"Multiple enemy aircraft confirmed launching from the Astrea! Four have been identified as Hound series! However..."
The operator's voice paused for a moment. Something was appearing on the screen.
"...One unidentified craft is approaching at high speed! It's breaking through our defensive perimeter!"
The commander raised his head.
"Tch... These criminals are running wild, not knowing their place... Order all fleets to directly intercept the Astrea. Contact the Zeros Code as well."
"Yes, sir. All standby forces, commence battle deployment! ...But-!"
The operator's voice cracked. The screen flickered violently, and warning alarms blared simultaneously from multiple units.
"What is it?"
The commander raised his head and shouted.
"The unidentified craft currently approaching... Its speed is abnormal! It's completely disregarding our previous response predictions and charging straight in!"
Before he could finish speaking, red alert windows popped up one after another on the tactical monitor.
"Report! A-01, A-02, A-03... All crafts confirmed destroyed!
Additional damage incurred, B-07 to B-10, all lost!"
The operator's voice trembled. Until that moment, the Federation's main forces deployed at the front, were being shot down in mere seconds by a single craft.
The commander gritted his teeth and roared.
"What are the others doing?! Where is the Zeros Code?!"
"The Zeros Code unit is still on standby for launch orders!"
"Launch them immediately! And notify all fleets, reorganize the battle line! All battleships on both flanks, focus fire on Point 305. Shoot down that monstrous craft right now!"
Communications flooded between each ship, and their gun barrels began to move. The entire fleet turned forward, and began concentrating fire on the trajectory cutting through the center.
But then-
"Port side, Ship 2, destroyed!!"
"What the..."
And then, the enlarged unidentified craft appeared on the screen. Its black armor and glowing red eyes resembled a grim reaper.
"Th-The Knight of the Apocalypse...?"
Someone's murmur made the commander's brow furrow.
"What did you just say?"
"W-Well... It's because its appearance is similar to the craft widely rumored these days, called the Knight of the Apocalypse...."
It was a rumor he had also heard. The black craft that had recently caused a stir in the Arsenos sector.
Furthermore... This name, 'Knight of the Apocalypse,' had frequently appeared in recent reports from the Federation's front lines.
"That craft, it really existed then..."
The commander's breath hitched.
At that moment, another warning alarm blared through the bridge.
『Central battle line, A-14, A-16, A-17 destroyed. No craft response.』
The commander stared intently at the screen. And before his eyes, the scene of the black-armored craft simultaneously shooting down multiple Federation crafts was displayed.
Although the defensive line was still established, each time that monster moved, their allies vanished.
"...That monstrous bastard..."
The commander slammed his hand down hard on the desk.
"Zeros Code! Why haven't you launched yet!! The only one who can stop that thing is-"
At that moment, a communication connected.
[This is Lieutenant Colonel Lucien Brax, Zeros Code Unit-07. We will engage the unidentified craft.]
***
The craft itself was practically a weapon. Its overall balance was even more perfect than the Requiem, and even its armor density and responsiveness were on another dimension. To simply call it strong would be an understatement.
"Kuh... So this is an S-rank craft, huh?"
[How is it, Seoyun oppa? Do you like my gift?]
As Adel's voice flowed through the comms, I let out a chuckle from the cockpit.
"If it's this good... I could kiss your lips all day and it still wouldn't be enough."
[You can do that to your heart's content later. For now, let me finish explaining the craft.]
She then calmly continued.
[The armor is a next-generation composite armor developed with Licentia Group's proprietary technology, called Titan Armor Plate. It's designed to withstand penetrating railguns, high-heat plasma, and even EMP shocks, by applying a multi-layered energy dispersion layer over a high-density carbon alloy.]
"So its defense is insane too. At this level, it's practically a fortress."
[That's right. In fact, this armor withstood direct battleship shelling up to three times during the experimental phase. But the real core is inside.]
"You mean the energy system?"
[Yes. It's equipped with a T-NF Drive, a high-density nuclear fusion core. Originally, we planned to apply a higher-grade core than the prototype used in the old Requiem... but it was completed just before I was captured here, and luckily, we were able to install it in this craft.]
"Well, this is just a mobile strategic weapon."
[Exactly. It has no output limit, so it can completely devastate an entire battlefield. Which means... it must never fall into enemy hands.]
"Of course not."
At that moment, the radar reacted. And five heat signatures were approaching at high speed.
[Oppa! All the crafts approaching now are Zeros Code. And they're all the Federation's new mobile weapons. You need to be careful!]
Hina's voice flowed through the comms.
"Oh, really?"
The corners of my lips naturally curved upwards. The Zeros Code, boasted by the Federation, was said to be composed only of elites with formidable skills, so I was looking forward to it.
"If possible... try to hold out a bit. It wouldn't be fun if it's too boring."
I lightly pressed the trigger with my fingertip. Simultaneously, my forward view split into multiple sections, and target analysis on the tactical HUD began sequentially. Each craft's trajectory, speed, and reaction delay appeared overlaid on the tactical interface.
"A light greeting."
The fixed long-range launcher stored on the craft's back deployed to the front. Its long, sleek housing and the red energy collector at its tip blinked brightly.
I twisted the aiming lever with my left hand to align it.
The HUD automatically generated a firing correction line, and the crosshairs overlapped on the lead craft that was flying in first.
-KWAANG!!
The gun barrel vibrated once, and for a moment, my vision distorted red. The projectile, enveloped in high-heat energy, flew, piercing straight through as if crushing the trajectory.
"Oh, the firepower is insane."
It was a shot with enough output to blow an entire battleship away with a single hit. But unfortunately, this shot didn't connect.
The target, the lead craft, veered off its trajectory by a hair's breadth. Reverse thruster burst. The timing was perfect. If it had been a mere inch slower, the craft would have exploded.
"So, they're the Federation's elites, after all."
Their reaction speed and positioning were movements that couldn't be achieved with just one or two real battles. And perhaps my welcoming greeting wasn't to their liking, as a counterattack immediately came.
A barrage of fire poured down from long range.
I lightly pushed and pulled the control stick, tilting the craft. I evaded as if letting the beams graze past, and quickly scanned the surroundings to grasp the situation.
It wasn't just the Zeros Code pursuing me. Dozens of Federation crafts scattered around were swarming in all at once. However, only the Zeros Code was actually keeping up.
The difference in craft performance was too stark. The Federation's crafts simply couldn't keep up. Ultimately, they were only providing suppressive fire from a distance.
I intentionally lowered my speed. That ambiguous distance, almost within reach but not quite. Maintaining a delicate gap, neither closing in nor letting them escape, I shot them down immediately if they fell into a trap.
-KWAANG.
With every single one of my movements, I could almost hear the Zeros Code bastards grinding their teeth. They couldn't catch me no matter how hard they tried, and Federation crafts were falling one by one right before their eyes. It was obvious how much I was getting on their nerves without even looking.
'I'd like to enjoy this a bit longer, but...'
The Astrea caught my eye at the edge of my vision. It was maintaining its course, but its speed was too slow. Four Hounds on its deck were blocking enemy incursions, and the ship's internal interception systems were desperately defending.
But I was uneasy. Although I had eliminated threats periodically, the number of Federation forces wasn't decreasing. On the contrary, it was increasing. For every one I shot down, twice as many appeared.
If we kept stalling like this, whether it was a surprise attack or an encirclement, we would be the first to collapse. I took a short breath, and connected the comms channel to Elena.
"Major-nim. If I clear the front now, can the Astrea outrun the Federation pursuit with its speed?"
[Just a moment.]
And a moment later, Elena's voice rang out again.
[...It's possible.]
"Good."
My gaze shifted to the top of the dashboard, to the forward coordinates. The Federation fleet, arrayed in parallel on the orbital line.
"Then, from now on, I will sweep away the Federation fleet in the Astrea's forward path. Astrea, please break through immediately."
Finishing my words, I pressed the red button on the left.
-Chik.
A short high-pitched hum echoed inside the craft. Soon after, a red deployment notification window appeared on the display.
【TITAN-OVER-CHAIN SYSTEM ONLINE】
【Switching output to Overdrive Mode】
【Automatic target designation in progress... Complete】
The Requiem's armor opened. The segmented armor gaps slowly began to glow red.
The next moment. The weapons stored on its back simultaneously sprang out. The deployed high-output weapons sequentially aligned themselves with the firing line.
And towards the front, all firepower was unleashed simultaneously.
-KWAAAAANG!!
"Wow."
An exclamation of awe naturally escaped my lips. Enemies exploding and disappearing in a straight line. The Federation fleet vanished one after another, in the order of their destruction.
As I was marveling, beyond the firing line, a single craft shot out as if in a rage.
One Zeros Code craft charged straight at me.
I twisted the control stick. The Requiem's frame reacted, lightly twisting its body.
Simultaneously, a high-output blade swung past right beside me. I used the recoil to turn the craft half a circle. I swung the nose of my craft behind the waist of the bastard who had entered from the left.
What appeared in my cockpit view was the enemy's rear. I half-pressed the controller in my left hand.
A single impulse blade that shot out from below the Requiem's knee sharpened its edge with a jolt. The blade, soaring diagonally, precisely sliced through the rear of the Zeros Code craft.
Shoving the craft, which had instantly turned into a pile of scrap metal, aside, I spoke.
"Major-nim, please move immediately."
[Understood.]
Simultaneously with Elena's response, the ship's engine roar rapidly increased from the rear. Pulling up full power, it accelerated forward along the trajectory I had created.
『Until Federation defense zone exit-16 seconds』
Within the Requiem's sight, the Astrea began to advance rapidly. A few Federation crafts, belatedly coming to their senses, attempted to interfere, but the Hounds remaining on the Astrea's deck swept them all away.
However, it wasn't over. Only the front had disappeared; the Federation's entire force hadn't collapsed. The rear battle line was already reorganizing. Squadrons, redeployed around the command ship, were rapidly changing direction to block the Astrea.
New heat signatures were continuously appearing on the radar.
"As expected, they wouldn't let us go easily."
I turned the craft. I pressed the acceleration lever, boosting the thruster output to maximum. The Requiem moved with intense residual heat.