It was a regular day and I was minding my own business while sorting out reports. A week has passed since that career talk incident and things have calmed down.

There was lots of criticism for the 13th unit because they let a school get attacked. Captain Noel already had a press conference and made a public apology for that. There were also rumors that a certain man in our unit was being targeted by a dangerous organization but she denied it. And by “certain man”, I meant myself.

I couldn’t believe the Unkindness was bold enough to attack a school. Then again, I had no idea how they were thinking. If they wanted to, they could just attack me when I was alone like when I was sleeping or something. But I should be happy that they weren’t the type to just attack me like that. The last thing I needed was to add more to Amelia’s troubles by having the Unkindness attack me in her home.

Captain Noel arrived in the office along with Temma. She looked really tired while Temma had an uneasy expression on his face.

“How was it?” I asked.

“Giving a report to the other captains was a total pain!!” she complained and sat down on her seat.

In each of the unit’s barracks, there was a room where captains and vice captains could transmit astral projections of themselves and have meetings with one another. The reason they would use this painstaking method was because having all of the captains and vice captains in one location would be dangerous, especially if there was someone who would be able to create a spell that could seal a group of individuals in a room.

“They were grilling her since they thought that her reputation wasn’t good enough to scare anyone threatening Westa’s peace”, Temma said.

“It’s not my fault that I’m the youngest captain in history! They think that I was being underestimated because of that! This is unfair!!” she shouted.

“The captains of the Westa Knight Order, huh? I memorized their names and I am a bit familiar with their faces. But I don’t exactly know any of them”, I said.

“You’ve met Captain Reagan, right?” Temma asked.

“Yeah. He’s the captain of the 3rd unit. We first met when we were preparing against Spade Echo who wanted to steal the White Star.”

“Yes. Captain Reagan is the captain of the 3rd unit. He’s a master of Mind Magic and Illusion Magic and was given the title “The Trickster.” Captain Reagan had the highest ever recorded grade in those fields of magic in the Knight Academy.”

“I see. If I’m right, the 2nd to 6th units are in charge of Westa North, the 7th to 11th units are in charge of Westa South, the 12th to 16th units are in charge of Westa West, and the 17th to 21st units are in charge of Westa East.”

“Yes. And the knights are in charge of maintaining public order. We also act as Westa’s military force in case of war.”

“Then what about the 1st unit? What’s their jurisdiction?”

“The 1st unit is a very special unit. Their jurisdiction is the entirety of Westa and they handle cases that can’t be handled easily by a regular unit. They also have more authority than any other units and each of their members have strength equivalent to a captain’s.”

“That’s pretty impressive. So there’s a unit that’s filled with monsters like Captain Noel?”

“Hey! Don’t call me a monster! I’m right here, you know?!” Captain Noel retorted.

Temma and I shared a laugh.

“Captain Noel’s strength is simply absurd. What I meant by having strength equivalent to a captain’s, I said they can pass the trial to become a captain”, Temma explained.

“Trial? Like accomplishing an A-ranked quest from the Adventurer’s Guild all by themselves and facing a captain in one-on-one combat?”

“That’s correct.”

“They must be monsters. So how does one become a member of the 1st unit?”

“Members of the 1st unit are scouted by the higher-ups themselves. If you have an amazing record in the Knight’s Academy, you’ll instantly get sent to the 1st unit. If you did a good job as a knight, you’ll be given an option to be transferred to the 1st unit as well whether you’re a captain, vice captain, administrative officer, or a regular knight.”

“Oh yeah. How does one get assigned to any of the other 20 units? When you graduate from the Knight Academy, do you have to apply to any of the units you want to join?”

“Every unit has different functions. For example, the 6th unit focused more on research and development so they need smart knights. The Knight Academy would submit your data and grades to all of the captains in the unit and they’ll see if you’re a good fit. They’ll then show you a list of the units you would qualify for. You will then choose a unit from that list and you’ll spend your career there unless you apply for a transfer.”

“I see. And once you graduate, you’ll start wearing this white uniform and working for Westa’s peace.”

“Yes. All of the 20 units have white uniforms. The 1st unit wears a special black uniform to signify how different they are from the regular units.”

The door burst open as three men in black uniforms entered. They had a sword strapped on their waist and they were wearing red armbands on their left arms.

“Like those guys?” I asked.

“Yes. What is the 1st unit doing in our barracks?” Temma asked them.

“Noel Shirogane, captain of the 13th unit. You are under arrest for involvement in acts that threaten Westa’s peace”, they said.

Wait... What?

“Acts that threaten Westa’s peace?” Captain Noel asked.

“We have gathered evidence that you are involved in those. We have been ordered to bring you to the 1st unit for questioning. If you resist, we are allowed to eliminate you”, one of them said while the others drew their swords.

“There must be a mistake! Captain Noel wouldn’t do anything like that!” I told them.

“It’s okay, Mikage. I’m sure there’s a mistake somewhere. I’ll come with you for questioning”, she said and walked towards them.

“Captain....” Temma had a worried expression on his face.

“Take charge of the unit while I’m gone, okay?”

One of the men approached her and placed handcuffs on her arms.

“As for the members of the 13th unit, we will question you one by one. If there are any suspicious contradictions, we will bring you to the 1st unit”, he said and after that, they left the office.

A few minutes after that, I could feel Temma’s mana oozing out. His eyes were burning with anger and his gentle expression was nowhere to be found.

“Temma?” I called out his name.

His mana disappeared and he took a deep breath.

“It’s okay. I’m fine now”, he said.

“What was that about? Why would Captain Noel be arrested?”

“I don’t know but I have a feeling things wouldn’t end quietly.”

“What do you mean?”

“The 1st unit’s investigations are top-notch and their loyalties are with Westa. They aren’t stupid enough to get fooled by fake evidence that easily nor can they be manipulated.”

“So you mean that someone’s framing Captain Noel?”

“That’s probably the case. Do you believe that she is someone who would threaten Westa’s peace?”

“Of course not!”

“That’s what I believe too. However, there’s someone who managed to plant good fake evidence to make the 1st unit believe that Captain Noel is a criminal. I don’t think things will go smoothly from here.”

“So what should we do?”

“I don’t know. But I’ll figure something out. I’m sure this isn’t the last move our enemy would make.”

###

It was already evening and I was on my way home. There was someone from the 1st unit who came to our barracks and questioned every single knight. Their questions were very vague like asking if Noel was doing something suspicious or if she ever left for a long time without telling anyone.

What in the world was going on? Why would someone target Captain Noel? Who was able to fool the 1st unit?

The more important question was: what could I do about it? Would I be able to figure out who was the enemy and prove Captain Noel’s innocence?

“Hey, you! You’re Mikage Kamishiro, right?” a voice behind me asked and tapped my shoulder.

I was surprised since I didn’t even sense anyone getting near. When I turned around, I saw a silver-haired man wearing the 1st unit’s uniform.

“And you are?” I asked warily.

If he was from the 1st unit, could he be here to question me about Captain Noel? That wouldn’t make any sense since I already cooperated with them. And for some reason, I felt like I'd seen him somewhere before.

“My name is Roland Shirogane. I need your help.”