19 Just a forward skirmish 4
Switch focus.
Concentrate on what lies ahead.
Otherwise, the next instant will see that long sword piercing Raven’s chest.
Hovering forward, maintain pressure with the ether rifle. First, gain distance.
Unlike last time, it won’t collapse after two shots.
Raven, adjusted by Shirley to withstand higher output.
In terms of instantaneous firepower, it matches the Second Fleet’s Gryphon.
The shot delivers enough damage to affect the Black Knight.
Stay calm. Blend foresight one second ahead with personal experience—hitting it is not impossible.
Jin, regaining precision in movement, gradually expands the combat range from close to medium distance.
The Black Knight advances, deflecting blows with thickened armored plates resembling gauntlets.
Armed as before—only the Long Sword.
But Jin knows, now, the extent of its terrifying destructive potential.
Conversely,
he also understands the absence of long-range weaponry.
The mastery of space through exceptional etheric control.
Even so, it remains confined to the domain of close combat.
No repetition of the first clash, no second humiliation.
No third display of ineptitude.
A complete out-range strategy.
Gravity itself works in his favor.
Jin’s Raven maintains high mobility through hover propulsion, but the Black Knight moves on foot.
The difference in speed is astronomical.
The charge is astonishing—but not beyond Jin’s perception.
The surplus in his mind drains away.
Thus, how simple it is to resolve matters with a punch.
……How will it come?
Proceeding as is will take time.
Yet Jin’s defeat from a one-sided assault is impossible.
Even more so, the certainty—like trust—that the Black Knight, the leader among humanoid forms, would not remain idle.
Jin holds the conviction that he understands the Black Knight better than anyone else among humanity.
Therefore, the next action was neither unexpected nor unforeseen.
He lifts the Long Sword high, gripping it with both arms.
The air around the Black Knight shrieks—vibrations intensified. A few plants burst apart.
The Black Knight swings the blade down directly at Jin.
The distance between them is approximately five hundred meters.
A shockwave cuts through that space.
A sonic boom capable of cleaving the earth.
Even if it were Raven’s ether coating, a direct hit might have breached it.
Still, he had concealed a long-range attack method.
That method hadn’t been anticipated—yet preparation for such a possibility had proven decisive.
The heavy strike was wide open—vulnerable.
Had he been able to end it with that blow, he likely would have.
But Jin dodged.
The meaning of that evasion is not trivial.
Slight, yet present.
A hint of urgency in the Black Knight’s movements.
From that moment, one-sided fire rains down upon the Black Knight.
Sometimes with the Long Sword.
Sometimes with the gauntlet.
Jin deflects the shots—but the Ether Cannon, slipped in between, cannot be blocked.
At that moment, the evasion is pronounced.
It appears to be a decisive advantage for Jin—but the situation is not so simple.
Jin’s current assault is possible only because he is pouring ether without regard for consequence.
The accumulated reserves and the supply from the ether reactor.
The moment that supply drops below consumption, the current position reverses.
A short-term confrontation.
Jin has no other path to victory from the outset.
Any extension of time would only grant the intelligent Black Knight the opportunity to respond.
That, in itself, is desirable.
Now, only.
How to deliver the decisive blow.
(Concept exists.)
Depending on the opponent—yet the Black Knight likely does not wish to maintain the current state.
It will act to break the deadlock.
That moment is the opportunity to shatter the present, fragile stability.
Rhythm.
Deliberately construct the rhythm of offense and defense.
Shooting from the rifle.
Firing from the cannon.
How to force a defense.
How to force an evasion.
That rhythm.
Even the opponent’s actions can be controlled at the designated aiming point.
Thus, the rhythm is formed.
The situation created intentionally by Jin.
(Now then)
That rhythm— the Black Knight shatters it.
At the instant the Ether Cannon was avoided, the black silhouette vanished from the monitor.
Within the atmosphere, no maneuver faster than a camera’s blink is possible.
Not an illusion like optical camouflage.
At this moment, the Black Knight vanishes from in front of Jin’s eyes.
Retreat—or withdrawal?
No.
The Black Knight vanished—then revealed himself behind Jin’s Raven in the next instant.
The blade drives into the abdomen.
Not the same lack of motivation as before.
The Black Knight came here intending to drop this.
The reason for this change remains unclear—should the opponent be serious, however.
If you intend to strike at Jin's weakness.
What would Jin do?
Come here!
The thought had persisted since the beginning of this battle.
Close-combat-oriented Black Knight.
Estimated specifications based on previous engagements.
The most unpleasant action possible, combining those elements.
If that can be predicted, then the rest is simple.
Counter it.
Yes, indeed. Jin murmurs this within his mind.
The humanoid overlight technology surpasses humanity.
Unlike human-made overlights, which suffer errors on the scale of kilometers.
The humanoid ASID overlight error is measured in meters... perhaps even centimeters.
With this in mind, Jin reads the opponent's tactics.
A blade pierces the abdomen.
Not Raven's abdomen—Black Knight's long sword piercing Raven's abdomen.
Rather, Raven's ether dagger piercing Black Knight's abdomen.
Maintaining distance like this.
The worst scenario is when the overlight closes the gap in an instant.
No negotiation. No warning. Instantly drawn into close combat.
That was the worst possible outcome for Jin.
He eliminated it first.
Other actions held no threat for Jin.
Only close combat following instantaneous teleportation.
He dealt with that alone.
His back.
He maintained constant vigilance there—where the enemy vanished.
So he could drive the Ether Dagger through the moment the enemy reappeared.
It made no difference if the opponent saw a second ahead.
It was simply a game of counter-janken.
Who could read the future more accurately.
Last time, the Black Knight had prevailed.
But this time, Jin had information on the Black Knight.
Acting with the knowledge that he could see one second ahead.
If so, there was no reason Jin’s foresight should be outpaced.
"Solid contact."
Three Ether Daggers clamped between his fingers.
The Ether blade, synchronized and converged across all three vibrators, pierced even the Black Knight’s defense.
The abdomen should house an Ether Reactor.
He saw it just in time. Though he avoided a direct hit, damage must have occurred.
That translates to reduced output—diminished combat capability.
"I'll take your head!"
If even the Black Knight could be felled—
no matter the circumstances, the outcome would still follow.
To realize that abstract theory—
Jin swung the converged Ether Daggers.
The ASID current disrupted the motion.
"Shit—"
Too focused on the Black Knight ahead, he failed to notice the swarm of ASID closing in from behind.
Forced to halt his pursuit, Jin faced the ASID swarm, now interposing itself like a wall.
Seizing the opening, the Black Knight leapt backward, retreating with a single-leg jump.
The Ether Cannon fires toward the landing point, but the target has already vanished by that instant.
Cautiously scanning behind, there is no sign of movement.
No strong reactor signature appears on the radar beyond Melce’s Queen-type.
It is safe to assume he is no longer on the planet Melce.
……He managed to escape.
Jin might reappear behind Raven again, but such a trick is no more than a poorly executed illusion.
While countering a surprise attack as before is difficult, preventing one is not particularly challenging.
More importantly.
Without knowing our exact position, he cannot execute an overlight.
Unless there is some clear marker, of course.
Jin cannot launch a surprise attack unless he reappears near Melce.
As long as we remain vigilant against large reactor signatures, there should be no issue.
Excluding the outcome because of Jin’s reasoning was a failure.
But the battle itself is not over yet.
The Queen of Melce.
Without her defeat, Jin’s victory would be meaningless.