Chapter 169: The Amir Campaign (Part Three)
“General Higashiyama Ryoichi, this is critical intelligence obtained by our undercover agent embedded in PROJECT. It involves parts of Militech’s strategic deployment.”
The military intelligence officer went straight to Higashiyama Ryoichi the moment he received the information that Roland had deliberately leaked.
Higashiyama Ryoichi stepped forward to examine it, his brow slowly knitting together.
As for this intelligence… he couldn’t be sure how authentic it was. Judging purely from its contents, it appeared highly credible, and some of the deployments did match what they already knew.
But… could things really line up so neatly?
“Do we need to deploy troops to ambush these units?”
“Hm… send out a few advance teams first to confirm the situation. Once that’s done, pass the information to the Free States and let them decide for themselves. We don’t need to get involved. Also tell them clearly—this intelligence isn’t guaranteed to be accurate. If something goes wrong, we take no responsibility.”
After a brief moment of thought, Higashiyama Ryoichi abandoned the idea of acting on it himself. Compared to risky surprise attacks, he preferred a steady, methodical approach—keeping developments firmly under his control. There was no need to deal with an unexplained variable like this. For him, it brought more risk than benefit.
If the intelligence was real, it would count as doing the other side a favor. If it was fake… even better. Let the Free States take losses and grow more dependent on their support. Either way, it wasn’t a bad outcome.
“Understood. I’ll pass the orders along immediately.”
...
While Militech and Arasaka’s upper echelons were locked in their own silent power games, movement finally appeared on the outskirts of Amir City.
“Commander Olsen, radar has detected an external signal. Something is approaching at high speed!”
“How many targets?”
A cold glint flashed in Olsen’s eyes as he strode forward.
“Uh… only one signal.”
“One signal?”
Olsen froze for a moment. Just as he was about to order a reconnaissance team forward, a strange electromagnetic disturbance rippled outward—and their radar systems went dead all at once.
In a sense, the command center had instantly gone “blind.”
Olsen’s expression darkened. “It’s New America’s anti-radar equipment. Restart all systems immediately and initiate electronic silence. Dispatch teams now and prepare for their next move.”
“Have the demolition units on the front line stand by. Be ready to detonate electromagnetic charges at any time.”
“Understood.”
“Captain, New America seems to have made their move. Should we advance?”
A squad stationed outside Amir City turned to their captain as soon as they saw what was happening.
“...Report it to headquarters first. Let them decide.”
After a brief pause, the captain shook his head.
“The one defending the city is Olsen from Colorado. I’ve fought him before. He’s steady and doesn’t like reckless advances—but that’s exactly something we can exploit.”
Major General Roler of New America spoke calmly, his expression unreadable.
“Then I’ll be waiting for good news, Roler.”
Jamde nodded and cut the communication. He still had other deployments to oversee.
For example, the false intelligence fed to PROJECT—meant to probe the relationship between PROJECT and Arasaka, and to set a trap for Arasaka as well.
So far, both sides were reacting just as expected.
Now it was a matter of whether a big fish would bite.
“Go. Have the mine-clearing units get ready. Tell the rear air units to provide cover. Ground forces, prepare to intercept incoming missiles.”
Roler issued his orders methodically. Everything looked perfectly normal, as if he were simply preparing for a straightforward frontal assault.
Soon, New America’s mine-clearing units surged forward, accompanied by large numbers of armed drones and several armored vehicles equipped with aerial-intercept machine guns.
“Guide the electromagnetic charge.”
Watching the battlefield through external camera feeds, Olsen issued the order at once.
An electromagnetic wave swept through the area—and then…
New America was barely affected at all.
The sudden lack of effect stunned New America’s forces. Even Roler looked puzzled. He had already prepared countermeasures for an electromagnetic attack—so why did it suddenly fizzle out?
“Sir, this…”
The operator who had carried out the command looked flustered, glancing at Olsen in confusion.
Olsen’s expression didn’t change in the slightest. “Press the detonation button next to it.”
“Understood.”
The operator acted immediately. To the confusion of those watching, numerous launchers buried underground activated at once. In an instant, countless small graphite rockets shot into the air and detonated amid the drone swarm.
A wide-area electromagnetic short circuit followed, and New America instantly lost its aerial cover.
“Have the light missile units launch. Ground forces, prepare for combat.”
Ignoring the stunned looks around him, Olsen continued issuing orders without pause.
Caught off guard by the sudden turn, Roler raised an eyebrow—but quickly reacted. “Deploy the armored units. Send in the individual combat teams as well. Prepare to attack.”
“Arasaka should have plenty of capable solo combat units,” Olsen added, turning to his adjutant. “Have them send reinforcements—especially their top snipers.”
“Understood.”
He needed snipers to prevent the enemy’s elite cybernetic squads from charging in with small tactical nuclear weapons. If those units broke through… things would turn disastrous.
After all, in that regard, they truly couldn’t match Militech or Arasaka.
“Looks like New America is planning a full frontal assault,” an officer beside Olsen said as more armored units appeared on the main battlefield.
Olsen, however, remained deep in thought. He didn’t know who was commanding New America’s attack on Amir City, so he couldn’t predict their decisions with certainty. But for now, the situation looked favorable.
“They’ve stepped into our rhythm.”
Roler’s aide spoke quietly as he watched Colorado’s reactions.
“Mm. Prepare the units on the other side to move. Inform me once they’re in position. And what about the troops in the hills—have they locked on yet?”
“Yes. We’ve identified the general area, but we haven’t fully pinpointed it yet, to avoid being detected by their equipment.”
“I doubt they have that kind of gear,” Roler said calmly, rubbing his wrist, “but caution never hurts. In that case, I’ll take this battle myself.”
Comments (0)
Please login or sign up to post a comment.