Noble Squad (Please Follow and Bookmark!)

Orbital strikes were, in essence, bombardment from beyond the atmosphere.

At least, that was how humanity in this world saw them.

After testing High-Energy Lasers, Charged Particle Cannons, Heavy Particle Cannons, and Railguns aboard experimental ships in low orbit,

the militaries of various nations found that missiles worked better than all those fancy weapons.

Every planet fit for human habitation had a thick atmosphere.

Directed-energy weapons lost much of their power passing through it.

Railgun projectiles could even be traveling at half their muzzle velocity by the final stage of their descent.

Even on planets with extremely thin atmospheres, these point-target weapons were not well suited to ground attacks.

In terms of destructive power, a 140-kilogram Tungsten Alloy Long-Rod Penetrator striking the ground at Mach 14

did less damage through sheer kinetic impact than a High-Explosive Shell fired from a 155mm Electrothermal-Chemical Cannon.

As for accuracy, ground forces had plenty of precision-guided weapons capable of matching a High-Energy Laser's margin of error.

Their power and blast radius, however, far outstripped a High-Energy Laser beam weakened by the atmosphere.

And so the major powers' Orbital Assault Ships had gone back to basics: orbital bombardment.

The Minotaur-class Orbital Assault Ships now "laying eggs" in low orbit over Robert IV were a perfect example.

These warships were about a kilometer long and resembled thick silver doors. They carried no anti-ship weapons, only a few point-defense guns for self-protection.

Inside, apart from their warship-grade jump drives and fusion reactors,

almost every bit of space was packed with missile silos and deployment bays.

A Minotaur-class's standard loadout consisted of 500 David tactical surface-attack missiles and ten Tunguska tactical hydrogen bombs.

It could also carry a quarter of an imperial regiment: 500 Orbital Paratroopers.

The Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group had brought fifty Minotaur-class ships in all.

Now those giant silver doors were spread across the skies of Robert IV.

Acting on intelligence from Commander Adam, they had already dropped one round of tactical hydrogen bombs on several Federation ground-force assembly points.

With terminal velocities of Mach 30, those bombs gave many Federation units no time to react.

Only fifteen percent of the first wave's warheads were intercepted.

Every tactical hydrogen bomb that broke through detonated in the air, 200 to 350 meters above the ground.

Ground forces en route to their exercise assembly points suffered devastating casualties.

Once the tactical nuclear strikes were complete, some warships remained in low orbit, continuing to cruise and attack with David tactical surface-attack missiles.

Most of the Minotaur-class Orbital Assault Ships lowered their orbits again.

The Orbital Paratroopers aboard them climbed into the Orbital Drop Capsules in the ships' deployment bays.

When the lights turned green, the capsules slid off their rails and away from the assault ships, dropping straight toward their designated landing sites.

These Orbital Paratroopers would be the first imperial troops to set foot on Robert IV.

They would land near key cities, facilities, and junctions across the planet, then attack as quickly as possible.

Once they secured safe landing zones, much larger Aerospace Transports would plunge into the atmosphere carrying all kinds of heavy equipment.

This was the standard procedure for a human orbital assault.

Among the Drop Pods falling like Meteors, a few sported particularly flashy paint jobs.

Although the Drop Pods' outer coatings were scorched black as they plunged through the atmosphere,

the Silver Dragon Emblems—symbols of the Empire's nobility—were still faintly visible beneath the soot.

Inside one Drop Pod, Viscount Ankarin and his comrades were experiencing the exceptionally thrilling passage through the atmosphere.

Most nobles from the Empire who joined the military became warship captains or ground-force commanders.

That made Viscount Ankarin, commander of the 72nd Orbital Drop Regiment in the Star Dragon Empire's 107th Expeditionary Division,

a "freak" in the eyes of other nobles.

But Viscount Ankarin did not care in the slightest what others thought.

To him, those "cowards" obsessed with opera, music, riding, and fencing

could never understand the unique thrill of an orbital drop.

He had started by buying a decommissioned Orbital Assault Ship and dragging a group of like-minded "freak" nobles along to try every variation of "outer-space bungee jumping" they could imagine.

Then he enlisted, becoming the first noble Orbital Paratrooper in the history of the Star Dragon Empire.

Now he commanded the 72nd Orbital Drop Regiment, which the emperor himself had honored with the name "Blood Dragon Regiment."

Inspired by him, some young nobles had joined this game for the brave despite their elders' objections.

The other Orbital Paratroopers called the nobles gathered in the Blood Dragon Regiment the "Noble Squad."

At this very moment, Yasin Base was the target of Ankarin, his Noble Squad, and the Blood Dragon Regiment.

Once they entered the atmosphere, the Federation Military's surviving air-defense units began to fight back.

Although the Drop Pods could penetrate the atmosphere, they were actually quite fragile.

Ground-based air defenses often did not need to destroy one outright. A hit to its attitude-control thrusters was enough

to send the Drop Pods out of control, tumbling toward the ground.

Beams of High-Energy Laser fire swept across the sky.

Railgun penetrators streaked through the night, leaving bright trails behind them.

Drop Pods kept taking hits from the anti-aircraft fire.

Then they tumbled, broke apart, and exploded.

Viscount Ankarin paid no attention to the hellish scene beyond the porthole.

Instead, he recalled the secret mission the strike group's commander, Marquis Ascania, had given him before the drop.

"Once you land, head straight to the Communications Center. An undercover agent from Star Dragon Fang will meet you there."

As he recalled the marquis's orders, the Drop Pod shuddered violently from its friction with the atmosphere.

Viscount Ankarin closed his eyes.

In conditions that would leave an ordinary person terrified beyond control, he felt calm.

He could even use that "calm" to think.

Viscount Ankarin turned the mission over and over in his mind.

Why did he need to lead his men to the Communications Center?

And why did he have to meet an undercover agent from Star Dragon Fang?

On top of that, the marquis had given him the mission personally.

Remembering another position the marquis held, Viscount Ankarin suddenly felt there might be more to the mission than it seemed.

A roar from beneath the Drop Pod, followed by a fierce surge of g-force, cut off his thoughts.

The Drop Pod's braking thrusters had fired.

That meant the Drop Pod was making its final descent and would soon land.

"Gentlemen! Prepare for battle!"