There was no way to win against a Planet-class Fortress in a head-on fight.
Everyone knew that.
The scales were just incomparable.
It was vastly larger than even Wifey's battleship.
Zero chance of victory.
At least, if we did things the normal way.
But even though we were technically students, we were still Imperial Army officers. We had studied the strategies for dealing with these behemoths in our classes.
Specifically, the kind of spiteful, ultra-difficult question that always cropped up on entrance exams for top-tier academies!
It was a legendary "harassment" problem that instructors always brought up during lecture tangents!
Because of that, we knew the answer.
Which was...
"Engineering students, blow a hole in the outer hull and secure an entry route! Fighter squad, take out the enemy!"
As if we could actually do that, you morons!
That was, indeed, the model answer.
In reality, no one would ever let you get away with that. It was obvious. The number of soldiers inside a fortress of that scale was also "planet-class."
If a Planet-class Fortress was on the defensive, you might manage to sneak in if the enemy was incredibly careless. But there was no way they'd let you pull that off while they were on the offensive! Not with armed soldiers swarming out in waves!
...Unless, of course, the attackers were us.
"Leo Kamishiro, commencing charge!"
A swarm of Standard-type Fighters rushed toward me.
They had the edge in straight-line speed, but I had the advantage in maneuverability. They fired a simultaneous volley of missiles.
Normally, that would be the end of you. But after that simulator training, this was just a "welcome" in the first second!
I worked my thrusters, weaving through the gaps in the missile swarm. Missiles detonated as they closed in, but I was already elsewhere by the time the fire expanded. Panicked, the enemy began firing their plasma cannons wildly, but none could pierce my machine.
I selected which shots were threats and which weren't, evading everything with minimal movements.
Bwahaha!
I didn't even bother attacking. I was just there to turn their formation upside down.
Then...
"Impact! Leo! Keep leading them on!"
Claire's voice came over the comms. I continued to taunt the enemy while leading them on a chase. The enemy wasn't stupid; once they realized they were taking fire, they tried to prioritize the attackers. But it was futile.
"Commencing drone support."
Kevin's spotter ability was honestly terrifying. A drone strike with 100 simultaneous lock-ons. He managed the operation with speed that bordered on the supernatural. He was faster than any AI. Fighters were picked off one by one.
Once the enemy's defensive line thinned, the momentum shifted entirely to us. The Engineering Squad, led by the Military University students, set their charges.
Finally panicking, the enemy deployed their main Humanoid Fighter force.
Too little, too late! Moreover, the Humanoid Fighter pilots were pampered nobles who had lived lives of luxury.
"Bwahaha! Leo Kamishiro! I am Sato Bidan! Let us engage in a fair and honorable du—Gwaaaaaagh!"
I cut him in half with a single stroke. He was swinging a battleaxe around, so it was fair game to hit him, right? Besides, I wasn't under any obligation to humor his request for a duel!
"Bidan's been killed! You heartless monster!"
"Shut up!"
I plunged into the swarm of Humanoid Fighters. Melissa and Claire followed right behind me. The boys followed them. It was our standard formation.
The beauty of this formation was its annihilation speed. In a simulator where enemies spawned at a terrifying rate, annihilation speed was the only metric that mattered!
Melissa carved through the enemy lines, and Claire's knuckles shattered heads. The boys sniped targets with their rifles or impaled them with blades. Meanwhile, Ren's sniping picked off anyone left standing.
"A-Aaaah! S-Stop! I surrender! I surrender!"
Sato Judo sent a transmission through his tears. I didn't care.
"Take it up with my wife!"
"Leo! Entry route secured!"
"Hell yeah! Let's go kill 'em!"
"Pleease, stoooop!"
Wifey watched the scene unfold with cool indifference.
"Wifey, what do you want to do?"
"What is he blathering about when they haven't even disarmed? Continue the operation!"
Just as I thought!
"A-All forces! D-Disarm!"
Sato Judo screamed the order to his troops. But life is always bitter. A gunshot rang out over the comms.
"I am Sato Yuruga! I have just assumed the position of Commander-in-Chief! Come and face me, Leo Kamishiro!"
Ah, yeah. Death confirmed. The "small fry" energy of a Last Boss without an Emperor Boost was incredible. In the original work, he actually felt like a threat. Maybe the theory that social status helps a person grow is true after all.
I entered through the breach created by the engineers. The hole was big enough for a Humanoid Fighter. As expected of a massive fortress, even the ventilation ducts were oversized. Giant fans spun in the passage; I destroyed them as I pushed forward.
The interior was a factory district.
"Planet-class Fortress Area A, life support deactivated, oxygen levels dropping. Lowering bulkheads!"
Naturally, the sector's disaster prevention shutters began to close. But internal walls were much thinner than the outer hull. I smashed through the wall and entered the next sector.
This one was a residential district with a central plaza. There were no civilians. There was no need for a population if the fortress wasn't fully operational yet. However, the Duke's knights were waiting there in their Humanoid Fighters.
"Leo Kamishiro! A du—Gyaaaaaaaaa!"
I didn't even let the idiots finish their sentences. I mean, they were just too weak!
Melissa, Claire, and the boys clearly felt the same way. Our hard-earned vacation. A relaxing school trip to a tropical resort. The rage of having that ruined... or was it righteous indignation? Yeah, let's go with righteous indignation. Our hearts of justice were burning hot.
We were going to crush them with everything we had. We would carve it into their souls. The sheer terror of Leo Kamishiro and the Hound Squad!
We systematically dismantled the Duke Army and reached the innermost sanctum. What emerged was a full-armored machine covered in spikes, swinging a spiked iron ball.
"Guhaha! I am the legitimate head of the Sato Ducal House, Sato Yuru—Ghabu!"
Claire's fist slammed directly into its face.
"Enough. You're annoying."
Claire was clearly at the end of her rope. The pile bunker on her arm hissed, and the stake punched through Yuruga's machine.
And so, we suppressed the Last Boss with overwhelming force, successfully avoiding a Bad End where nothing actually got resolved.