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

Chapter 213 Military Parade
The federal government attached great importance to the military parade in London, and preparations began very early. Parliament even approved a special fund for the event and organized a committee to repair and maintain the city's infrastructure.

It must be said that when it comes to saving face, the councilors are quite generous and work very hard. The commissioners of the committee are very responsible after receiving the money. They ride around the city in luxury cars with their secretaries to supervise and make changes wherever they find something they don't like.

As a result, London underwent a complete transformation. Not only was the city's infrastructure improved, but the Thames River also became much clearer. Furthermore, to welcome visitors from all over the Commonwealth and the space colonies, the Parliament purchased a large number of flowers from Western Europe, adorning the entire city with vibrant blooms.

Although it may seem cold-blooded to spend a lot of money on vanity projects when space refugees are still displaced and homeless and the ruins of war have not been fully cleared, the council members remained unmoved. After all, a grand military parade would better demonstrate the Earth Federation's determination and will.

For Earth's inhabitants, such a military parade can give them a great sense of security and strength, especially for those in occupied territories who are eager to see the Federation's military force on display.

After all, the brutal atrocities committed by the Zeon forces during the period of occupation were unforgettable for them. Cities razed to the ground by land battleships, civilians killed by mobile suits, and concentration camps surrounded by high walls and electric fences would become nightmares that would haunt them for the rest of their lives.

In another timeline, the Zeon army, which was advancing triumphantly and reaping numerous rewards, could still wear masks and engage in friendly exchanges, and Garma could still have a romantic relationship with the mayor's daughter. But here, the Zeon army, which desperately needed all kinds of resources, including human resources, only wanted to exhaust all resources as quickly as possible to keep the war machine running.

Therefore, even the kind-hearted young master Karma could only tolerate Gihren's Führer's guards acting in an efficient and ruthless manner.

Conversely, the Federation Army, which had been disliked by the residents of the Earth Federation for petty theft, drinking, and fighting, was in a completely different state. The more people hated the Zeonians, the more they liked the Federation Army. So much so that when Macarius and his group arrived in London, they were taken aback by the enthusiasm of the local residents.

Discounted accommodations and free drinks, beautiful young women radiating youthful energy flirting on the street—while you might not be able to take someone away to a hotel and have a passionate encounter simply by saying "you're beautiful," a sumptuous dinner and a movie are definitely within reach.

However, the Federal Army Headquarters has clearly prepared contingency plans for all possible scenarios, including distributing safety protection equipment to soldiers and deploying a large number of military police and special police to sensitive locations to prevent uncontrollable situations from occurring.

In order to nip uncontrollable incidents in the bud, the military police would patrol the entire city at any time. If any federal officers or soldiers were found to be beating them with sticks, they would do so. Moreover, because there were many retired veterans among the federal troops participating in the parade, a staff officer with nothing better to do came up with the bad idea of ​​breaking legs if caught.

If any veteran's unit is involved in an accident, their service time will be extended by one month. This is the most unbearable thing for veterans who are about to go home, so they can only suppress their desire to get drunk.

While these measures have significantly reduced the revenue of London's pubs, other sources of income have actually increased, particularly souvenir vendors and restaurants selling local delicacies.

Of course, the most frequented restaurants are French restaurants or other types of restaurants, while restaurants that sell local food are still only frequented by locals.

Marcarius's wallet suffered a significant blow, as he had previously used his own money to treat others to boost morale, and now he naturally had to keep his promise. Moreover, as a commander who keeps his word, he wouldn't compromise on anything else; having promised to feast at the best restaurants, he naturally wouldn't lower the standards.

In the blink of an eye, nearly 10,000 Hett disappeared completely, and even Markarius, who had accumulated a considerable fortune, couldn't help but feel a little pained.

However, after Nagase Hotaru whispered a few words in his ear, the pain completely disappeared!
After joyfully becoming adults, the Red Dragon battle group quickly threw themselves into rehearsals for the military parade.

This parade was the largest in the Federation's history since the Space Force's naval review 70 years ago, with the entire military participating. Therefore, to avoid any unforeseen circumstances, drills were naturally necessary.

After all, this parade is to be broadcast to the entire Earth sphere. If something unexpected happens in the middle, those fleeing Zeon remnants might also watch it, and the Federation would lose face.

And soon it was New Year's Day, and with the sound of a bugle, the military parade officially began.

Under the watchful eyes of a host of federal officials and senior generals, squads of federal troops marched onto the main road in neat square formations.

Infantry and armored units that resisted Zeon attacks with their bare hands in the early stages of the war; artillery units that provided heavy firepower support to frontline troops during the war, causing many Zeon mobile suit units' offensives to fail; Federation mobile suit units that served as the mainstay; and various fighter jets in the sky.

Amid cheers from the spectators, the troops passed by in batches, and when Makarius's bright red mobile suit stepped onto the parade route, the cheers reached their peak.

From the start of the war, the Federation Army began publicizing Macarius's many achievements in its internal military newspapers. As the war continued, the existence of the Red Dragon became known to the general public. Ordinary Federation civilians might not know what the NT1 Gundam or the G3 Gundam were, but they only needed to know that the red mobile suit in front of them was not painted red, but rather that it was red because of the large number of enemy targets that had been shot down.

Among those watching the parade were naturally members of the Zeon side. While the people of the Zeon Republic were able to watch with a calm attitude, the remnants of the Zeon forces were truly unable to bear it.

"Damn it, you damn bastard! Turn off this damn TV!"

In the vast ruins of a colony, aboard a dusty, grimy Zeon warship covered in who knows how much dust, a drunken Zeon officer, his uniform collar undone, angrily raised a bottle of liquor and smashed it against the television hanging on the wall. However, due to his extreme intoxication, the bottle missed the television, but it still startled the others in the room.

"Are you crazy? This is the last working TV on the entire ship!"

"Who's taking this guy away! If you don't want to watch, go to sleep. What are you doing showing off here!"

Several Zeon officers immediately began verbally attacking the drunkard in dissatisfaction, but the man only became more enthusiastic and started hurling insults back with his foul-smelling mouth.

"The enemy is flaunting their power with the blood of our comrades, and you can still remain so calm. Where is the semblance of a royal guard? When the Federation army arrives, will you be the first to lay down your weapons and surrender?"

"Bullshit! When I was fighting the Federation Army, you were still eating shit in the reserves!"

The conflict between the two sides quickly escalated from verbal sparring to physical fights. Being hot-blooded adults, and already in a bad mood, they fought fiercely, even removing the seats fixed to the floor of the warship and using them as weapons.

Then, a loud shout interrupted the group, who were fiercely trying to persuade each other with fists and feet.

"Stop!" "Attention!"

Several Zeon officers who were watching the battle from the sidelines were so startled by the bright, bald man who had entered the room at some unknown time that they jumped up from their spaceship.

Because this bald man was none other than their supreme commander, Lieutenant General Aijudilaz.

As the supreme commander of the Zabi Royal Guard, his prestige was beyond question. With just a shout, the Zeon officers who had been rolling around in a heap disregarded their injuries and stood up decisively.

"Why fight?"

Diraz didn't rush to punish these guys. He knew that the morale of the entire army was unstable at the moment, and it was normal for there to be riots. So, he simply asked the men a few questions in a very calm manner.

The Zeon officers looked at each other, but the leader, with his head still bleeding, reported the situation truthfully.

"What, do you find it too bright?"

Delaz glanced at the Gundam walking through the crowd on the screen, then looked at his subordinates.

"If you find it offensive, then you should open your eyes wider and look at it carefully. We failed, so this is the outcome. What kind of person would try to escape just because they feel ashamed?"

"Do we no longer even have the courage to admit that we are inferior to others and to face failure?"

"And you!"

Diraz looked at the drunken officer who had started the argument.

"The fleet currently lacks stable logistical support and still wants to sabotage equipment. You're sentenced to a month of confinement, then you'd better report to the maintenance crew!"

Delaz didn't dwell on getting drunk, because for the entire fleet that had fled their homeland in such a sorry state as to be like stray dogs, drinking to pass the time had become the only pastime for all the officers and men. Even he would occasionally have a few drinks when he was alone because he couldn't shake off the frustration in his heart.

However, it seems that such indulgence is not a solution!

"And you too, let the whole fleet see how our enemy swaggers around after defeating us, see how the executioners who slaughtered countless of our comrades are adored and cheered. I want you to remember this day, to remember this feeling!"

"Turn the volume up! Louder, so everyone can hear us clearly!"

Soon, the television presenter's gentle voice drowned out Delaz's voice and clearly reached the ears of everyone in the room and the entire fleet.

Diraz then turned and left.

At this moment, he knew very well that if he wanted the entire fleet to continue operating normally, he had to think of a way. It had only been less than two months since they left the homeland, and the combat effectiveness of the entire fleet had declined so severely. If this continued, let alone counterattacking Zeon, it would be a good thing if the fleet didn't disband itself!

In contrast to the Delaz fleet, on the other side, in another dark corner of the universe, Simakarahou, wearing heavy leather boots and sitting on her tiger-skin throne, was also watching a live broadcast from Earth. Due to signal issues, the image in front of her would flicker from time to time, but Simakarahou didn't have time to deal with it at the moment, because she and her subordinates were drinking and eating while watching the video.

"They took down over four hundred Zeon mobile suits. Good job! I doubt any of ours were among them."

Compared to the grieving Delaz fleet, Sima didn't care about honor or disgrace. When Makarius's ID photo appeared in the news, she couldn't help but whistle.

"No, boss, that guy is in Sector S, we're in Sector N!"

"Then it's alright. Otherwise, we would have had to run even further to avoid being targeted by this guy!"

When the Sima Fleet fled, they were all unwelcome and had to run away on their own. These soldiers, who came from humble backgrounds, quickly adapted to this life on the run and seamlessly transformed into space pirates. By occasionally plundering a few passing civilian transport ships, they managed to make a decent living. As a result, many of them thought they should have done this a long time ago. After all, in the Zeon army, they were unloved and never received their full rations.

Therefore, they never felt any shame about the Federation's display. After all, their so-called last contact with Zeon was gone, and their home, the satellite Mahar, had been transformed into a satellite cannon by the Zeon. So, at this moment, the Sima Fleet had no feelings for Zeon anymore. Zeon didn't treat them as human beings, so from now on, they could only rely on themselves.

Unfortunately, because Axis is far away in the asteroid belt, and the Zeon fleet, which is still on the run, cannot receive signals from the Federation forces, Char will never see the handsome photos of the two newborns who tormented him to the point of death.

However, not being able to see it is also a good thing for Char, since as a narrow-minded man, he would really be depressed!
Dozru, who was still in the Federal Army's high-security prison, also had a television. In fact, he was the first to turn on the television to watch the military parade, and his attention was naturally focused on Makarius.

"Ugh!"

At this moment, recalling his first meeting with Makarius, Dozru could only sigh. He had even thought that the outstanding Makarius would have a lot in common with him to talk about, but now, he could only say that fate had played a cruel trick on him.

(End of this chapter)