Emergency Evasion

A violent jolt ran through the Nightmare Bridge.

"Was it unavoidable?"

"Direct hit on the upper hull, but we narrowly avoided a direct impact."

Just before the enemy ship's barrage struck, Shinosuke instinctively adjusted the steering wheel, causing the Nightmare's hull to dip slightly and barely avoiding a direct hit.

"Assess damage!"

"Upper hull damage confirmed. Main dome compromised. Electronic warfare capability reduced to 58 percent. Additionally, changes in mass and balance require recalibration of spatial jump coordinates."

Attempting a jump under these conditions while already surrounded by enemy forces meant slowing down or stopping for recalibration would be tantamount to suicide.

"What are the consequences of强行 executing the jump?"

There is a risk of jump disengagement error within a range of 150,000 centered on the planned jump coordinates.

Spatial jumps carried out under advanced calculations can produce significant changes in outcomes even with minor alterations to conditions.

A slight deviation from the jump departure coordinates could result in emerging inside a planet's atmosphere or deep underground. One wrong move, and we might crash straight into a city on the planet's surface or in orbit—catastrophic consequences.

"There are no planets within 150,000 units of the jump departure point. Proceed with the jump!"

"Be aware that the ship may sustain critical damage!"

Be ready for anything! Besides, if there's error we can't predict, the enemy's chances of tracking our coordinates and chasing us are slim! Initiating forced jump—let's go!

Understood... Additionally, a relay vessel should be waiting in the destination sector, but there's a risk of coordinate overlap due to jump inaccuracy. Probability: less than 0.000001 percent.

Wait... what?... You should've said—

Shin nosuke couldn't stop the jump execution switch in time.

[Frigate Ship Tristar]

An intelligence-gathering unit belonging to the Akneria Space Fleet's 2nd Fleet.

The unit, consisting of the flagship destroyer Inazuma and two frigates, had been waiting in the designated sector under special orders from the fleet command headquarters.

Already three days had passed since they had deployed to this sector without knowing when the target would appear.

On the bridge of the second ship, the frigate Tristar, the crew was engrossed in casual conversation.

"Waiting around is tiring, you know..."

"Especially since we don't even know when it'll happen."

While they couldn't afford to let their guard down during operations, constant tension wasn't sustainable either.

As long as they maintained a moderate level of alertness, some light conversation and brief relaxation were perfectly acceptable.

As long as the captain doesn't misjudge the balance too much.

Captain Tristram's Lieutenant Claire Arnes kept a close eye on the crew to ensure they remained alert, while relaxing herself with a cup of tea in the captain's chair.

The synthetic fruit tea recommended by Lieutenant Commander Cassim Kradle, the unit's commander, was so unpalatable at room temperature that the first time I tried it upon his recommendation, I harbored murderous thoughts toward my superior officer, Kradle himself.

Though I'd never seen this synthetic fruit tea before while serving in the frontier patrol, it's a beverage recently taken up by the health-conscious Kradle. Regularly sent in boxes to Kradle's front-line post by unknown senders, Claire also receives portions from these deliveries.

To Claire, the taste was completely unappealing, but after much trial and error, she finally arrived at a flavor she liked by adding a splash of milk and squeezing in some lemon while the drink was still hot.

(Why on earth did I end up getting hooked on this beverage? Could it possibly contain some addictive ingredient?)

Even Claire herself didn't know the answer.

"But Captain Cradle turned down another transfer to central, didn't he? Even though he's an elite officer from the academy, he won't ever get promoted if he keeps this up."

"That's true. If he keeps going like this, he'll never catch up to Lieutenant Arnes."

The crew whispered among themselves freely, but Claire didn't bother to reprimand them.

There's no need to scold him over such minor things, and she knows the crew deeply respects Lieutenant Cradle.

Above all, the crew's rumors are true.

Although Lieutenant Cradle's father is already retired, he was once a fleet commander in the space navy and held the rank of major general. His uncle is a brigadier general serving at the space navy's general staff, and his elder brother, three years his senior, is a lieutenant colonel and a faculty instructor at the officer training academy—a family deeply rooted in military service.

Although Lieutenant Cradle himself had graduated with outstanding results from the officer training academy and been assigned to the Frontier Patrol Corps, for some reason he repeatedly declined opportunities for transfer to rear-echelon duties, choosing instead to continue serving on the front lines. As a result, he has missed out on numerous promotion opportunities, giving him the appearance of a perpetually stuck lieutenant.

As for Claire, she had graduated from the Space Force Academy and was serving as a non-commissioned officer on the frontier patrol unit, but at that time she was merely an ordinary soldier, with no particular desire for advancement.

However, spurred on by a certain incident, she channeled her resentment toward the organization into relentless effort, passed the officer promotion exam, and rose to her current rank of lieutenant—though technically a wartime appointment, it remains an extraordinary rarity for someone in her mid-twenties to go from private soldier to lieutenant and captain of a vessel.

Her momentum surpasses even that of Shinosuke from the days of the Imperial Space Force and her current superior officer, Captain Credle. However, her traditionally defiant personality and her tendency to openly challenge even her superiors when she doesn't agree with them have not won her favor among certain higher-ranking officers.

The common ground between Lieutenant Cradle and Claire lies in having both served under Shinnosuke and, influenced by their former commander, being exceptionally capable yet eccentric. Somehow, despite their differences, the two have remained in the same unit for a long time.

Incidentally, the frigate Tristar commanded by Claire was formerly the ship Shinnosuke served as captain.

You shouldn't all take Lieutenant Crowder as your role model. She's a bit of a peculiar one—she deliberately keeps serving on the front lines. When she first graduated from the officer academy, she wasn't like that at all. Back then, she was a top-tier elite officer. But something happened later in life that changed her. Still, her abilities are genuine. If she ever wanted to, she could be promoted to staff officer in no time and become a fleet commander before you could blink....If she ever decided to. But who knows when that might be.

"Isn't that the same for Captain Arnes too?"

"Not really. I joined because I had a bit of a grudge against the military for doing something uninteresting—something I resented. But now that the reason for my resentment is gone, my drive to advance has kind of vanished too."

"Guess we really are alike, aren't we?"

Laughter spread across the bridge, but just as quickly, a siren blared, drowning out the mirth.

"Emergency! Spatial jump reaction! Something's coming through a warp malfunction!"

"Out of spatial jump point. Irregular jump detected! Immediately calculate coordinates—report to Captain Thundercloud of the Thundercloud Squadron!"

"Understood! Warning received from Thundercloud as well. Initiating Level 1 combat readiness!"

"Calculate coordinates urgently! Prioritize duplicate coordinate detection and collision avoidance!"

Though highly unlikely, if the coordinates of a ship exiting a spatial jump overlap with another vessel, mutual destruction could occur, potentially dragging nearby ships into the blast.

Even without coordinate overlap, a spacecraft exiting a spatial jump won't be able to avoid obstacles directly in front of it.

"Fire control on. All hands, battle stations!"