CH 41

Battle of Leboir [11]

A dozen of gigantic battleships are being escorted by countless auxiliary ships in a ring-shaped formation. Not even attempting to hide themselves, their majestic presence could be seen as the triumph of conquerors.

Toward such an intimidating sight, a pure white striker is speeding at them like a comet. In response, a fierce barrage from the AA guns flew toward him but the [Caliburn-Revive] evaded it with a sharp turn.

“That hurt…..Ugh, cough.”

Attacked by the vicious G that assaulted his entire body, Kisei coughed. His cough was accompanied by not a small amount of blood but he couldn’t afford to wipe it off as he can’t take his hands off the control sticks.

“Guh…..but, if I don’t do this then who would!”

His attack is clearly reckless. However, he can’t turn back. His target is the enemy battleships. What he needs to do is to evade the AA barrage from the small and medium-sized cruisers and destroyers that are escorting them and race toward the center of their formation.

“WHY IS THAT MAN HERE! He’s supposed to be kept away from this area of operation!”

At the bridge of the [Odelvansen], Diaroze screamed.

“What exactly is the problem here, Your Highness? What can they do with just one striker?”

Her staff officer calmly replied. Certainly, a striker’s firepower is limited. His ammunition should be enough to sink one battleship at best. Although that may seem like a big loss for them but the loss of one battleship can not turn the tide of battle.

“Fool, there’s no way that he just rushed in alone without expecting any kind of support! They must be planning something!”

Diaroze’s instinct is warning her that no matter what, she should never allow him to get close.

“Pulling back the frontline unit backfired on me huh. To think that our reserved units can’t even stall that man……..!”

That’s right. There were only a minimum number of strikers left to escort the fleet since they had dispatched them to keep Kisei occupied. As a result, the [Caliburn-Revive] only has to deal with the storm of AA barrages from the ships to get to the center of the fleet.

“I made it……!”

At almost the same time he arrived at the center of the enemy fleet, the battle between the two sides broke out. The main batteries of battleships from both sides loudly barked as powerful blaster beams and Armor Piercing (AP) shells were exchanged.

“The ship with the thinnest armor……..that one huh.”

While identifying what appears to be an old-fashioned battleship and relaying the information back to the Calencian fleet, Kisei pointed the muzzle of his anti-ship grenade launcher at a nearby battleship. His target is the Fire-Control-Radar (FCR), a large piece of equipment that is only installed on battleships. With such a big target, there’s no way that he would miss.

(TLN: an FCR is ) is a radar that is designed specifically to provide information to a fire-control system)

“Alright……first one down.”

The radar array was blown away. Following that, he also fired his blaster rifle toward the navigation radar and the Tadar. (TLN: Reminder Tadar in this story is Tachyon Radar)

“Ugh…..”

An ally battleship was sunk by concentrated fire from the Noredian fleet and Kisei’s complexion immediately turned darker.

“I have to, finish this soon.”

Meanwhile, the AA-turrets and high-angle blaster lined up on the deck of the battleships nearby continue to shoot at him. To avoid hail after hail of beam and bullets, Kisei has no choice but to perform tight turns and unnatural maneuvers, making him cough up blood each time.

“We lost another one, ma’am! The [Grigor]’s FCR is down, their Fire-Control-System(FCS) is disabled! They can only use the built-in sensors on their turrets now!”

“Ugh……Advance the entire fleet! Put the damaged ships in the lead!”

With their radars destroyed, long-range shooting is no longer possible for them. To make up for that, Diaroze tried to close the engagement distance but with the advice Kisei gave before the battle began, the Calencian fleet withdrew as much distance as the Noredian fleet is advancing on them and focused their efforts on long-range battle while Kisei continues to destroy the Noredian fleet’s FCR.

“Explosion confirmed on board the [Erregen]! Contact lost!”

A pillar of flame rose on the left-wing of the fleet. After the explosion, the crimson battleship descends as if it could no longer resist the planet’s gravity. However, before it landed, another explosion occurred and its hull was broken in half.

“237 people………”

Kiseis mutters as his breath gets mixed with blood. The battleship that had fallen earlier was the one that Kisei marked for concentrated attack.

The receiver of the I-con system does not only pick up the brainwaves of the pilot but also of the people in the area. Kisei perceived clearly that hundreds of lives had just been snuffed out in an instant.

“…….damn it!”

However, there’s no time for him to sort out his emotions. Perhaps due to blood loss, his vision started to blur. He can’t see clearly anymore. Still, it might be better this way. Kisei shut his eyes. He can steer a striker even with his eyes closed. After all, the information from the cameras and sensors can be transmitted directly to his brain through the I-con system. It will take a heavy toll on him but he has no other choice.

After around 10 minutes, 4 of the Noredian battleships have been sunk in total. On the other hand, although the Calencian fleet also suffered some damage, only one of their battleships was sunk.

“You still can’t find the enemy flagship yet!?”

While suppressing the impatience inside her, Diaroze asks her staff.

“Not yet, Ma’am. The Calencian do not have any special ship. We’ve only been able to identify standard battleships so far……..”

“Ugh……damn penniless country! Just target the ships that look the newest first! You don’t have to sink them, just landing a good blow on their bridge is enough!”

Diaroze knows that the enemy commander here is Queen Alisha. If she can kill Alisha, the enemy’s command will shatter and they should be able to push through.

And perhaps her prayer was heard by the heavens, an AP-shell fired from the [Odelvansen] landed on the bridge of the [Glorious]. Although it could not penetrate the armor plate, it did cause tremendous damage to the command room.

“Damn…..not that one huh!”

However, the enemy fleet still functions. They continue to make pinpoint concentrated attacks on their weaker ships. Thinking that the enemy commander is still alive, Diaroze clenched her teeth.

“Your Highness, we can’t hold out at this rate……please sortie! If Your Highness can kill that mercenary then we still have a chance of winning!”

It is clear that the enemy’s pint-point attacks were enabled by the information provided by the [Caliburn-Revive]. However, shooting him down is no easy task. That’s why the staff plead to Diaroze, who is in possession of the Noredian most powerful striker, to deal with him. Not to mention that her appearance on the battlefield will increase the soldiers’ morale as well.

“Fools! How do you not notice that it’s exactly his aim to lure me out! If I go out, it would only get more convenient for them!”

If she has to be honest, Diaroze does not have the confidence that she can win against Kisei in a one-on-one fight. Moreover, if she gets defeated in single combat, the morale of her fleet will plummet to an irreversible level.

“Your Highness! It’s enemy reinforcements! 50 missile vessels and destroyers. They are being escorted by a large number of strikers as well! They are approaching us at high speed from 8 o’clock.”

“ARGHHHHH!!”

Diaroze finally screamed. The Calencian force that was being stalled by their secondary units has arrived. Under normal circumstances, these missile vessels and destroyers are nothing to them. However, in a confused state like this, they stand a chance of breaking through the Noredian escort fleet.

“…….Withdraw all ships! Have the damaged ship withdraw from battle and leave this system at full speed! The [Odelvansen] will act as the rear guard!”

Given the situation, she has no other choice. The Calencian is gaining an edge on them. To not let the damage spread any further, Diaroze was forced to withdraw.

Although it suffered great damage, her fleet did not suffer to the extent that it reached the point of no return yet. While fighting back, the Noredian fleet pulls out of the system with precise maneuvers.

With the Calencian fleet in no state to give chase, the distance between the two sides is rapidly increasing.

“……it’s finally over.”

In the cockpit reeked with the smell of blood, Kisei mutters to himself. He fired his thruster and headed toward the Calencian fleet but suddenly, everything went silent. His propellant has run out. The [Caliburn-Revive] crashes and rolls on the surface, blowing up clouds of dirt.

“Uugh.”

With a strong final impact, the striker finally came to a stop. It appeared that he crashed onto one of the sunken Noredian battleships. In his hazy consciousness, Kisei reached toward the crimson armor plate displayed on his main monitor.

“If I don’t…..get stronger………never again……..”

After saying that much, his consciousness was completely cut off.