"Fundamentally, there is a difference in the class of our main battle tanks, which is why we are deploying a greater number. This means we can utilize a wider area of the battlefield."
This wasn't a massive war with hundreds of tanks clashing, but a mock battle based on ten Crusader tanks versus five Tiger tanks. Hasumi judged that the tanks would likely be disabled within five to ten minutes after the battle began.
"I will be granting the students of the Arius faction separate command authority under Saori-san. Arius's armaments are on par with, and in some areas even surpass, our own Justice Task Force's. I would like Saori-san to take charge of one flank of the battlefield and achieve a decisive victory."
"Understood. I will meet your expectations."
After instructing Arius to break through the left flank, Hasumi turned her gaze to Hinata, the representative of the Sisterhood.
"You said the Sisterhood would follow the command of the Justice Task Force, correct?"
"Y-Yes… Besides Sister Sakurako, we do not have anyone else who can lead us, and Sister Sakurako is currently busy researching the artifact that was recently transported from the Arius district to Trinity."
"Hmm. In that case, would you be willing to take command, Hinata-san—"
"Wh-What?! I-I'm sorry, but I must decline… I'm sure I would get too nervous and make some terrible mistake."
"I understand. In that case, for this mock battle, the Sisterhood will temporarily operate under the command of the Justice Task Force."
It had already been decided that Hasumi herself would command the center, while a third-year JTF member would command the right flank. After integrating the Sisterhood students into their formations, they awaited the signal to begin.
"So, the match has been delayed by ten minutes due to an urgent matter for Mika-san. I see."
The Justice Task Force and the Prefect Team had made significant contributions to the early discovery of the incident involving Wakamo, so Mika's plans had been shared with at least the heads of each organization.
Mika's combat strength was estimated to be on par with Tsurugi's. Even against the Fox of Calamity, there shouldn't be a major issue. Hasumi decided to cast aside any unnecessary worries and focus all her attention on winning this battle.
Mika, too, would prefer that she focus on scoring points and winning the competition rather than worrying about her and potentially messing things up.
"Kikitkitkit! It's obvious what those doves are thinking! Therefore, Iroha! Use
that to sear the bitter taste of defeat into their minds!"
"Yes, yes, you mean the Invincible Ironclad Toramaru.
Sigh…"
"Hey, Iroha. Isn't your reaction a little lackluster…?"
"It's all because of your terrible naming sense, Makoto-senpai."
"Hmph… let's move past such trivial matters. In any case, concentrate all tanks in the center!"
Hina, who had been standing with her arms crossed and eyes closed, opened one eye and looked at Makoto. Her expression was flat, as if to ask what kind of nonsense she was about to spout this time.
Ako, on the other hand, had put on earmuffs and completely tuned out of the conversation. She had decided it was better than getting into a pointless argument with Makoto and losing her focus on the match.
"What's the point in spreading out the front line? Rather than breaking the enemy's wings, crushing their body is the shortcut to victory! Especially with those doves; the moment their center collapses, they'll panic and fall into chaos. Victory is as good as ours! Kikitkikit!"
"So, you're saying that by concentrating five tanks in the center, you expect the forces on the left and right flanks to face the enemy without a single tank for support?"
"Kikit. What's this, Prefect Team President? Don't tell me you lack the confidence to handle something as simple as that? My, my. Your standards are so low I can hardly be bothered to stoop to your level!"
"Having no tanks means we cannot stop the enemy from pushing forward with their own, President Makoto. In that case, our wings will be broken before Trinity's body collapses. In other words, the Pandemonium Society forces that were trying to crush their body will instead find themselves surrounded by Trinity's forces and be pathetically beaten down."
"Hmph. Did you really think that the great Makoto was unaware of something so basic? Of course, I was planning to deploy one tank to each wing."
And concentrate three tanks in the center…
Giving up on any further conversation with Makoto, Hina closed her eyes again.
"We will sear into Trinity's minds who the true opponent to be feared in the center of this battlefield is! As long as they are unaware that our tanks are a full generation ahead of theirs, a crushing defeat is all that awaits them! Kikitkikit—!"
"Hah."
Iroha, hiding her face with the book she was holding, let out a sigh.
While it was true that this festival had been a rather enjoyable experience for her… a full-blown mock battle was just a pain.
Since Makoto had stubbornly insisted that Pandemonium Society would take the center, all she could do was pray that Trinity's own asymmetrical powerhouse, Kenzaki Tsurugi, wasn't deployed there.
If Trinity decided not to simply react to their opponent's formation and instead went all-in on annihilating Gehenna's forces, then the JTF President would surely be tasked with piercing the center like a spearhead. In that case, the only casualties would be the poor tanks.
Closing her book, Iroha boarded her own tank and let out another deep sigh.
The Ironclad Invincible Toramaru, or Invincible Ironclad Toramaru, or whatever it was called. It was obvious it wouldn't survive the day.
The news of the delay was then relayed to the Gehenna side as well.
The members of Pandemonium Society knew nothing about the Wakamo incident, but the Prefect Team, who, like the JTF, were involved, could easily guess the reason for Mika's absence.
Mika has it rough, too, Hina thought, before tapping Ako's arm a few times and moving to lead the forces on the left flank.
[…We offer our sincerest apologies for the delay in the proceedings. The Tea Party Host has been called away by urgent business and is unable to continue her commentary. Therefore, I will be handling the commentary for this match alone. We ask for your generous understanding. The match will now begin ten minutes later than scheduled, at 5:10, and will last for exactly one hour.]
A few moments ago, Nagisa had been terrified when Mika, upon receiving an urgent message, had ordered the helicopter to lower its altitude and then promptly jumped out. Now, she resumed the commentary with a calm voice.
This wasn't a question of whether she could do it alone; it was a situation where she had to. Nagisa knew that. With a slight exaggeration, any major problem here could tarnish the name of Tea Party.
Even without that, in a situation where one Tea Party representative had left, if the one with the next highest authority could handle the situation cleanly and bring it to a successful conclusion, it would prove Tea Party's competence.
The result of that might be a slight weakening of the influence of the factions that followed Mika and a strengthening of her own, but…
'For that to actually happen, Mika-san's support base is far too solid.'
As the Host who had stepped forward to lead this festival, Mika's approval ratings were sky-high. The fact that she, a member of the hardline faction, had not been ousted despite pursuing a pro-Gehenna policy was proof of her firm grip on the Pater faction. After the most extreme members had either been crushed in a direct confrontation with her or had been brought under her banner, there were virtually no anti-Gehenna factions left with the guts to attack her openly.
The neutral factions saw her hosting of a festival for the students and her embrace of the once-exiled Arius as positive moves.
And the moderate and weakly pro-Gehenna factions tended to support her actively.
For Nagisa to try and rally support to challenge Mika's stronghold was unthinkable, and she had no motivation to do so in the first place.
As she thought that the current Tea Party might be the most unified in its history, Nagisa took a small breath.
Unlike in the past, when they had separated their public and private lives within Tea Party regardless of their friendship, now both Nagisa and Seia actively followed Mika. As a truly united Tea Party, maintaining its name and prestige was of the utmost importance.
[Within one hour, any side that inflicts near-total damage on the opposing camp and renders them unable to fight will be declared the winner. If a winner is not decided after one hour, the state of the battle will be carefully reviewed to determine a victor. The operation of tanks is permitted from this moment, but please be aware that firing on the opposing side and the deployment of infantry will only be permitted from 5:10.]
As Nagisa finished speaking, the tanks of each camp began to move into position.
This was a mock battle, not a real war. As such, artillery, which would be a given in a real situation, had been completely excluded from the proceedings.
This was, as Mika had said, because an overly chaotic battlefield would lose its meaning as a competition, and because if artillery were included, the students, who were supposed to be the main stars, would be unable to play a major role.
For similar reasons, bombing was also excluded. This was also an issue related to the laws established by Kivotos's General Student Council, so its inclusion would have been strange in the first place.
Therefore, the structure of the battle would be tank-on-tank combat, with students using them as cover. A one-hour time limit had been set, but it was unlikely the match would last that long.
'…Mika-san, if you come back with so much as a single scratch…'
If Nagisa were to make a mistake during the commentary, it would undoubtedly be because she was worried about Mika.