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n“I’m invincible!”

nInside of Avid’s cockpit.

nI grabbed the controls and I couldn’t stop laughing.

nThis is it! This is what I’m talking about!

nTo subjugate my enemies with overwhelming power.

nMy opponents were pirates.

nI felt intoxicated with power from killing all these people that seemed to overlap with the debt collectors from my previous life.

nNot the side of those who had things taken from them, I was finally on the side of those who took things away from others.

nMy heart was full.

nEnemies started flocking towards Avid, which was larger than regular knights and was cutting down pirates one after another.

n“You’re annoying me!!!”

nAs I shouted that, innumerable magic circles manifested around Avid.

nThe weapons I had stored in the space magic beforehand started materializing.

nHoming missiles were fired concurrently from missile pods, tracking down the attackers. Some of the flocking enemies fled, but they were soon caught and died in the resulting explosion.

nAfter that, several knights appeared from the explosion’s smoke.

nTheir movements were different from the other aircrafts.

n“Pirate knights?”

nPeople who were originally knights, but had fallen to piracy and crime were called pirate knights.

nMost pirates were just gangsters and thugs, so pirate knights were a very valuable force for pirates.

nThe shields mounted on Avid’s shoulders repelled enemy beams and lasers.

nThey created an energy field that wrapped around the airframe, so those attacks never even reached me.

nEven if they shot physical projectiles like bullets, Avid’s armour was sturdy enough to take it.

n“I’m not even using any cheats! –woah.”

nMelee weapons on the other hand… I started taking evasive maneuvers against the pirate knights who had switched to swords and other melee weapons, dodging them as the came, one after another.

nEven the amazing Avid would be damaged by a knight’s swing if they hit.

nSo I avoided them because it felt like I was damaging a new car.

nYou know, I don’t like scratching the things I just bought.

nAs I kept dodging my opponents, I threw away my bazooka and started shooting at them with a rifle.

n“You might be better than normal pirates, but you’re still nothing!”

nAs Avid passed by the approaching pirate knights, they’d suddenly be split into two.

n“Nice response.”

nThe attacking pirate knights were cut down immediately after they approached.

nRising slash, downward slash, reverse slash, counter-1 just by shaking my sword a little, my enemies were suddenly severed into pieces and exploded.

nOne of them somehow received my attack with his blade.

nInstead of attacking again, I accepted his power challenge against Avid.

nThe other party’s voice came through the comm lines now that we made contact.

n“You, what the hell did you just do?! What school is that?!”

nMany knights are trained in specific martial schools.

nTo learn martial arts is the foundation for all knights.

nHowever, the other party was puzzled and couldn’t recognise my school.

nAmong the pirate knights, his was the one with the best movements.

nI was also kinda interested in him and replied back.

n“It’s the school of the One-Flash, founded by swordmaster Yasushi. Do you recognise it?”

n“I’ve never heard of that school, nor of a swordmaster by that name! Must be some no-name swordstyle trash!”

nMy anger flared up so I threw away my rifle and smashed the pirate knight’s head in with my left hand.

n“You say I belong to a no-name school? I’ll crush you and broaden the name of the One-Flash!”

nAfter destroying what remained of the enemy with my left arm, I steered Avid towards a nearby pirate ship.

nThe boosters spurted out fire as beams of light shot out towards the accelerating Avid.

nI pushed through the rain of optical weapons, and smashed through the pirate ship, breaking straight through its armour and hull.

nAfter damaging it that much, the ship detonated in a fiery blast behind me.

n◇ ◇ ◇

nGoaz watched as a black knight emerged unscathed from an exploding battleship.

n“W-what the hell is that guy?! Who’s piloting that knight?!”

nHe was sure that it had to be a well-known and famous knight.

nAt first he thought it was just a large, outdated airframe, but his pirate knights were being slain without even being able to lay a finger on it.

nGoaz was growing impatient and could feel a cold sweat coming on.

n“Who is he?”

nThe adjutant exclaimed out in surprise after hearing his subordinate’s report.

n“It’s their leader! The lord of the Banfield house is piloting that knight! It’s Liam Sera Banfield himself!”

n“What?!”

nGoaz shook with anger as he listened to the report.

n“Impossible! How can the high-end bodyguards I hired be losing to a single kid?! The mobile knights I gave them weren’t cheap either!”

nHigh-grade pirate knights who charged exponential prices for their services.

nEven the mobile knights given to them were aircrafts stolen from the Empire and bought at the black market.

nTheir appearances may have changed, but they were still better than the normal aircrafts used by ordinary pirates. It was unbelievable that a single knight could take them all on.

n“…no, this is a chance, their general is on the front lines! Idiot, only a fool would leap into the middle of an army alone. Surround him and beat him down!”

nGoaz saw his men in a vain light.

nPirates couldn’t be trusted by anyone, not even other pirates.

nAll the more so when so many of them had already been killed.

nThe more likely they thought they couldn’t win, the more likely they were to betray him, so he had to end this quickly.

nWatching the scene displayed on the monitor from his chair, Goaz took in the sight of a battalion of pirates swarming towards the single knight, as per his instructions.

nBut-

n“No way!”

nGoaz couldn’t believe his eyes.

nThe pirates that flocked towards Liam were all bisected in an instant.

nThey started to explode from the very action of approaching Liam.

nEven pirate ships were divided as if this were some sort of horrible nightmare.

n(This can’t be! How can one knight be so strong?! What is this?! What the hell is that guy?!)

nHe couldn’t believe it.

nIf things kept going as they were, then Liam was on a direct collision course with Goaz’s flagship.

nAs it punched through another pirate ship, allied ships started to recklessly fire at the black knight, completely missing their target while hitting each other.

n“Idiots! Stop that immediately! Let the mobile knights fight him!”

nThe pirates were afraid of the lone Liam.

nBut their enemy wasn’t Liam alone.

nThe adjutant started shouting,

n“Boss! Enemy forces incoming!”

nThe enemies who were desperately trying to catch up to Liam were in a cone-like formation.

nThey broke through the pirates who were already starting to panic.

nThe pirates were confused due to the unexpected high-level skill of the attackers, and their lack of hesitation.

nGoaz smashed his fist into his chair’s armrest.

n“Useless, all of them!”

nHe had a multitude of pirates under his command, but they were all untrained ruffians.

nIf things even looked slightly dangerous, their lines would easily collapse.

nGoaz wracked his brain,

n(The current flow can’t be allowed to continue. At this rate we’ll lose, then I’ll have no choice but to run away and save myself. I didn’t think they’d be this strong.)

nThere were many benefits for being the boss of a large pirate fleet, but conversely, it was also very troublesome having only thugs and criminals follow him.

nGoaz called over his adjutant and started to whisper,

n“We’re running, call over whoever you think is trustworthy. Everyone else is disposable.”

nThe adjutant was surprised at first, but soon gave a look of understanding.

n“Understood.”

nGoaz’s flagship started to retreat, it’s surrounding escort ships following closely behind.

n(After we get away, I’ll start sending assassins to the brat. I can still win this, I have an unlimited number of chances.)

nHis adjutant started shouting as Goaz unconsciously gripped the alchemy box.

n“What the hell are you doing?! Continue the retreat!”

nThe pirate in charge of steering cried out in response,

n“What about our allies?!”

nThe adjutant hissed,

n“They’re already dead anyway! So press forward! The enemy will be here soon!”

nThey were behaving like cowards who wanted to escape as quickly as possible.

nIt was a course of action that they would never take normally.

nSo why would they do this?

n—they were simply scared of Liam, who was quickly approaching at high-speeds.

nThe sight of Liam, who was an unstoppable force on the battlefield was terrifying.

nAnd-

n“Caught you.”

n—The flagship shook violently with a sudden impact.

nLiam’s Avid had landed on the hull.

n◇ ◇ ◇

nI caught up to the fleeing enemy flagship and attacked them.

nAfter landing on the ship’s hull, I destroyed the turret that was aiming at Avid.

n“Are the pirates afraid of shooting at their leader’s ship?”

nThe pirates were hesitant to attack the flagship, which I was boldly striding across.

n“Are some of them trying to run away?”

nI immediately went on to shoot down any ships that tried to desert the battle, blocking their escape route.

n“Well, it’s too late to get away now. I’ll get every last one of you, and then all of your treasures will be mine!”

nAs I started blocking their chance to escape, the pirates suddenly started to scatter everywhere.

nWhen my allies finally caught up, they opened up their comm lines despite all the static.

n“My lord, are you alright?!”

n“Forget about me, chase them down. Leave a thousand ships for defense and hunt down the pirates with the rest. Don’t let a single one get away, and ignore any pleads of surrender, kill them all.”

n“Understood!”

nMy allies will pursue the pirates who run away.

nEven if they try to escape into space, a swift pursuit should still be able to defeat the majority of them.

nAs one of the friendly ships approached the enemy flagship, they started prepping a landing force.

nI forced open the ship’s hatch and entered into the pirate knight’s hangar.

nA mobile knight was standing ready and fired a rocket at me, but I wasn’t worried.

nNothing at that level could destroy Avid.

n“Hey, you scratched the paint job.”

nThe pirates standing nearby started shaking in fear after seeing Avid emerge from the explosion almost unscathed.

nHolding up their rifles, the space suit-wearing pirates started to open fire.

n“You’re annoying.”

nAs a section of Avid’s armour opened up, and a laser was discharged that practically incinerated the pirates into ashes.

nAfter finishing off the last knight, I let out a breath and started putting on my helmet.

nMy pilot suit also doubled as a set of power armour.

nI attached my sword to my belt, and grabbed the rifle I had stored in Avid before boarding the pirate ship.

n“Now where do you keep your treasure?”

nAs I said that, multiple small allied ships started entering the hangar.

nAfter safely landing, the troops started gathering around me.

nThe soldiers were all dressed in combat-focused powered suits that were far taller and intimidating than my own.

nSeeing people dressed like that act so respectful towards me was really amusing.

n“Lord Liam, we’ve come to retrieve you.”

nThough it looks like they’re here to bring me back.

n“Rejected, I’m coming too.”

n“It’s too dangerous! We may have already pushed them this far, but if the enemy has any suicide bombers or-”

n“Why would someone that was running for their life turn into a suicide bomber? I’m leaving, follow me if you want.”

nAfter refusing the grumbling landing squad, I entered the ship.

nThe land squadron dressed in their powered suits quickly took formation around me.

nI was impressed, the insides of a pirate ship were more beautiful than what I thought it’d be like.

nBecause gravity controls were offline, we had to go through the corridors in a weightless state. Luckily I was wearing special boots that allowed me to walk normally even in these conditions.

n“It’s surprisingly beautiful.”

n“Lord Liam, please don’t push on ahead by yourself!”

nAs we proceeded forward, I sensed some feelings of hostility and forced everyone to stop.

n“Now, where are you hiding… found you.”

nNear the corner of the passage.

nI could feel some presences waiting for us there.

nAdditionally, I could feel more of them lurking around in the ceiling.

nAt my order, my men shot their rifles upwards, creating multiple holes.

nFrom there, red blood started to flow out, suspended in the air, so they were probably dead.

nMy subordinates started to make a commotion,

n“They were wearing suits that our sensors couldn’t detect. I can’t believe that pirates have such expensive equipment.”

nApparently the equipment they wore was pretty costly.

nIn other words, they have a lot of money.

n“This is good, the treasure hunt is getting more fun. Let’s hurry!”

nThe pirates hiding around the corner jumped out, probably hoping to catch us by surprise.

nSo I stepped forward.

nIn front of me were multiple pirate knights wearing powered suits.

n“You got careless!”

nThey leaped forward.

n“Protect Lord Liam!”

nI pushed my subordinates out of the way.

n“Unnecessary.”

nI just continued walking, ignoring the pirate knights approaching me.

nMy subordinates seemed stunned, so I turned back towards them.

n“What are you doing? Hurry up.”

n“W-wait, it’s danger-”

nThe pirate knights who were charging towards me were suddenly propelled towards the walls and floor, their bodies severed into pieces.

n“Lord Liam… what did you just do?”

nI answered my bewildered subordinates, like it was the most obvious thing in the universe,

n“I cut them.”

nEven this much was nothing compared to what my master could do.

nAt his level, you wouldn’t even be able to see him draw his sword, my slashes are nowhere close to the peaks he’s reached.

nI could still remember them now. My slashes were the equivalent to child’s play in comparison.

nThe landing squad behind me quieted down at my response.

nThat’s right, fear me.

nFear and worship me, your master!

n◇ ◇ ◇

nThe landing squad gazed at Liam’s back as he marched forward.

nIf a child wore a powered suit, of course they’d look a little bigger.

nBut Liam’s back looked far larger than that, it was imposing.

n“How could we protect a knight like that?”

nUsually when confronting knights, all soldiers could do is lament their bad luck.

nConversely, if they had a reliable knight on their side, they’d be crying in happiness for their good luck.

nOne of the soldiers muttered,

n“He hasn’t even had his coming of age ceremony yet… Isn’t our lord actually an amazing person?”

nThey knew that he was highly skilled in domestic and governmental affairs.

nBut there was no way to know how far he honed his martial skills.

nIn the first place, normally people didn’t start a military education until they reached adulthood.

nThere was no way for them to know.

n“Oh, he’s definitely strong, does he really look that prodigious to you?”

nThe one that spoke was a soldier natively from the Banfield territory.

nBecause he had never left the territory before, he had no idea how amazing Liam actually was.

nBut even if he wasn’t strong, wouldn’t the image of their lord personally fighting on the front lines for them cut an inspiring figure?

nThey definitely thought so.

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