AN: Who is the man with the plan and knows how to jam?! It's JDUBZYT! Thanks again.

AN Fun Fact: The chapter "Please Don't Go" is named after the same song of the name by KC and The Sunshine Band. Enjoy.

ARC Four: Battle From Zero

Chapter Twenty Seven: Starting Over

Subaru had returned to Crusch's Estate and requested a meeting with her. In the meeting he pleaded for her help in protecting Irlham Village from the ensuing Witch Cult attack. They refused as they saw no beneficial reason to help them. Subaru became utterly furious with her lack of empathy for the situation, he screamed and begged them to help, all the while swearing to kill every last member of the cult. Crusch asked him if taking revenge on the Witch's Cult was his sole reasoning to get close to Emilia.

He became enraged more and more by her accusations, making Rem visibly worried. Then, Crusch outright denied him his claims…

"Not once…"

"Huh?!"

"Not once have you said that you wanted to help Emilia…"

Subaru's eyes darkened and he stared at her with an emotionless gaze. And it was Rem who first noticed Subaru walking slowly towards Crusch, grasping several small throwing stars he had hidden in his pocket.

It was Rem who stopped him first, grabbing his free arm and looking up at him with a worried expression. In the corner of his eye he saw Ferris narrowing his eyes while standing in front of Crusch and Wilhelm standing firm while looking down at him. Angered, Subaru began to storm out of the room, but not before looking back Crusch with near absolute disdain at her.

"I hope you become a great leader, Crusch Karsten. THE KIND OF DICTATOR THAT ABANDONS THE WEAK."

He left with Rem behind him.

It was later that they attempted to find Reinhard, but only to learn that he had already left with Felt on urgent business. This angered Subaru more.

"DAMN IT! Why is everyone so useless?!"

He looked back at Rem, realizing what he just said he scratched his head and remembered something.

"Rem, is it possible for you to find Batman?"

"Yes Subaru-kun, I believe I'd be able to find in a few minutes time."

"Great! Could you head out and find him? He might be able to help us out."

"Yes, I'll be back in just a moment."

Rem leapt out of the window of the Inn they were staying at and began her search for Batman.

She found him roping up some robbers in an alleyway.

"Batman-san!"

"Rem? What are you doing here?"

"It's an emergency! Subaru-kun says that the Witch's Cult is going to attack the mansion!"

"Witch's Cult?"

Rem gave a brief summary about who and what the Witch Cult was.

"I see…"

"We need your help! Unless...you also don't believe Subaru-kun."

Rem gave a sad expression as she said this, making Batman put a hand on her shoulder as he sighed.

"No Rem, I believe him."

"Really?!"

"Subaru is a smart kid, he wouldn't just lie for the fun of it. We know him to well for that."

"So then…?"

"Let's go. I'm not letting you face the Witch's Cult alone."

"Thank you!"

She gave him a big cheerful hug as he simply patted her on the head.

When Batman arrived at the Inn, he noticed Subaru staring at him, like he was seeing a ghost.

"You okay Subaru?"

"J-Just glad to see you. We need all the help we can get."

"..."

The next day the group split up to find help from various other people.

Rem headed for the Knight Barracks.

Batman went to a Mercenary Guild.

And Subaru went to Priscilla.

Subaru had an unfortunate encounter with her as she tried to make him lick her foot in order to get assistance. When he almost did it she kicked him and called him a greedy pig who never thought outside of his selfish thoughts, and promised to destroy any camp he was apart of. She then made Al take him away.

Outside the gates of her Estate, Subaru was being healed by Rem and watched over by Batman.

They both had no luck recruiting anyone to their cause.

It was then that Batman noticed Al was staring at Rem.

"Interested in our little maid, are we?"

"...Huh? Oh nah, just curious about her is all."

"...?"

Al then waved at them as he looked over at Rem.

"Well, see ya guys! You too Ram."

"...I'm sorry Al-sama but Ram is my sister, Rem is my name."

"No, you're Ram right?"

"No no, I'm Rem."

Al scratched his helmet and tilted his head a bit.

"Sorry to ask you this Rem, but is your sister still alive?"

"Well yes of course she is."

"...DON'T FUCK WITH ME."

A fierce aura surrounded Al as Rem took a defensive in front of Subaru. Subaru himself pulled out some throwing stars…

Batman released his own fierce aura as he stared him down. Seeing this, Al stopped and shook his head.

"Sorry, I'm in a pretty off mood today, would you all just please leave?"

"Very well Al-sama, we are leaving."

The three looked back at Al who headed back inside...unaware of what he was muttering.

"So that thing is still alive?...FUCKING DISGUSTING."

Later, Subaru happened to encounter Anastasia and asked for her audience, though she asked for a one on one meeting.

"Yes, so you can leave your pretty little maid...and HIM behind."

The two left, but Anastasia turned around one last time glaring at Batman.

Subaru had his meeting with Anastasia in a diner, along with a small bubbly cat girl named Mimi.

Trying to get a Dragon Carriage out of the Capital, she almost gave one up without an issue...but Subaru accidentally slip that a lot of traffic was going in and out of The Karsten Estate. Anastasia thanked Subaru for the valuable info.

Subaru realized too late he had been set up.

Anastasia smiled at him as she told him that he was at the short end of the stick when it came to the deal, but his powerlessness was what caused it. Subaru became angry and got up from his seat...only to have Mimi point her staff at him.

"Onii-san should not get closer to my lady. I may not look it, but Mimi is very strong."

"It's okay Mimi. Natsuki-san can't do anything anyways."

She slightly giggled...before she noticed an odd shadow appeared on the table.

"BUT I CAN."

She turned to see the origin of the voice. It was a silhouette of a tall imposing horned figure with nothing but his sharp white eyes glaring down at her.

"Now get out all of you."

"What do-"

"I mean you, that little girl...and the bodyguards you have in this restaurant."

At that moment all the patrons around Subaru stood up and faced Batman. Batman narrowed his eyes and stared at them for a moment, Anastasia is also stood and stared back at him.

"And if we don't?"

"Well, I hope your bodyguards can work with a full set of missing teeth."

The bodyguards shifted to offensive positions along with Mimi, but Anastasia grabbed her purse and shook her head.

"Enough. We're leaving."

"But my lady?"

"Let's leave."

Anastasia took Mimi's hand as they walked past Batman, Mimi noticed she was looking down as they past him, making Mimi slightly narrow her eyes at Batman. The rest of guards also passed by him, one of them bumped his shoulder, but was shocked when he didn't even move an inch. By then, they were gone and Subaru slammed his hand on the table.

Afterwards they acquired their driver, a young man named Otto Suwen. They were also able to contract several other merchant carriages as an attempt to evacuate the villagers.

On the way Subaru noticed Otto was nervous around Batman, who was sitting behind him.

"Don't worry Otto, Batman only eats worthy people filled with fear. Although…"

"That look and comment don't help at all! Wah! He is looking right at me, please tell my family I loved them!"

Batman and Rem whacked Subaru on the back of the head.

"Subaru-kun do not speak badly of Batman-san, you'll scare this poor boy!"

"Subaru, could stop spreading wild rumors about me?! This kid here looks like he is gonna piss himself."

Otto had tears forming in his eyes as he heard this.

"The cute maid and the scary man are also saying such things to me?! Why me?!"

Rem and Subaru chuckled at Otto, even Batman couldn't help but smirk.

It was then that Batman felt something was wrong, and so did Subaru.

Looking out the side of the carriage, Subaru asked everyone what happened to a nearby carriage that was right next to them.

Everyone had no idea what he was talking about, claiming there was never one there at all.

When Subaru and the others looked back, they saw a large yellow eye staring back at them.

Otto took the reins as they did their absolute best to escape from the unknown beast. At one point, when it got too close, Batman tossed several Batarangs at its eye. It screamed in pain at the damage it took, only for it to seemingly run away when they exploded. Blood flew everywhere, Batman used his cape to shield everyone from the blood. He looked around seeing that many of the carriages that came with them were destroyed. He continued trying to summon the Batwing, but a connection couldn't be established.

"Why now of all times?!"

Batman looked over and saw the beast was coming at them again at high speed. Rem waved her palm and fired a barrage of icicles at the creature, it roared loudly as it escaped back into the fog. Suddenly, it attacked from behind, causing the carriage to shake violently. Subaru lost his footing as he flew out from the back of the carriage.

"Subaru-kun!"

Rem tossed her chain and wrapped it around Subaru, pulling him back in.

As Rem was holding him, the beast came closer to the carriage, Otto saw this and began to scream at the sight. Batman pulled out his freeze gun and aimed it at it's eye wound. He froze the wound and tossed a Batarang covered in explosive foam at the iced up wound. He pushed the trigger and a loud explosion and roar were heard. It disappeared back into the fog.

Batman walked over to Otto and grabbed his shoulder.

"Otto, what the hell is that thing?!"

"Can't you tell?! IT'S THE WHITE WHALE!"

"...White Whale?"

"A monster so powerful that it killed the last Master Swordsman! We have no chance!"

Subaru and Batman were shocked to learn just how dangerous the monster they were dealing with was. Batman pondered more and more on what to do. He then quickly overheard Rem…

"Batman-san, take care of Subaru-kun."

"What are you talking about?"

"I will go and slow down the White Whale for you all. Take Subaru-kun and keep him safe."

"No."

"We have no other choice."

"...!"

Rem thanked Otto for his services, while he could only scream at her not to be so reckless. She smiled a bit and turned to Subaru.

"Subaru-kun, please listen to Batman-san. He'll-"

"No Rem! If I lost you...I don't know what I'd do!"

A small bump in the road caused Subaru and Rem to fall over.

When they stood up, Rem realized Subaru was embracing her.

She smiled at this.

"This very moment was the reason for Rem being born. Thank you Subaru-kun."

As Subaru looked over at her…

Batman grabbed both of their right hands and handcuffed them together. Rem was the most shocked by this.

"B...Batman-san! What are you doing?!"

"What needs to be done. This way, you won't run out there and stay put with him."

"NO! You have no idea what you've done! This was the only way, Rem just had to go out there-"

"-AND GET YOURSELF KILLED?!"

Everyone in the carriage shook as they heard Batman yell at her. When Rem looked up she saw his face was angry...but also a tinge of sadness was there.

"If anything happened to you, Ram would never forgive me, and it would hurt Subaru to no end…"

"Rem is…"

"So none of that crap here! As long as I'm here I'm not letting any of you die! We're getting out of here, all of us! ALIVE!"

Batman slammed the side of the carriage as he looked around for anything that could help them. But the fog obscured his vision, making it hard for him to see anything even with his optic eyes. But now a thought came to mind…

"...that's it!"

Batman looked down at his gauntlet and tried to summon the Batwing again, only for it to fail again.

"Than that's it."

"Batman-san?"

"Subaru, it's the fog, there might be some sort of magical properties in it. The reason the signal from the gauntlet can't reach the Batwing."

"Oh! So we need to get on the other side of the fog to get out of here!"

"Correct. But going straight through here, while the White Whale is out there is risky. So we have only one other choice."

He then moved back to Otto and pointed straight ahead.

"Otto, take us to the Flugel Tree."

"Huh?! But why-"

"-DO IT. It's key to our survival."

Otto nodded as he forced his ground dragon to make a mad dash to the Flugel Tree. They raced forward. Rem and Batman did their best to keep the White Whale at bay. Once they reached the bottom of the tree, Batman ordered everyone out of the carriage. Otto didn't want to leave his ground dragon, but he was forced to by Batman.

He grabbed Otto with one arm, even as he tried to break free. His ground dragon looked at him with a slightly understanding expression. Batman then instructed Rem and Subaru to hold onto his shoulders. He fired the grappling hook and they were pulled up high into the air along the side of the tree.

Otto looked down with tears trailing off his cheek, his beloved ground dragon getting smaller and smaller from his vision. Batman keep this up as he fired his hook, then when he reached the end of the line, he would dislodge it and fire again. He kept this up, doing his best to reach the top of the tree.

When he looked down he saw the White Whale was actually following them.

He then looked at Subaru as he screamed an order.

"Subaru! On my belt, the fourth and sixth pouches, take them off and dump the contents onto the White Whale!"

"Got it!"

Subaru as he was told and dumped the pouches contents. Smoke and explosions covered the White Whale as it slowed down considerably and eventually, sunk back down into the fog.

Batman and the others eventually made it to the top of the tree and rested on the leaves for just a moment.

Otto looked down and screamed.

"It's coming back!"

They heard the White Whale roar as it had begun trying to make it's way to them. Batman grabbed them all...and jumped off the tree.

Subaru and Otto screamed a they flew through the air. Batman had trouble gliding as they were free falling. When they turned the corner, he saw the White Whale flying through the air, covered in fog, going straight towards them.

"It can fly?!"

Batman then shifted his body ever so slightly as he pressed the buttons on his gauntlet. When he did, the signal came through and he could tell the connection was established.

He then tossed up his comrades as he fired another freezing shot and froze the whale's mouth, he then fired a heat beam from his fingertip and spun in the air.

Rem fired a humongous shard of ice onto the ground. They all then slid along the side of the large icicle and landed on the ground. In the distance, they could hear the Batwing approaching. They all made a run for it as the Batwing got closer. Batman turned around and saw the White Whale still coming after them.

Then he noticed the horn on it's head. Subaru noticed soon after.

"No...It's a damn Ma-Beast!"

"Then, it's after me?!"

"Doesn't matter! Just get to the jet!"

When the White Whale roared loudly again, it was near feet away from them, Batman furrowed his eyes. He turned around and stuck his palm out.

"AL JIWALD!"

A large wave of light hit the face of the White Whale as it fell back onto the ground. The Batwing landed, Rem threw Otto up. Rem then jumped in with Subaru. Batman then tossed them the keys to the handcuffs to unlock themselves. The Batwing security system did not recognize them, so Batman gave an overriding password that allowed them in. Batman then made the system accept Subaru as an acceptable driver. But just as he was about to enter in as well, The White Whale fired a large cloud of fog from its mouth, right behind him. He rolled out of the way, in the nick of time. Subaru and the others looked at where the White Whale had fired, leaving a large path of missing Earth in it's wake.

Batman then muttered some words into his gauntlet, closing the opening in the jet as it began to lift off. Subaru was near the glass as he banged on it. Rem also looked out at him with fear in her eyes.

"Batman-san! What are you doing?! Get in hurry!"

"Batman-san...why? WHY?! Please, don't do this! Rem cannot let you do this!"

Rem and Subaru at this point, were crying as the Batwing began to lift off.

When they looked back one last time...the saw his entire right arm and shoulder was literally gone. As if it had been simply wiped away.

He then raised his head over his head as a large ball of energy formed, four times his size. As the Batwing sped off Subaru looked back to see a bright light shine...only for it to quickly disappear.

Subaru began to cry into his hands.

"B...Bruuuuuce."

Rem caressed his head as she spoke to him.

"Bruce?"

"Yeah….that was Batman's real name. I just...couldn' help it. I couldn't help him."

"Subaru-kun…"

"...Yeah?"

"What's a Batman…?"

Subaru stared at her in confusion and sheer terror. He shook his head as he looked at her.

"What do you...Rem! Batman-san! Our friend! He's been with us since I went to the mansion!"

"Rem does not understand...you arrived alone with Emilia-sama."

"...but...OKAY! What about this thing we are riding in?!"

"Well, it was a Metia you brought along with you, is it not?"

"...NO WAY."

Otto looked at him wildly confused about his remarks. Subaru silently stared out the window as the Batwing made it's way back to the mansion.

The Batwing landed and everyone exited the jet as they all ran to the mansion. They rushed through the doors.

"Emilia! Ram! Anyone!"

Ram and Emilia soon quickly walked down stairs and met up with everyone.

"Subaru? Why are you here? Weren't you supposed to stay-"

"-Now's not the time! The Witch's Cult is coming! We have to get you and the villagers out of here!"

"Witch's Cult? How do you know-?"

"IT DOESN'T MATTER!"

Emilia trembled with fear as she heard Subaru yell at the top of his lungs. All the others there stared at him with a look of shock.

Subaru then began to cry, harder than ever.

"So many people died to get us here. And Batman-san's sacrifice would mean nothing if we couldn't save you guys."

"Is that a friend you made in the capital?"

"...No….Not you too."

Subaru backed away from Emilia and the others as he stared with distressed eyes filled with tears.

He looked over at Ram.

"Ram...Batman...remember, he's one of our most trusted friends? Please...remember!"

"Barusu...I've never heard of this person in my entire life."

Subaru grasped his head, biting his lower lips as he did. Blood trickled down as Rem and Emilia worryingly walked over to him. Otto and Ram looked at him with their own worried expressions.

Then they felt the mansion begin to shake.

"Huh?!"

The White Whale crashed through the ceiling of the mansion as it roared loudly. It fired a massive cloud from it's mouth, which was aimed directly at Subaru.

Rem then quickly pushed Subaru out of the way. She then disappeared in the mass of fog that melted through the floor.

"Rem? REM?! REM!"

Ram then jumped over to where Subaru was and helped him up.

"Barusu get up!"

"But Rem! She's-"

"-Again I don't know who these people are!"

"-NO! No not Rem too! NOOOO!"

Subaru had to be dragged away by Ram as the White Whale continued to chase after them. Just then a dagger flew through the air, towards them all. Ram and Emilia dodged the dagger, but it hit Otto in the throat.

He gasped for air and clenched his neck trying to stop the blood loss. In his final moments his eyes darkened as he stared at Subaru.

"...all..your f-fault."

Otto then passed away.

Just as they made their way to the entrance, Ram suddenly stopped.

"Ugh!"

Ram dropped Subaru as she was lifted high into the air. Her body convulsed as she tried to breathe.

"R-Ro….!"

Her neck then snapped, her head completely turned completely around. Her body went limp as she fell back down to the ground.

"R-RAM!"

Subaru cried out as he saw yet another friend die.

Emilia ran over Subaru, while shooting icicles behind her.

"Hang on Subaru!"

"Emilia wait-!"

BANG!

Emilia slumped over as she fell to the ground, blood pouring from the side of her head.

"Emilia…?"

From the fog emerged a group of Witch Cultists, as well as two people Subaru recognized instantly.

"Betelgeuse? Scarecrow?"

Betelgeuse slightly frowned at Scarecrow as he surveyed the scene.

"Was that really necessary Scarecrow-kun? We didn't even see if she would face her trial with me! Betelgeuse Romanee Conti! HAH!"

"I was on my way out for starters! So when I saw this absolute mess of a situation unfold here, I had no choice but end this massive failure of a mission, quickly too."

"Hmmmm...but did you have to use that weapon to do it?"

"I was just lucky I found an extra one in my possession. Plus, if she could not handle a single bullet, then she had no right to be chosen to house our Witch. It would be rather insulting right?"

"...AHHHHHHH! You are so correct! You acted accordingly, to rid us of the half-devil impostor and to find another way to fulfill our goal! Ah yes! SPLENDID! HEHEHEHEHEHEHE!"

Subaru stared at them as tears fell from his eyes.

Suddenly, Puck appeared as he froze everything around him. He grew into a large beast that looked over at Scarecrow and Betelgeuse.

"Ah! It appears we are dying Scarecrow-kun. How miserable of a way to go!"

"Still, we got the job done. And for the record Betelgeuse, it has been an honor working with you."

"YES! Let us meet again in the embrace of our beloved Witch! HEHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"Huhuhuhuhahahahahaha!"

The two of them laughed as they completely froze to death.

Puck looked over at Subaru with a face full of disdain, even as he froze to death.

"You broke your promise with Emilia, you tarnished her feelings, and now you have killed her!"

"In accordance with my contract I shall now destroy the world. But first, I must deal with you…!"

The White Whale emerged from the now destroyed mansion and charged at Puck, releasing a large amount of fog as it did.

"You even brought the White Whale here too? You are absolutely useless."

After hearing this, Subaru suddenly began to laugh. He laughed at his own uselessness. He got Emilia, Rem, Ram and Otto killed. He sacrificed his first true friend Batman to get here. He failed him and all the others.

"...You're slothful Subaru."

Subaru shattered away as he heard this.

Subaru awoke in the Marketplace with Rem right next to him.

He grabbed her hand and ran off with her, running through the streets as he continued. When Rem finally stopped him, he turned around and apologized.

They found a spot in some old ruins that overlooked the city, as Subaru apologized again for his behavior. But then, he asked Rem to run away with him.

Some time passed, but Rem couldn't do it. She said that had Subaru asked her with a smile she might have accepted, but as he was now, she didn't.

Subaru lost his composure at this point as they both began to argue with each other.

"Do you have any idea, what's it like to be an absolute failure of a person and still believe that you could do so much more than you already could?! It's a joke! It's pathetic to not realize and just laugh at oneself when they realize this, right Rem?! RIGHT?!"

"..."

"I'm empty! Nothing inside me at all! I'm...no hero…"

"I'm a fraud! I'm a lie! I'm absolute scum! I'M-"

Subaru was then slapped in the face by Rem, who could only shake violently after the strike.

"Subaru-kun, have you not though once about how Rem sees you?! I told you, I love you. That's not a lie. I love you Subaru-kun, so Rem can't bear to see you like this."

"Why do you love so much?"

"Because, you are my hero Subaru-kun."

"No. I'm not...Batman is way more of hero than I'll ever be! A hero would sacrifice their life no matter what, not just for their friends but for others too! That's not me…"

"...Subaru-kun. It is true, Batman-san has what many would consider the qualities of a hero, the courage to face danger, the strength to fight and the determination to see things to the end. That's who he is…"

"See? Even you-"

"-But he is not Rem's hero, you are!"

"...What?"

"You had the courage to face a group of Ma-Beasts alone, even without the strength to do so. You fought to the very end to give Nee-sama and Batman-san a chance to escape.

But...you also said the words I needed to hear most when I needed them. Subaru-kun, you are my hero! And I love you! No matter how much you have fallen, or how much others do not believe in you...Rem will believe in you! Rem will be by your side!"

Subaru began to cry and fall over but was caught by Rem who hugged him tightly. She then smiled as she gave him a small kiss on his forehead.

Subaru slowly rose up as he stared at Rem.

"Let's begin again, okay? Satring over from here Subaru-kun."

"Starting over?"

"Yes Subaru kun. Let's start again from the beginning. No...FROM ZERO!"

It was those words that made Subaru return back from the abyss of his sadness and back to reality.

But…

"Rem."

"Yes?"

"I love Emilia."

"Yes."

"I want to see a future with her alive and happy. But…"

"...But?"

"I want to see a future where you're by our side. Not just you, but Beatrice, Ram and even Batman. I want a bright future where all of us can smile without any more pain. Rem, will you help me?"

"...Geez, Subaru-kun is a horrible person asking this of someone he just rejected."

"It's hard to ask this of a person who rejected my once in a lifetime proposal."

The two laughed together, returning back to their usual selves.

Rem gave a polite bow and took Subaru's hand, only to be surprised by a sudden hug from him.

"Watch Rem! Watch as the man you fell in love with, becomes the greatest hero in this world!"

Rem heard this and began to cry into his chest.

"I'm watching you Emilia. And Rem, you are watching me. So I cannot back down from here!"

Subaru looked up at the blue sky over him, with a new determined expression.

"My life in another world starts again...FROM ZERO!"

Subaru had later returned with Rem to discuss a deal with Crusch, Anastasia and Russell Fellow, merchant guild president, in a plan to take down the White Whale.

While the meeting was shaky at first, Crusch accepted his deal, using her Divine Protection of Wind Reading to do so.

"Divine Protections are amazing though."

"Well yes, Natsuki Subaru, though your friend has one as well."

"...Wait, who?"

"Batman."

"He...HAS ONE?!"

"Yes, Ferris detected it during his healing session."

Ferris struck a pose as he confirmed this.

"Nyaha! It's true, I detected the Divine Protection of Nightfall in him."

"Nightfall?"

Wilhelm nodded with this, looking over at Subaru.

"My wi-I mean, the previous Master Swordsman had it as well. It makes the owner a stronger fighter during the night."

"Wow. Well, that explains a lot."

The group dispersed as Subaru motioned to Rem.

"Rem, we're gonna need help with this. We're going to need to find Batman-san."

"Yes, shall Rem go and fetch him?"

"No…"

Subaru looked out one of the windows and saw large light stones in the garden, probably to be used in the upcoming battle.

"...I have a better idea."

Batman was jumping from rooftop, looking for any sign of trouble in the streets below. Just then, he looked over his shoulder and saw something he had not seen in over a month.

It brought a nostalgic feeling to him as he shook his head.

"Damn kid."

He turned around and ran to the light, one that shined a poorly made Bat symbol onto the night clouds above.

Batman made it to the Crusch Estate to find the origin of the light, seeing Subaru and Rem there as well. Rem melted the ice that was on top of the light stones and slowly deactivated them.

Batman walked over to Subaru who quickly bowed to him.

"Batman-san! We need your help, a big battle is coming up and we..-I need your help!"

"Subaru."

"Of course I'll help."

"R-really?"

"Yes. We are allies after all. Plus, I can't help but feel as though you'd drag yourself into another disaster if I wasn't there."

"Hehehe yeah."

Batman and the others chuckled. But Batman asked for some privacy with Subaru, so Rem gave them some time alone. Batman then wanted an explanation of what was going on.

When Subaru was done, Batman nodded as he stared at him.

"And...how do you know about the White Whale and the Witch's Cult attacks?"

"I...just did...is all."

"Subaru. I'm going to ask you something, and I want you to be honest as possible with me, okay?"

"Sure, Natsuki Subaru is not one to lie to his friends!"

"...Subaru…"

"Y-yes?"

"You're time looping aren't you?"

Subaru could only tremble at the question spoken to him.