23 Companions of the Path 4

The Harold Fleet was being pressed.

At the same time, the situation favored the Harold Fleet.

Tactically—the Third Fleet and the Terminus people had won the engagement of front-line forces.

But strategically, the circumstances changed.

The Harold Fleet did not need to win here; it only needed to hold out for one more hour and proceed toward Earth, their home planet.

And their advance was not being slowed in the slightest.

At this pace, the hour would pass before the cybernetic squad and the captured units were destroyed.

Once that happened, Laitera would activate—and turn everything upside down.

But this information was unknown to the Third Fleet.

The battle line misjudged, time passed without change.

In any case, they could not reach the central hub, 'Leara,' without breaching the automated defense satellite Umbrella II.

Something was coming.

Even as they braced, the Third Fleet’s maneuver left the Harold Fleet stunned.

The glow of Overlight.

Something was emerging in this sector.

Mass was substantial.

A chance encounter with an ASID swarm—such a convenient coincidence the Harold Fleet could not hope for.

If it were so, Mio could seize most of the swarm, bolstering their forces.

But this was the Third Fleet’s calculated move.

Reinforcements were highly likely.

That was precisely why the shock was so great.

What appeared was a massive rock fragment, sixty kilometers in diameter at least.

“S-something… a minor planet…?”

At this scale, even with Ether coating, impact would cause catastrophic damage.

The coating only enhanced structural integrity. If the impact force was extreme enough, even that would be breached.

Moreover, if accelerating, the situation becomes all the more critical.

In a sense, Harold’s fleet was forced into a momentary paralysis before the greatest physical attack humanity could devise.

"Are they serious?!"

Harold let out a laugh tinged with disbelief.

That size alone would sink even a Lombardia-class vessel on direct impact.

And as expected—no, perhaps one should say predictably—it aimed straight for 'Lia'.

◆ ◆ ◆

Jin’s method of countering the automated defense system was strikingly simple.

Overwhelm it with sheer, inescapable mass.

Mars, located in Earth’s vicinity—though still seven million five hundred thousand kilometers away—was the starting point.

At the midpoint between Mars and Jupiter, within the Main Belt, a suitable asteroid was selected.

Using Overlight, the Terminans alone could reach it.

The asteroid was retrieved through Overlight and brought back to the battlefield.

‘Is one enough?’

Jin nods in reply to Edelweiss’s question.

‘Increasing numbers raises the risk of missed shots.’

The deliberate distance from Harold’s fleet was intended to make them easier to destroy.

Even so, striking directly with that much mass would sink the fleet.

Incidentally, the two converse normally—yet between exchanges, Jin manipulates the control stick, downing several Griffons.

Even inferior aircraft held their own.

And the cyborg squad had shown Jin far too much of their fighting style.

They could no longer stop him.

They charge with desperate resolve—but each flick of Jin’s fingers sends an ether rifle blast, bringing them down.

Monster. Abomination. The cyborg squad cannot even voice such accusations, so thoroughly shattered they are.

In combat, Jin has no concerns now.

From this position, the fragmentation via Ether Cannon should be sufficient. It should be. That was Jin’s sole concern.

If it fails, everything will be undone in every sense.

As Jin expected, the Harold Fleet enters full defensive posture.

One after another, Ether Cannons fire, peeling away the surface layer.

But that is all. Complete fragmentation remains unachieved.

Among the fleet, one vessel stands out in size, slowly moving into position.

Longinus-class mobile battleship 'Trishula'. It transitions into close-combat mode, raising the Ether Himegacannon.

Now, every primary vessel of the Harold Fleet is concealed behind the shadow of an asteroid.

Seizing the opening, the fleet commander issues the order.

Full speed ahead.

Close the distance to the Harold Fleet at this moment.

The intent was to blunt their advance by forcing a rapid push along the front.

The flash of the Ether High Megacannon was visible even across the asteroid.

It flickered several times—then finally split in two.

‘... Terrifying, that person. Even we could only shatter that celestial body under the Emperor’s command.’

‘Humans can manage something on the level of a Longinus, you know.’

Though split in two, it remained overwhelmingly massive.

Half continued on its course toward 'Lia,' while the other half crushed several Lombardia-class vessels.

One vessel took the impact head-on and was completely sunk.

Others might not have been destroyed, but their navigation was rendered inoperable—nearly ten ships.

The Harold Fleet’s half was brought to functional failure through this crude method of force.

The remaining half is being intercepted by 'Trishula,' but not yet obliterated.

Fragmented further, the debris is systematically eliminated by Umbrella II.

"……As expected."

The accuracy of the strikes is nothing short of extraordinary.

It selects only the fragments that would cause harm and eliminates them precisely.

Simultaneously, it leaves behind only harmless debris—meaning no defense is required.

This was one possibility Jin had considered.

"Interception and defense cannot occur simultaneously. Then, can you counter this long-range sniping?"

A shot beyond the assault frame's operational limits.

Jin himself has never attempted a shot at this range.

To challenge the unprecedented—

"Ah! No! More to the left. Like touching a maiden's skin—softly, gently! Too far! Right! Right!"

"Unintelligible. Provide precise coordinates."

"How can you not understand? You should feel it through your fingertips!"

"Hey, Instructor. That won’t work. Primarily, it’s Yuriya."

Yuriya Nastin. And the Terminans known as the Unicorn.

Yet this pairing—this combination—was proving ineffective.

Even Kou had given up trying.

The issue stemmed mainly from Yuriya.

Jin hadn’t known this before—regarding sniping, Yuriya was entirely instinctual.

Where Jin could at least articulate his own sense, Yuriya’s reasoning was incomprehensible.

Whether she was aware of it herself, or not.

Every explanation was layered in sensual metaphor.

"Impossible, Captain! Sniping together with the Unicorn?!"

"Edelweiss. I suggest: joint operation with Yuriya Nastin is not feasible."

Jin thought he shouldn’t be surprised at this point—yet he had been the one to demand the impossible. He had no grounds to object.

If a direct approach proves unfeasible, the secondary plan remains—approach the automated defense satellites by using a shattered asteroid as a shield and destroy them.

Transitioning to the secondary plan requires selecting a strike team.

If speed is the priority, perhaps only a few from among our group and the Terminus people would suffice, Jin mused—when Edelweiss offered assistance.

‘Unicorn. Hand over bodily control to Yuri Nastin.’

‘—Are you mad? Edelweiss.’

Unicorn froze, as if struck dumb by the suggestion.

‘To entrust my body to such a diminutive being?’

The voice remained unchanged, but that was simply because the Terminus people were poor at infusing emotion into speech.

Internally, however, the outrage was palpable.

‘…Hey, handing over your body…’

We can entrust control of our own bodies to another. It should be possible to operate that Raven of yours as well.

“Sounds like a good idea on paper, but what’s the unicorn so angry about?”

The question from Yuria drew a response from the unicorn—unnervingly quiet.

“Only the one designated for the exchange may take control of the body.”

“Aah…”

Jin and Yuria both sensed it, vaguely. Apparently, to the Terminus people, this was a deeply humiliating act.

It was anger.

“We do it for our child.”

“You claim to have no stake in this, yet act as you please.”

“Then offer another method.”

That seemed to be the decisive point.

“Damn it… kill him.”

“Hey, no! Don’t kill him! You just saved him a moment ago!”

“Demanding gratitude for a life saved… you despicable wretch.”

Something trivial, yet Jin thought distantly, the unicorn’s vocabulary was slightly more elaborate than expected.

The当事人 showed no sign of agreement, but it was decided that Yuriya would pilot the unicorn’s body to execute the sniper strike.