Chapter 235

Episode 235. The Final Push is the Mark of a Masterpiece…! (7)

—

<Global Chat>

-[Waaah](Raksha)

-[Heya](Melon)

—

Raksha, who had been dominating the battlefield solo like an overpowered protagonist, suddenly got team-killed (but not really) and was reduced to an observer.

But even with Raksha out of the picture, the situation had already spiraled too far out of control to be reversed.

Before Raksha’s destroyer exploded, it had wreaked havoc across the fleet, collapsing formations to a degree that couldn’t be fixed in a short time.

—

“Nyaah, there are too many enemies!”

“Tch, everyone retreat! We must either capture or neutralize that aircraft carrier at all costs!”

—

Meanwhile, most of Icarus’ superhuman suicide squad had been pushed back or defeated, cornering Anomalocaris and a few ships into a siege.

While they were busy trapping their own superhumans, the All-Star Team, having finally regrouped with additional ships from the rear, launched a full-scale offensive with every available force…

Thanks to Raksha’s “legendary control skills” (worthy of a funeral tribute), the Icarus Team’s formation was in disarray, leaving gaps in their defenses.

Combined with the overwhelming difference in ship performance between top-tier players and mere high-rankers…

—

–<ChuChu’s Light Cruiser has been sunk by Antares’ Texas-Class Heavy Cruiser!>

–<Raizenkan’s Guardian-Class Protected Cruiser has been sunk by Betelgeuse’s Odin-Class Battleship!>

–<Pampakapam’s Oracle-Class Battleship has been sunk by Arcadia’s Hood-Class Cruiser Battleship!>

–<Pampakapam’s Aircraft Carrier has been sunk by Laura’s Heavy Cruiser!>

-[Kyaaaah!](Pampakapam)

-[We’re getting wrecked, damn it!](Raizenkan)

-[Hold it together, more are coming!]

-[Ah, crap!](Elans)

–<Elans’ Chau-Class Heavy Cruiser has been sunk by Antares’ Griffin-Class Battleship!>

—

They were being ground up like meat in a grinder.

Of course, being top-tier players themselves, they still put up a fight.

—

–<Menaldu’s Heavy Cruiser has been sunk by Raizenkan’s Bessarabia-Class Cruiser Battleship!>

–<Laura’s Ukulele-Class Destroyer has been sunk by Elans’ Meteor-Class Heavy Cruiser!>

–<Betelgeuse’s Light Aircraft Carrier has been sunk by ChuChu’s Bessarabia-Class Cruiser Battleship!>

-[Ah, geez](Menaldu)

-[The resistance is pretty strong](Laura)

—

Even as they were being torn apart, they chipped away at the All-Star Team’s forces, showing their desperate will to resist.

Though, with the failure of Kraken’s assault and Hreðsvelgr’s kamikaze attack, their chances of winning were slim…

—

*Boom!*

—

-[Damn it, my engine’s hit again!](Mona Lisa)

–<Mona Lisa’s Light Cruiser has been sunk by Elans’ Meteor-Class Heavy Cruiser!>

-[Ah](Mona Lisa)

-[Can’t we catch that damn stealth ship yet?](Betelgeuse)

-[Seraphias and the other electronic warfare cruisers can’t even find it. I’m not even sure if it’s a stealth ship](Antares)

-[Sigh](Betelgeuse)

—

Despite the hopeless battle, the reason Icarus’ team wasn’t being completely slaughtered was…

Of course, the support of Nerañzara, who had been quietly sabotaging the All-Star Team’s ships by targeting engines, anti-air systems, and bridges with “spatial torpedoes.”

And inside that Nerañzara-Class Aetheric Submarine…

—

“Everything’s gone to hell.”

—

After using the Hreðsvelgr-Class as a suicide bomb, our Icarus had relocated there.

—

Meanwhile, inside the atmosphere of a massive gas planet that the All-Star Team had dismissed as “natural terrain”…

As you can see from the ‘periscope buoy’ popping out and emitting strange spatial waves all around.

The Nerañzara-class Aetheric Submarine, which had been lying low without much presence, was now submerged in the aetheric space, keeping an eye on the situation with only the buoy exposed.

And inside that submarine, of course, were Jessica and I, who had abandoned the Hreðsvelgr and moved here.

Unlike the grand and beautiful bridge of the Hreðsvelgr, perhaps due to the nature of being an ‘Aetheric Submarine,’ the bridge inside the hull had not a single observation window to see outside.

Instead, we were watching a screen that displayed only the view from the periscope buoy floating on the surface between the aetheric space and reality. I calmly sorted out my thoughts.

We’re screwed… that’s what I thought.

After much deliberation, I came to this conclusion, and I could say it with firm conviction.

“Jessica, we’re all screwed.”

“Commander, you’ve always had a screw loose.”

“…Hmm.”

I didn’t expect my well-crafted joke to be received like that.

I mentally noted Jessica’s remark for future use and turned my gaze back to the screen, deciding to continue the conversation.

“Looks like our allies are going to have a hard time winning, huh?”

“Yes, no matter how exceptional this Nerañzara-class is… it can’t single-handedly take out at least 70% of the remaining enemy ships.”

“So it’s a firepower issue, after all.”

“That’s right.”

Unlike when I used other ships as fodder, after actually boarding and operating the Nerañzara-class, I could really feel why, despite its absurd survivability, the ship itself isn’t considered ridiculously overpowered.

One of the Nerañzara’s overpowered traits, the ‘spatial torpedoes’ that emerge from the aetheric space just seconds before impact, turned out to be surprisingly underwhelming in terms of firepower.

To give you an idea, the Nerañzara can fire up to 8 ‘spatial torpedoes’ at once.

And all 8 of them need to hit simultaneously to barely sink a single destroyer.

Of course, aside from that, in this battle, the Nerañzara-class was particularly unable to secure kills and only provided support, which might explain it.

Jessica, sitting next to me, puffed her cheeks and expressed her dissatisfaction.

“Still, it’s a bit disappointing. If we had played our cards right, the Nerañzara could have sunk 2 or 3 ships.”

But I raised a finger and clicked my tongue at Jessica.

“Jessica, Jessica, the Nerañzara-class is a real joker card, you know?”

“Hmm… is that so?”

“Think about it. Have I ever let the Nerañzara-class get damaged in battle since I started operating it here?”

“Ah, I see.”

Someday, when I face another player in PVP, I’ll have the Nerañzara-class sneak up behind them and unleash a barrage of spatial torpedoes for a real surprise.

There’s no need to show off my precious secret weapon to other top players.

After all, doesn’t everyone have a secret weapon that others don’t know about?

“Thinking about it, there’s no point in revealing the Nerañzara-class at the tail end of the event… right?”

“Understood, Commander.”

“And Jessica, you know that the Nerañzara-class can’t really do much more, right?”

“Actually, I was just saying that.”

Moreover, there was another critical reason why the Nerañzara-class couldn’t be more active…

“Commander, all remaining spatial torpedoes have just been exhausted.”

“Hmm, I see.”

Since the resources we brought were completely depleted, I had already offloaded all the Nerañzara-class’s weapons, except for the spatial torpedoes, to the Hreðsvelgr and other ships.

So now, as the bridge NPC reported, our Nerañzara-class, having exhausted all its spatial torpedoes, was left with nothing to do but remain submerged in the aetheric space.

Thus, I sat in this safe spot, watching the battle unfold.

As soon as the Nerañzara’s support was cut off, I saw our allies being pushed back.

I quietly opened the chat window and posted a message saying, “We’ve fought hard enough. Let’s just surrender cleanly.”