Chapter 114

Leaving the erosion zone filled with chaos and madness, we encounter the barrier and fortified city that protect reality and order. After crossing several more kilometers, we can see the safe living quarters of humanity. Countless people are fiercely living day by day in the human habitation spread across multiple continents.

However, this is not our stage. To truly take the stage, we must leave the continent.

Beyond the undulating waves, crossing the sea, we can face a group of countless islands. This is the Rustroom Archipelago.

The academy city of Rustroom is located on the main island of the Rustroom Archipelago. Surrounding the massive main island are over dozens of smaller islands scattered like stars in the night sky. If the main island is the largest gem adorned in a crown, then the surrounding islands are the tiny decorative jewels.

Although the majority of the population of the archipelago is concentrated on the giant main island of Rustroom, people also inhabit the surrounding islands.

Prominent islands include Mistia, Veridis, and Cascadia. If you were to stop a passerby and ask for the name of an island in the Rustroom Archipelago, they would most likely name these three major islands. While not as populous as Rustroom, they still have a significant number of residents. The low occurrence of gates ensures safety, and the beautiful scenery makes them famous tourist destinations.

However, not all islands in the archipelago are easily accessible. Some islands have been completely eroded, and there are places off-limits due to clan forward bases or federal military outposts. Moreover, the vast majority are uninhabited, deserted islands.

We Violets have taken note of this geographical feature. An uninhabited island means no one lives there, making it a good worksite. While the troublesome issues are handled by the Violet Barracks in the Central District, the rest of us took a boat and headed out beyond the main island of Rustroom.

“Is the Adela family home on that island we stopped by earlier?”

“Yeah, that’s the one.”

By taking an armed ferry from Rustroom, we can reach Cascadia Island. After securing another boat and traveling for a while, we were met by the towering cliffs of Respera Island.

“Is this a famous spot? I don’t see many people here. We came up, but there’s not a single person around.”

“It’s probably because it’s not tourist season now.”

Respera Island is a small island with a high volcano and rugged cliffs. While it may not be as famous as the three major islands, it is considered a tourist attraction in its own right.

However, for us, who are tirelessly working year-round to topple the academy, there is no sudden reason to visit for leisure. The Violets are here for other reasons.

“Well, it’s good since there aren’t many people to practice!”

Respera Island has a suitable sea breeze and high cliffs. This natural environment has made the island a hot spot for paragliding and wingsuit enthusiasts. It means it’s an excellent environment for flight practice.

“Okay, Violet Flight Squadron, make your entrance!”

The Violet Squad has just established its first flight squadron today.

*

Originally, we had planned to practice flying on the main island of Rustroom. Our future operational environment will be an urban area, so it would be better to conduct takeoff and flight in the city.

“Alright, let’s get started.”

“Be careful not to break anything!”

After putting the delivered parts into the inventory, we moved them to the explosives workshop far away.

The Violets at the workshop began taking out powered hang glider parts from boxes and started assembling them. Soon, a proper aircraft was born in the middle of the factory. After fueling it and starting the engine, it worked perfectly.

However, a problem arose in the next stage.

“How do you steer this thing?”

Although it is less complicated than an actual airplane, the powered hang glider is still a type of aircraft. I had never flown a plane before, so I had no idea how to operate it.

“There’s no joystick; how are we supposed to control it?”

“Is this even the right one?”

The ‘powered hang gliders’ we ordered were of different types. One was a plane-like vehicle with an engine, seat, and landing gear attached beneath a hang glider. The other was a simplified version with just an engine and gondola attached beneath a parachute. Technically, this should be referred to as a powered parachute.

We rummaged through the included manuals, books, and various video materials.

“It says you steer by shifting your weight!”

“It’s just like a motorcycle!”

I sat in the unstarted seat and began to move around. After a few tries, I felt like I could do it.

“Let’s get started right away!”

“Prepare for takeoff!”

We dragged the powered hang glider to the wasteland near the workshop. Many volunteers stepped up to be the first one to ride it, so we used a computer RNG to pick a number. Number 74 came up.

“Yay!”

Number 74 grinned widely and hopped into the seat. As I started the engine, it sputtered a few times before the propeller began to spin furiously. The hang glider moved forward.

“Try moving your body back and forth; that might make it take off!”

As the surrounding Violets offered advice, 74 followed their instructions. The hang glider soared into the sky.

“Wow, I’m flying! I’m flying!”

The Violet successfully achieved true powered flight. The hang glider ascended slowly but surely into the sky. Number 74, elated, spun around in the air.

“I’m flying!”

“Amazing! It’s your first time, and you nailed it!”

We applauded, filled with excitement. A few of the thrilled Violets popped champagne from their inventory. This flight was just a small attempt, but for us Violets, it was a significant leap! Now, our influence stretches toward the sky.

“Now, I’ll try landing!”

After soaring in the air for a while, Number 74 attempted to land in the wasteland. Not knowing what would happen, several Violets came out with a net from the workshop. They spread the net on both sides, planning to catch the hang glider for a safe landing.

“I’m coming down!”

The hang glider with Number 74 landed toward the ground. However, caught up in excitement, 74 ended up making a mistake. She approached the ground at too steep an angle.

“Huh? Uh! This feels unstable!”

“The angle!!”

There was no chance to reduce speed, and the hang glider crashed into the ground. The fuselage flipped over, and the wings were shattered.

“Awk!”

“Ahhh! Our hang glider is destroyed!”

Number 74 screamed as she slammed into the ground.

“Ugh… I think I broke my back.”

“Alright. Number 74! Perform reverse generation!”

Number 74 hadn’t died but was seriously injured. Her body slowly scattered into particles of glowing magical power. But it wasn’t a problem if a Violet died or got hurt. The hang glider was wrecked. The propeller was broken, and the fuselage was shattered.

“Oh, what a waste! Our hang glider!”

“It can’t be helped! We’ll get a new one. Just be careful when flying next time.”

Fortunately, we hadn’t just ordered one powered hang glider. After reviewing the previous issues, we set off for another attempt.

“How about enhancing our bodies a bit to control them while steering? That’ll let us move much more delicately.”

The engine started making a booming sound as it operated again. The new hang glider rose into the sky.

“Slowly, slowly! Don’t worry; we’ll catch you with the net!”

“Alright! Landing!”

This time the hang glider landed more stably than before. Although we faced the problem of needing to stop it with the net before it clocked to a halt, the hang glider was in one piece.

“Sure enough, enhancing reaction time with magic makes control much easier.”

“Just don’t overdo it. We need to conserve magical power.”

And on the third flight, the hang glider successfully landed stably.

“Finally!”

As Number 542 disembarked from the hang glider, the surrounding Violets rushed in to celebrate her.

“Yay!”

“Let’s keep it going from here!”

The Violets were laughing, chatting, and bouncing around when Number 10, watching from the Violet Barracks, chimed in.

“So, what do we do now?”

“What do we do? We need to practice takeoffs. We can try flying target practice, bombing…”

“What about wingsuits?”

“Oh, right.”

The eyes of the Violets turned toward the unused wingsuits. Now that I think about it, I’m not sure where we should practice with them.

“How about jumping from the hang glider or generating clones in mid-air?”

“Are we doing that already? Let’s do that once we’re used to it; for now, we should jump from a high place first.”

The Violets nodded in agreement to the reasonable suggestion.

Then, what could be a good spot? Jumping from a tall building seems ideal. Coincidentally, right in the heart of the Central District is Rustroom Veil, a structure boasting a KM height.

“Isn’t it going to be way too conspicuous to do it in the middle of the city? At least the workshop was in a somewhat remote area.”

“Then, where’s a place that’s less populated and good?”

Someone came up with a new idea.

“Do we absolutely have to do it within the academy city? There are a lot of islands outside, right?”

“Aha!”

*

Thus, the Violets headed to the cliffs of Respera Island.

“Everyone! Get ready!”

Confirming that there were no people around, I created a clone and donned the wingsuit. The wingsuit could be replicated just like other clothes.

“The weather’s nice! And the wind is great!”

“No one’s approaching! We can start!”

In the sky, a squadron of hang gliders that had been airlifted and assembled from the inventory was flying overhead.

The three hang gliders were mainly taking on a control training role but were also coincidentally practicing flying. We were additionally scouting to check if anyone was approaching.

“Team 1, beginning descent!”

“We’re droppingaaa!”

First, five Violets threw themselves off the high cliff.

As we fell, we spread our arms and legs. The fierce resistance made it hard to spread out, but we activated magic on our limbs to exert strength. The film attached to our clothes deployed. It felt as though we floated. The speed of descent decreased slightly, and the fall transformed into flight. We began gliding through the air, embracing air resistance with our bodies.

“Yay! This is fast! It’s the best!”

“Kya-ha-ha!”

The fierce sea breeze that we could feel even behind our masks and goggles excites us. The speed is incomparable to that of the hang glider, and we felt a thrilling rush.

However, aside from the fun, steering was incredibly difficult. Just a little twist of our limbs had us spinning wildly in the air or heading in completely the wrong direction.

In high-speed flight, clumsy mistakes lead to death.

And then, an incident occurred.

“Ugh!”

Number 412 crashed into a rock due to a flight miscalculation. It was a result of losing control in the fierce wind. 412 disappeared like a crushed tomato.

“412 is dead!”

The remaining four Violets kept their focus as they descended toward the ground. In the distance, the reckless drop ended with white waves crashing and rocks waiting for us.

“Uh? Uh! I’m stuck! Ack!”

While flying near the trees, Number 67 misjudged the height of a tree and got caught. Number 67’s neck broke.

“This is the training control officer! We’re nearly at the destination. It’s time to deploy parachutes and land!”

The three remaining members reached the destination safely. Since we couldn’t land in places with people, we decided to submerge into the sea.

Below us, a pulsating mix of deep blue and white foam awaited. All we had to do was deploy our parachutes!

“No! The parachute won’t deploy! Aaaaah!”

Unfortunately, at the last minute, Number 443’s parachute failed to open. Number 234 and Number 110 landed safely, but Number 443 crashed into the sea.

“All surviving Violets, quickly perform reverse generation. Now, next!”

“Team 2, beginning descent!”

The Violets continued to plunge, practicing repeatedly. Like flowers dropping, they leapt from the cliffs and vanished.

As we died multiple times, we gradually became familiar with flight.

After the training, the remaining Violets discussed wingsuit flying.

“I looked it up, and wingsuit flying is more falling than flying.”

“It’s fast but challenging.”

The wingsuit was immensely harder compared to the hang glider. It lacked any propulsion equipment, and control was complex. A minor mishap in steering sent us flying off course.

Moreover, the drop speed was swift. Apparently, for every meter fallen, it moves about 2.5 meters forward. In other words, to fly around 10 kilometers, one has to jump from over 4 kilometers above.

“When it comes to actual usage, we’ll have to jump out of the hang glider. Or generate clones.”

“While it would help with rapid infiltration, sustaining flight would be overly challenging. We need to consider that if stationed at too high an altitude, the powered hang glider’s engine may not function well.”

“What if we just attach rockets to our backs?”

“Rejected, we can’t control the propulsion.”

Violet 45 and Violet 31 expressed skeptical views. While they pondered, Violet 289 responded.

“Don’t be too negative! We can use them for the different necessary roles.”

Reflecting on the necessity of roles, it turned out to be true. Nothing is truly versatile in this world; thus, applying it to suitable situations is crucial.

Powered hang gliders can fly freely in the sky but are considerably clunky and slow. Wingsuits are quick and agile, but they can only glide.

We deliberated on how to overcome the strengths and weaknesses of the two items.

Number 3 slammed their knee and shouted.

“If distance is the problem, how about jumping from a hot air balloon or an airship? We could jump from a higher position than with the hang glider!”

“That’s a great idea, isn’t it?”

The Violets found Number 3’s suggestion appealing and recorded it.

The hang glider can’t really ascend to high altitudes due to engine performance issues. But a large helium balloon or hot air balloon could elevate us even higher. Placing a Violet below the balloon as a base could also enable continuous production and deployment of a wingsuit assault team.

As everyone shared their thoughts, we realized there were so many possibilities. The option of flight could provide us with so much more in our battles.

“Wait a second, everyone.”

In that moment, Number 178 proposed an intriguing idea.

“Why is everyone acting strange? Why are we only trying to use wingsuits as a means of transportation?”

“…!”

I had forgotten. The Violets have their own unique methods! There’s a way to maximize the advantages of wingsuits.

*

A few days later, while the Violets on the main island scrambled with various problems, the Violets outside the island ventured further into the sea.

The place we headed by boat was an uninhabited island. A location far from Respera Island. We planned to conduct combat training here.

The Violet Flight Squadron, having completed preparations, soared into the sky across the sandy beach. The five diverse hang gliders began their formation flying.

“Alright, don’t drift from your positions. Get ready!”

The hang gliders slowly flew toward the target area. Before long, the formation reached the sky over the uninhabited island. There, various targets like watermelons, mannequins, and broken appliances lay spread out.

“Attack aircraft, prepare to fire!”

First, the single-seat hang gliders and powered parachutes approached. Each held an automatic rifle or small homemade bomb in hand.

“Commence the attack!”

The squadron leader Violet issued the command. The Violets aboard the hang gliders opened fire on the ground and threw bombs.

– Boom!

A targeted mannequin fell over after taking gunfire from the rifles. Bombs followed, raining down. The mannequin was blown to pieces.

As the small hang gliders withdrew, this time, the two-seater hang glider slowly circled the target like a hawk eyeing its prey.

While the pilot in the front concentrated on operating, the Violet in the passenger seat pulled a 60-type machine gun from the inventory.

“Attack aircraft, commence firing!”

– Tatatatatatang!

The Violet in the passenger seat lined the red dot of the sight with the target. As she pulled the trigger, bullets poured out like rain. The yellow flares swept across the targets.

– Bapa-pat!

The table and the watermelons on it erupted and shattered.

“Destruction completed!”

Once the machine gun fire ceased, the Violet pulled out a grenade launcher and aimed it at the ground. With a small boom, the targets were showered with fragments and reduced to shambles.

“This part was according to plan, nothing major.”

“The important part is what comes next; we have to succeed…”

After the shooting training concluded, the Violets waiting on the ground of the uninhabited island brought out a large white cloth. An aiming sheet drawn with a black cross was spread out in the center.

We pinned down each corner of the cloth to the ground and then scattered back to the trenches to take cover.

“Number 5, ascend to maximum altitude!”

One of the powered hang gliders instructed, revving its engine to maximum thrust and soaring high into the sky. Number 12 scanned the surroundings, only deep blue sea sprawling below. After moving far from the island, Number 12 focused their magical energy.

A clone wearing a wingsuit was generated under the hang glider. Number 241 donned a heavy vest and backpack. Number 241 opened the film and began gliding towards the island. Although the heavy load made her movements sluggish, she could still fly.

“Number 241, you can do it!”

“Focus! Stay focused!”

Listening to the encouragement from the others, Number 241 gained confidence. The harsh wind whistled past her ears. She could barely hear over the sound of the wind. The once-distant uninhabited island steadily grew larger. Letting the wind guide her, Number 241 plummeted freely.

Soon, the target came into view. The white cloth spread on the ground was rapidly approaching. The black cross etched on the cloth became clearer. Number 241 twisted her limbs diligently to adjust her flight trajectory, making sure to avoid drifting from the landing zone.

“It’s getting closer! Kya-ha!”

Number 241 internally cheered. She spotted the squadron of Violets circling in the sky. They could see the others waiting on the ground. The white cloth was now right in front of her. The ground is getting closer. It’s imminent. Collision!

“It’s going to explode!”

– KAAAAM!

Number 241 precisely collided with the center of the white cloth target. A second later, a fierce explosion engulfed the designated point.

The first to witness the result were the Violets in the squadron.

“Did we succeed?”

“We did it! We succeeded!”

Number 241, back in the Violet Network, shouted triumphantly.

“See? I did it!”

“Well done!”

The Violets on the uninhabited island couldn’t contain their excitement and began jumping and dancing.

“Today is a great day. Let’s party and drink!”

“Long live!”

We celebrated our new success, relishing yet another advance in Violet military science. It was impossible not to be elated. Today, at this very moment, the Violets have gained the power to wipe out any villainous groups from a distance!

A weapon capable of showering precise lightning upon our enemies’ heads, the Violet Airborne Guided Bomb, has been born!

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