Chapter Sixty-Nine: The Vanguard Ambushed

“There's evidence of combat heat signatures ahead—likely the advance team!” Dalida Rolaha Chandra II, stationed at CIC, noticed something unusual on the screen.

One could not help but wonder about the background of someone with “the Second” in their name.

“What?!” Everyone was startled.

“Montgomery is calling! Rendezvous cancelled. The Archangel is ordered to immediately change course and retreat!”

“Captain!” Murrue (Bacchus) was seated in the captain's chair, but such a crucial decision was not hers to make. She looked toward Bacchus (Murrue).

“What’s the enemy's force distribution?” In this emergency, Bacchus (Murrue) swapped places with Murrue (Bacchus).

“Yellow557, maku402, Nazca-class! Ye6, maku321, Magellan-class! Thermal analysis: three GINNs, twenty-four High Mobility ZAKUs, and…” Control Officer Jackie’s report stalled.

“This is… Aegis! X-303 Aegis Gundam, and an enormous unidentified MA!”

“So, that’s the ship that’s been pursuing us all this time.”

The main units of the Eighth Advance Team, now engaged in battle, were only Moebius fighters—likely nothing more than fodder for the ZAFT humanoid machines.

“Even if we retreat now, it’s unlikely we’ll escape so easily…” Bacchus (Murrue) rested her chin on her hand. “All hands, first combat configuration! Archangel, move to cover the advance team!”

Still as commanding as ever.

Archangel—Hao Ren’s private quarters.

Hao Ren and his three companions, in the midst of being thoroughly trounced in an online PFP game, stared blankly as Kira (Lacus) suddenly burst in.

“Lacus~ Lacus~!” Damn it, the little pink troublemaker could still recognize Lacus, whose soul had been swapped, and continued to bounce around Kira (Lacus). No wonder that lock might as well not even exist.

While Hao Ren was stunned, clad in hunting horn and a full set of Lagombi gear, he was carted away by the Felyne.

“Oh no, my unbeaten record!” Gamers often have their compulsions—no-damage runs, maintaining spotless records, always grabbing the hot water bottle on the left side of the door, reloading because they missed smashing a red soul box, and so on.

“Requesting a restart! Please!” Hao Ren pleaded, shamelessly performing a dogeza.

“Even for my master, I won’t agree this time.” Nemesis was in high spirits, her expression reading, “Beg all you want! I still won’t say yes.”

---

After Sayane’s task was completed, Nemesis promptly returned to Hao Ren’s side, showing little reaction to the soul swap between Maya and Little Dark.

Understandable—having mastered “Dual Fusion,” Nemesis was something of a soul manipulation expert. If she acted as the spiritual bridge herself, Maya and Little Dark could easily swap back. But the situation was much more entertaining now, so she kept silent.

Watching the tsundere Maya and the eager Little Dark was quite delightful! Nemesis’s little devil tail was practically curling up.

“My~ All these little sisters are so adorable!” Could she please not say such things with Kira’s face? It gave me chills.

“Big brother is handsome too.” A heavy blow from Little Dark (Maya).

Even with Kira’s composure and calm temperament, faced with such circumstances, she couldn’t help but panic for a moment. Little Dark (Maya) was rubbing salt in the wound!

“What a funny little sister,” Kira (Lacus), now completely unfazed, stared straight at Little Dark (Maya)’s relatively flat chest.

A challenge? Little Dark (Maya) raised her eyebrow; her bust, hips, and height all surged.

“Big brother, anything else you want to say?” Dragging two massive peaks, Little Dark (Maya) pressed Hao Ren’s head onto them.

“Don’t do anything indecent with my body!” Maya (Little Dark) rescued Hao Ren, sparing him from suffocating.

This side was soft too! Maya (Little Dark)’s own chest was quite nice.

Hao Ren grinned lasciviously.

“All hands, first combat configuration!” The Archangel’s alarms blared again.

“Tch, another battle?” The PFP was casually stowed away somewhere near his rear and disappeared. “Alright, Lacus-kun, we’re heading out to fight. If you can, you’d best stay hidden in your room. After all, we’re fighting ZAFT, and someone who resents ZAFT might try something bad to you.” With Kira’s face, the odds of someone venting their anger on you were even lower.

If anyone did vent on that face, they’d have to be pretty twisted! Though, beautiful boys aren’t bad…

Leaving Kira (Lacus) behind, Hao Ren hurried to the maintenance bay, only to be intercepted by Frey, disguised in Sai’s skin, along the way.

“It’s okay, right? Daddy’s ship won’t get attacked, right?” Sai (Frey) clung to Hao Ren’s hand, asking incessantly.

“It’s fine, it’s fine, I have to go!” Hao Ren forcibly shook off the man’s grip, spouting nonsense.

Sai (Frey) watched as Hao Ren departed.

---

…Wait, why did she call out to me? Could it be I’ve shifted Frey’s anger, originally meant for Kira, onto myself?

What a hassle.

Well, I don’t like that fool of a woman, but for the sake of her concern for her father, I’ll protect that idiot dad’s battleship as much as I can, provided I’m able.

Hao Ren had no idea that Little Dark harbored murderous intent toward Frey.

The battlefield was locked in a stalemate—or rather, it was one-sided. The Earth Alliance’s advance team was no match for Aegis and the GINNs, let alone the ZAKUs that weren’t in the original story, and…

Hmm…

A green, elliptical, conical giant tin can? Numerous little gadgets hovered around it, occasionally firing green beams, intercepting all of Moebius’s barrage attacks.

It seemed to be the Elmeth! A black mobile suit suddenly appeared at the edge of the battlefield, and with a knock, realization dawned.

“Where are the promised low-tier machines?!” Hao Ren roared.

Unbeknownst to him, someone had once said the same to him—but that person had already met their end.

The Elmeth, the earliest mobile suit in Gundam history equipped with remote-controlled bits, could only be piloted by Newtypes. In SEED, the DRAGOONs of Freedom and Legend Gundam would have to call it their ancestor.

The original pilot was an Indian woman with a red dot on her forehead. One wonders if she danced a traditional routine before every sortie, perhaps filling the Elmeth’s cockpit with the aroma of curry.

Hao Ren was curious to see it.

But this time, the script did not follow Hao Ren’s expectations. The Elmeth’s cockpit was occupied by none other than the burly man who once sabotaged the Archangel’s crew—October First, Lord Xun!