Chapter 17

A mixed fleet of 100 medium to large combat boats.

If the small boats and drones they carried were released, it would resemble a swarm of locusts that occasionally occur on planets.

However, it is precisely because of this that there is a chance to win.

If you try to chase an opponent who has come through like a bulldozer, your allies might get in the way, and if you miss a shot, you might hit your allies.

Moreover, the pirates do not have the same level of discipline as the military.

Furthermore, they seem to be quite considerate of their comrades.

If you don't take these factors into account and act accordingly, you might end up in trouble.

Just as I was thinking this,

"Going ahead!"

Nosuair flew out.

Why does she always fly out like that!

Does she not realize she's popular?

No, that's probably her combat style.

Anyway, I decided to follow and support her.

However, it wasn't necessary.

Her movements were so incredible.

Not to the extent of Rosweyze, but she was moving with a skill comparable to the 'Pitch Black Demon.'

Her craft spun and turned, leaving a trail of explosions in its wake.

Still, being surrounded was only a matter of time.

So I decided to use the strategy I had initially thought of.

I approached the nearest medium combat boat and disabled one of its guns.

Then, while maintaining close proximity, I circled around the medium combat boat, disabling its guns, turrets, and exhaust ports.

This way, if other ships fired at me, they would hit their allies, and if small combat boats or drones attacked, I would intentionally get as close as possible to the medium combat boat to lure the shots, dodging at the last moment to hit the medium combat boat.

Occasionally, I would attack the surroundings to provoke and make them attack, causing them to hit their allies.

The ship I was attached to found it difficult to take evasive actions due to the presence of many allied ships, and if it fired, it would hit the surrounding ships.

This would inevitably reduce the number of attacks.

Furthermore, the fact that the surrounding ships were focused on attacking me meant there were gaps.

In other words, the surrounding ships would be vulnerable to attacks from other mercenaries.

Taking advantage of the pirates' consideration for their comrades.

It's a rather cowardly strategy, but it's necessary to survive and to reduce the attacks on Nosuair.

Meanwhile, Nosuair was taking down enemies one after another, even sinking large combat boats.

Her firepower was far superior to my second-hand ship.

It was difficult for my ship to take down large combat boats with its attack power.

Of course, the other mercenaries were also reducing the number of enemies by taking advantage of their large numbers.

Only that self-important guy kept attacking the flagship-like super-large combat boat, being blocked by small boats and drones.

Still, the numbers were overwhelmingly in their favor.

We hadn't lost any ships yet, but we were being gradually pushed back.

"Not good. The remaining beam shots and fuel are unreliable."

This was probably true for all of us, but we couldn't retreat to resupply for fear of being broken through.

"Nosuair, please retreat! You've done enough."

I was attached to the second medium combat boat, having had Nosuair take down the first one, but it was quite troublesome as the enemy was putting up a decent fight.

At the very least, we needed to get the civilians, including Nosuair and the 'Crystal Weed' crew, and the colony residents to safety.

Just as I was thinking this,

A simultaneous communication was sent to all of us mercenaries, including Nosuair.

"Everyone, retreat to the colony direction quickly!"

A handsome man in his mid-30s with a strong will appeared on the monitor, urging us to retreat.

Everyone understood it as a call for reinforcements and started to retreat immediately, except for the self-important guy, who was shouting, "Don't tell me what to do!"

The moment everyone except the self-important guy retreated, a rain of beams fell from the 'top' and 'left' of the pirates.

It was a crossfire.

The rain of beams was from the Galactic Empire's 7th Fleet and the gathered mercenaries.

The exact number was unknown, but it was undoubtedly a large force.

In one strike, half of the remaining pirate ships were severely damaged or sunk, and the situation was immediately reversed.

Immediately, the handsome man from before called for the pirates to surrender over an open channel.

"This is Vice Admiral Salamas Torncheed of the Galactic Empire's 7th Fleet! To the Grimmleap Pirate Group! If you surrender, stop your engines and recall your drones and small boats! If not, we will fire again in three minutes!"

The nearest fleet must have come to our aid, but it just so happened to be the 7th Fleet, which was unfortunate for 'Blackbeard.'

Vice Admiral Salamas Torncheed, a member of the Torncheed noble family, grew up in unfortunate circumstances because his mother was a commoner. He joined the military at 15 and rose to vice admiral in just 15 years, accumulating significant achievements.

He is said to be unmatched in fleet management, tactics, strategy, and personnel development within the Imperial Army.

His subordinates, mostly commoners or outcasts who were looked down upon or disliked by the nobility, are among the top in the Imperial Army.

The previous Kaides Pirate Group and the current Grimmleap Pirate Group were said to avoid encountering the 7th Fleet and adjust their activities accordingly.

To put it bluntly, if Rosweyze were here, she would immediately try to seduce him; he is a true elite.

Three minutes after the ultimatum,

"Being cornered by 'The Demon God'... there's no way out... We surrender. Men! Disarm! We are the Grimmleap Pirate Group! Don't make a spectacle of it!"

The Grimmleap Pirate Group surrendered.

"Phew... We managed to survive this time..."

From the cockpit, I could see the pirates surrendering.

If things had gone wrong, or if even a small detail had been different, we could have ended up like them.

Thinking about this, I let out a sigh of relief.

Still, Vice Admiral Torncheed is called 'The Demon God' by the pirates.

A communication came from Nosuair.

"Uzoss, are you alive?"

Nosuair looked quite exhausted on the screen.

I probably looked the same.

"I'm alive. Thanks to you taking down so many enemy ships."

I forgot to use formal language and praised and thanked Nosuair.

"From my perspective, it's because you drew the hate, don't you think?"

"Still, you're the one who took them down."

The number of kills is calculated based on who actually destroyed the enemy.

So, she definitely took them down.

"Let's go back. The fuel is running low."

I wanted to explain everything to her satisfaction, but the fuel was genuinely running low, so I prioritized that.

"Oh, right. We need to get back while we can still move!"

She also prioritized returning immediately.

Even if we ran out of fuel, the military was nearby and would help us.

It would be embarrassing to be unable to move in the air, but since we had enough fuel to reach the colony, it was a rather satisfying achievement.

Ah, the self-important guy, Fidic Ruttondan, managed to avoid the direct hit of the crossfire and was towed by a ship from the 7th Fleet due to running out of fuel.

During the battle, the girl who was being tossed around, Fino Foldup, was not on that ship.

If she had been, it would have been better to shoot from behind...

Some might be angry,

But living in shame can be a more painful punishment than death.

Thank you for your comments, opinions, and typo reports.

I've started 'The Hunt'...