Chapter 105 – You May Look Upon Me With a Bit More Heartfelt Respect, You Know!?

Outside the hideout.

Around the time the fierce battle indoors had drawn to a close, it seemed some fighting had broken out on this side as well, if only to a modest degree. Several wrecks of what were clearly raider Makina drifted quietly through the dark surrounding space, the aftertaste of a hard-fought skirmish still heavy in the air.

"Aland, how's it looking on your end?"

Grain opened a channel, checking in with Aland, to whom he'd entrusted command of the outer perimeter.

"Yes, Captain. About six machines tried to make a break for it out here as well, but we've suppressed all of them. Nobody got past us. Our own damage is minor."

Grain nodded at Aland's report, but Rajel cut in almost immediately, his tone carrying a faint, teasing edge.

"Well, except Herta messed up a little."

Sure enough, among the Rudes that had taken part in the encirclement, only one machine -- piloted by the woman with long, light-brown hair, Herta -- showed a light fracture to its right leg, apparently from taking some enemy resistance.

"Ugngh...!"

Being on the receiving end of a jab, usually the role she played against Rajel herself, left Herta able to do little more than let out a frustrated groan. With visible damage right there for everyone to see, not being able to talk her way out of it clearly made it all the more infuriating.

"I see... Well, all in all, not bad. The ones inside are cleared up too."

Grain let out a breath of relief, confirming everyone had come through safely.

Riese's black-and-white manipulator arm held firm to a large evacuation pod, the kind used for holding criminals, recovered from the hideout's command room.

The captured raiders had been packed inside it.

"Fufufu, they were all rather underwhelming opponents to face against someone like me!"

On the comm monitor, Letaria puffed out her chest proudly in her usual haughty manner. But from the corps members, who knew all too well by now just how far beyond the ordinary her abilities were, all she got back was the flat, well-worn reaction of (Yeah, of course... that's just how it goes when you're up against the young lady...).

"Now just a moment! Isn't everyone's reaction rather terribly flat!? I performed magnificently, so you may all look upon me with a bit more heartfelt respect, you know!?"

Watching Letaria's fluster and protest at the unexpectedly lukewarm response, Grain and the rest of the corps finally lost whatever thread of tension had been holding them together and burst out laughing.

After a good round of shared laughter and a full sweep of the surrounding area for safety, Steshia let out an exhausted sigh over the comm, stretching hugely in her cockpit.

"Haah~... Still, nobody told me there'd be a real, honest-to-goodness military machine in there, old as it was~! I was seriously on edge the whole time."

"Huh, really? Everything that came flying out on our side was just a bunch of beat-up scrap-heap machines."

Aland answered her, sounding a little puzzled.

"The ones inside were probably the raiders' elite, or directly under the leader's command. There really were a few skilled hands mixed in there."

Hearing Grain's explanation, Rajel let out an impressed whistle.

"Huh, that's a surprise. The Captain and the young lady, sure, but I didn't expect Steshia to actually go toe-to-toe with that kind of opponent."

"You were probably just carried by that new machine's performance, weren't you."

Perhaps out of some competitive streak, Herta's voice, carrying a faint edge of frustration, needled sharply over the comm.

"Th-that's not true! Future super ace! It's a real shame you all didn't get to see this Steshia Rinin's dazzling, godlike combat skills in action!"

Steshia flailed both hands, flustered, trying to save face -- but Herta's merciless retort came flying right back.

"Says who, exactly. Rasta's left shoulder is completely wrecked."

"Ugh...! Th-that was unavoidable! Besides, I really don't want to hear that from you of all people, Herta!"

"I got my leg, you got your shoulder. Pot, meet kettle."

The corps members carried on with their usual lively back-and-forth. Perhaps thanks to the relief of a successful operation, the whole stretch of space had settled into that same relaxed, homey atmosphere so characteristic of the corps, all trace of tension gone.

Watching his subordinates with a mix of exasperation and warmth, Grain turned Riese's nose toward Seldia.

"Well, well. All right then, let's get these guys escorted back to Seldia before any more debris drifts in and--"

Just as Grain was about to give the order to head home, it happened.

Something struck at Letaria's senses.

"...What is it? ...From that direction...?"

Letaria's magic, channeled through Arden, picked up on something from far, far away.

Her eyes were fixed neither on the wreckage before her nor on her lively companions -- but on the distant, pitch-black void beyond, a place where not even light seemed to reach.