Subaru Natsuki

Name: Subaru Natsuki

Gender: Male

Age: 17 (at the beginning of the story)

Family: Lives with his father and mother in modern Japan before being summoned to another world.

He has short black hair, a very average-looking face, and a solid, muscular build.

His eyes are sharp and intimidating, with a noticeable three-white-eye look that gives him a “bad” gaze.

Subaru is physically stronger than he appears and runs faster than the average Japanese person.

He is proud enough of his speed to boast that no one in the Kingdom of Lugunica can beat him when it comes to acting as bait for a powerful enemy.

Before being summoned, he skips school, sleeps as much as he wants, and spends his days lazily playing around.

His personal motto is: “If you’re hesitating between doing it or not, then don’t do it.”

Subaru has a strong “chuunibyou” streak, meaning he is obsessed with myths, star names, and grand-sounding concepts.

This background knowledge later helps him understand the nature of the authorities used by the Sin Archbishops.

He often fails to read the room and acts in a joking, provocative way that easily irritates others.

However, underneath that, he is deeply compassionate and willing to throw away his own safety to protect those he cares about.

Because of this, he becomes beloved by children in Arlam Village, such as Petra Leyte, and slowly gains the trust of the people he bonds with.

Over time, others recognize that his foolishness is backed by genuine courage and emotional strength.

One late night, Subaru leaves a convenience store with some snacks and is suddenly summoned to another world without warning.

Confused and powerless in a strange land, he is saved by Emilia, who helps him without asking for anything in return.

Subaru immediately falls for Emilia and decides that protecting her will be his top priority in this new world.

At the same time, he treasures Rem, who gives him unconditional affection and faith and becomes his second most important person.

Rem’s presence becomes a key emotional anchor for Subaru.

Her support helps him keep going through the lonely, terrifying struggle associated with “Return by Death.”

Physical Ability and Training

Subaru’s raw physical ability is only slightly above that of an ordinary athletic teenager at first.

He used to be in the kendo club in junior high, and he has enough courage and fighting instinct to beat up three small-time street thugs with his bare hands.

At the beginning, he has no outstanding combat technique or special physical talent.

However, after the events in the Sanctuary and one year of steady training, his physical abilities improve significantly and he becomes capable of handling a certain level of combat.

Later, he adopts a whip as his main weapon.

Through training with Beatrice, he refines his fighting style and learns to combine his weapon use with his unique magic.

Magic and Gate

Subaru has a slight affinity for yin-attribute magic, which allows him to use a darkness spell called “Shamak.”

This spell creates a field of darkness that obstructs vision and can disorient enemies.

However, his “gate,” the organ that controls the flow of mana in and out of his body, is unstable and difficult for him to control.

Because of this, he frequently suffers from mana exhaustion when using magic.

By the middle of the story, he manages to gain better control and can use his magic with fewer side effects.

But during a battle with Garfiel Tinsel, he overuses his gate and it becomes completely destroyed.

After his gate is ruined, Subaru can no longer use magic on his own at all.

On top of that, he cannot expel excess mana from his body, which would normally leave through his gate.

To survive this condition, he holds hands with Beatrice so that she can drain his surplus mana.

This arrangement allows both of them to use magic, effectively linking their magical functions together.

Authorities and Witch Factor

Subaru has an unusually strong compatibility with something called “Witch Factor.”

These are mysterious essences tied to the power of the Witches and the Sin Archbishops.

When he kills Petelgeuse Romanée-Conti, the Sin Archbishop of Sloth, Petelgeuse’s Witch Factor enters Subaru.

Later, when he kills Regulus Corneas, the Sin Archbishop of Greed, he absorbs Regulus’s Witch Factor as well.

Through this, Subaru gains access to two authorities.

From Sloth, he learns the authority of invisible hands originally known as “Unseen Hand,” which he later names “Invisible Providence.”

Invisible Providence lets him manipulate invisible hands that extend from his body, similar to Petelgeuse’s ability.

From Greed, he acquires an authority known as “Little King,” which he names “Cor Leonis.”

Cor Leonis links him to those who consider him their “king,” letting him share and coordinate the hearts and feelings of his allies.

However, overusing these authorities causes Subaru to suffer intense, piercing headaches.

Dragon Blood and Regeneration

During a battle in the water city of Priestella, Subaru fights Capella Emerada Lugunica.

In the fight, she drips dragon’s blood onto his injured right leg.

Because Crusch Karsten also has dragon’s blood on her body, Subaru touching her spreads its effect to him in a special way.

As a result, Subaru’s right side gains an extraordinary regenerative ability.

His right half can now heal from injuries at a frightening speed, making him much harder to disable physically.

This regeneration becomes another factor that keeps him alive in otherwise hopeless situations.

Resistance to Gluttony

The authority of “Gluttony,” wielded by certain Sin Archbishops, can devour other people’s names and memories.

Its victims are erased from the world’s memory and become essentially forgotten by everyone.

For reasons that remain mysterious, the effects of Gluttony do not affect Subaru at all.

He can still remember those who were devoured, including victims like those who suffered from the White Whale and the Sin Archbishop of Gluttony Lye Batenkaitos.

This makes Subaru a crucial witness for people who have lost their loved ones to Gluttony.

His memory becomes their only proof that those erased individuals ever existed.

Subaru’s one and only initially granted special ability is called “Return by Death.”

When he dies, time rewinds to a specific “save point,” letting him relive events and change the future.

He uses this terrifying power repeatedly to rescue those around him from tragic fates.

By dying and trying again, he slowly discovers the actions needed to avoid disaster.

However, Subaru is completely unable to tell anyone about Return by Death.

Whenever he attempts to describe it, a mysterious black hand grips his heart and subjects him to unbearable pain.

This invisible grip threatens to crush his heart if he continues talking.

The curse is so strict that even hinting at it in certain ways triggers the pain.

In one instance, when he tries to reveal Return by Death to Emilia despite the pain, the unseen power reacts in a different way.

Instead of Subaru, Emilia’s heart is crushed, killing her instantly in front of him.

Each use of Return by Death also thickens the special “witch scent” around Subaru.

This scent, associated with the Witch of Envy and other witches, becomes stronger with each loop.

Individuals who are sensitive to this smell, such as Rem and others, become suspicious and wary of Subaru when the scent grows stronger.

This creates serious misunderstandings and makes it even harder for him to earn trust, especially early on.

The combination of repeated traumatic deaths, isolation from his secret, and the fear of seeing loved ones die again puts a heavy psychological burden on Subaru.

Yet he continues to use Return by Death to protect Emilia, Rem, and everyone who has come to rely on him.

Emilia

Emilia is the girl who first saves Subaru right after he is summoned.

She helps him without any demand for reward, at a moment when he is lost and helpless.

Subaru falls in love with Emilia almost immediately and decides to devote himself to her well-being.

From that point on, protecting Emilia becomes his ultimate priority in the new world.

Even when she misunderstands or rejects him, he risks his life again and again to secure her safety and happiness.

His devotion to Emilia is one of the core driving forces of his character and choices.

Rem

Rem is another person who becomes incredibly important to Subaru.

She offers him unreserved love, admiration, and faith, even when he is at his weakest.

Subaru considers Rem the second most important person in his life, after Emilia.

Her earnest support gives him a reason to keep standing up and trying, even after traumatizing failures and deaths.

During his long and lonely struggle with Return by Death, Rem becomes his emotional lifeline.

Memories of her affection and trust help him endure despair that would break most people.

Arlam Village and Others

Subaru builds strong bonds with the residents of Arlam Village.

Because of his kind acts and playful nature, children such as Petra Leyte become very attached to him.

Over time, as he continues to risk himself for others, more people begin to trust and respect him.

Even those who are initially annoyed by his behavior come to see his reliability and stubborn kindness.

His partnership with Beatrice, especially after their mana-link, grows into a unique combat and emotional relationship.

Through repeated hardships, Subaru gathers a circle of allies who support him and, in many cases, treat him as their emotional center.

In the “Kono Light Novel ga Sugoi!” rankings, in the male character category, Subaru Natsuki achieved high popularity.

He ranked 4th in the 2017 edition and 7th in the 2018 edition, reflecting his strong impact on readers.