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

Chapter 289 Potential Stock

"Hurry up, hurry up, get out of bed!"

The piercing military whistle and the instructor's roar rang out almost simultaneously. Then, the pilots, who hadn't slept soundly in their tents, hurriedly got out of bed and began tidying up their belongings.

The Federation Army's housekeeping standards are no worse than those of the Earth era, and in fact, because it integrates multiple national armies, they have to do even more. Fortunately, it is in a field state, so the pilots don't have to polish their boots or fold their shirts, but they still have to tidy up.

After hurriedly tidying up and washing up, it was time for breakfast, which was equally rushed and even timed.

"carrot?"

Looking at the raw carrots in the pot, Uraki Hiroshi felt a wave of dizziness. This was the thing he hated eating the most in his life!

"Is there no other dish?"

"A corn tortilla, a bowl of clear soup, and a raw carrot—that's your breakfast. Of course, there's meat too; if you accomplish your tactical objectives, you'll get plenty when you return. But if you fail, you'll be eating carrots for three months!"

Upon hearing this, Uraki Hiroshi almost collapsed and fainted. Eating carrots for one meal was already enough to kill him; eating them for three months would be worse than being shot!

But seeing that the instructors had already started timing, the pilots could only stuff the crispy cornbread and carrots into their mouths and then swallow a mouthful of clear, cold vegetable soup.

Even so, many people still failed to finish their meals on time, and their leftovers were ruthlessly taken away to feed the cattle raised at the logistics base.

"You only ate one piece of bread, how can you possibly feel full?"

"It's alright, that's enough!"

Seeing that his friend hadn't touched the carrot, Geese was quite worried, but since Uraki Hiroshi had said so, he could only give up trying to persuade him.

"Then let's team up when we move out later!"

Can we team up?

"The instructor said there would be no restrictions. If we can combine everyone's strength, we can definitely do it!"

"Really!"

"Yes, the pilots next door have already joined forces, let's join them!"

"Yes, that's definitely worth a try!"

After all, they were a regular army, and with military academy backgrounds, so the Federation pilots had no intention of fighting alone. After all, the famous Federation military expert, outstanding tactician, and invincible Federation mobile suit ace Macarius said that mobile suit units should always prioritize cooperative operations, a statement that was even written on the title page of the book "Attention! Mobile Suit".

So the pilots started coordinating last night and divided the command hierarchy according to everyone's overall abilities. However, Hiroshi Uraki fell asleep early because he was too tired. Otherwise, Geese would have recommended that he also try to be a commander.

"Look, our machine!"

"It's still Jim C. Didn't they say there were Gundams here?"

As the mechs were being transported to the camp, the pilots began to whisper among themselves.

"Gundam? That depends on whether you're qualified!"

Baninger overheard the students' conversation and chuckled.

"You know what? A new Gundam pilot might just be born from among you!"

"???"

Baninger's words were like a pebble thrown into a calm pond, instantly creating ripples. The pilot wanted to ask something more, but saw that the other man was already standing on a six-wheeled transport truck.

"Everyone, come and collect your activation keys!"

As key cards were distributed, GM C vehicles slowly rose from the transport vehicles under the instructions of the ground preparation troops.

"I'll emphasize again, this is real combat. If you don't put in your utmost effort, you could lose your life. Also, there are signal transmitters on your machines. If your machines malfunction and can't be repaired, just press it, and a transport plane will come to pick you up!"

Then, Baninger saluted the group of pilots.

"Well then, good luck to you all!"

Afterwards, the logistics personnel left the field, and the directing department went online. To ensure the smooth conduct of the exercise, six high-altitude subsonic drones took off from the Torrington base at once. Equipped with high-definition cameras and satellite imagery, they were able to monitor the entire exercise area.

Inside the command post, Makarius sat with his legs crossed in an exceptionally arrogant posture, while Nagase Hotaru poured freshly brewed black tea for him.

"Guess how many will be eliminated when they leave?"

After giving the other person a glass, Makarius picked up his own glass and spoke to Char, who had reached out but received nothing.

"???"

Xia awkwardly withdrew his hand, then suddenly raised his head again.

"Wait, you just said you were going out?"

At that moment, Captain Kuvatorobagina felt that the guy sitting in front of him had horns on his head, sores on the soles of his feet, and pus oozing from his back. After all, someone who could come up with the idea of ​​blocking the door and killing someone was definitely not a good person. This guy didn't even pour himself some tea!
"Yeah, guess who's there?"

"Who? Amuro?"

Seeing Makarius nod, Char was completely speechless.

"Aren't you afraid of giving these guys psychological trauma?"

"That's better than dying on the battlefield. If they can really be traumatized, then it means they're not suited to be pilots!"

"You know, Captain, on the battlefield, I put in so much effort but dare not speak of victory. I only hope that fewer of my men will die, especially in the future. Large-scale wars will become less frequent, but conflicts will only become more and more brutal with the advancement of technology! Think about that Zeong. If it were facing not ace pilots like you and me, but ordinary pilots, how many casualties would it have to suffer to take it down?"

Char remained silent, only thinking of the One Year War. Weren't those ordinary Zeon pilots just as helpless in front of Macarius?
While the two were talking, the participating Federation Jims had already completed a simple tactical grouping and then began to walk out of the base.

As the first GM walked out the door, a cracked icon suddenly lit up on its UI.

"what?"

"What's wrong, Bambino? Let's go!"

"I...I see it says it's been destroyed?"

"Destroyed? Is this thing malfunctioning...? Holy crap, I got destroyed too! What the hell was that?!"

"Is there something wrong with your machines? Don't block the entrance!"

The third Jim, also bewildered, walked up and then his machine stood still.

"There seems to be something wrong with this detection. How come it shows as destroyed as soon as we exit the gate?"

At this moment, the pilot finally realized what was happening.

"No, it's not a judgment, it's our enemy. Don't forget, the instructor said this is real combat!"

"But there are those who are blocking our base gates and fighting!"

"Have you forgotten how our fleet stationed at the side was wiped out?"

"This is not the time to talk about that. Who exactly is attacking?"

"Found it!" A GM knelt on the ground, using its reconnaissance module to gaze into the distance, and then spotted the enemy on the ridgeline who made no attempt to hide itself.

That was a Zaku I sniper rifle captured by the Federation forces, holding a 75mm live ammunition sniper rifle. Clearly, the GM that was destroyed at the gate was killed by him!

"Damn it, only one! That guy thinks he's something special? First Company, let's go!"

Seeing that he was indeed the only one around, a squad of Jims, led by their commander, leaped over the wall and launched an attack.

"Great, the First Company is suppressing him! Brothers, charge out! Let's kick those old bastards' asses!"

"Tsk tsk tsk, these guys are really daring, deploying an assault formation right on the plains!"

Major Jung, piloting the sniper Zaku, shook his head, then picked up a straw and put it in his mouth, happily sipping the juice from his water bag while launching an attack on the team of Jims.

As soon as he destroyed one, he saw more Jims emerging from the base gate and outer walls.

"Hey, you guys, do you really think I'm the only one here?"

"Major Amuro, it's your turn to enter!"

"learn!"

Behind the ridgeline, a large monster then burst out from the reverse slope, spewing out a jet of air.

"Wow, this movement speed is really impressive! It's like flying!"

Amuro, who was piloting the Dom in actual combat for the first time, couldn't help but sigh. As his machine rushed out of the reverse slope, he raised the rocket launcher in his hand. When the GM outside the base gate appeared in the crosshair, Amuro took a quick aim and pulled the trigger.

The exercise rockets were then launched and hurtled towards the densely packed GM formation.

"Intercept the barrage!"

After detecting the incoming rockets, several GMs stopped and began trying to intercept them with their head-mounted Gatling guns. Unfortunately, their artillery skills were terrible, and they failed to stop a single rocket, instead losing several GMs in the process.

After firing the rocket launcher, Amro did not linger but quickly left. Like the other Jims, they had limited weapons and ammunition. His Dom only carried four rocket launchers and two disposable Iron Fist rifles for close combat. This attack had already used up half of his ammunition.

Major Jung was the same; he only carried thirty rounds of sniper ammunition, so he was extremely careful when firing.

Their collaboration resulted in the loss of nearly one-fifth of the pilots' GMs before they even entered the exercise area. A total of nine GMs were destroyed. At this moment, the pilots of these GMs watched their comrades disappear into the distance with despair, and they could only return to the base to accept their punishment.

"Damn it, Hiro, you saw that? Those guys were too fast!"

"That's why I told you to conserve your ammo. You just fired three magazines and didn't hit anything, right?"

"I'm so angry! Those damn instructors are so shameless!"

At this moment, Hiroshi Uraki and Geese are moving closely with the main force.

"This is real combat; there's no way to talk about fairness with you. Besides, I think this attack is just the beginning!"

"No way, how many instructors are we going to have to face?!"

"It's definitely more than before, so..."

Before Hiroshi Uraki could finish speaking, the pilot team was attacked again. This time, the attacker was a high-powered GM. The enemy occupied a piece of satellite debris dozens of meters high and used its MG79 to suppress the advancing pilot team from above.

In the blink of an eye, two more GMs were destroyed.

"Damn it, go around, go around, flank him from both sides! Take him down!"

Forced to halt their advance, Jim and his men immediately launched a pincer movement, attempting to outflank and encircle the enemy.

"Something's wrong!"

"What's wrong?"

"The attack ahead was a trap!"

Uraki Hiroshi immediately shouted loudly on the public channel!
"what?"

Amidst the commander's puzzled exclamation, the sounds of fierce fighting soon came from the direction of the flanking force.

"This is Alpha Squadron. We've encountered resistance and can't advance! We can't advance!"

"This is the second squadron. The commander has fallen, and we are now under crossfire!"

This was indeed a well-designed trap, luring the enemy in the center while crossfire was deployed on both sides. It was specifically designed for flanking forces and had achieved good results.

"Those cunning foxes!"

The commander couldn't help but grit his teeth and curse. Then, he asked in the channel.

Who was speaking on the radio just now?

"it's me!"

"you are?"

"Lieutenant Hiroshi Uraki!"

"So, Lieutenant, do you have a way to help us get out of this predicament?"

"let me try!"

Uraki Hiroshi wasn't sure either, but right now everyone was trapped in this basin. If they didn't take action soon, and the snipers and rocket soldiers reappeared, they would only suffer even greater casualties!

"Just tell me what you need!"

"Just help me suppress the enemy's firepower!"

Then, a dozen or so GMs in front quickly emerged from their cover and used concentrated firepower to push the enemies on the wreckage aside, while Hiroshi Uraki controlled his machine to leap from behind the hillside and land next to a colony satellite wreckage of similar height behind them.

"Although I haven't tried it before, this is the only way for now!"

Looking at the towering wreckage, without the slightest hesitation, Hiroshi Uraki jumped inside. Then, he controlled Jim to climb and jump along the various obstacles inside the wreckage, and soon reached the top.

"I'm in position!"

"here you go!"

"Ceasefire, ceasefire!"

The commander immediately ordered all pilots to retreat to cover, while Hiroshi Uraki calmly held up his MG79 and aimed at the wreckage in the distance.

Due to the interference from ground fire, the elite pilot atop the wreckage was completely unaware of the unexpected guest opposite him. Just as his crosshair was locked onto a GM that couldn't retreat in time, a burst of gunfire rang out in the distance.

"Damn it!"

Looking at the broken gun in his hand, the elite pilot realized that there was a GM in front of him.

"Damn it, how come I didn't notice there was such a smart guy in here at the beginning!"

(End of this chapter)