Chapter 175

When they transferred to the designated space region, a significant number of assault craft and battleships were already waiting there. What stood out the most was a massive sphere. It seemed the Federation had even brought out an artificial celestial body. That alone showed how serious they were.

Most likely, the core of the fleet was this artificial celestial body. They sent a transmission to confirm who the representative was.

"Thank you for waiting. Fifteen Earthlings from Queen Bee and 9th-Terra have arrived."

'We've been expecting you, Kait Third-Rank Citizen (Enec Lagif). I am the person in charge of the battle fortress Sarunzarek, Nijerio. My citizen rank is Sixth-Rank Citizen (Ab Rag). Please remember me.'

"Pleased to meet you."

It was unusual for a mechanical intelligence to serve as a representative.

Perhaps noticing the curiosity in Kait's gaze, Nijerio continued calmly.

'It has been confirmed that a massive artificial celestial body exists at Divin's base. One of the reasons Sarunzarek has been deployed is to deal with that artificial celestial body. Please understand.'

"I see?"

'Additionally, if we are able to capture Divin's royalty, we are to detain them and transport them to the Federation. To avoid any potential danger, all staff aboard Sarunzarek are mechanical intelligences.'

"Understood. I apologize for my rude stare."

'Not at all. It's only natural to have questions. Now, please come inside.'

One of the pieces of information obtained from Vengeance was that Divin employed a strategy of thoroughly evacuating their superiors whenever Queen Bee was nearby.

Therefore, during the transfer, both Queen Bee and Vengeance were housed inside Sarunzarek and were to remain hidden until the encirclement was complete.

When Queen Bee and Vengeance entered the interior of Sarunzarek, a mechanical intelligence identical to Nijerio was waiting. When Kait disembarked from Queen Bee, it introduced itself in a higher-pitched voice than Nijerio.

"It is an honor to meet you, Kait Third-Rank Citizen. I will be your attendant, Darmasha Sixth-Rank Citizen. Currently, the atmosphere inside Sarunzarek matches that of Earth, your homeland. Please feel at ease."

"Thank you, Darmasha. Emotion?"

"Yes. The atmospheric composition is nearly identical to the Moonbase where the Lunar Development Agency personnel lived. I believe they should have no issues operating here."

It seemed similar enough that there would likely be no problems. Kait raised a hand to Vengeance to signal it was safe, and after a moment, a few people timidly disembarked.

"Not everyone came?"

"Sorry, Crouch. I did ask them."

Giolgu and a few others had probably stayed behind to guard the ship. It wasn't entirely incomprehensible, but it did show a lack of trust. What was surprising was that Dr. Wu had come down. It seemed her curiosity had outweighed her caution due to the unknown civilization.

"Well, do as you like. Darmasha, they haven't undergone body modification. Please keep that in mind."

"I see. ......There is a modification lab within this celestial body, however."

"It won't be necessary. They don't seem interested in becoming Federation citizens just yet."

"Understood. Then we will extend to them the same hospitality as that given to the temporary guest, Fifth-Rank Citizen (Alto Romia)."

Kait didn't understand why they were being treated as Fifth-Rank Citizens, but the fact that it was stated so explicitly must have had some significance. He thanked them and headed to the prepared room.

After entering the room and sitting on the sofa, he casually voiced his doubt.

"Do you know the reason, Emotion?"

"They are likely mechanical intelligences tuned for military use. A characteristic of theirs is that while they are obedient to citizens ranked higher than themselves, they demand strong sincerity from those ranked lower. By treating them as equivalent to Fifth-Rank Citizens, they are clearly indicating that they are not under their command."

"I see. That makes sense."

At that moment, Kait's device vibrated slightly.

When he connected it to the built-in monitor, as expected, Terapolapaneshio's face appeared large on the screen.

'It seems you've arrived, Kait Third-Rank Citizen.'

"Yes. Sorry to keep you waiting."

'No need to worry. All ships will be assembled shortly. Once that's done, we'll transfer to Divin's base, so be prepared.'

"Understood. We'll wait aboard our ship, right?"

'That's the general idea. Once the encirclement is complete and their transfer is blocked, Queen Bee may launch. Go wild.'

"Got it. And what about them...?"

'Ideally, they'd wait aboard Sarunzarek, but that's unlikely, isn't it?'

Kait shook his head—it was indeed unlikely.

Even the discussion about bombardment from the perimeter had taken a lot of convincing. Telling them to wait quietly upon arrival would likely cause them to go berserk.

'I figured as much. It can't be helped—we'll assign Assault Craft Aganrange as support. Just make sure they follow orders.'

"Aganrange... Is Ritimiele here too?"

'Of course. Of all of us, Ritimiele likely has the strongest attachment to the Earthlings. That also means she harbors the greatest hostility toward Divin. Honestly, I wanted to keep her in the rear.'

This wasn't a full-scale war against Divin. The goal was to capture their royalty and hold them accountable for their interference with Earth. Whether or not to include 9th-Terra in that objective was a highly delicate issue.

That's because 9th-Terra was located outside the Federation's sphere of influence. To destroy an entire planet was an act of extreme malevolence, but the Federation would find it difficult to take responsibility.

"Understood. Then I must quickly restrain the Emperor before Ritimiele or the others explode."

'Sorry, but I'm counting on you. If this escalates into full-blown war with Divin, there's no telling how the power balance in this region of space will shift. There's no chance we'd lose, but we don't want to plunge the galaxy into chaos.'

It seemed his role was more important than he had imagined.

Kait himself had mixed feelings and concerns about Divin. If he were to be overwhelmed by emotion in front of the Emperor of Divin, he wouldn't be able to lecture Dan and the others. He steeled himself once again.

***

Not long after Kait and the others regrouped, all ships in the expedition fleet had assembled. Without any special signal, the departure began quietly. The artificial celestial body, which had radiated a majestic presence, was the first to vanish, followed by the surrounding ships.

Finally, a few Di-Kigaia Zarmos disappeared, completing the transfer of the entire expedition fleet to the space region that was Divin's base.

'We've been expecting you, members of the Federation.'

Countless ships appeared, beginning with the artificial celestial body Sarunzarek.

At Divin's base, their massive fleet awaited in perfect formation, facing the encircling Federation fleet.

It was a well-disciplined, impressive formation. The artificial celestial body at the center was about two sizes smaller than the Federation's Sarunzarek. Yet, there was no sign of intimidation from Divin's fleet.

"It's as if they were expecting us."

Nijerio, who had taken the representative role instead of Terapolapaneshio, responded to the incoming transmission.

It wasn't the current Emperor Volparek. Though they hadn't disarmed, they weren't aiming their weapons either. It seemed they were trying to find a diplomatic resolution first.

'Apparently, some insolent pirates have been misusing the royal ship we discarded. Surprisingly, these pirates seem to be on friendly terms with the famous Kait Third-Rank Citizen from your Federation. We heard it from a subordinate who barely escaped and felt we should demonstrate that we bear no hostility toward the Federation.'

"Oh? That attitude is commendable. However, I cannot ignore the claim that Kait Third-Rank Citizen is friendly with pirates."

'It couldn't be helped. Our Re-Eden Plan may have been displeasing to the Federation, but it was far from complete. While I admire your mercy in bestowing grace even upon such inferior creatures, had we not been exiled, we could have explained ourselves more clearly.'

Calling Kait an inferior creature—Nijerio praised his own restraint for not blurting out the order for an all-out attack.

The encirclement wasn't yet complete. Though he wished to end the conversation immediately, part of his role was to buy time. Nijerio forced himself to remain calm and spoke again.

"It seems Divin has forgotten that even their highest-ranking members never attained citizenship above Ninth-Rank Citizen (Darla Strolue). And to utter such insults toward a Third-Rank Citizen recognized by the Federation Congress—know your place."

Apparently, Nijerio's words had deeply wounded their pride. The unpleasant responses ceased for the moment.

A report arrived from a subordinate mechanical intelligence that the encirclement was complete. At the same time, the wide-area scan confirmed that Emperor Volparek was indeed present in the fleet.

"Very well. Any further explanations will be heard in court. We are here to take custody of former Ninth-Rank Citizen Volparek. Present yourself immediately."

'W-We refuse. If we are not even allowed to explain ourselves, then though we cannot win, we will resist until the last person falls.'

So it's come to this.

No problem. A bit of combat was already expected. Upon receiving the report that their weapons were now aimed at them, Nijerio was certain his first task was complete.

"Then it can't be helped. We'll steel ourselves as well."

The port not facing Divin's side opened. One assault craft, seemingly eager, smoothly launched from Sarunzarek.

A moment later, a ship resembling those of Divin followed. The port was sealed, and weapon locks were disengaged next.

"Kait Third-Rank Citizen. Go all out."

'Thank you. Then, we're off.'

The transmission ended. Watching Queen Bee head straight for the battlefield, Nijerio cast off his calm demeanor as commander.

"Boys! Right in front of us are the bastards who insulted our glorious Third-Rank Citizen!"

'Defeat! Defeat! Defeat!'

"Sarunzarek is now entering combat mode! Don't you dare get in Kait Third-Rank Citizen's way, got it!?"

Sarunzarek aimed its main cannon at Divin's artificial celestial body, which was arrogantly asserting its presence.

"Silence the Emperor—just enough not to kill him! Fire!"

A beam with slightly reduced power fired from Sarunzarek.

As that light sliced cleanly through space, the battle began.