Chapter 530

Chapter 530. Keke, it hurts.

==========

In a way, it’s a pretty obvious story.

But maybe it’s because the damage to users is just too severe in that way.

—————————————–

[Event]

[Stage 1 Battle Ended!]

[Content]

[All Commanders have finished the battle with the Vanguard!]

[Result]

[As of now, all Commanders’ event progress has automatically moved to Stage 2!]

—————————————–

“Oh.”

“That was fast.”

It hadn’t even been a full day since the event started—no, actually, it had been a day, and it was now the second day.

Right after a message popped up saying, “You guys finished Stage 1, good job~,” it felt like…

—————————————–

[Global Event]

[After a Fierce Battle, Rest is Needed!]

[Content]

[Originally, the Grand Cross’s additional offensive was supposed to proceed immediately.]

[However, after running internal simulations, the Grand Cross’s command AI determined that their losses were greater than expected.]

[They have decided to delay the offensive for about a week to buy more time.]

[Result]

[Time remaining until Stage 2: 23 hours 11 minutes 5 seconds ⇒ 7 days 23 hours 11 minutes 4 seconds (7 days added)]

—————————————–

Looking at the message that popped up about the additional time, I nodded my head and said,

“Since users are getting wiped out so badly, the admins are giving us time to recover.”

“Is it really that bad?”

“Probably? All I can see is what’s happening around me and in the community forums.”

“Ah, that makes sense.”

And it seemed like I wasn’t the only one thinking this, as reactions to the message exploded all over the forums.

—————————————–

Title: The admins must be freaking out right now

Author: ㅇㅇ

Content: [Image of a toad sparkling with starlight]

They probably thought they were being all balanced and stuff, but…

Some people are handling it with zero losses, while others are completely wiped out and can’t even participate in the next event.

This just shows how messed up the balance is, so they’re probably scrambling to buy time.

Comments:

-[Lol, true]

-[But seriously, solo players are getting wiped out way too much]

-˪[Are there really that many solo players?]

-˪[Just in the Central Zone alone, there are at least 50,000 pure solo players]

-˪[That’s a lot]

—————————————–

—————————————–

Title: Starting now, I will begin praising the admins

Author: ㅇㅇ

Content: [Image of a toad raising its middle finger]

Thought I was gonna do that, huh? You idiots.

Why can’t you balance things properly?

Comments:

-[So you’re saying you’re homeless now?]

-˪[Siiisabararababab](Author)

-[Look at this guy having a meltdown]

-[Cowardly attacking with facts]

—————————————–

…Even though some of the reactions were a bit weird, the important thing was that users now had precious time to recover their fleets and superhumans.

Our jokester users were already busy preparing for the next event, making the most of the time they had.

A week later.

“Commander, all fleets are ready for deployment.”

“Hmm.”

“The mercenary groups and faction dispatch teams are also ready!”

“Uhhuh.”

Finally, on the morning of the start of Stage 2.

I made sure to equip all the depleted gear, restock the aircraft and missiles that had been exhausted during leveling, and checked the condition of the superhumans.

After confirming that everything was in order, I nodded in relief and proceeded to enter the event map for Stage 2.

==========

Of course, even after entering, it wasn’t like the battle would start immediately.

—————————————–

[Grand Cross Event]

[Stage 2 Battle in Progress]

[Current Waiting Members: 892/1,000]

Once all members are filled, the battle will automatically start in 5 minutes.

—————————————–

[Grand Cross Stage 2 Event Map Exclusive Chat Room]

-[Sec]

-[Tteu]

-[Ship?]

-[You crazy guys]

-[So when does the battle start?]

-[Don’t ask without reading the content, check it yourself]

-[Where are the enemies coming from?]

-[We don’t know either]

-[It’s our first time doing this event, so no one knows lol]

-[Ah]

—————————————–

“It’s bustling.”

“That’s right.”

873 users, no, one more just joined, making it 873 users, along with their main forces.

Perhaps because they allowed ‘mercenary groups’ and ‘faction dispatch units,’ which were usually restricted in event maps, to be brought along.

I couldn’t help but feel a strange sensation seeing far more ships than I had imagined in my mind.

Of course, it might be because the mercenary groups and faction dispatch units replaced the ‘small ship’ forces.

—————————————–

[Grand Cross Stage 2 Event Map Exclusive Chat Room]

-[Some crazy guy brought a fleet with only battleships and above]

-[Ah, the mercenaries will handle the small ships anyway lol]

-[Damn, mercenary ships are just regular-grade ships]

-[Where did you dump the small ships?]

-[Gave them to the new era]

-[Left them at the base?]

-[Trust the faction dispatch units, bro]

—————————————–

Our user friends, as if suffering from a chronic user-specific disease.

That vicious spirit of big ships and big guns, even after the fleet was torn apart in the first stage of battle, still reared its head without hesitation.

“…How on earth did those crazy people think of bringing only Dreadnoughts?”

“Well, since the Ancient Empire’s ships only know how to do fleet battles, they’re probably just planning accordingly.”

Even Jessica, who’s still half a novice in fleet battles, is saying such things while I’m whispering in her ear.

Imagine how the other users must be.

—————————————–

Title: Why are there so many large ships in Stage 2?

Author: Garten

Content: [A different map from where Icarus is, but here too, the ‘user fleet’ is swarming with battleship-class and above.jpg]

And damn, it’s all cruisers or battleship-class and above.

If they brought a bunch of carriers, at least you could feel like they’re trying to counter the Ancient Empire’s fleet, which is a one-trick pony in fleet battles.

But damn, bringing Dreadnoughts or Siege Assault Ships against the Ancient Empire’s fleet, which is a beast in fleet battles, what are they thinking?

They’re just gonna get wrecked by the Ancient Empire’s fleet, lose their large ships, and then cry for help from the users.

It’s so vivid in my mind, those damn Shericlats.

Comments:

-[Excuse me, but you’re on fire]

-[You were so mad you even made typos at the end]

-[Lololol]

-[They’re just gonna get wiped out]

-[Crushed by the calamity they brought upon themselves~]

-[But isn’t the faction dispatch units at least somewhat stronger than regular ships?]

-[The Ancient Empire’s fleet strength scales with the total user strength, so the faction dispatch units and mercenaries alone might not be enough] (Author)

-[Hmm, maybe]

—————————————–

“Everyone’s on fire.”

“You sound like an arsonist.”

Many users expressed deep concerns that the user forces might get wiped out in Stage 2 in a different sense.

Of course, most users, armed with their big ship, big gun mentality, denied it, saying, ‘My precious battleships won’t get wrecked so easily.’

But the moment all users joined and the Stage 2 battle began, those proud battleship enthusiasts were brought to tears.