By the time the live feed reached the Governor-General's Residence in Area 18, Cornelia had already been watching for half an hour.
She had not let the heroic narrative on-screen cloud her judgment.
The Great Han's and India's Linear Cannons and Particle Cannons had no trouble penetrating armor, proving that humanity, at least, did not have to start over with matchlocks to figure out how to break alien shells. The Sutherland's Assault Rifle was sufficient to handle Tank-class BETA, the Gloucester's MVS could cut through the joints of large specimens, and VARIS and large Linear Weapons could inflict effective damage on the flanks and rear of Assault-class BETA.
The problem was that they could not kill them fast enough.
Against a fortress or a massive armored army, the imperial military was confident it could settle the outcome swiftly. But seventy thousand, over a hundred thousand, or even more than two hundred thousand individual creatures that would never surrender would exhaust every KMF's ammunition, energy, pilot stamina, and service life.
Gilford asked quietly, "Your Highness, the Great Han has not yet submitted a formal request for support."
"Because he doesn't want Britannia to gain command of the first extraterrestrial war, nor does he want us to have access to all the samples."
"Then do we continue to watch?"
Cornelia turned her head, her tone returning to its cold hardness on the battlefield.
"No. If the Great Han holds off this war alone, tomorrow the entire world will believe it was the Great Han that first defended humanity. If they fail, Area 18 will be the next front. Either way, the empire cannot simply sit on the other side of the map and watch."
She swiftly drew up her terms.
Imperial Area 18 was willing to open its west-facing field hospitals, casualty