Flexing is an art

~ Emilia POV

'What is he saying? Death isn't the same for him? He'll come back one day?' Emilia thought as she watched Julian back moving away from her with an astonished gaze.

'But... But. You can't go come back from death. It's simply impossible, right?' Emilia's mind was left in a confused mess as Julian moved even farther away. The words he was saying not really registering as all noises she was currently hearing was passing as mere background noise for her own thoughts.

But suddenly, her heart skipped a couple of beats when the last words of the tall blond played back in her head, as if he was saying them again before her, his voice stating with finality. "But one day... I'll be back... To help you realize your dreams... Because I decided so."

He would help her realize her dreams? But she never even said anything about them during all the time they spent together! Why did she have the impression he knew much more about her than she knew about him? Why did he save her at the cost of his own arm when they knew each other for a day? if she hadn't, maybe he wouldn't...

Catching herself, Emilia shook her head. Julian was right. She could feel the heart behind these words. Maybe didn't matter, IF story does not exist.

Was it what Puck meant when he told her that both Subaru and Julian were hiding a lot of things, but the later secret's seemed to be way heavier?

Snapping out of her thoughts, Emilia finally realized a way more important issue. With both Subaru and Julian gone. She would be alone all over again.

In a burst of panic, she struggled to stand up as her legs were numb from the sitting position.

Tumbling for a bit, she began to run after Julian.

It was irrational, she knew. She was powerless to do anything about it. But if she could just...

"Julian, wait!"

She pleaded loudly as she ran her fastest to catch up to her friend. The one in question paying no heed to her call.

Even she didn't knew what she would do if she caught up. But she didn't want to go back to those cold, disgusted gazes and glares. Not when she found someone who truly didn't care about her half-elf nature. Someone who showed her some warmth and didn't treat her with indifference.

"I believe you will do the right thing... Strongest of knight."

Just as she was but a dozen meters away, she heard him say these words and mutters some things she could not hear.

And then, he stepped into the alley.

Rounding up the corner, Emilia froze in place at the entrance.

Gone, he was gone. Like he had never been there in the first place.

Emilia nearly thought so herself when she remarked she was clenching something in her hand.

Opening it up, she found her own emblem. A smear of blood hiding a corner of the crest. Maybe the only evidence that it wasn't a dream. That she hadn't just created him out of her own loneliness.

Hearing steps behind her, she turned herself to the sight of familiar knight. He had the same easy going smile that he always had, nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

But despite that, and even if she could not quite grasp it. Emilia could tell that something was seriously off about him.

"Emilia-Sama, I'm deeply sorry that I didn't made it in time for your friends and for your own lost. I failed you as a knight." Reinhard bowed to her.

"It - It's alright. But I want to ask something." Emilia said sofly.

Turning her gaze back to the alley, she asked in the same manner. "Did you see it? Is he really dead?"

Reinhard thought for a bit before shaking his head. "I'm not sure. By all mean, I saw what kept him alive run out. But I'm not sure of what happened after that, as he used a kind of magic I've never seen before. It was as if he simply vanished in thin air from a blaze of dark red flames."

Emilia squeezed her emblem as she dipped her head before raisins it again. Eyes full of determination and some hope.

It was enough.

As long as she didn't see his corpse with her own two eyes, she would keep hoping.

She would keep waiting.

—————

~Back to Julian

As he destroyed his own body to kingdom come, Julian finally let himself be pulled by the tug he felt since Subaru's death.

Unlike his last death, this time he actually felt himself pass through some sort of space? Dimension, where everything was black and purple. His body felt similar to the state he was in after his death to the witch of envy. No physical sensations nor senses, only differences being that he was totally in control of his thoughts.

But before he could see anything or anyone, he was tossed out toward a door of light that suddenly appeared close to him.

It seemed he wasn't really welcome there. What a rude host.

As his vision flashed white briefly, he regained the feeling of his own body.

Taking a deep breath, Julian surveyed his surrounding. He was curious how the curse would work with him waiting before joining Subaru.

Julian eyes widened a bit as he found himself before a fountain, same as the first time he came into this world. With Subaru nowhere in sight.

Julian mind churned as it rapidly analysed the situation. He could remember a particularly tall lizardman sending a nasty gaze to Subaru at his first yell.

Lizardman that he too could not see being around the plaza.

Shielding his eyes from the sun, he estimated its position to be almost the exact time he was transmigrated with Subaru in the first run.

With these two factors, he could confirm that he was 45 minutes later than the first loop's beginning.

Why 45? Because it was the exact duration of his fight with Elsa and all subsequent events leading to his ultimate death.

Closing his eyes and crossing his arms, Julian thought of the most efficient course of action for a moment.

"Hey handsome, are you free for some talk and maybe a walk around town? You don't seem from here." A woman voice resounded as Julian was still thinking.

Opening his eyes, Julian gazed at the obviously noble and pretty red haired woman for a bit before diverting his eyes again. "No, I'm not free."

Before she could bother him some more, Julian imbibed himself with mana, crouched and proceeded to leap on the closest roof. Leaving a stunned noblewomen and a gaking crowd behind as he jumped from roof to roof much like Felt would.

Diriging himself in the vague direction of the warehouse. Julian kept a look out for a mischevious and rather foolish thief who would not listen to her senpai advice.

Also keeping an eye out on the street for Emilia's appearance. Julian took little breaks in interval to be sure he wasn't making progress too fast and possibly miss one of the girls.

It didn't even take five minutes of this endeavor for him to catch sight of a dark point streaking across the top of buildings far away.

Smirking a bit, Julian upped his mana release and directed himself directly toward Felt.

He was moving so fast through the air that he looked like a bolt of blue lightning flashing from roof to roof.

"I didn't know it was so fun to jump between buildings like that, should do it more often before I get to fly." Julian mused as he honed on Felt. Who only now realized she had a second pursuers. Much faster than her other one.

Beginning to panick a little, she tried to flee at her fastest, the wind almost surrounding her entirely.

'Tried' was the word as when Felt was indeed fast. She was only going around 125 - 150 meters a second. Way slower than Julian who suddenly bursted with three times her speed. Cracking the tiles under his feet and breaking the sound barrier, he jumped over dozen of houses in the blink of an eye.

In merely three seconds after she began to run away. Julian intercepted her in the air and caught her like a kitten by the back of her top. Proceeding to jump on a roof to afterward land on the ground in an alley. He snatched Felt dagger just as she made a move to take it.

"Bad idea. For your blade, that is." Julian shook his head as he kept Felt at arm's lentgh as she squirmed in his grip, trying to punch and kick him.

"Give it back! I mean, let go!" Felt cursed at Julian as she found herself unable to do anything as she was too short to reach him and his hold on her was too strong.

That was until she had the great Idea to bite his arm.

"Ouch!" No, that wasn't Julian.

With tears in her eyes as she had the impressions have biten on metal. Felt put her hands on her jaws as she looked at Julian. "What are you made of?"

Julian put his free hand under his chin after he put back the knife in Felt own sheet.

Looking thoughful for a moment, Julian answered after putting her down. "I'd say... 100% handsomness, 100% brain and 100% muscle."

Julian made a show of flexing, making some lady passing by colliding with the back of the person before them as they weren't looking where they were going anymore.

Felt threw the stink eye to Julian as she refuted him. "I know that's not how number work! I'm not stupid."

Julian stopped flexing as he gained a strange expression. "Never said you were. But now that I think about it, do you even know how to count?"

Felt gritted her still sensible teeth as her expression turned indignant. "I'll let you know, old man Rom teached me everything I need to know!"

Suddenly, realisation and even more indignation flashed across her face. "Hey, stop treating me like a child! I'm 15!"

Julian rolled his eyes and turned around. "Stop yelling already, it doesn't help with your I'm-not-a-child image. Now, follow me."

"And why would I follow you?"

"Because you know what happen to dicident children who don't listen to what they are told?"

Julian smiled as he threw a glance at Felt, striking with his palm a nearby wall.

*CRACK*

An indent in the form of his hand now imprinted on the stone wall. Julian began to walk away as he put his hands in his pocket.

"They get spanked."

Felt gulped as she saw the indent, promptly proving her survival instinct as she shut up and opted to follow Julian.

—————

After some time, Felt found herself curious of her captor and of their destination as he hadn't done anything hurtful to her beside stomping on her pride.

"Say, Aniki, Where are we going?"

Julian brow twitched as she just called him the equivalent of bro. But it was more because it was the first time ever that someone refered to him as that. "To the owner of the item you stole."

"Eh? No way I'm giving it back! There's enough money to get from this job for me and old Rom to start anew!" Felt protested.

"Yes, yes. Money is cool and all, but is money more important than your own life?"

"Wh-what do you mean." Felt froze for a split second before asking.

"Ever heard of the bowel hunter?"

Felt nodded. "Of course I know of her, she's the most infamous assassin of the time."

"Well, you see... She's your client."

"What!?" Now Felt was fearful, there was multiple stories around the assassin. The most known one was how the name: Bowel hunter came to be.

Julian ruffled her hair as he comforted her, smirking. "Don't worry, that's why I'm here. She stand no chance against me, I already defeated her once after all. I can do it again."

Felt slapped his hand away as she humphed. But despite it all, she couldn't help but feel better. It's true that he seemed pretty strong, after all. He was even faster than her! And he looked so confident that she wanted to believe him.

...

No, it was simply better to believe him. Because if he was lying...

Felt was snapped out of her own mind as her kidnapper said aloud. "Ah, there she is. Now that's the fun part."

What did he mean by that? Was he perhaps implying that she wasn't fun to be around!?