Rokujouma no Shinryakusha!? - Volume 46 - Chapter 2

State of Emergency

December 5, Monday

The official name of the conference was the Forthorthe Economic Development Conference. It had been created shortly after the civil war in order to correct the economy that was starting to collapse through cooperation that exceeded what the government could accomplish. The coming conference was the sixth one; the effectiveness of previous policies would be examined, and new policies would be discussed. Kiriha and the others had participated in the first conference as well as the ones that had happened since they returned to Forthorthe. So it wasn’t their first.

“I can’t help but be worried.” Clan was on the deck for departures, but she didn’t look very happy. She was feeling gloomy when she thought about what was awaiting them. She tended to be more negative than Theia, but it was rare to see her like that when it concerned her job.

“But by taking this risk, we increase Satomi Koutarou’s chances of victory,” Kiriha said.

“I wasn’t saying that I’m afraid of taking risks,” Clan retorted.

“I understand, Clan-sama,” Ruth said. “I feel the same way.”

Kiriha and Ruth also felt tense. But it wasn’t the conference the three of them were worried about. There was something else on their minds.

“Hey, hold up!” a voice called out from behind.

It was Koutarou. The moment they saw him, the girls’ expressions returned to normal.

“What is it, Satomi Koutarou?” Kiriha asked while turning around.

There, she could see Koutarou entering the departure deck carrying a large package in his hands.

“Bring this with you!” Koutarou said. “Landlord-san made lunch!” As he walked over to them, he held up the package, which had Shizuka’s homemade food in it.

“Haha, thank you.” Clan smiled. “The flight will take several hours.”

The trip from Forthorthe to Alaia would take some time. While warp would cut out the majority of the distance traveled, in order to avoid warping on a planet, they would be traveling the ordinary way before and after the jump. With all that in mind, the journey was expected to take six hours.

“Shizuka, I want some too!” Sanae demanded.

“I request some as well,” Theia added.

“I figured you would say that, so I made a lot,” Shizuka said. “Let’s eat it later.”

“All right!” Sanae cheered.

Behind Koutarou were Sanae, Theia, and Shizuka. The four of them had come to see them off. Incidentally, Harumi, Maki, and Yurika were with the Imperial Army. They were absent due to being called away for magic-related training.

With the lunch talks over, Theia spoke to the three headed for the conference. “I’m sorry about this. Having to leave this to you... I wish I could go with you.”

“It can’t be helped,” Clan replied. “You have a different conference to attend.” She smiled at the apologetic Theia as she accepted the lunch from Koutarou.

Theia had been expected to take part in the conference as well, but there were several military and political conferences that needed members of their side. So Clan and the others would be attending alone.

“The only ones that could really play around in this situation are Mackenzie and Mackinley, who were forcibly brought here,” Koutarou said.

“There you have it.” Clan nodded.

“I appreciate you saying that,” said Theia.

They were all busy. The magicians were all with the military, and even Shizuka and Sanae, who normally seemed free, were guarding Elfaria and Theia whenever they went out on official duties. So at times there just weren’t enough of them. But that went for everyone, so nobody really complained.

“Clan-sama, Kiriha-sama, it is almost time for departure,” Ruth said.

Clan and the others were bound for Alaia on a battleship, and they had just contacted Ruth. A small craft was being sent out to pick them up, heading for the Imperial Palace’s departure deck.

“So it’s finally time,” Clan said as her expression changed ever so slightly.

Koutarou could sense the tension in her expression. “Is there something you’re worried about?”

“Ah?! U-Um...” Clan faltered. She was surprised and thought she’d failed.

Her reaction confused Koutarou, but Kiriha answered in her place. “There’s actually somebody tormenting Clan-dono waiting for her,” she explained.

“Kii!” Clan exclaimed. Was it okay to say that? Clan was shocked more by Kiriha’s words than Koutarou’s.

“Hahaha, so you can’t really keep your cool when under pressure,” Koutarou laughed. “But when you meet them, just tell them off.”

Fortunately, Koutarou took Kiriha at her word and figured that there was someone Clan didn’t like at the conference.

“I know!” Clan shouted.

“It appears they have arrived,” Ruth reported.

“That’s larger than I thought,” Koutarou said.

“It is a military vehicle, after all,” Theia replied. “Even small crafts are like this.”

“To think seeing something like that flying around would become a daily occurrence,” Shizuka commented.

“I agree, Landlord-san. What a crazy future this is,” Koutarou agreed.

The spaceship coming to pick them up arrived, and attention turned away from Clan.

Sensing that, she sighed in relief. “Thank you, Kii.”

“I’m glad he didn’t notice,” Kiriha answered.

“I was so surprised when you said that, Kiriha-sama,” Ruth added.

“It’s best not to lie,” said Kiriha. She hadn’t told any lies; she simply hadn’t corrected Koutarou’s misunderstanding.

“That might be true,” said Ruth.

“We should give them a good thrashing,” Clan told them.

“Yes, that’s the spirit,” said Kiriha.

The three who were departing looked at each other and nodded. It was finally time to leave.

With their space distortion technology, Forthorthe spaceships didn’t need rockets, but the two technologies could be used in tandem when there was a need to hurry. Using rockets when unaffected by gravity meant that the ship flew off in a flash, leaving behind a plume of smoke.

“They’re so far away already, I can barely see them anymore,” said Koutarou.

“I can still see them,” said Theia.

“You have amazing eyesight, Theia-chan,” Shizuka told her.

“You can see them too, can’t you?”

“Ahaha, in my case it’s more that uncle can see them,” Shizuka said.

Koutarou, Shizuka, and Theia were chatting with smiles, but Sanae alone wore a complicated expression.

“Hmm...” Sanae murmured.

“What is it, Sanae?” Koutarou asked.

“It’s nothing special, but...weren’t those three a little tense?”

“Isn’t that normal? It’s an important conference, and if there’s someone you don’t like there, you’re going to get a little tense. Don’t you get the same just before a test?”

“Ah, that’s true,” Sanae said. “I guess that’s just what it’s like.”

Sanae had noticed that the three girls were strangely tense. But Koutarou did make a good point. Any normal girl would get tense taking part in a galactic conference, so she soon forgot about it and looked at the sky like Koutarou and the others.

But in the end, that interpretation was wrong. Kiriha and the others were nervous for a different reason. It wouldn’t be until a few hours later that they realized that.

It took roughly three hours to get from Forthorthe to a location where a ship could warp. That distance was necessary to make up for any margin of error. Warp worked by bending space through the control of gravity to travel vast distances. Because of that, the presence of large objects like planets would have an influence on the warp. At close distances it was possible to ignore the margin of error, but not for longer trips. So for normal travel, ships needed to get far enough away from planets. The same applied to the destination. Since the ship would arrive in a location that wasn’t heavily influenced by gravity, it would take another three hours to reach Alaia.

“Maxfern-sama, a landing craft has been launched from the Imperial Army’s battleship,” Grevanas reported. A hologram was displaying a battleship, with a small spaceship being launched out of it.

“As per our intel,” Maxfern said. “Their route is the same as the one they used to get to the conference the time before last.”

Moreover, the location that landing craft set out from and their directions were displayed on the hologram. Based on that, Maxfern could conclude that the same route as another time was being used.

“As expected, it seems the battleship is on guard in orbit,” Grevanas noted.

“Their security is tight,” Maxfern agreed. “But that makes them easier to predict.”

Their target, the three girls, were on the small spaceship that could enter the atmosphere, heading for the conference. The battleship remained on alert in orbit. The Imperial Army was already stationed on Alaia, and with another battleship joining, their defensive positions were very powerful. A normal attack would face a fierce counterattack.

“On this route, our forces on point 13 and 14 are able to intercept,” Maxfern reported.

“Give them the order to move,” Maxfern instructed.

“At once,” Grevanas acknowledged.

Trying to send in pursuers after the landing craft would be difficult. With the defensive system and fleet in orbit in position, any pursuit would be intercepted long enough for the landing craft to escape. But thanks to the information Maxfern and Grevanas had gotten ahead of time, they could set forces to intercept on the ground. Strict security or not, it would be hard to stop a small unit that had infiltrated ahead of time. Moreover, the attackers could focus their fire on a single point while the defenders had to spread out their attention. The information gave the attackers an overwhelming advantage. That was why Maxfern was convinced of his victory, and a smile appeared on his face.

“Blue Knight, your women have jumped into my trap on their own. Hehehe...” he laughed.

Maxfern’s greatest enemy was the Blue Knight, from both a strategic point of view and an emotional one. On board the landing craft were three of the pillars that supported the Blue Knight’s strength. They were in charge of strategy, technology, and logistics, and losing just one of them would greatly weaken the Blue Knight. Now there was a chance to take all of them out at once. With a chance to get revenge, Maxfern’s excitement was at its peak.

“The ground forces have begun moving,” Grevanas said.

“The wait is frustrating...” Maxfern replied.

If everything played out as the information they had gathered suggested, the landing craft would enter the atmosphere in thirty minutes. Maxfern had to spend the time until then filled with impatience.

Upon entering the atmosphere, the landing craft started glowing. It was a result of the ship’s distortion field coming into contact with the air. The air in front of the distortion field was rapidly compressed and turned into heated plasma, burning the hull. Meanwhile, the strong distortion field was expending a lot of energy to ward off the heat. As a result, the landing craft was glowing.

“The landing craft has started decelerating,” Grevanas reported.

The landing craft on the hologram that Maxfern was staring at was glowing brightly. It had already entered the atmosphere. The footage was being recorded from afar, but it was clear on the hologram thanks to the AI processing the image.

“I see,” said Maxfern.

“Is something the matter?” Grevanas asked.

“So this is why shooting stars shine... I never could have imagined it two thousand years ago.”

Being from two thousand years prior, Maxfern hadn’t known why shooting stars shone. By observing meteorites, he could understand that they had all been heated up immensely, but he hadn’t known why.

“So it is,” Grevanas said. “And that gap in knowledge was like our gap in strength with the Blue Knight.”

“But things are different now!” Maxfern said with a fire burning in his eyes. “I can now reach the Blue Knight, and right now I am about to tear off his wings!”

Maxfern now understood why shooting stars shone, which meant that he now had the same power as his nemesis, the Blue Knight. There was no longer any gap in their strength. And by destroying the landing craft, he would surpass him.

“That moment is fast approaching,” Grevanas announced. “The landing craft has descended to below twenty-five kilometers. If the simulations are correct, the distortion field should be released soon.”

The landing craft decelerated via the friction with the air in the atmosphere. By the time the landing craft was about twenty kilometers from sea level, it would have slowed down to around the speed of sound, and there would no longer be any need for the distortion field to protect the hull. It would then continue going in a straight line and slow down a little more. That was the moment that Maxfern and Grevanas had been waiting for.

“Well then...begin the attack! Fire every missile you’ve got!” Grevanas gave the command to attack.

The missiles wouldn’t impact in an instant. Even if they were fired from directly below, they still had to travel twenty kilometers. Firing them now was essential to reach the ship just before it changed to normal flight.

“The ground forces have launched missiles,” Grevanas reported.

With a warning sound, eighteen small lights appeared on the hologram. They moved slowly at first, but rapidly accelerated. The lights were all supersonic missiles. Flying at more than five times the speed of sound, they would destroy their target in the blink of an eye. The target had used up most of its energy making it through the field, so there was no way it would be able to block all of them.

“Drop dead, women!” Maxfern cursed. “Blame the day you became the Blue Knight’s pawns!”

Filled with excitement and hate, Maxfern watched as the supersonic missiles curved through the air toward their target. A few seconds after being fired, they struck the landing craft. He was too far away to hear the sound, but the explosion was big. The camera looking up at the sky was showing a massive explosion. The flames and flash hid the landing craft from sight.

“It’s a direct hit!” Grevanas said.

“Are we sure?!” Maxfern confirmed.

“Yes! The landing craft has scattered into parts that are falling to the ground!” Grevanas answered.

The radar showed the craft breaking into debris. There was no sign of anyone escaping, so it was likely that the crew had been shot down with it.

“Wahahahahahaha, now what will you do, Blue Knight? Your wings have been torn off!” Maxfern laughed.

At this moment he was assured of his own victory. Without the brains behind him, the Blue Knight could only struggle. That made Maxfern incredibly happy.

He celebrated. “Wahahahahahaha, we did it, Grevanas! With this, the battle will move forward well!”

“I am sending ground forces to confirm its destruction!” Grevanas informed him.

Unlike Maxfern, he calmly issued orders to the ground forces. He was happy about their victory, of course, but his innate calmness showed its face. The destruction seemed to be assured, but he wanted to be certain, so until the soldiers reached the estimated point of impact and reported on the situation, he wouldn’t openly show any joy.

A few minutes later, the ground forces arrived where the craft had crashed. There, they found the ship in pieces. The impact had scarred the ground around it. The soldiers stepped over the circle of debris driven into the ground and headed for the largest piece in the middle. Black smoke was still rising from it. The armor had been destroyed, but it was no doubt the main body of the shot-down ship.

“Grevanas-sama, we have visual confirmation of target A,” a soldier reported.

“What condition is it in?”

“The rocket boosters have been seriously damaged, but while the armor has also been damaged, the craft has maintained its form.”

“Confirm what’s inside right away!” Grevanas ordered.

“Understood! Sending heavy infantry inside!” the soldier responded.

Grevanas had a bad feeling. The lack of overall damage bothered him. Staring at the hologram with worry, he watched as soldiers in huge armored suits opened the hatch. Their armor had been designed for fighting on different planets, and it could take the heat and smoke without issue, so it was perfect for the job.

“Aren’t you overthinking it, Grevanas?” Maxfern asked. “At the very least, they hit the ground at high speed. There is no way the people inside could survive.”

“I think so too, but...” Grevanas hesitated.

The landing craft had been hit directly with missiles, and it had slammed into woodlands while spinning out of control. Even though it had decelerated, it had hit the ground at several hundred kilometers per second. The impact alone would have killed anyone on board. So Maxfern’s words were probably true. But Grevanas couldn’t fully believe it. His experiences with victory slipping through his fingers made him more cautious. Unease filled his withered face.

“Reporting in!” That was when one of the soldiers that had entered the craft stepped back out. Their movement made it clear that they were panicked. “The destruction inside is minimal! No bodies were found! Either there was nobody on board or they have already escaped!”

“What?!” Maxfern was aghast.

“Did the destroyed rocket motors shield them?! No matter! Hurry and chase after them!” Grevanas barked.

Both of them had raised their voices. The landing craft had a lot of large structures, including its rocket motors, which worked as a shield against the missiles, protecting the cockpit. So it was possible that the controls had worked well enough to land, though very unlikely. Unless the three on board were extremely lucky, that wasn’t something that could be so easily accepted. Yet the truth was that nobody was dead inside the ship. Grevanas was puzzled by that, but he quickly gave the soldiers orders to pursue the trio.

Meanwhile, Koutarou was busy with work he was bad at. By coincidence, he had become the majority shareholder of DKI, so he had the authority to choose the representative director—which, through another series of coincidences, had ended up being him. He had temporarily taken up the position after Elexis was cut out, but he was still the representative director. Therefore, he needed to present his management policy to his employees and shareholders on occasion. He was currently writing up a draft for that.

“So, what are you going to do about this company, Kou?” Kenji asked when Koutarou put down his pen.

Koutarou was using an electronic pen, used to write on electronic paper. “I want to keep it from having any strange influence on the world,” he answered. “I bought it to win the battle, but I don’t want to cause trouble for other companies. It’s not like I want to put DKI in the red, but I want to keep it from making too much profit.”

Whether he declared it during his speech or not, Koutarou’s current policy was to maintain the status quo. Businesses would continue running as they had. Clients varied between individuals and companies, but Koutarou wanted to be responsible. Any sudden change in policy would only cause confusion. Naturally, any illegal business was put to a stop, but there were some exceptions. Products that would benefit the world, like the PAF, were unlikely to turn a profit, so he would actively pursue those. Ultimately, the PAF’s value had become too great and ended up making a profit anyway, but the policy behind it was sound.

“In the future, it would probably be best to let go of DKI,” Koutarou commented. “I don’t want my presence to warp society. Besides, I have basically no time to get involved in the management side anyway.”

“Ahaha, true, you are the supreme commander, Kou-niisan,” Kotori laughed. She couldn’t get used to Koutarou being the supreme commander of an army. And with him being the manager of an enterprise too, all she could do was laugh.

“Um, Koutarou-sama,” Nalfa said, “if you say you are stepping down from being the representative director, won’t DKI start to go under?” This was no laughing matter to her. She knew a little more about economics than he did.

“Huh? Why?” Koutarou asked.

“I remember my brother saying that when you became the manager of DKI, the share prices skyrocketed,” she explained. “Apparently, it happened to all of the related companies. So if you were to retire, the opposite would occur...”

Nalfa had a brother named Danesford, who was a famous reporter. And he had said that Koutarou’s involvement had a huge impact on economics. Right now that was working positively, but if Koutarou acted in the opposite way, it would turn out for the worse. Nalfa was worried about that.

“So that would make the stocks shrivel up and drop like a rock, huh? Ahahahaha!” Kenji clapped his hands and burst out laughing. Koutarou buying up DKI’s stocks and becoming the manager had caused the stocks of DKI and affiliated companies to shoot up. So the opposite would happen if he sold them.

That would have a negative influence on the world, which was exactly what Koutarou didn’t want. “It’s not something to laugh about, Mackenzie!” he shouted.

Kenji shrugged. “Well, either you make a huge profit and sell or leave the management to someone else.”

If DKI and its affiliated companies made huge profits, they might be able to absorb the damage after Koutarou sold his stocks. Alternatively, he could hire a CEO and leave the management to them. If that CEO maintained Koutarou’s policies, it would limit any influence the company had.

Maybe having Elexis do it would be best, but...legally, he’s in a terrible spot... Koutarou mused.

With Elexis having grown, Koutarou could theoretically leave things to him. But the man was a traitor in the eyes of the law, so that wouldn’t work. As he was thinking about what to do, he suddenly realized that he had a second candidate for the job.

“Mackenzie, why don’t you be CEO?” he suggested.

“Whaaat?!” Kenji exclaimed. Having the topic suddenly turned on him stopped Kenji from laughing, and he stood up from the sofa he was sitting on.

“Well, you’re a smooth talker,” Koutarou explained. “You’re also surprisingly serious deep down. If I say a friend is helping me while I’m busy, people probably won’t oppose it.”

“Don’t be ridiculous! Don’t get me involved in this!” Kenji objected. Seeing Koutarou, he felt like one’s position and fame should match their stature. And from his point of view, Kenji figured he should—at best—be a department chief in a small company. Being the CEO of a galactic corporation was nothing but a shackle.

“I think it’s a good idea,” Koutarou said. “What do you think, Kin-chan?”

“I agree,” Kotori replied. “It would force nii-san to live a serious life.”

Contrary to her brother, Kotori was all for it. If Kenji took over as CEO in place of the Blue Knight, the romantic scandals surrounding him would surely disappear. In Forthorthe, Koutarou was seen as an example of morality, and not even Kenji would be able to do something to make him look bad. The relationship between Kotori and Kenji had been improving lately, but if her brother took on such an important position, she could finally breathe.

“Kotori! How could you!” Kenji shouted. Naturally, he was upset about his sister’s statement. But for better or worse, their argument didn’t have time to continue.

At that moment, someone swung the door wide open and rushed into the room. “Your Excellency! It’s an emergency!” an Imperial Army soldier cried.

Seeing the soldier’s speed and expression, Koutarou realized it was important and threw aside the pen and paper to rush over.

“What is it?! What happened?!” he asked.

“The spaceship that Princess Clariossa and her friends were on has been shot down!” the soldier reported. Koutarou had expected something serious, but this went beyond that. Shocked, he took off running, moving quickly past the soldier. Naturally, his destination was the palace’s command room. All of the information should be gathered there.

The Forthorthe Imperial Palace had a command room to give orders to the Imperial Army. That was because the emperor was in charge of the army. Although Elfaria was an exception thanks to Koutarou’s presence, this had been the case for generations. As such, most information was collected there when something like this happened. When Koutarou entered, the room was buzzing.

“That’s why Kiriha-sama said not to move from the Imperial Palace!”

“Now’s not the time for that! We have to confirm their safety first!”

“Calm down, everyone! Those three won’t go down so easily!”

The landing craft that Clan, Kiriha, and Ruth were on had been shot down. That news had sent panic throughout the command room. Those three were exceedingly important to Forthorthe. Clan was a princess as well as skilled in science, technology, and intelligence. Kiriha boasted a high level of competence as a military strategist and politician, formulating strategies and policies and even handling negotiations. As for Ruth, she coordinated both military and economic affairs. Together they could handle huge matters, and they could be considered Elfaria’s and the Blue Knight’s confidantes. With those three suddenly disappearing, it was no surprise that confusion had spread.

“His Excellency the Blue Knight has entered!” the AI announced.

At that announcement, the command room fell silent. Koutarou was the supreme commander. As such, they needed to avoid getting in his way.

Before Koutarou sat down in his seat, he asked, “So, what’s the situation?!”

“At present, we only have a report that landing craft Shooting Star K17 was shot down during the final stage of deceleration. This has been confirmed on cameras both from orbit and on the ground,” an officer reported.

The first report had come from a patrol unit on duty. The pilot had informed them that the landing was going according to schedule and confirmed the ship’s appearance both visually and on radar, entering the information into the computer. After that, the patrol ship had returned to its mission and surveyed its surroundings. Shortly afterward, the ship had detected supersonic missiles fired from the surface and reported that as well. Moments later, Shooting Star K17 had been shot down by different missiles.

The second report contained observations from both the surface and space. In Forthorthe it was common for any ship entering the atmosphere to be recorded. Having an outside viewpoint was helpful from a safety perspective as well as for verification in case of accidents. That was especially true when important people were on board, and landing craft were observed by multiple cameras and sensors. The craft had started its descent at the specified point. Just as it was about to finish deceleration, Shooting Star K17 had been shot down by supersonic missiles. Upon being hit, its trajectory had changed and it had fallen toward the ground in a curve that was wrong for a spaceship.

“Why was there an attack from the surface?! Was the information leaked?!” Koutarou asked.

The problem with the incident was that the attack had come from the ground. The point of descent was changed every day, but there weren’t many points around the conference that were suitable for descent, so they could end up being reused. Yet it was unrealistic to have equipment for interception at every point. It would be next to impossible for the Imperial Army to miss such a large number of weapons being moved. So it made more sense to assume that the information had been leaked.

“It is impossible to say at the moment, but it is very likely,” an officer answered.

“Did you send ground forces?”

“A rapid reaction force has already been deployed. They will arrive in seven minutes.”

“I refuse to believe it!” Koutarou slammed his desk. “They can’t be dead!”

The incident had happened because they had been naive.

I underestimated Maxfern. Of course someone capable of anything would target those three!

In a large-scale battle, it wasn’t people like Koutarou or Theia who were the most dangerous. It was people like Kiriha, Ruth, and Clan: those who could oversee the entire battlefield and make adjustments to people or material were the biggest threats. For example, Theia was strong. In specific battles, she would win time and time again. That would have some effect on the battlefield.

But what if there were no supplies? Not even an invincible Theia could fight without bullets. Repeated victories were thanks to Ruth, who could supply troops without either excess or shortage; Kiriha, who managed the damage to troops on the battlefield by moving them around in a balanced manner; and Clan, who repaired and manufactured weapons and gathered information. Having gone through several wars, Maxfern and Grevanas were well aware of that, which was why the three girls had been targeted. The enemy’s grudge against Koutarou was probably part of it, but it made strategic sense as well. It had been careless to send the three out to a conference when a war was about to start.

“Your Excellency, please allow me to speak.”

While Koutarou was filled with regret, the woman who was seated in the chair next to Clan’s currently empty one spoke up.

“Who are you?”

“I am from the intelligence department. I was given a message from Princess Clariossa to pass to you if this situation were to occur.”

“From Clan?! Tell me!”

“I will convey it precisely as instructed,” the woman said. “‘If something were to happen, tell Veltlion to tap his seat’s headrest with his right hand three times.’”

“Tap the headrest?” Koutarou looked perplexed. Clan’s message was strange. He didn’t think there was any meaning in the requested action. Even so, he decided to stand up and tap the headrest three times.

“What is the point of—”

“Designated command confirmed,” the AI responded. It appeared the act was a hidden command. “Your Excellency Blue Knight, replaying a message from Princess Clariossa.”

Clan appeared on a large monitor. Behind her were Ruth and Kiriha. It appeared to have been recorded in the command room.

“Pardomshiha, is it already recording?” Clan asked.

“Yes, it has already begun,” Ruth confirmed. “So Master is already watching.”

“Wha... Ahem...” Clan cleared her throat and began talking. “Veltlion, if you are watching this, then I imagine you’re in an uproar.”

“Don’t try to act cool now,” Koutarou retorted.

“Quiet, you!” Clan shouted.

“What?! How did she know that I was replying?!”

“Anyway...I have something important to tell you,” Clan continued. “Why this has happened, and what to do next.”

From there, she started talking about how their landing craft would be shot down.

It had started one week ago. Clan’s intelligence agency had come up with some information: the Forthorthe Liberation Army was looking into her, Kiriha’s, and Ruth’s movements with the intention of assassinating them.

“That’s quite concerning...but let us just handle it as usual,” Clan remarked.

Spies had been discovered trying to infiltrate the Imperial Palace several times before. The only difference was that this time the target was Clan and the others, so she was going to have the intelligence agency handle it like they usually did. But someone stopped her.

“Hold on, Clan-dono,” said Kiriha.

“What is it, Kii?”

Kiriha had happened to be around when Clan received the report. After stopping her, Kiriha stared at the monitor by Clan’s seat.

“It would be a shame to let such an opportunity go,” Kiriha announced.

“Opportunity?”

“Considering the future, we can use this to get information on Maxfern.”

Kiriha was concerned about the lack of information they had on the enemy. She didn’t know where their headquarters were, what the scale of their forces were, what regions were working with them, and so on. Since Ralgwin had been so skilled, they hadn’t been able to grasp the scale of the situation beforehand. So if a battle were to begin, it would be disastrous. Kiriha wanted to use the opportunity to gather more information.

“What exactly are you thinking?” Ruth, who was also sitting in, asked. She was prepared to do anything to allow Koutarou to win, so she was interested in Kiriha’s suggestion.

“I want information on them, so I want to create a situation where they will risk frequently exchanging information. That said, I don’t want an all-out war to begin,” Kiriha explained.

“So you want orders to be sent, like in the middle of a battlefield, but you don’t want it to be during a large-scale battle? Is that even possible?” Clan asked.

“Not definitely, but it is possible. If we supply information to their spies, we can present them with an opportunity to assassinate us.”

“Assassinate us?!” Ruth’s face turned pale. The suggestion was unexpected. She knew that Kiriha was a genius, but even she was shocked by what Kiriha had to say.

“Of course, we can’t actually let ourselves be assassinated,” Kiriha continued. “That would wrap up their plan, and I don’t want to die either. We need to allow ourselves to be attacked but survive.”

“I see!” Clan exclaimed. “In that case, they will deploy their army to assassinate us and will keep in frequent contact with their commanders!” She understood what Kiriha was saying. If they used this method, they could probably get a grasp on the enemy’s leadership.

“And this isn’t as likely, but if Maxfern and Grevanas are close enough to use comms in real time, we might be able to follow them and find their headquarters,” Kiriha added.

On missions, command could only have around a ten-second delay at most. In other words, if they weren’t within a distance that took light ten seconds to travel, they wouldn’t be able to give proper commands, which would mean that Maxfern and Grevanas were close. Moreover, they would need to have frequent contact. That would make it possible to locate and follow the enemy to their headquarters, but only if everything went according to plan. If Maxfern put his trust in their soldiers on the field, he could fall back farther, in which case they would have to analyze the communication waves and hopefully pursue an enemy ship in the hopes of gathering information on the Forthorthe Liberation Army. Even then, Kiriha felt that the risk was worth it.

“Oh...my... That is an unexpected plan.” Ruth’s mouth was agape. She couldn’t even imagine how Kiriha could think up such a plan. But she could understand that this was why the enemy was snooping around for information in order to assassinate her.

“And you want us to be the bait,” Clan concluded. “But it would all be for nothing if we actually die. That is a very difficult task, Kii.”

Clan understood Kiriha’s intent, but it was a tricky matter. Preparations could mean nothing depending on where the assassination would happen. So it would be necessary to guide the enemy to a position where they could actually make those preparations. Their enemy was a military organization that ignored all rules. It was obvious that they would hit with overwhelming firepower. That had to be prevented somehow. But if the attacks were perfectly blocked, the plan wouldn’t work. They needed to take enough damage for the enemy to think that they were just one step short of accomplishing their goal. Without that, there wouldn’t be a large volume of messages being exchanged.

“I got it, Kiriha-sama,” said Ruth. “You are intending to leak information on the next Forthorthe Economic Development Conference, correct?”

“That’s right.” Kiriha nodded.

“Ah, all three of us are participating in that conference!” Clan exclaimed. “That would narrow their aim!”

The enemy was gathering information to assassinate all three of them, which meant they could leak information regarding when they would all be together. That way, the enemy would set their sights on that particular moment. Furthermore, since they would be traveling by spaceship, it was easy to tell when the enemy would attack. It was possible the enemy might see through it and assume that things were too convenient, but it was better than leaking other information that might make the enemy’s moves less predictable.

“Could you change Theia-dono’s schedule, Ruth?” Kiriha asked. Theia was scheduled to attend the conference with them, but Kiriha didn’t see any reason to get her involved.

“I understand. I will make arrangements for that,” Ruth answered.

“Can Theiamillis-san not join in?” Clan asked.

“It’s not like this is without risk, and Theia-dono is too important,” Kiriha explained. “After all, she would have to seem to be defeated by the enemy.”

“They might suspect something,” said Clan.

Kiriha intended to survive, but there were no guarantees. They were going to be reckless in order to gain information. So having Theia, who wasn’t being targeted, accompany them would only put her life at risk for no reason. Besides, they needed to act like the enemy had outmaneuvered them, which would look unnatural if a combat expert like Theia was with them. If they wanted to preserve the idea of the noncombatants trying to escape with their lives with the Forthorthe Liberation Army giving chase, Theia couldn’t come with them. And with Theia gone, they could get the enemy to lower their guard. Kiriha figured Grevanas would assume that if it was a trap, they would force Theia to come along to increase the value of the decoy.

“What a grand plan,” Ruth said. “I can only hope that it works out well.”

Clan nodded. “I agree with you there.”

They both agreed with Kiriha’s suggestion. By taking on such a risk on their own, they would allow the Imperial Army and Koutarou to buy a great deal of time, so they didn’t hesitate to put their plan into action. Even so, it wasn’t like they weren’t anxious.

“I can understand them wanting to take down Kii, so it might work out perfectly...” Clan commented.

“How disconcerting. These are just the idle ramblings of a little girl,” Kiriha replied.

“To be honest, I am glad you’re on our side, Kiriha-sama,” Ruth added.

With that, the three chose to face an assassination attempt head-on. It was highly dangerous, but it could end the war sooner. That way, there would be fewer civilian casualties, and most importantly to them, Koutarou would spend less time on the battlefield. To the girls, that was worth the world.

Having chosen to take this risk, their biggest problem was when the enemy would attack.

“Strategically, there are only a few opportunities to strike,” Kiriha informed them. “It is highly unlikely that they’d strike in space. It’s unrealistic that they would know where we’ll warp out to intercept us.”

Kiriha surmised that an assassination in space would be difficult. In order to get to Planet Alaia, they would need to warp once so the enemy couldn’t know exactly where their ship would arrive. That was too reliant on luck to be a plan.

“Besides,” Ruth offered, “it wouldn’t be very wise to attack while we are still on a space battleship.”

The three would travel to the orbit of Planet Alaia on a battleship before moving to a landing craft to descend to the surface. Naturally, a battleship was very sturdy, so it was easier to attack a landing craft. If the enemy wanted to take out the entire ship, they would need some heavy anti-ship weaponry. But if they could sneak in such a thing, they could have just attacked the Imperial Palace in the first place.

“Then it would happen after we leave the battleship, but they would likely avoid the conference or the area around it due to its strict security,” Kiriha noted. “In other words, it would happen at some point during the atmospheric entry. From a technological viewpoint, when would a landing craft be at its most vulnerable, Clan-dono?”

Kiriha surmised that the attack would happen between their descent and arrival at the conference venue. To determine exactly when, Kiriha asked for Clan’s counsel.

“That would be the moment before the craft finishes decelerating,” Clan answered. “The craft will be using its distortion field during reentry to ward off the heat, so when it finishes decelerating, it will have used up most of its energy. Moreover, the flight will be in a direct line, making it easy for guided weapons to lock on to the craft.”

Clan’s answer was clear. The landing craft was at its most defenseless moments before it finished decelerating. The girls had no way of knowing, but Grevanas had reached the same conclusion.

“What are the chances that they use something other than guided weapons?” Ruth asked.

Guided weapons, like missiles or unmanned crafts, weren’t the only weapons available. There were lasers, rail guns, and more. So Ruth wanted to know why she was focusing on guided weapons.

“Lasers or rail guns would make it too easy to tell where the attack came from,” Clan explained. “After the first shot, they would be wiped out by an orbital bombardment.”

Lasers and rail guns stood out a lot moments before firing. They needed a lot of energy to fire, and that would be detected. Moreover, the attack would fly straight, so its origin could be calculated by following its trajectory. From there, a battleship could rain down lasers and there was nothing the enemy could do. Unless the first strike was guaranteed to take out the landing craft, lasers or rail guns would be hard to use. Similar circumstances made bullets and cannons unfeasible. The sound and straight trajectory made their origins easy to discover.

“So they would use weapons guided through optical observation,” Ruth mused.

“Certainly they would,” Clan nodded. “Well, strictly speaking, lasers would be further obstructed by the heated atmosphere around the craft.”

Firing lots of guided weapons would be the best option for taking down the landing craft. Missiles wouldn’t miss a decelerating target flying in a straight line. Moreover, even if the enemy was detected, they could fire all the missiles at the same time before getting hit by orbital bombardments, so it would be impossible to prevent the assassination attempt.

“In other words, Clan-dono will need to block those missiles,” Kiriha said, “while also making it look like they’ve done serious damage.”

A normal landing craft wouldn’t survive a focused missile attack, so Clan needed to make adjustments to their plan that would allow them to survive. But it couldn’t be too perfect. Some tricks needed to be put in place to make the attack look effective. If not, the enemy might suspect that it was a trap.

“You make it sound so easy, Kii.” Clan gave Kiriha a disgruntled look.

“We are counting on you, Clan-sama,” said Ruth.

“Good grief, you two...”

Though exasperated, Clan’s brain was changing gears to figure out how to block the attacks while making it look like they had worked. She had a one-week deadline. All of her knowledge and experience was being put to the test.

Clan came up with a clear answer to the difficult task. For that purpose she added three functions to the landing craft. The first was a sturdy distortion field.

“Activate the additional distortion field! And I don’t care if we’re almost out of energy—deploy the original distortion field!”

“As you wish, my princess!” the AI said.

Clan initially countered the eighteen incoming missiles with decoys and jamming technology, but it was only enough to avoid two of them. For the remaining sixteen, she used the enhanced defense of another distortion field. The new field was powerful enough to be installed on a battleship. It also had a dedicated power source, so it could function even after the original distortion field had used up most of its energy.

“Alert message: eight missiles have directly impacted the distortion field,” the AI reported. “The damage to the landing craft is minimal, but the distortion field has collapsed. Thirty-eight seconds remain until it can be reactivated.”

“Good work!” Clan exclaimed. Eight missiles had been blocked but there were still eight more. With the distortion field out of energy, it couldn’t block any more. “Now, Karama, Korama!” she instructed.

“Leave it to us, Clan-chan, ho!” said Karama.

“Amplifier activated! Deploying the emergency Spiritual Energy Field, ho!” Korama cried.

“We’re counting on you! It’s all up to your guts now!” Clan said.

The second defense was additional armor plates installed on top of the landing craft. It was reactive armor that would blow up on its own when a missile exploded, reducing the impact by having the two explosions cancel each other out. Combined with Karama and Korama’s Spiritual Energy Field, it became a sort of composite armor. The reactive armor was double layered, with the Spiritual Energy Field separating the two layers. The haniwas’ power wasn’t enough to block the missiles, but with an amplification device, they could provide adequate protection.

The combination blocked another six missiles. Even so, two more remained. Clan had one final countermeasure, but it wasn’t necessarily for defense.

“Immediate evacuation recommended,” the AI proposed.

“I know that!” she shouted.

“Clan-sama!” Ruth cried.

“Now, Pardomshiha!” Clan instructed. “Ignite it!”

“As you wish, my princess!” said Ruth. She slammed her right fist down onto the operator panel in front of her.

That was when something unexpected happened. There was a large boom and explosion, but not from a missile. It had happened within the landing craft. Ruth had activated the self-destruct.

“All we can do now is pray!” Clan told them.

The self-destruct had originally been meant to destroy the evidence. The new functions had been installed near the rocket motor, with the exception of the reactive armor. But since those had already exploded, only the devices near the rocket motor remained, so if the motor was destroyed, there would be no evidence that they had prepared for the assassination ahead of time, leaving only the cockpit unscathed by chance.

There was another explosion.

“Did it work?!” Clan asked. She’d used the self-destruct to block the last of the missiles by triggering it when they were approaching. The motor exploded, scattering debris that hit the missiles, causing them to detonate.

Clan screamed as Ruth yelled, “Masteeeer!”

Kiriha resigned herself. “It was a fleeting life...”

“That’s Ane-go for you, ho!” said Karama.

“Not flinching in the slightest, ho!” Korama replied.

Clan had managed to block all of the missiles, but they didn’t make it out of the situation unscathed. The landing craft was seriously damaged, with parts falling off. Fortunately, the cockpit was still in one piece and airtight, protecting the three girls. However, the cockpit was falling in a tailspin. Only God knew if they would be able to land safely.

When Clan came to, she was dangling from the ceiling, so to speak. In the crash, the cockpit had ended up upside down, and the ceiling was now the floor. Clan was firmly fastened into the pilot’s seat, her hair and arms dangling down.

“Ugh... Karama? Korama?” she asked in a daze.

“Ho! Clan-chan opened her eyes, ho!” Karama said.

“Are you okay, ho? Does your head hurt, ho?” Korama asked.

“It seems I’m not hurt...but that was horrible...”

Clan accepted a helping hand from the haniwas to get out of her seat. Like she’d said, she didn’t seem to be injured, but she did look exhausted. The distortion field had limited the speed of their spinout, but it hadn’t eliminated it. Just getting spun around like that was enough to tire her out.

“Are you okay, Onee-chan?” Kiriha asked gently. It was a tone reserved for when the two of them were alone. Naturally, her eyes were just as kind.

“I see you’re full of energy. I guess you always were...” Clan replied.

“I can even ride on a roller coaster,” Kiriha said.

“I suppose so...hehe,” Clan giggled as she fixed her clothes. Kiriha naturally helped out.

Ruth watched them with a serious expression. “Sorry for interrupting, but we need to leave right away. The enemy is coming.”

She was already preparing to set out. Upon waking up, she had packed a rucksack with an emergency kit, portable rations, and other necessities. Since she knew the enemy was coming, she’d left Kiriha and Clan to the haniwas and gotten to work.

“Here, Clan-sama,” Ruth said. “It has your personal belongings and tools.”

“Thank you for everything, Pardomshiha,” Clan replied.

“This is for you Ane-go, ho!” Karama said.

“We kept it light, ho!” Korama added.

“Thank you,” Kiriha answered. “I am aware that I’m not getting enough exercise.”

Shortly after their crash landing, the three crawled out of the ship. Since everything was upside down, it was harder to move, but the spaceship had exits up, down, left, and right, so it wasn’t too hard to get out.

“Looking at it like this, I am impressed that we are in one piece...” Ruth said upon seeing the damage that the craft had taken. The armor was falling apart. Looking around where the rocket motor had landed, it was a miracle that the cockpit survived.

“That’s thanks to Clan-dono’s efforts,” Kiriha said.

“That’s amazing, ho!” said Karama.

“Well done, ho!” said Korama.

“If anything, it’s thanks to the safety measures,” Clan replied. “Unfortunately, we didn’t land thanks to me.”

Just like the PAF and Koutarou’s armor, distortion fields tended to have levitating powers. Spaceships that used distortion fields for defense and navigation naturally used them as safeguards as well, so as long as the power supply and distortion field generator were safe, a crash landing was survivable—if both were kept intact.

“It’s the same thing, Clan-sama,” Ruth insisted. “You were the one to protect the safety devices.”

“But you can hardly call it an achievement,” Clan answered with a sigh. “We won’t be able to get the vehicle out of this.” She was being praised, but her expression was gloomy. There had been an unexpected problem. The original plan had been to use a vehicle to leave, but the hatch was warped from the crash, and it was impossible to get the vehicle out.

“It’s hard to predict everything,” said Kiriha. “Sometimes there’s nothing we can do.”

“That reminds me,” Clan replied, “you actually won against someone who could predict the future. Hehe, so if you’re saying that, there really was nothing we could’ve done. Let’s just try to stay positive about our situation.”

“That’s the spirit,” Kiriha agreed.

“Pardomshiha, what direction do we go?” Clan asked.

“This way please!”

“Ho!”

“Ho, ho!”

With that, the three girls and two haniwas left the ship and crash site behind. It was a given that Maxfern and Grevanas would send in soldiers to check the wreck, so they had to rush to a safe location as quickly as possible and wait to be rescued.