Tatiana was finally able to take off.
One-oh-one and Shiyun had stabilized too.
The problem was the landing, though.
When she tried Mimicry, Tatiana’s head practically exploded from the mental calculations. After a severe headache followed by a fever, she declared, "I’m never doing that again!"
It seemed that abilities requiring steady effort and knowledge were difficult for her to acquire. Which was strange, considering how easy ESP was.
"Waaaah! Landing is way too hard!"
"Just look at your instruments. Everything important is right there."
"Waaaah!"
I drilled the habit of checking the instruments into them. The rest was just a matter of whether their motor reflexes could keep up. It was probably on the same level as trying to ride a racing bike in a straight line. Half of it was just getting used to it.
Regardless, I hammered the correct procedure into them. Pointless improvisations would only slow them down.
Eddie and the others were also teaching the Latarnians. A female soldier asked Eddie a question. Naturally, Eddie was also teaching without the front camera.
"Um... does everyone in the Galactic Empire undergo this level of training?"
"No. However, most pilots who survived the Zork War are capable of this much."
The female soldier froze.
Even Suematsu-san could do it (while crying), and I had personally drilled it into Raven-kun and the rest. We don't abandon our pilots. We make them do it until they can. After all, we were crying at the beginning too. Even though we set the goals ourselves, we couldn't meet them. Our pride as elite officer academy students was left in tatters.
But if you can't do at least this much, your chances of dying skyrocket. If you don't want to die, you have no choice but to work for it. We practiced repeatedly until we could do it without thinking.
While we spent our days in that Heartwarming Nightmare of a training camp, the Latarnian Foreign Minister requested a meeting. Wifey accompanied me as we headed to the Latarnian home world.
"I wish to express my deepest gratitude for the rescue of our compatriots and the recovery of their remains the other day."
Something felt unusual. It wasn't in a bad way; rather, he seemed incredibly moved.
"Lord Groom, Latarnian culture places great emphasis on mourning the dead. Recovering remains is considered as vital as rescuing hostages."
I had known that in theory, but I hadn't realized it was that significant. Since our Galactic Empire's religion is a mix of something like Buddhism and something like Shinto, we have our own attachment to ancestor worship. We’re proactive about recovering remains as well.
However, rescuing hostages usually takes priority. In contrast, the Ogre God Nation is fairly lax about recovering bodies. Perhaps they prioritize the soul over the vessel. Whether a corpse is considered the person who once was or simply an empty shell is a debate religious scholars are still having.
Since research on Latarnian culture has produced numerous bestsellers, the scholars were suddenly very motivated. After all, sales are the ultimate justice.
We were surrounded and photographed by the Latarnian mass media. Good grief. Well, I suppose projecting the image of a friendly nation is fine. Maybe Latarnia’s internal situation has become precarious.
Media criticism of the government was growing more intense. Taikyoku Nation's interference was likely playing a role. Latarnia was conducting raids on media outlets and arresting spies, but...
Because the Taikyoku Nation was fully mobilizing its spy network, the crackdowns were like pouring water on parched soil. They still couldn't produce Anti-Ghoul Repellent. They were only just reaching the point of understanding the mechanism.
As a result, social anxiety was being fanned relentlessly. Arson attacks on military and administrative buildings were frequent, and protests were constantly devolving into riots. Everyone must have been consumed by fear.
Worse, they were losing repeatedly—and to the Ghouls they had looked down upon so much. The commoners viewed it as a war against the Ghouls rather than one against the Taikyoku Nation. It was as if Latarnia’s own propaganda had been turned against them.
It’s a difficult situation. Ultimately, everything would be fine as long as we won the war. I decided to keep that in mind.
With that, we had our commemorative photo. We signed a friendship treaty for the return of remains. (Our policy was to hand them over even without a request.) I’d known about this beforehand. For us, memorial services and spirit festivals are part of our culture, so it wasn’t a burden. It was only a burden for Latarnia.
Once the ceremony was over, it was time to relax in the dining hall. I was boiling something resembling sweet corn that I’d bought in bulk during my visit to Latarnia. The timer went off.
"It's boiled!"
Everyone sampled it. Claire ate in her professional mode. I handed it out to everyone else as well.
"It might be a bit lacking in sweetness."
Claire, who was used to dealing with luxury goods, tilted her head. To me, it didn't seem much different from what you'd find in a normal supermarket. The only real difference was that the kernels were as large as marshmallows.
"The kernels are huge. It might be a hit if we grilled it with a soy sauce glaze. Should we try selling it at my family’s place?"
That was the opinion of Melissa, whose family runs a Japanese-style theme park. That sounded quite promising.
"It's good, sir!"
Tatiana was the least reliable when it came to taste. No matter what she ate, it was always "It's good."
"Removing the kernels and sautéing them in butter is supposed to be delicious. I'll whip some up."
Nina-san, our most reliable source for flavor, smiled. Wifey was also munching on a cob.
"Lord Groom, being able to enjoy rare delicacies like this is quite the perk."
I was glad to see Wifey smiling. Those days continued for a while. One-oh-one, Shiyun, and Tatiana eventually learned how to land.
So, I finally lifted the camera ban. "Alright, move, move, move!"
"Yes, sir!"
Because I’d forced them through a brutal hard mode first, the subsequent steps were a breeze.
"Now, a forward roll."
"Hup!"
Then a jump after a back roll. "And there!"
"See? It's easy because you learned the right way from the start."
"So basically, I just have to look at the instruments!"
"Exactly."
Even though that's actually the hard part. One-oh-one did it with ease. Shiyun had no problems either. The Latarnians had also reached a point where they could pilot to some extent.
Then, one day...
"Gyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!"
Eddie’s scream rang out. Wifey and I were sleeping in the same room as usual. His room was close by, so I ran over immediately.
Piggett from the next room and the escort knights like Raven arrived as well. Inside Eddie’s room was a naked beauty.
Ah, right. Unlike us, Eddie has a separate room from Minerva-chan. We’re officially married, so we sleep together, but...
"Why?! Why?! Why is this happening?!"
Eddie was in a complete panic. He was wearing his usual tacky tracksuit. This definitely wasn't an "after-the-fact" situation.
Then Minerva-chan arrived. "I-It’s not what it looks like! I haven't betrayed you!"
Minerva-chan let out an exasperated sigh. "I know that. You were set up, weren't you?"
Almost everyone there, except for the two of them, probably thought, I figured as much. Thinking about it calmly, it was obvious. Targeting me was impossible. After all, I sleep in the same bed as Wifey. They must have thought Eddie would be an easy mark.
How naive. That man is the most straight-laced person on this ship!
Wifey spoke up. "Apprehend her. I want this resolved quietly. How utterly foolish. Latarnia must be desperate, but still..."
Wifey looked completely fed up.