Gacha Kingdom Building-Chapter 289 - 289: War Machines

I should be mad.
After all the discussion I had with the girls, our strategy was sent to the upper management, where, according to Alpha Team, it could take days to be approved.
The government had good reason to be critical and carefully evaluate the decisions and demands made by a group of top-tier adventurers like us.
It also couldn't be helped that I was still waiting for my official approval into the team, but...
Experiencing firsthand the bureaucracy, the constricting rules, and everything that caused this war in the first place was frustrating.
Every step we hesitated to take only made Erik one step ahead.
Our plan would only work if we caught him by surprise, and I feared delays like this gave him the time to read us and prepare.
Yet, I couldn't be mad.
As for the reason, well...
Thanks to all of this, I got to ride on a tank.
Not an old one, like the type I'd see in museums, either.
One of the big, modern ones.
So modern in fact that Father and I weren't even allowed inside.
Instead, we had to ride on the hull.
Which didn't matter too much to me, as it was still cool as hell.
Marcus: "And suddenly your frown is gone. Told ya I'd make it worth your time."
Miwen: "I mean... It'd be hard not to."
Communications with a forward operating base set in a commercial airport were cut a few days ago.
Due to the number of different factions vying for control in the area, no one knew exactly what to expect there, so Dad ended up picking the task to re-establish the line.
As usual, he was "offered" a squad to help in this mission.
Alpha Team wasn't allowed to act without surveillance from the army, so Dad and the others have been making the most of it.
Among their requests so far, there have been choppers, APVs, and all sorts of vehicles and equipment they were interested in seeing.
Do they need them? Probably not.
They were only looking to satisfy their own curiosity.
But man, they sure knew how to make good use of their lack of authority.
As we rode to the airport, almost nothing stood in our way.
At most, we faced one makeshift barricade.
Dad and I could easily blow it away, but...
Marcus: "Oof."
Miwen: "Hell yeah!"
After the thundering of the main gun, the flimsy iron bars magically disappeared from our sight.
Despite the power behind the shot, the hull absorbed most of the recoil's shockwave, making it feel like a small bump on the road at best.
Fast, strong, and smooth.
The tank was truly the perfect ride.
Even the deafening sounds weren't too bad.
They added to the thrill and the power fantasy of it all.
And yes, the tank could have run over the barricade just as well.
But from the cheering sounds of the crew inside, I'd wager they were also looking forward to some action.
Funnily enough, the damage we caused to the street became a bigger obstacle than the iron bars.
Still, they caused even less of a bump than the cannon fire.
The only thing that stopped us was the sound of explosions we heard when passing by a convenience store.
The noises weren't that different from those of the tank itself, and whatever was happening inside caused a window to break.
With my skills, despite our distance and speed, I could see inside the store through that small opening.
Inside were five men.
One of them was a cashier with his arms raised, being held at "gunpoint" by a guy with the palm of his hand extended and covered in sparks.
The three other men inside the store were filling backpacks with the products from the shelves.
Marcus: "Alright, we're making a stop here. I'm giving you five stars."
Miwen: "...Seriously?"
Our objective was still miles away.
It was much more important than something like this, which had become commonplace and would hardly have an impact, even if stopped.
And still...
The moment he told me to take a look, he had already decided.
I should've known.
Father didn't have it in his heart to be a bystander to injustice.
Without a second wasted, he jumped out of the tank.
He didn't even stop to measure his strength against the street, landing with an impact heavy enough to announce his arrival to the entire block.
Part of the crew escorting us followed him, so, as his sidekick on this mission, I also called off the ride early.
Miwen: "The four robbers are around level fifteen. But the cashier is level six. If it turns into a fight, he might become collateral."
Marcus: "I'll protect him. How many of them can you take?"
Miwen: "You are kidding, right? All of them."
Marcus: "Without killing?"
That... was a fair question.
We were in the dark regarding what was happening at the airport, so our orders were to assess the situation on the ground and arrest any culprits, if we found any.
As such, until the top dogs from the surveillance team gave us permission, we were under Alpha Team's standard rules of engagement.
Unless the guys said so, lethal force was only authorized in self-defense or against confirmed AOTG troops.
Although the guys seemed to like and respect my father, both parties agreed that lethal force would be unnecessary and excessive in this situation.
Miwen: "I'll try."
Despite the bothersome restrictions, while the army men surrounded the store, I rang the bell and entered from the front door.
The guys inside immediately turned their attention to me, shouting and gesturing for me to get out.
I raised my arms defensively and pretended to be confused until I saw a blue light emanating from the cashier's body.
In those few seconds of chaos, Father had already worked his magic.
It was now up to me to work mine.
The vitals, despite being instinct to me, were definitely not a target I could risk taking.
Knocking them out could also be dangerous. Our level difference made their heads as poppable as balloons.
In movies, they normally give a karate chop to the neck in situations like this, but I didn't know how to do that, or if it was realistic.
The best alternative then was asphyxiation.
Regardless of level, people needed air to breathe.
Wind had always been my best element, and my control of it was only matched by Beatrice and Elizabeth.
These guys were far from the level of those two, not only numerically.
With a wave of my hand, I created a mask around the robbers' faces.
The air inside their throats was vacuumed instantly.
Their lungs struggled, their hearts screamed, but it was no use.
I had cut their supply.
Desperately, they resisted, throwing the backpacks at me and attacking the cashier.
The man extending his hand turned what were sparks into a lightning bolt, which he mercilessly targeted the cashier with.
The other two robbers used the distraction caused by their backpacks to raise their fists and close the distance between us.
Meanwhile, the last one raised a pillar of earth from the ground to lock my feet in place.
They were all too slow.
No exceptions.
Even without Cassandra, I had more than enough power to break the earth binding me before they swung their fists once.
With a jump back, I invalidated the distance they had closed.
Taking control of the air around the cashier at the same time, I created a wind shield, protecting him from the magic.
I knew Father's Gift would hold, but since I was already being thorough, I did my best to cover all the spots.
I needed so little magic to stop the lightning bolt that I didn't lose control of the robbers' air masks.
Not only that, I took a note from their mage and created a few air barriers before their feet.
Too desperate to hit me, they only noticed the blocks of air after they tripped on them.
They knocked down a few shelves on their way to face the ground, though.
This was the most collateral damage I caused, and if not for it, it would've been a perfect 10.
The cleanest solution possible.
Of course, I apologized to the cashier for that, but he was too thankful to mind it.
After we checked on him and performed the necessary first aid, he gave us a few snacks.
The cops showed up, brought the group into custody, and we hopped back into the tank.
To me, this was a complete success.
However, for some reason, Father was being quieter than before.
No boisterous laugh, no funny remarks...
In his face, I found a contemplative look that didn't suit him at all.
Miwen: "...Something wrong?"
There had to be.
Being quiet wasn't his thing.
Marcus: "Yeah... It's just that this isn't the world I wanted to leave to you and your sister. You know?"
As I thought...
Miwen: "It's not your fault."
In his eyes, I saw fire without anger.
He was lost, and perhaps confused.
But equally strong was his determination.
Father was a real man.
In times of crisis, he walked through the fear and despair without blinking.
Maya and I knew better than anyone the sacrifices his fight demanded.
And yet, I could not, and I would never blame him or the other trailblazers for the current state of the world.
It was thanks to him, Mom, and the others that there was still a world to fight for.
I've always understood that, and I've always been grateful.
Although...
Now that I had people whom I looked after, I felt like I understood him more.
Miwen: "I think... You did a good job. I'm proud to be your son. I'm sure Maya is the same."
Marcus: "Hey! It's not nice to cut straight to the chase like that. Let this old man reflect a little."
It wasn't fair that a man who'd already won his battle would be once again stuck between the world and his family.
He shouldn't have to carry the weight of the world on his back this time.
But he did, without complaints.
The only person he could open up to was another man.
Someone who'd understand it.
Despite the melancholic mood, realizing he saw me that way made me proud.
Just a little bit.
Miwen: "I swear... How does Mom deal with you?"
Marcus: "Haha! Maria is like no other, that's for sure..."
It's easy to get lost without a compass.
Not everyone can guide themselves by the stars like Maya.
But no storm lasts forever.
As long as we can look forward and laugh, we should be alright.
That's what I learned from him.
A lesson that had not yet failed me.
Marcus: "Don't count us out yet, though. Your dad still has one more in him."
Miwen: "Yeah, yeah... When is it gonna be the last?"
Marcus: "I'm your father, Miwen. I'll always be walking ahead. I need to make sure to clear the path, so that you can walk further than me."
In other words, he'd never stop fighting, for as long as there was battle to be fought.
Unfortunately, as if to confirm that the fight never ends, a toy airplane rose in the horizon, coming towards us at an incredible speed.
If not for the cheap plastic, it would've been a perfect replica.
It was impressive.
Almost as much as the real bullets it fired, or the bombs it dropped.
Marcus: "You alright?"
Miwen: "Yeah."
Thanks to one of his abilities, every single bomb and every single bullet hit him, and no one else.
The airport was within our sight, and once we confirmed the hostiles belonged to the AOTG, we were technically granted permission to use lethal force.
Not that it mattered.
Just like with the clerk before, the crew of the airport had been taken hostage.
So the gloves had to stay on.
At least for a little while longer.