Convoy Escort 1

Kelberos met up with the Langrudo Consortium's convoy and Andi's Beetle at the scheduled coordinates.

"Langrudo Consortium convoy and Beetle, this is Kelberos. Pleasure to work with you."

Seira established communication with the Langrudo Consortium's convoy and Andi's Beetle.

"This is Orion, command ship of the Langrudo convoy. It's our second time working with Kelberos. We look forward to your cooperation once again."

"This is escort vessel Beetle. As this is our first escort mission, we will follow Kelberos's instructions. We look forward to working with you."

Shinnosuke and the others reformed their formation at the rendezvous point.

The convoy formed a two-column line, centered on two large vessels, keeping the formation compact. Beetle was positioned at the front of the two-column line, while Kelberos took up a rear-upper position to maintain vigilance.

The basic formation pre-simulated by Shinosuke and Andy—placing the inexperienced and weakly armed Beetle at the front, with Kelberos in a rear-upper position to maintain overall situational awareness.

"Kelberos to Orion. The flagship and escort vessel Beetle will come under your command during normal operations. Preparation is complete; you may depart at any time."

"Orion, understood. Departing now for the Damura Cluster Republic."

Eight ships—six cargo vessels and two escort vessels—set out toward the Damura Cluster Republic.

While it would take about two weeks to reach the Damura Cluster Republic with a vessel like Kerberos, the convoy will take approximately three weeks due to the slow pace of the cargo ships it is accompanying.

"Now, this will be a long journey, so let's vary the pace to keep tension under control. For the first few days, we'll be traveling through the Akneria sector, where coast guard and space forces are on high alert, so the danger is relatively low. We'll rest whenever we can."

Space pirates mainly operate in international space zones or exclusive economic zones where the eyes of the space forces and coast guard don't reach.

Even in these regions, if a distress signal is sent, the space forces or coast guard of nearby countries will respond, but it takes time for them to arrive.

In other words, this is an ideal hunting ground for space pirates.

Shin nosuke sends a communication to Andy.

"From Cerberus to Captain Andy of the Beetle. For the next three days, the likelihood of pirate attacks is extremely low. While we must remain vigilant, try to relax. It's better to use the autopilot to prevent fatigue from building up."

"Captain Andy of the Beetle here. Understood."

Even over the communication link, Andy's tension is clearly noticeable.

However, since a certain level of tension is essential for performing one's duties, Shinnosuke deliberately refrains from mentioning it.

Upon closer inspection of Andy's Beetle, Shinnosuke notices that the ship has incorporated his advice, ultimately resulting in the Ranglud Company's infiltration—but now, three high-caliber anti-air laser cannons have been added to the upper deck and both side panels.

"A Steard Armorment SL35 anti-air machine gun. Whether it's a military surplus or not, it's not a bad choice..."

The Beetle's new anti-air machine gun doesn't match the firepower or rate of fire of the Cerberus's laser Gatling cannon, but as a machine gun, it's quite powerful.

Though once adopted by the Akneria Space Fleet, it's already outdated, and very few ships still carry this SL35 anti-air machine gun.

The Ranguldo Company probably arranged the sale of military surplus to Andy.

I don't know exactly how much they sold it for, but regardless of being secondhand, its performance is unquestionable.

Whether new or veteran, escort ship crew members must always pay close attention to their equipment.

It's not just about firepower; having gear suited to oneself increases survival rates, allowing newcomers like Andy to gain experience and grow into skilled escort vessel crew members.

Of course, this also means Andy and the others are being used to the hilt by the Langrode Company, but even if they're considered a shady organization, they likely don't engage in careless deals when it comes to business.

For the first three days, everything proceeded smoothly and as Shinosuke had predicted.

But the anomaly occurred on the fourth day.

Seira, responsible for radar surveillance and communications, suddenly spoke up.

"Unknown contact, port side. Maintaining a constant distance while staying just at the edge of the radar detection range."

Sinosuke checked the monitor as well.

"Reconnaissance, then. Good—unlock all weapons systems. Relay to Beetle: activate weapons and aim all turrets toward the unknown on the port side."

『Beetle, understood.』

As Sinosuke spoke, he unlocked and activated the weapons systems, aligning the turrets toward the port side.

"Unknown is rapidly retreating—moving out of detection range... Was that a pirate, just now?"

When pirate scouts have been shadowing a fleet closely, it's common for another pirate ship to be lying in wait at their intended destination.

But this time, rather than staying close, the scout vessel completely disengaged and retreated.

"Likely a pirate scout, but they've decided to abandon their pursuit of this convoy. They probably realized they couldn't handle it on their own. Even pirates need good risk management to survive long."

As Shinosuke had predicted, there were no more pirate encounters along the subsequent route, bringing them ever closer to the first spatial jump point.

Since jumping simultaneously with eight ships was impossible, Cerberus went first to secure the safety of the destination.

"Coordinate calculation complete. Destination coordinates have been locked in."

After receiving Marks' report, Shin nosuke pushed the throttle lever, accelerating Cerberus.

"Jump entry speed reached. Jump point approaching, countdown starting. Five, four, three, two, one..."

"Wah..."

"Kchushun! Ah, sorry..."

Shin nosuke's voice was drowned out by Seira's sneeze.