“`
“We will prepare for the worst, and we shall fight a desperate battle with the enemy in our capital, our heart! We have a defensive line that spans 330 kilometers, a capital Fortress manned by 200,000 people, and the million-strong army that is soon to come from our allied forces! I will ensure that those alien invaders crash and bleed against the Fortress that Stefanians have built with their flesh and blood!”
“No matter how powerful the alien invaders are, no matter how advanced their weaponry, we will make them witness the valor of the Stefanians!”
“In the name of the Queen, I swear that I will fight alongside my subjects to defend this nation, and we will not take a single step back!”
“I believe that we will ultimately achieve a complete victory in this war!”
Under the Iron Curtain Queen’s speech, generals and ministers shouted and raised their arms in cheer!
Their morale was boosted, they trusted their Queen, and they were willing to shed their last drop of blood for Her Majesty!
However, just at that moment, a muffled sound penetrated the shouting of the officials, unclear but still firm enough to reach everyone’s ears.
The cheers and applause gradually ceased, followed by more and more frequent muffled sounds that kept coming, seemingly getting closer and closer.
Many thought it sounded like gunfire. But they also found the idea too incredible; under the Iron Curtain of the Queen, who would dare to fire a gun inside the Stefano Fortress?
As for that more terrifying possibility…
No one wanted to believe it was real.
Logically, how could the Alliance Army, which was still 300 kilometers away this morning, possibly have come so close in the afternoon, past the defensive line of 100,000 soldiers, past the strong Fortress defended by 200,000, that their gunfire could be heard by these individuals?
Were divine troops descending from the sky?
Even if there really were such divine troops descending, they would be shot down!
The Stefano Fortress had a complete orbital defense system. No matter whether it was airdrops from planes or orbital drops, it would not be so easy to break in.
So, what was really happening?
At this moment, the Iron Curtain Queen’s face really was as stern as iron.
Without her needing to give an order, the close attending military officer had already rushed out to find out what exactly had happened.
However, barely a minute or two later, the military officer who had left came back.
Isabel’s close attending officers, all of whom were promising young elites, were born into military families with solid military training. The Iron Curtain Queen established the position of close attending officers to gather these young talents, to develop their abilities, their loyalty, and to facilitate their future deployment to various armies, replacing the Queen in controlling the military power of the Kingdom.
They were supposed to maintain a poker face in all situations.
But when truly facing a catastrophe, how many people who prided themselves on their composure could actually remain calm?
The returning officer looked panicked, his steps frantic.
He said, “Your Majesty, the enemy has breached the Fortress!”
This officer’s father, a general of the Kingdom, was present. He couldn’t stand the sight and stood up, scolding, “What’s with the panic?! It’s probably just a small group of infiltrators…”
Yet, the officer defiantly retorted, “It is indeed a small group, but they are Interstellar Warriors!”
Now, there was a real silence.
Interstellar Warriors? The ones known as the Emperor’s Death Angels?
They remembered the intelligence.
About two years ago, during the turmoil initiated by the Luman Kingdom against the Gu Family, the forces that had beaten up the Luman military indeed included the appearance of Interstellar Warriors.
Even though many thinkers within the Kingdom concluded from their limited understanding of the Interstellar Warriors that this unexpectedly powerful force was only invited occasionally to deal with Luman Kingdom affairs. Given the rarity of the Interstellar Warriors, it was unlikely they could be recruited repeatedly by a single power.
But, adhering to the spirit of expecting the worst in every plan and preparing for it as comprehensively as possible, they still included the extraordinary force of the Interstellar Warriors in their defense planning.
The Kingdom’s military thinkers wracked their brains with the limited intelligence they had, estimating the combat capabilities of the Interstellar Warriors, and conceived many ways to deal with these Super Soldiers.
“`
But now, the frontline battlefield hasn’t even encountered those Angels of The Emperor, yet the capital, which should have been extraordinarily safe, has been struck first?
How is that possible? Even if they are Interstellar Warriors, how did they get in?
In the midst of silence, that military officer couldn’t help himself. He spoke up again: “I saw the surveillance, those red-armored giants wiping out the stationed Knights as if there was no difference between them and the unarmed civilians they slaughter. The Royal Knights couldn’t stop their advance at all! Your Majesty the Queen, generals, ministers, you must retreat now while you still can!”
“Shut up!” The general, who was the officer’s father, spoke out once again.
He was worried his son might anger the Iron Curtain Queen.
Just moments before, Her Majesty the Queen had proclaimed before all the ministers that she would live and die with her subjects, and fight to the end against the enemy, without retreating. And now his boy was clamoring for people to run?
Do you have a death wish, doesn’t Her Majesty still care about her dignity?
With some concern, he glanced towards the head of the table, only to see Her Majesty the Queen, pale with anger, wordlessly turning and walking away.
…
Anat put down the bomb gun in his hands, still smoking from the barrel, watching as the last Sentry Mecha, painted orange-red, fell before him.
Although he had only been an Interstellar Warrior for two years, he was already accustomed to battle.
His gaze shifted to a middle-aged woman in military attire, trembling but holding a pistol, trying hard to stay calm, and the group of people following her. Inside his helmet, he whispered in a volume that couldn’t be heard outside: “Group A has cleared all enemies, target captured, confirmed as the Queen of the Kingdom of Stefano, Isabel.”
He didn’t think he had said anything wrong.
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Even though the Queen was holding a gun and a few young officers nearby, and those so-called generals and ministers at the back were also holding self-defense weapons, in his eyes, there was indeed no danger anymore.
New orders came through the built-in communication system of his helmet: “Take all targets to the rendezvous point, try to ensure they do not die.”
“Understood.”
After acknowledging the order, he looked up at the local dignitaries in front of him and said: “You have been captured. Now, please follow me and do not attempt any form of resistance.”
Behind him, five other warriors slowly stepped forward, using their gun barrels to direct the captives back the way they came. Anat himself walked directly towards the Queen.
A young officer, mustering his courage, stepped in front of him, opening his mouth as if to say something, but Anat just waved his hand, the iron backhand striking his face and taking his head off.
Anat’s stride didn’t falter as he came up to the ‘Queen’: “Isabel.”
He spoke her name flatly, without any superfluous words, but the barrel of his gun adequately conveyed his intent.
The Iron Curtain Queen clenched her teeth but could only stagger along in the direction indicated by the barrel of the gun, totally powerless.
They returned to the conference hall where the military meeting had begun.
Six red-armored giants guarded all the entrances and exits. Anyone who dared to come in or tried to sneak out would be turned to dust and smoke under their bomb guns.
Inside, including the Iron Curtain Queen herself, more than twenty people hadn’t even been disarmed.
Nonetheless, they couldn’t even think about resisting.
They didn’t even dare to speak.
It was in this way, as they occasionally heard the sounds of gunfire, that they spent half an hour until they saw two more squads of Interstellar Warriors walk in.
“All anti-air systems have been shut down.”
“In one hour, the Special Forces of the 10th Brigade will be air-dropped here.”
“To take control of the entire Fortress region, we have to ensure that when the main corps arrives two days from now, this city will be without obstructions.”
“We guarantee to complete the mission.”