Who is Playing the Love Development Game in Gundam

Back on his asteroid, just as He Kui settled into his seat in the radar room, Joule's communication came through.

"He Kui, how's the progress on the new Odin's Spear?"

"The current plan involves using nanobots," He Kui replied, sending over the prepared blueprint.

"Hmm," Joule said after a brief read-through. As both a Defense Committee member and the mayor of a city known for battleship manufacturing, he could understand the details. After a moment, he nodded.

"It seems feasible. The computer-simulated data looks promising. Nanobots wouldn't even need to operate on a cellular level to be effective."

He Kui agreed, following Joule's nodding with his own.

"How's the progress on the nanobots?" Joule inquired.

"The machines are nearly modified. Once calibration is done, production can begin."

"Good. We look forward to hearing good news from you." Joule gave a rare encouraging smile.

"I understand," He Kui replied.

Ending the communication, He Kui sighed, eyeing the radar with some reluctance. It was time to log back in. Hopefully, tonight he could spare a moment to sleep. Meeting with Cagalli for a power boost would be nice, but his prior experiments had shown that if she didn't know he was behind a gift, it wouldn't trigger any skill bonuses. The same was true with Elina—whether she had a hidden skill was still a mystery.

Downing a shot of jelly-like concentrated coffee, He Kui reactivated his radar connection. In South America, Aegis fully powered up, detaching itself from its charging port as He Kui opened the cockpit door.

Elina was nowhere to be seen.

He Kui glanced around, feeling uncharacteristically off-balance without her usual presence. Downstairs, his four subordinates were eating in a tent, while his surveillance bird continued to monitor the enemy's base camp nearby. The opposition hadn't left; having gone to the trouble of setting up a field base, it wasn't likely they would abandon it quickly.

It seemed that most of them were resting in their tents, with only a few soldiers patrolling. The Forbidden model piloted by Moby Dick was present, but the Raider seen the previous day was gone.

He Kui adjusted the bird's path to tail a pair of patrolling soldiers.

"Any idea who that mech last night belonged to? It was the same model as ours, but way beyond our level," said one soldier, whose field uniform concealed any visible rank.

"Not sure. Poor Circo was wiped out in a single move," his companion replied, a shadow crossing his face. "The higher-ups probably know, but they haven't told us a thing!"

"Typical. To them, we're just expendable."

They were both enhancement subjects, He Kui surmised. From what he knew, enhanced soldiers underwent a ruthless selection process that weeded out the weak through a brutal gauntlet, leaving only the strongest three. Even so, the military didn't kill the failed subjects immediately but kept them for other purposes. He Kui wasn't sure which fate was more merciless.

"But it's better to be expendable than to end up like Sosyth," the first soldier sneered, his expression turning dark and malicious.

"Exactly. Even if he's a weapon crafted by the higher-ups, he's just an adjusted human. To let him spar with us instead of executing him outright is already a kindness."

He Kui's frown deepened as he listened. Sosyth—a combat-adapted clone, likely one of the Atlantic Federation's abandoned projects. Clones had repeatedly escaped, and with the ease of piloting MS units, the higher-ups had ultimately decided to terminate most clones, leaving only a few like Sosyth for live-fire training. Ordered not to harm naturals, these clones were often brutalized during practice, with some beaten to death.

It seemed a few Sosyth clones had survived.

He Kui directed the bird to fly past the two soldiers, skimming the perimeter of the base. Clones were easy to spot—their blue hair and identical features made them stand out. Scanning through the tents one by one, He Kui's high-res camera eventually located one such Sosyth, held captive in a makeshift cage. The clone had striking blue hair, a nondescript and cold face, a gaunt frame, and countless scars testifying to the abuse he had suffered.

The black surveillance bird hovered silently behind him.

"Dinner time!" A guard rudely shoved a tray under the iron bars. Dust kicked up by his boots settled onto the dry bread, coating it in grit.

"..." The clone remained silent, picking up the bread and biting into it without expression.

Watching the lifeless expression, He Kui frowned. He wasn't here out of altruism. He had thought about releasing Sosyth to cause chaos in the camp, but it was evident that even if he were attacked, the clone wouldn't put up a fight.

"Perhaps nanobot-assisted gene modification could restore him to normal," He Kui muttered before dismissing the idea for now. He directed the bird to a high vantage point, where it could continue monitoring the entire base.

"A, are you there?" Edward's voice came through He Kui's wrist communicator, his tone familiar.

"I'm here."

"We've mostly confirmed your intel. The attack will begin around noon, and we'd like you to join the strategy meeting."

"Understood."

He Kui wasn't surprised. From his bird's surveillance feed, he had already seen the enemy's morning activities. They had been resting, with only a skeleton crew patrolling, clearly conserving energy for a nighttime offensive.

"Got it."

Edward seemed to want to add something but merely sighed and ended the call. With the order given, everyone gathered once more.

"This is one of the toughest elite field units they have here. If we can eliminate them in one go, the pressure on Brazil will ease considerably," Edward explained, gesturing at the map. "Their base is located on the edge of the forest, but remember—avoid using beam weapons or missiles in the forest. If possible, contain the fight within the base."

Since most present were mercenaries, Edward kept his briefing short, focusing only on objectives and precautions.

"So, in their base, we're free to use all weapons?" one of He Kui's subordinates asked.

"Their base is built on a clearing. If you use beam weapons or missiles, aim precisely to avoid collateral damage."

"Understood."

After He Kui agreed, the four subordinates behind him exchanged uneasy glances but remained silent. They knew better than to question orders, especially when they knew they couldn't take him on. Following orders was their best option.

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