Ch.272Kirsanid Scourge (3)

# Chapter 272: Kirsanid Scourge (3)

Of course, I had absolutely no insane intention of making new enemies in the current situation.

I responded to the diplomatic message from the Fuchsviet Federation with the most courteous phrasing possible.

After sending the message to those bear friends…

“…”

[Pause]

I paused the game and began to sink into thought.

‘Hah, surely this must really be the end now?’

It suddenly occurred to me that the moment this damn Scourge event ends, the game would automatically be cleared as well.

Especially since the war situation is currently being contained…

I couldn’t help but think about future plans.

‘If the Prosnack Alliance joins ISTO as they initially declared… they might surpass the Ten-Ron Guardians, the remaining precursor empire, and achieve first place in national rankings.’

Of course, as soon as I had this thought, I realized I was counting my chickens before they hatched.

‘Ah, I should think about this later.’

I stopped that wishful thinking.

Instead, I decided to focus on how to deal with the damn Scourge horde that’s currently upon us.

But…

‘Wait, there’s nothing for me to directly handle here either.’

Perhaps it’s because we’ve been intensely preparing since a year before the Emperor and the straggling Scourge arrived.

There was absolutely nothing more for me to do at this point.

‘What more could I do politically… when I’m already doing everything?’

I’ve been pressuring diplomatic ambassadors at the ISTO Treaty Committee to request reinforcements.

And simultaneously, although it has become practically nominal…

With its “symbolic” meaning as an entity encompassing the entire galaxy…

We’re already supporting the front lines by doing everything possible politically and diplomatically, like pressuring and bribing the Galactic Federation to declare the Kirsanid Scourge as a crisis under the crisis bill.

It’s not like we’re going to provide military support or anything.

[Unpause]

“Riel, how many stealth destroyers are currently assigned to the Purge Unit from the Diplomatic Enforcement Agency?”

“About 35 ships… why do you suddenly ask?”

“Hmm… no, it’s nothing.”

Small-scale irregular warfare, special operations…

Or internal purges and secret police actions would be one thing.

But in a situation like this that requires the mobilization of forces across the entire galaxy, what could we possibly accomplish with just 35 stealth destroyers?

It’s not like we’re going to board assault pods into those insane biological monsters.

“Minister, are you thinking of ordering the Purge Unit members to infiltrate the Scourge ships with assault pods?”

“…”

“Even so, doing something like that would kill the Purge Unit members too.”

So there was someone who thought the same thing.

Right beside me, no less.

But I wasn’t about to fall for Riel’s teasing.

“As expected of a hateful AI, you’re running simulations for something even I wouldn’t consider.”

“…!”

“Pathetic.”

Seeing my response, Riel made an expression like she’d been caught off guard.

After we each landed a blow on each other…

“So Minister, what were you actually pondering about?”

I shared the problem I’d been contemplating in response to Riel’s casual question.

After hearing my concerns, Riel said:

“But Minister, you’re currently entrusted with the most important mission in the entire galaxy, not just the Empire, aren’t you?”

She pointed to the drawer of my desk.

I thought of the item I was carefully storing in the safe inside that drawer.

The item that Artraia had personally handed to me recently.

*Slide… thud*

“You mean this?”

“Why are you taking that out again?”

I said, holding up Artraia’s ‘imperial crown.’

“Well, this is indeed important.”

———————————-

A few days ago.

When I visited the imperial palace on business for various reasons.

As always, I was abducted by the imperial guards and dragged to the Emperor’s private chamber.

And there…

“Arto, I’d like you to accept this.”

“…Huh?”

Like a lover receiving a marriage proposal, I accepted this ‘imperial crown’ from the bashful Artraia.

‘…???’

My brain refused to comprehend the situation, becoming so short-circuited that I couldn’t even think to use the pause function.

Barely holding onto my sanity, I asked why she was giving this to me.

And Artraia’s answer was quite a masterpiece:

“But… when that Progenitor Emperor arrives, I’ll have to go into battle with Great-Aunt, right?”

“Well… that’s true.”

When I responded like that, Artraia twisted her glamorous figure…

Then she took my hands holding the crown into her own delicate hands and lifted them up.

“Until this war ends, I want to entrust the crown to you, whom I trust the most.”

“…Eh?”

“So, when this war is over… let’s have a formal wedding ceremony.”

———————————————

It wasn’t even me proposing.

Instead, I received a proposal along with the imperial crown.

“Minister?”

“…No, looking at the imperial crown suddenly reminded me of what happened recently.”

I shook off that sudden flashback from my mind and decided to focus on proper work to prevent any more random thoughts from surfacing.

But as evident from my falling into such reverie and exchanging jokes with Riel…

The current situation on the Kirsanid front was quite stable.

“Although the Sevan Administration has fallen, half of the leadership and citizens in that country have successfully escaped.”

“Hmm.”

“Though most will have to live as refugees outside our Empire for the time being… the Sevan leadership says they’ll form a government-in-exile to continue resistance.”

Since the enemy wasn’t particularly targeting anything political…

I started wondering what Sevan could possibly do without military means.

Even without a fleet, they could still be utilized as personnel to form a fleet.

So there seemed to be no need to interfere with them.

“And on one western front, the Kerzin Republic has joined the battle with their entire fleet.”

“Kerzin?”

And other vassal states were beginning to actively participate in place of Sevan.

“The Mis-Fel Independent States Alliance… they’ve also deployed their entire fleet to the front lines.”

“Hah, they were always complaining, but as soon as crisis hits, they jump right in?”

“Still, the fact that even small nations like Mis-Fel and Kerzin are rushing in shows how important everyone considers this war.”

I nodded in agreement with Riel’s words.

“Plus, the ISTO treaty nation fleets might arrive soon, so we might hear some positive news from the front lines, don’t you think?”

“I suppose so.”

—————————————–

And not long after…

“Minister! Victory reports are coming in from all fronts!”

“…What?”

I couldn’t hide my surprise at this unexpected news.

“Is that true, Riel?”

“Yes! All our fronts, as well as the Prosnack, ISTO treaty forces, and allied fleets!”

Is it really resolving this easily?

As far as I know, the individual ship performance of the Kirsanid Scourge in the game is quite inferior compared to late-game ships when this crisis occurs.

But that’s only in one-on-one situations.

They shouldn’t be weak enough to be pushed back when they have a 3-to-1 numerical advantage.

Even in the actual game, despite each individual ship’s poor performance…

How terrifyingly effective they were as a fleet was a daily topic of complaint posts flooding the community during the game’s heyday.

So I couldn’t help but feel puzzled by the fact that we were winning, but…

“They say they’re starting a full-scale offensive on all fronts now, and they’re even going to broadcast it live!”

Thinking it wouldn’t be bad to drive in the final nail at this point…

I nodded at Riel’s words and decided to watch the real-time broadcast through the screen in my office.

But as I watched, I was gripped by a strange sense of dissonance.

‘This feels like… the UN forces advancing north during the Korean War?’

That thought suddenly came to mind.

And at this point, another question occurred to me…

‘Where the hell did the Progenitor Emperor go? And the Queen?’

Despite tens of thousands of space monsters being swept away…

The causes of this war and our targets for elimination weren’t appearing at all.

Of course, this question of mine would be answered not long after…

-“AAAAARGH!!!”

-“Retreat, retreat!”

“This is insane.”

“Crazy.”

The answer came quite naturally through the screen broadcasting the events in real-time.