Chapter 165: Sit Down, Natsuki Subaru
As the words fell, the atmosphere between the two became heavy.
After staring at each other for a while, perhaps the woman noticed in Subaru's eyes that he wasn't joking.
"Hmph, someone like you will never find a girlfriend."
The white-haired woman said so while quietly observing Subaru's expression, but she could not see any change at all on his face.
"What a rude guest you are. You barged into my place so forcefully, and now you even ask me what this place is."
"This is the Sanctuary?"
"Mm, in your terms, yes, this place is indeed the Sanctuary. But to me, this place is nothing more than my grave."
Subaru was taken aback, and instantly understood what she meant. Since she said this was her grave, the person before him must be a spiritual body.
After all, he had spent time as a shut-in otaku before.
Stories of people losing their bodies but having their spirits remain were common enough.
But that only made him more curious about just who this person was.
Based on the information he already had, this place was the Sanctuary, which was also her grave.
And since the Sanctuary was within Roswaal's domain, just who was she, that Roswaal would call this place the Sanctuary?
Subaru would never believe Roswaal didn't know about the Sanctuary. In fact, Roswaal was one of the reasons Subaru had even come here.
"Just who are you?"
"I'm just a beautiful girl, of course. But if I said that apart from the name 'Sanctuary,' this place is also called the 'Witch's Graveyard,' then you'd understand, right?"
The moment she said "witch," Subaru's face froze.
The next instant, he leapt away from the chair, widening the distance between them, his whole body tense, ready to fight at any moment.
"How rude. Do you really need to be this wary? If I wanted to, you wouldn't even have been able to sit here chatting with me just now."
"You've got that wrong. From the moment you dragged me in here, I've never once let down my guard.
I'm just showing it outwardly now. And even if I know I can't win, someone like me—stubborn like a cockroach—waiting quietly for death doesn't suit my style."
"What a pity. It's been such a long time since anyone came to chat with me.
If you refuse to cooperate, then I'll have no choice but to show you the side of me that is a witch."
As her words fell, Subaru watched her with utmost vigilance, his brain spinning with possible ways she might attack and how he could dodge. But what he saw was only black mist seeping from the woman who called herself a witch—and nothing else.
"Why are you unharmed?"
Hearing that, Subaru froze.
Her words meant she had already launched an attack, yet he hadn't seen anything touch him. And as for the option of her being dead and powerless—that had never existed.
Someone who could pull him into this place without him noticing could never be powerless.
It was like a homeowner in chaotic times letting a complete stranger into their house.
Unless that homeowner was powerful enough not to fear the stranger—or was such an idiot that words couldn't describe.
"Mm~~ That's strange. Even if you carry the scent of that woman, it shouldn't be possible for you to completely ignore my attack. How did you do it? Can you tell me? I'm so curious!"
Subaru hurriedly backed away several steps, nearly blurting out the name of his skill. The witch's current appearance gave him an unbearable discomfort.
That gaze, filled with obsessive curiosity, fixed on him—it made the image of himself strapped to a dissection table involuntarily flash through his mind.
"Don't come any closer!"
"Alright, I won't. So, will you tell me how you did it? Even though your mental strength surpasses that of ordinary people in this world, it's impossible to show no reaction before me.
After all, I am a witch—the kind of terrible woman that just by looking at me makes people want to vomit."
At this point, Subaru thought the person before him was a complete idiot—the dumbest of fools. Of course, that was only the surface.
Who knew what might be hidden beneath that foolish expression?
Now he fully understood why, from the very beginning, something about her had felt off.
Though her acting was good, he could not sense any genuine sincerity in her words or actions. His intuition, honed through the battle royal games, never lied to him.
Combined with the twisted god-given ability he now carried…
After all the points he had put into it, Subaru completely trusted his instincts. That was why he could so easily tell whether someone was good or bad.
When she had just questioned him, he had felt it—felt her sincerity.
And under that sincerity, Subaru instantly understood: she really was exactly what she said—a terrible woman.
A person with such abnormal curiosity could never be good. To satisfy their pursuit of knowledge, they would trample all that was right or wrong beneath their feet.
Becoming a true lunatic. And such a lunatic was on a level far beyond the Witch Cultists.
Subaru took a deep breath, forcing a bitter smile as he stared at the pitch-black woman before him.
"Indeed, you're an utterly terrible person. I won't tell you anything about myself. I only want to get from you what I desire."
"Although I am very interested in your 'abnormality,' don't you think it's rather greedy to want something from another person without giving anything in return?"
The woman laughed.
"To take without giving—that doesn't exist in this world. I know that much. But do you really have something I want? If you do, I might consider giving you something in exchange. Do you think I'd say that?"
Subaru looked at the witch with a mocking expression.
"From the moment I entered this place, your attitude toward me has been strange.
You definitely know certain things about me, and you want something from me. So right now, it's not me being forced—it's you who has to offer something tempting enough to get what you want."
"..."
"So, shouldn't we sit down and have a proper talk now?"
"Sit, Natsuki Subaru."
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