Episode 130

(Author’s Note: I am incredibly sorry for the late post. I caught the flu and was practically on death's door.)

In a world dominated by "limited wars"—where tactical-level skirmishes were grandly labeled as full-scale conflicts—Teiro had allowed himself a dangerous thought.

Hurry... just hurry...

He had studied strategy from the annals of history. He had convinced himself that he was the only one who truly understood the art of war. Looking back, it was a staggering display of pure, unadulterated arrogance.

"Please, just let me be in time..."

He hadn't been able to find the enemy at Katsushika. While there was a non-zero chance they were hiding behind some clever trick, it was hard to believe they could slip past Etta.

The enemy was already bearing down on the Alpha Star System.

Teiro fought the sudden, violent urge to strangle himself. His eyes were bloodshot, fixed forward as the ship hurtled through space. The Imperial Alpha Route, usually a bustling highway of merchant fleets, was an eerie, empty void.

[[APPROACHING DRIVE-OUT POINT, MR. TEIRO.]]

The usual vibrations rattled the ship’s hull before tapering off into a high-pitched whine. In his pit of despair, Teiro barely registered the noise. He wordlessly initiated a [[WIDE-AREA SCAN]].

"......How?"

The radar began chirping, populating the screen with data on celestial bodies, stations, and nearby vessels.

"......After I worked so hard. After everything."

The station appeared to be intact, but the space surrounding the Stargate was a graveyard. Countless ships and a massive cloud of debris clogged the view.

It was a scene of total, unambiguous destruction.

"Dammit... dammit all to hell!"

Teiro buried his face in his hands, his shoulders slumped in defeat. A wave of crushing lethargy and helplessness washed over him, and he couldn't stop a sob from escaping. Beside him, Marl’s eyes welled with tears, her small fists trembling.

"............"

Silence filled the bridge, save for the low, rhythmic thrum of the engines. It was a hollow, agonizing sensation—as if every ounce of effort he’d exerted had been unceremoniously spat upon.

"What am I... what am I even supposed to do now...?"

The words tumbled out as a pathetic mumble. He wasn't asking for an answer; he was just mourning out loud.

"A communication is incoming from the fleet ahead, Mr. Teiro."

"............"

"Mr. Teiro?"

"......I hear you. Put it through."

Teiro closed his eyes as the channel opened. He braced for the inevitable: a demand for his surrender or a mocking dismissal. If the Stargate connecting the Alpha Star System to the Imperial core was gone, the war was effectively over. Attacking now would be nothing more than a spiteful, petty gesture.

"『............Yo.』"

A deep, gravelly voice echoed through the bridge. Teiro’s eyes snapped open. He bolted upright.

"............Ah. Ha... haha."

The sound escaped him before he could catch it. His grief-stricken face contorted, and a hysterical laugh bubbled up. Marl tilted her head, looking utterly baffled, while Koume just spun in circles without a word.

"『Your finishing move is weak, you little brat. Try being the adult who has to wipe your messy ass for once.』"

At the sound of that grumpy, familiar voice, Teiro’s laughter turned into a roar. Marl finally recognized the speaker and joined in, her tears turning into giggles.

"『What are you cackling at? Hey, you listening, kid?』"

"Ahaha! Sorry, sorry. It’s just... things were getting a bit dark. Thanks, Dingo."

"『...Hmph. I’ll be demanding a massive cut for this later, believe me. I just hope you don’t end up regretting that thank-you once you see the bill.』"

"Heh, fair enough... By the way, is the Stargate okay?"

"『I wouldn’t say "okay." Some desperate bastards tried to snipe it from long range. It took a few hits. Transfer capacity is going to be halved for a bit, but it’s nothing a month of repairs can’t fix.』"

"I see... thank God..."

Teiro turned his attention back to the [[TACTICAL SCREEN]]. The fleet clustered around the Stargate belonged to the White Dingo. The "debris" he’d seen wasn't the remnants of his allies—it was the shredded remains of the Stealth Fleet.

"So... for real? We actually won?"

Marl stepped up beside him, resting a hand on his shoulder. Teiro looked up and met her gaze with a grin.

"Yeah. We won."

---

Meanwhile, on another bridge, a certain old man was vibrating with pure, unbridled rage, his legs shaking as he spat out a stream of curses.

"Why... why did this happen?! This isn't how it was supposed to go!"

He slammed his fist into his seat, his eyes bloodshot and bulging. After a few minutes of lamenting his own misfortune, he used BISHOP to summon a crewman. A soldier appeared shortly after and offered a crisp salute.

"Well?! Why haven't we departed yet? If we don't move now, we’re all going to the gallows!"

The soldier gave a non-committal nod. He checked the time on an electronic tattoo glowing on his left wrist.

"It’s almost time. Don't worry. We’re taking a route through the edge of the California Route, so it’s going to be a long trip. We’re putting you into cold sleep now."

The old man nodded silently. Given how little of his life remained, he wasn't about to waste his final years staring at a bulkhead during a long-haul flight.

"There won't be any issues, right?"

He felt a sharp prick in his neck. A sedative began to harvest his consciousness, dragging him down into the dark.

"Oh, no issues at all. Rest easy."

The soldier offered a polite, chilly smile. He stepped toward the old man and pulled the lever to seal the cryogenic Capsule.

"I see... Wait... you... I don't... recognize you..."

The old man’s voice trailed off as his eyes fluttered shut. The soldier leaned in close, whispering just as the cover snapped shut.

"My name is Phantom. I suppose you could call me your biological son."

The old man tried to force his eyes open, but the drugs won.

---

The war between Enzio and the EAP concluded with an EAP victory following the total annihilation of the Enzio Main Fleet.

The news rippled across the Alpha Region Space like a shockwave, and the petty skirmishes breaking out in various sectors vanished almost overnight. On the EAP side, there was dancing in the streets; on the Enzio side, there was a heavy, suffocating silence.

However, it didn't take long for the Enzio citizens to breathe their own sigh of relief.

The massive web of lies spun by the Enzio Alliance Government leadership was dragged into the light. When the citizens realized they hadn't actually been fighting the Empire itself, they were furious—but also relieved. At the very least, they wouldn't have to face the Empire's legendary, merciless brand of retaliation.

"But what’s going to happen to us now?"

The average citizen didn't know the gory details of what the Alliance Forces had done. But the fact that their side had engaged in indiscriminate attacks on civilians was common knowledge. Now that the "Imperial Oppression" had been revealed as a hoax, those acts were seen as unforgivable.

"Is the EAP just going to take over everything? You’ve got to be kidding. The military did that on their own!"

"Who cares? You think they see a difference? We’re the ones who provided the ships!"

"We took them back at the end! Besides, we were tricked!"

The debates raged back and forth, circling a drain of uncertainty. There were no easy answers, but that didn't stop anyone from shouting.

The meeting to decide that very fate was currently being convened in the heart of Little Tokyo.

"Right then. Let us begin the discussion regarding the post-war settlement of the EAP-Enzio War," Lin announced, her voice ringing through the hall.

The delegates around the massive round table nodded solemnly. Nearly a hundred people were packed into the room, with advisors and staff standing in rows behind them. Teiro and Marl were there, seated in the place of honor right next to Lin. Only Sakura, sitting on Lin's other side, held a more prominent position.

"As you are aware, the war itself was conducted under rights recognized by the Empire. This conference will not be litigating the legality of the conflict itself. Our focus is the attacks on the civilian population and the subsequent reparations. Are we in agreement?"

Lin scanned the room. A hand shot up.

"Understood, but are we handling this separately from the standard war reparations?"

"We must. The Enzio Alliance Government is currently unresponsive and in a state of total collapse. We expect the government to dissolve entirely."

"So the bill has no one to send it to... Can their remaining assets cover the standard reparations, at least?"

"Yes," Lin replied. "Most of it will be in the form of physical assets like ships, but it should cover the baseline. The real problem is..."

Lin gestured to the screen behind her. It showed the skeletal remains of a destroyed space station, accompanied by a number for the total damages that had too many zeros to count.

"This amount. No matter how hard we squeeze them, they cannot pay this. Normally, we would levy this against the Enzio territory itself, but that would be unprecedented. Why should the uninvolved populace pay for the military's madness?"

The room went quiet. In a typical Limited War, you just billed the participating corporations. But this was different. The debt was too massive to ignore, and the EAP public would riot if they just let it slide.

"If we bill the general corporations of Enzio too hard, they’ll just go back to fighting. It would be a new war."

"Don't even joke about that. Neither side can afford to keep this up. If we enter a true Total War, we’re just talking about mutual suicide."

"We need to talk to them directly. We need a delegation."

Every eye in the room turned toward Lin. She nodded and looked at the person sitting right beside her.

"Agreed. For the selection of representatives, we will go with Little Tokyo, Takasaki, and..."

Teiro, who had been halfway to dreamland, suddenly realized the room had gone quiet. He blinked and looked up.

"...And Mr. Teiro of Rising Sun. If there are no objections, we shall proceed."

The conference hall remained silent. The trap had been laid, and Teiro was walking right into it.