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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Simzy
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Rowner Ellie, with her body enhancements, the braggart Lewis, and pink-haired Dana regained consciousness quickly after Karl. They hurriedly helped the collapsed trainee knights behind cover.
Looking at the transport ship lying askew, they wore expressions of despair. They hadn’t expected the pirates to actually attack. And to blatantly fire missiles, no less! …It seemed the negotiations hadn’t gone to their liking.
But even so, damn it, really firing missiles? These fucking pirate bastards—!
Rowner Ellie frantically tried to connect to the main unit for support, but the connection kept failing, as if they’d deployed a jamming network. Still, if the signal was lost for more than 30 minutes, the ship was supposed to consider it an emergency and immediately enter combat status.
The problem was those 30 minutes. Rowner doubted she could hold out that long with these bewildered trainees.
Moreover, even if 30 minutes passed, it would take tens of minutes for the troops dispatched from the ship to arrive. …No matter how she looked at it, it seemed unlikely they would survive that long.
…No, still, I have to do what I can. I can’t just give up.
Ellie thought they needed to escape this location and enter the rugged rocky terrain. An open area might be good for observing the enemy’s approach, but it wasn’t very effective for defense. Of course, they chose this wide, flat area because of the transport ship, but since the object they needed to protect was gone, there was no need to stay here. Now, her mission was to protect the trainees, not the transport ship.
“Louis, head into the rocky area. You lead the way. I’ll take care of the trainees from the rear.”
“Understood.”
Terrified, Louis already seemed eager to flee. So he readily agreed to lead the way.
Ellie shouted at the trainees to quickly grab their weapons and follow Lewis. Thanks to their individual shields, thankfully, none of them had injuries severe enough to hinder their movement. The trainees grabbed their energy guns and quickly followed Lewis toward the rocky area.
Ellie first checked the rapidly approaching pirates’ location with her radar, then with her own eyes. Several dots, likely those on hover bikes, were approaching at high speed.
Someone had to stay behind and stop them. Ellie knew she was the only one who could do it.
Even though she had body enhancements, her combat sense was inevitably inferior to that of the escort or combat units. …Honestly, she couldn’t help but be scared. Moreover, the opponent was the infamous Red Duck pirate crew. She couldn’t guarantee what would happen if she were captured.
Alone, is it possible?
If they used hit-and-run tactics with their hover bikes to stall for time, there wasn’t much she could do. She’d be caught red-handed.
Just then, someone approached Ellie. Ah— She was startled, wondering if someone was still here, not having left yet.
“Karl…? What are you doing here? Why aren’t you going?”
“How can I leave senior alone?”
When Karl said that with a sly grin, Ellie, strangely, felt greatly comforted. Even if a trainee couldn’t be of much help, having someone beside her felt like that. …However, as a senior, how could she stand by and watch her junior fall into a pit of despair?
“It’s not too late, even now. Hurry up and go—!”
“Don’t worry. I can protect myself.”
Of course, Rowner Ellie had heard rumors of his outstanding performance in ranked matches. However, that was just a record among trainees, and it didn’t necessarily translate to real-life situations. Moreover, in simulations, body enhancements were virtually applied, but now, there were none—!
Having those body enhancements or not made a world of difference. Enough so that even Ellie, who wasn’t particularly outstanding, could neutralize Karl, who possessed exceptional talent, with a single gesture.
“I said go—! That’s an order—!”
“I’m sorry. I think I have to disobey your order this time, senior. …And it’s already too late. They’re… coming.”
…This foolish boy.
His loyalty was truly admirable, but wouldn’t that loyalty cost him his life—!
“Senior, if we both return safely, could you grant me one wish?”
Ellie glanced sideways at Karl, wondering what he was talking about in this situation.
“I’m… a little nervous.”
She fully understood how he felt. Even she, a veteran, was trembling; it was impressive that a trainee was just standing there calmly. …Right, it was better to help him relieve his tension this way.
“…Okay, if we both return safely. …What is it?”
“Could I… touch your breasts, senior?”
Ha, honestly—. Ellie burst out laughing, thinking that even in this situation, men were looking for breasts. And a junior daring to ask a senior like her—!
Thinking that this kid was living up to his handsome face, she nodded lightly.
“If we return safely, I’ll let you touch them as much as you want. …So, survive somehow. You have to survive, okay? That’s the priority, Karl.”
“You promised… to let me touch them as much as I want?”
Karl cracked his neck from side to side. He suddenly felt a surge of motivation. Ellie, still unaware, thought it was fortunate that she could give him courage even in this terrifying situation. …Of course, the outcome was obvious.
…If captured, I’ll just die. I don’t know what will happen to me if they catch me. It’s better to die cleanly, for the sake of my comrades.
Even though she resolved herself to this, death couldn’t be anything but terrifying. …It was a terrible thought, but having Karl by her side was strangely comforting.
If she could really get out of here alive, she could let him touch these uselessly large breasts a hundred or a thousand times. …But was that even possible?
…Ah….
The pirates were far more numerous than expected. If even one of them had body enhancements, the slim chance they had would disappear. The situation was getting worse and worse.
She was afraid. She tried to remain composed, but her body trembled.
She was too young to die. Just when she thought she was finally seeing the light, this had to happen.
Haah, haah, haah.
Still, she resolved to take down at least one of them with her. That way, the survival rate of the remaining trainees would increase, even if just a little.
These goddamn bastards…!
Rage surged within her towards the pirates who had committed this outrageous act. With that, she was able to somewhat forget the fear of death. Of course, it wasn’t completely gone.
Soon, the pirates were right in front of them. She first aimed her energy gun at them and fired, pyong pyong. Of course, even these crude pirates weren’t without energy shields. Especially Red Duck, one of the pirate crews well-equipped enough to fight an entire unit.
Two hover bikes, each carrying three pirates, circled Ellie and Karl. They fired their energy guns, pyong pyong, buying time until their comrades arrived. …Exactly the worst-case scenario Ellie had imagined.
She desperately fired her energy gun, trying to overcome this crisis, but this wasn’t enough to penetrate their defenses. And if she approached them, they’d just retreat, driving her crazy.
Then, suddenly, Karl stepped forward with his laser blade.
“It’s dangerous, hide—!”
Rowner Ellie shouted, brushing away the sweat-drenched hair stuck to her cheek. But Karl didn’t listen and continued walking forward.
“Kaaarl—! I told you to hiide—!”
The moment Ellie shouted for him to take cover, Karl suddenly vanished from sight.
And then, suddenly, a hover bike exploded.
—!!!!
Ellie was momentarily speechless, staring at it with blank eyes. The pirates were equally surprised. They didn’t know why the hover bike had suddenly exploded.
While they were stunned, Karl appeared in front of the remaining hover bike and sliced the engine block at the rear in a single stroke. The airborne bike spun and crashed into a rock, exploding. The pirates on board fell to the ground, motionless. One of them was completely engulfed in flames.
Phew.
Karl exhaled as if wanting a cigarette and looked towards Ellie. She was staring at him with a look of astonishment, wondering what had just happened. He simply smiled leisurely and gave a slight wave.
Oh dear, our Rowner, so surprised… Cute.
Karl imagined Ellie’s breasts being delightfully squished in his hands, then slowly turned his head to the approaching pirates.
There were about thirty of them. His eyes checked their body temperatures, identifying those using body enhancements.
Two with enhancements—. Karl determined that if he dealt with them, there wouldn’t be a problem, and then fully activated his Ion Buster.
Immense talent, vast experience, and the best enhancements—.
With these three combined, Karl was practically invincible. Even if one searched the entire vast space empire, there would be only a handful who could face him in single combat.
Naturally, it was absurd for these pirate scoundrels to oppose him. From their perspective, it was truly a bolt from the blue. They couldn’t have imagined that such an outrageous monster would exist within this backwater knight order.
The two pirates with body enhancements had their heads severed in the blink of an eye. They only realized the situation after their heads were gone.
—!!!
The pirates were terrified, seeing the man who had suddenly appeared in their midst. Moreover, the heads of the two strongest among them had already been severed—!
“I don’t consider pirates to be human.”
As soon as he finished speaking, blood spurted from the chests of the surrounding pirates. Their chests were split open before they knew it. Even their shields had been penetrated.
“K-Kill this bastard—!!”
Karl, with blood splattered on his cheek, grinned.
And the massacre began.
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