A/N: I had fun writing the persona thing last week, but it looks like almost no one read it, so that kinda sucks. Oh well, I still had fun. As for now, I'm going to go ahead and continue with this story.
Speaking of, I'm going to blaze through a couple of things here because of the fact that not a lot from Mobuseka volume 4 is really important in my eyes. I also do need to change a bit to have some more Eminence in Shadow things appear. Speaking of, slight spoilers, but I'm going to start up Cid's side story again this chapter.
Some characterizations may be incorrect during, but lame the eminence in shadow group for releasing everything so slowly.
Leon Fou [now Rapha] Barfort: Renowned adventurer and current crown prince. / previously: Hiro (pre:isekai)—Lea of Bart's Fort (The true founder of Holfort and lover to the Saintess Ann and Mary)—JOU_MOU_ (someone who used to work in Luxion's facility.)
Angelica Rapha Redgrave: Daughter of Duke Redgrave and ex-fiancé to Julius/ Previously: Ann of Bart's Fort (aka Saintess Ann and lover of Lea of Bart's fort). / Also goes by Angie to close friends and loved ones. Currently Pregnant.
Olivia: Commoner from the Kagenou Barony. / previously: Mary, lover and companion to Ann and Lea. When they had returned from their adventures in ancient Midgar, all three had been attacked by the founding heirs as they all wanted Ann. To save Lea and Ann from such a fate, she teleported them away, and swapped bodies with Ann. / Is also known as Livia by her close friends and loved ones. Currently Pregnant.
Cid Kagenou: fiancé to several famous elves but just a regular mob you'd find anywhere / previously: Minoru Kagenou boy from Earth that would be transported to the ancient times of the current before dying at the hands of his friends due to becoming demonically possessed out of grief. / Also dons the secret identity of "Lord Shadow." Leader and founder of The Shadow Garden. / Mundane Mann, a pathetic looking sword wielder that disappeared many years ago and has returned for the Bushin festival. / Kageno of Mitsugoshi, after an argument with his parents, Cid decides to go by Kageno for a while. / Herlock Sholmes. During the trial of Leon v Holfort, Cid disguised himself as the famous detective.
Alice [Kagenou: Cid's personal elf servant, lover, and childhood friend / previously: Beatrice (this is non canon, but all of Shadow Garden had identities before joining so I made a name up for her.) / Dons the secret identity of "Alpha" or "Lady Shade." Co-leader and second founder of The Shadow Garden, first of the Seven Shades. The name "Alpha" is only used by those in Shadow Garden. Currently Pregnant.
Other Shadow Garden Members: All of the seven shades have secret identities. They see their Shadow Garden names as their true names and will use that in their own thoughts. But to everyone not in Shadow Garden that sees them as their secret identities will use those names.
Beta: Natsume Kafka, renowned writer.
Gamma: Luna of Mitsugoshi, owner of said store and many others, richest Woman in the world. Xianyun, Sword master of the far eastern kingdoms. Currently Pregnant.
Delta: Sara, certified good girl.
Epsilon: Shiron, amazing musician known internationally.
Zeta: Zetan. Previously known as Lilim, named after the therianthrope hero, Lili.
Eta: Goes by Eta Lloyd Wright, renowned Architect.
Charlie: Known previously as Carla Fou Wayne.
Aurora: Called Violet by Cid, and now camps out in his soul/brain. Known as the Witch of Calamity, and the Demon Diabolos.
Other People:
Claire Kagenou: Cid's older sister and one of Leon's fiancés. Going by Nonna during her time in Alzer.
Deidre Fou Roseblade: The stereotypical haughty Ojou-Sama. One of Leon's fiancés. Going by Rogue during her time in Alzer.
Rose Oriana: Princess of Oriana. Probably the only person besides Aurora that knows Cid thinks everything is part of a game. Going by Luci in Alzer. Number 666 in The Shadow Garden.
Disclaimer: I don't own Trapped in a Dating Sim: The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs nor The Eminence in Shadow. The only Beta reader here is the elf.
-P2W-
Although the new invention of the body doubles had allowed Angelica and Olivia to attend school, there was the issue of them being 1. The official fiancés of the current Crown Prince, who—in case anyone forgot—had all but waged a bloody revolution/coup and changed the country by force. Not to mention had saved everyone when the school had been destroyed. 2. The "two halves of the Saintess." This meant that they were constantly…
"Make way for the Saintess!"
"Make way!"
"Are you staring at the Saintess with lust?! Do you want to piss of the guy who fought the black knight?!"
Angelica and Olivia could only chuckle a bit as they saw that some of the new transfer students were having their eyes poked roughly by the others and then beaten down.
"No killing" shouted Olivia, who received a thumbs up in response.
"As the kind half of the Saintess commands!"
Olivia and Angelica could only sigh as their day continued in the same way. Olivia in particular couldn't believe that this is what her life could be from this point forward. It wasn't until later that they met with Clarice on The Licorne again that things were properly explained to them from another more normal point of view.
"Turns out that all the changes that came across thanks to hubby's actions are really hard to adjust to for everyone. The girls had all their slaves leave for opportunities with Mitsugoshi and their private army, meaning they now have to do everything on their own. Even human servants aren't allowed." Clarice informed them over tea.
"Well that explains the girls," acknowledged Angelica, "but what of the men and their… worship?"
Clarice shrugged, "Things are shifting in their favor, and they don't want to have that taken away I guess. Remember, everything is thanks to Hubby and Cid's actions, and—according to Dan—men generally know better than to hurt another man's loved ones. So, they're all making sure that no one even looks at you two funny." Clarice then takes a sip of her tea and then frowns. "*sigh* It's just not the same…"
Angelica and Olivia could only nod in agreement.
"Sorry miss Cordelia, Nana, but It's weird going back to someone else's tea when Leon used to make it for us whenever we wanted." Said Olivia who stirred the spoon in her cup.
Cordelia Fou Easton is the loyal head maid of the Redgrave Household. She has short black hair and has sharp eyeglasses on her black eyes. She is wearing a Victorian style maid outfit which shows her curves and waist so fit. In light of Angelica's pregnancy she had been assigned to watch over her and Olivia.
Nana Fia Elgar is Dan Fia Elgar's wife and Clarice's follower. Although she had dropped out shortly after her marriage to Dan thanks to not enjoying her time there, she has since come back to accompany Clarice in Leon's absence.
(I suppose that even though Master had been kind enough to share his recipes, it lacks that most important ingredient.)
"Love?" asked Nana.
(I was going to say the crushing expectation of society to not hurt your lover's feelings by saying they did a bad job, but I like your answer more.)
Everyone just shook their heads at Cleare.
(You're all so mean! Just for that I'm not going to tell you about the experiments I've been doing, hmph!)
"…Cleare…" said Angelica with a suspicious glare, "What did you do?"
(Oh? Is it time to clean The Licorne? I think it is)
Like a dog with something in its mouth Cleare began to retreat.
"What did you do!?" roared Angelica as she began to run after Cleare.
(I didn't kill anyone!)
"WHAT DID YOU DO!? CLEARE!"
-Leon-
After exiting a class with an extremely buff but also extremely effeminate man, I found myself talking to Noelle again. It's strange to say but she's even more tomboy-ish than Claire. For example, to talk to me Noelle had sat backwards on a chair with her arms crossed over the back. I didn't look down, but I know that she's wearing a skirt, and I know that's not an ideal way to sit if you're wearing one.
Claire wouldn't ever sit down like that, heck I don't think I've even seen Claire not sit like the other noble girls unless she was super tired from training. Though if what Cid told me about their mother is to be believed then Claire had it beaten into her.
"Your notes are better than mine…" noted Noelle.
I suppose they were, but it was more thanks to Luxion helping me consolidate the information from classes rather than me doing things on my own. "Thanks, but even if it looks good I might still have to ask for your help. So it's good to know you're still checking up on me."
"Just doing my job!" chirped Noelle. "Hey, I was going to go out with Marie and the other girls—"
"I'm not carrying your stuff." I shot down the clear setup Noelle was trying to build.
"Aw, that obvious?" asked Noelle.
I shrugged, "Eh, I just saw the signs. Sides, Jean said he was going to introduce me to the better Noelle today."
Noelle slaps me on the shoulder with a big smile, her face essentially the XD emoji, "Hey! I know she's the goodest girl to exist but you don't need to say it to my face!"
This Noelle and I were of course discussing Jean's 17-year-old dog who also was named Noelle. Apparently, Noelle was the reason that Jean and Noelle the Human were friends.
I laugh off Noelle's ministrations and take a look outside. "It does look nice out, it'd be a shame to spend it all while carrying some boxes or something."
Noelle gasps, "Sorry, are you trying to ask me on a date? I'm not that easy so I'm going to have to decline."
I rolled my eyes and shove her chair back. I don't even bother explaining that I have about 7 fiancés already. I'll admit that based on appearances, that being that Noelle looked like a party girl/gyaru, I'd thought she was the type to casually date. Frankly I'd be more at ease if she were given that she might be the protagonist. We need her to get a date probably.
"I figured you'd be dating someone given how cute you are, "I said as I start putting away my stuff. Noelle coughs so I offer a lozenge from my bag. She waves that she's fine, but given she coughed so hard that her face turned red I forced it into her hand. "Anyway, is there anyone besides Jean that you're talking to?"
"I mean I do want a boyfriend" said Noelle, "But there's a big obstacle in the way"
"Obstacle? You mean the princess of House Rault you mentioned?"
"Yep, And there's one more. A prince… oh and I guess because it made Jean nervous, I should try and mention that House Rault is made of vampires but not every house is, like the one of that 'prince' that's bothering me."
Vampires huh?
Something I'd learned since coming here was that each of the Six Great Houses ruled their territory like royalty. The house leaders (or kings, as they saw themselves) were united by The Sacred Tree, providing the foundations of the Alzer Republic as we knew it. Unlike in Holfort, that meant each house had a different middle name. Honestly? It seemed like a bothersome setup.
"Anyway, that guy's name is Loic." Said Noelle. "He's got some strange ideas about me, and I don't really care for him. He keeps telling everyone he's my boyfriend, but I refuse to acknowledge it." She paused for a moment. "Actually, he was a pretty okay guy before this all started."
She looked depressed, so I patted her head as I started to think. I mean, Loic was one of the canon love interests, if Noelle hates him then we can already consider that one route demolished.
Also, that just seemed kinda creepy. "Are you okay?"
"I'll be fine." Noelle said. I took my hand off her head. "But I could use a bit more praise."
I put both hands on her head and messed up her hair.
-Eta-
Push*
roll-roll-roll*
Push*
roll-roll-roll*
"It's… quiet…" I whisper out loud.
I've long since claimed that I needed no distractions during my research. That I needed to be left to my own devices so that I can achieve greatness.
But…
push*
roll-roll-roll*
It's too quiet now.
All of my subordinates have been let go.
When this was first reported to me, I immediately questioned Cid, figuring that Alpha was trying to get me to 'shape-up' or whatever it is she says all the time. But no, apparently, he was the one to let them go.
Something about their role being over.
push*
roll-roll-roll—tick*
Ah, the pencil fell onto the floor.
"Lady Eta?" called out a voice from my lab's entrance.
I use my slime to turn me around and saw not one of my precious subordinates but one of Epsilon's.
"Tsk." I use my slime to form a giant hand and try to force the lab door shut. Epsilon can't even be bothered to comfort me directly, instead sending her subordinate. I thought I was your favorite little sister!
"Wait-wait-wait! I have a letter!" shouted Kai.
I stop the hand. "From who?"
"Your subordinates." Answered Kai with a smile.
I form two more hands, two that pick her up and take her out and one that grabs the letter.
"Thanks… I guess…" I say as I have the slime shut the door behind her.
Opening up the envelope I see that Foxtrot, Yankee, and Carla all wrote to me.
There's a lot that they said, I made sure to read the letters over and over again.
After some time I looked outside my room and saw some of the maids that Epsilon trained standing there. "Hey… you…"
"Yes Lady Eta?" asked the numbers.
"Find me some picture frames… and then… take me to Mitsugoshi…" I said. I then held up the helmet left behind. "And bring me a box… to hold this in…"
-Leon-
During lunch, I met with Marie, and she seemed to find a bunch of worrying things on her end.
Apparently, Leila was the only one on a route, as all the others were basically closed off by now. If Noelle was the protagonist the only hope we had left was Serge, who Luxion hadn't been able to find.
I didn't even have the pleasure of laughing at Marie, because apparently the five boys she calls her lovers were threatening to eat her and the others out of house and home. Cid and Natsume mostly keep to themselves, so Carla and Hertrauda are the only help they get around the house otherwise.
After school, Noelle and I reunited with Claire and Deirdre on our way home. As the girls exchanged pleasantries I took in our surroundings.
The neighborhood people in the lower class stayed in was a lot like Japan in the early 1900s. Which was strange since the uniforms we wore to Alzer's school were a lot more like modern Japanese uniforms, or at least how anime thought they look. Which, again, feels weird but the mental dissonance is easy enough to overcome.
The tram arrived and we all piled on. It reminded me a bit of my commute way back when. It's kind of nostalgic.
"Hiro, is there something bothering you?" asked Noelle.
I looked and saw that the girls were shooting me worried looks.
"Oh, no. I'm fine, it's just…" how do I explain that my past life is causing me some heartache in front of Noelle? Uh… "Something about the trams gives me this weird sense of déjà vu."
"Oh? But I thought that you guys used airships to get around in Holfort. You even said you owned one Hiro." Said Noelle. Behind her Claire and Deirdre shot me looks of understanding.
"Yeah… he, do you want to take a ride on it sometime? You've never been on one right?" I asked.
I was just trying to be friendly, but Noelle put her guard up and wrapped her arms around herself.
"Are you hitting on me? I thought I said I wasn't that easy." Noelle squirmed a bit with a mischievous smile, clearly trying to poke fun at me.
"That's not what I was trying to do," I said. Claire and Deirdre shot me looks that said they didn't believe me. "Seriously I'm just being friendly!"
"Aw…" said Noelle with a fake pout as she hit my shoulder again, "and here I was hoping you were asking me out. Unfortunately, I'm pretty busy so I'm going to have to decline."
"It looks like your plans to woo the locals isn't going as well as you hoped dear?" taunted Deirdre.
"What do you mean plans? I don't have any plans for anything like that!" I shot back.
"Hmm…" said Claire as she raised a brow, "So you say…"
"Because it's the truth!" I yelled.
"Eh? Are you one of those 'passport bros' my sister was warning me about Hiro?" joked Noelle.
I was going to keep up the meaningless debate that I hoped none of us were taking seriously, but a chill suddenly ran down my spine.
"Ugh, it's her." Said Noelle.
I slowly turned my head.
"Hiro…?" said a voice. A voice that I somehow could remember. A voice that despite the new accent, and the new body, I could still remember who it belonged to. "Baltre, did you just say Hiro? Hiro? Hiro is that you?"
I grabbed Claire and Deirdre's hands. "We're leaving."
"But the tram's still moving!" Noelle said worriedly.
"See you tomorrow!" I said before I chanted sukukaja and had the three of us jump off and run as hard as I could.
Despite the fact that we crossed several streets, I still heard… her yelling behind me.
"Hiro!? Wait! Stop! Hiro!"
It took about 30 minutes of running before we actually got away.
"Leon…" said Claire as we took a rest in a park we fled to. "Why… why did we run?"
"I recognize that woman as the daughter of House Rault. But… that wasn't all there was to it, was it?" asked Deirdre who patted my back.
I swallowed the spit in my mouth as I tried to formulate an answer.
We sat in silence for a bit.
I look up at the two.
"You know you can trust us… right?" asked Claire.
I smiled.
"Right." I sighed and then leaned back. "I think… I think that Louise Sara Rault is my ex."
"Your ex? But I thought that Livia and Angie were…" Claire trailed off before she remembered what I told her about my past life. That I had an ex who I was planning on marrying, but she had left me due to the rumors of me being gay. She never heard me out, just wished me happiness and I never saw her again. Claire took out a knife.
"What are you going to do with that?" I asked.
"I just want to talk to her."
"Claire no."
"I just want to talk to her."
"We don't even know it's her! It just felt like she was!"
Deirdre joined in by taking out her own dagger, "You could tell by feeling, and she reacted to your name."
"Both of you, stop!" I cried as I held onto their jackets. "We can't afford to cause a huge scene right now!"
And as though some god, perhaps Murphy behind his law, heard me, the sky was coated in a familiar array of ultraviolet strings.
"He's here."
-P2W-
While Leon and the girls were in the park, Brad found himself in a particular situation. While heading towards the back of the school out of curiosity, he had seen the friend Leon had made during the last couple of days at the academy. What's concerning is that said boy was being picked on by others.
Not wanting to overlook such a thing, if mostly due to Marie telling the boys in the past that she hated nobles who acted like they could do whatever they wanted thanks to their status, Brad stepped in.
"Well now, I didn't realize that the local nobility was no better than some of the pirates back home." Said Brad.
"Pirates? You really think you can call us lesser than you, you third rate noble? You sure are pretentious." Responded a similarly purple haired man. This was Pierre Io Feivel, someone who when he decides he doesn't like someone, he gets rid of them.
Leon and Marie were aware of him, given that he was essentially the first boss in the game. Pierre was your classic aristocratic villain. He went after the protagonist and prompted the love interest to rescue her. After that, the two of them confessed their love. Pierre was nothing more than a plot device.
Brad sighed. "Seems you Alzerian nobles are even more belligerent than the rumors led me to believe. I am of the aristocracy as well, you understand. You may hail from one of the Six Great Houses, but don't dare start something with me. You'll bring international scandal on your head."
Pierre's lackeys cackled, fully aware of what they were getting into.
For himself, Pierre quirked a brow, his right eye bulging with manic intensity. "How entertaining. You should be honored, then. I'll be dealing with you myself."
"You sure are confident." Replied Brad. He looked behind him and tossed Jean a healing potion. "Take that and get out of here. Find Leon if you feel unsafe, he's even stronger than me."
Jean nodded and felt his wounds go away enough for him to run as he drank the potion. He then dashed off, although no one was paying attention to him anymore.
"Ignore the runt! Get the fop boys!" shouted Pierre.
Brad glanced from one side to the other. Pierre's flunkies charged, swinging wooden swords.
"Take this!"
Brad sidestepped and smoothly shoved his opponents, sending them stumbling.
"You bastard!" one of them spat, scrambling back to his feet.
Brad sighed inwardly. Are these guys serious? They're not playing around, are they?
The nobles of Holfort were descended from adventurers, and it was customary for students at the academy to dive into the capital's dungeon to beef up their skills. Brad wasn't the type to duke it out on the front lines, but he was still far stronger than anyone in Pierre's gang.
"Try this on for size!"
Another boy came charging from behind, and Brad slammed his knee into the boy's stomach—swiping the wooden sword out of his hands. As the fight continued, Brad continued to beat off anyone who came for him.
Looks like all that training is paying off. In fact, he was quite pleased with himself. Having been beaten bloody by Leon's group whenever he requested a spar, Brad was worried he hadn't been progressing in any capacity, especially when dueling Claire. He did keep this hidden to himself and hid his expression by a cool face as he studied Pierre. "Are we done here?"
Pierre growled at his minions. "Tsk, you puny excuses for men!"
But as far as Brad could see, Pierre was the puniest of them all. "I would prefer to avoid further violence. Shall we withdraw for now?" he asked, hoping he wouldn't need to embarrass them further.
Then Pierre threw up his right hand. "Moron! Bladework isn't everything!"
His minions followed his example, flinging their hands toward Brad.
"Agi!"
"Bufu!"
"Zio!"
Each of them fired their most powerful spell.
Are these guys insane!? Brad was surprised, but he kept his head and responded in knd. The thing was, he was far more talented at magic than he was with a sword. In fact, he had been able to replicate one of the ancient magics he had seen Leon use a couple of times.
"Magna!" Brad stabbed his sword into the ground, erecting a shell around himself and effortlessly blocking their attacks.
Pierre's goons soon realized they were outmatched and turned to Pierre, practically egging him to step in.
"You all really are worthless!" Pierre snapped.
"Let's just call it quits here." Brad said soothingly. "You're outmatched, and I have no more reason to fight you."
He thought it best to take the diplomatic route, even if he was really was faring quite well against them.
All the same, Pierre just grinned maniacally.
What's with him? Brad braced himself.
Pierre lifted his hand, and the crest on his hand began to glow. "Now you've really pissed me off, you no-name third-rate noble!"
A magic circle lit up beneath Brad's feet, and the wall he'd conjured crumbled into dust.
"What!?" He brandished his wooden sword in a panicked attempt to defend himself, but tree roots suddenly shot out of the ground and attacked him. Brad tried to parry the tree's blows, but his weapon splintered. Even worse, when he tried to use his magic, something strange happened.
"Tsk, Agilao!" At first, he thought the roots had deflected his flames, but that wasn't it—his spell never even materialized. "Wh-what's going on!?"
Brad's magic hadn't failed him. It was more like something had stopped the spell entirely.
The roots wrapped around his feet, lifting him up into the air and holding him upside down. Brad struggled to free himself, but the tree just squeezed his ankles even tighter.
"Dammit!"
Pierre's flunkies circled around him while Pierre kept his hand up, his crest glowing. They all sneered menacingly. With no other way to defend himself, Brad braced his arms over his head.
Pierre raised his hand to his forehead, still pointing at Brad with the other. He cackled. "Where did all that bravado go, huh? Now we'll punish you for your insolence. Once we're done with you, you won't have such a pretty face anymore!"
As frustrated as Brad was, he didn't let it show. What a fine mess I've gotten myself into. Marie, Julius… everyone. I hope you forgive me for the trouble this will cause.
For a split second, Brad found himself wondering what Leon would do. That single thought replaced his anxiety with something quite different. He grinned.
"Now!" Pierre howled. "Punish him!"
"How pathetic."
As Pierre's flunkies attempted to finally do Brad in, a voice had called out. Suddenly, the sky was coated in a array of ultraviolet blue-ish strings. For the citizens of Alzer, this was strange but nothing to panic over just yet. For Brad, he felt fear that Pierre could never hope to invoke.
A man clad in the darkest black, Lord Shadow had arrived. He wasn't alone, by his side was a woman in a black coat of a similar color, clearly a member of The Shadow Garden.
"Field. I shall address your performance later." Said Lord Shadow, making Brad wince. With a quick swipe Brad was teleported back to the ground. Lord Shadow then turned to Pierre. "You… am I to assume that these roots come from your crest?"
Pierre, who had not paid attention to international news and therefore new nothing about the stranger before him sneered, "What, are you another foreigner? Uh, yeah, dumbass. This is the crest given by the Sacred Tree. So long as I have shit, you can't do shit to me!"
Lord Shadow took a step forward.
He then disappeared.
"Is that right?" he asked as he was behind Pierre and holding his hand up. Pierre tried to shake him off but couldn't do anything. Lord Shadow suddenly looked away, as though an unseen voice was calling out to him.
In fact, it was Aurora (Violet), calling from his mask. "Hey, can you get some of his blood real quick? I think I can figure something out. Maybe let him use it a bit too."
Lord Shadow then nodded and let go of Pierre.
"You. The weakling who relies on borrowed power. Show me how well you can use it." Lord Shadow then took out his sword. It was clear that he wasn't giving any options.
"Lord Shadow." Called out the woman. "If I may?"
Oh. Thought Lord Shadow. Yeah, I guess it's not going to be any fun if I do everything. Violet, can you still do what you need to if I'm not doing it?
"If you give me to her, sure. I am still just in a bracelet/mask right now after all." Said Aurora.
"I suppose things would be over too quickly if I did it myself. Here, try not to finish him off to quickly. He isn't what we care about here." Lord Shadow then melted his mask back into the bracelet and passed it to Rose.
"As you command Lord Shadow. You, the wretch who masquerades as nobility, attempt to entertain me, will you?" asked Rose.
Pierre, who had been played for the fool to this point grew enraged and didn't think about the potential danger the people in front of him posed. He immediately raised his hand again and once more summoned the tree roots to lash at Rose. Rose however, just dodged them with her superior speed.
Pierre growled and tried to use the magic erasing qualities of his crest. Rose did briefly feel the slime suit she was wearing melt a bit, but then some of the strings that coated Lord Shadow appeared on her outfit, holding them in place. Rose then dashed towards Pierre and slapped him across the face.
SLAP*
"Pervert."
SLAP*
"Wretch."
SLAP*
"Weakling."
Pierre tried to fight back but Rose easily dodged his blows and retreated back a few feet.
"You…" growled Pierre as he spat out some blood and wiped his mouth, "YOU…!"
"Okay, I think I understand how it works now." said Violet. "Well, not entirely, but I can stop that magic erasing stuff. You just need to…"
Lord Shadow nodded as he stepped up to Rose and took Violet back. He then turned back to Brad. "Would you care to finish this yourself?"
Brad nodded.
Lord Shadow then grinned. Bending down a bit, he picked up some leaves from the ground. Coating his hand in his familiar purple-blue flames he changed the color of said leaves. Then he blew into his hand, making them fly towards Brad. When one touched his hand a symbol appeared on the back. A crest. This one black in color, with the design resembling a rose.
"A temporary gift. It should be enough." With a flap of his coat and a nod from Rose, the two vanished.
Brad looked back to Pierre who now was even angrier than before. "Is… is that a fucking fake crest? Is that supposed to scare me? Are you fucking with me!?"
Pierre attempted to have the tree roots attack Brad again, but Brad was now able to use his spells again.
"Maragilao!" Brad summoned several plumes of flame that burned the tree roots. Strangely, when burned the roots gave off the scent of copper, but that was neither here nor there.
Pierre flinched, and Brad smirked.
Brad then charged towards Pierre with his sword, burning down each root that attempted to grab him with ease before he was within range of Pierre.
Pierre attempted to defend himself only to find himself immediately have his sword locked and forced down.
"You're only strong due to the crest, aren't you?" taunted Brad, "I bet you've never actually trained."
Pierre opened his mouth to retort but Brad, inspired by Leon, immediately punched Pierre directly in the teeth. When Pierre dropped his sword and held his mouth in pain Brad, inspired by Claire, jumped, spun, and then kicked Pierre directly in solar plexus.
Pierre doubled over in pain.
"Pathetic." Brad raised his sword and then used the pommel to finally knock Pierre out.
Suddenly the sound of footsteps alerted Brad. He turned and saw Leon, Claire, and Deirdre all arrive.
"…" Leon took in the surroundings before scratching the back of his head. "Okay, I'm going to need an explanation."
-Cid/Shadow/Minoru-
I'm currently in the middle of teaching Rose a super-duper-secret-clandestine handshake between friends in celebration for pulling off her first Eminence in Shadow role playing thing.
"Okay so after we high five up here, we do it down low here, and then bump hips like this, before finally clasping hands like this." I instructed Rose. She then dutifully, and excitedly, did as I instructed. "Nice!"
Rose giggled, "I can see why you said that was fun. Not only did we do our best to look cool, but we also got to deliver justice to that horrible excuse of a person!"
"Oh? What do you mean? Like I know he sucks but I haven't been here that long." I said.
Rose nodded and began to explain. "Pierre is well known for doing atrocious things. Destroying stores whenever he feels like it, picking on whomever he likes, and not to mention him forcing himself on the wives of men. Thanks to that crest no one had been able to do anything about it."
Whoa hey. Now I can forgive murder, but he's raping people?
"You can forgive murder?" questioned Violet.
"We're going to go see if Leon needed that guy alive later, if not, we'll have to rid the world of that horrible blight." I said. Rose nodded, because she was cool.
I gotta admit, hanging out with Rose like this kind of reminds me of when I was teaching Alpha and the others everything way back then…
…
…
"*Sigh* I miss my girls Rose." I said. "I miss them a lot."
"Huh? Haven't you only been separated for about two weeks?" asked Rose.
I summon a red door in front of me. "I'll be back."
I then stepped through and emerged on the other side in the middle of one of the Mitsugoshi's. Not sure which one, but I do know that when I walked through, I saw Gamma and Alpha still at work. Although the latter was clearly arguing with her aunt Beatrix and her maid Yumeria about being able to do more.
I saw them stop and look at me. With a smile I walk up to Gamma and give her a hug and a kiss, then kiss her belly. I then go over to Alpha and do the same.
Beatrix and Yumeria both giggle at the sight.
"Hello darling." Greets Alpha with mirth clearly in her voice, "I wasn't aware that you could teleport. Let alone from so far away."
"Oh." I said as I realized I forgot to tell her, "Violet taught me a while ago. I thought it'd be a nice surprise."
"Consider us surprised then." Replied Alpha as she leaned in for another kiss. I saw Gamma twiddling her fingers.
"Gamma, you're my fiancé too, you don't have to ask." I said. Gamma then happily walked up to me with her ears wiggling.
"Uh, Cid, since when were you able to cast such complicated magic?" asked Beatrix.
Shit. I forget we hadn't fully recruited her yet.
"It's my familiar. Remember how she let me do things in the war?" I said as I showed off my bracelet that Violet was in. "I can't do too much but I can use her power when it matters."
"Oh, and what was so important that you had to use your powers to get here?" asked Alpha.
"He said he missed you all." I looked behind me to see that I left the door open and that Rose had stuck her head in specifically to tease me. "It was so cute! Oh, and by the way, are you going to leave this open or…?"
I walk back to Rose and lightly push her back. "Go ahead and go home for the day, thanks for the warning though."
Rose giggled as I closed the gate and turned back to everyone. Before I can explain anything further I find someone waiting at the door.
Eta, who is being carted in on top of a large box, waves lazily. Although it's also happily given I can see the tips of her ears wiggling beneath her messy hair. "Hullo… Cid…"
I walk over to Eta and pick her up like a plushie. I give her a kiss on her lips and her forehead. "Hey, are you here on business?"
Eta shakes her head, "No… not exactly… actually it's really… convenient that you're here."
Eta then motioned for the maid that wheeled her in on the shipping cart to open the box. I can see inside it that it was in fact the helmet of the armored angel set that I had borrowed. Come to think of it, I hadn't seen this since before the trial.
"My old subordinates… had written to me… near the end of… the letter they reminded me… You said to remind you about this thing… said you weren't done with it… yet…" informed Eta.
Oh right. There were three rooms I needed to go through, not two. I should probably go back to doing everything in this thing.
"Thanks Eta." I replied as I patted her head.
Eta flashed me some double peace signs while going "V, V" and then immediately took a nap on the cart. She was then shortly wheeled back out.
"Darling? What is that? It looks like it belongs to Leon." Said Alpha.
Hm… not sure if I want to bring this up…
"Going to hide something from the mother of your child? That doesn't seem very cool of you." Pointed out Violet.
I…
I know that's right but…
"It did belong to Leon, but since Lindwurm it's had some weird stuff going on with it. I tried investigating it around the time of the Bushin festival, but hadn't been able to continue that research until now." I explained. I'm not going to bring up the memory stuff… I'm still not ready.
"You know you can trust them? Right?" asked Violet as she gave me a soft hug.
I… I know… I know… I know that. But…
The words just…
I can't okay. Just drop it for now.
"Okay dear. Just whenever you're ready, okay?" reassured Violet.
I looked out at the sun, "Well, it was nice seeing you all, but I didn't tell everyone that I could warp so I should head back before it gets too late."
Alpha and Gamma nodded before giving me a hug. I even gave one to Beatrix in thanks for taking care of Alpha, and gave Yumeria a thumbs up before leaving.
-P2W-
A hand slams down on a table.
"WHAT HAVE YOU BROUGHT UPON OUR LANDS!?"
"Me!?"
"The only thing keeping our citizens from rebelling is the fact that we have the protection of the crests and they don't! Now thanks to your son we have drawn the ire of someone who can create their own!"
"W-well I'm not the one who allowed these foreigners to come to our land! Look at the ruler of the white tower for that!"
"You know very well why none of us can say anything to that whore!"
Several days have passed since Brad's fight with Pierre. In the crimson tower, the leaders of the Six Great Houses assembled. Also present was the ruler of the red tower, Vlad, and the ruler of the Black tower, Juggernaut. Yukime had declined to show up, likely expecting nothing good for her should she show up. As such it is the leader of house Feivel that was taking the brunt of the criticism.
Although, to be fair, if Yukime had shown up she'd be able to black mail nearly all the men present with the amount of times they visit her district, especially given how many of them were married.
It is rare for all of the leaders to show up as such, given that their subordinates mainly handled the finer details of things. It's only in such drastic times that the figure heads would meet. Currently, they were discussing the recent things brought out by Pierre of House Feivel.
Albergue Sara Rault, the acting chairman, looked solemn as he read the report. Inwardly, he was filled with disgust. House Feivel again? They never learn. It was only a matter of time before they ruined things for the rest of us.
Thanks to the protections of The Sacred Tree Alzer had proudly boasted their impenetrable defense. This unfortunately led to a history of some citizens deliberately antagonizing their neighbors.
And how long will people keep up this foolishness? Something tells me that this new revelation won't change things as much as I'd like. Behind his outward indifference, Albergue was appalled.
Although he was in his mid-forties, he was tall and muscular, to the point he looked a decade younger. His hair was cropped short, and he wore a finely pressed suit. Were it not for the loss of his son, his wife claims they'd have many children. "Lord Lambert," he said. "Do you have any thoughts on the matter?"
House Feivel was at the center of this controversy, and the head of that household was Lambert Io Feivel. He was a short, plump man, and Albergue's complete opposite. His hair was thinning noticeably, and he was so heavily adorned with rich clothes that it was a miracle he could still move.
"My son was simply wishing to demonstrate his prowess in battle against those renowned adventurers from Holfort. It's not his fault that they brought a man known to multiple countries as a warlock to our doorstep. If anything we should be demanding compensation from them! Especially given how he and his subordinates were injured beyond an appropriate level for a simple spar!" Lambert, despite knowing his son was in the wrong, was going to do his best to seem like he was in the wrong.
Fernand Tola Druille, leader of House Druille, didn't agree. He was a capable, if inexperienced, leader. A handsome man with short, wavy green hair and green eyes. He was still in his early twenties, and the youngest of all those present. "He's provoking conflict with other nations for personal gain? It appears that he doesn't understand what it means to be a part of the aristocracy."
"What's it matter if the crests aren't going to be a factor?" said Juggernaut, a man that was more muscle than anything else. He was also the tallest person here, likely 7-8 ft in height. "You guys just need to train more. What I'm worried about is the fact that none of us haven't gotten a Precious Orb this year."
"Indeed. From what our spies have told us, this Shadow person was injured by two school boys. Just make sure that we don't get caught off guard, and maybe offer some float stones to Holfort so we can hire the person who defeated him last time." Said Vlad.
Unlike all of the nobles, Vlad and Juggernaut were warriors in their own right. The sacred tree had given them blessings as well, but they hadn't received them until much later in life. What was like the nobles, is that the two were very greedy.
And so, the matter of the shadow crest was shelved… by the nobles.
Outside the door, a woman with long red hair had stood, listening in.
"Fake crests that can ignore the ability of those here…?" she mused, standing up so that she could leave. "With the red moon approaching in a few months, that may be exactly what I need."
-Leon-
I looked on as Brad was cheered on by his four idiot friends.
"Well look at you!" taunted Greg as he gave Brad a friendly noogie, "Some chumps tried to jump you and you're the one walking away!"
"Defending a common man just because it was the right thing to do… truly, I am honored to call you my friend." Said Julius.
"As honorable as any knight." Supplied Chris.
"It was dangerous and if Lord Shadow didn't show up you might've died." Scolded Marie. Brand flinched and looked away, so Marie pulled on his tie and gave him a kiss on the cheek as she began to heal him. "But still thank you for doing the right thing… it was really cool."
I decided to look away, "Right, so what about Jean. I know he was given a healing potion but…"
Noelle, who had come to us after checking up on Jean, shook her head. "He's fine physically for the most part. But he still ahs a bunch sprained. And because it was a healing potion and not a healing spell, apparently not everything set right."
At her last remark Claire and I both sucked air through our teeth, both familiar with what it feels like to have to break bones again.
"Oh how terrible!" remarked Hertrauda, "Does he have anyone looking after him right now?"
Noelle shook her head sadly, "No. Jean lives alone. His parents passed a while back. It's just him and Elle."
"It's unfortunate but Noelle the human's right." I said, getting her to pout at me, "Jean's a commoner too. So he's not exactly able to afford to pay anyone to look after him. I offered to pay and all, but Jean turned me down."
"He did give us his keys so we can look after Noelle." Said Natsume. "Luckily Noelle the human lives next door so she should be able to check on Noelle pretty often."
"Hey! It was funny the first time, but now it just hurts!" Noelle started to tear up a little.
I felt bad, but not enough to not chuckle. "Sorry, sorry, don't feel too bad… Elle."
"Hey!" Noelle started to punch my arm as I laughed at her.
"Hm…" hummed Claire.
"Mhm…" hummed Deirdre in agreement.
I narrowed my eyes. "What are you two implying?"
"Nothing." Said Claire.
Deirdre smiled, "Just remember, two left."
"Two left?" asked Noelle, "two of what?"
"Nothing!" I said a little too quickly now that I think about it. "Anyway, if we need to I can take Elle to my place."
"Oh?" said Natsume with a grin reminiscent of Cid whenever he teases me and Claire.
"The dog!" I shouted.
"Um, if I may?" said Hertrauda. "I could have Carla check up on Jean. At least after school."
"Not a bad idea, but is she okay with that too?" asked Deirdre.
Carla shrugged, "I don't see any reason no to. Besides, I'm used to taking care of other people thanks to taking care of Lady Eta… Lloyd Cartwright."
Natsume nodded in understanding at this. "Ah yeah, that would make anyone a qualified caretaker."
"Oh, but do you think he'd mind?" asked the kind princess of Fanoss, "I'd hate to impose."
I briefly recall that Carla matches what Jean said his ideal type would be. If he's not after Noelle, and since he's not a love interest maybe it'd be better to keep it that way, why not do our new friend a solid.
"He'd probably be happy if anything." I said.
Noelle, who's been friends with Jean for years, nods in agreement. "Yup, not a guy in the world who'd turn down getting looked after by a cute girl!"
If our comments bothered Carla, she didn't mention it. She just munched on some more snacks. Marie and Kyle tried to sneakily take some but she smacked both of their hands without having to look back at them.
"Owie!" shouted Marie. She then sat down next to Noelle. "Sorry about that. Anyway, so what's the plan?"
"The plan?" questioned Noelle.
Marie nodded, "Yeah, I mean we're not just going to let things end here right?"
The boisterous boys joined in.
"Yeah! They can't think we'd just let them get away with trying to jump Brad!" said Greg.
"Nor can we ignore the blatant disrespect towards us." Said Jilk. "Not to mention that we only won thanks to Lord Shadow and his subordinate's surprise appearance."
Brad could only nod. "I'm ashamed to say, but had it not been for his appearance I would've lost. I could tell that my magic was sealed and the roots were impossible for me to break with my wooden sword. I can't imagine what they would've done to us after."
"Wait, wait, wait!" shouted Noelle. "I get it, I do, but what are you guys going to do if this Lord Shadow guy isn't going to help us?"
I looked at Marie who nodded.
"Well, the power comes from the Sacred Tree, right?" I asked. Noelle nodded. "So what if we found another?"
"…You're just talking crazy now." Noelle scoffed, "What do you even mean find another tree?"
"Well, it's a tree. Chances are that it has seeds. We just need to find one." I explained.
"And where do you expect to find one of those? It's not like the Sacred Tree drops acorns or anything." Pointed out Noelle.
I patted my pants clean as I stood up and pointed at Noelle, "Same place that we usually find treasure. The dungeon."
Noelle blinked.
"Think about it, The Sacred Tree has one dungeon, right? The thing about dungeons is that they always protect important and otherwise magical treasures. One of ours had The Saintess' Bracelet even. So, we have to wonder, what is The Sacred Tree protecting? What could possibly be so important?" I asked.
Noelle nodded, "Okay… but say it is there. What are you going to do next? How does that lead to revenge?"
"Oh no, this isn't revenge." I said happily. "This is justice."
Luxion hands me some papers secretly, as we hadn't shown him to Noelle yet, and I show them to her.
"Are these news paper clippings?" asked Noelle as she gave them a quick glance.
"Look a little harder dear." Said Deirdre. "Article after article that talks of everything House Fievel has done."
I know that Pierre Io Fievel was nothing more than the first boss, but after having Luxion look into him… well I want to say he's basically the male version of Stephanie. At least the version of her from the game… you know, come to think of it is fair to say that pussy saved her? At least based on what Hertrauda said.
Anyway, nothing we found about Pierre's house was good. Like you'd think there'd be something good at least given the many years it existed, but no. No. Lmao, no.
"I…" Noelle sits back down. "I knew that they were awful but…"
Julius walks up, looking every part of the hero he was supposed to be, "I'll admit that my home wasn't perfect. But we had the opportunity to change, thanks to our citizens. With the way things are in Alzer, I'm not sure you have even that."
Noelle nodded.
"But here's the thing, I think that you might have that." I said.
Noelle looked up at me uncertain.
"Noelle… I looked into you too. Mostly because I wanted to see if there was a way to get rid of Loic for you. And there is." I said. Noelle perked up at this, though she was still cautious. "You're… from house Lespinasse, aren't you?"
Noelle looked startled. She even got up. But when she saw none of us were going to stop her, she stood still. "…Yes."
"Well then," I said with a smile. "How about we hit two birds with one stone?"
"What do you mean?" asked Noelle.
"What if I told you we could give you the power of a noble, and show these poor excuses of people what's what." I said.
Noelle thought deeply. If I had to think, she was likely thinking about her family, what's she's been through, and maybe even what other people have been through. But here's one thing I know. If she's anything like Livia, since she's also a protagonist (probably) then she's not going to pass this up.
"I'm in." said Noelle.
I stick out my hand and she shakes it.
Just then the door opened and Cid walked in with a box.
"Hey guys…" Cid looks at Noelle and my hands. He then looks at his sister to see if he needs to beat me up, or at least I assume given he sticks a hand in his pocket where I know he keeps the gun I have him. She shakes her head so he relaxes. "Anyway, I did that thing you asked. The teacher gave me a hug? I dunno. Anyway, I said you guys can go tomorrow, that cool? I'm going to take this up stairs."
We all cheer and start preparing for the trip to the dungeon as Natsume follows Cid up the stairs and helps him with the box.
-Minoru-
After I went to sleep, I find that I didn't wake up in the same white void room from earlier. Rather, I find myself in the middle of what looks like a desert.
As I get up I see that I'm in what looks like the familiar white uniform from my last life.
I take a look right, sand.
I take a look left, sand.
Front, sand.
Back? Well I could see some forest in the distance. So I decided to head that way.
It took some walking but I eventually ended up in the forest, and once I was there I started to feel… something. I feel like I should know what this is, but it evades me right now.
I do my best to look for some fresh water, and maybe even some food.
I wind up at a small natural hot spring. Not seeing any animals or even people, I decided to take a quick dip.
As I hum to myself, waiting for my clothes to dry since there was sand everywhere on them, I hear some footsteps. Looking up I see a blonde elf crouching in front of me.
"Hello." I said.
"Hello." She said.
"Is this your hot spring?"
"No."
"So why are you here?"
"I'm looking for vampires."
"You are?"
"I am."
"Is that so."
"That's so."
"I see."
"Yes."
"Is there a reason you're staring?"
"I'm trying to see if you're a vampire."
"But I'm in the sun? Wouldn't that clear me?"
"They don't fade into dust unfortunately, just burn a little."
"Really?"
"Really."
"Neat."
"I suppose so. Are your teeth sharp?"
"As much as a human's can be. See"
"I see."
"Mhm."
"You have nice teeth."
"Thank you?"
"You're welcome."
I then turned around. For as beautiful as the girl was, I didn't have any business with her.
I stayed in there until my clothes looked dry enough and got up. The elf was still there.
She was staring at my Excalibur.
"Could you not?"
"You looked up my skirt earlier."
"Not by choice."
"But you still did."
"Okay, sure, but—"
"Are they supposed to look like that?"
"…What do you mean by that?"
"I've never seen a man's before."
"Okay, well, they can. But I'll have you know it's still in its sheathe."
The elf girl tilted her head. "Sheathe?"
"How old are you?" I asked as I put on my underwear.
"I've been told I'm around 16."
"Same age as me then."
"Really?"
"Really."
"How come you have to be told though?"
"I'm always told to do things."
"By who?"
"The church usually, sometimes Freyja. Lilim's too weak hearted to demand anything."
"So did they tell you to hunt vampires?"
"Everyone says you need to hunt vampires."
"Yeah?"
"Yes. The only good vampire is a dead vampire."
"Really? None of them are nice?"
"They feed on blood. Unless they can overcome that somehow, then no."
"I mean, have you ever tried to discover that for yourself?"
"No. I don't need to. Everyone knows this."
I sigh.
"…Only able to follow orders. Living for nothing but the ideals of others… how pathetic."
With that I got left.
"Where are you going?"
"Who knows? Maybe we'll see each other around later."
The girl jumps up and lands in front of me. "I forgot to ask."
"Yeah?"
"Do you work for vampires?"
"No. I've never met one actually."
"Really?"
"Really."
The girl shrugged and then turned around. Come to think of it though, since I'm in another world…
"Hey, before you go, do you mind if I take a picture?" I asked.
"What's a picture?" she asked.
"It's like an instantaneous painting. This device will take one for me." I explained.
"A portrait? Don't those take a while to make?" she asked.
I shook my head, "Not if I use this device. It can capture images within seconds."
"I suppose that's fine then. Should I stand here?" she asked.
I walked up next to her, figuring that it'd be more fun to take a selfie. Gotta prove that I didn't take a photo of a random cosplayer after all.
"Look into the glass right there." I said.
"Is this a mirror?" she questioned as she aligned her eyes.
"Sort of. It just lets us know what the painting will look like." I explained.
"Should I do anything?" she asked.
"It's proper form to stick your hands out like this." I said as I performed a peace sign. The elf girl then mimicked me.
click*
"That was fun I suppose." The girl said. "I must go now. Don't team up with any vampires."
"I won't. Good luck though."
I would then later find out that I was on a floating island and that girl was probably my only hope of leaving it. Luckily some bandits would try to make it their base, so I was able to kill them and then take their stuff.
I leave the memory and find three objects in front of me. My uniform jacket, my shoes, and my old phone. The phone was the easiest to carry so I grabbed that.
I also ended up grabbing Beta when I woke up, but that's not important right now.
.
.
.
A/N: Unfortunately, I wasn't able to summon Olivier, so I'm kinda just making her a cross between Beatrix and Alpha and hoping for the best. From what I understand she's basically that but more kuudere.
So, we're kinda going to blaze through Volume 4 and 5 with the next couple of chapters. I obviously had to change a few things.
This also means that I had to read through those novels again to try and figure out what to do.
Pierre, Pierre when I catch you. Pierre, when I catch you!
Oh, and I did take a quick look at the WN for EiS because I remember there was a plant based crest thing that Shadow did. It was from the Three Ojisan arc I think? Or whatever it was called, the one before the black rose arc.
In any case, Shadow has this move called [Shadow Puppetry] where he can basically do exactly what the sacred tree does. Give people a boost in power through a crest, to the point that three farmers were fighting like well trained soldiers.
It's weird how much stuff from these series line up sometimes.
Anyway, let's answer the comments:
SB
MWKillKenny84: I mean, What's basically Genshin Impact Jean in Genshin Impact Noelle's outfit also sounds good. (Weird that both of those names are used here
Temsen: You know, you're the first person to complain about Cid and do so properly. Thank you for explaining why you find him annoying instead of ending things at "just because." For what it's worth, Cid is taking things seriously. He legit doesn't know that things aren't just a game.
Rendfire: I honestly flipped a coin on who to give the last laugh lol. I forgot that bit about Marie from canon though, I always thought it was just Noelle making excuses.
Your ideas for Yumeria (your idea to organically add her to the harem) and Vampire Hunter Mary (the reason she renamed herself Mary) are really good. I'm not going to implement them all one for one, but thanks for helping me on the stuff I was stuck on. I really like your long comments and the insight they always bring.
I do think I could have some interactions between the two before I have Yumeria leave for Alzer.
Someone ani: I love the birthday stuff, but I'm always missing the birthday interactions. I think I read somewhere they're only available the first day and the first time you open the game that day?
Thanks for commenting.
Gastrem: Well, since this comment is super early on in the story I hope you continue to read long enough to see my response. In terms of your statement: I can kind of see it. But keep in mind on the chapter you made this comment, Leon did canonically almost die. I made Luxion stronger than he was in Mobuseka so it makes sense that Cid had to step in as Shadow here. Leon does still get badass moments, but looking cool in fights is more of Cid's thing. Leon's is being able to actually force the world to change for the better (Holfort, Fanoss, Alzer, all the other places after volume 8-9).
Ao3
Anisomeone: I feel like at this point Violet is a bit too out of character. I should interact with her more in the game. At least you still like her, so I must be doing something right.
I figured that's how old Yukime was. I wonder if with the current ages of the cast, that'd make her as old as Mylene. I guess that means both Leon and Cid like them silver foxes *ba-dum-tiss* (Pretty sure you have to be at least 40 for that to apply.)
Beta being jealous is part of her, so I had to include it at least once since she's not fighting with Epsilon here.
I mean, Claire was never possessed. It was like a blood thing.
Mostly Hurt/Comfort. I'll give you at least one hint about the hurt for now, you know the last few seconds of the second season's OP?
Wolfpaladin: That's a pretty interesting theory. I wish I knew everyone's names already though. I wonder what the others are.
Yup. It's funny that Cid met them before Alpha too honestly. She's going to be so mad when she learns that.
She didn't take Elisabeth's place. Elisabeth is still in the crimson tower. But that's all I'm going to say for now.
Loic will get what's coming for him, probably next chapter.
Jean's fun, he doesn't really exist past volume 4, but I like the guy.
Yup, for once someone knows they're playing a game. And it's Rose, the cinnamon roll who only became less kind because the world wasn't as kind.
I'll deal with Leila. I don't think I'll kill her, and maybe not Serge. But they aren't going to be rewarded for their actions, I'll say that.
BOY4_GOW:
That country was the lawless city around the crimson tower, which is in Alzer. Namely where the Lespinesse territory used to be.
Yup, a vampire. A princess, technically. The way Alzer's nobility works is a little weird.
Oh yeah there is. I guess you aren't familiar with Mobuseka's canon, at least to Alzer's? I'll get into it, but I think it comes up in volume 5 or 6.
Rose is just built different. Built like a friend really. I am adding her to Cid's relationship by the way, just not for now.
Yup, Leila was at least smart enough to look out for that. Not enough to realize she was becoming her last life sister.
I guess that Perv is so unimportant that you could forget about him, so it's an easy mistake to make.
Yup. I think the Raults, obviously Vlad, probs the teacher, and well, we haven't gotten a good look at Noelle's teeth yet.
Totntotbt: Lmao, that's the most accurate description of Rose I've ever heard. I love it.
I hope you like the first thing he did. I know I kinda brushed it aside, but given how dumb Alzer is I felt it's only in character.
You know, I thought about it actually. And Juggernaut is here. I also don't like him because of some… art. So look forward to him getting killed off screen like in canon. Or jumped by Leon, Cid, Delta, and Vampire Hunter Mary like that one Jojo meme.