The hangar of the light carrier Melea, normally filled with Raccoon units, housed three Nevan-type mobile knights besides Atalante. Emma, leading the third squad, stood with her team, observing the Nevans from a distance.

Molly, a passionate mobile knight enthusiast, couldn't contain her excitement.

"Those are custom models, right? The catalog says they have 20% better performance than regular Nevans. I want to try one at least once!"

Larry Kramer, a junior officer, frowned at the sight of the customized Nevans. His displeasure stemmed from the special treatment given to Russell's elite squad.

"So these are the Elite’s personal units. They're spending a lot of money on them, but I wish they'd allocate some of that budget to us."

The custom Nevans were only given to a select few knights. Russell, leading the Elite knight squad, received them on a trial basis. But for Emma, it was more than just that.

"Larry, we got Raccons too, remember?"

"We've been treated badly for so long, and now they suddenly change their tone?"

Seeing Larry's stubbornness, Emma sighed.

(Even though the environment has improved, it's still the same as before.)

Just as she pondered how to approach her team, Doug Walsh, another junior officer, spoke with his hand on his chin.

"Don't say it, Larry. They're Elites, they're different from us."

Emma’s shoulders slumped at Doug’s words.

“Doug, don’t say that.”

“It’s true, isn’t it?”

“Yes, they are Elite, but—“

Russell, with two other officers, was among the top 100 graduates from the Knight Academy. Unlike Emma, they'd been on the elite track at the Banfield House since graduation.

The custom Nevans were a testament to the expectations placed upon them. Russell was the captain of their squad, and the other two were lieutenants. All three were top-ranked knights.

As the third squad watched, a female knight turned towards them.

With tanned skin and long, straight golden hair, she had a slender build and a lighthearted personality. Her name was Charmel Odan, a lieutenant. She looked at the third squad with a mocking smile.

"Captain, we're being watched!"

Charmel addressed Russell, who was discussing something with his other lieutenant, Yomm Balte. Yomm, a young man with a fringe covering his eyes, seemed to have a dark personality. He was smaller and more delicate than Russell, barely looking like a knight. But given that he was part of Russell’s squad, he must have been exceptional.

"You were the Captain's classmate, weren’t you? I heard you were a genius who received the new model. But you don’t seem scary at all.”

From Emma's perspective, both Charmel and Yomm were her juniors. Yet, their actions made it clear they didn't respect Emma as their senior.

Russell, noticing Emma’s team observing him, showed his annoyance openly.

"It's so frustrating. I don't understand why we have to be on this ship for the mission."

He seemed to despise Melea, which had once been considered a relegation.

Larry and Doug looked at him with sharp eyes.

“Hah! Nobody asked you to be on board, Mr. Elite.”

Russell calmly retorted to Larry's snark.

“We’re operating under orders. I’m not important enough to choose my carrier based on personal feelings. If you have complaints, go to the higher-ups.”

Larry shut his mouth when he was met with those cold eyes. Now it was Doug’s turn.

“Why don’t you suggest to your superiors that you don’t want to be on Melea? They’d probably listen to your words better than ours, since you’re an Elite.”

Charmel and Yomm exchanged glances, tilting their heads in confusion. Russell looked like he had a headache.

“If you think personal feelings allow you to refuse orders, then this squad is truly hopeless.”

Doug, silenced by Russell’s logic, joined Charmel and Yomm in shrugging.

“I heard there was a B-rank knight like me here. I was looking forward to it, but these guys are disappointing.”

Charmel’s remark caught Emma’s attention.

“You’re B-rank?”

“Yes, I’m a B-rank knight, Captain. Higher rank than you.”

Charmel puffed out her chest, while Russell had an indescribable expression. He wanted to rebuke his lieutenant for belittling him, but he couldn't because it was true.

“I’m the captain.”

“Yes, I know.”

Though Charmel responded lightly, Emma was shocked.

(It’s unbelievable for someone who just graduated from Knight Academy to become B-rank.)

Emma became B-rank due to her Atalante mobile knight. Her promotion was due to her accomplishment in solving a major incident.

She believed it was a stroke of luck. Yet, it felt strange to her that her junior, who was younger, became B-rank so easily.

Her surprise showed on her face, and Yomm, noticing it, explained. There was a slight look of disdain in his tone.

“Char—Charmel is what they call a genius. She destroyed fifteen mobile knights piloted by other knights in three sorties.”

“Fifteen?!”

The third squad was stunned by that number.

They understood the difficulty of destroying fifteen mobile knights piloted by other knights, especially not in a battle against ordinary soldiers.

Larry was confused.

“Fifteen in three sorties, that means she averages five kills per sortie.”

Charmel looked at Emma challengingly.

“By the way, how many have you destroyed, senior? You’ve got the new, super-strong mobile knight, so you must have destroyed over a hundred, right?”

She was boasting about destroying fifteen units with her customized Nevan.

Emma had fewer kills, especially against mobile knights piloted by other knights. She had fought against Sirena's Golden Raccon, but escaped.

“Z-zero.”

Emma’s honest answer left Charmel dumbfounded for a moment. Then, she started laughing, clutching her stomach.

“No kills! That’s amazing, Captain! Did you get your promotion and rank through connections? That’s great, connections lead to the top, right?”

Emma was annoyed at being laughed at, but she couldn't retort because her lack of kills was a fact.

Molly was flustered, seeing Emma’s distress. Larry and Doug turned their backs, showing no intention to help.

But Russell intervened.

“Charmel, that's enough.”

“Okay, okay.”

Just as Charmel backed down, an alarm echoed through the hangar.

Emma and her squad were stunned, momentarily paralyzed.

“Charmel, Yomm!”

Russell and his team headed towards their mobile knights, already preparing to enter their cockpits.

Seeing this, Emma hurriedly ordered her squad.

“We’re deploying too!”

◇

As Emma’s third squad prepared for deployment, Russell, inside his custom Nevan, was contorted with frustration. His monitor displayed the surrounding scene, but despite the alarm, the crew was moving sluggishly.

“Are these people sane? How long are they going to take to deploy?!”

He had flourished as a knight, but he knew that he could only thrive with the support of those around him. Yet, what he saw before him was appalling.

‘Deploy? Did we receive an order?’

‘The others will handle it.’

‘Which squad is deploying?’

The sight of the maintenance crew lazing about in the hangar was enough to irritate even Yomm, who was on the same team.

Yomm’s face appeared on a part of the monitor.

‘It’s even worse than I heard. I understand why this is a relegation.’

Despite his calm demeanor, his voice was colder than usual.

Even Charmel was angry.

‘These guys are so unalarmed.’

Both Yomm and Charmel were top performers at the Knight Academy. To them, the situation on Melea was unbelievable. But unlike Russell, they didn’t show anger.

“The remnants of the old army!”

Russell’s curse toward his allies made his team on the monitor look confused.

‘Captain’s in a bad mood today.’

‘That’s unusual.’

◇

As the third squad deployed from Melea, the battle had already started. Emma, piloting Atalante, gritted her teeth inside the cockpit.

“This is the third squad. Melea, I request instructions!”

It was clear that Melea was under attack, but no details were provided. She tried to confirm the situation with Melea’s operator, but the response was terrible.

‘The number of—ships? Two hundred? Three hundred? It’s probably space pirates. Commander, what do we do?’

When the operator asked the commander for instructions, the reply was unbelievable.

‘If our allies are winning, there’s no need for us to get involved. We’ll just support them.’

‘—That’s what he said. Just provide support for our allies.’

Hearing this, Emma couldn't hold back her anger.

“Our allies are fighting!”

The commander on the bridge responded in a cold voice.

‘I don’t want you to risk your life and kill Doug and the others while I’m trying out a new toy. —Support our allies.’

Emma, unable to say anything further, was filled with frustration towards the Melea bridge.

“This is no different from before.”

She remembered what Russell had said.

—No matter how much the equipment is upgraded, if the inside is rotten, it means nothing.

And then, she saw a squad excelling on the battlefield.

“Russell's squad?”

Three custom Nevans were facing mobile knights that didn’t have the same features as a Moheave. They were acting like space pirates, but they were fighting strategically.

Russell and his team were performing exceptionally against them.

◇

‘Be careful, the enemy is augmented soldiers.’

Charmel was talking to Russell inside the custom Nevan cockpit.

‘Augmented soldiers, you say? - Ah, those are Unified Army Knights.’

She retrieved the knowledge she had learned at the Knight Academy and found the answer.

‘They’re different from knights like us. They’re even more troublesome.’

Faced with this different enemy, Charmel licked her lips.

‘No matter. It’ll contribute to my score.’

She gave a mischievous smile, and immediately moved the control stick. She stepped on the foot pedal to accelerate, and Charmel’s unit evaded enemy fire, closing in on an enemy unit.

She thrust her high-powered laser blade into the enemy's cockpit.

“First one!”

Knights—augmented soldiers piloting mobile knights—surrounded Charmel’s unit.

Their coordination was more important than the Imperial knights, and even though they were space pirates, they were working together.

But Charmel, having confirmed the enemy's movements, moved immediately.

“Second one!”

She attacked the enemy unit flanking her, destroying it, and then turned her attention to the third unit.

As the enemy unit tried to sandwich her,

‘You’re being careless, Charmel!’

‘Another time we’re covering for you, Charmel.’

Russell and Yomm joined forces to cover Charmel.

While they were complaining about her rampage, they never missed a chance to support her.

After Charmel destroyed the third unit, she continued, destroying the fourth and fifth units in quick succession.

“Five down! Yes! Now I’m getting that special bonus!”

Charmel cheered, happy with her fifth kill. She changed her tactics. She had been moving solo, but now she switched to support, staying behind Russell’s unit.

Yomm was dumbfounded.

‘What is it with you always calming down after getting that special bonus?’

Charmel ignored Yomm’s complaint.

“There’s no point in trying harder than this. You have to be efficient when it comes to the number of kills.”

Russell rebuked them both.

‘Enough of this.’

The squad then headed to rescue the allies who were struggling.

◇

Emma was dumbfounded by the sight of Russell’s squad's performance. She was surprised by Charmel’s quest for bonuses, but it was her competence that truly impressed her.

“—Strong.”

Despite being harsh on Emma, Russell proved he had the skills to back up his words.

“And compared to us, my squad…”

She glanced behind her, seeing two Raccon units following Atalante. Their movements lacked any enthusiasm.

She could hear Larry and Doug talking.

‘Are they ignoring orders? The commander told us not to take risks.’

‘That squad is different. They have their own authority. —Knights are always getting special treatment, wherever they are.’

Even after witnessing Russell’s squad’s performance, all they could do was complain.

Emma was overwhelmed with frustration, self-pity, and various other emotions, but she pulled herself together and gave orders.

“We’re going to pick up the pace too. Increase speed!”

Larry and Doug responded with unenthusiastic replies.

‘Did our synchronized knight give you some motivation?’

‘Don’t say that, Larry. We’ll do as we’re told.’

They didn’t disobey her order, but they were still complaining—Emma wondered if her squad could continue like this.