episode_0013

-Nuh-uh, I’ll go before it’s too late.

Lavender Whiteley chose to sleep in the dormitory.

It’s a good choice.

If your sleeping environment suddenly changes, you may not be able to sleep properly, which may have a negative impact on your skills as a pilot the next day.

-Well, at least give me some time! Aside from moving, I also need time to prepare!

Instead, we agreed to delay the arrival time at the third factory by one hour, to 6 o’clock instead of 5 o’clock.

Although it is a little late to achieve optimal efficiency, if the pilot can be in the best condition by giving up a little hunting time, that is fine.

For the rest, the key is whether or not you can properly sortie…

‘From now on, it’s the instructor’s domain.’

I told Lavender to just go straight to the 3rd Factory, but in reality, I don’t have anything ready right now.

There is also a transport aircraft to go outside the colony and into outer space.

And Harkon N, where Lavender will board, is not ready yet.

‘This is not [Baekun], and it is not a place where, as a tutor, if I ask you to prepare this, it will be prepared right away.’

I have yet to prove anything to Starlight Academy, the Foundation, or the Colony.

I threatened the students that they would have to show their performance to prove it, but in reality, in order to create an environment where Lavender could produce results, I had to prove it.

And from now on, I have to get busy proving it.

To be exact, this ‘call’ that was ringing loudly on my terminal.

“I tried to go there in person, but it saved me a lot of trouble.”

The person who called was Vice Principal Stella.

“Yes, vice principal.”

[To the teacher’s office right now… No, were you coming now?]

“The teacher’s office light was on.”

It is already night in the colony, streetlights are twinkling on every street, and the teacher’s office in the distance is also glowing softly.

The reason why the lights are twinkling like that even though all the students have already gone back to their dormitories or home is because the people remaining in the teacher’s office are working overtime.

“I’ll be there soon.”

As the person who caused the overtime, I feel sorry for not being able to bring a drink, but I guess I can cover those drinks with the profits I earned from defeating the ether monster.

[First of all, let’s continue the call. Come and let us talk. This is because the decision has actually been made.]

“Please tell me.”

[There are five conditions. If that cannot be accepted, the Academy will not allow Instructor Cloud to teach in space.]

“There are a lot of conditions.”

In fact, it feels like it is less than expected, but what was the condition?

[first. All responsibility lies with the cloud instructor.]

The first conditions are harsh, but this has been fully taken into account.

[I will use all expenses related to this field training in space within my special education budget, but if I cannot make a profit to cover it all, the cloud instructor will be responsible for it.]

“I will accept it.”

[…Even if it is deducted from the salary, the amount can increase enormously?]

“I’m not saying you should only take responsibility for economic problems.”

I am willing to take responsibility for everything.

“As long as I take the students I teach to battlefields where actual combat will take place, I am prepared to take responsibility not only for the financial burden placed on the academy but also for the lives of the students.”

[…….]

“I will take full responsibility for everything.”

The first condition is not a big problem to me.

“What’s next?”

[Harpe N cannot be shipped.]

“That’s a bit.”

[Instead, we will rent you a basic Harpe. This is the aircraft that Ms. Lavender herself previously rode. Weapons will also be supported as standard specifications for actual combat.]

“Is additional armament available upon request?”

[…considering the degree.]

A mumbling voice is heard beyond the terminal.

It seems that there are probably some other teachers besides the vice-principal who are whispering about the scope of the ‘addition’ I mentioned.

“The basic specifications will be a beam rifle and a shield, but one close combat weapon is required. First of all, among the things on the dock…beam axe. And spare armament for each armament.”

[If that’s the case, check. I will accept it.]

“There is no problem with the second condition.”

Pass through the main gate.

Some students who have finished club activities are shocked when they see me, but I don’t care and keep moving forward.

[The third condition is that one assistant instructor will follow.]

“Assistant instructor?”

[You could call him a safety guard.]

“Aha.”

It must be a surveillance station and a kind of brake at the same time.

“Are you by any chance Instructor Aria? If it were her…”

[no. I am a pilot from the Colony Defense Force. We will seek cooperation from the National Defense Force, and a combat-type Harkon N will act as an escort.]

“Thank you for that.”

Perhaps because he has to protect Ace, he seems to be trying to put in place safety measures to ensure Lavender’s safety.

“But if the pilot interferes with the training…”

[If the situation becomes clearly dangerous, we will immediately order a retreat. Until then, the pilot will watch the training activities from the side and write a report.]

“Are your skills outstanding?”

[…yes.]

If that’s the case, I’m glad.

If you are confident in your skills, you will definitely know the safer angle.

“I will follow safety instructions as long as they do not interfere with educational activities and are at the level of common sense. I think of it as a paramedic who followed along with me during swimming training.”

[…fourth. Of course, ship support is not possible. Please use the shuttle.]

“Shuttle….”

Literally a transport plane.

“Are you [Potter] by any chance?”

[yes. This is Porter.]

“With arms…”

[doesn’t exist. It’s a transport plane.]

No matter how small the Harkon is because it is an entry-level version, the shuttle ‘Porter’ can carry at least four Harkons in the hangar.

“Okay. I will follow your instructions.”

It is an efficient transport aircraft with wings on the left and right on top of a very large square container, but this was also assumed from the beginning.

“Then what is the final condition?”

[The last condition is….]

The voice gets closer.

I opened the door to the teacher’s office while still holding the phone.

“Please tell me?”

“…….”

In the teacher’s office, Professor Edmund and other teachers were occupying one of the conference room chairs.

“Nice to meet you. This is Trev Cloud, the instructor in charge of Special Forces Group B. As of today, I have started working as a special forces instructor at Starlight Academy.”

These were all faces I had never seen before, and I politely bowed to them and greeted them.

” I would like to start by saying that I am sorry if you were in a meeting until late at night because of me.”

I guess I looked sideways at the various materials placed on the table.

“Do you think your skepticism about me was deeper than your skepticism about my teaching and training methods?”

It was full of data about the existence called ‘I’.

“Instructor Trev Cloud.”

Vice Principal Stella, who was sitting at the head of the conference room, turned off her phone, stood up, took a document and waved it in front of me.

“Before mentioning the last condition, let me clearly state this first.”

“Yes.”

“You.”

Principal Stella’s eyes.

“Zodiac calls you a ‘reseller’, is that correct?”

They looked at me as if they were looking at me like a criminal.

* * *

That time. A dormitory exclusively for special forces students. Lavender Whiteley’s room.

“Trev Cloud, Trev Cloud. Oh, there is.”

After taking a shower and lying down on the bed, Lavender opened the search engine on her wide tablet terminal and searched for information about the instructor in earnest.

“It’s not on the wiki… Ah, I found it. There’s no personal page, it’s somewhere like an article. Is it a celebrity…?”

Wasn’t it a separate pseudonym?

While Lavender was searching a web page for clues about someone named Trev Cloud, she was momentarily fascinated by unexpected information.

“Crazy.”

Among the Zodiac Alliance and the Central Army of the 12 Colonies, the ace unit [Ether Guardians] is said to gather only the ‘strongest pilots’.

An ace pilot who was assigned there five years ago and a special pilot from the Libra colony –

“The person who taught [Astraia]…?”

He has a record of teaching 12 so-called great aces among active pilots.

Although the person involved never said such a thing, traces of it being mentioned briefly in Astraea’s own interview remain in the article.

-… It was harsh training, but I think I was able to get to this point without giving up thanks to his teachings.

Praise, one color.

In addition, among the stories circulating on the space internet, there is an added story like ‘The story of how 999 became the Zodiac after being tutored by a mask instructor.’

“He was a very talented person.”

The more I searched for information, the more I seemed to have faith in the instructor named Cloud.

Yeah, it was the same.

If I hadn’t seen another ‘latest article’ that followed, I might have completely believed in Trev Cloud.

“What is this…?”

Trev Cloud.

About a year ago.

“You sold the student for money…?”

He raised the students he tutored into ace pilots at the academy.

The Academy achieved excellent results by participating in the Colony Competition.

“It is said that in the year of his third year, he was expelled from the colony on charges of tricking an ace pilot into selling him to another colony for a large sum of money…?”

He was an outcast suspected of betraying the existing colony and selling out an ace pilot.

“No way.”

Lavender swallowed her saliva.

“To make money by selling me…?”