After leaving the "Administration Building," Roz and Big Haro went their separate ways.
Big Haro had to go back to update various plug-ins and modules, while Roz looked over the mission data that had just been sent to him.
Following the guidance in the mission files, Roz arrived at a device located not far from the Administration Building. It featured an upright ring with a crowd of people lining up, labeled as a "Portal." He keyed in the identification number from the data.
The ring in front of him began to rotate, and blue particles formed a passage in the center.
"…I can't help but feel like this thing doesn't belong in a mecha series setting," Roz grumbled, though he stepped inside anyway.
After all, with so many people using this thing, if there were a real problem, it would have blown up long ago. Besides, the Courtyard had contingency plans for retrieving people, and he had double-checked the input code two or three times; nothing should go wrong.
Just as Roz was about to step into the portal, a commotion broke out behind him, causing him to instinctively turn his right eye to look.
He saw Kamille, dressed in casual clothes, seemingly in a conflict with a sunglasses-wearing Char who was clutching some kind of book. Shouting, "You disgraceful fellow!", Kamille dashed forward, grabbed Char by the collar, and gave the book-clutching Char a shoulder throw.
"That's..."
When he saw the book in Char's hand, Roz instantly understood why Kamille was giving him a shoulder throw.
The reason was simple: the book that Char held was none other than "A Complete Guide to Newtype Pre-school Education and Advanced Directions," authored by the very "retired old man Char" he was about to meet. Roz had even stopped Big Haro from buying it at the time.
"It's because you take this thing everywhere to proselytize! That's why our reputation as Newtypes is so low!"
As he spoke, Kamille—who had just delivered a flying kick—tugged at the collar of the fallen Char. "Now everyone thinks we Newtypes are loli-mommy-cons, but I clearly only like girls like Four and Fa!"
"I don't call it proselytizing; it's disseminating basic knowledge about Newtypes!" the Char being throttled by Kamille defended himself. "Honor is worthless to an adult. You haven't fully matured yet, Kamille!"
"Shut up! This isn't about honor, it's about social death! You disgraceful fellow!"
In Roz's vision, the struggle between Kamille and Char was gradually covered by blue light particles. Finally, as the particles dispersed, a massive manor appeared before his eyes.
"This is..."
Looking at the scene before him, Roz was momentarily dazed.
"A small space carved out for an individual, like stacking a small bubble on top of a larger one."
At that moment, a voice slightly different from the Char who had just been shoulder-thrown by Kamille rang in Roz's ear. "After all, it's impossible to place every building near the Courtyard. If we did that, the Courtyard's manifestation—at least for our sector—would turn into a super-planet or a super-colony."
"But as long as you complete enough missions, accumulate enough prize money and resources, you can set up a small world like this for yourself."
Hearing this voice, Roz instinctively turned around.
A man wearing white pajamas, clearly much more mature than the one Kamille had just shoulder-thrown, sat in a rocking chair. He raised a glass of whiskey from a small side table toward Roz, gesturing to the empty rocking chair beside him.
"You're the 'retired old man' Char?"
Roz walked over to the reclining chair Char had indicated, hesitated for a moment, and sat down.
"Excellent. I thought we might have a conflict, Raven Roz..."
The retired old man Char took out two glasses, added some ice, and poured the liquor. "After all, in my experience, whenever I meet a new Amuro, things tend to get a bit confrontational."
"I am not Amuro," Roz replied with firm conviction.
"Of course you aren't him. Your appearance and voice are very similar, but your inner self—your spirit—is different from his."
With that, Char picked up the glass from the small table. "Having dealt with Amuro for so long, I know him all too well. But that is exactly why I felt a bit of a pleasant surprise when I saw you."
"Moreover, the fact that you could go toe-to-toe with Amuro back then truly astonished me."
Like a genuine retired old man, Char rambled on about his perceptions of Roz, casually picking up a glass of whiskey from the table.
"Let's get back to the point... What is the mission content? And why did you assign it to me?" Seeing that Char was about to veer off into strange territory, Roz hurriedly pulled the conversation back on track.
"...UC 0105. You are familiar with that point in time, aren't you?"
Hearing Roz's words, Char began to explain his thoughts. "I've seen your declaration form, after all. It lists a slightly modified Penelope, so you must know a thing or two."
"Likely because of something those Lord God Agents did, a younger version of myself has been swept into the UC 0105 timeline. I only learned of this news a short while ago."
As he spoke, Char swirled his glass and looked at Roz, a kind smile still fixed on his face.
"I need you to personally deport him back to where he belongs, or bring him directly back to the Courtyard."
"...Why me?"
Roz knit his brows slightly upon hearing this. "If it's a matter of doing something like that, there are others more experienced in this kind of work, aren't there?"
"The versions of me who have come into contact with Amuro generally have similar life experiences and attitudes, even if they vary slightly."
At this point, Char became very serious. "But I saw you. You are like Amuro, yet you are not him. Your thoughts and your spirit are distinct from his."
"I am looking forward to seeing what kind of change you can bring to that younger version of me."
"Besides, people in the Courtyard often say that a Char without an Amuro is incomplete. That's why I thought of you."
Char smiled and looked down at the whiskey in his hand. After hearing this, Roz fell silent, beginning to digest the information Char had provided.
First, the timeline is UC 0105, and the target is a young Char... if he remembered correctly, wasn't Hathaway also known as the "Second Coming of Char" during this period?
"I'll try to settle this as quickly as possible without exerting too much influence on him..."
Roz rubbed his forehead and voiced his thoughts.
"No, no, no, Roz... remaining unchanged only leads to repeating my mistakes. I want those versions of me that are not 'me' to have lives and values different from my own."
Char shook his head, rejecting Roz's idea. "Only then can it be truly called spectacular."
"Is that the reason you spend every day thinking of ways to screw over your younger self, Char?"
"Don't put it like that, Roz. Aren't you also a young Amuro?"
Facing Roz's questioning, Char instead looked directly into Roz's eyes. "So, will you take the job?"
"Yeah... I'll take it."
Roz did not refuse; instead, he chose to accept.
"Then, here's to a pleasant cooperation. A toast?"
"No thanks, I don't drink."
Looking at the whiskey on the table, Roz shook his head.
In his subconscious, he felt that drinking would make his hands shake, and when piloting an MS in combat, shaky hands would seriously affect the fight.
"I see. It seems you're still an immature fellow after all."
Hearing Roz's words, Char felt it was a bit peculiar, but he still pulled a bottle of soda from the cooler.
"Consuming alcohol can't exactly be called a sign of maturity," Roz retorted as he took the drink.
"But many times, if you've experienced much and don't drink, you can't suppress the weight of the past."
Char likely understood why Roz didn't drink. "Looking at it this way, your steady composure is the fruit of forced ripening, Roz."
With the important business concluded, the atmosphere on the scene became a bit more relaxed.
"Now then, moving on to a rather private topic."
As he spoke, Char produced a pen and paper from somewhere, seemingly prepared to record something. "So, Roz, what kind of women do you prefer?"
"Mature women."
At the mention of this topic, Roz narrowed his eyes slightly, staring at the Char in front of him. "Because if I got involved with a loli, my conscience would condemn me."
"Roz, you must understand that for us adults, a thing like a 'conscience' is completely useless!"
Upon hearing this, Char suddenly sat bolt upright in his rocking chair, clearly intending to engage Roz in a debate. "You should abandon the so-called condemnation of conscience and come to know the beauty of a loli-mommy!"
"Shut up, you disgraceful fellow with a loli-mommy fetish!"
Hearing Char's words, Roz slapped the armrest of his rocking chair and rebuked him angrily.
"What's wrong with liking loli-mommies!"
-----------------------------------
At this moment, on the other side, in a café within the Courtyard's commercial district.
"Metal Graham," whose hair possessed a slight metallic luster, and "Wheelchair Graham," who was currently wrapped in bandages and sitting in a wheelchair, were engaged in a calm exchange over two cups of coffee.
"I see... so it was that point in time?"
"Metal Graham" couldn't help but sigh at "Wheelchair Graham's" account. "To think that such things happened—a satellite cannon, and even an ELS probe..."
"I've already noted down everything you just said, especially the later parts regarding the combat situation." "Wheelchair Graham" nodded slowly.
"No, you cannot use me as a reference at all for your future battles."
But at that moment, "Metal Graham" shook his head instead, stopping "Wheelchair Graham" from continuing to memorize the details of his experiences.
"Why?"
Facing this alternate-world counterpart of himself, "Wheelchair Graham" couldn't help but frown.
"Haven't you realized yet? Me telling you the direction of future battles can only change you slightly."
"Metal Graham" shook his head and continued, "But now, your life trajectory has become completely different from mine. My references won't work."
"But no matter what, you only need to remember one thing."
"Metal Graham" reached out and skillfully poked "Wheelchair Graham" right where his heart was.
"When you don't know what to do, follow the feelings in your heart."
"Metal Graham" smiled and gave a thumbs-up to the "Wheelchair Graham" before him.
..................