My waist bent like a bow.
Though it’s just a word meant to describe a shape, doesn’t it give off an odd sensation?
Nevertheless, that word held the same meaning as despair for me now.
“E, Edu. Are you alright…?”
“My flagship…!”
Unfortunately, it had been positioned above the Earth Eater and got caught in a direct blow from the cruiser’s charge, collapsing into the Earth Eater.
Freya had said she’d reinforce it thoroughly.
I knew its power had been increased with the added acceleration, but…
My flagship.
My flagship!!
Chicken poop-like tears flowed down my cheeks.
While mourning the tragic destruction of a ship I hadn’t even gotten to pilot yet, a hand rested on my shoulder.
“Edu, isn’t that enough?”
“But, President…! My flagship, the flagship…!”
As I clutched at Ryuje’s clothes and spoke, he answered while scratching his cheek.
“Well, it’s strange to say, but wasn’t it not originally ours…?”
“But it’s still heartbreaking!”
It was supposed to be a preparation to take out the Third Fleet, but losing even one flagship was too heartbreaking.
Even if it were just a cruiser that could be replaced, losing a flagship was painful.
“Hmm, I understand your feelings, but can’t we do anything about what’s already happened?”
Comfortingly, Ryuje patted my head.
The warmth flowing through my small hands somewhat calmed my heart, which had been filled with sorrow.
“Ugh, you’re right…”
“Edu! President! Nisia!”
Freya’s voice.
She approached, waving at us from afar.
“What on earth are you all doing here?”
“Edu seemed too upset.”
“Upset?”
Freya, looking inquisitive as to what this was about, tilted her head.
Then Ryuje pointed at what used to be the Earth Eater and the flagship.
“Oh, it’s because the flagship got wrecked?”
“Yes, it was quite the formidable force.”
“But what’s done is done, right? And we heard from the captured aliens that it was actually their flagship.”
“Hmm? That was their flagship?”
Ryuje inquired with interest.
“Yes, which is likely the reason they’ve lost their morale. They must have been stunned to see their flagship and the monster both gone in an instant.”
“Inadvertently, we’ve set an example.”
“Something like that.”
Freya, who had responded in this way, turned her head around.
The ships of the Third Interstellar Navigation Fleet were crushed into the ground amid massive shock and explosions.
Around them, fully-armed soldiers moved to secure the area, while researchers and technicians busily transferred equipment and machinery back and forth through large trailers.
“So, are the ship recoveries proceeding smoothly?”
“Of course. We’ve captured those related to the ships for information extraction, and our technicians are also on site, so it seems like we’ll manage within the set timeframe.”
“Hmm.”
Ryuje nodded.
Freya approached me and poked my cheek.
“So, Edu, let’s head back and rest. Nothing changes by continuing to dwell on what’s already happened, right?”
“Yes…”
I extended my arms towards Freya.
With a faint smile, Freya picked me up with both hands.
I leaned my body on her wrist as I sat there.
The warmth spreading through my whole body felt comforting.
Was it because the tension had eased? My eyelids felt heavy, and sleepiness crept up on me.
“Hmm…”
As I rubbed my eyes with my hand, Freya turned her head towards me.
“Oh, are you sleepy? If you’re tired, it’s okay to sleep.”
“Nehe…”
Hugging her neck tightly to avoid falling, Edu closed her eyes.
The gentle sound of Edu’s breathing could be heard.
Looking at the quickly sleeping Edu, Ryuje smiled softly.
“She’s fallen asleep already.”
“Well, it was a tough day, and she tried her hardest for her small body.”
Freya gently patted the sleeping Edu’s back.
“Alright then, let’s head back to base.”
Ryuje walked ahead.
Freya turned her gaze toward Nisia.
“Nisia? Let’s go.”
“Ah, yes!”
…
The forward base, where the crisp morning air lingered.
Toward the obelisk proudly standing at its center, we moved with Nisia’s support.
“Director.”
“Oh, welcome, Director!”
The squad members who recognized me and greeted me with salutes.
“Hello.”
I gave a familiar response, receiving their salutes and exchanging greetings.
As we moved further inside past them, rough-looking soldiers noticed us.
“Oh, isn’t that the young lieutenant?”
“Hey, you’re rather cute.”
While they said this, they didn’t forget to salute.
As I returned their salute, I firmly reminded them.
“I’m not ‘young’!”
Aitch, why does my tongue get twisted at times like these!
“I’m not young!”
“““….”””
Even after correcting them a little late, as expected, they grinned more than before.
Some sort of warmth could be felt from their gazes.
“Understood, Lieutenant. We’ll be more careful next time.”
“That’s the third time, right?”
“Oh dear, my memory’s a bit…”
Amid their playful jokes, I turned my head with a huff, feeling slightly embarrassed.
Meanwhile, Nisia exchanged greetings with the soldiers as she passed them.
Once we moved on a bit further, there was a familiar door.
Upon opening the door and stepping inside, Ryuje, who was sipping tea, and Freya, lounging on a chair, came into view.
“Oh, you’re here? Did both of you sleep well?”
“Yes, I slept well.”
“And me too.”
Pat-pat.
Freya approached and alternately patted our heads.
Ryuje set down his tea and gestured to the seat with his chin.
“You both sit.”
“Yes.”
Nisia sat me in the chair and took the seat next to me.
Freya returned to her own place.
“Well then, since we’ve gathered enough ships, don’t we need to proceed with the next move?”
“Yes.”
Not all ships have been recovered yet, but that’s only a matter of time.
As Ryuje said, now it’s about time to prepare for facing the Megabase.
“We wanted to use the fallen ones as forces, so don’t we need to move a ship?”
“Yes, ideally, a larger one would be better, but battleships have poor fuel efficiency, so a cruiser will suffice, right?”
Though we took the ships, they don’t have infinite materials and equipment inside.
If we can save something, we should save it.
As I spoke with this thought, Ryuje and Freya nodded their heads.
“A cruiser, you say? I’ll prepare that.”
“Thank you. And by the way, this is a different matter, but is it okay?”
“Hm? What is it?”
“It’s about the colonial cities under the control of the Third Interstellar Navigation Fleet.”
The Third Interstellar Navigation Fleet gathered all the cruisers they had stationed on the planet’s surface and then fought us.
In other words, the colonial cities they had occupied had lost their masters and were left unattended.
We needed to bring the people from those cities to a safe location in preparation for the next phase.
“Now that you mention it, there must be more than a few such cities.”
“Yes.”
The Third Interstellar Navigation Fleet had dominated most of the large cities around the first colonial city we reclaimed.
There were about 20 cities in total.
At a rough estimate, tens of thousands, or perhaps even hundreds of thousands of people had been abandoned with their cities.
“Oh, that…”
But Freya hesitated, not providing a clear answer.
“Is it really too difficult?”
“Yeah. We’re short on personnel, there’s no place to gather and house these people, and decisively speaking—”
Her serious gaze turned toward me.
“We are short on supplies, and the forward base doesn’t have the resources to feed and support that many people.”
“Oh, that makes sense.”
“Yeah.”
I understood her reaction.
As I mentioned before, the ground recovery team’s reputation wasn’t great due to repeated failures.
However, people eat and sleep to survive.
In other words, without proper sustenance and ample rest, one cannot live on.
Without sufficient resources or support, it might be tough to accommodate large numbers of refugees who only consume supplies.
“Hmm, if we can just resolve the supply issue, right?”
“We could manage to accommodate quite a few people if we stretched ourselves, as the forces can be utilized somehow.”
“Why don’t we pressure the other Fangju to disperse and house the people?”
Ryuje’s suggestion to Freya.
“That’s not bad, but won’t that provoke the Fangju unnecessarily?”
“Come on, leave that to me.”
Ryuje spoke calmly.
From her confident demeanor, even if she seemed nonchalant, trust flowed abundantly.
“If we can handle the supplies, then it’s doable.”
“Yes, aside from that, if we ponder it, we can find a way.”
“In that case, I’ll try to acquire the supplies while you, Freya-san, rescue the people.”
At this proposal, Freya’s eyes widened a little.
“Do you have a way?”
“Yes, I know someone.”
…
“-So you’d like to meet my grandfather?”
“Yes, is it alright?”
Clarissa Chronos.
The class president, and one of the female AOE members who helped me during the recent spy incident.
Moreover, her grandfather Halfendel was a person who held up one of the pillars of the Fangju economy.
“Hmm….”
Clarissa, in deep thought.
Even while considering, her behavior remained impeccable, showcasing her noble demeanor, befitting a high-born lady.
After a brief pause, she nodded.
“Alright, if it’s something like that, I should definitely help. I’ll wait for you by the academy’s main gate after classes end.”
“Yes, thank you!”
“Not at all, see you this afternoon then.”
![[TS] The End of Magical Girls Has Come](https://i3.wp.com/darkmtl.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/1737407792-8993-TS-The-end-of-magical-girls-has-come.png?resize=85,105 "[TS] The End of Magical Girls Has Come")