Whoosh!
Before Kasgar and the others could regain their footing, the massive Crystalline Constructs spun and shifted at high speed once more, preparing another shot.
Kasgar rolled aside and fired his Explosive Gun again.
But several layers of crystal shielding were stacked along the side where he stood, and the Explosive Gun's shot was far from effective.
To truly damage its core, they had to fire directly at the alien's crystal core.
"Can you reach its core?"
"No!"
Lucius, who was close to the crystal's line of fire, answered somewhat breathlessly. Panting anxiously, he shouted at Kasgar.
"This thing has closed the opening too tightly!"
"Unless we face it head-on and trade shots, there's no way to hit its core!"
"Here it comes again! Dodge!"
As the two spoke, the crystal rapidly gathered its energy once more, preparing to launch another attack at Kasgar and the others.
Whoosh!
Seeing that its long-charged laser seemed unable to hit these humans, the crystalline alien appeared to change tactics. It fired a thinner, faster, more concentrated beam, as thick as a human head, toward Kasgar's position.
A roll!
Another laser suddenly appeared in the void behind where Kasgar had been standing.
Though the beam was smaller than before, Kasgar did not doubt its power in the slightest.
If it hit him, even with his great shield protecting him, it would still blow a huge hole through his chest.
"You were right. We really can't shoot it like this!"
Kasgar's expression grew several degrees more serious.
His experience from facing it head-on just now told him that unless someone took the laser head-on, there was no way to damage the core beneath all those layers of protection.
In other words, someone had to step forward and sacrifice themselves.
Or they would all be dragged through the Portal and die together.
"I'll do it."
Seeing this, Saul Tarvitz was the first to break the silence.
He understood that Kasgar was Lady Fulgrim's beloved, while Lucius was a more gifted rising star in swordsmanship.
Compared to those two, the sacrifice of a negligible recruit like himself was naturally the best bargain.
After speaking, he slowed down and stopped running. Focusing his gaze, he raised the Explosive Gun in his hand.
At that moment, the laser cannon barrel formed by the Crystalline Constructs also aimed at him—
"Saul!!!"
Lucius roared as he sprinted forward, trying to stop him from throwing his life away.
But he was too far away. There was no way he could save him before the next laser cannon shot fired.
Even Aqua, farther away still, could not do it.
Whoosh.
The laser shot toward Saul Tarvitz.
At that moment, the Explosive Gun in his hand was aimed at the enemy.
Then, in that instant, he felt a powerful impact from his left.
Thud!
It was the sound of power armor colliding.
Kasgar had acted.
At the critical moment, he threw himself forward and knocked Tavitz aside, while aiming the barrel of his Explosive Gun at the enemy's core.
Buzz—
In an instant, the Ignition beam struck its core.
As though in pain, it withdrew its core and circled through the air.
But at the same time, Kasgar's right hand and Explosive Gun were swallowed by the enemy's laser.
The place where his right hand had been was instantly engulfed in blazing white light.
"Hiss—"
Kasgar cried out in pain, then rolled repeatedly over Tavitz's body before getting back to his feet.
"Get up, Tavitz!"
Seeing his dazed expression, Kasgar hurriedly shouted.
"Your hand—"
"Forget about my hand! Trading one hand for a brother is worth it!"
"No, your hand—"
"At a time like this, you're still hung up on that?"
"I'll just have Melusine make me another one when we get back!"
"No! That's not what I mean!"
Even Saul Tarvitz, who was usually calm, was getting anxious.
"Your hand is fine! Nothing happened to it!"
Huh?
Only then did Kasgar come back to himself and look at his palm.
The Ceramite-covered power armor gauntlet and the Explosive Gun had vaporized together beneath the laser's heat.
Yet somehow... somehow, his right hand was completely unharmed beyond the smooth severed edge of the armor!
Of course, it was not entirely unharmed.
As though the crack at the base of his thumb had widened, his entire palm was covered in fine golden-red patterns.
Like porcelain scorched into crackle glaze.
Kasgar flexed it, yet there was no abnormality at all.
He could hardly believe it.
Whew, I almost got crippled by that laser.
Good thing I was an athlete.
I'll be fine after resting up a little.
"Fine? Then how effective was that shot just now?"
Lucius also rushed to their side, ready at any moment to save them if the sphere attacked again.
But the cunning orb seemed unwilling to take any more risks after being injured.
It no longer attacked those inside the chamber. Instead, it formed itself into a dense spherical crystal, stubbornly guarding its core.
It had tucked into its shell.
"Damn thing!"
Lucius tried leaping up and cutting at it with the Duelist Sword in his hand, but all he felt was a crisp, glass-scraping vibration traveling through the blade.
The enemy remained unmoved.
To it, whether it could wipe out every one of these boarding Tactical Squads was unimportant.
All it needed to do now was wait and control the warship through the Portal. Once it neared its homeworld, reinforcements would naturally come to help.
"Why? Why hasn't the boarding Tactical Squad sent any word yet?"
"Reporting to the commander! Their signal is still active!"
"Lord Kasgar appears to be fighting fiercely for control of the warship!"
The fleet commander was frantic.
The alien warship was already very close to the Portal.
At this speed, it would pass through the Portal in less than five minutes.
If they waited until the warship returned to the aliens' home territory, what would be the point of capturing it?!
"Return at once! Notify them immediately to return aboard the landing craft!"
Boom!
The smoke from the Melt-Explosive Charges dissipated.
That Crystalline Constructs still remained curled into a sphere, unwilling to move.
Even the Melt-Explosive Charges had only blasted an opening into the crystal and scattered a few fragments.
The crystalline aliens had not developed Void Shields. In exchange, their materials technology had advanced to a terrifying degree.
"If there's truly no other way, withdraw for now. We have almost no time left."
Aqua calmly directed them from behind.
"The enemy is getting closer and closer to the Portal. If we don't board and leave soon, we'll be dragged into the Portal too."
"Perhaps this operation did have a few minor flaws, and the boarding action failed to achieve its intended results."
"But Kasgar, you've already done very well."
She comforted him.
As a Legion Acting Prefect, being able to use only a few thousand Auxilia to crush tens of thousands of well-equipped aliens and defeat their fleet already counted as textbook-level battle command.
Even if their boarding action ultimately failed, no one would dare criticize him for it.
Though she did not know why Kasgar was especially obsessed with this alien warship.
But clearly, since capturing the vessel was no longer possible, there was no point in forcing the matter further.
It was time to go back, Kasgar.
Before you continue