Gundam: Changing the World Even with a Mass-Produced Unit

Chapter 4: Departure!

Why was it? Why did Amada Shiro—who, upon graduating from the Space Officer Academy, had sworn to drive out every last Zeon soldier—hesitate now?

Irei, of course, knew the reason.

Aina.

Irei silently observed Amada Shiro, clad in full anti-G-suit, standing by his machine, trying to fathom what he was thinking.

Meanwhile, Amada Shiro was similarly trying to guess Irei's thoughts.

Having gone through similar experiences, Shiro naturally felt curious about Irei.

Having spent half a day at this base, Shiro had already picked up a few rumors about him.

The first thing confirmed was that Irei was a deeply respected figure here.

It wasn't just because of his distinguished achievements in battle, but also due to his high enthusiasm for fighting against Zeon. Whenever he received a distress signal, he would immediately head for the battlefield.

According to the 7th Squad, they alone had been saved by Irei two or three times.

What was even rarer, however, was that despite being from Side 2—the colony that had been destroyed—he was willing to accept Zeon soldiers who actively surrendered.

Even if Irei's gaze always carried hatred when looking at them, it only made the people at the base admire him more.

"What a good man."

To this, Amada Shiro could only conclude that Irei was a man with a clear sense of hatred.

He would not misplace his rage at the destruction of his homeland onto all Zeon soldiers but instead focused that anger on Zeon as a whole and fought against it.

"Beep, beep, beep!"

The pocket watch in his hand rang loudly. Shiro glanced at it and realized it was almost time for the scheduled operation.

Carefully stowing the distinctly feminine pocket watch inside his standard uniform, he looked up and stared into the dim eyes of his Gundam.

"Alright, time for me to give it my all too!"

Stepping onto the cable line, Shiro entered his machine.

Irei, who had been watching, couldn't help but smile. The sound of his laughter startled Karen, who was still making final adjustments to Shiro's and Sanders' machines nearby.

"What's up?"

"Nothing. I just thought… your new captain really is an idiot, dressing like that even in this heat."

Irei watched as Amada Shiro spiritedly climbed into his Ground Gundam, admiring his heat tolerance.

This moment was also noticed by Sanders, who was boarding his machine.

At first, Sanders was annoyed, thinking someone was mocking his captain and benefactor.

But when he saw it was Irei, he let go of the idea.

Not only was Irei of higher rank, but ever since hearing about Sanders' "Grim Reaper" rumors, Irei had neither looked down on him nor allowed others to gossip about it.

Sanders noticed that the 7th Squad—who had once loved calling him the "Grim Reaper"—now only looked at him with mild discontent.

For this reason, Sanders respected Irei greatly.

Besides, his captain was a bit of an idiot…

Silently, Sanders climbed into his machine.

"What about me? What about me? Is this my unit?!"

An overly loud and energetic voice came from another direction.

Irei looked over and saw a short soldier shouting next to the No. 2 machine of the 06th Squad.

This was Corporal Michel Ninorich, who had come as a reinforcement alongside Shiro to join the 08th MS Team.

Having also completed MS pilot training, he naturally assumed he'd be assigned a Gundam.

But in the next moment, a long-haired man wrapped his arm around Michel's neck, lifting him slightly off the ground.

"What are you thinking? There aren't any spare MSs for you. You'll be my co-pilot from now on."

The long-haired, golden-haired man was none other than the last remaining member of the original 08th MS Team, Eledore Massis.

He gestured with his free hand and thumbed toward their rear.

It was the Type 74 Hover Truck—a vital auxiliary machine serving as the "eyes and ears" for the units in dense forests under Minovsky particle conditions.

"Hey, Irei, help me listen to my new song when we get back, okay?"

Eledore winked at Irei.

Eledore possessed unparalleled hearing ability.

What should have been a talent that shone brightly in the world of music was now being used for sonar surveillance aboard the Type 74 Hover Truck in the midst of war.

Even so, he continued to write his own original music.

Was it a good thing or a bad thing to do such things during a war?

Irei wasn't sure.

But there was one thing he was certain of.

"What Zeon has done is unquestionably wrong."

Lowering himself into his cockpit and reactivating his Gundam, Irei muttered to himself.

Originally, as a gunpla enthusiast, Irei had loved the various cool older men and Zeon mecha designs, so he hadn't held a deep, personal grudge against Zeon.

However, participating in this war firsthand and witnessing the destruction of Iffish Island had made him truly understand the sheer terror of Zeon's plan to drop an entire colony onto Earth.

At that moment, Zeon's proclaimed "noble cause of space colony independence" had completely lost its meaning.

Here on the Southeast Asian battlefield, Irei had also seen Zeon's oppression of the local population.

Countless villages had been flattened, turned into military bases or mining operations.

As for the residents, it went without saying—they were either dead or enslaved as laborers.

Because of this, guerrilla forces had once again emerged in Southeast Asia.

But that was another matter.

In short, after witnessing Zeon's actions, Irei could no longer bring himself to say, "A real man pilots a Zaku."

To him, Zakus were now enemies to be hated and destroyed.

The Ground Gundam's twin eye sensors lit up, and the machine slowly rose from its half-kneeling posture.

Beside him, the 08th MS Team's three Ground Gundams also stood up.

"Alright, Special Operations Squad, move out!"

Almost as soon as Irei opened the communication channel, Amada Shiro's energized shout came through.

"Don't just make up call signs!"

Karen laughed and complained in her machine.

"I still don't know much about everyone yet, so please let me learn more after the mission."

The usual pre-battle speech had been postponed until now by Shiro.

Sanders' unit was equipped with its unique container system, holding a disassembled 180mm cannon and ammunition for the entire squad.

Once the ground crew cleared a path for the MSs, the four Ground Gundams began their march into the dense forest.