The Witches' Tea Party

All right, Re:Zero time has come around again this week! And today is also Emilia's birthday! Just what kind of story are we going to get? Stay tuned!

Just like last time, we start with Subaru losing his life again at the end. His gouged-out left eye has healed, but the impression left on him by Emilia collapsed beside him has changed...

Having resolved to make full use of Return by Death, Subaru finally realizes because of what happened last time that Roswaal is the formidable enemy of Arc 4. Roswaal knows about the loops, but he does not know about Return by Death, so keeping that hidden is also one of Subaru's conditions for victory.

To reach Echidna again after she explained that the conditions for being summoned to the next tea party would be stricter, Subaru heads back to the tomb. He hoped he would be called to the tea party, but instead, what echoed through his skull was his own distant voice...

Subaru sees an unfamiliar scene. "Behold an unthinkable present."

The second "Trial"... unlike the first, which dealt with the past, this one is something that makes you face the "present." Or rather, it was supposed to show a "present" different from the current one, but for Natsuki Subaru alone, it became an irredeemably deadly poison. Even the Witch did not expect that.

One after another, the "presents" that come are all futures beyond the points where Subaru threw away his life. There were unfinished deaths, resolved deaths, sudden deaths, all kinds of them, but each and every one still has a story... and that is what Subaru had been averting his eyes from.

The confrontation between Puck and Reinhard lies beyond Episode 15. Puck could bring about the collapse of the world if Emilia dies, but Reinhard serves as the stopper that keeps that from happening as long as he is there.

For every death so far, Natsuki Subaru falls deeper into despair. Then, falling over him, comes a voice his ears know all too well...

Whenever Natsuki Subaru falls into despair, she always seems to reach out her hand to him, but she's not actually that sweet and gentle a girl. That is Natsuki Subaru's answer after going through Episode 18.

The Rem who should have been there vanishes, and appearing in her place is Carmilla, who calls herself the "Witch of Lust." As he continues witnessing these unthinkable presents, Subaru had fulfilled the conditions for why he would be summoned to the tea party, and for wishing it himself.

Carmilla, the "Witch of Lust," is a witch loved by all thanks to her power, the "Faceless Bride." Just as Echidna explained, anyone standing before Carmilla becomes unable to think of anything but her, and in the end even forgets to breathe and to keep their heart beating.

Echidna, who knows about Return by Death, affirms Subaru's journey through Return by Death just as he is on the verge of denying it because of the second "Trial."

At the end of last time, Echidna said, "If we meet again, there is something I'd like to discuss," and this "contract" is what she was finally bringing up. For Subaru, burdened with Return by Death and suffering because he cannot talk to anyone about it, having someone there he can confide in would mean an enormous amount, as all of you watching the anime already know.

Right before the contract is about to be made, someone steps in to stop it.

Minerva, the "Witch of Wrath," has big, dramatic actions, but that's because she was once the strongest bare-knuckle brawler in the world, the kind who could shake the whole globe with her fists. Since her Witch Authority turns violence into healing power, what you see and the actual result are reversed.

Following Carmilla, the newly appearing Sekhmet, the "Witch of Sloth." She can't even be bothered to stand up, but among the six Witches excluding "Envy," she is the strongest. If Sekhmet were serious, even if all the other Witches besides her attacked together, they would be wiped out in a single second.

Learning the hidden side of the "contract," Subaru presses the issue. Then, in front of him, Echidna begins to speak. A long story is about to begin.

And that was Echidna's heartfelt sales pitch.

I don't want anyone to misunderstand, but Echidna has never once lied up to this point. She merely kept things unsaid. A little too much of that just spilled out in what she said earlier.

Echidna, the "Witch of Greed," is a witch incapable of understanding emotions. All of the various attitudes she has shown so far are templates copied from things like "that's how it's done" and "that's the expected script." She doesn't really think deeply about what kind of impression that gives Subaru. Which is why she ends up acting like that.

Right in front of Subaru, as he tries to confirm who "that person" is, Echidna explains who "that person" is. That leads Subaru to a decisive answer about how he feels toward her.

"The Witches' Tea Party". This episode's subtitle is elaborate enough to use all of the witches' colors. I'm completely satisfied!

Echidna appeared starting in episode 3 of Season 2, saving Subaru when his heart was on the verge of breaking and causing all sorts of events, but this episode was about why she is a "Witch" in the first place! It was packed again this time too, but thank you very much! Being able to see this episode, as the author, leaves me deeply moved!

So with that, thank you again this time too! Next week, on the 30th, will be the final episode of the first cour of Season 2. It seems some people don't know it's split cour, but the second half starts in January 2021, so I think everyone will probably suffer from the cliffhanger, but look forward to it!! Well then, see you again next week! Please keep supporting us!

For anyone who wasn't sure what would happen if Echidna and Subaru made a contract, to explain it a bit more precisely: Subaru died 5 times to clear Arc 3, but if Echidna had lent him her power, he'd die about 10,000 times. That's because Echidna would guide him in order to see the results of different choices. But he would be able to clear it. Because she wants to see what lies beyond that.

When playing a visual novel, I imagine some people choose options they absolutely shouldn't just because they want the bad ending, but Echidna is the type who would try every last one of the vast number of those choices. In other words, if you're the type who wants to see the bad ending first, you're the Echidna type! If you ever find someone who can "Return by Death," be careful not to lose yourself, okay?

Right, there was just one thing I forgot to mention! That long Echidna monologue was a one-take OK. Sakamoto-san was incredible. I bow down.