The deck of the airship was shaking violently.
Livie clung to the railing, rushed over to the injured crew member, and began treating them.
"Are you okay?!"
"I-I'm fine..."
The crew member smiled weakly—he'd had his arm bitten by a monster. The one who'd taken down that monster with a spear was a male student from the academy.
The male student shouted:
"Leave the small fry to us! Protect the girls no matter what!"
The girls chanted spells one after another, deploying shields to protect the airship.
"Don't come over here!"
Some girls launched offensive magic as well.
"Aha ha ha! Go flying!"
The deck had become a battlefield.
Around them, Armor flew back and forth, taking down monsters that seemed far too powerful for humans to handle one after another.
Chris was performing with the ferocity of a lion in battle.
Everyone was reminded anew that she really was strong.
Livie could use healing magic, so she went around treating the wounded.
After finishing treatment on a crew member, she stood up to look for the next injured person—
"Hey, they're pointing their cannons at us!"
"They've got us surrounded!"
"Are they going to blow us up along with the monsters?!"
Behind the monsters, a duchy airship had positioned itself, its broadside turned toward them with rows of cannons aimed in their direction.
Livie's breathing grew ragged. Clasping her hands in front of her chest, the charm Leon had given her—worn at her wrist—glowed faintly.
"No... I can't let this happen—I CAN'T!"
She curled her back and screamed with all her might, and in the same instant, the cannons fired in unison.
As everyone averted their eyes, light overflowed from Livie's center.
◇
What she heard through the black smoke was Luxion's voice.
*'How impressive.'*
"Yeah, I'm impressed too."
As the black smoke was swept away by the wind and cleared, I confirmed the luxury liner's safety behind us.
What had been deployed to protect the airship was a faint light in the shape of a massive sphere.
That light, with its magic-circle-like patterns, was the protagonist's—Olivia's power itself.
I was amazed by the force that had shielded the ship from the cannon fire and blown away the approaching monsters.
"Without even the key item, she can do this much—"
Luxion, who had been prepared for the bombardment, spoke.
*'This is the result of her training. She worked incredibly hard at the academy. The benefit she gained from meeting you, Master. Because she was protected by you, Olivia had plenty of time to devote to her studies.'*
"...As long as it's not a waste, that's fine."
Facing forward, I loaded shells into the shotgun.
Gripping the handle tight, I revved the Schwert's engine.
"Alright, let's go!"
*'I'll select the shortest route. Master, don't fall off.'*
The airbike shot straight ahead. Monsters lunged at us, but we dodged them like threading a needle and headed for our destination.
Before my eyes was a massive whale-like monster.
It opened its enormous mouth, and the many eyes inside looked at me.
"Gross!"
*'What terrible taste. Well, let's charge in.'*
Light from its eyes—beam-like magic was fired at us, but we dodged it all and charged straight ahead.
Into the massive mouth, Luxion and I plunged.
◇
Angie was in that shaking place, clinging to the railing.
When she was brought back inside, she found that the spot she'd been forcibly shoved into also had Hiltrude.
Angie complained.
"What an uncomfortable airship. And to top it off, it's hideous too."
Hiltrude was frowning.
"W-What did you say?! It's cute, isn't it?!"
"Where?! Are your eyes blind?!"
She would never have thought to make an enormous monster into an airship.
Then, the messenger—a man who'd received a report—grinned.
"Apparently, the man who was running at the front has been eaten."
His gleeful remark made Angie glare through tears.
Sensing this, the man didn't stop.
"What a fool. Charging in all alone. Well, I'll make sure his name is carved into the duchy's history. 'The fool who charged in alone and died for nothing'—that's what they'll say."
The rather high-ranking man introduced himself as Geralt.
Geralt mocked Leon.
"To think he's a knight at that age! Is the kingdom so short on manpower? Well, of course it is! The duchy is incomparably superior!"
Angie lowered her head.
"...Leon."
—From below. A creaking sound came from the floor.
Bursting through the floor of that very room was Leon, riding his airbike. He'd punched straight through the monster's body to get here.
"Leon!"
"Get your heads down!"
He leveled the shotgun and fired it over Angie's head, blasting away the knights.
They were knights too. They'd apparently defended with magic, so the damage wasn't fatal. But they couldn't move right away.
Leon dismounted the airbike, cracked Geralt across the jaw with the shotgun, and pointed the barrel at Hiltrude.
"You're coming too. You'll make a good hostage."
But Hiltrude was smiling.
"I never thought you'd go this far. I underestimated you, kingdom knight. Would you tell me your name?"
But Leon fired the shotgun without hesitation.
He blew away the maid standing behind Hiltrude.
Angie noticed.
(Rubber bullets for anti-personnel use?)
Leon was calm.
"Stalling for time is pointless. Hand over the Magic Flute. You're coming too. There's no time. If you resist—"
Angie was puzzled that Leon knew about the Magic Flute, but Hiltrude conceded and tossed the Magic Flute to Leon.
But—
*'It's a fake. The real one was hidden under the desk.'*
Luxion said, as he shaved Geralt's mustache off with a laser. He was muttering something about 'might as well do permanent hair removal while I'm at it.'
Leon was wearing a helmet, but to Angie, he looked like he was smiling.
"Too bad, Your Highness."
Hiltrude glared at Leon, but Angie immediately retrieved the real Magic Flute and handed it to Leon.
Hiltrude put up little resistance, and Leon was somewhat surprised by her compliance. He restrained Hiltrude's arms and loaded her onto the airbike.
Angie climbed on as well, and the ship began to tilt heavily.
"Leon, could it be—?"
"Yeah, the monster below seems to have been fading, so we're falling. It's fine. The balloon was over the building, so we'll just drift down slowly."
After saying he'd defeated the monster below, Leon gunned the engine and burst through the wall to the outside. Then, pointing his barrel at the captured Hiltrude, he shouted:
"Heyyyyy! Your princess is right hereee!"
He aimed the gun at the princess and held her hostage so the approaching Armor couldn't act.
The duchy knights piloting their Armor saw Hiltrude and lowered their weapons.
*'Wh-What a disgrace! Is that any way for a knight to behave?!'*
When someone called out, Leon shouted back:
"You idiots! Look in a mirror before you talk! Now back off!"
Angie, clinging to Leon's back, buried her face against him and laughed.
The knights who'd rushed to the crisis weren't elegant or dignified like in stories. But to Angie, it made her incredibly happy.
"...You really are... Thank you, Leon."
◇
"Damn it! They've got us surrounded!"
After landing the Schwert on the luxury liner's deck, I let Hiltrude and Angie off.
I checked my shotgun shells—barely any left.
Looking around, the monsters had stayed where they were and weren't moving. But the duchy's ships had us surrounded.
Not just front, back, left, and right.
Enemy airships were positioned above and below as well.
Chris came up to me and opened the chest of her Armor, revealing her face.
"Bartfort, what do we do now?!"
...I hadn't thought that far ahead. Well, I'd been thinking about heading back to the kingdom, but they didn't seem like they'd let us escape.
Looking around, everyone was exhausted.
As students, they'd held up remarkably well, but the enemy still had reserves to spare.
They'd only been fighting monsters—their pure combat strength hadn't diminished at all.
"...Negotiating would be best, if possible."
I glanced at my pocket watch, then looked at Olivia.
She was sitting down, completely drained.
Angie's entourage had rushed to her, so she couldn't even move.
Chris's Armor was battered, and to top it off, her sword was broken.
...She fought in that condition? What are you? I'd been underestimating her a bit too much.
"So, what do we do next—"
Before I could finish, a command was broadcast over the duchy fleet's loudspeaker.
*'The princess has sacrificed herself to the duchy! All ships, commence a full assault!'*
It was Geralt's voice.
Chris made a face like she'd bitten into something bitter.
"She's still alive! Are you telling your own princess to die?!"
Hiltrude was standing there, laughing softly.
"...You don't understand anything, do you? The duchy won't stop at this. There are others who can take my place. I was only put in charge of the advance force."
I couldn't believe my ears.
"She wasn't the final boss?!"
Then Hiltrude began chanting a spell.
I aimed my gun at her, and she was smiling. She finished the chant—and the monsters all began moving at once.
"What did you do?!"
"As I thought, you weren't resolute enough. You should have shot me through immediately. ...I've released the monsters from my control. Monsters that were being controlled will target the one who controlled them. They'll converge on this ship."
Sure enough, the monsters began gathering as if drawn by a magnet.
The duchy airships also started moving, heading straight for us.
Angie grabbed Hiltrude by the collar.
"What's the purpose—to go this far?!"
"I told you. To sink the kingdom."
I looked at Olivia, and the magic she'd used to protect the airship didn't seem like she could fire it again. I didn't want to push her any further.
I straddled the airbike and spoke to Luxion.
"Either way, I need to buy time. Keep up!"
*'Of course. To the very end.'*
As the airbike lifted off, I aimed at the approaching monsters and pulled the trigger.
The monsters I blasted apart turned to smoke, but new monsters emerged through the smoke.
—This is the worst.
◇
As Leon took off, Angie reached out her hand.
Chris also received a new weapon, took off, and began cutting down the enemies around her.
"I—I will! I will!"
The red charm tied to her right wrist glowed faintly, and flames erupted around Angie. The flames swelled, then converged into six, taking the shape of lances.
Angie recognized the magic.
"Fire Lance. How—"
She was surprised that a spell she'd never been able to use before had activated... and grateful. She hurled the lances at the enemies swarming around Leon.
"Blow away my enemies!"
The lances pierced into the horde of monsters, burning and piercing, then detonated in a massive explosion.
It blew away many monsters, but there were still far too many enemies.
Enemy Armor continued launching from their airships, heading toward them.
Angie panicked, and as she tried to use the same spell again, she spotted the fallen Livie.
A monster was about to pounce on Livie, so Angie quickly fired magic to save her.
A flame bullet pierced through the monster and sent it flying. Angie rushed to Livie and picked her up.
"What are you doing?! Get up, quickly!"
Livie was breathing hard.
And her legs were wobbling.
"You—could it be you've exhausted your magic power—"
Livie had depleted so much magic that her complexion was terrible and she could barely walk. She'd recover in time, but sitting here would just make her a target.
As Angie tried to carry her inside the ship, Livie spoke.
"I—I was useless again. I only ever drag Leon and Angie down."
Seeing Livie cry in frustration, Angie smiled.
"Idiot! You've done more than enough. Besides—saving you isn't a burden. You... you're my precious friend!"
At the words Angie had shyly squeezed out, Livie's eyes widened and her face scrunched up as she burst into tears.
"Angie—"
Right after, Angie saw an enemy airship bearing down on them.
"...They're going to ram us."
A duchy warship had rammed into the luxury liner's massive hull. The ship lurched violently to the side.
As the two of them nearly lost their balance, a monster with its enormous mouth wide open descended toward them.
Angie pushed Livie aside, stepped forward, and incinerated the monster with magic.
The monster, wreathed in flames, disappeared—but on the steeply tilting, violently shaking deck, Angie slipped and was flung overboard.
"Angie!"
When Livie called out, Angie caught herself on the railing of the tilted deck.
Her body was hanging outside the ship, the sea far below.
The altitude was high—she wouldn't survive the fall. On top of that, monsters were writhing below. If she fell, they'd tear into her.
Some students could see Angie clinging to the railing, but they were too busy with their own survival to help.
Unfortunately, that section of railing was damaged and crumbling.
Angie murmured:
"If only I'd told him properly sooner..."
The faces that came to mind were her family, Livie—and Julius too. But the last face that surfaced was Leon's. She imagined his provocatively grinning face, and Angie smiled.
"Get along with Livie, you fool."
Just as she reached her limit and was about to let go—
Livie, having steeled herself with desperate resolve, rushed to help.
Angie shouted at Livie:
"Don't come!"
"No!"
Livie answered instantly, leaped across the broken floor, and dashed beneath Angie. Pushing her still-unrecovered body beyond its limits, she grabbed one of Angie's arms and pulled with all her strength.
Angie used her last ounce of strength to climb back up.
She'd avoided falling, but Angie screamed at Livie:
"You idiot! You almost fell too!"
"But... but..."
Livie looked up. Through her tears:
"You said we were friends, didn't you?!"
Angie looked away, embarrassed.
"Idiot. You don't have to—"
"I-I don't mind being an idiot! If it means being friends with Angie—"
But then the ship lurched violently again, and this time Livie was blown overboard. Angie reached out her hand, but it wasn't enough.
"—Ah!"
Seeing Angie's face about to cry, Livie smiled. As Livie began to fall, Angie burst into tears—
A grey airbike dove straight down toward the sea.
"Leon!"
◇
I leveled my shotgun.
I aimed at the monsters trying to pounce on the falling Olivia. She looked at me and folded her hands in front of her chest in a prayer-like gesture, closing her eyes.
She had that gentle face of absolute trust—infuriating, because I couldn't afford to betray her expectations. Now I really couldn't fail.
I pulled the trigger, blasting away the surrounding monsters, then stowed the shotgun.
I let go of the handle and let Luxion take over piloting.
"I'm counting on you."
*'Matching relative speed now. Hold on tight.'*
I caught Olivia in my arms.
It ended up like a princess carry.
*'Water landing imminent. Brace for impact.'*
"This is really keeping me busy!"
I held Olivia tight and braced for impact. The airbike slammed its base into the water's surface.
Continuing forward, it skimmed across the sea, white spray trailing behind. Gradually, the airbike gained altitude.
Olivia was crying.
I held her close and gently tapped her head to comfort her.
"It's okay now. I'll get you all the way up, so don't worry, Olivia."
Then—
"It's Livie!"
She demanded that I call her by her nickname. There was a stronger will in her expression than before, and she seemed somewhat angry.
"Hey, come on—"
"It's Livie! Leon, I—I wanted to apologize to you. I wanted to say I'm sorry. But you kept avoiding me... and you called me 'Olivia'! That made me so sad!"
Luxion stayed silent.
He was piloting the Schwert as it gradually gained altitude, and I really wished he'd help me out. I'm no good at these situations.
"—You can't be with me. Be with someone more deserving."
"I don't want to!"
"Why not?! There are plenty of good-looking guys, rich guys, all sorts!"
Usually, she'd have been flustered, but instead she pushed through with stubborn determination.
Your targets are the capture-route guys.
Julius and Jilk aside—no, Brad and Greg won't work either. Should I push for Chris at this point?
At this rate, anyone would do! As long as this girl finds happiness.
"There's His Highness Julius, isn't there?"
"I hate him because he abandoned Angie!"
"Then how about Jilk!"
"He's scheming!"
"Brad!"
"He's a narcissist!"
"Greg!"
"He's a brute!"
"Chris!"
"She's an attention-seeker!"
...She really had nailed all their characteristics. That was kind of funny.
"I don't want anyone else! I—I want to be with you, Leon! I want to spend time with you and Angie, like we used to!"
But, but—staying with me wouldn't be good for her.
"You c-can't stay with me! Open your eyes—what's so great about me?!"
"I want to be with you. You're kind, you're strong... More than any of that, Livie loves Leon! That's all there is to it! I love you!"
I looked away.
...The last time someone told me they loved me this straight to my face was my mom.
I never expected to hear it in a world like this.
Luxion spoke to me.
*'Master, we're approaching the airship.'*
I grabbed the shotgun. Loaded it, then in a quiet voice so Olivia—Livie—wouldn't notice I was flustered:
"Hold on tight to my back... Li—Livie."
"Yes!"
When I'd called her by her nickname before, it had happened naturally.
I hadn't meant anything by it, so why was I so conscious of it now?
Livie's face brightened and she moved behind me, wrapping her arms around me... Wait, isn't this normally the part where you press against someone's back and get all nervous?
Her clothes are thick, and because of that, I can't feel a thing against my back!
Did Luxion read my expression? He said in a rather cheerful voice:
*'Master's pilot suit is custom-made.'*
"You would say something like that!"
I shouted, leveled the shotgun, and blasted away the monsters visible ahead of the ascending airbike.
The airship was tilted from the duchy ship's ramming attack.
However, the duchy ship was also swarmed by monsters and couldn't move.
Having spent all my shotgun shells, I forced the Schwert to land on the airship's deck and looked around.
Luxion was saying something.
*"...Schwert, good work. I'll give you a thorough maintenance later."*
I set the shotgun down on the Schwert and dismounted with Livie.
Angie rushed over.
Then she and Livie embraced.
"Idiot. Idiot! Don't make me worry like that!"
"Angie... I'm sorry."
...Two girls hugging each other while crying—how precious. Who was it that said girls' friendships were fleeting? Isn't this beautiful?
The battlefield continued to rage.
Thanks to the duchy airship that had rammed in, cannon fire had stopped for the moment, but the situation was still precarious.
If this kept up, the airship would sink.
Fortunately, there had been no deaths so far, but it was only a matter of time.
"Luxion. Time?"
*'On schedule—it's arrived.'*
Hearing those words, I pulled out my pocket watch and checked the time.
—Right on the dot.
Visible in the distance was the Partner.
Angie, still holding Livie, looked toward the Partner.
"You didn't—did you? How could you communicate at this distance—"
I smiled at her.
"I had it on standby nearby. I'm a worrier. Luxion—"
*'Already launched.'*
Luxion said the preparations were done before I could even finish speaking.
I wish he'd let me finish talking.
And the duchy fleet scrambled to respond to the new airship that had appeared on the battlefield, breaking their formation.
◇
Geralt had transferred to another airship.
On its bridge, he was barking orders.
"What are you doing?! Sink them already!"
The military officers protested.
"Our allies are still in there! And the princess is still unharmed!"
Geralt reached to touch his lost mustache, realized it was gone, and clenched his fist.
That mustache he'd been so proud of.
He'd groomed it every single day, but now it was gone. The Kaiser mustache had vanished overnight.
It was that knight. He had to defeat that knight no matter what.
"Why did you let them charge through?!"
At Geralt's words, the officers averted their gazes.
*(They deliberately let the princess's rescuers charge through. To give them a reason not to fire! Even though there's a replacement!)*
Fuming, Geralt kicked the person nearest to him—and was surprised by how hard the man was, hurting his own foot.
"Ugh! This is that man's fault too! The one who took my mustache!"
Then a crew member shouted:
"Sir, we've spotted a new vessel! Approximately 700 meters in length!"
Geralt's eyes went wide.
"Impossible! It's too early for kingdom reinforcements."
But when he looked through the binoculars, it was a strange-looking airship.
"What is that? The number of cannons... I can only see two."
The officers were puzzled as well.
"That shape is unusual too. And movable cannons? Only two?"
Normally, the strategy was to mount many cannons along the broadside for area suppression, but this shape was far too unconventional.
Geralt said, absentmindedly stroking his bare jaw where his mustache used to be:
"Shoot it down. That tasteless airship is an eyesore. As long as we recover the floating stones, there's no problem."
The floating stones that kept airships aloft.
Because of them, airship technology had advanced. With floating stones, you could build airships—if not easily, then at least feasibly.
Recover them, and build new airships.
Geralt was actually making a reasonable point.
If it were just an ordinary airship, that is.
"Hurry up and surround it."
Then, an enemy ship fired a cannon shell directly at the airship Geralt was on.
The airship shook violently, and its critical engine was damaged, rendering it immobile.
"Wh-What's happening?!"
"Cannon fire from the enemy ship!"
"Cannon fire?! At this range, that's impossible! —Ugh!"
And when the Partner fired again, the duchy airships were rendered immobile one after another.
Geralt saw something launched from the Partner heading toward the luxury liner.
"Wh-What on earth—"
A piece of ceiling blown down by the cannon fire struck him directly on the head. Bleeding, Geralt couldn't even imagine what was about to happen.
◇
A large crate landed on the deck.
The students who saw it lit up with hope.
Chris had a complicated expression.
In her battered Armor, she landed near me and spoke:
"Bartfort, can you do this?"
I turned around holding Luxion in one hand.
"Who are you talking to? And rejoice—this is my victory."
The outcome was practically already decided.
As for Luxion, regarding my confidence:
*'Master, enemy Armor is approaching. Requesting permission to deploy drones.'*
I nodded, and from the Partner, combat drones were launched one after another.
The upper-body-only Armor each carried different weapons.
The crate opened like a folding mechanism, and from inside emerged a grey Armor—Arroganz.
It opened its chest, waiting for me to climb inside.
Angie and Livie were watching me while holding Hiltrude captive.
The captured Hiltrude narrowed her eyes at the sight of Arroganz.
"...A Lost Item."
As I boarded Arroganz, I responded to Hiltrude:
"You're well-informed. That's right. A Lost Item."
"I remember now. There was a young knight who made a name for himself in the kingdom as an adventurer. So that was you."
Luxion was saying something like *'I'm not entirely convinced,'* but I ignored him, closed the chest, and the surrounding view appeared on the display.
Gathering monsters, and the duchy knights beginning to move.
As Arroganz powered up, I grinned.
"They've been beating me up one-sidedly. From here on, I'm going to beat them one-sidedly in return!"
*'You did fight back, you know.'*
"It's about principle! I'll teach them who they're picking a fight with. I'll make those duchy bastards understand the meaning of fear!"
From the container on Arroganz's back, drones armed with machine guns were launched.
They mowed down the surrounding monsters one after another, and I said to Angie:
"Get to safety."
Angie and Livie both nodded.
"Yeah, I'll leave the rest to you."
"Leon, you absolutely have to come back."
Then Chris stood beside me.
*'I'll be helping out.'*
Was she going to fight even in that battered state?
"Do what you want. Just don't slow me down."
To my hostile remark, Chris smiled slightly.
*'I'll handle it!'*
...No, even if she agreed with me, it was awkward—I'd been hoping for more of a "don't tell me what to do" kind of response... Oh, whatever.
"Luxion, bring out the large rifle and—the blade."
*'Container one, container five. Releasing.'*
The large rifle that emerged was mounted on my right arm, and I gripped the blade in my left hand.
As Arroganz slowly rose into the air, Chris followed alongside me.
Monsters swarmed toward Arroganz as it emerged above the clouds.
*'...Pointless.'*
The drones clustered around Arroganz and began blowing the monsters away with machine gun fire.
Seeing this, Chris reflected, "I must have been out of my mind to challenge this with a sword."
You lot should have reflected sooner.
Around us, drones deployed from the Partner were fighting the monsters and enemy Armor, protecting the airship.
I aimed the rifle at an approaching duchy Armor and pulled the trigger—its head blew apart.
"Well then, let's go break the fighting spirit of the duchy's finest."
*'As expected, the Master really does seem like the villain.'*
I grinned and gripped Arroganz's control stick.
◇
Geralt watched the scene from the bridge.
"...Is that some kind of monster?"
Not only were duchy airships going down, but their Armor were being knocked out one after another as well.
The grey Armor bore no resemblance to the mainstream designs—it was heavily armored.
He'd laughed at reports of outdated models, but the sight of allies falling one by one had turned his face pale.
A nearby officer spoke up:
"Count, I believe we should withdraw."
Geralt punched the officer who'd said that.
His magically enhanced fist sent the officer flying.
"Withdraw? What nonsense! Do you want the duchy's military to be laughed at for being beaten by kingdom students?!"
The officer stood up, wiping blood from his mouth.
"H-However, our losses are already—"
"We've lost the princess, lost the Magic Flute, and on top of it all, we've been beaten by children! There's no path of retreat left for us!"
Even if they fled back in this state, there would be no future for Geralt and his people.
In his position of having to bear responsibility, Geralt had no choice but to defeat the enemy before him.
He bit his lip, eyes bloodshot.
"No one told me the kingdom had new models like this. At the very least, I have to take those down and bring them back, or my position—"
As Geralt muttered to himself without caring about those around him, the knights from the bridge arrived.
Seeing them in their custom black military uniforms, Geralt looked up with a start.
At the sight of the knight at their front, he smiled.
"Ah, yes. We have you. The duchy's mightiest hero, my lord."
The middle-aged man looked at Geralt's face with undisguised contempt.
"You gave the order not to deploy, and now you say that? I heard the princess was captured. I'll deal with you later. Let us sortie—now."
Hope kindled in the eyes of the military officers.
The airship and Armor rampaging before them—this man could surely handle them.
Geralt nodded happily, again and again.
"By all means. Viscount Bandel him Zenden. I'll leave it to you—leave it to all of you."
The knights filed off the bridge.
Geralt chortled.
"With this, everything is resolved."
But the officer who'd been punched spoke up:
"Y-However, there's an order from the country not to deploy Viscount Bandel—"
Geralt scoffed.
"He'll deploy of his own accord. Besides, would it not be foolish not to play our strongest card in this situation? The Black Knight will surely defeat that monster. After all, he's the duchy's greatest knight."
The duchy's mightiest knight began moving toward Leon.