Emilia didn't know how long she had hung there. It could have been an hour or just a few minutes, but either way, her whole body felt like it was on fire.
Emilia 's entire body weight dangled from her arms, which felt ready to pop out of her shoulders. Her legs twisted and strained to try to reach the floor just to relieve some of the tension on her poor arms. The only part of her body that wasn't under great strain was her face, and thanks to 128's brutal slap, her face hurt as well.
She heard the door open behind her, and Emilia 's heart stopped. Chained up as she was, she couldn't look behind her. Her keen hearing detected quiet footfalls approaching, slowly and steadily.
In spite of herself, Emilia twisted and struggled, desperately trying to escape like a rabbit in a snare.
"Oh, my poor foolish Acolyte," Regulus murmured. The words were kind, but Emilia could hear the delighted grin in his voice. "It always grieves me when moments like this are necessary. I am the most benevolent person in the world. I even rescued you from your meaningless life. I do not enjoy punishing you this way. This hurts me much more than it hurts you. But punish you, I must. Because without discipline, without submission and obedience, you will not become the woman that you are meant to be."
Regulus slowly emerged into Emilia 's line of sight, and Emilia flinched back violently. Naked and helpless, she trembled in fear of the mad Archbishop. Restrained as she was, she had no way to even cover herself up.
Regulus looked her body over, but there was no lust in his expression. He only seemed to find delight in her helpless misery.
"Acolyte," Regulus went on, "This room is a crucible where impurities are burned away until all that remains is a pure product. In this trial shall your impurities be slowly burned away until all that remains is an ideal wife: docile, submissive, and obedient." Regulus began to walk in circles around Emilia, her head snapping back and forth as she struggled to keep the dangerous madman in her field of view.
Emilia realized that the room was getting darker. The light was fading, and a warm, spicy-smelling smoke was billowing up from the grate beneath her feet.
The room was pitch black. Emilia could barely see her own reflections in the mirrors anymore.
Regulus materialized out of the darkness, thrusting his face directly into Emilia 's, his expression a mask of twisted delight.
Emilia screamed as Regulus abruptly grabbed her arm and squeezed it hard.
"My poor Acolyte," Regulus said; his voice was regretful, but his smile was vicious. "Now begins your first lesson. Remember, only the test of fire creates true steel. Don't struggle against the fire, Acolyte. Embrace the flames…"
Regulus let go of Emilia and walked off behind her.
Emilia struggled to see what he was doing back in the shadows. It looked like he was pulling something small out of his pocket and touching it to the mirror-covered wall.
Emilia started as the mirrors on the walls all rippled in unison as if Regulus had dropped a stone into water.
Emilia shook her head. The strange-smelling smoke was starting to make her dizzy.
Emilia tried to peer into the darkness. The mirrors glowed faintly, and their surfaces rippled. It was like something was taking shape in the mirrors around her. Something that looked like …
Trees.
Emilia 's eyes widened in horror.
In front of her, she saw an elven girl with silver hair chasing a small spirit through the forest.
No! Not this again! Not now!
Emilia turned away but no matter which way she looked, all the mirrors around her displayed the same image. No matter where Emilia looked, she saw the tragedy unfolding before her eyes again.
Emilia firmly shut her eyes.
To her astonishment and horror, it didn 't work. Her eyes were closed, but the images simply poured directly into Emilia's brain. Eyes open or closed, the strange room's magic denied her any chance to ignore the vision. In fact, it felt like shutting her eyes only made the vision more intense. Instead of just seeing the vision, she felt as if she was reliving it.
A shiver flew down Emilia 's spine as Regulus gave a cold laugh.
Regulus stepped in front of her. " Now , I remember, " He said, sounding triumphant. "You were that little fool all those years ago! The one who destroyed the forest!"
Emilia flinched. "That's not true!" She shouted. " You were the ones who attacked us! "
Regulus 's face twisted in rage, and he raised his fist to strike her.
Emilia closed her eyes and twisted her face away, but before the blow could land, Emilia heard: "Well, what splendid luck."
A girl 's melodic voice froze Regulus's hand in place.
Emilia carefully opened her eyes and saw that Regulus was looking into the mirror with an uncertain expression.
Emilia swallowed hard as the vision played out again in the mirror before her. In front of the young Emilia stood Regulus, the evil Archbishop having not aged a day in all these years. Beside him was a strange blur or optical distortion that spoke with a girl 's voice.
Emilia tore her eyes from the vision and looked at the real Regulus.
The Archbishop 's face was both sullen and confused. He looked at the blur in the mirror with intense loathing, but more than that, he looked baffled, as if unable to understand why it was there at all.
"We've been looking for you for a long time, little one," The blur said in a gentle voice. "If you would be so kind as to come with us, we can avoid a great deal of trouble."
Emilia squeezed her eyes shut as she heard her younger self scream in fear and run away.
And now I 'm leading these monsters right to Guese and Mother Fortuna, Emilia thought in despair.
"Running away like a frightened little mouse," Regulus loomed out of the shadows to hiss in her ear. "Pathetic. What was your plan? To hide behind all the other elves and use them to shield you?"
Emilia flinched. "I… I was just a child," The words slipped out of her. "I didn't know… I didn't know what was… You… You attacked our home! You attacked-"
"And you led me right to all the others," Regulus said with malicious delight. "You ran off through the bushes like a little mouse, practically begging us to follow and to find all your kin."
Emilia flinched again.
"All of those people suffered because of your cowardice," Regulus pressed on. "You led us right to their doorstep. A little coward, desperate to save her own skin. Not caring who else would suffer in the process."
Emilia shook her head violently, trying to drown out Regulus 's words as he attacked her most sensitive spot.
"I don't understand why I'm even here," A sullen voice pouted.
Emilia opened her eyes and realized that the Regulus who had spoken was the one in the vision.
"Let me just grab her and bring her back," the Regulus in the vision said. "I want to hurry up and be done with this!"
"Not yet," The blur whispered calmly. "There are still other options available to us. Let us try the diplomatic approach first."
"Why am I even here?" Regulus grumbled in the vision. "Why do I, of all people, need to be dragged away from my sainted way of being and involved in such pedestrian matters? I have never asked you to rearrange your delicately calculated schedule for my benefit or for you to amend your own plans on how to spend your time. I am the most satisfied existence in creation, and all that I have ever asked of anyone is that my right to live my life as I choose be respected and that others provide very reasonable accommodations for my preferences and yet today, I find myself bereft of the perfect life that I have cultivated for myself and wandering through a dank and grubby forest in a baffling quest for something. Now I ask you, does that seem-"
"My darling Regulus," The voice was girlish, but the way she spoke was almost maternal. "Do you feel that I'm treating you… unfairly?"
The girl 's voice was soft, beautiful, and even loving, but something about the way that she asked that question made the hairs on the back of Emilia's neck stand up.
She saw that the Regulus in the vision felt the same way. His spoiled, sullen expression had been replaced by alarm and even fear.
"Of course not, Goddess!" He said at once. "Never! I just… want to serve you more… efficiently," He said, his voice trailing off in a grumble.
'Goddess?' Is this who Regulus was speaking to tonight?
Regulus scowled up at the vision, his expression uncertain.
Emilia 's eyes widened in understanding.
It 's that blur with the girl's voice. Regulus is afraid of her. He's even groveling to her…
"It looks like I'm not the only coward!" Emilia exclaimed in wild delight before she even had time to consider if provoking Regulus was wise. "You're terrified of that girl!"
Regulus whirled on Emilia, his eyes wild. "I… You…" He clearly struggled to control himself.
His eyes narrowed. "What a strange thing to say," He said in a more composed tone. "The only coward I see here is you. You let us right to your people, and they all died because of you. "
Emilia flinched. "No! You did that! " She protested.
Emilia felt dizzy. The strange-smelling smoke was making her head spin.
"Oh, you silly little fool," Regulus said in delight. "You don't know the truth, do you? Did you really never wonder why we came to the forest in the first place?"
Emilia hesitated. "To… attack the elves," She said uncertainly.
Regulus burst out laughing. It was a high, cold laugh that echoed off the walls of the mirror room.
"Oh no, Acolyte," Regulus sneered. "We didn't care a wit for the elves. We came to the forest that day for one reason. We came there to find you."
Emilia blinked. "What?"
"You were the only thing in the forest that we cared about!" Regulus shouted in glee. "All we wanted was you! If you'd just come with us when we asked, nothing would have happened to the elves! They all died because of your cowardice and selfishness! All that suffering, all that pain, all that death, none of it had any purpose! None of it was necessary! They all died because of you!"
Emilia stared at Regulus in horror. Her body trembled.
No. No, that 's not true. He's lying. That's impossible. They… No. He's lying. All of that misery… I… It couldn't have been…
"No!" Emilia screamed out, thrashing in her bonds, desperately trying to break free. "That's not true! You're lying!"
Regulus gave her a vicious grin and gestured toward the mirror in front of her. Emilia felt her eyes unwillingly return to the vision.
Within the mirror, Regulus followed the blur through the underbrush. Regulus 's face was once again sullen and resentful, but he trailed a respectful pace behind the strange blur. His demeanor was that of a man who knows he stands next to a mountain of dynamite and is warily watching for any sparks.
The strange pair emerged from the underbrush, where they found the weeping Emilia being cradled in Mother Fortuna 's arms. Guese was trying to comfort her as well, but he saw the strangers emerge from the bushes, and his face paled in horror.
"Hello, Guese," The blur said in a friendly tone. "It's been such a long time."
Guese 's face twisted in hatred as he stared at the blur with the girl's voice. He wore a savage expression that Emilia had never seen nor even imagined on Guese's kindly face.
Guese 's lips moved as if he was chewing on words that he was desperate to throw at the blur, but then he turned his attention to Regulus. "What is this?" He demanded. "We agreed that the girl would be under my protection until she comes of age! If you wanted to discuss changes to our arrangement, it should have been done at the Cathedral! "
Regulus snorted. "What arrangement?" He asked indifferently. "I agreed to nothing. I simply didn't care enough to become involved."
"And now you're working with her?!" Guese asked incredulously. "The Betrayer?! Are you completely insane?!"
Regulus 's face darkened. "I don't much care for your tone," He said petulantly.
"We're not here to trouble you, Guese," The girl said sweetly. "We're simply here for the girl. You did some truly remarkable work keeping her hidden from me for all this time. I legitimately thought that she was dead. But darling Regulus kindly explained the situation to me."
Emilia 's face grew pale as she watched the vision unfold before her.
"You see," The real Regulus said insinuatingly. "I have no need to lie to you, Acolyte. Not when the truth is so much more devastating. All we wanted was you. If you had come away with us when we first asked you to, we would have left the forest in peace."
"No!" Emilia screamed, twisting and thrashing in her bonds.
"Yes," Regulus hissed into her ear. "We didn't destroy the elves. You did that yourself."
"No!" Emilia screamed, trying to drown out the horrible vision.
"No!" Emilia rasped.
Emilia hung limply from her chains. Every muscle in her body felt completely numb, and the strange smoke welling up from the grate made her head spin.
Emilia had no idea how long she 'd been trapped in this nightmare. The familiar vision had ended, and then the mirrors immediately started replaying it, over and over and over.
Emilia was utterly exhausted but Regulus badgered her constantly, seemingly no more tired than when they 'd started this ordeal hours earlier.
"Please!" The tiny Emilia in the vision begged the strangers desperately. "Don't take me! There are more elves in the forest. They're much more important than me! Take them instead!" Then, the vision showed Emilia turning and fleeing into the bushes, seeking Mother Fortuna in a blind panic.
Emilia whimpered. "That's not what happened. I didn't say that! " She sobbed.
The visions had been playing on a constant loop for hours, but worse than that, each time the vision was replayed, it became subtly twisted.
At first, the changes were meaningless. Emilia saw that Guese and Mother Fortuna had swapped positions in the vision.
Emilia stared at them in confusion. "That's… wrong," She muttered. "That's not where Guese and Mother Fortuna were standing."
"Isn't memory a funny thing?" Regulus sounded reflective. "Our minds do strange things to protect themselves. They… cover up our mistakes. If the truth is too terrible to contemplate, sometimes the mind simply refuses to contemplate it. It covers it up with a comforting fantasy."
"It's not my memory! Guese and Mother Fortuna have switched places."
"How do you know?" Regulus had demanded at once.
"That's not where they were standing," Emilia had said at once.
"And where were they standing?" Regulus said in the tone of a man indulging a foolish child's fantasy.
"They've swapped positions," Emilia said.
"How far apart were they standing?" Regulus asked abruptly.
Emilia hesitated. "They… they were standing right where they're now standing. They just switched positions."
"So, how far apart were they standing?" Regulus pressed.
Emilia squinted at the mirror. "I don't know. Maybe two feet?"
"Huh," Regulus snorted contemptuously.
As the vision replayed over and over again, it kept changing. Most of the twists and changes in the vision were empirically meaningless. But each time she noticed one, Emilia 's exhausted mind was forced to stop and question which facts were true and which were lies. The strange smoke continued to make her head spin.
Worse, the vision steadily changed to make Emilia more selfish, cowardly, and ultimately responsible for the tragedy in the forest. The strange blur with the girl 's voice slowly faded into the background as Regulus gained prominence, now depicted in the vision as a kind and generous man only seeking to protect others from Emilia's dangerous power.
"No!" Emilia screamed in horror.
The vision played out again, and Emilia watched as a great hole was torn in Mother Fortuna 's stomach. But this time, it wasn't the strange girl or Guese's power that caused it. It was Emilia's own magic that had murdered her mother. A sharp ice crystal ripped through Mother Fortuna's belly. Fortuna fell to the ground, her dying eyes staring reproachfully at Emilia.
"No!" Emilia screamed in agony as the vision ended and restarted again. "That's not what happened!"
"Acolyte," Regulus said in a warning voice. "I am getting very tired of all your excuses."
"This is all lies!" Emilia cried, fighting to ignore the vision. "None of this is true!"
"Acolyte! This is the truth! Not your fragile memories that try to make you look better! You already tried to tell me a story about how the people in the glen had changed position!"
"It's true!" Emilia protested, looking up at the hated vision again. "Guese and Mother Fortuna had changed places!"
"And how far apart were there?" He demanded.
Emilia whimpered. She 'd been hanging from the shackles for hours and was desperate to sleep. "About a foot apart," She sighed.
Emilia cried out as Regulus backhanded her. She slumped in her chains, dazed.
A moment later, she screamed in pain as Regulus grabbed her hair in a tight grip and jerked her head back, forcing her to look at him. "An hour ago, you said two feet! " He raged. "I'm tired of all your lies, Acolyte! "
Emilia slumped in her chains and sobbed.
Emilia hung limply in her chains.
Her mind had nearly shut down. She existed in an agonizing twilight between wakefulness and exhausted sleep. Each time that Emilia started to black out from sheer exhaustion, Regulus would slap her across the face to jar her back to wakefulness.
"Were you always this out of control?" Regulus criticized.
In the vision behind him, Emilia once again cursed the forest and turned the elves to ice. After all of the changes to the vision, the Regulus in the vision now seemed like no more than a harmless bystander watching as Emilia 's cruel magic wiped out her own people.
Emilia choked back a sob.
"It's funny how memories always make us out to be the heroes of our stories, isn't it?" Regulus murmured. "Look at you. You were so desperate to save your own worthless skin that you cursed the forest and entombed the elves in ice. But to hear you say it, you were just trying to protect them. Isn't it convenient how you remember yourself trying to 'save' them rather than remembering all of the pain and death that you actually caused?"
Emilia was silent.
"It seems like every time you disobey, other people pay the price," Regulus said sternly. "Why is that? Why do other people always have to suffer for your mistakes? Why can you never pay the price yourself? Not even your own mother was safe from your selfishness."
Emilia cringed with a whimper.
Regulus shook his head. "I know that you think that I'm being unfair to you, Acolyte," He said in a regretful voice. "But am I? Look at all the misery and suffering you caused. Earlier today, you admitted you don't deserve to be one of my wives. And you're quite correct. I didn't want to humiliate you in public, but you don 't deserve it.
"I didn't bring you here for my sake. I brought you here for yours. Because keeping you here is the only way that I can prevent you from causing more damage and inflicting more pain."
Emilia flinched.
"This is who you are, Acolyte. It's who you are and who you'll always be. I'm keeping you here for everyone else's safety. And you should be grateful. At least here, your selfish, cowardly choices won't hurt anyone else. It's important that you learn to face who you truly are as well as all of your mistakes. See what your defiance and disobedience have cost others? The forest, your family, they all paid the price for your selfish decisions…"
Emilia whimpered.
"Perhaps it's time that you finally accepted the truth, Acolyte. If not for your selfishness, none of this suffering would ever have happened. I'm here to help you see it, to free you from all your self-serving delusions. And one day, you'll thank me for it."
Emilia floated in between sleep and wakefulness. Her mind pleaded with her for rest, but she was too afraid to fall asleep. She knew that the moment she did, Regulus would pounce with another sharp blow, waking her up and castigating her.
The manacle holding her left arm let go, and Emilia half-fell to the ground with a strained whimper. Now, she dangled from only her right arm. Gentle hands held her naked body as the other manacle let go as well.
The hands slowly lowered her to the ground.
"Be gentle with her," A soft voice that Emilia recognized as 128 murmured. "The Mirror Room is a formidable ordeal. She'll need time to recover."
Emilia struggled to open her eyes. She saw 128, the red-headed 246, and another woman looking down at her sympathetically.
Emilia could barely move. She didn 't even have the strength to cover her naked body.
128 sighed. "I know that it hurts, Acolyte. But try to remember this is just the first step on your journey toward salvation, and the first step is always the most difficult. The outside world has corrupted you, and its scars run deep. Without the Master's guidance, those wounds only festered and never received the chance to heal. Wounds that putrefy need to be cut and drained."
Emilia had no strength to even respond. She closed her eyes with a whimper.
128 sighed. "Help take her up to the showers. She needs to clean up."
As the sun rose, the weary Patrasche pulled a crude two-wheeled wagon north across the plains. Subaru, Felt, and a reluctant Brador sat in the cart.
They had rode in silence for close to an hour.
Subaru looked at Felt. "I'm sure that Garfiel is still OK," He said awkwardly. "We'll find him."
"I know that," Felt said quietly. "Garfiel's head may be full of rocks, but he's also tougher than anything that he's likely to bump into in some jungle. He'll hang in there until we find him. And then I'll put the fear of God in the dumb fleabag for being stupid enough to run into a cursed jungle and leaving me out here worried sick about him!"
Subaru almost smiled.
Brador stood up in the wagon and shielded his eyes against the sun. "There it is," He said. "That's His Majesty's base of operations."
Subaru squinted and saw an enormous camp in the distance. He drove Patrasche toward it.
They pulled up to the enormous army camp, and a sentry held out his hand, ordering them to come to a stop. "Halt, who goes here?"
Brador stood up and stepped out of the wagon, nearly falling out of the wagon after misjudging the distance to the ground. "I am Major Brador Basileus. Junior Undersecretary to the Minister of the Interior," He introduced himself awkwardly.
The soldier looked distinctly unimpressed. "And what are you doing here?"
"His Majesty sent me to locate these people and to bring them before him," Brador explained.
"I've received no such instructions," The soldier said dismissively
Brador looked annoyed. "Excuse me, Legionnaire, but is His Majesty in the habit of confiding secrets to his doorman ? "
The soldier looked livid. Brador approached the man, and the two began to argue quietly.
After a moment, the soldier sullenly said: " You may enter, Minister. These people must remain here until I receive proper confirmation of your orders from official channels. Insurgents and saboteurs roam the countryside. No one is admitted to the camp without proper authorization. "
Brador looked unhappy, but he nodded.
Brador hurried back over to the wagon. "I'll go make my report to His Majesty," He told Subaru in a placating voice. "Please. Try to stay calm. You won't be waiting long."
"We'd better not be," Subaru growled.
Brador swallowed hard and darted into the camp at a run.
The Legionnaire looked at the wagon 's passengers darkly but made no further comments.
Felt sighed. "If Vincent is as anxious to meet with you as Brador implied, then this should move along quickly."
"Moving at light speed wouldn't be fast enough for me," Subaru muttered, his voice like ice. "But I'm looking forward to having a nice long chat with Vincent. As far as I'm concerned, he needs to take responsibility for this mess. We were all his guests when Emilia was kidnapped."
"Subaru," Felt hissed. "You need to get a grip on your temper! You came here looking for help!"
"And Vincent is going to supply it. One way or the other," He grated.
Felt grabbed his shoulder and shook it violently.
Subaru turned to scowl at Felt.
Felt blanched as she looked into those burning eyes but she took a deep breath and pressed on. "I know that you're worried about Emilia! We… both are, " She added hesitantly. "But the absolute last thing we need right now is to pick a fight with somebody else! Especially given how much trouble it sounds like Vincent is already in! If you 're not careful, he might think that you're working with the rebels and that he has absolutely nothing to lose whatsoever by ordering his men to attack you! You 're asking for access to a weapon powerful enough to threaten a world-destroying monster! That means that you need to be diplomatic enough to convince Vincent that you're not going to use the weapon against him or his Empire! "
Subaru seethed as Felt 's words slowly penetrated the red haze of his rage.
Finally, Subaru bowed his head with a sigh.
"It's going to be OK, Subaru," Felt said in an oddly gentle voice. "We'll get her back."
Subaru quivered, his rage vanishing as if someone had flipped a switch, and his expression was left hollowed out with grief and despair.
"You don't know that," He whispered, his voice hoarse and raw. "You don't know what he's capable of… We don't even know if she's still alive!"
"Subaru," Felt said with as much assurance as she could muster. "Nobody kidnaps someone just so that they can kill them out of sight. If he wanted her dead, he would have killed her in front of us. He stole her because he has a use for her, and that means that she's still OK."
Subaru sighed. "I know. I know. You're right," He said in a broken voice. "And yet…"
"We'll get her back, Subaru," Felt promised, knowing that she was grasping at straws. "We'll get her back, and then we'll find Garf and the spirits and disappear."
246 and the other woman carefully carried Emilia up several flights of stairs.
Emilia could only lie in their arms in a daze while the world spun around her. Every muscle was in agony, and her mind felt broken.
Emilia vaguely realized that the sun was just starting to come up and that she had spent the entire night in the Mirror Room with Regulus.
"I know how painful this was," 246 whispered to Emilia in sympathy. "Most of us don't actually… The Master only brings a few girls into the Mirror Room. The ones who need… special care. We all know how agonizing it can be."
"246!" The brunette whispered, sounding scandalized. "The Master only brought her there because she needed it!"
"That doesn't change the fact that it hurt, 17!" 246 hissed back. "We can still empathize with her suffering without questioning the Master!"
Emilia looked dully up at the women as they argued. She noticed that 17 looked distinctly unconvinced by this argument.
The women carefully carried Emilia into a large communal shower. Dozens of women were washing their bodies out in the open with no shower curtains or walls to provide privacy.
Some of the women paused as the pair carried Emilia into the room. Their expressions as they looked at Emilia ranged from sympathetic to hostile to indifferent.
As the women finished showering, they walked to a line of hangers on the wall and took out a white dress identical to the ones they wore yesterday. The women pulled on their dresses and lined up in front of 128, who was reading from a clipboard.
"42, 14, you're in the kitchen today," 128 read. "68, 84, laundry. 17 and 33, gardening."
The women received their assignments and then left without a word.
Meanwhile, 246 and 14 gently carried Emilia back to the shower. The elven girl, 78, who had just finished dressing, quickly grabbed a wooden stool and placed it in the shower. 246 and 14 carefully lowered Emilia onto the stool. Her body was so wobbly that she needed help to even sit up.
"Let me help," 78 whispered to 246. "This is more my area of expertise."
246 hesitated.
Emilia watched dully as the redhead glanced at 128, who had just finished handing out assignments to the other wives.
128 frowned for a moment and then nodded. She beckoned 246 and 17 to come with her, leaving the showers empty. Emilia was all alone with 78.
78 took a deep breath. "I've never been in the Mirror Room myself," She admitted, trying to keep one hand to support Emilia while she turned the shower on to a gentle drizzle. "But I've heard the stories…"
A thin stream of water washed over Emilia 's body. Her muscles spasmed painfully at the warm water, but then they started to relax. Only now did Emilia realize how tense her body had been.
Emilia drew a shuddering breath as 78 began to gently wash her.
"I can… wash myself," Emilia croaked.
"No," 78 said softly. "Right now, you couldn't. Just hold still. You'll feel better soon."
As 78 gently scrubbed Emilia 's body and washed her hair, Emilia felt some strength returning to her.
Emilia noticed that 78 's hands glowed with a lambent green light, and she realized that 78 was using healing magic to repair the damage done to her body.
To her shock, Emilia found herself struggling not to stare enviously at the other elf as she casually used her magic.
I always hated my magic. But now I just desperately want it back. With no magic, I feel so helpless. I can 't do anything to protect myself. Without my magic or Puck… or Subaru, I'm entirely helpless…
Emilia tried to shake off the poisonous thoughts. "What's your name?" She whispered to the elven girl.
78 shushed her. "I told you," She said gently. "We all surrender our names to the monster here. Just like you did. It's forbidden to mention your old name within these walls. The punishment is severe . "
Emilia swallowed hard, afraid to even imagine what constituted a 'severe' punishment to someone like Regulus. "But we're all alone here."
"Don't be too sure," 78 whispered. "Not all of the wives are your friends. Some turn informant every chance they get, hoping to raise their status with the monster for better treatment."
Emilia sighed. "How… long was I down there?"
"All night," She answered. "Probably about ten or eleven hours."
Emilia shuddered. "It felt like weeks."
78 nodded. "So I've been told."
"How long have you been here?"
78 froze for a moment, and then she resumed gently washing Emilia 's body and using her magic to soothe the aching muscles. "Almost forty years," She said quietly.
Emilia looked up at her in horror. "What? And you still haven 't managed to escape?!"
"There is no escape," 78 whispered. "The monster has a powerful talisman that tells him wherever his brides are, no matter where we try to run. A few women try to escape every year. None have ever succeeded. You will not succeed."
Emilia swallowed hard. "I'm not giving up…" She choked.
78 sighed. "You will. Or you'll be killed trying to escape. Or your heart will break, and you'll die of despair."
The brutal simplicity of 78 's words made Emilia shudder.
78 shook her head. "Please, be careful here. I don't want you to die. There are far too few of us as it is. You're the first elf I've seen in decades." 78 paused, and she looked around the deserted shower as if checking for spies. She lowered her voice, "Are there many elves where you come from?"
The nightmarish visions she 'd been forced to watch all night of the ravaged forest flashed before Emilia's eyes. "No… not for a long time now," She whispered.
78 sighed. "For years, I wondered if I was the last of our kind. Now, there are two of us here. It would be a strange black comedy if we were the last two elves. A critically endangered species finally meets its end in the house of this monster."
Emilia stared at 78 in horror at this quiet despair.
Emilia found that her muscles were stabilized enough for her to sit up on her own. She struggled to cover up her nudity with her hands as 78 continued to calmly wash her body.
"We're almost done," 78 reassured her. "Then we'll go down to the kitchen and have a quick bite of breakfast, and then 128 will give you your task for the day."
"My task?" Emilia asked in a sinking voice. Even the idea of trying to walk was daunting right now, much less trying to perform labor.
"We all have chores to do each day," 78 explained. "128 assigns them."
"I can barely move," Emilia protested. Her limbs still quivered.
78 gave her a sympathetic look. "…Perhaps 128 will give you a simple task today," She said, but her voice was doubtful.
78 helped Emilia stand on her shaky legs, and she led her over to the long row of identical white dresses.
78 studied the rack. "I think this one is in your size," 78 murmured, pulling one out for Emilia.
Emilia looked at the outfit dubiously. It was white, plain, and modest, borderline prudish. It was something in between a house dress and a maid 's outfit.
The notion of being dressed identically to all the other women in Regulus 's nightmare mansion made Emilia's skin crawl, but she remembered that 128 had destroyed her clothing, so she quickly pulled the dress over her head and slipped her feet into the provided soft shoes.
Emilia 's stomach gurgled.
78 looked at her sympathetically. "Let's get downstairs. If we're lucky, there will still be some breakfast for us," 78 murmured. "Remember to take small and ladylike steps when you walk. The monster insists upon it."
The army column marched slowly and painfully through the jungle. The jungle was hot and muggy and any paths that they found only allowed them to pass in single file. Whole swarms of mosquitoes followed the soldiers through the dense foliage.
They 'd made a late start this morning. They could have made much better time, but the Lieutenant insisted on forming new units with every man in a specifically assigned position before they went anywhere.
Garfiel had no assigned place, so he just stomped along at Horatius 's side.
"Wasting all that time assigning positions was stupid," Garfiel muttered to Horatius. "We spent hours debating stupid shit instead of trying to get out of the jungle. Now we're all tired and hungry."
Horatius sighed. "It's not… entirely stupid," He admitted. "A phalanx requires a tight formation to be effective. Men need to know where they stand and how they support one another, or there'll be holes in the defense."
Garfiel snorted. "Look at this jungle, Horatius! Can you imagine finding enough open ground here to form a phalanx? There 's barely room for the two of us to walk side by side!"
Horatius had no response to that, and the weary column trudged on.
The deeper that Garfiel went into the jungle, the more unsettled that he became. Garfiel was a country boy, and although the Sanctuary wasn 't all that large, it still had plenty of woods and hidden places to get lost in.
Garfiel had taken full advantage of this growing up. He 'd learned early on how to find his way through the wilderness. He was probably better at using the sun to guide his path than Subaru.
But here in the jungle, all his techniques fell flat. As soon as dawn came and they set out on their journey through the dense foliage, Garfiel kept a wary eye on the sun, marking their journey toward the northeast as they traveled. He kept careful track of the sun, hanging low in the sky to his right.
A few minutes later, Garfiel casually looked again, just to ensure that they were staying on course and the sun was now off to his left. Despite the fact that the column of men hadn 't turned at all to justify why this had happened.
This strange phenomenon had continued all day. Every time that Garfiel lost sight of the sun, even for a moment, it would move, appearing in different positions all across the sky.
As a young man who was accustomed to using the sun to find his way across the woods without much effort, this impossible situation was deeply unsettling to him.
Garfiel couldn 't tell if the sun's motion was an illusion or a sign that whatever curse lay on the forest was so deeply entrenched that it could violate physical laws on a whim.
Either way, Garfiel began to feel very small and very afraid. More than anything else, he wished that his friends were here with him.
By the time the elves got down to the kitchen, breakfast was over, and the wives were already cleaning up, so Emilia and 78 were simply forced to go without.
"Is she fit for work?" 128 asked 78 with an almost clinical detachment.
78 hesitated. "She's… exhausted from her ordeal last night," She said slowly. "She might need to be on light detail today while she recovers. The trial of the Mirror Room is very intense."
128 did not look pleased by this answer, but she sighed. "Very well, Acolyte. You will assist 246 in scrubbing the floors. Pay careful attention to everything that 246 teaches you. Remember, the first ambition of any acolyte worthy of the name is not to remain one. You must work diligently and impress the Master so that you can earn your own number and truly become one of us. "
Emilia swallowed hard.
Subaru and his friends were left cooling their heels outside the camp for close to an hour, and Subaru 's temper constantly threatened to surge out of control.
Finally, an older man in burnished golden armor appeared at the gate. "Lord Subaru. It is wonderful to see you again."
Subaru frowned. "General… Atesca?" He asked hesitantly.
The General bowed. "Yes, Lord. Forgive me for not escorting you through the Westfold personally, but urgent matters forced me to bring my men elsewhere."
"Is Vincent ready to talk?" Subaru snapped.
Atesca raised an eyebrow at this disrespectful form of address. "Nearly, Lord Subaru. His Majesty is engaged in one final… extremely important matter. He will be prepared to meet with you immediately following this. If you will follow me, I will bring you to the command tent where you may meet with His Majesty. By your leave, I'll bring your companion to the officer's lounge while you two speak."
Subaru 's eyes widened in fear. For a moment, he was utterly certain that this was nothing more than a ploy to take even more of his friends hostage.
Subaru nearly exploded in rage, but Felt 's small hand squeezed his shoulder. She looked at him with a steady gaze, and Subaru finally sighed. "Please extend my deepest gratitude to His Majesty," He murmured reluctantly.
"You can do that yourself very shortly, Lord Subaru," Atesca replied. "Please follow me."
Atesca led Subaru and Felt through the enormous army camp. It was the size of a small city and incredibly noisy since it sounded like absolutely everyone was shouting or barking orders at one another.
Atesca led Subaru to the Emperor 's command camp, a massive pavilion the size of a stadium. Then, Atesca excused himself with a bow. Felt gave Subaru a reassuring look as she followed Atesca away.
It 'd made no sense for Vincent to try to take Felt prisoner at this point, Subaru thought as he fought to steady his nerves. Brador has definitely told him what happened to Emilia and what I want from him. So, that already gives him plenty of leverage over me. Taking Felt hostage would just establish from the get-go that I can 't trust anything he says. He'd be an idiot to try to capture Felt right now.
So why am I feeling so paranoid?
Subaru took a deep breath and walked inside.
Inside the cavernous tent was a massive maze of thick canvas that hung from the ceiling, creating the illusion of rooms and hallways. Thin curtains hanging from overhead appeared to approximate doors.
Subaru walked around in confusion, having no idea which way to go to find the Emperor now that he was inside the pavilion. He hadn 't thought to ask.
Subaru noticed a man leaning against the curtain wall, and he headed toward him to ask for directions. The man had midnight blue hair and wore what looked like a pink yukata with an open-breasted blue robe. His face was handsome to the point of being pretty, and his eyes were a brilliant dark blue. The man had a katana in hand, patiently honing the blade with a whetstone.
"Excuse me," Subaru began, "I-"
"You're Subaru Natsuki?" The man asked at once.
Subaru paused and then nodded. "Yes."
The man stopped honing his blade, turning to look at Subaru with guarded interest. "His Majesty has spoken about you often."
Subaru frowned. "Really?" He asked in surprise. Under normal circumstances, Subaru would have immediately dismissed this message as a diplomatic gesture intended to cozen him, but the blue-haired man made the statement with such clear resentment on his face that Subaru was forced to take it seriously.
The man held out his hand to Subaru with obvious reluctance. "Cecilus Segmunt. The Blue Lighting," He introduced himself.
I know that name. This guy is supposed to be a match for Reinhard?
Subaru took his hand. "Subaru Natsuki. 'The… Fire Witch,'" He drawled.
"Yes, I heard about you winning that sobriquet in Gusteko," Cecilus said, his tone flat. "His Majesty took special note of your actions in the Valley of the Winds."
Subaru got the funny feeling that talking to Cecilus was ultimately not going to accomplish very much. "I'm here to meet with His Majesty," Subaru said in a neutral tone.
"You'll be waiting a bit," Cecilus grumbled. "An hour at most. They're not done yet."
What?!
"Done with what?" Subaru demanded.
Cecilus glowered at him with such fury that Subaru took an involuntary step back.
What the fuck?! All I asked was what Vincent was doing! This guy looks like he wants to kill me!
Cecilus returned to honing his sword, pointedly ignoring Subaru.
Subaru fumed.
Perfect. So, apparently, all I can do right now is wait here and chat with someone who clearly despises me for some unknown reason.
If it were anyone else, I 'd just knock them out of my way and go in regardless, but if Cecilus is really a match for Reinhard, I'd be deeply out of my depth if I tried to fight him.
Every second seemed to last an eternity as he worried incessantly about Emilia.
Subaru had nearly decided to try getting past Cecilus in spite of how hopeless it seemed when a familiar voice rang through the air.
"I will not accept that!" A woman stridently exclaimed. "Find a solution!"
Subaru blinked. "Priscilla?" He whispered. He turned and headed in the direction of her voice.
Cecilus glowered at Subaru 's back as he departed, but he said nothing.
Servants and functionaries scurried down the 'hallways' on various errands. A few looked curiously at Subaru, but none challenged him as he walked through the enormous tent, following the dulcet sounds of Priscilla's fury.
"Absolutely intolerable!" Priscilla said in a shattering voice.
As Subaru drew closer, he heard someone murmur something back to her.
"No!" Priscilla said, sounding both furious and frantic.
Subaru approached the 'room' that he thought Priscilla might be inside.
"Listen to me very carefully," Priscilla seethed. Subaru could easily imagine her speaking through clenched teeth. "You are all considered to be the very best. We wanted the best. We paid for the best. And now, after accepting all that money, you're standing here and telling me that you've failed?"
There were all kinds of nasty implications in the way that Priscilla said 'failed.'
"Princess," The voice murmured. "We… our best but… never been successful. I'd suggest… and preparing for what's to come."
Subaru found the entrance to Priscilla 's 'room,' a thin curtain hanging from the ceiling.
After several moments debating if there was some way to 'knock' on the fabric, he gave up and slowly pushed his way inside.
The room contained a large table that overflowed with maps, books, and papers. A single lamp overhead cast a dull glow on the table.
Priscilla stood surrounded by four old men of somber mien who were wearing plain brown robes.
Priscilla looked as beautiful as ever with her crimson dress and blond hair, but her vibrant coloring was muted in the dark room. In fact, as Subaru studied her, he realized that her face was pale and drawn, as if she 'd been functioning on short sleep for many days now.
Priscilla didn 't notice Subaru's arrival. "I will not accept that, " She grated to the old men.
One of the men looked pained. "I've heard that there is a true master that can be found in Lagunica," He offered. "Perhaps we could-"
"No," Priscilla said in a tone of finality. "I don't want the people to hear about the Imperial family asking for alms from the north. Besides," She said in a suddenly exhausted voice, "He's otherwise… engaged at the moment."
The man who spoke shrugged helplessly. "Then I'm afraid I have nothing else for you, Princess."
Priscilla glared at the men who all quailed beneath her gaze. She drew herself to her full height and announced, "This is a matter of critical importance for the safety of the Empire. I will see it resolved. I don 't care how, and I don't care what it costs, but you will find a solution. We 'll meet again at this time tomorrow and if you value your own good health, you had better have some fresh ideas to offer me! Now get out! "
The men bowed and quickly filed out of the room, many looking curiously at Subaru as they passed.
It was only while watching the men depart that Priscilla 's attention was drawn to where Subaru stood beside the door curtain.
"How dare-" Priscilla thundered before realizing who stood before her. She stared at him in silence, and then she folded her arms across her chest. "Subaru Natsuki," She murmured.
He gave her a slight smile. "Hello, Priscilla. I was just in the neighborhood. So, I thought that I'd drop by and say hello," He said dryly.
She gave him a thin smile in return. "And did no one ever instruct you in the proper manner of entering a woman's chamber?" She asked archly.
"It's kind of hard to knock on a curtain, Priscilla. I know. I tried."
"Hm," Priscilla's drawn face looked faintly amused. "I heard about your exploits in Girali. I'm not sure whether or not I should believe them all."
"That depends on what you heard," Subaru said evasively. "But all that matters is that I got out of there in one piece with all of my friends and with several hundred newly freed slaves."
"And made any number of lifelong enemies in Kararagi," She noted.
Subaru gave a tired laugh. "Yeah, swell. Give me a few more weeks, and I'll have enemies in every corner of the world."
"Good," Priscilla said seriously. "Enemies mean that you've stood up for something in your life. Any fool can go through life without making enemies."
Subaru raised an eyebrow, uncertain how to respond to this.
"I heard about the attack at the army camp," Priscilla continued. "I'm told that he kidnapped one of your companions?"
Subaru shivered involuntarily and didn 't answer.
Priscilla pursed her lips. "For whatever it's worth, I am sorry. "
Subaru grunted, not trusting himself to talk.
Priscilla glanced at the map, folding her arms behind her back. "From what I've gathered, this monster has been a plague on the land for centuries, stealing any woman who caught his eye and killing anyone who protested."
"Centuries?" Subaru echoed in shock.
Priscilla nodded. "Assuming that it's the same individual, then yes. Our records show that this fiend has been causing havoc since the days just after the Great Cataclysm."
Subaru frowned, pondering the idea that Regulus could be so old. Then, he dismissed it as unimportant for the moment.
Priscilla continued, "I also know that no one has ever been rescued or recovered from that monster's hands."
"I will get Emilia back," Subaru grated.
Priscilla raised an eyebrow at his vehemence. "Perhaps you will at that. You fended him off once before, did you not?"
"Barely," Subaru admitted.
"No one remembers the score, Subaru Natsuki. Only which side claimed victory."
Subaru sighed. "How did you hear about all this? Did Brador tell you?"
"I got the information directly from Imperial Intelligence. Likely gathered by the remaining Arcani. Who is 'Brador?'"
Subaru shrugged. "He's one of your brother's ministers. Do you know him?"
"No, but I can't keep the names of most of my brother's ministers straight in any case. They're all too busy attempting to find me a suitable husband rather than trying to preserve the Empire that's crumbling around their ears," She said bitterly.
Priscilla took a deep breath to calm herself. "I believe that you're here to meet with my brother?"
"Yeah," Subaru nodded. "Brador told me that the Empire had a weapon that might be able to defeat Regulus. Something that belonged to the 'First Emperor.' Do you know anything about it?"
Priscilla 's eyes widened at the name, but she shook her head. "I don't. But I know little of the First Emperor in general."
"Was he the one who reorganized Vollachia after the Great Cataclysm?"
Priscilla laughed. "Oh, no. After the Jealous Witch was sealed away, my own revered ancestor, Marius the Unifier, took the throne and brought order to the Empire. No, the First Emperor is the subject of a far older history. A full ten thousand years ago when the Empire stretched from horizon to horizon, and no other nations existed."
Subaru raised an eyebrow. "Really?"
Priscilla heard the skepticism in his voice, and she gave him an amused smile. "So the legends say. How reliable these legends are, of course, remains to be seen. "
"Who was this First Emperor? Do you know anything about him?"
"Only what I heard in stories as a child. According to the tales, the First Emperor was all things to all people. A ruthless warlord who brought peace to the land, a brilliant lawgiver who slaughtered those who refused to accept his rule, an unimaginable genius who fought on the front lines as tough and hardy as any warrior."
Subaru made a face. "Sounds like a typical larger-than-life figure," He muttered. "I don't suppose you heard any stories about some kind of special weapon he had?"
"Like a 'Sword of Heroes?' No, I'm afraid not. But I do know that many of the stories about the old Imperium have been carefully hidden away to protect certain secrets. Only high-ranking members of the Empire are permitted to study many of them and, at least according to rumor, some are reserved for the Emperor alone."
Subaru nodded. "I need to talk to Vincent about this. I have to find a way to defeat Regulus and rescue Emilia."
"He'll wish to speak with you about a great many matters, I'm sure," Priscilla murmured.
Priscilla 's expression twisted in frustration.
She wrestled with herself and then drew herself up. "Subaru Natsuki," She said formally. "I do need your help. But to do so, I am forced to reveal to you some highly confidential information. "
Subaru raised an eyebrow. "Alright," He said.
"An extremely high-level state secret," Priscilla continued in a mocking tone, "A secret that could shake the very foundations of the Empire."
Subaru squinted at her. "…OK. I-"
"A secret that is known to only about half the population," She finished bitterly.
Subaru hesitated. "…I'm very confused right now," He confessed.
Priscilla took a deep breath. "My brother is dying," She said. Her eyes were wet with tears that she refused to let fall.
Subaru blanched. "Oh! I… I'm so, so sorry… what happened?"
"Poison," She said bitterly. "A coward's weapon. They laid low one of the greatest men in Imperial history without ever even showing their faces!"
"And there's no cure?"
"I've consulted every doctor in the Empire," Priscilla said, sounding exhausted. "I've even made discrete inquiries in the other nations. Nothing that they've tried has worked. My brother is… very weak. He spends more time sleeping than awake now. I haven't been permitted to see him in days! His few waking hours are being eaten up by affairs of state!"
Priscilla bowed her head over the table. She seemed to shrink in on herself, looking oddly small and helpless. "They say that he has only days left to live…"
Subaru gently touched her shoulder. She tensed but did not throw his hand off.
"I'm so sorry," Subaru whispered. "This must be a terrible loss for you."
Priscilla glared at him. "For me ? " She asked scornfully. "It's a loss for the Empire, for the continent, and for the world!" She exclaimed. "Vincent is, by far, the greatest man that I have ever known. His brilliance, decisiveness, and cunning are unmatched. He should have enjoyed many decades of prosperous rule, shaping the Empire in his own image. He should have left behind a legion of sons to contest the throne. Now, all of that is lost. Octavian may have murdered Vincent, but the violence that he did was to history itself. "
Subaru digested that. "You're sure that he's the one who poisoned him?"
"It was done at his order, at least," Priscilla amended. "He has been boasting of it since long before word got out. He's using this 'brilliant gambit' to try and gather more disaffected officers to his side. And with the Emperor unable to lead as he must in such a time of crisis, Octavian's support swells, and ours falters. The Empire deteriorates as my brother's health deteriorates."
The door curtain parted, and a functionary in a plain uniform stepped inside. "Forgive me. Are you Subaru Natsuki?" He asked.
"Who wants to know?" Subaru asked by reflex.
The man gave Subaru a perplexed look.
"Yes, that's him, Morin," Priscilla said calmly. "This is Morin, my brother's chamberlain."
Morin shook his head, looking bewildered, and then continued. "His Majesty calls upon you to attend him immediately."
Subaru blinked. "Wait a second. What about Priscilla? She's been waiting for days to see her brother! " He said, momentarily forgetting how badly he needed to work out a deal to rescue Emilia.
Morin looked scandalized that Subaru would even argue with the summons. "His Majesty calls upon you to come now , " Morin emphasized. "Time is growing short…"
"You should go," Priscilla murmured, but Subaru thought he saw a glint of gratitude in her eyes for remembering her desire to see her brother.
Subaru sighed. "Alright. We'll… talk more later."
Priscilla nodded as Subaru stepped out of the room, following Morin.