Kyoukai Senjou no Horizon-Volume 7B, Chapter 34: Round Girl at the Exit

If you can follow me

You have my praise

If you can catch this

You have my laughter

Point Allocation (Traveling)

After lowering Futayo onto the sixth ship’s deck while the girl spoke with Gin via divine transmission, Mitotsudaira made her way to the first ship.

She was in a hurry.

It was her duty to stand before her king.

This was Satomi’s battlefield, but her duty remained as long as she was participating. Her orders only came from her king, so she had to hurry back to him once she had completed something. After all, he was defenseless.

…I need to hurry.

Running along the deck was dangerous because of all the warriors moving here and there, so she attached her chain to the edge of the deck and jumped off the side of the ship to swing like a pendulum.

She swung her entire body over a long distance. She only used the one chain since one hand was filled by Ex. Collbrande. She would have felt more comfortable with two, but the lower weight meant greater speed.

She moved quickly. After about the third swing, she had arrived at the first ship.

Instead of just swinging herself on the chain, she planted her feet on the side of the ship and accelerated. Then she heard a voice.

“Nate!”

It was her king.

While she started to climb onto the deck using her Silver Chain, he reached a hand down from the edge of the deck. He smiled, and…

“Over here!”

At first, Mitotsudaira could not react to her king’s words and outstretched hand.

She had stood before him and he had given her orders plenty of times before, but…

…Is this the first time he’s ordered me to return to him?

She was not sure.

But while everyone watched her, she realized she was the knight whose place was with her king.

So…

“J-judge!”

She held Ex. Collbrande in her left hand and used her right hand to launch a Silver Chain toward her king.

She was using the chain that had been supporting her. That felt dangerous, but her king did indeed grab the Silver Chain in his hand.

And he pulled.

…But…

It would clearly be faster for her to pull herself closer to him by storing the Silver Chain in its storage device.

But he did not stop pulling the Silver Chain up like a net. She also stored the Silver Chain, which brought her back to the deck at an accelerated rate.

“There.”

She made a light jump back onto the deck.

The transport ship was moving quickly. The exit from the great ruins was already visible up ahead.

Of course, the enemy was there too. Warships and warriors could be seen blocking the canyon formed by the ruins.

She would have a new job soon enough, so once she landed, she needed to greet her king and prepare to head out again.

But she failed to do so.

Because her landing spot was already occupied by her king.

“Okay!”

…Eh!?

He caught her. And he caught her high up, so he was hugging her waist to his chest.

Oh? thought Narumi.

The Chancellor had caught his returning knight.

It was a lot like embracing her, but…

“Oops.”

He could not support her.

He staggered a few steps back and the knight placed her hands on his shoulders and bent backwards.

“Kyaaahh!”

As everyone gave the king accusatory looks, Narumi spoke to Urquiaga.

“Animals like dogs and cats don’t like being held up in strong winds, right?”

“Narumi, look more closely.”

On his prompting, she looked at the king who had collapsed after failing to support the knight’s weight and the confused knight who was straddling him.

The wolf’s cheeks were red and she did not seem to know what to do. But based on the way she was sitting on him…

“She must like it after all. She looks quite happy.”

Mitotsudaira had no idea what to do.

Not only had he suddenly caught her and held her up, he had collapsed underneath her.

…I-I’m not that heavy, am I!? It was just the weight of the Silver Chains pushing things over the edge, right!?

Her chest weight had to be significantly lower than Asama or Kimi’s. And while she actually had some confidence in her hips, she had a feeling that was more about the line formed by her pelvis than anything.

But once she thought about it, she realized Horizon would weigh a lot too since she was an automaton.

Silver Wolf: “Huh? Does that mean I’m the lightest member of the Main Blue Thunder group?”

Asama: “Ohh? Is that how we’re playing this game now? Mito just made her move!” 𝐟𝘳𝑒𝗲𝘸e𝒃𝘯𝒐𝐯e𝚕.c𝒐𝒎

Wise Sister: “Not so fast. Thanks to my divine protections, I maintain a weight of under 48 kilos.”

…Eh?

Mitotsudaira had known that girl was ridiculous, but she had not known it went this far. Even if she assumed dancers had weight-reduction divine protections…

Wise Sister: “And I was pretty certain my foolish brother weighs about that much too. I mean, he has no chest.”

“Eh?”

She voiced her shock out loud this time. She also noticed Asama opening a sign frame, but…

“Tomo! Tomo! Are you checking his personal information!?”

Well, we are living together now, so you have to expect this kind of thing. …Although I’ll only do it when it’s convenient for me.”

“N-now you’re just doubling down, aren’t you!?”

At any rate, Asama only said “interesting” and showed no intent of sending the information Mitotsudaira’s way. Then Mitotsudaira noticed everyone’s eyes were on her.

“Naruze!?”

She looked back and found the Weiss Hexen already working on her fifth drawing while riding her broom.

“Oh, she noticed,” said Naito next to her. “Hurry up, Ga-chan. She’s gonna fix her skirt and take a less candid pose!”

“It’s okay, Margot. I’ve gotten plenty already.”

“Wait,” said Mitotsudaira while trying to stand up, but…

…Eh?

Her king reached out a hand to help himself up. He grabbed her waist at the hipbone below the hard point and inside her skirt’s slit. f𝗿𝗲e𝒘e𝚋ｎ૦𝘃𝙚𝑙.com

“Nh…”

It was through her tights, but it was still a reminder that he was touching her.

All confidence in her hips vanished in an instant. She only felt a ticklish feeling that kind of made her want to press her body against his.

“U-um, my king?”

“Oh, sorry, sorry.”

He got up. She removed her Silver Chain to the side and slid her upright upper body back. Once she was sitting on his hips, Naruze gasped and began drawing something, but she decided not to worry about that anymore.

“Why did you suddenly decide to catch me like that?”

“Well, you know?”

“No, I don’t.”

“I thought that was something I could do now.”

For some reason, Asama’s face grew red while watching them.

…Wh-what was that for!?

Asama began fanning herself with her hand, but she must have thought of something similar for herself. There was the suspicious shirt incident, after all. Kimi’s shoulders were shaking with laughter, but as for their king…

“I mean, I felt like I had to show off some with your mom and papan here, but it didn’t work out all that well. …It always works when I do it with sis.”

“I can balance myself for you, but Mitotsudaira really did just fall into your arms.”

“What have you two been doing!?”

When she thought about it, she could guess they had probably been singing on stage together while he crossdressed. But once he sat up, his face moved a lot closer to hers.

A minty scent came from his hair, which reminded her they had recently taken a bath. And…

“You smell nice, Nate. Is that vanilla essence?”

“It is body milk that provides a fire-resistance divine protection.”

Having him smell her was weirdly embarrassing, but he actually brought his nose closer to her throat.

…W-wait, not the neck!

She realized everyone had crouched down a bit to watch them. Past that wall of people, she could see her mother giggling and wiggling while having her father rub her throat, so she had to question whether this was an issue of nature or nurture.

But as the area from her armpit to her throat trembled from a heated chill, the scent of her king’s hair moved away. She was relieved, but she could not help but feel a hint of disappointment as well.

And on the other side, her mother looked over at her, grabbed her father’s shoulders, and…

…Why are you giving me a “take him now” gesture!?”

It was incredible that her father was actually smiling. But…

“Okay.”

Her king made a sudden movement.

He brought her into his arms again and picked her up. He briefly placed her on his hips and then held her by the back of the thighs instead of the butt.

“There we go.”

Ah, she thought as she was lifted up a head height or two above everyone else.

…He really can do it.

Was it rude to find this somewhat surprising? Regardless, being picked up like this caused the wolf’s pulse to race and her cheeks to flush.

But she also heard her king’s voice.

“A knight is a king’s pride, right?”

“That doesn’t mean you have to show me off like this.”

“So you only want to do this when we’re alone?”

She thought about that, looked to her fingers on his shoulders, and focused on the color of the nail polish.

“Make it so I feel like I am looking up at the moon.”

“In that case,” he said with a smile. “Today’s moon is a good one.”

Narumi heard the Chancellor speak while raising his right thumb.

“How about that!? Give her your praise!”

“Um, my king? Just to be clear, I only did what I was ordered to do.”

“No,” replied the English Princess who was wearing Ex. Collbrande at her hip again. “A knight is their king’s power. A king should be proud of not just their knight but the power that comes from their relationship with their knight. So both of you should be proud here, Lady Mitotsudaira.”

10ZO: “Well, if Mary-dono insists, I guess I can praise Toori-dono too…”

Mar-Ga: “Yes, if Mary insists…I’ll praise the Chancellor too.”

Worshiper: “Well, if that’s what we’re all doing, I guess I could praise Toori-kun too…”

Me: “Whaaat!? Why do you all sound so reluctant!?”

But Narumi also saw the knight let out some quiet laughter and take her king’s hand after being lowered down.

“My king, I think we will have a chance to fight again soon. If you rely on my strength again then, everyone should accept it.”

“Ohh…” said the Asama Shrine Representative with a deep nod, so Narumi nodded too.

…Yes.

They were currently trying to steal away Nagaoka Tadaoki, but they were also trying to pave a path for liberating Satomi.

They would primarily be breaking through enemy forces, but…

“Here they come. They’re straight ahead.”

After passing the intersection and turning the corner to the right, the enemy came into view.

“Okay,” said the Chancellor while raising both hands and staring at the incoming cannon fire. “Everyone, run away!”

Tadaoki saw the enemy’s movement using a telescope spell strengthened for sniping.

He was high up in the ruins in Edo Bay. The ground had sunk in a lot of places around Edo Bay and the ground was low regardless, so his elevated position gave him a clear view of the enemy on the transport ship.

Asano: “Nagaokaaa? Whaaat’s going on?”

The answer to Asano’s question was obvious. The Musashi group on the lead transport ship (even those who had been inside the ship) were lined up on the deck.

The Hashiba defenders waiting at the entrance to the ruins were using a grounded transport ship as a barricade and they had three light warships in the air as well.

The cannon fire from those flew accurately down the road in the ruins. They could easily claim this attack was not targeting the ruins.

And the Musashi group responded by…

…Why are they lining up on the deck!?

Okaaa: “Are they preparing for a ground battle and they’re going to charge in using the ship’s defenses?”

Asano: “Do you think they might ram us with their transport ship?”

Okaaa: “As things are, I doubt it. Besides, the ships are too close together for that.”

“Then what are they going to do?” he wondered aloud while seeing a few different movements.

The enemy’s fourth, fifth, and sixth ships had ascended.

So…

Okaaa: “Are they responding to the barricades on the ground and in the air?”

…Then are they starting a surface battle from here on?

That would give him plenty of chances to snipe them. He could activate Thirty-Six Immortals of Poetry with his voice and he would have to move once they noticed him, but this position would give him plenty to do.

Okaaa: “Okay, I’m gonna prepare to fire. I’m in charge of the bridge-top area after all.”

With that, he started to draw Thirty-Six Immortals of Poetry.

But then he saw more movement. It came from the people lined up on the deck of the lead enemy transport ship.

“Huh?”

All of them – gods of war and mobile shells included – ran toward the next ship behind them and jumped onto it.

…Huh!?

What are they doing? wondered Tadaoki.

The enemy transport ships were currently arranged in two rows of three, one up top and the other down below.

But the Musashi group on the lead ship of both rows had just jumped to the next ship back.

And it did not end there. They continued running toward the third transport ship.

“Hey!”

They were completely abandoning the first and second ships. They turned their backs and took off running. And…

…Oh?

Something odd happened. What was likely the full crews of the enemy’s second and third ships and their fourth through sixth ships turned around and began running along the deck. The groups from the first ship were already running, so…

Okaaa: “Are they really going for a transport ship collision!?”

But transport ships did not have much penetrative power. A collision would only create a barrier for both sides and begin a ground battle.

The next move began while he tried to figure out what to do.

The Hashiba ground formation left their barricade ship in the center while falling back a bit to open up the center area. They were likely preparing for a transport ship collision. They wanted to make sure they were not caught in the destruction of their barricade ship, but they also did not want to let the enemy through.

The three warships in the air were the same. The central one must have decided it would act as a barrier. It dropped down a little and sent its center of gravity to the bottom while preparing to take a collision from the rising transport ships.

Asano: “Nabe-saaan, what do you do if you want to craaash into the enemy with a transport shiiip?”

Nabe3: “I only know about mechanical dragons, but it would be best to ram it full speed. But doing that’s dangerous if there’s anyone on board.”

That left two options.

Okaaa: “Jump down for a ground battle while it crashes at full speed…or ram the enemy more softly and fight a ground battle if it isn’t enough, right?”

Nabe3: “Well, there’s no way you’re getting through if you do anything softly. Even at full speed, a single ship isn’t going to get you through.”

Kanitama: “Um! Nabe-chan!?”

Nabe3: “Yeah? What is it?”

Kani asked the same question that had occurred to Tadaoki.

Kanitama: “How many ships would it take to get through!?”

Nabe3: “Don’t be dumb. If they did that, they’d lose their transportation before even arriving at Satomi. They wouldn’t do that. At most, they’ll ram the lead ship.”

Is that how it works? thought Tadaoki.

But it really looked to him like the enemy was on a collision course.

On the lower row of the enemy ships, the Musashi Vice Chancellor took the lead while running back. She jumped to the third ship with the Vice President draped over her shoulder, but she did not stop there.

“Huh!? But the third ship’s the last one!”

How far were they going? And…

…Slow down!

But Tadaoki knew what was going to happen next. And he realized what he was seeing could not be seen by the Hashiba defenders on the ground.

It was possible the airborne light warships could not see it either because they had activated a thick layer of defense barriers to prepare for a collision.

Okaaa: “Warning! Great Ruins East Entrance Corridor Blockade Unit, at least two ships from each row are going to hit you!”

A moment later, the probably-empty lead ship and second ship sped up. And…

…They’re really doing the third ship too!?

Tadaoki watched as exactly that happened.

The third ship from both rows accelerated with the runners still on them.

Asama ran with the others.

…S-Sensei was right to have us run a lot in our mock battles!

Everyone ran at their individual top speed and jumped to the third ship. She did the same, but…

“Mito, are you okay!?”

Mitotsudaira was having difficulty because she was using a Silver Chain to carry Adele who was inside Raging Beast. She was also using a Silver Chain to carry Toori. She was using her instantaneous acceleration, but she still could not draw out her usual speed.

Asama called out while running.

“Toori-kun! Can’t you run on your own!?”

“Just FYI: I’m really slow!”

He was being a little too honest, but she had seen how slow he was back at IZUMO. So…

Mar-Ga: “Wouldn’t Adele be safe even if we abandoned her?”

Flat Vassal: “I knew someone was going to say that! I just knew it!”

Gold Mar: “Yeah, but that might make it hard to sleep at night, Ga-chan.”

In that case, thought Asama just before someone passed her by. It was Kimi. The girl kept a light step for such high speed, circled behind Mitotsudaira, and shook her hips while she ran.

“I’ll be taking that!”

She dashed away with Toori held in her raised hands.

“Ah! My king!”

“Heh heh heh. Just try and catch me!”

The way he lay stiff and face up on top of her raised hands was impressive in a way. But the wolf frantically pursued the two of them.

“W-wait! You just stole my king, didn’t you!?”

Kimi nevertheless took the lead while spinning him around for fun. When Asama saw that…

“H-hold on, Kimi!”

She ran forward and tried to catch up, but Kimi lightly spun around in midair and asked a question.

“Heh heh. So you want him?”

“Well, yes, I-…”

She just about answered, but the other runners eyed her like prey.

…That was close! I nearly fell for it!

“I-I don’t mean it like that. And come to think of it, I wouldn’t be able to run with him in my arms anyway.”

“Oh, that’s too bad. …Mitotsudaira, do you want him back?”

“Judge!!”

The silver wolf did not hesitate to answer.

“In that case,” said Kimi while running and making a large jump.

She launched herself into the air leading to the third ship. When Mitotsudaira jumped next, Kimi tossed him to her as if setting up an alley-oop.

“Here, Kill Pass!”

“Wh-what moron would toss him to me here!?”

It was even more wrong that she managed to catch him with a Silver Chain. But after landing on the third ship, Mitotsudaira supported him from below to keep her speed up as she ran. And…

“They’re about to hit!”

Tadaoki saw the sky shaking.

Two flying objects crashed at high speed.

The Musashi transport ships had sped up and smashed full speed into the light warships forming barricades on the surface and in the sky.

The first thing he saw was the starboard side rupturing on the light warship facing him.

The shaking continued from there, the internal frame pierced the outer hull and jutted out, and most of the armor was blown out from within.

Only then did the sound finally reach him. However…

“Here comes the second one!”

The two second ships crashed right alongside where the lead ones had.

It sounded like a second blow from a striking weapon, but the second round of destruction continued even after the sound had ended.

Another great mass had collided right next to where the first ship had and the transformed light warships could not transfer the energy in a straight line anymore.

So the two barricade light warships were transformed further.

The embedded first ship acted as a fastener as the second ship pushed and tore apart the light warship.

The sound arrived. He heard metallic impacts and the tearing and creaking of bending metal. And…

…Whoa.

This was his first time hearing metal beams bending and breaking. The straining was almost sticky and the breaking was deep and carrying.

Kanitama: “The light warships are going to break apart!”

The next hit arrived immediately after Kani’s words.

It was the third ships.

Two ship had already hit alongside each other, but now the third ships slipped between the previous pair of attacks.

The first and second ships were fasteners holding the light warships in place on the left and right. The third ships were trying to crash into the middle that had been stretched and softened by the other hits.

But, thought Tadaoki. Even if the third ships destroy the light warships, they can’t break all the way through.

The collision would greatly reduce their speed and the transport ships would not escape unscathed themselves. Even if they could reach Satomi, the enemy could not make a proper attack with half-destroyed transport ships. But…

“What are they doing?”

Tadaoki was watching from above.

The Musashi group was continuing to run along the third and final ship. They were running toward the stern, so there was only one thing they could be planning.

…Are they going to jump off!?

It had to be that. If they were going to switch over to a ground battle, this was their only chance.

But that was not what they did.

They did not jump down.

The Musashi group made a great leap behind the third ships. And waiting for them there were…

“Smaller transport ships!?”

Tadaoki saw smaller transport ships that had been ejected from the back of the normal transport ships.

“They loaded their transport ships with transport ships!?”

These were smaller, but they were still more than 200m long. They had begun accelerating from the moment they were ejected and warriors were loaded on their decks.

Kanitama: “Here they come!”

Ahead of the smaller transport ships carrying the Musashi forces, the empty third ships crashed into the barricade light warships. That final blow split the light warships in two. That stalled the transport ships, but…

…They’re still coming!

The smaller transport ships passed through the top of the destruction and shot out the other side with great speed.

Naomasa fired. She applied Asama’s Branch and Leaf Connection on the sniper rifle that Jizuri Suzaku held and she shot down the enemy shells.

She was on the small transport ship ejected from the top row of ships.

The approximately 2000 members of the Satomi liberation force were on that ship.

There was also a god of war unit with three armored heavy gods of war. Righteousness and the others had brought the overall weight right up to the small transport ship’s limit.

With her included, all four had come from Musashi and they were linked with Branch and Leaf Connection, so…

“Supplement each other’s view while you fire!!”

They were targeting the light warships hovering to the left and right overhead.

Branch and Leaf Connection had linked their eye movements to their targeting.

The firing was not handled manually. The targeting spell opened in front of her created a hemisphere of stitches that divided up the visible scenery. According to Asama, those symbolized the spread of the ley lines. And the sight in front of her eye would turn red when it crossed one of the stitches.

According to Asama,

“The color changes when the ley line ‘connects’ you with them. Ley line disturbances and fluctuations can have an effect, but you should be nearly guaranteed a hit even if you are targeting the tip of a needle.” The problem was the distance. A distance of less than 300m was ideal for establishing that “connection”.

That was impossibly close range for ship-to-ship combat, but…

…It should work in this situation!

Work it did.

Four of them were firing. Two were positioned on either side of the ship.

Their targeting spells were linked. When two stood side by side and supplemented each other’s targeting, they could view the ley lines more accurately and aim more harshly.

They fired on the engine division.

Musashi’s god of war unit was made of engine division workers, so they were very familiar with the internal structure of aerial ships. They could analyze a ship’s exterior to determine where the armor was thinnest and thus where they should attack.

Right now, they had to target the stern of the enemy ships. Specifically, the keel running down the center. In order to let the wind flow more smoothly to the back and gain power for the rudder, the bottom of the stern rose up above the keel a bit like a fish’s fins. That was the central point of the ship’s balance.

Break that and it would grow unstable at high speeds. And…

“There it is!”

During the destruction, Naomasa saw the layered structure of the interior on her sign frame.

If they broke the part that lifted up from the keel, they could fire inside by slipping a shot past the keel. That would require some pinpoint shooting while they were moving quite quickly, but…

“Get in there!!”

Suzaku and the god of war unit’s sniping slammed into the enemy ship from close range.

Two then three shells veered off target and threw sparks into the air, but that helped destroy the armor further. And the fourth one clearly spread the damage.

“–––––!”

The red target emblem in the targeting spell suddenly grew much larger.

That happened at about the same moment as they passed those ships by on either side. Which left…

“Just keep shooting!”

They did so. They could only continue targeting those ships for four more seconds.

“Tear into their cannons!”

On Naomasa’s instructions, the god of war unit began destroying the enemy ships’ cannons while they rapidly flew away. But the light warships did not make any clear response as they moved away.

“How about that!?”

Naomasa’s question was answered by a silent battlefield.

But the wind was moving.

“Chief!” said one of the god of war pilots. “We’re out on the ocean!”

Just as she heard that, two lights raced out.

The two enemy ships they had left behind rose up as if from a blow to the bottom and then ruptured.

Internal damage sent explosive flames spewing from their stern.

Asama watched the higher small transport ship fly off into the distance.

She and the others were on the lower one, but it was slowing down. And…

…Futayo and the others jumped down and went on ahead to secure an escape route.

Neshinbara’s plan for the Satomi Liberation was a simple one for the most part.

First, the small transport ship carrying the Satomi forces and the gods of war was sent to the center of the Bousou Peninsula which was the enemy’s front line. Then they would advance south under Ookubo’s command and Yoshiyasu’s lead in order to break through to Satomi.

But the Hashiba forces around the Great Bridge Ruins of Edo Bay could not be allowed to push in from behind them.

So Asama’s group here would deal with the enemy in that area while also rescuing Nagaoka Tadaoki.

The idea was simple enough, but it was a race against time.

That was why this group had been given powerful fighters like Futayo, Mitotsudaira, and Mitotsudaira’s mother.

Their small transport ship was facing Edo Bay at the moment, but it had not ventured out over the water. It had slowed down and those who had been dropped off would take care of the enemies at the exit from the ruins behind them.

Mar-Ga: “Looks like the enemy didn’t expect us to jump over them and attack from behind.”

Gold Mar: “The people we dropped off are nearly defenseless, so we still have to be careful.”

Novice: “Precisely!”

Someone was sounding in top form.

Novice: “Let us move on to the next phase! But first, does anyone need an explanation of just how much of a rousing success the current phase was!?”

Four Eyes: “Hurry on to the next phase.”

Novice: “You see, that vertical triple attack from the dual-stage iron transport ship shells worked so well because-…”

Four Eyes: “Next phase, please.”

Novice: “…it took advantage of how the enemy would never expect us to abandon every last one of our transport-…”

Four Eyes: “ ‘Ah ha ha,’ rosily laughed Craneberg, leading everyone to turn his way. Maastricht felt like there was a wind blowing through his heart. And…”

Novice: “Don’t read thaaaaaaaaat! Isn’t that the climax of the White Crane of Venice that I wrote in my first year of middle school!? Why do you even have that!?”

Four Eyes: “Now, the next phase. You must always rush onward in battle.”

“Impressive…” sighed Asama as Neshinbara reluctantly continued on.

Novice: “Next, we will mop up the enemy here and then take the Great Bridge Ruins of Edo Bay. But pay careful attention to yourself and the others when you descend. We will need to descend from a ship at N?rdlingen as well, so use this as a test to see how everyone does. I set this up so it would be as safe as possible.”

“Honestly,” he said.

Novice: “We will not ram transport ships into enemy personnel, so the most we can do there is use them as a battering ram. Those conditions are surprisingly hard to meet, so I hope you are thankful.”

He was right about that.

Breaking through the barricade had cost them six transport ships, but it had been worth it.

They had saved themselves a battle’s worth of fighting by destroying those troublesome ships.

…Breaking through the first line of enemies means a lot.

Smoking Girl: “Uh, hey, Asama-chi?”

Asama: “Huh? What is it, Masa?”

“Judge,” said Naomasa from the acceleration ether light crossing the bay.

Smoking Girl: “Our god of war unit is pretty excited after those results, but just between us, those enemy ships only went down because you fired a finishing blow, didn’t they?”

She was awfully sharp. But…

Asama: “Noo, not at allll. I would never fire directly on an enemy ship. Never ever.”

Smoking Girl: “I’m not so sure…”

“Now, now,” said Asama while switching over the divine transmission. And…

Unturning: “Oh, she noticed, did she? She has good instincts.”

Uqui: “Your mandible swords are primarily vermilion, but they still can’t be easy to see at night. A testament to Naomasa’s skill, I suppose.”

True, thought Asama.

Narumi had “brought down” the ships that would have eventually “sunk” due to internal damage.

Naomasa’s group’s attack had had results, but…

…If the cannons survived, they could have functioned as gun emplacements.

So Narumi had completed Naomasa’s results.

Those two enemy ships were currently breaking apart from within and falling on either side of the exit from the ruins.

Narumi must have seen that from the ground because Asama saw her post “well, whatever” on the chat before saying more.

Unturning: “Our ruins group has cleared the enemy. …Main unit, get going to the Great Bridge Ruins of Edo Bay.”