"W-wow… so this is the spaceship…"
After the trip into the forest, we went back to my house on Earth and finished all the preparations.
The spaceship was still floating above my house, waiting for us, but Merl-san had operated the terminal on her left arm so that others would not be able to recognize it.
(Now then, let's get on board.)
When Merl-san operated the terminal on her left arm again, a circle of light, different from a magic circle, appeared at our feet, and before we knew it, we had all been transferred to the inside of the spaceship.
(Since it was originally designed for a small number of people, it could barely fit this number of people aboard, but… I'm glad everyone managed to get on.)
As Merl-san said, there were 12 of us, including me, so it felt quite cramped. However, it was fortunate that Night and the others were small and did not take up that much space.
Inside the spaceship, there were a lot of holographic touch panels and machines that I didn't know how to operate, just like the spaceships in famous science fiction movies.
I wanted to look around, but I didn't want to push any buttons and get into trouble, so I didn't dare touch anything.
"Rill! It's amazing, isn't it?"
"Ruri! It's amazing!"
"Hey, don't touch anything inappropriate."
""Yes.""
The twins seemed to be even more curious than I was and were unafraid to try and touch the machines around them, but Odis-san got angry at them.
…..
"Ouma-san, please don't touch anything either, okay?"
"What do you think I am?"
When I told Ouma-san that because I was anxious, he shouted in annoyance.
However, Night and the others have an indescribable expression on their faces.
"Woof…"
"Fugo."
"Pi."
"W-what do you want to say? Hmm!?"
"…Woof"
Night shook his head tiredly at Ouma-san's reaction. I can't speak for others much, but Ouma-san had a record back in the storage room. As a result of that, Merl-san came to us and gave us a chance to learn more about Sage-san…
(…Energy replenishment has been completed. Everyone, please take your seats.)
While we were exchanging various information, Merl-san, who was nonchalantly going about the preparations, told us to sit down in an empty seat.
The seat was pure white and futuristic in design, but the moment we sat down, something that looked like jelly enveloped us!
"W-what in the world is this?"
We were completely enveloped by the jelly-like stuff, including our heads. We were panicked by the situation, but we didn't feel like we couldn't breathe, and it actually gave us a very comfortable feeling.
Then Merl-san, also wrapped in jelly-like stuff, explained the situation.
(We will now travel into outer space, and there will be a strong shock. However, by being wrapped in this protective gel, the shock will be completely mitigated, and at the same time, your body will absorb this gel so that you can function in space without any problems. To put it simply, it will modify your body to be able to move outside the spaceship without any special equipment.)
"In space? Does that mean I don't need a spacesuit as we know it on Earth?"
(Yes, that's right. I understand that, unlike me, you may have aversions and fears about your body suddenly being transformed, but I can assure you that you will be absolutely safe.)
Everyone looked a little uneasy, just like me, but Merl-san said it with a serious expression on her face, so we finally decided to believe her.
And then──.
(Then… departure…!)
"───!"
Merl-san's spaceship floated up into the sky without us receiving any shock and then launched itself into space at an astonishing speed!
There was a window in the spaceship near where I was sitting, so I looked out and saw that it was climbing higher and higher into the sky, leaving the city and even the clouds behind as it finally entered space.
"A-amazing…"
(So this is what space looks like…)
"It's hard to believe… that we can really come to space."
Iris-san and the others, who came from a world where they didn't know much about the existence of space itself, were impressed by the scenery of space.
Even though I live on Earth and have some knowledge of it, it is still an unknown world, so I understood how they felt.
As I continued to watch the situation outside for a while, Merl-san nodded to me.
(…It looks like we've successfully left the Earth. We will now begin preparations for warp. If we use the warp function, we'll be able to spend some time without sitting in a chair, so please wait a little longer.)
"Um, what do you mean by warp?"
(Let's see… There is a very large distance between where we are now and the planet Amel. So if we were to travel normally by this ship, it would probably take us several hundred years to get there.)
"Several hundred years?"
When we were all stunned by the outrageous number of years, Merl-san hurriedly continued.
(In order to prevent that from happening, there is a warp function. The principle is that by developing a subspace that is outside of normal space-time and moving through that space, we can easily traverse great distances. So, I would like to begin using that function now.)
When we were all relieved by her words, Merl-san operated the touch panel that was provided on the chair. Then, there was a sudden change outside the window.
To my surprise, something like a line of light gradually clung around the spaceship we were currently on.
(Then… warp, activate.)
As soon as Merl-san said that, the scene outside the window suddenly changed, and a strange space with a strange color scheme spread out, just like when my house on Earth was isolated in subspace during the previous attack by the Dragonias.
(…Transfer to warp space, successful.)
When Merl-san, who was operating the terminal, said that while exhaling a breath, the jelly-like stuff that was enveloping us was smoothly sucked into the chair.
(There is no problem for you to spend time freely for a while. Just don't touch the machines in the surroundings.)
Merl-san took the initiative to stand up from her chair, and we began to move with trepidation.
"Whoaaa… that made me strangely nervous."
"Agreed. It was a strange experience. Question. Since we were covered in that squishy stuff earlier, you said we could act outside the spaceship. Can we do that now?"
(Not while we're in warp space at this very moment, but when we're in normal space, you should have no problem venturing outside the ship.)
"That would be very helpful. When the enemy attacks, we can use interception magic from inside this ship, but it will still be difficult to target them without going outside."
(For those of us who fight in close quarters combat, being able to move around in a new environment without any problems is great.)
When Master Usagi said that, Merl-san added a little apologetically as if she remembered.
(I'm sorry… It's true that activities in space are no problem, but that only means that the body adapts to weightlessness and vacuum space, and moving through space requires footholds and other propulsion.)
(I can take care of that on my own.)
In other words, to move freely in space, you need something like a ground or another power like jet propulsion.
Well, I guess I can do something with wind magic or something.
As each of us was relaxing on the ship, I asked Merl-san about something that had been on my mind.
"By the way, I hadn't heard any details about your hometown, but what kind of place is it?"
(Yeah… As I told you the other day, we Amelians are adversaries to the Dragonias. The Dragonias are one of the most powerful species in the entire universe, but we also pride ourselves for being the best in the universe in terms of scientific power.)
"T-the best in the universe…"
All the technology Merl-san had shown me so far were indeed so amazing that I could honestly agree with her when she said that.
In addition to being able to easily erase a person's memories and information, according to our talk, they never die of disease and have a ridiculously long lifespan.
When I was thinking about Merl-san's past, Merl-san's expression became a little cloudy.
(…Therefore. The Dragonias have been trying to force us into servitude or to rob us of our technology since long ago to gain access to our scientific power. Our ancestors created an anti-celestial annihilation weapon to counter them, but as a result, it only intensified the attacks by the Dragonias… That's what I think.)
"Why is that?"
(Because we have created a weapon that can easily destroy a planet, and the Dragonias feel threatened by it, so they attack us even more. Of course, if it weren't for the anti-celestial annihilation weapons and other weapons packed with Amel technology, the Dragonias would have already invaded and taken everything from us…)
I guess they didn't expect the weapons they created to repel the Dragonias would end up intensifying the battle…
(Anyway, with the blueprints of the anti-celestial annihilation weapon that I have obtained, and with your help, I hope to end all battles. So please… lend me your strength.)
Merl-san bowed to us once again, and everyone nodded vigorously, including me.
She smiled at us and turned her attention to the terminal.
(Thank you for your help… I think it's time to release the warp. There's a possibility of another impact, so please take a seat in your chairs.)
(Hmm? Are we arriving at Amel yet?)
(No, no matter how long a distance we can travel instantly through the warp, we can't travel a distance that would normally take hundreds of years in a single pass. Warp requires an enormous amount of energy, and more importantly, the ship won't last…)
I wonder if it's like the phenomenon of a computer getting hot when it's on for a long time? When I think of it that way, it becomes all the more ordinary.
With Amel's technologies, there must be some sort of cooling function, but it might not be that simple when it came to warp, which was an unimaginably advanced function.
I followed Merl-san's instructions and took my seat again, only to have my body enveloped in the jelly-like stuff again.
(Then, I will deactivate it.)
As Merl-san operated the terminal on her left arm, the color of the mysterious space outside the window gradually faded, turning into countless lines of light that eventually returned to normal space.
As each of us observed our changed surroundings, the jelly-like stuff that had enveloped us was absorbed by the chair.
(…Warp release has been successful. We will normally navigate for about an hour from here and then warp again──.)
At that moment, our spaceship suddenly shook violently.
"W-what is it?"
(No way…?)
Merl-san hurriedly operated the terminal on the spaceship.
As we were getting up from our chairs and ready to move at any time, Master Usagi muttered with a grim expression.
(…It seems we're under attack.)
"Under attack? That's…"
"It's probably the Dragonias who are the enemy this time."
(Too bad! I'm aware of all of your movements! I'll spare your life if you surrender meekly and hand over the blueprint for the anti-celestial annihilation weapon. But if you refuse… you will be trashed here in space!)
As if to affirm Iris-san's words, a transmission from what appeared to be a Dragonia alien came from the ship that had probably attacked us.
But we have no intention of surrendering to them.
(I'm not going to surrender!)
(Then you'll die here!)