I love time travel the most!

but……

"I choose to continue the alliance."

"Xiao Lin!"

Upon hearing Kobayashi's answer, Subaru Natsuki's expression brightened.

If even the most powerful figure abandons him, he'll truly be devastated.

Kurshu gave an "oh," raised an eyebrow, and asked, "Would you mind telling me the reason for continuing the alliance?"

"It's simple. Because Natsuki-kun is the best bait."

"Bait?"

"The Witch Cult's whereabouts are elusive and unpredictable, but their target is indeed Emilia. Now that we know their target, why not use Emilia to find the Witch Cult?"

Xiaolin's answer makes sense.

Natsuki Subaru found it hard to accept being used as bait, but he had no choice but to accept it in order to maintain the alliance.

"Crisis is opportunity."

Kobayashi smiled and said, "I don't deny that the Witch Cult is troublesome, a bunch of troublesome guys like an endless swarm of cockroaches, but as long as we can defeat them, we can gain a lot of fame. I don't think any candidate for the throne would refuse."

Besides, they also have Reinhard, the strongest on Earth.

Even if there were thirty more archbishops left, let alone the three remaining high-ranking criminals, we could easily take them down!

With the world's favorite son in hand, one speaks with confidence.

"Your answer is exactly what I wanted to hear."

Courthy is also a very charismatic character.

In fact, she never intended to give up on the alliance with Emilia from the very beginning.

To gain something better, you must pay a corresponding price. The concept of equivalent exchange is something even a child understands; it's just that Phyllis was too worried about Kurshu's safety, which caused her to miss the point.

It is no exaggeration to say that the Witch Cult is the biggest cancer in the world. If you want to gain merit and fame, there is no better way than to destroy the Witch Cult.

"So that means the alliance continues?"

"Ah, of course."

"Humph!"

Seeing that he couldn't persuade his master, the cat-eared man pouted and left the meeting room in a huff. Kurshu had no choice but to apologize and chase after him to appease him.

As the host left, the tense atmosphere eased.

Natsuki Subaru let out a deep breath and said, "It's finally over. I'm so exhausted."

"Are you alright, Subaru (Lord)?" x2

Emilia and Rem spoke in unison.

Enjoying the care of the two beautiful girls, the triangular-eyed boy waved his hand and said, "I'm actually fine. It's all thanks to Kobayashi's reminder that things didn't go so smoothly."

"What are you talking about? It's all your credit, Natsuki-kun. Whether it was teaming up with Kursh and Anastasia to defeat the White Whale, arranging for the villagers to escape and fight the Witch Cult that launched the attack, or speeding away in the dragon chariot to save Emilia at the end, if there were an award, you would undoubtedly be the MVP."

"Is that so? I do seem to have done quite a few things along the way that I'm afraid of when I think about them."

After being praised by Kobayashi, Natsuki Subaru realized just how many miraculous things he had done.

That was a situation where one wrong step would plunge one into an abyss of no return.

I'm drenched in sweat again.

Chapter 398 You can win countless times, but I only need to win once.

"Thank you, Xiaolin. Without you, the consequences would have been unimaginable."

"Not at all. If it weren't for Natsuki-kun finding the hidden witch cultists in time, both the villagers and Emilia would have been injured while searching the caravan. It's all thanks to you."

"But wasn't it you, Kobayashi, who told others about the hidden witch cult members?"

"What are you talking about? It was Natsuki-kun who told me to tell everyone else... Ouch—"

Under the questioning gazes of others, Kobayashi's consciousness became confused, as if an abnormal memory was surfacing in his mind.

His brows furrowed, and he couldn't help but cover his forehead.

Phyllis, the master healer, was the first to notice something amiss and said, "What's wrong, Kobayashi? It was you who told me to be careful of the Witch Cult lurking in the caravan, and you even told me who they are."

Wilhelm followed up, saying, "It was only thanks to Lord Kobayashi's reminder that I was able to avoid being injured by the filthy and despicable witch cultists' suicide attack. I must express my gratitude."

"On the way to Mezas territory, didn't you say, Kobayashi, that Subaru sending a blank envelope would be misunderstood, so you made a warning and we weren't attacked? Without a doubt, that's also thanks to you." Julius also mentioned what Kobayashi had done.

No, no, no, that's a misunderstanding!

He wasn't being modest and hiding his achievements; rather, he was passing these things on to Wilhelm and the others because Natsuki Subaru had genuinely told him.

Eh?

Did Natsuki Subaru talk to him about it?

I seemed to grasp some clue in my mind, but it vanished in an instant.

it's wired!

What's wrong?

No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't figure it out. It was as if a thin film was separating the truth from her, and no matter how hard Xiaolin racked her brains, she couldn't break through it.

"Anyway, it's great that we were able to defeat the Archbishop of Sloth successfully. All the suffering I endured wasn't in vain. Why am I feeling this inexplicably moved?" Natsuki Subaru wiped away his tears playfully, looking as if he had sacrificed too much for this family.

Seeing his expression, Phyllis said with disdain, "I don't deny Subaru's contribution, but Subaru doesn't seem to have suffered any injustice. Why make yourself sound so hard-working?"

"You don't understand Phyllis, I died several times before... cough cough, never mind! In short, I contributed the most!"

"Eh----"

The cat-eared man drawled out his voice.

Not only did they fail to explain clearly, but they also took credit for it so readily. I really couldn't stand it anymore.

Kobayashi understood.

Natsuki Subaru cannot openly reveal that he has reincarnated many times, otherwise everyone present, including Emilia, will die.

……wrong!

No, no, no!

Distracted by him, Kobayashi suddenly had a flash of inspiration, turned his head and looked intently at Natsuki Subaru, causing the triangular-eyed boy, who was still holding his head high and being proud, to shrink back.

"Nazuki-kun!"

"I know it's you, Kobayashi, who's the best..."

"No, that's not it! Please tell me in the simplest terms: how many times have you faced the Archbishop of Sloth since you defeated the White Whale, until you successfully defeated him?"

The inexplicable question left everyone bewildered, but it was a sentence that only Subaru Natsuki could understand.

"You're asking how many times this is? It's my first time. Is something wrong? Come to think of it, being able to beat the Archbishop of Sin in one go, I'm definitely a pro gamer!"

What is a pro gamer?

"It's a high-level player, the highest reward awarded to players who can complete a difficult game in one go. Anyway, you, the best knight, wouldn't understand things for the poor."

"what is that?"

Julius and Subaru Natsuki were bickering.

However, Kobayashi could no longer hear it; only one sentence echoed in his mind.

"—Is this your first time...?"

My fingers lightly tapped on the coffee table.

My thoughts slowly drifted away from the memories of the discussion two days ago.

He is currently at the Sword Saint family's residence.

Two days ago, after the rewards were distributed, he left the Duke's mansion in Coursius.

Subaru and Emilia were heading to the Sanctuary, which was Emilia's stronghold. Kobayashi was not invited, so he returned from the Duke's mansion to the Sword Saint family's residence.

After returning, I kept thinking about what Subaru Natsuki had said.

In fact, he already had the answer in his heart, but he just couldn't come up with a reason that hadn't convinced him.

How can I do.

Does it require divine power? But last time it was just a coincidence, and this time I didn't use divine power either, so it can be concluded that divine power is not a necessary condition.

"Xiaolin? What are you doing here?"

As he was lost in thought, a gentle voice reached his ears.

She looked up, not angry at being interrupted, and greeted the Sword Saint with a smile as he returned from his journey.

"Welcome back, Reinhard. You've worked hard."

"I am back."

Rheinhardt has been quite busy these past few days.

The kingdom was already shaken by the defeat of the White Whale and the Archbishop of Sloth, but who would have thought that our Sword Saint would single-handedly defeat two archbishops of sin, the infamous Archbishops of Greed and Gluttony.

Even Julius couldn't help but sigh at how far he was from being the strongest on Earth.

Kobayashi asked curiously, "You came back really quickly. To be honest, I thought you would be a few days later."

“That was how it was supposed to be, but with Lord Kurshu's testimony, it was over quickly,” Reinhard said.

The victories over the great sins of the bishopric need to be proven.

Just like the white whale and the Bishop of Sloth, their corpses serve as proof after they were defeated.

After all, you can't just say you've defeated the Archbishop of Sin and expect the kingdom to believe you, not even Reinhard.

Kursch, who was rescued in time, patted her chest and said that she would use her own reputation and the reputation of the Duke's family as collateral to make the kingdom recognize that Reinhard had defeated the Bishop of Greed and the Bishop of Gluttony as a token of her gratitude.

The Duchess clearly succeeded.