N. Chuuya X Fem! Reader: The Territory of Gravity

10.6 - The Dark Era

The shadowy figure in a black overcoat, Ryuunosuke Akutagawa, who flanked you, took another step forward. A split second later, the twelve bullets clashed with what appeared to be silent blades of solidified darkness. Most of the bullets were reflected before even reaching Akutagawa, while the remaining ones crashed into an invisible wall, stopping mere inches away from him. Akutagawa cut through space, creating a shield. He twisted his body, and the murderous shadowy blades sprung forward as if to answer his calls.

One man's face; another, his body; even one soldier's legs were all sliced in half. Still, the blades' wild dance had not ended. They soared through the air like a violent tempest of darkness destroying everything in its path, as if they were living creatures with minds of their own. It was a skill specialized only in destruction and killing—nothing more.

Akutagawa laughed.

It was as if a pitch-black demon were devouring the gray ghosts.

"Retraite!"

The surviving Mimic soldiers' faces turned sickly pale as they quickly backed away.

"Come back! Fight me!" Akutagawa screamed while chasing after them. Black spears and bullets clashed violently across the battlefield.

"This is nothing! This barely even counts as a trial! Show me cruelty—show me the sort of brutality that will freeze my very soul!" the boy dressed in black screamed, an echo of supplication in his voice.

"That's enough, Ryuu-chan," you glared. 

Just then, a Mimic personnel carrier appeared before the art museum containing new soldiers. Like a mad dog, a fiendish smirk played across Akutagawa's lips.

That was when a signal flare shot into the air from the personnel carrier. The phosphorescence raced straight up, leaving a red trail in the sky and casting a shadow over the earth below.

Immediately, the Mimic soldiers ceased fire.

"What—?"

Bewildered, Akutagawa surveyed the battlefield. Not a single enemy was holding up their gun. One after another, they placed their weapons on the ground. Some even had both hands already in the air.

"They're surrendering?" Akutagawa muttered in disbelief. "Impossible."

With his arms raised, one soldier walked over from the other side of the group. He had handsome features, and both his clothes and hair were a sickly silver-gray hue, as if his soul had been sucked out. The man looked essentially the same as the other Mimic soldiers but was disproportionately taller than the rest. And yet, his footsteps didn't make a sound; it was as if he were weightless. Decorating the breast of his military fatigues were various medals of honor in all different colors. The soldier's emotionless eyes locked on Akutagawa. Confused and at a loss, the Mafia members pointed their guns at the defenseless man as he approached.

"So it's you... You're the black-robed skill user they say is immune to bullets," the tall man said, his lips barely moving. His voice seemed to come from nowhere in particular, like a howling wind.

"Who are you?"

"The commander... Mimic's leader."

The moment his words sunk in, the Mafia combatants rushed over in unison before pointing their guns at him. The Mimic leader's eyes did not even waver. You raised a hand, commanding them to lower their guns.

"Their leader himself has come to surrender? An admirable attitude, but hardly believable... In fact, it disgusts me."

Akutagawa's overcoat transformed into several black belts that bound the Mimic leader's hands and feet together before dragging the man to his knees.