Gundam, the Gundam journey of a certain glue guy and his mecha girl.

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Vesalius, bridge.

As usual, Kruze stood in his favorite spot, gazing at the dark universe outside the porthole.

"Huh? Are we going to abandon the mission to chase Long Legs?"

After hearing Kruze's arrangements, Captain Artis asked in surprise.

"We have completed the mission of rescuing Miss Lacus Clyne. Now, our responsibility is to send Miss Clyne back to her home country. As for the mission of pursuing Longlegs, the surrounding friendly fleets have already gathered in the direction of the Earth Force's Eighth Fleet. Let's trust our allies' capabilities here."

Although he said that, Kruze would not have been willing to retreat if it weren't for the fact that he had lost more than half of his mobile suits and the Gamow.

Like a moth drawn to a flame, the feeling Raven gave Kruze always made him eager to be with him.

If one could push a passionate and hopeful soul into the abyss of despair, one would surely experience boundless joy.

But Kruze has something even more important to do besides that.

"However, our team's drivers probably don't really want to retreat now."

Artis thought of the giant pilots, and his head began to throb.

These young masters are at least the children of councilors; if they start causing trouble, it could get really complicated.

"Isn't it a good thing for soldiers to have high morale? If they really want to stay, then let them participate in the troops that launched the attack. Of course, except for Aslan. As the son of the Chairman of the National Defense Committee and Miss Klein's fiancé, he has more important things to do."

Kruze gazed into the deep void before him, as if he could see the white behemoth that had long since disappeared from sight.

'Before we meet again, don't be so easily knocked down, pilot of the short sword.'

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The Archangel was now positioned in the center of the Eighth Fleet formation, sailing alongside the flagship Menelaus.

Inside the hangar, a standard coalition liaison boat was steadily anchored inside the Archangel's hangar.

All the officers on the Archangel had gathered there, and when Brigadier General Halbarton appeared from behind the liaison boat's hatch, they straightened their backs and saluted the renowned general in unison.

"It's been a long time, Maru. When I heard that Heliopolis had collapsed, I thought it was all over. I didn't expect you to have fought your way here. You've worked hard."

Halbarton was surprisingly approachable, far less imposing than rumored.

"Thank you for your concern. It's been a long time, Your Excellency."

Maru excitedly greeted her mentor, and Halbarton smiled and returned the greeting before looking at the two officers standing behind Maru.

“I am Natal Bakirulu.”

"I am Mu la Vlada, belonging to the Seventh Mobile Fleet."

"You are the famous Endymion's Falcon. It's fortunate that you are on the Archangel."

Brigadier General Halbarton warmly shook Mu's hand, but Mu seemed somewhat embarrassed in the face of the eager brigadier general.

"To my shame, I didn't really play a role. If it weren't for the help of those children and Mr. Raven, the Archangel probably wouldn't have joined the Eighth Fleet at such a low price."

Mu's gaze drifted to Raven and the students from Heliopolis standing behind the officers, their blue and pink volunteer uniforms standing out conspicuously in the hangar at that moment.

Brigadier General Halbarton walked over to the students and thanked them solemnly.

"On behalf of the Earth Alliance, I apologize to you and thank you for fighting alongside the Archangel until now. Students of Heliopolis, I have checked on the situation of your families, and everyone is safe and sound, so please rest assured."

After hearing Halbarton's words, the students all breathed a sigh of relief. Their biggest worry these past few days had been the safety of their families.

"Also, it's been a long time, Dr. Ray. I didn't expect that Dr. Ray could pilot mobile suits in addition to his research. You may not know this, but on Earth, Dr. Ray's popularity might even surpass that of the most popular movie stars."

Halbarton grasped Raven's hand and said, half-jokingly.

"You flatter me, sir. I'm just a technician, not a movie star."

Raven initially thought Halbarton was joking, but seeing the other man's smiling expression, he sensed that something was amiss.

"Uh, Your Excellency, you must be joking, right?"

"A hero who piloted our army's newest mobile suit and led the Archangel through the enemy's heavy blockade. That's how they're promoting you back home."

Raven keenly caught the meaningful glint in Halbarton's eyes and immediately understood the Allied Forces' intentions.

By portraying him as a war hero, morale was boosted, especially since this hero was previously a highly regarded young natural scientist.

The Allied forces' top brass's plans are almost thwarting Raven's scheme.

"We'll discuss the details somewhere else."

Seeing Raven's increasingly grim expression, Halbarton could only sigh and lead Raven and the officers on the Archangel into the interior of the ship.

Chapter 27 New Missions and New Equipment

Zaft, Vesalius hangar.

Aslan and Lacus stood at the edge of the hangar, bidding farewell to Yzak, Diego, and Nicol, who were about to transfer to friendly ships to participate in the attack on the Eighth Fleet.

"What's wrong, Aslan? Are you that reluctant to part with me?"

Yzak's somewhat irritating voice rang out in the hangar, but Aslan was not easily provoked by Yzak as usual.

"Yzak, you must come back alive."

Seeing Aslan so serious, Yzak lost interest.

"Tch, why is it suddenly so heavy?"

"Diago, Nicol, you too, you must come back alive."

"Aslan, just play the role of knight and wait for our good news in PLANT. What Eighth Fleet? They're just big targets in front of me and Storm."

Diego, maintaining his usual nonchalant demeanor, waved to Aslan, while Nicol replied with a smile.

"We will work together for Aslan, so don't worry."

As soon as Nicol finished speaking, Cruzon's tall figure in a white uniform emerged from inside the ship.

"Your relationship is still as good as ever."

"Captain!"

Upon seeing Kruze, Athrun and the others saluted him.

But Lux, standing behind Aslan, felt a slight chill in her heart the moment she saw Kruze.

After returning to the Vesalius, Lacus seized an opportunity to read information from inside the Soldier Ants using a computer that was disconnected from the internet.

In Ants, Raven reveals to Lacus the existence of LOGOS and the truth about Kruze.

Although Raven failed to provide valid evidence to prove his claim, Lux knew that Raven was not one to make empty promises.

'You absolutely must tell your father about this.'

Lux thought this to herself, but on the surface, she still gave Kruze her usual gentle smile.

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Archangel, Captain's Room.

The cabin, which originally looked somewhat spacious, now felt cramped after accommodating six adults.

Halbarton, seated in the captain's chair, had his first mate handing the appointment letter to the Archangel's captain.

"Huh? Promotion? I'm a major?"

Maru made a surprised sound.

"I've been promoted to lieutenant."

Bakiruru looked serious, as if she had thought of something.

"I'm a major too, could it be..."

Upon receiving the appointment letter, Mu, like Bakirulu, considered a certain possibility due to this sudden promotion. This kind of temporary, emergency promotion was no different from being posthumously awarded two ranks. What Halbarton was about to announce might be a mission no different from ordering them to their deaths.

Normally, Mu would have complained a lot, but considering that his superior was right in front of him, Mu forced himself to swallow his words.

And among those searching for information, the most surprised was Lei Wen.

"I'm included too?"

Raven raised an eyebrow and opened his appointment letter.

"Earth Alliance Technical Captain? When did I become a soldier... Ah!"

Raven remembered the volunteer application he had signed to pilot the short sword.

Raven looked up at Halbarton with a reproachful expression, but saw the brigadier general's helplessness.

"Although I apologize to you all for fighting so hard to get here, headquarters has a new mission for you."

The Coalition Headquarters granted the Archangel 13th Independent Unit the order to land in North Africa, traverse the Eurasian continent from the Zaft occupied zone, and finally reach the Coalition Base JOSH-A in Alaska.

After hearing Halbarton read out the order, Raven quickly realized what the coalition leadership was up to.

Raven never hesitated to speculate about the true thoughts of these insects with the utmost malice.

The Archangel was used as bait by these high-ranking officials to distract ZAFT and cover up their large-scale counter-offensive. Raven was even portrayed as a war hero fighting against ZAFT. And if Raven had died in this operation, the Coalition might have been able to use the opportunity of mourning Raven to incite another wave of civilian-machine gunners, thus increasing their military strength.

Although this coalition was unreliable in warfare, they certainly mastered journalism.

Even Raven, who had never received military training, could understand this, so of course Maru could too.

"Your Excellency, this kind of mission is tantamount to suicide!"

Even if the person in front of her was her mentor, Maru couldn't care less about anything else at this moment.

“This is an order from the Joint Forces Headquarters. I’m sorry, there’s nothing I can do,” the brigadier general said to the man before him. “I can only provide you with the maximum supplies I can.”

The adjutant delivered a supply list to Maru, which included various types of ammunition, mobile suit parts, and living supplies. Halbarton also brought two new "Sky Overlord" fighters and two new assault backpacks to the Archangel.

Lei Wen came over and glanced at the list, saying with some surprise.

"These are the IWSP backpacks and lightning backpacks that were not planned to be manufactured, but they have already been completed."

The full name of the IWSP backpack is Integrated Armed Assault Backpack. As the name suggests, it integrates the functions of three types of assault backpacks into one. While possessing flight capabilities, it also boasts an excessive amount of armament. It has two long-barreled railguns on its shoulders, two 115mm cannons below the railguns, a composite shield that integrates a beam boomerang and a Gatling gun, and a pair of 9.1-meter anti-ship swords.

In the original timeline, this backpack was delayed due to energy consumption issues, but this problem was solved through the cooperation between Raven and Dawn Corporation, and the battery expansion pack technology was completed ahead of schedule. Unfortunately, the IWSP backpack was destroyed in the battle between ZAFT and the Archangel before manufacturing could begin.

The other backpack, the Lightning Pack, has a unique function: it can recharge friendly mobile suits during combat. It also carries a Type 70 railgun and a Type 31 railgun on each arm. These two railguns can be combined to transform into the Type 70-31 long-barreled railgun. This long-barreled railgun can be linked to the large rangefinding system on the backpack, enabling precise sniping even from tens of thousands of meters away in space.

"This is something I had the lunar factory manufacture based on the design you uploaded earlier. It should be a significant asset in the upcoming battles."

In this world, Halbarton was undoubtedly the one who understood Raven's talent better than anyone else. When Raven was still in college, Halbarton, who was then a colonel, noticed him. Therefore, as soon as Raven finished his studies, Halbarton immediately brought him into the G Project team.

It could be said that what Halbarton was able to do for them was the limit of what he could do within his authority.

Maru understood this as well, and in the end, she could only accept the appointment and leave the cabin with her people.

However, Raven didn't rush to catch up with Maru and the others, but stayed where he was.

"Your Excellency, I have some personal matters to attend to. Is now a convenient time for you?"

As he spoke, Raven glanced at his adjutant beside him.

Chapter 28

Halbarton only spoke after the adjutant's figure disappeared from the captain's cabin.

"I didn't expect you, Dr. Lei, to start doing these roundabout things. I remember you didn't like these things in the past. Let me make it clear first, I can't rescind this order under my authority. However, I've already used my connections to get you in touch with resistance organizations operating in enemy-occupied territory. While I can't guarantee how strong their combat capabilities are, they should be able to help to some extent."

With only Halbarton and Raven remaining in the room, Halbarton abandoned his dignified general persona and simply leaned back, burying his body in the soft sofa chair, squinting his eyes, and constantly rubbing his swollen temples.

Compared to the so-called "wise general," Halbotton now seems more like an old man experiencing a midlife crisis.

Raven could tell that Halbarton had put a lot of effort into the Archangel, but what Raven wanted to say had nothing to do with Halbarton's expectations.

"What are your views on blue cosmos and this war?"

Halbarton stopped moving.

"What, are you more interested in politics than scientific research now?"

Halbarton opened one eye and saw Raven's serious expression.

"Having seen the ruins of Heliopolis and Junius VII in succession, no one can remain unmoved, Your Excellency."

Upon hearing Raven's reply, Halbarton could only sigh and sit up straight.

“If only all young people were as upright as you,” Halbarton said, arranging his words slightly. “I was sent to space to command the Eighth Fleet because I don’t like blue cosmos flowers, which is common knowledge within the military. As for this war, as a soldier, all I need to do is figure out how to win it.”

"What if you were no longer a soldier?"