Book 12: Chapter 11: Banfield Territory Defense (6)
"The Banfield family's home planet has been targeted by the enemy main fleet?"
The news that the Banfield family's main planet was being targeted by the enemy fleet led by Cleo reached Marie.
Unlike Tia, who was still in the midst of a fierce battle, Marie, who was still in a standoff with the noble fleet led by Tride, had not made any moves.
Although she is dissatisfied with her inability to take credit, she continues to hold back to avoid making a bad move.
The knight, her second-in-command, gives the number of enemy fleet, his expression showing a bitter look.
"According to the latest information, it is a large force reaching four million. Where did they scrape up an additional two million from?"
Marie put her hand on her chin in annoyance at her second-in-command, who was disgusted by the imperial power.
(I'm worried about Rosetta-sama and Edward-sama's safety, but more than that, reinforcements at this time? Did the imperial army build a supply base that dependable in the rear?)
I would be impatient if I thought the enemy had solved the problem of supply, but I ponder whether that is possible.
(I have heard that there is a fantastic tool in the legacy of a defunct civilization that creates gold from garbage. It would not be surprising if the empire possessed such a tool. Not strange--but is it possible?)
Did the enemy play a trump card?
Marie thought that way, but it didn't seem to add up.
(Then use it from the beginning. There is no need to even go around the territory to collect treasures. And yet, they even brought out a pirate fleet to troll around--just to harass us?)
Marie, judging that she has little information, switches her thoughts to concentrate on the enemy in front of her anyway for now.
"Our enemy is the fleet in front of us. It is led by the head of the Moss family, isn't it?"
The second-in-command took the trouble to display the information in front of Marie.
She confirms it as she looks at it.
"Like Liam-sama, he is a viscount who has been accumulating power on the frontier. The fleet he leads is also a fleet of nobles who are also powerful in the empire."
Hearing this, Marie thinks about the future.
(The nobles on the imperial side. In addition, if they are all powerful people, it would be better for the future to sink them here. If the head of the family disappears, their family will be stuck for a while.)
The problems that arise from the heir disputes and the absence of the head of the family will keep the nobles' families stuck.
Furthermore, if the army dispatched to the Banfield family disappears, they will not be able to conduct military operations for some time.
The enemy in front of them is an entity that will determine the future of the war.
Marie, realizing this, began to giggle.
Her second-in-command looked at her with a startled look, but she ignored him and gave the order.
"Notify all the troops under your command. When the battle begins, we will destroy the enemy without mercy. Until then, I want you to nourish your strength. --And don't forget your training."
"Do you think the time will come to invade?"
"It will come."
Marie shrugged her shoulders.
The order is then communicated to all troops under her command.
Tride, who was glaring at Marie's army, sat up from his seat when he heard the news.
He looks as if he is biting a bitter bug at the news.
"What is His Highness the Crown Prince thinking!"
He swung his fist down on the armrest, angry at Cleo's shortsightedness.
His men looked at each other.
"Where did he get a fleet of two million?"
"I have never heard of such a reserve fleet!"
"But they are actually moving and assembling on this battlefield."
Tried, holding his face with his right hand, imagines where that fleet came from.
There's only one thing that comes to mind.
"There is one. Yes, there is. They were going to send a fleet to put pressure on the faction led by Banfield. The fleet of nobles and imperial troops for that purpose would be that large if they were all assembled together."
For some reason, the fleet originally intended for the nobles belonging to Liam's faction had come to Cleo's side.
Hearing this, Tride's subordinates looked incredulous.
"They ignored the order and attacked the Banfield family? That's impossible!"
"We are actually gathered like this! Get confirmation from the capital planet immediately. This will not sit well with the local lords who are cooperating with the Banfield family."
If they are not so good, they will send their fleet to help Liam.
To that extent, it is hard to believe that they would lose, but it would still be an unnecessary hindrance.
Besides, a volunteer army that rushed in without being called would be an intruder on their own supplies.
"I hope His Royal Highness the Crown Prince can bring down the main planet of the Banfield family as quickly as possible, otherwise we will be at a disadvantage."
If we don't, we will run out of supplies in enemy territory.
No matter how powerful the fleet is, it cannot move without fuel.
They would become mere targets.
One of my subordinates spoke up with some good information to lighten the mood.
"But it is a huge fleet of four million ships that is attacking the main planet of the Banfield family. We are not prepared to fight them off. If we are not careful, there is a possibility that the Banfield family will surrender."
He must have been thinking that they would surrender.
However, Tride could not shake off his uneasiness.
(It would seem so if it were not for Klaus, but the problem is Liam, who has disappeared from the battlefield.)
Reports of Liam's appearance on the battlefield had reached Tride.
What is the Commander-in-Chief doing? I have wondered many times, but when it comes to this, it is uncanny.
Where is Liam's fleet, led by the elite, doing something?
To Tride, it was eerie and frightening.
"--Did you get any details on where Banfield's fleet is and what they are doing?"
He asked his men, all of them scrunching up their faces.
"No, sir, we have no information."
That means it is unclear what Liam is doing.
Tride speaks of wishful thinking.
"Did he return in a great hurry when he learned that the main planet had been attacked? If so, the Crown Prince's fleet will not go unscathed."
Tride feels sorry for Cleo, who has to deal with Liam and Klaus.
At first, Tride was more afraid of Klaus.
Liam, no matter how strong he is, is still an individual and would be inferior to Klaus in leading a fleet.
However, Liam's fleet, which now looks eerie on the battlefield, changed Tride's mind.
"--He has the ability to command the most powerful knight in the empire."
He reflects on the fact that he underestimated Liam, and now focuses on nailing Marie's army to the spot.
The main planet of the Banfield family.
Klaus, in command of the army, was encouraged by his men's efforts.
"They are all holding up very well."
On the huge monitors showing several battlefields, the commanders of the fleet were defeating the imperial forces one after another.
They were taking advantage of their defensive facilities and bases to destroy them while holding down their exhaustion.
Klaus was doing his best to ensure that his men could fight.
"Sir, reinforcements are requested."
"Turn them in immediately."
"But the reserve fleet has already been dispatched."
"Send the fleet under my command."
He was sending reinforcements to his men even as he cut down his own defenses.
However, if that passes, the main planet's defenses will be thin.
From the experience he has cultivated in following up, he derives discretion and takes charge.
The operator shouts.
However, the shout contained a sense of jubilation.
"Mobile knight squadron, destroy the flagship of the enemy fleet! The fleet, having lost its flagship, is retreating!"
Hearing this, Klaus' subordinates issued orders one after another.
"Make chase! Don't let them catch up with us!"
"What is the loss rate of the Mobile Knights?"
"Which unit? It's a big one."
The surrounding general staff happily confirms the affiliation of the mobile knight squadron, having neutralized a fleet of around 10,000 men and women.
Then, the operator reported with a tight smile on his face.
"It's Colonel Chengshi's mobile knight squadron."
When they confirmed who was leading the unit, the faces of the staff members who had been so happy earlier turned bitter.
A group of problem children had just made a big name for themselves.
One of the general staff looked at Klaus.
"--Sir, this is the scene to have them receive supply and maintenance. But it might be better to let them run rampant. They would want that, too."
They are a bunch of knights who love to run amok.
If he ordered them to back off at this point, there was a possibility that they might get out of line.
But Klaus shook his head.
"Let them get supplies and maintenance. The battle continues. Tell them that there are still opportunities for violence, and force them to back off."
"Ha- HA!"
At Klaus' order, the general staff moves.
And Klaus himself.
(You may want to take this opportunity to grind them down, but I don't want you to make a big mistake like that. I want you to concentrate on the enemy in front of you for now.)
Chengshi's mobile knight squadron returns to the mother ship.
As maintenance of the aircraft begins in the hangar, the arms of opportunity and mechanics attach themselves to it.
When Chengshi emerges from the cockpit, waiting for her are her disgruntled subordinates.
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"Captain, we're not ramping up yet."
To her men, who say they can still fight, Chengshi smiles and kicks the knight who stands in her way.
It was beautiful how she twisted herself in the weightless space and kicked him cleanly.
The person who was kicked was blown away and bounced off the ground, hitting a mobile knight under maintenance.
Chengshi looked around.
"The fight is still going on. You should keep quiet and rest your body, as Klaus ordered. Besides, if push comes to shove, I'll let you fight to the death."
Smiling at Chengshi, the men were convinced and headed for the resting room near the hangar to take a break.
At that time, the pilot who had been kicked was also retrieved.
When his men are gone, Chenngshi's smile drops and her face becomes discontent.
"I heard they were sending in the Empire's elite, but the guys I'm dealing with don't have the teeth to deal with them."
Cleo, facing Klaus' fleet, narrowed his eyes in frustration at the fleet he had been entrusted to spearhead.
"They are all talk and no use to us."
The volunteer fleet was sent in ahead of the fleet as a small test against Klaus.
The fleet was intended for looting and its equipment was of low quality and its soldiers were poorly trained.
The fleet was cut down and destroyed by Klaus' army.
A knight from Cleo saw this and spoke to him from the side.
"The loss rate is ridiculous, Your Highness. We should lower their numbers and send in the main fleet."
Cleo smiles wryly.
"I don't want to wear out the main group. If you've come all this way for me, it would be pitiful if I didn't give you a chance to play an active role, wouldn't it?"
Cleo smiled a sneering smile as he said "pitiful".
The knight, sensing Cleo's thoughts, realized that any further comment would be pointless and withdrew.
But he added one last thing.
"I understand. But the enemy is gaining momentum. On the other hand, if we inflict further damage, our allies will be intimidated, as they should be by the most powerful knight in the empire."
One after another, the allies were destroyed in front of Klaus, the empire's most powerful knight.
He added his concern that the morale of his allies would drop when they saw this.
Cleo understood this, but his desire to minimize the wear and tear on the main force prevailed.
"They're sacrificial stones. They're a throwaway and we'll do our best to exhaust Klaus. We'll take all the good parts."
In front of his depleted allies, Cleo still thought he had not suffered any damage.
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