Re:ZERO; Ram:IF (Original)

Chapter 28: Reduced to Ash

"Let's go, Ram." Subaru said while boarding the carriage. Ram pouted, as she looked at him. "Pervert." Subaru came to the realization that his cheery mood, to Ram, seemed to be caused by the thought of her sitting on his lap. Subaru knew Ram had no problem with sitting on his lap, Rem also wouldn't care that Ram is sitting on his lap. He was convinced that Rem liked him too after what had happened in the previous loop, with her holding his hand so tightly during Sirius' speech about love.

Contradictory to her statement, Ram jumped on Subaru's lap in the passenger seat once again. He smirked as Otto pouted, looking at him straight in the eyes. " 'You interrupted my time with Frederica, AND now you're doing that next to me with Ram?!' Is what he must be thinking..." Subaru thought, whispering to Otto. "I'll pay you back, and that's a promise." Otto, being slightly unsatisfied by Subaru's briefness

Subaru gripped Ram tightly. He was afraid that he would die again. He couldn't die. He wouldn't. Although he was not sure how, he knew he was going to try his hardest to make it through this loop. With a determined smile on his face, he shouted in his mind. "I'll do everything in my power to kill that bastard Sirius!"

Subaru was confident that he could kill Sirius this time. However, knowing himself, would his pride be of any use in a fight like this? Subaru, himself, is very weak, by far the weakest out of everyone in the carriage. Despite being able to do magic due to his contract with Beatrice, everyone else had some aspect or aspects that overpower his. Sirius had an ability to control emotions, so how would any of them fight Sirius?

The last hope was Reinhard. Subaru had been a witness to Reinhard's power, he knew Reinhard could definitely take anyone on and be guaranteed victory. "There's no way we can lose again with Reinhard, right?" Subaru could only put his mind at ease, until the moment comes to see who wins.

There's also Julius, a master at wielding a sword. He wasn't quite as strong as Reinhard but that is no excuse to put aside the brilliance of his swordsmanship combined with his usage of spiritual arts. In fact, he was of the most help besides Reinhard and Emilia.

The rest, who were Ram, Rem, and Beatrice never really aided him much. Beatrice had attempted to save Subaru after he killed himself in a previous loop, and when Ram choked him to death in another. However, she was unsuccessful. Setting his mind just again, he could not let anyone die. However, he did not want to experience the pain of death once again. Even though he had died so many times, he was still not used to it at all.

"Mister Natsuki, are you alright? You seem to be dozing off." Subaru opened his eyes, once again leaning his head against Ram's back. He was lost in thought, thinking about everyone who he considered his closest allies, so much so that time flew by. They were about to arrive at the bridge to Priestella once again, only to meet Sirius. Subaru inhaled, and let out a long, controlled exhale.

"How long until we get there?" Subaru turned to Otto in question. "A few minutes, however we will need to pass through the gates if they haven't taken everything over yet." Subaru looked into the distance, and started seeing the horizon flatten, with no sign of trees anywhere. They were passing through the bridge once again.. However, Sirius was not there, contrary to his first loop. Dumbfounded, Subaru sat with widened eyes as the carriage headed towards Priestella..

He stared into the vast, clear water of the lake. Everyone in the carriage took the time to peek out of the windows to gaze into the endless water. Subaru looked ahead, seeing the familiar island-like city, standing in the middle of the lake. He clenched his fists tightly. He knew that Sirius was a rather formidable opponent to deal with, knowing her now.

Subaru stared at the city, getting closer and closer. Suddenly, Subaru's eyes caught something. He saw a familiar bandaged figure standing in their way, about 2 blocks away from the gates. The carriage came to an abrupt halt as Otto peeked around to get a good look at the person standing before them.