Rokujouma no Shinryakusha!? - Volume 32 - Chapter 5

The Rescue Mission

Sunday, May 15th

Professor Brown’s wife, Claire, was confined to her hotel room—the penthouse suite on the fourteenth floor of the Traditional Kisshou. And conveniently, the interclub obstacle marathon would pass right by that exact hotel. It hadn’t been that way last year, of course, but Koutarou and the others had had a hand in planning the course for the marathon this year.

“Kyah!”

Just before the marathon reached the Traditional Kisshou, however, a high-pitched scream rang out. One of the female runners had caught her foot on the sidewalk and taken a rather nasty tumble. She rolled along the ground, coming to a stop right at the entrance to the hotel. She was wearing a flashy pink outfit decorated with all kinds of frills and ribbons, so it came as no surprise to anyone that her bib identified her as a member of the cosplay society. Indeed, it was none other than the cosclub’s rising star, Higashihongan Sanae.

“Are you okay?!”

Before anyone else could react, a woman in a suit came running up to her. She was so elegant and composed that she looked like an executive secretary for an elite corporation, but that wasn’t actually the case. It was the burgeoning university student Sakuraba Harumi.

“Owie, owie, owie! My legs! Ow!”

“Oh no, you’re bleeding!”

Both of Sanae’s shins and knees were red. At first glance she appeared to be bleeding quite seriously, but it wasn’t actually her blood. Harumi had smeared it on her when she came over to help, which was why she’d made sure to be the first to respond.

“Oh no! That girl fell over and she looks hurt!”

“Should we call an ambulance?”

“Of course we should!”

After a moment, people started to gather around. The first three were Kenichi, Hayato, and Megumi of the Sun Rangers who were all dressed to the nines.

“What should we do while we wait for it to get here? I know! You over there! Does this hotel have an infirmary of some kind?”

It was Daisaku in his expensive suit, wig, and false beard that called out to the hotel porter. He looked and sounded like he was the president of some important company.

“It does, sir.”

“Well? What do you say? I know this poor girl isn’t a guest of yours, but just look at her. Could we at least give her first aid inside?”

“Certainly. Please follow me right this way.”

Seemingly persuaded by Daisaku’s calm demeanor, the porter didn’t hesitate to throw open the door for him. Kenichi and Megumi helped Daisaku and Hayato carry Sanae inside, and the porter and the worried Harumi followed them all in before the door swung to. The porter, you see, was actually Kotaro in disguise.

“What happened?” the hotel manager asked.

“This young girl was injured right outside,” Kotaro explained. “If I’d just left her there, it would’ve looked...”

“Not another word. You made the right choice. Take her to the infirmary at once.”

“Yes, sir!”

Kotaro did a masterful job of playing his role as porter, easily slipping himself and the others into the hotel and past the manager. It was thanks to him that Harumi, Sanae, and the Sun Rangers were able to reach the infirmary without issue. The infirmary, however, wasn’t their destination. Once they reached it, they proceeded right past it and headed for the metallic door beyond that opened up into an emergency stairwell.

“Phew... Things worked out just fine.”

Once she was sure there was no one else around, Harumi took a deep breath and let out a sigh. Honestly, this simple level of acting was nothing to her. But knowing someone’s life was on the line made even simple acting nerve-racking.

“Heehee. You all did great.”

Sanae practically hopped out of the Sun Rangers’ arms and made a ten-point landing on the floor. Since she hadn’t really been hurt in the first place, she was as energetic as ever.

“Kotaro, we’ll be walking up to the fourteenth floor from here. How often do these stairs get used?” Kenichi asked as he took off his suit jacket. From here on, it would only get in the way.

“The guests use the elevators and the employees have their own set of stairs, so these don’t see much use at all.”

“So we can rely on our specialty then,” Hayato said as he removed his signature shades. The emergency stairwell was only dimly lit, making it a bit hard to see with them on.

“Daisaku-kun, what’s our specialty again?”

“It’s that thing you’re not so good at, Megu-chan. In other words, brute strength.”

“Aww, I should have worn my combat suit...”

Today, the Sun Rangers were in business suits rather than their combat suits. Their combat suits were designed to keep them safe in battle, but they had more than just defensive power. They also made the Sun Rangers faster and stronger. Running up fourteen flights of stairs without them would indeed be a bit of a chore.

“If you’d like, I could use magic to make things easier.”

“Instructor Sakuraba, please save your magic. We never know what might happen.”

Magic could do all kinds of things, but even it had limits. The Sun Rangers wanted to be prepared for anything and everything that might lay ahead. Harumi understood that quite well and nodded judiciously.

“That’s fine, but... could you perhaps reconsider the whole ‘Instructor Sakuraba’ thing?”

“Hahaha, but you are our instructor!”

Recently, Harumi had been something of an informant for the Sun Rangers, teaching them about magic and new fighting techniques. And ever since she’d started doing that, Kenichi had been referring to her as “Instructor Sakuraba.” That bothered her much more than being on reserve in case something went wrong.

“All right, everyone! Follow me!”

“Yeah!”

With energetic Sanae taking the lead, the seven of them took flight, ascending the hotel’s emergency stairs.

Because this was a serious operation with high stakes, Sanae unleashed her psychic power, wreathing her body in a bright light that significantly increased both her natural speed and strength. In a sense, she’d made her own angelic version of the Sun Rangers’ combat suits. And thanks to that, she wasn’t even out of breath when she reached the fourteenth floor.

“I won! I made it first!”

“Jeez, to think I’d lose to a girl... Phew...”

The Sun Rangers following close behind her kept in formation, with Kenichi, Hayato, Daisaku, Kotaro, and Megumi reaching the top of the stairs in that order. Thanks to their strict daily training and all of their field experience, they were only slightly winded. It didn’t take them long to catch their breath.

“Higashihongan-san is a very special girl,” said Harumi, the last to arrive.

She was using one of Clan’s inventions, the Power Assistance Field or PAF. It was a device that selectively and strategically used barriers to make everyday physical tasks easier. It was enormously helpful for Harumi, but she relied on it less and less these days since recovering her health. She didn’t hesitate to whip it out in an emergency like this, however, and thanks to the PAF, she wasn’t even out of breath.

“Special?” Hayato asked curiously.

“I was watching her, Hayato-niichan,” Kotaro replied. “Sometimes it looked like she took an extra step beyond the stairs, and sometimes it looked like she was just plain hovering above them.”

“Seriously? That’s ridiculous...”

The Sun Rangers readied their weapons and other gear with their usual light banter. Once everyone was ready, they approached the door at the top of the stairs that led to the penthouse, their backs against the adjacent wall. This was their usual method for storming in.

“Kotaro...”

“I know.”

At Kenichi’s signal, Kotaro pulled out a long, narrow cable from his backpack. He was going to use a special camera to get a look at things on the other side of the door.

“I’ll take a look too!”

But before he could, Sanae beat him to the punch. She walked up to the door and an image of herself leaped out of her body, leaning forward and putting her head right through the door.

“Here goes!”

With her head on the other side, she began looking around.

“Whoa!”

Seeing a paranormal phenomenon before his very eyes, Kotaro jumped back in surprise. The other Sun Rangers didn’t raise their voices, but they were equally surprised.

“Er, um, I’m sorry for surprising everyone... My other half is a bit reckless...”

The initial incident was shocking in and of itself, but even more shocking was that Sanae’s now-supposedly-abandoned body was still moving around on its own. Moreover, there was a different look on her face and her mannerisms were different. She was more calm and gentle than usual. For the Sun Rangers who didn’t know Sanae’s story, the surprises just kept coming.

“Don’t worry. I don’t see anyone around— Hey, what are you doing?”

“Hurry up and come back, Sanae-chan. You startled everyone. You can’t just jump out of your body in front of people who don’t know you can astral project.”

“What? Really? You Sun Rangers still have a long way to go if this startles you.”

Sanae was sure she’d demonstrated her psychic powers in front of the Sun Rangers before, so she was disappointed they were acting so surprised to see them now. But the truth was that Sanae’s powers had evolved considerably since then; it was quite natural for them to be surprised. Not that Sanae was aware.

“Don’t say that, Sanae-chan! That’s rude!”

The biggest surprise of all, however, came when Sanae-chan and Sanae-san began bickering. As they shared the same soul, their quarrel was essentially Sanae’s inner monologue shared aloud... But it was indeed quite a show for anyone who didn’t know her.

“This is ridiculous, Kotaro...”

“Yeah, Hayato-niichan. I can feel a headache coming on.”

Higashihongan Sanae, ignoring all laws of physics and common sense, was as energetic today as ever.

Compared to the emergency staircase, the fourteenth floor was brightly lit. That made exiting the stairwell risky—it would be the easiest time to spot the infiltrators coming out of the darkness. Because of that, the Sun Rangers were cautious about going in. Sanae, however, demonstrated no such regard. After merging back into one, she casually opened the door and stepped right through.

“See? There’s nobody here.”

The stairwell opened up into a far corner of the main hallway on the fourteenth floor—an out-of-the-way location that saw very little traffic. Continuing down the hallway led to the elevators, which would likely be the first they saw anyone. But presently, Harumi wasn’t worried about being seen by people.

“What about these surveillance cameras?”

The hotel had a respectable surveillance system, including cameras lining the hallway. There was even one pointed right at the emergency stairwell.

“Instructor, I’ve hacked into the system and set it to replace the live feed with footage from yesterday. We should have a solid twenty minutes.”

“My! You’re so multitalented, Kotaro-san.”

Harumi flashed a relieved smile. While she herself didn’t know much about technology, she’d witnessed Clan and Ruth do such remarkable things before. So hearing Kotaro had overwritten the cameras impressed her more than it surprised her.

“That’s my only good point.”

“You don’t have to be modest, Kotaro-kun. We’d be helpless when it comes to computers without you.”

“You’re the only one who would say that, Daisaku-niichan.”

Kotaro was small and didn’t make much of an impression, but he was the Sun Rangers’ go-to tech guy. He’d been assigned to the team for his skill with all kinds of technology and machinery. That was why he often stood beside Megumi, who actually had a medical license. Three combatants alongside a technician and a medic was the standard composition for a Sun Squad team.

“Twenty minutes means we don’t have much time. Let’s move,” Kenichi urged the stalled group.

Hayato had already gone ahead to check out the elevators. Two hallways connected in front of them, forming a T-shaped juncture. Their destination lay at the end of the hall that branched off from the hallway they were currently in.

“...”

As the group approached, Hayato flashed a silent signal with his hand. When he did, the Sun Rangers slowed down and crept closer cautiously. Following their lead, Sanae and Harumi did the same.

“How does it look, Hayato?”

“As expected, it’s well guarded. There’s a goon on patrol right outside the door.”

From the elevators, Hayato had peered around the corner and spotted a man in a suit. He wasn’t doing anything in particular—merely pacing back and forth in the hallway. But just from the glimpse he’d gotten of the man, Hayato could tell he was a professional.

“That’s not good. It doesn’t look like we can knock him out in a single blow,” Kenichi said with a bitter expression as he took a peek for himself.

The ideal scenario would’ve been incapacitating the guard as quickly and quietly as possible, but the hallway leading up to the penthouse was appropriately long and grand. There was almost no chance of sneaking up on him.

“That means this is Harumi’s chance to shine!”

“You’re right! We’re counting on you, Instructor Sakuraba!”

“O-Okay... Understood.”

Harumi still felt some resistance responding to “Instructor Sakuraba,” but she had no qualms about lending the team her assistance.

“Arise from within, spirits of the mind. Guide my target and weave a cage of sleep!”

Harumi pressed her hands together and recited an incantation in Ancient Forthorthian. She kept her voice down so that the guard wouldn’t notice her, but everyone standing immediately around her could feel her power. With every word she spoke, indigo-colored mana came pouring from her, coalescing in her right hand as she raised it aloft.

“Entrap, Seal of Dreams!”

At the end of her incantation, Harumi swung her hand downward. The indigo light gathered within it formed a glowing orb that sailed towards the guard at the end of the hall. He’d just turned away to begin another lap of pacing, so he didn’t even see it coming.

“...”

The moment the indigo orb struck him, it spread out to cover his entire body before it appeared to sink in and vanish. His head suddenly fell forward and he stopped in his tracks.

“Phew... Looks like it worked.”

Harumi let out a sigh of relief as she gave Sanae and the Sun Rangers a smile. She had no desire to harm the guard, so she had instead locked him in a harmless, hallucinatory prison. She’d put him to sleep under the spell of a dream that was indistinguishable from reality. As far as he would know until he woke up, he was still diligently doing his job.

Daisaku carried the spellbound man over to the window, making it look as though he was enjoying the view. That way, nobody would think it was suspicious if they happened to pass by.

“All right. I think it’s time.”

At Kenichi’s signal, the Sun Rangers drew their weapons. Kenichi had a bladed weapon for close combat, Hayato had a large revolver for ranged combat, and Daisaku had special gloves for martial arts. Kotaro and Megumi carried grenades and a small pistol, respectively, for support. They would all be storming the penthouse together.

From here on out, they would be relying on force. Thanks to Sanae, they knew exactly where Claire and the three guards were inside. But that didn’t mean attacking through the wall would be easy. Yurika had managed to do it before, but that was only made possible by her target’s proximity to the wall. Pulling the same thing off in a spacious penthouse was no mean feat. If they used too wide of an attack, they would put Claire in danger. And if they used pinpoint precision to take out the guards one at a time, they’d inevitably be noticed. They needed to split the difference with a fast, accurate attack.

“Please be careful, everyone.”

“Go get ’em!”

Harumi and Sanae didn’t have much experience with this kind of technical operation, so in order not to get in the way, they stood back and let the Sun Rangers take the lead from here. They would use their magic and psychic powers respectively to offer support where they could.

“Let’s do this!”

On cue, Megumi and Kotaro stepped forward. Kenichi then took a deep breath and began the countdown.

“Three, two—move!”

“Wait, what happened to ‘one’?”

As Sanae quizzically cocked her head to the side, Daisaku swung his fist at the door. Using his size to his advantage, he put all of his weight into the punch. Although a limited-function version, the special gloves he was wearing worked like the Sun Rangers’ combat suits. Between his own strength and their power, Daisaku’s fist rivaled a pile driver capable of punching through bedrock.

Kabam!

The penthouse door didn’t stand a chance. The lock was smashed in as the door burst open.

“Kotaro-kun!”

“On it!”

Now it was Megumi and Kotaro’s turn. Megumi shot repeatedly into the room, sweeping from left to right. As she was using a spiritual energy weapon, however, it was practically silent. There were two guards sitting near the door. They initially jumped up from the sofa when the door was punched in, but as soon as Megumi opened fire, they dove for cover.

“Your setup wasn’t bad. You’re just up against the wrong guys.”

It was there that one of Kotaro’s grenades came rolling up to them.

“Whoa!”

“Crap!”

But instead of exploding in a fiery burst, it released a bright flash of light that completely robbed them of their vision. And that wouldn’t be the only thing taken from them.

Bang, bang!

“Wh-What?!”

“Is there a sniper?!”

The pistols they were both holding suddenly went flying, but it happened too fast for someone to have run up on them after the grenade.

“So this is what those sunglasses were for...”

“I thought he was just trying to show off...”

“Sanae-chan! I told you to mind your manners!”

Hayato was the sniper who’d blown the guards’ guns right out of their hands. His shades, as it turned out, were to protect him from the flashbang.

“Just who do you think I am...?”

“Let it go, Hayato! Another flawless job today!”

Kenichi was last up, and he charged into the room as soon as the flash died down. He assaulted the blinded, unarmed guards with his weapon. It had the appearance of a blade, but was meant to incapacitate its target with a high-voltage current. And it was thanks to that that both guards were now unconscious.

“They’re so strong...”

Harumi was surprised by the Sun Rangers’ performance. It had taken them less than ten seconds to subdue the guards. They were impressive, both individually and as a team.

“Way to go! The Sun Rangers are so cool!”

Harumi and Sanae had come to know the Sun Rangers as a hard-luck bunch of amateurs, however well-meaning they might be. Nothing seemed to be any different from the last time they’d worked together, so the girls certainly weren’t expecting the glorious show the Sun Rangers put on for them today.

Bang, bang, bang!

“Whoa!”

Suddenly, three shots rang out. Kenichi immediately got low and looked around. The penthouse had multiple bedrooms, and there were now three bullet holes in the wall to one of them. Someone had fired through it.

“There’s the other guard!”

“If it’s just one guy, you can leave him to us! Come on, Harumi!”

Sanae recklessly ran towards the door to the bedroom. Several bullets came flying through it from the other side. They weren’t aimed specifically at Sanae, but she was right in their trajectory.

“Answer my call and soar, spirits of wind! Whirl up a storm and sweep away this volley! Blow, Atmospheric Shield!”

Fortunately, the bullets were quickly deflected by Harumi’s magic. Seeing her chance, Sanae leaped into the air and flew towards the door, one leg extended in front of her.

“Haaaaah!”

Whump!

In stark contrast to her powerful shout, Sanae’s foot landed softly on the door in front of her. And despite it now being riddled with bullet holes, it didn’t budge one inch.

“Wh-Whaaat?!”

The Sun Rangers had all been sure she was going to kick it right in, so they were rightfully stunned at this turn of events. However, Sanae’s attack didn’t end there.

“Sanae-chan, you need to stop doing things like this out of the blue...”

“Sanae-chan Craaaaash!”

“Eeek!”

Sanae-chan and the last remaining guard—a woman, apparently—could be heard shouting from the other side of the door. Sanae had projected through it when her foot came into contact with it, sending her astral self flying into the guard like a battering ram. Since she was basically just expelling spiritual energy without any fine control, its power and accuracy dropped off significantly the further away it got from her. But at close range, it was devastating.

“That’s the most ridiculous thing she’s done all day, Kotaro...”

“Does science mean nothing anymore?”

“I’m sorry! I’m so sorry about Sanae-chan!”

“Didja see that? Justice always wins, so there!”

And like that, Sanae-chan dispatched the last guard in one hit, leaving Sanae-san to apologize for her actions.

For better or worse, Claire could tell that something serious was going on after witnessing Sanae’s otherworldly attack on the guard. Not knowing any better, however, she mistook it for Forthorthian technology. Unlike her daughter, she knew the situation Professor Brown was in. And that was a boon right now. After seeing the footage from her husband, Claire was perfectly willing to cooperate.

“What about Emily?! Is she all right?!”

“Please don’t worry. We rescued her before coming here.”

Like any mother, Claire was more concerned about her daughter than she was herself. And upon hearing the reassuring Harumi tell her that Emily was safe, relief washed over her.

“Oh, thank god... And what about Chris?”

She was a mother first, but Claire was also a devoted wife. Her next concern was her husband.

“Once we have you and Emily-san secured, we’ll move to rescue Professor Brown. So please come—”

“Let’s go right now. I’m already ready,” Claire said without hesitation, grabbing her purse from the master bedroom’s walk-in closet.

Inside of it was everything she’d need to make her escape. Before the Browns had come to Japan, her husband told her to be prepared for something like this.

“Please. Right this way, Claire-san. We’ll take the emergency stairs down to a vehicle we have waiting.”

Realizing everything was in place, Kenichi guided Claire towards the penthouse door. Harumi had put up a barrier before the Sun Rangers stormed the room in order to suppress any noise from the ensuing commotion. They couldn’t risk anyone making a complaint to the front desk. That danger had passed, but they wouldn’t have long before more BTE security came along now that they’d lost contact with the guards on site. Kenichi wanted to leave the hotel as quickly as possible.

“Coming!”

The Sun Rangers formed a circle around Claire with Kenichi at the lead. From here on, her safety was their top priority.

“All right! Sun Rangers, move out!”

With Claire in tow, the Sun Rangers, Harumi, and Sanae exited the penthouse. They made their way back to the emergency stairwell the same way they’d come. The plan was to have the “ambulance” someone called earlier pick them up to take the “injured marathon runner” to the “hospital.” Koutarou and the others, of course, would be waiting for them.

Now that Emily and Claire had been rescued, the operation swiftly moved into phase three: recovering Professor Brown and the navigation device. The device in question was scheduled to be used in an experiment today, meaning both it and the professor would be in the secret research facility underneath the factory where Yurika had been working. That gave Koutarou and company the perfect opportunity to grab them together in one fell swoop. That was ultimately why they’d chosen today for the operation, and why they’d chosen to use the obstacle marathon as cover.

“We just got a message from Harumi-chan saying that they’ve rescued Claire-san from the hotel, ho!”

“So now that we have both her and Emily-chan, it’s time to raid Yurika-chan’s workplace, ho!”

“We’ll nab both the device and the professor when they arrive, right?” asked Shizuka.

“Yes. I believe charging straight into Yurika’s workplace and taking what we need is far better than coming up with some grand, elaborate plan,” confirmed Theia.

“Um, can you please stop calling it my workplace?!” shouted Yurika over the comms, having heard their conversation.

Shizuka and Theia, alongside the two haniwas, were currently stationed outside the factory. With Emily and Claire’s rescues a success, they were now waiting for a limo carrying the professor and a truck carrying the navigation device to arrive.

“Ruth, what’s going on with Koutarou and the others?”

“They are en route towards Yurika’s work— I mean you, Your Highness. They should be arriving in ten minutes.”

“The professor and the device will get here first, ho!”

“It looks like we’ll have to do this on our own, ho!”

With their respective missions complete, Koutarou’s group and Harumi’s group were currently on their way to rendezvous with Theia and Shizuka for the final leg of the mission, but they wouldn’t make it to the factory before the professor did.

“So it’ll be just us...” Shizuka sighed.

“Are you worried?” Theia asked.

“Well, a little. I’m still not really sure what it means to fight with all your strength as a girl.”

“Well, in your case, it means your weight will increase.”

“Could you not bring that up, Theia-chan?! I just managed to stop thinking about it!”

Theia and Shizuka were stationed at the factory because their respective abilities were the most combat-forward. Rather than stealth or utility, they were put to best use laying out their enemies with firepower and brute force. And that kind of approach was only viable here in the third and final phase of the operation. That was why they’d strategically been positioned here with the haniwas to support them.

“It’s time for us to show our manly side, ho!”

“It’s finally our time to shine, ho!”

The haniwas were pumping themselves up to protect Theia and Shizuka. Seeing it, Shizuka couldn’t help thinking to herself...

I really hope so... Or maybe the professor could just get caught in traffic or something...

Shizuka was displeased Koutarou had stationed her here, knowing that it meant he saw her as someone who relied on brute force. And thinking about that, she despondently dusted off the apron she was wearing from preparing and serving food for the obstacle marathon earlier.

“Heh, good luck, haniwas. You’ll have a hard time outshining me.”

“We won’t lose, ho!”

“We’ll show you we’ve got guts, ho!”

“Splendid! That’s how true warriors should behave!”

In stark contrast to Shizuka, Theia was thrilled. She believed that this position was earned. It was something Koutarou had trusted her with, and that made it the most important position of all. And to meet his expectations, she would deliver a glorious, majestic display of force.

I need to achieve a complete and total victory that not even he would argue with. No injuries, no collateral damage. Lethal weaponry should be limited to preventing the enemy’s initial response. Shizuka’s plenty strong, so this is my chance to show off my skill!

Theia’s plan was to seize complete and utter victory, earning Koutarou’s praise. If he praised her both physically and verbally, that would be even better. It would be the sweetest reward of all for a flawless mission. For as brave a warrior as Theia was, she was also a girl in love.

“Your Highness, please ready yourself. The limousine and truck are inbound. ETA is one minute.”

“What about Koutarou and the others?”

“They’re still coming, but they’re a good ways out.”

“So it really is just us... Oh well, all the better!”

“Crap, I was really hoping the professor would get stuck in traffic...”

Theia and Shizuka readied themselves for the professor’s arrival. Since they were trying to be discreet, Shizuka was untransformed and Theia was carrying a noiseless laser rifle. The mission would begin as soon as the limo and the truck reached the factory grounds. The factory itself was surrounded by a high wall, so the fight should go unnoticed as long as it was short and sweet. Clan, however, suddenly came over the comms line with some unexpected news that might make things difficult.

“Theiamillis-san, both vehicles have turned around and are headed back!”

“What?!”

Clan had been observing things via an unmanned reconnaissance craft overhead. She’d been the one monitoring the limo and truck making their way towards the factory. They hadn’t taken the most direct route, but everything was still within acceptable parameters. There were no signs they were onto anything strange. That’s why Clan had overlooked the first odd turn they took. She had assumed they were just taking a cautious path to the factory. The second odd turn they took, however, was suspicious. They were now headed in the direction opposite the factory and picking up speed at an alarming rate, defying the posted speed limits. Once Clan realized what was happening, she hurriedly reported the situation to Theia and Shizuka.

“We can’t just sit here! Let’s go after them!”

Theia was shocked, but she was quick to action and called for a small aircraft from the Hazy Moon. Blue Knight was still under repair outside of Earth’s orbit. When the aircraft arrived, she sent her new bicycle back to the Hazy Moon for safekeeping. She then cracked open the cockpit’s canopy and quickly jumped inside.

“Did they figure us out?!”

“We’re coming too, ho!”

“Don’t leave us behind, ho!”

Shizuka was panicking over what might have happened, but followed Theia into the cockpit of the small craft. The haniwas jumped in her lap right after. The aircraft was a two-seater about the size of a normal van and came equipped with optic camouflage. It was useful for hiding the craft while parked, but it didn’t do much to disguise engine noise. That’s why Theia only used it for emergencies—and this was definitely an emergency.

“Maybe! This mission was on a razor’s edge, after all!”

When humans were involved, there were always uncertainties at play. Man’s fickle nature made him difficult to pin down. Accidents happened, too. There had been no guarantee from the start that BTE wouldn’t find out about the rescue operation.

“Kiriha, we’re following those vehicles!”

“Call off your pursuit, Theia-dono. Please head over to the coordinates I’m about to give you instead.”

“Did you plan for this?”

“I took some precautionary measures. Like you said, this plan is riding on a razor’s edge.”

Kiriha wasn’t the type to overlook risks. At least, not without some kind of contingency. She was prepared for the possibility that BTE might discover them prematurely, but that in and of itself created a whole new gamut of risks. So as prepared as she might be, it was far too early for them to let their guard down.

Before the operation began, Kiriha had taken the time to set up some contingencies. That included getting Clan to hack into the city’s traffic signals and setting some conservative faction members up with construction signs and various equipment. The idea was that, by manipulating traffic lights and strategically setting up fake construction sites, Kiriha could guide the BTE convoy wherever she liked.

It was a clever strategy, but it had its risks. Since the diversions would be so public, they couldn’t actually be set up ahead of time. Effectively, the plan was time sensitive. It would only take so long for the city to notice the traffic lights had been compromised and for the police to notice that unauthorized construction sites were cropping up and blocking traffic. Moreover, there was also the possibility that BTE might simply ignore traffic lights and construction signs, barreling right through them with no concern for safety. It could create a very dangerous situation, but Kiriha knew if she and the others missed their chance to secure the professor and the navigation system today, they would only end up caught deeper in BTE’s web. If that happened, rescuing them would require an even riskier, more elaborate plan. That was why Kiriha wanted to get it over with today, despite the presented risks.

“Kiriha, we’ve arrived at the designated point. How are things going over there?” Theia asked over the comms line.

“We’re managing to guide the convoy, though it’s only so precise. Theia-dono, can you see the old buildings 400 meters to your north-northeast?”

Kiriha had sent Theia and Shizuka to what was essentially a relay point. Since she couldn’t guide the BTE convoy with absolute precision, there was a certain margin of error in regards to where they would end up. Accordingly, Kiriha had sent Theia and Shizuka to the centerpoint of anticipated destinations. From there, they should be able to rush the convoy no matter where it ended up.

“I can see several shabby buildings, yes.”

“I want you to move over there. It seems they’re headed that way.”

Shortly after Theia and Shizuka were in place, Kiriha realized exactly where the BTE convoy was headed—an old, abandoned resort on the outskirts of Kisshouharukaze City. It was built back during the boom, but as economic growth slumped, so too had the resort’s business. By the time the Kisshou City and Harukaze City merger rolled around, the local resort was completely abandoned.

“What are they doing over there?” Theia pondered aloud.

She figured that if they were trying to make an escape, they’d be using a plane or boat. Since Japan was the only nation with diplomatic relations with Forthorthe—and therefore laws regarding the use of Forthorthian technology—it made perfect sense for BTE to try to leave the country with the contraband. But instead of abroad, the BTE convoy was currently headed up into the mountains. That puzzled Theia.

“Do they have some kind of secret base there?”

“I don’t know, but we should keep them from reaching their destination regardless.”

“You’re right about that! We’re en route to intercept now!”

Theia turned the joystick and swung her craft around to face the buildings Kiriha pointed out. The small craft only had a small engine, but it should still make it to the resort before the professor and the navigation device did. There was no telling what would happen to them once they reached a BTE facility, so the plan was to keep them from reaching it at all.

“Theia-chan, how are you going to attack?”

“I’ll start by bombarding the truck with laser shots.”

“Are you sure you should open with something so dangerous?”

“It’s not like it matters if the navigation device gets broken in the process.”

“Well, that’s true...”

Their goal wasn’t to recover the device so much as it was to prevent it from falling into the wrong hands. Destroying it would be an easy way to accomplish that. Theia hadn’t dared to use a brazen assault like a bombardment thus far because of the risk of collateral damage. But now that the BTE convoy was departing the populated urban area, that changed things. Theia could attack freely and accomplish their mission that way.

“As for the limousine carrying Professor Brown, could you take care of charging it, Shizuka?”

“What? You want me to just use brute force?”

“Honestly, I’d prefer you rescue the professor with some finesse.”

While Theia could attack the truck carrying the navigation device without worry, that wasn’t the case for the limousine. It was smaller than the truck, and more importantly, it had other passengers riding in it. Sending Shizuka to either stop or seize the car would be much safer.

“That’s fair. But make sure you back me up, Theia-chan.”

There, Shizuka took off her apron and safely stowed it away in the ship. She couldn’t stand the thought of dirtying it up in the coming fight. It was too important to her.

“I know, I know.”

Wshhh!

Theia cracked a smile as she cracked open the cockpit canopy. Air poured in at an astounding rate. Since the craft was traveling at several hundred kilometers per hour, the whipping wind outside was fierce. However, Shizuka hopped right out of the craft like it was nothing. The Fire Dragon Emperor could fly through even the void of space, so a little earthly breeze didn’t faze her.

“Sanae really seems superhuman at times, but so do you, Shizuka...”

Theia smiled dryly and closed the canopy since she only had her personal barrier to protect her from the wind. And once the canopy was closed again, she opened the comms line. Shizuka’s voice immediately came over it.

“Did you just say something, Theia-chan?”

What? Even if she didn’t hear exactly what I said, the fact that she could hear me at all over that wind... Just how keen are her ears?

Not wanting to upset Shizuka, Theia decided it would be best to tell a little white lie.

“I said let’s begin our attack right away.”

“Got it! Then I’ll be off!” Shizuka said as casually as if she were going grocery shopping.

She then kicked off the topside of Theia’s aircraft, launching herself forward. She cut a beautiful arc in the air as she sailed towards the convoy with the Fire Dragon Emperor’s power of flight.

“All right. Time for me to get started too.”

Theia activated the craft’s firing control system, causing the two side-mounted laser cannons to whirr to life. The moment Shizuka reached the limo at the front of the convoy, Theia would begin her bombardment.

The firing control system Theia was using tracked her line of sight to aim for whatever she was looking at when she pulled the trigger. Since lasers moved at the speed of light, she didn’t need to give her target any lead like she would with, say, a modern machine gun.

“How about some of this?!”

Coordinating her attack with Shizuka’s, Theia squeezed the firing trigger. She sent two lasers flying into the truck right where she’d been aiming. One opened up a hole in the cargo area, and the other blew off one of the truck’s rear tires.

“A-Are we under attack?!”

“Now’s not the time for questions! If you don’t want to die, stop the truck and get out!”

The truck scraped against the guardrails as it came to a screeching halt, and two men jumped out of the front seat, one on either side. Just moments later, fire sprung up from the back of the truck. Theia’s attack had damaged the fuel tank.

“The truck’s stopped, Shizuka!”

“They’re shooting! It’s scary!”

By this time, a hail of bullets was raining down on Shizuka. The men in the limo had noticed her approaching and opened fire.

“Help me, Theia-chan!”

“Oh, come now! Something like this wouldn’t even scratch you.”

“I’m not a dragon, Uncle!”

As far as living creatures were concerned, Shizuka was in contention for the title of strongest in the entire universe. Alunaya was right—normal bullets would do nothing to her. Even armor-piercing rounds would only smart. It would take heavy artillery to do any real damage to her. But despite how tough her body was, Shizuka was still a normal teenage girl on the inside... And guns were scary.

“Hang in there! I’ll get them off your case!”

Theia gave the weapon selection panel on her dashboard a quick tap and pulled the trigger without bothering to take proper aim.

Pop!

The weapon she was using wouldn’t need it. It only needed to land in proximity to the target.

Flash!

“Okay, Shizuka! Do your thing!”

“I’m on it!”

Theia had fired a flashbang that landed behind Shizuka, exploding into a brilliant burst of light when it made impact. The three men leaning out the limo windows and firing at her were instantly blinded.

Theia had known from the get-go that she couldn’t fire at the limousine carrying Professor Brown. It was too dangerous. She needed to use something to support Shizuka without putting her in danger either, and a flashbang fit the bill perfectly. It was a masterful attack from a masterful fighter.

“You know, I haven’t gotten to use any karate lately...”

When Shizuka landed on the hood of the limousine, she leaned forward and planted her hands on the roof.

“Wait, there’s a person on the car?!”

Rrrip!

For Shizuka and her incredible strength, cars might as well have been made out of paper. She ripped the roof of the limo right off as the driver stared up at her in shock and awe.

That man in the back must be Professor Brown... He looks more haggard than in his photo, but considering what he’s been through, I guess that’s understandable.

Shizuka finally had a visual on the professor. He was sitting in the back of the limo with a guard on either side of him, carefully clutching a leather briefcase.

Screeeeech!

It was there that the driver, panicking over Shizuka, threw on the brakes. He barely knew what else to do and was simply acting on survival instinct, but his actions had a rather unexpected effect.

“Wha?!”

The limousine came to a screeching halt, but Shizuka didn’t. She continued speeding forward at the same velocity, which quickly put substantial distance between her and the stopped car. From Theia’s point of view, it almost looked like Shizuka had been thrown.

“Shizuka!”

“I’m fine! Don’t worry!”

Theia’s flustered voice came in over the comms line, but Shizuka was as calm as ever. Flapping the wings on her back to adjust her direction, she changed her course for a nearby tree and kicked off one of its thickest branches.

Crack!

“I’m going straight at it from here!”

“Shizuka?!”

Using the momentum from her kick, Shizuka flew right back at the limousine. Unable to take the force of Shizuka launching herself off of it, the entire tree tipped over behind her.

“Hyaaah!”

Fine-tuning the position of her wings as she sailed forward, Shizuka took a swinging chop with her hand at the hood of the limousine when she reached it.

Swish!

She put all of her weight and momentum into the blow, splitting the hood right in half. The limousine would never run again.

“Ooh, very impressive!”

“Yeah, I thought it was time for some karate.”

“You’re taking to draconic fighting quite well. That’s precisely how you attack from a flying charge.”

“Huh... I’ll make sure to remember that, Uncle!”

Shizuka dusted herself off as she stood up from the wreckage of the car. The driver watched her in horror, unable to move. He’d had a front-row seat for Shizuka’s incredible attack, the crack from which crept all the way up right next to him. The very scene struck fear into his heart that pinned him in place.

Just who the hell did we cross?!

The driver despaired, but he was actually rather lucky. Shizuka was just a normal high school girl at heart. She didn’t want to hurt anyone personally, and she belonged to a band of knights that upheld the virtues of peace and goodwill. As long as the driver didn’t try anything, he would live through this unharmed. Unfortunately for him, however, he didn’t know any of that right now.

The other guards in the limousine had been hanging out the windows to fire at Shizuka and were all subsequently blinded by Theia’s flashbang, leaving them completely unprepared to brace themselves for the driver slamming on the brakes. The sudden lurch had knocked two of them unconscious. The third guard had slammed his head against a window. He wasn’t critically injured, but he was certainly no longer in fighting condition. Between them and the driver paralyzed with fear, there was no one left to oppose Shizuka as she took Professor Brown from the car.

“My apologies for the rough introduction, Professor Brown,” Theia said as she gracefully held the skirt of her dress.

She then greeted the professor with a Forthorthian-style curtsy, which had her hands in notably asymmetric placement. That was meant to make it easier to draw a weapon, which was something of a holdover from ancient times and spoke to Forthorthe’s long history as a nation of brave warriors.

“You’re Theiamillis-san of the delegation?! Then was that man from before also a Forthorthian?!”

Professor Brown knew Theia’s face—she was the mysterious girl rumored to be the real leader of Forthorthe’s diplomatic mission. The entourage that always accompanied her suggested she was someone very important indeed, which made sense to the professor. It would certainly explain a great deal of what had happened.

“He’s my first knight... Well, technically Ruth was the first, but he’s my knight nevertheless.”

“P-Please, Theiamillis-san! What of my wife and daughter?!”

But the professor had more than just Theia’s identity on his mind. He was desperate to know what had become of his family, and Theia answered him graciously.

“Don’t worry. My personal band of knights has rescued both of them. We’ll take you to them now.”

“I see... Phew... Thank god...”

Hearing the good news, the professor could feel his knees give out underneath him. He sat down on the spot and hung his head. Before this incident, Professor Brown had tried to live his life as a good man in accordance with his personal beliefs. BTE had twisted his arm and made him do things he never would have otherwise, all because they had his family held hostage. But now that was over and his family was safe. It was only natural that his legs would buckle under the weight of such relief. Shizuka understood that perfectly.

“If you will, professor... We should get out of here as soon as possible.”

“Y-Yes, you’re quite right. My apologies.”

Shizuka reached her hand out to the professor and helped him up. She felt sorry for him and wanted to give him a moment of peace, but they weren’t safe here. Theia knew that as well and promptly got to work. She used her bracelet to transport the still-burning truck to the Hazy Moon. It would take too long to put the fire out and search for the navigation device, so Theia decided to send Clan the whole package. It would be immediately contained within a barrier on her ship to prevent damage from any explosions, which should also put out the fire. Nevertheless, Theia knew she would get an earful from Clan about this later as she watched the burning truck disappear into the black hole. But as it vanished, something else appeared—a red dot on the back of Theia’s head.

“Shizuka, this is bad!”

It was a sniper’s laser sight. Alunaya was the first to notice it, but quickly determined that it would be faster to say something to Shizuka than use magic to warn Theia directly himself.

“Theia-chan, get down!”

“What?”

Shnk!

But that moment’s delay would prove fatal. The moment Theia reacted to Shizuka’s voice, a searing beam of white light cut through the air... right at Theia’s head. Not even Shizuka and all her superhuman power would be able to stop it. It was a grim situation, and both she and Alunaya thought it was the end.

“Now’s our time to shine, ho!”

“We’ve got your number, ho!”

Fortunately, however, there were two more players on their team—Karama and Korama. Kiriha had sent them along with Theia and Shizuka, who were both armed to the teeth in terms of offensive capability. That meant the haniwas were put to much better use protecting them rather than trying to help out with the assault. The most efficient way for them to do that was to conceal themselves until they were needed and keep a watchful eye on their surroundings. And that’s exactly what they’d done. The instant they detected the beam charging, they’d moved into position to protect Theia.

“Synchronization mode activated, ho!”

“Spiritual energy field, ho! Focused deployment at full power, ho!”

However, the beam fired at Theia came from an anti-material rifle—the most powerful weapon available to infantry. It was essentially a handheld cannon that could shoot straight through a tank’s barrier and its armor. The haniwas’ barrier alone wouldn’t be enough to stop it.

Bzzt!

The beam bored into the barrier before it collapsed completely. The flash of white light then sailed over the haniwas, still headed for its mark—Theia.

“We couldn’t do it, ho!”

“Ho! We’ll leave the rest to you, Big Brother!”

“Recall Precast Teleport!”

Pang!

However, just before the beam could strike Theia, a man in blue armor appeared out of nowhere and stepped in front of her to protect her. The beam connected with his armor, scorching its surface.

“Yeowch... Hey, isn’t this the same thing as that one time? That stupid big cannon you tried to kill me with, Clan?”

“That’s correct.”

“Koutarou, it’s you! Thank you!”

“You should be thanking Yurika and the haniwas. I couldn’t have saved you on my own.”

The haniwas were constantly relaying data to Clan and Ruth, and Yurika had used the information she’d gotten from them to teleport Koutarou’s group and Harumi’s group to Theia. The haniwas knew he was coming, and they’d planned their defensive maneuver accordingly. Koutarou’s armor was strengthened both by GoL and magic, and he himself had the additional protection of Signaltin and Saguratin. So the haniwas knew that as long as they could weaken the beam some, Koutarou should be able to block it. And, fortunately, things had worked out just as they’d calculated.

“Well done, you two. You really rose to the occasion,” pronounced Theia.

“You honor us with your praise, ho!”

“But we wouldn’t mind if you went the extra step and made us full-fledged knights too, ho!”

“Very well. As of today, you may fight as Princess Theiamillis’s proud knights!”

“All right, ho!”

“At your service, ho!”

The haniwas danced through the air, making their way towards the sniper. Yurika and Sanae were already en route, so they would handle the situation together.

“Sakuraba-senpai, I’ll leave the professor to you!” Koutarou said to the nearby Harumi as he activated the boosters on his armor and took off after the haniwas.

There was no way they could let their attacker go unchecked.

“Understood. Please be careful, Satomi-kun! Now, professor... This way, please.”

Harumi took over for Shizuka and guided the professor to safety with the help of the Sun Rangers.

“Satomi-kun, are you okay?”

As Koutarou sailed through the air, Maki flew up next to him with a worried look.

“It hurt, but I’m fine. Could you take a look at my back and see if my armor’s busted, though?”

Seeing the genuinely worried look on Maki’s face, Koutarou got a little worried too. Maki was currently flying on her staff transformed into a broom and smoothly moved around behind Koutarou in a fashion that completely ignored the laws of aerodynamics.

“It looks okay. Just a little singed.”

Upon seeing Koutarou’s armor, Maki finally looked a little relieved. There was a hole burned in his mantle, but only a scorch mark on the armor itself. Theia confirmed that much for herself via diagnostics on her bracelet and then radioed Kiriha over the comms line.

“Kiriha, what do you make of this?”

“It must be an ambush by the remnants of Vandarion’s faction. It seems we were also set up. They must be after one of us, but they couldn’t single anyone in particular out this way... Instead, they’re just trying to thin our numbers. They likely attacked you over Shizuka because you’re a higher-priority target.”

Theia’s question had been general, but Kiriha gave her a very specific answer. The weapon used—an anti-material beam rifle—indicated the culprit was Vandarion’s faction. But if they’d used a gate to reach the scene quickly, Clan would’ve detected the incoming distortion. There’d been no such readings, indicating the sniper had been lying in wait. The sniper had no way of knowing, however, who exactly of Koutarou’s party would be in pursuit of the professor and the navigation device. It was unlikely that Theia specifically was their target from the outset. Kiriha suspected that Vandarion’s faction was getting strapped in for a drawn-out fight. They’d be satisfied picking off anyone they could.

“Pardomshiha, we’re deploying unmanned crafts around the area. There might be more enemies nearby.”

“As you wish. Clan-sama, please watch over Master and the others. I will keep an eye on the professor.”

After hearing Kiriha’s assessment of the situation, Clan and Ruth both got to work. They each sent out unmanned crafts to survey the area since there was no guarantee there was only one sniper. Clan knew for sure she’d use at least three if she’d been the one to plan this attack... But she didn’t dare say that out loud when Koutarou could hear her.

“So does that mean that this corporation had connections to Vandarion’s faction all along?” Shizuka asked once she was back aboard Theia’s aircraft.

To her, it looked like Vandarion’s faction was trying to hurt Koutarou and company as much as they were trying to help BTE. But something about that didn’t seem quite right.

“It’s hard to imagine that they were helping them from the start, but I think it’s safe to assume they’ve been cooperating since the two vehicles turned around in the city.”

Kiriha felt the same way. If Vandarion’s faction had been working with BTE all along, rescuing Emily and Claire should have been much harder. In fact, there was no sign anyone at all was lending BTE aid until their strange decision to change course. Kiriha believed that Vandarion’s faction had discovered her plan and approached BTE at that point.

“Guess we’ll have to find that sniper before we get our answers...”

Koutarou glanced in the direction the shot had come from. They wouldn’t reach any meaningful conclusions discussing things at this juncture. Capturing the sniper and getting them to talk would be much more productive.

Sanae and Yurika were the first to depart for the sniper’s location. Sanae could detect incoming attacks ahead of time and Yurika’s magic gave her the flexibility to respond to all kinds of situations, making the two of them a great forward team. Yurika had made them both invisible with her magic, and Sanae was guiding them towards the sniper.

“Hmm... something just doesn’t feel right...” Sanae muttered to herself.

“What is it?” Yurika asked.

“It’s like there are people out here, but not.”

“What does that mean?”

“Um... You know how when you walk through the woods, you step on grass and snap twigs and stuff, right? I don’t detect any human presence around the damaged vegetation.”

It was strange. The beam had come from the forest along the side of the road—where Yurika and Sanae currently were. There was plenty of life in the woods, which Sanae could readily detect with her psychic powers. That normally made it easy enough to find people in forested areas. They left something of a wake, damaging vegetation and scaring animals. Following that wake should lead to an aura trail that Sanae could follow, but there didn’t seem to be any hint of one among the wake in the forest here. That’s what had Sanae so puzzled at the moment.

“Doesn’t that just mean it’s robots like that one time with Green-san?”

“That’s awfully smart for you, Yurika, but you’ve got a good point. Let Koutarou and the others know.”

“Okaaay.”

They’d been through something like this before. Autonomous and remote-controlled weapons didn’t have auras. That had tripped them up back in Folsaria, but they knew better now and pressed onward without raising a fuss over it. Sanae and Yurika were ordinarily rather carefree, but emergencies like this brought out their serious sides. Even they knew there was a time and place for everything.

“Sanae-chan, Yurika-chan! Sorry for keeping you waiting, ho!”

“Ho! How are things looking over here?”

There, the two haniwas descended from above. They were presently having an argument about whether they should call themselves the Fire and Lightning Knights or the Dog and Cat Knights, but they agreed on one thing above all else—their time in the spotlight wasn’t over. That was why they’d shown up here ready and raring to go.

“Either the enemy is really good at hiding or it’s robots.”

“You can rest easy, ho! We’ll protect you no matter the foe, ho!”

“That’s right, ho! And knights don’t go back on their word, ho!”

“I wonder what’s up with them...”

“Who knows? But they seem more fired up than usual, so it’s fine, right?”

Sanae and Yurika were oblivious as to why the haniwas were so eager and motivated, but they were grateful for it nonetheless. Karama and Korama had moved out in front of them to act as their shield. Both Sanae and Yurika left themselves wide open when they used their more powerful attacks, so the extra protection was most welcome.

“Energy reaction detected, ho! It’s just like Sanae-chan said, ho!”

“There are automated weapons hiding around here, ho!”

The haniwas couldn’t pick up on auras as well as Sanae, but they had additional sensors to detect other kinds of energy. That included charging lasers and heat from generators, which told them exactly where the automated weapons were hiding.

“Sense Metal! Modifier: Multi-Target!”

“Thanks, Yurika!”

Sanae smiled and held her hand out in front of her. When she did, the crest on her forehead began glowing purple and Saguratin appeared from thin air. By the time it was in her hand, Yurika had finished her incantation and cast a spell that let her, Sanae, and the two haniwas sense any and all sources of metal around them. That, of course, included the automated weapons.

“All right! Let’s beat them before Koutarou and the others get here!”

“It’s time for the Flame Knight to make a glorious debut, ho!”

“Cat Knight advancing, ho!”

“I don’t want to lose to them... I’m gonna cast a bunch of spells!”

While the four of them looked like they were having fun, they were all actually quite serious as the nearby sources of metal slowly crept up on them.

“You face the Purple Knight, Higashihongan Sanae!”

Once the metal reactions were in range, Sanae was quick to action. With Saguratin in hand, she repeated a line she’d once heard in a historical play and unleashed an attack. With Saguratin sheathed in her spiritual energy, its range extended several meters past its actual blade.

“Hyah!”

Sanae swung the sword down. It didn’t physically hit anything, but her spiritual energy extending from it acted like a much longer sword. The spiritual energy blade passed right through the trees, cutting an automated weapon hiding behind them in two. It collapsed to the ground, sending small parts everywhere as it fell. But upon seeing it, the haniwas didn’t look happy.

“This was just a decoy, ho!”

As it turned out, Sanae had cut down an Earth-made robot used in ground warfare rather than a Forthorthian automated weapon. It was a fairly simplistic design—a remote-controlled gun mounted on caterpillar tracks—that didn’t even compare to Forthorthian technology. But one modification to the unremarkable machine made it clear how Sanae and the haniwas had made such a mistake: it was equipped with an unnecessarily large engine and capacitor, which made it appear to be a much bigger and dangerous weapon than it really was on most sensors. In short, it was a decoy meant to conceal the real deal.

“Attack incoming, ho!”

There were several high-energy reactions around Sanae and the others, but it was impossible to tell which one would actually fire. Most of the reactions were probably decoys too. Among them, however, was at least one real anti-material rifle. And unfortunately, all the decoys were outfitted with laser sights as well. The red dots gave no indication of where the actual gun lay as they all converged on Sanae.

“Sanae-chan, get down!”

“Wah!”

Yurika, who came running up from behind her, tackled Sanae. And it wasn’t a moment too soon. As soon as they hit the ground, a laser beam flashed through the air.

“What was that for? You cast that spell on me, remember?”

Sanae was visibly surprised by Yurika’s extreme reaction to the situation. Yurika had preemptively cast an illusion to make it look like Sanae was standing several meters away from where she actually was, after all. There was never a chance of the laser hitting her in the first place.

“They don’t know that yet! We shouldn’t show our hand when we still don’t know how many enemies there are!”

Yurika was referencing the basics of magical combat, which prioritized concealing as much about oneself as possible. Giving extra information to the enemy was just giving them more ammunition to attack with. As her master, Nana had talked Yurika’s ears off about magical combat strategy. And the same principles that applied to fighting a fellow magician also applied to fighting an unknown opponent. After so many battles, Yurika had learned how to put Nana’s training into practice.

“Huh, yeah... I guess you’re right. Thanks, Yurika! So should we wait for Koutarou and the others to get here instead of making a move?”

They didn’t know how many real enemies they were up against at the moment. Carelessly going on the offensive could get them attacked from several directions at once, which would blow their cover immediately. Waiting for Koutarou and the others would be a much safer bet. Sanae admired heroes and wanted to be one, but she was mature enough now to know when to hold back. After all, with her eighteenth birthday on the horizon, she’d soon be an adult.

“You won’t have to wait long, ho!”

“Big Brother’s already here, ho!”

Swish!

No sooner than the haniwas announced him, Koutarou landed in front of the girls with Maki and Shizuka following soon after. Theia arrived on the scene too, circling overhead in her fighter.

“What’s the situation?” Koutarou immediately asked.

“The enemy is spread out in a wide area ahead of us, ho!”

“There’s not a lot of them, but they have plenty of decoys, ho! We can’t tell them apart, ho!”

“That sounds like a pain...”

If they retreated now, the enemy would likely pursue them. Even if they tried to flee in Theia’s ship, the anti-material rifle the sniper had was capable of shooting it down. That said, there wasn’t much to be gained from a fight here and now. Koutarou and company couldn’t afford to bombard the entire area just to rout one sniper.

“Why don’t we just get Sanae to pinpoint the sniper and focus on defeating them?”

Koutarou’s plan was to go straight for the threat and eliminate it, but Kiriha saw the flaw in his logic.

“The threat would still remain if the anti-material rifle is being controlled by an automated program.”

Forthorthian artificial intelligence was extremely advanced, so just taking out a weapon’s operator wouldn’t necessarily take out the weapon. The Hazy Moon and Blue Knight were both brilliant examples of just how powerful military-grade AI could be. They were very dangerous weapons even when fully automated.

“Which means that we’ll have to start at one end and just go down the line...”

It would indeed be a pain, yet Koutarou couldn’t see any other way of doing it. They’d probably get shot at several times, but they would surely find the real threat in the process. The only alternative would be to send in automated weapons of their own, but that could be troublesome now from a legal standpoint. This would have to be up to them.

“That’s not true, Veltlion.”

“Really, Clan?”

“Really. If we attack with an electromagnetic pulse, we should be able to at least stop the decoys.”

Clan had picked up on the fact that the decoys were Earth-made devices, meaning they were considerably less advanced than Forthorthian ones. All Forthorthian technology was designed to be operable in space, meaning it came with additional safeguards that Earth-based technology didn’t—including extra protection from electromagnetism. And Clan saw that as a golden opportunity.

The electromagnetic pulse generator that Clan quickly threw together with what she had on hand was capable of frying circuitry from several dozen meters away. And since the decoys had been scrapped together with only spare parts and spare batteries, they were high-output devices especially vulnerable to such an attack.

“One of the machines is on the move! Expect an incoming attack!”

Kiriha remained vigilant as she kept an eye on the radar, warning the group as soon as danger presented itself. They hadn’t won this fight just yet.

“Master! Looking at the energy readings, it must be one medium-sized mobile weapon with two automated rifles!”

“Ah, so that was their real trap... You’re a lifesaver, Clan.”

“But of course. I expect to hear proper thanks for this later.”

The enemy had laid a three-fold trap. The first phase was using the professor and the navigation device as bait to try to snipe Theia. The second phase was using the Earth-made robots as decoys. And the third phase was the mobile weapon with the rifles. The enemy had limited the mobile weapon to rifles to trick Koutarou and company into thinking they were chasing a human opponent. Then, once they were drawn in, the real attack would be sprung—a surprise assault at full force. An ambush like that would’ve been deadly, whether it was just Sanae and Yurika or the entire group. Koutarou could feel a cold chill run down his spine when he realized just how meticulous the enemy’s plan really was.

All joking aside, I really will have to thank Clan for this later...

The mobile weapon sprang out from cover and attacked as soon as Clan decimated the decoys with her impromptu device. It was a glorious display that even Koutarou felt was worthy of commending.

“These guys are fundamentally different from the enemies we’ve fought so far. If we show any weakness, we might be killed in an instant. We’ll have to be careful...”

Koutarou glared at the approaching mobile weapon. He tensed up for a moment but then focused exclusively on the fight in front of him. He had to. After everything they’d been through, he and the girls couldn’t lose to a single medium-sized mobile weapon with two rifles after seeing through the trap. The fight, as expected, didn’t last long.