Chapter 14

I can't continue the fraud of posting indefinitely, so despite the lack of stock, I will resume posting.

The update is scheduled for 7 PM.

And the release date for "The World of Otome Games is Tough for the Common Folk, Volume 10" is [May 30th]!!

You might already see it in bookstores, but I would appreciate it if you could refrain from spoilers.

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In a universe where numerous asteroids drift, the wreckage of spaceships and mobile knights floated.

A newly wrecked mobile knight was discharging electricity from its damaged parts.

Moving its head awkwardly, it watched the entity that had tried to kill it.

"Filthy mercenaries."

The destroyed unit belonged to the Unified Army's frontier guard.

Facing them, the pilot of the enemy mobile knight laughed coldly inside the cockpit.

"To me, it's a compliment."

Immediately after replying, she moved the control stick, and the sword in the mobile knight's right hand pierced the opponent's cockpit.

As the female pilot removed her helmet, her shining white hair spread out in the zero-gravity cockpit.

Her skin was fair and smooth, and her figure was evident even through the pilot suit.

A very beautiful and charming female pilot—however, her eyes were clouded.

Her green eyes, which had lost their luster, gazed at the mobile knight she had defeated.

"If you had surrendered, I wouldn't have killed you."

After uttering the arrogant line, her allied mobile knights gathered around.

The left shoulder of the mobile knights bore the mark of the dahlia, a flower of the Asteraceae family, which was also the name of their mercenary group.

One of the mercenary groups under the large mercenary organization "Vulture," the Dahlia led by the female pilot was a group of skilled individuals.

"Captain Sirena, we're done here too."

"The Unified Army's units can't be negotiated with, so it's troublesome."

"If it were the Empire, they might let us off with a bribe."

The voices of the female pilots could be heard from the gathered mobile knights.

Despite the recent battle, they were quite cheerful.

Sirena did not reprimand them.

In fact, she liked her subordinates who were like this.

"I'm glad everyone is safe. Still, we shouldn't have taken on the job of escorting pirates. The reward wasn't bad, but we should have asked for a 20% increase if we had to fight the Unified Army's frontier units."

The Dahlia, led by Sirena, had taken on the job of escorting a pirate group operating within the Unified Government.

What they were transporting was all contraband banned by the Unified Government.

In other words, it was smuggling.

The Dahlia had taken on the job of escorting them.

One of her comrades asked,

"But this job is almost over. Should we go to some battlefield next?"

"I've already decided on the next job."

While the mobile knights were heading back to the mothership, Sirena talked about the next job.

"An assault on the Empire's Seventh Weapon Factory."

"Are you serious?"

The idea of targeting the Empire's weapon factory made her subordinates hesitate.

It was a very dangerous mission, but Sirena shrugged and explained.

"We've been asked to capture or destroy a certain unit. Once the mission is completed, we'll retreat immediately."

"If that's the case, well, but why?"

"There's no need to question the reason. However, the reward is exceptional."

Sirena recalled the substantial advance payment.

(Is it some special unit?)

She operated the monitor to check the data of the requested unit.

Sirena murmured the name of the targeted unit.

"A new Nevan. The unit name is—Atalante."

◇

A girl woke up inside a capsule filled with liquid.

The green liquid was slightly viscous, and she felt resistance when she moved.

The girl, Lieutenant Emma Roddman, moved her hand.

(Ah, right. I was in the training capsule.)

As she remembered where she was, the liquid in the capsule was drained.

The capsule slowly rose, and the hatch opened.

There, waiting for her, were female staff in white coats.

She took the bathrobe they offered and put it on, still half-asleep.

The female staff reported to Emma.

"Thank you for the short-term training. Since it was only a week, you don't need rehabilitation."

"Thank you."

Wobbling, she walked, and the other capsules in the room began to open one by one.

The ones who came out were mainly the female crew members of the light carrier Mereia.

Her friend, Molly, collapsed on the floor as soon as she came out, and the concerned female staff rushed to her side.

"Are you okay!?"

Emma, worried, went over to her.

"Molly!"

Molly, noticing Emma, looked up with teary eyes.

"Emma-chan—me—I'm—"

"What's wrong!? If there's any problem, you should—"

Before the worried Emma could finish, Molly explained why she had collapsed.

"I'm hungry."

Immediately after, Emma's stomach growled, and the surrounding people's faces twitched.

A female staff member sighed.

"Please choose something gentle on your stomach at first."

◇

In the cafeteria of the training facility.

While Molly ate a porridge-like food with a dissatisfied look, Emma, who had changed into a hospital gown, operated a terminal.

"The next mission is the Seventh Weapon Factory."

Reacting to Emma's murmur, the male pilot, Lieutenant Junior Grade Larry Kramer, who was sitting next to her, spoke.

"Is there a reason to go to a weapon factory?"

The sarcastic Larry prompted Emma to show off her knowledge from the knight school.

"There is. The Banfield family buys weapons from the Seventh, so they need to send them for overhaul and modification."

Molly, interested in the conversation, asked Emma.

"It's great to see the new models from the Seventh. But, is there a reason for us to go along?"

Emma, who should have learned this at the knight school, thought hard.

"Wait. I think I've heard this before—"

Even if knowledge is drilled into you in the training capsule, it will be forgotten if not used.

Emma remembered how important daily practice is, but an unexpected answer came.

The last member of the squad, Lieutenant Junior Grade Doug Walsh, appeared with a tray.

The middle-aged man with short hair and a beard, who had lived in the military for a long time, gave a different answer from what was taught at the knight school.

"They send us along with the ships to avoid the hassle of transfer. To the nobles, we're just parts to move the fleet."

Hearing Doug's answer, Molly and Larry showed understanding expressions.

"Oh, I see."

"That makes sense."

Emma, standing up, denied it.

"No! That's not true!"

It was bothersome to think that the military treated soldiers as parts—moreover, the Banfield family's military was Emma's first step towards her dream.

She had a strong admiration for the lord at the top, so she didn't want to be denied.

Looking at the strongly denying Emma with a puzzled face, Larry pointed at her with his spoon.

"I doubt it. Our military alone has millions of members. The higher-ups probably only see soldiers as numbers."

As Emma tried to deny it, Doug, perhaps wanting to change the subject, scratched his head and changed the topic.

"Sorry, kid. Let's change the subject."

"I'm not a kid, I'm the captain. Captain!"

"Then, Captain, I have some news for you."

Doug operated his wrist terminal and displayed a list of the fleet being sent to the Seventh Weapon Factory in front of Emma and the others.

The four of them stared at the same screen.

Molly was surprised by the scale of the fleet.

"Three thousand ships? Sending this many will be a hassle for the Seventh, won't it?"

Larry, remembering something, nodded and spoke.

"Maybe they bought a lot of ships after the reform. Many of them are approaching the end of their service life, so they might be trading them in for new ones."

The name of the light carrier Mereia was also on the list of ships being sent.

However, it was marked with "scheduled for overhaul."

Doug sighed.

"Our mothership is already past its service life, yet it's being overhauled. The frontier security force is still treated coldly."

Seeing the three of them dissatisfied with the treatment of the Mereia, which was known as a place of demotion within the Banfield family, Emma couldn't say anything.

(The Mereia is already past its service life and should have been scrapped.)

It was a warship from several hundred years ago.

Additionally, it had been operated in harsh conditions, causing numerous problems.

As a light carrier from several generations ago, it had performance issues.

As the four of them were feeling dejected, Doug changed the screen, perhaps to lift their spirits.

"So, the commander for this mission is a B-class knight named Klaus."

Klaus Sera Mont.

Seeing the name, Larry frowned.

"I've never heard of this knight. Besides, a colonel? The rank and the scale of this mission don't match."

It was a large-scale mission for an unknown knight.

Molly speculated why Klaus was chosen.

"Maybe he has connections in higher places? Or, since it's just a round trip to the Seventh, anyone would do?"

Doug nodded in agreement.

"We're short of knights."

Doug's gaze, which mentioned the shortage, was on Emma.

Noticing this, Emma felt indignant but couldn't say anything because she knew she lacked many things.

However—

(Colonel Klaus Sera Mont—what kind of person is he?)

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Ifukumi-chan (°∀°) "Everyone's idol, Ifukumi-chan! I'll be promoting in the afterword, so please look forward to it!"

Ifukumi-chan (°∀°) "The 'The World of Otome Games is Tough for the Common Folk, Volume 10' is being released on the 30th of this month! It has episodes not in the web version, so anyone can enjoy it! The 'Mob Seka' anime is also airing, so I'd be happy if you could support that too!"