Gundam: A Gundam Enthusiast's Journey with a Mecha Girl

"It's wonderful that Aslan has found someone who appreciates him."

On Raven's other side, Lux watched the two drift away, clasped her hands in front of her, and offered her heartfelt blessings.

"You're quite carefree. Although the engagement has been dissolved, that engagement lasted for several years, didn't it?"

Raven asked casually.

"Well, this..."

Lux tilted her head slightly, pondering the question seriously.

"To be honest, I feel that since Aslan and I are together because of our engagement, I can't give him all my feelings like Cagalli did. I guess Aslan feels the same way. We'll probably focus on doing what we want to do after fulfilling our responsibilities as husband and wife."

"Lux, is this your attitude towards marriage? That's a bit unexpected."

"That's not necessarily true. My thoughts might change depending on who my marriage partner is."

"For example?"

"for example……"

Lux's gaze swept subtly over Raven's profile beside her, and the curve of her lips deepened slightly.

"Please allow me to leave this topic for another time. Also, Mr. Raven, please study the heart of a young girl more in the future."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

Raven frowned, but Lux had already started walking, giving Raven no chance to ask further questions, leaving him only with her pink ponytail swaying from side to side with her steps.

Kira and Andrew, standing behind them, exchanged a glance, and a smile simultaneously appeared on their lips.

Chapter 90 The Approaching Doomsday

The heads of the three ships, Archangel, Kusanagi, and Eternal, were gathered in the conference room of the Archangel, where Halbarton's face was being displayed on the screen on the wall.

Even with the latest signal enhancement technology, the image from Halbarton's side still appeared very blurry, but in the environment of a neutron jammer, achieving this level of clarity is already quite remarkable.

"I never expected you would take the risk of going to PLANT itself."

Halbarton's voice carried a hint of reproach, but more than anything, it was filled with worry.

"What if something goes wrong in such a dangerous operation?"

"But we can't abandon our partners. We should try as long as there's a glimmer of hope."

Raven replied.

"Moreover, you should know better than I how much political weight the fact that Aslan Zala, as Patrick Zala's son, agrees with our ideals and has chosen to fight alongside us carries."

The forces currently gathered here include the reformists within the Earth Alliance, the moderates within PLANT, and representatives from Orb, a neutral nation on Earth.

To integrate these forces, the third force envisioned by Raven and Halbarton cannot easily abandon their allies.

Halbarton certainly understood this.

"Well, Raven, you're always right. But never forget that your talents shouldn't be limited to war; the post-war world is your main battlefield."

Raven nodded, sensing the expectations Halbarton had for him.

"I know that stopping this war is just the beginning; the real work is yet to come."

Halbarton nodded, a hint of relief on his face, but his expression turned serious as he thought about what he was about to say.

"Blue cosmos has acquired the technology to manufacture anti-neutron jammers."

Halbarton's words caused the air in the conference room to freeze instantly.

"This technology didn't leak out from me. A few days ago, a ZAFT officer named Rau Rukroze piloted a ZAFT-made nuclear-powered mobile suit and defected to Blue Cosmos."

"Rau Le Creuset? That ace from ZAFT?"

Upon hearing the name, Mu was instantly startled and sat bolt upright.

Halbarton nodded slightly.

"PLANT's intelligence network did not report any news of Kruze's defection. However, my father revealed in a public speech that Kruze had leaked information about the Breakthrough Operation. This probably led Patrick to investigate Kruze as well, ultimately forcing him to join Blue Cosmos."

Lux pieced together the truth based on the available information.

"Regardless of the truth, the fleet that obeys Blue Cosmos has already begun its operations."

Halbarton steered the conversation back on track.

"A batch of nuclear weapons at the lunar base have been deactivated, and PLANT may face a new round of nuclear strikes."

The word "nuclear bomb" silenced everyone present.

Just a year ago, a nuclear bomb that hit Junius 7 set off the beginning of this bloody war. Now, what will the reactivated nuclear bomb bring?

No one dared to think any further.

Halbarton logged off in the silence, but Lux suddenly raised her finger and pressed it against her headset.

"I just received urgent intelligence from PLANT. Mr. Raven's earlier premonition has been confirmed. We have confirmed that ZAFT has built a nuclear-powered superweapon, but we have not been able to obtain its specific data or location."

"So, both the coalition forces and ZAFT now possess superweapons capable of destroying the other? This is no joke."

Andrew's voice was more bitter than his favorite coffee.

The meeting room fell silent once again.

If the coalition's nuclear weapons and ZAFT's superweapons were to attack each other, the only outcome would be the destruction of the world.

Halbarton's fleet has just departed from the moon and will need some time to reach the front lines where Blue Cosmos and ZAFT are engaged. Currently, only the Three-Ship Alliance can mount an effective response.

But what can the three-ship alliance do on its own?

"Raven, what's our next move?"

Lux's voice broke the silence, drawing everyone's attention to Raven.

"We'll head to Fort Poyaz first. Blue Cosmos wants to attack PLANT, so we must attack there first. If we can make it into battle, we'll destroy Blue Cosmos's nuclear bomb. If we can't make it in time..."

Raven paused, glanced at the star map in the center of the conference table, and pointed his finger between PLANT and Jachin Duve Fortress.

"We can only take advantage of the conflict between Blue Cosmos and ZAFT to destroy both sides' superweapons at the same time. I know it will be difficult, but we have no other choice. Only we can stop the world from being destroyed."

-----------------

After leaving the conference room, Raven received news that El had completed the final adjustments to the new form of the S Gundam.

Raven hurried to the maintenance area, where he saw a mobile suit that was more like an armor unit than a mobile suit.

This is the S Gundam Deep Strike Form, designed by Raven himself and utilizing technology from the SEED world.

The original form of the S Gundam has disappeared, and the position of its legs has been replaced by a pair of giant thrusters. The propulsion backpack on its back has also been replaced with the same high-thrust model. Although the upper body of the Deep Strike Gundam still retains a humanoid shape, it is also very different from the S Gundam.

The right shoulder of the Deep Strike features a super-large beam cannon with the output of a battleship's main gun, its barrel length almost equivalent to that of a mobile suit. In order to allow this beam cannon to exert its proper range and power, the left shoulder and left hand of the Deep Strike have been replaced with multi-purpose sensors, which greatly improves the Deep Strike's target acquisition range.

The Spirit Beam Cannon held in the right hand of the S Gundam remains unchanged. The firepower of the four beam cannons that were originally on the shoulders and waist has been moved to the large thrusters on the legs, while the wire-controlled cannon on the head remains unchanged.

Since the Seed world lacks technology similar to the i-position, Raven can only use existing technology as a substitute.

He referenced the Eurasian Federation's light wave defense system, miniaturized it, and installed it in a device on his chest.

Its defensive capabilities are such that it can even withstand attacks from shipborne positron cannons before overheating, but the cost is extremely high energy consumption. Once activated, the Deep Strike Force must allocate most of its nuclear engine output to this defensive system.

"Raven, the upcoming battle is indeed very dangerous?"

El looked at the monstrous Deep Assault with some worry.

"Well, next we're going to be the heroes who save the world, intervening when the two major powers launch destructive weapons at each other and stopping them from ruining the whole world."

El listened quietly as Raven finished speaking, then lowered her head thoughtfully. Suddenly, she blurted out a sentence.

"Raven, do you like Miss Lux?"

"Huh? Why are you suddenly bringing this up?"

Raven was completely baffled by El's words.

"This is very important. Please answer me honestly, Raven."

"If I had to say, I would say I like her. But she's only 16, and I'm not so eager as to develop a high school girl into a romantic relationship."

"I see. Raven really likes Miss Lux. I'll remember that."

El's eyes flickered a few times.

"So, why are you asking this?"

"It's a secret; this is one of my methods for studying a young girl's heart."

"Girlish heart?"

Raven never expected that the words he had just heard from Lux would be heard again from El.

'But how exactly does one cultivate an AI's girlish heart?'

Chapter 91 El and Lux

Following Raven's plan, the three-ship alliance set sail from L4 space, following the trajectory of the Blue Cosmos Fleet, and headed towards the Poaz Fortress.

Everyone knew that the decisive battle was approaching, and the atmosphere on the three warships was quite somber. Lux sat on the command seat on the bridge as usual, but found that she couldn't calm down as usual.

The fate of the world and the survival of humanity will be decided in the next battle, but the chips they have to leverage seem negligible.

The battles to come will require countless sacrifices. Perhaps it would be better to say some things before the battles begin.

Lux's right hand unconsciously gripped the ring hanging on her chest.

Just as she was still immersed in this conflicted feeling, the bridge door suddenly opened, and Lux ​​looked in the direction of the sound and saw a familiar figure standing in the doorway.

The silver-haired girl with the delicate, doll-like face extended an invitation to her.

"Miss Lux, may I borrow your time?"

-----------------

In the lounge next to the bridge, the wall lamps cast a soft glow. Lux turned around and gave Aiur her usual gentle smile.

"Miss El, is there something you need?"

El didn't answer immediately. Her red eyes scrutinized Lux ​​as if confirming something, and then, in her characteristically calm tone, she asked a question that caught Lux off guard.

"Miss Lux, do you like Raven?"

"...Huh?"

Lux blinked first, then realized the question El had asked.

"I... um... uh..."

Lux hurriedly waved her hands, and a blush spread from her neck all the way down to her ears before stopping.

Lux knew El's personality, but she didn't expect him to ask so directly.

"I'm not……"

The girl's sense of shame made her instinctively want to deny it, but the words stopped before she could finish speaking.

Raven's image flashed in her mind, and she suddenly had a premonition.

If she denies it now, it might become a lifelong regret for her.

She then used a soft voice to overcome her shame and speak her thoughts.

“I… like Mr. Raven.”

When she finally voiced her thoughts, she felt surprisingly at ease.

Lux slowly raised her head, revealing her feelings to El.

"When I was first brought to the Archangel, although I seemed indifferent on the surface, I was still a little scared inside. Although everyone on the Archangel was a very kind person, only Raven did not treat me as an outsider. Without him, my situation on the Archangel would have been much more difficult."

“Raven acknowledges my talents, whether I am a singer, a politician, or simply 'Lux,' he is tolerant of them. In his presence, I no longer need to play the role of 'Lux Klein' in people's minds, but can simply be an ordinary girl.”

"So I want to be his support, to stand behind him and help him achieve his dream."

Lux felt much more relaxed after pouring out her thoughts. She looked at El in front of her, staring directly into his red eyes, and asked in the same serious tone.

"But El, don't you like Raven just like me? Then why did you specifically come to ask me this question?"

El fell silent, her eyes flickering, and then the words she finally uttered froze Lux's expression.

"Although Miss Lux may see me as someone who is close to human, I am not human in the end."