Hearing Shido's resolute and unwavering answer, Kotori's almost imperceptible smile finally widened into a satisfied grin, filled with approval and the sentiment of "As expected of my brother."
"Very good," she uttered softly, then swiftly changed her body's direction, casting her gaze upon the entire crew standing ready below the bridge. She raised her hand, her voice clear and strong, resounding throughout the bridge:
"All personnel, confirm final preparations! Ratatoskr's operation against the Spirit, commence immediately!"
"Understood!"
"Preparation complete!"
"System all green!"
The crew responded in unison, their hands simultaneously performing dazzling operations on the control panels.
Data streams rapidly refreshed on the main screen, various parameters and targeting reticles locking onto the target area below. The hum of the system and the confirmation of commands echoed within the bridge, and the atmosphere instantly became tense and efficient.
As Kotori gazed at this orderly scene, operating like a precise instrument, she shifted the precious jewel in her mouth to the other side, gently licking her lips with her tongue. Her eyes gleamed with a sharp, excited light, like a raptor spotting its prey.
Then, with her unique voice, a blend of a maiden's sweetness and a Commander's authority, she uttered her signature line, which was both a declaration of war and an invitation:
"Well then—let our war (DATE) begin."
These words were like an invisible switch being pressed; Fraxinus's entire operation seemed to shift into a higher gear.
The transfer device began to charge, emitting a faint glow, directly aimed at the battlefield below, where smoke and rain intertwined.
Shido took a deep breath, feeling the surging energy and firm resolve within the bridge. He knew there was no turning back.
He had to go to that girl, to forge a different path amidst the hail of bullets.
His date (war) had begun.
However, just as Shido took a deep breath, preparing to step into the transfer light column and rush to the battlefield called "date,"
Koushi suddenly leaped forward, raising his hand, a perfectly timed look of confusion and a hint of mischievous grin on his face, and loudly asked:
"Um—Commander! Allow me to interrupt! So... according to the plan, do I also need to go down with Shido?"
He scratched his head, displaying an expression that said, "This doesn't seem right," and continued to explain:
"Look, the Spirit we're supposed to 'capture' this time, according to you all, is that blue-haired girl called The Hermit, not my troublesome sister Chinatsu."
"Shido is going down to fulfill his sacred (?) mission of 'dating her and making her blush.' Me, a grown man, trailing behind him as a third wheel... that's not very appropriate, is it? It'll ruin the atmosphere!"
As he spoke, he lightly nudged Shido, who was about to depart, with his elbow, winking and whispering:
"Right, brother? You don't want an audience watching your pick-up live broadcast all the way, do you? Especially someone like me, who's skilled at making snarky comments."
Shido, disturbed by his antics, nearly lost his serious demeanor and shot him an annoyed glare.
Kotori, sitting in the captain's chair, heard this and lightly tapped her chin with the lollipop stick, pondering for a moment.
She glanced at The Hermit, who was still awkwardly dodging the AST's pursuit on the screen, then at Koushi, who had a "I don't want to be a third wheel" expression, and nodded.
"Hmm... your concern has some merit. Under normal circumstances, Shido's 'date' does require as much external interference to be eliminated as possible, especially from someone like you, who comes with an 'unstable snarky aura.'"
But she changed her tone, her eyes sharpening: "However, considering Chinatsu—she is very likely to invite every manifested Spirit, just like she tried to approach Tohka before, attempting to form her so-called Anti-Entropy organization."
"As someone who currently has a deep connection with her and is a crucial part of our plan, you must be on standby near the scene."
She offered a compromise: "How about this, you still transfer down, but you don't need to stick close to Shido. You wait on the edge of the battlefield, in a relatively safe area with an open view."
"Once Chinatsu's Spirit wave reaction is detected, or if she truly appears and attempts to contact The Hermit, you must intervene immediately."
"Understood? Your primary mission is to deal with a potentially appearing Chinatsu, not to interfere with Shido's capture."
Hearing this arrangement, Koushi immediately made an "OK" gesture, a relaxed expression on his face that said, "That's more like it":
"Understood! Mission accomplished! Infiltrate, stake out, make a grand entrance at the critical moment to disrupt... ah, no, to deal with! I'm good at this!"
He patted Shido's shoulder, chuckled, and said: "Go on, Shido, go capture your little girl with peace of mind. Your godfather will be right beside you to hold the fort, and also to guard against my troublesome'sister' causing trouble."
Thus, after clarifying their respective missions, Shido and Koushi successively stepped into the transfer light column.
Their goal was the same—that perilous battlefield—but their respective missions were entirely different.
—One was for salvation and a date, the other was to deal with potential "family" and greater variables.
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