Previous Chapter: Entering the War 2
Imperial capital Ragna, Gra Valkas Empire
Cars filled the streets as various monotonous buildings lined their side. If the inhabitants of this world were to look at it, they’d think it was the ultimate manifestation of mechanical civilization, while if a Japanese person were to take a glance at it, they’d probably see it as a city on the level of an old town. In a certain room at the imperial castle located at the heart of the city were two men talking to one another. Next to the two men stood a middle-aged man that served as their mediator.
“Father, I was thinking of going to inspect our frontline bases. If I, the crown prince, were to give them words of encouragement, and most importantly, for a member of the imperial family, to head to the frontlines, it would greatly increase the morale of our troops!!”
The crown prince of the Gra Valkas Empire, Gra Cabal, is asking for permission from his father, Emperor Gralux, to visit the frontlines.
“Cabal… The frontlines are vastly different from what you think they are. In order to welcome someone from the imperial family, there would be need for preparations. Those preparations, as well as the responsibility for the security of the imperial family will fall to the frontline soldiers.
In addition, there’s also the possibility of an unexpected attack from the enemy that would catch us off guard. The frontlines are a place where safety isn’t guaranteed.”
Emperor Gralux, who understood well the situation at the frontlines, warns the not-so-intelligent crown prince. For hectic places such as the frontlines, a visit from people that require security and protection is extremely bothersome.
“Father! The influence of the imperial family over the citizens is unfathomable! If someone from the imperial family were to visit, if the soldiers were to hear just that point, then their morale would increase! Isn’t that what’s usually written in the newspapers?”
Cabal has a specialty in remembering figures and events, but he has a habit of taking everything that is written down as fact and dismissing everything else. In short, he is terrible at scrutinizing information and he doesn’t understand the divergence between ideals and reality.
“…I’m not aware of the comings and goings there… at the frontlines… so, I think you should pay a visit to Foreign Affairs at Leifor.”
In the end, Emperor Gralux sends him to a place that won’t be a nuisance to the people at the frontlines.
“Father, the place that I will go to is not the Leifor sub-branch of Foreign Affairs. The place that I must go to is the frontline with Mu, Valkyries base. Father, I will exercise my power as crown prince in order to go there.”
By using his authority as crown prince to shake off the restraints keeping him in check, he can also shake off the necessity of having the emperor’s permission and instead report to the emperor after the fact.
It was decided that he will go to the frontline base of Valkyries for inspection.
After the talks, crown prince Gra Cabal mutters in his own quarters.
“Father doesn’t understand! The Gra Valkas Empire was shown the way by God to rule this world! The unequal balance of power between the empire and the barbarians of this world is clear… We don’t need to be afraid of countries such as Mu!!
Once Father passes on, I will be the king of the world!! The king of the world shouldn’t be afraid of matters such as going to the frontlines!!”
Those weren’t the only concerns the others had, but Cabal didn’t take notice of those and continued with preparations for the inspection of the frontlines.
・・・
Frontline base Valkyries, Leifor’s eastern sector, Gra Valkas Empire
At the airfield that was set up at the base, state-of-the-art Antares fighters were starting their engines and were pushing through with preparations to sally out. Besides the Antares fighters, lined up in an organized fashion were Sirius bombers and Vega twin-engine bombers which are exclusive to the Army Air Corps.
By carrying out multiple large-scale bombing runs with a total of 150 aircraft, the Army Air Corps were in high spirits to commence the operation to take the Mu town of Kielseki. The person responsible for carrying out the Army Air Corps’ operation, Perth, and supreme commander Army Commander Gaoggel were watching the scenery that was laid out before their eyes.
“What formidable power…”
The scenery was majestic… What unfolded before their eyes had an airpower unmatched by anyone in this world, save their own airpower. They felt so reassured by this power, that no matter how much strength was amassed against them, the enemy would never be able to overturn the situation of the war.
“When the Imperial Army’s 4th Division, our spearhead, begins their assault on the town, with our highly-motivated airpower, we might just be able to destroy the enemy army deployed in Kielseki… Borg might not even get his turn in the spotlight.”
A general with many battles under his belt, Perth places enormous faith on the combat strength of his subordinates.
“Just to be sure, we would be attenuating their land forces by sending our air corps to bomb the enemy base. After that, the mechanized forces of the 4th Division would pass through the hollow mountains and then emerge on the plains west of Kielseki. After they annihilate what’s left of the enemy’s main force and further elaborate bombings, infantry forces then move in to capture the town… Am I right?”
“Yeah. Down to the letter.”
“This Mu which calls itself the world’s 2nd strongest… They’re no match for the empire.”
“Indeed.”
Antares fighters begin taking off. Their overwhelming airpower, including their bombers, swivelled around in the sky and entered into formation as they headed east.
・・・
The skies south of the Ryūsei base, Mu
An aircraft unfamiliar to the people of Mu flies in the skies overhead. It’s twin engine propellers rotate as a huge disk-shaped object spins on top of its airframe. It’s world-class 3D radar captured several aircraft taking off from the Gra Valkas Empire’s Valkyries base in the sector of the former Leifor.
“Woah!! There’s so many!!”
It was a large formation of more than 80 aircraft. A formation of aircraft with a number unseen in modern warfare was reflected on the radar screen. Their number wouldn’t be that surprising to personnel that participated in the wars with Louria and Parpaldia, but to the personnel that were currently watching the scene unfold on the radar, this was their first taste of conflict.
Considering the course that they’re taking, their target is presumed to be likely the town of Kielseki which contains a station on the railroad connecting the continent’s north and south.
The data collected by the E-2C Hawkeye was then properly transmitted to Ryūsei base.
Ryūsei base
An ear-piercing buzzer rings out. The Air Self-Defense Force, which has sensed that the enemy invasion is nigh, has already prepared their 12 F-15s and 15 F-2s for sallying out. The fighters slowly trot across the ground towards the runway. The radar data has also been relayed to Mu’s air force, and so in order to protect their own country, they too have begun preparations to take off.
Palterim, a pilot of Mu’s proud state-of-the-art Marin fighter, caught a glimpse of a Japanese fighter entering the runway.
“Hm? So Japan’s army has also began to move, huh? I’m thankful for the support but there’s no chance in hell I’m letting you guys take the main role in this fight!”
Being the veteran pilot that he is, he emerges onto the runaway set up for use of Mu’s planes. He turned his engine to full power, strengthening the rotation of the propeller. His body is pushed against his seat.
“I… I will protect Mu!!!”
He has heard the rumors about the Gra Valkas Empire. They were the army of another world that boasted absurdly enormous power. However, Palterim’s morale and love for his country was stronger than most, and so he put his faith in the fruit of Mu’s technological development, the Marin, and thought not of taking any more delays.
The Marin accelerated favorably and took off.
“I will be the first spear to strike against those invaders!!!”
The sound of the engine along with the winds pummelling against the airframe made loud noises within the cabin. It was at that time when…
swooooOOOOOOOOOOOOSHHH!!!
After one of the Japanese army’s fighters flew past him from behind, it rapidly climbed up into the skies at a steep angle. The angle at which it climbed was something he had never seen before and the speed at which it flew past was staggering.
“N-no way!! Are those monsters?! Our dimensions are too different!!!”
The thing that had a speed that was clearly dimensions apart from his plane produced two flames behind it as it disappeared into the clear, blue skies.
・・・
Kielseki 1st attack group, Gra Valkas Empire
Inorganic-looking objects fly in the skies above the great mountain ranges.
Heavy sounds emitted by the engines of a total of 85 aircraft from the Kielseki 1st attack group echoed in the vicinity, creating a weird and eerie aura.
The bombing formation, which consisted of 19 Antares fighters, 41 Sirius bombers, and 25 Vega twin-engine bombers advanced favorably towards the town of Kielseki. Looking down below, the clouds entangled around the hollow mountains formed an ocean of clouds.
Platoon commander Spetz surveys the surroundings from his Antares fighter. The enemy is the world’s 2nd strongest superpower, which despite being part of the civilized areas, is clearly weak. It is highly likely that they will simply just fly over to bomb their targets and then return to base without any problems whatsoever.
Due to the threat posed by anti-air artillery, his sight was predominantly glued to the ground when suddenly, a bright light from the direction of the skies below the left of their formation shined momentarily.
“Huh?”
He raised his head, wondering what had happened at that moment.
“Wha-!!!”
At the same time he looked, the sound of an explosion reached his ears. Following a fierce explosion, one of the Vega twin-engine bombers split into four, falling into the sea of clouds as it burned.
The radio was suddenly full of flustered messages from everyone.
“What the hell just happened?!”
“I don’t know!!!”
“Check your surro-Ack!!!”
They had no idea what had just happened. Friendly aircraft began to explode one after another and the entire formation descended into a state of panic and confusion at the rapid death of dozens of their comrades. Eventually, their formation broke.
A total of 48 AAM-4 medium-range air-to-air guided missiles fired from 12 of Japan Air Self-Defense Force F-15J Kai (MSIP config) fighters flew straight to their targets, sweeping down on the Gra Valkas Imperial Army Air Corps. One of the domestically-designed AAM-4 missiles, which can even intercept cruise missiles, had a defect mid-flight, but the other 47 missiles found their targets.
“Wha-what the fuck is happening?! Where is the enemy attacking from?!”
They found it difficult to comprehend what was happening. The only sight that spread out before their eyes were the silhouettes of friendly planes being pulverized one after another and falling out of the sky in embers.
Aside from the moment following their launch, the AAM-4 missiles cannot be directly sighted since they don’t even emit white trails in terminal guidance and they also travel at Mach 4 to Mach 5.
Breaking formation to escape an attack of unknown origin, every aircraft flew in their own respective directions. The attack was not limited to the bombers as Antares fighter escorts were destroyed without exception.
“Nnggggh!!!”
Concluding that flying in high altitude where visibility was good is dangerous, Spetz began to turn around and dive. Behind him, the explosions continued as many lives were lost to the heavens. He had no idea what was under the blanket of clouds, but since he could be reliably attacked if he continued to fly at high altitude, he dived straight through the sea of clouds.
“Woah!!”
Slipping through the sea of clouds and following a short interval of empty air, the hollow mountains appeared before him.
“T-there’s no way forward but through there!!”
At this rate, I’ll hit the ground!!
His head dives into overdrive. Already on a near-vertical dive, he raises the nose of his plane and manages to slip under a tunnel-like formation created by a long stone above the hollow mountains. As soon as he slipped past it…
Boom!!!
The pillar on the hollow mountains from which he had just slipped through seems to have been destroyed by the enemy attack. Looking back, the stone pillar collapsed following an explosion.
“That was close… What the hell are we fighting against?!”
Terror enveloped him for a moment, but after brushing off the attack, he began to climb back up the sea of clouds to link up with the formation.
There was the occasional sound of explosions which were loud enough to be heard from within the cabin as clumps of flames fell towards the mountains. As soon as he neared the sea of clouds, he began to hear loud bangs that sound like thunderclaps. Voices which he couldn’t discern if they were reports or screams filled his radio. It seems that they were in disarray.
“Who dares treat the Imperial Army like children…!!”
While struggling with his fears, he continued to climb to fulfill his professional duties and eventually he slipped past the sea of clouds.
“W-what the?! What the hell is happening?!”
The empire’s proud Antares fighters and many of their high-performance bombers boasted overwhelming combat capacities in the previous world and this one. The speeds unleashed by their high-output engines prevented the enemy from catching up to them, crushing other aircraft completely with their fierce turn rate. The friendly aircraft before his eyes certainly aren’t weak and are no doubt a force to be reckoned with.
At least that should have been the case.
Their air corps, which boasts formidable aircraft performance and exceptional skills gained from hell-like training, was helplessly destroyed and reduced to balls of flames left to fall into the clouds.
It wasn’t just 1 or 2 aircraft. All of their planes were being rapidly engulfed in flames and shot down.
And then there were their unidentified enemies which were flying around with unbelievable speeds that far surpassed that of the empire’s aircraft. Their airframes were sharp like arrowheads and had swept-wings that stretched to their rear. Moreover, they flew without the use of propellers. Their preposterous flight speed cannot be explained in a single word and it can only be expressed in dimensions far beyond their own.
The Antares fighters that were left faced their noses at the direction of the enemy to try to shoot them down, but the disparity in their speed was too great and they were the ones that were easily shot down instead.
“W-what’s that?!”
The weapons that shot down his comrades seemed to be in the form of rockets. Friendly aircraft tried to dodge them, but it was clear from his perspective that the rockets visibly changed course to follow them. The machine guns used by the enemy also seem to have enormous range and firepower, pulverizing their bombers to shreds.
“T-this isn’t happening!!! At this rate, the empire will…!! Huh?”
Painted on the airframe were modest red circles on top of bigger white circles which served as their outline.
“T-that insignia… Is that the Japanese army?!?!”
The country of Japan was also the recipient of the empire’s declaration of war. Being the same transferred nation, they allied themselves with Mu and were believed to not be in the possession of a large military force. However, judging from what he is seeing, there was an extreme gap in their combat strength against Japan’s fighters. Moreover, judging from the number of enemies he could see within range, they were only a little less than 10 fighters… Their 85 aircraft strong force is being near-decimated by only 10 fighters. The inequality in their weapons performance was hopelessly staggering.
Going further into this war at this rate, the empire will be dealt a massive blow. He intuitively reaches out for his radio.
“HQ!! HQ!! We are under attack!! We are under attack!! The enemy is tremendously fast!!
They’re Japanese fighters!! The enemy is the country of Japan!!! We’re being wiped o-Ack!!!”
As Spetz was reporting back, a line of light ran through the sky towards him. Shots fired from the 20mm rotary cannon of a F-15 fighter brushed against the right wing of his Antares fighter, annihilating the wingtips and sending the aircraft in a spin.
Spetz’s Antares fighter was once again diving towards the sea of clouds as it spun out of control.
“Nggggghh!! I won’t let you fall!!! I won’t let you fall!!!”
The airframe shook violently as the plane continued to spin due to damage from the right wing. Flames sprouted from the right wing. The faces of his wife and children that had just entered elementary school appeared in the back of his mind.
“Am I… going to die?!”
He desperately tried to wrestle control of the aircraft. The aileron on the right wing isn’t moving… Making full use of the left aileron, rudder, and elevator, he eventually managed to bring the aircraft to a level flight.
“HQ!!! HQ!!! Tsk!!!”
As soon as he tried to operate the radio equipment, it somehow broke down and stopped functioning altogether. Worrying over fuel, he focused all of his nerves on heading back to base.
85 aircraft of the Gra Valkas Imperial Army Air Corps’ Kielseki 1st attack group was intercepted and annihilated by 12 F-15 fighters of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force in the skies above the hollow mountains.
・・・
Air operations command room, Frontline base Valkyries, Gra Valkas Empire
“Wha… what the hell happened?!”
Sweat trickled down from Perth’s forehead.
Suddenly, the area of the radar screen where the 1st attack group was flying became white. It wasn’t a radar malfunction, since it was only that part of the screen that had something like white metallic fragments being sprinkled all over. They concluded that there’s concerns of it being some sort of jamming.
They thought it was implausible for a lowly civilized country to conduct radio jamming, but they soon received a radio transmission that threw headquarters into terror.
“…we’re being attacked!! We’re… attacked… They’re fast… panese fighters… country of Japan… being wiped o…”
Shortly afterwards, the radar started to work normally, but the points of light that should’ve been their friendly aircraft were no longer reflecting on the radar screen.
“The 1st attack group has completely disappeared from radar in the skies over the hollow mountains.”
One of the officers reports with a sorrowful voice. The situation in which the glorious Gra Valkas Imperial Army Air Corps was annihilated is something that shouldn’t be happening. It had pulverized the wyverns of the air force of the uncivilized countries and the selectively-bred class of wyvern lords were no match for their fighters. Even the air force of the country that calls itself the world’s 2nd strongest country was helpless against them. They even heard that the fighters of the world’s number 1 country, the Holy Mirishial Empire, were hopelessly outclassed by their empire’s Antares fighters.
Despite all that, the glorious air corps’ 1st attack wave was annihilated. Their losses weren’t just 25%, 50%, or even 90%… They were completely annihilated.
“Tha…that’s preposterous!!!”
Perth subconsciously says out loud.
“W-wait… Could the Holy Mirishial Empire have sent their aerial battleships again?”
He has heard of them from rumors. The aerial battleships of the Holy Mirishial Empire seem to have dealt catastrophic casualties to the Imperial Navy Air Corps. If they were their enemy, then it is possible for them to have annihilated their attack group.
“No… If they were up against an aerial battleship of the Holy Mirishial Empire, then we should have received transmissions over the radio of what kind of enemy they were and what kind of attack they were facing.
What happened this time was that they were annihilated without being able to radio back… I can’t think of any more explanations as to what happened. Our radio transmissions may also be affected by the jamming that disabled our radar.”
They couldn’t understand what was happening. The fear of the unknown proliferates all throughout the command room.
“Whatever the case, up until we discern the identity of the enemy, I advise that we hold back from sending the 2nd attack group!!”
“C-can we really do something like that?! We are coordinating this attack with the ground troops!! If we don’t reduce the enemy’s combat capacity with some air strikes… Furthermore, we need to achieve air superiority!! If we let the enemy take control of the skies, they can inflict untold damage on our ground troops!!”
Perth puts his head into overdrive.
“There’s also the possibility that they’ll attack the base. Send around 30 fighters for overhead patrol and defense!!!”
“Yes, sir!!!”
“Get the 2nd attack group on standby and ready to sally out, and then…”
“Re-reporting in!!! Sir, the radar screen!!!”
One of the subordinates interrupts Perth’s orders and reports in. It was clearly an emergency.
“What’s wrong?!”
Perth takes a look at the radar screen.
The screen was completely whited out and was displaying nothing; not even their own radar traces.
“Ah shit!!! Get those fighters up, now!!! We have an incoming attack!!!”
Feeling a hunch that an attack was coming, Perth yells out orders.
・・・
Several aircraft with airframes that blend into the skies fly at speeds unmatched in the world. These things, which had blue camouflage patterns, were flying at over 17,000m above sea level, far beyond the airspace possible for the aircraft of the Gra Valkas Empire.
Due to electronic jamming conducted in advance, they weren’t anticipating any imperial interceptors, but nervousness shrouded the pilots due to the fact that their enemy possessed anti-aircraft guns on the level of those from World War 2. The sound of their breathings mixed with the loud noises reverberating within the aircraft. Things seem to be getting rough.
With their enemy’s airpower temporarily disabled, 15 F-2 fighters fly overhead. In terms of appearance, they strongly resembled the American F-16 Fighting Falcon, but the F-2’s contents were different. At the onset of development, it was called a support fighter (fighter-bomber in international conventions) but now, it is just simply referred to as the F-2 fighter. While the aircraft was specialized for anti-ship attacks, it is also an excellent fighter in achieving air superiority.
“We’re about to reach the drop point…”
A pilot mutters. They were currently flying in radio silence.
“3… 2… 1… Dropping!!!”
After the war with the Parpaldia Empire, the Japanese government, which had painfully realized during the conflict that they were lacking in precision guided munitions, proactively ordered for the mass production of guided munitions.
An attack that will lead the empire to its ruin…
Capturing the reflection of a laser emitted by its parent aircraft, the LJDAM guided bombs released by the F-2 fighters fly towards the laser-radiated points on top of the Gra Valkas Empire’s Valkyries base.
Previous Chapter: Entering the War 2
Imperial capital Ragna, Gra Valkas Empire
Cars filled the streets as various monotonous buildings lined their side. If the inhabitants of this world were to look at it, they’d think it was the ultimate manifestation of mechanical civilization, while if a Japanese person were to take a glance at it, they’d probably see it as a city on the level of an old town. In a certain room at the imperial castle located at the heart of the city were two men talking to one another. Next to the two men stood a middle-aged man that served as their mediator.
“Father, I was thinking of going to inspect our frontline bases. If I, the crown prince, were to give them words of encouragement, and most importantly, for a member of the imperial family, to head to the frontlines, it would greatly increase the morale of our troops!!”
The crown prince of the Gra Valkas Empire, Gra Cabal, is asking for permission from his father, Emperor Gralux, to visit the frontlines.
“Cabal… The frontlines are vastly different from what you think they are. In order to welcome someone from the imperial family, there would be need for preparations. Those preparations, as well as the responsibility for the security of the imperial family will fall to the frontline soldiers.
In addition, there’s also the possibility of an unexpected attack from the enemy that would catch us off guard. The frontlines are a place where safety isn’t guaranteed.”
Emperor Gralux, who understood well the situation at the frontlines, warns the not-so-intelligent crown prince. For hectic places such as the frontlines, a visit from people that require security and protection is extremely bothersome.
“Father! The influence of the imperial family over the citizens is unfathomable! If someone from the imperial family were to visit, if the soldiers were to hear just that point, then their morale would increase! Isn’t that what’s usually written in the newspapers?”
Cabal has a specialty in remembering figures and events, but he has a habit of taking everything that is written down as fact and dismissing everything else. In short, he is terrible at scrutinizing information and he doesn’t understand the divergence between ideals and reality.
“…I’m not aware of the comings and goings there… at the frontlines… so, I think you should pay a visit to Foreign Affairs at Leifor.”
In the end, Emperor Gralux sends him to a place that won’t be a nuisance to the people at the frontlines.
“Father, the place that I will go to is not the Leifor sub-branch of Foreign Affairs. The place that I must go to is the frontline with Mu, Valkyries base. Father, I will exercise my power as crown prince in order to go there.”
By using his authority as crown prince to shake off the restraints keeping him in check, he can also shake off the necessity of having the emperor’s permission and instead report to the emperor after the fact.
It was decided that he will go to the frontline base of Valkyries for inspection.
After the talks, crown prince Gra Cabal mutters in his own quarters.
“Father doesn’t understand! The Gra Valkas Empire was shown the way by God to rule this world! The unequal balance of power between the empire and the barbarians of this world is clear… We don’t need to be afraid of countries such as Mu!!
Once Father passes on, I will be the king of the world!! The king of the world shouldn’t be afraid of matters such as going to the frontlines!!”
Those weren’t the only concerns the others had, but Cabal didn’t take notice of those and continued with preparations for the inspection of the frontlines.
・・・
Frontline base Valkyries, Leifor’s eastern sector, Gra Valkas Empire
At the airfield that was set up at the base, state-of-the-art Antares fighters were starting their engines and were pushing through with preparations to sally out. Besides the Antares fighters, lined up in an organized fashion were Sirius bombers and Vega twin-engine bombers which are exclusive to the Army Air Corps.
By carrying out multiple large-scale bombing runs with a total of 150 aircraft, the Army Air Corps were in high spirits to commence the operation to take the Mu town of Kielseki. The person responsible for carrying out the Army Air Corps’ operation, Perth, and supreme commander Army Commander Gaoggel were watching the scenery that was laid out before their eyes.
“What formidable power…”
The scenery was majestic… What unfolded before their eyes had an airpower unmatched by anyone in this world, save their own airpower. They felt so reassured by this power, that no matter how much strength was amassed against them, the enemy would never be able to overturn the situation of the war.
“When the Imperial Army’s 4th Division, our spearhead, begins their assault on the town, with our highly-motivated airpower, we might just be able to destroy the enemy army deployed in Kielseki… Borg might not even get his turn in the spotlight.”
A general with many battles under his belt, Perth places enormous faith on the combat strength of his subordinates.
“Just to be sure, we would be attenuating their land forces by sending our air corps to bomb the enemy base. After that, the mechanized forces of the 4th Division would pass through the hollow mountains and then emerge on the plains west of Kielseki. After they annihilate what’s left of the enemy’s main force and further elaborate bombings, infantry forces then move in to capture the town… Am I right?”
“Yeah. Down to the letter.”
“This Mu which calls itself the world’s 2nd strongest… They’re no match for the empire.”
“Indeed.”
Antares fighters begin taking off. Their overwhelming airpower, including their bombers, swivelled around in the sky and entered into formation as they headed east.
・・・
The skies south of the Ryūsei base, Mu
An aircraft unfamiliar to the people of Mu flies in the skies overhead. It’s twin engine propellers rotate as a huge disk-shaped object spins on top of its airframe. It’s world-class 3D radar captured several aircraft taking off from the Gra Valkas Empire’s Valkyries base in the sector of the former Leifor.
“Woah!! There’s so many!!”
It was a large formation of more than 80 aircraft. A formation of aircraft with a number unseen in modern warfare was reflected on the radar screen. Their number wouldn’t be that surprising to personnel that participated in the wars with Louria and Parpaldia, but to the personnel that were currently watching the scene unfold on the radar, this was their first taste of conflict.
Considering the course that they’re taking, their target is presumed to be likely the town of Kielseki which contains a station on the railroad connecting the continent’s north and south.
The data collected by the E-2C Hawkeye was then properly transmitted to Ryūsei base.
Ryūsei base
An ear-piercing buzzer rings out. The Air Self-Defense Force, which has sensed that the enemy invasion is nigh, has already prepared their 12 F-15s and 15 F-2s for sallying out. The fighters slowly trot across the ground towards the runway. The radar data has also been relayed to Mu’s air force, and so in order to protect their own country, they too have begun preparations to take off.
Palterim, a pilot of Mu’s proud state-of-the-art Marin fighter, caught a glimpse of a Japanese fighter entering the runway.
“Hm? So Japan’s army has also began to move, huh? I’m thankful for the support but there’s no chance in hell I’m letting you guys take the main role in this fight!”
Being the veteran pilot that he is, he emerges onto the runaway set up for use of Mu’s planes. He turned his engine to full power, strengthening the rotation of the propeller. His body is pushed against his seat.
“I… I will protect Mu!!!”
He has heard the rumors about the Gra Valkas Empire. They were the army of another world that boasted absurdly enormous power. However, Palterim’s morale and love for his country was stronger than most, and so he put his faith in the fruit of Mu’s technological development, the Marin, and thought not of taking any more delays.
The Marin accelerated favorably and took off.
“I will be the first spear to strike against those invaders!!!”
The sound of the engine along with the winds pummelling against the airframe made loud noises within the cabin. It was at that time when…
swooooOOOOOOOOOOOOSHHH!!!
After one of the Japanese army’s fighters flew past him from behind, it rapidly climbed up into the skies at a steep angle. The angle at which it climbed was something he had never seen before and the speed at which it flew past was staggering.
“N-no way!! Are those monsters?! Our dimensions are too different!!!”
The thing that had a speed that was clearly dimensions apart from his plane produced two flames behind it as it disappeared into the clear, blue skies.
・・・
Kielseki 1st attack group, Gra Valkas Empire
Inorganic-looking objects fly in the skies above the great mountain ranges.
Heavy sounds emitted by the engines of a total of 85 aircraft from the Kielseki 1st attack group echoed in the vicinity, creating a weird and eerie aura.
The bombing formation, which consisted of 19 Antares fighters, 41 Sirius bombers, and 25 Vega twin-engine bombers advanced favorably towards the town of Kielseki. Looking down below, the clouds entangled around the hollow mountains formed an ocean of clouds.
Platoon commander Spetz surveys the surroundings from his Antares fighter. The enemy is the world’s 2nd strongest superpower, which despite being part of the civilized areas, is clearly weak. It is highly likely that they will simply just fly over to bomb their targets and then return to base without any problems whatsoever.
Due to the threat posed by anti-air artillery, his sight was predominantly glued to the ground when suddenly, a bright light from the direction of the skies below the left of their formation shined momentarily.
“Huh?”
He raised his head, wondering what had happened at that moment.
“Wha-!!!”
At the same time he looked, the sound of an explosion reached his ears. Following a fierce explosion, one of the Vega twin-engine bombers split into four, falling into the sea of clouds as it burned.
The radio was suddenly full of flustered messages from everyone.
“What the hell just happened?!”
“I don’t know!!!”
“Check your surro-Ack!!!”
They had no idea what had just happened. Friendly aircraft began to explode one after another and the entire formation descended into a state of panic and confusion at the rapid death of dozens of their comrades. Eventually, their formation broke.
A total of 48 AAM-4 medium-range air-to-air guided missiles fired from 12 of Japan Air Self-Defense Force F-15J Kai (MSIP config) fighters flew straight to their targets, sweeping down on the Gra Valkas Imperial Army Air Corps. One of the domestically-designed AAM-4 missiles, which can even intercept cruise missiles, had a defect mid-flight, but the other 47 missiles found their targets.
“Wha-what the fuck is happening?! Where is the enemy attacking from?!”
They found it difficult to comprehend what was happening. The only sight that spread out before their eyes were the silhouettes of friendly planes being pulverized one after another and falling out of the sky in embers.
Aside from the moment following their launch, the AAM-4 missiles cannot be directly sighted since they don’t even emit white trails in terminal guidance and they also travel at Mach 4 to Mach 5.
Breaking formation to escape an attack of unknown origin, every aircraft flew in their own respective directions. The attack was not limited to the bombers as Antares fighter escorts were destroyed without exception.
“Nnggggh!!!”
Concluding that flying in high altitude where visibility was good is dangerous, Spetz began to turn around and dive. Behind him, the explosions continued as many lives were lost to the heavens. He had no idea what was under the blanket of clouds, but since he could be reliably attacked if he continued to fly at high altitude, he dived straight through the sea of clouds.
“Woah!!”
Slipping through the sea of clouds and following a short interval of empty air, the hollow mountains appeared before him.
“T-there’s no way forward but through there!!”
At this rate, I’ll hit the ground!!
His head dives into overdrive. Already on a near-vertical dive, he raises the nose of his plane and manages to slip under a tunnel-like formation created by a long stone above the hollow mountains. As soon as he slipped past it…
Boom!!!
The pillar on the hollow mountains from which he had just slipped through seems to have been destroyed by the enemy attack. Looking back, the stone pillar collapsed following an explosion.
“That was close… What the hell are we fighting against?!”
Terror enveloped him for a moment, but after brushing off the attack, he began to climb back up the sea of clouds to link up with the formation.
There was the occasional sound of explosions which were loud enough to be heard from within the cabin as clumps of flames fell towards the mountains. As soon as he neared the sea of clouds, he began to hear loud bangs that sound like thunderclaps. Voices which he couldn’t discern if they were reports or screams filled his radio. It seems that they were in disarray.
“Who dares treat the Imperial Army like children…!!”
While struggling with his fears, he continued to climb to fulfill his professional duties and eventually he slipped past the sea of clouds.
“W-what the?! What the hell is happening?!”
The empire’s proud Antares fighters and many of their high-performance bombers boasted overwhelming combat capacities in the previous world and this one. The speeds unleashed by their high-output engines prevented the enemy from catching up to them, crushing other aircraft completely with their fierce turn rate. The friendly aircraft before his eyes certainly aren’t weak and are no doubt a force to be reckoned with.
At least that should have been the case.
Their air corps, which boasts formidable aircraft performance and exceptional skills gained from hell-like training, was helplessly destroyed and reduced to balls of flames left to fall into the clouds.
It wasn’t just 1 or 2 aircraft. All of their planes were being rapidly engulfed in flames and shot down.
And then there were their unidentified enemies which were flying around with unbelievable speeds that far surpassed that of the empire’s aircraft. Their airframes were sharp like arrowheads and had swept-wings that stretched to their rear. Moreover, they flew without the use of propellers. Their preposterous flight speed cannot be explained in a single word and it can only be expressed in dimensions far beyond their own.
The Antares fighters that were left faced their noses at the direction of the enemy to try to shoot them down, but the disparity in their speed was too great and they were the ones that were easily shot down instead.
“W-what’s that?!”
The weapons that shot down his comrades seemed to be in the form of rockets. Friendly aircraft tried to dodge them, but it was clear from his perspective that the rockets visibly changed course to follow them. The machine guns used by the enemy also seem to have enormous range and firepower, pulverizing their bombers to shreds.
“T-this isn’t happening!!! At this rate, the empire will…!! Huh?”
Painted on the airframe were modest red circles on top of bigger white circles which served as their outline.
“T-that insignia… Is that the Japanese army?!?!”
The country of Japan was also the recipient of the empire’s declaration of war. Being the same transferred nation, they allied themselves with Mu and were believed to not be in the possession of a large military force. However, judging from what he is seeing, there was an extreme gap in their combat strength against Japan’s fighters. Moreover, judging from the number of enemies he could see within range, they were only a little less than 10 fighters… Their 85 aircraft strong force is being near-decimated by only 10 fighters. The inequality in their weapons performance was hopelessly staggering.
Going further into this war at this rate, the empire will be dealt a massive blow. He intuitively reaches out for his radio.
“HQ!! HQ!! We are under attack!! We are under attack!! The enemy is tremendously fast!!
They’re Japanese fighters!! The enemy is the country of Japan!!! We’re being wiped o-Ack!!!”
As Spetz was reporting back, a line of light ran through the sky towards him. Shots fired from the 20mm rotary cannon of a F-15 fighter brushed against the right wing of his Antares fighter, annihilating the wingtips and sending the aircraft in a spin.
Spetz’s Antares fighter was once again diving towards the sea of clouds as it spun out of control.
“Nggggghh!! I won’t let you fall!!! I won’t let you fall!!!”
The airframe shook violently as the plane continued to spin due to damage from the right wing. Flames sprouted from the right wing. The faces of his wife and children that had just entered elementary school appeared in the back of his mind.
“Am I… going to die?!”
He desperately tried to wrestle control of the aircraft. The aileron on the right wing isn’t moving… Making full use of the left aileron, rudder, and elevator, he eventually managed to bring the aircraft to a level flight.
“HQ!!! HQ!!! Tsk!!!”
As soon as he tried to operate the radio equipment, it somehow broke down and stopped functioning altogether. Worrying over fuel, he focused all of his nerves on heading back to base.
85 aircraft of the Gra Valkas Imperial Army Air Corps’ Kielseki 1st attack group was intercepted and annihilated by 12 F-15 fighters of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force in the skies above the hollow mountains.
・・・
Air operations command room, Frontline base Valkyries, Gra Valkas Empire
“Wha… what the hell happened?!”
Sweat trickled down from Perth’s forehead.
Suddenly, the area of the radar screen where the 1st attack group was flying became white. It wasn’t a radar malfunction, since it was only that part of the screen that had something like white metallic fragments being sprinkled all over. They concluded that there’s concerns of it being some sort of jamming.
They thought it was implausible for a lowly civilized country to conduct radio jamming, but they soon received a radio transmission that threw headquarters into terror.
“…we’re being attacked!! We’re… attacked… They’re fast… panese fighters… country of Japan… being wiped o…”
Shortly afterwards, the radar started to work normally, but the points of light that should’ve been their friendly aircraft were no longer reflecting on the radar screen.
“The 1st attack group has completely disappeared from radar in the skies over the hollow mountains.”
One of the officers reports with a sorrowful voice. The situation in which the glorious Gra Valkas Imperial Army Air Corps was annihilated is something that shouldn’t be happening. It had pulverized the wyverns of the air force of the uncivilized countries and the selectively-bred class of wyvern lords were no match for their fighters. Even the air force of the country that calls itself the world’s 2nd strongest country was helpless against them. They even heard that the fighters of the world’s number 1 country, the Holy Mirishial Empire, were hopelessly outclassed by their empire’s Antares fighters.
Despite all that, the glorious air corps’ 1st attack wave was annihilated. Their losses weren’t just 25%, 50%, or even 90%… They were completely annihilated.
“Tha…that’s preposterous!!!”
Perth subconsciously says out loud.
“W-wait… Could the Holy Mirishial Empire have sent their aerial battleships again?”
He has heard of them from rumors. The aerial battleships of the Holy Mirishial Empire seem to have dealt catastrophic casualties to the Imperial Navy Air Corps. If they were their enemy, then it is possible for them to have annihilated their attack group.
“No… If they were up against an aerial battleship of the Holy Mirishial Empire, then we should have received transmissions over the radio of what kind of enemy they were and what kind of attack they were facing.
What happened this time was that they were annihilated without being able to radio back… I can’t think of any more explanations as to what happened. Our radio transmissions may also be affected by the jamming that disabled our radar.”
They couldn’t understand what was happening. The fear of the unknown proliferates all throughout the command room.
“Whatever the case, up until we discern the identity of the enemy, I advise that we hold back from sending the 2nd attack group!!”
“C-can we really do something like that?! We are coordinating this attack with the ground troops!! If we don’t reduce the enemy’s combat capacity with some air strikes… Furthermore, we need to achieve air superiority!! If we let the enemy take control of the skies, they can inflict untold damage on our ground troops!!”
Perth puts his head into overdrive.
“There’s also the possibility that they’ll attack the base. Send around 30 fighters for overhead patrol and defense!!!”
“Yes, sir!!!”
“Get the 2nd attack group on standby and ready to sally out, and then…”
“Re-reporting in!!! Sir, the radar screen!!!”
One of the subordinates interrupts Perth’s orders and reports in. It was clearly an emergency.
“What’s wrong?!”
Perth takes a look at the radar screen.
The screen was completely whited out and was displaying nothing; not even their own radar traces.
“Ah shit!!! Get those fighters up, now!!! We have an incoming attack!!!”
Feeling a hunch that an attack was coming, Perth yells out orders.
・・・
Several aircraft with airframes that blend into the skies fly at speeds unmatched in the world. These things, which had blue camouflage patterns, were flying at over 17,000m above sea level, far beyond the airspace possible for the aircraft of the Gra Valkas Empire.
Due to electronic jamming conducted in advance, they weren’t anticipating any imperial interceptors, but nervousness shrouded the pilots due to the fact that their enemy possessed anti-aircraft guns on the level of those from World War 2. The sound of their breathings mixed with the loud noises reverberating within the aircraft. Things seem to be getting rough.
With their enemy’s airpower temporarily disabled, 15 F-2 fighters fly overhead. In terms of appearance, they strongly resembled the American F-16 Fighting Falcon, but the F-2’s contents were different. At the onset of development, it was called a support fighter (fighter-bomber in international conventions) but now, it is just simply referred to as the F-2 fighter. While the aircraft was specialized for anti-ship attacks, it is also an excellent fighter in achieving air superiority.
“We’re about to reach the drop point…”
A pilot mutters. They were currently flying in radio silence.
“3… 2… 1… Dropping!!!”
After the war with the Parpaldia Empire, the Japanese government, which had painfully realized during the conflict that they were lacking in precision guided munitions, proactively ordered for the mass production of guided munitions.
An attack that will lead the empire to its ruin…
Capturing the reflection of a laser emitted by its parent aircraft, the LJDAM guided bombs released by the F-2 fighters fly towards the laser-radiated points on top of the Gra Valkas Empire’s Valkyries base.
