Chapter 187

Vroom—

A military truck crossing the wilderness.

Even though it was racing over a rather rough surface, the off-road large tires and the shock-absorbing devices installed in the cargo area minimized the felt vibrations, and the soft mattress absorbed whatever jolts remained.

The interior space, divided by a large door, was filled with living furniture for our group.

It was less like a truck’s cargo hold and more akin to a hotel, but no one cared about that fact.

“Hehehe.”

Seoli, nestled in my arms and squirming around.

Her actions were much the same as before, but her grown-up body now made the sensations I felt from her movements a bit dangerous.

“Seo, Seoli, can you move back a little?”

A cautious suggestion.

Seoli, upon hearing me, opened her eyes wide and backed off, then immediately took on an expression as if the sky had fallen.

“Move away? Does Small Mommy not like Seoli anymore…?”

“N-no, it’s not that—”

“Uuuh….”

Her eyes began to well up.

About to burst into tears, I immediately opened my arms and embraced the now larger Seoli.

“A-ah, no. There’s no way Small Mommy could stop liking Seoli, right?”

“…Really?”

“Of course. Why would Mommy ever stop liking Seoli?”

“Small Mommy!”

Seoli threw her arms around me.

As I felt her soft and now much larger frame against my belly, I stroked her head, which was pressed against my face.

“Hehe, Small Mommy! I really like it!”

Seoli, always showing her unwavering affection.

As her warmth transmitted through the cheek pressed against mine, I felt a smile naturally rising to my lips, when I suddenly felt my sleeve being pulled from the side.

I looked down to find a pair of sparkling eyes meeting mine exactly.

Similar in size to the former Seoli, the Red Queen, now named Hwa-ryong, was gripping my collar tightly.

“Ryong, what is it?”

“…”

Without a word, Hwa-ryong stared at me intensely, then suddenly turned her head away.

And yet, the way she never let go of my collar while glancing back at me occasionally made her look incredibly cute.

“Seoli, say ‘Ah.'”

“A~h!”

Seoli, trusting me completely, opened her mouth widely.

I placed one of the candies we received in abundance at the forward base into her mouth.

“Uuung! It’s sweet! Thank you!”

Seoli cheered, raising both arms high.

“Then Ryong, say ‘Ah.'”

“…”

Hwa-ryong, blushing while looking around after hearing me.

“A~”

When urged again, she tightly shut her eyes and slightly opened her small mouth.

Into the round little mouth of Hwa-ryong, I popped a candy.

Hwa-ryong’s body flinched upon sensing the unknown object in her mouth, but her face lit up with a pure smile as she realized it was candy.

“Does it taste good?”

“…!”

Hwa-ryong immediately returned her face to normal upon hearing my question.

With her cheeks crimson, she pulled my clothing up higher to cover her head.

A little while later, she peeked out from under the cloth to check my reaction.

Finding her cute, I reached out to her head, but Hwa-ryong quickly turned her head away without shaking off my hand.

Pet, pet.

Hwa-ryong’s ears were turning red.

While playing with the two girls like this, Nisia, who had been watching us with a smile from a distance, now spoke up.

“Still, it’s good that Ryong follows Edu so well.”

“Indeed.”

Seoli was a bundle of happiness in motion while Hwa-ryong had a bit of a porcupine-like side.

She was stubborn, would snarl and threaten when people other than me approached, but she was also shy and possessed a pure nature.

Perhaps the best way to describe her in one word would be tsundere.

“But Edu, what are you planning to do that requires this much preparation?”

Nisia’s gaze shifted toward the cargo area.

Beyond it, the mountain of items piled up reflected in her eyes.

“The Ustansha have sent reinforcements to tie them down, and they’re not an immediate threat for now. Still, it’d be too difficult to respond if the situation ever turned dangerous, so we need to act beforehand.”

“Uh…tie down the aliens’ feet?”

Nisia tilted her head.

“Don’t they have ships? Will things go as we plan?”

“Hmph, even if they have mobile means like ships, their feet can still be tied.”

“How do you plan to do it?”

“Simple. We’ll change the priority of dangers that the enemy perceives.”

Nisia’s eyes widened.

“Change the enemy’s danger priority?”

“Yeah. Nisia, what do you think the Ustansha reinforcements came here to Earth for?”

“Well, maybe to help their comrades who came earlier?”

“Right, but here’s something worth pointing out—what or who were those comrades trying to be saved from?”

“Ah.”

Nisia nodded briefly with a small exclamation.

“That’s right; the aliens took the biggest hits from the Cryptids and Invaders!”

“That’s correct.”

The biggest obstacles to the Ustansha Empire’s invasion weren’t us but the Invaders and Cryptids.

It was certain that their primary targets of caution were these two.

“But aren’t the remaining enemies and prisoners from other fleets still around? Won’t they tell the Ustansha about us?”

“The information will likely be passed along.”

The First and Third Interstellar Navigation Fleets were completely annihilated, but the Fourth Interstellar Navigation Fleet still remained.

“Then isn’t that dangerous?”

“It won’t be that dangerous because the Fourth Interstellar Navigation Fleet suffered far more from the Invaders than from us.”

The Invader fleets were continuously attacking the jurisdiction of the Fourth Interstellar Navigation Fleet.

Unable to hold up against the prolonged war of attrition, the Ustansha gave up their pride and reverted to the trench warfare tactics of old eras to barely withstand the onslaught.

“And even if we shout about the dangers we pose, the number of aliens who would corroborate that will be small.”

“Uh…weren’t there quite a few surviving prisoners?”

“That’s true, but the majority of those prisoners were soldiers, not commanding officers, right?”

The First and Third Interstellar Navigation Fleets, along with their leaders, were completely wiped out.

While a fair number of soldiers from that fleet remained, as Nisia had said, they were not opinion-makers but merely parties who experienced the events in fragments.

The information that these individuals could know and relay was inevitably limited.

“Soldiers have less speaking power, and from the start, they don’t know much, so the Empire types won’t listen much to the words of the defeated.”

The stronger the self-esteem and sense of belonging within a group, the more resistance will erupt when that group’s honor and image are tarnished.

Moreover, the Empire’s Royal Guard and main fleet were a group that adhered to strict elitism, even more so in the heavily hierarchical Ustansha Empire.

Perhaps it would be lucky if they merely mocked and belittled the defeated.

“So, the aliens also have various complexities.”

“People everywhere are the same, right?”

Rather, they aren’t exactly people but aliens, but since Nisia didn’t respond to my statement, I subtly continued the conversation.

“So, we’ll give the enemy a big shock before their tactical decisions are set in stone, and at the right moment, use a fitting means.”

“From the last time?”

“Correct.”

The Invader army dormant within the collection.

Although I was the one commanding this massive army, the Ustansha don’t know this fact.

“And this time, I’m going to try a few other things.”

“Other things?”

“Yeah.”

Even if it’s a feint to deceive the enemy, the Ustansha are no different from Invaders or Cryptids—they are invaders.

Moreover, since we have rescued all the people they treated like livestock who were holding us back, there’s nothing to hinder us.

Why would we need to fight the wicked invaders honorably?

“Hehe, you can count on me.”

As we were having that conversation, a buzzing sound rang out, and a holographic screen appeared at the front of the cargo area, showing the driver’s seat.

An auto-maton with an elegant but emotionless cold gaze.

But I knew that face well.

“Miss Mu, is there anything?”

Mu.

A connection formed when she snuck into Jeok’s house to get revenge for the previous Guild Leader.

Though I had been aware that the Dean mentioned he would take care of things beforehand, I hadn’t expected that it would mean he brought Mu over.

“Mr. Edu, we’re about to arrive at our destination. Please finish any necessary preparations.”

“Oh, okay.”

I nodded in response, and Miss Mu also slightly bowed on the screen.

A smile rose naturally to my face.

“Shall we go now to teach the bad aliens a lesson?”

…

High above the ash-gray city, the massive disc-shaped mothership proudly rested.

Surrounding this flagship of the Fourth Interstellar Navigation Fleet were various other ships, gathering together in a way unlike usual.

Unlike the sleek ships of the Fourth Interstellar Navigation Fleet, the ships from the main fleet exuded a rugged and retro look.

Countless shuttles moved busily between the ground and the air when, inside the mothership, two alien admirals shook hands.

“It’s been a while, Master.”

“True, it’s been a long time, Gelang. You’ve been through a lot, haven’t you?”

“…I’m ashamed.”

“There’s no need for that. Wars never flow exactly as planned.”

A hand placed on Gelang’s shell-covered shoulder.

At those words, Gelang’s tense shoulders relaxed, and his bowed head slowly raised again.

“I’ve heard that you continue to care for your subordinates?”

“…I apologize.”

The Master, called as such by Gelang, grabbed his shoulder and gently pushed his head back up.

“No, it wasn’t meant as criticism, so there’s no need to bow your head.”

“…”

Despite the warm encouragement, Gelang continued to keep his head bowed, trembling his antennae slightly without saying anything.

“Your face is dark… Now that the Empire’s main fleet has arrived, you can have some confidence.”

With a pat, the Master encouraged Gelang, who then slowly lifted his head.

“…Master, I have something I’d like to discuss.”

“Alright, with plenty of time, let’s have a leisurely talk as Master and student, after such a long time.”

As they sat in their chairs in response, an alien suddenly rushed into the captain’s room, opening the door.

The alien addressed as Master shivered slightly.

“Hmm, I distinctly told them not to enter without permission.”

“I-I apologize! But it’s an urgent matter I couldn’t ignore—”

Listening to the officer’s nervous explanation, memories of past events flashed through Gelang’s mind, and his lips parted naturally.

“So, what is it?”

“T-th-there’s a massive army of native organisms advancing towards us!”

“What?!”