1

The light sway of the chandelier had caught his eye; he slowly followed the motions with his eyes as he rose from his slumber. His ears picked up on the sounds of plates clattering, light chatter and two pairs of footsteps approaching his position.

"This is way too much." Subaru muttered to himself. When he had first woken up earlier, he felt strength and longevity coursing through him. But it would appear now on his second awakening he was discovering more to this curse. His senses were dialed up to eleven. He could hear so much, smell so much and see so much. His eyes had snapped to the sudden movement of a fly outside of the window, he could see its wings and eyes in vivid detail from his bed. It was disorienting.

So this is what Reinhard had meant about monitoring him about any new changes that could arise within him. The sensory overload was too much, the sounds were deafening, the visuals were disorientating. He was being overwhelmed.

'It's too much. It's too much. It's too much. It's too much. IT'S TOO MUCH!'

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK

The sudden banging on the door startled him out of his trance, slowly he could feel a sense of normalcy return to his senses as his racing heart which was beating so heavily, slowly returning to its normal pace. His heavy breaths coming out as gasps as he caught his breath. He took a moment to regain his bearings before responding.

"C-Come in!" Damn, he still stuttered over his words.

The door to the room he was residing in slowly opened up, and stepped in were two… children? Not only that but they were dressed in maid attire. Two young girls who looked eerily similar, no they looked basically identical!

'Twins most likely?' Subaru thought to himself.

The one on the right is a short girl who has peach colored hair with yellow ribbons decorating it. She wears a maid outfit which has white and pink colorations. Her hair had a lateral fringe. The one on the left looked identical to the one on the right, but her fringe was straight opposed to what he assumed was her sister.

"Greetings, I am Flam, and this is my sister Grassis. We are maids under the service of the Astrea family. It's a pleasure to meet you."

The one with the lateral fringe spoke, introducing herself as Flam. He looked over at the twin with the straight fringe who he now knew was named Grassis. He looked at the both of them silently for a moment before a sudden grin appeared on his face.

Subaru jumped out of bed in an instant and stuck his hip out to the side, raising his opposite arm into the sky and pointing to the heavens he struck what many would come to know as the "Subaru Pose".

"My name is Natsuki Subaru, not only am I clueless but I'm also broke beyond compare! Nice to meet you both!"

Both Flam and Grassis turned to look at each other in disbelief, an awkward silence slowly filled the room.

"…"

"…"

"…Please say something."

"…"

"…"

"Anything, I beg of you."

Grassis suddenly snickered and giggled at him as Flam deadpanned at him.

"We came to tell you that dinner is now being served, and we are to escort you to the dining hall, Subaru-sama who is broke beyond compare." Flam spoke with a neutral tone.

"Please follow us closely and try not to get lost, Subaru-sama who is clueless beyond compare." Grassis had followed up quickly, although she was clearly trying to hold back a laugh.

"I'm being bullied?!" Subaru suddenly exclaimed in exasperation, raising his arms and standing on one leg to hide himself in a dramatic fashion.

Grassis couldn't hold back the laugh anymore as she burst out into a fit of giggles, as her sister Flam cracked a smile at his outburst. Subaru noticing them both laughing and smiling at his expense also began to smile as he resumed his normal stance.

"Well, I guess it can't be helped… Please lead the way then!"

Flam and Grassis led him down the halls of the manor and Subaru quickly realized one thing.

'Holy shit! Reinhard must be loaded this place is huge! It's like these hallways never stop!' Subaru yelled out in his head, as he looked around at the long hallway they were walking down, noticing several paintings of men and women all with red hair placed along the corridor.

'Those must be Reinhard's family members or ancestors? I guess his red hair runs in the family then.'

His ears suddenly perked up as he heard voices grow closer and closer, the sound of plates being set. He could recognize the chimes of silver bells quickly recognizing it as Emilia's angelic voice. He also heard Reinhard's soothing voice and… a bratty voice who was resisting him? That sounded like…

"Felt?"

Felt turned to look in the direction of the voice that spoke her name in annoyance before her eyes lit up with excitement as she saw Subaru turn the corner with the two demon maids who forced her into this damned dress. They looked small but they seriously hid some power behind their small frames!

"Big bro!" Felt suddenly leaped from her seat at the table and landed a crushing hug onto Subaru, she quickly hid behind him as if using him as a shield.

"Listen big bro! You got to help me! That red haired weirdo knocked me out and kidnapped me!" Felt suddenly exclaimed, as she glared in the direction of Reinhard. The sight of Felt hiding behind Subaru was pretty comical as Emilia ended up letting out a small giggle at the sight.

Subaru suddenly looked at Reinhard and gave him a weird look as he held Felt behind him, Subaru was sure there was a reason for whatever had happened in the time he was knocked out, but an opportunity to tease someone was something he would not miss out on.

"Eh?... Reinhard I didn't know you were THAT kind of guy…" Subaru drawled out lowly as his mouth shape morphed into an accusing one with scorn as his eyes looked at him as if he was a weirdo.

Reinhard just looked defeated as he gazed upon the ground, a dark cloud forming above him.

"It's not like that…"

"Huh?! Does anyone see that comically placed raincloud above Rein's head?" Subaru exclaimed.

"What do you mean it isn't like that? I offered big sis back her insignia and then you suddenly grabbed me, knocked me out and whisked me away! And you won't even let me leave! It's definitely like that!" Felt yelled back in response to Reinhard.

"Is it really just me who sees that?!" Subaru exclaimed as he watched the raincloud disappear, was it just a figment of his imagination?! Did Reinhard's despair run so deep he summoned a raincloud?!

"Felt-sama please listen to reason! You are – "

"Cut that Felt-sama crap out! I didn't agree to this royal selection bullshit!"

Subaru just looked over towards Emilia who stared back at him with a worried smile as Subaru chuckled slightly, he decided to help Reinhard out.

"Could we chat about this later? I'm starving and I see plenty of good-looking food on the table!"

Felt suddenly looked up at Subaru and rubbed the back of her head sheepishly.

"Oh yeah, I guess I should've been considerate of you, big bro. You've been knocked out for days it would make sense that you would be hungry. Sorry about that!"

"Wait just a second! I've been knocked out for days?!" Subaru exclaimed in shock.

They all just looked at him before motioning for him to take a seat.

After a few minutes of explaining they had told him that basically his body was going through a serious change ever since Elsa had cursed him. His body had and still was going through a metamorphosis as he became a Cursed Doll. As a byproduct he was knocked out for days as his body underwent those changes and then needed time to rest after expending so much energy.

"Woah, so big bro is basically like the bitch back at the loot house now?"

"Felt-sama! That type of language is not appropriate for someone of your status!" Reinhard spoke as he micromanaged and picked at Felt.

Felt merely responded by flipping him the bird.

Subaru slowly nodded and took another bite out of the lovely meal of meat and vegetables from the old woman who escorted Emilia to her room earlier. He found out that her name was Carol Remendis. She was a kind old woman who came in a few minutes earlier during their conversation and served him a plate of food. Turns out she was the grandmother of Flam and Grassis and she was also a badass war hero!

"Yeah. Earlier when I first woke up Reinhard had me crush a metal rod in my hands, there was so much strength welling up in me I couldn't control it. And…" Subaru hesitated for a moment before continuing.

"When I woke up a few minutes ago, I felt overwhelmed. It's like… my senses have been dialed up to eleven. I could hear so much happening so far away, I could smell the different scents in the room, the lit candles in the hallway, the freshness of the sheets I was sleeping in. And I could see everything so vividly and track everything… It was cool I guess but it was almost maddening with how many sensations my body was and still is taking in."

Reinhard nodded at Subaru's description while Emilia and Felt cast him a worried glance.

"I'm sure it will pass Subaru, I reeeallly hope you feel better soon!" Emilia's voice chimed out.

"Oh yeah, I guess that would be pretty disorientating, huh." Felt followed up.

"With time and training you learn to better manage it. If you are feeling up to it, Subaru. I'd like to test out some of the changes your body has undergone in our courtyard." Reinhard spoke up.

Subaru nodded in agreement. "Yeah, while I definitely feel conflicted about this new change, it feels like I lost my humanity… and the thought that I might live a really long time is a bit scary, but I'm also eager to see what my new body can do."

The people at the table looked at Subaru with worry in their eyes as he mentioned being scared about his mortality or lack of it, Reinhard decided to take initiative to switch the subject.

"Excellent, then please follow me after we finish up our meal!"

Subaru nodded as he continued to eat the meal Carol had provided him. The three of them made idle chatter in the meantime.

"So! Emilia-tan and Felt are both royal candidates? Who would've thought I'd meet not one but two princesses in the same day!"

"Honestly I still can't believe I'm apart of this royal selection shit, I personally think Rein is making it up to get away with kidnapping girls who are younger than him. He also has those… demon maids working for him who are even younger than me!"

"It's true Felt-chan! The insignia lit up in your hand, which signifies you're a dragon priestess!" Emilia spoke up in response to Felt's unconvinced statement.

"Wait a moment. Demon maids? You mean Flam and Grassis? They're definitely little rascals who like to tease people but I wouldn't call them demons…" Subaru muttered remembering how they made fun of his introduction, although he will admit the way they did it was pretty funny.

Felt vigorously shook her head and pointed at Subaru.

"They're demons I tell you! They have the strength of a hundred men I swear! The way they forced me to put on this stupid dress I'm in! Honestly, I would like to give them a piece of my mind!"

Reinhard, Subaru and Emilia all looked at Felt with a puzzled expression before their gazes looked behind her.

Felt suddenly froze as she stared back at all of them.

"They're behind me, aren't they?"

"Felt-sama, while we appreciate the compliment of our strength, I don't think comparing us to men was quite nice." Flam's voice resounded to the right of Felt which sent shivers up her spine.

"We only acted on Reinhard-sama's orders to get you in that dress, if you hadn't rejected it so furiously, we wouldn't have had to use such force." Grassis's voice came from Felt's left.

"Yes, Felt-sama you are entirely at fault here."

"Now hold on just a damn minute!"

Reinhard quickly held Felt back from jumping onto the two young twin maids as she struggled against his grip.

"Let me at them! I'll show them who's fault this is!"

"Felt-sama please calm down!"

Subaru and Emilia just laughed at the scene playing out before them, a small smile formed on Subaru's face. These changes were scary, being summoned to a whole another world, dying several times and then losing his humanity altogether was definitely a strain on his mental… but looking at the people around him who could play around so lightheartedly, it made him feel like he finally belonged somewhere.

"I guess this isn't so bad."

Emilia stifled her giggles as she turned to look at Subaru with a curious look.

"Forgive me, Subaru but did you say something?" Emilia spoke in-between her attempts to stifle her giggles, as she had been paying attention to Felt and Reinhard as the twin maids just smiled smugly at Felt.

"Nothing! I was just thinking about how beautiful you look today Emilia-tan!"

Emilia looked at Subaru before pouting and looking away.

"Subaru you're such a dunderhead sometimes."

"Who says 'dunderhead' these days anymore?"

Puck suddenly flew at Subaru and punched him in the face, although his soft paws felt more like a pillow.

"Huh? Now why did you do that?" Subaru questioned Puck although his tone wasn't serious and more drawled out.

"I felt the need to, my senses were tingling!"

"Are you Spider-Man or something?!"

The sun was beginning to set along the horizon, the courtyard that Subaru and Reinhard were standing in was painted with the beautiful hues of orange and pink as the leaves, windows and buildings reflected the hue of the setting sun.

Reinhard was standing across from Subaru, his stance relaxed as he smiled at Subaru who was pumping himself up with an excited grin, finally being able to test out his new strength out.

"Alright Subaru, first I'd like to test out your physical capabilities. I want you to try and jump as high as you can. Put as much power into your legs as possible. I'll be able to assess how much force you're able to generate at your current level."

Subaru nodded at Reinhard's words as he hopped on his feet lightly preparing himself up.

"Alright, well here it goes!"

Subaru crouched down and tried to muster as much force as possible, extending his legs he shot off. Before he knew it he was suddenly high in the air, towering high over the mansion and over the other buildings in the city. A look of shock in his eyes as he took in the gorgeous site of the city from above in the sky, everything was painted in the orange color of the setting sun. He quickly realized his situation and his shock quickly turned into fear as he began to fall back down towards the earth he had previously been standing on, screaming like a girl.

"AHHHHHH! REINHARD A LITTLE HELP HERE?! I DON'T KNOW IF I HAVE ENDURANCE YEEEEETTTT!"

Reinhard smiled up at his as he watched him fall and shouted back.

"It's okay Subaru! You definitely have enhanced endurance otherwise every bone in your legs and feet would have shattered with the amount of force you generated when you leapt into the air!"

"THAT'S NOT HELPING MY SITUATION!"

"You need to try and land! Brace yourself!"

Subaru processed Reinhard's words as he looked down at the fast-approaching ground, he clenched his teeth and closed his eyes as he braced himself for impact, he stuck his legs out and bent them slightly to face the ground hoping to absorb most of the impact by landing on his feet.

He did not land on his feet.

"OOF"

Subaru made a sound as he impacted the ground, while initially he landed on one foot, he didn't account for the kinetic energy from his fall and his leg quickly buckled under the weight of the fall. As his other foot hit the floor he was already basically crashing into the ground. Dust picked up as the ground cracked slightly from the impact.

After the dust settled Reinhard and the rest of the spectators who were sitting by the entrance of the manor saw Subaru laying like a crumpled ball of paper just muttering to himself.

"Haha! Big Bro you really fucked up that one!"

Subaru suddenly shot up on his feet and pointed at Felt, an embarrassed blush on his face as he angrily swung his fist in her direction.

"It's not funny, do you have any idea how scary that was?! I'm surprised I'm even alive! I'm sure I would've had a heart attack or something!"

Subaru looked down at himself, and while he definitely felt the impact, his legs weren't broken, he was still alive and he still felt fine enough to continue.

"You didn't supply your limb with mana to soften the fall, Subaru. Doing so next time will help mitigate the impact."

Subaru looked over at Reinhard and sheepishly grinned at him, rubbing the back of his head.

"Ah you see… Well, I actually don't know how to do that… I don't even know if I can use magic honestly."

Reinhard looked at him with a puzzled expression before nodding curtly and motioned for Subaru to come to him.

"It's a bit odd that you don't know anything about using your mana or magic, but I can use my Divine Protection of Assessment to check your magical affinity."

"Divine Protection?"

Subaru approached Reinhard who was nodding at him.

"A divine protection is a gift which the Od Laguna blesses to someone on birth, anyone can have one although they are a bit rare. I possess several of them. Felt-sama is someone with a divine blessing as well, her connection to the wind grants her speed."

"I'm the fastest hand around, if you need something swiped, I'm your girl!" Felt exclaimed suddenly.

"I see… do I have one of these divine protections?" Subaru asked Reinhard, tuning out Felt as she yelled at him for ignoring her.

Reinhard placed his hand on Subaru's chest and stayed silent for a few moments as his hand glowed lightly, he quickly removed his hand and looked at Subaru.

"You don't have any Divine Protections unfortunately but you do have a rather unique element for your magic. You have an affinity for Shadow Magic."

"Shadow magic? That sounds cool! What can it do?"

"You can take away the senses of another person, slow them down, and a few other things. I don't use magic personally and a shadow affinity is quite rare so you'd have to ask someone well versed in magic to help you there."

"So it's basically debuffs?!"

"I'm not quite sure what a debuff is but, in a sense, it can be used to hamper your opponent's ability to perform in battle."

Subaru nodded slowly at Reinhard's description, while it might be useful it wasn't quite the flashy cool magic he had envisioned himself using. Subaru imagined himself shooting off fireballs, commanding the oceans and throwing lightning at people but…

He now had some pretty interesting abilities as a cursed doll, he could do things now that he only dreamed of doing before. Being able to use magic at all was still a cool experience.

"So how would I go about learning how to reinforce my body with mana?" Subaru suddenly asked.

"I'll be teaching you the basics of feeling your mana in your gate and guiding it throughout your body. Luckily, I have the Divine Protection of Training Mastery which allows me to bring out the latent potential in someone much more efficiently than a normal trainer would be capable of."

"You really are a bag full of tricks huh, Rein?"

Reinhard closed his eyes and smiled softly as he let out a chuckle.

"Yes, I suppose I am!"

Reinhard suddenly began to walk a few meters away from Subaru as he began talking.

"While it's fine for us to do exercises redirecting the mana in your body, I don't recommend we start using actual magic anytime soon. Your gate is small and untouched like a newborn. Attempting to use any magic now would result in failure or injury to yourself. Training your mana control will strengthen your gate in the meantime."

"Awh man, well I guess it can't be helped." Subaru replied dejectedly, he was really hoping he would be able to use magic sooner than later. But since he had some other new abilities to train, he didn't mind as much as he would have.

Reinhard had finally come to a stop and turned to face Subaru.

"I'd like to evaluate your ability in combat next, Subaru. Please come at me with everything you've got."

Subaru paused and looked at Reinhard with hesitation. "Are you sure?"

Reinhard nodded and smiled "Don't worry I'll be fine; I am not the sword saint for nothing."

"It's me I'm worried about!" Subaru exclaimed remembering how easily Elsa had been defeated by Reinhard, he remembered his comment about slaying monsters being his specialty and now that he was technically the same type of monster as Elsa, it made him feel a sense of unease, although not as much as he was playing it out to be.

Reinhard smiled awkwardly and motioned for Subaru to attack.

Subaru crouched down then leapt towards Reinhard. Subaru had moved incredibly fast, way faster than Subaru himself was able to keep track of, he was approaching Reinhard too quickly and he couldn't react in time to actually prepare a punch. Reinhard simply side-stepped the incoming Subaru and watched as he crashed into the nearby gates which were luckily reinforced with magic so they didn't break.

"You need to get a feel of your newfound abilities and react accordingly."

Subaru grits his teeth but nods as he gets back up and prepares once more for another attack. This time he sped off the ground at a slower pace, better prepared this time Subaru coordinated a punch which swung in from the left aiming at Reinhard's face.

Reinhard leaned away from it slightly causing Subaru to stumble forward. Quickly thinking he leaned into his momentum as he began to fall over and pressed his hand onto the ground, suddenly pushing himself off the ground with his newfound strength he rebounded off the ground and spun a roundhouse kick towards Reinhard's abdomen. It was quite a creative move to regain his bearings and attack at the same time.

But as he spun and kicked, he realized his target was no longer there and was instead behind him, Reinhard grabbed the collar of Subaru's jacket and threw him several feet away.

Subaru tumbled before skidding to a stop as he stared at Reinhard who was still pristine and clean as the moment when they first started this sparring session.

Subaru grit his teeth, he was so much more powerful and faster than he was before. His senses were taking in every movement around him and he was perceiving and processing information much quicker than before, so why? Why couldn't he hit him?

Subaru got back up and rushed in at Reinhard who prepared to move in response. Using his enhanced strength Subaru suddenly dug his foot into the ground and kicked upwards, causing rocks and dust to shoot towards Reinhard. Using the dust and rocks as a smokescreen, Subaru suddenly dashed to the right of Reinhard before rocketing at high speed towards him, jumping into the air and flying towards him with a kick aimed for his face.

To his surprise his leg was caught midair, and before he could process what happened, he was thrown into the ground and he skidded back to the same spot he was in before.

Reinhard had a small smile on his face as he gazed at Subaru's own face which had gritted teeth.

"That was a well thought move, Subaru! Using a distraction while frowned upon in spars between knights, in the real world where you're fighting every opportunity you can create is a good one. Well done."

Subaru's face softened at Reinhard's praise as he bit back his frustration.

"Thanks, Rein. It just feels weird. I'm so much more powerful than I was before… but I still can't even land a hit on you."

Reinhard nodded and relaxed his stance.

"Raw power does not translate to your ability to fight, Subaru. You are indeed much more capable than you were when we first met, but you are untrained. You have raw power but you do not have the means to control it or use it effectively. A fighter with technique will beat a stronger opponent who lacks technique."

Subaru while a bit upset saw the message in Reinhard's words as his face finally relaxed and he nodded.

"I get what you mean. Doesn't mean I have to like it though." Subaru muttered as he almost pouted, before shaking his head and smiling up at Reinhard.

The two of them continued to train for the next few hours, eventually Subaru was getting the hang of managing his speed and coordinating his attacks, although it was a far-cry from being an acceptable level for real combat.

The two of them part as Subaru had been sent back once more by Reinhard, who suddenly stopped and smiled.

"That should be enough for now, you have made incredible progress so far, Subaru!"

Subaru nodded tiredly as he was sweating, and filthy from the training.

"So, what happens now?" Subaru asked, happy that the training was finally done for day.

Reinhard smiled at his friend who was covered in dirt and soot, his hair had quite a bit of rocks in it and his tracksuit was dirty.

"Well first you should freshen up, we've been out here for quite a while so it might be good to rest. We will have a schedule, after breakfast you and I will practice mana control and reinforcement techniques. After lunch I must help Felt with her studies, but after dinner we can work on training you in the basics in combat and tactics, as well as get you to better your control over your strength."

Subaru blushed slightly realizing how filthy he was, he smiled awkwardly. He noticed the moon was now out in the sky and the environment around them hard darkened. They were out there for a while huh.

"Sounds good, although if possible, I'd like to join Felt in her studies… I actually don't know how to read or write this language yet." Subaru whispered out that part to Reinhard, it was a bit humiliating to admit but this was his first day here.

Reinhard nodded understandingly and smiled at him.

Emilia and Felt quickly got up from the steps they were sitting on and approached the two of them.

"Not bad for your first time Big Bro, you had me really surprised with how fast you were moving and how much strength you generated when you crashed into the gate!" Felt exclaimed both complimenting him and making fun of him simultaneously.

Before Subaru could scowl at her and ruffle her hair in response, Emilia suddenly chimed in.

"I was reeeallly surprised watching you, Subaru! You have made improvements in your movements as you attacked Reinhard! You're a quick learner!"

"Emilia-tan Maji Tenshi…"

Puck suddenly appeared yawning slightly as it was getting near his time to go back to bed.

"I have to admit you weren't bad for your first time, but you have a long way to go. I can help you out with your magic, I know a starter spell for Shadow Magic, once you're able to start training it I'll be glad to help you out, if it means making Lia happy~."

Subaru smiled appreciatively at Puck.

"Thank you Puck-sensei! I won't let you down!"

Puck laughed in response at Subaru's enthusiasm. "Work hard!"

Subaru was sitting in the hot water of the large bathing room he was in. Apparently, they were using something called Fire Stones to heat up the water, which was a stark difference to the water heaters which ran on electricity back home.

His mind wandered back to his home on Earth, he wondered how his parents were faring. They must be worried sick at his sudden disappearance which filled him with guilt.

"It's better this way, I was a good for nothing who stayed in his room all day… But man, I miss them."

Subaru muttered to himself, he had fallen into a depression trying to meet the expectations of everyone around him, and eventually he pushed everyone away at school while trying to be like his dad.

Eventually he stopped going to school altogether and stayed at home being a nuisance to his parents, and yet they always looked at him with such loving eyes even though he did nothing to deserve their affection.

Shaking his head from the depressing thoughts, he smiled determinedly as he gazed forward.

"I won't be the same hikikomori I was in this world. I'll become someone amazing."

Subaru got up as he finished cleaning himself off, as he exited the gigantic bathtub he was in. He looked around the room admiring the grand scale of it all, the entire bathtub basically was the room, being made of marble tiles with steps that led to a mirror and a pamper with his freshly washed clothes.

Subaru's eyes softened at his cleaned tracksuit, knowing that Flam and Grassis had most likely cleaned it for him as he was bathing.

"Those two are good kids. They're smug little brats but definitely good kids."

Subaru smiled as he began putting on his clothes, and prepared to walk out of the room before noticing himself in the mirror.

Subaru approached the mirror and stared at himself, admiring his toned body underneath his clothes, he smiled at the changes. Even if it was a curse, he would turn it into a blessing.

He dried off his damp hair and styled it back upwards into his signature swept back hairstyle. A toothy grin appeared on his face as he looked himself in the mirror.

His eyes suddenly caught the sight of his mouth and he suddenly screamed out in shock, his loud yelling resounding around the rooms around him.

Reinhard and Emilia burst through the door in worry as the twin maids followed closely by, as well as Felt who slowly followed behind them wondering what the fuss was about.

"Subaru what's the matter are you alright?/ Subaru is there something wrong?" Both Emilia and Reinhard spoke at the same time. But Subaru continued to look into the mirror at his mouth.

His once perfect teeth now had two long and sharp fangs on the top row of his teeth, with two smaller mirroring fangs in the bottom row of his teeth.

He suddenly turned to Emilia and Reinhard.

"Like hell this isn't vampirism?!"