24 Companions of the Path 5

‘Ah… kuu…’

A frail voice, unbecoming of the battlefield.

‘M-mustn’t…’

‘Yes! Male! Plug your ears!’

Utterly overwhelmed by the scene, Yuria raises her voice to silence the men.

Unable to cut the comms entirely, Jin pretends not to hear either voice, and shoots down the approaching griffin.

‘In essence, it’s intense neural stimulation—like sitting still while your numb legs are prodded.’

‘No, I don’t have time for idle chatter like that!’

Kou is barely keeping up, still struggling amid the relentless flow of enemy targets.

There’s no room for idle talk about the current situation.

‘Didn’t the Captain say to stop hearing it!’

‘Better silence that one. It’s just as annoying over here.’

The sound emanating—though it is electronic, not organic—is from Unicorn.

Currently, it appears Yuriya is connected to Raven via wireless signal.

Every time Yuriya moves Unicorn’s frame, that rasping voice echoes through the comms. For Jin and the others, it is unbearable.

To be blamed for it, of all things.

“Always thought she was the type to be class rep. Elementary school, maybe.”

No firsthand experience—only hearsay, primarily from Mio.

‘Hey, Instructor! You not escaping reality, are you!’

Kou finally snaps at Jin, who is muttering about matters that don’t require thought.

Yuriya clearly struggles to master Unicorn, yet if she cannot, no one else can.

Listening only to that whisper-like voice, Jin thinks.

"Question. What is the committee chair?"

"The leader of a small group."

"Hmm. A position befitting a strong individual."

"There's no time for idle talk—help out!"

Neither Jin nor Edelweiss is slacking.

Kou seems safe enough left alone, so priority is given to other support.

The enemy is focusing on this side.

Even as numbers dwindle, the cybernetic squad has clearly noticed Unicorn attempting something.

They likely don't suspect she's panting in the shadows—but now, many Griffons aim to prevent her from acting.

Jin and Edelweiss, in silent coordination, close in at maximum speed on the Griffons preparing long-range attacks.

Both exceed Raven in maneuverability. Perfect for hit-and-run tactics.

And approaching enemies, Kou’s special detachment and the warriors of Terminus stand ready.

This two-tiered formation marked the beginning of a solid alliance between humans and the people of Terminus.

Even amidst the chaos, they trust each other completely—covering one another’s backs, following one another’s movements.

‘Hmm… is it like this…?’

‘No, not quite… there—’

‘Mm… I’m starting to feel rather strange myself.’

Muttering, Yuriya takes control of the unicorn’s frame.

This is her first time—no deeper meaning intended—performing such a task, requiring synchronization of her sensory organs with the machine.

After several minutes adjusting Raven’s settings.

The unicorn’s sensory array synchronizes with Raven’s.

A sharp intake of breath, small and quiet, as the expanded field of view unfolds.

‘…Incredible. This is how you see the universe.’

Numerous cosmic rays, radiation. The glow of the ether. The motion of interstellar matter. The gravity generated by stars.

The trajectories born of nature evoke a harmony akin to a single painting.

These phenomena are shared with Yuria as visual data.

Even this breathtaking scene is only a fragment of what they are capable of perceiving.

‘Good good. This should work.’

‘Phew… Is everything ready?’

A faintly weary voice from Unicorn, inquiring whether Yuria’s preparations are complete.

‘Yes. Perfectly.’

Accompanying the reply, Unicorn’s arm moves.

Holding her barrel at the hip, she aims at the automated defense satellite being assaulted by shattered asteroids.

Ten thousand kilometers distant.

At the assault frame’s combat range of approximately one hundred kilometers, this distance is beyond conventional norms.

One-quarter the diameter of Earth.

Beyond that, the target—no matter how closely observed through the Unicorn’s eye—appears no larger than a grain of rice.

‘Don’t move, Unicorn-chan.’

‘Chan…?’

Uria tilts the barrel slowly, deliberately, as if tasting the name on her tongue.

Gently.

With precision.

Adjusting the motion by nothing but the sensation at her fingertips, like brushing against a feather.

Accounting for the gravitational wind from massive masses.

Holding her breath.

Squeezing the trigger.

The glow of ether crosses the battlefield.

Thinner than a battleship’s cannon.

A shot of exact precision.

‘Hit.’

Quietly. Uria declares it before the impact.

As if fulfilling her words, a blossom of flame blooms near ‘Rare.’

‘Next. Let’s go.’

‘…………You.’

Uria does not react. She calmly begins aligning her aim on the next target.

The sudden stillness contrasts sharply with the earlier chaos. Unicorn feels her body grow cold, as if her own frame were freezing.

The cybernetic squad realizes the impossibility of such a long-range shot—success only strengthens their assault.

Naturally.

If left unchecked, 'Rare' would be exposed completely.

Yet they are not without risk.

Using an asteroid as a projectile is not a maneuver that can be repeated.

There is no guarantee of finding a suitable asteroid.

Even within the main belt, the spacing between individual bodies remains vast on a cosmic scale.

Thus, the tactic fails if all fragments are destroyed—or if they pass entirely through the enemy lines.

A satellite possessing such offensive capability.

It can be destroyed in a single strike only because the enemy is not currently prioritizing defense against interception. Under normal defensive protocols, this long-range sniping would be impossible.

And if it closes in, the target must be engaged amidst the fleet's broadside fire.

Thus, this must be seen as the first and final opportunity.

Both sides understand this, which is why this localized engagement has suddenly become decisive.

‘Let’s boost output slightly. Two percent… one percent should suffice.’

‘Affirmative.’

The Unicorn redirected nearly all reactor output toward weaponry.

Ether coating for defense was minimized.

Ether for mobility was completely cut.

Now, relative velocity with the enemy vessel is matched, visually appearing stationary.

The Unicorn has achieved the level of fixed artillery that Yuri demanded.

She who dislikes people is obeying Yuri’s orders to retrieve Mio.

There is also the debt of saved life.

Yet something within her has changed.

Second shot.

This time, a single griffin cuts across the trajectory, sacrificing itself.

Another drawn in—yet pierces Umbrella II with the same force as the first.

One more flower added.

The Unicorn trembles quietly.

The current instruction had accounted for the enemy’s attempt to interfere.

If the power had been the same as before, it might not have reached the satellite— or if it did, not enough to destroy it.

‘Yeah, you can stop now. You probably realized it was pointless by now.’

If sacrifice cannot prevent it, Yuri had decided, then better to become the spear than the shield.

The assessment was mostly intuition. Yet it was consistently accurate.

The training academy days, crowded with the unpredictable trio of Kou, May, and Jin.

And even after that, eight years of working alongside Kou—her insight remained exceptionally sharp.

Her marksmanship stemmed from reading opponents' movements before they happened.

Even now, she had anticipated the natural phenomena disrupting the shot, the enemy's psychological patterns—read them all, and executed the shot.

Six satellites remained.

The asteroid decoys had reduced the number significantly.

Unicorn thought it was impossible—absolutely impossible.

But perhaps someone like this peculiar human—Yuria—might manage it.

‘Good feel, good feel. Are we a great team or what?’

‘…Don’t know.’

‘Not following. Third shot. Here we go.’

While responding with indifference to the opponent’s movements—precise to a degree Unicorn knew was beyond her own body’s limits—Unicorn thought.

Well, surrendering one’s own body to this one isn’t unreasonable.

— Not because it was acknowledged, but because occasionally exceeding one’s limits was judged the most effective means of improving capability.

Speaking hastily, without addressing anyone in particular, Unicorn watched the third bloom unfurl.