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Approximately four hundred years prior, Aldebaran betrayed Subaru Natsuki, sealing both Subaru and Beatrice inside a black sphere of Yin Magic known as Al Shamak to protect Subaru's heart. To keep Aldebaran alive—preserving the only known method of undoing the seal—Emilia froze herself and Aldebaran together in extreme ice within the Agzad Valley, located along the border of the Unified Empire of Vollachia and the Holy Kingdom of Gusteko. In the aftermath of this tragedy, several allies set long-term plans in motion. Rem, petitioned the Vollachian royalty for future aid, while Cecilus Segmunt asked Arakiya to assist in the eventual search. Simultaneously, Otto Suwen and Julius Juukulius coordinated a multi-generational recovery plan, with Otto tasking his descendants and Julius tasking his contracted quasi-spirits. Over the next four centuries, the Kingdom of Lugunica fell, the Witch Cult vanished, and the fear of the Witch of Envy dwindled to a mere formality. Julius’s six quasi-spirits (Ia, Lapicha, Soyone, Dorena, Kiara, and Shinika) evolved into humanoid Great Spirits, adopting the house name "Juukulius" and governing the Juukulius territory, with Ia taking the name Lumera Ia Juukulius. Meanwhile, a new "Witch of Melancholy" emerged, establishing her stronghold in the Great Glacier where Emilia remained frozen and attacking anyone who drew near. In the present era, Nicola Suwen—a merchant-scholar and descendant of Otto—alongside the Great Spirit Lumera, located Subaru and Beatrice in the Mogolead Geyser. Honoring the ancient promise made to Rem, Rosalind Vollachia, the young Unified Emperor and descendant of Abel and Medium, used the flame of the Yang Sword Vollachia to break the Al Shamak seal. Although Subaru’s soul was successfully reunited with his body, the irregular extraction left him physically burned out and experiencing respiratory failure. Beatrice awoke first and used her magic to stabilize him, saving his life before he lost consciousness. When Subaru woke again, he was completely paralyzed due to a severe disconnect between his soul and his flesh. Nicola Suwen provided a house for them, refusing to consider it a debt because rescuing Subaru fulfilled the Suwen family’s 400-year ambition. Nicola revealed that four centuries had passed, Lugunica was gone, and Emilia remained frozen under the guard of the Witch of Melancholy. Lumera reunited with Subaru, confirming the Juukulius spirits had kept their promise to Julius. It had taken 400 years of gathering lost technology and power to search the Mogolead Geyser, which connects to the underside of the world. Rosalind Vollachia visited alongside the long-lived Divine Generals Arakiya and Madelyn, mocking Subaru’s worries and demanding stories of Cecilus. Deeply shaken by the passage of time, Subaru made his First Oath: never to seek peace. Struggling with his severe physical impairment, he made his Second Oath: never to lament his failures. During a dinner with Nicola, Lumera, and Arakiya, a large, dark-skinned man with yellow-green hair and Sanskrit-style facial tattoos abruptly invaded the house. Arakiya, a "Spirit Eater" holding the power of the spirit Muspel, attacked the intruder with ribbons of light. However, the intruder declared he had to settle matters in six seconds to maximize his anger. Wielding twin magic swords of light, he instantly slaughtered Arakiya, Nicola, and Lumera, mortally wounding Subaru. Beatrice shielded Subaru, but both were erased within six seconds. This triggered Subaru’s "Return by Death," restarting the timeline at the dinner table before the intruder's arrival. This prompted his Third Oath: never to seek understanding from anyone. The intruder was revealed to be "Mad Prince" Vague Adgard of the Holy Kingdom of Gusteko, a half-human, half-spirit "Spirit-Person" who hunts spirits using the Cursed Sword Aion. Vague had once stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Reinhard van Astrea, Cecilus, and Halibel. Subaru underwent dozens of deaths in this loop, unable to escape due to his paralyzed body, while Lumera revealed that the Juukulius territory lay in ruins because of Vague's constant targeting of spirits. In a decisive loop, Beatrice activated her absolute mana-nullification field, E.M.T, successfully disabling Vague’s Cursed Sword. Arakiya kicked Vague while Lumera struck him with a wooden chair, but Vague utilized his "Divine Protection of Adaptation" to bypass the nullification field. Reactivating his magic sword, he severed Arakiya's limbs and Lumera's torso. Beatrice used E.M.M to shift herself and Subaru out of phase to block Vague's counterattack. Subaru tried to strike Vague with Invisible Providence, but Vague easily evaded it. Nicola then snapped his fingers, activating a remote magic trap on the Agzad Great Glacier. The glacier trap successfully drew out the Witch of Melancholy, ■■■, and her giant mabeast, the Crimson Scorpion. When Vague attacked her, his strikes were blocked by the Crimson Scorpion's downpour of light. ■■■ snapped her fingers and used "Compress Agony," blowing Vague apart from the inside. Vague survived by thinning his body into a mist-like mana state and retreated. As retribution for the trap, ■■■ took Nicola’s left leg below the knee. Subaru tried to shout her name, but a worldly rule rendered "■■■" unpronounceable. Intrigued by Subaru's desperation, ■■■ crouched before him and used "Compress Agony" to grant him "a blank space of one million seconds," knocking him unconscious for eleven and a half days. This event led to Subaru's Fourth Oath: never to rejoice in any success. Subaru woke up two weeks later to find Nicola using a prosthetic leg. Nicola explained he had deliberately lured the Witch as a countermeasure against Vague, who had been systematically exterminating major spirits—including the Spirit Beast Odglass and Lumera’s five sisters, who had sacrificed themselves as decoys so Lumera could rescue Subaru and Beatrice. Overwhelmed by the sacrifices made for an empty future, Subaru swore his Fifth Oath: never to push anyone's back again. He abandoned his physical rehabilitation and relied entirely on Beatrice’s care. He struggled with grief, doubting if Emilia was truly in the ice, and fought the supernatural erosion trying to make him forget "■■■." Refusing to yield, he resolved to keep her name carved in his mind and stand up again because both she and Emilia were alive. By calculating that 400 years was roughly 12,622,788,800 seconds, Subaru gained a deep understanding of the Witch's futile, isolated time. Forty years of preparation and rehabilitation followed. Finally able to walk and coordinate his mind and body, the sixty-year-old, white-haired Subaru resolved to deliver salvation to ■■■, who had spent four centuries in a dreamless, nihilistic state. Nicola, now master of his prosthetic leg, saw them off. Subaru realized that Otto had involved his descendants across generations so that Subaru could eventually save ■■■, whose existence could only be remembered by Subaru and Beatrice. Beatrice, deeply moved by Subaru's regained physical strength, rested on his shoulders. Lumera joined them, fighting not for vengeance, but because her past master Julius would have done so. Outside, they met Rosalind, Arakiya, and Madelyn. The Vollachian Empire, which had consumed Lugunica and Kararagi, cooperated with Subaru to clear the permafrost and pave a path to conquer Gusteko. Madelyn revealed they had located Clind, a dragonkin who had been missing for 400 years and was living in despondent isolation. Subaru and Beatrice resolved to find him, knowing only they could understand his despair. At the Agzad Permafrost zone, the alliance confronted the Mad Prince. When Vague attacked with his Cursed Swords, Clind intervened, blocking the strike with a lightning-burst. Revealed as a blue-haired dragonkin with black horns and golden eyes, Clind pledged his strength, having spent 400 years in isolation due to deep regret over the price ■■■ paid to become the Witch of Melancholy. Despite Vague's powerful, synergetic Divine Protections (Adaptation, Solitude, Iteration, and Fortitude) and his lack of a beating heart, reinforcements joined the fight, including a red-haired fire spirit, Arakiya utilizing diamond light-bands, and Madelyn using a Cloud Dragon Scale. During the battle, Subaru approached ■■■, and her protective Crimson Scorpion stepped aside. Subaru pulled ■■■ into a hug. She could not hug him back, having sacrificed her bodily rights and abilities—including holding others, crying, speaking names, and eating her favorite foods—to survive 400 years of isolation to meet him. Because of her condition, she forgot everyone if she stopped thinking about them for a single second, completely wearing away her memories. ■■■ confessed her love to Subaru, which he and Beatrice accepted. Subaru yelled out to Pe■■ and asked if she would eventually help him dig out another girl he loved buried deep in the permafrost. Telling him to "go die" with a smile, ■■■ charged into the battle alongside the Crimson Scorpion. Utilizing forty years of teamwork and twelve original spells, Subaru and Beatrice charged into the chaotic battlefield alongside their allies to defeat the Mad Prince. This narrative is revealed to be an Arc 9 "IF" route branching from a defeat scenario, serving as an after-story for the woman who disappeared at the end of Arc 9 and the characters who caused her to become the Witch of Melancholy.
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