Chapter 9 - The Fourth Attempt

Opening his eyes, Orion took a moment to compose himself as he leaned his head into the oh-so-familiar children's book.

'Shit… that was… horrible…' Orion shuddered at the memory of his life draining as he shivered from the cold emptiness. 'But… wait. If the return happens on Subaru's death…'

Looking up, he saw Subaru patting his throat before looking up at Orion. 

"Ah! Hey, Senpai!"

"Subaru… how did you die? Was there another attacker?" Orion asked, worried.

"No, no, nothing like that," Subaru waved him off. "It's just… Well… you died, right? And I'm the only one who could save you… Plus, I didn't want the reset point to change, so…"

"You… killed yourself?" Orion said, shocked.

"Don't put it like that! My sacrifice was very noble!" Subaru said.

"...I don't know if I should be encouraging that behaviour, but… thank you, Subaru," Orion said, bowing. "For saving me."

Subaru widened his eyes before getting up and slapping Orion's back good-naturedly. "Come on~ Enough of that, Senpai! You'll be saving me a lot in the future, right? And if you really feel bad… Maybe you could help me with Emilia-tan?"

Orion looked up at the younger boy before laughing, "Yeah, definitely. But I'll only help you with Emilia if you help me with Rem."

"Yeah, for sure- Wait, what!? What do you mean?"

"Anyway," Orion said, ignoring Subaru as he stood up. "Let's go talk to our resident great spirit to see if we can stop the curse. I think it's fair to say whoever cast it was in the village."

"Wait! That thing about Rem? What are you-"

Subaru's questions were ignored as Orion led them out the door.

—

"So you want to know about curses, I suppose?" Beatrice asked, closing her book. "...Haa. Betty shall explain, as long as you leave afterwards. The presence of you two is very aggravating for Betty, in fact."

Adjusting her posture, Beatrice proceeded to explain, "Curses are typically cast by shamans, I suppose, and require touch to mark a target before activation. This activation can either be done in that moment or from a distance, in fact."

'There must have been a distant activation in our case,' Orion thought.

"And can you heal a curse? Or stop its effects?" Orion asked.

"No. Once a curse is activated, the only way to stop it is for the target to die or the curse to complete its purpose, in fact," Beatrice said. "Curses, especially the one you explained, work by draining the target of their mana in order to affect their od and drain their lifeforce, I suppose."

'Draining their mana… that must have been what happened to me,' Orion thought, remembering the back-and-forth feeling from the last loop before he felt a sudden pain in his core. 'The mana draining of the curse fought with my divine protection which replenished my gate continuously until it eventually collapsed from the stress… What a horrible feeling.'

"Wait… so you can't do anything about a curse?" Subaru said, afraid.

"Betty did not say that, in fact," the great spirit pouted. "While Betty cannot stop a curse once it is activated, Betty can remove a curse once it has been placed, I suppose."

"Ah! You're the best, Beako!" Subaru said, suddenly lifting the great spirit in his arms.

"Waah! S-Stop this instant, I suppose! Betty is named Betty in fact!" she shouted, thumping Subaru on the shoulder before she was eventually put down. "Betty has had enough, I suppose!"

The two young men were then flung out of the doors and into the hall, in a manner much similar to last time, only this time Orion had to stretch out his hand to catch Subaru before he fell out the window.

"Alright. So she can remove curses… Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Subaru asked, dusting himself off.

"Well, I'm not completely sure, but I think I know," Orion said. "Just follow the same path as the first loop, get touched by everyone in the village, and then go to Beatrice before the curse is activated, right?"

"That's my Senpai!" Subaru said. "But you can leave that part to me! Let's do it right this time, Senpai."

Looking at Subaru's extended fist, asking for a fistbump, Orion shook his head before returning the gesture. "Yeah. Let's."

—

After completing Roswaal's initial magic lesson for the fourth time, Orion felt much more confident in his ability to cast the six spells he had been shown, though their applications in combat were still untested.

Wanting to challenge himself, Orion had gone to the library to look deeper into original spells and the methods for casting his currently known ones at a higher level, and Orion found that he had hit a wall.

His reading was still slow, of course, but that wasn't the reason for this wall. 

Instead, it was simply the way the people of this world interpreted magic. To them, magic was something that followed its own rules, and thus the explanation of the magic was often lacking in logic, something Orion found impossible to understand.

To put it simply, magic worked in certain ways because it did. Nothing deeper needed to be researched as magic was, well… magical.

'Well… who said I have to follow their methods?' Orion thought. 'Especially for original spells, there's no need for me to try to understand the metaphorical mish-mash that's recorded in those texts. Instead, I'll use my own unique approach. Something more… scientific. Based on logical understanding.'

He was currently standing outside with Emilia and Subaru as Emilia talked with her spirits while Subaru and Puck watched the beautiful scene with soft smiles. 

Off to the side, Orion had closed his eyes and begun to concentrate on his mana, morphing it into multiple orbs.

'El Goa, my first advanced spell. Contrary to the base spell, this version creates multiple projectiles that fire in a continuous barrage.'

Breathing in, and imaging fire, both in a physical and a scientific sense, Orion activated the spell.

"El Goa."

Feeling the balls of mana he had formed launch out of his gate, Orion opened his eyes to see a ring of five fireballs surrounding him.

Not noticing the surprised looks of the other three, Orion retained his control of the balls, taking a moment to get used to the mental load of five separate magical objects before letting them fly forth in an arc.

The five fireballs soared through the sky, gaining altitude as they traced their path before colliding together overhead, creating a grand explosion of flame in the air.

"...Whoa," Orion voiced out, surprised at the power of the spell as he could feel the heat reach him despite the considerable distance.

"O-Orion? What spell was that?" Emilia said, walking over with Subaru and Puck trailing behind her.

"Yeah Senpai, that was awesome! And your MP is fine after that?" Subaru asked.

"Yeah, I feel fine… and that was El Goa," Orion said, causing both Puck and Emilia to widen their eyes.

"An El-level spell… That's amazing Orion!" Emilia praised him.

Subaru, feeling jealous as he watched Emilia beam at Orion, turned to Puck. 

"Hey… can you give me a rundown on magic too?" he asked as the half-elf and her attendant began to converse.

As Orion answered Emilia's questions about how he already attained an advanced spell, they were interrupted by a shout.

"Shamak!"

Suddenly, a cloud of ink-black smoke spread across the yard, drenching Orion's world in black.

'Subaru…'

Orion was disappointed.

—

"So Subaru has the yin element?" Rem asked as she folded the laundry.

"Yup!" Orion answered, swinging down his sword a final time to complete his set. "But he has horrible control. Apparently, he hurt his gate just from casting a single spell, so I don't think he'll be using magic anytime soon."

"Subaru is indeed a bit… careless," Rem said. "But Rem is surprised at how you two interact. It is almost as if you are brothers."

"Heh. And am I the responsible one?" Orion asked.

"Obviously," Rem nodded.

With Orion's realization of his feelings for the blue-haired maid, he had made an effort to talk to her whenever possible. As a result, in only two days, Orion had become as close to Rem as he had been on the final day of the last loop.

"Well, sadly, Subaru isn't my little brother. I have my own family. Though…" Orion's expression turned slightly gloomy. "I'm from a very far away place, so... I don't think I'll ever see them again. Or at least not anytime soon."

Rem stopped her work as she turned to the young man. 

"Would you… like to talk about it?"

Orion was slightly surprised at Rem taking the initiative, though it was certainly welcomed.

"There's not much to talk about," Orion shrugged. "I have a mom, a dad, and a little sister. Even before I came here, I only saw them a few times a month. I know my parents would be fine with not seeing me as long as they knew I was happy."

Orion then tilted his head up to look at the passing clouds.

"I just… wish they could know that I'm fine and happy. I bet they're quite worried right now."

Rem felt her heart ache in sympathy. After all, she of all people would know the pain of missing family.

"...You said you have a little sister?" Rem asked.

"Yep," Orion nodded, looking back down. "She should be starting high school pretty soon. I'm just glad she's there for Mom and Dad."

"I see… Rem is also very glad to have sissy…" Rem said, biting her lips.

'Should I tell him? Orion has that disgusting scent on him, but I can't think of him as a cultist,' Rem thought. 'If he was, and he realized sissy and I were alive, what would he do? I know something bad would happen, so why… Why do I want to tell him?'

"Rem?" Orion said, interrupting her internal struggle. "You okay?"

Staring into those soft, gentle brown eyes that were filled with such honest concern, Rem felt her walls break down.

"Rem… also lost her family," Rem said. "...Though it is a bit different to Orion's situation."

And so, giving in to her feelings, she told him her story.

—

"Wow… I… I'm glad you and Ram survived."

Orion cringed at his response.

'Really? Did I really just say that?' Orion chided himself. 'Still… at least that answers why Rem hates the Witch Cult so much, and by extension the Witch's scent. Having your entire village massacred would do that to anybody.'

Seeing Orion's awkwardness, Rem couldn't help but giggle lightly to herself.

"Ahem! Yeah, that's quite different from my family," Orion said. "And at least with mine I can see them whenever I want, so I won't forget them."

"Hm? What do you mean?" Rem asked.

"Ah, well, I have a physical photo in my wallet. It's… basically a very good portrait." 

Orion then pulled out his phone, going to his photos to show his family together. 

The photo was the earliest picture taken of the four of them, which was taken for his sister's middle school graduation.

"That's them. Told you it wasn't anything special."

While Orion said that, Rem was looking on in wonder. Both at the quality of the portrait in front of her, as well as the device that was showing said portrait.

"Orion… What is this?" she asked, amazed.

"It's called a phone," he answered.

"So this… 'phone' stores these portraits?"

"Hehe, that's not all," Orion said, pointing the phone to Rem. "It can take them too!"

Turning to show her the photo, Rem became amazed at how detailed it was. From the slight tilt of her head in confusion to the way her visible eye sparkled in the sun, it was all there. 

And captured in an instant too!

"That's a pretty photo. I think I'll make that my wallpaper," Orion said, nodding to himself.

"Wallpaper?" Rem asked.

"Uh, it means that I can see it whenever I want by looking at my phone," Orion said with red cheeks.

"Oh…" 

Rem was also blushing now, though she tilted her head down to hide it.

"A-Anyway! It also has some books I downloaded, a calculator, and a bunch of other cool stuff. Like music!" 

Orion then played a rock song from his playlist, the sound once again causing Rem's eyes to widen in surprise.

"...Rem doesn't understand the lyrics, but she does like the sounds. Rem has only heard music from travelling bards and bands at parties Master Roswaal was invited to," she said.

Orion paused the music and turned off his phone with a sigh, "Well, unfortunately, I'll be in the same boat soon. I doubt this place has a charger, so it won't be long before it dies."

"Dies? You mean it will break down?" Rem asked.

"Yeah, something like that," Orion shrugged, not wanting to explain the topic of electricity and power.

Rem cupped her chin before saying, "...While Rem is not very familiar with yang magic, Rem has heard of a spell that reverts an object back in time. Perhaps that could be used to fix this 'phone'?"

"I'll… look into that, thanks," Orion said.

'There was such a spell?' he thought. 'That might be really useful. But I think I'll wait until this curse stuff is dealt with before I look into it.'

"Anyway, do you want help with the rest of the laundry?" Orion asked.

"No, Rem is… Actually, Rem would appreciate Orion's help," Rem said, returning to her work.

"Gladly!"

Orion joined her.

—

"Orion."

Stopping his sword swing, Orion turned to see Ram walking towards him.

"Yes, dear sister?" Orion asked.

"Master Roswaal only taught you Fura, correct?" she said. "I'm here to teach you the rest of the basic wind spells."

"Really?" Orion was surprised. "That doesn't sound like something you'd do."

"Consider it payment for making Rem smile," she said, flipping back her hair. "Besides, I am very charitable when I want to be. Be grateful."

"Y-Yeah, I am, dear sister," Orion said, sheathing his sword in preparation for the lesson.

Having heard about the two's origins from Rem, Orion knew that Ram was extremely skilled at wind magic. As a kid, she was able to beat back almost all of the Witch Cult that was attacking her village and was hailed as a prodigy since birth.

While she no longer had the stamina to be a proper fighter due to losing her horn, that didn't mean Ram's pure skill in magic had deteriorated.

'I hope I can learn a lot,' Orion wished.

"Good. Now, the first of the spells is Zephyris, which creates a wall of wind to defend against attacks."

Ram then conjured the spell, causing the air to tremble between them.

Wanting to test it out, Orion clenched his fist and punched forward, but his strike stopped in mid-air, with his knuckles burning as if he had punched a wall.

"Cool. I needed a defensive spell," Orion said, shaking the pain out of his hand. "Thanks, dear sister."

"As long as you know that even Al Zephyris won't stop me if you hurt my sister," she said with narrowed eyes. "Now, the next one is Silentium, which nullifies the sound around the caster, like this."

Ram then clapped her hands, but surprisingly, caused no noise whatsoever, even though she was right in front of Orion.

In fact, if he listened closely, he could notice that there was a distinct lack of sound from in front of him. Where there used to be the sound of the breeze lightly brushing across the grass, now… there was nothing.

But a moment later, that silence was removed as Ram cancelled the spell.

"And finally, there is Ventara, which allows the caster to move at higher speeds by creating a tailwind and parting the air in front of them. I don't want to move, so I won't display this spell," Ram said, sitting down. "Well? Go on and try them out. I'll correct any mistakes you will make and give you some blessed guidance."

"...Why do you assume I'll make a mistake?" Orion asked.

Ram smirked. "Learning new spells isn't so easy. Especially when you are comparing it to a genius of wind magic like myself. Just don't be too disappointed."

Orion sighed before pumping his fist, regaining some excitement.

"Okay! Let's do this, Orion!" 

"I could do without the unnecessary commentary," Ram quipped. "If I were to guess, I would say that Barusu is rubbing off on you."

"You take that back!"

They both stared at each other for a moment before chuckling.

After all, aside from the topic of Rem, nothing could bring the two together faster than poking fun at the younger boy's… distinctive qualities.

—

"I have to say, I'm surprised," Ram said, getting up and dusting herself off. "Your mana control isn't anything special, but you were able to use and cast each spell properly. Quite amazing for a beginner."

As Orion was about to smile at her compliment, Ram continued, "Of course, I was still considerably better as an infant, so don't get conceited."

"...Thanks," Orion said, wiping the sweat off his brow. "You're not a bad teacher, Ram."

"Did you expect anything less?" she quipped. "Someone had to get Barasu to an acceptable level of housework skills. That isn't a feat your regular maid can do."

"Yeah, yeah," Orion waved off her biting words toward his friend. "Anyway, thanks for taking the time to teach me. If you need any help with something in return, just ask."

Ram nodded before turning to leave, but after walking a few steps, she suddenly stopped.

"...Orion," she said, her voice stern.

"Yeah?" he answered back.

"...I've noticed how close you and my sister have gotten and how open she seems around you. I don't know how or why, nor do I really care," she said, turning to face him. "I'm glad my sister has found someone else to feel comfortable with, but I'm warning you now. If you hurt her, I'll kill you. And it will not be a painless death."

Orion swallowed his words as he noticed the coiled wrath hidden beneath those red eyes.

Ram wasn't joking around. She was serious.

"I-I promise," he said.

"...Good."

Ram then turned back and walked into the manor, leaving Orion alone with some new spells, and a new fear of getting on the pink-haired maid's bad side.

—

After Orion finished helping Rem out with cleaning the floors of the manor, much like in the first loop, the two of them found themselves walking through the hall before meeting up with Ram, as the two sisters were about to head downstairs to get started on dinner.

Passing an open door, Orion peeked inside to see Subaru resting on Emilia's lap, fast asleep.

'I did notice that he was acting a bit weird, putting up a front, but I thought he would go to me before doing… this,' Orion thought, watching as Emilia put a finger to her lips, gesturing for them to be quiet with a smile. 'Well… good for you, my friend.'

"Is that?" Rem said, looking over Orion's shoulder.

"It seems Barasu has decided to shirk his duties and instead take out his lust on Lady Emilia," Ram added. "What a troublesome employee."

"Don't tease him too much," Emilia pouted, playing with the boy's hair. "Subaru's a good boy."

'Yep. I'm definitely teasing him about this later,' Orion thought with a smirk.

"He's trying awfully hard…" Emilia said, looking down at Subaru's eyes that had sunken from fatigue. "Wasn't this job supposed to be your reward for saving me? I think Subaru's a bit lacking in ambition. You too, Orion."

Orion watched Emilia playfully pinch Subaru's cheeks before commenting.

"Subaru is what you would call a simpleton."

"Heh," Ram huffed with a smile. "At least I am not the only one that sees."

"He simply wants what he wants, not thinking too hard about the future," Orion continued, ignoring Ram's comment. "But… I can understand him."

Emilia lifted her head to look at Orion. "And what about you?"

"Well, you could say I enjoy working for something… important. Having a purpose. Mine being helping you become queen," he said, causing Emilia to smile wider. "And besides, it feels good to improve my magic and swordsmanship, and I enjoy the employees here, so I can't really complain even if it means putting in a bit of effort."

His words caused Ram to turn her head away and Rem to blush lightly, but Orion was ignorant of their reactions as Emilia looked down sadly.

"Still… you and Subaru are working so hard, it makes me feel bad when I don't do anything in return."

"Well, I think you're doing a pretty good job right now," Orion added with a smirk. "But seeing you put in your best effort is enough for me. And as for Subaru… you should go on a date with him sometime as a reward."

"A 'date'?" Emilia tilted her head.

"A private outing," Orion answered. "I'm sure Subaru will explain it happily if you ask."

With that, the two maids left and continued toward the kitchen as Orion headed into the library to practice some reading and writing.

'I should've taken a picture,' he thought regretfully.

—

"Alright! Today's a new day, and I'm feeling energized!" Subaru exclaimed, pumping his fists in excitement.

"It was the lap pillow, wasn't it?" Rem said.

"It was the lap pillow," Ram added.

"Is there any other explanation? It was definitely the lap pillow," Orion joined in.

"Wait, you guys knew!?" Subaru exclaimed, his cheeks turning a deep red.

"Good morning Subaru!"

Before he could be teased further, Emilia came to his rescue. 

However, in Subaru's case, her appearance made his heart flutter both in attraction and further shame, leaving him in a flustered state similar to as if he was being teased. Not much of a rescue.

"Eh? E-Emilia-tan?" Subaru stuttered as Emilia came up beside him. "Ah~ This is kind of embarrassing~"

"Are you feeling better now?" she asked with concern.

"Y-Yeah… I'm okay. I'm sor- No," Subaru shook his head before staring into Emilia's eyes with a smile. "Thank you. For everything."

Emilia smiled back at him, "You're welcome."

As the two stared at each other, Orion suddenly felt like he was watching a very intimate moment that would be best left unshared, especially since Rem and Ram had already left. But, before he could leave, Emilia turned away first.

"I have to talk with the spirits, but I'll see you at breakfast," Emilia said, walking away. "And… if you need me again, Subaru, you can just ask, okay?"

As she closed the mansion's doors, Subaru looked down at his clenched fist with a smile.

"So… tomorrow's the day, huh?" Orion said, walking up to him. "We'll find and take down that shaman or whatever and continue living like normal. Doesn't that sound nice?"

"Yeah," Subaru said, taking a deep breath. "Hey, Senpai. I… really don't want to lose this loop."

Orion narrowed his eyes as he looked out the window, seeing the morning sun spread across the vast lawn. 

More specifically, he was staring at the blue-haired maid as she began trimming the line of hedges.

"...Me neither."