Editing Tytania:Volume 4 Chapter 7 (section)

=== III ===
Historians of later generations noted that despite Ariabert’s defeat by Fan Hyulick on two separate occasions, he did not lose the trust of the troops under his command at all. It is recognised as a fact that he was not merely a military strategist but a renowned commander who possessed true personal leadership. As evidence, when he boldly attacked Uraniborg, there were zero desertions.

From the soldiers’ perspective, they did not view this as a rebellion against Tytania’s rule, nor did they consider it resistance against the Clanner. To them, it was simply a matter of determining who would take the seat of the future leader within the framework of Tytania’s permanent system of governance, through military means rather than peaceful ones.

Ariabert was beloved by the soldiers, but had Idris emerged victorious, they would have simply revered him as Clanner despite any underlying grievances. Looking at the scale and the aftermath of the “Uraniborg Incident”, the disparity between the perceptions of those involved and the reality of the situation was immense.

A tempest of heat and flame swept through the corridor, swallowing soldiers of all ages and genders who had failed to escape. Final screams rang out, and the stench of burning flesh stung the nostrils. A dark shadow, half-consumed by golden flames, struggled and flailed wildly before finally collapsing onto the floor. A soldier, his abdomen slashed by a flying fragment of something, lost the strength to continue as he tried to push his protruding intestines back inside with bloody hands, eventually falling still.

“Damn it, damn it! To think that Tytania was brought down by Tytania…”

“Medic!… Get a medic!”

Of course, if one emerged victorious, the future was bright, and even in defeat, a future could still exist. That was, provided one remained alive; the scent of blood and the state of the ravaged ship had replenished his nerves and veins with a fresh surge of terror that should have long since worn away.

“Will Duke Idris not be heading out with the ''Black Prince''!?”

An accusatory voice drifted through the communication network, yet Idris showed no intention of leaving the combat command room.

To brand Idris a “coward” would be far too harsh. He did not fear death. It was simply that, in inverse proportion to the strength of his ambition, he loathed failure. In particular, he feared that a military failure would lead to a political one, and while he was capable of making bold and cold-blooded decisions, he often hesitated to execute them.

The late Zarlisch, when referring to that aspect of Idris, gave the following conclusion:

''“That guy possesses far too much malice.”''

Because Idris’ relationship with Jouslain had soured, eventually even resulting in armed conflict, he was frequently compared to Jouslain. However, considering his lack of consistent strategy, his unyielding ambition, and his deficiency in tactical flexibility, ought he not rather be compared to Fan Hyulick? If Hyulick was a free man in exile, then Idris was a noble captive, confined within the magnificent prison known as Uraniborg.

''“Uraniborg is a prison.”''

Jouslain, who had once seen through the truth of it, desired an escape from that place and was now closing in upon him as an “enemy”.

“Did he guy himself ever imagine such a situation? Unlikely. Much less Ariabert…”

Idris, who was three years younger than Ariabert and Jouslain, harboured an excessive sense of rivalry towards them, which grew into complete hostility within a single year. Some historians went so far as to argue that the alliance between Ariabert and Jouslain was, in fact, created by Idris himself.

Of several political options available, Idris chose to turn both Ariabert and Jouslain into his enemies at once; however, to dismiss this as mere overconfidence or foolishness would be to overlook the rapid shift in circumstances that followed.

In any case, it was the first time in history that the flames of war had reached Uraniborg.

The transparent canopy covering Uraniborg would not sustain even a scratch from a collision with a frigate. It consisted of a six-centimetre-thick layer of diamond-hard transparent ceramic. Beneath that lay a thirty-centimetre layer of air, followed by more transparent ceramic, more air… and so on; the outer hull comprised twelve such layers. In the event of an emergency, fluid ceramic would be pumped into the air layers, further bolstering the defensive strength. Thus, it became clear that Ariabert’s later instruction to “destroy up to six layers” had been intended solely as a threat, rather than an attempt to achieve the complete destruction of Uraniborg.

The residents of Uraniborg, save for the Tytania military, were all peaceful recluses who had been permitted to reside within the Tytania stronghold, spending their days in tranquillity, cleanliness, and prosperity. They had never imagined that Uraniborg would ever fall under military assault, and indeed, such a thing had not occurred for generations. But now, all of that was a thing of the past.

It wasn’t only the citizens of Uraniborg. Half of the people living upon the surface of the planet Vardana also gazed up at the night sky and gasped. The expanding clouds of light looked almost like gargantuan interstellar organisms, swallowing and digesting the natural stars. Within the inner gardens of the grand, classical Vardana Imperial Palace, Harsha&nbsp;VI remained on the balcony, his gaze fixed upwards in ecstasy, having left his dinner unfinished.

“Behold! Lo and behold, Empress! Tytania is slaying herself. With her very own hands, strangling her own kin!”

Harsha&nbsp;VI’s ecstasy was gradually veering into madness. The unfortunate Emperor had been plagued by feelings of humiliation and helplessness regarding Tytania since before his adulthood, but now, his surging euphoria was on the verge of shattering the ceiling of his reason.

The Empress sensed danger, yet no matter how many times she attempted to soothe him, it was to no avail. She could do little more than sigh and dismiss the attendants, doing her utmost to ensure that her husband’s voice and manners were not witnessed by others.

Once again, a chain of explosions erupted, tracing a massive necklace of death and destruction across the night sky. As Harsha&nbsp;VI gazed up at it through the canopy, the silver goblet slipped from his hand and bounced upon the floor of the imperial palace balcony. A reddish-purple liquid stained the hem of his imperial robes, but the Emperor did not notice.

“Behold, Empress! I care not if it is by the thousands or tens of thousands, but those Tytanian bastards are dying! It is retribution for their wickedness. At last, the era I have dreamed of is arriving!”

The Empress, watching her frenzied husband from a distance, had a look of profound desolation in her eyes.

''“… In that mere private war, untold millions of people suffered physical and mental collapse. More than anything, it was the era itself that was in collapse.” ''(J.&nbsp;Augustus)

Duke Idris Tytania, who might be described as the natural nemesis of Harsha&nbsp;VI, appeared to be finally reaping the consequences of years of irreverence. Had Harsha&nbsp;VI been able to behold the young nobleman’s utterly haggard face, he might have died from sheer joy.

“To be overwhelmed so unilaterally…”

Idris was seized by a sensation as if the landscape before his eyes were losing its colour. It was as though intense stress had caused his optic nerves to malfunction.

In purely military terms, he was far from being Ariabert’s equal. Though he did not say it aloud, Idris had to admit it. He had never been so conceited as to believe his own military genius surpassed that of Ariabert. However, he had not been so self-deprecating as to believe there was a vast gulf between them; he had thought that he could catch up within five years and surpass him in achievements within ten.

To begin with, the talent and magnanimity worthy of the Tytania supreme commander were not limited solely to pure military prowess. It was enough to possess the discernment to appoint capable commanders whenever the need arose. At the very least, for the last three or four generations, no Clanner had demonstrated military ability that surpassed Idris.

Many times, Idris found a favourable opportunity in battle. The enemy fleet was emerging from the chaos of melee and attempting to regroup. After confirming their position, Idris shouted with lightning-fast decisiveness:

“Now! Fire! Fire! Fire!”

The rail cannons spat supersonic projectiles with a silent roar.

The concentrated fire proved successful, creating large and small fireballs that tore holes in the formation of the combined Ariabert-Jouslain fleet. Without hesitation, Idris ordered the deployment of corvettes<ref name="ftn41">“High-speed manoeuvring ship” (高速機動艦) pronounced corvette.</ref> aimed directly at those breaches. While five hundred ships would have been ideal, he could only move about three hundred and fifty. That was enough. Idris proceeded with the execution of his plan.

Ariabert made no attempt to intercept. Avoiding the manoeuvring attack of the charging corvette group, he focused on skilfully plugging the gaps while attempting to increase the distance between them and Uraniborg.

Idris found himself shouting aloud:

“It worked!”