Chapter 1: The End of the Beginning

The rest of the Bartfort family's vacation was, thankfully, an uneventful affair.

While Claire had been kidnapped and subsequently rescued, the incident itself had gone unnoticed by the general public. Curiously, the victim of the incident herself did not bother to report what had happened. Claire had been left unconscious near a guard post by Leon to hide their involvement. But instead of reporting to the nearest authority, Claire decided to head directly back to the inn their family was staying. Leon was barely able to sneak back into his room before she burst through the door looking for him.

Even after experiencing a harsh scolding from their parents for staying out late, Claire never told anyone what had happened to her. Not to the authorities or their parents. The only signs of her ordeal were the marks across her wrist, and an increased clinginess around her family. Thanks to this, Claire had practically glued herself to Leon for the rest of the vacation even until their return back to the Bartfort Barony.

Burdened with the knowledge of what truly happened to her, Leon let his sister have this. At least he could also make sure nothing else happened to her, and thankfully nothing did. It also allowed him to put the final touches on a certain objective.

"Leon, you're burning the stew."

"Oh right," he resumed stirring the pot and added the next ingredient.

"You weren't paying attention again," admonished Claire. "Even if we're close to home, it's not good to be distracted. Especially when you go dungeon diving."

Leon wanted to retort but he supposed his sister had a point.

"Sorry, was used to Bro being around," he just scooped some of the stew into a bowl and handed Claire her portion. "You think he's at the Academy already?"

"He should be," his sister simply answered as she had some of her stew. "Hmm? Tastes different."

"Tried adding different herbs. Change of pace from the usual stuff."

Leon grabbed his own bowl but placed it beside him for now.

It was a tradition for the siblings to go camping. A byproduct of living in the boonies and having an adventurer culture in Holfort. First with their parents, then letting the older siblings supervise once they came of age. Which was practically when one became a teenager for this society's standards. Not that Leon minded. As a born city-boy in his past life, camping was still a novel experience and he enjoyed it. One of the few good things about being reborn in this Otome Game world.

"Finley'll be joining us after her next birthday," Claire brought up. "Make sure you pay attention to what she's doing."

"She's gonna learn from dad first you know. Then you before she even gets to me," argued Leon as he put his untouched meal on the ground. "I mean you're not starting school till next year."

"Right… school."

Claire looked down at her hands, or specifically to the one wrapped in bandages that traveled up her arm. The conversation died out as Claire returned to finish her meal, while Leon simply observed his sister's behavior. Once she was done eating, Claire simply held the empty bowl in her hands and watched the burning campfire. Leon remained quiet as his sister was seemingly lost in thought.

"Leon, I have to tell you something." Claire turned her gaze back to her brother.

"Yes?"

"I plan to-" Claire had tried to stand up, but seemingly lost her balance and sat back down.

Leon in turn, got up to slowly walked to his sister's side, and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"You alright, Sis?"

"I… I feel sleepy…" Claire could barely keep her eyes open. "All of a sudden…"

The bowl and utensil she was holding slipped from her fingers and fell to the ground.

"Why don't you rest first? You can tell me your plan afterwards."

"My plan…"

Claire tried to keep her eyes open but failed eventually. Leon gently caught her sister, making sure to keep her head in a comfortable position.

"Cid?" Leon whispered after a few seconds had passed.

The terminal of the AI shimmered into view.

"Readings indicate the medication has taken effect. Your sister is fully asleep."

Since Cid had revealed himself, it meant they didn't have anyone watching them. Now was the best time to execute this plan.

"Send a message to the others. We're curing my sister tonight."

Curing his sister of possession was relatively easy compared to sneaking her unconscious body to the hidden base. He'd make it up to her though for effectively drugging her meal; even if he tried to pass it off as medication. The procedure itself went smoothly as Leon had performed the cure at least seven times already. The only thing he didn't want to do was perform the final check on his sister's body. Even with Cid's tech, it still meant having to check every area of her skin for leftover signs of possession just in case. He had only done that once for Alpha but that was a combination of focus, exhaustion, and Alpha being a child that allowed Leon to stay professional that time. Subsequent times, he left that to Alpha and the others as more were cured.

Which is why Leon was patiently waiting inside the office space of the hideout. He called it an office space but it was really just the room where they stored all matters of documents and items as organized as they could. Leon was busying himself behind a table, trying to sort the rest of the information they retrieved from the Tournament Island Incident.

"Your tea, Master Leon."

A dark blue haired elf girl, dressed in the usual Shadow Garden uniform, placed a cup on the table.

"Thanks, Gamma," Leon took a sip to help calm his nerves. "Can you hand the last inventory list? It's over there."

"Right away!"

"Watch out for Eta-" The sound of a body hitting the floor echoed through the room. "-on the floor…"

While Gamma nursed her pain, said floor obstacle in the shape of a purple haired elven girl barely even registered the impact of the someone tripping over her. It was almost impressive how dedicated Eta was to her sleep.

Before Leon could ask about Gamma or berate Eta, there was a knock on the door before it opened.

"Forgive me, but we heard some noise- oh," Alpha entered and immediately saw the pile-up of Gamma and Eta on the floor.

Gamma weakly looked up from the floor and flashed a thumbs-up before collapsing again. Understanding, Alpha simply walked towards Leon, with an additional elven girl following her. Knowing what they were here for, Leon stood up from the desk and approached the two elven girls.

"How is she?"

Alpha gestured to the elf behind her, this one with light-blue hair done up in twintails to distinguish herself from the other elven girls in the room.

"Go ahead, Epsilon."

Said elf looked nervous at the attention on her but took a calming breath before reporting.

"Another perfect cure, Master Leon," praised Epsilon. "No signs of black spots on her skin. Even the growths on her arm have healed. Her other vital signs are within normal readings as well."

Leon gave a small sigh of relief; the tension finally escaping his body. Months of work and he had finally done it.

"Mmmm…" the figure of Eta had finally gotten up, albeit until a sitting position only. A notebook and pen were in her hands. "Cure complete?"

Alpha sighed for everyone. "Yes, Eta. Already finished. Gamma, can you please bring Eta to the lab for now? And make sure she stays there."

The once fallen elf got back on her feet and saluted the blond elf. "At once!"

Gamma grabbed Eta by a leg and proceeded to drag her unceremoniously out of the room. Eta didn't look too bothered by the treatment and simply continued writing in her notebook. Everyone else just watched the scene play out like it was normal. Which for this group, it was.

Alpha gently nudged Epsilon to resume her report.

"We gave Lady Claire the recovery medicine to be safe, but nothing bad happened. We also put her clothes back without any problems."

Not something Leon expected a report on but appreciated it nonetheless.

"Looks like an excellent job, you two. My sister owes you her thanks," as both Alpha and Epsilon assisted during the procedure. Much like surgical assistants, the elven girls participating in the cure made the procedure easier. "Since she can't give it herself, I'll give one in her stead."

Leon placed one hand on his chest and gave them an aristocratic bow. He may be part of a branchline of a barony out in the boonies, but he was still a proper aristocrat in this world. These kinds of lessons were still drilled into them even if they did do more menial chores with the common folk.

"It-it was no problem!" Epsilon stammered out as she tried to match a proper curtsy in response.

"Thank you for your praise, Master Leon," Alpha on the other hand, gave a graceful one as befitting an elf. "How should we proceed now?"

Alpha certainly wasted no time, seemingly focused on the next task to be done. Thankfully, Leon did have a plan, or at least a semblance of one. The details still needed to be workshopped.

"Epsilon, can you continue monitoring my sister for now?"

"At once, Master!" the twin-tailed elf eagerly left for her assignment.

Leon went back to his spot behind the desk and motioned for Alpha to take the seat across him. A Familiar scene when the two would plan for Shadow Garden's missions, and tonight wouldn't be too different.

"How did the others find the festival?" opened Leon.

Alpha was caught off guard by the topic but dutifully answered. "It was an amazing number of people in just one place. And so many different kinds of races in one place. There were so many things…"

Leon listened as Alpha described the general sense of wonder she and the other members of Shadow Garden experienced. It seemed they didn't have problems around lots of people, even as isolated as they were right now. While they had lives before being possessed, there was always a risk they would develop some unforeseen traumas.

"Glad everyone enjoyed the festival."

Leon knew the girls deserved some time to enjoy their new lease in life. Even if he was planning to use them as his agents, it was important to balance their welfare with their work. He had no intention of running a black company.

"Did we pass the test?" Alpha immediately threw out.

Leon let out a small sigh. While the trip was a way to give the Shadow Garden members a vacation of sorts, it did double as a test run on how they would be able to blend in with a populace without any issue. Sometimes Alpha was too perceptive in some ways. Thankfully, not enough to discern the truth behind the Cult of Diablos just yet.

"I know we failed to keep an eye on your family. And Lady Claire got kidnapped but-"

A raised hand from Leon cut off Alpha's words. He brought his hands together and leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table.

"Like I said in the forest, it wasn't your job to babysit my sis. She's practically an adult when she goes to school next year," hopefully the incident would instill more caution into his sister. "But you're correct. The trip was a way to see if Shadow Garden was ready."

Considering how well the rest of Shadow Garden performed during the kidnapping attempt, it seemed they were even more capable than Leon had expected.

"Then…" Alpha started but felt nervous to continue.

Leon brought his hands on the table, fingers going over the documents on the table. A picture of the symbol the Forest of Ladies used as suicide brands. A reading of the scans of the residue left in the pill pouch from Viscount Grease. A transcription from the latest eavesdrop meeting from his father's office. Information that affected his plans.

"If basing it on previous assumptions, then yes, you all passed," the elven girl visibly lit up at the news. "But you saw how dangerous it was compared to just fighting bandits here."

"This is what we trained for," Alpha stated without a hint of hesitation. "What we all swore to do. I can speak for the rest, we remain committed to your cause, Master Leon."

Sometimes Leon didn't know whether to be proud or guilty regarding Alpha's loyalty. Right now, he'd settle for grateful as he gave an approving nod to her response.

"The plan was to give it another year to prepare everything for your departure. But we might need to move our timetable forward…"

With all those complicit in the kidnapping of Claire perished, the loss of said personnel would put the any group on high alert. While there hadn't been any follow-up attempts, Leon wasn't completely sure if Claire was completely safe. Recent activity to and from the barony hadn't shown any signs of the Forest of LAdies making moves against Leon's family in response to the incident. At best, it meant that Viscount's group had acted independently, unable to inform other members before Shadow Garden thwarted their plans. Hopefully, it would mean that no one could connect the incident to the Bartfort Barony.

However, Leon could only speculate what the Forest of Ladies truly knew or didn't. The need to gather intelligence on the group only grew more urgent. Upcoming events were also seeking to expedite their plans as well.

Based on the latest argument he heard from his father's office, the Mistress had authorized an inspection of the territory. Nothing unusual, if not expected, for a ruling aristocracy to do; the use of inspectors from outside the territory was unorthodox however. The barony hadn't broken any laws nor had any late payments recently, which was often the cause to bring such personnel from outside. Still, the Mistress had demanded Leon's father capitulate lest she report them lacking in their obligations to the capital.

Further eavesdropping on the private conversations between the Mistress and step-siblings had revealed that they too weren't in perfect agreement on the matter. Apparently, they were pressured by their beloved organization to conduct the inspection. They were unaware of the reason for it, only that they were told that it was a matter of great importance for the Forest of Ladies. It was a matter they could not refuse.

Whether it was due to the outcome of Clair's kidnapping or just activities in the barony finally catching their attention, scrutiny around the barony was going to be intense for the foreseeable future. It was time to move Shadow Garden activities abroad, so to speak.

"If I may, Master Leon," Alpha stood up from her chair and pulled out a folder from one of the many stacks around the room. She handed the folder to Leon before sitting back down. "This is a suggested action plan for Shadow Garden to investigate the Diablos Cult. How to proceed, and a list of the items we may need. If you can please look over it and give your opinion."

Curious, Leon opened the folder and skimmed through the plan. It was a rather impressively done report, even better than some submitted by his coworkers in his old life. Definitely better than anything Leon could do when he was Alpha's age the first time. If there was any real concern, it was how ambitious the plan was for a bunch of preteens. Just setting up a base in an unknown area alone would already be a monumental undertaking. Unlike before, Leon wouldn't be able to provide any assistance from the Bartfort Barony.

If it wasn't for the added pressure, maybe Leon would have considered a more conservative approach. Or even reconsider using the young demi-humans for his own goals. But the kidnapping suppressed any lingering hesitation. For the sake of his and his family's future, Leon would continue with his shadow war.

"It looks promising, and we can talk about the details more later," Leon handed the folder back to a pleased Alpha. "For now, we need to return back to camp before my sister wakes-up. Or someone tries to check up on us."

Back at camp the next morning, Leon woke up before his sister. A rare occurrence but to be expected as Claire had just gone through the taxing curing procedure. He took advantage of the tranquil morning and basked in the calming nature. He was finally able to cross out one of the objectives he had started years ago. While there was more work to be done, there was one less to worry about.

As he tended the newly lit campfire, Leon heard violent movement coming from the tent. He was approaching the tent to check on his sister when he heard Claire speak.

"It's gone?!" her tone in quiet disbelief. She had likely seen the state of her unbandaged arm which Leon didn't bother to replace.

A stretch of silence started to worry Leon. He was about to enter the tent, when he heard the sounds of sobbing and sniffling. Understanding, Leon quietly turned back and left to give his sister her space. Maybe some cooked forest game would cheer her up.

The next few months passed by unremarkably. Except for that one incident where Finley was caught sneaking out at night during her birthday. It made Leon's own escapades harder for a few days. Thankfully, it had little impact in the preparations for Shadow Garden's eventual departure.

Today was that day.

In a few hours, the first airship from the barony would leave for the central parts of the Holfort Kingdom. Before it did, Shadow Garden assembled at the ruins they had been using as their base of operations. They had chosen to gather atop the remains of what used to be a rampart, the highest point of view of the base.

In the distance, Leon could easily see the port area from this height. The skies were clear this morning and the forecast said it would stay that way. The best conditions for anyone planning to travel.

"Master Shadow."

Leon turned around to face the Alpha calling for him. Surrounding her were the other members of Shadow Garden. Instead of the usual black uniform, they were wearing commoner clothing. It would allow them to blend easily with the populace. They might attract some attention as a group of young female demi-humans, but they had already proven they could take care of themselves.

"The time has come for us to leave your side," Alpha said wistfully.

The others sport similar forlorn expressions, unable to meet his gaze except for Alpha herself. Leon felt their pain but dove deep into his adulthood experience to push through. It seemed harsh now but this was the best for everyone. Is what he told himself.

"Take care, everyone," Leon gave a comforting smile and nodded to the group. "I'm counting on you."

The girls perked-up just a bit at his words. Especially visible for Delta and Zeta; their therianthrope features reminded Leon of his pets in his old life.

"Good-bye."

Alpha's final farewell signaled their departure.

Leon remained atop the rampart, as the rest of Shadow Garden walked down the stairs, disappearing from view. He let the time pass as the cool breeze washed over him. After a while, he walked down the same stairs and only saw empty ruins before him. All signs of Shadow Garden had been erased, leaving no traces of their organization to be uncovered.

Well, almost all traces. There was one last piece of evidence Leon had to take care of.

Nestled in another spot not too far from the ruins itself was a structure that stood out of place. Not only because it was built in the woods, but its construction style was very unique. For this world at least. Like most popular Otome Games, this world's architecture leaned towards a medieval European style. The structure before Leon could only be described as a modern Japanese city house.

As Shadow Garden members grew rapidly starting with Alpha, by the time they reached Delta, Leon figured they really needed proper housing to stay in. Blame it on nostalgia, a whim, or the demi-human's own curiosity, the design they had settled on was the typical two-story home any slice-of-life family would be jealous of. Even after the addition all the way to Eta, there was more than enough room for everyone.

"I'm home…" Leon reflexively greeted as he entered the front door.

However, there was no one to greet him back. A first, Leon reflected, as the place was never without at least one member of Shadow Garden. By now he would hear people talking or moving about the house. Only silence greeted him this time.

"Shadow Garden has successfully departed from the island, Master," an orb floated into his view.

The AI broke Leon from his cogitation. He didn't realize how long he had been lost in thought, still standing at the entrance way. Instead of going further in, Leon turned around and headed back outside. Unfortunately, covering Shadow Gardens tracks meant having to tear down the structure. An obvious necessity but still an upsetting one all things considered.

Which is why Leon assigned himself this task. At the very least, he could comfort himself that they could just rebuild it one day. Assuming the demi-humans would still want to return.

The thought caused Leon to sigh and shake his head. He was definitely too young to be experiencing empty nest syndrome.

"Time to get to work."

His plans were just getting started.

A/N: Hopefully my plans don't end too soon. Finally finished with the more Eminence in Shadow Arc. There should be one more chapter before the story heads to the academy. It should be based on the Seven Shadow Chronicles plus an original arc based on Trapped in a Dating Sim. That's all I can really say for now.

Special thanks to those still leaving reviews no matter how simple.