When giant interstellar nations go to war, billions of people are mobilized.

Millions of ships are prepared.

The scale is so large that even generals, let alone individual soldiers, cannot grasp the whole picture. That is what interstellar warfare is like.

If it were a war between nobles within a country, the scale would be smaller and it would be easier to find a compromise.

However, in wars with foreign nations, it is easy to misjudge when to withdraw.

Sometimes wars continue for hundreds of years, during which both countries become exhausted and collapse from within—there are even absurd stories of how, by the time they realize it, the reason for the war has disappeared.

Even if a victor emerges, it's often the case that both sides are simply exhausted.

Therefore, interstellar nations usually try to limit their conflicts to small-scale skirmishes.

In the mobile knight briefing room in Melea, the pilots were gathered.

Emma, standing in front of the screen, relayed the orders from Central Command regarding Melea's future.

Central Command—that is, the military headquarters located on Hydra, the home planet of the Banfield family.

Emma was nervous about her first experience with external warfare, but she feigned composure in front of her subordinates.

She calmly stated the contents of the order.

"Melea, the technical test team, will be incorporated into the Banfield family's raiding fleet. The fleet is expected to number in the hundreds, but the exact number won't be confirmed until we arrive."

Lieutenant Kimura folded his arms at the vague content of the order.

His expression was his usual poker face, but he seemed slightly irritated.

"The orders are rather vague. Should we interpret this as Central Command being in a state of panic?"

Ain's question, suggesting that the Banfield family's deployment to external war had led to incomplete organization, caused unrest among the others.

If they were being scraped together just to make up the numbers, there was no telling how they would be treated on the battlefield.

To quell the growing unease within the unit, Emma deliberately adopted a cold demeanor.

"Unknown. Lieutenant Kimura, refrain from speaking based on speculation."

Ain adjusted his glasses with the middle finger of his right hand, appraising Emma.

"...My apologies, Captain."

Beside the apologizing Ain, Rick leaned back in his chair with his hands clasped behind his head.

He skillfully balanced the chair at an angle.

"More importantly, we're a technical test team, not a combat unit, right? I'd rather not be thrown into actual combat right away."

Emma glared at Rick's negative remark.

"Melea is a unit that will participate in actual combat if deemed necessary. Besides, Lieutenant Rick, your development team agreed to this, didn't they?"

The situation had been explained to the development team when they were assigned to Melea.

Rick scratched his cheek with his fingertip, looking troubled.

"Well, even if we were to participate, we were expecting small-scale combat against space pirates. Being involved in such a large-scale war is completely unexpected."

Inwardly, Emma agreed.

(I didn't expect an external war to break out either. But if we're ordered to participate, we have no choice but to obey.)

Hiding her inner thoughts, Emma maintained a stern attitude toward Rick.

"If we could predict the future, no one would have any problems."

As if pleased with Emma's retort, Rick clapped his hands exaggeratedly.

"You're absolutely right, Captain! You got me there!"

The other pilots were exasperated by Rick's cheerful attitude.

Larry, who harbored resentment towards Rick, or rather towards knights in general, raised his hand to ask for permission to speak, seemingly fed up with the atmosphere.

"Captain, may I ask a question?"

"What is it, Warrant Officer Larry?"

"I understand we're being assigned to the raiding fleet, but what's our mission there?"

Larry's question seemed to be on everyone's mind, as the pilots in the briefing room turned their gaze to Emma.

Emma took a few seconds to answer.

The reason was simple.

"...Unknown."

Because there had been no instructions from Central Command.

Displeased with Emma's answer, Ain spoke up.

"What do you mean, unknown? If they're assigning us to the raiding fleet, there must be a reason. Haven't you received any communication from Central Command?"

Faced with the accusations, Emma, before her disgruntled subordinates, blurted out the truth.

Discarding her composure, she raised her voice.

"Be-cause! We were just told to assemble! There haven't been any other orders! I checked because I was worried too. And all Central Command said was, 'Follow the instructions on the scene'!"

As Emma dropped her pretense, the pilots raised their voices.

"Don't mess with us, you're the captain! Get it together!"

"See, I told you it was too early for a little girl like you."

"Now I'm starting to get worried about fighting under the current captain."

Emma shouted at her subordinates, who were saying whatever they wanted.

"Quiet! Anyway, we'll carry out the orders from Central Command. Everyone, prepare your mobile knights for sortie. That is all!"

As Emma forcibly ended the briefing, Ain and the Varona team stood up.

Ain gave Emma a harsh look.

"I heard you were a competent knight who produced results, but the real thing isn't as impressive as the rumors."

A pilot belonging to the Varona team checked with Ain, their captain.

"Since we're under evaluation, we can refuse to participate, Captain."

Ain shook his head at that.

"Even if we refuse to participate, we can't leave this ship. We can't just stand by and watch on the battlefield. --But we will fight according to our own judgment."

As the Varona team pilots left the briefing room, the pilots who had been on Melea for a while were disgruntled.

"Those newbies are acting so high and mighty.""Who would ask an outdated model to sortie?"

Apparently bothered by the Varona team's reaction, Rick also stood up.

"Ah, sorry about this... but my Armored Nevan is under maintenance. It'll be difficult to sortie immediately, so please take care of things. Well then, I'll be going too!"

Rick fled from the briefing room.

Emma's cheeks twitched at the reaction of the newly assigned personnel.

This would be a major problem in a normal unit, but Emma's unit was a technical test team.

The mobile knights they handled were assigned for technical testing, so even if they were forced to sortie, it would end if the development team refused.

Due to their special position, Emma was put in a difficult position.

Doug, who had been listening to the conversation, sighed softly while resting his chin on his hand.

"Not many of you have experience participating in external warfare. It's understandable that you find the orders from Central Command unnatural, but at this scale, this is how it is."

With the briefing over, Emma tilted her head and asked Doug.

"Do you have experience, Doug?"

"A long time ago. I was made to participate, but luckily I wasn't involved in any fighting."

Hearing Doug's words that he wasn't involved, the veteran group nodded nostalgically.

"The nearby battlefield was a fierce battle zone, but we were left alone."

"I didn't understand why we were gathered."

"The scale is so large that even the higher-ups can't grasp the whole picture. Or rather, back then, both our side and the enemy's commanders were amateurs and it was a mess."

Larry put his hand on his forehead at the veteran group's story.

"What's that? Is external warfare that haphazard?"

Doug stood up and put his hands on his hips.

"It depends on the higher-ups, but the scale is so large that it's impossible to grasp the whole picture. If you're lucky, you can return without doing anything."

Larry's face relaxed upon hearing that.

"I was nervous for nothing."

"Idiot."

But the expressions of Doug and the other veterans were grim.

"If you're unlucky, you'll be sent to a fierce battle zone with a low survival rate, and everyone here could be sent to the other world. Depending on the scale, you could be detained for years or even decades. External warfare is incredibly troublesome."

The probability of surviving for decades by sheer luck is not high.

Emma, who had been listening to the conversation, worried about the future of her unit, thrown into external warfare.

(This is my first time experiencing a war of this scale, but I have to do my best so that this unit can get through it safely.)

◇

In space, ships were lined up in front of a long-distance warp gate.

These were the Banfield family's ships heading to the battlefield against the United Kingdom of Oxis.

Melea was also waiting its turn, and Tim was yawning on the bridge.

"I'm getting sick of our lord's love for war. If he doesn't show up on the front lines, I can curse him as a coward hiding in the back."

Unfortunately, the current head of the Banfield family was a strong person who had repeatedly gone into actual combat and achieved results.

The operator looked back at Tim, slightly bewildered.

"Commander, a small craft is requesting permission to land on Melea."

"Who's the idiot doing that at a time like this?"

Tim stood up and flew to the operator's seat in one swift motion.

The bridge was in a zero-gravity state.

Tim hadn't heard anything about accepting a small craft.

"Is it a lost ship asking for help?"

The operator, who had exchanged several communications with the small craft, widened his eyes.

"They're saying they're personnel dispatched from Fleet Headquarters and we should accept them."

"Fleet Headquarters?"

As Tim said that and checked the orders, an order had been issued to accept personnel from the Banfield family's Fleet Headquarters.

"Why are we suddenly getting additional personnel?"

The operator was also bewildered.

"I don't know."

Since it was an order from Fleet Headquarters, they had no choice but to accept it, so he instructed them to proceed with preparations to receive the small craft.

"Anyway, have them accept the small craft. Tell our guys not to make a fuss. Now, I wonder who they've sent—huh!?"

When Tim checked the additional personnel, the name was Captain Allison Baker.

If it was just the same last name, he wouldn't have been surprised, but her face closely resembled his wife's.

When he checked her information, her father's name was the same as his grandson's.

"No way... could this be?"

Tim took off his hat and scratched his hair.

Captain Allison Baker... she was his great-granddaughter.