"Alright. It's cleared up."
The storm that had raged during the day had cleared up as if it were a lie, and a full moon shone in the sky. Cornelia's words, as she gazed at the full moon, held a hint of satisfaction.
"With this, we can resume the landing operation. Prince Schneizel's plan can also be executed."
"The Special Corps… no, do you think Kururugi can break through?"
"He is the knight chosen by Princess Euphemia, so there's ample possibility."
"Hmph, he's a troublesome man."
Even as she said that, deep down, she was probably half-pleased. Considering Cornelia's doting affection for Euphemia, an improvement in their relationship wouldn't be far off. …Though, they would return to a cold war state again during the Special Administrative Zone of Japan.
"Once the Avalon enters combat, we'll move too. Have all units prepare for deployment. …Axel, I'm counting on you too."
"Alright. Providing air support for the Portmanns, then."
"That's right. Now, all Portmann units, prepare for deployment!"
Although 30-40% of the Portmanns had been destroyed by the previous attack from Kyushu, a considerable number still remained. My role was to provide support as these remaining Portmanns secured a landing point. The enemy's eyes should hopefully be focused on the Lancelot, so it should be better than being ambushed by fully prepared forces… or so I wanted to believe.
The surface of the sea, illuminated by the full moon. I flew my Guren over it. …Actually, while flying, I was intercepting cannon shells fired into the sea with my machine cannons and burst railgun, slicing missiles with the Assault Blade, and providing support for the Portmanns.
Thanks to these efforts, the target landing point gradually drew closer. The landing craft carrying Cornelia's main force was also heading towards us.
I thought they would deploy their helicopter units, which should be at Fukuoka Base, against me, an aerial threat, but fortunately or unfortunately, I haven't seen a single one yet. They were probably all deployed to intercept the Lancelot.
As a result, as per Schneizel's plan, we succeeded in securing the landing point with little difficulty.
A comm from the Portmann unit leader reached the Guren.
"Your Highness, we've secured the landing point!"
"I see, well done. Hurry to the landing point. Sutherland and Gloucester pilots, be ready to sortie immediately!"
"Yes, Your Highness!"
Good. With this, the biggest hurdle of this operation has been overcome… Tch!
"Cornelia, hurry as much as possible. We have a large group arriving."
Displayed on the monitor were nearly a hundred Gan-Lu. They were forming a veritable swarm, heading towards us.
And behind the Gan-Lu, a tank division could be seen. The helicopter units were probably sent to the Lancelot, but the tanks remained since they couldn't deal with the flying Lancelot.
"We can sortie in about 2 minutes. Hold out until then."
"Understood, 2 minutes."
If I were in my original unit, the Growsaver, instead of the Guren, I could have annihilated that many enemies in less than a minute, let alone hold out for 2 minutes. With slow-moving tanks and mock KMF Gan-Lu, even if there were 10 times that many, it would only take a little longer to wipe them out completely. However, my current unit was the Guren, not the Growsaver, and its unit performance, weapon performance, and everything else were overwhelmingly inferior.
"But, since I've been asked, I have no choice but to do it. …Concentration, Accelerate. Sonic Breaker!"
Using the spirit commands Concentration and Accelerate, I charged into the Gan-Lu. Dozens of Gan-Lu and tanks fired shells, but thanks to the effect of Concentration, I only evaded attacks that were about to hit me while charging towards the enemy. Of course, since I was heading directly into the enemy, I couldn't evade all attacks. However, the Sonic Breaker's T-Dot Array deployed an energy field, blocking all direct hits.
Then I charged into the enemy while maintaining the energy field. There was already a mass difference of nearly three times between a Gan-Lu and the Guren. What would happen if I charged in at a speed amplified by the Accelerate spirit command while maintaining an energy field?
The answer was simple. They were smashed to smithereens, their parts scattered into the air. Some unlucky individuals had their units damaged by these parts, but I merely glanced at them out of the corner of my eye and continued to charge into the enemy swarm.
A single line was drawn through the swarm of Gan-Lu and tanks. This line was formed in the Guren's wake, and only scrap metal remained on the line.
However, as expected, the remaining enemies tried to fire machine guns and cannons at my back from behind where the Guren had passed.
"Accelerate."
When my speed dropped, I used a tank that was turning its turret towards me as a springboard, and the recoil sent me upwards. I then rolled away, moving in the opposite direction from where the Britannian forces were landing. In my hand was the burst railgun. While moving, I fired my chest machine cannons and burst railgun, destroying one, two, three units.
"Haaaaaaah!"
I rapidly approached a Gan-Lu that was firing machine guns and cannon shells from the air, and with an upward slash of my Assault Blade, I split its body in two. Then, with a return strike, I slashed upwards, splitting a Gan-Lu on my left from bottom right to top left. Simultaneously, I used that momentum to leap. I fired my chest machine cannons at the Gan-Lu that had gathered at the scene of the melee. The power of each shot was low, but by compensating with sheer volume, similar in a way to the Chinese Federation's Gan-Lu's weapons, I kept them at bay while trampling several tanks from above to create distance.
At the same time, I moved to the sky above the Britannian landing point and descended next to a particularly conspicuous unit.
"Sorry to keep you waiting."
A Gloucester characterized by two horns. Cornelia's personal unit. She already held her lance, ready to charge at any moment. Beside it, I could also see Guilford's unit, with a violet body color closer to Cornelia's personal unit than a standard model. And behind them were standard Gloucesters and Sutherlands, and Portmanns in the sea. The landing seemed to be completely finished.
"No, don't worry about it. More importantly, there are many enemies, but are you alright?"
Cornelia snorted unhappily at my words.
"Hmph, have you forgotten who I am? Don't lump me in with just any woman."
"My apologies, Your Highness, Witch of Britannia. Then, let's see you wield that power to your heart's content."
"Very well. The enemy is just a swarm of countless mock KMFs. All units, show the Chinese Federation the true power of the Britannian army!"
With Cornelia's voice, all KMFs began their attack. Gloucesters, utilizing the KMF's characteristic swift movements, impaled Gan-Lu with lances and kept enemies at bay with assault rifles. Sutherlands slammed Stanton Phasers onto the heads of Gan-Lu and threw wide-area Chaos Depth Charges at the enemy's rear. Portmanns, in support of their allies, fired torpedoes and Slash Harkens from underwater.
Numerically, the Chinese Federation still had the advantage, but in terms of quality, the Britannian forces were clearly superior, and the battle progressed accordingly. Cornelia herself piloted her customized Gloucester, piercing tanks and Gan-Lu with her spear while continuously issuing precise orders to her allies. This was truly fitting for someone nicknamed the "Witch of Britannia." While I might be her equal in combat ability, her command ability over allies was vastly superior to mine. Though, given my combat style, which often involves solo combat, I don't particularly desire commander skills at the moment.
Guilford, too, constantly provided support for Cornelia while attacking nearby enemies. The Slash Harkens fired from the roots of his arms destroyed tank turrets and inflicted damage even on their thick armor.
Of course, I wasn't just silently watching. The Guren, being nearly three times larger than a KMF, was nothing but a good target for the enemy. Moreover, it was the unit that had just ravaged the Chinese Federation forces. Therefore, the attacks aimed at the Guren were extremely fierce.
However, dealing with such attacks was not difficult for the Guren, which could freely fly in the sky. …Though, due to its slower unit response, I couldn't pull off the last-second evades like with the Growsaver… or rather, I didn't want to, so I evaded with plenty of room.
"Hmph!"
I rapidly approached a Gan-Lu that was firing machine guns and cannon shells from the air, and with an upward scoop of my Assault Blade, I split its unit in two. Using the momentum from the upward slash, I evacuated into the sky again. Simultaneously, I used the Burst Railgun to fire a warning shot at a tank unit that was trying to circle around behind a Sutherland.
"It would be helpful if things started moving soon."
Approximately 20 minutes had passed since the battle began. The Britannian forces had the momentum, but the Chinese Federation's sheer numbers meant that, overall, it was a back-and-forth struggle. It was fine for now, but that equilibrium would break down soon. Unlike the Chinese Federation, we were a small, elite force. "Small elite" sounds good, but the fatigue felt in combat is roughly the same for even our top-tier pilots and the Chinese Federation's second-tier pilots, with only slight differences. In that case, there's a possibility of our numbers dwindling like teeth falling from a comb, one by one. To prevent that, something needed to happen to shift the situation…
However, my worries soon vanished. A report came in from the Special Corps: Fukuoka Base had fallen. Only Sawazaki remained, but with Fukuoka Base fallen, it was only a matter of time.
"Alright, our victory is decided."
I muttered unintentionally. If push came to shove, escaping would have been easy since the Guren could fly, but I had hesitated to abandon Cornelia and Guilford on this land, so I exhaled a sigh of relief.
However, Zero and Lancelot's joint operation was something I could easily accept because I knew the original story, but Cornelia, who didn't know it, would naturally suspect Zero's actions.
"What? Zero?"
Cornelia muttered, pulling her lance out of a pierced Gan-Lu.
"Yes, along with Kururugi."
Guilford, who had been protecting Cornelia's back with his assault rifle while she attacked with her lance, confirmed Cornelia's words.
"What is that man thinking…"
Cornelia muttered, but since the outcome of this battle was already decided, there was no time for contemplation. She switched on her external speaker and called for the Chinese Federation forces to surrender.
"Listen, forces of the Chinese Federation! Sawazaki, your justification for intervening in Area 11, has been captured. Furthermore, your commander, General Cao, has also been apprehended. Further resistance is meaningless. Surrender!"
Cornelia's words echoed throughout the surrounding area. I didn't know how much influence General Cao had, but he was still a high-ranking general. His capture would undoubtedly shock the troops. Given how easily he was discarded by the Chinese Federation in the original story, he probably wasn't that important of a figure.
A few seconds after Cornelia's words were uttered, first one Gan-Lu lowered the muzzle of its machine gun that had been aimed at us, and seeing that, nearby Gan-Lu also… and so on, they sequentially indicated their intention to surrender.
"Alright, Guilford. Give orders to gather and manage the prisoners in one place."
"Yes, Your Highness!"
Watching Guilford nod and begin issuing orders to his subordinates, I let out a sigh of relief.
"It was pretty close, but… we managed."
"Yes, I underestimated the Chinese Federation's numbers. Axel, thanks to you, we avoided significant casualties. I'm grateful."
"Well, that's my job. Don't worry about it. I'm perfectly satisfied just knowing you're safe."
"Y-you're spouting such nonsense again…"
Thus, the Kyushu campaign, initiated by the Chinese Federation and Sawazaki, concluded.
Name: Axel Almar
LV: 35
PP: 330
Melee: 246
Ranged: 264
Skill: 256
Defense: 253
Evasion: 281
Accuracy: 303
SP: 422
Ace Bonus: SP Boost (Increases Slime's performance by consuming SP)
Growth Type: All-Rounder, Special
Air: S
Land: S
Sea: B
Space: S
Spirit Commands:
Accelerate: SP 4
Effort: SP 8
Concentration: SP 16
Direct Hit: SP 30
Awaken: SP 32
Love: SP 48
Skills:
EXP Up
SP Boost (SP Up Lv.9 & SP Recovery & Concentration)
Psychokinesis Lv.10
Attacker
Gunfight Lv.9
Infight Lv.9
Morale Limit Break
Geass (Gray)
???
???
???
???
???
Kills: 223
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