Chapter 289

Chapter 289. The Empire’s Three(?) Divisions (2)

And then, our Icarus, after expressing a bored JOY, found themselves in deep contemplation about why they had a ‘super’ micro bikini (plug(?) attachment style) received from Vermouth, along with Jessica.

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…It’s unclear exactly when, but roughly a few days ago.

The Magellan Clan, due to rumors of a conflict with the Justice Clan that started in the gallery, hastily retreated from the monster territory they were planning to expand into.

In an attempt to recover the lost time in that area, they were about to start expanding in another direction when…

“Wee-hahahaha!”

“Sniff, today’s meal was delicious!”

While the rest of the users, excluding the executives, were causing chaos, the Latun Water Clan, whose very existence served as a kind of deterrent.

And now, with the subordinate clans that were friendly with Latun Water suddenly disintegrating, seeing this as an opportunity.

Under the command of Clan Leader Antares, Humanity launched a large-scale invasion towards the territory of the Xenobia Empire.

The scale of this invasion was such that Humanity’s own clan members numbered over 10,000.

Adding the subordinate clans to that…

From battleships to patrol ships, the ‘vanguard alone’ had a minimum of over 1 million ships, an enormous number for a large-scale invasion force that initiated a full-frontal assault.

-“Ah, damn.”

-“What the hell is that number!”

-“This is bad, let’s jump right away.”

The border area, which had the next largest battle after the monster territory and was mostly inhabited by small clans or solo players seeking a ‘pastoral’ atmosphere…

Within just a day of the invasion starting, about 3,000 users lost their homes and became wanderers.

Or they surrendered to the invading Humanity side, leading a life where their fleets and resources were requisitioned.

But despite this situation, unlike during the Pirate Alliance, the main force of the Xenobia Empire did not come to their aid…

—————————————–

<Xenobia Empire Chat Window>

-[Why isn’t our faction coming to help?]

-[The Pirate Alliance fought tooth and nail for us, is this for real?]

-[You idiots, back then the Earth Federation’s main force barged in, so the Pirate Alliance had to move, right?]

—————————————–

Of course, unlike the so-called ‘Southern War’ between the Pirate Alliance and the Earth Federation.

This invasion’s goal wasn’t to weaken the Earth Federation’s military power…

They didn’t lure the Earth Federation’s main force into the fray, and even left the Earth Federation’s ‘faction dispatch team’ at their base untouched.

They strictly used only their own forces to carry out the invasion.

Moreover, because of this, the Xenobia Empire’s command also treated this invasion not as a large-scale invasion by the ‘Earth Federation’.

But as a ‘kids’ fight’ to be resolved among the lower ‘commanders’…

Sadly, the users in the invasion’s path received no help from the ‘home country’, the Xenobia Empire.

The Xenobia Southern Territory, with only a few mid-level clans numbering 2-3 thousand, was utterly crushed under the overwhelming force of over 1 million ships.

Of course, the mid-level clans, with at least level 4 bases, managed to hold out by setting up defensive lines around their bases.

But the rest of the clans and users, as mentioned, couldn’t maintain their territories and were either pushed back or surrendered.

However, not long after, a ray of light… no, two rays of light descended upon the Xenobia faction users who were being swept away by the sudden large-scale invasion.

Due to the Xenobia Empire users’ persistent resistance, Humanity’s invasion force was significantly worn down.

The Justice Clan and the just ‘I Love Hot Pot So Much Happy Clan’, the Loki Clan, quickly moved upon understanding the situation.

And suddenly, the main fleet of Justice from the Xenobia North.

In the southeastern part of Humanity, where the ‘Southern War’ had taken place, the Loki Clan’s raiding fleets appeared, preparing to attack Humanity.

Eventually, Humanity halted their invasion of the Xenobia Empire’s territory.

Except for some areas captured by their subordinate clans, they retreated from all other regions, returning to the Earth Federation.

You showed up.

==========

Someone posted on the gallery, claiming that… was true.

I saw it and couldn’t help but nod.

“This seems like Humanity pushed too hard and crashed into something.”

“Is that so?”

“Yeah, I don’t know the details, but… Humanity’s invasion force didn’t solidify their territory and advance step by step—they rushed in too recklessly.”

On top of that, Humanity’s timing couldn’t have been worse.

Dealing with Justice alone would’ve been tough enough, but then the Loki Clan showed up too?

Even if Humanity is the top clan.

The Loki Clan’s pure user count has now surpassed 40,000, reaching about 80% of Humanity’s total strength.

Justice is also a massive clan with over 30,000 members.

Like Humanity, both clans have their own ‘subsidiary and lower clans.’

It seems Humanity judged they couldn’t win, so they hastily retreated, writing off their entire invasion force as sunk costs.

…Probably?

The problem is, it’s not that simple to think that way.

“It’s suspicious.”

“Yeah, it’s a pretty suspicious situation.”

Humanity isn’t the type to mindlessly push forward like that.

And knowing that Antares, Humanity’s Clan Leader, isn’t the type to handle things carelessly makes it even more suspicious.

As Jessica and I said, the situation is incredibly suspicious.

But even if we’re suspicious, there’s no way for us to know what’s happening in real-time in a place so far away.

After discussing the info we saw on the gallery for a while, we decided it wasn’t something we needed to worry about right now.

So, for now, we decided to drop it.

“Meow~♡”

“Ugh…”

“Ahahaha…”

Why did Smeragi, who went to put on a cat cosplay outfit, suddenly have nine tails instead of two?

And why were Gryanarr and Pashtra, following behind Smeragi, making such微妙 (subtle) expressions?

We decided to ponder that instead.

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Meanwhile, while Icarus was doing some weird stuff…

Inside the Level 8 Base ‘Andromeda Galaxy,’ which the Humanity Clan is currently using as their headquarters…

“Ugh, most of the guys on the purge list are contacting us, begging for fleet repair support ASAP.”

“Repair, huh?”

“What are we gonna do, Antares?”

As Icarus suspected, Humanity’s top brass was making it blatantly obvious that their goal wasn’t just territorial conquest.

Their real goal was…

After the previous ‘Loki Clan spy hunt,’ some internal saboteurs went into hiding, making it hard to catch them.

And even after catching some, there was concern that the Loki Clan might infiltrate new recruits with spies.

So, they pretended to stop the spy hunt, quietly gathered intel to identify the spies and ‘traitors,’ and then…

During this Xenobia Empire expedition, they mainly assigned those users to reckless charges to deplete their strength.

Of course, if they only assigned those users, they might’ve rebelled.

So, they mixed in about 30% regular clan members…

And as the cherry on top, they appointed a ‘half’ Antares faction user—someone who became an officer purely through seniority and connections but was slated for expulsion due to skill and personality issues—as the commander.

They then played on that user’s ambition and desire for glory to avoid backlash against Antares and the leadership later.