belonged to — or at least the one that kept torturing him again and again.
Now although Subaru despised Satella from the very core of his being, he wasn't foolish enough to let his emotions cloud his judgment.
He had decided on a careful balance of carrot and stick approach for her.
If he wanted to keep the Witch of Envy obedient and stable, he had to reward her occasionally, just enough to satisfy her obsession and keep her from spiraling out of control.
That was exactly why, despite the disgust he felt, he would give her small "rewards" whenever she flawlessly followed his orders — be it a simple gesture, a few kind words, or the permission to stay close to him.
To her, those things meant everything.
To him, they were a means of control.
After finishing her task, Satella silently dissolved into his shadow once again, vanishing like black smoke melting into the ground — ready to obey his next command the moment he called.
Subaru took a deep breath, stepping out of the eerie realm and back into the cold forest clearing where the Witch Cult's temporary base had once stood.
The scene that greeted him was gruesome.
The entire area was littered with corpses — dozens upon dozens of Witch Cultists sprawled lifelessly across the ground, their twisted bodies showing the horrifying results of Satella's miasma and shadow attacks.
Their faces were frozen in expressions of madness and pain.
The only one missing was Petelgeuse.
There wasn't even a trace of him left — not a body, not a drop of blood, not even ash.
His very existence had been erased, devoured completely by the Witch of Envy.
Subaru looked around the battlefield in silence for a moment, then sighed.
"Yeah… this is gonna be a pain to clean up," he muttered under his breath.
He reached into his coat pocket, pulled out a small white handkerchief, and began wiping the saliva left on his fingers from earlier.
His expression twisted slightly in discomfort.
"Damn, even her saliva feels like it's cursed," he grumbled, tossing the handkerchief aside once he was done.
For a moment, he considered what to do next.
"Hmm… dragging these corpses one by one would take forever," he said aloud, his voice echoing through the dead-silent forest.
Then, after thinking for a bit, he sighed again.
"Nah, screw it. I'll just tell the villagers it's done. That should be enough."
And with that, he started walking back toward the village.
By the time Subaru reached the familiar sight of the Arlam Village, the tension that had gripped the townsfolk was palpable.
Everyone's eyes immediately darted toward him the moment he appeared on the main path.
Then, like a wave breaking, relief and disbelief spread across their faces.
"Subaru-kun!" Rem's voice cut through the air, filled with relief and worry.
Before Subaru could even say a word, she sprinted toward him and threw her arms around him, hugging him tightly.
He smiled faintly, wrapping his arms around her in return.
"Hehe… see? Your hero is fine. Your hero's really strong, Rem," he said with a teasing grin, patting her head affectionately.
"Subaru-kun, you're alright!" Rem said again, her voice trembling slightly — the mixture of fear and relief evident in her tone.
She looked up at him, her blue eyes glistening, and Subaru chuckled softly.
Yeah… strong, huh?
He thought to himself, amused at the irony.
Physically, he wasn't strong at all.
Magically?
Not much better either.
But class-wise?
He grinned inwardly.
He was a summoner.
And his summon just happened to be an SSS+ tier — the literal world-ending Witch of Envy herself.
Ahem.
One of the villagers, still shaken but curious, nervously stepped forward and asked, "S-Sir Subaru… what about the Witch Cultists? What happened to them?"
Subaru turned to him with an expression so calm that it sent chills down the man's spine.
"Dead," he said flatly.
A collective gasp ran through the villagers.
Mothers clutched their children closer, and men looked at each other in disbelief.
"D-Dead? All of them?!" another villager asked, his voice cracking slightly.
Subaru nodded once, his face serious but oddly casual about the entire thing.
"Yup. Not one left."
The villagers stared at him — their eyes darting between him and his clothes.
He wasn't even dirty.
No blood, no torn fabric, not even a speck of dust.
It didn't make sense.
A few of them whispered among themselves, doubt creeping in.
Seeing their uncertain faces, Subaru chuckled and smiled faintly, tilting his head a bit.
"You know…" he said, his tone almost playful, "how about I show you their corpses?"
For a moment, silence swallowed the entire crowd.
No one spoke.
Not a single person dared to move or breathe too loudly.
The thought of seeing what lay beyond the forest — what Subaru had done — terrified them more than the Witch Cult itself.
The look in Subaru's eyes, the faint smirk on his lips — it told them everything.
Whatever had happened out there… it was something none of them ever wanted to see.
To be continued...