Gundam: From Piece to Player

"20? That's quite a boast! I'll bet 5 on myself winning!"

"Haha, Captain Lal is truly a man of courage!"

Although the betting pool was already expanding, Ramba Ral was not to be outdone after hearing this, and Mashu was naturally overjoyed.

After Mashu left, Hamon, who was standing next to him, whispered a reminder.

"Captain, shouldn't you be more cautious? According to the intelligence I've gathered, Lord Karma has been spending a lot of time with the technical staff at the university these past two months, and he's also been asking around the base for parts to modify his mechs."

"So what if we change it? Upgrade it again? Are we going to grow two pairs of wings?"

A real man like Ramba Lal didn't seem to care that much.

"If that's really the case, I'd like to see it too. If it takes to modify things to close the technological gap, then the young master is at most at the elite level."

Public opinion continues to ferment.

By 4 p.m., everyone at the Pei Zeng base had put down their work and turned their attention to the screen.

As the live broadcast footage showed the training airspace, military reconnaissance satellites used for defense near the base were even deployed to enhance the broadcast's effect.

The first to arrive at the training battlefield was the blue Bug, equipped with a tomahawk and a machine gun. Ramba Lal gripped the control stick tightly, and the gray silhouette of the machine in the camera behind him became increasingly clear.

It was seen spinning once during its flight, and this footage was transmitted back to the television screen, which made even the ace and elite pilots notice something unusual.

"The trajectory is a bit too stable, like a computer-programmed program?" Dozle, who was watching the live stream from the console, couldn't help but look at the white knight beside him.

Matsunaga Makoto shook his head, indicating that he wasn't quite sure about it either.

"Things are getting interesting." Lamba stepped on the gas, and the blue Bug flew out in a beautiful C-shape. "Let me give it a try, young master."

Unlike previous battles, where Karma would launch the attack and Ramba would counterattack, this time Ramba was the one to attack first.

The blue-clad Bug raised his rifle and, while maneuvering, quickly opened fire on the gray Karma machine.

Faced with the attack, the gray Bug did not retreat, but instead took out his rifle and fired at the blue Bug. The two moved quickly and exchanged fire during the pauses.

With the hit rate dropping drastically while moving, it's unclear how many times the positions have been swapped.

Ramba, caught up in the excitement of the shooting, raised his gun again and pulled the trigger, only to find that the training rounds did not fire as he had expected.

His shooting motion was anticipated, and he was hit first by a training round fired by Kalma, turning into scrap metal. This was to simulate the situation where weapons might be destroyed in a real battlefield.

"Good luck, Lord Karma!"

This scene also excited the speculators who had bet on Kalmar.

"I didn't expect Captain Lars to suffer a loss in the shooting battle," Gaia commented.

"Shooting isn't exactly the captain's forte," Ordiga retorted. "Is the captain better at close combat?"

“Even so, not just anyone can easily knock the gun out of his hand,” Mashu said smugly.

"Hey, who did you bet on to win?"

"Hehe, I bought both, to hedge the risk."

Although the rifle was accidentally knocked away, Lamba didn't say anything. Blue Bug discarded the rifle, which had become scrap metal, to further reduce his weight, picked up the assault shield, and drew the thermal battle axe from his waist with his other hand.

Using Bug's unique acceleration and maneuverability, it began to rapidly close the distance to the Kalma machine.

"Keep your distance, Lord Karma. It's rare to have a ranged advantage."

"Don't get carried away and engage in close combat."

"Quickly use the kite tactic."

While the battle raged, a heated discussion also took place off the field.

And when Karma not only did not create distance, but instead switched her weapon to a thermal axe and raised her shield to face the charging Ramba machine.

"Oh no, the young master's gone mad!"

Many self-righteous gamblers clutched their heads in dismay.

Like a knight charging forward, Blue Bug swung his heat axe at Gray Bug's shield, but the expected result of the shield being cut in two did not occur.

Blue Bug's heat axe blade sparked a flurry of sparks against the shield.

The axe blade did not strike the shield directly at the optimal 90-degree angle to break the armor, but was deflected and "bounced" away because the angle was too small. This is commonly seen in combat training grounds where experienced players are fighting new recruits.

But what's going on now?

Ramba Ral, a veteran among veterans and a top fighter in combat, missed his sure-fire strike.

The punishment for "missing the mark" followed immediately. In the instant the gray machine parried with its shield on its left arm, it swung slightly to the lower right, and the heat axe it swung down chopped off the blue machine's left leg.

Even though Lamba accelerated away from the machine immediately, the pulse connection pipe under his left leg had already been cut by the thermal axe.

The leg connecting pipes of the Buggy's machine, which were designed to enhance mobility, were connected to the outside of the armor as part of the fluid pulse system to transmit energy, and they began to leak.

Although there are many actions involved, the actual event occurs within one second.

The camera, just like in a live sports broadcast, used slow motion to repeatedly play the exciting moments, allowing viewers to understand just how terrifying the counterattack was.

Without the slightest unnecessary movement, the timing and precision of the counterattack were simply terrifying.

Such thrilling fighting scenes got the audience's blood pumping; MS battles could be this exciting!

The damage here means that the machine's mobility will be greatly reduced, and the balance of the battle has now tilted in Karma's favor.

Upon seeing this, Dozle, who had been sitting in the control room watching the battle, couldn't help but stand up.

"Is Karma piloting the gray mecha?"

“Yes, I think no one dares to fight for Lord Karma right now,” Matsunaga Makoto said from the side.

Chapter 7: The Moment of Appearance

During Blue Bug's flight, the fluid pulse system sprayed into space through the broken trachea, much like a person who has lost blood; as time went on, the machine's output and acceleration would decrease exponentially.

"Shall we continue fighting? Captain Ral, if we keep fighting, your machine will be in serious danger."

Kalmar was the first to break the radio silence during the exercise.

This also aligns with the safety hazards that may occur under special circumstances.

However, Lamba saw it as a provocation.

"Hmph, you think you can use me as a stepping stone? Not so easy, young master."

Lamba didn't mince words. He simply discarded his shield, gripped the thermal axe with both hands, and charged towards Karma's mech with a surge of heroic spirit.

In the cockpit of Kalmar, Lamba's axe and the aircraft's attitude and jet angles are clearly visible on the screen.

Karma gently pressed the combination button for blocking and control, and the shield on the left side of the machine began to 'lock' onto Ral's axe. However, the next moment, something unexpected happened.

Suddenly, Lal's machine tumbled and spun dramatically.

It wasn't an accident; rather, it was because Ramba Ral turned off AMBAC that the machine made this illogical move.

As he rolled, the axe blade in Ral's hand flew out of his grasp and towards Karma.

At the same time, Blue Bug also drew his fighting dagger and charged towards Karma following the axe blade he had thrown.

The automatic locking system locked onto the throwing axe based on the distance—but actually, it was Ral, who was holding a dagger in the back, who was the main attacker.

An ordinary driver would have been flustered.

Karma pressed the button to cancel the operation, switched to fire, and changed from the flying axe to the blue "Ramba" machine. Because the button was simplified, Karma only needed 0.2 seconds to input the above operations.

The classic trick of dropping the shield to bait the lock is a great first-encounter kill.

But having seen it so many times, Karma has already analyzed this move enough.

Although the thrown axe hit Karma's gray body, it did not cause any damage because of the wrong angle.

But Karma pulled the trigger on the blue machine behind her.

Ramba Lal's blue Buggy crashed into a barrage of fire from Kalma.

battle is over

After Bugu was hit in a vital spot on his torso by a training bullet, the exercise system judged Kalma to have won.

Karma secured a hard-fought victory after a 13-game losing streak.

However, this time they really offended Captain Ral.

The gamblers in the base who had bet on Karma's victory were equally excited.

"Who was it that just called Lord Karma a dog?"

“You misheard me. I said I am Lord Karma’s most loyal dog.”

"I do not believe."

"Why don't you make a few noises?"

"Haha, woof woof woof."

Upon returning to base, Karma saw his brother, who looked like a gorilla, waiting on the tarmac, along with Colonel Tovanin, the commander of the Pezen base, and Matsunaga Makoto, among others.

Suppressing her excitement, Karma didn't forget the real purpose behind this bet.

Dozru briefly explained why he was able to win against the Blue Giant, and engineers from the Weapons Development Bureau at the Peizeng Base also gathered there after being notified in advance.

They also brought a projection device for the machine's display and recounted the events that had transpired.

"So, Karma, you didn't become an ace overnight."

Even after learning the reason for the victory, Dozru's joy did not diminish in the slightest.

"The key lies in simplifying the input of the MS system's control system in high-intensity combat, further lowering the threshold for piloting."

"If this technology can be applied to our army, by reducing the number of pilots who can fly MS, the quality of our army's pilots will be significantly improved," Kalmar boasted. "Even a mediocre pilot like me can defeat an ace like Ramba Ral under this control system."

"Not bad, not bad, so this is the real purpose behind your grand gesture today?"

"Yes, elder brother."

"Hmph, I knew you would never do anything meaningless." Dozru Zabi chuckled and patted him on the shoulder. "Now that we have samples and design drawings, let's start mass production first, giving them to the elite troops on a small scale, and see which company to hire for mass production."

Upon hearing this, the engineers from the large corporations who were watching started to clamor, clearly recognizing the business opportunity.

"General, we can take charge of production."