The Royal Military Academy's Impostor Owns a Dungeon [BL] Chapter 1357: A Warning Too Late?

Once hailed as a technological breakthrough before being forgotten and practically decommissioned years ago, one particular proximity sensor suddenly sounded its alarm for the first time in a very long while.

Only this time, unlike so many of its fellow devices, its warning hadn’t fallen on deaf ears...

If only said ears belonged to beings capable of understanding what it had been meaning to convey.

"Uh... Captain? We’re down here by the maintenance deck, and we’ve actually managed to find the access panels for manually reactivating the weapons," Finn reported through the communication channel. "But, uh... as you can probably tell from the noise, there’s some kind of sensor going off, and we have no idea what it’s for!"

"...!"

Finn instinctively covered one ear, squinting against the sheer intensity of the sound as he hurriedly motioned for the other cadets to move out of the narrow room.

Seriously!

Just how loud was that thing supposed to be?!

And considering how deafening the alarm had become, the logistics cadets figured it would be best to inform someone who actually knew what they were dealing with before attempting anything themselves!

"A proximity sensor? Wait..."

Back on the bridge, the Captain immediately turned his attention toward the legacy blueprints displayed on his master console.

And sure enough, there really was such a device listed among the battleship’s original systems!

"If it’s the one located where you are..." he began, double-checking the exact coordinate tag transmitted by the cadets. "Then you’ve probably found the Ambient Distortion Sensor. Try looking for the manual switch. It should be right beside the main machine."

"Huh? Just like that? We’re just going to turn it off?" Finn asked, practically shouting over the relentless siren. "But Captain, why is it sounding like that in the first place?!"

"Yes, turn it off!" the Captain replied. "If it’s the ADS, then there’s probably nothing to worry about. That particular model was notoriously unreliable."

"You see, it was developed back when the Empire was still experiencing those unpredictable spatial shockwaves. The idea was to create a sensor capable of detecting spatial distortions before they occurred, giving everyone enough time to take precautions."

The Captain shook his head as he recalled what he knew of the outdated technology.

"But the thing barely worked! Most times it wouldn’t detect anything at all, and other times it would suddenly sound an alarm, forcing everyone to prepare for an incoming disturbance that wouldn’t even happen!"

"..."

So it was basically a faulty thing?

No wonder they’d eventually decommissioned the thing.

However, just as the Captain was about to continue explaining why they shouldn’t pay too much attention to the ancient device...

[WARNING!]

What?!

The sudden, authoritative automated alert cut through their conversation, immediately drawing the attention of everyone on the bridge!

For a moment, the Captain could only stare at his console in disbelief.

Because what the hell?!

Had that ancient sensor actually managed to work properly now, of all times?!

And right when he was in the middle of explaining just how notoriously unreliable it had been?!

"...!"

He was going to have to eat everything he’d just said, wasn’t he...?

But before he could take anything back, another warning suddenly appeared across the active consoles of the ship.

[ALERT: TAGGED JUMP POINT DETECTED.]

[PLEASE DISABLE ACTIVE PROPULSION MECHANISMS IMMEDIATELY.]

The moment the alert appeared on the bridge of Battalion 10’s battleship, the Captain and his staff immediately straightened.

"...!"

An unauthorized spatial jump?!

And directly onto their coordinates?!

For a moment, practically everyone on the bridge stared at the warning flashing across their displays.

Because what else were they supposed to think when their vessel had suddenly been designated as a jump destination without anyone requesting authorization beforehand?!

Either they’d been riding a compromised battleship all along, the incoming party had an absolute death wish, or someone with enough authority to bypass practically every security protocol was about to arrive!

But to do this without any warning?!

What kind of daredevil would attempt something so reckless?!

Sure, they had communication issues at the moment, but still...?

If they’d been moving at high speed or in the middle of an ongoing battle, wouldn’t an unannounced spatial jump directly onto their coordinates have been a problem?!

Of course it would.

But how could one desperate father not rush in like that when faced with something so alarming?

__

Now, considering the sheer audacity of such an arrival, one might naturally assume that the person responsible was Duke Leander Kyros.

And to be fair, much to the resignation of one particular Duchess, it would’ve been perfectly on brand for him...

After all, the Duke—who needed to arrive "properly" so he could fully exercise his authority without inadvertently dooming his precious son—was currently pacing back and forth aboard his own vessel, practically wearing a path into the floor as House Kyros mobilized its forces at what he kept insisting was a pace even slower than an egg without legs.

That was, of course, entirely untrue, considering they were already far ahead of every other military force.

Still, as much as the Duke might’ve been tempted to abandon all that preparation and simply rush over himself, this particular act of recklessness couldn’t be credited to him.

No.

This time, the person responsible was none other than Killian Nox.

"..."

Yep. That one.

The very person whose expression alone warned everyone not to mess with him as he watched his own daughter wilt in his hands.

Izzie.

The little one had been doing perfectly fine just a moment ago, remaining hidden and being ever so attentive as she insisted on supporting him, when all of a sudden, her condition deteriorated to a point that could no longer be ignored.

And that was what sparked his entire crusade, for as intense a person as Killian was, he had never been the type to simply go around digging everyone’s graves without a reason. Especially not when he was well aware of just how many lives he was responsible for.

But even a man like him had his non-negotiables, and he was about to discover one of them at that very moment.