Episode 259: Level Up
The second Gigantia-class aerial battleship, ＜Agrios＞, takes off.
Using the vast energy produced by its three Fusion Reactors without reservation, its 24 plasma jet engines and 6 jet engines propel the massive body forward. Combined with the acceleration generated by the solid fuel rocket motors added for takeoff, the 4,500-ton behemoth slowly ascends.
“…To think you’d build such a monument to romance…”
“We couldn’t make them this easily back in the game,” Eve replies.
Eve and Amadio are watching the launch footage of the Agrios together. This Gigantia-class ship will be dispatched to the skies above the Prawa Theocracy for a shakedown cruise, doubling as a show of force for their subjugation.
“I’ll assign Titan-class ships 5 through 8 as escorts. The 5th ship, ＜Hyperion＞, the 6th ship, ＜Iapetus＞, the 7th ship, ＜Cronus＞, and the 8th ship, ＜Theia＞. Hmm, it’s more than enough firepower against human nations, but…”
“It’s hard to believe that these five ships would be wiped out if they challenged the Demon Forest… I’ve been vaguely aware of it, but this planet is seriously messed up.”
“Right? If this were a normal planet without magic, we could have already seized the entire territory…”
Eve grumbles. Certainly, with ＜The Tree’s＞ technological prowess, conquering an undeveloped planet should have been a piece of cake. The fact that it has been stalled for several years shows just how significant the influence of magic is.
“Speaking of which, Amadio-san, have you been researching magic at all?”
“Huh? Ah… I can’t use it myself, so honestly, I haven’t done much at all. In my country, magic is treated as a backwater technology. Well, seeing the Theocracy’s offensive, I’m starting to think we might have taken the wrong approach to developing our technology.”
“I see… Well, magic seems to depend on individual ability, so it doesn’t mesh well with the modernization of the military.”
Scientific militaries seek standardized, easily procured equipment. Soldier types like magic users, whose quality varies greatly from individual to individual, are difficult to deploy.
However, the Repuytari Kingdom isn’t completely ignoring magic. They seem to be using some mysterious magical power to operate Message Birds, and they’ve certainly created something like a flamethrower.
“I haven’t been too involved in that area. I did allocate the budget, though. Well, I’ll have the research results reported, so make good use of them.”
“Oh, thank you. What’s the compensation, then…? How about expanding the Burnstone trade quota?”
“How materialistic. Well, I was worried about you controlling the energy source, so I was pulling some strings behind the scenes. Now that things have come to this, those efforts are meaningless. Fine, let’s do it.”
While casually deciding the future of the kingdom, they confirm that the launched Agrios is joining up with its Titan-class escorts.
“Now then. From now on, we’ll have this Agrios fly all over the Prawa Theocracy. We plan to use drones equipped with ground-penetrating radar to search for Lodes.”
“Oh? Can you tell from the sky?”
“Yes… I don’t know the details, though. Ichigo, can you explain?”
“Yes, Onee-sama. Ground penetration is possible with electromagnetic waves in the 1 GHz band. This is the so-called L-band. We will form a squadron of drones equipped with radar in this band and operate a synthetic aperture radar. Using Agrios as a platform, we will conduct as much land exploration as possible. We will dispatch ground troops to promising locations to conduct detailed surveys.”
Surrounded by Ichigo and even having her explain things, it’s quite the queenly move, but since they look so alike, it’s just endearing. Amadio doesn’t comment and simply nods.
“If the Lodes are near the surface, we can roughly find them this way, and if we can identify cracks or groundwater, it will give us a starting point for exploration. Ideally, we’d be able to do this with satellites, though.”
“And while you’re at it, you’ll be dropping bombs on towns and villages.”
“Exactly. There are still small, untouched farming villages. I really wish these religious fanatics would stop. They won’t listen to reason.”
Eve doesn’t believe that all enemies should be Zistroi. If possible, she wants them to surrender without bloodshed.
However, the Warrior Monks, who are the main force of the Prawa Theocracy, do not listen to the enemy. Some may be rational enough to listen to reason, but they may simply be lying and waiting for an opportunity to strike. It’s difficult to tell.
Therefore, she has decided to treat them as a necessary sacrifice and eliminate all Warrior Monks.
“Well, it can’t be helped. I still can’t believe that the source of all this is an independent AI belonging to us.”
“To start an independent country and fabricate a religion all on its own… it must have been a very capable AI. We know there are supposed to be relics, but I wonder if any are left…”
“I wouldn’t expect much. We certainly sent out multiple units for reconnaissance, but none of them came back. Well, they were just mass-produced units with information loaded into their memory. They were more or less disposable.”
“Is that so? Well, even if we made them with our technology, they’d still seem divine enough. It would be nice if we could recover them after the occupation.”
After finishing their heartwarming chat, Amadio straightens up.
“Now then. Putting the Prawa Theocracy aside, let’s talk about the future of our country, the Repuytari Kingdom.”
“…Yes. Let’s discuss that as well.”
From here, a proper top-level meeting between the two powers begins. The problem is, the power dynamic has already been decided.
“First, let’s talk about the situation at Moor Port. This is based on what I’ve gathered. You probably have an objective understanding as well, but I want to get a feel for what the locals are thinking.”
“Does Amadio-san’s perspective really match the feelings of the locals?”
“That’s… more so than you guys, come on. Well, whatever.”
Amadio chuckles wryly at Eve’s perfectly valid point. Certainly, it would be impossible for Amadio, in his position, to directly hear opinions from the common people. Ixia in her human form would probably gather more information walking around the city.
Well, even so. Hearing the frank opinions of the upper echelons is a valuable opportunity. In the future, they will be able to obtain this information in almost real-time.
“For now, the Theocracy’s invasion has been largely contained. They still manage to break through occasionally, but base defenses are strong after all. Apparently, they can be repelled with heavy machine guns. However, that’s only for base defense. It’s still difficult to push back and retake lost ground, but you understand that, right?”
“Yes. Our prediction is that providing too many powerful weapons will lead to infighting. What do you think?”
“I agree. From our perspective, they’re like primitives. They’ll try to enrich themselves immediately. It’s been too long since they’ve had a peaceful era.”
The Repuytari Kingdom is a relatively new country reborn after a civil war, so its upper echelons are all top-notch. However, the surrounding nations have apparently been living peacefully for over 50 years without war. Their upper echelons lack a sense of crisis.
Because of that, the Prawa Theocracy was able to easily conquer about two countries.
“The basic strategy is to form a large alliance centered on the Repuytari Kingdom. We’ll concentrate political and technological power in the Repuytari Kingdom, and the surrounding nations will become resource producers.”
“Yes. That sounds good. After we take down the Prawa Theocracy, we’ll redraw the borders based on the front lines at that point. Our country will handle the negotiations between nations. There’s a possibility they’ll make a fuss about reparations and such, but we can suppress them with force.”
“Leave the weapon exports to me!”
“You’re as reliable as ever…”
The Repuytari Kingdom is moving on to the next stage.
Unknowingly, guided by an overwhelming civilization.