I Know Hell

All right, it's Re:ZERO time again this week. Last time, after the encounter with the witches, we even had the unbelievable incident of a 'witch' appearing. With Garfiel saving Subaru adding even more confusion to the situation, where is this all going to lead... that's how it feels! So, I hope you'll join me again this week!

This is the true essence of troublesome Garfiel, whose actions change every time, but now that an even more dangerous presence has appeared, we're in the strange situation where he's not hostile toward Subaru either.

The situation is a whirlwind, and Subaru's emotional state stays just as urgent. Garfiel's actions and the appearance of someone very similar to Ryuzu-san, too.

The Witch of Envy is said to have swallowed half the world, but whether this is literally the kind of attack she used 400 years ago or not, at the very least, this is the system by which such terrifying things happen to Subaru.

Being swallowed by shadows and loved forever without being able to die... for Subaru, who can Return by Death, that is one of the worst possible outcomes. To prevent that, Subaru killed himself in the shadow world. The method he used was the blade of light for suicide that Echidna, whom he had just parted from, had hidden in Petra's handkerchief.

When Subaru says, "That damn witch...!" he's talking about Echidna, and what he's angry about is, "If you planted suicide magic in there, that means you knew the Witch of Envy was going to show up."

This has happened before too, but when Subaru returns by death to the tomb all mentally wrecked, Emilia's mental state doesn't collapse instead. If one stands, the other falls... that's the kind of pair they are.

In front of a wary Subaru after returning, Garfiel grins and says, "Glad ya made it back safe, huh?" Each time Subaru returns, the witch's miasma around him should be stronger, so I think you can tell that this reaction is unnatural.

He was swallowed by shadows and killed himself before completely losing his free will. That was how the previous loop ended, but at that time, Subaru almost merged with the many other consciousnesses that had likewise been swallowed by the shadows. So this is him acting on the idea of confirming the secret of the Sanctuary that was in those memories.

Trying to investigate that secret of the Sanctuary might touch a nerve with Garfiel, so he had Ram head that off for him and made it here... to the girl inside the crystal, and Ryuzu-san appearing there.

Ryuzu-san also says, "To think Su-bou, who's only been in the Sanctuary half a day, would uncover it," and that also explains just how abnormal Subaru's Return by Death is. From Ryuzu-san's perspective, this would genuinely be a situation that makes no sense at all.

Just think of a "magic crystal" as a kind of very large magic stone. It's extremely valuable because it has no impurities, and in the present day, almost no natural magic crystals remain.

Magic stones are, to begin with, things that slowly grow larger as mana drifting through the atmosphere crystallizes under special conditions, so anything enormous is incredibly valuable. The process by which small ones form was shown in the OVA "Frozen Bonds," where Emilia gathered them.

This explains how the Sanctuary came to be and what its purpose is, as well as why an 'original' Ryuzu-san named Ryuzu Meyer exists. As for why Echidna, the Witch of Greed, sought immortality, I don't think her character so far needs any explanation: she needs time because she wants to know everything in this world.

Characters who seek immortality often have a strong attachment to life, but in Echidna's case, it's less an attachment to living and more that she simply doesn't have enough time for what she wants to do... that's probably her true feeling.

Subaru had the position of "Apostle of Greed" thrust on him without his consent. The Dona tea Echidna prepared at the tea party was meant to stabilize the Witch Factor inside Subaru, but it turns out she had quietly assigned him another role as well.

Ryuzu-san described her love of tea as a "personality acquired over a long life," but if you think about it in terms of themes like why people are born and why they live... it starts to feel like a pretty deep topic. No? I see...

Subaru wants to send all the villagers back safely. He thinks it's no good for them to get caught up in the rabbits' appearance. I think it'd be nice if this part of Subaru's thought process feels just a little off to you. In an unsettling way.

The nighttime conversation with Emilia is also an event that only occurs on loops where her mental state is stable. Otto worrying about Subaru sneaking around at night is an event that happens pretty much every time, though.

Subaru leaves a note behind and puts careful setup on the back burner. Just as his inner thoughts show, the resolve of "as many times as it takes" has begun to sprout. That comes from the fact that he was able to confess Return by Death to Echidna, which changed how he views that power.

Up to now, Subaru had not chosen to actively make use of Return by Death, including through suicide. But from here on, that will no longer be the case for Natsuki Subaru. That is the resolve of the awakened Subaru.

The reason Garfiel, who overwhelmingly surpasses Subaru in physical strength, is intimidated by him is because he looked into the eyes of a Subaru he could kill with a twist of the hand. At this point, Subaru was prepared, at the extreme, to die if it meant confirming, "So this is how Garfiel acts this time."

This is Garfiel's impression of Subaru at this point. I hope you will keep in mind, for what comes later, things like Garfiel's reaction of losing his voice.

Watching Natsuki Subaru moving and speaking like this, you can feel a glimpse of the atmosphere of him piling life upon life for the sake of the best possible future, and it really weighs heavily on the heart.

At the end, Subaru once again heads to meet Beatrice. Beatrice's attitude in welcoming him was, depending on how you look at it, the calmest it had been in any loop so far. After all their conversations, what will he be able to hear from Beatrice this time... and with that, the end! So soon!!

So this week was a bit of an exposition episode. There was a torrent of information, but is everyone keeping up!? The important points are: "There are lots of Ryuzu-san copies!" "The Sanctuary is a facility for immortality!" "Subaru has resolved to make heavy use of Return by Death!" and "Garfiel is thoroughly creeped out!"

I think for a lot of first-time viewers, the flood of explanations just goes in one ear and out the other, but broadly speaking, you'll be fine as long as you keep those four points in mind. Feeling like you can't quite keep up is probably the normal reaction, so that's fine. I think once you see how things develop from here, looking back will make this week's developments feel all the more meaningful.

Well then, since this was an exposition episode, my tweets ended up being all explanation too, but thank you again for this week! Next week, please pay attention to what Subaru will talk about with Beatrice. Until then, hang in there by playing Re:Zero Lost in Memories or something while you wait for next week! Good work, everyone!!