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{ 3rd Pov }
Subaru returned to the mansion, his mind heavy with urgency. He needed to visit Regulus' wives as soon as possible—now that the Sin Archbishop of Greed was good as dead, they were vulnerable to unexpected danger.
But first, there was another pressing matter.
Roswaal!
He couldn't let that guy cook up whatever sche he was cooking—unsupervised, that man was a walking disaster waiting to happen.
Sigh... later, Subaru thought. For now, he decided to et with Beatrice.
With a soft thud, he pushed open the doors to the Forbidden Library.
"Hmm… it seems you've returned from the Capital, I suppose," Beatrice said, barely glancing up from her book, not at all surprised.
Then, without missing a beat, she added, "I take it you've dealt with the Witch Cultists, I suppose?"
"Yes… and I got this after defeating the Sin Archbishop of Sloth," Subaru replied, choosing his words carefully as he reached into his coat and pulled out the glintstone.
Beatrice's eyes widened. "I-Impossible… it's Geuse!" she gasped, rushing toward him.
Seeing the desperation in her eyes, Subaru handed her the stone without hesitation.
"He's… just sleeping," she whispered, cradling the glintstone gently in her hands. "But his Witch Factor is gone… which shouldn't be possible."
Her gaze slowly lifted to et Subaru's. Her voice trembled slightly, but her expression was firm.
"Who are you… truly? In fact—"
"I've already told you…" Subaru said bluntly, standing still under the soft light of the library. "I'm soone from beyond the Great Waterfall… and perhaps, the Sage Candidate."
Beatrice's eyes widened slightly. "S-Sage Candidate?" she repeated, surprised. But there was sothing else in her voice—sadness. This wasn't the answer she had hoped for.
"And for you," Subaru suddenly said, kneeling down to face her properly, "if you want… only if you truly want—I will be 'that person.'"
The words echoed in the stillness of the library. Words she'd been longing to hear for centuries.
"You're Betty's… that person?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper, eyes shimring with unshed tears.
Subaru smiled softly. "Whether I'm that person or not—it's not up to destiny. It's your choice, Betty. You have the right to decide."
She trembled.
"Y-You're trying to trick again, aren't you?! I've waited four hundred years for that person! I don't have a choice!" she cried out, puffing her cheeks in frustration, but her voice broke near the end.
Subaru looked her in the eyes. "The Witch of Greed—Echidna," he said slowly.
Beatrice flinched.
"She created the idea of 'that person' as a test. An experint. To see whether you… truly have free will."
"SHUT UP!" Beatrice scread, releasing a violent burst of magic toward Subaru, trying to hurl him away.
But the swirling spells vanished the mont they touched the golden aura cloaking him.
"It's the truth, Betty…" Subaru said softly, not moving. "I've seen the future—with my own eyes."
"SHUT UP! SHUT UP! SHUT UP!" she scread again, shaking her head as tears spilled down her cheeks.
"You're saying Betty's been waiting four hundred years… for nothing?! For a 'that person' who never even existed?!" she shouted, lashing out with her magic again, and again, and again.
Each blast hit him—but they dissipated harmlessly.
To him, the attacks were nothing.
But to her, they were everything.
They carried her sorrow. Her frustration. Her anger at the world. At Echidna. At him.
If only he'd said he was that person.
If only he'd lied.
She would've believed him.
But he didn't—because that person never existed.
Subaru stepped forward through the storm of magic.
And then—he gently wrapped his arms around her small, trembling fra.
"I know…" he whispered. "You've waited so long. Dutifully, faithfully… It must've been lonely. Painful. Devastating."
Beatrice froze.
"But if you take my hand, Betty… If you choose ," he said softly, "then it won't be lonely anymore."
"S-Several people have tried to take advantage of Betty… for her knowledge… for her powers! How are you any different?!" she barked, tears brimming in her eyes.
"There is a difference, Betty," Subaru said, locking eyes with her butterfly-shaped pupils.
"They were after your knowledge and power… But I am after you. I want you," he said firmly.
"Even if I agree, so what?! You're a human! You'll die and leave Betty alone! Just like everyone else did!" she shouted, stumbling a step back.
"Everyone dies one day… That's just life," Subaru said quietly, "but mories—they can be forever. And even if I'm gone, my mories will stay with you. My Spirits will stay with you. And maybe… my children, and their children, will stay by your side too."
He stepped closer.
"Beatrice, I promise—if you choose , I'll tell you bedti stories, bring you the sweetest sweets this world has to offer… I'll make you smile. I'll make you happy. And I swear… you'll never be lonely again."
She trembled, voice cracking. "Y-You're not 'That person'… Why aren't you?! Why couldn't you be?!" she cried—not at him, but at the cruel fate that mocked her devotion.
Subaru gently knelt before her.
"If you want, I'll be 'That person'… Or maybe I never will be. But I can promise you one thing, Betty—no, Beako—"
He looked up, eyes unwavering.
"—I'll be better than the one who left you waiting for four hundred years."
He extended his hand.
"Choose , Betty."
"I—You are not that person!"
"No… I'm not. But it's ti for you to make a choice."
"Shut up! You're not that person!" she scread, eyes burning with desperation.
"Yes," Subaru said, voice calm but resolute. "But I'm better… So choose ."
Those two words—Choose —started ringing in her mind, looping like a broken recorder, echoing in every corner of her heart.
Her breath trembled as she finally looked at him, really looked at him.
"…Do you promise to never leave Betty… until death do us part?"
"I do."
"Do you promise… that you'll tell Betty bedti stories… and hold her hand wherever you go?"
"I do."
"D-Do you promise… that you'll treat Betty to the sweetest sweets in the world… and that you'll never, ever leave alone again?"
Her voice cracked like fragile glass.
"It's a difficult one… but I do," he whispered, pulling her into a gentle hug. Her small hands hesitated—then wrapped around him tightly.
He scooped her up and began spinning in slow, playful circles.
"You know… I always wanted a younger sister. And Betty is the best younger sister, I suppose!" he laughed, warmth radiating from his voice.
Beatrice blinked in surprise, then let out a soft giggle as he set her down.
"My real na… is Natsuki Subaru," he said, eting her eyes.
Her butterfly-shaped pupils widened—and slowly, a radiant smile blood across her face.
"Subaru…" she breathed.
"Yes," he nodded.
"Subaru! Subaru! Subaru! Subaru! Subaru!" she cried, throwing her arms around him again, clutching him as if the world would end if she let go.
"Yes… I'm Subaru. Your Subaru."
And after four hundred years of loneliness, sorrow, and waiting…
The contract had finally co to an end.
…
To be continued…
(Give powerstones)
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