Inside the aerial ship.
On the bridge.
“The escape plan is ready.”
I returned to my physical body.
And announced it to the people from the otherworld through the ship’s broadcast.
Then, I transmitted the same message to other ships through inter-ship communication.
“Wooooooooooooooohhhh♪♪”
The people from the otherworld cheered with voices of victory.
We had completely taken control of the aerial fleet.
The next thing to do was to open communication with Brain, who was in charge of defending the Sharshar Kingdom.
“…Brain.”
He didn’t respond to the communications from the enemy ships.
All my attempts were rejected or ignored, but I persisted.
I continued to broadcast radio waves towards the Sharshar Kingdom, waiting for some kind of reply.
There was nothing I could do about the maritime fleet directly below us.
If they fired, we would simply retaliate.
The sun set and night fell.
I imagined myself as Brain, on guard against a night raid.
“Increase altitude. Instruct each ship to ascend to maximum altitude.”
“Y-Yes, understood!”
The ships ascended to their highest altitudes.
“…What?! This is an emergency?!”
A person monitoring the radar let out a scream, reporting enemy machine readings directly above our ship.
“Rumble! Rumble?”
“Is this bad?” I cut through the tense atmosphere with a loud voice.
“Stop the engines! Everyone, grab onto something! Deploy the defense barrier!”
It was a piercing, single-line kamikaze attack.
A silent dive by multiple [Alexy] units.
Even with a triple-layered defense barrier, it was clear they would break through.
I just wanted to avoid immediate sinking.
Therefore, I went out onto the deck.
“Whoosh—!!”
A strong gust of wind blew, chilling my skin to the bone.
I increased my body temperature and peered intently at the sky above.
☆Sparkle!
Like the first star of the evening, the armor of the [Alexy] units glittered, glowing with friction heat.
With every blink, their size grew.
“Ssssuuuuuuuu… Braaaaaaaiiinnnn!!!! Wait juuust a seconnnnddd!”
I inhaled deeply, to the limit of my lung capacity, and called out to the approaching [Alexy] units.
But they ignored me. Ignored.
The moment the first defense barrier collided with an [Alexy], a blinding explosion erupted.
Just as the sound of the explosion died down, a second unit crashed into the defense barrier, exploding just as violently.
The defense barrier shuddered.
The explosions continued, and my voice could no longer reach them from the deck.
I used short-range teleportation to get outside the defense barrier, spreading my arms wide so the [Alexy] units could see me.
“Brain!! Stop your attack!”
“BOOM! BOOM BOOM BOOM!!!”
Attacks from below and to the side… concentrated fire from the long-range attack specialized [Alexy] units.
Heathcliff’s body was blown to smithereens.
I possessed a corpse gathered inside the ship and resurrected.
“Brain.”
I used cleaning magic to wash the blood-stained clothes clean, and repair magic to mend the wounds, making them as good as new.
I couldn’t forget to reshape my face on the way back to the bridge.
By the time I reached the bridge, the [Alexy] units’ kamikaze self-destruction had progressed to the third defense barrier.
“Waaahhh!”
“Kyaaaah!”
Screams of “The defense barrier won’t hold!” erupted from various places.
While calmly instructing everyone over the ship’s broadcast, and offering words of encouragement to those on the bridge, I activated the ship’s attack system and locked onto the incoming [Alexy] units.
“You stubborn rockheads!”
I pressed the attack button on the console.
Pressed it. And pressed it again.
The magic power that had been allocated to the defense barrier was now redirected to the attack.
Unable to defend against the [Alexy]’s kamikaze attacks, the defense barrier shattered with the sound of breaking glass.
Then, magic bullets were fired.
“BOOM! BOOM!”
Each shot inflicted damage on an [Alexy], causing it to explode in mid-air.
I fired magic bullets like a barrage at the subsequent [Alexy] units.
“Become fireworks in the night sky!”
“Hii…?! Waaah♪ Oooooohhhhhh!”
The people from the otherworld, who had been cowering from Rayos’s shooting, erupted in cheers.
The other ships also joined the attack.
In the night sky, magic bullets and explosions flashed with orange light.
The maritime fleet, witnessing this scene, wanted to believe it was a fierce battle to suppress rebels.
They would use it in their reports.
Headquarters was annoyingly demanding the aerial fleet be sunk, but as the saying goes, “The superior man avoids danger.”
Not wanting to hasten my own death, I lightly acknowledged their requests, cut off communication, and continued to gaze at the never-ending spectacle above.
“Attacking in the middle of that? No way. If we make a move, all of that will rain down on us.”
Absolutely no interference allowed.
◇◇◇◇◇
Sharshar Kingdom.
Royal Capital.
“This is from Brain, who is in charge of defending the west coast!”
Patch, the Director of the Intelligence Bureau, opened communication with Brain.
They discussed sending additional [Alexy] series units as reinforcements.
“Understood. I’ll enjoy defending the coastline.”
Patch considered whether to send either of his two high-achieving subordinates, Suurl or Sharie, as reinforcements.
He changed the channel on the magic communication device and connected to the headquarters of the Eastern Public Relations Department, where Gira was located.
He informed them that one of the two should be sent over.
“Gira, you and Isaac have supplies to replenish.”
I could clearly hear a sigh from the other side of the communication device.
And Isaac must have been nearby.
He frantically tried to cover it up by shouting, “Ah, no, no,” but the sigh was audible.
“Gira, make sure you tell them both. Don’t hide it, okay?”
Patch sighed as the communication with Gira ended.
He felt uneasy. Gira’s impulsive actions.
His intuition whispered that Gira was definitely up to something troublesome.
“Don’t make more work for me~~ Please.”
Patch called for his secretary.
“Starting immediately, we are on high alert. Be prepared for any unforeseen circumstances.”
“Yes!”
He hoped this would at least reduce his workload.
He skimmed through the reports detailing the complaints of the local people suffering from the war in the east and west.
He arranged for those with free time to escort people to help resolve the issues.
“I’m busy. Please, don’t make more work for me.”
He made a wish. Patch glanced at the map of the Central Continent, praying for those currently fighting in the east and west.
On his desk, mountains, transformed into mountain ranges, of pending documents awaited his approval.
*Scratch, Scratch* *Hummm* *Scratch, Scratch* *Pop* *Scratch, Scratch*
Patch’s desk work would be an all-nighter again tonight.
It was a death march.
Would the day ever come when Patch could rest?
*Knock, knock*
“Director Patch, a report from the southwest.”
“Come in.”
After approving five documents, another pile (about thirty pages) was added.
Patch rubbed his eyes and temples, facing the documents.
