Chapter 132: Retreat
A bullet passed close to my face.
“Major General Willard! We can’t continue attacking like this!”
At first, we had fought only destroyers.
Then the light cruisers arrived, followed by battleships carrying far more anti-aircraft weapons.
Heavy machine-gun fire now filled the sky above the enemy fleet.
We could still evade it, but we could no longer approach closely enough to attack effectively.
“It can’t be helped. Everyone withdraw!”
The magic aerial soldiers broke away and returned to their assigned ships.
Fortunately, the vessels carrying them hadn’t yet been sunk, so they could resume their other duties aboard the fleet.
I returned to our battleship.
“Noah!”
Emma hurried toward me as soon as I landed.
“You made it back safely.”
“Somehow. But the situation is getting worse.”
We went below deck and headed toward the operations room.
The ship trembled each time shells landed nearby.
“What happened to the route toward the Orline Empire?” Emma asked.
I had already reported seeing ships ahead of us, and she understood what that meant.
“The Friez Kingdom anticipated that we would retreat toward Orline territory. Their fleet is already blocking the route.”
“I see…”
Captain Fall Yurick was waiting in the operations room.
“Major General Willard. I’m glad you returned safely.”
Emma delivered my report immediately.
“The enemy is waiting along our escape route. We’ve been surrounded.”
Captain Yurick lowered his gaze.
“So they cornered us this easily. As officers of the Lunoa Navy, this is disgraceful.”
“No,” Emma said. “No one could have predicted that the Friez Kingdom would gather a fleet of this size here. The war on land has quieted, yet the largest battle is taking place at sea.”
The officers continued performing their duties, but the room had grown heavy with resignation.
Captain Yurick looked at me.
“Major General Willard… even if the fleet can’t escape, you and Her Highness still may be able to—”
I shook my head before he could finish.
“There are still things we can try. We should exhaust every possibility before accepting defeat.”
I looked around the operations room.
“We may have to force our way through, but I won’t abandon everyone while there’s still a chance.”
No one objected.
The fleet was cornered, but the battle wasn’t yet over.