UC will eventually reach the stars

In short, the results finally matched up, and everyone got what they wanted. Just as Jung and his colleagues had imagined, the results were already terrifying enough without needing to be exaggerated.

Then came the scene before us: the reporters were desperately trying to get something out of Ye Yun! After all, he was the person involved! What he said was no less official than what the authorities said.

"Nothing much to say." Ye Yun looked at the reporters in front of him, whom even the military police could barely control, and knew he wouldn't be able to leave without saying something. So he simply shrugged and said casually, "We won, no losses, it's that simple." Ye Yun's words were light and casual, but they immediately ignited the attitude of the group of reporters!

Although all that was confirmed was that there was a battle, that the Federation won, and that the losses were minimal—a statement that seemed to say something but also said nothing at all, containing little information—this contemptuous attitude was exactly what these reporters loved.

This makes it easy to cause trouble!

If the other party were a true seasoned veteran, speaking in a steady, platitude manner, full of high-sounding platitudes, lacking any spark, how would they survive? Ye Yun's words were simply fantastic! They loved these ambiguous yet inspiring words, offering a huge space for interpretation! As long as they didn't deviate from the core meaning of Ye Yun's words, they could freely elaborate!

Oh, right, and I should do some work for that little bit of "tea money" Miss Ye gave me, shouldn't I?

"I'm sorry, your questions involve military secrets and I can't answer them. Everything is subject to the headquarters' external war reports. I have official business to attend to, so I won't be able to discuss the details with you all," Ye Yun said, then pulled down his hat brim and ran out with the military police. He was joking, these reporters had gone crazy. During wartime, who knew if the higher-ups would think he was being too cocky if he said too much.

Moreover, despite Ye Yun's prior arrangements, this battle took place on two separate battlefields. Ye Yun and his team were merely acting as bait. They seized the opportunity and fought the battle themselves. While Ye Yun undoubtedly took considerable risks, the greatest credit truly belongs to the brave MS pilots of the space force and the decisive space fleet!

"Commander Ye Yun, Major General Merck is waiting for you in the lounge." After successfully fending off the reporters, the military police captain whispered to Ye Yun.

"Okay! I'll be right there." Ye Yun nodded, without saying anything more.

"Congratulations on a resounding victory."

"Thank you."

Chapter Ninety-Eight: New Unit Numbers, New Machines

"I told you, we'll meet again soon!" Major General Merkel and Ye Yun saluted each other, then Major General Merkel gave Ye Yun a very warm hug. "Welcome to Africa."

"General Merck!" Ye Yun saluted the Federal Army's African Region Commander-in-Chief before him. From any perspective, this general was highly respectable!

Merck's adjutant served coffee to the two men, and everyone else in the lounge was asked to leave temporarily. After all, the information Ye Yun and Merck were about to discuss was quite substantial and might be too confidential for ordinary officers and civilians.

After all, it's a very simple truth: if it weren't for the two bases established by Ye Yun and the existence of the Federation's most important MS supplier, the Asian battlefield wouldn't have received much attention, let alone the truly sparsely populated Africa.

Therefore, although they were among the first to receive MS, the preference was more to have Major General Merk lead the Afrika Korps to control the expansionist tendencies of the local Zeon forces, preventing them from reaching Central Asia or even joining up with the Zeon forces at the mining base.

So in fact, the resources the Earth Federation's African Army received were not much. Compared with the European Army, which was preparing for a counterattack, it was only a fraction of what it had. In one month, in addition to replenishing the MS units on all fronts, the Earth Federation also added six battalions of troops, and another battalion of Daggers was about to be sent into space.

This time, the MS training squadron, their eyes gleaming, wondered if they could resume their "long-range training." After all, they already knew clearly from the last time that intelligence leaks occurred within the Federation Space Force's upper echelons, and Ye Yun had shown them how to effectively utilize their existing advantages.

So, will they face a similar situation again this time? Having just lost a large battalion and eight ships, do they want to regain their lost advantage?! Using this battalion of short swords as bait might give them a good opportunity.

Therefore, at this point in time, the Federation Forces' MS units, even after deducting losses, were already approaching the significant number of one thousand. This rapid achievement was largely due to the completion and ramp-up of the Chabro production line, while simultaneously, under pressure from the Federation Forces, Dawn Heavy Machinery Manufacturing Company and Ye's Heavy Industry expanded their respective production lines, leading to a rapid increase in productivity.

"Little guy! So, how's it going? Any thoughts on fighting side-by-side this time? As long as we win, I'll absolutely support you." Major General Merk waved his hand with a smile, exuding heroic spirit. After all, for him, the African Army shouldn't be the end of his career, but rather the beginning!

To achieve this, he needs merit! He needs achievements!

This young man before us has already fully demonstrated his abilities. After reshaping the Earth Federation Forces' combat system, he even went so far as to rebuild the Space Forces' tactical system. Although this tactical system is still in its very rudimentary stage, this very rudimentary form actually provides ample room for those who follow, preventing their creative spirit from being stifled.

Others might have various concerns about him, but for Major General Merck, he was certain that the little guy in front of him could give him what he wanted.

“General, I can’t make any promises right now. I need to look at the latest battle reports and confirm the situation.” Ye Yun shrugged. “Besides, as you saw, the Federation Space Force stripped us bare before letting us come back. The hangar in the shuttle we came back with didn’t even have a single 90mm machine gun bullet.”

"Hahaha... You can rest assured about this!" Major General Merck laughed. "While you were fighting in space, the Federation Headquarters had already made a decision!" As he spoke, Merck gestured to the people behind him, and his adjutant immediately stepped forward and placed a document in front of Ye Yun.

"?" Ye Yun reached out and took it. Since neither Rachel nor Doris were with him at the moment, Ye Yun had to do it himself. After quickly flipping through it, Ye Yun was somewhat puzzled. "GAT-01B? Short Sword B?" Ye Yun looked at Merck in front of him with a questioning expression...

It seems I'm the second in line to inherit Ye's Heavy Industry, and a co-founder of Shuguang Heavy Machinery Manufacturing, so how come I know absolutely nothing about it?! What is this Type B? I've never even seen Type A before!! Where did Type B come from?!

However, as Ye Yun flipped through the pages, he saw the general data and introduction.

Federation Army designation: GAT01B, Dagger Type B, naturally a redeveloped version of the Dagger. Due to its excessive pursuit of cost control, the GAT-01's structural strength could not support the enhanced backpack system. In particular, compared to the potentially violent thrust of the high-mobility backpack, the Dagger simply could not withstand it. This is evidenced by the high degree of wear on the joints of the high-mobility modified Dagger, represented by the test machine Nores's mobile suit.

Therefore, Kinias used the short sword with the highest structural strength among the existing modified models of the short sword as the template for the backpack system to design and modify the basic performance of the short sword.

That's right! Ye Yun is very familiar with this short sword.

GAT01FA Full-Powered Short Sword: It is I who...

After all, the structural strength of the full-armored short sword is strong enough to withstand the recoil of a 180mm heavy cannon, and its mobility is not reduced too much. With some special adaptation modifications, it can easily cope with the high-intensity thrust of a high-mobility backpack!

Then, the Earth Federation Forces obtained a short sword with enhanced structure, armor, and output! And without a doubt, this short sword was compatible with the backpack system of Project G Phase 2.

That's not quite right. It should be called the Short Sword Type B, which is a result of a redesigned concept of the original GAT-1 Short Sword, specifically designed to meet the hard requirements of the backpack system!

The previously produced, low-volume mobile-enhanced version (equipped by the 666th Squadron) was assigned the designation Short Sword A, and continued to be produced at a low rate because the Space Force favored it (the 666th Squadron members found it very comfortable to use).

So this is the second official modified version of the short sword, and it was designated as Type B. In Kinias's case, it's called the Short Sword 105 because it's the official model with a backpack configuration, belonging to the GATX-105 assault system. Of course, it's also possible that someone kept talking about the Short Sword 105 all the time and got it wrong, who knows...

After seeing the rough design schematics, the Earth Federation immediately chose to start small-scale trial production on the production line. After all, the first model of the backpack system, a simplified version of the motor backpack, which was called the flight backpack by the Federation military, had already begun to roll off the production line of Ye's Heavy Industry.

After the Earth Federation Forces nodded in satisfaction, they began urging the delivery of artillery equipment...

What a bunch of big pig trotters!

Whether it was to test the Short Sword Type B or as a reward for Ye Yun and his team's impressive combat capabilities in space, the Earth Federation Forces decided to organize a proper MS unit for Ye Yun, and all members of this MS unit would be equipped with the Short Sword Type B.

Hmm, that makes sense...

"That's right. Gao Long, Nores, Aina, and Squadron 666 have been organized into separate units? So what about my unit?" Ye Yun nodded. 12 units. In the future, one Pegasus-class ship could carry them all. If there were more, it might not be enough for one ship to carry them. But where would they get a Pegasus from? They couldn't really let Doris do something underhanded. Ships aren't like land-based aircraft; they're not so easy to hide.

"The 13th Independent Mobile Unit of the Earth Federation Forces." Merck gave Ye Yun a smile, indicating that he had made it big. "Based on what I know, you will most likely not be assigned to a specific war zone in the future, but will only be under the Earth Federation headquarters. Do you understand the value of this assignment?"

"Global deployment, global strike, damn it..." I'm just a brick, I'll move it wherever it's needed! Ye Yun sighed, "Use it to the death if it doesn't kill you?"

"Hahaha... This is a privilege that many armies would envy." Merck laughed heartily. In ancient terms, the little guy in front of him could "establish his own government" under this order!

And what would the result be? Because this guy has too much authority and reports directly to the Earth Federation Forces headquarters, ordinary ground generals, like themselves, simply can't command him. They can only invite him to "assist in operations"! And does the Earth Federation Forces headquarters really want to create a system to directly command a squadron-sized unit like Ye Yun's?! Don't be ridiculous!

Thus... Ye Yun, who was essentially left to his own devices, in a sense, truly became someone who "decides for himself whether or not to participate in the war," a right that was granted to him in one fell swoop.

To put it more precisely, apart from a very few high-ranking federal military officers with relevant authority, Ye Yun is not under anyone's command. For example, if the Irish lieutenant general were to issue another order for Ye Yun to go to space, Ye Yun, as a member of the 13th Independent Mobile Force, could simply ignore him!

To go even deeper, who's currently in charge of the Earth Federation Forces headquarters?!

General Gao Pu!

You're asking General Goppu to sign this?! Are you kidding me?

"Thank you so much!" Ye Yun took a deep breath. After Merck pointed out something to Ye Yun, Ye Yun naturally realized how terrifying this level of authority was. A surprised smile appeared on his face. These old dogs had just too many tricks up their sleeves.

“We’re all on the same side, no need to be so polite. How’s the situation in space? I’d like to hear something from someone on the front lines.” Merck nodded; he was quite satisfied with Ye Yun’s attitude. So he asked about other things, as Merck was also quite curious about the state of the universe!

"Right now, the main battle is taking place in low Earth orbit!" Ye Yun leaned back on the sofa. "It's a long war of attrition, you know? There are debris fields everywhere in space. Although the Zeon forces managed to gather some resources before the war, they are still not as strong as the Federation. If Loom hadn't suffered such heavy losses, the Space Force would have launched a counterattack much sooner."

"The Federation Space Force is more than five times the size of the Zeon forces, yet they can't control low Earth orbit..." Merck shook his head. "So, in your opinion, will the Zeon forces still carry out large-scale airborne operations?"

"I can't calculate that much." Ye Yun shook his head. "However, it's true that Luna 2 can't support Side 5 or control the lunar city right now. Once we can regain control, the Space Force's counterattack will most likely begin." Ye Yun shrugged. "Overall, it's still a matter of the new warfare model. The Federation Forces are almost done learning it. Now, it's time for the Zeon Forces to see how well we've learned the new warfare model."

"Why couldn't you calculate it?" Merck looked at Ye Yun, suddenly a little curious. This young man in front of him had almost predicted the entire pace of the war. Others might not know, but Merck knew about the ships under the command of Saintess Sera Maas of SIDE5. The original registered company was this little guy.

"Because I'm a normal person, I can't predict what mentally ill or crazy people might do..."

"The Zabi family is definitely not normal."

Chapter Ninety-Nine: I'm Back

"Ye Yun!" Aina waved to Ye Yun. It had been almost a month since they last met. Even though Ye Yun would often send Aina emails, Aina had learned that in the short month Ye Yun had been in space, he had been attacked three times and even engaged in a large-scale MS battle with the attackers!

Aina was extremely worried, so the moment she heard that Ye Yun had returned, she couldn't help but feel a sense of relief. This wasn't due to distrust of Ye Yun, but rather the worry a girlfriend could feel for her boyfriend who had inexplicably suffered misfortune!

Yes, of course. Aina plans to settle things with Ye Yun tonight about him going to rescue Sera and getting into a fight. Even though you've known each other for a long time, you still have to give me an explanation for how much I've heard these past few days.

Then, before Aina could question him, she was pinned down and Ye Yun called her "Mom," which completely stunned her, and she forgot all about it.

However, none of these things diminished Aina's heartfelt joy upon seeing Ye Yun! After all, it seemed that the two of them had never been apart for such a long time since they met, at most only for a week or two. Before, even when Ye Yun was on a ship, either Aina was going to space or Ye Yun was returning to Earth.

This was truly the first time the two of them had gone more than a month without seeing each other!

"Aina!" Ye Yun didn't care whether they were in the base or not, he picked up Aina and spun her around, making her blush bright red. "Oh right, here, these are the medals I just received, keep them for me." Ye Yun grinned and took out two medals that the Federation Army had just given him from his pocket.

One of them was awarded by the Earth Federation Forces headquarters. It was a medal for meritorious service. Simply put, it was awarded to Ye Yun by the Federation Forces for shooting down 15 Zeon Zakus.

The other medal was given to Ye Yun by the Federation Space Force. It represents Ye Yun's command of the Federation MS Training Battalion to wipe out an entire Zeon battalion.

What's most interesting is that the medal depicts a short sword piercing the body of a Zaku II, with the huge Earth as the background!

Exquisitely crafted, with meticulous attention to detail, and brimming with emotional value!

Currently, this medal is being awarded to all MS pilots who participated in the Low Earth Orbit battle, as well as the captains of several warships. Ye Yun's medal was expedited and 3D printed for him. The medals for the others are still being made. It seems that this medal will be awarded for every large-scale victory in the Low Earth Orbit battle in the future.

"So beautiful! They're mine!" Aina smiled and played with the two medals. These were Ye Yun's honors, and she liked them very much. They weren't as valuable as diamonds or jewelry. Besides, Aina was from the Sakhalin family, and had a blood feud with the Principality of Zeon.

"Okay, it's yours!" Ye Yun didn't object. Letting Aina keep them was no different from giving them to her. Anyway, when attending big events, Aina would take out these medals and let Ye Yun hang them all around his chest.

"I heard the Earth Federation Army is going to make you..." Aina hooked her arm around Ye Yun's, about to say something, when a strong gust of wind cut off everything they wanted to say!

"Aha~ This thing is much more exciting than the Dagger!" A Type 105 Dagger rushed out of the hangar with the driver's happy shouts. The way it was running showed that the driver of the 666th Squadron was test driving it!

After sprinting a few steps, he activated the thrusters on his back, made a big jump, and landed precisely a kilometer away. He then used a powerful jet propulsion mode to slowly propel himself and turn in the air, gliding for a few seconds before landing smoothly.

This maneuvering skill stunned the Federation MS pilots nearby. As MS pilots stationed at the African base, they were no rookies; they were all seasoned veterans who had experienced the baptism of war! However, the mobility displayed by the new Dagger that had just been delivered that morning, as well as the pilot's skill, truly amazed them.

"These guys..." Ye Yun rolled his eyes in annoyance and tidied Aina's messy hair. "Let's go. Have you tried out the new machine?" Ye Yun changed the subject to the 105 short sword. After all, they were childhood friends, so Aina could easily understand Ye Yun's little actions. Similarly, Ye Yun also understood some of Aina's habits.

Just like when Aina narrowed her beautiful eyes, it was clear she wanted to teach him a lesson for somehow offending her.

Watch the game! Watch the game!

“I’ve piloted it. Its performance is roughly equivalent to the previous fully armored short sword, but it incorporates some of the configurations from the mobility enhancement signal system I piloted. It’s a very good MS.” Aina answered Ye Yun’s question without much thought. She knew that Ye Yun, now the commander of the Federation Army, would definitely be interested in his main combat force, so Aina had learned about these new short sword models in advance. “My brother named them the 105 Short Sword, apparently because they’re starting to lean towards the assault direction.”

"The third stage?" Ye Yun nodded, a look of longing on his face. The current performance of the Short Sword is good, and it is basically in the category of gradual improvement. However, the Zeon army's slow response to MS warfare has allowed the latest batch of improved Short Sword models, such as the mobility-enhanced models previously equipped by Squadron 666 and Ye Yun's previous fully-equipped Strike, to gain some advantages in MS warfare.

However, recent reports from the ground battlefield suggest that the Zeon forces have equipped the Zaku 2's 120mm machine gun with new ammunition, which has improved its armor-piercing power. Areas on the short sword that the 120mm machine gun would have previously been unable to penetrate are now more likely to be penetrated.

However, all Federation MS pilots are instilled with the fact from the very beginning of their training that the shield is the life of a short sword!

So what is the main armor belt? Huh? The short sword has armor?

However, from this moment on, it seems that this understanding must be revised. In a sense, the Short Sword 2.0 that space MS pilots have been investigating has now been officially brought out by the Earth Federation Forces! Although the firepower of the MS does not seem to have changed significantly so far, still relying on the 100mm machine gun and the Type 59 90mm machine gun, it is now known that the armor has been strengthened.

Furthermore, in order to adapt to the armor reinforcement, a series of mobility enhancement configurations were also configured. At the same time, in order to cope with greater consumption, the main battery unit was enhanced, making it a multi-faceted operation.

In short, it was a very balanced enhancement.

After a brief assessment, the Federation decided to continue mass production of the Dagger, but only a small number of Dagger B units were deployed as captains or for special squads. Yes, the Federation's "small number." In the end, after the war, if we include the 105th Dagger, which was completed after more than 80% of its production was completed, there were not many, a total of 1400 units: 500 for the Space Force and 900 for the Earth Force. However, it is normal for wartime statistics to be chaotic. Later, military enthusiasts estimated the number to be more than 3000 (some of which were overhauled and could even be reassembled with spare parts).

Meanwhile, the Zeon forces, at least until now, are still basically relying entirely on the Zaku II to conquer the world.

Of course, Ye Yun and his group would only find out in two weeks that the Zeon forces hadn't been completely inactive in response to the impact of the short sword. The first batch of Zakus had been completely redesigned for ground combat and had enhanced shooting capabilities... no, it seems that the Zeon forces have decided to give this land-based enhanced MS a brand new designation! Following the order, it seems that it should be called MS-07.

"Looks like the guys from Squadron 666 arrived first?" Ye Yun put his arm around Aina to shield her from the wind, then tilted his head to look at her.

"Nores and I were the last to arrive. Oh! Rachel and Doris will probably be a few days away." Aina's eyes flickered. After all, these two henchmen of Ye Yun had caused quite a bit of trouble on SIDE6 this time.

Leaving aside intelligence gathering, the two engaged in fierce buying and selling, falsifying accounts and documents, fraud and coercion—using every means at their disposal. In just one week, they drove several companies that had been collecting supplies and reselling resources for Zeon to their deaths. With Ye Yun's meager start-up capital, they procured a large amount of food and supplies for Sera.

Before the SIDE6 authorities could react, the two went directly to the SIDE6 Federal Army garrison base. After revealing their identities, the police convoy chasing them could only stare blankly at the muzzle of the Type 61 150mm gun!

The next day, they were escorted by a large contingent of military police to the spaceport, and returned in a Federation shuttle, swaggering back. The SIDE6 government couldn't do anything about them.

After all, at this time, the incident of the Space Force MS Training Battalion tearing apart the opposing battalion under Ye Yun's command had only just begun to unfold, and the Side 6 government dared not confront him head-on.

Under the guns of the Federation forces, the officials of SIDE6 did not dare to confiscate the relief supplies that were about to become the Cosmic Saintess, Serena Mars, in front of the media. If they touched these supplies that were already marked with the Texas emblem of SIDE5, someone would really come to assassinate them.

"Oh~ Colonel Ye Yun, you're back!" At this moment, another 105 short sword came out from inside and looked down to see Ye Yun with his arm around Aina. "It's windy outside, why don't you go to the lounge to rest for a bit?" Perhaps because they had spent time together on Trafalgar before, Ye Yun and the pilots of Squadron 666 seemed to have gotten closer, so the pilot naturally teased Ye Yun.

"Get lost!" Ye Yun made a throat-slitting gesture and said irritably.

"Alright~ I'm off!" 105 Short Sword waved to Ye Yun in a very human-like manner. "The new mecha is pretty good, but when are you going to arrange for a paint job? Hey, Colonel, why are you leaving already!?"

"Shut up, what are you doing, acting like a third wheel!" Sima scolded her teammate.

"Yes Yes Yes……"

PS: Due to the controversy, here's a picture. It's the original design; judging from the structure, it should be a propulsion backpack for a rice-less furnace.

100th placement

“Hmm…” Kinias frowned as he flipped through the documents in front of him.

“Relax, Dr. Kara…” Daryl whispered to the person beside him. Their fates were about to be decided by the pale-skinned man in front of them, who seemed a little sickly, so Professor Kara was very nervous.