Phew... phew... wheeeeeeeew.
We actually managed to pull it off...
A massive sigh of relief escaped my lips.
The timing for the deployment of our forces had synced up perfectly. It was one hundred percent luck! It wasn't because I was some kind of super commander or anything. It was just a fortuitous alignment of the Lepsitolians' bravery, the drone units' arrival, and the old men going absolutely wild at the right moment.
I... I really thought we were done for this time. I was so convinced that I’d already started preparing the activation sequence for the emergency withdrawal beacons.
Well, in any case, the enemy formation was broken. Now we could pincer them—or rather, we could finally drag this into a "giant kaiju battle" with their Planet-class Fortress.
That said, we had zero experience actually operating a Planet-class Fortress.
No, seriously, it was impossible for us. In the Galactic Empire, the only ones who ever operated fortresses of that scale were those morons in the Duke Association. There was no way their "expertise" would serve as a useful reference.
As for Chronos, we didn't even have the records. I was sure they had existed once upon a time, but everything was lost during the Locust Terrorist Attacks. The Taikyoku Nation was in the same boat. The financial yakuza of Latania had no need for such hardware, and the other yakuza, the Lepsitolians, were the same.
As for Magellan, Ozen, and Persion, they were devastated to the point of a civilization-level collapse. Forget operating giant fortresses; they had lost their very culture and tradition. Their museums and universities had vanished along with the researchers. It wasn't just about the fortresses anymore. Anything that couldn't be restored from those nations was now just "Chronos-style" approximations.
Therefore, it fell to the active-duty Rosaria Army to handle the operation. It was a simple reality: only Rosaria could actually pull this off.
"Rosaria Army Planet-class Fortress, preparations complete! Main Cannon, deploy!" Charlotte’s commanding voice rang out.
The other Planet-class Fortresses were also ready, standing off against the planet-sized Corpse Eater. Our job was to crush the Ghoul Battleships and ensure none of them got close to our fortresses. Of course, since there was already a barrier in place, it should have been impossible for them to enter... but "absolute" didn't exist on the battlefield. Even if people called it a waste of resources, we had to defend them.
The main cannons of the Planet-class Fortresses were simplified versions of the Barrier Cannon. The logic behind them was: "If we just crank the output high enough, it'll eventually work." We prioritized sheer volume of fire over the ultimate weapon that only Tatiana could master.
And then, finally... there was Tatiana's "Saint of Endurance," also known as Lovely Cat No. 2.
This was the linchpin of the plan. It featured a brand-new function.
A communication came in from Tatiana. "Big Brother Leo! Let's do this!"
"Right!"
The battleship we developed for this very purpose moved into standby.
"Combination Sequence, start!"
That’s right. A combination.
No, I wasn't messing around. This was developed with deadly seriousness to allow for the firing of a high-output Barrier Cannon. The original logic was that the core Humanoid Fighter could be detached to allow Tatiana to escape if the ship was compromised, making the combined state the standard operating form.
However, no matter how anyone looked at it, it just looked like a power-up combination sequence. In fact, every single developer involved was... well... possessed by "idiot boy romance."
I'm sorry for being such a weak king. I didn't have the strength of will to stop their obsession.
Tatiana’s craft and the battleship began to transform and combine. I had pressed them many times on why exactly it needed to transform, but they always evaded the question. Granted, it definitely got my blood pumping.
"Lovely Cat Perfect Form, combination complete!" Tatiana shouted.
Her energy was on a different level than usual. So she was a fan of transformation and combinations too...
"Barrier Cannon Battleship, ready."
Whatever happens, happens! I gave the order to the ship. "Prepare Barrier Cannon!"
"Sequence start. Defensive Floating Batteries, deploy!"
The Floating Batteries moved to protect the battleship. The strategy was to defend with the batteries while delivering a fatal blow with the cannon. This was our decisive weapon against the Corpse Eaters—the new battleship, the Kichijo.
The ship housed a shrine dedicated to Zashiki-warashi, and Himorogi-chan was there as well. Mass production was impossible, but it was a monster-class weapon. Furthermore, thirty percent of the crew consisted of female Zork. Their mission was to protect the ship and Tatiana with drones.
"Listen up, you bastards! Protect the Saint!"
"We aren't exactly 'bastards' anymore, sir!"
"Shut up! Treasure the 'manliness' in your hearts!"
The female Zork officer barked her orders. I chimed in softly.
"I'm counting on you to look after Tatiana!"
"Leave it to us, Your Majesty! We'll make sure the Saint gets home safe!"
"Don't start dropping death flags like that!"
I knew she was joking, but I felt compelled to snap back. I suppose even this kind of banter was part of the established "aesthetic" now. Their voices were high-pitched like young girls, even if they were old men on the inside.
"Barrier Cannon charging complete. Ready to fire!"
"...Targeting position?"
"In position. Error correction complete."
"Go!"
"Barrier Cannon, fire!"
Even for a battleship, the recoil from such an absurdly high output was enough to shake its posture.
"No hull damage. Adjusting angle!"
As for the attack...
Everywhere the Barrier Cannon passed, swarms of the Corpse Eaters' bio-battleships were annihilated. But what about the Planet-class target? It definitely took a hit... There was no way it was unscathed!
A chill ran down my spine.
"All units, evasive maneuvers! An enemy attack is coming!"
The Barrier Cannon had certainly landed a blow, but the creature’s vitality was so immense that a single shot couldn't snuff it out. A massive light appeared—the main cannon of the Planet-class enemy.
"Planet-class Fortress! Deploying barrier! We will take the hit!"
"Stop! Dodge it!"
A message came in from Charlotte. "It is fine! We are well-acquainted with the way Planet-class vessels fight! We shall simply deflect the attack!"
The Planet-class Fortress acted as a shield, but it began to parry the beams.
No, no, no, no! You're using a method like that?! That was pure brute force!
It was just like swordsmanship. Even for something as simple as "defense," there were many ways to do it. You could parry to knock it back, use strength or friction to stop the attack, ward it off to break the opponent's posture, draw them in for a counter, or use footwork to change the vector of force.
And they had just pulled off that "vector conversion" with an entire Planet-class Fortress!
No matter how effective Tatiana's barrier was against the Corpse Eaters, it dispersed under the ultra-high output of the enemy's attack, and this time, the enemy's beam began to shave away the fortress's shield.
But it didn't land a direct hit. Or, more accurately, it only grazed the exterior. Was the fortress falling out of control? No. Using its inertia to move, the Planet-class Fortress rotated mid-drift.
Its own main cannon locked on.
"Main cannon! Fire!"
The monster-class main cannon of our fortress tore into the Corpse Eater. Of course, the other side had shields against beams as well, but they had just taken a hit from the Barrier Cannon. There was no way their defenses could recover in time.
"All-out attack! Break through the enemy's defensive wall!"
It was chaotic. Strategy had gone out the window. This was a battle of pure, raw power. But it was undeniably effective. The other Planet-class Fortresses joined the barrage.
"Enemy shield... is down!"
"All ships, commence attack!"
At this point, we just had to ride the momentum. I gave the order to the entire fleet. And then, the final piece of the puzzle arrived.
"Latania Fleet, enemy planet landing operation successful! We are joining the assault on the Planet-class target!"
The tide had finally turned. We now held the absolute advantage.