I Came Back but the World is Still a Fantasy!?

4-15: The True Power Balance of the Two Worlds (2/3)

No one ever talked about it in the academy, so I thought it was strange. Prejudices are really scary, arent they? I wouldve never even dreamed it That Garesto wouldnt have WMDs or strategic-class weapons.

Was it because of his prejudice or was it simply because he couldnt imagine a world that didnt have such weapons?

When he said those words, he seemed to be talking himself, and a fed-up expression appeared on his face as he shook his head.

As far as Im concerned, its more unbelievable that someone would actually make a weapon as inhumane as those, Frire said.

If tactical weapons were meant to fight directly on the battlefield, then strategic weapons were meant to destroy the important facilities of an enemy nation in other words, a weapon to incapacitate.

Broadly speaking, weapons of mass destruction were strategic weapons.

It is because they are able to extinguish vast amounts of human lives and destroy many structures that biological weapons, chemical weapons, and nuclear weapons are said to be humanitys strongest and most vicious weapons.

Just the summary or examples of the times when they were used were enough to disgust Frire.

I understand how you feel, I share your sentiments, in fact, but I suppose its precisely because those extremists of yours found out about these weapons and they became terrified of the Earthlings the same Earthlings who created such vicious things and used them against their own kind.

Thats why the extremists were born and have existed until now.

They believe that the spear of the Earthlings would one day be pointed at them, so it was best to remove their power before it was too late.

Personally, I think the way Earthlings fight is scarier than just that, Frire said. The way they fight is too different, it doesnt make sense. Their battlefields are full of cruelty and misery, and yet Who wouldve thought that at the end of that bloody road would be a weapon with unprecedented range and power.

The development of the exoskeletons(power suits) and their mass adoption made casualties rare in Garestos battlefields.

But the battlefields of Earth were always littered with corpses. In Earth, soldier lives were measured by the thousands, but in Garesto, every soldier was painstakingly trained from the ground up, every one of them was precious.

Soldiers who could protect the lives of many people were worth much more than other lives.

Of course, battlefields were always dangerous, but they couldnt allow their soldiers to die needlessly.

Thats why theyve always been developing their armor to ensure their lives.

Unfortunately, Earth didnt share Garestos thoughts, and they hadnt bothered to develop their soldiers armor at all. At least, thats how Frire saw it.

Truer words havent been spoken. I guess are worlds really are incompatible. When you think about it, its really simple why was the exoskeleton developed?()

From Earths perspective, its just a lump of overly high-tech stuff, something thats not even a strategic-class weapon, an armor meant just to defeat enemies within ones reach.

Earth is technologically inferior, and yet they have the ability to attack their enemies from across continents.

Even if Garesto was able to control the battlefield, if the cities they were meant to protect were destroyed, it would all be for naught.

In fact, just having such those weapons pointed at them would be enough to keep them from moving.

Theyve never actually had such a weapon pointed at them, so they had no experience intercepting it.

It was kind of stupid, but Garestos military had weakness.

A weakness they didnt realize until they learned of Earths technology. After all

The armies of Garesto are meant to protect the territories they are affiliated with. And thats not just a rule, thats a limit. No one would even entertain the thought of attacking someone from such an long distance since no one has the resources to spare for it. Its already remarkable that were somehow holding on despite having to subjugate monsters and defend the city at the same time. And besides, a weapon thats too powerful will just hurt the city were meant to protect, that or the natural resources around it, Frire said. Garesto is starving enough for resources as is. Losing our precious resources would be fatal. Even if someone did come up with a missile-type weapon at one point, a weapon like that thats used just once would have just been seen as a waste of resources.

Since there was no need for it, they never tried to make it. After all, their enemies were limited to just the raybeasts near them or the terrorists that used the same equipment and employed the same strategies they did.

But even those terrorists numbered too little compared to the raybeasts. Frire, who had been tasked to hunt raybeasts countless times, could vouch for that.

Garestos technology might appear unbalanced to Earth, but thats because they had to focus on the enemy in front of them. Their technology was born out of necessity the need to defeat the enemy in front and the need to protect their resources.

Thats why there were no such weapons in Garesto weapons like WMDs that were too strong and prone to collateral damage and ICBMs that were designed to reach enemies from long distances.

What they needed was not a weapon to wreak mass havoc, but a weapon to defeat the raybeasts around them without danger.

What came first has already been lost in the ebbs of history, but it was precisely because the exoskeleton was the most suitable weapon to that end that it was developed.

And just like that, we now have two worlds that couldnt be more incompatible militarily speaking. Garesto doesnt have any way to defend against Earths strategic weapons, while Earth shouldnt know how to deal with Garestos human-sized weapons.

Neither side has experience dealing with each others kind, and so both sides have no idea how to fight.

Garestos defensive wall and barriers cant stand up to Earths strategic weapons, while the rest of Earths weapons are unable to get past the defenses of the exoskeletons. Their strategic weapons naturally cant be used to intercept small forces either.

With the board like that, its highly likely that the first side to retreat into a defensive position will be disadvantaged.

That was the reason why Shinichi put so much importance on who could take the initiative.

In that regard, Garesto and Earths military were equal.