Fated to Die to the Player, I'll Live Freely with My SSS-Class Ship!

Almost an hour later, we finally reached our target position—a location approximately 300 kilometers beyond the Astoraxia-001 star system's range.

Hmm? Did we encounter anything strange along the way? No, what are you talking about? We didn't see anything. Absolutely nothing. Certainly not a gigantic, grotesque, mind-breaking eyeball spanning an entire zone.

Anyway, forget about that. We still have work to do.

"This angle should be good enough." I nodded slightly, ensuring that we wouldn't be visible or detectable at this distance. "Then, Cassandra, open a rift again."

"Alright..."

Her response lacked its usual energy. She was still dwelling on our earlier discussion—the potential dangers of using the key too frequently. But despite her worries, we had no other choice.

After all, we still had no idea where the Eclipse Sovereign was located.

Cassandra gripped the key tightly before pressing it into the empty space before her, turning it clockwise as if unlocking an invisible door.

The next moment, a rift materialized ahead, glowing with unstable hues of blue, red, and purple—visibly more chaotic than the last.

But unlike before, its size was drastically smaller. Barely a meter in diameter, it was far too small to fit the Range Falcon, no matter how we tried.

That was intentional.

As I'd said before, we couldn't face the Eclipse Sovereign head-on. Emerging from World-One into World-Zero at this moment would be nothing short of suicide.

Instead, we wouldn't be going through at all.

We'd be sending something else—several million OB Nexus 1000 Stealth Nanobots, programmed for reconnaissance.

Without delay, I deployed the nanobots through the rift, allowing them to enter the outside world.

At the same time, their video feeds linked to our systems without issue, transmitting real-time visuals of everything within their field of view.

Not even a minute later, the rift collapsed on its own. It wasn't something we could sustain indefinitely. Just discovering that Cassandra could adjust its size was already a significant breakthrough.

The connection to the nanobots severed the moment the rift shut—but thankfully, we had already gathered enough data.

"Let's see..."

The bridge's visors now displayed a panoramic view of the rift's exterior. And, of course, it had also captured clear footage of the Meyers Royal Family's fleet. Or rather—

"That's... a lot." Eva muttered, practically reading my thoughts aloud.

Right.

Even at just the visible range, we could see hundreds of thousands of ships—from corvettes to leviathans—stretching across the horizon in an imposing formation.

"True," I exhaled. "Anyway, let's get to work. Find the Eclipse Sovereign and report once you spot it!"

"Roger!"

"Y-Yes!"

Three heads were better than one. Just like a game of "Where's Waldo?", we each took our own approach to scanning the image for our primary target.

Cassandra relied on a manual approach, meticulously checking each ship that might fit the description.

Eva, on the other hand, was more efficient—she was fine-tuning an image recognition program to automate the search. Judging by her progress, she had likely prepared the script beforehand.

As for me—

"Percy, analyze the data. Mark all ships larger than Leviathans and highlight them for review."

—I wasn't about to waste the Range Falcon's AI capabilities. There was no reason not to use every tool at my disposal.

[Command received. Analyzing aggregated 3D image... Calculating distances based on perspective... Measuring ship dimensions... Applying filters... Complete.]

Within seconds, the once chaotic image filled with randomly placed vessels now had precisely twelve red-circled targets.

I systematically checked each one and sighed.

"Not in this frame. Next image! And Percy, apply the same analysis to it!"

One by one, I cycled through each nanobot's data feed, each offering a different angle of the battlefield.

Though the probes hadn't dispersed far in the minute they had been active, they had managed to cover a kilometer-wide radius from the rift.

That much should be enough... I hoped.

"...Found it!"

And finally, one of us spotted the target.

Of course, it was obvious who found it first—Eva.

Her algorithm, once fine-tuned, ran across each nanobot's perspective, processing vast amounts of data at lightning speed. In under five minutes, she had already locked onto the Eclipse Sovereign.

"Good! Now, we just need its relative coordinates, and—"

"I've already done that too."

Eva cut me off with a triumphant grin.

"The coordinates relative to our current position, factoring in heading angle and displacement, are..."

She relayed the precise numbers, her voice dripping with smug satisfaction.

"A-Amazing... I haven't even finished checking my first frame..." Cassandra whispered, sighing in mild disappointment.

Well, manual searching was never going to outpace an optimized algorithm.

"...And there!"

Eva continued, still reveling in her success.

"My calculations have, at most, a ten-meter margin of error, so we'll need to be precise. I've already marked the Eclipse Sovereign's center on the Star Map and overlaid it with old 3D blueprints."

She glanced between Cassandra and me, her smirk widening.

"With this, the second step of the plan should be as easy as pie, right?"

This girl… She really went and overdid herself.

I let out a deep sigh, waving my hand dismissively. "Alright, alright. You'll be getting a bonus for this achievement. Expect a raise in your cut."

"You…" But instead of the reaction I expected, Eva shot me a glare, as if she found my words downright insulting. "You think I'm doing all this just for money? I'm going this far for Casey!!!" she snapped, her voice filled with frustration.

"A-Alright, I get it… Chill!"

I guess even our little money monger had a heart, no matter how cold she usually was…

"But rewards are rewards, so I won't reject a raise. Be happy that I'm generously accepting your offer!"

And just like that, whatever good impression I had of her shattered in an instant.

Yeah. No matter how much she changes, Eva will always be Eva.

Anyway, now that we had the precise coordinates of the Eclipse Sovereign, there was no reason to waste any more time. We set course for the marked location, ensuring our movements were steady and calculated. The more we rushed, the greater the GPS margin of error would become.

And for the next phase, accuracy was the most crucial factor—it was what would keep us alive.

We covered the 300-kilometer distance in about ten minutes, cruising carefully at an optimized speed. After double-checking the radars, sensors, and the Star Map, we confirmed our position—we were now "technically" inside the Eclipse Sovereign.

Yep, you guessed it. We were about to open a rift and slip the Range Falcon inside, then annihilate the enemy from within—

...No, I'm just messing with you. If we actually did that, the Falcon would be the one getting crushed, trying to squeeze into a confined space.

"Alright, are your preparations done?"

I turned to the girls standing beside me.

Eva was already geared up, wearing her Truman Suit—same as me—fully equipped for our upcoming infiltration.

Cassandra, on the other hand, was also suited up, though hers was slightly different—5th ranked high-end powered suit from Gerard's collection. The Model 6067-PX Siren. It was a masterpiece crafted by Lightspeed Technologies, the same company that supplied Eva's Frigate's thrusters.

Unlike the Truman Suit, which focused on durability, the Siren emphasized speed, agility, and—most notably—style.

More than just functional, the Siren clung to the wearer's body with an almost tailored fit, enhancing every contour without sacrificing mobility. And with Cassandra's naturally graceful figure… well, let's just say any normal guy would be knocked out at first sight.

Honestly, it was poison for the eyes.

Me? Well, I'd already seen what was beneath that suit, so it didn't have the same effect on me anymore.

...Though I couldn't exactly say I was unaffected either.

*SLAP!*

I felt a sharp smack to the back of my head. Blinking in surprise, I turned—only to meet Eva's deadpan glare.

"Stop staring too much, you horny bastard," she hissed. "Casey's getting uncomfortable from your lecherous gaze!"

"Huh? I wasn't—" I started to protest, then suddenly froze.

Ah.

Right… I might've been… comparing certain things between them subconsciously.

"Anyway, let's leave it at that!" I clapped my hands, changing the subject before it got worse. "Let's begin Phase Two! Cassandra, carefully open a small rift—just big enough for a human to slip through!"

This was the next step of our plan—infiltrating the Eclipse Sovereign without alerting anyone.

With Eva's precise calculations and Cassandra's control over the key, we had selected a cargo bay located about two kilometers beneath the ship's bridge as our entry point.

There were two key reasons why we chose this location.

The first was simple—it was isolated, meaning minimal security presence.

The second, and more important reason—

"It's the only place wide enough to account for the margin of error while ensuring our safety!"

The cargo bay was roughly 50 meters in height, with each side stretching over a kilometer long. As long as we positioned our entry point at the very center, even a 10-meter miscalculation wouldn't leave us phasing into a wall or floor.

"Then… I'll start!"

Cassandra stepped forward, raising her right arm.

The wrist section of her suit hissed softly as it disengaged, revealing a hidden compartment from which a transparent, glass-like key emerged.

Gripping it firmly, she performed the now-familiar motion—twisting it in midair, right at the X-mark Eva had drawn on the floor.

*SCRITCH!*

The rift tore open.

This time, the sparks flying from its edges were violent, crackling with raw energy as if the very fabric of space-time was protesting. The air itself sizzled from the sheer power radiating from the portal.

I took a deep breath.

Glancing at the girls one last time, I gave a final nod—

—And stepped forward.