All affairs in Orb's homeland were back on track. The reconstruction of the most critical facilities—Dawn Company and Kaguya—was proceeding in an orderly manner. To restore Dawn Company's operations as quickly as possible, the first and second factories had already been rebuilt. Large-scale equipment previously dismantled and transported to the Mass Driver and Ame No Minashira had been recalled and put directly into production for Mobile Suit manufacturing.
"Take this and produce a batch as soon as possible."
Upon arriving at Dawn Company, Yang Hui handed a design blueprint to Erica Simmons. She took it and immediately opened it to examine, first freezing in surprise before her expression shifted to realization.
"With Orb's homeland surrounded by sea on all sides, we do need Aquatic Mobile Suit units."
This blueprint wasn't for a completely new Aquatic Mobile Suit but rather for an underwater-use backpack module for the M1 Astray.
The greatest strength of the M1 Astray was its modular design. Without modifying the Mobile Suit itself, simply developing backpack modules for different scenarios allowed for immediate deployment, perfectly fulfilling the requirement for an all-environment MS.
If Orb were to follow ZAFT's approach—designing and producing specialized Mobile Suits for each environment—even expanding Orb's industrial capacity several times over wouldn't allow for rapid, large-scale production. Thus, the M1 Astray was the most suitable Mobile Suit for Orb's current situation.
The same applied to Earth Alliance's Dagger. From the beginning, the Dagger's development had drawn inspiration from the Strike Gundam's ability to swap backpacks for different environments, allowing a single model to meet all operational needs.
However, Yang Hui knew that while the Dagger currently couldn't match the M1 Astray, it wouldn't be long before it caught up. Moreover, the upgraded Windam, developed later, would surpass the M1 Astray in performance.
Therefore, the M1 Astray couldn't rest on its laurels. Plans for upgrades and improvements naturally had to be put on the agenda—though they could be delayed slightly. Orb's immediate priority was expanding its military forces to adequately defend its expanded territory and refine its military structure.
The upgraded M1 Astray would undoubtedly retain its modular design, so there was no fear of waste from forming new units only to phase them out later. Upgraded modules could simply replace the old ones when the time came.
To be honest, in Yang Hui's view, the MVF-M11C Murasame—Orb's second-generation Mobile Suit—was rather redundant. In this world, transformable frame technology was already well-developed, with precedents like the G Project's Aegis Gundam and the X Series' second-generation Raider Gundam and Forbidden Gundam. There was no need to redevelop the technology from scratch.
But the Murasame, capable of transforming into a fighter jet, couldn't fulfill its most critical role for Orb—greatly enhanced mobility for rapid assaults, surprise attacks, or emergency rescues. Given Orb's stance and principles, it wouldn't launch offensive operations. For domestic rescue operations, the flight backpack Yang Hui had newly designed to replace the Shrike already provided sufficient speed.
Thus, the Murasame was essentially redundant for Orb. It would be better to allocate its R&D and production resources to the M1 Astray instead.
"Yang Hui!"
At that moment, Madok—who should have been at the Mass Driver—let out a furious roar and stormed toward him.
"Hmm?" Yang Hui was momentarily taken aback when he saw Madok, but quickly regained his composure. Given how furious Madok was, it was likely because Yang Hui hadn't fulfilled their agreement—the Atlantic Federation, which should have been thoroughly punished, had instead become his ally.
"You lying, untrustworthy—"
Madok cursed while reaching out to grab Yang Hui's collar, ready to scream in his face. But suddenly, his vision spun, and the pain in his back brought him back to his senses. He found himself lying on the ground, one wrist firmly gripped by Yang Hui.
"Anger harms the body. At your age, you should avoid outbursts," Yang Hui said calmly.
"You bastard! You broke your promise!" Even restrained, Madok roared at Yang Hui in rage. They had now joined Orb and were under surveillance, their home destroyed by the Atlantic Federation, with no way to leave. Yet Yang Hui hadn't kept his word to teach the Atlantic Federation a harsh lesson.
"Two of the Atlantic Federation's fleets were annihilated, their flagship Washington and the Azrael along with it. Azrael himself was killed, along with his prized creations. Still not satisfied?"
"...But you later allied with the Atlantic Federation!"
"So... by 'teaching the Atlantic Federation a harsh lesson,' you meant wiping them out completely?" At this, Yang Hui's expression turned cold.
"...That's not what I meant..." Madok felt the chill emanating from Yang Hui, and his fiery anger cooled.
He wasn't stupid. Orb couldn't possibly destroy the Atlantic Federation—not then, not now. Though weakened and fractured, the Atlantic Federation still had deep reserves. If any force threatened them now, their internal strife would cease immediately as they united against an external enemy.
The reason the Atlantic Federation was considered "weakened" was due to severe infighting. Once that ended, a united Atlantic Federation would be nearly unstoppable on Earth.
"Relax." Yang Hui understood Madok's rage and hatred. The Cosmic Workers' headquarters had been the culmination of countless people's efforts—their only home. Destroyed, with many comrades dead. Anyone would feel the same. So Yang Hui didn't blame Madok, helping him up instead. "There will be more chances. No need to rush."
"Chances? What chances?" Madok was stunned. The peace conference had just ended, with all factions signing a ceasefire. Where would another opportunity to strike the Atlantic Federation come from?
"After suffering such heavy losses, do you think the Atlantic Federation will just let it go?"
"...No."
"Azrael is dead, but is Blue Cosmos completely wiped out?"
"...No."
Madok understood. Yang Hui meant peace was temporary—war would return.
"Go on with your work." Seeing Madok had grasped his meaning, Yang Hui said no more, leaving him to wait patiently.
"..." But Madok didn't leave, still staring intently at Yang Hui.
"Something else?"
"The Junk Guild no longer has Earth and space factions."
Madok's sudden move left Yang Hui stunned. He didn't understand why this was being brought up to him.
"This matter has nothing to do with me."
"What I mean is, Madonna and I have agreed—we'll all join Orb."
"Huh?" Yang Hui looked at Madok in surprise. The remnants of the space faction had joined Orb as part of a deal, but while the Earth faction maintained a permanent presence at the Mass Driver, their relationship with Orb remained cooperative rather than subordinate. Yang Hui had never forced these freedom-seeking individuals to join Orb.
"What's this? Giving up on freedom now?"
"Heh, I've come to realize—there's no such thing as absolute freedom." Madok's expression was weathered and desolate. Before the Atlantic Federation's attack, they'd truly believed complete freedom existed—that with their skills, they could survive in the cracks between powers.
But the Atlantic Federation didn't just slap them—they drove a knife straight through their necks. That moment of clarity cost them everything, revealing the truth: the major powers hadn't left them alone because they couldn't touch them, but because they chose not to. The moment those powers decided to act, they could be wiped out in an instant.
After their discussions, Madonna had reached the same realization about their precarious position as Madok. He felt grateful for initially choosing Orb—that even in its most desperate moments, Orb never forced them into submission. But that was only for now. Who knew what the future held? Would Yang Hui eventually turn against them?
Given this, rather than waiting to be crippled into joining Orb or being outright destroyed, it was better to join while relations remained positive.
"Your subordinates might not see it that way," Yang Hui remarked coldly.
If the space faction had learned this bitter lesson through suffering and sought Orb's protection, it was clear not all Earth faction members would accept this. Without experiencing that pain firsthand, they'd never understand that desolate realization.
"We've spoken with everyone. Those unwilling were allowed to leave," Madok said.
"Have you considered what awaits them?"
While not every junk dealer was exceptional, they were all capable individuals—with the most outstanding appearing on every major power's recruitment lists. Previously protected by the Junk Dealers' Guild and the balance between powers, they'd been untouchable. But with the guild gone and that protection vanished, any who wandered alone would be snatched up.
"That's no longer important. They chose freedom—let them experience its price," Madok said with a bitter smile.
The junk dealers had been comrades banding together for warmth, but their bonds didn't extend to life-and-death loyalty. They supported each other while together, but those choosing to part ways would go their separate paths.
"...Very well. Return and prepare. I'll have someone coordinate with you."
"Understood."
"By the way, about Lowe..."
"Ah, him? He's got quite the headache now."
"Hah! Naturally. His goal was to become the greatest junk dealer, and now the guild doesn't even exist."
"No, that's not what I meant."
"Then what?"
"That pilot from your family, what's her name... the girl called Juri? Didn't she retire? She's joined Lowe's team now."
Yang Hui: Σ(°△°|||)︴
Juri retired? One of Orb's three top female combatants retired? To pursue love? That can't be right? He knew Juri pretty well—she wasn't the type to be so lovestruck. And how could an elite pilot like her retire without him knowing?
Coincidentally, Mayura and Asagi appeared in Yang Hui's line of sight just then, so he immediately called them over.
"Commander!" X2
"At ease. I have a question for you."
"Please go ahead, Commander."
"Did Juri really retire?"
"No." X2
Seeing how they answered without hesitation, their innocent and confused expressions couldn't have been more genuine, so Yang Hui also looked bewildered as he turned to Madok.
Unexpectedly, Madok was just as confused. A few days ago, he had clearly seen Juri in Lowe's team and even heard Lowe ask why she retired, to which Juri replied she was chasing love. But... what was going on here?
"Ah, Commander, are you asking about Juri being with Lowe?" Mayura and Asagi seemed to realize something and asked Yang Hui.
"Yeah, what's the deal?"
"Well, it's true Juri went to pursue love, but she didn't retire. She requested Director Simmons to use retirement as an excuse to join Lowe's team, acting as a spy to monitor his every move and persuade them from within to join Orb," Asagi explained.
"The essence of love is to tie your beloved to your side—those were Juri's exact words," Mayura added.
"..."
Hearing this, both Yang Hui and Madok fell silent, their expressions serious as they gave a thumbs-up, silently offering Lowe their blessings in their hearts.
(End of Chapter)