But That Big-Eared One Was Me? (4)

Rora Estelt, the vice-captain of the Obelisk, felt a slight reluctance to carry out the order to restrain her direct superior, but she could not deny understanding the commander’s decision.

Two months ago.

A command had arrived from the Union Command.

Appointing a colonel, one rank higher than herself, as the new captain to the David-class assault destroyer Obelisk. There had never been a precedent of a colonel assuming command of an assault destroyer. It was a bit questionable, but she had only been captain for a month, so she accepted the order without objection.

“Colonel? And a golden parachute who got promoted in record time in just six years.”

“Chloe, it’s an honor to meet the new captain.”

As the captain, she automatically changed to vice-captain. And Chloe, who had been left vacant, was reassigned to the vacant command control officer position.

“I wish Rora had remained captain…”

“I’m sure she’s a better person than me.”

“But even so, rumors have been swirling since before the new captain arrived, right?”

Unsettling rumors had been spreading even before the new captain arrived at the Obelisk. That she was Luden Edelvine’s adoptive daughter, the golden parachute dropped here under her father’s halo, and that she was ‘very’ violent. Rumors were meant to be exaggerated, but Rora was a bit worried about the last rumor.

“You can’t evaluate people based only on rumors. Come on, let’s get ready.”

“Rora’s too kind-hearted, that’s the problem. How can smoke just come out of the chimney? Something smells—”

“-Chloe.”

“Eek! Vice-Captain Rora in mom mode. Yippee-yippee.”

And on the day the captain was to assume command.

She had showered early, put on her meticulously ironed dress uniform, and hurried to prepare for the welcoming at the entrance of the Obelisk’s hangar bay.

It was still much earlier than the expected arrival time. From the other side of the hangar, a commotion broke out, and she looked over from a distance.

“I don’t know! Where exactly is the problem in this report!”

A logistics officer in charge of maintenance supplies, with lips that had split, stood in front of someone. A white-haired elf wearing the black uniform of the assault destroyer. Holding a T-shaped metal ceremonial staff for the captain.

“Logistics officer, I am not a parrot. I’ll ask one more time.”

Her hair, whiter than freshly fallen snow, flowed like a waterfall down to her waist, glistening as if wet, displaying its chilling intimidation. Except for the left eye covered by a blindfold, the right eye was a huge blood-red, with latent madness flickering in it.

“Where did all the missing money go? Which items are missing?”

“I don’t know about that. I am—”

The logistics officer protested in a low voice, and she raised her arm and slapped his cheek.

“You’ve been hit once and still can’t get it together. You maggot.”

The personnel gathered upon hearing the news of the new captain, personnel moving for work, everyone in the hangar focused their gazes there.

“You claim not to know? Then I’ll kindly teach you instead. It’s right in the maggot’s belly.”

Soon after, an one-sided beating that could not be described in words began. In the blink of an eye, the maintenance logistics officer who had been kicked in the leg fell to the floor, and she began swinging the ceremonial staff in her right hand wildly. No one, including Rora herself, could muster the courage to stop the horrific scene.

“You little rat! Same bastard, you! You ate the cost of the Corps! Even if you bought 10 air-to-air missiles! You bought them, 76mm laser! Even if you bought depleted uranium shells! You bought over 90! You liar! Documents now! To me! You dare to present a report?!”

Every time the staff swung through the air, red blood splattered everywhere.

“So! How much did you embezzle by deceiving people? Me too! Same as the previous captains! You thought I was stupid? Big mistake. I won’t let those maggots live! No thought. Starting with you, all of them! Thoroughly! I’ll crush them. In my ship! The maggots! Are unnecessary!”

“U, uwaaaah! This bastard—”

The logistics officer, unable to endure the beating, jumped up and tried to run at her with a fist. No, he tried to run at her. With a gunshot, his charge ended in failure.

“Ah! Kuaaah—”

“Stupid, my gun isn’t decoration.”

He rolled on the floor with a large hole in his thigh, screaming. Blood soaked into the welcoming carpet laid in the hangar.

“Huu, kueeeugh-! Aaaaaah—”

“-Shut up. It’s noisy.”

She kicked the face of the logistics officer lying and screaming with the heel of her boot. The logistics officer fainted, clutching his leg that was bleeding profusely.

“Tsk, the ceremony got messed up. Is there a weapons control officer?”

“Y-yes! Yes! W-weapons control officer Yuribi Aine, Lieutenant!”

“Article 3, Paragraph 1.”

The weapons control officer Yuribi came forward trembling.

“You didn’t hear properly? Article 3, Paragraph 1. Repeat.”

“Y-yes! W-we are, as Aegis’s lighthouse, leading the eradication of corruption!”

“In terms of corruption within the assault destroyer, what is the captain’s maximum authority?”

“Y-yes…! Regarding corruption, hiik, corruption within the ship…”

Yuribi could not speak, her mind blank. The captain’s immediate disposal right (life or death) for corruption within the assault destroyer, which was specially permitted only inside the ship. As a battleship piercing the enemy’s defense line and engaging in fierce combat, it stemmed from ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the tradition of prioritizing transparent and smooth supply of supplies.

But tradition is tradition.

In reality, there had been no cases of immediate disposal.

Most were handed over to trial.

“Answer, Yuribi Aine, Lieutenant. What is the captain’s maximum authority?”

Smoke rose from the muzzle of the ceremonial pulse pistol that had just spat out the flash. Yuribi was terrified. The moment she answered, the captain would immediately shoot and kill the fainted logistics officer in front of her. Thick tears streamed endlessly from her eyes, which were soft-hearted.

“Captain’s! Maximum authority?!”

“Huu, huuugh, corruption within the ship, hiik, corruption, huuugh, the captain, huuueugh-”

“Please stop, Colonel!”

Rora Estelt, who had broken through the crowd, stepped forward. She pulled the crying Yuribi into her arms. Yuribi began to sob pitifully in her embrace.

“-Official name.”

“Rora Estelt, Lieutenant Commander, captain of the Obelisk.”

“A useless captain has arrived. Now it’s time to play house with this rotten—”

“-Colonel.”

The colonel laughed faintly and brushed off the bloodied staff.

“Send the maintenance logistics officer to the infirmary immediately. I’ll ask about responsibility later.”

“Y-yes! Captain.”

After the logistics officer was carried away, a heavy silence descended upon the hangar. The welcoming ceremony was already in ruins. Rora handed Yuribi over to Chloe and faced Colonel Elia directly. Since her height only reached up to Elia’s chest, she was clearly looking down, but oddly, it felt as if she was looking up at her.

“So, our merciful Colonel is keeping the maggots alive, I see.”

“I’m sorry, Colonel. We will handle it according to federal law here.”

Rora bowed her head and spoke in a polite tone. Then she let out a somehow dangerous and decadent laugh and put the pistol back in its holster.

“Yes, since the handover isn’t complete, follow the captain’s decision until then. However…”

The two’s gazes locked in the air and confronted for a few seconds.

“-Listen carefully, Captain Rora. I hate useless trash. Especially the maggots who don’t know their place and feast on corpses.”

The huge rotten bloodshot eye turned to Rora.

“That a useless trash became the captain of the assault destroyer, I’m truly fortunate that I came. Otherwise—”

“-Colonel! Though it’s improper, Lieutenant Commander Rora Estelt has not been on this ship for even a month! The words you’re saying now have quite a flaw-!”

“-Is showing an empty head also a pride of this ship? Trying to evade the fact that ‘today’s’ arrival is less than a month by saying I don’t know. And…”

The bloodied staff poked Chloe’s left chest pocket.

“Before opening that rotten mouth, give your official name, trash.”

“Chloe Agnes, vice-captain of the Obelisk.”

“Yes, Vice-Captain Chloe Agnes.”

With a stride like a beast, she got right in front of Chloe’s nose, gently grabbed the collar of the prey, and at the same time, explosive killing intent focused on Chloe.

“Once more, if you interrupt my words and chatter, I’ll personally stuff your empty head with etiquette.”

“I-I apologize. I’m sorry.”

“No second time, maggot.”

She pulled her hand from Chloe and gripped the staff with both hands, slamming it down on the iron floor of the hangar with a bang. Her dead eyes scanned the approximately 200 living audience. Suffocating tension. Even the sound of swallowing saliva was blasphemous here.

“Listen well. I am Colonel Elia Edelvine. When calling me, ‘Captain’ or ‘Captain Elia.’ I will permit only two titles. From this moment, the ship is reborn under my command. If I don’t warn in advance from this position, I will write the history of this ship with your blood. So, those who don’t want to spill blood, come down immediately. I will prepare transport tickets to the ground.”

A smile full of madness. The mouth split long. The air in the hangar became as taut as rubber just before bursting.

“-The welcome ceremony is over. Ah, by the way, I almost forgot. All maggot officers of this ship are to write reports by fully understanding the status of each assigned area by 7 AM tomorrow morning. Those who bring trash-like information that even ‘today’s’ arrival knows… I will make you pay dearly for stealing my precious time.”

With that said, she headed to the captain’s quarters without guidance, as if she had already fully understood the structure of this ship. That was the first sight of ‘Elia Edelvine’ that she remembered.

“Rora.”

“…Chloe.”

Rora snapped out of her recollection at Chloe’s call.

“What are you going to do?”

“I can’t choose. It’s an order.”

“Is this an order? Let me see…”

“…The Commodore came out hard this time too.”

“Because you’ve ignored the Commodore’s recommendation to report to the Valkyrie six times so far.”

The 21st order. To restrain without regard to life or death. Of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠course, it wasn’t literally to bring her back, but this 21st order was a measure of how firmly she had been holding back so far.

“Should I go to the captain first and talk?”

“No way, that woman would walk here herself.”

As expected from their childhood friend. She had never properly followed Commodore Cherny’s order. Thanks to that, the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠disciplinary warning letters that had flown to the Obelisk easily exceeded 30 sheets. When Rora asked why, she answered like this.

“I’d rather have my tongue bitten off than listen to the order of that stupid woman.”

From Rora’s perspective, Karina Cherny was never an incompetent commodore. Among the current commodores, she was second to none in pure performance and achievements. She was expected to be promoted to lieutenant general.

“Anyway, Captain… you don’t look well.”

“On the contrary, this might be a good ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠opportunity. Besides, next to the ‘Valkyrie’ is the legendary medical ship ‘Archaea’? While sending you for a few days of recuperation, why not—”

“-Chloe!”

“W-well, that’s what the words mean. There’s no point in worrying. If I tell you in advance, you’ll definitely resist going. If I don’t tell you, it will be resistance, but surprise confinement has a high probability of success. Of course, the choice is yours, Rora.”

Although there had been many things in the meantime, Rora respected her sincerely. She thought ‘I’m really glad that this person became captain instead of me.’

In fact, the officers of the assault destroyer Obelisk had grown incredibly in ability over the past two months. Not only that. All crew members had acquired ship combat capabilities comparable to the elite Corps assault pilots under her harsh training, and the survival rate in simulated battles had skyrocketed.

In particular, the transcendent language she showed when destroying the Unknown’s ‘Nightmare Gate’ in a single shot was something she herself couldn’t imitate. Even in the midst of her body burning like a fireball, she didn’t let go of the command staff in her hand.

When she fell to the floor unable to endure the pain and stood up with her indomitable will, grabbing her shoulders and sitting back in the command seat, respect welled up. When she ignored the superior’s standby order and used strategic weapons independently to destroy the Unknown’s ‘Nightmare Gate’ in a single shot, even awe was felt. Heroic power that brings miracles. Who could do such a tremendous feat? At least she couldn’t.

That day, the 20 or so fleets under the Aegis Coalition on Cephus Planet were filled with cheers of joy. But the hero who created that miracle lost consciousness and fell, sleeping alone in the room. Rora’s chest became heavy with sadness and frustration. Thinking of the security door of the captain’s room that had been tightly locked no matter how much she pounded, her vision blurred with rising tears.

But orders are orders.

“Chloe, call Special Operations Officer Erika.”

“Should I summon the Chainstalker unit too?”

She had no choice but to follow the order.

Then what she could do was one thing.

“…Yeah. Please.”

To bring her to the Valkyrie without any wounds.