Chapter 194: The So-called Sin Archbishop of Lust Capella is Nothing More Than a Witch Cultist

Only when Ram's eyes welled up with tears and she silently begged for mercy did Subaru's anger finally cool enough to let her off the hook.

Afterward, Subaru took Betty's hand and settled down on the picnic blanket spread in the shade of the great tree, calling the rest of the girls over to join him for lunch.

"Hal, quit lounging up in that tree and come down to eat!"

Subaru tilted his head back, cupped his hands around his mouth like a megaphone, and shouted up at the figure perched in the tree above.

They weren't exactly close yet, but that didn't stop him from calling the man "Hal" right off the bat—when it came to shameless over-familiarity, Subaru was practically a professional.

Besides, was this really over-familiarity? The guy clearly liked him a ton already, so playing it aloof would've just been awkward.

This was the fortune and the guard he himself had built up in another possible world—so really, this was all the fruit of his own hard work!

In response to Subaru's invitation, Halibel laughed and waved a hand.

"Ah... nah, it's fine, Su-san. You all go ahead and eat—I'll keep watch."

Halibel called back down in a deep, magnetic voice.

"We're out in the wilds, after all—can't afford to let our guard down. I've got the high ground, so I'll spot any trouble and let you know right away."

Halibel's vigilance went without saying—the moment he'd decided to serve as Subaru's guard, he'd resigned himself to never letting his guard down easily.

After all, who could say what might happen next?

A horde of crazed Witch Cult followers, an Archbishop of Sin, or even one of the Three Great Mabeasts could show up out of nowhere—none of it was impossible.

The thought made Halibel shrug helplessly, and he couldn't resist grumbling internally about Zarestia, still sleeping in late back at the manor.

He might already count as a powerhouse, but faced with all the strange and countless blessings and Authorities in this world, he couldn't guarantee he'd handle every threat flawlessly.

That was exactly why Zarestia's presence mattered so much.

Without her light orb stolen from her, Zarestia's power far, far surpassed his own!

If she were here, he wouldn't have to keep himself on edge like this all the time.

Still... well, he understood her, too.

Getting to meet her friends Subaru and Rem again in this lifetime—he figured Zarestia felt just as thrilled about it as he did.

The reason she was still sleeping probably wasn't just laziness, though.

More likely, it was because of... the light orb!

That orb was the vessel Zarestia, the Great Spirit of Wind, was bound to—it held centuries of accumulated killing intent, and combined with her body's own instincts, it left her wanting to kill at every waking moment.

The only reason Zarestia had been able to get to know Rem and Subaru in the past was that the light orb had been stolen, stripping away that overwhelming killing intent and letting her keep a normal, rational mind.

Now that she was whole again, Zarestia was probably holding herself together purely through her love for Subaru and Rem's family, using sleep to fight back against the killing instinct present in both her soul and body.

"Sigh, I'll bring it up with Su-san when I get the chance. With that clever head of his, he might just find a way to fix it."

Halibel folded his arms and closed his eyes, weighed down by heavy thoughts—at his level, keeping watch with his eyes open or closed made no difference, so there was no need to disturb the picnic going on below.

He'd always cast himself as the guard hidden in Subaru's shadow, so he made a conscious effort to keep his presence faint.

Down beneath the tree, Subaru nodded at Halibel's words. Necessary caution really was necessary—these days, he honestly couldn't say what the future might bring.

And then there was the question—did the Witch Cult's Archbishops of Sin also carry memories from other timelines?

Especially Petelgeuse Romanee-Conti, the Sloth Archbishop of Sin who had long since set his sights on Emilia and was the closest threat nearby!

"What's wrong, Subaru? Why the sudden long face?"

Emilia, who'd been watching him closely, was the first to speak up.

She furrowed her brow slightly, turning her stunning face toward him with a look of concern, her eyes filled with nothing but him.

Before Subaru could answer, Rem spoke up first, her expression grave.

"It's... the Witch Cult! Those damned lunatics might already have their eyes on us right now, so it's right for Hal to keep watch for us!"

"Ah, those disgusting bastards. But targeting Subaru? They deserve to die ten times over, I suppose!"

Betty snorted coldly, then turned to Subaru with a serious look.

"If that's all it is, don't worry. Betty's Mana reserves are more than enough now—she's got everything she needs to protect you properly!"

But seeing Subaru still spacing out even after she'd said all that, Betty put her right hand on her hip, puffing up with irritation.

"What, don't you trust Betty or something?"

She raised her small pink fist, glaring at him threateningly.

That accusation dropped on him like a hammer, and Subaru broke into a cold sweat instantly. He denied it flat out, cutting off Betty's spell-casting by grabbing her around the waist and spinning her around a few times.

"No, no, of course I trust my Beako! Hooray... hooray!"

"So dizzy..."

It didn't take long for Betty to get spun into dizziness, and even after Subaru set her back down, she couldn't quite remember what she'd been about to scold him for.

After setting Betty down, Subaru put his hands on his hips and wiped the sweat from his brow, relieved he'd lived to see another day.

"Darling, don't worry. I'll be the blade in your hand, and I'll slice open the guts of every enemy in your path~"

Just then, Elsa stepped up in front of Subaru and took his hands in her cold ones, declaring her feelings.

But after the words left her mouth, something seemed to cross her mind—a flicker of hesitation and fear passed through her eyes, quickly replaced by resolve.

What Elsa was hesitating over was nothing else but the organization she'd once belonged to—specifically the woman who was nominally her and Meili's "mother," but who was in truth the Witch Cult's Lust Archbishop of Sin, "Capella."

This "mother" of hers was not only powerful but also thoroughly vile in nature, and her Authority let her alter not just her own life-form but the physical form of anyone she touched.

Back then, Meili had been turned into things like frogs and flies by "Mother," suffering an utterly inhuman psychological torment.

Only through that had she gradually gone from a child raised by beasts to slowly learning how to speak like a human and live as one.

And yet, even an existence that powerful had, in the end, been defeated by Subaru—who'd once called himself the "Pride" Archbishop of Sin—her beloved.

And all of that had happened simply because Capella had stood in the way of Emilia's path to the throne.

So really, when it came down to it, there was nothing to fear about her "mother" after all!

The so-called Lust Bishop "Capella" was, in the end, nothing more than just another Witch Cult follower!

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