The Rashudia fleet had committed the largest number of ships in this campaign, mobilizing a full two hundred million vessels in their bid for the first victory. However, half of them had been dispatched earlier as part of a flanking maneuver.
The remaining half, positioned at the forefront of the battle lines and lacking the sacrificial buffer of outer-ring civilizations, suffered significant losses. By the ti the retreat order was issued, only about seventy to eighty million ships remained.
After Conradus gave the retreat command, the Rashudia fleet executed a prearranged plan. While other civilizations were still entangled in disputes over who should retreat first, the Rashudia had already turned their ships around, moved to a safe distance, and begun accelerating into warp travel.
What had initially been an action that inspired envy among the representatives quickly turned into panic. The Rashudia fleet had unwittingly demonstrated a grim truth: the Swarm’s failure to trigger the energy systems wasn’t due to inability but rather waiting for the right mont.
Of the seventy million Rashudia ships, approximately twenty million exploded on the spot, their catastrophic detonations outshining even the distant light of Star System One’s sun.
Less than twenty million ships managed to force their way into warp travel. Though their subsequent fates were unknown, their prospects were bleak.
Among these ships was the flagship of the Confederation’s supre commander, Conradus. Despite quantum communication technology capable of penetrating warp space, Conradus had not responded to the nurous ssages sent by the various races of the Confederation.
Nearly ten million Rashudia ships did not enter warp space but instead attempted to flee using sub-light engines. Optical observations revealed explosions erupting across their hulls. So ships were instantly annihilated, reduced to debris, while others retained their primary structure but clearly had their energy systems and engines destroyed. Drifting with inertia, they were headed toward unknown destinations.
However, their positions remained within the gravitational influence of the star system. Without propulsion, they would likely be captured by the star’s gravity, settling into orbits around it. Even if they avoided capture, they wouldn’t escape back ho. Their fate would likely be even worse, as the asteroid belt outside the star system would probably mark their final resting place.
Though the Confederation forces had previously cleared so asteroids from the belt, there were undoubtedly remnants, and reinforcents had since replenished the field. Even if the density was now lower, it was still far too dangerous for powerless ships to traverse.
As for the remaining twenty million ships, they gradually decelerated and ca to a halt. With their command systems in disarray, it would take so ti before they could establish new lines of communication through quantum networks and rebuild a functioning command structure.
The representatives watched all this unfold with growing unease. Although many representatives in the virtual eting room had displayed bravado, even so mid-ring civilizations hoped to leverage their relatively intact fleets to negotiate better terms.
But when it ca ti to speak up or make demands, they fell silent. Consequently, the surrender ssage sent to the Swarm was brief, containing only the most basic request. The humane treatnt of prisoners.
“Will the Swarm accept our surrender?” At this point, the representatives felt uneasy. Though traces of foreign presence had been discovered in Swarm territory, this didn’t guarantee that the Swarm would accept captives.
“Perhaps…” A representative’s bitter smile betrayed his resignation. At this stage, all they could do was leave their fate to chance. Even if the Swarm refused to accept their surrender, what options did they have? Even with their relatively intact firepower, what good would it do to wipe out the remaining hundred million Swarm units?
Without propulsion, they could only wait for Swarm reinforcents to arrive, bringing judgnt and retribution. Perhaps obliterating the Swarm units entirely would reduce their chances of successful surrender to zero, sealing their doom.
In truth, they hadn’t entirely given up on resistance. This wasn’t deep within Swarm territory. Though closer to Swarm space than to the Confederation’s borders, it wasn’t excessively far from the Confederation’s domain either.
If they could hold out until their own reinforcents arrived, perhaps they wouldn’t have to endure such humiliation. But when they communicated with their rear command, they received the last piece of news they wanted to hear—the straw that broke the cal’s back.
There would be no reinforcents. The thod by which the Swarm had infiltrated their ships remained a mystery. Sending reinforcents now risked sending them into the sa trap, turning them into fodder for an endless war of attrition. After deliberation, the Confederation high command decided to withhold reinforcents until the situation was fully understood.
Even if reinforcents had been approved, it was unlikely they could save everyone. When the Rashudia launched this campaign, they had effectively drained their frontline base of resources. Aside from outdated ships belonging to outer-ring civilizations that lacked warp drives, nearly every vessel capable of keeping up with the main fleet had been deployed.
Under these circumstances, any reinforcents would consist of newly arrived units at the frontlines, but their numbers would be insufficient to evacuate so many powerless hulks.
The process of surrender was straightforward. The representatives broadcast a regional transmission toward the Swarm’s position, using the most basic form of information dissemination to openly send their ssage in the designated direction.
Any civilization with an industrial foundation should have the ans to receive such information. Though the Swarm primarily pursued a biotechnological path and their thods of communication remained enigmatic, the representatives believed the Swarm was more than capable of receiving and interpreting these signals—if they so desired.
Ti ticked by slowly. The surrender ssage had been sent for so ti now. Given the relatively short distance, the information, traveling at light speed, should have reached the Swarm’s position long ago.
To avoid mishaps, the ssage had been repeated several tis. Yet, aside from ceasing fire, the Swarm’s base gave no response.
“Could it be that the Swarm can’t receive our ssage?” Fear caused the weaker beings’ rationality to plumt. The Swarm’s prolonged silence spread terror among those awaiting judgnt, prompting so representatives to ask seemingly naive questions.
“Haha, how could that be? What do you think biotechnology is—stupid beasts? They’re experts in electromagnetics. Those signals aren’t encrypted, but even if they were, cracking them wouldn’t be difficult for the Swarm.”
“Stop overthinking. They definitely received the ssage. Don’t forget, during earlier battles, the Swarm deliberately jamd our communications.”
[T/N:
Hey everyone,
I’ve noticed this novel has started showing up on a few external sites—and honestly, that’s totally okay. I’ve spent plenty of ti reading on those sites myself, so I completely get it.
That said, if you’re enjoying the story and want to support the translations, feel free to check out my Patreon. I always keep 5 extra chapters unlocked and free to read there, and your support really helps keep going.
Also, if you’re looking for more to read, I’m currently translating two other novels:
I Beca the Vampire Progenitor (Patreon-exclusive) – A darker supernatural fantasy with kingdom-building and survival elents.
Rebirth of the Super Battleship – A hard sci-fi story about a genius who becos a sentient warship after humanity’s fall.
Thanks so much for reading—and as always, I really appreciate the support!]
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