Meeting Fred's seemingly unchanging gaze, Lacus nodded as well.
"Then I hope you can successfully integrate the team tomorrow, brother."
Tomorrow would be Fred's first day meeting his own squad.
Before Fred's secret operations began, the first step was naturally to integrate the team.
Otherwise, even if everyone were elites, a scattered group would have little combat effectiveness.
"Thank you."
"But can you still not say what operation you're preparing for now?"
Lacus tilted her head, asking with a hint of playful charm.
"Not yet, for now."
Fred rubbed his nose, avoiding Lacus's gaze.
It was still too early to mention that Copernicus would be attacked in the future.
He could only reveal it when the situation on the battlefield began to show signs.
There was still plenty of time, anyway.
"Eh~"
Just as Lacus was about to say more, a familiar voice accompanied by the sound of a door opening interrupted her.
"Brother~"
Flay's sweet voice rang out as her eyes swept over the two people before her.
"Am I interrupting?"
Faced with Flay's suggestive look, the two remained quite composed, with Fred merely shrugging.
"You came at just the right time."
"Let's get ready for class."
Fred stood up.
Although Athrun and the others weren't around, teaching the two of them was still necessary.
After all, even a princess should have some self-defense skills.
As for Flay, that was even more the case.
"Oh~"
Flay blinked, exchanging a glance with Lacus before nodding.
...
The next day, as scheduled, Fred arrived at the underground facility of the Defense Committee.
It was a room similar to the one where he had met Patrick and Siegel last time.
The entry process was also much the same as before.
"But we should go to the base from now on."
Looking at the respectful soldiers before him once more, Fred thought to himself.
Although this was headquarters, there were too many eyes and ears.
Moreover, since their battleships and GINNs no longer needed to be hidden, there were now many ZAFT bases throughout PLANT.
Among them, Fred's two Laurasia-class ships were docked and stored at the base in April City.
Of course, they were in an independent port, so no one would see him coming and going.
Meanwhile, ahead of where Fred strode forward, the people in the conference room were looking at each other.
"Squad Leader Orphee, what kind of person is our captain?"
Mikhail Aiman, known as the "Twilight Bullet," asked a squad leader with a simple, honest face and a sturdy build.
Hearing Mikhail's question, the squad leader merely shrugged his broad shoulders.
"Who am I supposed to ask?"
"I heard he's very mysterious, with no information about him at all."
"Such a high security clearance?"
Hearing Orphee's words, the others gasped in surprise.
After all, they were a secret operations squad, and they already had their own security clearance.
Moreover, they were one of the units that had been active in the shadows even before the war began.
Although not as ferocious as that Andrew's squad, they were all professionals when it came to covert operations and infiltration missions.
They were also privy to many secrets of internal operations, yet now they actually didn't know the details of that captain named Freed?
"That's right, so he's most likely not an ordinary person. Don't offend him casually; just follow orders."
Captain Orphee reminded them again.
Meanwhile, the other tall and thin captain of the second squad also nodded toward them.
Although they didn't know what abilities the other side possessed, this order had been jointly issued by Patrick Zala and Siegel Clyne.
Moreover, this unit was Unit Zero of the Special Ops Unit.
No matter how they thought about it, that commander couldn't be an ordinary person.
In a regular unit, there might be troublemakers who would provoke others and then get subdued by them.
But this was a joint order from the Committee Chairman and the Chairman.
They wouldn't dare do anything to that Freed even if they had ten times the courage.
Otherwise, even without Freed using them to establish his authority, offending the higher-ups would leave them with no way out.
"In short, as long as the commander isn't too outrageous, we should do our best to cooperate."
The tall and thin Captain Chiora chimed in, but then his tone shifted as he smiled and added, "However, if he turns out to be incompetent, we'll also help you report it to the higher-ups."
A reliable commander was extremely important.
Safety reasons aside, there was also the consideration of making contributions.
Even if they couldn't be known to the public, they still wanted to contribute to PLANT and ZAFT.
So, if that mysterious Freed couldn't lead them to create corresponding value, then they couldn't be blamed for what they might do.
"Yes!"
Hearing what the captains said, the others relaxed a bit.
Since the captains had spoken this way, they at least had some reassurance in their hearts.
Amidst everyone's varied thoughts, the door soon opened.
The young man who had been the subject of their discussion for so long walked in with large strides, wearing a mask, followed by Alec, as the two squads saluted him.
Seeing the mask on Freed's face, everyone in the meeting room was stunned.
After all, it was the first time they had seen a commander wearing a mask.
Of course, this Freed's identity shouldn't be fake, given that the two highest authorities were backing him.
As for the adjutant behind Fred, he looked quite unfamiliar, but he didn't seem like someone to be trifled with either.
"No need to be so formal."
Fred laughed, continuing as if he hadn't noticed everyone's surprise. "I don't bite. Take a seat."
"Alright."
Being well-experienced, the others quickly regained their composure and sat down one after another.
"I believe everyone already knows what our Unit Zero is primarily responsible for before coming here."
"Yes, sabotage behind enemy lines."
Orphee nodded in agreement while observing the commander before him. From the look of his mouth, he seemed quite young, definitely not over thirty.
However, the fact that he hadn't wavered at all in the face of their earlier salute at least proved he wasn't an ordinary person.
Amidst the captains' and everyone else's thoughts, Fred shook his head and said, "Yes, and no."
"Our mission is to maintain the balance of the world, to make peace a choice."
"We are the makers of peace, the guardians of PLANT, and the unsung ones."
Fred looked at the people before him and spoke earnestly.
His voice echoed in the slightly empty room, stirring a surge of passion in the listeners.
Guard PLANT, forge peace.
Both objectives truly aligned with their own goals.
Of course, they were not the type to blindly believe whatever others said. After a brief moment of inner restlessness, they quickly calmed down.
"So, Captain Freed, what is our mission?"
The tall, lean middle-aged leader of the second team asked.
"The first task: integration."
Fred continued along the lines of the other's question.
"Hand-to-hand combat, MS operations, infiltration skills—I need a comprehensive understanding of your abilities."
"Of course, I will also participate personally."
Upon hearing Fred's words, Chiora, who had been about to ask something, froze.
"You mean... you'll fight us?"
Chiora carefully chose his words before finally speaking plainly.
"Exactly."
Fred nodded.
Ever since Athrun and the others stopped attending classes, he had resumed his own training.
But no matter how he looked at it, progress was still too slow. Having ready opponents here was an opportunity not to be wasted.
This applied to both hand-to-hand combat and MS battles.
All of these were chances to accelerate his improvement.
Moreover, it would allow him to gain a deep understanding of the team's capabilities while also subduing the seemingly obedient but not yet fully convinced squad members.
Although they were an elite squad, capable of carrying out sabotage operations behind enemy lines, their skills were certainly not as strong as Andrew's.
According to the information Patrick had provided about them, Fred's elite combat skills were definitely enough to outmatch them.
As for MS piloting, even though he was just a beginner, the others were certainly not as proficient as Andrew.
On his side, he also had the support of various skills.
At the very least, he could hold his own.
And he could continue to improve.
So why not take advantage of the opportunity?
During this period, aside from research, Fred planned to focus on integration as the main objective, engaging in frequent sparring and exchanges with the team.
There was still over a year before the terrorist attack in Copernicus occurred, and during that time, he would undoubtedly take on other missions.
For example, he remembered that another Councilor would be killed in a terrorist bombing.
In short, this series of events would serve as the best training for their new team.
Finally, he would also need to prepare detailed plans for the Copernicus operation. Although the timeline seemed flexible, every second counted to ensure they were fully prepared.
So, after finishing his explanation, Fred continued.
"Any more questions? If not, let's begin immediately."
"..."
Hearing the eagerness in Fred's tone, the team members exchanged glances, each seeing confusion in the others' eyes.
What was going on?
Although they had considered the possibility of fighting him, they hadn't expected him to be so enthusiastic about it.
It was as if they were just sparring partners for each other.
But complaints aside.
Everyone was genuinely interested in testing each other's abilities, so after snapping back to reality and seeing the two captains nod in approval, they all agreed.
Alec, who had been watching all this without saying a word, was quite excited inside.
Although none of the people in front of him showed any expression on their faces.
As a fellow Ace, he could roughly understand their thoughts.
They probably didn't trust Fred—not in terms of their relationship, but in terms of his abilities.
This was understandable, but for Alec, who had fully accepted Fred, it was dissatisfying.
Thinking about how Fred would be able to showcase his strength in front of everyone and make them submit, he was genuinely happy.
While Fred was speaking and Alec was feeling excited, Patrick, on the other side, was watching this live broadcast through the monitors placed there.
At this moment, he didn't know what to say for a while.
However, he truly was like a martial arts fanatic from ancient times. Over these past few years, Patrick had somewhat gotten used to it.
Thinking this, the middle-aged man immediately turned to Lenore beside him, who had just finished arranging the planting tasks in Junius City and was also looking at the screen in surprise.
"What do you think about Athrun's situation?" Patrick asked.
"You know Fred's people. If he follows him, Athrun's safety can be protected to the greatest extent."
"Let's ask Athrun for his opinion first."
Lenore didn't relent, just shook her head, then turned her gaze to the screen in front of her and continued.
"Of course I know Athrun joining the military could greatly boost public morale, but he's our son."
Hearing Lenore's words, Patrick didn't deny it, just lowered his eyes.
He had shown Lenore this live broadcast of Fred's, hoping to gain her approval, but it seemed quite difficult for now.
"I also care about our son, but no one can predict the future. What if something happens to us? Who will protect him then?"
Patrick said helplessly.
"I heard even Nicol from Amalfi has joined the military."
"..."
This time, Lenore didn't argue. She just watched the scene on the screen as Fred led everyone toward the internal gym and remained silent for a moment.
"If Fred can prove his abilities on the battlefield... then I'll be able to rest assured."
Although this might seem a bit harsh on Fred, who is a good young man, when it comes to the important issue of her son going to the battlefield, Lenore still said this.
"I have the same thought."
Patrick nodded.
"But for now, Athrun can attend military school first. At the very least, it will allow him to protect himself and those he wants to protect in the future."
"...Alright!"
While the two were speaking, Fred had already led everyone into the training gym.
The equipment inside was far more complete than that of an ordinary gym, and the uniformly cold, hard color scheme gave off a sense of iron-blooded discipline.
It was clear at a glance that this was a place where countless people had shed sweat and even blood.
"First up is combat training. Who wants to go first?"
As he spoke, Fred swiftly stepped onto the ring.
There was no need to remove his white officer's uniform, as its design was inherently tailored for ease of movement. The fabric used in the uniform was warm in winter and cool in summer—a high-tech synthetic material newly developed by PLANT.
In short, it was quite impressive. While it couldn't stop bullets, it allowed soldiers to move freely in most environments.
As for his abilities, he hadn't eaten yet, but he had brought a homemade lunchbox, planning to eat it only when it was time for the MS simulation battle.
He had planned everything out before coming here.
Now, standing below the ring in response to Fred's words, even without seeing his expression, they could still sense the confidence radiating from his tone.
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