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

Chapter 175 This place is off-limits
"Sir, the Caluda has been shot down!"

"I saw!"

Mark Bay sat in his chair, looking utterly devastated. His face was almost deathly pale, and he unconsciously clenched his fingers tightly around the armrests.

At this moment, there was no turning back. HLV had entered the launch countdown, and his fate was now entirely in the hands of fate!

As the ground trembled, another Zanzibar cruiser slowly rose, facing the falling flames and debris. With the help of booster rockets, the cruiser gradually broke free from the constraints of gravity.

As the altitude numbers jumped, the Zeon soldiers inside the spaceship were on tenterhooks. Some were sweating profusely, while others closed their eyes and muttered prayers to the spirits of the universe, hoping for a safe return to space.

However, the spacecraft's sensors immediately issued a sharp warning, indicating that the fire control system on the ground had firmly locked onto the spacecraft.

Immediately afterwards, a thin beam of light shot from the ground and landed on the booster rocket's fuel tank.

The booster rocket's armor held out for less than a second before being penetrated. Then, the high-purity rocket propellant ignited, and the rocket's outer shell expanded like popcorn. Immediately afterward, the entire rocket began to explode and disintegrate.

The Zeon soldiers inside the spaceship could only cry out in despair as the explosions continued upwards, spreading throughout the entire ship.

The second Zanzibar ship suffered an even more horrific fate than the first. The entire ship exploded into a brilliant fireball due to the rocket fuel, and the shockwave from the explosion sent fragments evenly sprayed outwards in a 360-degree arc from the epicenter.

The third Zanzibar cruiser was attacked next. These ships were all new ships that had just left the shipyard less than a month or two ago, and this trip to Earth was their final swan song.

"Damn it, we can't let them attack anymore!"

At that moment, amidst the ever-growing Zeon army, a weathered and haggard major general slammed his military cap to the ground.

"Forget about those damn nuclear bombs, we have to get those rockets up there!"

The Zeon troops were unaware that the rockets did not carry wounded soldiers, but rather various resources mined by the Zeon mining forces. To cover their tracks, Mark Bey consistently told the Zeon troops that the rockets were used to transport the wounded.

Therefore, seeing the incredibly tragic state of the three Zanzibar ships, the Zeon commander felt extremely distressed.

In his eyes, countless people lost their precious lives in that exploding fireball.

"Tell the brothers, we can't back down anymore. We can't get on a flight back now anyway, so it doesn't matter if we die here. But at least we have to get those wounded soldiers back safely!"

"Let them tell our story to our children!"

Without Macbeth's command, the Zeon forces besieging the Red Dragon battle group finally ended their nightmarish, piecemeal attack, leaving the Zeon forces, lacking various support, to face the Federation's most elite forces. The result was a horrific massacre.

Fortunately, they still had many clear-headed commanders. After a brief meeting, the Zeon army's attack pattern immediately changed.
The Majera tanks and other armored vehicles were no longer used for direct combat, but remained on the front lines to provide makeshift artillery support. The main force of the attack became the continuous stream of mobile soldiers and light infantry in various vehicles.

In addition, the configuration of Zeon's mobile suits has been improved. A small number of mobile suits equipped with heavy anti-ship rifles and large-caliber machine guns are deployed in the rear, while the Zaku, which serves as the main force, attracts the firepower of the Federation forces. A small number of Dom and other special mobile suits such as the high-mobility Zaku, which are now only in the single digits, will conduct patrol attacks to find weaknesses in the Federation's defenses and seize opportunities to break through.

After the Zeon forces completed their deployment, the defensive pressure on the Red Dragon battle group increased significantly.

"Have these guys finally figured it out? They know how to fight now?"

Amuro, who was moving nimbly behind the building, fired at the enemy in the distance with his short-barreled assault rifle while muttering to himself.

"They haven't suddenly figured it out, they've just changed commanders!"

Makarius was not on the front lines at the moment, but instead found a corner and released a fiber optic drone to check the situation in the vicinity. He then immediately reacted to the Zeon army's movements.

"White Knight, take your squad to reinforce the western defense line, and bring the Steel Tank squad over as well!"

"Amuro, go to the south side and take the Spartan squad with you!"

"Understood, what about this side?"

Amro did not hesitate at all after hearing the order and immediately returned to the inner side of the position to resupply. However, he did not forget to ask what to do about the north side where Markarius was under the most pressure.
"Leave this to me!"

Makarius picked up the beam rifle, took a deep breath, and replied.

"Come on, brothers!"

The Zeon forces on the north side had already begun their assault. A squad of three Dom units led the charge, their rocket launchers raised high. Once within effective firing range, the Zeon pilots pulled the triggers without even waiting for the fire control system to lock onto the target.

A 360mm heavy rocket, propelled by propellant, flew out of the muzzle. After leaving the muzzle, the rocket's engine started working, preparing to accelerate the projectile. But at the same time, a blinding beam of light shot out from the front of the Big Demon Squad.

The aftershocks of the beam easily destroyed the rocket, causing it to explode. The beam itself struck the chest of the first Dom without any attenuation. After penetrating the first Dom, the beam continued to fly out and hit the lower body of the third Dom. The pilot of this Dom had just controlled the machine to leap into the air when one of the engines responsible for propelling the machine was destroyed by the incoming beam.

The third Dome instantly lost its balance and began to roll on the ground like a gourd, before colliding with the first Dome whose cockpit had been destroyed, sending parts flying everywhere.

The pilot of the second Dom didn't have time to check on his teammates. He frantically pressed the trigger on the control stick, preparing to fire his rockets as quickly as possible and then turn. But the next second, two beams shot out one after the other, detonating his rockets one by one. His mech was hit in the torso the next second, and the Dom, out of control, crashed heavily to the ground.

After eliminating the large demon squad, Makarius immediately lowered his beam rifle and raised his left hand. The shield he had been holding was gone, replaced by a rocket launcher. Makarius slightly raised his weapon, then held his breath, using his senses to determine the movement of the enemies behind him.

After a brief moment of holding his breath, he decisively pulled the trigger, blasting out four rockets in one go. After emptying the magazine, he used his right hand, which had been holding down the beam rifle, to reach in and load a new four-round magazine into the rocket launcher's chamber.

With a click as the chamber was loaded, four more rockets were fired, and the empty magazines containing the warheads slid out of the rocket launcher's receiver, emitting hot steam, and fell to the ground with a crisp clanging sound.

Reload and fire!
In less than seven seconds, Makarius fired sixteen rockets in one go, and the rockets then formed a staggered pattern, striking the attacking Zaku group in a neat formation.

Dozens of Zaku fell, but many more simply passed over the wreckage of their teammates and continued their attack.

At this moment, these Zeon pilots had already disregarded their own lives. They faced the incoming beams of light head-on, and were even willing to take the bullets for their allies behind them, just so that their allies could advance one more step.

Meanwhile, their light and heavy firepower was also retaliating in the direction of the incoming beam. Perhaps this could not destroy the enemy's machine, but it was enough to disrupt it!

If the constant barrage of Zeon artillery fire is like the waves crashing against the beach in the ocean, then Makarius is the reef that stands firm amidst those waves.

Stray bullets kept hitting or grazing his aircraft, scraping off the red paint and revealing the original white base color. He could even hear the sound of shrapnel hitting him from inside the cockpit.

But Makarius did not move; he simply stood there, holding his beam rifle high and continuing to fire.

Under such intense use, his rifle quickly ran out of ammunition. Then, Markarius simply dropped the rifle, pulled out the MG79 from his thigh holster, and continued firing.

When MG79 ran out of ammunition, only one-tenth of the Zeon mobile suits that appeared before him remained, and even those that were left were mostly badly wounded.

However, in the eyes of the Zeon pilots, the G3 Gundam was just as good as them. Its armor was covered with craters and dents, and some parts of the armor were even red from repeated hits and friction, looking as if they were on fire.

Even so, they remained completely unfazed, as the latter drew out a beam spear with a gleaming purple blade.

"No passage allowed here!"

With a roar from Macarius, the G3 Gundam launched itself like a cannonball, brandishing its spear and engaging in fierce combat with the enemy before it.

The sweeping spear cleaved through the scorching axe blade, and the roaring head cannon tore apart the single eye that pulsed with red light. In just a few minutes, the only thing standing on the field was the G3 Gundam, riddled with countless wounds.

As for the Zeon mobile suits that fell at his feet, there was more than just one battalion. The Zeon soldiers who accompanied the mobile suits in their attack had already witnessed this bloody and brutal battle. Seeing the Zaku's head being roughly torn off by the enemy's grip, and the Tiger being severed in half by the enemy's gun blade, still spitting out sparks, these Zeon infantrymen completely collapsed.

Even though there was only one mobile suit on the position, and the enemy was out of ammunition and supplies, even the bravest Zeon commander dared not utter any more nonsense about continuing the attack.

Because they all saw it, saw how the enemy used a single machine on the position to destroy their attacking troops one by one with various firepower, and saw how, after finally getting close, the Zaku were disemboweled and slaughtered by the enemy with a long spear.

And now, even if they attack again, what can they do?
Thanks to Makarius's impeccable defense, the Federation Red Dragon Battle Group troops in the rear were able to turn the HLVs that were rising into the sky into dazzling fireworks.

"Sir, we're alright!"

For Macbeth, he was lucky. The HLV launched from the edge of the area was indeed a fish that slipped through the net in the eyes of the Federation forces. Everyone was busy fighting the dense enemy in the center. Therefore, the HLV he was riding successfully broke through the constraints of Earth's transport capacity and safely delivered him to Earth's low Earth orbit. A small Zeon fleet with several Dolos transport ships was quietly waiting in orbit.

Upon the arrival of the HLV, Dolores immediately contained Mark Bay's rocket. However, Mark Bay, who emerged from the rocket, did not show any happy smile. He simply rushed to the central computer on the bridge, quickly retrieved the sensor data, and then revealed a pained expression.

His adjutant soon realized why his superior was so upset. Very few HLVs had flown up with them; only a handful were floating alone in space. Moreover, some of these HLVs were actually full of wounded and sick soldiers. In other words, his last attempt to make a big profit had completely failed, and it was not even close to a complete failure.

"Sir, should we continue to wait?"

"retreat!"

Captain Zeon, who was in charge of containing the HLV, was still unaware of why there were so few rockets. He was prepared to wait for more rockets to arrive, but then Macbeth shook his head.

"Retreat! There are no more HLVs left; most of them have been destroyed!"

Then, the fleet quickly set sail and headed into the depths of space. Before leaving, Mark Bay looked sadly at the Earth beneath his feet and then said.

"We are now the last Zeon force to leave Earth alive and safely!"

While the Macbeth fleet was leaving silently, the Zeon forces on the ground discovered the truth inside the HLV that had failed to launch. The wounded they thought were there were still struggling in the ruins of the hospital that had been blown to pieces. Inside the HLV, there were only neatly stacked minerals.

"Marc Bey! You'll die a horrible death!"

In despair, Major General Zeon slammed his fist into the hatch in front of him, leaving a bright red bloodstain on it.

But now, his desperate roars were meaningless. The Zeon army, having learned the truth, deflated like a punctured balloon. Their once fierce offensive vanished, and the intense firefight turned into a one-sided barrage of fire from the Federation forces.

"What are we?!"

At this moment, these people suddenly realized that they, the Zeon soldiers who were still on Earth, were actually no different from the dead.

(End of this chapter)