Chapter 63: The Sudden Retreat

It's been a few hours since I started fighti—toying with these girls. They are good partners for testing out my new powers, unlike Mordred.

His arrogance isn't what pisses me off, it's how good he is at villainous monologues. Even as I toyed with him, he continues monologuing, trying to steal the show from me. That's why I had to interrupt him a few times. Now I've sent him running like the rat that he is. That's what you get for stealing my thunder.

Out of all of them, Zeta is the most skilled and adaptable, capable of blocking many of my unpredictable shapeshifting attacks.

It's been fun but I must soon wrap this up. The effects of the temporary vampirism will run out soon.

Still, how should I exit the stage? I must do it in the most dramatic way possible. Perhaps around sunrise? No. Unfortunately there is still few more hours away before morning.

I also wouldn't want to kill them all because I at least want someone to tell the tale—Wait. One of them has already escaped. Which means it's safe to just kill them all. Even the beastkin Zeta.

"Haaaa!"

"Dieee!"

Shouted the pair of blonde haired spear wielding elf and the dark skinned axe wielding half elf as they attacks me from front and behind. Nice pincer attack, I must say. However…

"Aghh!"

"Uaaghhh!"

I wrapped myself with my cape and created several sickles out of my cape and started spinning myself.

They cannot properly react to such chaotic movements and as a result, they weren't able to block all sickle blades and were cut in several places.

Oh? The pink haired one attacks me. Her face looks familiar.

"Die!" She shouted as she swings her sword at my exposed head from above. I dodged her strike, only to find the beastkin Zeta within my trajectory, ready to strike me from behind.

She wordlessly bisected me with an uppercut, only for my body to reattach itself in seconds.

"Tch! How troublesome!" She said. Her plan to stab my heart after bisecting me failed due to how fast my regeneration is.

I retaliated by clawing her, giving her a huge gash on her back.

"Ughh!" She grunted in pain as she fell to the floor, but not before sending a spike from her heels, which almost stabbed my heart if I didn't dodge it. How versatile their slime equipment is.

Due to the nature of the imperfect vampirism that I gave myself, I ended up having the same weakness as normal vampires of this world even though normally my regeneration should be able to handle even wounds on my heart. How dangerous.

"Lady Zeta!" The pink haired one shouted. Now I remember. She's the former Saint Victoria, or as I'd like to call her, Experiment No. 046. It's been a long time since I saw her. I knew she has joined Shadow Garden. I'd like to taunt her but that would reveal my identity as the Necromancer. I'll just save some monologues for later.

"Aghh!" She grunted as I impale her stomach with a spike coming from my cape.

"Not yet!" With her stomach still impaled, she swings her sword at my neck, decapitating me.

But of course, it's useless because I reattached my head quickly enough.

I threw her to the wall after reattaching my head.

"Hm. I am feeling thirsty after all that exercise." I tauntingly said as I snapped my fingers and fresh blood flows from their wounds towards me.

"No.. way…!?" Zeta murmurs as she felt her life blood leaving her through the wounds I inflicted, heading straight to my mouth.

"The Blood is the Life." I said as the blood reaches my mouth.

But as I began to drink, I was interrupted by a magical slash which bisected me.

"Has that coward Mordred returned? No… He's not strong enough to…" I said as I reattached my body and turned back to see… a familiar face.

"You're…!?" I murmured with wide eyes as I recognize her as Silon, the pianist that I suspected is a reincarnator like me and Shadow. While I haven't met her in person before, I've seen her face on newspapers so there's no mistake. So she is a member of Shadow Garden!

"You shall not harm my friends again!" She declared with a grim expression while brandishing her blade.

Tch. Her magic power is almost as formidable as Zeta so I assume she is one of the Seven Shades. However, being a reincarnator makes her more dangerous than Zeta. Who knows what tricks she has up her sleeve? I know that me and Shadow have plenty. Why not her?

Because my temporary vampirism is almost spent, I decided to retreat.

"You… I shall make you mine one day…" I said to her as I retreated to the shadows and disappeared.

"One day…." My voice still echoes around the hall even as I already merged with the shadows and left the building, leaving them flabbergasted.

"What just… happened?" Epsilon said in confusion as the enemy retreated as soon as she arrived.

""Lady Epsilon!"" Shouted both Chi and Omega.

"Are you both okay?" Epsilon asked, noticing their bodies riddled with multiple gashes.

"We'll be fine. Lady Zeta though." Chi answered while pointing at Zeta.

"I'll be fine as well. I won't die from this much wound." Said Zeta as she stood back up despite the large gash on her back which she covered with slime in order to prevent further bleeding.

"And 559?" Epsilon asked Zeta.

"I'm here… Ughh…" 559 answered while clutching the large hole in her stomach. She almost collapsed before Chi caught her.

"What happened? Why did he retreat?" Asked Epsilon, not knowing what could've caused the vampire to escape when he clearly had the upper hand over them that she doubt her presence could make a difference.

"I don't understand myself… But before 559, Chi and Omega arrived… Mordred was here." Answered Zeta.

"Mordred!?" Exclaimed Epsilon.

"Yeah. He taunted me by showing strands of your hair. How did a weakling like him hurt you that much?" Zeta said.

"I-I was ambushed, alright!? If it was a fair fight, I wouldn't lose!" Epsilon said defensively.

"Okay okay. Calm down."

"But that's not why you brought up Mordred, isn't it?" Epsilon asked. Her defensive tone no longer there.

"Yeah… I noticed that the vampire Alucard… has a strange reaction when he saw your hair in Mordred's hand, Epsilon." Zeta explained as she recalled Alucard's reaction to Mordred's taunts that weren't even directed at him.

"I saw him frowning when Mordred taunted me using strands of your hair, when Mordred said he have captured you." Zeta continued.

"Alucard was… angry?" Epsilon said.

"Probably. In fact he retreated because of you. He's somehow… reluctant to fight you. And… you heard his declaration, right?" Zeta explained.

"That he… wants to make me his…?" Epsilon murmured confusedly.

"Epsilon. Have you met him before?" Zeta asked.

"No. I don't think so. I could at least remember the faces of my audience but… I'm confident that I never met him." Epsilon answered without hesitation.

"Whatever the case… it seems that he has taken a liking to you." Zeta teased.

"What!? No! What a creep! I belong to Lord Shadow only!" Exclaimed Epsilon angrily.

"Ha ha ha. Just be careful and don't let yourself fall for his charms alright?" Zeta teased.

"Impossible! There no way-" Epsilon said before being cut.

"Remember that he has the power to control people's minds… like Necromancer." Zeta said in a serious tone, in contrast to her previous teasing.

"Yes… that's right… Even Mordred confirmed that Perv Asshat was controlled by him." Epsilon said, regaining her serious tone as well.

"Anyway, let's go back to the base. I have a huge story to report. Where's Lady Alpha?" Zeta said.

"Last I checked, she is still staying in Alexandria… Though I don't know why." Epsilon answered.

"Ah… so she's doing it." Zeta murmured.

"Doing what?" Epsilon asked.

"Training with the Mist Dragon. You read the reports from Beta, right?" Zeta said.

"Yes… that Necromancer also have a dragon at his disposal." Epsilon answered with a grim expression.

"After Lord Shadow was defeated by Necromancer in Midgar, Alpha said she plans on training with the dragon and invited me to join. I declined back then because I still have assignments in Oriana. But looking at our current level of skills… it seems that we should train with the dragon. Because there are more threats than just Necromancer and that Alucard… plenty of more monsters out there." Zeta explained. The revelation shocked Epsilon, 559, Chi and Omega.

"What do you mean?" Epsilon asked.

"I'll give a detailed report later… Let's go back." Zeta tiredly said as she walked towards the corpses of 624 and 625.

"Lady Zeta. Please allow us to-" Omega said before being cut.

"No… This is my fault. My burden." Zeta tiredly said as she began carrying the two corpses with her own hands despite her wounds.

"So this… is how Lady Alpha felt back then…" Murmured Zeta with tears falling down her eyes as she recalled Alpha's defeated expression when she arrived while carrying the corpses of her subordinates to Alexandria a few years back.

That is not the only casualty that Shadow Garden suffered of course. With the Cult armed with the Necromancer's Artifacts, some Shadow Garden members met their ends while on missions. But this is the first time Zeta lost people under her command because she mostly acted alone.

It is Shadow Garden's policy to take back the bodies of their fallen comrades home, not just to prevent the Cult from experimenting with them but also to prevent the Necromancer from defiling their corpses with his vile magic.

"Zeta…" Epsilon murmured with pity as she recalled the same memory.

559, Chi and Omega also watched with pity and understanding despite not having the full context.

All those monsters… And Lord Shadow is the only one who can fight them… because we are too weak… I must proceed with the plan. Even if the other Shades would despise me for it. As long as it ensures Lord Shadow's victory…! Thought Zeta while gritting her teeth as she walked out of the temple with her comrades in tow.

Author's Note:

That ends the Alucard arc. The vampire arc still continues though. A classic Eminence in Shadow misunderstanding happens in this chapter. I wonder how it will go from here.

Wholesome07: So is Cid(Shadow) gonna save(by passing by) her fellow Gardens?

Answer: I was about to write Cid stumbling upon them by accident on his way to Lawless City because he got lost on the way but as I write the Epsilon part, I have another idea to make things less predictable, which you see in this chapter.