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Mobuseka Volume 13 Chapter 8
🕑 Added 2024-05-21 02:16:17 +0000 UTCThis is MTL. So, I cannot guarantee that the translation 100% contextually accurate or appropriate.
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Chapter 8 "Misidentification"
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Part 1
[——Revised downward the evaluation of Arcadia]
As Facto mutters this, the supporting artificial intelligences also perform calculations one after another.
[Kingdom's military attrition rate is minor.]
[Two main gun attacks are expected before contact is made with the Empire's forces.]
[There are three shield ships left.]
If things continued like this, the Kingdom's forces would be able to make contact by sacrificing only the shield ship.
[The defense by the sacred tree was a great way to preserve the shield ship. But——]
However, in the face of the power of the enemy's main guns, the morale of the Kingdom's army was beginning to decline.
Although Noel and Lelia were able to defend against Arcadia's main guns, it was inevitable that the morale of the Kingdom's army would suffer if it continued to be under attack.
In fact, many flying battleships are slowing down in front of the Empire's forces.
Even if the current situation was explained in detail, too few commanders understood it.
Few believe that they can win if they keep going.
Facto also predicts that the Kingdom's military will collapse from within before making contact with the Empire's forces.
[If things continue like this, we won't be able to maintain our fleet.]
Just as they thought their chances of winning were declining, a group of flying battleships stepped forward.
It was the fleet of a former principality —— Duke Fanose.
Creare was assisting, or rather was sending out a communication to the entire ally.
[What?]
As Facto was thinking he didn't want anything unnecessary to be done, Hertrude's voice rang out.
"The Kingdom's army seems to have lost its footing in the face of the enemy."
It was a provocative tone.
In fact, she was probably provoking her allies who were slowing down in front of the enemy.
"If things continue as they are, will Duke Fanose be the best spear? The lords of the kingdom are all talk and unreliable. Instead, let us do our best to make up for them, shall we?'
Aren't you frustrated that you lost to me, a little girl?
Under such provocation, some of the kingdom's troops moved forward in fury.
Facto couldn't understand the scene.
[What is it? Why did this provocation make them speed up?]
It is a sight that is incomprehensible to Facto, who only knows the regular soldiers —— the old humans.
The battlefield that Facto knows is one where the old humans and the new humans fight for survival.
There was no pride involved.
Moving forward in line with the fleet of the Duke Fanose was the fleet of the Republic of Arzel.
It is led by Alberg.
"A dashing young lady, indeed. But even we cannot act in a way that would waste the devotion of the priestess-sama. What about you, the brave warriors of the Republic?"
It was Loic, the one who drives the armor in the Republic, who took Alberg's talk.
"I apologize to the Duke Fanose, but let us, the Republic, take the lead."
Alberg raises his voice, and then shouts at the soldiers.
"Brave Heroes of the Republic! This level of fighting is nothing compared to the nightmare of that time! Don't be afraid! Show the courage of the Republic!"
The nightmare was the day the Sacred Tree went out of control in the Republic.
Knowing that terrifying situation, the Republican troops bravely increased their speed and moved forward.
Hertrude teased Loic.
"You just want to show off in front of the Saint."
"Anego——Hn! We would be honored if the Saint-sama could see our heroism. But we are a brave army of the Republic. We are not cowards who will shrink back from something like this."
In other words, it was the same as saying that the Kingdom's army that was shrinking back were spineless bastards.
At the words of the young Loic, it seems that the Kingdom's army has reached the limit of its patience.
Curses began to fly over the communications from each ship.
"Duke Fanose's family should not get too cocky!"
"The Republic's army is brave? It makes me laugh that the people who have been holed up for so many years are so brave!"
"Don't fall behind them! Show them the spirit of the kingdom!"
With this level of provocation, allies increased their speed and the overall speed increased.
Facto is puzzling.
[——Incomprehensible]
However, this meant they were able to make contact with the Empire's forces sooner than expected.
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Part 2
After the Kingdom's army defended against Arcadia's main gun.
Around Moritz, the generals, staff officers, knights, and soldiers began to make noise.
"The Kingdom's army is within visual range!"
"They're getting all fired up."
"What the hell are they?!"
The Kingdom's forces were charging tremendously at the Empire's forces, which were moving backward.
Moritz, who had been silent until now, opens his mouth.
"That's it."
Arcadia nodded.
[The enemy doesn't know our trump card. No, they probably misidentified it.]
Moritz rises from his seat as commander-in-chief and gives orders to the Empire's troops.
"All armies, fight the Kingdom's army!"
The Empire's forces were in formation, waiting for the Kingdom's forces to charge in.
There are no allied ships in front of Arcadia, and from the enemy's point of view, it would appear to be completely unarmed.
But it was all in the calculations.
"I didn't think we would be forced to play our trump card."
Arcadia responds to Moritz's small voice.
[No problem. I won't sink at this level.]
"I'm sure you are. Besides, the enemy won't think we're just pretending."
[Fufu, I'm sure they'll be surprised.]
"You magic creatures are really nasty. You make them think it takes fifteen minutes to fire the main gun."
It was a lie that the main guns could not be used continuously.
Arcadia was smiling, its large eye curled up.
[The enemy is probably thinking that the next attack will come in fifteen minutes. But——Too bad! Actually, it's possible to use it continuously.]
It was implanted in the artificial intelligences that once the main gun was used, it could not be used for fifteen minutes.
The purpose was to give the artificial intelligences a big blow at an irreversible time, without giving them accurate information.
Moritz gives a powerful order.
"All ships, begin firing! Bring out the armors!"
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Part 3
The flagship of Duke Redgrave.
Vince was relieved that he was able to get close enough to the Empire's forces to have a chance to engage them.
"If we get this close, Arcadia's main guns won't be able to be used."
Even Arcadia's powerful main gun was deemed unusable in a situation where friend and foe were intermingled.
He thought that if they used it, there was a high possibility that it would involve their allies, and the enemy would be hesitant to use it.
(We can't rule out the possibility of ignoring the damage to our allies, but for now, we have no choice but to move forward anyway.)
Vince, who was on the front line of the Kingdom's army, was in a very precarious situation.
But inwardly, he was also relieved at the situation.
(It was the right decision to place Gilbert in the rear. With me here on the front lines, the Redgrave family can save face as a Duke. Even if I die, Gilbert and Ange will be there. The Redgrave family will not be destroyed.)
He also maintains the face of nobility, and if he dies, his children will be left behind.
He stood on the front lines with that kind of feeling.
On the bridge, a soldier with binoculars reports to Vince.
"The enemy has brought out their armor!"
When the Empire sent out the armor, Vince immediately gave the order as well.
"We too must send out our armor to intercept them! Don't let them get close to the flying battleship!"
The armors that was sent out began engaging in combat with the Empire's armors, and the airships began firing their cannons at each other.
In the midst of all this, Vince made a bitter face when he saw the equipment of the Empire's army.
(I don't mean to underestimate the military power of the Empire, but it's more than I imagined.)
It was an imperial flying battleship, but instead of the old style with cannons lined up next to the hull, a movable gun platform was provided.
And it is not human-powered, but automatic.
Even the armor seemed to be superior to the ones used in the kingdom.
"As expected of a military superpower. However, we have no intention of being defeated so easily."
As Vince squinted at the battlefield, the Kingdom's flying battleships and armor fought hard.
It was also important that the AI had recently been upgraded by Luxion and the others, giving it the capabilities to fight against the Empire's Army.
But the reason they are fighting so hard is because their homeland is behind them.
"I won't let you bastards do as you like."
Now the kingdom is united in fighting against the Empire.
The morale of his own troops was high enough, Vince felt, to be able to compete with the Empire's forces.
But right after that——the flying battleship on which Vince was riding shook violently.
The soldiers on the bridge were unable to withstand the force and were blown away, and Vince hurriedly checked the situation once the shaking stopped.
"W-What's going on?"
The captain, who was nearby, was shaking his head and looking around.
"I-I don't know. It just felt like a light suddenly poured down, but——"
Looking out the window, I saw the light shot straight up from Arcadia, bursting forth and then pouring down on the Kingdom's army.
The deploying magic barriers are pierced, and allied flying battleships are shot down one after another.
Duke's flying battleship must have been attacked in the same way. It was slowly losing altitude.
"Damn you, Empire!"
As Vince furrowed his brow and shouted, the light emitted from Arcadia spread out and poured down.
One of them hit the flying battleship on which Vince was riding.
As the flying battleship was engulfed in explosions, Vince looked behind him.
(Gilbert——Angers——I'll leave the rest to you——)
The Duke's flying battleship was engulfed in flames, then exploded and fell into the sea.
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Part 4
"Father!"
Ange watched the scene of the sinking of the Duke's flying battleship on Licorne's monitor.
She extended her hand toward the monitor and shouted, but helplessly, the flying battleship with Vince on board sank into the sea.
In the rain of light emitted from Arcadia, Creare was confirming the situation with Facto.
Creare's voice is rough.
[Hey! I never heard of the enemy doing this kind of attack! Besides, it's spreading, wasn't that originally from the main gun attack!]
Arcadia had launched its main gun and had it popping in the sky above.
What poured down was a main gun attack of spread out power, but it was more than enough to sink the Kingdom's flying battleships.
Caught by surprise, the Kingdom's army had more than a hundred ships shot down by Arcadia's attack.
Licorne deployed shields to protect the surrounding flying battleships, but not in time.
It did not protect the entire ally.
Facto also showed some impatience —— and unexpected reaction.
[Arcadia's actions to this moment seem to have been intended to mislead us.]
[You're the one who said they couldn't fire consecutively!]
[Even at this time, we have determined that it is impossible to use it continuously.]
[They're shooting at us!]
[——My best guess at this point is that Arcadia was likely storing energy until he engaged us. The delay in marching speed was probably time for him to replenish its energy reserves.]
[Don't just calmly analyze the situation, get to work on a countermeasure! Aside from us, the Kingdom's flying battleships won't be able to withstand it.]
[We're looking into it.]
[This ponkotsu!]
While Creare and Facto were conversing, the situation was moving on the battlefield.
Kara points out the window.
"Our friends are being attacked by the enemy!?"
Kyle had the blood drained from his face.
"Where our allies have collapsed, the enemy has attacked——and we were defeated one-sidedly."
The Kingdom's army had been gaining momentum, but Arcadia's bombardment changed the entire situation.
Against the Kingdom's forces, whose front line had collapsed, the Empire's conventional forces were attacking.
The Empire had the upper hand, so much so that it could be described as one-sided.
Perhaps hoping to calm the frenzied Kara and Kyle, Marie taps the floor with the stone point of the saint's staff to get their attention, and then says.
"There are still allies who are still fighting!"
They all looked at their allies, who were in Marie's line of sight.
"The fleets of the Duke Fanose and the Republic have survived. Neither Hertrude nor Loic have given up yet."
The fleet of the Duke Fanose, which held out just in time, and the Republic's flying battleships, built by Ideal, were safe.
They were the center of the vanguard, fighting against the Empire's forces.
Seeing the situation, Ange immediately gives instructions to Facto.
"Send reinforcements immediately! At this rate, the Empire will destroy the entire vanguard fleet!"
Ange, with teary eyes and a trembling voice, was probably worried about her father, Vince.
Actually, she would want to divert their forces to rescue operations, but she has decided that they will not be able to win the war that way and orders reinforcements to be sent to the front lines.
[If we send reinforcements, we will be exposed to another Arcadia attack. We will maintain our current distance and continue the attack.]
Ange immediately criticized Facto's decision.
"Do you want to abandon your allies?"
While Ange and Facto were about to start arguing, Livia's eyes were glued to one of the falling flying battleships.
"P-Please wait. That's the ship that Leon-san's family is on."
Upset, Livia's voice was trembling.
They all followed Livia's gaze and saw Baron Bartfalt's flying battleship sinking.
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Part 5
The Bartfalt family's flying battleship received a direct hit from the rain of light, and even though it was falling, its speed was slow.
The crew members were yelling at each other, trying to get the flying battleship to swim.
"I'm telling you, we need more buoyancy!"
"I told you, we can't!"
"Just do it! Do you want to be thrown into the ocean and die like this!?"
Nix, who had been knocked down by the violent shaking, stood up, wobbling on his feet.
"D-Dad!"
When Nix got up and looked at Barkas, he was bleeding from an injury on his forehead.
"Dad, are you okay!?"
"Aa, don't worry."
"Good. Then let's retreat immediately. Almost all the allies in the vanguard have already been sunk."
Looking around, one after another, allies were being shot down and falling.
Barkas, who was watching the scene, put his hands on Nix's shoulders.
"Nix, you're going to rescue our allies at sea."
"Dad?"
Even though he suggested fleeing, Barkas orders him to give priority to rescuing his allies.
Barkas smiled.
"We're leaving the front because we got hit. You have a good excuse. You should go on like this, rescue our comrades, and get out of here. Get out of this battlefield as soon as you can."
"Then Dad's coming with us!"
Barkas's tone sounded as if he intended to stay.
Nix was worried and asked him to run away with him, but he laughed.
"If I run away too, I'll be sorry for my allies who went down. ——Take care of our family."
Having said all that, Barkas left the bridge.
"Dad!"
When Nix tries to chase after him, the captain stops him.
"Let me go! Dad is!"
"Bocchan! No, Nix-sama —— Please consider the feelings of the lord."
After hearing that, Nix's body went limp and he sat down on the floor.
While he was doing so, the Bartfalt family armor took off from the flying battleship.
Not only Barkas, but the knights also accompanied him back to the battlefield.
It was too dangerous to return to a battlefield where the Empire had the upper hand, with only a few pieces of armor.
Nix was filled with tears.
"Leon, how long do you intend to hide? You started this war!!"
He shouted as loud as he could to his little brother who hadn't appeared on the battlefield.
Then one of the crew members cried out in surprise.
"Bocchan! Below!"
He stood up and peeked out the window at the surface of the sea, from which the bow of the Luxion appeared.
It was like a whale leaping out of the water.
Covered in white splash, Luxion's main gun is aimed at Arcadia.
As soon as it appeared, it was ready to fire.
A huge blue light is heading towards Arcadia.
The light hit Arcadia's magic barrier, making a sound so loud that even the distant Nix and his crew could hear it.
A loud crackling sound echoes as the energies collide with each other.
Luxion's appearance brought a smile to Nix's face.
"You're late, you bastard!"
They are probably trying to attack from directly below Arcadia and try to pierce its barriers.
If Luxion's main gun pierces the barrier, the troublesome enemy fortress will sink.
Everyone was convinced that doing so would lead to victory over the Empire's forces.
But Arcadia's magic barrier turns reddish-black.
Soon a reddish-black mass appeared just below the fortress and swelled up, perhaps storing energy.
Just looking at the scene you can tell it is dangerous.
And then firing the mass directly at Luxion.
Tearing apart Luxion's blue light attack, the red-black sphere hits Luxion's main body and makes a hole in its hull.
"——Eh?"
Nix couldn't believe what was happening in front of him.
An explosion erupted from the hole that took the direct hit, and Luxion slowly fell down and disappeared into the sea.
Many allies were in despair at the sight of Luxion sinking.
