Having traversed countless realms, can you possibly be as clever as me?

"They seem to want to capture you and extract the secrets of the new human race from you. They firmly believe that you can open the path to immortality for them."

"Huh? Whatever, they're all going to die whether you tell them or not," Tsurugi shrugged.

"Their whole family is doomed. I may not be able to chase them too far, but I'll blow their mansion, their company, whatever they may be, to smithereens!"

These people are courting death and provoking him won't change anything; they're going to die anyway, and nobody can save them.

"Oh, and while you're at it, please get in touch with Gop or some other high-ranking officers in the Federation Army."

Tsugumi touched her fingers and smiled knowingly.

"I have a hostage here, and I'd like to see how much I can sell him for."

......

After the Federation Army's defeat in the Battle of Loum, there was no doubt that the pro-peace faction, which already had considerable power within the Federation, rose to prominence almost instantly.

These people were almost all representatives of the upper echelons of the Federal Parliament, and they had not been on good terms with Rebil's faction in the past. Now they seized the opportunity to vigorously criticize the Federal Army's defeat.

Many people think that if Rebil survived, he could change the Federation, which is obviously too naive. Even if Rebil had survived and become the victor who led the Federation to victory in the One Year War, he would still have to bear the blame for the defeat at the Battle of Loom.

In fact, such a defeat was enough for the Federation officials to legally and legitimately throw Rebil into jail, but unfortunately the Federation army was actually just a place to guard the hills.

Rebil was able to continue serving as the Federation's Commander-in-Chief because his faction was still powerful, even the strongest since the war. The reserve fleet that Tiam had preserved was Rebil's greatest source of confidence, and with Gop's support, the Federation Council had no choice but to accept him.

If he defeats Zeon, he loses his value. In a certain timeline, even if Reibir hadn't died, his fate would have been nothing more than retirement and a peaceful old age.

Reforming the Federation with the momentum of a great victory is destined to be a pipe dream. As the saying goes, a large ship is hard to turn around. A corrupt behemoth like the Federation cannot be easily changed course.

Throughout history, it has been almost unheard of for such a corrupt behemoth to be transformed through reform alone; usually, only a bloody purge can achieve a complete transformation from top to bottom.

The defeat is a huge blow to the Federation forces, and the council officials seem to really be hoping that Zeon will let them off the hook.

Meanwhile, Gop, who was in charge of dealing with them, had been exhausted both physically and mentally these past few days. He undoubtedly supported Rebil, but he also had to act as a lubricant in the Federation Army, responsible for communicating with those corrupt aristocratic lords.

This dual life took a heavy toll on his mind and body, and he could only hope to be more aggressive in the upcoming negotiations with Zeon in order to force those powerful lords to support them in continuing the war.

After all, they were the losers, and the initiative wasn't in their hands.

Just as the chubby Gop sighed and returned to his room, he opened the door and saw an old acquaintance.

Dejin Zabi, the prince of the Principality of Zeon, was now bound tightly and lying face down on the ground. A young man stood on one foot and looked at him mockingly. Gop was stunned for two seconds before he came to his senses.

He calmly turned around and locked the door. Before he could even speak, Tsugumi got straight to the point.

"How much can this old thing sell for?" Tsurugi kicked Dekin and looked at Gop with a smile.

"...That depends on what you want."

Gop spoke with unusual calmness, even though the person speaking to him was the most ferocious human in the Universal Century, and he was standing on the biggest card that gave the Federation Army the upper hand.

So Tsurugi stated his conditions...

Gopp was somewhat surprised; the condition seemed too extreme. But after a moment's thought, Gopp gave his answer.

Three minutes later, Gop summoned the high command of the Federation Army and showed them the Dekin that he had obtained.

This instantly invigorated the weakened Federation forces!

The Zeonians captured Rebil, they captured the prince, and by all accounts, they won!

No one would be foolish enough to ask at this juncture why Dejin, who should have been in Iron Death's hands, ended up in Gop's. At most, they would try to subtly inquire whether Gop could contact the other party.

Even though it might seem unambitious, the Federation Army's attitude towards Iron Reaper is unusually ambiguous—neither confirming nor denying the rumors circulating within the military that he is a secret weapon of the Federation Army.

The defeated army needed victory and good news to bolster its morale, but it was shameful that all of their Union Army's victories so far couldn't compare to this suddenly appearing new human.

Although he said he would confront the Federation, he didn't actually do it!

Rounding it off, he's one of us! The Iron Reaper's victory is our Federation Army's victory!

The Federation Army, having mastered the art of winning, did just that, which caused Tsugumi's popularity within the Federation Army to skyrocket to the top. Almost every Federation soldier knew her, and those who had a deep-seated hatred for Zeon wished they could make her into a deity and hang her on their bodies.

You're talking about massacring civilians in colonies?

Are Zeon even human? At least until Zeon is finished, no one will write history about these scumbags.

In short, they quickly spread the news that Prince Dejin was in their hands. Kilian then demanded a prisoner exchange and, incidentally, some treaties be reached.

The location was chosen to be Scott City in Antarctica, and Kycilia herself was in charge of the negotiations.

Yes, this purple-haired old woman actually chose to come to Earth in person to negotiate.

It was probably because of the heavy losses suffered by Zeon that Kycilia had to temporarily reconcile with Gihren. At this critical moment, she had to demonstrate the strength and fearlessness of the Zabi family and the courage to carry the war through to the end.

Of course, it's also possible that Kycilia needed to ensure her father's safety.

After all, Kycilia's love for her father was truly undeniable.

In short, the negotiations quickly began in Antarctica, while on the other side, Tsurugi was preparing for his final performance before temporarily leaving.

Oh wow, there's also Kycilia, what a pleasant surprise!

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

P.S.: I'll temporarily stop working on Gundam tomorrow, then finish Black Bullet in two days, and then head back to Type-Moon Rome.

Changing styles doesn't change anything, it's still all about killing! : 140. Negotiation and Laplace's Box

Scott, Antarctica

This is a city named after Scott, the protagonist of the famous "Great Tragedy" and an explorer who died in Antarctica.

Despite being located in the icy and snowy Antarctic, it is surprisingly one of the most livable cities in the entire Earth sphere.

Because this is a city built entirely within an ecological park.

The enormous glass dome, like an inverted bowl, envelops the entire city. While the outside temperature is a frigid minus seventy degrees Celsius, completely unsuitable for human habitation, the inside temperature is like spring all year round, with birds singing and flowers blooming.

All of this is maintained by a temperature maintenance device and an ecological simulation system built at great expense. Here you can even see plants and animals that exist in different climate zones at the same time, and even those that have already died out in the heavily polluted original ecological environment.

The reason for spending huge sums of money to build such a city in Antarctica is that the severe pollution of the Earth's environment has made most habitable areas uninhabitable, while the polar regions, due to their sparse population, have been chosen by the powerful and wealthy to build their own paradise.

Luxurious, comical, yet realistic.

The corruption and ugliness of the federal government are never superficial; they are present in every detail and everywhere.

The delegation from the Principality of Zeon arrived in Antarctica on the fourth day after establishing communication.

Although they were the victors of the war, as they entered this luxurious city, they couldn't help but look around like a bunch of ignorant bumpkins.

The vastness of the earth captivated them, while the extravagance of the Federation left them speechless.

They initially thought the Federation forces didn't live as luxuriously as their Zeon superiors, but upon arrival they realized they had compared themselves to the wrong people.

General Reibell might be a great general who could share the hardships of his soldiers and eat fast food with them, but the gentlemen of the Federal Council were a different story.

Even though the Earth's ecosystem is so precarious, they can still live a luxurious life that ordinary people can't imagine—in fact, it is precisely because of the poor state of the Earth's ecosystem that they can enjoy even more extravagant pleasures.

After all, it is precisely because there are enough poor people who are willing to do the work that they can unscrupulously exploit these people to provide themselves with an even more unimaginably luxurious life.

"Everyone, perk up! Our mission is to finalize the specifics with the Federation before Lady Kycilia arrives. Don't act like a bunch of country bumpkins!"

Colonel Mark Bay, who was in charge of the negotiating diplomatic corps, rebuked the disgraceful Zeon officers behind him.

Although that's what he said, he already had a white porcelain pot in his hand.

This was a gift from the Federal Parliament. They were originally going to explain its origin to him, but Mark Bay confidently gave his conclusion as soon as he received it.

"Yes, it's a pot from the Northern Song Dynasty. I really like it!"

The federal representative paused for a moment, then quickly agreed and left, turning around to complain to someone that they were a bunch of country bumpkins from outer space.

After all, anyone who knows even a little about the history of that country on Earth wouldn't be able to identify what kind of antique porcelain this shape represents.

But since he likes it, then so be it.

They rested in their respective rooms. Mark Bay put down his beloved teapot and looked out the window, his expression gradually turning cold.

He came to instigate the war.

Although a treaty needs to be signed, the war must continue. But before that, he must safely bring the prince back.

This is Lady Kycilia's order, and he is one of Kycilia's men.

The impact of Tsurugi's massacre in Zum was severe; indeed, the vast majority of those 150 million people were staunch supporters of the Zabi family.

The few survivors, such as Rambaar, were either members of the Daken faction or ignored the Zabi family.

However, it is absolutely impossible to say that this incident completely crippled Zeon.

In a sense, Tsurugi's massacre even "helped" Kihren.

He had already planned to purge the personnel inside SIDE3.

Because Gihren firmly believes that the number of humans he can rule alone is a minority, or rather, his superior intelligence calculates that the number of people he can perfectly rule with his abilities cannot exceed one billion.

Therefore, his series of heinous massacres after the start of the war were based on this purpose, and the massacre at Tsurugi was actually an acceptable result for Gihren.

He elaborated on the destruction of Zum, steering the narrative towards the survival of Zeon as a whole. The Zeon, already harboring hatred for the Federation, were further convinced after this incident that they had to win the war.

After all, Tsugumi had already demonstrated to everyone what the outcome of Zeon's defeat would be—even if the Federation let them off the hook, Tsugumi would not show any mercy.

"A battle for survival..."

Mark Bay gazed at the cold, white world outside the dome and murmured softly.

Negotiations began quickly.

Both Zeon and the Federation forces are quite aggressive, refusing to yield to each other in any aspect. Compared to the original timeline, the Federation here is surprisingly much more assertive.

Perhaps it was Dongjiang's influence that gave them confidence, or perhaps it was the leeway they had with Dejin in hand.

After all, compared to rescuing hostages, capturing the enemy leader alive and exchanging them is a different kind of luxury.

After several days of back and forth, Mark Bay finally got to the point.

"Rather than getting bogged down in some trivial matters here, we would much rather welcome our prince back."

Mark Bay crossed his arms and got straight to the point.

"Your General Rebil has been receiving VIP treatment in our Zeon. I wonder if we could meet our Prince...?"

“Anytime is fine, but I think we should arrange a more public and formal occasion after we've reached an agreement,” Gop ​​said calmly.

Although he appeared perfectly composed on the surface, Gop had some doubts in his heart—because Dekin, whom Tsurugi had thrown over, was alive, but that was all.