A Random in Re:Zero

Loop 5 - Part 24

Satisfied with the results of my bet, I raised my hands to ask for silence.

"For those who were still hungry for a fight, today's your lucky day. The reason we found the White Whale on this road is related to our next target! The Witch Cult is planning an attack on Mathers Domain! They had the beast in their path to ensure no one could stop them! But they didn't count on us messing with their plans! Next stop is Mathers Domain!"

"Wait, wait, how exactly are we going to do that? I mean, do you have a plan?"

Tivey, the small demi-human with a monocle, asked a very valid question.

"To sum up, I know they're preparing to invade the town adjacent to the mansion and the mansion itself. Their troops are hiding in the forest surrounding these two locations, and I suspect some of them are in this region as well, given the presence of the fog. The more distant groups may be reinforcements or keeping an eye out for outsiders who interfere with their plans. As for how we're going to defeat them, I'm simply going to draw them in with my presence; you've seen how the White Whale himself ignored everything else to come after me, so it'll work. Once they reveal their positions, we'll attack them with everything we have."

"So it's an ambush." Felix massaged his chin thoughtfully. "What about the townspeople and those in the mansion? I'm sure you won't let anything happen to Lady Emilia."

"You're not mistaken. With the help of Anastasia and Russell, I hired a group of traveling merchants to evacuate everyone in carriages (I'll pay them with Roswaal's money, muehhehe). I also had Rem write a letter reporting the situation. Can you get a messenger to send the letter to the mansion?"

"You can count on it!"

"Okay." I smiled nervously and looked at the others. "Listen guys, before we go, let me warn you about the power of the Archbishop and his reserve corps."

The next battle was presumably the last of this arc. Contrary to what it might seem, I wasn't at all worried about the possibility of failure. After all, I already knew how I was going to kill the Archbishop of Sloth.

***

Petelgeuse Romanée-Conti was very diligent, the most diligent of archbishops. His love was deep and twisted, bringing out the best in him to fulfill the mandates of the Gospel.

Until that day, he had never been cornered or overpowered on a mission. That day, the day of the trial, was to be no exception, as everything had gone just as he'd anticipated.

No errors, nothing beyond Sloth's precise calculations. At least that was the case until an anomaly appeared...

"Ah, this must be fate! The love you exude is magnificent, splendid, generous! But you, you, you...! You don't seem to understand what's going on here! You've acted so selfishly, so despotically, so full of yourself! Could it, could it, be that by chance...?"

"No, I'm not Pride, as far as I know."

The bodies of the cultists patrolling the area lay lifeless on the ground, their wounds mostly clean gashes across the throat. The rest were arrows piercing the chest, where the heart was.

"It can't be, there's no way, it's impossible, incomprehensible, unspeakable...! My brain is shaking...!"

"Yeah, I have something that will help you with that."

The man who caused this disaster smirked, raising a silver revolver that gleamed in the morning light. Sloth tilted his head, intrigued by what he saw.

BANG!

There was an explosion, but Petelgeuse didn't hear it. His brain was shattered by a bullet at that very moment, leaving a hole running through his head.

"Well, this was a bit disappointing."

After killing Petelgeuse, Leandro stood still, waiting for what he already knew was going to happen.

"Come on, don't make me wait."

A few seconds passed, and nothing happened. The boy raised an eyebrow suspiciously.

"Why not...?"

A supernatural sensation invaded him. Leandro could no longer move his mouth, nor the rest of himself.

"Ah, this new body..."

For some reason, his mouth formed words that his voice expressed without him having intervened at all.

"It's not that good..."

"How dare you insult my body, you son of a bitch? You're usurping it and you dare to despise it! Haven't you ever heard that you don't look a gift horse in the mouth!?"

Trying his best, Leandro began to fight for control and his mouth moved slowly.

"I can come back from the d...!"

Time stood still. Inside it, the familiar shadow of Satella appeared. But this time he wasn't alone, and she realized that.

"You are not him."

Destroying Petelgeuse's illusion, Satella expelled him from the body. Leandro almost felt sorry for the archbishop, who lived the last years of his life dedicating his existence to a useless purpose.

But the thought didn't last long. He still had to make sure the plan went ahead.

So he ran to join the others, still holding the revolver in his hand. However, Leandro wasn't destined to get very far.

BAM!

A single blow sent him flying, his body slamming into the trees. The revolver fell to the ground and skittered through the thick grass.

"Well, so you're the one who dared to kill our pet... Wonderful, wonderful, excellent, brilliant! How gratifying it is to have found you so quickly! We're so happy to be able to satisfy our appetite with you!"

With a voice oozing euphoria and the look of a hungry predator, Lye Batenkaitos introduced himself.