Cracking a knuckle, Toyota looked to all of the wisemen still seated.
"Actually, you all need your confidence cut down."
What had these people done during their time in power that had helped? After the deaths of the royal family, the first thing they did was take control of the power vacuum, consulting the dragon tablet for a prophecy which gave them legitimacy to rule for a longer period. Why do they dub themselves the title of wisemen after doing nothing, leaving the kingdom in this state? letting its citizens decline into poverty.
Toyota had read multiple records, as well as the laws created by this council. Everything was made for self-interest, completely redundant.
"So, tell me… what's so wise about you?"
His voice dropped in mockery. "Are you supposed to be intelligent government officials? Protectors of justice? Guardians of this kingdom's best interest?"
Many of the wisemen scowled at him, their psychology showing their frustration at being openly scolded.
Time to shake them.
"Let's have a confessional."
Raising a hand, the hall fell silent. Face twisting into a smile, he attempted to recall the tangled mess of threads woven onto books. Books acquired by drowning, trapping, killing, past, present, and future. All-knowing perspectives twisted, contorted. Who was right? Wrong? None of it mattered, as fact was irrelevant to feeling or opinion.
Gluttony's perfect memory guided his train of thought to a face, the one antagonistic wiseman in front of him. He was the man standing in front of a mirror, laughing maniacally as he punched it in rage, a frightened maid watching his outburst in fear. Her neck had red handprints that fit his.
"Why? I burned down that house. Bribed the guards. So why did the information come out?"
"P-please calm yourself, Lord Colev," the stuttering maid whimpered in fear as he turned his red face toward her, striking out by throwing a bar of soap that hit her in the eye. She flinched back, holding her eye.
Got it. Toyota acquired his name, his relevant memories, blackmail-worthy material, and his allies. However, to delve too deeply into the mind of the man would only further confuse him in his strange state.
"You," Toyota pointed at the man. "Lord Colev, right?"
He sat up straighter, his psychology showing fear. His favorability granted him no points, which was to be expected.
"Why do you know my name? What are you implying?" "Why do you know my name? Why do you know my name? Do you know my name? Do you know my name? Hey, do you know my name?"
The words continued echoing, louder and louder.
Once again, he was pulled into a memory.
He was standing in front of a little girl, or was he the little girl? Maybe fourteen years old, her name, Amue. They were in the borderlands, far from any large population.
"Hey, do you know my name?"
The little girl looked at him, the one who had killed her entire village, her friends, and family. The one who had flooded Priestella, killing over 100,000 people. She was terrified. Her expression said that clearly.
Her mouth opened, attempting to formulate a response, yet nothing came out.
If she said no, would he kill her too? Or was he asking purely out of curiosity?
Sweat poured down her forehead as he asked again, politely, as if she hadn't heard his first question:
"Hey. Do you know my name?"
Which answer would let her live?
Despite the kind, innocent look of the questioner, he radiated dominance, melting through pressure.
She answered honestly as she didn't know the face or name of the questioner, only rumors. If the man didn't get a response, he would kill her.
"N-no."
"Is that so…"
The questioner looked disappointed, yet satisfied as if able to sense her sincerity.
"I'm sorry. Once everything is over, the hero, the completed Subaru, will save you and your family, fixing everything." He spoke as if truly remorseful of his actions.
The girl watched as the white-haired boy with a glassy eye looked around slowly, different expressions passing over his face, the more he looked at his surroundings, as if seeing a bunch of friends he hadn't seen in a long time.
"Isn't that right… Otto, Regin, Garfiel, Emilia, Beatrice, Ram, Julius?"
As he said their names out loud, he stared into the empty space, smiling. Then, as if hearing a multitude of different replies, he smiled, nodding his head to the space in agreement.
"You're right. Subaru will find a way. I just need to keep patching everything together… to fill in the holes… to find Natsuki Subaru."
He took on a determined, serious look.
"I will save everyone."
How could such a kind-looking man leave her, the only one left?
How could he kill… yet still look so pure?
All around her were the headless bodies of her family, her friends, no blood or gore. They were killed mercifully.
Closing her eyes as the man walked away, she dropped to her knees, sobbing. She had survived. So why did she feel so broken, so guilty?
Toyota broke out of the moment, from the little girl's mind,
The mind that was Gluttony.
Subaru.
Don't focus on the memories. Focus on the present.
Toyota brushed past the sickening twist in his stomach. That grief and fear were so visceral he felt the urge to vomit, to empty the contents of his stomach.
It's simply a malfunctioning tool. I will deal with it later.
Using his Grey World's perception, he scanned for Rom, whom he had brought the parchment to using his unseen hand. Rom's bewildered face would have been funny as he squinted at the tiny piece of paper, holding it up to his face with two giant sausage fingers, looking like the Spanish teacher meme from "Community," but he was busy.
"Let's start with the basics: perjury, arson, assault, embezzlement, fraud, bribery."
The more he talked, the more the wisemen tensed. As the majority of them were connected to these crimes. Reading off their crimes was simple.
However, in the back of his mind, he felt horrible.
Who was he to judge these people when he was far worse?
No. That wasn't him.
The man leaping to his feet, shaking with a fearful, desperate look in his eyes, pleaded to Captain Marcos.
"This is slander! He's insulting the council; this is beneath the throne room!"
Seeing the man's defensiveness, Toyota only shrugged. "Your hasty response only makes you look more guilty."
The room was frozen. The wisemen, red-faced and seething, stood, raising their hands in unison. The air shimmered.
"Wow. I knew they were dumb, but to attack me in front of all these people… actually, they probably want to finish me off before I can reveal to everyone how they worked with a terrorist to order a candidate's death. A bit sacrificial… but useless.
Lord Colev (Nameless wiseman)— -100% Irredeemable hatred, wants to kill you | Points received 0
"..."
Never mind, he's just reckless and hot-blooded.
People began shouting as more chaos erupted, the air humming with building, glowing mana. Personal attendants rushed forward to protect their candidates. He stood there in fascination, watching as the power built up. They seemed to be casting a larger spell, sacrificing time for power. Everyone had time to react, but with Rei here, no one could harm him. So why should he move?
Crossing his arms, he sneered.
Just as the spell was about to be cast, a pulse of pure pressure radiated off Rei. As expected, she would take care of it.
She quickly subdued the attacking wisemen, absorbing their attack. The surrounding mages cringed at the display.
"Is this all true?" Marcos demanded.
Forcing a grin, Toyota tilted his head.
"Yep."
The homicidal wiseman, of course, denied it, but surprisingly, Crusch intervened, flexing her lie detector ability. It helped speed up the process, which Toyota was grateful for. The more time passed, the more he felt like he was going to throw up.
At Marcos's order, the wisemen were subdued. It was so fast that his Grey World was unable to perceive it, so the answer to who knocked them out so quickly wasn't even a question. Looking to Rei, who had her long, red, silky hair swaying without any wind, he felt dizzy. The blindfold's edges near his ears were crusted with blood.
"Lord Crim…" Rei's voice was soft, almost trembling, as her gaze lingered on the blood drying along the edge of his blindfold. She reached for him slowly, fingertips brushing his cheek with a light touch.
"I'm fine," he muttered, trying to play it off, but his knees faltered, the weight in his body giving him away.
Before he could fall, her arms were already around his head, drawing him in gently. She stroked his hair with slow, rhythmic movements, his chin momentarily resting on a gelatinous substance.
Toyota quickly righted himself.
"I don't know why you're bleeding…" she whispered against his ear, voice calm and strangely sweet, "but if you keep doing this to yourself…"
A smile spread across her face, warm, and utterly chilling.
"…I'll have to stop you. Even if it means you never move again."
Her hand stroking his hair tensed just slightly. Enough to make him notice.
A shiver crawled up his spine.
What did that even mean? Why did her voice sound so scary?
In a quiet, trembling voice, he whispered,
"Everything will be fine… You'd know if I was lying, wouldn't you?"
He offered her a faint smile, unnerved and tired.
"Even if I die… it'll still be fine."
A pause. Then, with a gentleness that felt like an apology,
"Once this is all over… I'll grant you one of your requests. Anything you want. How about it? Is there a place you want to see or something you want to try? I'll do it with you."
Rei looked at Toyota coldly, her eyes narrowing slightly.
"Are you trying to bribe me?"
"Of course not?" Toyota replied, a nervous bead of sweat running down his temple. But the moment the words left his mouth, Rei gave him a sharp side-eye, one that made it clear she caught the lie instantly.
CURSE HER DIVINE PROTECTIONS!
"Just… don't get hurt, okay?" she murmured, her tone suddenly dipping. Gently, she lowered her head to meet his gaze. There was a strange softness in her expression, genuine concern, but something else, too.
"I don't want you to die."
It struck him harder than he expected.
Ahh… she's still shaken about what happened to Felt.
He remembered the mission prompt clearly:
Special Mission:
Become Reinhard Van Astrea's friend. — Completed
Help Reinhard overcome her guilt.
Reward for both missions' completion: Unique Ability
That second part still lingered in the back of his mind. Originally, he thought helping her slay the White Whale, avenging her grandmother's death, would be enough. But now? It wasn't just about the past.
Felt's death… That guilt was something new. Something off-script.
Even if she kills the White Whale now… will it matter?
And as for the "reward," he had no expectations.
the mysterious "Authority of Blasphemy," he still had no idea what it truly was or how to activate it.
With a sigh, he decided to peek at Rei's mental state through the favorability panel.
What he saw made his stomach twist. His face locked up as he completely zoned out.
Reinhard (Sword Saint) — ????% Dependent. Too many complex feelings- Points Received: 4353
He blinked.
Huh… is this a yandere-type development?
Then he remembered Satella.
Compared to her, this was still tame.
She was practically the sugar mommy of his points.
If it wasn't for the wiseman fiasco being dealt with, then the sight of Rei stroking Toyota's hair would have been taken much differently.
Leaning away from her, he tugged the blindfold further down his face.
Now that he thought about it, his mind seemed to calm after talking to Rei.
Was she some stress ball or lucky charm?
It was fortunate that none of his blood was visible; he had wanted to create a false rumor to spread, specifically about his blood.
The Lugunican royal family had blonde hair and red eyes. The first king was bestowed dragon's blood, making his blood purple, giving him a regenerative effect. Felt is, in fact, a member of the royal family, the daughter of the previous king's younger brother, Ford Lugunica, who died one year before the original timeline. She was kidnapped as a child. If she were still alive now, she would have been the rightful ruler of the country, as she was the last of the Lugunican royal family's bloodline. Yet, it was so diluted that the family's blood turned back to red.
So, if I can use my purple mana to tint my blood purple, showing it off during the duel with Julius, I can spread the idea that I am the missing kidnapped child, gaining fake legitimacy to the throne.
It didn't matter if it was fake.
It didn't matter if it was debunked.
Because if there was one thing he learned from One Piece…
The one with all the power wasn't the marines, or the emperors. It was the fat news bird "Big News Morgans."
Big news controls public perception.
Truth was optional, perception was king.
His hair was white now. Not exactly blonde, but close enough for anyone with a hopeful imagination. And his eyes? Completely hidden behind the blindfold. Let them wonder if they were red. Let them whisper. He didn't need to prove he was royalty.
He just needed the idea to spread. He already had the uniqueness of being the only male candidate.
(AN: I don't know about the rest of you, but was I getting too serious? I know Re: zero is a psychological story about death, but I'm on the cusp between going full depression, and I feel I need some comedy to stay sane. I did try to speedrun through some dialogue, but the pace still feels like I'm not improving at all. There were parts I needed to add things for the future plot that just dragged out the scene.
I've set an official release schedule: Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Although when I get bored, I add extra.
Bonus chapters will drop on Saturdays if my demands are met. 🔫
Trade deal:
You give me 150 power stones, and I give you a bonus chapter.
Sounds fair, right?)