Why would I join the army if I can’t drive a Gundam!

Chapter 165 The Nightmare Returns

"Sir, here is today's intelligence!"

"Just leave it there, hopefully we'll have some good news today!"

Looking at the stack of documents Cynthia was holding in her arms, Major General Yuri, or rather, Lieutenant General Yuri, who had hurriedly gotten up, casually wiped his face with a towel and then sat down at his desk to look through the documents.

The top part of the document is a summary of the Zeon forces' situation over the past day. In the past, this summary was given to Garma, but now, with Yuri becoming the second commander of the Earth Area Army, this document has become Yuri's job.

"Oh my God!"

Looking at the numbers in the summary, Lieutenant General Yuri felt a splitting headache. Although the Federation forces had not yet launched a large-scale offensive in Central Asia and even Europe, the losses suffered by his Zeon army every day were still shocking. On average, the loss of one and a half battalions a day may not seem like much to Yuri's army of hundreds of thousands, but when accumulated, it was frightening, especially now that the entire army was basically not receiving any personnel replenishment.

Yuri then read the second battle report, which reported that the Zeon army had successfully launched an attack in the Baku region, seizing control of a village from the Federation forces and occupying an area of ​​approximately thirty square kilometers.

This was good news; at least compared to the Zeon forces in North America, the Zeon forces in Central Asia could still maintain their offensive capabilities. However, upon seeing the third document, Yuri's face darkened considerably.

The document contained a list of supplies, requiring Yuri to provide a batch of specially equipped Tiger mechs, a batch of reinforced power reactors, and other additional power reactor fuel. These items were not unavailable to the army at the moment, but the problem was that the enemy's demand was enormous, equivalent to the consumption of two armored divisions for a week!

"Kinias, what are you doing?"

Yuri glanced at the signatures at the bottom of the list and immediately gritted his teeth.

"Approve half of this order!"

"But Director Kinias will be unhappy!"

Cynthia served Yuri hot coffee and a sandwich, and then said.

"That guy is dissatisfied, but we don't have many resources. His research project has consumed so many resources, but he hasn't achieved anything!"

Lieutenant General Yuri wolfed down a sandwich, then gulped down his coffee before speaking.

"I know that if his research project succeeds, it can turn the tide of the war, but the question is, can we hold out until then?"

Lieutenant General Yuri sighed again. "How did North America collapse like a house of cards? Now only its own army group is left on Earth, all alone and helpless."

With that in mind, he quickened his pace in reviewing the documents, as he had a lot to do today.

After processing the Zeon military's documents and reports, what appeared before Yuri were some materials from the Federation collected by Zeon intelligence personnel, including military reports and captured texts. When he saw the first crumpled newspaper, Lieutenant General Yuri's heart and lungs stopped instantly, and his breath caught in his throat.

Because the newspaper article featured Macarius receiving his medal in Gabro, and behind him stood that blood-red Gundam.

"This guy was in Gabulo a week ago, so he probably won't be sent to Central Asia anytime soon, right?"

Lieutenant General Yuri even harbored malicious thoughts that Macarius might go to space to cause trouble for Fort Solomon. After all, it seemed a bit of a waste to use such powerful forces to deal with the Zeon forces on Earth!
However, this was just wishful thinking on his part. Yuri could also foresee that the Federation Forces would not launch an attack on the Zeon homeland until they had cleared out all the enemies on Earth. So for now, they would just wait as long as possible.

"Long time no see, Kant! You look like a pile of dog poop!"

"What the hell!"

Seeing Markarius, wearing a cowboy hat and carrying a backpack, step off the transport plane as if he were going on vacation, Major Conte, whom he hadn't seen in a long time, immediately raised a big middle finger and then gave him a warm, slightly sour hug.

"Get lost! This one is custom-made!"

Seeing that his custom-made military uniform now had several marks on it, Makarius kicked the other man in the butt without hesitation.

"Ugh, it's so frustrating. We're all top players, so why am I doing so poorly?"

Kant rubbed his backside, putting on a wronged expression, but still took Makarius's luggage and put it in the armored vehicle bed next to him.

"Let's talk again when you've broken 200 kills!"

"That's a bit risky!"

At the mention of taking down targets, Conte's eyes immediately went vacant. Despite his best efforts in the fight, he had only managed to take down seventy-three targets so far, a far cry from Makarius's record!
"But now that you're here, I suppose I have a chance!"

Kant chuckled.

"I've been waiting for this day of counterattack for a long time!"

The thing Lieutenant General Yuri was worried about still happened. After resting for three weeks at the Gabro base, the Red Dragon Tactical Battalion quickly completed its expansion and has now transformed into the Red Dragon Independent Combat Group. It took off directly from the Gabro base, traveled across the Atlantic to Europe, and then arrived directly at Odessa, the Federation Army's most important military base in the Black Sea region. Next, all that is needed is for the Red Dragon Combat Group's follow-up equipment and personnel to arrive before they can send holiday greetings to Lieutenant General Yuri!

The Red Dragon Tactical Group has undergone a significant upgrade, with its personnel nearly doubling in size. Now, Makarius commands six mobile suit companies and three steel tank companies, along with additional mechanized infantry and artillery regiments, an independent intelligence company, and a supporting logistics department. Even if the Zeon Capital Defense Division were to arrive, he would dare to engage them in battle!
However, with the increased scale, the troop's movements were naturally not as smooth as before. For example, Makarius's command post had already advanced to Odessa, while the main force was still on its way. However, the battle group was not in a hurry to launch an attack, so the slow movement was not a problem. This made it convenient for Makarius to gather some intelligence first.

It just so happens that he has a local acquaintance in Odessa. Back in the training camp, the boastful old man, Conte, immediately came running to pick him up after receiving the news from Markarius.

"I had to say a lot of nice things to the base commander and even gave him two bottles of good wine before I was moved to sit next to you!"

"What, you're here to ask me for reimbursement?"

"No, it's not that. I mainly have a request!"

Kant came over with a grin.

"I heard your combat group is made up of all aces, so could you spare some time to teach my men a lesson?"

"Okay, I'll grant your request! Do you want me to make an appearance?"

"Forget about you. My little brothers combined aren't even enough for one shot from you. But it'll be good to let them feel the pressure from a top-tier hunter!"

Kant genuinely wanted his men to serve as moving targets for Macarius, giving him a taste of the skills of so-called top elite pilots. He didn't want those guys to become complacent after winning several battles, because that's exactly what happened to him. He had underestimated a Zeon pilot when they faced off against him because the pilot had far fewer kills than him, and almost suffered a crushing defeat. So now, he wasn't going to let this opportunity to hone his skills slip by!

"Sure, when do we start? How about now?"

"Aren't we going to eat first? Our brigade's French chef is absolutely top-notch!"

"Then let him start cooking the dishes first, and we can eat right after he finishes!"

Markarius turned his head as he spoke.

"Amuro, can I borrow your new Gundam?"

"Sure, I'd love to see how this thing performs!"

The new Gundam that Macarius mentioned is naturally the RX-78XX Phantom Gundam that Amuro mentioned before. This is one of several derivative mobile suits of the RX-78 series that were developed in a highly secretive manner by the Earth Federation. Its performance focuses on melee combat capabilities and mobility in ground battles.

Because it was developed for combat in a gravity environment, and because it was designed based on the RX-78-2 Gundam, the Phantom Gundam is not much different from the original in appearance. However, in terms of internal structure, the space combat equipment and core fighter system have been removed.

In terms of specific modifications, the Phantom Gundam enhanced its mobility and simplified its armament and protection as much as possible, making it three and a half tons lighter than the original. Its output was increased to 1440kw, and with the addition of additional attitude nozzles, it can now be called the fastest legendary mobile suit in the entire Earth Sphere!

The reason Amuro's mobile suits were used was naturally because the G3 Gundam hadn't arrived yet. After all, the G3 had so much additional equipment after its upgrades that it required a separate Media Gundam to carry it. Therefore, the first items transferred from Europe were Amuro's two mobile suits. Soon, Macarius saw the crowds already waiting on both sides of the military camp. It seemed that Kant had put a lot of effort into preparing a welcoming ceremony, because upon seeing the convoy, there was a lively atmosphere with music and singing. Even before the vehicles had come to a complete stop, a bunch of new recruits rushed forward, wanting Macarius to sign their autographs!

When the pilots of Conte's 100th Squadron learned that Macarius had agreed to their captain's request for a warm-up match, they fought fiercely for a spot in the game, because Conte had limited the scale of the confrontation to one squadron against Macarius's weapon, which was ten against one.

Therefore, someone in the entire team will inevitably be unable to play.

So the pilots of the entire squadron racked their brains to get a chance to fly, and some even tried to bribe Conte.

"Captain, I'll introduce my sister to you. Please, let me go!"

There are also threats to Kanter!
"Captain, last time we went to the bar to pick up girls, I paid for it. You don't want the military police to know about it, do you?"

Even more people wanted to convince Conte based on their own qualifications!
"Captain, you know me well. So far, I've only taken down four enemies, just one step away from being an ace. Let me get a feel for it. Tomorrow, I'll bring you the head of the fifth enemy!"

However, Conte decisively rejected these guys and then selected ten pilots who, in his opinion, had a better chance of becoming ace pilots.

So the others could only sit on small stools outside under the big screen and wait to watch the battle. No one knew who had spread the news, so while the Red Dragon battle group's maintenance personnel were adjusting the Elf Gundam for about ten minutes, nearly a hundred pilots from other Federation forces came to join in the fun.

After Makarius was ready, the referee, Conte, read out the rules of confrontation.

"Earth environment, desert town terrain, restrictions on weapons of mass destruction, other conditions are unrestricted, destroy the enemy's mech to achieve victory!"

Upon hearing the rules, the pilots who came to watch the battle couldn't help but discuss among themselves, and they began to speculate from their own perspectives on how they would handle the battle.

Meanwhile, Makarius had already fully entered the map.

At this moment, his mech was outside a desolate desert town. Looking around, there were only sand dunes of all sizes, and only in front of him was a small, dilapidated town.

Without the slightest hesitation, Makarius directly piloted his mech toward the town. He had no intention of playing any fancy tricks; instead, he was determined to defeat his opponent as quickly as possible and end the confrontation.

Meanwhile, the pilots of the 100th Squadron opposite him were still cautiously searching and advancing. Some of them even activated their reconnaissance components, stopping to observe every two steps. After all, the name of the Red Dragon was well-known, so these pilots were very careful. But soon, they realized that they might have been overthinking things.

"Enemy aircraft detected, 6,000 meters away, right in front of us!"

"I saw it too! This guy is moving towards us, and he's moving incredibly fast!"

"Are you planning to crush us head-on? Hagiron, you bastard, form ranks and prepare for battle!"

While the 100th Battalion's Jims were frantically assembling, Makarius had already closed to within four kilometers of them. Taking advantage of this, he raised his MG79 while maintaining his sprint and fired three rounds of underbarreled grenades at the 100th Battalion's Jims. After removing the empty cartridge cases, he quickly reloaded and fired three more rounds until the third reload was complete.

At that moment, the Jims had just formed their formation when three grenades came hurtling over.

Guided by the Newtype's perception, the grenades hit the two GMs with great accuracy. The armor-piercing grenades, designed to attack mobile suits, pierced the cockpit armor of the GM pilots before they could even raise their shields, and they were forced to withdraw from the battle.

"What? How come we lost two friendly units?"

"More grenades! Shields up!"

"It's no use, that thing has a high-trajectory trajectory, it's too high, quickly use the headshot!"

Despite the timely response of the GM pilots, it was too late. The whistling Gatling gun barrage failed to take down anything, and another machine had its head monitor destroyed, forcing it to withdraw from the battle according to the rules.

At this moment, these Jims hadn't even spotted the enemy's location.

"My God, is this our army's top ace? Is this guy even human?"

Makarius's skillful grenade launching truly gave these Federation pilots a slight shock, but what surprised them even more was yet to come.

At this moment, Makarius had already rushed across the town and finally appeared in the sight of the Jims. But while the Jims were still struggling to lock onto him, Makarius had already raised his machine gun.

The precise bursts of 90mm armor-piercing rounds suppressed the larger number of GMs, forcing them to raise their shields to protect their vitals. Meanwhile, Markarius didn't care about the ammunition, running and firing all the way until all four magazines he carried were emptied, at which point he fired the last three grenades.

Then, under the watchful eyes of the other pilots, the Phantom Gundam dropped its rifle, grabbed two small beam daggers that popped out from its thigh, and launched a high-speed attack.

"That guy is coming!"

"Fire!"

"No, I can't hit him, he's too fast!"

Thanks to the previous machine gun suppression and grenade attacks, Macarius had gotten very close to the GMs. Then, he activated all the attitude thrusters on his legs and back, and the entire machine, like a butterfly in flight, rushed towards the GMs with dazzlingly fast and erratic maneuvers.

"Draw your sword! Draw your sword now!"

The first GM had barely dropped its rifle and hadn't even drawn its beam saber when Macarius's beam dagger pierced the cockpit from its side. Then, with a nimble spinning kick, the Elf Gundam brought the second GM to the ground with a sweeping leg.

Then, the Elf Gundam activated its maximum power boost as if taking off from flat ground, leaping across the ground and simultaneously killing the second unit with its beam dagger.

Meanwhile, the third GM drew its beam saber and charged forward with two allies behind it. However, the Elf Gundam easily parried the slash with a dagger and instantly deflected the beam saber with a nimble spin. Then, the dagger severed the GM's arm.

Then, using the third GM as cover, the Phantom Gundam jumped as it crashed into the fourth GM, its two head cannons beginning to fire in mid-air, forcing the GM pilots to raise their hands to protect their heads. In that very second, Macarius's Phantom Gundam landed, its dagger piercing the cockpits of the third and fourth GMs one after the other.

"how is this possible?"

The pilot of the fifth GM only saw the opponent nimbly spin around like a ballerina, and his teammate in front of him fell down. Then, the opponent pounced on him.

"Don't even think about killing me!"

Jim's pilot roared, trying to suppress the opponent with his headshot, but the Elf Gundam suddenly rolled forward and disappeared from his sight.

"how is this possible?"

Jim's pilot was about to duck, but the next second, he saw a beam of light pierce through his machine.

Now, only the sixth and seventh GMs remained on the field. The pilots of the two GMs exchanged a glance and then charged towards the Elf Gundam side by side. However, as they swung their swords, the Markarius mobile suits suddenly charged forward one by one and then slid through them.

Before the two GMs could turn around, the Elf Gundam had already sprung up from the ground and thrust its twin blades straight at the enemy.

"Red Dragon wins!"

Seeing the ten GMs destroyed in less than two minutes, the Federation pilots watching the battle fell into a deathly silence. It wasn't until a while later that someone reacted and started to applaud.

"Is this the power of an ace?"

"We simply can't do that!"

(End of this chapter)