Chapter 38: Anti-Air Engagement

"Hey, hey, Mutsuki? Do you think… maybe we took the wrong road?"

The beautiful abandoned city, which had still been wrapped in snow just yesterday, had been transformed into a pitiful wreck—as though it had been scoured by violent gusts of wind, or something far worse. The clock tower-like structure that once stood so prominently now looked as if it had collided with something head-on, snapped cleanly in half.

Suspicious of the sight before them, Aru and the others arrived at what was supposed to be their destination—the place where the "flying battleship" should have been docked.

However, what awaited them there was—

"There's nothing here!?!?"

—No. There truly was nothing at all.

If one were feeling generous, there was only a snowfield gleaming obnoxiously under the sunlight, an unnatural depression in the ground that seemed to scream that something had once been buried there, and a mound of churned-up earth beside it.

That was all.

And yet, those scant clues were more than enough to force an unpleasant reality upon her—one she desperately did not want to acknowledge.

"Looks like they left without us~"

"W-What did you say!?!?"

The truth struck with merciless force.

She screamed, her eyes rolling back. By now, it was practically a signature performance to both observers and comrades alike—but this time, she herself was completely serious. She was genuinely distressed. Poor thing.

"...The moment we found that none of the dormant PMC soldiers were left in the airship wreckage, I had a feeling this might happen."

"Then you should’ve said something sooner!?"

"No matter when I said it, the outcome would’ve been the same."

"S-Sorry, Aru-sama! It’s because I’m too slow… I’ll atone for it right now!!"

"Hey, Haruka, don’t waste ammo!"

With no stopper in place, the situation rapidly descended into chaos. Even if Aru and Mutsuki both possessed common sense, it wasn’t enough to rein things in. One of them actively enjoyed pushing matters further, and the other was already caught up in the confusion.

Now then—speaking of the extremely sensible stopper who usually reined them in, Kayoko had run off moments earlier, claiming she’d seen something moving—

"...Boss, sorry. I found something lying around."

"Mm—! Mmm!!"

"Why is the Director of Public Security thrown away like trash!?!?"

She had returned carrying yet another catalyst for chaos.

What she dragged along was Kanna—wrapped tightly in layers of rope like a rolled mat, a gag stuffed into her mouth. The tall, blonde, dog-eared beauty was utterly ruined by her current state. Unable to move freely, she thrashed about, flopping like a fish stranded on dry land.

"S-Should we untie her first?"

"Gh—gasp! Sorry… thank you. You saved me."

"S-So? What exactly happened here?"

"...I’m sorry. This is all my fault."

Kanna, the Director of Public Security, bowed her head deeply before the president of Problem Solver 68—Rikuhachima Aru—despite them technically being criminals. She then explained what had transpired.

First, Komori and the others had succeeded in securing control of the ship. Then, blinded by greed, the PMC led by the former directors had turned their guns on them and taken them into custody. After that, Kanna herself had been thrown off the ship. As for Sensei and Amari Komori, they were likely taken away while still restrained.

"I failed to see through their scheme. I should have protected the two of them, who couldn’t fight…! This responsibility lies with me."

"H-Hey, lift your head? It was a sudden ambush, so it can’t really be—"

"That’s not something we can forgive."

"Mutsuki?"

Mutsuki cut off Aru’s flustered attempt at consolation. Her tone sounded the same as ever—but the anger bleeding through her voice was impossible to hide.

"They fed us false intel, escaped on their own, and on top of that… they took Komori-chan, one of our precious friends? They even kidnapped our very precious Sensei. Do they really think they can just get away safely?"

Her expression never changed, her smile perfectly intact. Somehow, that only made it more terrifying.

"At this point, there’s only one option—kill them all!!"

"...Yeah. That definitely crosses the line."

"Y-Yes! Anyone who picks a fight with Aru-sama will be shot dead…!"

Starting with Mutsuki, the others followed suit, baring their rage one after another. Aru looked around at them, momentarily taken aback—and then—

"That’s right! Let’s teach them what it means to pick a fight with Problem Solver 68!"

In the end, she chose that side too.

That said, she’d only been briefly shaken by the suddenness of it all. She wasn’t kind enough to stay silent after having her precious employee and business advisor taken away. It was only a matter of time before things turned out like this.

With a declaration of war against the former directors, Aru and the others boldly stepped forward—only to realize a crucial problem.

"But how are we supposed to catch up to them!?!?"

They had no means of transportation.

Unless they got close enough to shoot or punch, retaliation was impossible. Worse still, with the flying battleship stolen, they might not even be able to return to Kivotos.

So what now? Was this the end? Would they simply wait here and freeze to death—?

It was precisely at that moment.

"Ku-ku-ku… better safe than sorry. I anticipated the possibility of things turning out like this and prepared accordingly."

"What did you say, Black Suit!?"

The villainous-looking Black Suit pointed toward a small rocky outcrop jutting out a short distance from where the ship had been docked.

"In fact, before departure, I discovered something like this…"

Led around to the other side, what they saw was—

"...Is that… actually an airplane?"

It came out as a question, not a statement.

The reason for that was simple: its appearance.

Armor riddled with bullet holes. Walls torn apart by what looked like an explosion. Glass shattered beyond recognition, and a machine-gun barrel bent completely out of shape.

It was unmistakably the wreckage of a small transport aircraft.

"And there’s even the remains of some weird octopus-looking robot inside… does this thing even move?"

"It will be fine. I can guarantee the engine will run. After all, this is a relic of the Nameless Priest… though—"

"Though?"

"I cannot guarantee that it will fly."

"That makes it useless!"

Looking up, they could see a massive hole punched clean through one of the wings.

"That said, it’s also true that we have no other way to catch up. Does anyone here know how to fly an aircraft?"

"You can’t fly it yourself!?"

"I probably can’t~ I’d like to try, though~"

"...I can handle cars…"

"I’ve never done it, but if it’s for you, Aru-sama…!"

"Um… I might be able to do it."

One person timidly raised her hand after surveying the utterly hopeless state of the group. In an instant, everyone’s gaze locked onto her.

"Pilot secured. I’ll be counting on you, Kanna-san."

"W-Wait, you’re seriously planning to fly this thing?"

"Alright! Everyone, hurry up and fix it—we’re catching up to those bastards!"

"Seriously!?"

And so, they ended up flying an airplane that was barely more than scrap metal.

────────

…That’s how it ended up, but—

"Hey, hey!? Right—right—RIGHT!!"

"No, no! Not right either!"

"T-The wings are creaking!"

"Daaah!! You’re all too loud! Could you please shut up for a second!?"

What rained down on them wasn’t something as small as bullets, but massive naval artillery fire. Their assault rifles stood no chance of penetrating the flying battleship’s heavy armor, and the aircraft’s mounted machine cannon was useless—the barrel was far too warped to fire.

Carrying six lives aboard, their aircraft finally managed to reach the flying battleship carrying the former directors.

Naturally, upon spotting such a suspicious object approaching, interception was the only reasonable response. The girls were engulfed in a storm of incoming fire.

"...This is bad. Not just the wings—the engine can’t handle the unexpected load. It’s going to explode."

"You said it would work!?"

"I said it would run. I never said it would endure."

"You’re useless!!!!"

Thanks to Kanna’s exceptional piloting, they somehow remained airborne—but they’d already taken one hit to the passenger compartment and another to the tail wing. Two direct hits in total. For an aircraft that had been left exposed to the elements, practically a derelict even before Aru and the others patched it up, the strain was far too much.

At last, that strain began to manifest visibly.

"W–What!? I heard something crack just now!?"

"...This is bad. The tail stabilizer’s gone."

And misfortune struck again, one blow after another.

"This is bad! Everyone, get down! We’re about to take a hit!"

Because they could only perform evasive maneuvers that accounted for the aircraft’s damage, there were attacks they simply couldn’t avoid—no matter what they did. And at last, one of those hits struck a place that absolutely should not have been hit.

"...Left engine down! We can’t keep flying like this!"

"W-What did you say!?!?"

The left engine didn’t merely stop functioning—its very existence was erased. Wing and all, it was blown clean off by naval gunfire. With the aircraft thrown completely off balance, continued flight was impossible. At this point, being shot down was only a matter of time.

"What do we do, Rikuhachima Aru!?"

"Huh!? W-Why me!?"

"Because you’re the one leading us right now! Isn’t that right, Black Suit!?"

"Indeed! You’re the only one who can get us through this situation! Even that cleaner said so—that no matter what happens, you always find a way!"

"Do your best, Aru-chan! Our lives—and Sensei and Komori-chan’s fate—are riding on you!"

"P-Please… Boss! Do your best…!"

"It’ll be fine, Aru-sama! I’m sure it’ll work out!!"

—That’s way too much pressure!!!

She wanted to scream it out loud, but swallowed the urge instead, gripping the cockpit frame as she stood.

I’m the boss. The leader who guides everyone.

If I want to be a true outlaw, I can’t shy away from a trial like this.

To live up to their expectations, she made her decision.

"Ram the ship!!"

"Are you serious!? In the middle of this barrage!?"

"Yes! I’m serious! Believe me! This is the only way to break through this situation!"

"...Tch! If we die from this, I’m haunting you!"

Kanna wrenched the controls hard to the left, pushing the remaining right engine to its absolute limit until it spat flames. The aircraft plunged through the incoming rain of shells, enduring several direct hits—and then—

"Ramming impact!!!"

They slammed straight into the rear of the flying battleship, stabbing deep into the area around its engines and bridge.

"So, yeah! That’s what happened!"

"O–Ooooh!!!"

Aru-sama puffed out her chest proudly. I gazed at her with sparkling eyes.

Ahh, as expected of Aru-sama. Normally a complete mess, but when it really counts, she delivers like a true genius. A born-and-bred outlaw! Everything she does is flashy—and every single move leads straight to solving the problem!

"As expected… Aru-sama…!"

"Hehehe… well? It’s not that big a deal, really!"

"...Though I was pretty shocked when the robot you accidentally activated after tripping in the hallway turned out to be Goliath…"

"...I take back what I just said."

"Why!?!?"

So it was you who woke that thing up!!!

Inside the Flying Battleship — Somewhere Within

"...Hah… huff… Are you okay, Imo? Don’t pull that out. You’ll start bleeding."

"...Yes. Somehow."

In the dimly lit corridor, a girl whose body was covered in bruises asked the question. The girl with a knife embedded in her shoulder replied while staring vacantly into the distance.

"...Are you sure you’re alright?"

"I’m fine. …Coming from someone who got beaten even worse than I did, that doesn’t carry much weight."

"...Don’t push yourself. I knew about your relationship with her. Even knowing that, it was still my call to follow the former directors."

"..."

"I’m sor—"

"Homura."

The girl cut her off mid-sentence. Her expression wasn’t sadness, nor anger—strangely enough, it was bright.

"I think… I finally understand, at least a little, why I can’t catch up to her."

"...What do you mean?"

"Yes… She’s a true, born-and-bred ‘Cleaner.’ It wasn’t her environment that made her that way—she was like that from the moment she was born. Did you see it? Her face."

"Her face?"

"Yes! Completely expressionless! Unlike me, she felt no joy born from jealousy, no guilt over destroying relationships she had built—nothing at all. Absolute emptiness! Ahh, it was truly magnificent…! Just like an ordinary, unremarkable part of daily life—waking up in the morning and eating breakfast, nothing more than that! That is the true outlaw we aimed to become!!! How fortunate… to be able to witness it from so close…!"

"……"

"...But as a ‘friend,’ I didn’t want to make her wear a face like that."

"...! Imo, you—"

"Hehe. I guess you could say I have two hearts~, maybe? …I know. The fact that I can still harbor such sweet thoughts proves that I could never become that."

The girl laughed self-mockingly. The other girl looked at her in surprise—and then—

"—! Homura!"

"Huh?"

Imo shoved Homura away.

As she stumbled from the force, Homura saw it—an old, battered robot standing behind Imo, its hand gripping a black, gleaming firearm.

And in the very next moment, she watched her partner’s body being riddled with bullets.