“Essentially, since there’s a difference in the class of our main battle tanks, we have more tanks in operation. This means we can engage the battlefield over a broader area.”
It wasn’t a large-scale war with hundreds of tanks clashing; rather, it was a mock battle based on ten Crusader tanks and five Tiger tanks. Hasumi judged that the tanks would likely be scrapped within five to ten minutes after the battle began.
“I will grant Saori an independent command over the Arius Faction students. The armament status of Arius is not lacking compared to our Justice Realization Department, and in some areas, it even surpasses ours, so I want Saori to take a decisive role on the battlefield.”
“Understood. I will meet those expectations.”
Hasumi, who had instructed the Arius faction to break through on the left side of the battlefield, turned her gaze to Hinata, representing the Sisterhood students.
“You said the Sisterhood would follow our Justice Realization Department’s command?”
“Y-Yes… Aside from Sakurako, we don’t have anyone who can lead us, and right now, Sakurako is busy studying artifacts transported to Trinity from the Arius Autonomous District.”
“Hmm. Then Hinata will take command—”
“N-No?! I’m really sorry, but I’ll have to decline that… I would definitely be too tense and likely make a big mistake.”
“…Understood. Then for this mock battle, the Sisterhood will temporarily follow the directives of the Justice Realization Department.”
The central battlefield would be commanded by Hasumi herself, and one of the third-year students from the Justice Realization Department would manage the right side. As the students from the Sisterhood were evenly distributed and waiting for the match to begin…
“…It seems Mika has urgent matters and the start of the match has been delayed by ten minutes. Hmm.”
The Justice Realization Department and student council had already made significant contributions to understanding the situation surrounding Wakamou’s case, so Mika’s plan was at least shared among the heads of each club.
Considering Mika’s strength, comparable to Tsurugi’s, even if that Reikubyō no Yū was her opponent, there would be no big problem. Hasumi decided to throw away her unnecessary worries and focus all her nerves on winning this battle.
Mika likely would want to concentrate on scoring points to win the match rather than doing anything that might mess things up with unnecessary worries.
*
“Kikikikikit! Those pigeons are definitely thinking that way. So, Iroha! Make sure to engrave the taste of defeat into them!”
“Yes, yes, you mean the Invincible Steel Battleship Toramaru, right? Haa…”
“…Hey, Iroha. Isn’t your response a bit underwhelming…?”
“It’s all because of Makoto-senpai’s atrocious naming sense.”
“Ugh… Let’s overlook those trivial matters. Anyway, concentrate all the tanks in the center!”
At Makoto’s sudden declaration, Hinata, who had been standing with her arms crossed and eyes shut, opened one eye to stare at Makoto. It was a look that asked what foolishness he was going to say this time.
Ako had even put on earplugs and turned away from the conversation, deciding it was better not to engage with Makoto’s nonsensical chatter and be distracted from the match.
“What’s the point of extending the front line? Breaking the enemy’s core is the shortcut to victory! Especially those pigeon fellows; once the center falls, they’ll be in disarray, and victory is ours! Kikikikikit!”
“So, concentrating five tanks in the center means leaving the left and right lacking even a single tank against the enemy?”
“Kikik! What’s wrong, Student Council President? Are you saying you lack the confidence to handle even that? That’s just sad!”
“The lack of tanks means we can’t stop the enemy’s advance with their tanks, Makoto, Chairperson. In that case, before Trinity’s core collapses, our flanks will likely fall first. In other words, the forces trying to break the core will be tragically trapped and beaten by Trinity’s forces.”
“…Hmph. Did you think the great Makoto would be unaware of such a fact? Naturally, I’d allocated at least one tank to each flank!”
And then, three tanks would be concentrated in the center…
Hinata gave up talking to Makoto and closed her eyes again.
“We will firmly engrave on Trinity who they should truly fear at the central front. As long as our tanks are generations ahead of what they know, all that awaits them is a miserable defeat! Kikikikikit—!”
“…Haa.”
Iroha, covering her face with a book, sighed.
Although this festival had been a somewhat pleasant experience for her, the actual mock battle was an absolute hassle.
With the core of the battlefield being taken by Manma Battle due to Makoto’s insistence, she could only hope they wouldn’t position Kenaki Tsurugi, an asymmetric power from Trinity, over here.
If Trinity’s side decided to position their forces with the intention of annihilating Gehenna rather than countering the threat, the Justice Realization Department’s leader would take on the role of piercing through the center. In that case, only the poor tanks would be sacrificed.
After closing her book, Iroha boarded her tank, releasing another sigh.
Whether it’s the Invincible Steel Battleship Toramaru or just Toramaru; it was clear it wouldn’t last beyond today.
As they waited for the match to begin, the Gehenna side was informed that the match had been delayed.
While the Manma Battle personnel were unaware of Wakamou’s situation, the student council, involved in the matter like the Justice Realization Department, could easily guess why Mika had stepped away.
Thinking Mika was really going through a lot of trouble, Hinata gave Ako’s arm a gentle pat and moved to lead the left flank.
*
[…We sincerely apologize for the disruption in the match’s progress. Due to urgent work, the T-party’s host is unable to continue the commentary, so I will do my best to manage things on my own, and I kindly ask for your understanding. The match will begin 10 minutes later than planned, at 5:10 PM, and will last for exactly one hour.]
After receiving an urgent contact, Mika had instructed the helicopter to lower its altitude, and Nagisa was startled to see her suddenly jump out, but she resumed the commentary with a calm voice.
It wasn’t just a matter of whether she could manage it alone but rather that she had to do it well. Nagisa understood that if a significant problem arose here, it would damage T-party’s reputation.
Even aside from that, in the current scenario where the representative of T-party had left, showing that she could smoothly handle the situation and conclude it successfully would demonstrate T-party’s competence.
With that outcome, it wouldn’t be surprising if the influence of those following Mika diminished and the strength of those following her increased.
‘However, it’s unlikely that such a situation will actually occur, considering Mika’s support base is too solid.’
At this point, as the host, Mika’s support was at an all-time high. Even though she had started to take a hardline stance as part of the pro-Gehenna faction, the fact that she hadn’t been ousted signified her stronghold within Pater. Even the most extreme factions had either crashed by confronting Mika or transitioned to support her, meaning it was safe to say no faction would dare attack her from the outside.
Those claiming neutrality simply viewed the festival as an event for the academy’s students or had a positive outlook on the recent steps taken to embrace the formerly ousted Arius.
Meanwhile, the moderate to weak pro-Gehenna factions leaned heavily toward actively supporting Mika.
In such circumstances, Nagisa gathering people’s support to topple Mika’s stronghold was an absurd idea, and in the first place, she had no motive to cause such a commotion.
In fact, nagging thoughts crossed Nagisa’s mind that amongst past T-parties, this generation’s T-party likely possessed the strongest unity of all; she inhaled deeply.
Regardless of past friendships, compared to the days of separating the public from private matters within T-party, now Nagisa and Seiya were both actively following Mika. With T-party truly united, it was essential to maintain the name and weight of the faction.
[Whoever inflicts near-total annihilation on the opposing forces within an hour will immediately claim victory. Should the match linger beyond an hour without a decisive result, we will carefully evaluate the battlefield to determine the winner. Effective immediately, tank operations are allowed, but bombardments and troop deployments against the opposing side will only be permitted starting at 5:10 PM, so please be advised.]
As Nagisa wrapped up her statement, the tanks from both factions began moving to take their positions.
This was just a mock battle, not a full-blown war, which meant that the bombardments usual in real scenarios were entirely excluded.
As Mika had said, if the battlefield became excessively chaotic, it would lose its meaning as a match. Unlike the tanks which were provisions from Kivotos, artillery units, when showcased in such mock battles, would prevent the students, who should be taking the spotlight, from making any contributions.
Though not the only reason, bombardments were also excluded due to laws instituted by Kivotos’ student council; it would be even stranger if they were included.
Consequently, the battlefield dynamics would involve tanks clashing against each other while students would use them for cover. Although a rule of one hour was implemented, it was highly unlikely that the full duration would be utilized.
‘…Mika, if you come back even slightly hurt, just you wait.’
If Nagisa were to make a mistake during the commentary, it would likely be because she was too worried about Mika.
