Why would I join the army if I can’t drive a Gundam!

Chapter 15 Knee-jerk reaction
"Are you so pessimistic about humanity?"

“It’s more disappointment than pessimism!”

"So you think war will definitely break out?"

"It's obvious!"

"You should have come to my General Staff, those idiots. All they learned in military school was how to eat with a knife and fork. Many of them even accepted bribes and persuasion from Zeon intelligence officers. Did you know that yesterday, an intelligence officer swore to me that the Zeon people would definitely accept the Federation's conditions, disband their army, and restore peace?"

"what about now?"

"I promoted that guy and transferred him to Side 2, Ifeshi Island!"

"Uh, great place!"

"So, stop worrying all day long. Colonial satellites aren't going to fall from the sky!"

"How do you know it won't fall? If I were a Zeon, I wouldn't just drop a colony satellite on Earth, I'd also find an asteroid to drop on it! We'd all explode together and no one would survive!"

"Okay, what's the point of you saying this now? You're not the Zeon General Staff, nor are you a worm in the stomach of that beach kid Gihren. Go back and repair your tank as soon as possible!"

"As you command, General, I'll take my leave now!"

"Go ahead. Oh, wait, your principal said you set up a handicap at school to bet on the winner of the exercise and made tens of thousands of dollars. Is that true?"

"That's a lie, General. You know me well. I have always cherished the vision of being a role model of an honest, kind, brave, fearless, and selfless federal soldier!"

Macharius said so. Of course, if the other party wanted to give it to him, he could not refuse it. After all, it is a good virtue to accept the loss of a bet!

"That's more like it, go ahead!"

After saying goodbye and leaving the headquarters, Macharius went straight to the combat readiness garage. At this moment, the armored cadets were methodically checking the vehicles that had arrived here under the guidance of the veterans of the garrison. As the first unit to be equipped with M61A2 tanks, the heavy armored battalion of the garrison had accumulated a lot of experience in how to use tanks. Now facing their juniors, the veterans naturally would not hide anything.

Not to mention, many of these veterans have interacted with the cadets.

"The Red Dragon Team, we're old acquaintances. Back when they were doing armed training, I even kicked their captain's ass hard from behind!"

"That's amazing! I heard their captain is very powerful, but I didn't expect you to be even more powerful!"

"Just listen to his boasting. He's never won any professional competitions. He just relies on his muscular build to physically bully kids!"

"Kid? Captain of the Red Dragons?"

"Yeah, look, that's it!"

An old soldier recognized Macharius in his casual uniform and greeted him.

"Red Dragon One, please don't embarrass us during the exercise!"

"Yeah, kick those Zeon gigolos' asses!" "Sure, sure, leave it to me, don't worry!"

"Is this guy so powerful?"

"He's amazing! Since he joined the academy, he's participated in 75 exercises without a single loss of life. He's destroyed over enemy targets in exercises alone. And during one exercise, he even shot down a low-flying Swordfish fighter with his main gun!"

"No, are all the students nowadays monsters? Can they do this?"

The soldiers of the garrison have naturally served as whetstones for the cadets of the Zeon Military Academy at times. Both sides have won and lost in exercises, but generally speaking, whether they win or lose, the fighting is rather frustrating. There is nothing that can be done about it. The quality of the cadets of the Zeon Military Academy is still different from that of the privates. Because of its small scale and the fact that there is only one military academy, the training of the Zeon Military Academy students is very strict, and anyone who is pulled out is a jack of all trades.

But now, the Federation has also gathered a group of its own high-quality soldiers. In addition to the Red Dragon Team of the Armored Academy, there are also the best from other military academies. Moreover, because the joint exercises of the Federal Military Academy have become a daily project, the cooperation and coordination of the students is not a problem, because many people know each other.

Therefore, the soldiers of the garrison are naturally looking forward to this exercise, because they will also intervene in the exercise as referees. At that time, if those Zeon Military Academy students make mistakes, they will be able to laugh at them!
So, under everyone's anticipation, the exercise finally began!

Although the combined size of the two sides is only at the level of a reinforced battalion, the entire schedule of the exercise is not short, totaling more than ten days. However, the first day is naturally a very formal arrangement.

The federal cadets were kicked out of bed at six in the morning. After washing up, they had an extremely sumptuous meal. In order to ensure that the cadets were well fed and had enough energy, the kitchen had started preparing this meal the night before. The most eye-catching item in the meal was the Side 3 garrison's own specialty dish, which was a super hot pot. The big pot was full of various meats without a single vegetable. It was called the Athlete's Troop Pot. This food was also improved from the local recipes of Side 3, because Side 3 is a heavy industrial colony. After a tiring day, the local workers engaged in manual labor would make a stew with some wine to comfort themselves for a day's hard work, and then it was learned by the garrison's canteen.

"Eat more! You never know when we'll have our second meal today!"

"Why? Isn't it time to give a speech and watch the parade in the morning?"

"Yeah, but you can't say how long you're going to be speaking! Don't forget, there's a bunch of media here today!"

A simple exercise wouldn't have taken up much time for an opening ceremony, but the problem was that their exercise was politically motivated. So, when the Federation cadets saw Zeon's leader, Gihren Zabi, dressed in full military uniform and draped in his exquisitely embroidered cape, walking up to the podium in front of the Zeon Academy building like a victorious general, they regretted not listening to Macharius! This guy was such a boaster! From the founding of the Zeon Academy, to the hardships along the way, to the various prospects for the future, Macharius listened to the entire speech, only catching onto four words: "Long live Zeon!" But it was undeniable that this guy was a first-rate incitement. The Zeon cadets, standing at attention in two separate sectors alongside the Federation cadets, were like chicken blood, and when he finished, they enthusiastically chanted "Long live Zeon!"

The momentum was so great that the federal generals sitting behind the podium looked uneasy.

The students standing below naturally felt the strong sense of provocation.

"This guy is trying to intimidate us!"

"Then we have to fight back fiercely?"

"Everyone, I have a plan!"

Macharius then stood still and whispered to the commander of the Infantry Academy beside him.

Afterwards, after Kilian, General Rebil, the spokesperson for the federal army, also gave a speech. When General Rebil finished his speech, a command sounded in the ranks of federal cadets.

"Everyone, stand at attention and salute!"

Then, a scene that made Gihren's face turn pale happened. After hearing the command, the Zeon cadets subconsciously followed it, and the scene turned into cadets from both sides saluting General Rebil.

General Rebir then responded with a military salute to the students from both sides with a proud smile.

(End of this chapter)