Chapter 7

【The World of Otome Games is Tough for the Common Folk Vol. 9】【On Sale November 30】

Soon, pre-orders will be available for the e-book version.

For readers who prefer e-books, please consider making a pre-order.

Pre-orders—author—delighted.

Around the aircraft carrier Remia, several ships with added boosters, prioritizing speed, had gathered.

High-speed ships.

Due to their emphasis on movement speed, they were fragile as battleships and lacked firepower.

They could carry little cargo and were mostly used as emergency transportation.

They were not planned to participate in the next operation; after picking up the research team on Remia, they would return to the home planet.

Claudia, watching the high-speed ships depart from Remia, was being questioned by her subordinates.

"I can't accept it! Why should a D-rank failure get a new model?"

"The colonel should be the one to ride it. If it's a modified special unit, it would be more useful as a combat force."

Emma Rodman.

The other knights couldn't forgive the fact that a new model had been given to a D-rank knight.

Claudia was also dissatisfied, but knowing who the sender was, she couldn't take it away. However, she didn't tell her subordinates who the sender was.

Christianne probably didn't know either.

She didn't feel like revealing the truth carelessly.

(There's no way I can interfere.)

"It's an order from above. Besides, that unit wasn't part of the original plan. Don't cause trouble by doing unnecessary things."

Speaking coldly, her subordinates fell silent.

However, Claudia was also concerned.

(Why would that person give a mobile knight to that one?)

◇

In Remia's hangar.

Around the Nevan prototype that Emma had received, pilots from Remia, including Larry and Doug, had gathered.

"This is the Nevan?"

"Looks frail and unreliable."

"Handing it over to a D-rank failure, what is the higher-ups thinking?"

While the others were making their own comments, Emma was not in the mood for that.

She entered the cockpit and began adjusting the unit.

Helping with the adjustments were Molly, the squadron's maintenance technician, and a technician from the Third Weapons Factory who was involved in the development of this unit.

The nervous-looking man with glasses had his light blue hair styled in a slick-back.

This man, Technical Major Morse, was puzzled by the adjustments.

Speaking apologetically to Emma.

"To be honest, this unit is an experimental model equipped with a new power reactor."

"Huh? Oh, yes."

While moving the control stick and making various adjustments, Emma almost ignored Morse's words.

Morse sighed.

"We developed this to create a special unit for ace pilots by forcibly installing a new power reactor in the Nevan type."

The Nevan was an excellent unit.

It was highly rated for its stability, performing consistently well in various situations.

However, because it was versatile, many ace pilots found it unsatisfactory.

Most ace pilots preferred other units over the Nevan.

To address this, the Third Weapons Factory began developing an ace pilot-oriented Nevan.

However, the experimental unit, which underwent forced modifications, turned out to be a unit that even ace pilots couldn't handle.

No matter how much the performance was limited, the poor balance caused operational issues.

"No matter which ace pilot we put in, it didn't produce results. To be honest, this is a defective unit. The reaction speed is too sensitive due to the forced modifications, and the assist functions don't work properly—"

Morse felt bad about deploying such an experimental unit in combat.

However, Emma was engrossed in adjusting the unit.

"Maybe the control stick should be a bit lighter?"

"—Are you even listening to me!?"

"Huh? Y-Yes, I'm listening. It has a powerful engine, right?"

Exasperated by Emma, who wasn't listening, Morse pressed his hand to his forehead.

"Why are you so engrossed? No matter how much you adjust it, it won't function properly."

While Morse, the developer, was giving up, Emma was fully focused on the adjustments.

"Like this—here—"

Watching Emma, Morse sighed deeply.

"This unit doesn't have the assist functions because they don't work properly. It's a defective unit with the worst balance. If it goes out of control, it could self-destruct."

Explaining how dangerous the unit was, Emma, who had finished a section of the adjustments, took off her headset and turned to Morse.

"Oh, that's why it's so hard to adjust. Hmm, will it be ready in time for the operation?"

The operation to assault the pirates' weapon manufacturing plant aimed to capture or destroy it.

To decide the battle before the pirates could escape, the operation was about to begin.

Morse, exasperated by Emma's nonchalance, stopped talking about the unit.

◇

Meanwhile.

In the pirates' weapon manufacturing plant, a conflict was brewing.

"Banfield! If you don't escape quickly, you'll be killed!"

Pirates who did business with other pirates.

They sold weapons manufactured in the plant and amassed great wealth.

However, with the Banfield family, who showed no mercy to space pirates, about to arrive, they wanted to prepare to escape immediately.

But one person was preventing them from doing so.

Among the rough pirates, a man in a clean suit stood out.

He looked out of place among the others, with his pale skin, as if heavily made up.

"That's a problem. We've invested a lot of money in this plant. If it's destroyed to cover up evidence, it won't be profitable."

The thin, unimpressive man's reaction made the pirates feel uneasy and afraid.

No one knew his name, but he called himself "River."

The pirates feared him because he had killed several observers sent by the Banfield family.

"I don't care about your plant's profitability."

A senior pirate pulled out a gun and shot River in the head.

River, who fell, was clearly dead, but the surrounding pirates looked terrified.

The senior pirate ordered his subordinates.

"Let's escape immediately. Prepare the ships. The enemy is still gathering. The chance to escape is—"

"Boss!"

A subordinate shouted, looking at the door. There stood River.

The same appearance, the same suit.

A person identical to the River they had just killed was smiling at the pirates.

"I can't let you escape. You need to fight until you die."

The River they had just killed was standing there.

"Let's make a big loss for the Banfield family here. If we do, losing one plant won't be a problem. It will be profitable enough."

◇

In Remia's hangar.

Claudia had gathered the main personnel.

There were no Remia personnel among them because she didn't count them as combat forces from the beginning.

"After descending from this light carrier, we will make a low-altitude flight and assault the enemy base."

A strategy meeting around a 3D image.

A marine commander, listening to Claudia's plan, turned to look at the small boats.

"We are to capture the enemy base with three squads. It sounds tough."

The enemy base was too large compared to the size of the unit.

Despite the lack of combat power, the marines didn't look discouraged.

Claudia, seeing their attitude, smiled slightly.

"You can do it, right?"

Asked if they could do it, the commander shrugged.

"If we failed such a simple operation, we wouldn't have enough lives to make up for it."

"I'll leave the base's capture to you. The outside is our job."

As the meeting was about to end, one of Claudia's subordinates suggested in a casual tone.

"Captain, what should we call our unit? Since it's a hastily assembled mixed unit, should we decide on a name?"

"Yeah. Hunters—Jäger Unit sounds good."

◇

Emma, whose experimental unit adjustments were not yet complete, had gone outside for a break.

Watching Claudia, who was in the strategy meeting, Larry approached.

"An unsuitable name for a ragtag unit, isn't it?"

"Mr. Larry?"

Larry, who didn't like the name Jäger Unit given by Claudia, stopped next to Emma.

"The power suit's kill marks—those guys are knight killers."

"Knight killers?"

Emma tilted her head, and Larry scratched his head in frustration.

"Why don't you know, a knight like you? The earl's pride, the land combat unit—commonly known as Treasure."

"Huh? There's no such unit."

"I said 'commonly known.' They are always sent to the front lines, led by the earl. They are all eccentrics who continue their military life until they die."

"Until they die."

On the marine power suits, there were marks that looked like kill marks. The helmet of an ancient knight with an X on it indicated the number of knights they had killed.

"They can't leave the military in a different sense from the people on Remia. They are clumsy people who can't choose another way of life. To me, both seem to be wasting their lives."

A group trained in educational capsules to kill knights under certain conditions.

The price they paid was to dedicate almost their entire lives to the military.

The same was true for the military personnel on Remia.

They clung to the military, not knowing how to live outside of it.

However, the Treasure unit had become elite, working by the earl's side and accumulating achievements.

"You can do it too if you try hard."

Hearing the words "try hard," Larry laughed.

"Try hard? That's what capable people say. The world is full of things that are impossible no matter how hard you try. —Just like I can't become a knight now, no matter how hard these people try, they can't become elite like them."

Larry said this and turned his back to Emma.

Unable to respond, Emma watched as Larry said, still facing away.

"I hope you can get out of here by trying hard. —Since you've got a chance."

"Mr. Larry"

◇

Approaching the planet Elias to enter the atmosphere, Remia.

Claudia, in the cockpit of the Nevan with horns as the lead unit, was listening to her subordinates' reports.

"The experimental unit's adjustments are not complete."

"—Ignore it. I don't want to give the enemy any more time. We'll capture them while they are fortifying."

Hearing that the experimental unit's adjustments were not complete and it wouldn't be a combat force, Claudia felt a sense of relief.

After the communication with her subordinates ended, she whispered to no one in particular.

"Assigned to the frontier and still getting involved. —What a unlucky guy. He should just quit being a knight."

While saying that Emma was foolish for clinging to being a knight despite being given a reason to quit, Claudia looked sad.

Claudia looked at the charm on her wrist.

◇

Several decades ago.

Claudia was captured on a resource satellite that served as a base for space pirates.

She hid her emaciated body with dirty cloth and flattered the pirates to prolong her life.

In the cell where captured people were thrown.

A female knight who had been lying nearby had died without her noticing.

In the terrible environment, she was just waiting to die, repeatedly thinking about how she ended up here.

"Damn—damn it."

She didn't want to die. She didn't want to die like this.

As she was thinking this, a former subordinate who had become a pirate entered the room.

"Doing well, former captain?"

The former subordinate, who had a lecherous smile, was a new knight in Claudia's unit.

He was useless, but she had trained him strictly because he was her subordinate.

"You, you—"

"Whoa, don't glare at me. I brought food."

Saying this, the man reached into the cell and threw the food on the floor.

"Here, crawl like an animal and eat it."

"Ah—"

Driven by hunger, she lunged at the food on the floor and tears came from the humiliation.

The other living prisoners also swarmed and fought over the food.

The former subordinate laughed, holding his stomach.

"You brought this on yourself by making fun of me! You should be kind to your subordinates, former captain?"

Out of resentment, he had betrayed her and the unit to the space pirates, and many of her important subordinates had died.

As she sobbed in frustration, the former subordinate laughed loudly.

"Hahaha! Serves you right. You looked down on me, so—"

The next moment, the man's head exploded.

Looking outside the cell, a child, who seemed to be just an adult, appeared in a mobile knight pilot suit.

In his right hand was an antique gun.

But, apparently not liking the feel of it, the child threw it away.

Then, he looked down at the former subordinate with a bullet in his head.

"Playing around in an emergency, what a failure. Well—"

The child looked into the cell, and information about Claudia appeared around him.

"—Ah, it's you. You're supposed to be excellent."

Saying this, the cell was cut open, and the child entered, extending a hand to Claudia.

"Useful knights are welcome. Take my hand—now I will use you."

Arrogant attitude.

But for some reason, Claudia took the extended hand.

The child's face, hidden by the helmet's visor, seemed to be smiling.

"Welcome to the Banfield family. From today, you belong to me."

◇

Recalling the past, Claudia shook her head and focused on the operation.

(To prove to that person that I am not incompetent. That is everything for me now.)

In the shaking ship during atmospheric entry, Claudia gripped the control stick.

The descending Remia began to head for the enemy base at full speed.

Then, the time to sortie arrived.

"Jäger Unit, all units sortie."

Yokoki-chan (°∀°)ノ "Hey, I'll be promoting it hard today too."

Emma (・∀・)ノ "Yes, senpai? The 9th volume of 'The World of Otome Games is Tough for the Common Folk' will be on sale on November 30. Pre-orders for the e-book version have started, so please consider making a pre-order."

Yokoki-chan (゜∀゜ヘ) "You seem to understand. Yes, just follow my instructions for the promotion."

Emma ( *´∀｀*)ノ "And! For the 'Next Light Novel Grand Prix 2021' being held on Kimirano, there are readers who vote every day. I would like to take this opportunity to thank them. Thank you! You can vote once a day, so please consider it, other readers as well."

Yokoki-chan (；゜Д゜) "Hmm, is this safe?"