"I want to go too!"
Her eyes were rimmed with red, and her body trembled slightly with emotion.
Subaru pushed aside Rem who was trying to stop her and shouted at Crusch, who was already fully dressed and preparing to lead her troops out.
Crusch turned around and looked at Subaru, her eyes showing no sign of wavering.
"The terms of our deal clearly include one clause: ensuring your safety."
Her voice was steady but carried the weight of an absolute refusal. "Even though Tsukasa's promise has not yet been fully realized, the attitude and strength he has shown are enough for me to fulfill the agreement in advance, even before seeing the White Whale's corpse with my own eyes."
She paused, her gaze sweeping over Subaru's clenched fists and stubborn expression.
"Therefore, you cannot come with us. Staying here is the safest arrangement."
Subaru's breath hitched.
Crusch's logic was airtight, blocking any room for argument based on the 'deal'.
She opened her mouth but found herself unable to refute it. Only her clenched fists, with knuckles turning white from the force, declared her uncompromising determination.
At this moment, Subaru's refusal to back down caused the air to stagnate for a second.
Just as Crusch was about to ignore Subaru and turn to the courtyard to order the departure—
"Crusch-sama."
A male voice sounded from the courtyard archway.
Everyone looked toward the sound.
The newcomer had a face that could be described as textbook handsome. Under short hair as red as fire were a pair of clear, sharp blue eyes. At this moment, those eyes held a gentle smile, complementing his exquisite armor that shimmered with a faint silver glow in the morning light.
Reinhard van Astrea.
"Let her go with you."
He walked forward steadily, his voice not loud, but clearly reaching everyone's ears. "I shall personally guarantee her safety."
Crusch and Subaru both showed expressions of surprise.
"Sir Reinhard?"
Crusch's brow furrowed slightly, her gaze scrutinizing. "Why are you here?"
She had never summoned this contemporary Sword Saint, who clearly belonged to Felt's camp, to participate in this operation.
"It's not just him."
Another light and lively voice joined in.
From behind Reinhard, a face with a shrewd smile peeked out.
Anastasia Hoshin stood with her hands behind her back, leaning forward slightly, her eyes curved into crescents.
"I've come too."
"Crusch-sama! I am so sorry!"
The sound of hurried footsteps rang out as Felix and Wilhelm arrived in a hurry.
The cat-eared knight's face was full of apology and unease, his cat ears drooping slightly from tension.
Wilhelm stood silently to the side, his brows tightly knit. After casting a complex look at Reinhard, his gaze finally settled on Crusch.
Crusch glanced at her ashamed knight, then turned her gaze back to Reinhard, the warmth in her eyes dropping a few degrees.
"I need an explanation, Sir Reinhard."
Reinhard nodded. He took a step forward, pulled a letter, and handed it over with both hands. The letter was sealed with thick parchment, and the seal was pressed with an exquisite and complex wax stamp—an insignia that only the Royal Family and the highest advisory bodies had the right to use.
The moment Crusch received the letter, her expression became solemn. She recognized this standard—it symbolized the highest-level command issued by the Captain of the Royal Knights with the consent of the Council of Wise Men representative.
She broke the wax and unfolded the letter.
There were only a few lines on the paper, written in neat and powerful handwriting.
"To the Knights Order, the Duke's Mansion, and the Royal Selection Candidates of all camps, you must reinforce Margrave Roswaal L. Mathers' territory before it falls."
"Target: Execute the Sin Archbishops of Pride and Sloth."
"In this joint operation, all shall follow the command of the Head of the Karsten House—Crusch Karsten."
Crusch looked up, her gaze slowly sweeping over the people in the courtyard—the agitated Subaru, the silent Rem, the surprised Felix and Wilhelm, and the uninvited Reinhard and Anastasia who held the highest command.
She folded the letter and put it in her pocket. When she looked up again, only the calmness and decisiveness of a commander remained in her eyes.
"I understand."
Her voice was clear and firm, breaking the silence of the courtyard. "In that case..."
Her gaze fell on Subaru, pausing for a second. "Sir Subaru, you may come along."
Subaru's eyes suddenly widened.
"But you must follow closely at all times and must not act on your own."
—
"Huh?"
Tsukasa propped himself up with one hand, stood up from the large crater he had smashed into, and patted the dirt and grass clippings off his kimono.
Using Blue for high-altitude long-distance displacement made this final landing a bit rushed. He hadn't controlled his posture well and had smashed a rather deep pit into the mansion's courtyard.
However, he didn't care about this small amount of mana consumption at all. What mattered more to him right now was...
Who exactly was this little brat in a maid uniform, holding a staff and glaring at him furiously?
Her short brown hair was slightly messy, she was petite, and her face still had some lingering childishness, yet her eyes were as fierce as a provoked beast.
She held a wooden staff longer than her height with both hands, assuming a defensive stance. That black and white maid uniform she wore felt somewhat out of place.
"You damn Witch Cultist!"
The little girl ignored Tsukasa's question entirely. She growled through gritted teeth, pushed off the ground, and charged. She swung the long staff in a wide arc, bringing it down toward Tsukasa's head with a whistling sound.
Unfortunately for her, the staff came to a sudden halt about half a foot away from Tsukasa's forehead. No matter how she gritted her teeth and exerted force, her arms trembling with the effort, the tip of the staff could not advance another inch.
Tsukasa said with a hint of helplessness in his tone, "I'm not from the Witch Cult."
He looked up and scanned the mansion's courtyard, which didn't seem to have anything unusual going on.
He asked, "Where are Ram and Emilia?"
The brown-haired girl stared fixedly at the staff that couldn't move forward, then looked up at Tsukasa's unfamiliar face and his hair, which was similar to Emilia's. Her lips were pressed white, and a flash of wavering appeared in her eyes, but it was immediately replaced by deeper vigilance.
"I've long heard that Witch Cultists are cunning."
She stuck her neck out, her voice sharpening with tension. "I... I won't tell you!"
After several failed attempts to strike again, her eyes gradually turned red, but she stubbornly refused to let tears fall, only staring at Tsukasa with those reddened eyes.
Looking at her, clearly scared to death but forcing herself not to give in, Tsukasa felt a bit of a headache.
Just then—
"Hey! Junior! Are you alright?!"