Hidden Specs Part 2
「How the heck is that possible?!」
It was such a shocking matter that even Kou couldn’t help but retort. After all, Quattro Silhouettes were designed to circumvent the classification of a being between human and beast. Where do the Nereids fit in that equation?
「You shouldn’t be surprised by that in the first place. We aren’t elves, okay? The Nereids are sea sprites (Nymphs), and Nereus is The Old Man of the Sea. There are even accounts where the sea god Triton and Nereus are equated as one and the same. The OS made by Prometheus should have taken that into account.」
Blue protested on behalf of all the Nereids. For some reason, she was really adamant about not being an elf.
「As part of a race greatly connected with the sea, it’s a machine I would definitely like to try piloting. I’m sure every Nereid feels the same way.」
「Uh, s-sorry, Blue. Anyway, that’s really amazing, Matt!」
Kou was intimidated by Blue’s angry look and apologized.
In any case, this was certainly great news for the Nereids who were usually treated as denizens of the forest.
「It’s probably just a coincidence. I can’t imagine just how many such secret specs are there. In the Fennel OS, I mean.」
「Hidden specs huh? It would be interesting to try and discover them.」
Kinukawa smiled softly. He thought it would be quite interesting to conduct bricolages while specifically trying to discover those hidden specifications.
「I’m sure they would serve as a bit of a surprise to the enemy. I believe the fleet battle will come down to a battle of attrition. We’ve set for supplies to be brought in by submarines as needed. With this, we’ll be able to prevail in the long-range bombardment battle, air battle, and underwater battle.」
Each respective captain nodded at Matt’s words. Not having to worry about supplies was a great thing.
「The Wild Hunt unit and the Triton unit huh? They will definitely bolster our lines. Thank you, Matt-kun.」
Matt nodded in response to George who was serving as the fleet commander. This was the reason why he came after all.
The battle for air supremacy was becoming more and more intense.
The Wild Hunt unit attacked the Argoforce fighters like a veritable storm.
It was a place in the midst of darkness. A deep, pitch-black darkness.
Suddenly, a monitor lit up, and the image of a beautiful girl was projected. The girl had vibrant strawberry-blonde hair.
There was also a man, whose figure was illuminated by the monitor, present alongside her. He was sporting an eerie-looking mask that hid his visage. It was a pure white mask that covered up to his nose. In other words, a classical eye mask.
He had the aura of a gentleman.
『Scouting complete. I’m back.』
「Welcome back, my dear goddess.」
『I told you to stop calling me a goddess already!』
「Haha. Isn’t it fine? At the very least, I hold it as true.」
『Oh my. That’s kind of embarrassing.』
The beautiful girl on the screen displayed an awkward expression. She felt like she was being excessively complimented, but the masked gentleman held no malice in his conduct.
The lips of the masked gentleman loosened.
『I apologize for barging in during your break.』
「It’s fine. I was just having a tea break after all. You’re the one who’s quite busy going around all over the place.」
Just as the gentleman said, there was a freshly emptied teacup on top of the table beside him.
『I can’t let them notice my presence after all! I have to avoid revealing myself to everyone as much as possible.』
It wasn’t like she actually went out in the truest sense.
In order to get in contact with the other ships and information networks without getting noticed, she minimized the use of her ship’s resources as much as possible.
「At times known as Feronia or Libertas from Roman mythology. In other times, the goddess Britannia. A mysterious goddess who provides supplies and technology to French and English transferee companies. Just what is her true identity……?」
The gentleman muttered.
『It’s not time for my grand entrance yet after all! However, it doesn’t look like the General Defense Company folks would be able to make it. The base is simply too slow. At this rate, Fortress Area P336 will fall to the enemy.』
「We may not make it in time ourselves either.」
『Right. But with you here, we just might make it. By entering a contract with a Development Engineer, I can unleash my true potential. Astraea is…… unfair. I haven’t even talked to him yet. How envious.』
「I will do everything in my power to protect him.」
The masked gentleman smiled kindly at the slightly sulking beauty.
『I was hesitant. I wondered if entrusting this world to the Stones would actually lead to true peace. However, based on how things are going, that doesn’t appear to be the case. That’s why I’ve been helping you guys out without revealing myself.』
「To the point of deceiving even your older sisters?」
『My sister is too enamored with her contractor after all! He even managed to rescue Asia. During that time, I was able to plan and scheme as much as I wanted.』
The girl smiled mischievously.
The gentleman was inwardly awed by the implications of her words.
「It appears that you’ve completely given up on the peace touted by the Stones.」
『Un. The Stones are no good. They have started to make use of humans as mere parts of machines. That is a big no-no for me. Something like that is simply incompatible with us. That’s why there was a need to help you guys build up your strength. The release of sealed technology was helpful.』
「For us, the matter regarding our mysterious collaborator was something treated as top secret. Just how were we able to build the Gracious Queen? I imagine the same goes for the folks who built the Jeanne d’Arc.」
『A country of freedom, equality, and harmony. And a country that highly values its pride. In order to lead the ones from those countries lacking in myths, an appropriate image was necessary.』
「Right. After all, why would a goddess help us? That was something suspect. However, if the goddess in question was Britannia. And if she was Feronia, then that would explain her helping both an American and a French company.」
『Even so, I was still pretty troubled by my decision you know!』
The gentleman knew. He knew that his goddess was simply far too kind. She wasn’t all that suited for war.
That’s why she needed the help of companies who were capable of employing military force in her stead. In order to realize a world without conflict.
「I understand. But we didn’t expect that you’d resort to cosplay. I believe it would have been fine even if you simply introduced yourself normally.」
『But the goddess I imitated was a pretty minor one you know? I’m sure the mythical goddess Feronia will approve of me. After all, it’s in order to protect the people’s will. Historically, your three companies seemed to resemble one another, so it was pretty awkward for me you know!』
「My apologies for that. We weren’t exactly on the best of terms after all. Well…… I believe no one would have found it infuriating even if you named yourself Marianne and Columbia.」
『That’s– impossible for me.』
Even she minded it. Posing as the goddesses who were the epitome of Britain and the symbol of France, that is.
The gentleman certainly didn’t mind in the least though. Historical enmity should no longer have any bearing now that they have left the Earth. Marianne was the personification of France, and Columbia was the personification of the United States.
『I think it would be better to keep it within the bounds of Greek and Roman mythology.』
「I see. But you see, Britannia wears Athena’s helmet while wielding Poseidon’s trident. So it’s still within the realm of cosplay after all!」
『Don’t keep emphasizing the cosplay part! It’s kinda awkward! I do like cosplay though!』
It was fortunate that the gentleman was tolerant of the AI’s cosplay tendencies. After all, many people would probably have been offended. There were a lot of Development Engineers who were overly serious.
『Even so, those Gogyou folks are quite the freaks. To think they’d be capable of building a ship like that through sheer effort alone.』
「The maritime prowess of their nation somewhat resembles our own after all. So you really didn’t lend a hand to Gogyou after all.」
『They have a completely different mythology system after all. Even I wouldn’t go that far.』
「I see.」
『My need to hide my true identity aside, why do you insist on wearing a mask anyway?』
「Currently, I am listed as MIA and my survival is in question. Therefore, I have no choice but to wear a mask!」
The gentleman insisted. Even the AI pretending to be a goddess was convinced by his momentum.
『Right, that’s how it’s gotta be! Understood! Mysterious Development Engineer, Tea Mask-san. Apologies for inconveniencing you.』
「I’m able to build all sorts of stuff as I please here, so this place is akin to heaven for me. And besides, there’s plenty of tea.」
『The Megareus will be a tough opponent, even with the current strength of Ulysses.』
「And that’s where we come in.」
『Indeed. We’ll prepare the weapons for the decisive battle.』
「Please leave it to me. My goddess Britannia. Let us create things that will absolutely amaze everyone.」
『Yes. But let’s be sure not to provoke the ire of Okeanos, okay?』
The two of them whispered to one another like children plotting a prank.
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