At Primarch Curze's summons, Bruce hurried to the very front lines together with Sevatar.
This was the moment when the Chagualsa Sector stood closest to open war.
On one side was the battle group assembled by Curze herself: a fleet of several hundred warships with the Gloriana-class battleship Nightfall as its flagship, supported in battle by the Dark Angels expeditionary fleet led by the Invincible Reason, another Gloriana-class vessel.
On the other side stood the rebel fleet. Though it numbered in the thousands if one counted every ship big and small, whether in quality or actual combat power, it looked pitifully shabby by comparison.
And when Bruce arrived aboard the Nightfall, he received the highest standard of welcome, and the highest courtesy as well. From the shipmaster to the senior officers of every company, all were waiting at the landing bay to receive him.
Though Bruce was basically a junior runt in front of Curze and Sevatar, in the eyes of everyone else in the Night Lords Legion, he was a heavyweight among heavyweights—a figure not to be provoked, and definitely not to be trifled with.
Even the members of the Night Haunter Council, even the old veterans like the War-Sage—now currently Shinobu Oshino—had to give this Acting Commander a full nine-tenths, if not a full ten-tenths, of their respect.
So amid the welcoming ceremony, Bruce practically walked a red carpet while being showered with kneeling salutes all the way into the Nightfall's central command center.
Curze had already been waiting there for quite some time.
"F-Father? You wanted to see me?" Bruce asked cautiously, instantly picking up on the distinctly unfriendly atmosphere in the command room.
The chamber itself was dim, lit mostly by projection devices and star maps, but what he could feel even more clearly was that everyone present was deliberately holding their breath, as though they feared something.
And who, exactly, were they afraid of?
Obviously Curze.
She sat in a chair so high it could practically be called levitating, her face black as thunder, radiating an aura of annoyed, unhappy, and very much in the mood to kill someone. No wonder the others barely dared breathe.
"Mm. We've just been waiting for you so the meeting could start."
Curze snapped her fingers and ordered, "Camilla. Present your battle plan."
"Yes!" Camilla answered in a refined, noblewoman-like voice.
Among the gathered council members, she stood out simply by being taller than the others. So when she stepped forward with her skull-topped cane to stand before the battle display, she immediately towered over the other tiny figures.
"At present, the entire sector has already been sealed off. That damned traitor Shavok has nowhere left to run. As for those who still dare resist Mother—"
"Hold it," Curze interrupted impatiently.
Camilla immediately fell silent and bowed her head slightly, inwardly wondering whether some flaw in her plan had displeased the Primarch.
"I'm saying, that display is too high. I can't see it. How am I supposed to know what the battle plan even looks like?" Curze propped up her cheek with one hand, her expression full of helpless irritation.
"Why are you all still standing there? Get something over here! Raise Mother higher!" Krul reacted first and immediately started barking orders at everyone.
"Looking, looking!"
"There's nothing in the command center tall enough to prop up the Primarch!"
"Bring that thing over! Stack all those documents together—surely that'll be enough!"
"Are you stupid? What if Mother slips and falls? You want to be responsible for that? Bring books! Use books to raise her up!"
"Gah! If Mother sits on those books, I'm buying them later!"
"Take out the bolter magazines! Stack those too—the height should be enough!"
"I found some ammo crates! Will these work?"
"Looks like it! Bring more!"
…
For a moment the whole command center descended into utter chaos, almost lively chaos at that—but the Night Lords weren't doing it for fun. They simply wanted to meet the Primarch's needs as fast as possible.
Otherwise this strategy meeting would have no meaning at all.
Yet while the Night Lords bustled around in a panic, Bruce silently walked over in front of Curze, turned his back to her, and crouched down.
"Ahh… much better. The view's comfortable now."
Holding down her skirt, Curze gave a little hop and stepped right onto Bruce's shoulders.
After adjusting herself a bit and settling down, her expression visibly improved the moment her rear felt that familiar metallic firmness beneath her.
"…"
Gradually, everyone slowed and then stopped what they were doing, turning in silence to look at Curze perched atop Bruce's shoulders.
Good heavens.
Was this the Acting Commander's level of dedication?
"Children, carry on. I'm very satisfied with this vantage point," Curze said, taking the teacup Bruce handed up to her. She inhaled the aroma and let out a pleased sigh.
Really, it had to be the newbie.
What a fine mount.
"Captain Ophion, please continue," Bruce ordered Camilla. "As you can see, the Primarch merely regretted being unable to view your strategic map. She has no objections to the content of your plan."
"Yes!"
Camilla hurriedly bowed toward Bruce, gripping her cane with both hands.
That one explanation instantly dispelled all her unease.
And so this tactical genius—mocked by many in the Legion as a "coward"—continued laying out the operational plan.
According to Camilla's design, the Legion would employ a decapitation strike aimed directly at Shavok himself. Night Lords Raptor units would be sent straight into the governor's palace to seize the traitor.
At the same time, the Nightfall would carry out a sabotage operation against the enemy's fortified orbital defense satellites, after which several grand companies would enter the field and eliminate all remaining resistance.
In short: use the smallest possible cost to secure the greatest possible result.
No attritional war.
Once Shavok was killed, the will to resist among the others would naturally collapse. At that point, everyone who had participated in the rebellion would be reduced to slaves and made to atone forever to the Night Lords Legion.
"Do any of you have anything to add?" Curze asked after hearing the full plan. Then she yawned.
Very boring.
Very uninteresting.
"We should carry out a bloody purge across the traitors' worlds," Shalltear immediately declared. "Let them live in terror, and let all the world know the price of betraying the Legion!"
Just executing the ringleader while sparing everyone else who had joined the uprising?
How could they possibly be allowed to get off that easily?
"The manpower, resources, and factories on those worlds are still useful to us. If we simply slaughter them all, the losses would be too great," Shinobu retorted, firmly taking Camilla's side.
That was the worst part about an internal war. Since it was one's own territory, you couldn't go too far without hurting yourself—but if you didn't go far enough, others would imitate it in the future.
Where exactly to draw that line was the real problem.
"And the newbie?" Curze tapped Bruce lightly on the chest with her heel.
"Me?" Bruce raised his head a little and pointed at himself.
Damn it.
With this many big shots in the room, you're asking me?
Then obviously the answer is to go all in.
"I've only got one thought."
"First, have the Dark Angels launch the attack on the governor's palace and create the illusion that they're about to take Shavok out in one wave. Then send in Raptor units to infiltrate the city, cut its supply lines, locate the armories, and plant teleport beacons."
"The moment those coordinates are set, the Black Guard teleports in immediately and locks those locations down, preventing Shavok's companies from getting desperate and using those weapons for a last-ditch counterattack."
"And finally—the most important step—broadcast it to everyone. Spread the word that the Primarch has promised mercy: surrender and you won't be killed. We break their will to resist."
"As for the warships outside orbit—anything tied to Shavok gets boarded. If we can take it, we take it. If we can't, we destroy it."
"As for the defense satellites and the like… I doubt they'll really fight hard. And even if they do, the Dark Angels can tank it first, can't they?"
"That's all I've got to say."
Bruce finished and spread his hands.
"…"
Everyone fell into thoughtful silence as they listened to this plan, simple to the point of brutality.
"But…" Camilla was the first to identify the problem. "Acting Commander, how exactly are we supposed to make the Dark Angels cooperate with our maneuvers?"
They were the ones being sent in first.
Would they really agree to serve as cannon fodder?
You were talking as if you were their Primarch.
"I'll handle that part, so don't worry. I guarantee we can achieve a pretty good synchronization rate."
"Then we'll go with that," Curze declared.
She settled it with a single sentence. "Sevatar, relay my orders. A little later, we attack together with the Invincible Reason. Even if they take point, we can't just hide behind them and get mocked for it."
"Yes."
Sevatar nodded and immediately moved to carry out the Primarch's orders.
Now that the command had been established, all that remained was execution.
The assembled officers dispersed and returned to their stations.
"Nicely said, newbie. I thought you were just going to blurt out something like 'all forces attack,'" Curze praised him without reservation.
"Uh… I just said a few simple things, that's all." Bruce gave a strained smile.
Honestly, he had a sneaking suspicion she was mocking him.
"As a reward, I permit you to join me in the assault."
"Huh? Me? I'm joining the assault too?!"
Was that really a reward?
"What? You were planning to sit on the Nightfall and watch us fight?" Curze felt Bruce's thinking was seriously warped.
She was letting him join the battle.
Shouldn't he be happy?
Why was he afraid of this and that? It was ridiculous.
"O-Okay…" Bruce answered nervously. "Give me a little time. I need to use the Lion's appearance to sync the orders with the Dark Angels."
Well, at this point, he could only force himself forward.
It was just a ground assault, right?
With a Primarch backing him up, surely it couldn't be that bad.
"Fine, then go—hm? What are you doing?"
The moment Curze noticed herself being lifted, she reflexively clamped both legs tightly around Bruce's neck.
"Ghk—ghk—ghk!"
Bruce nearly suffocated on the spot and let out a strangled scream.
"If you're going to relay orders, then relay orders. Why are you putting me down? Did I order you to?" Curze fumed, punching Bruce in the head.
Clang.
Bruce bared his teeth in pain.
"I have to transform! What, were you planning to appear on camera with me?!"
"And why not?" Curze saw no problem with that at all.
"…"
You're serious?
"I've already publicly revealed a humiliating appearance like this, so one more thing won't matter. Go on. I'd like to see for myself what level Lion's sons are at."
"After all, they're the ones who defeat me in the future. I should at least examine them."
"...Fine," Bruce said helplessly, submitting to the order.
If she wanted to appear on-screen together with Lion, what more was there to say?
He just hoped she wouldn't lose her temper later.
After all, the Dark Angels were nothing like the Night Lords. When those knights got sharp-tongued, they could genuinely talk a person to death. Other than Lion himself, no one could keep that bunch in line.
The Warleader's heroic bearing (coming soon).
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 150)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 115)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League (Chapter 110)
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter105)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter100)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter69)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter100)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 65
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 70
From Junkman to Wasteland 60
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 40
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 60
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 50
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 50
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass 50
The Way the Umamusume Look at 31
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 26
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 26
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