Chapter 48

"Is this your first time at sea?"

The one who called Yaan up onto the deck was Cain, wearing only a shirt.

"Aren't you supposed to be with the admiral?"

"I slipped away. Thought I'd die of drink otherwise."

Drinking on duty here too.

Compared with the carnage on the front, the rear was lax beyond belief; Yaan sighed at the sight.

The autumn leaves had already fallen, and a cold winter sea-wind swept across the deck of the transport cutting through the open ocean, yet Cain looked refreshed, as if enjoying it.

"Looks like the commander is already used to this?"

"Came on trips when I was a kid. First time heading to the front, though."

Having said that, Cain leaned on the rail and handed Yaan a tin flask.

"Have a swig. Knights are just cargo at sea anyway."

"I don't drink."

"Figured you'd say that, so I had the cook swap it for juice."

At Cain's words Yaan said nothing and put the bottle-no, the juice bottle-to his lips.

A bright fruit scent mingled with the unmistakable aftertaste of preservatives; the flavor defied description.

"Miss Diana told me. You killed eleven men the day before sailing?"

"They poured beer over my head. Abused my authority a bit."

"Dandel. Must be because of him."

At Cain's pinpoint remark Yaan's eyes deepened.

"I'm only keeping a promise I made to the commander."

"Fight for me. That's what I said."

"To keep that promise, the Greyhounds' reputation must remain untarnished."

Hearing Yaan's words, Cain gave a bitter smile and took a sip from his own flask.

"It'll be a long fight. No need to strain yourself already. Just do the work in front of you, and the chance will come."

"I don't just get it done. I do it perfectly, and with the least possible loss."

Once begun, he had no thought of stopping or turning back.

Hiram Belkuth. The instant he saw that face, Yaan swore it.

"Fleet sighted on the horizon! Confirming one cruiser Velosta and three destroyers! Recon element of Second Fleet!"

As the lookout aloft shouted, deckhands relayed the news to the bridge via speaking-tube.

"Signal sighted! It welcomes the casualties reaching the front! Proceeding straight to rendezvous with this ship! End!"

Matching the bridge's orders, the sailor who'd spoken began waving flags at the approaching Second Fleet.

'Thanks for the welcome. Glory to the Empire.'

"Don't know why naval signals need so much fancy phrasing."

"It's their culture. Not our place to interfere."

Alternately watching the transport squadron and the recon squadron trading signals, Yaan and Cain exchanged quiet comments while observing the sailors' work.

"Hm?"

Something caught his eye, and Yaan's face twisted.

"What's wrong?"

"Something's moving toward the recon squadron."

After speaking, Cain stared toward the oncoming cruiser and destroyers with a vacant expression.

"The cruiser's barely the size of a finger, and you can still see that?"

"Yes."

Yaan's left eye-like Ren's had-shifted pupil and lens size to correct his vision.

Just as if he were zooming in the cockpit of Glaepnir, Yaan scanned at maximum magnification and muttered a curse.

Out of the empty-looking sea it leapt, cleaving the water and racing forward.

"Shit, that's a torpedo."

The instant he said it-

Boom-!

With a metallic shriek the destroyer took the hit squarely, split in two and burst into flame.

"Enemy assault! Enemy assault!"

"Confirm blast bearing! Bearing northwest thirty-two degrees!"

"Port evasive! Following ships, follow this vessel!"

The captain's shout over the loudspeaker joined the sirens and bells summoning soldiers to flood the deck.

Aaaaaang-!

"Battle stations! Every last one, battle stations!"

"Battle? This ship's a transport!"

"Look! At the recon squadron!"

Boom-!

Soon another destroyer lurched with an explosion.

Not hit amidships, it didn't sink outright, but its upper works were reduced to dust; sailors began leaping overboard one by one.

Boom-boom-boom-!

Unable to endure any longer, the cruiser's main guns opened fire down the torpedo's path.

Yet no enemy appeared; they only wasted shells.

"Dammit, what the hell is going on?"

Had this been land he would already have mounted a colossus and gone to battle, but this was the middle of the sea.

A colossus of heavy iron was helpless on the open ocean.

"Scope sighted bearing northeast thirty-two degrees! White sharks!"

"Relay to Velosta! Hurry!"

A sailor waved a signal lamp toward the distant cruiser.

While Velosta's guns searched for a firing solution, the last destroyer turned its bow toward the area the transport had marked.

Fwoosh-!

Torpedoes burst from the destroyer's stern, carving arcs and exploding underwater, yet they signaled the cruiser with a flare-unable to find the submarine they sought.

"Did it flee?"

"No. Still there. Right beneath the destroyer."

Through the eye Ren had implanted, Yaan knew the submarine's location, but grabbing a sailor and telling him was useless.

"Knights, please take cover inside!"

"The submarine's position-"

"Unless it's land combat, the sea is our domain! We'll escort you to the base, so follow our orders!"

If he were that sailor and a knight fresh from ground combat claimed to know where the submarine was, he'd call it nonsense.

Crunch-!

The instant the thought formed, the sailors' eyes filled with horror.

"What the-"

"The rumors were true!?"

As if torn apart by a giant hand, the destroyer-still sowing torpedoes-split in two with a sickening sound.

Through the wreckage, the prow of a submarine burst above the surface.

Unlike other subs painted black for concealment, this one gleamed pure white-an alien sight that explained why they called it the White Shark.

"At this rate the unit will vanish before we even report in."

With a click of his tongue, Yaan dashed toward the cargo hold.

"Yaan! Where are you going!"

"Tell them to open the deck elevator!"

"What are you planning! A colossus can't-"

"Use Cain Lorenz's name or the commander's authority-just get it open! I'll do what I can!"

"...Understood!"

Glaepnir flashed through Cain's mind. Remembering that the Emperor himself had sent it here, Cain turned and ran for the bridge.

[Pilot on board. Glaepnir, systems online.]

Whoooom-

Nil's voice echoed; with cables linked to the device at the back of his neck, Yaan opened his eyes.

At the same moment, sailors who'd come below hauled frantically on levers to lower the elevator to the transport's deck.

Boom-! Boom-!

A massive transport built to carry base-defense colossuses and vehicles, it could bear Glaepnir's weight.

Soon, the soldiers who had been watching the battle with anxious eyes turned toward the black colossus that appeared on the elevator below.

"Colossus?"

"What's he planning to do on the deck?"

"Is he going to fire an assault gun? He's insane!"

Negative remarks came in succession, but Yaan paid them no heed and stared at the white submarine, the White Shark, displayed in his field of view.

[Frame comparison. Egyptian Union Navy standard submarine. Thutmose-class. Specifications output.]

"Was that Ancient legacy too?"

Was that the pirate the Emperor had spoken of, and was that the reason he had been sent to this front line? Thinking so, Yaan checked Glaepnir's armament and asked.

"Then, does that mean the one aboard that ship is also someone born with the blood of the Ancients, like me or Rael?"

He asked, but Nil's answer was negative.

[That equipment is a weapons system predating the founding of the Human Federation. Therefore, it does not incorporate a nanomachine-based control system like this Frame.]

"Not everything called an Ancient relic is the same, huh."

Saying so, Yaan checked the Rail Cannon's ammo count.

As expected, because the crew had focused on repairs, only one round remained in reserve.

"Hey, Nil. Can you land this in one shot?"

[Negative. The equipment employs special paint that nullifies this Frame's targeting. For effective fire, a minimum of three observed shots are required.]

"Then I can't use this right away."

With no certainty when the maintenance team that had left the Kerdan front line would arrive, he could not waste the only round.

Yaan grimaced, then glanced around and brightened at the sight of some steel bars stacked in one corner of the transport.

"You said you can move underwater, right?"

[Affirmative.]

"Then let's go for a little swim."

With those words, Glaepnir emerged onto the deck gripping one of the ship's steel bars.

"The colossus is coming up!"

"Clear the deck! A mad knight is riding the colossus!"

The sailors, busy checking the submarine's position and reporting-because no weapons were loaded-turned as one at the sight of the black colossus rising onto the deck.

Soon, Glaepnir was fully above.

In one hand of the giant ashen colossus was a steel bar, its end sharpened like a spear.

"What's he doing now?"

- Brace for impact.

After that brief warning, Glaepnir took a few steps and crouched.

"H-hey, wait a minute..."

"No way, is he...!"

The sailors who guessed what the stance meant paled and desperately clung to the rails.

Thoom-!

The transport's center heaved and Glaepnir's massive frame soared upward.

"What the-!?"

"A colossus jumping? And that high?"

While the sailors gaped at the unbelievable sight, Yaan, high in the sky, grinned down at the White Shark beneath his feet.

"You slippery little fish, where are you running off to?"

A chilling utterance, as of a beast sighting prey.

Yet the White Shark was no ordinary foe.

Shhkrrrk!

[Enemy Frame, missile hatches open confirmed.]

"Missile? What's that?"

While Yaan voiced his doubt at the unfamiliar term-

Thooom-!

Ten doors snapped open along the submarine's back, and something trailing flames shot skyward toward Glaepnir.

[Confirmed RIM-27 Fleet Defense Missile. Decoding target signal. Deploying flares.]

Fwoosh-!

The armor plates on Glaepnir's back opened, releasing a storm of light and smoke at Nil's command.

"Hey, look at that..."

"In the sky... a colossus..."

Sailors aboard the transport, and sailors aboard the cruiser Veloster who had suddenly spotted the colossus in the sky, stared skyward as if entranced.

Light and smoke burst from both sides of the hovering Glaepnir-wings of smoke spreading wide-

"...an angel."

"An angel has descended from the sky..."

Yes. The figure looked just like the angels recorded in the scriptures-an angel bearing a spear, said to appear in the Apocalyptic War.

Craaaash!

Ten warheads, thrown off by the jamming, exploded in the air beside Glaepnir.

Realizing its attack had failed, the White Shark hurried to dive.

Yet it had no time. Glaepnir plunged beneath the surface, and with a roar the steel bar in its hand slammed into the White Shark's hull.

Thruuum-!

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