The Terra Ecclesiarchy fleet was smaller in number than the Alliance of Light. After all, Qile had received support from numerous planets during her advance toward Terra.
Aside from its own directly controlled warships, the Terra Ecclesiarchy had also used its authority to requisition part of the Imperial Navy to assist in battle.
As the two massive fleets entered the Weapon Array's range, the flashes released by warship macrocannons and lances instantly tore through the darkness of space.
The crusader warships' lance arrays fired first, deadly high-energy laser beams streaking toward the Alliance of Light vessels.
The Battle of the Dimarmar System officially began at that moment.
Qile immediately gave the order to prepare for the enemy.
Yet the space battle that followed did not develop into the fierce, brutal conflict everyone had imagined.
The pace of the war was unusually slow.
Some of the Terra Ecclesiarchy fleet's warships seemed to take far longer to charge their macrocannons than the standard manuals prescribed.
Their lance volleys were sparse and scattered as well, as though the gunners' fingers had all gone numb and could no longer aim properly.
The macrocannon shells and beams fired by those warships often passed the Alliance of Light vessels with suspiciously convenient deviations, or vanished after raising a few harmless ripples across the enemy's void shields.
The seasoned Inquisitor Carter stood before the Emperor's Light's tactical command dais, a knowing curve lifting at the corner of her mouth.
"The Ecclesiarchy never had a core armed force of its own. It can only rely on its authority to cobble together a fleet by forcibly requisitioning the Astra Militarum and Imperial Navy... Naturally, we can't expect much combat capability from a fleet like that."
A cold gleam flashed through her eyes. "Pass the order. Play along with their