"We have arrived much earlier than any of the other occupants in the room. It was explained to us by a strange voice calling through our heads that we should await the 'others' arrival and that we couldn't escape from this prison no matter how powerful we are. The reasons for this would be explained once someone called the 'sage candidate' shows amongst the next batch of prisoners."
Emilia and the others in her camp all looked towards one another in shock.
"D-Did you all hear what the voice said to me?" Emilia asked her squad earning nods from everyone around her that were moved through space at the same time as she did.
"He was talking to the sage candidate in my head as well… " Otto muttered thoughtfully.
His gaze slowly wandered over until he was directly looking at Subaru's sleeping form.
"What's a sage candidate anyway?" Felt asked from the side, glancing worriedly at the sleeping boy with a glint of disappointment clear in her eyes as she wanted to meet with him one more time.
"I don't know what that is… " Reinhard shook his head in shame but gazed at the young-man with worry.
Beatrice stayed silent and kept her eyes firmly on those closed ones of her contractor. Not wanting to explain precisely what that title meant. She had a feeling that her contractor held on to such a title since she felt the power within him… But she never dreamt of it getting exposed like this. If these people knew what this name truly meant… They would execute her precious Subaru on the spot.
"Beako… You're a knowledge bound spirit. co-"
"I'm a great knowledge bound spirit, I suppose. But I don't recall that name ever existing in my archives at all, infact."
Emilia flinched at the hostile tone in the little blonde's tone. Deciding that she was upset for Subaru, Emilia ignored the clearly forced tone of the spirit loli and looked up at the other occupants in the room.
"When the light engulfed us, we heard a voice speaking to us… or one of us." Crusch and Felt's camps all looked at Emilia as she explained loudly to all of them.
"They said something akin to a greeting towards a 'Sage Candidate' but we don't know who that is… " Emilia softly turned her gaze towards the sleeping black-haired young man near her.
"You think whoever they may be, were referring towards Natsuki Subaru-sama?" Crusch inquired with her eyes narrowed in interest.
Emilia slowly looked at her friends, getting a shrug from Garfiel as he looked lost but ready to pounce on anyone trying to hurt his friends and a thoughtful look from Otto.
She gazed up towards the duchess and nodded her head firmly.
"I think they might be after Subaru… He's the only one not awake out of everyone here… They must've wanted to do something special with him for being… whatever a Sage candidate is." The half-elf concluded while edging closer towards her knight to be extra sure that she can jump in and save him in the event of another faint light showing up to take him away.
"Subaru-kyun always manages to attract the worst kinds of trouble, huh." An exasperated Felix sighed and shook his head in bemusement.
Crusch kept her gaze stuck on the black mop of hair slumped on the seat before her. "Hmmm. It seems like whoever brought us here are knowledgeable about things we are ignorant about."
As the duchess mused to herself in thought and worry for the boy's condition, a loud accent-heavy voice filled the room as a purple-haired lady wearing fur clothes and a fox scarf strutted towards the conversing three camps.
"It seems that whoever brought us here is more powerful than the Sword Saint himself, huh?"
A cheerful voice called the attention of the two, revealing the purple-haired faction leader, Anastasia with her mercenary team and her elegant knight standing beside her.
"Julius, This wasn't a move from your Camp's leader, right?" A one-armed helmet-wearing man called out from his side of the room where he sat beside a bored fiery headed woman that was watching the events below her with an amused look.
Julius simply shook his head elegantly. "This wasn't Anastasia-sama's doing. Whatever brought us to this place, the culprit surely isn't any of us."
While the others continued conversing amongst one another. Emilia and Beatrice sat next to Subaru, each holding one hand. Wondering why he hadn't woken up.
As another faint light appeared at the back row, a scream filled the theater-like room.
"Rem!"
All eyes turned to find a completely shocked looking Ram staring starstruck at what looked to be a carbon copy of her but with blue hair instead of pink.
"R-Rem… Sissy!" The blue-haired girl blinked in confusion and bewilderment as Ram engulfed her in a tight hug, her eyes leaking tears of happiness.
"Isn't she Cap'n's potato?" Garfiel pointed at the clearly awake and confused blue-haired maid with a look of bewilderment, referring to her as to how he remembered her.
An unconscious coma induced girl that had been the source of grief for Subaru for a year.
"Th-That is Rem-san, yes." Emilia whispered with disbelief painting her expression. The sight of an awake sleeping beauty highly disturbing her.
"But… " Emilia grimaced in disappointment as she tried to search her mind. "… I don't… "
"We don't remember who she is stiiiiilll." Roswaal cut the thoughtful Emilia off with an unreadable frown on his face. Watching the reunion of pink and blue with a skeptical expression.
The blue-haired maid stayed silent. Covering her distraught sister with her arms and patting her back. Rem's eyes took a moment to analyze the room and everyone in it, wonder and confusion filled her irises as she noticed just who was in the room with her. Questions of how she had arrived her or why any of these people were present with her were at the forefront of her mind.