I Reincarnated as the Captain of a Battleship in a Robot Anime, but at This Rate, I’m Going to Be Assassinated – Chapter 39

Chapter 39: It seems that smart people can’t understand that ordinary people want to know the process most when they act with a predetermined conclusion
  The universe reflected in the eyes of the man named Percy is painted black. Within it, a few points of light illuminate. Large ones, small ones, some moving erratically, some traveling straight, some slow, some fast…… Black and light, but within that, complex and different information is also mixed in.
  An ordinary person would think that this sight is just light moving in the darkness.
  That’s wrong. If even light has different types, then it can be understood that they are different entities.
  
  “Beautiful…… A beautiful, streamlined sight.”
  
  Percy pulls the trigger.
  Then, one of the lights in the darkness disappears.
  He repeats this. Another light disappears.
  
  “Satisfaction…… The silent universe. The guilt and sense of superiority of scattering blooming flowers.”
  
  *Kachiri, kachiri*, he pulls the trigger.
  However, Percy’s aim is not at such useless flowers. He wants to bring down something more beautiful.
  
  “Where are you, Trismegistus? Which one is Trismegistus…… All k*ll…… Does it matter if I s*oot them all down?”
  
  He crushes the small points of light reflected in his eyes, and the last one he crushes must be the Trismegistus. So, he pulls the trigger. He repeats this process.
  But the scene on Percy’s retina reversed.
  
  “Flash! White darkness……!”
  
  The scene, which should have been all black, is filled with light.
  
  “S*it! Is it the disturbance from the explosion? But…… If I lower the sensitivity……”
  
  The light doesn’t last. He removes unnecessary heat. Even so, it interferes with the sensor for a moment, but the processing speed is fast. Like sunlight or the power reactor of the fortress, he cuts out obstructive and large heat so that it cannot be seen.
  He can’t make too many fine adjustments because he needs to capture flying objects like missiles, but if he strains his eyes and adjusts it, he can see.
  Amidst the light, a small light leaps out in the slight remaining darkness. He pulls the trigger and shoots it down.
  
  “……!”
  
  In an instant, countless streaks of light come flying towards him.
  Unpleasant light. Obstructive light. However, he cuts these out as well. Then, he can see them. New light, entities with heat.
  
  “Anti-snipe. But, it won’t hit.”
  
  Percy makes his Rabi Reivu, customized for sniping, take evasive action with minimal movement. He can dodge slow particle beams from battleship main cannons with just a little movement.
  But it’s troublesome. His vision is once again enveloped in light.
  
  “Missile party……! But it won’t last long…… Huh!?”
  
  The light in front of him. He understands that it’s a simultaneous missile launch to escape from thermal detection.
  This is an obvious flaw in the old, large thermal detection system installed on this Rabi Reivu. However, if he can destroy all of the targets, it will overcome that flaw. Because he can definitely capture them. After that, all he has to do is pull the trigger and fire the railgun at it.
  Percy starts adjusting the sensor sensitivity again.
  At the same time, he finds a point of light approaching directly again.
  
  “Is it Trismegistus!? Or is it just a small fry!? It’s fine if I s*oot it down, right, Doctor!?”
  
  Countless heat source reactions from the approaching target.
  
  “Handheld missiles!? Sensor machine guns! Defense!”
  
  Percy activates the floating sensors that assist him. They are not just auxiliary cameras but are equipped with laser machine guns for self-defense.
  At the same time, by synchronizing with the sensor system installed on this unit, they boast exceptional accuracy. It enables hedgehog-like anti-air defense.
  He intercepts the missiles that were probably launched with them. He’s completely exposed. The heat from the explosions is a hindrance, but if he can detect the heat source he captured before the missile barrage……!
  
  “……! It’s gone!?”
  
  The reaction disappeared from the sensor.
  
  “Only the Trismegistus can do something like this!”
  
  Percy searches his surroundings with the sensor.
  But it’s not there. There are no points of light around him.
  
  “Nonsense! Impossible, I have anti-jamming measures in place. The system can’t be taken over……! Because I’m completely offline……!”
  
  Once he captures a target, he won’t lose it unless it disappears from his sight.
  That’s how it should be.
  
  “D*mn it, sensitivity adjustment…… Huh……!”
  
  In an instant, Percy realized his blunder.
  But it’s too late when he recognizes it. An impact runs through the unit.
  
  “You! You! Kamikaze!?”
  
  When the sniping railgun was destroyed and the thermal sensor deactivated, Percy’s eyes saw the original space, and right in front of him was the Trismegistus, blackened with soot and with what looked like melted wounds here and there.
  
✼✼✼
  
  If this fails, I might d*e.
  It’s not that I don’t have that fear, but I also have this baseless confidence that the Trismegistus will be alright.
  Even if I charge straight at Percy’s sniper unit without a plan, it would be suicide. The enemy’s sniping accuracy is amazing. Even the Trismegistus would be destroyed if it took a direct hit.
  It’s a different story if it conveniently performs a short-range warp, but I can’t rely on that too much.
  
  “Lopes said it was thermal detection. But there’s a lot of obstructive heat in space.”
  
  Even though space is cold, it doesn’t mean there’s no heat at all.
  Especially in this area, there are artificial objects, and they have power. Missiles are flying around, and beams are running. There’s the sun far away, and the fortress base nearby.
  It’s full of heat sources, and it would normally be a real nuisance.
  “I have no idea if this will work, but……! Thoth, if you’re motivated, warp or something! If that’s not possible, match the timing of the missiles, and put a load on the unit at the same time……!”
  
  Yuuki sets up the handheld missile pod he has on the Trismegistus.
  He can see the enemy. He fires a barrage of missiles. However, he can’t imagine that kind of sniper unit being without any escort.
  
  “It flashed, machine guns!”
  
  At the same time that the missiles are intercepted, Yuuki plunges into the explosion.
  The scorching flames rise in space. They scorch the surface of the unit. At the same time, Yuuki scatters the remaining missiles.
  He curls the unit up, using the Trismegistus’s robe-shaped armor as a shield.
  Alerts warning of danger pound his eardrums. The damage display is bright red, indicating a danger zone. The spare arms he attached have already been blown off.
  The robe armor is no longer usable. He probably can’t even fire the beam.
  But that’s fine.
  
  “Now!”
  
  He doesn’t even know how many thrusters have survived. But this is his only chance, this split second. Yuuki deliberately steps in front of Percy with the slightly red-hot armor.
  Percy is just standing there blankly.
  Because he can’t see it. Percy, who cuts out unnecessary heat sources and only chases the heat of registered units, can’t see it.
  This is space. The heat of the unit won’t last long. If it starts to cool down gradually, he’ll notice it immediately.
  But it’s a mobile weapon. If he can get a momentary acceleration, the rest is just momentum.
  
  “Raaaaah!”
  
  A piercing strike with the remaining left arm. He slams it into the joint between the unit and the sniper rifle. Just that is enough to disable the sniper rifle.
  The sensor machine guns that noticed his approach turn their muzzles towards him, but he shoots them down with the surviving robe cannons. At the same time, the robe detonates, but if he purges it, it’s not a problem.
  
  “I’m sorry! I don’t have any grudge against you!”
  
  After that, he kicks away the remaining unit.
  
  『You devil!』
  “I’ll try not to be……!”
  
  The Trismegistus has no usable weapons left.
  But there’s something just right nearby.
  Just by destroying the joint, the firing mechanism of the railgun, which is a sniper rifle, is still alive. In the extreme, if he can just pull the trigger, he can fire it.
  Yuuki pulls the railgun closer with the Trismegistus’s remaining left arm and puts his finger on the trigger.
  His target is…… not Percy. It’s the guy who’s sneaking around behind him, though he can’t see him.
  
  “Thoth! Fight jamming with jamming! You can see through him, can’t you!?”
  “Vivi! Copied, copied!”
  “Thermal detection……! You’re smart!”
  
  In this instant, Thoth imitated the same method that Percy used with the Trismegistus’s sensors.
  If he does that, whether it’s an electronic device or something he can’t see visually, he can capture the heat it emits just by existing.
  
  “Hmm? Wireless communication! Connected!”
  “Wireless, connected……?”
  “Enemy! Ship! Data acquisition! V!”
  “I don’t understand what you’re saying at all……!”
  
  Anyway, it seems Thoth obtained data to find the enemy’s boss in addition to thermal detection.
  He detects the reaction indicated on the main monitor. He fires the railgun towards it.
  He thought his arm might be blown off if he fired it in its damaged state, but that didn’t happen. For some reason, this railgun seems to be able to handle almost all of the recoil.
  However, it sparks and becomes unusable as soon as he fires one shot. It seems the durability is low.
  
  “But……!”
  
  The fired bullet seemed to pierce the void.
  However, after a few seconds, the space in front of him distorts, and a warship appears. It’s shaped like a disc UFO, like something out of an old sci-fi movie, for some reason. The part that would be the port side, if he can even call it that, is gouged out from Yuuki’s perspective.
  It seems the railgun hit it directly.
  
  『Magnificent……』
  
  Immediately after, a communication line opens, and a voice of admiration is heard.
  
  『So that’s how the Trismegistus has evolved.』
  “You…… You’re the Doctor, right!?”
  
  The owner of the voice didn’t answer Yuuki’s question, but it was definitely Dr. Phoenix.
  
  『How it will grow, even I don’t know. I see, it specialized in electronic warfare. That’s the right evolution, in a sense. In a networked society, it’s no exaggeration to say that those who control information control everything. It’s not about the destructive power you see. That’s just a superficial evaluation. Have you understood, Trismegistus…… and Thoth?』
  “So you’re not going to answer my questions?”
  
  Moreover, the Trismegistus is half-destroyed and has no usable weapons.
  It’s also immobilized. He understands that he’s in trouble.
  
  “D*mn it! I want to punch him!”
  
  No matter how much he moves the control stick, the Trismegistus just slumps无力地 and drifts in space.
  But at the same time, there’s good news. There’s a ship heading straight towards them.
  It’s the Mirandora.
  
  “Captain……!”
  
  Percy’s unit is neutralized, but the Rabi Reivu equipped with beam cannons for long-range sniping still remain. However, they are swept away by the Mirandora’s simultaneous barrage, as if they have no intention of taking evasive action.
  
  “Oh, wireless!”
  
  Thoth’s belated remark comes in.
  In other words, they were drones.
  
  “Hey, if that’s the case, couldn’t we have avoided all this trouble by controlling those?”
  “Can’t!”
  “Are you really specialized in electronic warfare……?”
  
  While they’re talking, he sees Anish’s Rabi Reivu approaching.
  
  『Hey! Are you alive!?』
  “The contents are safe.”
  『Why would you do something so stupid!?』
  “Tell Thoth…… He didn’t suggest anything.”
  
  The surviving Mirandora squadron units also gather and take aim at Phoenix’s ship.
  
  『It’s you! You d*mn geezer! I’m gonna make you spill everything!』
  
  He can hear the Captain raging like a young punk.
  
  ‘She gets like that sometimes.’
  
  The Mirandora approaches as if it’s about to charge, but before that, Phoenix’s ship shimmers like a mirage.
  
  “That, that guy! He’s trying to escape!”
  
  By the time he realized it was a warp, it was too late.
  The reaction disappeared. Percy’s unit had also vanished before he knew it.
  The only thing he knows for sure is that the battle is finally over.