Gundam UC Hunting Time

Chapter 140 Pre-battle Preparations: Supply Arrives

Hey! Don't all crowd together!

Doris, piloting the search and rescue plane, complained impatiently—the light reconnaissance plane, which was only meant to carry two people, was crammed with three, and the two people in the back kept pushing forward, not caring at all whether she could stand it or not.

"You guys are so annoying!"

"I'm sorry, but I don't know how the captain is doing now, and I really can't just sit here and wait."

Anita apologized, but showed no intention of putting down her binoculars. Shirley Page was doing the same thing on the other side, but she didn't even apologize.

"What's there to worry about? That guy is Death! How can Death die? You guys get to the back! You're blocking my control!"

Doris rolled her eyes, finding the hemispherical objects blocking her view extremely offensive.

"If only that were true..."

Anita said sincerely, while Shirley Page pressed her earpiece and asked about the transport plane behind them.

"Lieutenant Aiden, how are things on your end?"

In the transport plane behind, Lilith, who was traveling with the machine, was also observing. Upon hearing this, she pressed her earpiece to answer.

"Nothing was found."

"Oh God, please bless the captain so he will be safe and sound."

Upon hearing this, Anita couldn't help but close her eyes, press her hand to her chest, and pray to the gods. Doris, who didn't believe in gods, just pursed her lips upon hearing this, and was then drawn to the golden flash in the distance.

"what?"

She blinked to make sure she wasn't seeing things, then grabbed the binoculars hanging around Anita's neck and pulled the sergeant into her arms.

"What!?"

Anita was taken aback.

"I think I saw something."

As she observed, she turned the plane in that direction and soon spotted the source of the golden flash—Lu Gao's antenna!

"Found it! At the 1 o'clock position!"

Shirley Page also rushed over to take a look, and suddenly the three of them were all huddled together.

"Get those awful breasts of yours off me! Do you want to crash your plane?!"

On the other side—

"Drip-drip-"

A warning sounded in the cockpit, and Lin Xingyuan, who was dozing off, immediately opened his eyes and looked at the radar screen. He noticed a green dot approaching, indicating that it was a Federation IFF. The computer then identified the target model as a Federation search and rescue aircraft.

Then, the communication device rang.

"Captain, are you there? Can you hear me? Please answer?"

A familiar female voice came through; it was Anita, her tone filled with worry. But perhaps the rainfall had affected the concentration of Minovsky particles, as the radio transmission was exceptionally clear.

"I heard you! Anita!"

He responded over the radio, and Anita immediately became excited.

"It really is you! That's great! We've spotted you! We'll be there soon."

"Ok."

Lin Xingyuan turned off the communication and looked at Xia Ya through the screen—he wasn't that daring to sleep with this guy.

Beneath the shield, Char had already woken up and was looking up at the cockpit of the Land High-Rise, presumably having heard the sound of the rescue aircraft.

After a few seconds of silent staring, Lin Xing, who had originally intended to ask why he wore his watch on his right hand, turned and walked into the jungle.

Oh well, I've already gained enough anyway.

Lin Xingyuan maneuvered the machine to stand up, took a step, and turned to leave.

"You guys are so slow."

He complained on the radio that Anita had just apologized when Doris interrupted her.

"Captain! We set off before dawn, didn't sleep all night, and didn't even have breakfast! Please understand!"

"I'm so sorry, thank you for your hard work."

The landing transport plane contained the black Ground Gundam, which had run out of propellant. Lin Xingyuan stepped out of the cockpit, where Lilith and Mira were already waiting for him. Mira noticed a long, thin, sword-like object hanging from Lin Xingyuan's waist and asked him curiously.

"Captain, what's that?"

"A souvenir I found."

Lin Xingyuan patted the captured Xia Ya's sidearm and said with a smile.

On the other side, Char didn't emerge from the bushes where he was hiding until the transport plane took off and drove away. He shook off the brightly colored spiders on his body and turned on his watch-like pager.

……

……

"De Dai?"

When the transport plane landed at the base, Lin Xingyuan saw two other Media transport planes, as well as something that was being covered with camouflage cloth and looked like a Zeon Dodai YS assisted flight system, which made him a little curious.

"Where did it come from?"

"It must have been captured, right?"

Mira answered uncertainly. Lin Xingyuan raised his eyebrows, feeling that something was amiss. Seeing officers huddled together below Midia and Dede, he immediately went up to ask.

"Excuse me for interrupting your work. Is this Dedai?"

Upon hearing his words, the officers turned around. In the middle was a female officer with honey-colored hair, and next to her was a tall man in a driver's uniform, wearing his hat askew, with a cheerful smile typical of chatting with women—the kind that looks sleazy and frivolous.

[Ah! It's Miss Matilda!]

[Is that Shrek Crowe next to you? The first one is Mutombo.]

[Upstairs, you've got the father-son relationship wrong.]

The number of comments about familiar faces increased slightly, and when the two saw Lin Xingyuan approaching, they immediately stood at attention and saluted.

"Captain! I am Lieutenant Matilda Ajane of the Media Supply Unit."

"Screenman Lowe, pilot of the 103rd Fighter Squadron, Pacific Fleet!"

Matilda stood upright, her gaze towards Lin Xingyuan filled with appreciation and respect. In contrast, Sleika was much more relaxed. After saluting, he looked Lin Xingyuan up and down with curiosity and scrutiny, speaking somewhat rudely.

"The Black Reaper is actually a minor. Our Federation Army has also fallen."

"Who can argue with that?"

Pilots are all like that, so Lin Xingyuan didn't find it strange at all. He even shrugged in agreement, and the two looked at each other and burst into laughter.

Lieutenant Matilda didn't mind and watched the two with a smile until Lin Xingyuan turned his head away.

"Lieutenant, weren't you with General Reibill?"

“I came here personally to resupply on the orders of General Rebil. The general has been keeping a close eye on your operations, Captain, and has instructed us to provide you with the greatest support in terms of supplies.”

Lieutenant Matilda replied with a smile and produced the supply list.

It feels great to be cared about by the big boss. Lin Xingyuan happily accepted it and casually pointed to Dedai, who was already covered by the camouflage net.

"It's my duty. Please give my regards to General Rebil. Is this also part of the supplies?"

"Yes, this is based on your suggestion at the technical demonstration meeting, Captain. The Zeon D'Dai, which was copied by the Air Force's technical department, uses our Federation Army's specifications and engine. It is faster than the D'Dai and has a more robust structure. We hope that your troops will test it."

Matilda answered, and Lin Xingyuan suddenly understood, then gave a thumbs up.

"They're really fast."

"Aircraft are much simpler than mobile suits."

“Then I became a test pilot.” Sleka shrugged and said helplessly, “The fleet was destroyed, and we carrier-based pilots were useless. We could only fly these clumsy bombers.”

"I see," Lin Xingyuan said with a smile, understanding why Shreka had come.

"How could that be? Only an excellent pilot like you, Lieutenant, can maximize the performance of the new equipment."

Shreka was a little surprised: "The infamous Black Reaper knows a nobody like me?"

He was from the Navy, while Lin Xingyuan was from the Space Force. Before this, the two should not have had any interaction.

"An unknown soldier? No way. Lieutenant Sleika, who's skilled in artillery and airplanes and also a womanizer, is quite famous."

"Really? Is that so? Haha, I'm truly honored."

Shreka scratched her head and laughed without any embarrassment.

Author's message

……

……

Preparing to hunt Karma

Chapter 141 Sharpening the Knife

After receiving the supplies delivered by Matilda, the aircraft were quickly repaired and strengthened.

First, the damaged Sherry Page mobile suit was fitted with a new head—a Gundam-style holographic head assembled from remaining Ground GM parts and Ground GM components. The addition of "horns" improved its communication and detection capabilities, and also enhanced its head cannon, marking a world first for a GM equipped with a Gundam head. Regarding firepower: due to a lack of key components, the beam rifle sent by Jabro was the BR-M-79C-1 beam pistol used by GMs. However, after being reassigned by Lin Xingyuan, she was permitted to use his beam rifle. Regarding protection: Lin Xingyuan and the technicians analyzed her combat history and installed a small amount of explosive reactive armor on her shoulders and shield, improving her anti-melee and anti-rocket capabilities.

Next was Lilith Aiden's machine—her body was undamaged, but Lin Xingyuan and the technicians still made corresponding adjustments and modifications based on her combat style. In terms of protection: the temporary shoulder armor was removed, and additional armor and explosive countermeasures were added to key areas of her body, further enhancing her assault capabilities. In terms of firepower: following Lin Xingyuan's plan, a small attack shield with two built-in BR-M-79C-1 beam pistols was equipped on her right arm; the shoulder was replaced with a Gatling gun for easier containment, and the original beam rifle was transferred to Lin Xingyuan's machine—as for why they went through this roundabout way, it was because everyone would be satisfied this way, at least that's what Lin Xingyuan's intuition told him.

Next up is Doris Bright's unit—her body was also undamaged, but her weapon systems were completely destroyed, so she received new equipment as well. In terms of protection: at her insistence, lightweight explosive reactive armor was installed on her shields, shoulders, chest, and waist. In terms of firepower: again at her insistence, the cumbersome 180mm cannon was replaced—since combat testing had already been completed. Instead, she was equipped with an XBR-L type medium-range sniper beam rifle, the same type used with the steel cannon, for ground testing—this long-barreled beam rifle has higher accuracy and range than the XBR-M type rifle equipped on the RX-78-2. The missile backpack on her back was also redesigned, increasing the ammunition capacity to 12 rounds, improving firepower sustainability. Although her mobility was slightly reduced, this didn't affect her role as a fire support unit; it could be easily discarded in critical situations.

Finally, there's Lin Xing's original machine—overall, there are no major changes, only minor modifications. In terms of protection: the previously damaged armor has been completely repaired, and nothing else has been changed except for the addition of a small amount of explosive reactive armor to the shield to improve its defense against rockets. Regarding firepower, in addition to the original equipment, there's a new weapon he needs to test—a rotary 533mm electromagnetic projectile howitzer prototyped by the Augusta Research Institute. Needless to say, it's Durandal's work; it's a simple weapon that can be manufactured and put to use immediately. Its appearance is like an enlarged version of an old-fashioned rotary grenade launcher. Its range is shorter than rockets, but its power is greater than the rockets equipped by the Great Demon. It can also be controlled by the pilot's voice to select different ammunition types and can perform indirect fire! It's perfect for ambushing enemies using the "Old Six" tactic.

In this way, the Scorpio Tactical Testing Unit had completed the hardware preparations for hunting down Karma Zabi. Accompanying Lieutenant Matilda was General Rebil's authorization—authorizing Lin Xingyuan to mobilize nearby troops to participate in the operation!

Even at this point, Lin Xingyuan had not revealed his operational objectives to his superiors, and the entire operation lacked a detailed plan, being quite crude. However, this was unavoidable—the Federation Army was a coalition of armies from most countries on Earth, naturally loosely structured, and became extremely chaotic after the war began. This allowed Zeon spies to infiltrate every corner, even including the head of the intelligence department, Ireland, who was one of their own. He had to be wary. He personally could not influence the overall situation and could only adapt to the circumstances.

However, Rebil was Rebil after all. He had already guessed Rebil's purpose through Rebil's series of combat operations and boldly gave him temporary authorization. Although the ground forces were not very effective, the ability to mobilize the air force greatly increased the success rate of the hunt!

While the Federation was making preparations in full swing, on the other side, Char returned to the Gau-class where Karma was located. He took a shower, changed into a new uniform and mask, and then appeared in front of Karma.

"Char!" Karma exclaimed excitedly upon seeing Char. "Thank goodness you're safe and sound!"

"I'm sorry for showing you such a bad side of myself. I was too young and impetuous."

Char looked ashamed, and Karma comforted him with a smile.

"It was just a minor mistake, don't worry about it."

Thank you.

"That's just the way friends should act."

"..."

Karma's words about "friendship" slightly stung Char's heart, but it was quickly suppressed by the hatred in his heart.

Soon, the forward-deployed Gau-class carrier strike group turned back to base for resupply. During this time, Karma also warmly invited Char to a ball he was hosting, secretly telling him about the girl he liked and seeking the support of his friends.

"A very elegant lady, she suits you perfectly."

Having overcome the sting in his heart, Char's performance was impeccable.

But I don't dare tell her.

Karma shyly pinched a strand of hair from her forehead, looking every bit the part of someone experiencing first love.

"Why? You are the young master of the Zabi family, the commander of the Earth Attack Force. No girl would refuse such a position."

“The problem lies in her identity. I like her very much and don’t want her to submit to me because of my identity. Besides, her father is the mayor of New York City and has always refused to cooperate with our Zeon army.”

“It’s practically a modern-day Romeo and Juliet, you and her,” Xia said with a chuckle as he held up his champagne.