Chapter 174: The Bloodstained Clue

"Prepare for battle." Iris utters those words few seconds after hearing her subordinates' report about the sighting of a company of undead warriors around the fortress she just captured.

"R-Right away, your highness!" The subordinate who reported to her about it responds to her order and swiftly left the room to spread the word, leaving Iris alone in the commander's room she's currently using as her office.

"I'm not afraid… I'm not afraid…"

She chants as if possessed, as her hand finds itself on the hilt of her trusty mythril blade, gripping it tightly while trembling. After steeling herself, she takes the Artifact with her as she left the room, ready to unleash its powers on the battlefield.

She eventually arrived at the walls of the fortress. Her eyes are filled with the sight of the undead warriors, thirsty for blood and death, down below. The undead gathered outside the walls are composed of both of her own fallen knights, both of the Knight Order and the Crimson Order, and fallen enemies, knights who worked under the Thirteen Night Blades, whose uniform is a black version of the uniform worn by her knights.

The enemy seems to have revived the corpses of the fallen. I should've ordered the knights to immediately burn the corpses after battle. Thought Iris.

However, contrary to their expectations, the undead didn't move towards them… instead, the undead warriors turn to walk the other way, leaving the battlefield altogether.

"What are they doing?"

"Those zombies are leaving?"

"Ha… they're scared of us, aren't they?"

"Yeah. We've killed them once before after all."

"Yeah! Serves you right! If you don't wanna die a second time, you better not come back!"

The knights shout at the retreating undead forces, taunting them, though their taunts are left unheard by the mindless undead below them.

"Your highness! Look! They must be afraid of you!" One of the knights says after noticing Iris' arrival. Such words of praise would've raised Iris' spirits… if she could believe it. But she knows the huge disparity between her and the Necromancer. He isn't scared of her in any way. In fact, it is she who is afraid. She has seen the mountain he destroyed. There was nothing but a crater in the place where there used to be a mountain that can be seen from the royal capital. Even with an Artifact, she couldn't accomplish such a feat.

"Look! Up there!"

As if to confirm her fears, one of the knights saw two figures floating high in the air above the retreating undead warriors. The first figure wears a black hooded cloak and his terrifying skull mask is visible for all to see. The gaze coming from his shining red eyes chills the hearts of everyone who is present, making the knights, who were cheerfully taunting the retreating undead before seeing him, becomes silent.

The second figure wears a similar cloak as the first one but is much shorter than the first. But said figure's eerie mask is intimidating in its own right. Said figure's gaze is focused on Iris.

It's Necromancer… and the rumoured apprentice, the Acolyte... though they didn't look like they're here to fight. Thought Iris.

"Necromancer!" Finding her courage, Iris shouts at the dreaded figure while pointing her blade in his direction.

"I am Iris Midgar, princess of Midgar and the future queen! State your intentions!" She shouts bravely. The words "future queen" seems to have shaken the apprentice, though only the Necromancer noticed it.

"I know who you are, Iris Midgar. And worry not. I am not here to end your life… yet." The Necromancer replies with a mocking voice, as if the princess is not his equal.

"Then why are you here!?"

"As you can see here, I am here to… recycle your trash, making them useful once more." He says nonchalantly. The implication of his words infuriates the red haired princess. Turning her countrymen into his undead slaves…

This whole civil war would only benefit the ruler of death as his forces would be strengthened every time a warrior falls in battle. Iris knows this, which is why she cursed the unfairness of it all. Her frustrated face serves only to delight said ruler of death.

"Come now. There's no way you're going to give up now, are you? That would be absolutely boring for me." The Necromancer taunts. His taunts reminds her of how there is still hope. A small hope but it's still there.

"That's right. I still have my Claude after all." Iris says. Even though her words aren't particularly loud, it still reached the two figures floating in the sky. The shorter figure in particular, reacts by clenching her fists.

Seeing as even the illustrious Necromancer didn't retort the moment she mentioned Claude's name, Iris' spirits is raised even higher, which allows her to smile tauntingly.

"You're afraid of him, aren't you? Despite having a base in his family's domain, you've never made any move to attack him. And he will soon return to us and become the king! When he does, there's nothing you can do to this kingdom anymore!" Iris taunts further. Her words also gave the knights some hope and raised their morale.

"Is that so? Then why isn't he here fighting alongside you? Oh wait! I know! He has been captured! Charmed by another woman! Did you think he will return after being captured by the Thirteen Night Blades?" The Necromancer retorts but it didn't make Iris flinch.

"Claude is not like that. I believe in him! I believe he will return to me! To us all!" Iris declares with unshakeable conviction, which inspired her men, allowing them to openly glare at the lord of the dead. Her words infuriate his apprentice, which she noticed. In contrast to his apprentice though, the Necromancer is perfectly calm.

"Heh heh heh. We shall see. Until then, I'll allow you to cling onto that hope." The Necromancer says before teleporting away with his apprentice. The undead warriors below him also vanished completely without a trace, letting the knights breathe sighs of relief.

"Th-That was scary!"

"Yeah. Just one look from his red eyes and I was frozen! I almost peed in my pants!"

"But Lord Claude will return! Princess Iris said so!"

"Yeah! He will return to us and we will be able to turn the tide of war into our favour!"

The knights chat amongst themselves as Iris retreats back to her office.

Upon reaching the door of her office though, she noticed the scent of blood. Her battle senses has been honed during her time on the battlefield and thus she would be able to recognize the scent of blood anywhere. And she noticed that the scent of blood came from her office room.

Brandishing her blade, she slices the door apart before pointing her blade at the figure who's sitting nonchalantly on top of her desk.

"Who are y-" Iris' words are cut off when she noticed who the bloody figure sitting on top of her desk. The figure wears colourful outfit that wouldn't be out of place in a circus or a carnival, though said outfit is stained in blood as if said figure just committed a massacre. The smiling clown mask that the figure wears creeps even Iris, who has just faced a more terrifying figure just moments ago.

"You are… Jack the Ripper?" Iris mutters the name of the clown, making the silent clown respond by clapping his hand as if she just won a prize.

"What are you-" Before she could finish her question, she noticed the decapitated head of a man sitting beside the clown on the desk. Iris recognized the man as one of the Thirteen Night Blades. The card 7 of spades is embedded on the forehead of said man's head, likely the cause of his death before being decapitated. On his mouth is another card, which is face down.

As her attention was focused on the decapitated head, she didn't notice it when the clown suddenly disappeared from the room even though he was still within her line of sight.

"What!? Hey!" She tries to call out to the clown while looking around but she couldn't find him.

"It's impossible. I was standing at the door the whole time and the window… is still closed. How did he escape from my sight like that?" Iris mutters to herself.

"Princess Iris! We heard the noise! Are you alright!?" She heard one of the knights shouting outside the room with concern.

"I'm fine." She says as she takes out the card that was held in the mouth of the man whose head is sitting on top of her desk. It's the King of Hearts card. And only one person comes to mind when speaking of a king of everyone's hearts, especially hers.

"So… Jack the Ripper also supports Claude." Iris mutters, feeling as though she has more hope than she thought.

Then her eyes turn towards a bloodstained map which is laid open on her desk. On the map a location on the outskirts of the royal capital is circled with blood. She knows that location is Count White's estate. Count White, being one of the Thirteen Night Blades, has had his estate raided by the Knight Order but considering that said location is circled, something must be going on there. Perhaps Claude is there!? Considering the clown's previous message was the king of hearts, it might be true.

That clown has left them with a clue, which thankfully isn't as cryptic as Alexia said. The bloodstain on the map makes her realize the state of her desk though.

"Dammit… I just wish that clown didn't stain my desk with so much blood. There are important documents there, you know?" She sighs while looking at the state of her desk, which was previously immaculate, now stained by blood because of the killer clown.

Yatta! I've at least done something on time! After spending so long in that alien world, I thought I was too late to fulfill my promise… err Jack the Ripper's promise, that something's going to happen at the third week of winter, which is thankfully still this week! I don't know how it's still this week considering I've spent at least a few weeks or months with Godzilla in his world but meh. I'll just take it as fortune being on my side.

After returning from that alien world, I couldn't return to the castle immediately because I need to hunt down the Thirteen Night Blades, which is harder to do now because they've went into hiding. Luckily I spotted one of them in a random fort while scouting.

I left his head and my message to Iris, who's occupying the nearest fort. I couldn't leave anything too elaborate because I had no time, though that comes with the advantage of having the clue being easier to decipher. The loss of cool points though…

No matter. I'll think of cooler clues later. For now, I must return to the capital immediately. Alexia and sis must be worried sick about me because I've been missing for at least a few days at this rate.

I sneak into the castle at night, which is easy because I've memorised the layout of this castle already. Just have to pass through this hallway and I'll be in the guest room! But before I could come up with an excuse for my disappearance, I was caught by a very angry Alexia.

"There you are, Poochie." She says with a calm voice, even though she is not calm at all.

This has happened before... When was it? Ah yes. It was when I was trying to sneak out of class months ago, whereupon she would complain about Don Jon to me after catching me.

Seriously! How did she catch me while I'm being sneaky!? Is it because I entered mob mode the moment I enter the castle? Probably so because instead of erasing my presence immaculately like I did as Jack the Ripper or Shadow, I would tip-toe like a cartoon character while I'm in mob mode, which led to me being easy to be spotted.

"Pooch... Poochie Poochie Pooch…!" She mutters the nickname she gave me with an ominous voice.

"Oh umm… Good morning, princess." I say as I turn slowly towards her while waving my hands in greetings.

"It's night now, you know?"

"Then… good night?"

"Yes… I wish I had several good nights' sleep but you just have to disappear for few days. Where were you, my wayward Pooch?"

"Umm… I had a stomach-ache and had to use the bathroom?" Because I haven't thought of any excuses, I had to use my trusty old bathroom excuse. Because of that lame excuse though, I got hit in the head.

"There are many toilets in this castle that you can spend just a few minutes in, you know? Pray tell… why did you have to disappear for days?" Ouch. She's getting angrier.

"It was… a very large poop that… I didn't want to unleash it upon the castle?" I say while scratching the back of my head. I admit. That was a lame excuse and it left her speechless. It still fits my image as a mob though.

Surprisingly, Alexia just sighs instead of being angrier. She looks stressed so that's probably why.

"Really Pooch. You're starting to sound like Claude." Huh? I sound like the ikemen? Me? This mob character that one can find anywhere? How!? Since when!?

"I didn't know you carry a huge secret that you would hide even from me. But you know you can trust me with your secrets, you know?" What? Me? A mob character? Having a secret? Y-You're sorely mistaken, Alexia-sama! There's no way a mob like me could have a big secret!

"Wh-What are you talking about?" I say with my voice shaking. In fact, my entire body is shaking.

"Claude always carries such a heavy burden alone that he refused to share with his family. Always keeping a secret from us all, always fighting all by himself, which worried us all." Huh. That ikemen did something like that? How interesting. Sounds like he's on his way to becoming a Shadowbroker.

"And you, Pooch. You must have a secret too, don't you?" She says with her eyes focused on me like an eagle eyeing her prey. Has my shadowbroker secrets been found out? Impossible! What could've given it away!?

Oh no. Did she put two and two together? Whenever I have to go into action, be it as Mundane Mann or Shadow, Cid Kagenou always disappear from the public eye, mainly using toilet as an excuse. Did she figure it out just from that!?

"I-I-I have n-n-no secrets whatsoever, p-p-p-princess." I stutter uncontrollably as my entire body shakes as if I've been left out naked in the blizzard.

"It's okay, Pooch. You must've been so burdened. Though… said burden must've been your own fault."

"Eh?"

"I understand, Poochie. I heard the state your two friends left themselves in. You too must've racked high amounts of debt due to gambling, haven't you? And your intention when taking refuge in the castle is not just to hide from your sister and from the debt collectors but also to steal from the castle treasury, isn't it? And your disappearance is because you had to not only erase the evidences of your crimes but you also have to pay off your debt, didn't you? Where did you go? Lawless City I assume?" Huh? Where did she come up with that idea? I did gamble back in the Don Jon Tower but that was as John Smith and I always win! I was the Casino Royal, you know?

In my previous life, I didn't like the game of chance like gambling because I'm not guaranteed to win. If I had known how high my luck is, I would've done so a long time ago. Ever since I realized my luck, I've scammed Skel and Po out of their money constantly by gambling with them, which is why they are in so much debt right now.

But what is this princess thinking? Accusing me of stealing like this?

"You don't have to deny it, Pooch. During the days you were missing, Marquis Monay, the castle's treasurer, reported a few million zeni missing from our treasury. I ignored it because I had… other worries than that… but I should've known that it was you." She says while pulling both my cheeks, stretching them cartoonishly wide like my sister did.

"Ah… Ah hab nah idea wat ur talkin' about…" I try to speak with my stretched cheeks. Seriously. I might be good at robbing treasuries and money vaults but whoever stole your money wasn't me!

"It's okay, Pooch. I forgive you. I'll even overlook this incident… as long as you never do it again. Got it?"

"Y-Yeeesh…!" I say while crying. At least this spares me from having to come up with an excuse.

"Now then. Since you've stolen money from the treasury to pay off your debt, that means you're now indebted to me. Understand this, Pooch. Stealing from the castle's treasury is a heavy crime. You could be executed for treason! Just imagine how high your debt is to me now!" Oh shit. I'm starting to think that agreeing to this excuse is a bad idea! I drop to my knees in despair, cursing my fate.

"Ha ha ha! You should've seen the look on your face, Pooch! That's what you get for worrying me!"

"Huh?"

"Don't make such a gloomy face anymore, Pooch. It was a prank. I know someone like you couldn't possibly break through the security of the royal treasury!" This freaking princess!

"Y-Your highness! Emergency!" Just as I was about to shout at her angrily, we were interrupted by a man's voice.

"What is it, Marquis Monay?" This lanky guy is Marquis Monay? Isn't he the treasurer that she was talking about?

"A-A thief broke into the castle's treasury and stole a few million zeni!"

Few seconds after hearing Marquis Monay's words, Alexia slowly turns her head towards me with wide eyes.

"Hey! Don't look at me! You said it yourself that it's impossible for someone like me to be the one to steal from the highly secure treasury!"

"I-I know that, Pooch! But anyway, looks like you came at the right time because now we have a case to solve!"

"Huh? We? Since when did I become your detective?"

"Since you started getting involved in the Jack the Ripper case."

"But this isn't the Jack the Ripper case!"

"Aww, come on, Pooch! You were so eager to aid me last time even though I tried to dismiss you away! Where was your enthusiasm from before?"

"I-I'm not-"

"Tell you what, Pooch. I've done you a great favour of letting you take refuge in this castle. If you don't aid me, I'll kick you out so you can have fun with your sister!" She says smugly with both her hands crossed.

"Anything but that!"

"And I'll even overlook your recent disappearance and won't ask anything about it! As long as you don't do it again of course!"

"O-Okay! That I can live with."

"Then it's settled. Oh ho ho ho ho!" She does the ojou-sama laugh again after roping me into her mess.

"Now then, Marquis Monay! Take us to the treasury!"

"As you command, your highness."

Dammit! I still have to find that ikemen so I can bring him to Count White's estate like I promised to Iris! I have no time for this! Noooo!

Author's Note:

Cid is back, and he almost got his secrets exposed!

Also, I know that Cid not liking gambling is not canon. I just wrote him like that in this fic in order to make the joke on the Casino Royal chapter. Canon Cid would be more well versed in gambling considering he scammed Skel and Po out of their money since Vol 5.

Also, have you guys bought the English version of Volume 6? I'll get mine on Thursday! Yippee!

Guest: I'm going to hazard a guess that the misunderstanding is that Charlotte is going report this to Shadow Garden and they will think that Necromancer has possessed Claude and Claude is using the memory crystals to store his memories and remember his identity in case he "slips".

Answer: Ding ding ding! You are correct!

Guest: With all the evil for the sake of being evil, the green color motif, Shadow Garden thinking he is an evil spirit, the trolling, the sadism, the manipulation of women, the fake public identity of being a benevolent figure, the use of a knife as a weapon, becoming whole again, and now being a condescending asshole to his other selves (Thanatos and the clone), Necromancer is starting to remind me of Hazama/Yuuki Terumi from BlazBlue. Which is even funnier after seeing your artwork of what Claude looks like over on Sufficient Velocity, and he looks almost like Jin Kisaragi from the same series.

Answer: Huh, neat. I didn't even know that. I didn't really follow that series.

Guest: Hopefully Eliza gets what she deserves and suffers a cruel fate for what she has done to everyone

Answer: She will.

DerTrap: Nice to finally see Iris Skywalk... ah I mean Iris Midgar's point of view. And this chapter gave me a good idea for a potential future for her. Claude could pull a Palapatine on her and manipulate her just like Palpatine did with Anakin Skywalker, she already is really dependant on him after all. She also certainly is developing the right mindset currently.

Claude(to Iris): Have you ever heard the tragedy of Alexander the Great?

Claude(to Iris): Villainy is a pathway to many abilities some would consider unatural.

Alexia: It's over Iris, I have the high ground!

Iris: You are underestimating my power!

Alexia: Don't try it.

Iris: *War screech*

Alexia: You were the future Queen of Midgar! You were supposed to protect Midgar, not destroying it!

Iris: I hate you!

Alexia: You were my sister Iris, I loved you.

Answer: Lol nice Star Wars reference.

Masterboy: Nice. Begin civil war.

Answer: There has been plenty of civil wars lately.

TheVirtualPug: Omg. Claude civil war 2.0!? Real Claude go corrupt after slaying imouto and no care for isekai imouto no more but clone still do. Clone protect imouto!

But seriously, the clone becoming the hero Claude pretended to be? While fighting his evil real self? And everyone else thinking he's the real Claude? Misunderstandings!

Answer: You just read my mind.

borregodillon9: Great chapter as always

Answer: Thanks.