"What are we to do now? The 20-Third Fleet has been annihilated to the last by a T5-grade interstellar warship that suddenly appeared, and the 20-Third Fleet's commander has fallen besides!"
The commander of the 20-Fifth Demon Race Fleet, charged with the assault upon Leona's fleets, was the first to receive word that the 20-Third Fleet had been annihilated.
The 20-Fifth Demon Fleet's commander at once made contact with the other two demon commanders.
And those other two demon commanders were at that hour burnt at head and scorched at brow over the deadlock upon the frontal field, and their inability to take any advantage of it.
Hearing this news, they were shocked past all bearing.
"What! They actually have a T5-grade interstellar warship? How is that possible? Even we of the Demon Race have but a few T5-grade interstellar warships. How could the natives here possibly hold interstellar warships so advanced as that!"
"Fool! Is this the hour to be speaking of such things? The other side's T5-grade interstellar warship is set out there before our eyes. What we ought to be settling now is the battle plan to come!"
The three demon commanders began to discuss how the case was to be handled hereafter.
Their three Demon Race fleets belonged to this expedition's second echelon, and their task was to assist and act in concert with the operational tasks of the first echelon's 20-Third Demon Fleet.
Upon the battle reports the 20-Third Demon Fleet had sent back before, they had all judged this an exceedingly easy and simple operational task.
But by the look of it now, it was nothing of the kind.
The interstellar warships opposite were thornier even than those hypocritical angels!
And the 20-Third Fleet's demon commander, charged with leading this operation, had fallen outright; so that this thorny problem was now flung down before them.
"Enough. Let us simply put it to a vote and decide. Those in favor of continuing the battle, raise your hands." The demon commander of the blunt and forthright temper cut off everyone's wrangling outright.
He had seen through it well enough: neither of these two fellows before him was willing to put forward what he truly thought, which came to nothing more than an unwillingness to bear the responsibility.
Very well then; he would simply throw the business out and have everyone make a straight choice.
At this the other two demon commanders were left blank, and put off and put off raising a hand.
"Five seconds more. If no hand is raised. It shall count as opposing the continuation of the battle, and we shall withdraw at once from this fight, fall back to a place of safety, make contact with the Empire, report the case, and then lay our plans." The forthright demon commander said it gravely.
The other two demon commanders made no sound.
The five seconds were very soon up.
Not one had raised a hand.
Not one of them was willing to go on fighting here any longer — and there was a T5-grade interstellar warship besides, and a whole flock of interstellar missile ships!
Who could say whether, fighting on, they might not tread in the 20-Third Fleet's footsteps.
"Since no one favors continuing the battle. Very well. From this moment. We gather in our several fleets at once and make ready for the work of withdrawal. Remember! There is to be no disorder in the withdrawal; the three fleets are to cover one another. And should anyone dare set his own interests first, let him not complain when we all tear off the mask!" This forthright demon commander glared at the two of them.
The ugly words spoken first; and so he need not fear that these two fellows would play some trick when the hour came.
Very soon the order to withdraw was passed down through these three Demon Race fleets.
The three Demon Race fleets began by degrees to gather in their formations, turning from their former attack to defense, and began to withdraw by stages from the region of the field.
"The Demon Race fleets are withdrawing! Those fellows are pulling out!" The adjutant beside Leona sprang up outright in his excitement.
The petty officers upon the bridge cheered and leapt at this hour as well, some of them weeping for very joy.
From their former collapse, when they had believed death certain past all doubt.
To turning peril into safety now.
The changes of this hair's-breadth escape had put their feelings past all control.
"This is a chance seldom to be had. Should we not make contact with the Owl Dragon Legion and pursue the enemy!" the adjutant asked in excitement.
Set against what she had been before, Leona at this hour was a good deal cooler and steadier. She said mildly, "Pursue? With what are we to pursue? To the eye, we have now driven back the enemy and hold the advantage. In fact the enemy's chief strength has not been annihilated by us at all. And after passing through that stretch of high-intensity fighting just now, our interstellar warships, if their resources are not drained to the bottom, have very little left; they cannot possibly support a battle of pursuit. And even upon the Owl Dragon Legion's side, by any estimate the case is no better. Their interstellar warships are very strong; but in the engagement just now the intensity of the fighting was several times ours, and one interstellar warship commonly had to be used as four or five. To say nothing of those interstellar missile ships. They are very satisfying in use. But the quantity of missiles consumed behind it is a figure terrible past all telling. Have you not observed that those interstellar missile ship fleet groups, even having completed a fresh round of interstellar missile resupply, have put off and put off delivering another round of saturation firepower strike?"
Upon the present case Leona had made a rigorous analysis.
And very soon their side received besides an order transmitted from the Owl Dragon Legion.
No interstellar warship upon the Warhammer's side was permitted to pursue on its own authority; all were to await the Owl Dragon Legion's command!
——————
T5 Hades-class Interstellar Dreadnought · bridge.
"Are we not pursuing?" Xue Xiaoxiao looked at Commander-in-Chief Zhao Chen, unsatisfied.
"I should like to pursue as well, but the strategic resources we prepared are not enough. To speak honestly, if these Demon Race interstellar warships truly went on fighting us to the end. Perhaps we should win at the last; but by the end of that fight a great many of our strategic supplies would show shortfalls, and by then even a victory would be got at an exceedingly great price." Zhao Chen said it helplessly.
This was the Owl Dragon Legion's soft underbelly at present.
A soft underbelly very hard to remedy in any short time.
Its capacity for short-duration combat was very strong; but to conduct annihilation warfare upon a great scale was exceedingly difficult.
"So earlier, when I discussed it with Charlotte. Since we were to give battle to the Demon Race fleets, then we might as well set out our whole presence at the very first. Six Owl Dragon legions, two special fleets, and our own T5 Hades — all of them drawn out. And overawe the enemy outright. By the look of it now, this move of ours has been exceedingly successful." Zhao Chen let out a breath.
Xue Xiaoxiao nodded in understanding; then something suddenly occurred to her. "Ah, right — we agreed the whole army was to go out. Why is it that down to this moment I have not seen Wan'er's special fleet at all?"
The corners of Zhao Chen's mouth lifted slightly; he pointed in the direction of the Demon Race fleets' withdrawal. "I said that we cannot go on fighting. But I never said we should let these Demon Race fleets withdraw in such peace and quiet as that. If they will withdraw, they must leave a little something behind."
And just as Zhao Chen was speaking.
Upon the road by which those Demon Race fleets withdrew, interstellar torpedoes and interstellar missiles sprang out from none knew where.
And blocked a part of the Demon Race fleets outright, and brought them to a stand.
Thereafter a pursuit fleet made up of interstellar battlecruisers and interstellar cruisers, long since standing by, came on like a wolf pack that has caught the smell of blood.
And ringed these Demon Race fleets that had fallen behind about on every side.
As for those Demon Race fleets that had already withdrawn — of these friendly ships that had been stopped, they simply chose abandonment.
And hastened the speed of their withdrawal a little more besides, for fear that being slower by ever so little, they too should be left behind here.