After General Berkeley's defeat, the troops of the sacred kingdom began to waver.
"The general was defeated… by a fake human?"
"It's a lie! That wasn't the general! He is the strongest beast-man in the country!"
"But he just exploded! His armed unit just exploded right now!"
Like a virus, the news began to spread rapidly.
The soldiers' morale plummeted like the temperature in winter.
Because of this, it was easy for Bram's group to join the fray.
"Damn it, they won't surrender."
Even though morale was low, their attacking power didn't diminish. In fact, it increased because of that name.
"Even if General Berkeley was defeated, it means nothing. We still have His Majesty the Sacred King with us."
"Let's finish off these bastards to take the country and kill the Demon King!"
"A new humanity will be born with us at its center!"
As the demi-human soldiers shouted their motivations, they grew stronger.
Bram was fighting with all his might against an enemy who was also a general.
"I am the third strongest in this fleet, General Schtrom! Try to kill me too, fake human!"
The general struck several armors and went after Bram because of his black armor.
"So you came for me, Demon King. Fine, I'll take you to hell myself."
Bram used a rifle to counter the enemy general's sword attack.
But he was so fast Bram could barely do anything.
He watched as the ship was getting farther and farther away.
If it rose into the clouds, they would lose them forever.
Bram bit his tongue, ignored the enemy general, and went after the ship.
"Don't underestimate me!"
Said the general as he swung his sword, cutting the front of the cockpit.
A huge mark in a straight line was left on the armor.
The sword was centimeters from touching his face but only cut a lock of his hair.
Even so, Bram pressed on.
"Adaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!"
He shouted with all his might and flew to the ship.
Cold air entered through the hole made, but he didn't care.
Even so, the enemy general wouldn't leave him alone.
"Where are you going, Demon King? Come here so I can kill you with my own hands."
Bram was close, but the enemy behind him wouldn't let him escape.
Then he received a message on the panel; it was the artificial intelligence implemented there.
"It seems the user needs help, is that not so?"
Bram was no longer surprised that inanimate things could talk at this point.
"That's right, I need to get there."
"But you also have the enemy behind you. What do you wish to do?"
"Get him off my back."
A brief pause occurred, and after a few seconds, the AI responded.
"Understood. I will proceed to help the user complete both tasks. It seems vital for him to reach the ship. Preparing boost."
"Boost?"
Immediately after, the armor's rockets accelerated, using a lot of fuel, but in less than 30 seconds, it reached the ship's deck.
It opened its cockpit and dumped Bram onto the floor like trash, along with a rifle.
Before closing the cockpit, it said to him, "I was ordered to protect you, but you have a task more important than your preservation. Therefore, I will proceed to eliminate the threats to assist you as quickly as possible."
The armor flew off in the direction of the enemy.
"There you are, fight me!"
"Denied. The user has priority; therefore, I will proceed to eliminate obstacles quickly."
"Die!"
The general shouted as he threw his sword at the black armor, but it shattered the sword and then split the enemy armed unit in two.
It grabbed the remains of the enemy general with one hand.
"Analyzing… no signs of life."
"Proceeding to eliminate remaining obstacles to assist the user."
The armor grabbed two machine guns from its back and went to eliminate a ship that was firing at them.
It aimed its rifle and began to fire. The flying whale was resistant to magical and physical damage. But the ammunition it used was meant to penetrate mountains, so not even its body could withstand it.
In a matter of seconds, it was turned to ash, and the ship it was holding crashed into the ocean with a heavy impact.
Bram watched everything from the deck.
"It's terrifying. Good thing those things are on Rudel's side."
Fear and surprise felt the same to him. Bram took his rifle and went to inspect the place.
He started carefully, checking through the windows to see if anyone was inside.
But there was no one.
Little by little, he went deeper and still saw no signs of life.
"Impossible, no one's here? Can the ship not be piloted alone, or can it?"
Bram thought they might also have the same misguided goal as Rudel, to make ships fly without sailors.
But then he heard some voices.
"Hurry up, they need help."
"But we can't leave the ship alone."
"The ship will be fine; as long as no one moves the helm, it will take us to the clouds to escape."
"Besides, I left a group guarding the hostages."
Those words were all Bram needed.
He froze, not moving a muscle, not even breathing, to go slowly and quietly away from where those men were coming from.
He continued to the hangar, where there were hardly any unoccupied armed units.
He hurried to the other end and found them there.
"Bingo."
He murmured softly upon seeing four men with rifles and a group of women inside.
Bram peeked his head out a little to analyze the situation.
"They're at the four corners, armed, and they look strong."
"I need to wait and see if there's another member around."
Bram waited a while to see if a fifth member would arrive, but nothing happened.
He was devising his plan when one of them spoke.
"I'm sick of this."
"What's wrong?"
"Didn't you hear? General Berkeley and Schtrom are dead."
"This war is lost."
"We still have His Majesty!"
"His Majesty is facing the Demon King! And it's not just one, but two, and there are even those weird-colored armors. We can't win anymore."
"That's why, before they kill me, I'll leave my mark on one of these women."
The other men thought the same; they didn't doubt their king, but victory now seemed distant.
"Hey, what about that one over there?"
"That one? Yeah, true."
"She has huge tits and a massive ass. She's definitely the best of them all."
One of the men grabbed a girl.
"No, please let me go!"
It was Ada who was shouting.
Hearing her scream, Bram didn't hesitate to act. He stood up, breaking the glass of the place.
His mind wandered for a moment to his childhood.
He was about eight years old back then.
The older sons and their father were in the forest.
"Not like that, Bram. You need to hold the rifle higher."
"Place your leg correctly, like this."
"Now place the stock on your shoulder of your dominant arm."
"Good, focus your gaze on the reticle."
"Take a breath… and fire."
*Bang*
The sound of a gunshot echoed in the place.
In the center of a tree, multiple shooting targets were placed.
"You didn't hit any. Try again."
"Don't worry, you'll do it one day."
Little Bram was sad.
His older brother took the rifle and fired.
"Six out of eight, not bad, Lyle."
Lyle felt proud of his aim.
"Hehe, it's natural. I'm the oldest here, so I must be the best."
"Lyle, don't boast about something so common."
Walt knelt and placed his hands on his sons' shoulders.
"Listen, you two. What you're learning now is something you'll use in the future. Remember, pirates could invade us, and you must protect the territory and your mom, and Rudel."
"Yes!"
"Yes."
Each replied with a different tone.
Someone approached; it was little Ada, bringing a basket of food.
"Mister Dad, Mrs. Mom sent me to bring you these snacks."
"Thank you, Ada-chan. You're a good girl."
"Alright, you two, ten-minute break."
"I can still keep going, you know?"
His father and Lyle went to sit and eat; Bram, on the other hand, tried to aim at the targets to shoot and missed again.
"Bram-sama, what are you doing?"
Ada asked him. Bram blushed at having her so close.
"Practicing. Dad says it's important for us, but I'm really bad. And it's better for everyone if Lyle aniki protects us."
"Really? And if Lyle-sama isn't here, who would defend me?"
Bram realized what Ada had said. The sun was beginning to set.
"If Lyle-sama is the heir and must protect us, then Bram-sama is the second-in-command to do so."
"Therefore, Bram-sama must become stronger to protect us, right?"
"That's what my daddy used to tell Allen-kun, being the man of the house."
(I just have to be stronger than Lyle.)
Bram grew up with that thought, and right now, he was proving it.
He shot at the four beast-men with incredible speed, but since it was his first time doing so, he missed one of the shots, hitting the shoulder of the one holding Ada.
"Damn it!"
Bram said upon seeing he'd missed. Since his rifle only had four cartridges, he needed to reload.
But as he averted his gaze, the man with bear ears lunged at him, breaking the rifle with his arm.
"Damn fake human! You won't get away with this."
Bram and the beast-man fell to the ground, hitting their backs hard.
But due to his physical strength, it didn't hurt the beast-man. The opposite was true for Bram, who received the impact of the metal floor.
The beast-man ran towards him and delivered a strong kick to his face.
"Damn you! How dare you kill my friends!"
The beast-man proceeded to kick Bram savagely in the stomach.
He vomited blood and was then sent flying two meters forward.
"Is that all you have? You act all tough and then curl up like a child asking your mommy to save you?"
"Damn coward. I'll cut your balls off myself and violate you like all these women."
Bram began to rise slowly. Blood was gushing from his face and gums.
"A long time ago, a girl told me that if my older brother wasn't there to protect us, I should do it in his place."
"Huh? And what's that to me?"
"Those words aren't for you, filthy animal."
His eyes became bloodshot.
"I see, it's true what you say. Killing you with my claws won't be worth it; I'll use this instead."
He drew a knife stored in his leg.
(If Lyle can't protect us, I will.)
Bram shouted from the bottom of his heart, with a force his vocal cords and lungs had never before mustered.
"Look at me, Ada! Right now, I'll prove to you that I'm a man capable of protecting you no matter what!"
"It doesn't matter if my family opposes it! I love you and I'll make you my wife no matter what!"
"Uwooooooh!!!"
Bram ran straight at the smiling beast-man.
"Idiot, you want to die that much? I'll grant your wish."
"Die!!"
With a sadistic and perverse expression, the beast-man stabbed at Bram, but what he didn't expect was that Bram would use the palm of his hand as a shield.
"How? Your hand?"
Bram used his already injured hand, leaving it useless for combat.
"Don't underestimate Bram of the Bradford family!!!"
He grabbed the man's fist and then jumped onto his knee. In his right fist, a great amount of magical power was concentrated.
It was a ball of fire burning in his hand.
Bram drove his fist into the man's mouth, shattering his teeth.
"Die!!!"
He shouted while opening his fingers, and the fireball shot into the interior of the beast-man.
Smoke began to pour from his ears, and his eyes turned black.
Bram stepped back, and after withdrawing his hand, the beast-man fell to the floor.
He still had the knife stuck in his hand.
It hurt a lot, but he didn't care.
He climbed the stairs and entered the office where they were holding the girls.
There he saw Ada, who was wearing a trench coat.
She saw him bleeding. Slowly, she began taking steps toward him.
Seeing her, Bram smiled with blood-stained teeth.
"If Lyle isn't here, I will protect you."
Ada ran to him to hug him, letting go of her trench coat.
Since his hands were useless from the injury, he couldn't hug her back.
"Fool! You're such a huge fool!"
"Why did you hurt yourself so much to rescue us?"
She said to him, crying. But feeling her body embracing him, he could only smile.
"Because I couldn't let anything happen to the woman I love."
"I won't doubt anymore. I won't fear what my parents say either."
"Ada."
Bram looked at her intently and tried to wipe her tears with his burned hand.
"I love you. I always have, I always will."
"All I can offer you is my companionship if I don't inherit the territory, but I don't care if that happens."
"I'll strive to make you happy, no matter the cost. Because you're the only woman for me."
Upon hearing those words, Ada began to cry again.
"How cruel you are. I told you we should forget this and let it just be a nice memory."
"But after what happened today, I don't think I can keep it locked in my heart any longer."
She wiped her tears and smiled at him after cleaning the blood from his mouth.
"Bram-sama. I love you too. Nothing would make me happier in this world than to be your wife."
After hearing that declaration, they both leaned in and shared a loving kiss.
The maids watching this applauded the spectacle, but one of them said.
"Excuse me, miss. What you said was beautiful, but you should do something about your appearance first."
Both Bram and Ada only then realized the situation.
Ada was wearing a cow-print bikini. She also had a tail, ears, and horns.
Ada's voluptuous body was so seductive that Bram's gaze couldn't help but fixate on her entire form—from her full thighs, to her slender, exposed midriff, to her generous breasts barely contained by the scant fabric.
Ada was so embarrassed that she screamed in shame.
"Noooooooooo! Pervert! It's wrong to look at me like that before marriage!"
She slapped him hard, and the maids rushed to help Bram, who fell injured to the floor.
But the other allied armed units boarded and saw the situation.
Bram had successfully completed his mission.
All that remained was to rescue Elaine, but it wouldn't be easy for Lyle.
◇◇◇
The battle was at its most critical point.
The sacred kingdom had just lost two of its generals, and the allied ships were bravely fighting the enemies.
The battle was intense, especially because most eyes were focused on two figures at its center.
"Why can't I hit him?"
Lyle pulled out a huge machine gun and pulled the trigger.
Any enemy would tremble in fear at such firepower, but the Sacred King Findor was toying with him.
"What's wrong, human? Can't hit me? Am I too slow for you, or is your aim just bad?"
Findor was mocking Lyle because he was soaring through the sky like a bird, dodging bullets flying faster than flies.
No matter where Lyle aimed the hail of bullets, Findor would dodge them like a fish in water.
"Damn it!"
For the second time, the machine gun's ammunition ran out. When he went to grab a third magazine, he realized there was none left.
"It's out? What do we do now?"
Lyle asked Bell, frightened.
"Hmm, he's certainly very fast. So fast I can barely track him. You can't catch him."
"It can't be!"
Lyle said, almost wanting to cry, but Bell immediately calmed him.
"Only if you didn't have me here. Even if he's too fast, he has a movement pattern like a carp."
"He always flies to the same place without changing direction."
"That means even for him, he's going too fast and can't turn sharply due to the high speed."
"Good, I finally understand."
Bell addressed Lyle, who was still scared.
"Listen well, onii-san. That guy uses technology on my level, but it's not a big deal. However, since I used scrap parts for you guys, that's why you can't defeat him easily."
"The important thing is this: I've discovered how to win."
"Really?!"
Lyle was happy to hear it, but Bell wiped the smile off his face with her next words.
"To achieve victory, I need to disconnect for a moment and hack him."
"So I'll leave you alone for a few moments."
"Leave me alone!? Right now, when I need you most?!"
"I understand you're upset, but please don't yell at me."
"Sorry."
"Alright. It will only take three minutes. You must hold out until then."
"Victory is guaranteed; you just need to hold on a little longer."
It wasn't that Lyle didn't trust Bell, but hearing he'd have to face the elven king alone gave him a stomachache similar to his father's.
"Can I trust those three minutes?"
He asked, clutching his stomach.
Bell replied without lying. "Yes. We will win after three minutes."
Lyle grabbed the controls and said, "Then go quickly."
Before disconnecting, Bell murmured.
"That face is undoubtedly the one Master makes when he knows he'll win. The body may be different, but the blood is always the same."
"See you soon."
Bell said goodbye, and the green LED of her eye went out.
Lyle was alone.
"Now, let's survive three minutes."
"I'm tired of playing with you. I'll finish this right away."
"Oh, come on! You say that now?"
Findor grew bored of analyzing Ixion's second-hand Battler and went straight to fight.
He drew two swords and lunged at him.
Lyle also drew two swords and used them as a shield to repel the attack.
"Are you really the Demon King? You don't seem like much."
"I heard you fought the Bloody Knight and the Supreme Kingdom. I was expecting an epic battle where I could feel my heart pounding, but…"
"What do I get?!"
Findor began to get angry. He swung his swords rapidly, managing to destroy the ones Lyle had.
Lyle escaped to pull out a shield now, and Findor didn't hesitate to attack.
"A coward who doesn't know how to fight!"
"You're a fraud, a liar."
"You're weak, a weakling."
"Someone like you can't make a name in history with such simplistic skill!"
Now he drew two more swords and attacked Lyle mercilessly.
"Not even a minute has passed yet."
Lyle said as the shield was disintegrating. He threw it, and it was cut into tiny pieces.
"Is this the epic battle I longed for with the man who shook the world?"
"Is this pusillanimous coward the man who made the Ten Powers tremble?"
"It disgusts me to believe that trash like you actually earned the nickname 'Demon King'!"
"Undoubtedly, cowards like you can only achieve success by taking advantage of others. Someone else had to defeat them, and you stole their honor."
"Shut up!"
Lyle shouted with all his might.
"To Rudel… to my little brother, stop mocking him!"
"Little brother?" said Findor, disturbed. "Why do you mention your little brother?"
"The man you're talking about. The one who did all those things was him. My little brother, Rudel."
Findor finally understood.
He brought his hands to his face in shame.
"Your little brother… that means you're the older one…"
"Are you saying that trash sent his older brother to fight me so he could board the ship!?"
Rage consumed him; his nails dug into his face.
"This is the greatest shame I've ever felt in my life! I was fighting trash who took his little brother's place!"
"If anyone else finds out I couldn't kill a worm like you, I'll be a laughingstock for generations."
His eyes were bloodshot.
"Damn you, older brother of the Demon King, for making me feel shame!"
"I'll kill you in the most painful way possible! Then I'll go kill your little brother and cleanse my shame!"
"I won't let you kill me or do anything to Rudel. As his older brother, it's my duty to protect him."
Lyle looked at the watch on his arm.
(It's barely been a minute. I have to hold out for two more minutes no matter what.)
"Rudel is superior to you; everything you say is something he did alone and unaided."
"I'm sure if he faced you, he could defeat you in less than a minute."
"After all, he defeated a huge monster all by himself without anyone's help."
"You think a good-for-nothing like you would be a problem for him?"
Findor fell silent.
"You… you're trying to buy time, aren't you?"
Lyle was found out immediately; his breathing stopped. He couldn't believe he'd been discovered.
(Does he know about the plan with the magical servant?)
(No, no one but us knows of its existence.)
"You're trying to have your brother finish freeing the hostages and come save you, aren't you?"
Lyle was glad he misinterpreted everything, but he didn't imagine what would come next.
"You're truly pathetic."
Findor began to attack him.
"Relying on your little brother to save your skin. I'm also an older brother, and I know better than anyone the weight of our family that rests on our shoulders."
"My little brother was just like me but better at everything he did."
"So I killed him while he slept."
"You killed him…?"
Lyle was horrified to hear that.
"That's right. My little brother was superior to me; I, as the older one, couldn't allow it. So I ended his life."
"I must thank him. Without his death, I never would have made my decision to seize the throne by force."
"All thanks to my little brother. So I ask you, boy."
"What does it feel like to be the shadow of a man who shook the world? What does it feel like to know your own flesh and blood is someone superior to you, and you are nothing?"
"What do you think when you see him succeed in life and you remain in the same pit you were born in? Do you feel bad? Do you feel life is unfair?"
Findor smiled demonically from inside his armor; he enjoyed torturing Lyle.
(I can tell from your words. You're a coward who never took a life, never thought of killing your little brother and stealing his glory.)
(Sentimental fools like you are the best trophies; scum like you remind me my decisions were always the best.)
"Answer me. What do you feel being the trash of your family? You'll always live in his shadow and…"
(Here comes the final blow.)
"Your children will be ashamed of you; they'll see your uncle as an admirable man, they'll wish they were his sons. Your wife included, your whole family will feel ashamed of a nobody like you being their husband and father."
"Aren't you ashamed knowing your existence will always be that of a microbe next to his?!"
Lyle looked intently at his watch; it was a gift from Rudel from the republic a few months ago.
He smiled from cheek to cheek and responded.
"I know better than anyone."
"…What did you say?"
His answer bewildered Findor, who expected crying and denial.
"Rudel is incredible; he'll do great things in the future."
"As his older brother, and as a man, I feel I've lost to him, but…"
A memory from long ago came to him.
"Give it back, Lyle."
He and Bram were bothering Rudel, throwing his toy to each other.
"I won't give it to you," Lyle replied, sticking out his tongue.
Rudel wanted to cry.
"You're a stupid older brother! I hate you so much!"
"Idiot, I'm your older brother; I'll always be better than you."
Lyle laughed remembering those moments.
"That annoying little brother became an incredible man. Naturally, you'd be afraid of him; everything you say is true."
"I was jealous of Rudel; he's the best thing that happened to the family, unlike us, his older brothers. But you know something…"
(I don't want to keep killing people, I don't want to kill people anymore.)
Rudel's tear-stained face suddenly appeared. Which made Lyle grip the controls firmly, and anger welled up within him.
"My little brother is an incredible human. He has helped many people and kicked the asses of many idiots like you."
"He's resting now, and his older brother needs to help him clean up the trash."
Lyle pushed the controls to the limit and went straight at him.
"You're an insignificant worm to Rudel. We'll lighten his load so he can sleep in peace."
"An older brother exists to protect the crying little brother. Rudel is a crybaby who needs his older brothers."
"So don't talk shit about him when you don't even know him. You disgusting, pedantic long-eared freak!"
Lyle saw Findor's image, visible through the cockpit; he could see the shame he was suffering.
"Disgusting long-eared… I'm a disgusting long-eared…"
His face grew even redder from the accumulated rage.
"A damn piece of trash like you dares to call me disgusting! I'll kill you! I'll kill you a hundred times until you're ground meat!"
"Let's see if you can do it, you idiot long-ears!!"
"Fake human!!"
Lyle and Findor clashed weapons.
What had been a shooting duel turned into a brawl of enraged men.
Findor drew his six swords, and Lyle drew two huge vibrating axes from his back.
The two, with no type of defense, proceeded to pummel each other.
"Die! Die, you damn trash!"
"I'll be the one to finish you first, big-ears!"
Lyle hammered Findor's armor at great speed and with a force that shattered one of its arms.
But Findor moved at near-hypersonic speed, managing to inflict multiple wounds, including slicing off part of Battler's left arm.
Lyle looked at his watch; there was little time left.
"Less than 30 seconds left; I can hold out."
Lyle said, confident that Bell would save him.
"General Algren!!! Destroy the hostage ship!!"
But Findor erased his smile by shouting at his subordinate.
The enormous whale that served as the flagship began to move.
Aiming its cannons at the ship that had stopped.
There were Bram and the hostages climbing to the deck to be rescued.
"I won't let you get away with this! A king must win!"
"A king cannot lose to inferior beings like you!"
"Stop!"
Lyle shouted as he pushed Findor aside to try and stop the whale.
"You're vulnerable!"
Findor shouted and injected magical power into his swords. A blue light infused them, and Findor shouted his most powerful attack.
"Devastating Blow of Shooting Stars!"
Although it was a very long and exaggerated name, he wasn't joking about it being devastating.
Lyle was hit by a wave of magical power in the shape of a crescent moon that impacted his chest.
At that moment, Elaine was crossing a hallway after escaping the room.
"Outside is chaos. I need to find a way to hide so they don't use me as a hostage."
After crossing a hallway, the wall beside her broke, and a huge black metallic object crashed into the wall.
"Kyah!"
She screamed before falling to the floor and rolling several times.
There she saw Battler with a huge wound in its chest.
"Is it an enemy? No, wait a moment…"
From a distance, she could see a familiar face visible in the partially opened cockpit.
"It's him!"
She said, but couldn't remember his name.
"Why is he here?"
She moved towards him; she didn't know why, but she walked a few steps when a hand grabbed the robot by the head.
"Come on, you good-for-nothing!"
"Didn't you say you'd defeat me so your little brother would lose to me?"
"Weren't you saying it wasn't worth it, huh?"
Findor began stabbing the robot's chest over and over, purposely missing to avoid killing him.
From inside the cockpit, Lyle could see and feel a huge knife penetrating the cockpit near him, making its way to where he was.
"Come on, insect, say it again?!"
"What am I?"
Lyle laughed, which Elaine could see clearly.
"You're a stinky long-ears, no match for Rudel. He defeated the prince of our kingdom twice and did it without breaking a sweat."
"Meanwhile, you can't even kill a simple worm like me. Who's the loser here, long-ears?"
The rage on Findor's face increased thanks to Lyle.
He pulled him out, leaving a new trail of destruction, and Elaine saw it all.
She ran through the area following their fight.
She didn't know what it was, but she couldn't take her eyes off it.
Despite being seen by the maids, they did nothing due to the panic after the deaths of General Berkeley and Schtrom.
Elaine reached the deck and watched with her own eyes as Lyle received a beating.
"Damn human."
"Admit my superiority already."
"Tell me I'm stronger than you."
"I never will."
Lyle was being severely punished by Findor.
He didn't want to kill him until he said he was better.
No matter how hard he tried, Lyle wouldn't succumb.
He got so angry that he tore off the chest section and then lowered his own cockpit to grab him with his hands.
"Why the hell won't you admit my superiority!?"
He said, face to face with him.
Green eyes stared into Lyle's black ones.
"I told you, didn't I?"
"You're nothing special; Rudel wouldn't waste time with someone like you. That's why I'll defeat you here in his place."
He said, smiling at him, which greatly angered Findor, who decided to end all this.
He let go of Lyle and stepped away.
The cockpit closed, and Findor breathed abruptly to calm down; after doing so for a while, he finally calmed.
"I'm fed up with you; I'll finish this."
Findor drew his swords and infused them with magic power.
"The Demon King will be my next target. Die, trash who doesn't deserve to die as a nameless one."
Findor approached to cut Lyle down. Then, seeing what seemed like his end, Elaine finally remembered his name and shouted from the bottom of her heart.
"Lyle-san!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
At that moment, when all seemed lost, a voice resonated in the place.
"All is complete, apologies for the delay."
Bell had arrived, and with her, the victory.
"Halt."
Findor's armor stopped suddenly without explanation.
He couldn't move it no matter what he did.
"Huh? Why won't it move? Move, you piece of junk!"
Lyle grabbed Bell furiously.
"It was more than three minutes."
"Sorry, I was doing other things."
"But we've already won."
At that moment, all enemy armed units stopped.
None of them could do anything.
Not just them; the ships couldn't deploy shields.
"I hacked the enemy systems, eliminated their mobility and defenses. Now finishing them off will be like hitting a baby."
"Please don't give such horrible examples."
"Sorry."
After Bell's apology, she said to him.
"Onii-san, it's time to finish this and deliver the final blow."
"Of course."
Lyle pulled the last weapon he had left from his back; it was a rail cannon.
He positioned himself to the side of Findor and aimed it at both him and the enormous whale trying to flee.
"You spat a lot of garbage at me. About my family, about my little brother."
"But I don't hate you; you're not worth it for that."
"I pity you; you're an insecure person who wants to feel special. You could say we have a lot in common."
"I also understand what you felt about your little brother. You felt you were no longer special and that he stole everything from you, but you know."
Lyle smiled proudly at what he said.
"Unlike you, I'm happy to have been born into this family of peasants. I love my family and would never change that for anything in the world."
"But you are a threat to us, and as the eldest son, as the heir, as the next head of the Bradfords."
The cannon began to charge rapidly and he aimed it at Findor, who with all his strength tried to move the armor.
But he could only break the cockpit and emerge with a sword to attack Lyle.
"How dare you compare yourself to me, you filthy trash!?"
"I will be remembered for eternity; you will be forgotten like the insect crushed on the ground that you are!"
"It's true," said Lyle, aiming his cannon at Findor's face.
"But while I live, I'll be someone. I'm a Bradford, and I'll be remembered by my family."
Bell gave the final words.
"Gamma Ray."
An enormous beam of light was fired at Findor, which pierced through the whale.
The armor crumbled away along with him.
"Impossible! Someone like me! A superior being like me!"
"Being defeated by a nameless loser like you… it can't be… it can't happen…"
"Uriiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii—!"
Was the last thing he screamed before being silenced by the wind.
Findor had been defeated, and with that, the war had ended.
But despite receiving a shot and having a huge hole, the whale kept floating.
◇◇◇
General Algren had seen the unimaginable.
The generals and the Sacred King had been slain.
"It can't be. It's impossible for this to happen on our first day of conquering the world."
"Man the cannons!"
He shouted euphorically.
"We won't let the murderer of His Excellency go free!"
All the sailors shouted, but then…
"Wahahahahaha!"
A strange laughter came from the clouds.
An explosion came from a nearby ship.
"More enemies? But how?"
From the clouds emerged many ships surrounding the area. All of them had their own flags, but alongside them was the kingdom's flag.
"Well done holding out, Baron Bradford. Leave this to me."
Said a huge man resembling a gorilla.
"You mean 'us,' because you're not the only one who came, you know?"
Replied the voice of a slender man.
"Quiet, the enemy is here," exclaimed the voice of a young woman.
"Wahaha, sorry, but I'm very excited."
Replied the gorilla man as he ordered his fleets to fire at the enemy ships.
They weren't the only ones; the other ships began to fire, and their knights emerged to fight.
They totaled more than 80 ships.
Added to those already fighting, it made a total of 115 allied vessels.
The enemy fleet was overwhelmed and outmatched.
General Algren threw himself to the floor, crying.
"We lost, it can't be. We sacrificed everything and lost."
"Our country is ruined, and all because you lost, Findor!"
◇◇◇
After eliminating Findor, Lyle headed to the deck.
There stood Elaine.
Bell said to him.
"Alright, now to rescue the damsel in distress."
Lyle was getting closer and closer.
He was beginning to get nervous. Bell asked him why.
"Why are you getting scared? Are you afraid of women? Didn't you suck your mother's titties as a child?"
"That has nothing to do with it!"
"Then why do you look like a frightened hamster? You just defeated the enemy commander."
"Defeating a guy isn't the same as going to see a woman who rejected you."
"Trust me when I say now is your chance to win her over."
"…"
Lyle had nothing to lose, but being rejected so many times wasn't a good thing.
The armor descended, and Lyle climbed down from the hatch.
There he saw Elaine covered by a trench coat.
"E-Elaine… san…"
He said, still terrified.
"Um, we came to rescue you all. Only you are left."
Elaine was staring intently at Lyle, who was avoiding her gaze.
"Your name," she said.
Lyle thought she didn't remember it and was about to tell her when she spoke first.
"It was Lyle, right? Your name."
He was surprised.
"Yes, it's Lyle. You remember."
"I remember. But not for being a Bradford, but from the academy."
"Lyle of House Bradford was the student who caused the most trouble. He was a clown who spent his time making people laugh."
Lyle became even more disheartened hearing about his sad past at the academy.
"Ah, yes, that's me. Sorry."
"You were brave."
She said to him, looking at him with pride.
"Not just anyone can do what you did and smile. Weren't you afraid?"
Lyle affirmed it without hesitation.
"Of course I was afraid! Never in my life had I fought in armor; I'd never felt such stomach-churning nerves until now."
"Ah! The problem's back!"
He hugged his stomach, and she laughed.
"You're certainly interesting."
She said with complete honesty. Lyle was left speechless.
Just as he was about to say something, a strong wind blew and lifted her trench coat, revealing the lush curves hidden by a meager, practically translucent bikini. The flimsy fabric did little to conceal her form, clinging to her skin and leaving little to the imagination.
She immediately covered herself, shame coloring her face.
"Kyah!"
"Thank you very much! I mean, sorry!"
Lyle covered his face while going to fetch the trench coat.
He covered her with it and said, after wiping the blood from his nose.
"Please, climb up. We'll take you home."
Elaine's heart was pounding even more.
"Yes. Thank you very much for coming to save us. I'll make sure House Bradford is properly rewarded for this."
Elaine climbed into Battler first, but when it was Lyle's turn…
"Damn humans, we won't surrender without fighting to the end!"
General Algren's voice resonated throughout the ship.
He had detonated several magic stones, which had damaged the whale, now turning to ashes.
The ship capsized, and all the sailors began to fall, breaking through the windows along with their chairs.
Lyle was no exception; he was about to fall when Elaine jumped to grab his hand.
The two were going to fall; she knew it but didn't want to let go of his hand. Then Bell, using both of Battler's hands, caught both of them just in time.
"Please don't do such risky things."
Their hands remained connected even though they were safe.
Lyle didn't want to let go of her hand; Elaine didn't want to either. Even while in the robot's hands, she said to him.
"It seems now I saved you; we're even."
"It seems so."
"Hahahaha."
They both began to laugh, and Bell recorded everything.
"It's not my usual BL material, but there's nothing wrong with a dose of traditional love now and then."
With Elaine's rescue, the enemy fleet was subdued by the allies.
Before sunset, they returned home, and with that, the war that lasted only three hours ended with the kingdom's victory, thanks to the Bradford family and without Rudel in charge.
_________________
What did you think of the story? It's still early to answer, but wait for the surprises to come.
To close out the stage as the geniuses do—fanservice of Elaine, the rescued maiden: https://danbooru.donmai.us/posts/8216753?q=millia_rage
_________________
Here is the Mega link where you can see the chapters with illustrations in PDF format, as well as the characteristics of the characters and armor: https://mega.nz/folder/75wTzA4b#W-_qGvlSP9miCm1jpk54IQ