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Having heard that name before, Subaru remembered that Wilhelm's wife was named Thearesia.
The Sword Saint of that era, she must have been the Generation before Reinhard. Hearing that a single woman had put an end to a war that had raged on for ten years, Subaru felt a true sense of the unorthodoxy of the existence that was the Sword Saint.
[Subaru: Well, I have a general idea how the Demihuman War went now. And I can more or less imagine the kind of problems might’ve sprung up from it]
[Frederica: The reality was almost exactly as Subaru-sama surmised. It would seem that your mind is sharper than I thought. I'm surprised to find that I've misjudged you]
[Subaru: I'll just… pretend that was a compliment for now. So, moving along, although the Demihuman War has ended, the prejudice against the Demihumans couldn't have been dispelled so easily. Of course, people wouldn't blatantly flaunt their hostility under the public eye, but]
Even in the Capital, along the streets lined by fruit-stalls, Humans and Demihumans seemed to be living in normal, peaceful coexistence. But who knows how much pain and struggle had to pass before such a scene could become part of normal life. And, contrary to places like these, there must also have been places where peace had not become normal occurrence, and there will always be places where light does not reach.
[Subaru: Places like closed-off villages with small populations, isolated from the outside world…… if one guy stands out as a problem, I get the feeling the whole place would set on him]
[Frederica: You could say that my little brother and I had lived through precisely this kind of environment]
Furrowing her brows at some painful reminiscences, for the first time in this conversation, Frederica directly referred to her little brother―― Garfiel. Then, turning her eyes somewhere far away,
[Frederica: My brother is my sibling by a different father. Our surnames are different because of this…… I took my father's surname, while my little brother took the surname of our mother]
[Subaru: Your full name is Frederica…… Baumann, right?]
[Frederica: Yes. And my brother's last name would be Tinsel. Our mother was a…… clumsy person, and also an unlucky person]
It was as if Frederica tried to find the right word, but failed to find it in the end. Hearing her say this, Subaru showed an expression of non-understanding, when she started again with [It's embarrassing to say this, but]
[Frederica: It seems, our mother was in the process of being sold off because of her debt, when the slavers were set upon by a group of Demihuman bandits and she was captured…… That's where she met my father]
[Subaru: Wha!? Wa-wai-wait! I get the feeling I have to prepare my heart before I can hear this!]
[Frederica: But that father died soon after, and my mother carried me as an infant as she wandered without a home, when she was captured by another Demihuman band. That's where she met Garfiel's father……]
[Subaru: Waitwaitwait, I was wrong! I never thought it was going to get this heavy!]
[Frederica: And so, I won't dwell on these things. In any case, Garfiel was born, but once again, we were unable to stay with Garfiel's father. So our mother, carrying the two of us, wandered once more, and, when we were at the end of our ropes, we were taken in by the House of Mathers]
Briefly laying bare her heavy past, a certain nostalgia emerged in Frederica's eyes as she sighed. Then, stroking the handle her chair with a palm,
[Frederica: At the time, still in his early teens, the Master…… Roswaal-sama, had already inherited his title as the head of the House of Mathers. To my brother and I, the Master is our savior in the truest sense of the word. And I consider it to be an honor to be able to serve at his side this way]
[Subaru: So the two of you were brought into the Sanctuary, and lived there, huh…… by the way, it's a bit hard to bring this up but, what happened to your mother?]
From what he could gather from her story so far, their mother must have been a pure blooded Human. Which meant that she would have been able to enter and exit the Sanctuary at will. But whether it was at the Sanctuary or the Mansion, Subaru had never seen anyone who could have been her.
Yet just as Subaru was imagining the worst, Frederica shook her head,
[Frederica: It seems I've made you worried, but please rest assured. After leaving my brother and I with Roswaal-sama, our mother left the Mansion without leaving word of where she was going. Nor have we heard from her since. But she must be safe and still living somewhere, I believe]
[Subaru: ――――]
Listening to Frederica lightly saying this, Subaru couldn't utter another word and only remained in silence. Although the worst Subaru had prepared for was their being separated by death, the crueler reality was that she had abandoned them.
But hearing this created even more questions,
[Subaru: Even though your mother left like this, Garfiel is still using her surname, while you're using your father's. Why is that?]
[Frederica: Because there were no records of her left behind, our memories of our mother were told to us by others…… and in these unreliable circumstances, I took my father's surname. As for the reason why my little brother took our mother's surname…… it was because that child didn't know about our mother. As much as he pretends to be meaner than he is, he is stubbornly sentimental at heart]
[Subaru: Stubbornly sentimental……]
Reviewing his impression of Garfiel in his mind, that explanation would explain many things.
In terms of sensibilities alone, Subaru couldn’t deny that Garfiel was upstanding and noble-minded in his own way.
[Frederica: Subaru-sama. ――Would you happen to know how the Sanctuary's Barrier distinguishes its targets?]
While Subaru occupied his mind with such thoughts, Frederica threw him this rather abrupt question.
Unable to understand the meaning behind it, Subaru was a little slow to react. He looked back at Frederica without much confidence, and with [Umm],
[Subaru: Honestly, no. While there's no doubt the Barrier certainly exists, I can't feel it at all. It's probably using some kind of magic to check everyone that passes, I guess……]
[Frederica: The Barrier does so by verifying the blood inside the veins of those who passes through. If it can clearly distinguish both Human and Demihuman blood, that person will be repelled. In essence, that is the nature of the Barrier]
[Subaru: ……What are you trying to say?]
Unsure why she was suddenly revealing the Barrier’s conditions to him, Subaru only quietly asked her this in return. Receiving this response, Frederica lightly nodded,
[Frederica: Do you perhaps now understand how I was able to pass through the Barrier and exit the Sanctuary?]
[Subaru: ……I don't. I feel like understand even less now after you told me the Barrier’s conditions. On the road back, I saw Lewes-san almost collapse when she came close to the Barrier, so I’m sure the Barrier's effects are real. And it was the same when we entered the Sanctuary as well]
Right before Garfiel's dramatic introduction, Emilia had collapsed from passing through the Barrier. Having witnessed its immense power, only a fool would have any doubts about its existence――
[Subaru: ――Huh? How come……]
That moment, a shock flashed across Subaru's mind.
Now he had the answer to that unease. Subaru had already noticed this when he saw Lewes' reaction as they came close to the Barrier.
[Subaru: They were the under same conditions……. but how come when he was that close to the Barrier, that bastard Garfiel was still fine and kicking around?]
Ambushing them as soon as they passed through the Barrier, Garfiel threw Patrasche and the dragon carriage into the air as if they were nothing.
He certainly didn't use his full strength that time, but compared to Emilia, who fainted as she passed through the Barrier, and Lewes, who almost collapsed just by going near it, Garfiel's behavior was completely different.
――It was as though his body wasn't affected by the Barrier at all.
[Frederica: Owing to his special characteristic, Atavism, at first glance, my brother might appear to have more Demihuman lineage, but in fact, that is not the case. ――The same is true with me]
[Subaru: If detection of blood is the Barrier's criteria for distinguishing humans from Half-Bloods…… to bypass this criteria, one side of the blood would just have to be too thin to detect?]
[Frederica: Although my brother and I have different fathers, neither of them were pure-blooded Demihumans. Both were Half-Blooded, and combined with our Human mother, we were born having inherited only one ¼ of Demihuman blood, having been twice diluted this way]
[Subaru: One-quarter…… so that's why you're not repulsed by the Barrier]
The Barrier that repels Half-Bloods does not repel Quarter-Bloods. It sounded almost farcical, but his existing suspicions told him that it was the truth.
But then, this would give rise to next question,
[Subaru: Wait. Then does that mean Garfiel can also freely exit the Sanctuary? If he wants to, that guy can just come out regardless of whether the Trials are completed?]
If that was true, then it would be surprising and welcome news.
Originally, Subaru had already abandoned his hopes of repulsing Elsa in this loop and was preparing to evacuate everyone from the Mansion, but now――
[Subaru: If that guy can come out, then……]
[Frederica: It's true, that same as myself, my brother can also venture outside the Sanctuary. When it came time for me to leave the Sanctuary, he was supposed to have come with me, and he ad come along as far as the edge of the Barrier. But……]
Cutting off her words there, Frederica looked at Subaru, who seemed to have found some glimmer of hope. But her eyes were filled with an emotion so deep and somber that Subaru felt his hopes cool off at once. Seeing him this way, she went on,
[Frederica: My little brother chose to stay behind. And as long as the Sanctuary is not liberated, I don't think Garfiel will ever set foot outside it. He is a kind and stubbornly sentimental child]
[Subaru: Sentimental…… you don't mean…]
Seeing Subaru raise his brows as his thoughts arrived at that point, as if confirming his astonishment, Frederica gave a single nod as she covered the corner of her lips with her sleeve,
[Frederica: That child could not leave the residents of the Sanctuary behind while he ventures out alone. He is neither good, nor bad, only a straightforward…… and troublesome little brother]
-=Chapter 32 End=-
(I combined two official character art from Twitter to make the thumbnail. They look so cute together >_<)
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After releasing Part 1, I realized I shouldn’t have released it before I had time to edit it more. I don’t mean missing words or typos since they can be easily fixed, but how I wanted the chapter to read.
For most of the releases in the past, I continue tweaking the chapter even after it’s been released, so I’m only fully satisfied with a chapter 4 or 5 hours or even a day after release, but in that time, a lot of people would’ve already read it.
I often feel pressured to release quickly so you guys could read it early, but I think I’ll be more relaxed from now on and only send out chapters when I feel it’s ready. When I have a choice between releasing before bed or after sleeping for 8 hours, I’ll do it after sleep so I can proofread with a clear head before sending it out.
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Basically, everything is the same as before, but you’ll see a chapter sitting in the Live Draft overnight more often. :3