Re:black phoenix

No rest for the stars.

Petra: "Empty…?"

Man: "Yes the village is empty. We're the only ones here."

The leader of the young man's brigade, a young man with a crew cut, informed his fellow neighbors of the state of their village. 

As a bubbling sense of anxiety rose in her chest, Petra repeated his words. She looked to a village square, specifically at a raven-haired boy who wore a similarly perplexed expression.

Subaru: "Roswall and Ram are both with them. We can reasonably assume they're all safe."

Barring someone like Regulus, Subaru was certain Roswaal could send any threat packing without much effort. Ram's involvement also meant she could plan around any trap they might have fallen into. 

With this in mind, the delay of the group's return became considerably more sinister. The possible existence of another archbishop of Regulus's caliber sent a jolt down Subaru's spine. 

Emilia: "Ram and the others haven't returned yet."

Subaru: "They went to the sanctuary right? Freddy wouldn't go into detail about it."

Emilia: "Roswaal said it is a kind of secret base…"

While speculating as to the nature of this mysterious location, Subaru watched Frederica who was conversing with the villagers, Emilia tapped her smooth chin while a merchant standing next to her was sweating heavily.

Otto: "Erm, sorry to interrupt but, am I supposed to hear this? This all sounds very secretive."

Subaru: "Of Course not, you'll be disposed of shortly. Don't worry, the mansion's dungeon is very comfy."

Emilia: "Don't be mean Subaru! Look how pale he turned, apologize now!"

Capitalizing on Otto's paranoia, Subaru gave a devious answer. To this, Otto looked as though he had been struck by lightning. Emilia tugged at Subaru's ear tight enough to nearly rip it off.

Subaru: "Sorry sorry it was a joke just a joke!"

Emilia: "Who taught you such mean pranks, you're such a naughty kid."

Subaru: "I'm not a kid!"

Otto: "You're not a kid, you're a demon."

After being released from Emilia's death grip, Subaru kicked a small pebble and shrugged. Teasing the peddler was fun but Emilia's good nature blocked his banter.

Subaru: "Yeah, says the crybaby. Do you still believe in the boogeyman?"

Emilia: "Subaru…"

Subaru: "Alright alright, I get it. Let's go to the mansion, staying here won't do us any good."

The trio was shortly joined by Frederica. She assured them that the villagers understood the situation and that they would wait patiently for the rest's return. Eventually, after checking on the barrier crystal and a short patrol through the forest, Subaru, accompanied by Emilia Otto and Frederica returned to the towering mansion. For some reason, the knight had a nagging feeling that he forgot about something.

The giant double door opened with a creak. What greeted the group was an unexpected sight. While the interior of the mansion wasn't as clean as when Subaru was doing the rounds, it was still sufficiently brilliant. 

This, although surprising, wasn't what caused the quartet to stand still as a statue. In the spacious lobby of the Mathers mansion, dozens of beautiful women roamed around. When the door opened they all lined up on one side as though they were conditioned to.