Fated to Die to the Player, I'll Live Freely with My SSS-Class Ship!-Chapter 155: Trap Within a Trap

Present time.

Roughly 5 hours away from where Arthur and the rest were. A fleet of ships was gathered, zooming through hyperspace at tremendous speeds.

Each vessel bore a dark hue—so deep it was as if they'd run out of paint options and just chose pure black instead. On the hull of every ship, a bold and conspicuous insignia was emblazoned: a white, shadow-less hawk, wings fully spread, as if moments from taking flight.

Unlike the forged emblem Arthur painted on his own fleet, this one was no imitation.

These were the real Shadowless Hawks.

All 10,000 ships in this armada carried this genuine mark without exception.

At the heart of their formation stood the flagship. There, in the captain's chair, sat a woman—her posture relaxed but commanding, one hand propping up her cheek, legs crossed. Her eyes, half-lidded and distant, hinted at deep, calculating thought.

"Boss, are we really…?"

A man nearby broke the silence, his voice tentative and uncertain.

At that moment, the woman's crimson pupils flicked sharply toward him, narrowing to a deadly slit. Her glare froze him on the spot—but her words followed soon after.

"What? Are you suggesting we just let someone walk away after mocking the Shadowless Hawks—right to my face?"

"N-No, I didn't mean it like that, I—!" The man flinched, instantly realizing the gravity of his misspoken words.

But she wasn't a fool.

She knew very well they were being manipulated—led into a situation orchestrated by the mysterious caller who had contacted her and sent an all-purpose clearance key that allowed access to the Voltherian Empire's heavily guarded Star System.

"Even if this entire incident is a setup," she exhaled deeply, sinking into her seat, "we follow our code. No one gets away with insulting our brigade—especially not someone profiting from our name and symbol." freeweɓnovel.cøm

At this moment, their mission was clear: pursue the pirate fleet impersonating them.

Those impostors had gone too far—even crafting a logo that mimicked the real Shadowless Hawks, an act so brazen it could only be seen as a personal slight. Eliminating them was the top priority.

The loudmouthed General and the mysterious benefactor behind the clearance key? Those issues could wait. If they happened to cross paths during the chase, all the better.

Of course, at this point, she still had no idea that the same pirate fleet they were hunting was also the one who had sent her the clearance key in the first place.

"Exiting hyperspace!"

The Navigation Officer called out, his fingers dancing across the console as he coordinated the simultaneous deceleration of all 10,000 ships.

Gradually, the pulsating streaks outside their visors calmed. The distorted visuals of faster-than-light travel faded, revealing the familiar static starscape of normal space.

"Boss, we've got confirmed reports the impostor fleet stopped at this space station." Another officer said, analyzing the data logs gathered during their approach. "Their flagship docked, restocked supplies, then left about thirty minutes later."

"Shall we land and request details?"

All eyes turned to the red-haired woman, awaiting her decision and command.

She said nothing for a moment, then rose to her feet with a rustle of her uniform. Her cape fluttered behind her, revealing a gleaming badge over her left chest—marked with five radiant, rainbow-colored stars.

"We'll interrogate whoever's in charge. Find out where our target's heading!"

Her voice rang like a whip, fierce grins spreading among her subordinates' faces as she continued.

"Raze the place if they try to resist…!"

Elsewhere—specifically, inside the command room of the mentioned space station—the officers stationed there stood frozen, mouths ajar in disbelief.

Before them loomed a fleet of 10,000 warships, every single one bearing the feared insignia of the Shadowless Hawks.

Faced with this dreadful sight, the idea of resisting never even crossed their minds.

"…We're fucked."

The lead officer sighed, already mourning his miserable luck.

Fortunately for them, the Hawks' "interrogation" was swift and to the point. Within ten minutes, the massive fleet was already pulling away—no casualties, and no collateral damage to civilian lives.

However, it had to be mentioned: the moon on which the station rested had its mass reduced by nearly half—a result of a single, casual warning shot.

Rather than getting angry, everyone stationed there could only thank the stars that the main cannons hadn't been aimed directly at them.

"Heading straight toward the 2nd planetary cluster…" the woman murmured, a finger resting against her puffy lips as she pondered. "But that leads us right to the border—the one patrolled by that loudmouth General."

A creeping suspicion was starting to fester in her mind—one that linked the anonymous key-sender with the same pirate fleet they were now pursuing.

But alongside that suspicion… came a different feeling.

A gnawing sense that she was walking straight into a trap.

Still, they'd come too far to stop now. With this many resources and lives invested, retreat wasn't an option—not anymore.

"We'll simply crush anything that stands in our path…!" she growled, her resolve absolute.

---

Roughly five hours after we left the border, our little spy drone, which we'd left behind to monitor the situation, finally reported back.

"Ten thousand?!"

Nyssra, who was seeing the report firsthand, groaned aloud, her voice tinged with panic.

I had expected a large fleet, considering it was the main force of the Shadowless Hawks coming for us. But over ten thousand ships? That number exceeded even my wildest estimates. Apparently, posing as them had pissed them off far more than I anticipated.

"You better have a plan where we come out alive, Arthur." Even Eva was glaring daggers at me, as though this entire mess was solely my doing.

"Relax, they're still five hours away." I waved my hand casually, brushing aside their concerns like dust. "Let's focus on our current task. They won't have time to deal with us for much longer anyway."

After all, that five-star general had insulted the Shadowless Hawks directly—right in front of their leader, no less. We'd already seen the results: the entire border station was turned into drifting debris within just a few volleys.

No survivors. Not even an escape pod made it out.

As expected, their unified firepower wasn't just overwhelming—it was terrifying.

'But at the same time, their presence serves as the perfect smokescreen for us.'

That fleet was simply far too conspicuous. And now, after destroying a major border installation, the Voltherian Empire would have no choice but to shift all attention to them.

"Oh, I just intercepted an encrypted military missive."

Nyssra blinked in surprise.

"All available units within the second planetary cluster have been called in to eliminate the threat—specifically, the 10,000-strong fleet. Looks like we've slipped under the radar."

A grin slowly crept across my face. Everything was unfolding just as I planned.

"That should make slipping past the next border a walk in the park... But that's not enough."

Of course, we weren't entirely out of danger yet.

After flattening the border station, the Shadowless Hawks began their pursuit. And since our jump drives were roughly on par with theirs, the distance between us remained constant—not growing, not shrinking.

Given our coordinates, the timing, and the narrow opportunity available…

"Alright. Initiate plan E4 Case 11." I ordered. "Drop the fake insignia—now!"

At this point, the "Shadowless Hawks" were the Empire's main concern. Keeping those symbols on our hulls any longer was too great a risk—we might just end up caught in their crossfire.

With a simple press of a button, the false emblems fell away, revealing nothing but sleek, unmarked black steel beneath—silent, reflective hulls streaking across the starscape.

But that wasn't all.

Our call signs, chassis IDs, and every digital identifier were scrubbed clean—reset to their original, authentic values. In the eyes of any observer, we weren't the same fleet from even thirty seconds ago.

Even the automated warning tag associated with us would vanish with this.

Now, we were truly like ghosts—faceless, nameless, untethered.

"Radar picking up signals incoming!" Eva suddenly called out. "Military fleet approaching! Detecting active, directional Jump Drive Jammers!"

I gave a curt nod. "Alright. Disengage the jump sequence before their field takes effect."

"Copy that!"

Without hesitation, Eva pulled us out of hyperspace. Our 183 ships resumed drifting forward, cutting across space like silent predators.

And right on cue, just as the sensors predicted, a Voltherian military fleet of about 1,500 ships emerged up ahead—already in a tight blockade formation, clearly meant to intercept.

{Halt! Markless ships, identify yourselves!}

A firm voice came through the speakers, echoing with unmistakable authority.

I turned slightly toward Nyssra, signaling her with a subtle nod, before I replied.

"Ah, Sir Soldier. We're just a merchant fleet operating under the Astoria Agriculture Federation. We've been commissioned to deliver food packets to the first planetary cluster."

{Astoria...?} The voice on the other end hesitated, doubt creeping in.

Like the Shadowless Hawks, the Astoria Federation wasn't someone they wanted to provoke. Picking a fight with them would come with its own heap of consequences.

Roughly ten seconds passed before the officer returned—his tone now completely changed, laced with apology.

{We've confirmed your delivery manifest, Astoria Fleet. It appears there's been a mix-up on our end. Please accept our apologies for the inconvenience.}

"No, no. It's perfectly understandable. You're just doing your duty—same as us."

I smiled despite the lack of visuals. And of course, everything I just said was complete bullshit.

Astoria's fleet? Sure, I'm technically an Astoria by blood, but I've got zero affiliation with that Agri-Fed whatever. The route he pulled up? That was a fabricated entry Nyssra planted in their systems long ago—a prebuilt emergency cover for our fleet.

Never thought we'd end up actually using it.

Regardless, with the "misunderstanding" cleared up, the Voltherian fleet quickly resumed its own mission, initiating another hyperspace jump and vanishing into the distance like a trailing spark.