Chapter 20 - Involvement in War Preparations and a Premonition of Operational Failure
~Outside the Territories of the Gialpha Galaxy Free Democratic Alliance (Space Outside the Gialpha Galaxy)~
Sangou was navigating a region of space outside the Gialpha Galaxy, the so-called "outer universe."
Naturally, with Jin and Silk on board.
That place was an unknown region of space where neither the Gialpha Galaxy Empire, nor even the nearest major power from their current position, the Gialpha Galaxy Free Democratic Alliance, had reliable navigation and spatial chart data.
What was Sangou doing in such an uncharted region?
"I am creating a new route that can be safely navigated during a large-scale invasion of the Gialpha Galaxy Free Democratic Alliance by the Gialpha Galaxy Empire's Space Force."
In short, that was the answer as stated above.
However, this route...
At the present time during its creation, it was still unknown whether it would be used or not.
Depending on the final decision of the military in the Gialpha Galaxy Empire, it might become an unnecessary thing.
Nevertheless, because Jin and Sangou had time to spare, they understood the aforementioned circumstances and began the work in advance.
So why did Jin and Sangou start on a task that might be wasted?
To know that, one must go back in time and follow events in chronological order.
Therefore, from here on, this is a story from a little while ago.
Empress Laura, having finished her inspection of the new planet in the Betasia Star System.
When she sent Laura to the Imperial Capital on Sangou, Jin entrusted her with a data cube containing recorded video addressed to His Majesty the Emperor.
Before departing for this inspection case, Jin had received a secret order from His Majesty the Emperor.
The data cube, which was a response related to that, was delivered to the Emperor in that manner.
"I want only Laura-sama and His Majesty the Emperor to see this."
Incidentally, that was the meaning of the words Jin conveyed when he handed it to Laura.
In fact, when they saw it, the two parties involved understood the meaning, but such a thing is trivial.
Jin entrusted Laura with the data for Plan Z, one of the operational plans he and Sangou had thought up together, and at the audience, he submitted the other operational plan, Plan A.
By the way, to put Plan A simply, it was a "Let's all work hard together with the Imperial Military plan."
The operation itself was simple: "While drawing the Alliance forces to two front lines, a detachment will circle around to the rear and trample the undefended areas."
However, the crux of the operation was the part about "using a newly developed route to make a detour."
So, what was the content of the other, non-publicized operational plan?
Plan Z was an "one-ship supremacy plan using only Sangou."
This was not a recommended plan, but was proposed as a "last resort when nothing else can be done."
As a note, the plan explicitly stated the view that "neither Jin nor Sangou think it is 'good' for the future of the Gialpha Galaxy Empire for Sangou alone to solve everything."
Plan Z begins with first ramming Sangou into a conveniently located star to attack the Alliance.
Then, while Sangou consumes the star's energy, it repeatedly fires ultra-high-output Energy Convergence Cannons across the entire Alliance territory.
Imagining the colony device from a certain anime work that lights up space, but with "continuously firing while gradually shifting the target point," might be close to reality?
However, realistically, if Jin's mana continues to be supplied to Sangou, a star that is merely an energy source is unnecessary.
Strictly speaking, it's not needed, but if one knows it can be done without cost, they might easily choose it.
That is probably typical of ordinary humans.
Thus, Plan Z, which Jin secretly submitted, was proposed with that point deliberately concealed.
Plan Z expressly details how Sangou alone can annihilate the Gialpha Galaxy Free Democratic Alliance, which the Gialpha Galaxy Empire has long struggled with.
Seeing it, the Emperor and Laura thought.
"Indeed, this is troublesome if others find out."
The two exchanged glances and silently nodded to each other.
On the other hand, Plan A, which Jin was urged by His Majesty to submit in public, was immediately sent to the Imperial Military HQ Operations Room of the Gialpha Galaxy Empire.
There, intense debate was taking place regarding the proposal submitted by Jin, a Brigadier General with so-called special privileges, whose lone ship was a guerrilla formation directly under His Majesty and not under the influence of the Imperial Military HQ.
Is it feasible?
If so, how much force should be committed?
With the committed force, are there prospects of victory?
There were many other points of contention, but the aforementioned three were especially important.
Now, what exactly is the "newly developed route" in the "detour using a newly developed route," the crux of this operation?
No, to broaden the scope, what exactly is a "spaceship route" in the first place?
That thing, simply put, is "a path where you don't get lost" and "a path where you can reliably confirm your ship's position and navigate easily, i.e., a continuous area of space without obstacles."
Incidentally, regarding "places not normally used as routes by spaceships," most have a problem with the "not getting lost" part.
"Can you reach your destination without getting lost in the middle of a vast ocean with nothing visible around, under conditions of 'no compass, no astronomical observation, and of course no GPS'?"
Using Earth's oceans as an example, it's "a question at that level."
And obstacles in "space" can be likened to "reefs, shallows, pack ice, icebergs, etc." in Earth's oceans.
In a broad sense, narrow straits that are difficult to pass through might also be included.
Incidentally, what falls under the "not most" category are places that are obviously "full of obstacles" and places where a spaceship's hull physically cannot withstand.
Specifically, places like asteroid belts or large debris fields, or near stars, high-gravity planets, or black holes.
Although it's unrelated here, the mainstream scholarly opinion in the Empire is that "a supermassive black hole likely exists at the center of the nebula forming the Gialpha Galaxy," and within a certain range from the center, the space is unusable for humanity in the Gialpha Galaxy.
Of course, passing through there by spaceship is impossible.
Well, that was a bit of a digression, but let's return to the crux of the operation.
A spaceship route refers to a path that allows safe travel without getting lost, and that data, along with spatial chart data within the Empire's territory, is treated as important information.
And what about such data within enemy territory?
Because the state of war has continued for so long, data obtained from destroyed ships exists, albeit incomplete.
Therefore, if Imperial forces can be sent into enemy territory, operational actions on-site would be largely possible.
However, the crucial forces cannot be sent in.
This is the same for the Alliance side, so it's mutual to some extent.
There are only two established routes from the Empire side to the Alliance side.
Both of those have become fierce battlefields on the front lines.
The core of the operation Jin proposed was to bypass the two routes by navigating the outer space outside the galaxy, thus sending Imperial forces into the Alliance's sphere of influence without using them.
But why has such a simple thing not been achieved until now?
A route bypassing the outside of the galaxy makes confirming position and direction hopelessly difficult.
Moreover, a long-distance march is required, with no natural supply resources along the way.
To put it bluntly, "even if you want to go through, it's too dangerous, and even if you manage to pass once by luck, it's impossible to replicate."
So what was Jin's proposed operation?
It was the same as saying, "I'll create navigation data that allows the Imperial Military to safely pass through that supposedly impassable space and hand it over, so use that to launch an expedition."
Of course, at this stage, the route data itself had not been provided to the Imperial Military.
What did that mean?
"If you're willing to fight this operation, start preparations. In the meantime, I'll go and create the route data on Sangou."
This talk was not dismissed as nonsense partly because the Emperor enforced it.
From the Imperial Military's perspective, if the operation was executed and failed due to route deficiencies, they could simply hold Jin responsible.
However, sufficient preparations to do so were necessary.
In the Imperial Military HQ Operations Room of the Gialpha Galaxy Empire, after debate, they concluded "carry out the operation itself" and moved on to discussions of mobilization strength and logistics.
The reason Jin and Sangou were in the space at the beginning was that, without waiting for the Imperial Military's conclusion, they had obtained permission from His Majesty the Emperor and started creating route data ahead of time.
Well, the movements of situations that might affect Jin's future in his absence were, of course, not limited to that.
Now, since there are movements in a different place, let's shift the scene.
Separately from the capital planet side, on the Kaydelon Star System 15th Planet, which is the neighboring star system to the Betasia Star System with Neutral Colony Greta in between, disturbing conversations were also taking place.
Incidentally, that related to the remarks that appeared near the end of the previous chapter.
The person who made those remarks, expressing annoyance that the asteroid belt in the Betasia Star System had been completely wiped clean, was none other than Baron Mamawaga, the head of the barony that included the son who had previously targeted Rouj and the others.
Baron Mamawaga was in the middle of a conversation with his son about the Betasia Star System.
"Hey old man, food exports are skyrocketing according to Greta's import-export management records and port logs! That's damn suspicious. It's like they're exporting without feeding the people of the Betasia Star System. And also, there's talk of a planet that's not on the spatial charts. If it's unmanaged, can't we take it?"
"I've already filed a survey request for that planet. We should know something within thirty days. More importantly, none of the measures we've taken in recent years have gone well. If we can't pillage in disguise as bandits due to the disappearance of the asteroid belt, things are going to get a bit tough."
Baron Mamawaga's territory was based on the Kaydelon Star System 15th Planet, and he controlled the space including eight satellites near the planet.
The barony was supposed to be "top class in the Gialpha Galaxy for rare metal production."
However, the reality was just a façade created by deception.
In truth, the actual production volume was at most enough to rank as second-class.
They repeatedly plundered rare metals being transported after mining, disguising themselves as bandits, and then recycled the loot as newly mined material.
By doing so, Baron Mamawaga inflated the quantity.
If that "plunder and recycle" practice stopped, the baron, who was already running a loose fiscal policy, would steadily decline.
"That suddenly appeared Viscount called 'Hero, Asada family' is in the way. He's the one who married all those elf women that were supposed to be mine, isn't he? I want to kill him."
"He's rumored in the Imperial capital's high society as 'a special person who is allowed to act independently as an independent raiding unit of the Imperial Guard.' At that time, the talk about his lack of presence, 'Oh, the Count of Betasia? Well, I don't remember meeting him,' was funny. There were also discussions at other soirées like, 'Since Viscount Asada is a legal noble under the Count of Betasia, should we forge ties with the Betasia family, or establish direct relations with the Asada family?' But lately, I haven't heard any such talk. That means it was only a temporary topic."
"If we get the Betasia Star System, we can run wild on Greta as space pirates. But there's a rumor among the bandits that says, 'If you see the Asada family's spaceship, run away immediately.'"
"We can't get those space monster eggs anymore. We also found out in the Betasia Star System test that they're too dangerous to use nearby, so even if we got them, they might only be useful for assassinations. We spent a lot of money using connections with the Alliance. The 'infiltration unit for rear area disruption' should be running rampant soon."
The Betasia Star System, being one of the farthest back from the Free Democratic Alliance's perspective, had weak defenses, and at the time the eggs fell into the baron's hands, it was seen as a convenient target for disruption.
However, in the incident a little over two years ago, the disruption infiltration unit was completely wiped out, and the actual unit no longer exists.
Baron Mamawaga still does not know that fact.
He continues to be parasitized by a few surviving thugs who are less than informants.
A new type of space monster that destroyed an entire star system in the Free Democratic Alliance.
That was something called a "cosmic scavenger" in Sangou's homeworld.
In that incident, which caused great damage, all the reserve forces that were supposed to be sent to the war front temporarily, the equivalent of six corps by Imperial Military standards, were committed and crushed, resulting in the complete annihilation of the space monsters.
After struggling with extermination, what was finally used were two types: "Planet-Destroying Bombs" and "Star-Destroying Bombs." It was a fierce battle that even deployed so-called ultimate weapons.
By completely destroying everything within a certain range, as if a hole was punched in the Alliance's spatial chart, they finally succeeded in extermination.
And from the debris that drifted in during the aftermath of that situation, the aforementioned space monster eggs were discovered, which became the beginning of various later incidents.
Experiments in the Alliance revealed that if a living organism of a certain size ate one of those space monster eggs, it would hatch.
Further experiments led to the conclusion that "it is impossible to manage the reproduction of the hatched individuals."
Through this series of experiments, the Alliance side understood the danger of these space monsters.
The remaining eggs had no use for the Alliance.
However, by some twist of fate, the intelligence operations department obtained information about that experiment.
"Let's use those eggs in the Empire!"
Who first said that?
There are no records, so details are unknown, but in that flow, the eggs were brought into the Gialpha Galaxy Empire.
With a use found, all remaining eggs were entrusted to the intelligence operations department.
That aside, the Alliance side suffered a significant depletion of reserve forces due to the emergency deployment of the equivalent of six corps by Imperial Military standards for the anti-space monster war.
This caused a temporary shortage of troops, and a hole was about to open in the fleet strength to be committed to the front lines.
Unfortunately, the measures available to the Alliance side at this time were limited.
Therefore, the intelligence operations department became busy.
As a means of rear area disruption for the Empire, they had intelligence agents secretly operate around the spare of the Aleftria Duke's household and around Empress Laura.
The people engaged in the Alliance's intelligence operations department tried to buy precious time by setting various schemes in motion.
As part of such Alliance intelligence operations, the eggs flowed to Baron Mamawaga around that time a little over two years ago.
All the events Jin had been involved in until now were casually connected in strange ways.
However, there was little Baron Mamawaga could do now.
The villain on the Kaydelon Star System 15th Planet, praying for some luck to come his way, sank into a sea of thought.
The strongest duo of the Hero and the living spaceship, who should be unaware of such movements of others in different places.
The two, who were creating a new route on their own, were having a conversation predicting the Imperial Military's moves while doing that work.
"Hey, Sangou. Do you think the Plan A I submitted will be approved?"
"Yes, Plan A itself will probably pass. Since it wouldn't be good if Plan Z were approved, that's desirable."
"Yeah, I suppose so."
"However, the problem is the scale of forces committed to Plan A. This is not a tactic that can be used multiple times. So, we need enough force to settle it in one go. The question is whether the Gialpha Galaxy Empire Imperial Military HQ Operations Room understands that accurately and will carry out the operation."
"Right. Since it would be troublesome if it were used for a counter-offensive, the route we're making now is only a disposable one."
"Yes. If the rear is attacked on a large scale once, it will become impossible to concentrate and send forces to the front line. Therefore, the minimum goal of 'alleviating the current difficult situation' should be achievable."
"From the start, this war seems to have been a defensive war for the Empire side. The question is whether they will make a decision to push in all at once until the Alliance side is completely annihilated. Well, that's only if we believe the documents obtained in the Empire. (In reality, such documents are often distorted to suit one's own country's convenience.)"
Jin, being originally Japanese and having studied history, had thoughts he didn't verbalize, which led to such skeptical remarks.
Nevertheless, judging from the documents Jin received from the Empire side, he couldn't find a reason why the Empire had to invade the Alliance's territory.
On the other hand, the reasons the Alliance side gave for war against the Empire were clearly and plainly stated.
"We don't like the political system of 'autocracy,' where inheritance is the norm and it's not democratic."
"We will liberate the people of the Empire from the tyranny of 'autocracy.'"
Those were the war reasons the Alliance side kept shouting and upholding.
According to the documents, it was supposed that "the Alliance is waging war against the Empire."
Well, since the two front-line battlefields are at the 'Empire side' entrances of the routes connecting the two countries, it's easy to imagine objectively which side started the war.
"Isn't this like... after smacking the Alliance down with military force, then confronting them with the logical punch, 'Is interfering in other countries' domestic politics a democratic act?' then setting up a moderately wide neutral zone between the two countries, and saying, 'Let's go with non-interference from now on.' That would be good, wouldn't it?"
Jin's personal thought turned out that way.
Of course, that alone is not simple.
While the two were having such a conversation as they made the route, Silk, who was trying to perform her duties seriously, was confused.
Because, according to the training she received as an operator, the fact that Sangou was currently navigating without problems was "incomprehensible."
According to Silk's knowledge, Sangou's current navigation was "impossible."
Sangou, in order to create a new route, was naturally navigating an uncharted region with no route or spatial chart.
On the monitor of Sangou that Silk was watching, the way ahead was displayed in a state where the relationship between the ship's position and the surroundings could not be determined.
Yet, Jin seemed to be giving course instructions to Sangou and navigating without any hesitation.
And as they passed, light sources like stars were being placed at regular intervals, constantly updating the route map.
It was natural for Silk to be confused, thinking, "This makes no sense."
Incidentally, the mechanism that made this possible was entirely due to Jin's magic.
Jin, with his grown maximum mana capacity, had expanded his Map Magic and Search Magic to the maximum area currently possible.
Then, he continuously checked Sangou's position and direction of travel relative to the Alliance's territory, constantly sending appropriate course instructions.
Furthermore, in parallel with such instructions, using his infinitely regenerating mana, he was activating the Light Sphere magic at a scale comparable to a small star, placing them one after another.
Jin's Light Sphere magic could adjust its duration after activation by the amount of mana imbued.
Therefore, Jin set the duration to about nine months.
What Jin was doing was the same as mass-deploying lighthouses or buoys needed by ships on Earth.
However, due to the light sources being magical, there were differences from stars.
The giant light spheres Jin set naturally did not have the high gravity or extreme heat that stars have.
That is, even "immediately next to the light source," or arguably even "inside the light source," a spaceship could navigate without problems.
Though it's unknown what would happen to optical external cameras and sensors if such reckless actions were taken.
And since they were spells with a set duration, they would vanish without a trace once that time passed.
This was the reason Jin described it as "a disposable route."
Light has a speed, and there is a unit called a "light-year" to express it in terms of distance.
A light-year is a unit expressing the distance traveled at the speed of light in one year. Naturally, the light emitted from the moment Jin placed them can only be observed within the distance the light has reached.
That is, for example, a place ten light-years away could only observe it after ten years.
And with a magic duration of nine months, "it will cease to be observable nine months after it first becomes observable."
Therefore, by placing the marker light spheres at a distance equivalent to seventy-five percent of a light-year, i.e., more than nine months' worth, from the Alliance's territory, it would generally not be detected during the operation.
Of course, the placement locations were carefully chosen with sufficient margin to ensure safety.
Sangou completed the new route, and Jin returned straight to the Imperial Capital.
When the living spaceship, which was nothing short of cheating from the Imperial Military's perspective, returned, the military's conclusion regarding Plan A had already been made.
And the formation of the flank attack force, along with preparation of sufficient logistics for the expected operation period, was also complete.
Jin's proposed Plan A was fully approved by the Imperial Military in all respects.
Incidentally, the initially planned force to be committed by the Imperial Military was three corps.
However, with a single word from the Emperor, an additional five mobile fortresses from the Imperial capital's forces were added.
This would be enough force to trample about fifty percent of the Alliance's territory, if Sangou's calculations of the Alliance's strength were correct.
That aside, it was decided that Sangou would not participate in the battle.
This decision was caused by an opinion sent from the Imperial Military to His Majesty the Emperor.
It was the result of that opinion being adopted.
With this background, the new route data created by Jin and Sangou was to be handed over to the Imperial Military.
However, a preventive measure to prevent information leakage was simultaneously enacted.
When the flank attack force gathered in the space that would be the departure point for the new route, under the guise of an extremely large-scale exercise, the new route data was handed over to the Imperial Military for the first time.
The flank attack force, which received the new route data, commenced the operation and departed.
Sangou, not participating, was to remain on standby in the space around the Imperial Capital until the operation ended.
"Hey, Sangou. Why do you think we ended up on 'standby'?"
"Yes. I believe it's a 'problem of distributing credit within the Imperial Military.' Just providing the new route alone is a major achievement. If battle results are added to that, wouldn't the 'captain's achievements become too great'?"
"What a ridiculous reason. Foolish, before even winning."
Jin, not having victory as his primary goal, questioned the Imperial Military's methods.
Also, from the Hero's intuition, this matter felt like a misstep.
Still, it probably wouldn't become an irreparable disaster.
If it were, he would have been hit by a much stronger bad feeling.
"Also, since they extracted the mobile fortresses stationed around the Imperial Capital, I infer that the Emperor, thinking of 'using Sangou to fill that gap,' 'concurred with the Imperial Military's opinion.' If that inference is correct, it means 'Sangou was judged to be equivalent to those five mobile fortresses.' Heh heh."
"I-I see."
For Jin, it was a "heh heh" from Sangou that he hadn't heard in a while.
No matter how many times he heard it, he never got used to the vague fear he felt towards it.
"As another possibility, 'Laura-sama's will' might have had an influence. Things like 'not wanting to send Silk-san to the front lines,' 'wanting to meet her occasionally during standby,' or 'wanting to ensure time for the Captain and Silk-san.' Such personal feelings might have exerted pressure on the Emperor."
As expected of Sangou.
Sangou's conjectures were all correct.
But being 'correct' didn't mean getting a gold star.
Incidentally, hearing such responses from Sangou, Silk's face turned red in her seat on the bridge.
"I want to take time with Jin and hope for children."
The reason was that Silk had said something like that in a previous conversation with Laura.
"Is that so. That might be a factor too."
Jin flipped his motivation switch on.
But nothing happened.
Reality was not a game.
As they were having such aimless conversation, a communication came in from Laura, the subject of their talk, with a request.
It was a request for treatment of a woman who had previously had her hands cut off at the wrists, related to a case when Laura had fallen ill.
"I will provide five hundred million en from my personal funds. Can you somehow restore her original state?"
The matter Laura brought was such a case.
No one other than Sangou could regenerate lost arms and legs, which was impossible with the Empire's medical technology.
However, for Jin, this would normally be a "decline case."
"Why now?"
That thought certainly crossed his mind.
But when the circumstances and feelings were explained in detail, it changed for Jin into a "case he had no choice but to accept."
There were circumstances that moved Jin in this matter.
The woman, who had been living with a prosthetic hand since the incident, originally had a fiancé, but his family had been continuously applying prejudiced pressure against the marriage, saying things like "A woman with a prosthetic hand?!"
Nevertheless, the couple's resolve to marry was firm.
Therefore, fortunately, the engagement was not called off, but the strong obstruction prevented them from marrying, and "the period of engagement became too long."
Laura had recently learned about this.
Sangou, on standby in the space around the capital planet, had nothing urgent to do.
If it was a case Captain Jin approved, he wouldn't hesitate to deploy a twenty-meter-class sub-craft.
With such a case arising, the twenty-meter-class sub-craft smoothly launched from Sangou's hangar.
Laura, the woman requiring treatment, one female knight as escort, and one maid, a total of four people, boarded Sangou, and Jin performed the wrist treatment with Perfect Heal.
Of course, it goes without saying that it was made to look as if Sangou had performed the treatment.
They stayed overnight on Sangou for observation, and all returned the next day.
Having gotten a taste of this, Laura visited a few times with requests for pick-up and drop-off by sub-craft while Sangou was on standby, which was a trivial matter.
That Jin obtained five hundred million en as treatment compensation, and the treated woman immediately began marriage procedures with her fiancé upon arrival in the Imperial Capital, was even more trivial.
Incidentally, that Laura wanted to observe Silk's training while wearing a sub-craft, which sometimes took place in the hangar, and the female knight who watched together said, "I want to try that too!" is a different story.
It was straightforwardly rejected by Sangou, though.
On standby Sangou, Jin and Silk spent their time leisurely, almost as if a temporary vacation had arrived.
But the fact that it didn't last long might be due to Jin's fateful luck.
"Captain. It seems that 'seventy percent' of the invasion force returned."
It had been four months since they saw the force off when word arrived of the Imperial Military's return, having suffered unexpected losses despite the operation being supposed to be a surprise attack on the Alliance's undefended positions.
Thus, Hero Jin and Sangou provided the Imperial Military with the means to execute a flanking invasion from outside the galaxy's nebula.
The fantasy-derived magic and super-scientific technology easily succeeded in having the Imperial Military's high command recognize the unparalleled great achievement of "creating new route data."
They also completed the regenerative treatment of the severed hands of a certain woman, which alleviated Laura's guilt.
However, the villain on the faraway Kaydelon Star System 15th Planet was still alive.
On top of that, the Imperial Military, which should have departed in a confident mood, returned with a thirty percent loss.
How will these relate to the future?
No one knows the future.
During the standby period of just over four months, the Hero received news that Rouj had given birth to a girl, and recklessly performed an ultra-long-distance teleportation.
Although he somehow succeeded in the teleportation itself, Jin ended up experiencing severe pain from mana depletion, at a level he had rarely experienced before.