The escort fleet, having concluded negotiations with the unified government, was to return to the home planet.

In the midst of this.

Emma appeared at the entrance of Melea's training room, where there were several familiar faces besides Russell's squad.

Emma was surprised.

"Doug? Larry?"

She stood frozen in front of the entrance, surprised by the two who were training. Then, Molly, who had arrived earlier, rushed towards Emma.

"Listen, Emma-chan! Both of them are going to do their training properly! It seems like they really took getting scolded by you to heart."

"Eh? Really?"

Emma looked at their faces, and the two sweating men frowned.

Larry, having neglected his training, was unable to complete even the standard menu.

"N-n-no! This is something we decided on our own. We just needed to reflect on some things from the previous battle, so we're just training."

Next to Larry, who was gasping for breath, stood Doug, also drenched in sweat.

The decline of his physique – he looked a bit shocked at his body that had become stiff due to neglecting training.

"Do you think we'd be motivated by something like 'We're gonna work hard because we got scolded like kids'?"

He said so, but resumed training.

And then –

"But, the lieutenant's words were right. We've reflected on it in our own way."

The word "lieutenant" naturally slipped out when referring to Emma.

Hearing that, Molly poked Emma several times with her elbow.

"What? What? Both of them are finally motivated!"

"—"

Emma, initially surprised, softened her expression somewhat.

"Then you need to train even harder as Mobile Knight pilots. From today, I'll be the one preparing your menus!"

Seeing Emma's enthusiasm, the sweating Larry and Doug had strained faces.

"Cut us some slack. We've been out of practice for a while."

"I'm not that young anymore, you know?"

As the two tried to make excuses to avoid it, Emma said with resolute determination.

"No. For now, let's measure your physical abilities today."

Molly laughed at the two.

"Good luck, you two!"

But, Molly didn't seem to be in a position to laugh either.

"Eh? You too? Just because you're a mechanic doesn't mean you can escape training."

"Me too!?"

◇

Russell, watching the scene of the Third Squad in the training room, smiled.

"It seems they've come together, which is good."

Youm, his subordinate, looked at Russell curiously.

"You seem quite pleased. Didn't you dislike her, Captain Russell?"

"If your rivals grow stronger, it means the power of the Banfield family increases. Isn't that a good thing?"

Russell said it as if it were a matter of course, so Youm shrugged his shoulders, unable to say anything.

He then turned his gaze to their problem child.

"Please do something about Charmel, at least."

"Lieutenant Charmel, you say—"

Russell looked towards Charmel, where she was diligently training.

Charmel was drenched in sweat, but her gaze was fixed on Emma.

It seemed she had developed a rivalry.

"She seems to be motivated by rivalry. Seeing a knight stronger than herself must have been a good stimulus. I don't think it's a bad thing."

Youm was dumbfounded by Russell's perception.

"It's her greed for money that has been stimulated. She shot down over twenty machines and destroyed several warships in this battle, didn't she? She's motivated after hearing that she'll be given special rewards along with the medals."

Russell made an indescribable expression after hearing Youm's story.

"No—well. It's good that she's been motivated anyway. — I think."

◇

The escort fleet, having completed its mission, docked at a space fortress near the home planet.

It was a military base that utilized resource satellites and had docks for accommodating warships inside.

From Melea, fixed within the dock, the crew disembarked.

Emma's Third Squad and Russell's squad members were among them.

However, there were also some crew members who were packing their belongings.

One of them approached Doug.

"Are you staying?"

"Yeah—you're leaving?"

The crew member who was leaving had an indescribable expression, then glanced at Emma.

He saluted politely, despite his complex expression.

Emma returned the salute, and the crew member leaving gave a wry smile.

"I woke up thanks to the lieutenant. Or rather, I realized it. I had already lost my heart long ago. That's why — I'm leaving the military."

Doug, seemingly familiar with the crew member, looked sad but also blessed his friend's departure.

"What are you going to do after leaving?"

"The military is going to provide vocational training before I return to civilian life. Apparently, things are hectic everywhere now, so there's no shortage of work. I'm going to work hard from now on."

"I see."

"You guys do your best too."

Saying this, the crew members, who made up more than forty percent of the total, left with their luggage.

Emma watched the scene with a bitter feeling.

"If I had worked harder—"

Then, Marie and the others disembarked from the flagship, which was fixed next to Melea.

Emma and the Third Squad saluted the noisy group of knights.

Heidi was the first to notice them.

"Oh, there are some young promising knights. Good job!"

Then, Marie approached Emma and Russell.

She put her arms around them and hugged them, speaking to them.

"You did a good job, both of you."

"Y-yes! Thank you!"

"Having come from an elite path, you've gained good experience, haven't you? Gain as much knowledge as you can while you can. If you are to support the Banfield family in the future, this is necessary experience."

"Y-yes! I will gain more experience!"

"Good."

Russell was moved, but Emma had a complex expression next to him.

"— In the end, a lot of the crew left the ship."

Looking at the state of Melea, Marie said to Emma.

"It's a success if half of them stayed. You need to rebuild the unit by taking in new recruits, so you need to put more effort into it."

"Eh?"

Emma was surprised, and Marie had the mischievous smile of a child who had succeeded in a prank.

"The unit will be maintained as you wished. Continue to work hard — Emma Rodman."

Marie, who had been calling her "Atarante's pilot" until now, finally addressed Emma by her name.

Seeing her leave, Emma replied a little late.

"Y-yes!"

◇

In the government office of Hydra, the home planet of the Banfield family, Marie and Heidi were talking in their office.

Heidi, sitting on the sofa, asked Marie, who was sitting at her desk, without looking at her.

"Is the story about recommending Atarante's pilot true, Marie?"

Marie was organizing reports, sitting at her desk.

She was putting together documents about the negotiations with the unified government and the lurking presence behind the scenes.

"Emma Rodman, Heidi."

Marie, in work mode, answered with a blank expression.

Heidi shrugged his shoulders.

But he was happy.

"It seems you really liked her. So, did you recommend Emma's promotion and rank advancement?"

Thanks to her active role in the recent mission, Emma was virtually guaranteed promotion to captain and a rank upgrade to A.

She was the most successful among her peers.

Marie finished her paperwork, stretched, and spoke her intentions.

"There's no problem if she has the ability and experience. That woman seemed to want to give her more experience and raise her carefully."

It seems she was going to let Emma stay as a lieutenant for a while and let her grow slowly, considering her situation.

But Marie wouldn't allow that.

"—However, we don't have time. It's important to provide capable knights with a position and a place to succeed."

"You're right. In that case, are we going to take Emma into our faction?"

To the question of whether she would join their faction, Marie made a troubled face.

"Since Liam-sama favored her, putting her in our faction could anger him."

Heidi made a dejected face.

"I hope you're not serious. We don't want to anger the general either. Okay, I'll tell our people not to mess with her."

"I'll rely on you. But—"

Marie displayed documents in front of her to check the status of Melea.

She scanned through dozens of pages in an instant and smiled.

"— I'm looking forward to seeing how she manages the unit in the future."

Melea was originally understaffed.

This time, many crew members left the ship, so it became necessary to replenish the personnel.

But, since it was once considered a place for demotion, the recruits were likely to be a mixed bag.

Marie imagined Emma struggling with difficult subordinates and smiled, thinking.

(From now on, you'll have to work hard as the middle captain.)

◇

The crew of Melea, who had entered a long vacation, had all returned to their homes.

Emma was also back home.

Emma, locked in her room, was assembling models spread out on a table that could be called a workbench.

They were numerous plastic models that she had bought but couldn't break down.

"Ah, I wish I could have an Atalante model someday."

She murmured about her pride and joy, her beloved aircraft, after finishing assembling one and admiring it for a while.

Looking around the room, one wall was remodeled into a display shelf.

Assembled plastic models were displayed there.

The storage space contained tools for making them, and there were also boxes of plastic models.

Emma was delighted to add to her collection as she displayed the completed plastic models on the shelf.

As she lay on the bed admiring her collection, she heard a knock on the door.

"Sis, I'm coming in."

"Go ahead."

Emma's brother, [Luca], came into the room and had a slightly withdrawn expression.

"Your room is still completely dedicated to your hobby."

"It's my oasis, you know?"

"I think there are other uses for it, like fashion or something."

"Hmm, I'm not having any trouble with it for now, so it's fine."

Luca was dumbfounded by Emma, who was relaxing at home.

"I can't believe this is the knight who got a medal."

Hearing the word "medal," Emma turned her back on Luca.

She didn't want to show her depressed face.

The reason was simply that she couldn't be happy.

She had defeated many enemies—in other words, it was proof of how many she had killed.

"—It's fine, isn't it? I just want to relax at home."

Luca sighed deeply.

"That's fine, but Mom and Dad aren't coming back today, okay? They said we could eat lunch on our own. I'm going to eat out with my friends, but what about you, sis?"

Emma sat up.

She remembered her mother saying something like that.

"I'm going to eat out too."

◇

Emma went to a park-like plaza.

There were many stalls lined up there, so there was no shortage of snacks and meals.

Tables and chairs were also prepared so that people could eat after buying something, which was convenient.

It was a place where families were bustling at lunchtime and adults were drinking and having fun at night.

"Are there more stalls than the last time I came?"

Emma, with a light step, had already visited many stalls.

She was carrying many food items in plastic bags in both hands.

She had a skewer of yakitori in her mouth and was walking while eating it.

Looking around, there were families, as well as couples.

—It was a truly peaceful sight.

A different scene from the battlefield.

What they had to protect.

"I hope this scene continues forever."

As she was thinking about various things, Emma brushed past a young child.

The lively girl with red hair was probably a single-digit number in age.

"Mommy!"

"Oh, Ellen, you can't run."

"But, but. I want ice cream!"

The child who brushed past Emma hugged the woman who seemed to be her mother.

When the mother picked up the child—Ellen—she smiled kindly.

"Again? Ellen really loves ice cream, doesn't she? But only one, okay?"

"Okay!"

As her gaze was captivated by the heartwarming scene of the mother and child, Ellen seemed to have noticed Emma.

She tilted her head curiously, only turning her face towards Emma.

Emma, startled, hurriedly waved her hand.

The child also waved her hand in response to Emma.

As the mother and child left, Emma pondered for a moment.

"Will I have a child someday? I need a husband first, right? —Hmm, I can't imagine it now."

Emma, who was imagining romance and marriage, couldn't help but feel a sense of unreality.