for me?
What is that supposed to mean?” Subaru was completely dumbfounded, unable to wrap his head around the phrase, and could only probe further with a question.
After all, hearing words like “rich experiences with death” and “shoulder it for you” popping up made Subaru go entirely numb.
It was impossible to comprehend.
*Could it be that Boss has died too?
And died many times over?* Otherwise, why would he talk so casually about death—something normal people avoided like the plague?
Besides, a phrase like “a daily occurrence” shouldn’t ever be linked to death, should it?
Not to mention the so-called shouldering it for him.
The more Subaru thought about it, the more terrified he became.
*Shoulder?* *How is he going to shoulder it?* *Isn’t taking over his body just dying in his place?* “It’s exactly what you’re imagining, brat.” Diavolo gave an affirmative reply, his tone flat and unbothered, as countless, wildly varied memories of death flashed through his mind.
Scalded to death, electrocuted to death, crushed to death, bitten to death, drained to death, suffocated to death…
The sheer number of deaths and the vast variety of ways he died were things Diavolo himself had almost lost count of.
To endure infinite deaths until transmigrating without completely losing his sanity was all thanks to Diavolo possessing a powerful mental fortitude far beyond that of ordinary men.
This was the will of an emperor.
“Could it be, Boss, that you also possess the ability to ‘foresee the future’?” Subaru probed cautiously, “foreseeing the future” in his words naturally referring to Return by Death.
“Heh, you’re overthinking it.
No one would actively crave endless deaths.
I was struck by an enemy’s attack, landing me in an infinite death loop.
Being able to transmigrate to this world is already a stroke of luck among misfortunes.” “When I first transmigrated here, I thought it was just another bizarre way to die, but looking at it now, I have indeed successfully escaped the infinite loop of death.” Infinite deaths.
Those two words alone were bizarre enough to make one’s scalp tingle with dread.
Subaru’s heart shook violently; this was the first time he had learned a fraction of Diavolo’s past.
It was cruel beyond imagination.
He recalled his own mere two experiences with Return by Death.
He had only died twice and was already on the verge of breakdown, unable to bear it—yet Diavolo had been cycling through endless deaths continuously?
Thinking back carefully, it seemed that every time Subaru was on the brink of death, Diavolo would roar violently, wanting him to survive, likely out of an extreme terror of returning to that endless hell of death.
Seeing Subaru’s shocked state, Diavolo felt a flicker of hope, then continued to instruct him.
“Brat, always remember: once you encounter a guaranteed death scenario, you must do everything in your power to gather all the surrounding information you can get.
This is crucial.
Even if you can’t process or analyze it, as long as I am here, all problems can be solved.” This was Diavolo’s confidence as an emperor.
With Subaru’s existence, he could practically be considered immortal.
Combined with King Crimson, he was invincible.
Pondering for a short moment, Subaru felt a sudden surge of clarity.
“Yeah, I get it, Boss!
On my own, I can’t handle all these dangers at all.
Meeting you in a strange alternate world is truly my good fortune.
I’m sure things will only get better from here on out.” If he was unfortunate enough to die, he would be responsible for scouting and gathering intelligence, while Boss would handle taking out the enemy.
With such a perfect dynamic, they wouldn’t have to worry about establishing a foothold in an alternate world at all.
Thinking of this, a few lovely figures involuntarily flashed across Subaru’s mind, a quiet flutter of excitement rising in his chest.
Emilia, Rem, and Ram.
While it wasn’t a deep, head-over-heels infatuation, humans were visual creatures after all, and preferring all things beautiful was only natural.
Cute girls and the like—yes, yes, he loved to see it, absolute gold!
Heh.
Afterward, Subaru recounted the complete experiences of his previous two Return by Deaths to Diavolo in full detail.
At the same time, they briefly discussed the background and origins of the mysterious girl.
Though the useful information gathered was sparse, it was still better than nothing.
Right around this time, Diavolo suddenly noticed that the eyes of the smaller face on King Crimson were closed, and that state seemed to have persisted for a long while.
He boldly formulated a hypothesis—this was highly likely related to Subaru’s deaths.
To be precise, it was related to his own death.
After all, unlike typical soul possession, if Subaru died, he would perish along with him.
All along, he had been observing the world relying on Subaru’s visual senses.
Perhaps after the next death, he would be able to use King Crimson to see Subaru’s ‘Epitaph’ right before his death.
“Then Boss, like you said, we have to be cautious.
How about we take this chance to quietly scout the mansion tonight?” Subaru suddenly suggested.
During their earlier exchange, he felt that what Diavolo said was entirely correct.
With such a big boss backing him up, he couldn’t just stand still.
Most importantly, he didn’t want to fall into an infinite death loop like Diavolo.
With that thought, he wasn’t willing to sit around and wait for death.
If an unexpected danger broke out at night, he wouldn’t be able to react at all.
Besides, Diavolo had mentioned that special individuals attracted one another.
Having transmigrated here, he had died horribly twice in just half a day—his luck was rock bottom, and no one could guarantee he wouldn’t suffer a mishap in his sleep.
What if he went to sleep and never woke up?
Opening his eyes to see the apple stand vendor again would be disastrous.
“Tonight, you just rest easy.
We are currently on someone else’s turf; snooping around recklessly will only invite displeasure and draw fire upon ourselves.” “Don’t forget this is an alternate world; perhaps we are being monitored at this very moment.” Diavolo’s deep, harsh voice echoed in his mind, his tone as unquestionable as ever.
Then, he added a line: “Rest assured, with me here, nothing can go wrong.” “Got it!
Boss!” Subaru lay flat as told, putting his heart at ease.
Since Boss had guaranteed it, what could go wrong?
At worst, it was just another death.
The soft mattress wrapped around his body, offering comfort far exceeding any bed he had ever slept on.
Yet when he actually closed his eyes, he felt no sleepiness at all, tossing and turning in bed.
He stared at the patterns on the ceiling, a chaotic jumble of thoughts filling his mind.
The gruesome scene at Old Man Rom’s warehouse, Emilia’s gentle concern, Roswaal’s bizarre aura, the mysterious girl appearing inside him, and his sweet secret talk with Boss…
Scene after scene flashed continuously in his head.
However, he soon let it go.
If the sky fell, Boss would hold it up, and Emilia would definitely never harm him.
He only hoped everything would go smoothly and peacefully tomorrow.
The fright and exhaustion accumulated throughout the entire day swept over his body like a tidal wave.
His consciousness gradually blurred, falling completely into darkness.
His breathing steadily slowed and evened out, his knitted brows relaxing as he fell into a deep, sound sleep.
After an unknown amount of time, the eyelashes of the person on the bed suddenly trembled slightly.
The next second, his eyes snapped open, and the aura around his entire body shifted drastically.
A glint of pale green, chilly light flickered past his eyes in a flash.
At this moment, he lacked even half of Subaru’s usual lively, childish demeanor.
All that remained was a bone-chillingly cold scrutiny and sharpness, like a long-dormant beast showing its fangs, brimming with lethal intent.
Diavolo sat up steadily, his movements gentle and calm, without making the slightest unnecessary noise.
He slowly flexed his ten fingers, feeling the grounding sense of controlling a body, the corners of his mouth curling into a faint smile.
“As expected, once this brat falls into a deep sleep, I can take over the body without any resistance.
It seems his subconscious mind has implicitly allowed my actions.” —