I Reincarnated as the Captain of a Battleship in a Robot Anime, but at This Rate, I’m Going to Be Assassinated – Chapter 23

Chapter 23: There’s No Stopping the Headache-Inducing Seeds From Increasing
  ‘An existence known only to the inhabitants of this world. A character who wasn’t in the anime…… No, maybe there was a setting, but they didn’t include her, couldn’t include her?’
  
  Even Shougo was bewildered by the unexpected appearance of this person.
  The daughter of the enemy’s big boss, Fauden. What would an encounter with such a super VIP bring to them?
  And why was such an important person being chased by the military?
  
  ‘I can guess. If they are an extremist faction within the regular army, they might be trying to take Fauden’s daughter hostage or something to launch an attack. But it’s also strange that she wouldn’t have any guards.’
  
  Was it some kind of mistake, or was there a conspiracy he didn’t know about?
  Either way, the fact that she was their rescue target remained unchanged.
  
  『If that’s Lieutenant Commander Jowain over there?』
  
  Judging from the call from the girl, Franny, on the screen, Jowain must have met this girl several times.
  However, tracing Jowain’s memories, it was more like seeing her face two or three times when he accompanied Anferu as his attendant, rather than having a proper meeting.
  Did she really remember someone like that?
  
  『Rescue, a noble cause. I never thought you would actually come to our aid.』
  
  And she seemed to be greatly mistaken about something.
  
  ‘Oh well, whatever.’
  
  Shougo decided to go along with it for now.
  
  “Franny-ojōsama. Please rest assured. We will help you.”
  
  ***
  
  Around the time Shougo was astonished, Yuuki, in the cramped cockpit with Anish and Thoth, was making his second sortie.
  At the moment, he was vaguely thinking about what he had to do. Regardless of the results or the process, he believed that he was qualified to pilot a high-performance machine, and if using it would improve the situation, then it was something he had to do.
  Furthermore, he also wanted to repay the captain’s kindness for allowing his selfishness.
  
  “Don’t use the thrusters unnecessarily in space! It’s a waste, right? Look, can’t we set the auto-balancer or something for just following the formation?”
  “I’ll try setting it. Thoth, help me out, how do you do it?”
  
  Anish, who had been forced to board the Trismegistus, had tried to pilot it herself once, but it hadn’t responded at all.
  In the end, as Yuuki had said, it seemed that she had no rights unless Thoth approved. She also didn’t want to challenge Thoth and get sent somewhere like that Percy guy.
  In that sense, it was actually scary to have Thoth so close.
  Part of the reason she was giving Yuuki advice was to make him believe she was useful.
  At the same time, Yuuki, despite being able to pilot, was still an a*ateur, and his movements were wasteful.
  It was frustrating for her to just watch.
  
  “Don’t make others do it for you, find it yourself, honestly. Look, the cockpit seems to have the same standards as the Georg, so it’s probably…… around here with a one-push……”
  
  Anish pressed a button while avoiding each other’s bodies. It was an automatic function installed in most machines these days. It was essentially a collision prevention and speed control function.
  It was used when forming temporary formations, but originally, soldiers had to be able to do it manually.
  However, those were skills acquired through hundreds and thousands of repeated training sessions, and they had to grasp their position by themselves using the command unit’s beacon and thruster lights as markers.
  Such things could not be learned overnight.
  
  『The new model, is it the kid who’s piloting?』
  “Y-Yes, sir, Lieutenant!”
  『Hmph, good response. The Captain-dono pulled some strings for us, and the shuttle is in a bad situation too. First, let’s see what you can do. You really can neutralize them, right?』
  “I’ll try. And if I can’t, I’ll go to the brig or wherever.”
  『Just do it. I’ll send two units to escort you. If you can’t, we’ll just do it ourselves. First, we’ll give them a warning. Do whatever you can in that opening.』
  
  After saying that, Mark left two units to escort the Trismegistus, dispersed the rest of the members around the shuttle, positioned himself directly in front, and seemed to be calling out on an open channel.
  
  『Hello, hello, this is…… the ally of justice. To the despicable cowards pointing rifles at the shuttle. I recommend you immediately lower your rifles and activate the escape pods.』
  
  The three Teurugia attacking the shuttle were clearly shaken by his actions, but as expected, they kept their rifles pointed at the shuttle, using it as a shield.
  
  『Back off! Or we’ll drop the shuttle! New Balance, you had escorts!』
  
  Yuuki and the others didn’t understand the meaning of the reply from the enemy unit.
  Even so, the act of attacking a defenseless shuttle and even using it as a shield was unforgivable to Yuuki.
  He thought it was the same as the subordinates of that Anferu guy who tried to attack them.
  No matter the reason, there were things humans should and shouldn’t do. At least, the Teurugia surrounding the shuttle didn’t seem to be doing anything good.
  
  “If I can isolate the enemy’s wavelength from the open channel Lieutenant connected us to…… and if they’re not receiving data links from their mothership, then if I can pry that open……”
  “Hey, are you okay?”
  
  Yuuki couldn’t give a very strong reply to Anish’s anxious voice.
  To be honest, he was just as scared. Still, he needed to take the reins of the Trismegistus. In the end, that was the action that would best ensure their safety.
  
  “I don’t know, but it’s the machine that brought us this far, and that Percy guy said its electronic warfare capabilities are high, right?”
  “Well, yeah, but it won’t start s*ooting beams on its own again, will it?”
  “I think it’s our job to prevent that from happening. Thoth, I have no idea what you’re thinking, but help me. Show me a way other than killing. You’re a super machine, aren’t you?”
  
  Yuuki said, looking at Thoth.
  Thoth tilted his head, and then some light ran through his goldfish bowl-like head, seemingly activating a function.
  At the same time, a change appeared in the Trismegistus. From the outside, it would probably look like the same scene as when it fired beams or manipulated gravity before.
  However, a different operation was taking place inside.
  
  “Haireta haireta”
  
  Thoth clapped his hands. As he did, the Trismegistus’s main monitor displayed the aircraft data of the three enemy Rabi Reivu units. The screen was exactly the same as the one displayed during control and data linking with the battleship.
  
  “It really worked.”
  
  Yuuki was stunned.
  What was happening before his eyes meant that the Trismegistus could easily grasp the enemy’s actions. It shouldn’t be limited to just the enemy. It could almost certainly control all the machines present.
  No, Yuuki shook his head, he knew that from the beginning. The fact that the Mirandora warped on its own meant that a function that could even grasp the battleship’s system was at work.
  Of course, that wouldn’t be all……
  
  “What are you going to do?”
  “Force them to eject. That’s quicker.”
  
  After checking the displayed data, Yuuki operated the console.
  He selected the activation of the remote emergency ejection system. Then, the job was done without a hitch.
  In that instant, the three Rabi Reivu units convulsed as if having a seizure, then went limp and slumped, their heads disintegrating, and the cockpit blocks inside were forcibly ejected.
  The confused voices of the enemy pilots could be heard from the still-connected open channel, but the communication was immediately cut off.
  Mark and the others had secured the escape pods. At the same time, the unharmed Rabi Reivu units were also secured just in case.
  
  “……Isn’t that too anticlimactic?”
  
  Anish was dumbfounded that the operation was already over.
  Yuuki felt the same way. It was too overwhelming and one-sided. He didn’t feel any particular emotion. After all, he had only performed a simple operation.
  
  “It was easy because they weren’t linked to the battleship. Teurugia are supposed to reach their full potential only when they’re under control. They were deliberately operating without it. Maybe it was a strategy where they had to act independently so their main force’s position wouldn’t be revealed……”
  “Isn’t that suicidal?”
  “I think it was worth that much…… Oops.”
  
  While they were talking, the shuttle, with its propulsion system damaged, drifted straight towards the Trismegistus. Yuuki gently caught the shuttle, and a contact circuit was connected.
  It was from the other side.
  
  『If that’s Your Holiness over there.』
  “Holiness? Are you talking about the Trismegistus?”
  
  The voice that came from the communication was a girl’s.
  
  『Did you save us?』
  
  The accuracy of the contact circuit increased, and not only the voice but also the image was clearly displayed.
  He saw a blonde girl, a strong-willed woman with glasses who seemed to be her attendant, and a middle-aged pilot who seemed to be losing consciousness.
  
  『Oh, Ojō-sama, quickly, the spacesuit! It’s going to explode!』
  
  The woman with glasses urged the girl to put on a spacesuit.
  
  “Calm down. The shuttle only has damage to its thrusters. It won’t explode with this level of damage. More importantly, please cut off the shuttle’s power. Otherwise, excess fuel will leak, and it will affect the oxygen and life support inside the shuttle. I can confirm a fuel leak.”
  
  He was a man who had earned his pocket money by doing part-time jobs like machine maintenance in Byblos. He could tell that much just by looking.
  
  『How can we do that? The pilot is like this……』
  
  Ojō-sama was either soft or rather composed, but in any case, piloting a shuttle was certainly specialized work. And the woman with glasses was just panicking and didn’t seem to be of any help.
  
  “Understood. I’ll carry the shuttle, so please fasten your seatbelts and wait.”
  
  It would be troublesome if they messed with it and caused a warp or acceleration. Even though the thrusters were damaged, they still functioned. There was no danger of explosion because they weren’t doing anything right now, but if there was a malfunction now, that would be more dangerous.
  
  “It’s okay. We’re allies.”
  
  Yuuki continued to speak, trying to calm them down as much as possible.
  With the Trismegistus at the center, the two Rabi Reivu units that had joined as escorts supported both sides of the shuttle.
  
  『What’s your name?』
  “Yuuki Shijima.”
  『I see. A good name. I’m Franny. Franny Fauden. I believe you’re a fine gentleman. I’d like to introduce you to my father.』
  “Huh?”
  
  Even Yuuki was stunned to hear that name.
  
  “Fauden……?”
  “Isn’t that the same family name as Commander Fauden of New Balance?!”
  
  Anish shouted in an exaggerated voice.
  
  『Oh my, are you together with a lady? My, my, you’re quite the player, aren’t you?』
  
  Despite that, Franny was like this.
  She didn’t make a fuss at all.
  
  “More importantly! You, Fauden?!”
  『Yes, the Commander of New Balance is my father. I don’t know which unit you belong to, but if you report to my father, you’ll be rewarded. You seem to belong to our army, don’t you? Lieutenant Commander Jowain is in command, isn’t he?』
  “Hey, Anish…… I think I’m in a lot of trouble.”
  “Don’t ask me…… I have a headache.”
  
  While dealing with Ojō-sama, whose conversation didn’t seem to be making sense, they returned to the Mirandora.
  After that, when all the units returned, oxygen was pumped into the hangar, each unit was secured, and the shuttle’s fire was extinguished, they were finally able to get out of their machines.
  Yuuki and the others followed suit and jumped out into the zero-gravity hangar. Then, Mark flew over with them.
  
  “This has become a pain in the a*s.”
  
  Mark muttered, scratching his head.
  
  “Is that person really the Commander’s Ojō-sama?”
  “I don’t know. I’ve never met her. The Captain seems to know her, though.”
  
  As Mark gestured with his chin, Shougo arrived at the same time.
  He also seemed perplexed.
  
  “Why is the Commander’s daughter……”
  
  As he was trying to think about various things, there was a commotion.
  At the same time, someone was shouting at him.
  
  “Hey, kid, front!”
  
  He thought it was one of the pilots.
  Reacting to the voice, Yuuki faced straight ahead.
  Then, something soft hit his face. A fluffy, sweet scent drifted, and straight blonde hair covered his vision like a lace curtain.
  
  “Huh?”
  
  He was being hugged by someone.
  
  “My, you have a surprisingly young face up close. Thank you for saving me, Your Holiness?”
  
  It was Franny.
  He was being hugged by her in mid-air for some reason.
  
  “H-Hey! What are you doing, you!”
  
  Seeing that, Anish’s face turned bright red as she tried to pull them apart.
  
  “It’s a thank you.”
  “Don’t hug him!”
  “But hugs are done with affection.”
  “Shut up!”
  
  When that started, Mark, who was nearby, decided he couldn’t stand it and quickly left.
  The other pilots and maintenance crew were needlessly cheering them on.
  And as for Shougo, the captain……
  
  ‘Ugh. The second heroine. I don’t know this character. And on top of that, she’s the Commander’s daughter. Isn’t this a huge troublesome element?’
  
  Looking at the three of them having their youthful moment above, he thought it was heartwarming, but for some reason, he felt a headache because of the complicated situation.
  They had picked up something extraordinary.
  
  ‘The enemy’s, the Commander-in-Chief’s daughter…… Is this a common, development?’