The Hungry Fortress Wants to Build a Battleship in Another World – World of Sandbox-Chapter 21Vol 3. : Desert Defense

"All right, everyone. Sorry, but I'm leaving the rest to you."

"Mm. Goodnight, Commander Big Sister."

"Sleep well, Commander Big Sister. I'll get some rest too once the support work is wrapped up."

"I’ll pull back soon too~"

"Once I hand things over to the local AI, that is!"

"I’ll leave the rest to Olive... Goodnight, Commander Big Sister."

Though her heart was heavy with worry, Eve hardened her resolve and left the command room.

She decided to calm down with something warm to drink before heading to bed.

"Commander Ma’am. Patrol drones are in flight, all sensors are functioning normally, and I’m assisting with monitoring.

Please don’t worry too much."

"I know... but I can’t help it!"

Sighing heavily as she walked, Eve was gently comforted by Ringo, who placed a hand on her back and matched her pace.

Seeing no other choice, Ringo stayed by her side—snuggling close all the way into bed to provide "enhanced sleep support."

It couldn’t be helped. Absolutely couldn’t be helped.

Meanwhile, Utsugi and Erika coordinated with the on-site strategic AI, finalizing the defense plan.

The basic doctrine was clear: do not initiate attacks.

If a monster approached the defensive line, respond with intimidation.

If it breached the line, engage and destroy.

After witnessing how the enemy had used decoys and coordinated attacks, they incorporated countermeasures.

From now on, every monster sighting would be treated under the assumption that another was lurking nearby.

Surveillance was handled via aerial patrols and ground-embedded composite sensors.

Real-time processing resources were temporarily boosted to prioritize early detection.

Additional patrol drones from Fortress No. 2 were en route.

Within a few dozen minutes, their numbers in the skies would double.

Although night operations reduced image resolution, it would still be enough to detect any ground movement.

Burrowing threats could be picked up through vibration sensors.

Once the ongoing production of additional composite sensors was complete and deployed, they would have early warning coverage over a vast area.

"Olive. Assume full control of the drill plant’s strategic AI.

Integrate all sensor networks and patrol drone telemetry.

Repurpose local tactical AI code for control and analysis programs.

The plant can be temporarily shut down if needed.

I’ve already authorized additional AI units for airlift."

"...Got it... Control acquired."

Following Akane’s instructions, Olive initiated a pseudo-neural merge with the local strategic AI.

Unlike a deep neural merge, which was irreversible, a pseudo-merge allowed for eventual safe detachment.

Not that a deep merge was even possible here—the physical distance was far too great.

Through pseudo-merging, Olive could process local data as if she were physically present at the plant.

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The primary downside was that the local AI’s neural structure would mutate beyond recovery after detachment.

Usually, this would cause severe dysfunctions—but since the current site AI was still near-default and largely unused, it posed no real problem.

Olive immediately linked the local strategic and tactical AIs, uploaded the new control protocols, and rebuilt the sensor and drone systems.

In terms of assembly speed, among the five sisters, Olive was unmatched.

The systems she built rarely encountered bugs—and even included automatic self-repair features, earning her top marks from Ringo.

Commander Eve, naturally, lavished praise on her—not that she ever withheld praise from the others either.

"Akane, I finished optimizing the multi-legged tank tactical AI network~!"

"I switched it from a mesh structure to a tree structure.

The root node is now the strategic AI in charge of the mother tank."

Utsugi and Erika had reconstructed the multi-legged tank command network.

Originally, it had been a resilient mesh topology, ideal for flexibility and fault tolerance.

However, maintaining it consumed nontrivial processing resources.

Switching to a tree structure reduced overhead.

While the root node bore greater load, the child tanks could now move more freely.

It also streamlined the command hierarchy—ideal for the current state of full combat readiness.

The root node, the mother tank, would remain largely stationary, effectively functioning as a mobile fortress.

"Network calibration complete.

No issues detected.

Instructing Utsugi and Erika to stand down for rest.

Shift change in ten hours."

"You sure you're okay, Akane~?"

"Looks like you're pulling overtime!"

"No problem. I’ll hand things off to Olive in two hours and take a break.

Ichigo, I’d like you to handle backup for the next six hours—can you manage?"

"Yes! I had some minimal rest earlier, so I’m ready. Leave it to me."

The girls exchanged high-fives and cheerful banter—then returned to their duties, energized.

"Commander Ma’am, recovery of the scorpion corpses is complete.

Dissection is currently underway inside The Tree."

"Good job."

By morning, Eve had already received a full report from Ringo.

"Structurally, they’re largely the same as normal scorpions.

However, the composition of their exoskeleton is extremely unusual.

Also, as expected, crystals were discovered inside their torsos.

The size matches previous samples, scaling proportionally with body mass."

"Hmm. Ordinary animals don’t have those crystals, right?"

"Yes-affirmative, Commander Ma’am.

They were absent from all livestock acquired in Telek Port City, and among all local fish and shellfish as well.

Thus, it’s safe to conclude: the presence of these crystals is a defining trait of monsters."

The mysterious crystals—dubbed "magic stones" by Commander Eve—

were casually referred to as "crystals" or "crystalline objects" in places like Telek Port City.

Likely, this was simply because so few had been found in circulation.

Even in the relatively developed Fratara City, the terminology was inconsistent.

In the United Kingdom of Aphracea, they were still regarded as an unknown mineral.

"Research into magic seems relatively advanced in the Forest Kingdom of Levresta.

We’re trying to negotiate for access to their knowledge—but it’s proving difficult."

Trade negotiations with Levresta were ongoing.

They had already begun exchanging cellulose-based textiles for coinage,

which would later be used for East Gate City lease fees and local labor wages.

The plan was to steadily expand trade volume—and, if possible, import magical technologies.

"If only we could find out exactly what Levresta wants..."

Even for Ringo, with her vast databases, direct human negotiation remained a clumsy endeavor.

Progress was slow and uncertain.

Still, it was good experience—and they would continue regardless.

"Yes-affirmative, Commander Ma’am. I will continue my utmost efforts."

As a last resort, of course, they could always "negotiate" physically—by arriving at Levresta’s ports with a full warship fleet.

If Levresta grew too stubborn, Eve wasn’t above playing that card.

"In addition, we’ve decided to deploy ground-attack drones to both Oil Port and the drill plant.

Airlift operations from Fortress No. 2 ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) are currently underway.

Being able to attack from the air will give us a significant advantage in defense."

These attack drones were armed with machine guns, rocket launchers, or missiles.

They were intended primarily as fixed aerial gun platforms, hovering above the battlefield.

As a result, their detection systems weren’t particularly sophisticated.

They were designed to operate in close coordination with other machinery and sensor networks.

"Didn’t we also have railgun-equipped drones?"

"Yes-affirmative, Commander Ma’am.

They’re still prototypes, but we’ve integrated about three of them.

Due to unresolved heat dissipation issues, they can’t fire repeatedly yet."

The ability to fire shells from midair at an initial velocity of 8,000 meters per second was a massive advantage.

However, due to the nature of microwave power transmission, the receiver units tended to overheat easily.

Both energy storage and firing the railgun generated enormous heat.

Until they solved those thermal problems, the weapon remained difficult to use for sustained operations.

"Still, that's reassuring.

Keep up the good work with oil production, too."

"Yes-affirmative, Commander Ma’am."

◇◇◇◇

Somewhere in the desert—

From the crest of a vast dune, a tremendous explosion of sand erupted.

Almost simultaneously, a colossal creature slowly emerged from within the sand.

Sand cascaded off its towering body with a heavy, hissing sound as it raised itself upright.

It was a giant scorpion—

one whose body stretched over forty meters in length.

Sensing the deaths of its kin—

recognizing the existence of a true threat—

The monster began to move, deliberately and inexorably.