Starting Life From Another Choice Than Zero

Chapter 2 - Visions of the Remorseful

Sunrise had passed since his abrupt yet inevitable departure. And not once could a good night's rest ease him on his travel. It seems whenever he closed his eyes, in that moment of absolute darkness, he could see them. Rem, Ram, Beatrice and Emilia, drifting ever so slowly, their bodies lifeless, lying in a sea of blood, their blood. Now, on this bright sunny day, a day he dreaded its arrival, the haunting image grew ever more vivid and gruesome.

Right now, as he sits here in the carriage, atop a hill. The witch cult might have already begun their assault the village. Their screams of desperation burrowed deep in Subaru's mind. He could hear it, Betelgeuse's craze derisive laughter echoing amongst the panic.

And yet, the carriage moves on, continuing as if all is right in the world, ignorant of the chaos and destruction happening whilst the ground dragon gives a heaving grunt as it clambers its way over and down the hill.

As the minutes grew longer and the slope steeper, Subaru couldn't help but grimly wonder how many villagers have been massacred in cold blood in such a short time. Did Petra have time to run? Have the villagers abandoned their homes, seeking refuge inside the mansion? Was Ram out there, possibly with a recently arrived Rem, risking their lives to keep them safe? What could Emilia be doing in all of this?

He told himself not to think about, yet did so anyway. And was so painfully wracked with guilt, he had to restrain himself twice from taking over the carriage and turning back towards Lugunica at neck breaking speed.

"You sound like you're having a real internal struggle over there. With all the grunting and growling." The trader called out from the front.

"Never mind me... Just keep driving as if you're being chased by a whale or something." Subaru replied, placing a hand on his forehead.

He had to stop thinking about it. He needed to. It was no longer something he need be concern with. It was too painful. He needed something to take his mind off it. Soon, this will all seem like a distant memory.

"Hey, is there something I should be worried about once we reach Kararagi? Anything dangerous, the witch cult perhaps?"

This question was immediately followed by a snort of disbelief.

"You're going to Kararagi and you don't even know what's there?" He asked.

"Well, I kinda did it on a whim hoping to get away from everything. Don't ask, I won't explain." He said, seeing the trader's curious expression. "Just fill me in on what's on the need-to-know basis." Subaru added, scooting backwards towards the driver's seat.

The trader stared at Subaru from the corner of his eye and appeared to be trying to assess the boy sitting on his pile of appas unknowingly, before sighing and diverting his gaze back onto the road.

"Kararagi is all about money. Trading is everything over there, you won't expect to last a week unless you got something to sell. As far as dangers go, the only thing that comes to mind is the local gangs in the area. I don't recall their names, but you'll hear about them soon enough. As for the witch cult... They're practically a myth to the people over there, as is the Jealous Witch herself."

At that, Subaru gave a huge breath of relief and for once, felt at peace for the longest time.

The rest of the day went on without so much of a whisper after that. The dragon's break, which were short in time, ended only after a quick meal of rice with some meat from one of the unopened sacks in the back, which Subaru, after much needless protest, finally humbly accepted the trader's offer to share in response to hearing a loud rumbling in his stomach to which Subaru swore was a wild goat.