The raiding fleet that the Melea joined consisted of only around three hundred ships. In a battlefield where nine million ships were engaged on both sides, this number was incredibly meager.

However, the flip side was that a fleet of such a paltry size was less likely to be thrown into the most intense combat zones.

Even though they were called a raiding fleet, in reality, the roles they were assigned on the battlefield were mostly menial tasks. Over a month had passed since they entered the battlefield, and the Melea hadn't been involved in any combat.

Most of their missions involved escorting supply fleets, and perhaps because it was a battlefield contested by two nations, even space pirates had fled, and they hadn't encountered any.

In the Melea's hangar, Larry, in his pilot suit, chatted with Molly while enjoying a drink.

"I was worried when I heard about external warfare, but it's been pretty quiet since the war actually started."

Molly, who was checking the Third Platoon's Raccoon, kept her face towards her terminal as she replied.

"Doug said it would have been dangerous if we'd been lumped in with the regular fleet just to make up the numbers. It's good for us that these units haven't been damaged, though."

Larry floated upside down in the zero-gravity hangar, bored enough to start playing around. However, he still refrained from pulling out his game console, likely due to a lesson learned during a previous mission. Larry's attitude had been gradually changing.

"It would be great if we could return home like this without incident."

His lack of motivation, however, remained unchanged.

Molly sighed deeply and glared at the playful Larry.

"If you keep talking like that, Emma will scold you again. Have you forgotten the time she doubled your training menu?"

Emma had seriously reprimanded Larry for his repeated displays of apathy. He still vividly remembered the resulting doubled training menu and the days of agonizing muscle soreness that followed.

"Alright, alright, I'm sorry. … Honestly, our captain is too serious."

Larry had come to acknowledge Emma enough to naturally call her "captain."

Molly seemed unable to contain her smile, pleased by this development.

"Emma has become stronger, hasn't she? You be careful too, Larry."

"Yes, yes."

As they chatted, Emma, accompanied by Doug, rushed into the hangar. They propelled themselves towards Larry and Molly by kicking off the walls, their expressions grim. For a moment, Larry worried that they had overheard their conversation, but the situation was worse than he'd anticipated.

Emma gave them an order.

"Third Platoon, prepare for sortie and stand by in your cockpits."

Stunned, Larry asked,

"But there hasn't been any announcement?"

Doug approached the bewildered Larry, grabbed his arm, and led him towards the Raccoon's cockpit.

"An allied fleet is approaching."

"Huh? That makes even less sense."

"Just get in the cockpit and stand by. Larry, don't start playing games because you're bored."

Doug shoved Larry into the cockpit. Sitting in the pilot seat, Larry asked Emma for an explanation. Emma's face appeared on the monitor, but she was deep in conversation with Molly. Feeling a twinge of guilt, he used the external speakers.

"Captain, what's going on? Standing by in the cockpit isn't normal."

Outside the cockpit, Emma turned to Larry.

'An allied fleet is approaching without any prior communication. We're not going to a full alert to avoid provoking them, but the fleet commander ordered us to be on guard.'

"They're allies, right?"

Why be wary of allies? Emma's expression turned slightly troubled at his question.

'It appears to be the Imperial regular army.'

"...Huh?"

Even more confused, Larry could only watch as Emma headed towards the cockpit, seemingly having nothing more to say over comms.

"I thought we could relax, but things suddenly got busy."

◇

Inside the Atalante's cockpit, Emma stared intently at the monitors. The walls of the spherical cockpit were monitors, displaying the public exchange between their raiding fleet commander and the approaching Imperial regular army fleet commander.

The opposing fleet commander, while belonging to the Imperial regular army, was apparently of noble birth. His uniform was ostentatiously modified to his liking, and his hairstyle also violated military regulations. Such things were permissible only because of his noble status.

'I heard there was a small Banfield fleet here, but a mere three hundred ships is pathetic.'

The arrogant commander's words were offensive, especially given the unannounced approach.

The raiding fleet commander responded, though clearly exasperated.

'We weren't scheduled to rendezvous with you. What business do you have with our fleet?'

The nobleman appeared annoyed, likely because the fleet commander was a commoner, not a noble. He seemed like the type to look down on anyone not of noble birth.

'My fleet is about to retake a captured fortress. We require reinforcements, and that's why I've come all this way.'

'...If you require reinforcements, you should submit a request to Central Command. We haven't received any orders to join your forces.'

As the fleet commander firmly attempted to refuse, the nobleman became visibly enraged.

'You commoner, watch your tongue! I've personally come here, so your proper response is to gratefully join me and participate in the fortress recapture! ...And don't you dare talk back to me, you private army scum!'

As the opposing fleet began preparing to fire, the fleet commander grimaced. The enemy outnumbered them ten to one, with three thousand ships, and engaging them here risked annihilation.

(I learned that there's a possibility of conflict even between allies on a chaotic battlefield, but I never thought I'd actually encounter such a situation.)

Though tense, Emma was ready to launch the Atalante at any moment.

The fleet commander began consulting with his adjutant, then suddenly his eyes widened.

'...We've received authorization from Central Command. We are ordered to join your forces and participate in the fortress assault.'

As the fleet commander made a face like he'd swallowed a bug, the nobleman was elated.

'The Banfield family is surprisingly cooperative. Now then, let's quickly proceed with the fortress assault. You lot will take the vanguard.'

The communication line was unilaterally closed, and for a moment, anger flashed across the fleet commander's face.

'...Notify all ships. We will now join our allies for the fortress assault.'

As the connection closed, Emma sighed in relief. However, the tense situation persisted.

"I refuse to believe that's the Imperial regular army."

(Positioning us at the vanguard means the fortress assault is going to be tough.)

◇

As Emma exited the cockpit, the first to approach was Ain and the Varona team. Ain seemed to have grasped the situation from the previous conversation.

"We've been assigned the vanguard for the fortress assault. I'd like confirmation that you, Captain, have a plan for victory."

While the vanguard position was considered an honor, it also meant high casualty rates. The nobles likely intended to use the Banfield raiding fleet as a shield to minimize their own losses.

Emma responded to Ain.

"We have fortress assault equipment. I intend to have all units reconfigure."

Ain's voice rose at her response.

"That won't be enough. Do you even have experience with fortress assaults, Captain?"

"I've participated in a ground base assault once."

"No experience with space fortress assaults, then. I doubt we can serve as the vanguard, given our lack of experience and resources."

The raiding fleet was to serve as the vanguard, but Emma's squadron, with its knights, was likely to be deployed to the most dangerous area. Ain, realizing this, was assessing Emma's preparations.

"Lieutenant Kimura, expedite the Varona reconfiguration."

"Captain, I cannot fight under your command. We'll proceed independently."

Ain left with his subordinates. Next, Rick appeared.

"...Senpai. Um, about my unit... it's still acting up, so I was thinking of skipping the fortress assault. Is that okay?"

Emma sighed deeply at Rick's forced smile.

"If you don't sortie, you'll be forbidden from entering the cockpit."

"...I'd prefer to avoid that."

If they assaulted the fortress, even the Melea wouldn't be safe, and there was a risk of being shot down. If he couldn't wait in his Mobile Knight's cockpit, his fate would be in others' hands.

"Sigh... I guess I have no choice but to sortie this time."

He resigned himself to preparing for sortie, and Emma watched him go. She then approached Molly.

"Molly, load the Atalante with as many weapons as possible."

"That's fine, but what about Larry and Doug's Raccoons?"

"Load them up with missiles, anything. We'll treat them as expendable. I also want large shields prepared. And relay the same order to the other squadrons—maximum weapon loadout."

"Are you sure? That will reduce maneuverability and increase the risk of being shot down."

Emma replied with a determined tone, dispelling Molly's worries.

"It'll be fine—I'll make sure everyone reaches the fortress."

(There's no turning back now. Whether I can do this or not—no, I will do this. I'm a selfish knight of justice, after all.)

She pushed down her inner doubts with a bold declaration, convincing herself there was no turning back. Seeing Emma's resolve, Molly seemed reassured.

"Emma, you seem more dependable than before. Alright, I understand. I'll have the Melea's mechanics load up everyone with as much weaponry as possible."

"Thank you, Molly."

◇

On the vast bridge of the flagship Vaal, Christiana, enveloped in pillars of light, processed information to grasp the entire battlefield. She monitored every engagement, large and small, and deployed units accordingly. However…

"...It's futile. No matter how carefully I position them, on-the-ground decisions ruin everything."

…No matter how meticulously Christiana and her team deployed the fleets, the commanders on the scene made their own arbitrary decisions, rendering their efforts pointless. In particular, the fleets dispatched by the Imperial army refused to follow their instructions.

Claudia, returning from a break, approached Christiana.

"Lady Christiana, you need to rest. You haven't slept in three days. This is too much strain."

Claudia was worried about Christiana pushing herself too hard.

"Three days… No, I'll rest in two. I can't rest easy until we have a favorable situation."

Ignoring Claudia's concerns, Christiana continued reviewing the fleet deployments. Then, a voice called out from behind.

"Christiana, you should rest."

She turned to see Klaus looking down at her from his elevated position.

"I can still continue."

"The battle is far from over. Overexerting yourself now is unwise. Besides, your overworking encourages your subordinates to do the same."

Christiana glanced at her adjutants, noting Claudia's pale complexion. She had taken a break, but likely cut it short. Christiana sighed softly and stepped out of the light.

"If I can't even notice the state of my subordinates, I suppose I should rest. I'll follow your orders, Acting Supreme Commander."

Relieved that Christiana agreed to rest, Claudia let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding. Christiana then spoke to Claudia.

"Claudia, that knight you were keeping an eye on, she's been assigned to the raiding fleet."

"Captain Rodman?"

"Stuck with a collection of patrol fleets, forced to participate in a fortress assault."

While it was undoubtedly part of the Imperial army, the force led by the nobleman was a problematic collection of patrol fleets. Patrol fleets were a convenient dumping ground for troublesome nobles. Many patrol fleets were commanded by nobles, kept separate from the regular fleet. The reason? Most noble offspring were incompetent and only caused problems when deployed.

It was a shameful truth, but the children of nobles were a headache for the Imperial army. Claudia's expression turned grim.

"I'll order them to return immediately."

"Impossible. Pulling the raiding fleet back now would only enrage that nobleman, and we'd risk friendly fire. It's better to have them participate in the fortress assault."

"But with the raiding fleet's strength, they could be annihilated."

"Don't worry. I've sent them a small, but exceptional reinforcement. Besides…"

Christiana looked at Claudia, a faint smile playing on her lips.

"—I believe she can do it. Have faith in your slightly more experienced protégé."

With that, Christiana left the bridge.

TN: I really want more Christana scenes.