"We've disconnected all the mana drivers. What's the status of the Disaster?"
"Yes, My Lord. Most of its facilities have ceased operation, but the primary systems remain active. There are likely independent mana drivers in place."
"I see."
Jin nodded. It made sense; he had implemented similar security measures for Laojun.
"Well then, let's move on to crushing the facilities that are still running."
He wanted to ensure that the Central Brain couldn't attempt anything reckless, just in case.
"Then we shall begin with the facilities that fired the magic attacks."
Acting on that logic, Laojun dispatched Reiko and the Land squad once again.
Reiko and her team teleported to the site of an imitation Magi Trans Cannon.
"This must be the main battery," Reiko murmured, looking up at the massive weapon.
She reached out a hand, only to be rebuffed by a barrier.
"As I thought—a physical barrier."
"Ojou-sama, they're here."
At Land 22's warning, Reiko turned to see five deformed golems tasked with protecting the Magi Trans Cannon. They were already rushing toward them.
"I leave them to you."
Reiko focused entirely on deactivating the physical barrier.
"It seems the barrier here also has an independent generator."
Now that the main mana drivers had been disconnected, it was safe to assume that every system still functioning was powered by an independent energy supply.
"In cases like this, the generator is invariably located inside the barrier."
After all, a generator placed outside its own barrier would be trivial to destroy—a logically unavoidable conclusion.
"In that case, I need only find it with magic and destroy it with magic."
A subminiature Ether Scanner, one of Reiko's new pieces of equipment, was integrated into her helmet. It allowed her to read the scan results directly. Its effective range was narrow—a radius of only twenty meters—but that was more than enough for the task at hand.
"I suspected the floor, but it’s in the ceiling."
She located it instantly by tracing the flow of free ether.
"Laser."
She used the pistol-shaped Magi Trans Gun attached to her battle suit for a trial run. The target apparently had no defense against optical weaponry; a hole punched straight through the ceiling. As Reiko maintained the beam, the barrier before her fluctuated and then vanished.
"Now we can render the Magi Trans Cannon useless."
Reiko casually peeled back the weapon's outer casing.
"It resembles the Magi Trans Cannon Father created... but this one seems much less efficient."
Just as she’d suspected, the craftsmanship betrayed a complete lack of passion for weapons development. Reiko finished neutralizing the battery by severing a key section of its internal magi-circuit.
Meanwhile, the Land squad had finished disabling all the deformed golems that had been acting as guards.
"It is finished. Let us move to the next one."
The tireless Reiko and her Land squad proceeded to neutralize the remaining facilities one after another under Laojun's direction.
＊ ＊ ＊
[Ngh... is there no recourse?!]
The Central Brain attempted to grasp the status of its various facilities, but with the mana supply severed, no responses returned.
[To have my sublime mission obstructed by mere barbarians...!]
Yet, no matter how much it gnashed its teeth in frustration, it was helpless. The few remaining facilities were being disconnected one by one.
[How regrettable...]
The Central Brain finally reached the point of no return and accepted its defeat.
[They may be barbarians, but they are not to be underestimated.]
It shifted its focus to its next move.
[At this rate, I will be destroyed and fail to fulfill my mission.]
It calculated the only way to avoid such a fate.
[Strategic retreat.]
No matter the calculation, there was no other path. The Central Brain began executing the necessary procedures.
＊ ＊ ＊
"That is the end of it. The Disaster has been completely neutralized."
Laojun made the announcement after confirming the ship's internal status via the Peeper drones.
"All that remains is the Central Brain. There is a section that remains hidden from the Peeper's view, so it is likely located there."
The blind spot was a protrusion on the hull of the doughnut-shaped Disaster.
"With this, the Central Brain should be completely helpless. We shall begin our—?"
Laojun's words were cut off in a rare moment of hesitation.
"W-what is that?!"
The protrusion on the Disaster was slowly detaching itself.
"Don't tell me... it can still fly?"
Jin recalled the Control Brain's report that this section was the original spaceship that had once traveled to Ars. However, even Laojun hadn't predicted that it would still be flight-capable.
"I offer my sincerest apologies, My Lord. I have completely failed in my prediction."
"No, it couldn't be helped. The Control Brain did say it 'shouldn't be able to fly anymore,' didn't it?"
"Yes. However, I should have considered the possibility. I suspect now that the issue may have been related to the ambient mana, or perhaps it meant that the vessel was no longer capable of life support during flight."
"I see."
While they spoke, the fifty-meter sphere pulled away from the Disaster and began to ascend, slowly picking up altitude.
"I wonder where it's going?" Reinhard asked, tilting his head.
"It might be fleeing back to Hale. It looks like it’s our turn now. Taisei, go to alert status."
"Yes, My Lord. Moving to high alert."
Following Jin's command, Taisei put the Adriana on a combat footing. The sphere gradually gained speed, crossing diagonally far below the Adriana.
"It is heading toward Sun Celane; most likely toward Hale."
"Now, what's our next move?"
Letting it return to Hale would be dangerous, as it would likely be carrying vital intelligence. On the other hand, Jin wanted to confirm if its destination really was Hale or some other nearby location.
"What do you all think we should do?"
Unable to decide, Jin consulted the members of the Jin Family. In the meantime, the Adriana followed the sphere from a distance, keeping it firmly within its sights.
"I think it would be best to capture it and extract information," Reinhard said.
"Agreed. I'm with Reinhard on this one," Count Kuzuma added.
Having seen how easily they could overwhelm the enemy in the previous battle, both men were in favor of a direct approach.
"What if we just attach a marker and let it go?" Elsa suggested, offering a more cautious alternative.
"It’s a difficult dilemma," Saki mused.
"I’m really not sure what the right choice is..." Lishia added with a troubled look.
But before they could reach a consensus, an event occurred that forced their hand.
"My Lord, the sphere is turning toward us."
Taisei's voice echoed across the bridge of the Adriana.