The time was now.

All the suffering he has endured will not go in vain he thought.

Now riding into battle against the dreaded White Whale, he hopes for a better future. Never wanting to suffer from his mistakes again. But he knew too well it was going to be inevitable.

But that's what made Subaru more admirable. To have to guts to move on forward despite his shortcomings and frailty. His strength never was in his combat skills or negotiation, but rather the ability to rally others to his cause.

That, Subaru knew he was proud of. But always held the fears of reverting back to his old ways.

He led the charge of the band of warriors he worked ever so hard to gain trust from. Despite being the weakest of all of them, they all knew he was the most courageous. They held him at high opinion the most for that.

Subaru flashed a dangerous smile as he continued to charge at the Whale, riding Patrasche, his personal ground dragon steed, with Rem at his side.

Crusch, the leader of the White Whale hunting party smiled.

"EVERYONE! FOLLOW THAT FOOL!", she commanded drawing her blade as she initiated the cavalry charge with everyone following suit bellowing their battle cries.

The demi-human mage squad open fired and unleashed their magical cannons upon the White Whale, barraging its entire side with magical blasts with no substantial effect. The human mages unleashed their devastating fire spells hoping to ground the beast failed as well. But nonetheless, they kept at it.

Iron Fang members leapt from their battle mounts and boarded the sides of the Whale, cutting into its flesh with whatever weapon they possessed. WIlhelm Van Astrea sliced and diced like a madman with a storm of blades cutting away chunks from the Whale's tough hide. He went even as far as to cutting out its eye from its sockets with his sword and mocking the Beast from the ground, eye hanging from the tip of his blade. He longed for this moment for many years as he planned to avenge his late wife, Theresia, the former sword saint.

The battle raged on with neither side gaining an advantage until the whale decided to make copies of itself and attack from the sky. Wilhelm and several other key important players got injured in the process. Things were not looking quite well.

Subaru dismounted from Patrasche to enact a new plan. To lure the Whale under the Great tree and crush it to death by felling the Grand orchard onto it when it is off guard. It was a risky plan but it was the only shot they got now considering they just simply weren't doing enough damage to the White Whale.

"AL HUMA!", Rem cried as she casted a giant icicle spell with Subaru riding on top of it.

Subaru hung onto dear life as he started reaching towards the Whale high up into the air. The plan was to release a large amount of the Witch's scent in which the whale would begin to divert ALL of its attention to Subaru so that he may lure it under the tree to execute his strategy.

"Uh-oh.." Subaru gulped as he was somehow veering off course. Originally he was supposed to land on top of the White Whale's horn but somehow the current trajectory of the speeding icicle missed its mark… almost..

A sickening squelch filled the air and blood rain down upon the soldier down below.

"Wha..?!" Rem stared upwards surprised, she almosts never misses her mark. But this was an exception.

Blood trickled down the icicle as it made holding onto harder for Subaru. Thankfully, he had already grabbed onto the hairs of the White Whale preventing him from slipping off.

The icicle pierced the remaining eye of the White Whale! It was now totally blind… and more furious than before. It let out a earth shaking cry.

Normally one would think this was a good thing. However, this is the White Whale we're talking about. It was not some average dumb beast, it is a disaster that plagued the land for centuries and it refused to fight blind. It needed to get away for now to heal.

The atmosphere changed suddenly as the air grew tighter and the wind buffeting the soldiers below.

Crusch was behind the grand tree waiting for the right moment to execute the plan that never came. She was shocked to see what she was seeing. The White Whale was actually retreating! And at such unprecedented speed for a hulk its size!

She refused to let this hunt be in vain as she commanded her steed to charge.

"Everyone! Do not let the White Whale leave the battlefield! Do not let our chance of ridding this disaster slip from our grasps!" Crusch yelled as she started frantically swinging her magic blade trying to cut the whale's belly from underneath.

"Subaru-kun!" Rem cried out realizing Subaru was still on the Whale. She mounted herself back on Patrasche and gave chase to the speeding whale.

"I know we don't get along too well but please just this once, help me reach him," Rem exclaimed to Patrasche who reluctantly nodded back at her. The noble ground dragon ran with all her might as it bared its fangs and roared with a ferocity like no other, slowly catching up to the whale.

However, Rem knew Patrasche couldn't keep this for very long as she can tell the ground dragon was quickly tiring from her frantic Sprinting. Rem summoned her Magical Morningstar and swung the Metal Spike Ball true to its aim. It extended itself long enough to grapple itself around one of the front fins of the whale. With Patrasche slowing down, Rem felt being pulled into the air as she began to climb the chain upward to her target.

"You are not going to take my reason to die Whale!" she cried angrily as she got closer and closer to her destination.

Crusch stared into the Horizon, panting in utter frustration as she angrily watched the whale fly away, unable to catch up to it. Her brows furrowed as she glared one last time, raising her sword ready to swing. It was a long shot but it was better than nothing.

If that whale is going to have the last laugh, she might as well leave her mark. Crusch swung with all her might with her peerless sword that cuts at any distance. The green energy soared through the sky towards the whale out in the distance.

Seconds passed…

….

A loud cry was heard from beyond.

Crusch smirked as she delivered a temporary crippling blow to the whale as a huge portion of its tail and fins were sliced off.

"Men! Pursue the beast! Take advantage of it's weakness!" she ordered as they all gave chase despite being so far away.

"Subaru-kun!" Rem yelled happy to see his face once more.

"Rem?! What are you doing up here?!" Subaru asked in shock.

"Rem came to save you. Grab Rem's hand!" as she reached out to Subaru who was barely hanging on by a Whale's thread.

Reluctantly Subaru reached towards her. As they were mere inches apart, a resounding slice entered the premises. They looked back in surprise to see someone had sliced off the Whale's tail. Must've been Crusch doing they thought as they looked back in the horizon, seeing tiny dots resembling a band of soldiers following them.

The Whale had just managed to cross over the sea, as land seemed to shrink farther and farther away from them.

However, they were not out of their predicament yet. They realized the whale was descending. Especially at the speed it was doing so, they would die if they even tried to land safely.

Subaru eyes widened in shock as he saw the edge of the world. The Great Waterfall and the endless void.

He remembered his conversation with Priscilla and Al back at the Capitol. Everything near the Great waterfall would be swept away by a torrent of water into the unknown.

The whale tried its best to stabilize itself in the air but alas could not.

'Damn it.. To die like this when we were so close…' Subaru thought to himself.

Rem hugged Subaru closely, possibly for the last time.

The two braced themselves for what was to come as they fell through the void.

Lightness filled the air as they felt like floating. Immediately after, everything faded to black.

It had been hours until Crusch and her group reached the divide between land and sea. The whale was nowhere in sight as they had to rely on eye account witness to discover the Whale indeed went into the ocean. With how far it went, it was extremely possible it got swept away by the Great Waterfall.

…

…

They just simply could not believe it. Of all places in this damned kingdom, the White Whale actually went through the Great Waterfall…

A loud vibrating sound slowly began to fill his ears amidst the darkness as he began to regain consciousness . It reminded Subaru of his summer days of listening to the cicadas from outside his home. In fact... It sounded too much like cicadas!

Subaru's eye snapped wide open as he remembered his previous predicament. 'The White Whale!' he thought looking around frantically only to see that he was lying in the middle of a grassy meadow. The stars and moon illuminated the night allowing him to see in the darkness. He scanned his surrounding further to confirm he was alone. No White whale in sight. He sighed in relief. Whatever happened, they were now safe.

….

Oh shit! Rem!

He tried to get up onto his feet only to feel dragged down by a weight. His worrying looked relaxed into a calm one as he realized Rem was hugging him closely, dozing away.

"Ha..haha..hahaha…" he laughed to himself as he survived a horrifying predicament for once.

"We're gonna be alright Rem", he said to the sleeping oni as he softly stroked her head.

'She must have exhausted herself from all that fighting', Subaru thought to himself as he pried Rem's iron grip off him to move her into a piggy back carry.

Subaru did not know where he was but was determined to find civilization regardless as he went astray in random directions. Rem's weight did bog him down a bit but nonetheless toughed it out. The walking went on for a few hours as he took periodic rests in between and drank from nearby streams.

Another hour passed by as he decided to take a load off once more. Spying a Bus Stop bench nearby. He set Rem down on the bench and joined her momentarily as he sighed in relief for something to actually sit on.

…

…

'Did I just sit on an actual bench at a Bus stop in the middle of nowhere?' Subaru thought to himself.

His eyes widened in shock as he jumped from his seat to examine the area once more. He couldn't believe his eyes. He ran his hands againsts the light pole believing it was some sort of illusion but felt the rust and dust rub off on him denying his suspicions. Tears of disbelief came running down.

A nearby Rem slowly returns from her short slumber as she yawns and stretches. She is quick to notice Subaru's tears and was slightly confused.

"Subaru-kun? What's wrong? And where's the White While?!" She asked frantically on that last part.

But Subaru didn't respond. He stared at a hill before taking off to it.

Rem easily managed to catch up to him to see him atop the hill fixated on whatever was on the other side. Curious, she walked on over to join him.

Little did Rem knew, she was staring into the future.

A Modern city.

Towers of concrete and steel that dwarf most buildings she's ever seen, lights that brought the night sky to life, intricate roads and buildings that make the ones in Lugnica's look simple. Carriages that zoomed across the roads, made of steel and without beasts of burden to pull it. But what amazed her the most was perhaps all the lights. It's as if the city never sleeps. She has never seen anything like it.

"Subaru-kun… What is this place?" She said, eyes still fixated on the view.

"Rem… I'm home…" he said shakily

"Your.. Homeland?" She questioned curiously. Come to think of it, since Subaru arrived to Roswaal Manor that fateful day, he has never mentioned anything of his origins.

'Subaru-kun looks distraught', Rem thought.

"Subaru-kun, are you not happy that you are finally home after all this time?"

Subaru shook his head.

"Don't get me wrong Rem, I really do appreciate the perks of being at home but I can't just abandon my dedication to Emilia and all the other friends I have made back in your world", as Subaru hung his head in disappointment. "It is likely that I can never return to your world by normal means other than Return by Death…"

"Return.. By death?" Rem queried.

"Ahh…" Subaru's Jaw slacked open. He had openly admitted the one thing he was not supposed to. He cursed his own carelessness. He waited for the return of the Witch's Presence.

…

…

Nothing ever came.

Return by Death was no more it seemed.

Somehow for some reason, the witch no longer was trying to influence him.

Normally, he would be rejoicing to have his freedom back but at the same time, he realized his freedom was now a double-edged sword.

He could no longer benefit from returning back in time any longer. His last checkpoint in life was no more and thus shattered any hope to return back to Lugnica.

Subaru dropped to his knees, realizing the severity of the situation. All the dedication and devotion towards Emilia and her cause was now gone. He will never see her again. Tears welled in his eyes once more. He has failed.

"It doesn't matter anymore…"

It was only a few months back that Subaru first came to Lugnica, a nobody and country bumpkin. A NEET shut in who was basically a failure at everything he tried. But when he was suddenly transported to a new fantasy world, he rejoiced in excitement but soon learned the reality of all of it.

Now that all of the sudden things are finally going his way, it is all taken away as he is whisked back to his old life. To be fair, he truly is happy to be home finally but to Subaru, taking away all that he has achieved and his dedications for others wasn't fair.

"All the suffering I went through, just to make things right.. ALL wasted.." as Subaru began breaking down. "And the worst part is Rem.. you can never go home.."

Subaru suddenly felt a warm sensation as Rem hugged him up close.

Rem dismissed those earlier moments.

"Subaru-kun, do you remember.. Back at the Capitol.. Our conversation?"

Rem will never forget that day. The day where Subaru truly opened himself up to her for one of the first times. Where he admitted his flaws, his arrogance, and how he hated himself. It wasn't just a developing moment for Subaru at the time but also Rem's as well.

For the one of the first times, she was able to come close and relate to him on how he made her appreciate and value herself more and that he made her feel special for once. It was that day she confessed her unyielding love for him and that she promised to be with him no matter what.

"Rem at first wanted to take Subaru-kun's offer on running away together... " as Rem reminiscenced. "But Rem knew that just wasn't like Subaru-kun to give up".

"If Rem were to take you up on your offer that day, Rem would never get to see Onee-Sama again. Rem would run away from her responsibilities at Roswaal's Manor".

"But even after all the consequences, Rem still wanted badly to run off with Subaru.." she confessed. "But Rem declined because she wanted Subaru to be happy in life by pursuing what he saw was right".

Subaru's eye slightly widened.

"So please Subaru-kun, don't give up on life because things didn't go as planned", as she hugged him tighter. "Rem will remind Subaru-kun once more. Even though he might hate himself, Rem loves him for who he is, my hero who saved me from myself".

"Subaru-kun calls himself a failure, but Rem admires him for his will to try and try again despite his own failings", she said as tears began to well up in her eyes as well. "So please, even if Subaru-kun fails, Subaru-kun must keep on going as he will never find happiness again if he stays in one place!"

…

…

'She's right', Subaru thought. 'In the beginning, I made a lot of mistakes and rash decisions, and refused to own up to them resulting in my many deaths. Progressively I learned more from them but it still didn't change my attitude towards life itself. It was only until I steeled my resolve and stopped acting rashly and kept moving forward was when I had better times. I turned enemies into friends and rival into allies when I changed my outlook from being purely selfish in nature. Though Return by Death had its uses, it ultimately did not make me a better person than I was yesterday. It was only when I decided to change my outlook and nature was when I thrived," as Subaru clenched his fist in confidence, a fire returning to his eyes.

While it was true Emilia was his first true love, given his special circumstances, he needed to move on forward or remain in place wallowing in misery. It was a hard pill for him to swallow but he knew the choice was obvious.

'This is one life, I do not want to regret upon, it's the only one I got.'

Subaru responded with a hug of his own as he embraced the blue haired maiden, embracing her tightly and closely than ever before as she was all that he had left while Subaru was all Rem had at all.

"Thank you once more, Rem", as Subaru grinned with his will to continue on once more. The two finally unlatched themselves from each other after their emotional moment.

"Rem... won't you miss your sister though?" he asked.

Rem lightly closed her eyes. "Rem will always love Onee-sama, but of all people, Rem cherishes you the most. Rem will miss her dearly, but as long Rem is with Subaru, Rem will always be happy", as she finished her sentence with tears running down her face.

"So please... Don't cast Rem away, you are all that's left who is most precious to her..." as she extends her hand waiting for a response.

He grasps it, wiping away the lone tear from her face.

"I will never let you go", he promised.

…

"Welcome home.. Subaru".

The two began their descent from the hill under the starry night, down to Subaru's hometown, hand in hand as their fingers entwined with each other tightly.

Every new journey, begins at Zero.