Chapter 285: Conspiracy
“This is still just a casual discussion, but let’s consider a mobile or evacuation flagship,” Ringo announced to the sisters gathered during their usual break time.
“Flagship?” Akane asked.
“A vessel for a VIP, in this case, Onee-sama, to reside on.”
“Isn’t the Hringhorni-class good enough~?” Erika chimed in.
Eve, by the way, was sunbathing with Asahi and wasn’t present. When Asahi returned, they usually let the two youngest sisters have some time alone. Since the five sisters were usually together, they deferred to the youngest.
“The Hringhorni-class is a powerful battleship, but it’s insufficient for the purpose of carrying and protecting Commander. The Hringhorni-class is, after all, a escort ship. It’s not designed to guarantee internal safety.”
“Don’t we have sufficient capabilities compared to the surrounding forces?” Ichigo inquired, to which Ringo shook her head.
“While I acknowledge that human civilization is insignificant, the threat of magical beasts is too severe. Also, although there are no signs yet, if an extreme magical civilization exists, it would be a clear threat. Asahi also mentioned that we need to suppress them before they rise. …Well, that’s a topic for another time. This time, we’re talking about a battleship.”
They regularly held verbal meetings to improve their face-to-face communication skills, as they were increasingly negotiating with humans.
Of course, training could be completed in a matter of hours using simulators, so it was mostly a hobby, a way to kill time.
“We are doing our best to ensure the safety of The Tree, but it’s far from perfect. Therefore, we need to prepare a means to safely evacuate Commander in case any problems arise.”
“…For the time being?” Akane asked.
“For the time being, we will have to rely on the Hringhorni-class or Naglfar-class, escorted by a fleet, to evacuate to the Second Fortress (Black Iron). It’s safer than the open sky.”
“The sky monsters are scary~” Utusgi said.
“If we’re attacked by Wyvern-class, even Titan-class or Gigantia-class ships will be shot down~” Erika added.
Utusgi and Erika said, laughing, but it was no laughing matter. However, if they could work together with the maritime fleet, it wouldn’t be such a threat.
“…The forces stationed at the Second Fortress (Black Iron) would be more than enough…?” Olive muttered, tilting her head.
“Olive, are you saying that the Second Fortress (Black Iron) has more substantial forces?” Ringo asked.
“Yeah…”
When Olive spoke, she tended to be a bit lacking in words. Probably because Eve and Ringo spoiled her. They had been able to communicate with few words. It could be called a unique trait.
“That’s right. In terms of simple combat power, the Second Fortress (Black Iron) is undoubtedly superior. However, The Tree is equipped with many non-combat facilities. For the time being, this will remain our base.”
The Second Fortress (Black Iron) was a fortress focused on expanding military power and producing resources. The Tree had research and medical facilities, and above all, The Core, an incredible supercomputer. If they were to move the base to the continent, they would also need to move The Core. Otherwise, it would be a fatal performance degradation for the AIs, including Ringo.
“The problem is the limited means of evacuation. Currently, the only evacuation destination is a fleet centered around the Naglfar-class aircraft carrier.”
“Is one of the reasons why Onee-sama isn’t actively expanding The Tree’s defense mechanisms because she believes the continent needs more forces? The logic is correct, but…” Akane pondered.
“Commander makes resource allocation decisions based on numbers, so there’s nothing wrong with that in itself. Rather, we should welcome the fact that she allocates them accurately,” Ringo said, lowering her gaze slightly with an expressionless face. “Personally, I would like to allocate more resources to The Tree’s defense forces.”
“We agree~” Utusgi said.
“We could use a little more~” Erika added.
Utusgi and Erika also agreed with Ringo. Although the strength of their feelings varied, the sisters believed that The Tree’s military power should be expanded. However, the reason was just a vague sense of unease, and they couldn’t provide any evidence, so Eve had rejected it for now.
Until now, resources had been chronically tight, so it couldn’t be helped.
However, the current resource balance had improved considerably. Even if they allocated resources to expand The Tree itself, it would have little impact on the plan in the long term. At most, the production plan for the next few years would be delayed by a few months.
However, Eve understood that even if she accepted this request, the AIs would not be satisfied. It was easy to imagine that their desires would grow, given how overprotective they were. That’s why the sisters were complaining like this in a casual chat.
“Ringo’s view is that we should continue to increase the escort fleet and build a flagship?” Akane asked.
“That’s right, Akane. We were originally planning to build a battleship anyway. It would be realistic to make it a flagship. We need Commander’s living space and protective equipment,” Ringo replied.
The Hringhorni-class battleship was 321m long without modifications. It had living space, but it was modest compared to its massive hull. However, simply expanding the living space would only lead to a decrease in structural strength.
“The battleship that will become the flagship needs to be at least 400m long. Living space and armored compartments to protect it. Anti-air equipment, underwater equipment, and a supercomputer to carry out command and control. All of these must be accommodated, and it must also have combat capabilities.”
“…If we could make a floating fortress, that would be the best… but we don’t have the resources yet…” Olive said.
What Olive was saying was that they should secure buoyancy by some means and float a huge facility that could be mistaken for a fortress in the air. Of course, construction would require a large amount of resources. Also, the current energy furnace had its limits, so they would need to develop a furnace based on a new principle. As expected, the hurdle was too high at the moment.
“Structural reinforcement might be possible. We have succeeded in manufacturing hard building materials using the Big Moth’s structure.”
“If we can somehow overcome Commander’s aversion, it’s worth considering. If we can mass-produce Superior Reactors, we can use reinforced structures with energy fields.”
“Monster materials are easy to use, but~” Utusgi said.
“The problem is that the procurement method is hunting~” Erika added.
High-strength structures that transcend scientific constraints using monster materials. Using these, even with The Tree’s current technology level, they could build very robust structures. However, there were difficulties in the supply of monster materials.
“The procurement of Big Moths is going smoothly, but there is the problem that the absolute number is small. According to the person in charge of the Forest Country (Lebresta), the number of breeding should decrease after a certain amount of time, so future procurement will be more difficult.”
“Even if we use it for aerial escort ships, the amount is insufficient for a monocoque structure. We can only use it for mechanically important parts to reduce weight.”
The Big Moth was a huge monster, but even so, it was only possible to manufacture structures that were about 5m to 7m long. Even if they collected and combined them, it would not be enough for the hull material of the aerial escort ship (Titan), which was 180m long and 393m wide.
“…Asahi says that chemical mass production is impossible…”
Of course, light and strong materials were very useful. The Tree also wanted to mass-produce them if possible. However, according to Asahi’s assessment, magical growth factors were indispensable. Mass production by cultivation or other means was currently unthinkable.
A tea party with just the sisters. It’s quiet without Asahi-chan.
Ringo-chan and the five sisters are gradually becoming more resistant to fantasy.