A Random in Re:Zero

Loop 5 - Part 28

"Believe it or not, but I'm afraid of the world too. I don't know what it holds for me, and I don't know if I can face it on my own. That's why I came here, you know? Because I don't want to fight alone."

"Well, good for you! Betty's fine being alone, I suppose! Betty doesn't need anyone!"

"I don't think so. You look like someone who's desperate but too stubborn to admit it. If you're waiting for a Prince Charming to come and rescue you, I'm warning you, that's not going to happen. You have real people who care about you and want to help you, but you keep dreaming about an imaginary person who's supposedly going to live up to all your expectations."

"How do you know that I...?!"

"I've observed you quite a bit and I've come to understand how you think. You're not so different from a normal girl, Beatrice. You could even learn a few things from Petra."

"That's enough! I won't speak to you again!" She banished me from the library with her magic.

"AHHHHHHH!" I walked through the door and collided with someone, landing on top of them.

"UGH, MY BACK!" Otto exclaimed, trapped under my body.

Well, that didn't go well. It was too early for the self-improvement talk. On second thought, I shouldn't imitate Subaru here. Perhaps I could win Betty over another way, like I did with Rem. If it took less effort, all the better.

"Man, you took your time in the bathroom." I stepped away from the merchant and helped him up. "Were you thinking about Frederica's tits?"

"You shouldn't talk about such things so lightly!" Otto blushed furiously. "And how can you act casual right after flying out of that door?!"

"Sounds like I hit the nail on the head." I mocked. "To answer your previous question, flying away is second nature to me."

Unable to deal with my logic, Otto sighed and simply followed me into the room where Emilia, Rem, and Frederica were.

Emilia approached me as soon as I arrived.

"Frederica says she can't take us to the Sanctuary. What should we do, Leandro?"

"Otto will drive us there." I answered immediately, looking at Frederica. "Can you give this guy directions to the place in question?"

"Of course, Master Leandro." Frederica stated confidently.

"That's it, then. You two should get comfortable while Rem and I make the tea."

As Emilia breathed a sigh of relief, I stood next to her and started whispering, putting Operation Cupid into motion.

"Emi, can you tell Frederica you're going to study in your room? I'll explain later."

"Huh? Okay..."

When Emilia announced she was leaving, Otto became nervous, and Rem gave me a confused look. Without saying anything else, I gestured for her to follow me.

Already in the kitchen, I got some tea leaves and started boiling water.

"Hey, Rem..."

"What is it?" She interrupted me. "Have you finally worked up the courage to apologize?"

"Actually, I... I was going to ask you if you could cook a ravioli stew."

Rem interrupted me again, chopping vegetables for dinner while deliberately avoiding eye contact, as if she wanted to make it obvious.

"It's not as simple as that. You've ignored me for hours while hiding behind Lady Emilia. A verbal apology won't work this time."

"What are you talking about?" I scratched my cheek innocently.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about." Rem approached with a menacing gleam in her eyes, causing me to back away in fear.

"I don't know, my memory is pretty bad..."

"I told you before: you're a bad liar."

At this point, I couldn't play dumb anymore. My face gave me away completely. So I knelt before Rem, bowing exaggeratedly.

"I'm so sorry. I was very rude to you, and I'll do whatever it takes to make up for it."

I had to bow my head and submit to her will in order to try to regain the affection points I lost with her earlier (this is the most virgin sentence I've ever written).

Rem said nothing, as she was apparently thinking about how to respond to my apology.

"If you want my forgiveness, then... Join me tonight."

Rem's condition sounded very promising, especially the way she said it.

"Okay! Don't get your hopes up, don't get your hopes up, don't get your hopes up... Shit, I already imagined the sex."

It was obvious this would be like last time, when she said she'd come to my room... but it was only to heal my wounds. I shook my head, as if that would clear the dirty thoughts from my mind.

Just as I expected, I met with Rem that night... to place maid recruitment ads in the village.

"Wait a second, why do we need more employees at the mansion? I don't mean to flatter you, but you're already pretty good at doing everything. Or do you want to reduce your workload?"

"It's not that. Master Roswaal told me that I shouldn't leave your side until further notice, and since he hasn't spoken about it yet, I'll go with you to the Sanctuary."

"I see... This is so Frederica doesn't have to carry everything alone. So Petra's going to end up involved in the main plot anyway?"

No matter how the story twisted its course, some things remained the same. In a way, that both delighted and terrified me. My version of Re:Zero would still have many similarities to canon, but these could be both positive and negative.