It was a variable.
And one tilting heavily in the worst possible direction.
“A red star.”
I immediately recognized the symbol drawn in the photograph.
“That’s right. The emblem of the Allied Nations. A fighter they supplied. We recovered the pilots’ bodies as well, and by all appearances, they appear to have been from the Allied Nations.”
The Allied Nations’ support had not ended with just ground troops. The situation we had feared had become a reality.
“The Allied air force….”
“Exactly. They’ve already arrived in Londinium. It’s certain they’ve completed their organization and been committed to operations.”
The Victoria Island mainland air campaign was fundamentally subject to “physical constraints.”
Imperial fighters had to cross the sea to conduct operations. It might seem trivial, but those mere ten-odd minutes made a huge difference.
Not to mention that operational time was shortened by that much, the enemy could also receive support from friendly anti-air networks deployed on the ground.
In an emergency, Imperial pilots escaping to the ground were killed or captured, whereas enemy pilots fell into their own backyards. Considering how precious fighter pilots were as personnel, it was a factor that could never be overlooked.
On top of that, the Allied air force had now intervened as well. Quite literally, it was mountains upon mountains shrouded in impenetrable fog.
I clenched my fist. The landing operation had not even begun, yet it already felt as though a thick fog was descending.
“Still, it’s not all bad news.”
Lieutenant General Albert held out additional documents.
“As it happens, the exiled government that fled to the colonies sent over a piece of intelligence.”
“Intelligence… you say?”
I examined the cover of the folder.
There, a familiar emblem caught my eye. The United Kingdom Royal Intelligence Bureau.
“It contains the precise coordinates of the enemy’s new radar base and dense anti-aircraft zones. They say it was extracted by activating their internal spy network.”
I accepted the documents, furrowing my brow.
*Hmm….*
So this was that famous “Intelligence Bureau” intelligence.
“Lieutenant Colonel Yeager. That is exactly the expression I expected.”
Lieutenant General Albert read my face.
“Can we truly believe this trashy scrap of paper?”
He had hit the nail on the head.
“Are they not the ones who incompetently surrendered the capital? I cannot recklessly swallow intelligence from fools who failed to detect both the Reds’ uprising and the Capital Defense Corps’ betrayal beforehand, and send my precious subordinates to their deaths.”
It was an extremely realistic reaction.
An alliance had, of course, been formed in the imperial conference based on the Emperor’s will and diplomatic gains, but among field commanders, this sort of contempt had spread as if it were only natural.
And I was one of those people.
*Sydney Welsley. Honestly, she’s good at combat and disguises, but….*
When it came to her actual duty—intelligence work—she wasn’t competent. She might even be of a lower caliber than Aiden.
Therefore, this was intelligence that should naturally be dismissed.
“….”
But my judgment was not what mattered. In an organization called the army, a superior’s will was always the most important law.
I used the core cheat skill that had elevated my political acumen by over one hundred and fifty percent.
*Status Analysis.*
[Using the skill ‘Status Analysis (Lv.3)’ on ‘Albert von Graif.’]
[Name: Albert von Graif]
[Status: Evading Responsibility, Secretly Expectant]
[Emotion: If the Intelligence Bureau’s intel is genuine, he wants to launch his bombers immediately and overturn the war situation. But what if it’s a trap? He cannot bear the blame for losing his precious fighters and pilots.]
I swallowed a hollow laugh inwardly.
[Hidden Desire: He wishes for Lieutenant Colonel Yeager to vouch for the reliability of this intelligence, or at the very least, serve as an excuse.]
*Generals are all the same, wherever you go.*
Whether it was Brigadier General Dietrich of the Army or Lieutenant General Albert of the Air Force. They wanted to monopolize the sweet fruit alone, yet tried to push the risk that might be poisoned onto their subordinates.
He was trying to exploit the fact that I had friendly relations with Queen Charlotte and Sydney, the Intelligence Bureau chief.
If the bombing failed, his plan was to shift the blame to me, saying, *Lieutenant Colonel Yeager vouched for the exiled government’s intelligence.*
A skillful piece of military politics. Of course, I was already used to it, so it did not faze me in the least. It was daily life. One could only climb smoothly up the organization’s ladder by skillfully exploiting even a superior’s selfishness like that.
*What should I do?*
I pondered for a moment. What mattered was the operation.
*The mainland bombing must end in success, no matter what.*
The Victoria Island mainland air campaign was my scheme. The imperial conference. An operation I had boldly boasted about before the Emperor.
No matter how much favor I enjoyed from Field Marshal Ludwig and the Imperial family, a flower without fragrance withered quickly. If it failed, I would be the first to lose my head.
I realized I was not in a position to remain complacent. I could also guess why Albert had gone out of his way to inform me of this intelligence.
*He’s the one in a hurry, so he’s telling me to find a breakthrough.*
I hung my head, pretending to contemplate. What I had to rely on was, as always, a cheat skill.
“Do you need more time to think? Take your time. I shan’t disturb your deliberations.”
Albert nodded and leaned deeply back in his chair. As he did, he picked up a teacup and brought it to his lips.
I ran my eyes over the coordinates on the document and quietly used a skill. The most certain way to verify the exiled government’s true intentions.
*Shared Sight.*
[Skill ‘Shared Sight (Lv.1)’ is activated.]
[Sharing the designated target’s (‘Sydney Welsley’) visual information in real-time.]
Bzzzt—
Noise crackled across my retina as a different field of vision overlapped.
Before my eyes, which had just been in the corps commander’s tent, a completely different landscape unfolded. A dim office.
Through the window, instead of dreary Londinium, I saw the colonies’ characteristic wide gardens and lush forests. Quite literally, it was a pastoral landscape.
And at the edge of the vision, her face reflected in a mirror was visible.
The skin beneath her eyes was sunken and dark, and her neat blonde hair was disheveled every which way. She looked as though she had stayed up several nights.
Before long, Sydney’s gaze turned downward. In her hands were several documents and telegrams.
[…Transmission to Imperial Command complete. Londinium southeastern radar base coordinates.]
Content that exactly matched the document Lieutenant General Albert had shown me.
“Chief. We have delivered all intelligence to the Imperial side.”
“…I see.”
A voice conversing with a subordinate was heard.
“Will they not be suspicious? After what happened in Londinium, there is no way they would trust our Intelligence Bureau….”
“We will have to make them believe it.”
Sydney’s gaze turned toward the red circles marked on the map.
“This intelligence was bought with the lives of eight of our agents. Lieutenant Colonel Yeager will surely recognize its value….”
Sydney’s hands gripped the table tightly.
*Status Analysis.*
[Name: Sydney Welsley]
[Status: Operational Fatigue, Earnestness]
*Deactivate skill.*
[‘Shared Sight’ is deactivated.]
I withdrew my vision. Lieutenant General Albert’s face came back into view.
*At least I can tell she worked hard.*
The fatigue and earnestness displayed in the Status Analysis window. And the fact that eight agents had died. That could not be a lie or crude misinformation.
But that was the problem—the problem was that that was all it proved.
The Intelligence Bureau already had a record of being thoroughly manipulated by Galitzi. Hindered by the Citizens’ Labor Party, their equipment and training standards had long since deteriorated. They had even lost their original spy network and fled to the colonies.
No matter how hard she had worked to gather it, I could not rule out the possibility that the intelligence itself was a trap intentionally leaked by the enemy.
*…One must tap the stepping stones before crossing.*
All the more so for a stone that had already fallen into the water.
*Captivating Eloquence.*
[Skill ‘Captivating Eloquence (Lv.3)’ is activated.]
“General, I am inclined to think that….”
After a long silence, I raised my head and opened my mouth.
*
A few days later. 2nd Air Corps Command operations conference room.
“To give you the results upfront, half was correct and half was a trap.”
Freshly developed aerial reconnaissance photographs and reports from radio detection troops were scattered messily across the wide table.
“Look at this. High-altitude reconnaissance photographs.”
The photographs showed the coastal scenery at the coordinates Sydney’s Intelligence Bureau had indicated. At a glance, it appeared to be nothing more than wooded terrain, but when passed through an infrared filter, clear traces were revealed.
“It’s a camouflage net. Beneath it… comparing the outlines, it is a massive antenna structure.”
“A radar site.”
Albert was certain. A new weapon that had recently begun to be introduced into the air force in rapid succession.
“Furthermore, tire tracks. And from monitoring, we even captured a unique pulse pattern.”
“So the exiled government’s intelligence was not entirely wrong.”
“Yes. Had they not provided the clue, finding the exact location would have been difficult.”
Of course, that was not all. This was information that was half right and half wrong. I continued with a serious expression.
“However, the points we must focus on are here. And additionally, here and here.”
Albert and the other staff officers began to examine the photographs again.
I explained.
“…At least three battalion-strength anti-aircraft artillery units are lying in ambush, centered on the forested high ground. In short… this is a trap.”
“…Those cunning Red bastards.”
Albert gnashed his teeth.
The enemy was by no means easy. Among the intelligence the Royal Intelligence Bureau agents had risked their lives to obtain, there were likely things the enemy had intentionally leaked as well.
If we had carried out the bombing based solely on the Intelligence Bureau’s word? We would have been repelled by the enemy’s overwhelming anti-air firepower. Precious bombers would have been turned into pincushions and crashed into the sea, and the seizure of air superiority would have been considerably delayed.
Considering the tight schedule of this landing operation, it was something that absolutely must not happen.
“Colonel, I am glad I listened to you. I thought it a waste of time, but in the end, the caution to wait until the last moment for detection results was correct.”
*Status Analysis.*
[Name: Albert von Graif]
[Status: Cold Sweat, Relief, Extreme Acquisitiveness]
[Emotion: Leaving this genius in the Army is a loss to the entire Empire! I want to make him my chief of staff unconditionally!]
Once again, his gaze became burdensome.
“It was all thanks to the General’s decisive judgment and the excellent skills of the frontline unit personnel. I merely played the role of a compass.”
I answered with a shrug.
“Hoho. Your humility never fails to amaze me.”
Having briefly lightened the mood, Albert reached out over the map again.
“Now the answer is out. Since we have obtained all the information, we need only avoid the trap and tear the encirclement apart.”
His voice rang out thunderously through the conference room.
“All hands, attention!”
The 2nd Air Corps Commander’s orders began pouring out like a waterfall.
“Operations staff! Issue immediate sortie orders to the 3rd and 4th Bomber Wings. Target is the enemy radar base located in Sector D-4. Penetrate the blind spots in the anti-aircraft range identified by the reconnaissance aircraft.”
“Yes, sir!”
“Approach altitude is 8,000 feet. Enter with the sun at your backs. Strike and withdraw before enemy interceptors can take off. Communications officer, transmit the ciphertext immediately!”
Tatatatatack—!
The teletype machines lined up in the corner of the conference room began moving with a clamor. Staff officers grabbed maps and charted flight routes, while weather officers calculated the strait’s wind direction and cloud base, reporting incessantly.
“Coordinate transmission complete! Sortie approval received!”
“1st Fighter Wing fighter squadrons taking the lead in takeoff for bomber escort duty!”
The entirety of the 2nd Air Corps Command headquarters began to turn like a giant cogwheel.