Chapter 22

4 “The secondary pillar has begun moving again. The battlefield is shifting!” Alma closed an eye and gripped the control stick in her cockpit as that report come over the radio. As her plane flew along at high speed, the only things visible in the sky were black-shelled tertiary pillars that looked like flying ants and her fellow Valkyries from Sigrdrifa Squadron. There were no other planes in the sky at all. And the reason was— “Mistletoe…” She kept the terrible, giant pillar in her sights wherever she flew. It was normal for a secondary pillar to be dozens of times larger than a tertiary, but even so, this one was massive. It was the largest of all confirmed pillars. The so-called cataclysmic secondary grated on her nerves even as it simply stood there, imposing and seemingly self-assured. Mistletoe boasted an incomparable size, and the trees that apparently made up its body shared no sense of season or location. There were modern and ancient trees from species that grew all over the world. It was an amalgamation of giant trunks that had seemingly stood for millennia. And befitting its overwhelming presence, its movements were ponderous, lacking even a hint of agility. It was almost always impossible to tell what pillars were thinking, but that was especially true for what seemed like a giant mass of plant life. The other pillars at least mimicked one living creature or another, so their movement patterns could be somewhat predicted. But Mistletoe was different. There was no clear basis behind its attacks, making it impossible to read. “Scatter!” Shannon’s voice called out over the radio. She was serving as the squadron leader, with both Rusalka and Natalie absent. Alma immediately reacted and pulled into a climb. “” Every Valkyrie had their own habits and quirks when it came to evasion. For Alma, who was carrying the highest firepower and was often tasked with annihilating masses of pillars in a single strike, she naturally had a habit of climbing to gain an altitude advantage over her opponents. Shannon tended to like having a bird’s-eye view, looking out over everything, so she also favored climbing, while Leili circled to the right, smoothly adding to her plane’s flight path. Just as the other Valkyries all scattered in their own ways—Mistletoe unleashed a terrible ray of white light in all directions. The world was scorched white by a fearsome high-energy attack. It was incomparably faster than the bullets of light that tertiary pillars normally shot. An actual beam of light that coalesced in the blink of an eye. Mistletoe did not pay any heed to its allies as dozens of scorched flying ants dropped out of the sky. Pillar attacks were effective against one another. Rusalka often took advantage of friendly fire between pillars in order to take down enemies that would normally be beyond her lacking firepower. But none of the Valkyries was about to be grateful for what Mistletoe did. Especially since not every Valkyrie had managed to evade successfully. “Silva and Amanda are hit. We’re withdrawing!” “…All that’s left is…” “Just you and me. And Leili… This is a pretty heavy responsibility.” Two of their allies were beating a hasty retreat, trailing black smoke. While covering their retreat, their formation was finally down to just three Valkyries, and their odds were looking grimmer and grimmer. “Is it not rather reckless to continue any further?! The number of enemies—” “Why not just get rid of some of them?” “Alma?!” A hint of panic had crept into Leili’s voice when Alma cut in, looking down on the battlefield from her new, higher perch. Leili couldn’t believe her ears. The ants that had avoided Mistletoe’s attack were obnoxiously swarming again. Alma’s big, round eyes, which often looked bored or sleepy, were currently scouring the battlefield on instinct. She had dropped dozens of Grand Slams on pillars already. “I won’t miss.” The bomb she released fell straight into the heart of the swarm. They tried to scatter, but it was too late. And they had no business fighting her anyway. “We’re the reapers who will slaughter you.” And may the gods be with you. —With that final ironic prayer, her bomb went off, consuming hundreds of pillars in the ensuing explosion. It was a tactical munition that could change the flow of battle in one shot, no matter how much the enemy tried to concentrate their forces. Delivering that devastating strike was Alma Conturo’s role and the duty she fulfilled without fail. But— “Even so, there’s no end to them…!” Leili was right. Even after blowing away hundreds of pillars, the enemy hadn’t lost even half of its forces yet. As the flames faded, more black shadows piled in to fill the gap. “Mistletoe was never going to be easy.” “…Wait, are you going in, Alma?” Shannon noticed Alma was flying straight at Mistletoe’s face, or back, or whatever it was while she was using her highly maneuverable plane to mop up the tertiaries in the vicinity. “You realize there are only three of us and no ground support. And we don’t have Natalie or the major.” “If the enemy is Mistletoe, then it was always going to be that way. Rusalka and Natalie don’t have anything to do with it.” “Wellll, you’re not wrong, but…” Any non-Valkyries inside Mistletoe’s area of effect would be unconditionally turned into trees, so it was impossible to create a battlefield that would be advantageous. It would be different if they could predict its appearance and amass Valkyries in preparation for its arrival, but— “Things aren’t that simple.” They had no choice but to create a chance to finish it in whatever battle it happened to appear. Even if that meant trading altitude for speed and ramming a Grand Slam down its throat right then and there. “Even Mistletoe will—” “—Friendlies to the southwest in the forest below where you are fighting! Requesting support to cover their withdrawal!” Rising over the black wall of tertiaries, Alma hesitated for a second in her pursuit of Mistletoe. Heeding the transmission, she swung her head around, carefully scanning the terrain. She saw a handful of figures barely larger than specks running out of the forest. They were currently pulling back to friendly lines, but they were in a particularly nasty position. She was confident she could keep them from getting caught up in the explosion, but she couldn’t be sure that stray rounds from any dying pillars would not hit them. If she was going to support their retreat, it was more important to lure fire away from them than to make her attack run. But— “Mistletoe is…” If she diverted to cover their retreat, she would lose her chance to conduct a follow-up attack on Mistletoe. Thinking of all the suffering it had already caused, Alma decided it was too painful to just let it go. And also, there was something new they had learned from the combat data. To take down a pillar as large as Mistletoe, humanity had to rely on the greatest firepower at their disposal to even stand a chance. And one of the few weapons that fit the bill was Alma Conturo’s Grand Slams. Which meant she had a responsibility to defeat Mistletoe— “Alma! The friendlies are the major, Natalie, and Lisbeth!” What broke her out of her hesitation was Shannon, who had sharper eyes than she did. If that’s what she saw, then that had to be what it was. The ones running away from the pillars’ fierce attacks were none other than Rusalka and Natalie, who were currently on a top secret mission. Just that fact alone was enough to send the scale in Alma’s mind slamming down on one side. “Diverting to support the retreat.” Tilting her stick down, Alma picked up speed as she went into a dive, and then she pulled back up to level out, leaving the pillars chasing her out of position as Shannon and Leili peppered them with fire, like shooting fish in a barrel. Then Alma left the pursuit to the two of them and picked the area with the highest concentration of enemies, finding a place where the ants were swarming just a short distance away. It was far from Natalie and the others, the perfect location. “” For just a second, her attention was drawn to Mistletoe, which was still visible in the corner of her peripheral vision. She had only one more Grand Slam left. If she dropped it here, there would be no way to fight Mistletoe. But she had already made up her mind. “—The decisive moment draws near. Do not make the wrong choice, Sveið. For the sake of your beloved friend.” For some reason, she heard Odin’s warning again. She was not even sure if it had really been directed at her, but those words weighed heavily in her heart. Biting down on the dull ache, Alma exhaled. “—Releasing!” The Grand Slam hit one of the flying ants trying to escape right in the head, easily crushing it just as the world around it erupted in a fiery inferno. The brilliant burst of flames gleamed like the sunrise come to scorch away the night. It swallowed the swarm of invaders seeking to turn the fertile earth into a barren wasteland, annihilating them to keep these lands safe. And as the flames faded and the swarm of pillars turned into particles of light and faded— “—The pillars have reached their activity limits. All units, return to base.” After Alma’s firepower devastated the swarm, the pillars started disappearing from the sky after crossing a certain threshold of losses. And Mistletoe was no exception. This was the third time Sigrdrifa had allowed it to escape. “It won’t happen again.” Alma pointed to the enormous pillar as she vowed that she would have her vengeance. There was no way it could hear her declaration, but it quivered as the countless trees that made up its body started sprouting flowers. Mistletoe disappeared in a swirl of scattering leaves and petals. Alma felt incredibly unsatisfied, as if that had been a direct challenge to her. “Well done, Conturo. We’ve confirmed the friendlies’ withdrawal. Time for you to come home.” “Roger.” Alma’s expression was stiff as words of appreciation came directly from Commander Alejandro. However, that was not enough to soothe the restlessness stewing in her heart. She would have to get back to the base quickly in order to vent that bitterness. “Natalie and Rusalka are…” It should start to fade some once she could meet up with the two of them again now that their mission was over. Hearing that, Shannon whistled over the radio. “…That’s love.” “…I love you, too, Shannon.” Shannon burst into laughter at her reflexive response, trying to cover her embarrassment. 5 The sun was setting behind the mountains to the west, and the skies were growing dark behind the veil of night by the time the pillars were confirmed to be gone from the area and they had gotten back to Holm base in the car that had come to fetch them. “Ugh, my head hurts…” Shirin held her hand to her forehead and groaned. She had lost consciousness when the pillars appeared, and she had been sleeping on her sister’s back throughout the whole extraction, but when the battle was over and the pillars disappeared, she woke up, as if she had perfectly timed the whole thing. “Hmph, must be nice. You have any idea what we had to go through?” “Oh my. You might be surprised to hear it wasn’t exactly all roses for me, either.” “Huh? What could be hard about sleeping through it all?” “I have the worst dreams. Because of the pillars, I’m sure. Dreams of world destruction.” “That isn’t just stupid—it’s got literally nothing to do with anything!” Lisbeth snorted in annoyance as Shirin woke up. She had broken the ice to some extent with Claudia during the escape, but it would be an ongoing process to build relations with Shirin. Rusalka was just wondering how that would go… “Shiri, they worked very hard to protect us. And were it not for Lisbeth, I would surely have lost my life as a result of my recklessness.” “O-oh…?” “Haaah, you’re always so trusting, Sister.” But none other than her sister came to their defense. Shirin sighed as Lisbeth looked shocked. The younger sister puffed out her cheeks in annoyance. “Fine, then. Thank you very much for helping us. And the same goes for your friends who were fighting.” “Friends isn’t really the word for it…but I’m sure they will appreciate the thanks.” As the conversation petered out, the car started to slow until they came to a stop right in front of the base. Rusalka was thinking about taking the Brafford sisters directly to Alejandro to report the results of the mission. “—Natalie? Is something wrong?” Rusalka suddenly turned back to the car, looking at Natalie, who was still inside. On their return, she had been mostly quiet and leaning back in her seat, looking a little bit tired. But she roused herself at Rusalka’s question. “…Apologies… I suppose today has just worn on me a bit.” “That’s only natural, having traveled through a forest for so long without being used to it. How are you, Lisbeth?” “Of course I’m tired. Unlike a certain gorilla, who returned to her natural habi— Arghhh!” “Then let’s increase how many laps you run so you won’t be tired next time.” Grabbing Lisbeth by the head, Rusalka urged her to reflect on her response for a moment before releasing her and holding out the same hand to Natalie. Seeing that, Natalie looked a little surprised. “It’s an odd feeling, being escorted by you like this, Major.” “I’m happy to do this much anytime. Assuming you aren’t scared to take my hand after seeing what happened to Lisbeth.” “Heh-heh.” Natalie laughed softly and took Rusalka’s hand without hesitation. Rusalka’s expression softened slightly as she helped Natalie out of the car. And just as all five of them safely arrived— “—You made it back, Rusalka.” “…Commander?” It was a familiar voice, and sure enough, the handsome, dirty-blond-haired Alejandro appeared at the entrance to the base. Rusalka was taken aback to be greeted at the door by the task force commander himself. “Hey, now, what’s with that face? Is it that strange I would come out to welcome back my trusty right hand?” “…When you put it that way, I suppose not, but you just finished overseeing an entire operation, sir. It’s hard to imagine you have much time to spare with all the briefings and reports, since you are the task force commander.” “I can leave that to my top-tier subordinates. A proper division of labor is the mark of a great officer.” “A smooth talker, as per usual…” Alejandro did not hesitate to puff out his chest in pride as he brazenly made that declaration, and Rusalka made no effort to hide her exasperation as her eyes narrowed. She was almost certain he had ditched his work and left his aides with all sorts of shirked responsibilities. But even so— “It isn’t such a bad feeling to be greeted at the door.” “You’ve gotten a lot more comfortable with the witty repartee… Good work on the mission.” “—? Yes, sir. It was all thanks to the help of my subordinates.” She looked askance at him when his voice stiffened slightly. But Alejandro looked to Natalie and Lisbeth, who were standing at attention behind her. “Well done carrying out a mission that came straight from God, you two. It’s like a story straight out of legend.” “I must agree with the major—hearing that does not feel so bad.” “It was just running some errands, though.” Natalie added her two cents and smiled as Lisbeth offered a cheeky reply. Alejandro smiled wryly at the two extremes before turning his attention to the pair they had brought home with them. Claudia was standing straight up, and Shirin was half hiding behind her sister. “You have my thanks for taking the trouble to come all the way out here. I am the commander of Holm base, Lieutenant Colonel Alejandro Ostley of the International Peacekeeping Organization…” Fully identifying himself, he was in the process of according the two girls every courtesy he could, but partway through, he trailed off. “Sir?” Alejandro had caught his breath, and his eyes were wide in surprise. Rusalka was shocked. This was her first time seeing such an extreme reaction coming from him, but she quickly realized the reason. It made perfect sense. She had had the exact same reaction herself, after all. “…Well, this is a nasty twist…” He murmured it to himself, so only Rusalka, who was right beside him, had been able to hear it. Alejandro had known Amy. The Miracle at Lamia, his greatest accomplishment, had been possible only with her help. But he hid the shock that had rocked him with a single blink of the eye. “I guarantee your safety while you’re under our care. I hope none of my subordinates were rude in the process of bringing you here.” “No, their hospitality was faultless. My sister and I are quite in their debt…,” Claudia responded as Alejandro feigned calm. “Ah.” Claudia adjusted herself elegantly. “I haven’t introduced myself. I am Claudia Brafford, and behind me is my twin sister, Shirin Brafford. We are grateful for all that you did for us today.” “So polite. Still…” Alejandro nodded deeply as he looked at the girl behind her. Shirin was glancing at Alejandro with a cold stare. “Eep.” She pulled her head back when her eyes met his. “I guess she doesn’t like me.” “Apologies, my sister takes time to get used to people. In particular, she has little experience interacting with men.” “S-Sister! Don’t go saying stuff like that! And I bathed with Father without any problems!” “I’m pretty sure that was more than five years ago at this point…” Shirin was blushing as Claudia cocked her head. For Rusalka, who had experienced Shirin’s courage down in the underground bunker, seeing her reaction now was utterly unexpected. Perhaps she had just been putting up a brave front to stave off their approaches. “Sir, I’m sure they must be tired. Perhaps we should change locations?” Rusalka suggested. “Yes, of course. A great escape out of an underground bunker, only to make a forced march beneath a major shoot-out in the sky. I’m sure you must be fairly tired, t— Actually, you seem a little too sprightly.” “I’m well trained.” Rusalka had said many times before that being a soldier was a battle of endurance, and she stood by that. Claudia, with her nigh-infinite stamina, and Shirin, who had been sleeping the whole time her sister carried her, were complete outliers. The only ones worn out were Natalie and Lisbeth. Of course, both of them were not happy to be in the minority in that regard. As they were all talking— “—Rusalka, Natalie.” —Alma called out to them as she and Shannon appeared, waving as they came from the direction of the hangar. They had seemingly finished giving their after-action reports, and Rusalka was relieved that they had held down the fort without too much trouble while she was gone. “Well now, the whole gang’s here.” “Yes, sir. But it is fortunate that everyone made it back without issue.” Rusalka put her hand to her chest in relief. Alejandro nodded as well. “—Without issue? Are you sure about that?” “Shiri…?” As everyone else was sharing sighs of relief, the Braffords, or more specifically Shirin, raised some doubts. When Claudia called Shirin’s name and everyone turned their attention to her, she waved her hand and said, “Ah, ummm, maybe I said something I shouldn’t have?” “What do you mean…?” Shirin looked uneasy at Rusalka’s question. She quickly remembered Shirin’s special ability—the mind reading one, not the pillar prediction one. “What did you hear?” Rusalka wasn’t about to let this go without comment. “Hear is… Look, keeping these sorts of secrets just leads to both parties being hurt, so you should probably stop it.” Shirin’s voice weakened as she glanced over at the red-haired girl—Natalie Chase. “” Natalie was silent. But her lips were pursed. “Natalie?” “…I really can’t hide it any longer, can I?” Natalie looked almost resigned as she murmured that in response to Rusalka. She turned to the rest of her comrades, who all had confused looks on their faces. “Mistletoe’s transformation process has begun—there’s no saving me anymore.”