Let's go back in time a bit.

A great fleet was moving through space.

It was Rosetta's personal guard.

Rather than being equipped with state-of-the-art gear like Liam's, this fleet was outfitted with current, stable, mainline weaponry.

The sight of twenty thousand battleships, each bearing the crest of the Claudia family, was a magnificent spectacle.

Watching the scene from the bridge, Rosetta sat uncomfortably in her dedicated seat.

As Liam's wife, her dedicated seat was as luxurious as one a queen would sit in.

The function-oriented seat had been lavishly decorated.

"I wonder if it was really okay to assemble so many?"

Ciel, dressed in a maid's uniform, was there to distract Rosetta from her worries as she rested a hand on her cheek.

"No problem at all! This is just proof of how many people adore you, Lady Rosetta!"

Watching Ciel with a bitter expression was Eulisia, who served as Rosetta's military support.

"We had the budget for it, but still, this is too many."

Hearing Eulisia's words, Rosetta couldn't help but feel apologetic.

"You're right. It is a bit too many, isn't it?"

"It's not just 'a bit.' You have more military power than some lesser count families."

Corrected by Eulisia, Rosetta shrank back.

"I wonder if it's alright to head out for training like this?"

This time, it was a grand mobilization, leading the entire army.

In a way, the objective was to make a show of Rosetta's military strength.

The one who planned this was Ciel.

"No problem. It's to show just how wonderful Lady Rosetta's personal guard is—huh?"

Just then, Ciel stopped talking and looked around restlessly.

Eulisia crossed her arms.

"What's wrong all of a sudden?"

"N-no, it's nothing. I just thought I heard a dog barking."

Eulisia let out a small sigh with an exasperated look.

"If you mean Chino, she's back at the mansion, isn't she?"

Chino of the dog-kin tribe is a maid at the mansion.

Told that she wasn't here, Ciel shook her head.

"That's not it! It sounded like a real dog's howl—"

Just then, the operators began to stir.

"Lady Rosetta. We've received a distress call from one of our house's fleets."

Rosetta's expression changed.

"A distress call? Which fleet is it?"

"Well, it exists in the data, but the detailed information won't be disclosed."

"Disclose it with my authority."

"Yes, ma'am!"

According to the information that was then disclosed, it was a special fleet organized by Liam.

"This is—Lord Liam's fleet!"

"Darling's!?"

The operator confirmed the situation.

"It seems they've entered a state of combat with the nobles of the Calvin Faction. The difference in forces is over sixty to one!"

The bridge erupted in commotion.

Eulisia hurriedly tried to make contact.

The commander aboard Rosetta's flagship was issuing orders.

"Hurry and send a rescue request to the home planet!"

Rosetta stood up.

"The personal guard will proceed with all ships to rescue my darling."

"Lady Rosetta!?"

The commander was shocked and began trying to persuade her to return to the home planet immediately, but Rosetta shook her head.

"I have decided. We are going to help him!"

The commander relented in the face of Rosetta's determination, and the personal guard set out to rescue Liam.

Ciel thought.

(H-huh? Why is Liam being saved as part of my plan?)

◇

—This is wrong.

Facing the great fleet of twenty thousand ships that had appeared, I felt the urge to complain.

"N-no, this is wrong. This is wrong, Guide!"

After cutting off communication with Marie, I was in Avid's cockpit, holding my head in my hands.

"Why did Rosetta have to show up at this timing?! Anyone else would have been fine!"

Of all people, I never thought I'd be saved by Rosetta.

After writhing in agony for a while, I gripped the control stick tightly.

"If it's come to this, I'll just have to take it out on them!"

To vent my frustration on the surging nobles of the Calvin Faction, I launched Avid.

◇

A pilot who later became an enemy of Liam's would speak of that day.

"I still see that day in my dreams. It's a nightmare."

The pilot had been shot down before Liam sortied and was drifting through space.

He said he had drifted away and watched the battlefield from a distance.

"The cockpit monitor was still working. I was watching what was happening outside, but I doubt anyone would believe me if I told them about that battlefield. Even I don't want to believe it."

Even if video footage remained, people would just say it was doctored.

It was that unbelievable of a sight.

"When that machine, Avid, passed through, our allies would explode a moment later. They were sliced to pieces, engulfed in explosions. A trail of explosions followed in its wake."

The pilot chugged his drink.

"When the Count's fleet tried to retreat, the traitorous mercenary group blocked their escape route, leaving them with nowhere to run. We even offered to surrender. The message reached my cockpit too. But what do you think they said?"

In response to the Count's fleet offering surrender, Marie, leading Liam's fleet, was said to have replied with cold eyes.

"'We do not accept your surrender. You will all end here.'"

The pilot was laughing through his tears.

"It's a crazy story, right? Even with the traitors, we still had fifty thousand on our side. And yet, the enemy had less than half that, twenty-four thousand. There was more than a two-to-one difference, and yet we were trampled. I—I could do nothing but watch."

I ask the pilot the reason the battle occurred.

"The reason we fought? That was decided by the higher-ups. How would I know? But, I did hear a rumor. Apparently, the Count's idiot son captured Liam's master. You know, the One-Flash Style. They say Liam got furious and came charging in. Unbelievable, right?"

Everyone denied the rumor.

It was unthinkable that the then-Count Banfield, one of the most prominent nobles in the Empire, would personally venture into the frontier.

There must have been some other reason—the pilot seemed to think so.

"Flashes of explosions were erupting from our fleet. In contrast, you couldn't see any such light from the enemy's side. Our fleet was a paper tiger, but I never thought it was that weak. We were complacent, thinking we could win with numbers."

The pilot's hands were trembling, perhaps recalling the scene from that time.

"The Banfield house has some insane knights. I'd heard the rumors, but I couldn't truly grasp it until I saw them on the battlefield. Their skills are incredible, but the scariest part is how captivated they are by combat. The ones who aren't afraid of dying are the most terrifying. The named one who showed up partway through was especially bad. Chengshi. That woman used to rampage on the battlefield without distinguishing between friend or foe. And now, under Liam, she's a quiet, loyal retainer? Can you believe it?"

Even back then, Liam had always won in situations where he was at a disadvantage.

I ask if he didn't know that.

"If I'd believed it, I wouldn't have challenged him in the first place, would I? I thought it was just some tall tale from the battlefield. I figured he was just a little strong and the stories were exaggerated. Still, it was sixty to one. We were cautious and gathered our numbers, and we still got trampled."

I ask the pilot about Liam on the battlefield.

"Liam? To the people of the Banfield territory, he's undoubtedly a wise lord. It makes me cry with envy. Our lord was a terrible man."

Was a terrible man—past tense.

I wonder what happened?

"—He died. When we survivors returned to our territory, the Count and all his potential heirs were dead. The rumor is they were silenced, but we don't know what happened either. I just heard the way they were killed was pretty gruesome."

As I try to continue my questions, the pilot stands up from his seat.

"That's enough, isn't it? I don't want to remember this story. I've decided never to get involved with the Banfield house or Liam again. I've seen a lot on the battlefield, but—that man is a true monster."

◇

The battle was over, and I'd left the cleanup to my subordinates. I was relaxing inside the ship—or not.

When the battle ended, Marie was tearfully tending to my wounds.

"A wound on Lord Liam's body—a wound—This Marie is ashamed of her own incompetence. I will atone with my life."

"Are you an idiot? Just keep treating my wounds."

Even if I say that, the ever-loyal Marie will just think to herself, 'Lord Liam is so wonderful for forgiving me!'

Her wonderful corporate-slave mentality makes me want to puke.

I was a corporate slave for a time in my past life, so I hate the very idea of it.

The world is best when it's simple.

Don't expect anything, just pay for the work done.

This is fine. This is good.

After my wounds were treated, I straightened my clothes and sat in seiza on the prepared tatami mats.

Rinho and Fuuka were already sitting in seiza, and Ellen followed my lead and sat down as well.

Facing us were my master and his family.

"Master, I'm glad you are safe."

When I bowed my head, Rinho and Fuuka bowed as well.

For some reason, only Ellen seemed hesitant—I'll have to scold her for this later.

Master Yasushi was smiling.

"Ahahaha—I am grateful for your help."

He's a generous master.

But there was something that bothered us.

Fuuka was the first to speak.

"Master! Why did you get captured by those guys from the Original One-Flash Style! With your skill, you could have taken down those small fries in a single blow!"

—That's right. Why had the master been captured?

And Rinho was worried about Master Yasushi's well-being.

"And what's this about you not being able to fight!? How could our master, who was so strong, be—!"

In addition to their two questions, I asked one more.

"Master, unfortunately, the master of the Original One-Flash Style escaped. I thought he was with the magistrate, but even when I had Kukuri and the others investigate, they couldn't find him."

Hearing our questions, the master crossed his arms and closed his eyes.

And what was even more concerning was that giant octopus.

"And that monster. It treated the One-Flash Style as its mortal enemy. Did something happen?"

It should have been our first meeting.

And yet, it knew about me. No, it knew about the One-Flash Style.

The giant octopus had bared its hostility, saying we shouldn't exist.

Master Yasushi opened his eyes and prepared to answer our questions.

"It seems the time has come to tell you everything."

The master began to tell us about the secrets of the One-Flash Style.