The traitorous captain

Captain Reagan clapped his hands.

"I knew you were an amazing detective but I didn't expect you to deduce the trick so easily. And it was completely surprising that you found my connection to the Unkindness", he said.

"So you admit to those things?" Amelia asked.

"Yes. I framed Captain Noel since she is a dangerous existence. She somehow killed a Living Darkness and so, the others want her out of the way."

"As I expected. You guys are afraid that Captain Noel found a way to kill those "immortal" Living Darknesses. That's why you had to make sure she becomes confined and out of your business."

But the truth was: Captain Noel wasn't the one who killed the Living Darkness. It was Yogiri. Amelia must be aware of this and she was probably trying to redirect the attention from Yogiri since she couldn't protect herself yet.

"Our plan was to remove Captain Noel and make another member of ours become the new captain of the 13th unit. That way, it would be easier for us to monitor and even capture the Primordial Dark", Captain Reagan explained.

"Why are you guys obsessed with the Primordial Dark? What are you up to?" Temma asked.

"Our goals are beyond your understanding."

"Reagan, you bastard! You were deceiving the knight order all this time?! Is your loyalty as a captain to Westa fake?!" Captain Vein growled.

"No. I truly love Westa and I will protect it to the best of my abilities as a captain. However, I have my responsibilities as a member of the Unkindness."

"What the hell is the Unkindness?!" she asked.

"It is a powerful organization that has existed since the Dark Times. I am quite proud to be part of it."

"In any case, you admitted to the crime. That means we can arrest you under the authority of the Westa Knight Order", Temma unsheathed his sword.

"Arrest me? I can deal with you four easily."

"How about making it five?" a voice rang out from nowhere.

A silver-haired man appeared beside us as his invisibility magic wore off. He was wearing a black uniform that belonged to the 1st unit.

"R-Roland Shirogane?!" Captain Reagan's face paled when he saw him.

"I had Roland standby and listen to your confession. After all, the 1st unit will believe their own members", Amelia smirked.

"I'll have you know that I recorded the entire conversation, including your confession. And if that's not enough, I'll let the 1st unit analyze my memories", Roland said.

"There's no escape, Captain Reagan! Why don't we just make things easy for all of us and have you surrender?" Temma asked.

Captain Reagan took a deep breath and composed himself.

"Even if the famous Roland Shirogane, the Dark Knight, and the Wolf Lady are here, I can still win. I'll deal with Captain Magus as soon as I dispose of your bodies", he said and unsheathed his sword.

We charged at him but before we could reach him, mist surrounded the area.

"This is the Mist of Deceit!" Temma exclaimed.

Seven copies of Captain Reagan appeared and they charged at us. If that wasn't enough, an inexplicable fear appeared in my mind and I almost ran away screaming.

"W-What's going on?" I asked.

(This is Mind Magic! Captain Reagan must've used it to make all of you feel intense fear!) Anya explained.

My arms and legs were heavy and my heartbeat was distracting me. It took everything I had to focus on a single Captain Reagan and fight him.

"Mind's Eye!" Roland shouted and splendidly dealt with three copies of Captain Reagan at once.

Temma and Captain Vein were also doing quite well. Amelia was observing the fight from a distance but I could tell from her expression that she was afraid.

Damn it. I have to pull myself together and not be a deadweight in this fight.

I then noticed one odd thing in the fight.

(Anya. Why is Temma not using magic? This isn't like him!) I asked.

(This is the effect of Mind Magic. One of magic's requirements is resolve. With this much fear, I could understand why Temma doesn't have the necessary resolve to cast magic), she explained.

If that was the case, then Roland must be seriously amazing.

The battle became more dire as three more copies of Captain Reagan materialized. We were already having problems with seven of them and now, there were three more. This would be a difficult battle since only one of us could use magic.

"Mikage! Why aren't you doing that?!" Temma asked.

"Do what?!" I asked back.

"You have a method to deal with the Mist of Deceit, right? You used it back in the Idol Fan Tournament!"

Damn it. The fear was messing up my mind that I didn't even think of that.

"Buy me a few seconds!" I shouted.

I closed my eyes and began to focus. The fear was messing up my concentration but I managed to find the real Captain Reagan's darkness and I charged towards him.

He managed to block my attack and he smirked.

"Even if you find the real me, you can't hope to defeat me one-on-one!" he swung his sword.

It was really difficult to fight him. The fear inside me amplified since he was focused on me and it took me a lot of willpower to just move my body.

This is impossible. I can't defeat him. His Mist of Deceit was troubling the others and I was the only one who could find him. But even if I could find him, I couldn't hope to match his skills one-on-one.

(Mikage! Snap out of it! He's placing despair on your mind along with fear! Harden your resolve and use Synchronicity!) Anya scolded me.

Tch. Mind Magic was annoying. I even forgot about Synchronicity thanks to the fear. I bit my lip which caused it to bleed. Thanks to the pain, my mind became clearer.

"Synchronicity Release!" I shouted as my outfit changed.

(So it's my turn, huh?) A semi-transparent red-haired man appeared beside me.

My body relaxed as the fear and despair inside me disappeared. I could feel power coursing through my body thanks to Ryuuki's skills and I lunged at Captain Reagan.

Ryuuki Tatsuya was Anya's seventh master. The reason I chose him was because his style was placing enhancements and protection on his body to turn the tides of any battle.

My arms and legs were enhanced and my mind was protected from any Mind Magic. Thanks to those things, I was an even match. No… I had the upper hand.

Captain Reagan backed away after I almost landed a direct hit against him. And thanks to him being focused on me, Captain Vein, Roland, and Temma defeated all of the illusions.

"Give up, Reagan. Let's not drag this on", Roland pointed his sword at him.

"If I'm going down, I'll take you along with me!" he took out a pill and drank it.

An eerie feeling appeared in my mind as darkness oozed out of Captain Reagan. The sclera of his eyes turned black and he roared.

"Amazing… The power is amazing!" he grinned.

Amelia knelt on the ground and her face was filled with fear and despair. Even Temma and Captain Vein looked troubled.

(Oh dear… His Mind Magic became stronger. Be careful, Mikage. This man is stronger than before), Ryuuki told me.

"I thought the pill would deteriorate the mind and turn the user into a mindless beast?" I asked.

"I'm guessing this is an improved version of the pill", Roland said.

Captain Reagan managed to close the distance between me and him in under a second. If Roland didn't react in time and blocked his attack, I would've been injured.

Four Shadow Companions and thirteen copies of Captain Reagan appeared. This was bad.

"Mikage… Can you handle the real Reagan?" Roland asked.

"If you're telling me to leave the Shadow Companions and the illusions to you, then I can do that", I answered.

"Alright. Temma! Vein! Let's go!" Roland shouted and that snapped them out of it.

(Amazing. Roland is an exceptional fighter), Anya said.

(What's up?) I asked.

(To counter the despair and fear Captain Reagan is producing, Roland used Mind Magic to support both Captain Vein and Temma.)

If that was the case, then they should be fine.

I charged at Captain Reagan and we clashed swords again. His strikes were stronger and faster and we were evenly matched.

Things were going well until the eerie feeling inside me became stronger.

Captain Reagan screamed as a powerful burst of darkness came out of his body. The Mist of Deceit disappeared and the Shadow Companions vanished.

"What happened?" I asked.

"I'm guessing the pill isn't perfect yet", Roland said.

Waves of darkness continuously came out of Captain Reagan's body and we couldn't get close.

(I'm warning you that this is a dangerous situation. A strong amount of Dark Magic is gathering inside the man. At this rate, it would explode), Ryuuki advised me.

"Roland! He's going to explode if we don't stop him!" I shouted.

"That's a problem. But we can't get close to him while his darkness is pushing us away", he said.

Darkness…. I found a way to get out of this.

"Roland! I can create an opening. Be prepared to cut him down", I told him and he nodded.

I focused on the darkness surrounding Captain Reagan, I was the Primordial Dark's vessel and I could command each and every darkness in existence.

The darkness coming out of Captain Reagan wrapped around his body and solidified after I asserted my will on it.

"Now!" I shouted.

Roland lunged as his sword glowed. In one swift motion, he beheaded Captain Reagan.

The case ended the moment Captain Reagan's head rolled on the ground.