On the other side, Fred was not surprised by Patrick's words, merely lowering his gaze and responding with a faint acknowledgment.
This involved a matter of initiative versus passivity.
If they acted directly, the other side had too many ways to shift blame.
Judging from the subsequent performance in the war, both sides were evenly matched.
However, the collapse of Junius City ultimately tore away the fig leaf covering both parties.
It also gave ZAFT an excuse for retaliation.
In any case, who was right or wrong no longer mattered.
What mattered was that, at least for now, he had to first seal this breach and then later eradicate Blue Cosmos in one fell swoop.
That was the real task at hand.
With this thought, Fred's focus returned to the dazzling battlefield before him.
Given ZAFT's current combat capabilities, it would likely shock many people.
This battle was only the beginning; what truly mattered was how to deploy forces in the future.
As Fred methodically planned, on the other side, Captain Chen, who was also observing the battle, watched the unfolding situation with eyes gradually widening.
After all, ZAFT's Laurasia-class ships against the Drake-class were almost like cutting through melons and vegetables.
Even if they were to join the fight, the outcome would likely be similar.
Not to mention the chasm-like gap between the Mistrals and the enemy's MS.
After just two rounds of combat, the Atlantic Federation's casualty ratio was already being blown apart by ZAFT.
Apart from relying on numerical superiority for victory, he couldn't think of any other effective way to counter the enemy's battleships.
Meanwhile, standing behind Chen, the Adjutant watched the scene with an expression of astonishment even more exaggerated than the Captain's, his military posture nearly faltering.
"This... those Coordinators' ships are just too powerful!"
The Adjutant's mouth hung wide open, as if he could swallow an entire goose egg.
The cold air he kept sucking in did little to calm him down.
"Indeed..."
Captain Chen responded, feeling a bitter taste in his mouth.
The thought of their own lagging research progress filled him with frustration.
Ever since the end of the Recombinant War, their technological development seemed to have stalled completely, with no progress at all.
Even with Coordinator research teams, the situation remained unchanged.
Despite purchasing so many Drake-class and Agamemnon-class ships.
In contrast, PLANT had achieved such a significant innovation.
However, Chen did not wallow in self-pity. Believing firmly in human determination overcoming fate, he snapped back to attention, took a deep breath, and immediately said:
"Mobilize our people. We must identify the key developers behind this technology."
"And quickly transmit this information back to our homeland."
Human determination may overcome fate, but it requires capable people.
He didn't understand this technology, but if their domestic scientists could make a breakthrough, that would be ideal.
If not... then they would have to recruit talent.
Although he made it sound simple, he was well aware of the difficulties involved in recruiting.
Money was one thing, but the other side wasn't their own people, and there were many variables.
Yet, without taking the risk, there would be no future at all.
"Yes, sir!"
Seeing his superior's serious expression, the adjutant refrained from saying anything more as usual. He simply saluted and quickly exited the room.
Inside the room, only Chen remained, watching the battle on the screen before him as he let out a slow sigh.
This time, PLANT had come with overwhelming force. It was clear that ZAFT had been well-prepared.
Although on the surface, ZAFT still lacked the ability to challenge the Atlantic Federation, variables had already emerged.
The Atlantic Federation, having lost face this time, would not easily let ZAFT off.
It was likely that the chaos of the future had only just begun.
Thinking of this, Chen grew even more anxious in his heart.
They needed to possess their own strength to protect themselves and prosper—this was the foundation of everything.
Just as Chen's thoughts began to drift, the battle on the screen before his eyes grew increasingly intense.
"...Take out their weapon systems. I'll suppress them."
Andrew, piloting the white Captain's mobile suit, calmly commanded amidst the hail of gunfire.
"Well done! We've successfully broken through. Proceed according to plan, using the big guy as cover!"
"Big guy" was their nickname for the Agamemnon-class battleship.
"Yes!"
Responding to Andrew's words, the squad members scattered, moving as nimbly as fish in water around the Agamemnon-class battleship surrounded by close-in weapon systems.
They remained untouched by the close-in weapon systems, while the weapon systems around the Agamemnon-class were successively destroyed.
As for the Drake-class battleships serving as escorts in the box formation nearby, they could only watch helplessly.
There was no other way—the mobile suits were too close to the Agamemnon-class.
For the 300-meter-long Agamemnon-class, the 20-meter-tall mobile suits could easily use this behemoth as natural cover.
The Drake-class battleships were equipped with missiles. If they were dodged and struck the Agamemnon-class, or even caused the death of the commander aboard, they would undoubtedly face a court-martial upon return, possibly even execution.
Thus, no one on the battleships dared to act recklessly.
They could only hold their breath, nervously watching the battlefield before them, cursing the pilots while hoping they would make a mistake and explode.
Of course, the battleships' inaction did not mean everything was fine.
After all, besides the battleships, the Atlantic Federation also had Mobile Armor units.
"Where are the Moebius units? Attack now!"
"If this ship is shot down, I'll have you all buried with it!"
Sutherland, witnessing this scene, no longer hesitated as before.
His voice was cold, hard, and ruthless, making the members of the Mobile Armor squad forget their fear.
Finally, seeing the situation turning unfavorable, several Moebius units, accompanied by dozens of Mistrals, charged toward the mobile suit squad.
However, the twenty-strong GINN squad was far faster than the Moebius and Mistral units.
Already elites, they were even more agile while piloting mobile suits.
Twelve GINNs deftly formed a perimeter, intercepting the Mobile Armors attempting to rescue the battleship.
The remaining eight GINNs continued to search for openings around the Agamemnon-class.
Although the GINN squad appeared to be handling the situation with ease, the danger remained.
After all, they were deep in enemy territory, and they couldn't kill indiscriminately. Fighting with such restrictions meant that prolonged entanglement could easily lead to a fatal misstep.
Of course, such a minor issue couldn't stump Andrew. Amid the chaos of battleships exchanging fire and the clashes between MS and Mobile Armors, Andrew quickly found an opportunity.
At that moment, outside the bridge window of the Agamemnon-class battleship, the red light from the mono-eye of the MS piloted by Andrew shone into the bridge, its massive, dark gun barrel aimed directly at everyone inside.
The broad red light illuminated their faces, yet it couldn't conceal the pallor of fear.
"Alright, everyone, calm the surroundings, Commander."
Andrew's still nonchalant voice reached the Commander's ears directly through the laser communication channel. His already livid face turned even darker, appearing rather comical under the red light.
And if even the Commander was like this, the other crew members were even more so.
Several of them couldn't help but swallow hard.
Their minds were in a daze.
Having a gun pointed at their heads—even as well-trained soldiers, they were still afraid.
Not far away, several Moebius and Mistral units, which had been engaged with the MS, also dared not act recklessly, withdrawing their hands from the triggers.
However, unlike those on the battleship, they now breathed a sigh of relief.
After all, continuing to fight would only mean feeding themselves to the enemy.
Now that they didn't have to, it was naturally a relief.
Amid everyone's complex thoughts, the battlefield fell into an eerie silence.
Of course, the battlefield was already quiet; it was just that the spectacular fireworks were now absent.
"Then make your decision quickly, Commander."
Andrew didn't want to push the other side too far, so he dropped the mockery from his tone, replacing it with seriousness and gravity.
Yet, the determination in his voice remained unmistakable.
At this moment, Sutherland had only a few choices before him.
First, gamble that the other side wouldn't fire and continue the attack.
But the other side were soldiers, not robots.
If their actions truly threatened the life of that pilot, he had no doubt the other side would fire.
After all, what happened after death was none of their concern.
Second, they could only retreat.
It was humiliating, but at least it would save their lives.
He was part of Blue Cosmos, but he had joined only to climb the ranks.
Compared to his hatred for Coordinators, his own life was clearly more important.
He had joined Blue Cosmos for promotion and wealth, not to become cannon fodder.
"Cease the attack!"
His thoughts raced, and Sutherland gritted his teeth before speaking.
Upon hearing this, most of the people on the bridge breathed a sigh of relief.
They were truly afraid of being sacrificed.
However, some genuine Blue Cosmos members were quite dissatisfied upon hearing this, but with the Captain's decision, they had nothing to say.
And, undeniably, faced with this situation, they too were afraid of death.
"Do you think doing this will earn the approval of the Council Nations?"
Of course, for the sake of pride, Sutherland couldn't simply retreat. He sneered and reconnected the communication channel to Patrick, speaking with a threatening tone.
"What we want, as we've said, is only this space sector."
Patrick's words remained calm and measured.
He showed no hint of arrogance from the favorable turn of the battle, nor any fear in the face of the opponent's threats.
He continued speaking in a composed tone.
"Of course, if you invade again, we will have no choice but to respond."
"Hmph."
Upon hearing Patrick's words, the commander only let out a cold snort.
Though his mind was filled with thoughts, dissatisfaction, and even simmering resentment, Sutherland raised his hand and gave the order as he stared down the dark barrel of the gun.
"All forces retreat. Fire the signal flares."
With no casualties so far, retreat was the best outcome.
The battleships slowly retreated following Sutherland's command. Clenching his teeth, Sutherland turned to Patrick and issued a threat.
"This time, I underestimated you."
"Next time, you won't be so lucky."
Sutherland's words were not an exaggeration.
If the Atlantic Federation had truly mobilized all its space fleets, PLANT would have stood no chance.
However, the situation was far more complicated. For now, at least, Patrick remained unshaken by the threat, replying calmly.
"You're welcome anytime."
"..."
Sutherland offered no further response, retreating with his subordinates in a humiliating defeat.
Though space was silent, both sides in the conflict understood the situation all too clearly.
The Atlantic Federation had arrived with an air of overwhelming might, but their departure was marked by utter disgrace.
This was evident not only in their battered, smoke-spewing fleet but also in the shattered morale of the Atlantic soldiers, crushed by the sudden and overwhelming suppression.
Watching the Atlantic forces retreat, Patrick's rigid posture relaxed slightly.
His gaze then shifted to Fred, his expression complex, as he said.
"Come to my office later."
"Yes."
Patrick would be speaking with him later, most likely to offer some kind of reward.
It would likely be money or status—nothing Fred found particularly novel.
As for why it was "later," it was because Patrick was currently occupied, having just won a battle—or at least what they considered a victory. The soldiers were exhilarated and excited, and the general populace was eager for answers.
Patrick would undoubtedly need to address them.
Fred thought to himself, his eyes scanning the bridge, where everyone without exception wore expressions of excitement. A strange sense of loneliness began to stir within him.
ZAFT and the Coordinators were celebrating their victory together, but he felt no shared joy with them.
Ultimately, for them, this battle was the foundation of PLANT's establishment as a nation, but for him, it was merely the beginning of a series of brutal conflicts to come.
In those battles, Flay and George would both perish.
Of course, Fred had no intention of letting that happen.
Nor would he allow them to destroy this world.
As for his own victory, in the short term, it meant successfully helping the Moderate Faction in Copernicus evade the Atlantic Federation's terrorist attack.
In the medium term, it meant obtaining the data from the G Project and finding Kira.
As for how far they could go under his guidance in the end, even he couldn't be certain at this point.
But at the very least, he could do his best to steer this world toward a better future.
Meanwhile, as Fred watched the crowd grow increasingly agitated by Patrick's speech, Lacus in April City finally breathed a sigh of relief after receiving the report from the terminal before her.
Everything was proceeding according to their plan—there was no doubt about that.
However, there were also issues emerging.
"Have they already set their sights on Junius City?"
Lacus murmured to herself.
Although they hadn't taken action this time, it had already proven Blue Cosmos' malicious intentions.
Even though that place was likely as solid as a fortress and they had taken precautions, the mere recognition of this possibility sent a chill down Lacus' spine.
These were the lives of over two hundred thousand people.
"Lacus?"
Flay, noticing Lacus had frozen, approached with concern and took her hand.
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