Marshal Imperium must be incredibly furious. He would probably try to crush the Lucifer Star Cluster, our family’s domain, even if it meant splitting off some of his forces.
‘Ah! I even made a sales pitch to that Chihuahua.’
About how I was going to sell off the Lucifer Star Cluster. Now that things have turned out like this…
‘Maybe it sounded different?’
Reinterpreting it roughly…
— I messed with your lord’s woman, but I’m going to sell the domain and run away. What are you going to do about it?
He probably thinks he’s being played. Furthermore, I even have the title of a scoundrel or a philanderer. It is a huge disgrace. It is like throwing ink on the honor of Imperium.
Now, punishment has become a necessity, not an option.
So, how many enemies will come here?
‘At most, not even 2,000.’
A maximum of 1,000 ships. But considering how great my anger must be? I’ll add 500 ships, making it 1,500.
Yes, if it is the Imperium I know, he would have sent 1,500 ships.
‘Can I stop them?’
No, the chances are slim. Even for me, 1,500 ships are tough to handle with only 600. Moreover, the opponents are top-tier elites with superior vessels. They are on a different level from our hastily gathered fleet.
“Son, avoid them now. You’ve done enough. A fleet of 600 ships won’t be ignored anywhere you go.”
In the end, we returned to the starting point. Father sacrifices himself, and I have to run away.
I have struggled and rolled around so much, yet nothing has changed. So, will I give up? The answer is obviously no. Even if it is just out of spite, I cannot quit.
“Father, General Naparer was being treated poorly even with 3,000 warships. It will be hard to find a place for myself with only 600 ships.”
In fact, I could just go to Area 24, but getting there is an ordeal.
“He and you are different. You are a proper noble.”
“I am just a fallen noble once I leave Area 16. You might be different, Father, but I am not.”
In fact, Naparer would be rated much higher. He is a soldier with a record of service during the Great Invasion. On the other hand, nobles are recognized when they inherit the family business. The Pak family has already closed down their business.
“Then, what do you plan to do?”
“I have to hold out. The star cluster has grown to three, so it’s a waste to just throw it away.”
If not for this location, the size was perfect to start something.
“It is 3,000 ships! And they say Imperium himself is leading the army, not some ragtag group.”
I shook my head.
“He won’t come here. Never. He has no reason or luxury to send 3,000 ships.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“It is true he must punish me to restore his honor, but the main battlefield isn’t here. No matter how important a marshal’s honor is, it’s not enough to risk the survival of his faction.”
Father’s despairing expression softened slightly.
“At most, it’s 1,500 ships. Marshal Imperium is putting his honor on the scale and using it.”
A trick to make the Allied Forces let their guard down and lure them out. Then he probably plans to ambush them when the opportunity arises. Because he has the Hermes Footsteps.
“What a terrifying man. To use honor as a stake.”
“If it wasn’t for the woman issue, he wouldn’t even have sent 1,000 ships.”
Touching Imperium’s sore spot was the problem. Even if I had killed his son, he wouldn’t have been this angry.
“1,500 ships are still too many. His subordinates are all brave.”
“No, if it’s that many, it’s worth a shot. And while his subordinates are brave, that’s all they are.”
“What do you mean? You must never underestimate his men.”
I never underestimate them. I value them higher than anyone else. Because at this time, they are scarier than anyone.
“There’s just one guy I can underestimate. I’ve even beaten him once.”
“What?!”
“I know who will come as the commander.”
Imperium cherished Sagitta. He was a blood relative, after all. He would have given him another chance. He needed to restore Sagitta’s confidence.
So…
‘He must have appointed Sagitta as the commander.’
Then, is that guy easy? No, he’s terrifyingly scary. But I know his weakness.
“He probably organized the army mainly with artillery ships.”
Regular artillery ships are roughly like archers in a fantasy setting. His preferred formation is to fill more than half the force with them. He sets up a wall and builds a fire net. Countless enemies have knelt before that simple strategy.
And his assigned mission is to occupy or destroy this place, Lucifer. Since he’s coming in a hurry, he won’t have siege weapons, so the ratio of archers — artillery ships — is bound to be high.
“Doesn’t that make it a bigger problem?”
“No. That’s why it’s worth a shot.”
Artillery ships are tricky to operate. They have a long range, but they are slow and have weak defense.
“And we still have a hidden card we haven’t played yet.”
“What else is there?”
“Isn’t there Lord Uganadao, the adopted son of Black Blood?”
“Ah! If he buys an army from Marshal Poena, he’ll head this way first.”
“Yes. Since he doesn’t know the situation yet, he’ll think this is the front line.”
I had also given him Marshal Humildas’s letter requesting reinforcements. In other words, he’s in a state where he can join the war immediately.
“It will take quite a while because of the distance…”
“Father, didn’t I tell you? Sagitta is my prey.”
I laughed confidently, but…
‘I don’t know if this will actually work.’
To be honest, I wasn’t certain. But as a hardcore veteran, I wouldn’t be defeated so easily.
***
Marshal Imperium led an army of 3,000 and left the garrison. Enemy scout ships hovered in the distance. He entered a suitable general nebula area and chased the scout ships away.
“Sagitta. Do not disappoint me this time.”
“Yes, my lord. Even if I have to kill that guy, Pak-Yoo, I will bring him to you.”
“Forget it. If he runs away alone, there is no way to catch him. Just smash his domain as an example.”
That much would be enough to save face. And the real goal of this operation wasn’t this.
“Afterward, advance toward Marshal Humildas’s center. As noisily as possible.”
“I understand what you want, my lord. Then, I will see you at the Area 16 center.”
“Very well.”
Sagitta turned 1,500 warships toward the Lucifer Star Cluster. More than half of his army consisted of artillery ships.
“That bald bastard! This time you won’t be safe.”
Sagitta ground his teeth as he thought of Pak-Yoo.
***
I spread out the map. Interpreting this wasn’t easy, to be honest.
*Flip!*
Common sense tells us that if A, B, and C are listed in order, A and B are closer than A and C. However, this damn space map isn’t like that. Sometimes AC is closer than AB.
It is especially true when the scale of the forces is large. If too many troops take a wormhole at once, the flow is distorted, and they might end up in the wrong place.
So, you have to move along the main wormholes. Even for short distances, you often have to take a long detour.
What if the scale is 1,500 ships? There aren’t many wormholes that can move a force that size all at once without splitting them up. But if they split up, they risk being defeated piece by piece.
However, we were the opposite. Winning the fight wasn’t the goal. We focused on slowing down the enemy’s advance. We just had to hold out until Uganadao arrived.
“It doesn’t look easy at all,” Sojin said as she approached me, flapping her wings.
“Yes. We have to prevent the enemy from splitting their forces.”
It was the best way to slow them down. If we kept buzzing around them, they wouldn’t be able to advance in separate groups, fearing they’d be picked off one by one.
“We will lay mines on the main roads and attack if they split into smaller groups to buy time.”
“In that case, we should only carry out operations in star systems with nebulae.”
Nebulae are space dust. Nebulae that clump together like lakes instead of flowing were quite common. In the era I lived in, they could be used like forests. They were good for ambushing, allowing a small army to face a large one.
“I’m just putting a burden on your shoulders, Sojin.”
“No. As a guest of the Pak family, I have to earn my keep.”
Sojin is an excellent navigator. Even in a nebula with poor visibility, she would find the way well. This is why a great observer is necessary…
*Scribble! Scribble!*
Out of 40,000,000 star systems, we selected candidates that could become battlefields.
There were three conditions:
1. A place where the enemy might switch wormholes.
2. Presence of a nebula zone.
3. A place where a large army cannot move all at once.
“I think this is enough. Let’s arrive first and prepare.”
Actually, I don’t like nebula zones. There are too many uncertain variables. However, for this battle, I think I have to bet on the uncertain.
But then…
“My Lady! Why are you here?”
On the day of the departure, Lysandebuzz was in the situation room of my flagship.
“Didn’t you know? Our private guards won’t move without me.”
“Ah…!”
Thinking about it, it was natural. Lysandebuzz wasn’t the head of her family. There was no reason for them to follow orders except regarding her safety. In other words, to move the private soldiers, she had to move too.
“I wanted to show off my prowess, so this works out well. Ha. Ha. Ha.”
I couldn’t make her disembark. 200 warships were by no means a small number. I had to stake everything on this operation.
“Everyone to your positions. All fleets, set sail.”
“Orders received. Instructions completed.”
*Thud!*
The fleet set sail. There were over 1,500 ships. It looked like an enormous number, but about 900 of them were cargo ships.
The armed merchant ships capable of combat were only about 200. The rest of the cargo ships were loaded with mines.
“Each merchant ship, lay mines at the designated positions and then retreat.”
The merchant ships that received the order scattered in all directions. Unlike large fleets, small ships had many paths to choose from and could use side roads. This meant quick marching was possible.
“Let’s check that Grey Nebula over there first.”
Before the enemy arrived, we planned to investigate the nebula zones of the candidate sites. There’s a huge difference between having passed through once and entering for the first time.
“Our fleet is entering the Grey Nebula zone.”
Nebulae have different characteristics depending on their color. If a Green Nebula is like strong waves, a Grey Nebula is darkness. It absorbs light and releases it as thermal energy.
So, everyone becomes blind inside a Grey Nebula. It is hard to distinguish objects not only with visible light but also with infrared. You have to grasp the presence of objects through the flow of dark energy waves in front of you.
“Maintain formation! The formation must not break.”
If we weren’t careful, allies could collide with each other. The silver lining was that we were in a rehearsal, not an actual battle…
*Swoosh!*
Suddenly, the waves billowed.
“Damn it!!”
The inside of the once-quiet Grey Nebula surged. The ship shook violently.
“The formation is breaking!”
“Loss of direction.”
“Coordinate-related equipment is down.”
“Total darkness! I recommend slowing down the fleet.”
At least the Grey Nebula doesn’t paralyze communications. We just had to escape this place step by step.
“Everyone… lower your… spe — “
*Splash!*
While I was giving the order, the ship shook again. To avoid being swept away, we had to maintain engine output.
“The waves are calming down again.”
We could slow down now and exit this place. However…
“A bigger wave is coming! 10 seconds before it hits our ship!!”
We couldn’t slow down. It would be a disaster if we encountered an allied ship without propulsion. We wouldn’t be able to dodge while resisting the waves.
Then…
“What is everyone doing? Is colliding also part of the training? This is very interesting.”
Lysandebuzz blinked her many eyes.
“My Lady. What do you mean by colliding?”
“Call me Lysan. There are three allied ships ahead. I think we’re going to hit them at this rate.”
Everyone looked at her with expressions of not knowing what she was talking about.
“My Lady. No, Lysan. Sit in that observation seat.”
She sat in the observer’s seat as told. For reference, our ship’s observer seat was vacant. Putting an unskilled person there would only cause more confusion.
*Thud!*
The moment she sat down, she was connected to the ship.
“Cr — Crazy!!”
What she saw was now visible to us as well.
‘Was the eye monster not a total waste?’
The Shoggoth race was considered the most useless in combat. These guys were only useful for their eyeballs. And not when they were alive, but when they were dead.
‘Does it mean a genius is different regardless of race?’
She was called the greatest genius of the Doros family.
“Captain, please give instructions quickly!”
The waves weren’t moving in one direction. They were popping like bubbles here and there, creating waves in all directions. At this rate, several ships would collide and be taken out of action.
“From now on, I will issue individual orders to the entire fleet! First Mate, help me.”
“Understood.”
Lysandebuzz’s vision was shared. The first mate’s mind became busy giving instructions based on it.
The two of us quickly adjusted the direction and engine output for each ship. Everyone was blind, but we were the only ones who could see the world.
‘If I do this right, I can use it.’
I had acquired a top-tier observer today.