Gundam: The Wind That Blows Through Space

Chapter 758 The Retired Hero (Part 1)

On the return route to Earth, Maru chose Panama, mainly because Hilde was going to disembark there, taking three captured mobile suits and two prisoners, and then head to the GN Particle Research Institute located at the Gabro base.

It is worth mentioning that, after Mina’s relentless and violent reshuffling, the Human Revolutionary Alliance has officially moved its ground command headquarters after the regime change into the Gabro base, which even seems to be on par with Granada. After all, the lunar base has become more of a city than a military base after the removal of Requiem. If it weren’t for the fact that the First Fleet’s home port was still there, it would have become the second largest military center on Earth after Alaska.

Of course, with winners come losers. A large number of mid-level officers from the old East Asian faction launched a sizable rebellion, but it was completely suppressed by A-Laws. The absolute technological gap in mobile suits, coupled with the difference in pilots' abilities, was enough to wipe out this old-style military force. More and more people began to shift their attention from Celestial Being to this security force that only obeyed Mina.

Hilde's departure not only took Macho and Niaan with her, but also Phoenix was left behind in Gabro. Even though 99% of humanity was unaware that they had just narrowly escaped death, the news of Phoenix triggering the Moonlight Butterfly gradually reached the upper echelons of the Human Revolutionary Alliance. Sealing this machine was, in a sense, a kind of exchange for Mina taking control of A-Laws.

As for Ras, she had to return to Scandinavia to handle some political affairs. As for her and Siegfried's child, Thor and Millie took him back to Orb. Mana there was a master at taking care of children; just from her ability to successfully raise Cagalli, it was clear that she was an absolute leader in the field.

Sending the child to Orb is also a backup plan that Ras has made so that she can frequently slip away in the future. Even though the People's Revolutionary Union is now a unified entity, it is easy for the queen of a country to run to Orb to see her husband every day, which could easily leave some unfounded material for external public opinion. Now, with the reason of seeing the child, she can shut up many busybodies.

Siegfried, along with Kotori, and Celestial Being's last MS, Destiny Gundam, returned to Onogoro Island. Marius and the others would then enjoy a long vacation. The entire Ptolemy, from the captain to the maintenance crew, had been working non-stop for almost a year. The warship needed major repairs, and the crew also needed appropriate leave.

After handing the warship over to the ground crew, even the workaholic Marduk hurriedly took a car back to Eurofatu. These people were not just independent individuals; they had parents, wives, children, relatives, and friends in Orb. As the sum of their social relationships, they were also full of anticipation for this holiday.

While Celestial Beings are on vacation, Londo Bell will fill the gap. As for vacation, Kratis and the others have already taken enough time off on the agricultural satellite, so the entire Neo Argama has unanimously stated that they do not want to take a vacation in the short term. In addition, the Human Reform League has already cleared everyone's identities, so now they face no obstacles whether they move to Orb or return to PLANT to visit relatives, which directly removes their last worry.

So, Siegfried, finding himself with nowhere to go, hitched a ride with the little bird all the way back to Mayu's house. Since he couldn't meet his mother openly, Luna, who was on vacation, and Stella, who was already living independently, both chose to stay there. Considering that all three of them had backgrounds in MS combat, after a considerable period of training together, at least on the surface, they had become best friends who could talk about anything.

"Are you really not coming to my house for dinner? Stella has been asking for this for a long time, and Mayu also said that you should thank her in person. Having a meal won't stop you from going home to see your wife."

With both hands gripping the steering wheel, Shin Asuka stared straight ahead. For him, driving and operating a mobile suit were serious matters, and even though the road conditions in Orb were excellent, he showed no signs of relaxation.

"I'm telling you, are you really going to continue like this, without any clear explanation? It's not fair to Luna and Stella, is it?"

"Hey!!! What are you saying?!"

Siegfried's words immediately broke through Kotori's defenses, and the vehicle slid in a twisted S-curve. Fortunately, Kotori was a T0-level MS pilot, and with a slight correction, she steered the vehicle back to the center of the road. "I'm saying, although Orb changed the marriage law for my sake, cross-border marriages are not really relevant. If you really want to follow my example, I'm worried Stella might stick a fork into your eye socket while we're eating."

"You've misunderstood, I didn't do that at all."

"You know best whether it's true or not, otherwise any explanation would just be a cover-up, Asuka-kun."

As an observer, Siegfried was well aware of the rosy emotions between the three. For Stella, who was not good at interacting with people, Shin Asuka was one of the few men she could have normal conversations with, or even take things further, besides Siegfried. ODRer's Tatsumi had completely lost his chance after being stationed in South America for a long time. From Siegfried's perspective, he was still happy to see Stella and Shin Asuka get together.

But while the imagination is beautiful, in reality, Luna's existence is an unavoidable topic. In terms of closeness, Luna and Kotori are classmates, and even now that their classmates have either died in battle or retired, the two have become partners and comrades-in-arms who support each other to some extent.

Furthermore, Luna is also a member of Celestial Being, which gives her a significant advantage over Stella, whose MS skills are mediocre. Considering that Celestial Being has almost no need for one-on-one melee combat, the probability of Stella joining Celestial Being in the foreseeable future is extremely low.

Of course, Siegfried could also open a back door. With his current status, let alone Stella, no one would object even if he asked Mana to come in and take charge of Ptolemy's sanitation. But this would not only confirm that Celestials were Ashar's private army, but Stella's pride would also prevent her from joining Celestials through back door.

So when Luna and Stella both asked to stay at Mayu's house, Siegfried just gave them a strange look. When he realized that their eyes were not shy but full of self-righteousness, he realized that he was the least qualified to speak. He shook his head and signed the papers without hesitation. He then kindly helped Stella move for a day.

Perhaps Siegfried had hit the nail on the head, because the little bird didn't say a word for the rest of the journey. It wasn't until the two arrived at Mayu's house that Siegfried jumped out of the car with one hand on the side and rang the doorbell without saying a word.

After entering the house, Siegfried deliberately lingered in the entryway for a few seconds until the little bird couldn't resist and changed her shoes before him. Then, she slowly strolled in with her hands behind her head. The three women inside were all dressed in home clothes. Luna and Mayu were even wearing aprons, clearly having just come from the kitchen.

However, with his excellent combat intuition, Siegfried sensed something unusual beneath this peaceful facade; something was definitely amiss.

Without saying a word, he washed his hands, gave Stella a quick hug, and then slipped into the kitchen under the pretext of showing off his cooking skills.

"This meal doesn't look very appetizing!"

(End of this chapter)