HEAVY OBJECT:Volume6 Chapter 3

Status: Incomplete

Chapter 3: The Conspiracy Bank that Motivates Human Greed >> Bombardment Battle in the Amazon District

Part 1

Details of the incident involving the explosion of unexploded shells loaded into a civilian truck:

Three dead, two injured. No civilian deaths.

The unexploded shells were an old-style weapon used by independent local guerrillas, but remains of the fuses discovered were that of a Legitimacy Kingdom model. It is possible they were intentionally detonated.

The reason the suspects Quenser Barbotage and Heivia Winchell were in the Athabasca district civilian residential city of Maple Queen is unknown. However, local camera footage confirms that they led the civilian truck into Maple Queen.

The two insist the explosion was due to the interference of the 202nd Mobile Support Company aka “Unicorn”, but no evidence of this has been found. Also, no proof has been found to indicate the existence of the supposed 20 tons of lithium ingots.

It is estimated the suspects are almost certainly guilty, but the Background Unit does not officially exist. Also, Operation Christmas Boot is being treated as “negative noise”. That is, it will not remain in the official records, so we cannot view the documents at our level of authority.

As such, investigation of the battlefield cannot be continued according to the formal methods.

Since a court martial under standard regulations cannot be carried out either, the rest will be handed over to the Black Uniforms in charge of barrier duty.

…On a personal note, I seriously hope the Black Uniforms end up shooting the suspects.

Part 2

The Amazon district in South America was technically classified as a battlefield country, but in reality it was almost entirely under the control of the Legitimacy Kingdom. It freely used cutting edge technology to be an overly hygienic-seeming powerful player in the primary sector thanks to the living resources of all the flora and fauna in its vast jungles, the research and patents on the caffeine and other substances extracted from coffee beans, and the foreign currency acquired from its large scale plantations centered on bioethanol.

One primary political issue existed. The Legitimacy Kingdom preferred to control a territory via a local monarch, but they had to choose between setting up a king from the indigenous people whose culture continued back for thousands of years or from the European population that had arrived during the Age of Exploration and now made up 90% of the population. Either choice could have explosive consequences.

Even though it was relatively stable, it was still a battlefield country. A certain city that could simply be described with the word “motley” displayed that distinct characteristic of the Amazon district. A small barracks had been forcibly added to the side of a building overflowing with a sense of cleanliness that had been built for a community campaign. Both trash and actually usable items had been piled up on the sidewalk. According to economic commentators, it would take another 10 years before they would realize the value of those items.

An open-air café existed in one corner of that cityscape that looked like it had been forcibly put together using pieces from a few different jigsaw puzzles.

Stores that served such nasty coffee were rare in a great coffee nation like that. The draw was neither the product nor the waitress’s smile; it was the money to be made gambling at dominoes. A suspicious-looking group sat at one of the tables.

However, they could easily hide their out-of-place aura in a place like that.

The group all had a crest on their shoulder showing a horse with a spear stabbing into its forehead.

That was the symbol of the 202nd Mobile Support Company aka Unicorn.

“Sogia, should you really be smoking a cigar?” A relatively fair-skinned young man spoke to a large man whose neck seemed to be as thick as his skull. “If you keep smoking them this much, you’ll get dogs chasing after you. They still use them as cheap sensors.”

“Just because we’re in the Amazon district doesn’t mean we’re going to be having shootouts in the jungle. It will be easier to blend in if you smell like civilization. …Mars, you smell like a wild animal. That isn’t good for a city. You need to take a shower and put on some cologne. Like a gentleman.”

“Tch,” came a click of the tongue from a silver-haired, brown-skinned woman named Sanya at the same table. “That’s the problem with newcomers.”

“What does this have to do with me being a newcomer!? Can you answer me that!? Not to mention that I’ve been with you for three years now!!” cried Mars in a shrill voice, but this was nothing new so no one at the table paid him any heed.

The final person at the table, a boy with a small build, poked at some domino tiles and spoke up hesitantly.

“…I feel kind of bad about what we did to those two.”

The boy had very recently played the role of a supply soldier with a chef’s license.

In response, Sogia smiled because he was more used to that kind of thing.

“You mean the Dragon Killers? Flat, people tend to meet a horrible fate when they get philosophical on the battlefield. By the way, what happened to the lithium? Whose job was it to deal with that?”

“Mine,” said Sanya as she raised her hand. “I melted it down once more just to be sure and then put it into a reserve fund. The rate was 0.75.”

“That’s a rip off.”

“Well, yes. They were completely taking advantage of us, so I had the rare earth transport ship sunk on the way back. Hopefully that makes them rethink the rates they give people. But the money was sent to the Information Alliance via check. It seems they are willing to send out a terrorist group they finance.”

“That’s fine then,” replied Sogia in an offhand tone as he lightly scratched at his neck with his index finger.

Just like the others, he had scars from stiches circling around his neck.

It was the symbol of the ceremony undertaken when entering Unicorn.

“The other units scattered around have mostly succeeded in making their connections as well. And now we have somehow managed to acquire the final piece. I suppose it’s about time we begin. Contact Colonel Marechiare.”

In an attempt to look cool, Sogia punctuated his statement by taking a sip of his coffee, but he ended up spitting the black liquid onto the ground because it tasted so bad.

He then said, “We’ve prepared all these delicious ingredients. Let’s treat those spoiled Legitimacy Kingdom VIPs to a wonderful meal.”

Part 3

A certain military base existed in the Amazon district.

It was a large-scale facility that was equipped as both a large-scale naval base and airport and functioned as a relay base to resupply Objects. None of those giant weapons were present at the moment, but plenty of cruisers, interceptors, and other types of normal military power were gathered there.

This story begins along the fence encircling the facility grounds.

“This is horrible,” muttered Quenser in the intense humidity of the hot sun that seemed perfectly suited to a demotion.

He must not have been able to accept his circumstances because his voice quickly grew to a shout.

“This is horrible!! I can practically feel everyone staring at us!! They’re monitoring us as closely as the authorities monitor a sex cult! Can’t someone do something about this!?”

“Well, yelling about it isn’t going to help. Unicorn was simply better than us. We were watching them from below and the bird shit they dropped down landed right in our faces.” Heivia sounded annoyed. “And on top of that, we ended up in the last place I wanted to be: the Amazon district. Everyone is super agitated with the Royal Duel to determine the ruler of the Volga district coming up. I get the feeling this is something else that will take years off our lives. Things have gotten pretty rough in Volga since the White Bears of the 115th kicked the bucket.”

The people who had been loitering around with large pieces of equipment were likely from television stations. They had no idea if they were local media or foreign media though.

Naturally, the camera crew and announcers would never approach the area for the Royal Duel where two Objects would be clashing, but it was possible they could pull in decent ratings just by getting distant footage and providing narration.

“I don’t care about kings. No one like the witch in Cinderella actually exists. Commoners have no chance of going to any of those fancy balls.”

To Quenser, getting dragged into problems related to who inherits the throne or not was a trivial difference. He was more concerned about how deeply he had sunk into the Unicorn’s conspiracy.

The issue was the bombing disguised as unexploded shells in order to steal the lithium.

“Do you think we can reveal the truth?”

“It doesn’t matter. If we end up firing our guns to reveal that truth, we’ll just be thrown into prison for that new crime. This isn’t a Hollywood movie, so the truth doesn’t get you off the hook for the fights on the way there,” said Heivia in annoyance. “Luckily, the fact that it was a covert mission worked to our advantage. If we keep our mouths shut, we can at least avoid getting handcuffed. But it does mean the money we had saved up is all gone!!”

Even when left on a tropical island to do nothing but rot, they ended up causing their own trouble.

Even when forced to carry out suicide missions in the Arctic, they ended up surviving and spreading problems everywhere.

And so it seemed Quenser and Heivia were too much for the higher ups to handle. They had the feeling that they were well on their way to getting a gift of a bullet to the head along with a fake report that they resisted during the inquiry.

They could no longer fight it.

They could only obediently perform the simple work they were given while under the direct surveillance of the government.

That was more or less what was behind the decision to send them to the “relatively safe” battlefield of the Amazon district. Even if the local delinquents spat on them, they could only smile and pull out a handkerchief. If they didn’t, they would be shot. That was made abundantly clear even if it was never stated.

Heivia leaned against the fence and looked around in annoyance.

“Those Black Uniforms are as diligent as ever. I can’t believe anyone would actually wear a pure black uniform in this heat. Are they trying to show off their usefulness at the end of the fiscal year?”

“What are the Black Uniforms?”

“Didn’t I explain this to you already? They’re an independent division that specializes in investigating crimes committed by soldiers on the battlefield. Simply put, they’re a unit that shoots people from their own country. Any obstruction to their investigation will be met with gunfire. And they will often aim in the complete wrong direction.”

“…So are they like our natural enemy?”

“Don’t be stupid. Right now, everyone is our enemy. At any rate, just do as you’re told. Don’t crack any jokes. They have no sense of humor, so they could very well shoot you over it.”

“I wonder if I could get off the hook since I’m a student rather than a soldier.”

“If that’s supposed to be a joke, I’ll shoot you for them.”

The issue of jurisdiction actually was quite tricky, but Heivia kept silent about that. It did him no good to let Quenser get excited all on his own.

But trouble had a way of appearing on its own when one most wanted things to go smoothly.

This time, it began with a large envelope meant to hold documents.

More accurately, it was the Latin man holding it.

“Hey, hey. So you two are the rumored Dragon Killers. I came to give you a warm welcome as a fan. This is filled with documents on Unicorn, that unit you have been having so much trouble with.”

“…No thanks. We don’t have any money.”

“That’s fine. Just take it. I am not asking for money. I said I was a fan, remember?”

The Latin soldier forced the envelope into Quenser’s hands and quickly left.

“What are we supposed to do with this?” asked Quenser.

“Don’t ask me. Don’t look at me either. The Black Uniforms are already glaring this way thanks to your irregular actions. You can get yourself shot if you want, but don’t drag me into it,” whispered the complete chicken that was Heivia.

Quenser sighed and flipped over the large envelope. He spotted a handwritten note on the edge.

“Hurry up and get shot, you traitorous motherfucker.”

Quenser looked back towards the Latin soldier in time to see the man blatantly raise his middle finger.

“Isn’t this wonderful? It’s like a prison welcome party,” said Quenser so cheerfully it sounded as if he was about to begin humming.

In exasperation, Heivia said, “You’re like the prime example of a dumbass.”

“This entire naval base is filled with honor students of the worst kind. They won’t allow you to step out of line in the slightest. And from what I hear from the rumors spreading over the internet, they attack without restraint once someone or something has been deemed evil. When they shoot an innocent person, they have no problem insisting they were a victim as well since they were led astray by the provided intelligence.”

It seemed the people of the naval base were hoping Quenser and Heivia would risk their lives by acting as comedians to the Black Uniforms. Basically, they had no problem with an “accident” occurring.

Quenser clicked his tongue and opened the envelope.

Looking puzzled, Heivia said, “You’re really opening it? That can only invite trouble. And I highly doubt it has any useful information inside.”

“The trouble began from the moment it was handed to us. See how that scary lady is glaring at us?”

“What if there’s a bomb inside?”

“If it’s a bomb, I’ll have to examine the contents carefully.”

Luckily, it contained nothing but documents.

Several areas were covered up in black, but it was properly formatted.

“Let’s see, let’s see, um… Wait a second. What’s that smell? I’m trying to concentrate, but it’s growing stronger.”

“Trash. It’s coming from the piles of trash. It’s overflowing into the roads and walking paths. The wind is sending the smell right to us. I hear they throw out everything from bundles of old magazines to politicians’ mistresses. Some idiots go around collecting the working appliances, so some people mistakenly assume they’ll pick up any kind of trash. That’s why it’s absolutely everywhere.”

“Do they recycle the politicians’ mistresses, too?”

“Get back to concentrating.”

“…This is a bit too much to read through out of curiosity. If only they had a girl write her email address on the edge of each page.”

Quenser began reading through the documents while grumbling.

The 202nd Mobile Support Company aka Unicorn. Their primary role is to hide within a battlefield and destroy the enemy Object’s maintenance base’s transport vehicles and the routes for those vehicles. Simply put, they stealthily sabotage the support for the enemy Object.

However, it seems the true purpose behind hiding within the battlefields is to create points of contact with the Information Alliance, the Capitalist Corporations, the Faith Organization, and even local guerrillas and terrorist groups that are not affiliated with any world power.

In other words, they carry out prior consultations to avoid a long, drawn out war.

They use tricks behind the scenes to rig the outcomes of the clean wars.

“What do you think?”

“Nothing much. This is exactly like the sort of conspiracies you see on the two hour end-of-the-year TV specials.”

When they attack the base of some local guerrillas, they then sell the old-style weapons found there to a different local terrorist group. They launder money given to them by the Faith Organization and pass it on to the Capitalist Corporations. They assassinate a local influential figure and use the chaos to get hired as bodyguards for another influential figure.

However, these sorts of activities are also often carried out on official missions by the intelligence department.

The problem is that their actions leave the control of the higher ups in the military once they are hidden in the battlefield.

Quenser frowned as he flipped through the report.

“What is it, Quenser?”

“What is Rank 3?”

“The risk level for dangerous elements that have an exceedingly high possibility of using biological or chemical weapons. Why?”

Unicorn’s main force is officially made up of around 200 members, but it is unknown how far their force spreads when their connections with other world powers are included. And all of those they have a cooperative relationship with help support the rigged battles by carrying out dirty jobs.

Unicorn’s ultimate objective is unclear, but if they truly are creating a network outside the influence of the higher ups of the military, there is a large risk of our Objects being destroyed or damaged by enemy Objects due to information being leaked.

The tactical risk reaches Rank 3.

We must immediately look into whether they are even truly a part of the Legitimacy Kingdom.

Quenser clicked his tongue and pulled a lighter out of his survival kit.

Heivia saw him set fire to the documents and asked, “So what did you find out?”

“Nothing much. Although it seemed more credible than the idea of making burgers out of earthworms. But it was given to us primarily to cause trouble, so I have no idea how much of it was true.”

“You sure have grown up.”

“If some earth-shattering conspiracy could be found on a document someone hands you for nothing in return, we could solve it all by handing the document over to the Black Uniforms. What a pain in the ass. Why would we jump at this obvious bait?”

As he spoke, Quenser let go of the burning envelope. He did not even look down as the bundle of documents fell to the ground. Their goal was clear. All they needed to do was work through their disciplinary period and return to the 37th Mobile Maintenance Battalion. And so they would patrol the area around the naval base according to their time table, keep their appearance impeccable, and put on a huge smile and approach any elderly locals needing directions. They could only put up with it while reminding themselves it was better than being a fast food worker who had to bow down to a horribly gourmet customer who was expecting the flavor of a noble-only salon out of the fast food restaurant’s 1 euro coffee.

But reality was not so kind.

Half of the trouble in the world came uninvited.

This time, the air-raid siren sounded.

By the time the deep electronic tone began blaring around the naval base, the situation was already underway.

The interceptors waiting by the runway could not be scrambled in time. Several small shadows passed overhead and into the air above the naval base.

When he saw something long and narrow leave one the wings, Quenser shouted out while still looking up into the air.

“What!? Why didn’t the radar catch them!?”

“You idiot!! If you have time to complain, get down!!”

Immediately after Heivia tackled Quenser to the ground, the long and narrow items accurately struck the naval base’s buildings.

Great roars, shockwaves, and explosive blasts.

Those were what stabbed into their eardrums, squeezed their insides, and sent a fear of death stabbing into the two boys even from several hundred meters away. Quenser’s heart rate shot up and an unpleasant sweat flowed from his body.

“An aerial bombing? What happened to the clean wars filled with Objects and anti-air lasers!? The airport has lost almost all functionality, hasn’t it!?”

“Those are known as Apoptosis UAVs. They’re ground attack UAVs developed by the Faith Organization.” Heivia rolled off of and away from Quenser. “They were an option for a submarine aircraft carrier project they really seemed to love. They’re unmanned attack craft made as small and light as possible. However, the actual aircraft carrier was too big. It disturbed the ocean too much as it moved, so it could be detected right away. I thought the project had been frozen. …Then again, it’s also said some high military official who wanted to keep Objects as the primary weapons found unneeded fault with it.”

“Then what are those? They weren’t fired from the bottom of the ocean, right!?”

“Development of the Apoptosis itself was a success. As I said, they’re small and light. That makes them perfect to carry around while keeping them hidden. To make up for the debt of that failed project, the Faith Organization was selling them to anyone who would pay. These days, they’re seen as the symbol of terrorism.”

They heard gunfire coming from within the airport’s grounds. Heivia continued his explanation as the sounds of the counterattack continued.

“With additional booster and launcher equipment, they can be fired vertically. They probably took off from a line a few hundred meters away but within the naval base’s defensive line. That’s why the early warning radar didn’t catch them in time.”

“Hey, wait a second. Why are they firing their assault rifles?”

“There’s no way they’ll hit. They’re probably just panicking.”

“Then why are some of them aiming this way!?”

“God dammit!! Are they blaming us again!? Do they think we’re remotely controlling these toys!? Ahh, it’s that damn Latin guy. He’s staring down the sights with a look that says ‘I’m an honor student’!!”

Quenser and Heivia frantically ran away from the fence and dove behind a pile of trash by the side of a civilian road.

The stench made Quenser grimace.

“I feel like I sold my pride to buy my life…”

“And why is this pile repelling rifle bullets? I thought those rifles could shoot through one side of a car and out the other.”

“I guess bundles of old magazines and old appliances are just that great.”

Suddenly, Quenser felt a small vibration in his pocket.

He pulled out his handheld device and said, “Oh, I’ve received something.”

“Is it a satellite image!? If we could see the distribution of the enemy controlling the UAVs…!!”

“No, it’s just emails from both the marriage scam artist Genelia and the Perfect Idol.”

“Both of those are lovely jobs filled with dreams!! But they are completely useless right now! And when the hell did you exchange email addresses with them!?”

“Oh, wait a second…When the Perfect Idol gets out of her powered suit…Ohh! Those tits!”

“Wait, what!? What are you talking about!? Did it come with an attachment!?”

Heivia suddenly turned his attention towards the device, but then some new explosions occurred in midair. The two boys ducked down and checked on the situation from next to the pile of trash.

The soldiers of the naval base had recovered from the first wave of attacks. The remaining anti-air weapons began firing back at the Apoptosis UAVs with missiles and autocannon fire.

They were helped by the fact that the UAVs were equipped with propeller engines that focused on flight time rather than jet engines that focused on speed.

The UAVs were too slow in taking evasive actions. The blasts and fragments from a surface-to-air missile ate into one UAV’s main wings and body. The Apoptosis lost its balance and crashed into the middle of the naval base while trailing black smoke.

“Oh!”

“Idiot!! This is where things get bad!!’

Quenser had started to poke his head out from behind the pile of trash, but Heivia grabbed the back of his neck and pulled him back.

In the next moment, a brilliant flash of light and deafening explosive roar swept over the area.

The pile of trash turned into a black silhouette and everything else was dyed white.

A stinging pain spread across all of their skin as if they had sat right next to a heater for a long period of time.

Quenser tried to take in a breath, but Heivia covered his mouth.

If he had breathed in, the inside of his body could have been horribly burned.

After a few dozen seconds had passed, Quenser was finally allowed to breathe once more.

“What…? What the hell was that!?”

“It’s the same principle as a thermobaric bomb. They’re unmanned attack crafts, remember? When they are unable to continue flying, they chemically scatter their fuel around the nearby area and then ignite it. That way, they can take out the enemy craft that shot them down or do damage to a target facility on the ground. That’s the reason the UAVs are named after a form of suicide.”

“A thermobaric bomb? Then shouldn’t we have ended up as a part of the pile of trash?”

“They aren’t using a combustion agent meant for bombs. All they do is scatter their leftover fuel. At best, its range is about 200 meters around them, but the power goes down depending on how much they have left in their tank.”

“Not good… The remaining UAVs are falling towards the naval base!”

“I guess that first one was enough to take out the rest of the Apoptosis UAVs. Don’t go out from behind cover! Get down and hold your breath!!”

Seven more impromptu thermobaric bombs were set off.

The pure white explosions robbed the naval base of all of its primary functions.

Quenser was thrown into a vortex of explosive roars. He felt a pain like he had been stuffed inside a metal drum that was then beat from the outside with metal bats. For a while, he was not even sure if he was lying face down or face up.

“I’m gonna die…I’m really gonna die, dammit! Why haven’t I died yet after all this!? I’m fucking amazing!!”

“Don’t get too excited, lucky boy. There’s more coming!!”

Quenser heard the sound of rifles being fired. Quenser wondered why they would be firing since all of the Apoptosis UAVs had detonated, but that was not the target.

On the southern side of the naval base, a few dozen men in military uniforms were walking over the fence that had been knocked down in the repeated explosions. They were charging into the naval base.

The machine guns on armored vehicles with all their wheels destroyed and other weapons were being used in an attempt to drive back those enemy soldiers, but it was unclear how long that would last.

And the request for backup came over the radio just as Quenser had expected.

It was from the Latin soldier from before.

“We must stop the enemy soldiers from infiltrating from the south. All soldiers able are to find a firearm and gather there! The third armory is half destroyed, but its contents are still usable!!”

“Is the only thing he’s good at forcing others to clean up shit? What should we do, Heivia!?”

“Leave him be. I’m not gonna listen to the selfish demands of some honor student.”

Quenser stopped moving when he heard that response.

He blinked a few times and asked again.

“…Seriously? You’re going to let him die because he treated us unfairly?”

“That’s not what I’m doing. What proof do we have that there are no more Apoptosis UAVs? Look to the north and west. Something like contrails are heading straight up from the ground about 500 meters away. Those are from the boosters that launch the Apoptosis UAVs vertically. If we don’t take care of those launchers, a second wave will be set up. If they’re launched, the naval base won’t last.” Heivia pointed alternatively at the contrails in two different directions. “This port is a military facility. It has a lot of underground areas protected by thick concrete. There won’t be as many casualties as the visual damage suggests. But those areas aren’t absolutely safe. If those thermobaric bombs attack again and again, the survivors will be buried under rubble.”

“…Should we head to the north or the west?”

“It’s the same either way. Come with me.”

Heivia tossed Quenser the military handgun he used as a sidearm and they began their attack with the west.

Five hundred meters was in range of an assault rifle, but the path there was too cluttered. It had apparently originally been a road with a tidy row of office buildings, but so many barracks had been added that they covered up both the sidewalk and road. Plus, the various piles of trash filled the narrow path further. Only a small path remained. There was too much blocking the line of fire.

“Let’s head forward alongside all these piles of trash. If we run into enemy soldiers, they’ll be able to fire through the barracks.”

It seemed ridiculous to think of trash as tougher than building walls, but it was the truth.

“So who do you think this enemy is? The Faith Organization?”

“I said the Apoptosis UAVs were sold to acquire foreign currency, remember? There’s no way to know at this stage. This is the Amazon district after all. If you head north up the ocean, you find yourself at the home countries of the Information Alliance and the Capitalist Corporations. This is an important place because it acts as a relay base for Objects. There are plenty of places that want to attack it.”

But there was no way to hide the launchers.

After all, the UAVs had to be launched into the sky like rockets. They might have been able to hide them before firing, but there was nothing they could do afterwards. Most of the attention had turned in the direction of the explosions in the naval base, but a few of the waves of confusion had turned in the direction of the launchers. Several gazes mixed in with the panicked and fleeing people had turned towards the launchers as if surrounding them from afar.

“That’s it,” said Heivia once they had approached to 200 meters away. “They’ve forcibly attached a launcher onto the back of that large truck. That thing held by the crane is a set of four Apoptosis UAVs. It can be hard to tell with their wings folded up like that.”

“Let’s finish this before they can set them up. How many enemies are there?”

“Ten from what I can see. And there might be some more mixed in with the crowd over-…”

Before Heivia could finish speaking, the two boys heard a small metallic noise.

It was the sound of a man in a military uniform hiding behind a barracks 5 meters away switching off the safety on his submachine gun.

“!?”

Quenser immediately tried to bring up the military handgun he was not used to using, but Heivia moved more quickly. He pulled out the large knife on his waist and threw it.

The large blade stabbed deeply into the man’s throat and he collapsed to the ground without being able to cry out properly.

Heivia approached the corpse to retrieve the knife.

“Don’t make any noise, idiot. We can be flashier once we get another 50 meters closer.”

“…Did they teach you that at military school?”

“No, you can’t always follow the textbooks. When it’s this heavy, you have to use it like a throwing axe. Otherwise the rotation of the blade stabilizes it and it won’t stab in very well.”

Another enemy soldier spotted them while Heivia got carried away with his commentary.

The two idiots frantically dove behind a pile of trash just as the first gunshot rang out. The tremendous noise of other guns firing joined in afterwards.

“I’m gonna die, I’m gonna die, I’m gonna die!!”

“Actually, it is strange we’re still alive with how much they’re shooting! Are they even aiming!? Don’t tell me they’re just panicking!”

But no matter the intention behind it, a fired bullet was still deadly. And they were at an overwhelming disadvantage when it came to numbers. Just poking their heads out from behind cover could easily get them killed by a storm of bullets.

“They stink of amateurs. What should we do, Quenser!?”

“I’m an amateur too, so don’t ask me! By the way, do you think all the people of the city have escaped yet?”

“This is a battlefield country. They’ll definitely have enough crisis management ability to run away when they hear this much gunfire!!”

“Then take out your shoulder-fired anti-tank missile.” Quenser tapped Heivia’s shoulder to gather his attention and then pointed at the distant launcher vehicle. “Shoot the Apoptosis UAVs still hanging from that crane. They’re filled with jet fuel, right? That’ll blow all these soldiers away.”

“That’s just wrong.”

“They’re the ones that attacked our base using that. They can’t complain.”

Heivia removed the safety pin from the missile hanging from his shoulder while Quenser tried to provide covering fire with the military handgun he held in both hands.

But he clearly failed.

“Ow!? That almost ripped my wrists off! Why do you use such a pointlessly huge handgun!? Doesn’t that defeat the purpose of a sidearm!?”

“It’s 50 caliber. A man’s gotta have a big gun!”

“Not even a human skull is this hard…”

“Outta the way. The missile’s ready! It’s time for a fun campfire!!”

“Kyahh! You’re so cool, Heivia!!”

“Time to dance, you assholes!!”

With the missile launcher resting on his shoulder, Heivia used the sensors to aim and unhesitatingly pulled the trigger.

It launched with a sound more like compressed gas being released than an explosion.

It shot down the narrow path between barracks, passed straight over the launcher vehicle, and struck the set of four Apoptosis UAVs hanging down from the crane.

The explosive roar disappeared.

It was blotted out by the flash of light.

Quenser and Heivia were knocked over backwards by the side effects of the explosion they themselves had created and the pile of trash they had been using as a shield began to crumble. The frantically rolled out of the way, but then the wall of one of the worn-down barracks began falling towards them.

“Why is it that I’m not expecting to get any praise for this victory!?”

“Just be grateful we won!!”

The diagonal barracks wall got caught on the barracks on the opposite side of the narrow road. The two idiots crawled through the gap this left and somehow managed to survive unscathed.

“Quenser, Quenser. Get your handgun ready!”

“?”

“Most of them were turned into pillars of fire, but the survivors have begun to retreat. If we don’t take at least a few of them alive, we won’t know who’s behind this!!”

“Then you focus on that, Heivia!”

“What are you gonna do!?”

“Look. There are still a few sets of four Apoptosis UAVs left. There’s another launcher up north, right? Let’s fire them and bomb the other launcher. If we don’t, the naval base is done for!!”

Part 4

Sogia of Unicorn checked on the situation with binoculars while intercepting the cheap radio encryption the local terrorist group was using.

He scratched at the scar encircling his neck.

“What’s going on?”

“The western launcher is almost entirely taken out. The northern one is currently being bombed by a stolen Apoptosis,” replied Sanya. “The ones who charged into the naval base are being pushed back due to air support being so late. A lot of the terrorist group’s remaining force has given up and started to retreat.”

“What are they using for a vehicle?”

“When the one they came here on was destroyed, I told them to use the one we had hidden. The vehicle has a bomb underneath and the fuel tank has also been rigged in case the bomb does not go off.”

“Ugh,” said Mars in displeasure.

Sogia ignored him and said, “We have no more need of the terrorist group, so take care of them. And do it once they’ve gotten onto a main road and are unlikely to get out of the vehicle.”

“Sir, yes, sir,” said Sanya in a mocking manner as she checked the location of the GPS tracking device on her tablet device.

As Sanya took human lives with a single finger, Flat let out a timid voice.

“Will the lieutenant general be happy about this?”

“He’ll make sure he looks troubled by it. But he’ll definitely be smiling inwardly. He is the kind of villain that joins hands with Unicorn after all,” replied Sogia offhandedly before pointing his thick finger at Mars. “Now, it’s time to get to work. If things are going as planned, the pumpkin carriage’s route will change. We’re about to get very busy. We all need to work hard to make up for Sanya who is busy cleaning up trash.”

Part 5

“Hey, baby. How long are you going to keep crying? It’s about time you smiled.”

The one who had told her that was gone.

The owner of the unrefined hand that had rubbed her head was gone.

Yulenzak had been lost in a South American desert along with many other soldiers.

And she had stopped hoping for anything from anyone else.

That was why she had prepared herself somewhere inside for this to happen.

“Our route has changed,” said the female servant in a maid uniform driving the high class vehicle.

With no change of expression, the girl of about 14 asked, “Why?”

“Additional risks to your safety necessitated the change.”

From what she had heard, it was only another 10 minutes to the nearest military facility. She had only been able to somehow withstand the hellish flight because the goal was so close. But once it came down to it, this happened. The safe zone had been stolen from right before her eyes. She had no idea if her life would last long enough to reach the next goal point. In fact, she had no idea if that goal would be safe even if she could reach it.

She had originally been protected by a large scale convoy, but now this one vehicle was all that remained.

This was not because their numbers had been worn down by external enemy attacks.

As if it had been arranged ahead of time, the soldiers who were supposed to protect her had begun attacking her. If the high class vehicle had not been bulletproof, it would have been turned to Swiss cheese and burst into flames.

When she thought about it, she had been wrapped up in all sorts of political strife in the past as well.

But this was different. It had long since crossed a certain line. There was likely no hope for her. Her heart had been completely hardened by the malice sprayed at it 24/7, so she was horribly calm as she predicted that truth.

After breathing a quiet sigh, she said, “You do not need to stay with me any longer. You may leave if you wish.”

“I am doing this because I wish to. I am not being coerced into it.”

“Then I command you: leave me.”

“Then I will be forced to ensure your survival to atone for the crime of disobeying you.”

A shadow shot by above the high class vehicle.

In the next instant, something long and narrow stabbed into a building in front of them and the wall exploded. It was an air-to-surface missile fired by a UAV. When she saw large quantities of rubble pouring down, the maid frantically hit the brakes. The black vehicle slid to a stop just in front of the pile of rubble. A second wave of falling rubble spread out as if chasing the vehicle which backed up quickly enough for the tires to screech.

The hurried backing up caused the back of the high class vehicle to slam into a streetlight.

The maid unlocked the back door and jumped out of the driver’s seat. She opened the back door and dragged out the girl.

“An automobile cannot outrun air-to-surface missiles. We must head through the narrow alleyways on foot!”

The girl moved her feet while being pulled by the hand, but she had a guess where they were headed.

They were being guided.

The naval port they had been headed to before the change of route had been their final safe area. Now that they could no longer use it, their possible goal points were limited.

This was the moment.

She could not keep the maid involved any longer. There was no point in it.

So she said, “I can manage on my own from here on out. You flee on your own.”

“Do not be silly.”

“Then let me ask: where are we headed?”

The maid did not reply.

A slight bit more strength entered the hand holding the girl’s hand.

“By any chance is it the Lexpop rental float…or rather, its ruins?”

“…”

“We are simply being led along the route they want. In that case, there is no need for you to go to so much effort. Even if I am alone, I will be led along the same route.”

“…Even so, it is my pride to protect the royal bloodline.”

There had been a time when the girl had been given hope by such comments.

She had depended on them, snuggled up to them, and trusted in them.

But then the White Bears of the Legitimacy Kingdom’s 115th Private Royal Guard Company had been wiped out.

Those vulgar jokes…

And that large hand that had rubbed her head…

They had all disappeared. It had been such a disaster that the bodies were completely unrecoverable.

It was only after it was all over that the girl had learned that they had thrown themselves into such danger again and again to protect her from all sorts of political strife.

And…

The girl had given up on having hope in anyone or anything.

She felt she had no other choice.

Part 6

The mopping up of the terrorists was mostly complete, so Quenser tossed aside the tablet device he had used to control the Apoptosis UAV.

Heivia was returning from a distance.

For some reason, he was covered in mud.

“Did you have a sports festival or something?”

“I had no luck. I was chasing after the fleeing terrorists’ vehicle, but it suddenly blew up. The others in the group might have been cutting their losses like a lizard’s tail.”

“Well, that was blatant.”

“Yeah, it was like the whole thing was plastered with stickers announcing their group was backed by someone else.”

However, it was not Quenser and Heivia’s job to sit in the strategy room and push pieces across a large map. They were curious about the identity and scale of their opponent, but it was nothing more than curiosity. Whoever their enemy might be, what they had to do was the same.

In other words…

“Well, we finished blowing up the terrorists. Now we have nothing to do.”

“You’re saying we should head back to all the honor students in that naval base? And end up running around in pace with all of them? I don’t think so. This confusion will keep them from confirming things are safe at least for a while. Since we’re out here in the market, how about we get something to eat at a stand?”

“Things aren’t exactly calm here either. There was that firefight and explosion, remember? All of the townspeople are gone.”

“We can just leave the money on the counter.”

“What’s the traditional food in the Amazon district?’

“It’ll at least be something we can eat. It won’t violate the Washington Convention.”

After saying that, the two cowards decide not to be adventurous and bought (without permission) some fried chicken they could have gotten anywhere. As he tore into the chicken while leaning against the stand made from a small modified truck, Quenser finally felt his stiffened cheek returning to normal.

“Ahh, ahh. Cheap food like this is so damn good. We really are gourmets.”

“Hey, Quenser, can we drink 0% beer while on duty? It doesn’t have any alcohol.”

“We’re already breaking regulations with this fried chicken.”

As they chatted, an annoying voice came in over their radios.

“All available soldiers are to head to runway 3. We will reorganize the units. All who are not injured or aiding the injured are to hurry to runway 3!”

“It’s that Latin guy again.”

“So that grades-obsessed bastard survived. Maybe we should have used the confusion to fire a bullet towards the naval base too.”

What they were saying was horrible, but it was nothing but talk. The ones who had actually silently fired at their own side during the attack had been the men from the naval base. That would normally warrant a court martial, but there would be no proper witnesses due to the confusion and the others from the base would likely cover for their comrades.

“Lieutenant Colonel Camellia is injured, but I have instructions from her. A yellow label is underway here. I repeat, a yellow label. Normally, only officers have clearance to know this, but the only way to continue the mission is to reveal it,” continued the transmission.

“What’s a yellow label?” asked Quenser.

“A real bitch of a job,” replied Heivia. “It’s a mission for an embassy, consulate, or military facility to shelter a VIP who is being pursued for some reason or another.”

“The transmission went on to say, “Due to the damage we have taken, we are unable to defend the VIP here. But the yellow label is still in place. We must rendezvous with the VIP and protect her as she heads to a secondary candidate for a base. Anyone who can move must work. Once the units have been reorganized, we will head out to recover the yellow label! If we allow the defenseless Staivia Nikolaschka to be abducted by local terrorists or the local mafia, our names will go down in history as the ones who let it happen!!”

“…Nikolaschka?”

A bit of seriousness mixed in with Heivia’s joking tone.

Looking confused, Quenser asked, “What is it? Is it a name you recognize from your noble evening parties?”

“You idiot! This goes higher than that. She’s way higher than me! Nikolaschka is the royal family of the Volga district! Staivia is the youngest princess, but she’s said to be one of the most influential candidates in the conflict over who inherits the throne. Normally, she would be surrounded by bodyguards every moment of her life! In the Volga district, the next heir is decided 30 years after the queen’s enthronement, so this is when her value is at its highest!!”

“Is she a beautiful woman?”

“Given her age, you’d have to call her a beautiful girl.”

And that was enough to give them motivation.

Quenser casually tossed aside the bone to his fried chicken and restarted the conversation.

“So the naval base was attacked to alter the route of this sheltered Staivia girl?”

“Looks that way. Whoever it was using those terrorists as disposable pawns is probably planning to try something along this new route of hers, don’t you think?”

They had no idea why one of the royals who stood at the top of the Legitimacy Kingdom would be wandering around this area, but it would be a once-in-a-lifetime chance for those who wanted to use her. There would be plenty of people wanting to abduct her for the sake of money even if they had no direct grudge against her.

…Or so it seemed.

“Hey, what do you even do if you abduct a royal?” asked Quenser, a commoner, with a frown. “It’s just too rare a situation. It would be like when people steal a Van Gogh or Picasso and have trouble selling it afterwards, right? And if they tried to make threats while using the princess as a shield, it would be dealt as a threat to the dignity of the royal family and the Legitimacy Kingdom as a whole, right? A power on an entirely different dimension from family bonds would make her family try to slaughter all of the abductors even if it meant sacrificing the princess. …Her family would be looked down on otherwise. It could act as a spark that incites conflict among the influential royals.”

In the Legitimacy Kingdom, the purpose of abductions was usually to get at the wealth of commoners. If someone noble was abducted, the abductor would meet overwhelming resistance thanks to the noble’s money, influence, and connections. And if someone went after a royal that was even higher than a noble, they would lose any chance to turn back.

Even if they fled to another world power like the Information Alliance or Capitalist Corporations, various diplomatic methods would be used to have them sent back to the Legitimacy Kingdom. And if those failed, an assassination team would be sent in.

As a noble, Heivia was more familiar with all that than Quenser who was only a commoner, but Heivia shook his head.

“The situation is different for Staivia Nikolaschka.”

“?”

“The Volga district is in the top 10 of Eastern Europe when it comes to issues regarding the heir to the throne. It wouldn’t be surprising if the faction supporting her opposing candidate or a force wanting to sell her to that faction is trying to crush Staivia.”

“…Is it really bad enough to warrant military involvement?”

“The other candidate has a reason to rush things. According to rumor at least.” Heivia leaned up against the wall of the fried chicken stand. “Dimiksy Nikolaschka. He’s over 30. If you just go to any salon, you can hear more rumors than you want about how he’s killed at least two other candidates. Then again, Dimiksy is at the top of the list due to his age. And not just compared to Staivia. He’s the oldest of any of the candidates.”

“Then wouldn’t Dimiksy be first in line for the throne? I guess I have heard of the order getting changed if the primary candidate has a congenital disease or is likely to die before too long.”

It was not rare for the rights of the one who stood at the top of a nation to be taken away by a third party if their ability to rule was threatened by physical or mental issues.

And since the Legitimacy Kingdom gave bloodline more weight than anything, they had a custom of avoiding adding any genetic risks into the royal bloodline.

But…

“Dimiksy Nikolaschka’s issue is nothing on that level.”

“Then why change the order of succession? If he has to get rid of several other candidates, he must have ended up fairly low on the list.”

“The Volga district’s queen is said to be wise, talented, and skilled at both military and political matters, but she does have her faults. That queen is known as the Goddess of Moscow, but her ability to choose men is bad enough to go down in history.”

“…So her husband cheated on her?”

“Officially, Dimiksy was said to be birthed by a surrogate mother, but the theory that he is a bastard child from a mistress is pretty likely. One writer who tried to investigate it ended up drowned in a river. In the Legitimacy Kingdom, bloodline is everything. The royal bloodline of the Volga district comes from the queen. If Dimiksy really is a bastard, it means he does not contain a single drop of royal blood.”

If that was true, Dimiksy Nikolaschka would not just be low on the order of succession, but he would have no right to the throne at all.

If he still planned to inherit the throne of the Volga district, the options left to him were limited.

He had to murder all of the other candidates.

The suspicion was a problem, but it was better than having the royal bloodline come to an end. No matter how suspect Dimiksy might be, those around him would be forced to give him the throne.

“But the Legitimacy Kingdom has the Lineage Department, right? When he inherits the throne, they’ll definitely do a DNA test. No matter what Dimiksy does, he’s done for as soon as his DNA doesn’t match up, right?”

“If the Lineage Department does its job properly,” replied Heivia so quickly and readily that he had to have been expecting that question. “The Lineage Department is officially cut off from politics. Otherwise, nobles and royals would be unable to use them to mediate family turmoil. …But the top executives in the Lineage Department are filled with people from the tutoring organization that works for the royal families. In other words, they were given their jobs there.”

“You don’t mean…”

“A royal will give a group of several dozen tutors to a single child. And for a few years now, the top executive positions have been filled one after another with people with a connection to Dimiksy. He has a majority. It wouldn’t be hard for him to have a record or two swapped out.”

Dimiksy Nikolaschka was suspected to be attempting to take the throne of the Volga district on false pretenses.

It was possible he was trying to drive the proper heir, Staivia, off of the stage so that he could fulfill that ambition.

Which meant the purpose behind Dimiksy’s faction using terrorists to attack the naval base to alter Princess Staivia’s escape route was not to abduct her. It was to assassinate her.

“That’s horrible. The family has so much power and yet they start killing each other.”

“What are you saying? It’s just your standard fight over inheritance.”

“…Oh, I see. So nobles are insane, too. We commoners will never understand any of this,” spat out Quenser offhandedly. “But this is a conflict between royals, right? Wouldn’t a clash between their direct royal guard units be enough to cause a war? And if they use their political power, they can probably get Objects brought in…”

“Staivia is a solitary princess. Unlike the other royals, she does not have a direct royal guard unit. Although it seems she used to.”

“…?”

“The Legitimacy Kingdom’s 115th Private Royal Guard Company. Also known as the White Bears. They were the unit that acted as the princess’s shield. Three years ago, they were wiped out in a surprise attack by the Information Alliance during a military exercise. …And it seems they were forced to take part in that military exercise. I’ve heard talk that Dimiksy’s faction was behind it.”

“In other words, there’s no proof the soldiers wearing Information Alliance uniforms were actually from the Information Alliance, hm?”

If someone was killed in a safe country, it was a major incident. But things were different in a battlefield country. Even if 100 or 200 people were killed, it would be compressed to nothing more than a small article crammed into the corner of the newspaper. …After all, this was an age when small-scale wars were constantly occurring all over the world.

That had been a careful slaughter carried out simply to wear down the power of a political enemy.

“And rumor has it a newly formed unit began hanging around Dimiksy at the same time. Supposedly they passed some entrance exam and succeeded in gaining Dimiksy’s favor. But…” Heivia used his thumb to make a slicing gesture across his throat. “That unit was the 202nd Mobile Support Company…aka Unicorn. And that’s the deed that towers above all the other horrible things they’re rumored to have done.”

Part 7

“I hate this feeling,” muttered Sogia, the large man from Unicorn, as he lit the cigar in his mouth while standing at an elevated area a slight distance from the village. “I hate this damp feeling. It reminds me of a desert oasis.”

Hearing that, a cynical smile appeared on the face of Sanya, the female member, as she leaned up against the back of the truck.

“No matter what it reminded you of, it would leave a bad taste in your mouth, right?”

“I suppose that’s true.”

The young man named Mars who had been monitoring the intercepted radio transmissions suddenly called out to Sogia.

“Not good, not good. The naval base is getting back on its feet quicker than expected. If they reorganize their units this quickly, the base could regain functionality. And if the base is able to take care of the yellow label here, the ‘little bird’ we took so much effort to send the other way will turn back and enter its cage here.”

“Wh-what should we do?” asked Flat hesitantly.

Mars pointed at the back of the truck Sanya was leaning up against.

“How about we use her collection? If we put on Information Alliance or Faith Organization uniforms and fire a rocket, we can take them all out at once. They’re all lined up on an open runway to confirm who’s survived.”

Sanya was jokingly called a cosplay enthusiast. She collected uniforms and equipment of the main world powers of the Legitimacy Kingdom, Information Alliance, Capitalist Corporations, and Faith Organization and even of local guerrillas and terrorists.

Unicorn would wear multiple uniforms on the same battlefield and carry out subversive activities to spread great confusion through the battlefield. They would wear Information Alliance uniforms and attack a Capitalist Corporations unit. Before the blood had even dried, they would change into Capitalist Corporations uniforms and attack a Faith Organization unit. They would send out a Faith Organization SOS signal, slaughter the recovery unit that arrived, and use the unit’s transport helicopter to safely escape the battlefield.

For a small number of elite soldiers to interfere with the great flow of a war and yet safely survive, dirty methods were needed to fill the gap in military strength that could never be overcome with standard methods. And of course, those sorts of methods were Unicorn’s specialty.

But…

“That kind of defeats the purpose of using the local terrorists in the first place. The first shot might be a success, but if the battle continued, we would be outnumbered. With that many in this situation, just the four of us isn’t enough,” said Sogia casually while he puffed out some smoke. “Really, we don’t need to think about this too much. Their attempt to reorganize will definitely fail. Even if they gather up personnel and weapons, they’ll get into an argument over who takes command with all of their higher ranking officers dead. …There are different factions even in a single unit. Even if they all know they need to hurry, human greed cannot be completely eliminated.”

While still leaning against the back of the truck, Sanya glared at Mars.

She quickly said, “Damn newcomer.”

“Can you please stop treating me like a newcomer!? It’s been 3 years since I joined the unit!”

“You’ll continue being a rookie for as many years as it takes for you to finally start learning from your mistakes, Mars. Oh, and Sanya, bring out the uniforms in your collection for Flightburg Air Force Base.”

“Flightburg?”

Mars frowned, but Sogia grabbed his lit cigar between his fingers and pointed up into the air with the glowing orange tip.

“We have a black high class vehicle of our own coming to pick us up. We need to make sure we don’t violate the dress code.”

A jet black transport helicopter designed with stealth in mind was approaching. The specific model was used to airdrop paid killers more often than it was to transport cargo. The large craft with two rotors began flying in a light circle around Sogia and the others. Once it detected the ultraviolet marker Flat had set up, it slowly descended.

An older man wearing sunglasses and a deep gray beret stepped off of the helicopter while protected by several bodyguards. His rank was colonel, but he had fewer medals on his chest than the average for that rank.

Sogia saluted, but it seemed like he was mocking the man since the cigar was still in his mouth.

“Hey there, Colonel Marechiare. I didn’t expect someone of your standing to come out to greet us.”

“Do you mind if I take one?”

“As long as you’re fine with the cheap cigars of unknown make you can find all over the marketplace.”

“I’m in the mood for some cheap drinks.”

Sogia handed Marechiare a cigar and the older man held it between his teeth and between his index finger and middle finger. One of Marechiare’s bodyguards held a light out for the colonel before Sogia could hold out his own lighter.

Marechiare lightly puffed on the cigar and the wrinkles on his face increased.

Sogia calmly said, “I told you.”

“I have received word that the damage at the naval base has exceeded a certain level. The destination for Princess Staivia’s yellow label has been changed.”

“Of course, even if the attack had failed and the princess made it to the naval base, the upper levels of the base had already been bought off, right?”

“Yes, but that bribery was only carried out 2 months ago. It was too uncertain. There was always a risk they would betray us at the last second. Changing the yellow label as planned is much easier.”

Naturally, the upper levels of the base they had treated as “allies” had been kept in the dark that they would be attacked.

That point alone suggested Colonel Marechiare’s character was just as rotten as Unicorn’s. And the members of Unicorn were rotten enough that they were unfazed by something of that level.

“Now that we have moved to the next phase, I wish to move you to our hideout. Are you prepared?”

“We’re about to change. We can leave as soon as that’s done. We’d stand out if we were walking around Flightburg Air Force Base still dressed as Unicorn, right? …Oh, and this truck is our own. Can you carry it down below the helicopter?”

“It’s small enough to fit inside the helicopter.”

The four members of Unicorn changed into new military uniforms and boarded the large transport helicopter.

After the helicopter had taken off…and so there was zero chance of being overheard, Colonel Marechiare opened his mouth to speak.

“…The plan for the Royal Duel is finally complete.”

“Who are we sending out?”

“Prince Dimiksy himself. We can’t have the pilot Elite being unreasonable and refusing to shoot Princess Staivia at the last second.”

Sogia looked slightly surprised to hear that.

“Even if this place is relatively stable, it’s still a battlefield country. If that got out, it could inspire an attack.”

“The prince is in the safest place in the Amazon district, so do not worry. This is set up so some smelly bomb made of manure cannot do anything.”

“I see,” muttered Sogia.

The prince was likely holed up in a cutting edge Object.

“Then all we have to do now is watch the rest unfold.”

“Yes, even if we have no particular grudge against the princess.”

Sogia grinned at Marechiare’s words.

Dimiksy Nikolaschka had many allies. But that was not because of his own personal virtues. The reasons people supported influential people were the same as they had always been.

It was always about how easy they were to use.

Prince Dimiksy was as horrible a person as the rumors said, but his interests were clear and that made him easy to control. If Dimiksy’s surroundings were set up to make him think he himself chose a course of action based on his observations of his surroundings, he could be easily manipulated and controlled.

On the other hand, Princess Staivia was an unknown factor. Some thought she would be easier to control due to her young age, but there was a risk of that same young age could mean a sense of justice or simplified view of the world would make her ignore what was best for herself and therefore cause all control of her to be lost.

And so people had taken action to kill the pure and innocent Snow White and to decorate the dark prince on his white horse.

“You certainly have taken a lot of risks. Does the rank of general really look that bright in your eyes, colonel?”

“The same goes for you. I have difficulty understanding how all this money and killing could be for the sake of spreading your connections.”

The large transport helicopter quietly headed towards Flightburg Air Force Base.

Those conspirators kept it all contained.

They used the people’s tax money to hide the evidence of their conspiracy.

Part 8

Quenser and Heivia quickly gave up on the idea of regrouping with the survivors from the naval base.

Just from what they could overhear from the complicated radio transmissions told them those at the base were arguing over who got control. Since they were glaring at each other while sorting through manuals in search of some kind of loophole, it seemed they had no idea just how urgent the situation was.

“It sounds like those honor students could start shooting each other at any time. If we get too close, we’d just get lined up with the rest of them and stuck there.”

“But without the official information they have, we don’t know what route Princess Staivia is using to escape. It’s top secret. I doubt it’s been made viewable on standard military terminals.”

“We need to think. Let’s reason through this, Quenser.” Heivia called up a map of the area on his handheld device. “Even if it’s relatively stable, this is still a battlefield country. If they learn a legit princess is wandering around here, the Information Alliance or the Faith Organization will abandon whatever mission they’re on and rush here. Once it was clear the princess couldn’t use the naval base, she would start heading on the quickest route to their second option. She’s probably headed to the next closest Legitimacy Kingdom military facility, don’t you think?”

“But the next closest one is 200 kilometers away. Do you really think they would head straight there in a normal vehicle that isn’t even bulletproof?”

“This map only shows the facilities that are in active use. But the princess needs to reach safety as quickly as possible. In that case, it’s entirely possible she would try to flee to a facility that had been abandoned but is durable.”

Heivia changed a setting and a new marker was added to the map.

It was a facility along the ocean just like the naval base.

“The ruins of Lexpop International Airport. It’s all that remains of the rental float policy that was so popular a few years back.”

“…That was a means for safe countries to support battlefield countries, right? If they simply sent money, it would go straight into the pockets of government officials, so they put international airports and all the infrastructure required such as water and sewage pipes and power generation onto giant floats which were rented out.”

“Lexpop International Airport was a rental float from the Legitimacy Kingdom. Officially, it was a civilian airport, but it actually doubled as an Object maintenance facility. The local guerrillas took issue with that and used torpedoes to blow up the ships that towed it. The rental float was then unable to lower its speed, so it slammed into the coast and flooded.”

“How sturdy is it?”

“It was designed to be used to aid Objects, so the float itself is quite tough. If the emergency power source within is activated, it’s possible its salt-resistant and highly durable anti-air defense system could be reactivated.”

The ruins of Lexpop International Airport were 80 kilometers south of the airport that had been attacked. Heivia pulled a small motorcycle out of a pile of trash and used a screwdriver to force open the ignition and start the engine.

As he climbed on the back, Quenser asked a question of his partner.

“Do you think we’ll find them on the way there?”

“Who knows. And Princess Staivia’s side has to be aware they have enemies in the Legitimacy Kingdom. If delinquent soldiers like us carelessly approach them, we might get filled with bullet holes.”

“…I’d prefer to receive a counterattack from that princess that involves hitting people with stuffed animals.”

Heivia headed full speed down the shortest route to the ruins of Lexpop International Airport. That was the route Princess Staivia’s group would likely be taking, but they did not run across any such convoy on the way there.

In fact…

“What the hell? Not only is there no sign of the princess, but there aren’t any traps or troops from Dimiksy’s faction waiting to assassinate her. If they had blocked off all routes to the float, we should have run across some kind of barricade…”

“That means… This is bad. They must want Princess Staivia to head to the ruins of Lexpop International Airport. If there’s a trap, it’s the float itself! Has this rumored princess already gone inside!?”

Heivia stopped the small motorcycle near the ruins of Lexpop International Airport. A portion of the gently curving concrete embankment had been broken by the impact from the square float. The float had been dented a bit and it was tilted in the direction of one of its four corners, but it did not appear to be badly damaged. …The tilt would prevent it from functioning as an airport, though.

It was called a manmade float, but it carried all the functionality of an airport. Naturally, it was quite large. The sight of a piece of land 3 kilometers square floating in the ocean was quite bizarre.

“? Heivia, why did you stop the bike? We need to hurry up and meet up with Princess Staivia.”

“Were you even listening to what I said? Lexpop International Airport is officially a civilian airport, but it can also perform maintenance on Objects. And that means…”

The situation changed before Heivia could finish his explanation.

Several large tiltrotor transport aircrafts passed by overhead. The model could of course carry troops, but it could also carry light tanks.

It was a Legitimacy Kingdom model, but that hardly put Quenser’s mind at ease. Dimiksy’s faction that was targeting Princess Staivia’s life was part of the Legitimacy Kingdom.

Quenser used a pair of binoculars to monitor the body of the tiltrotor crafts.

“Those are ID numbers from the naval base. Are the arguments between factions already over? I guess those honor students wanted to protect Princess Staivia after all.”

“Dammit! This is no time to be stupid, Quenser. We need to get going!! We need to save the Sleeping Beauty trapped in that castle!!”

“Why? If a large unit of those honor students are on their way to save her…”

Quenser’s voice was cut off by an explosive noise.

An orange flash of light ripped through the sky and an impact like a giant drum being struck weighed on the two idiots’ stomachs. Quenser immediately lowered himself to the ground as he watched one of the tiltrotor crafts explode in midair and spread black smoke and wreckage everywhere.

“They were shot!? That came from the ruins of the airport! They’re firing missiles and Gatling guns like crazy!!”

“I said the anti-air weapons could be reactivated if the emergency power supply was activated, remember!? They’ll just be shot down like this. Every one of those flying treasure chests will be gambled away!!”

Some of those from the naval base took action to avoid being foolishly blown to pieces aboard those slow cargo planes. Even from where he was, Quenser could see the cargo hatches opening and soldiers, airmobile tanks, and armored vehicles being forced out.

But if one ignored war treaties, a parachute was just a nice target.

The Gatling gun’s tracer bullets mercilessly attacked a portion of the humans and armored weapons that’s speed had quickly dropped.

“What? They’re shooting the allies that are here to help! Is this rumored Sleeping Beauty such a bad sleeper that it reaches the level of a reign of terror!? I mean, I understand the desire to shoot those honor students when you see those smug grins, but still!”

“No, Quenser. Something isn’t right. I’ve been trying to contact them by radio for a while now, but every frequency I try has too much noise on it. Someone is jamming us. It’s like they’re trying to hide the true intentions of the princess.”

“You mean Dimiksy’s faction set up the emergency power and anti-air weapons ahead of time to isolate Princess Staivia?”

“If those weapons are on auto-intercept mode, they’ll act regardless of the princess’s wishes. All of this friendly fire is going to be blamed on her! We need to hurry up and sneak onto the airport float and shut down the emergency power. Otherwise, all of those disagreeable honor students will be turned into bloody rain!”

If they headed through a normal route, they would be swallowed up in a storm of bullets and missiles.

Quenser and Heivia entered the ocean from the coast a short distance from the float. The area must have been developed to allow large ships to pass through because it was surprisingly deep. From what they could see, it was several dozen meters deep.

“Upph! This is absolutely disgusting! It reeks!! Do the people here think nothing of ocean resources!?”

“If they understood that, they would be able to join the other advanced nations. Dammit. I want to throw away my rifle and missile and everything. I should have prepared a float before jumping in!”

Without the aid of fins or oxygen tanks and while somehow managing to hold onto their heavy military equipment, the two idiots approached the float while half-drowning.

“Is there a secret entrance or something?”

“Don’t be stupid. We’re just going to climb up onto it. It’s the basic method.”

Luckily, it was light on sea-related defense systems such as torpedoes and anti-ship missiles. A few sea mines were floating around, but they were meant for ships, so they were big enough for Quenser and Heivia to easily avoid.

But the two of them spotted something much worse before they made it to the float.

It was directly below the float.

They saw a giant silhouette hanging down into the ocean by hundreds of metal wires.

Once he realized what it was, Quenser spoke without meaning to.

“…An Object…?”

Part 9

Its composition was simple enough.

But what was that Object doing there in the first place?

“That’s a first generation Object from the Legitimacy Kingdom. …And it’s a pretty old one. I think it’s called the Assault Signal. I’ve seen it on some military sites. It’s a different system type from the Baby Magnum, but parts of this one’s design were incorporated in its design,” said Quenser as he climbed up the wall of the giant float.

“But why is it here?”

“How should I know? It’s not like they can use it. The pilot Elite that goes with it died in a terrorist bombing five years ago. And in a safe country no less. …It’s nothing but a useless hunk of metal now, but someone must have secretly ordered it in.”

But what did anyone gain by preparing the unusable Assault Signal?

As he climbed up to the flat surface, Heivia gave his guess.

“It’s the same as when the White Bears of the 115th Private Royal Guard Company were annihilated to take away Princess Staivia’s wings.”

“…Killing even one person in a safe country is a huge incident. But killing 100 in a battlefield country only gets a small article.”

“They want to get Princess Staivia aboard that Object somehow. Succession issues can be resolved with a duel between Objects. If they do that, they can blatantly assassinate her while following the rules of a clean war. They won’t break any war treaties. The Royal Duel between Objects was just a gigantic plan to assassinate Princess Staivia.”

A sniper attack or bombing would have been easier, but if a young girl was killed as the result of a conflict over political power, discontent would swell up within the people. In an absolute monarchy like the Legitimacy Kingdom, that was of no consequence whatsoever. However, not even a royal could take actions that the surrounding influential royals considered to be unbefitting of a head of state.

In the modern clean wars, it was rare (in the official records at least) for infantry to shed any blood, but the people were used to the pilot Elites inside Objects being sent on fights to the death.

As soon as one boarded an Object, it was assumed one was prepared for death.

And the preparations for that were complete.

“But if they eliminated an entire unit and assassinated an Elite just as preparations to legally eliminate Princess Staivia, aren’t they getting their priorities a bit backwards?”

“There are some problems you can erase and some you can’t. And you know just how big Dimiksy’s eraser is.” Heivia used his thumb to point at his chest. “In fact, my Winchell family is in the middle of some turmoil right now. Normally, they would plot some way of assassinating me while I’m wandering around in these battlefield countries. If they got their hands on a gun or bomb from an enemy nation, they could easily pull off the perfect crime. The only reason they haven’t is because I’m such a big existence that they can’t fully erase the problem with an eraser of their size.”

From the view of the commoners down at the bottom, the nobles and royals could do whatever they wanted, but Quenser guessed they must have their own issues to deal with.

And in that case…

It was only natural that…

“The Object they secretly brought in for Princess Staivia is basically a pile of scraps. They chose it so they knew they had a target they could destroy on the first shot.”

“What if the princess catches on to Dimiksy’s conspiracy and refuses to board the Objecct?”

“If they used an Object to torture the flesh-and-blood princess to death, they would receive nothing but the animosity of the people. …But it’s different if she has an Object but refuses to board it. People would assume she lost her nerve. And another thing. In our world, you are free to accept or decline a letter challenging you to a duel. But once you accept the duel, your social standing will drop like a rock if you don’t show up. That might even get your right to life revoked.”

In other words, Dimiksy’s plan was almost complete by the time Princess Staivia was brought to the ruins of Lexpop International Airport.

At that point, the assassination could safely be carried out by having Dimiksy’s side’s Object sent out to use its great firepower to annihilate her according to the proper protocol.

What mattered was the official truth that Staivia’s side had an Object and could therefore fight evenly with Dimiksy’s side. Whether Princess Staivia was in a complete panic and could not move the Object in the ocean or not was not a problem.

“…This is insane.”

“If we’re going to do anything about this situation, we need to start by dealing with those anti-air weapons. If we knock out the emergency power, the defense system should stop!”

Another tiltrotor craft was shot down by a Gatling gun and crashed near Quenser and Heivia. They passed by the flaming wreckage and ran along the top of the float.

Perhaps because they had made their way onto the float, the radio jamming had weakened.

Someone must have been trying every frequency Dimiksy’s group was not using because a female voice came in over Quenser’s radio despite the fact that he had not tuned it to anything in particular.

“…This is…ksshh… I cannot control the float’s defense system! It….attacking….on its own… It is…ksshh…indiscriminately… You will be shot down at this rate!!”

“Yes, yes! Your signal isn’t reaching the air! Are you the rumored princess!? We’ve made our way onto Lexpop. We are aware that it’s all over if you board that Object due to the Royal Duel. We’re going to knock out the emergency power, so give us anyone information you have!!”

“I am a servant of the royal family. My name is Mikfa. Who are you!?”

“Someone from the Legitimacy Kingdom who is not tainted by Dimiksy’s faction. I am Heivia Winchell. If you know how to pick up information from the rumors you hear in salons, surely you know I have nothing to gain by supporting Dimiksy Nikolaschka!”

“I see. I heard you are the eccentric boy trying his hardest to act out a Shakespearean tragedy by taking the daughter of the opposing Vanderbilt family.”

“Well, right now I want to turn this into a comedy.”

This was likely something Heivia would be better suited for with his knowledge of the nobles and royals at the upper levels of the Legitimacy Kingdom. There was a power balance in play that a commoner like Quenser simply did not understand.

“I brought Lady Staivia here to Lexpop for shelter, but it seems it was a trap set up by Dimiksy’s faction. The power supply for the defense system is controlled by the members of Dimiksy’s faction that were hiding in the float! You need to destroy it!!”

“How many men does Dimiksy have here?”

“Lady Staivia and I are the only two not from his faction.”

“Well, that simplifies matters,” muttered Quenser.

As Heivia ran along the top of the float, he spoke into the radio and asked, “Where are you now?”

“I am being imprisoned near the power generation facility Dimiksy’s faction holds. I attempted to remain by Lady Staivia’s side, but it seems Dimiksy’s faction is using that as a part of their plan.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“It seems they intend to use me as a hostage in order to force Lady Staivia into the Object. And unfortunately, Lady Staivia’s heart is too strongly benevolent. I am prepared to withstand torture, but Lady Staivia will not last if she is forced to watch it.”

Heivia clicked his tongue.

And then he made a completely groundless promise.

“We’ll be there in 10 minutes. Don’t you die before then.”

“I appreciate your cooperation, but please prioritize rescuing Lady Staivia and destroying the emergency power.”

Heivia switched off the radio and tossed his spare handgun to Quenser.

“It’s time to clean up the shit, Quenser! Let’s go rescue a maid as an appetizer for the princess!!”

“A maid is a wonderful thing. We need to teach these people that our country should protect maids with everything it has!”

Dimiksy’s faction seemed to be fully relying on the defense system because Quenser and Heivia ran into no interference after climbing up onto the float. Their Object would likely be attacking the float in the near future, so they must have wanted to hold it with as few men as possible to allow a speedy retreat.

They entered a terminal with all its glass shattered and ran down the stairs to reach the underground portion of the float.

“Do you think we can manage this?”

“Rescue operations aren’t my specialty, but we’ll just have to make do with what we have on hand!”

They must have entered an area not intended for customers to see because the overall atmosphere changed as they headed down the stairs. The walls were made of exposed metal, the passageways were narrow, and numerous pipes ran along near the ceiling. Unlike the open airport, this area felt like it was inside a tanker. Oddly enough, the inability to see anything outside made the rocking of the float feel stronger.

“Even if I know how it works, it feels wrong for something this huge to be floating.”

“As long as it has air trapped inside, the size doesn’t matter.”

“Even so, it’s like styrofoam, so is it just human nature to want to build walls?”

“If the sea was stormy, it seems a large wave would break it.”

Whether it was always the case or if a mode changed when the emergency power was in use, the lighting was sparse. The only illumination came from occasional LED light bulbs, so the darkness was overwhelmingly greater than the light. As Heivia took the lead, he relied on the sensors of his assault rifle.

And after heading around a few corners, he whispered to Quenser.

“(…Shh. There’s someone in front of the door around the corner. It’s probably a guard.)”

“(Do you think you can take him out without making a noise?)”

“(I’ll try.)”

As he spoke, Heivia pulled a large knife from his waist. He was not planning to approach silently and slit the man’s throat from behind. Instead, he leaned out from the corner and forcefully threw the knife.

The knife rotated as it flew through the passageway and it smashed its way into the side of the guard’s head like an axe. He collapsed to the side without even letting out a cry.

“You’ve used that method twice now. How about you start carrying a dedicated throwing knife?”

“The normal ones would just bounce off of a bulletproof jacket or helmet.”

Heivia headed down the passageway and pulled his own knife from the collapsed soldier’s head. Quenser pressed his ear up against the steel double doors, but he could not hear anything from inside.

As Heivia checked on the guard’s equipment, he said, “He has a handheld device. It’s showing footage from within the room.”

A small window displayed video footage of the room from an upper diagonal angle. The room was cluttered like a storage room and a single chair sat in the middle. A single girl had her arms and legs bound to the chair and two men stood on either side of her.

It looked like security camera footage, but it must have been the type that recorded sound as well.

“Now then, break time is over. It’s time to get back to business.”

“…”

“Do you know why we removed your restraints, disinfected your wounds, and are giving you bits of free time? That ensures you will not die too easily by seeing that your mind does not grow dull. And that way your suffering can last much, much longer. So prepare yourself.”

Heivia spat on the floor and said, “It looks like they’re in the middle of some fun.”

“But there’s only one girl there. I thought they were going to torture the maid while Princess Staivia watched. Where is she? Is she in the camera’s blind spot?”

“No, I’d say the reason it’s being sent live across their devices is so they can show it to the princess. In that case, Staivia might have been brought elsewhere.”

“The facility has been cut off from its surroundings via jamming. That means Princess Staivia must still be somewhere inside the float.”

Then again, it was a stroke of good luck that Quenser and Heivia were able to view the situation inside before breaking in. They could check the arrangement of the room and the locations of the enemies.

“The inner walls are military stainless steel. It won’t be hard to open a hole with some Hand Axe.”

“The main problem is these. The powered suits.” Heivia pointed at the screen. “These two have gotten out of theirs to enjoy the torture, but this one is still in his. The powered suit won’t be slowed down by the shockwave when we blow through the wall. We’ll be surrounded by a storm of Morning Star grenades before we take a single step inside.”

“Then we just have to pay careful attention to how we knock. More importantly, can we even take out that powered suit with our firepower?”

“I could take it out with a missile, but the maid could easily get caught in the blast.”

“Don’t you have something a little…gentler? Do you have anything like a grenade launcher?”

“The missile’s the best thing I have. I usually use these signal markers against armored weapons. They use GPS, lasers, and ultraviolet signals to send targeting information to an Object. It’s easier and more of a sure thing to just have the Object send a pinpoint strike.” Heivia fished through the corpse’s equipment and pulled out something they might be able to use. “He’s got a smoke grenade. This model has aluminum powder mixed in to take out sensors as well.”

“Aluminum, hm? …Do you have a disposable heater or anything? With some iron oxide powder, I could make thermite.”

“This is a broken airport float that was left to rot. It has powdered rust everywhere.”

Quenser took apart the nonlethal smoke grenade and repackaged the ingredients to create an anti-armor weapon that produced heat up to 3000 degrees.

With their cards gathered, he left the double doors and attached some Hand Axe plastic explosive to the wall.

“How are things inside?”

“They’re completely focused on the maid, so they haven’t noticed us. They have no idea how to properly treat a beautiful woman.”

“Then let’s get this over with.”

Quenser and Heivia moved away from the bomb they had set. Quenser placed his thumb on the radio that would send the detonation signal.

“It’s time to beg for your lives, you sadists.”

Part 10

Immediately after the plastic explosive on the wall detonated, fragments, dust, and a shockwave flew into the room.

The maid and the chair she was tied to fell backwards and the two soldiers on either side of her were knocked to the floor by the shockwave. The blow to their heads threw their minds into temporary disarray.

Of those in the room, only the soldier in the powered suit remained calm.

He repeatedly fired his Morning Star grenade machine gun towards the opening created in the wall. Those explosives that spread fragments of death in a radius of around 10 meters flew out into the passageway and exploded.

But Quenser and Heivia were not there.

At the same time that the wall had been blown open, they had kicked open the double doors. The roar and shockwave of the blast had masked that simple truth. Quenser threw his makeshift thermite grenade straight for the powered suit that had immediately turned its attention toward the hole in the wall. He had used adhesive tape to make it stick.

Instead of the normal orange flames, it produced a bright white flash of light as if from welding. The distinctive smell of molten metal filled the air and the surface of the powered suit’s armor melted like wax.

“Gh…gyah…!?”

A cry came from the suit’s speaker, but it disappeared as the speaker stopped functioning. The powered suit collapsed to the ground and its limbs attempted to move, but the melted armor was interfering with the joints. This turned its movements into something resembling a dying caterpillar. For the same reason, the man inside could not escape.

Meanwhile, Heivia mercilessly shot the two soldiers who had been knocked to the floor. One had his head crushed and the other received the rifle bullet to the center of his gut.

“How’s the powered suit!? Is it down for good!?”

“It’s dead all right. Even if the armor itself isn’t completely gone, the high temperature will have roasted the internal circuitry and the human flesh inside.”

A powered suit was a formidable enemy that could repel rifle bullets, but it was not invincible. That was why tanks and armored vehicles were still in use.

“Uuh…” groaned the enemy soldier who had been shot in the stomach.

Heivia silently held his assault rifle back up, but the man let out a frightened voice.

“Please help me. You’re from the Legitimacy Kingdom too, right? I was just following orders. A soldier can’t disobey his orders. I wasn’t doing this because I wanted to.”

In response, Heivia glanced at the fingers of the maid bound to the collapsed chair.

When he confirmed that they were colored red, he spoke with a cold expression on his face.

“If you were doing this reluctantly, she wouldn’t have wounds like that.”

“Wai-…”

Before the man could finish speaking, Heivia let out a short burst of gunfire. Those few shots shredded the man’s stomach and spine. There was nothing that could be done to help him now, but it would still take a few minutes before he died. That was the kind of wound it was.

Heivia mercilessly spat out the words, “Eat up, sadist.”

Meanwhile, Quenser righted the maid and her chair. He used a tool to cut the wires binding her arms and legs, but she shouted out before he could treat the wounds to her hands.

“Lady Staivia has been taken away by another unit! If you do not hurry, she will board the Object! If that happens, the preparations will be complete for the Royal Duel that Dimiksy’s faction wants!!”

“The princess was being forced to do it for your safety, right? Now that you’re free, can’t she start resisting once more?”

“No, this is bad, Quenser.”

Heivia tossed the handheld from the guard outside to Quenser.

The live footage of the room was now filled with static.

“The explosion we used to get in destroyed the camera. The rumored princess doesn’t know her maid has been rescued. They can keep coercing her!”

That was when they felt a dull rumbling.

It was not caused by a large wave. The center of gravity of the entire giant float was clearly changing.

“…The wires connected to the Object down below are being released.”

“Oh, shit. Does that mean Princess Staivia has already boarded the Object!? The Royal Duel is going to begin!!”

Part 11

Staivia sat within the cockpit of the useless first generation Object known as the Assault Signal.

It had over ten levers and hundreds of buttons. It was equipped with goggles that read the movements of one’s eyes using lasers, but she had been overcome by an intense dizziness when she had tried to put them on. Someone who had not undergone any training would never be able to pilot the Object.

No…

Even if she was able to pilot it, the tremendous Gs that would produce would crush the insides of her delicate body. At any rate, the situation had been set up from the beginning so as not to give Staivia any opportunity to counterattack. The situation was the same as being stuffed inside a metal drum and used for target practice.

“The battle regulations for the Royal Duel will now be explained.”

A precise female voice that almost sounded synthetic came in over the radio.

All bands were supposedly being jammed, but there seemed to be a few holes for ultrasonic waves.

“The standard regulations are the same as in the yellow manual. Area 21 of the Amazon district shall be the battle zone. To determine succession, Prince Dimiksy and Princess Staivia shall each have an Object represent them. The two Objects shall engage in battle and fight until one is unable to continue. Participation is done at one’s own risk, so any injuries or deaths caused in the process are not the responsibility of the winner.”

She could try to inform her maid Mikfa of this frequency. Or she could use the Object’s radio to directly call for external help.

“Both forces may receive support from their own infantry and standard armored weapons. No penalties shall be made and the duel will not end until a conclusion has been reached.”

“No,” muttered Staivia.

What would change if she got through to someone? What could anyone change?

Staivia had been forced to board the Assault Signal because Mikfa, the maid who had stayed with her to the end, had been used as a hostage.

But…

Would the end result have changed if that maid had not been taken hostage?

The soldiers of Dimiksy’s faction would surely have forcibly dragged her along and thrown her into the Assault Signal’s cockpit. No matter what she did or what happened, she would still be stuck in this dead end.

In that case…

“The duel only comes to an end once one of the Objects has been destroyed. As such, the signal known as the white flag shall have no effect.”

Staivia thought as the meaningless explanations continued.

If nothing would change her fate, was it not her duty to ensure as few other people as possible got wrapped up in it? Was it not foolishness to send those who cared for her to their deaths for the sake of a meaningless and worthless battle?

Yulenzak who had once rubbed her young head was gone. The White Bears of the 115th Private Royal Guard Company had been entombed in darkness.

Mikfa, the maid who had loved her to the end, had had a blade pressed against her throat.

And it all because of Staivia.

It had been that reasoning that had led to her distance herself from everything. And as a result, no one had stayed with her. Everyone around her was an enemy and even her own bodyguards had betrayed her and turned their guns on her. Even if Staivia called for help using the Object’s radio, she would likely receive no response. She had cut all such connections with her own hands.

And so she did not speak.

She did not know what she could say.

The radio’s microphone was right there and she knew a channel was open to reach outside, but Staivia’s mouth merely flapped open and closed. She was unable to utter even a shout.

It was an unsightly result.

But this was the conclusion that awaited her due to her attempts to lessen the amount of damage as much as possible.

Staivia Nikolaschka had no choice but to view this as the best possible ending.

The best possible ending was to sit in this useless Object and be blown away by great firepower without being able to counterattack even once.

“Ahh, ahh.”

Staivia leaned against the back of the cockpit chair and looked straight up. The kind of voice she could never utter in the public eye escaped her lips.

All the pretty decorations were stripped away because she knew no one could hear her.

“…I didn’t want to die…”

The curtain opened on this murderous stage.

The main cannon of an Object that symbolized war would be violently aimed at a girl of only 14.

All sorts of preparations had been made to perfectly justify it.

It had been made into something no one could raise any objection against.

Part 12

The four members of Unicorn landed in Flightburg Air Force Base in the large transport helicopter. It seemed the other members who had been scattered across the Amazon district had already gathered there. Sogia could see a few figures casually salute him when they caught sight of him.

Colonel Marechiare, the man in a deep gray beret and sunglasses, spoke briefly.

“I must insist that you stay here in the base until Prince Dimiksy’s Royal Duel is over. The duel itself is legal, but some very dirty methods have been used to set it up. To prevent possible interference, I prefer to keep as many elements as possible contained until everything is over.”

“I’m relieved you do not intend to silence us more permanently.”

“If I was planning that, you would have disappeared to the ends of the earth. Hiding in chaotic areas of conflict is your specialty after all. After heading through a few battlefields, I would have completely lost your trail.”

“It’s those of you on the upper levels of the military that are maintaining these assassination zones known as battlefield countries. Even if you could not get rid of them entirely, surely you could make them more compact. We are only using the system you set up.”

That made Marechiare grin.

He must have felt more confident now that he was back on his home turf because he did not try to hide his true intentions.

“We maintain the things we need. But everyone wants the same thing, so there is a constant overabundance of it. It is the same as the convenience stores in cities.”

“Now there’s a surprise. So even a colonel uses convenience stores.”

“Hmph. Going to an antique shop or a tailor does not fill your stomach.”

They boarded a 4WD off-road vehicle just to cross a wide runway. Every one of the over 1000 people working at the base were on Prince Dimiksy’s side and were actively committing treason, so it was quite a spectacle.

“How long are we confined here? There are around 200 of us total. It’ll cost a lot to feed, clothe, and shelter us.”

“We are not a commercial organization. It is not our job to worry about the money.”

“Tax money doesn’t come from a magical treasure chest, you know?”

“We can continue wringing it out as long as war continues. And if they refuse, they will be branded as traitors. …And not by us. By their virtuous and ignorant neighbors.”

The 4WD vehicle stopped near the command facility. Marechiare led Sogia, Sanya, Mars, and Flat into the building.

Since Unicorn was wearing the same model military uniforms as Flightburg Air Force Base, it was impossible to tell at a glance which force anyone belonged to.

And then Mars asked, “…Excuse me. May I use the restroom?”

“Colonel, surely it’s better than having him piss himself. But if needed, I can order him to hold it.”

“You may move about freely. One of my men can show you the way if necessary.”

Once Marechiare had given permission to move about, Sogia snapped his fingers.

“Sanya, check the deposits in our bank account. Flat, check whether all the Unicorn members are here or not. Once you’re done, borrow a kitchen to make some food. That market junk food has numbed my tongue. Who knows what kind of meat we were eating. I might have been fed some little grey.”

When he heard that, Marechiare casually pointed out, “My unit eats rations except for Fridays when we have curry.”

“You can make surprisingly humane foods with a simple heater. Not when I make it, though.”

After the other members left, Sogia followed Marechiare further into the facility.

After entering a private room for officers, Marechiare removed the jacket of his high-quality uniform and sank into the sofa. He pulled a nicely cooled champagne bottle and two glasses from a small refrigerator.

Sogia gave a small smile.

“Isn’t it a bit early to celebrate?”

“There is no deep meaning to this. I just want a drink because I am thirsty. Plus, this is paid for by the military budget.”

Sogia accepted a glass filled with a gold liquid and downed it in a single gulp. Seeing that, Marechiare gave a thin smile and slowly tipped his own glass.

“I see you still have no concept of restraint.”

“I’m still not old enough to worry about my blood pressure.”

Sogia placed his empty glass on the table while Marechiare spoke as if reminiscing.

“So it’s been 3 years since we first joined forces. It all started when you attacked Princess Staivia’s bodyguard unit in that South American desert. I had heard about your miniature thermobaric bombs, but even I was taken aback when you created a cluster bomb out of them and scattered them over the White Bears’ heads.”

“Well, it was a dangerous gamble on our part, too. We needed a flashy present to properly establish a connection with you. And we wanted to make doubly sure since we were up against the elite White Bears. I was a bit worried when their bodies were completely unrecoverable since that might make you doubt us.”

“We were having trouble with Yulenzak and his 115th as well. I suppose you did need to go that far to truly eliminate them.”

Sogia and the rest of Unicorn had been the ones to eliminate Princess Staivia’s royal guard unit during a military exercise, but it had not been on the orders of Marechiare and the others supporting Prince Dimiksy.

Marechiare’s group had been planning their own attack, but Unicorn had beaten them to it.

“The 202nd Mobile Support Company,” muttered Marechiare. “Unicorn. The mysterious and secret unit that uses the framework of the foreign legion. Every member has undergone plastic surgery and had their fingerprints and palm prints forcibly altered by burning them and letting them heal. Rumor even has it their blood type has been changed by receiving a bone marrow transplant from someone else.”

“The foreign legion system is only there to fool the Legitimacy Kingdom Lineage Department that won’t shut up about bloodline and DNA. If you use that framework, you don’t need to have your lineage recorded. You announce from the beginning that you have outsider blood, so you fall outside the standards,” said Sogia as he traced a finger across the scars from stiches that circled his neck.

A closer inspection showed that the color of the skin changed slightly along that line.

“Did you go that far to hide your identity in order to create these connections of yours?” asked Marechiare, sounding truly curious. “The Legitimacy Kingdom, the Information Alliance, the Capitalist Corporations, and the Faith Organization. Creating connections between all of those world powers sounds nice, but the walls of religion, race, and ideology will always get in the way. By making it more ambiguous where you are from, I suppose you could make all of that more convenient.”

“And?”

“I do not know exactly how far your connections spread below the surface, but they are sure to be a great asset to Prince Dimiksy,” said Marechiare while finally finishing off his glass of champagne. “But we must make sure that only acts in our favor. We cannot have Prince Dimiksy growing too arrogant. We only want an influential person who is easy to manipulate.”

“So you want data on our connections to set up your means of control?”

“Full comprehension of the power balance around an influential person is the foundation needed to control him through the power game. If Prince Dimiksy wishes to bring you into his system, cooperate with him. Registering a bug-filled program on the network will only bring you down with it.”

“I see. That makes sense,” said Sogia with a light smile. And then he added, “But, colonel, you are mistaken about something.”

“What is that?”

“It was not to construct our connections that we underwent plastic surgery, rewrote our fingerprints, palm prints, and other biometrics, changed our blood type with a bone marrow transplant, and evaded being recorded by the Lineage Department.” Marechiare looked confused, but Sogia ignored him and continued. “In fact, you misinterpreted the circumstances of our actions 3 years ago when we destroyed the White Bears of the 115th Private Royal Guard Company that were Staivia’s most trusted men. Then again, we set it up so you would misinterpret it, so I have no right to blame you there.”

“What are you talking about?”

“You don’t get it?”

Sogia reached out a hand and used a finger to lightly push the champagne glass on the table.

The delicate glass easily toppled and shattered with a solid sound.

Sogia continued as the disturbing noise rang out.

“The brand new 202nd Mobile Support Company first saw the light of day when the White Bears of the 115th Private Royal Guard Company were destroyed. When we contacted you, you had to have hurriedly gathered information on Unicorn. And you accepted what you found. Our classification level was too high for information to be found on the military database, but Unicorn’s ‘evil deeds’ had left their mark on plenty of civilian-run military news sites. …Not that anyone could tell when exactly those articles had been added in.”

“You can’t mean…”

“And the White Bears were so thoroughly annihilated that there was nothing left for a funeral. Who the corpses belonged to could not be confirmed. And due to a vaccine shortage and an outbreak of an infection disease of an older era, people were dropping like flies in that blank area in South America. There were so many corpses that they had to be burned right away or they would pile up. With all that information at hand, surely you have arrived at the answer.” Sogia…no, someone using that name gave a thin smile. “A unit completely disappeared and another unit that had undergone plastic surgery appeared at the exact same time. If you still haven’t figured it out, you really are an idiot.”

“You mean Princess Staivia’s most trusted men were not killed…? You mean Yulenzak and his royal guard unit simply changed their name to Unicorn!?”

Marechiare immediately tried to grab the telephone on the table, but Sogia stood up from the sofa and crushed the phone and Marechiare’s hand under his foot.

“We learned five years ago that Prince Dimiksy was making preparations to take Princess Staivia’s life using a Royal Duel. We also knew there was nothing we could do about it even though we knew. So we had to take some drastic measures. We needed to cast aside our position as the White Bears of the 115th Private Royal Guard Company and take up a new position where we could deal with the situation from a different angle.”

“Gah!?”

“Let me tell you one legend about the unicorn, colonel.”

As Marechiare let out a short cry, Sogia pulled out his PDW with a smooth motion. It was a machinegun small enough to fit inside a business bag. He held it in one hand and aimed it at the older man’s face.

“It is a beast that shows no interest in power or treasure and instead does everything it can to protect a pure maiden, you monster.”