Once the Atalante secured a foothold on the fortress, things progressed rapidly. With a breach in the fortress’s defenses, the raiding fleet moved in, deploying Mobile Knights one after another. The casualties were far lower than anticipated, and the raiding fleet had single-handedly established a beachhead. On the Melea’s bridge, Allison watched in stunned silence.

Tim, seated in the Commander’s chair behind her, spoke up. “Now that we’re in, it’s just a matter of pushing forward…but the real problem is the enemy Knights. How many they have stationed inside will determine how this plays out.” While they had successfully landed, encountering enemy Knights would be problematic. If the enemy had a substantial force within the fortress, the stranded raiding fleet would be sitting ducks. Even with their own special forces team inside, a slow advance through the fortress would give the enemy time to regroup or call in reinforcements. Allison turned, glaring at Tim.

“You took command from me and succeeded,” she seethed. “Quite the impressive display of skill. You must be feeling very pleased with yourself.”

Tim sighed, annoyed by her pettiness. “Indeed. But celebrations can wait until we’ve survived. We can’t laugh or regret if we’re dead.”

Allison clenched her fists, looking down in frustration. Tim, seeing her reaction, wisely chose not to say anything more.

Ain, having led the Varona team onto the fortress surface, watched the Atalante’s performance on his cockpit monitor. The unique fighting style, wielding dual pistols, effectively neutralized the Mobile Knights emerging from the fortress, radiating an aura of overwhelming strength.

“She lives up to her title,” he muttered.

The Varona team was also destroying turrets, but their impact wasn't as significant as the heavily armed Raccoon squadron.

“Commander, we’re running low on ammo,” his second-in-command reported.

“Same here,” added his third. Further combat was becoming unsustainable. Ain was in the same predicament; his rifle’s energy pack was almost depleted.

“Equip melee weapons and provide support to the Raccoon squadron,” he ordered.

His subordinates were surprised. “Are you sure, sir?”

“Cooperation is essential if we’re going to survive this,” Ain explained. “Besides, returning to the mothership now would be too risky. We’d likely be shot down.”

“Understood,” his team replied, switching to close-combat weapons.

Ain watched the Atalante’s relentless assault, a smile playing on his lips. “Lightning…she truly earns her name.”

Rick, having destroyed a fair number of turrets in his Armored Nevan, ducked behind cover as his ammunition ran low. He had done his part; now his priority was survival. Using the Nevan’s enhanced camera eye, he surveyed the battlefield.

"Wow, Captain really punched a hole through their defenses," he whistled, impressed. The path cleared by the Atalante was now a weak point in the fortress's defenses. While the enemy deployed Mobile Knights to plug the gap, Emma’s squadron was effectively holding them back. The raiding fleet was closing in, exploiting the opening Emma had created. If the rest of the fleet landed, the tide of battle would surely turn in the Empire's favor.

“Haha! Looks like I’ll live to see another day if I just stay put,” Rick chuckled, feeling relieved.

Just then, the ground beneath his hiding spot began to shift.

“Huh?” A section of the floor opened up, revealing a hidden passage, and three enemy Mobile Knights emerged.

“A secret passage? That’s cheating!” he exclaimed. The Armored Nevan quickly ascended, with the three Mobile Knights in pursuit. He tried to shake them off with his boosters, but they were clearly high-performance machines, likely piloted by Knights.

“Ugh, if I run, I’ll just lead them to someone else. Guess I have no choice but to deal with them myself.” He turned the Armored Nevan to face the pursuing Knights of the United Kingdom. Panels on the mech’s armor slid open, revealing multiple laser emitters. He targeted the enemy and fired. Thin, almost feeble beams of light struck the enemy mechs, failing to penetrate their armor. Seeing the lack of effect, the enemy pressed their attack. They raised their rifles, and Rick whistled sharply.

“That’s a dangerous move,” he warned. He focused his lasers on the enemy rifles’ magazines. One exploded, taking the Mobile Knight’s right arm with it. The enemy quickly switched to close-combat.

“Fast reflexes…but not fast enough.” The Armored Nevan accelerated, creating distance. Then, he launched all the missiles from the packs mounted on its legs. The three Mobile Knights were engulfed in explosions and destroyed.

Rick jettisoned the empty missile packs and sighed. "My trump card’s gone. Looks like all I can do now is run…" His gaze flickered to a section of his monitor, where he saw the Atalante still fighting. "Well, with the Captain around, I’m probably safe. She’s got a surprisingly brutal fighting style for someone who looks like that. I almost feel sorry for the enemy."

Doug, unleashing a hail of bullets from his gatling gun, noticed something about the movement of the newly arrived enemy Mobile Knights.

“Those are Knights!” he shouted. Their ability to evade the Raccoons' attacks and close the distance suggested they were piloted by Knights of the United Kingdom.

Emma reacted instantly, directing the Atalante towards them. “I’ll take care of them!”

“Thanks, Captain!” Doug called back, pulling his Raccoon back. The Atalante moved to intercept, opening fire with its dual pistols. Despite their compact size, the pistols were capable of full-auto fire. They exchanged fire as they closed the distance. As they passed each other, Emma kicked one of the enemy mechs in the head, destroying it instantly. The destroyed Mobile Knight tumbled across the fortress surface. The remaining two enemy machines turned sharply and charged again. The Atalante and the enemy mechs weaved in a figure-eight pattern, another opportunity for a close-quarters engagement approaching.

“I’ll finish this now!” Accelerating the Atalante, Emma used the blades attached to her pistols to slice through two of the Mobile Knights as they passed. She then delivered a devastating kick to the remaining machine, her foot piercing its lower half. The crippled Mobile Knight, unable to withstand the force of the Atalante’s momentum, was slammed into the ground. As it lay immobile, the Atalante ripped its leg off, opening a communication channel to the pilot within.

“An Imperial ace…in a meaningless battle like this…” the injured pilot whispered before losing consciousness.

Emma confirmed the destruction of the Knight-piloted Mobile Knight. Then, a communication came in, not from Doug this time, but from the Melea.

“Good work. Though, your fighting style is as reckless as ever,” the familiar voice said.

“Melea!” Emma looked up to see her ship approaching.

“The raiding fleet has landed. Ground troops are pouring into the fortress. Excellent work, Captain,” the operator continued. It was as he’d said. Small craft from the raiding fleet were entering the fortress, beginning the takeover process.

“What about the Special Forces team?” Emma asked.

“The Treasures? They’ve already disabled the self-destruct system. They say it's all downhill from here.”

“Efficient as always,” Emma commented.

“Agreed. Also, the other squadrons are taking over. You’re ordered to return to the Melea.”

“Roger that.” Ending the transmission, Emma immediately relayed the order to her squadron. “Did you hear that? All units, return to base.” Despite taking some hits, her squadron had completed the mission without a single casualty.

With over eighty percent of the fortress secured, cheers erupted on the Melea’s bridge. While the remaining twenty percent remained unconquered, the secured areas included the command center. The fortress commander was in custody, and they were apparently negotiating a surrender.

“That Knight did it!”

“She actually pulled it off!”

“How many times has she amazed us now?”

For the Melea, it was a resounding victory, having achieved their objective with no casualties. Allison stood on the bridge, watching the returning Mobile Knights on the monitor.

“I can’t believe it. They succeeded with such minimal losses…” She had known Emma was skilled, but this exceeded all expectations.

Behind her, Tim grumbled about Emma’s performance. “If she’s that capable, she should transfer to another unit… Supervisor, why don't you get her transferred out of here?”

Allison clenched her jaw in anger at his words. The bridge had fallen silent, the celebratory mood dampened by Tim's comment, though he seemed oblivious. He clearly believed Emma shouldn't remain on the Melea. But for Allison, his words were unacceptable.

“The military is constantly vying for talented Knights,” she stated, turning to face him. “I’m sure there are countless units that would be thrilled to have Lieutenant Rodman.”

“Exactly! So please get her transferred already,” Tim pressed.

“The presence of a skilled soldier can alter a ship’s fate. Especially a Knight,” Allison retorted. “As Captain, you shouldn’t be so quick to suggest letting go of a valuable subordinate.”

Tim scratched his head, and Allison’s frustration grew. “You’ve really embraced the loser mentality, haven't you?” she taunted.

Tim offered no response, pulling his cap down over his eyes and falling silent.

The Imperial Rear Admiral trembled with rage, his face flushed. “They took the fortress…by themselves?!”

“Sir, we participated in the assault as well,” his secretary corrected him.

“It’s inaccurate to say it was solely the Banfields’ achievement.”

However, the Imperial forces only joined the attack after the raiding fleet had landed. They had intended to wait and see, but the raiding fleet’s unexpected success forced their hand. As a result, they had suffered unnecessary losses, further fueling the Rear Admiral's fury.

“It was practically all their doing!” he roared. “I would have been satisfied if they’d been weakened. But they barely suffered any casualties!” The secretary attempted to placate him, but the Rear Admiral remained enraged by the failure of his plan. Just then, an operator called out, choosing to address the secretary rather than the volatile Rear Admiral.

“Secretary, a mercenary group is attempting to contact us.”

The secretary, understanding the operator's apprehension, responded curtly. “A mercenary group? A little late to the party, aren't they? Which one—?” She checked the identification, and her eyes widened. “The Dahlia Mercenary Group. Quite a reputable group, aren’t they?” She was puzzled by their sudden contact and reported it to the Rear Admiral.