Chapter 155: Chapter 120: Squad Assembles
Although the Old Empire Administrative Region was the most powerful warlord faction in the Ash Soil Star Zone, even its civilians on the fringe worlds could sense the undercurrents swirling beneath the prosperity.
Frequent military operations.
The garrisons were replaced every year.
Not to mention last month’s epic rout, which had the entire Imperial Administrative Region buzzing with talk of their ruler’s incompetence.
That High Table Noble from the Radiant Holy City, Grand Governor Sedon—his image as a greedy and foolish man, stoked by those with ulterior motives, was now known by everyone in the Imperial Administrative Region, from top to bottom.
And it was because of this rout.
Aside from the Radiant Angels, whose fearsome reputation remained intact, the Battle Groups of the Imperial Loyalist Faction—the Shield of the Empire and the Death Battle Group, along with the various Lords and Governors who bore the sigil of the Old Empire—were all now seen as utter incompetents.
In contrast,
the local warlord factions of the Imperial Administrative Region were winning battle after battle. Though these were only small-scale conflicts on fringe worlds, to the neutral factions and the citizens of the Administrative Region, the scale of a war didn’t matter in this dark and chaotic era. Only victory did.
It had gotten to the point where not only were the voices in the Dome Grand Council opposing Imperial rule growing louder, but even the citizens and local Governors of the three hundred—oh, no, it must be two hundred and seventy worlds now—had begun to favor the local warlords to rule them.
A great rebellion, followed by a crushing defeat.
The local Governors and Great Lords of the Administrative Region, and even many of its civilians, had all lost faith in the rule of the Old Empire.
Against this backdrop, even a month’s time to fabricate Power Armor was incredibly precious. Reinhardt and Raphael had not yet returned to Ilibya World, but the Government Hall was already urging them to depart immediately on their rescue mission.
...
「Ilibya World Planetary Port.」
「The Punisher Ship.」
This small warship was so ancient its year of manufacture was lost to time. Its exterior was a display of the unique Gothic style of the Wizard Civilization, featuring spires, towers, and intricate, magnificent ornamentation.
As the dazzling white light from the Radiant Waymark’s teleportation faded, Reinhardt and Raphael arrived in the ship’s landing bay.
Four other members were already waiting there in silence before they boarded, all from the Vengeful Angels tactical squad.
A Professional Assassin from the Assassin Court, designated Number Seventy-Six. His build was no different from that of a mortal. His entire body was encased in dark-hued, metallic armor, across which faint, dark-blue energy could be seen rapidly surging.
A deep-red mechanical eyepiece was fixed to his faceplate. He sat silently on a bench, a long, narrow, steampunk-style rifle resting on his shoulder.
Though he looked unassuming and radiated no hint of Knight Power, he had been tasked with the crucial roles of infiltration and assassination from the squad’s inception.
Meanwhile, an elite Ash Guard from the Death Battle Group would serve as the tactical squad’s support specialist.
He was also an acquaintance of Reinhardt’s.
It was Matthias, a Six-star Military Rank Official Knight and a Champion Project candidate who had once challenged Reinhardt on Grillers World, only to be soundly beaten.
He had curly brown hair and a burly build, making him only slightly shorter than Reinhardt.
Compared to the arrogance he’d shown at their first meeting, Matthias’s scarred, hard-bitten face, covered in a rough stubble, now held a weary but steady gaze.
Upon seeing Reinhardt, he immediately rose to his feet, bowing his head slightly in a gesture of reverence. "Lord Reinhardt, we meet again."
His qualification to join the elite Vengeful Angels squad was a testament to his immense strength and vast combat experience.
At first, when Sedon met with him privately and asked him to join the Imperial Administrative Region’s top-secret Vengeful Angels project, he had refused.
In his eyes, apart from Lord Sedon and the veterans of the Ash Guard, no other Knight in the Imperial Administrative Region was qualified to give him orders.
But when he learned that Reinhardt was the core of the Vengeful Angels project, he fell silent.
In this newly formed, Legendary Level tactical squad, Matthias might have defied anyone else, but he deferred to Reinhardt without question.
The thrashing he had received back on Grillers World was still fresh in his memory.
Back then, Reinhardt had been just a New Recruit Knight, not even at the Four-star Military Rank. He couldn’t begin to imagine how absurdly powerful Reinhardt must be now as a One-star Military Rank Earth Knight.
It was the Imperial Knights’ way: might makes right.
Never mind just him; every Imperial Knight in Ilibya World had heard the tale of how Reinhardt repelled a Demon Prince with a single sword strike during the Battle of Verne.
He especially remembered, since he had personally witnessed this man, cloaked in the Miracle of Radiance, smash an Abyssal Great Demon’s head with a single punch.
It was like watching a Marshal himself in action.
Reinhardt’s expression was cold as he scrutinized the Ash Guard who had come over to greet him. "Have we met?"
Matthias wasn’t embarrassed; after all, he had been wearing a Full Coverage Helmet back then.
"Ash Guard, Matthias."
Upon hearing the name, Reinhardt recognized him.
The Six-star Military Rank Official Knight from the Emperor’s Shield also rose, nodding slightly to Reinhardt in greeting. "Lord Geoffroy has mentioned you," he said.
"You can call me Manon. I previously served in the Emperor’s Shield’s Siege Hammer formation."
Manon had a typical Ilibyan face: thick brows, large eyes, and slightly ruddy skin. He spoke with a powerful, resonant voice.
Standing over 2.6 meters tall with a powerful physique, he was like a Shield Tower forged from steel. Even Reinhardt was a full head shorter when standing before him.
After his greeting, Manon also gave Raphael a slight nod of acknowledgment.
After all, in a tactical squad, the Think Tank was second in command only to the captain—the absolute brain and master tactician of the team.
Raphael was momentarily taken aback, pleasantly surprised by the gesture.
Manon’s self-introduction was brief and unadorned, but the Siege Hammer was the most elite formation of the Shield of the Empire. Without exception, any Imperial Knight who made it into their ranks was a Veteran of Ten Thousand Battles.
According to the briefing Sedon had presented to Reinhardt, this small Punisher ship was provided by the Mechanical Order. It wasn’t large, but it was extremely powerful, supposedly a new trinket unearthed from the ruins of some Wizard Civilization just two years ago.
After modifications by the Mechanical Order, it was capable of operating in all sorts of hostile environments.
Just from the outfitting and personnel, the importance Sedon placed on the Vengeful Angels project was clear. To put it in perspective, not even the Steel Wings Mobile Combat Team was qualified to receive a dedicated vessel; they used standard-issue Radiant Waymarks for their landing operations.
Of course, it was also necessary to have a technician capable of operating this ancient yet advanced vessel.
Agate, a Six-star Military Rank Knight and former Advanced Technical Soldier of the Steel Hand. The world he had been garrisoning fell during the great rebellion, and during the retreat, he encountered a Void Storm and became stranded in the Ash Soil Star Zone.
Like Reinhardt, he hadn’t joined any local Knight Battle Groups, operating instead as a free agent.
Deeply inspired after hearing the tales from the Battle of Verne, he had volunteered for the position when Sedon was searching for candidates within the Mechanical Order.
Compared to a traditional Imperial Knight, Agate looked more like a steel octopus. Auxiliary mechanical arms of varying sizes, connected to his spinal nerves, extended from his back.
His wrinkled face and graying hair spoke silently of the century he had spent campaigning for the Empire.
The Technician Soldier merely glanced back at Reinhardt before returning to his work at the ship’s control console, making the final pre-departure adjustments.
