Mob No.120: [“Why can’t we take down such a weakling!?”]
The second battle ended, and after a two-hour break for rest and relocation, we arrived at the third battlefield—an empty void where it seemed the fight would be a head-on clash between combat craft.
And, unsurprisingly (or perhaps predictably),
[“Alright! Everyone, follow my orders!”]
That idiot, Dashed Denogar, started spouting his usual overconfident nonsense again.
Honestly, aside from a few lackeys, no one paid him any real attention.
While everyone else was tense, only his group remained carefree—honestly, it was almost enviable.
The enemy side seemed to mix elites with rookies, and the difference in their movements while waiting was noticeable. But whether it was genuine or a ruse was hard to tell.
If we didn’t stay sharp, we’d be taken out easily.
…Though, maybe getting knocked out early would be easier. After all, there was already someone serving as the perfect example of “getting taken out effortlessly.”
Just as I was thinking that, His Excellency General Breskin appeared on the monitor screen.
[“Now then, we shall begin the third simulated battle. This time, there are no obstructions or cover! Both sides are tied at one win each—fight to your hearts’ content in close-quarters dogfights! The countdown begins in five seconds.”]
His Excellency grinned and raised his right arm.
[“5! 4! 3! 2! 1!”]
Then, Colonel Schneela-Floss’s voice took over the countdown.
[“Combat begins!”]
As His Excellency gave the signal, his arm swung down, and the third battle commenced.
Still, I couldn’t help but wonder—why the countdown this time? His Excellency hadn’t done it for the first or second battles.
Did he make some kind of bet and get hyped up over it?
With that, the battle began.
Head-on clashes were terrifying. Without cover, there was no safety.
You could use allies as makeshift shields, but the enemy would do the same, so it’d just be a stalemate.
Positioning was also crucial.
You had to make sure you could maneuver freely in case of emergencies.
In chaotic battles, collisions—whether friend or foe—were always one of the top causes of being shot down.
As for combat maneuvers, Rosweisse-san was in a league of her own, Dan-san was decisively superior, and Arthur-kun and Levin-kun were quite skilled. Lambert-kun and Diloppers-chan were a step below them.
The enemy side was no pushover either—their self-proclaimed commander, Dashed Denogar, was swiftly taken down, along with several others.
And now, I was being chased by a swarm of enemy craft, much like how Rosweisse-san and Lambert-kun had been overwhelmed in the first encounter.
Though not as extreme as Rosweisse-san’s situation, the sheer numbers made “fake-out maneuvers” impossible—even if I dodged the lead pursuer, the ones behind would react immediately.So, for the sake of my allies, I had no choice but to play a deadly game of tag for a while.
The reason they were swarming me was probably because they judged me an easier target than Rosweisse-san or Arthur-kun.
They seemed like rookies, so I could handle them for now—but I couldn’t let my guard down for even a second.
I needed backup fast, so I decided to report the situation to everyone.
☆☆☆
First Fleet Side: Selected Combat Craft Unit Members
[“Why can’t we take down such a weakling!?”]
[“Hey! [Hey! The distance is closing! Scatter!]
[“Watch it! That was dangerous!”]
[“Still… how is that pilot not shot down yet with this many on their tail?”]
[“It’s gotta be just luck. Otherwise, there’s no way our top ace, Nadirs, would’ve been taken down!”]
[“The higher-ups are ruthless. Nadirs finally had a chance to clear his name, and they wouldn’t even let him sortie.”]
[“He was on edge after being shot down—it was the right call.”]
[“Either way, let’s crush this weakling fast. Once we avenge Nadirs, we’re going after the ‘Feathered Helmet’ next!”]
[“Got it! Moving in—flank and surround them!”]
[“Wait! We should regroup with the other unit first—”]
[“Shut up, cowards!”]
[“If you’re not here to avenge Nadirs, then stay out of our way!”]
READ THE ORIGINAL TRANSLATION AT gadgetizedpanda.net
☆☆☆
For some reason, the pursuers behind me suddenly spread out horizontally and sped up.
Before, they had been in a dense formation, but now that they’d thinned out, I could attempt a fake-out.
So, while flying at full throttle, I timed it just as one enemy craft closed in directly behind me— I pitched the nose up, fired the attitude-control thrusters at full power for a split second, and cut the main boosters simultaneously.
The craft flipped over the enemy, and as I did, I fired a warning shot before booking it in the opposite direction.
Of course, I wasn’t just running.
Once I had enough distance, I’d turn back around to counterattack.
The enemy would probably expect that, so they’d come after me in force.
To break their formation,
I first fired a slow-moving proton-torpedo-style flash missile.
And when an enemy aircraft comes close, if you hit the flash missile (similar to a “proton torpedo”)
with the beam, it counts as a hit and a flash occurs.
This way, the enemy will reflexively steer either left or right, so you can chase one of them down, shoot it down, and escape again.
This will confuse the opponent, and even if they come after you, it will consume their time.
During that time, you can either escape or prepare a counterattack formation if needed.
That was the plan, but…
But the moment I pulled the fake-out, the craft right behind me was “destroyed” on impact.
And somehow, no one even reacted, letting me escape easily.
After putting a good distance between us, they regrouped and chased me again.
I fired another flash missile, triggered the explosion—and all but one of them were marked as destroyed.
Turns out, they’d tried to evade the missile at the last second.
They had the skill and guts to dodge,
but they never expected me to shoot the missile itself.
The sole survivor was just lucky enough to have kept their distance.
Just as I was about to finish the last one, the exercise siren blared.
[“Both sides, halt! Results of the third battle: First Fleet Combat Unit—10 remaining! Mercenary Unit—13! Therefore, the victors are the Mercenary Unit!”]
Colonel Schneela-Floss declared the outcome, and cheers erupted from our side while the enemy let out a collective groan.
☆☆☆
Side: Eduardo Nadirs
There’s no way I lost—this has to be a mistake!
That weakling must’ve used some underhanded trick!
And I bet they bribed the higher-ups to keep me grounded, too!
Now that the First Fleet has lost, it’s up to me to restore our honor!
★★★★
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