Teletha inside the Fallen Angel gave Reid ample time to think.
Even though Reid hadn't responded for nearly five minutes, as long as the Hermes Zero showed no signs of fleeing, Teletha wasn't going to rush him.
As for how Teletha judged whether Reid would run, it mainly relied on the Lambda Driver.
After Amelia S summoned Teletha, she granted her a power similar to ability liberation. Originally, Teletha was just a beginner at piloting an Arm Slave, barely able to make it walk a few steps, let alone handle a simulated battle.
But Amelia S instantly enabled Teletha to master AS piloting, and she could even maneuver her sister Haman's Mobile Suit a few steps (pilot template activated). At the same time, Teletha's mental potential, no less than her brother Leonard Testarossa's, was also unleashed.
Of course, Amelia S certainly wouldn't care about the drawbacks of forcibly activating potential. In short, after her potential was unlocked by Amelia S, Teletha was no weaker than Full Metal Panic's final boss, Leonard Testarossa.
Thus, Teletha only needed to use her Lambda Driver to sense the Lambda Driver fluctuations around Reid's Mobile Suit. Whether Reid wanted to fight or flee, facing her would inevitably trigger the Lambda Driver's power, allowing her to predict Reid's actions to some extent.
However, by now, Reid had basically confirmed that the Teletha inside the silver-gray Fallen Angel before him was the one from the Full Metal Panic world who had taken the Xia sisters away.
No matter how this Teletha managed to do such a thing, he had to ask for specifics.
Because it was impossible for her to have crossed dimensions by possessing this world's Teletha through Whispered abilities and then flown out.
After all, while a soul might traverse dimensions that way, this silver-gray Fallen Angel absolutely couldn't have been brought along—the original Mithril headquarters had nothing like it.
Considering this Teletha's uniqueness and the advanced AI systems in the Full Metal Panic world, disembarking to confront her might put him at a severe disadvantage. So, Reid finally spoke up from inside his Mobile Suit:
"Alright, I'll call you Teletha for now. This isn't the place to chat. Let's talk somewhere else."
With that, Reid immediately activated the Hermes Zero and flew toward the central Pacific, though he didn't go full speed right away, instead cruising at a standard fighter jet's speed.
The Fallen Angel could naturally keep up at this pace.
But as Reid flew, he gradually began to accelerate, aiming to test just how fast the Fallen Angel could go.
Teletha knew Reid's intention the moment he sped up. Testing was mutual—she didn't know much about Reid's new Mobile Suit either (having arrived in this world later than Reid, she hadn't witnessed the Hermes Zero soaring into space). She only knew it was incredibly fast and that the Beam Cannon on its back was formidable.
Without sufficient intel, she couldn't devise targeted tactics, so Teletha was happy to engage in this mutual probing. When the Fallen Angel's natural speed couldn't keep up, she manipulated the Lambda Driver to form a fluid flight barrier, reducing air resistance.
Reid had been using the Lambda Driver for quite some time now. Seeing that the Fallen Angel had to rely on the Lambda Driver to reduce air resistance just to keep up with him, he could roughly estimate its maximum flight speed. It probably could reach Mach 1, but anything beyond that would be extremely difficult—speeds above Mach 2 were likely unattainable.
So, Reid stopped testing the waters to avoid revealing too much about himself. Maintaining a steady speed, he spotted a deserted island in the Pacific and descended for a landing.
Seeing this, Teletha naturally followed Reid down.
Once both Mobile Suits landed and stood on the ground, the Hermes Zero—towering nearly twice the height of the Fallen Angel—exuded an imposing presence. However, the reality was quite the opposite. In truth, Reid was the one feeling uncertain, given that this version of Teletha was shrouded in mystery. Cutting straight to the point, he asked:
"Teletha, I'll skip the pleasantries and ask what I really want to know—why have you come to this world, which isn't yours?"
Teletha's response was deliberately evasive. She replied,
"Well, the same way you got here, of course."
Reid frowned immediately, quickly dismissing the possibility that Teletha also possessed a system. After all, he had already traversed the worlds of Full Metal Panic, AC, and UC. If Teletha could truly cross worlds like him, she would have intercepted him long ago.
Thus, Reid concluded that this Teletha was likely only capable of traveling within the Full Metal Panic universe.
So, he countered bluntly:
"Teletha, lying isn't very becoming. If you really know how I got here, why don't you tell me exactly what method I used?"
Hearing this, Teletha smirked inside her cockpit—this was exactly what she had hoped for. By provoking Reid into questioning her, she could then "reveal" his method of travel, making him believe she knew far more than she actually did.
Without hesitation, she answered:
"It's the G Generation System that gave you the ability to cross worlds, right?"
For a moment, Reid broke out in a cold sweat—his most critical secret had been exposed. Even Ange and the others didn't know about the system, yet Teletha did.
But in the next second, as he mentally reviewed possible points of exposure, he noticed a discrepancy in Teletha's words.
G Generation System? His system was called the Super G Universe System. Though... the G Generation System—he did recall that name.
Suddenly, everything clicked. If Teletha mentioned the G Generation System, then this involved Aphrodite Nino and the codename Amelia S—the former and current administrators. Only they would publicly refer to it as the G Generation System.
Now that he had a rough idea of which faction she was affiliated with, Reid relaxed considerably. With a chuckle, he said:
"Teletha, it seems you don't actually know how I travel between worlds. The G Generation System... heh, you probably don't even understand what that term truly means."
The moment Teletha heard this, she knew she was in trouble—Amelia S's intel had a critical flaw.
At this moment, Teletha didn't suspect Reid was bluffing, because she had clearly sensed the Lambda Driver energy around Reid's Mobile Suit fluctuating earlier - a sign of the pilot's emotional instability. But this fluctuation instantly stabilized, which didn't seem like Reid thinking quickly in desperation, but rather like he had discovered a loophole in her words.
Moreover, Reid's subsequent words further confirmed her suspicion.
Reid's Newtype ability allowed him to directly read minds, making his judgment more accurate than Teletha's perception of Lambda Driver fluctuations. After detecting Teletha's panic, Reid quickly pressed his advantage:
"I'm guessing someone brought you out from your original world, right?"
Hearing this, Teletha knew further evasion would be pointless. Due to Amelia S's misinformation, she was already at a disadvantage in this intelligence battle.
With an internal sigh, Teletha admitted:
"Yes, an entity called Amelia S."
Reid felt somewhat speechless upon hearing this. He had initially thought it was Aphrodite Nino, the administrator of the G Generation System, who had discovered his world-hopping activities and was gathering forces to eliminate him as a "virus." Instead, it was Codename: Amelia S causing trouble.
But if Codename: Amelia S had awakened, where was Aphrodite Nino?
Reid glanced at his system interface, forming some theories about its origins.
Clearly, in terms of sensitivity to worlds managed by the G Generation System, Aphrodite Nino would undoubtedly rank higher than Codename: Amelia S.
Given that Codename: Amelia S had awakened while Aphrodite Nino remained inactive, the system in his possession became particularly intriguing.
Moreover, the creator had designed this system to resemble a cheap mobile game, seemingly matching the evolution of gaming trends in the original world.
Additionally, the worlds of Ange, Teletha, and Elvira Hill weren't originally under the G Generation System's management - they were characters added from the neighboring Super Robot Wars series.
Combining these clues led to a tentative conclusion: the Super G Universe System in his possession was the third generation of the G Generation System. However, it seemed he didn't truly control this system yet and was still in an evaluation period.
Regardless, if Reid's speculation was correct, then Codename: Amelia S was essentially a relic from two generations ago.
For her to cause trouble now would be like someone from the Qing dynasty suddenly appearing in 21st century China to stir up chaos.
After brief consideration, Reid spoke decisively:
"Alright, Codename: Amelia S. Tell me, how did she trick you?"
Teletha wasn't particularly surprised that Reid used what might be Amelia S's true designation or that he immediately assumed Amelia S had deceived her.
Not just her - even Haman and Mr. Chang Wufei had doubts about Amelia S's claims, hence their need to consult "informed individual" Reid.
Though Mr. Chang Wufei's primary motivation for seeking Reid out was probably to settle scores in a fight, given how Reid had deceived him with a false name.
So Teletha answered truthfully:
"Amelia S promised us that as long as we bring you, the key, before her, and once the G Generation System is back under her control, the world I'm from could be reshaped as I wish. All tragedies could be erased."
"So, Reid, is Amelia lying to me?"
Upon hearing this, Reid thought Amelia S wasn't actually deceiving Teletha—if she truly gained control of his system, she would indeed have that capability.
Of course, he couldn't say that outright. Forcing the G Generation System to rewrite tragedies would most likely lead to problems piling up, triggering even greater disasters, and then repeating the cycle of "fixing" them—until the system eventually overloaded. That was almost inevitable.
Thus, Reid answered firmly:
"Codename: Amelia S's ability is betrayal. Any promise she makes can be revoked in the end."
Teletha didn't respond directly to his words. Instead, she asked:
"Then, Reid, will you help bring peace to the world's conflicts?"
Reid fell silent at this question. Honestly, judging by the main quest the system had assigned him, it seemed to want him to steer the CE universe toward relative peace. After all, the system repeatedly emphasized that if the CE universe turned into an apocalyptic world, it would slip beyond his control.
However, the G-Invasion Module, the Skill Plunder Module, and the ways to earn G-Coins and Merit Points all encouraged him to wage war—to save one world by exploiting the resources of others.
It was almost like a global-scale experiment, testing whether sacrificing some parallel worlds could completely resolve the conflicts of a primary timeline.
But one thing Reid was certain of: simply nullifying problems with the G Generation System would never save the world. The resources a world's inhabitants could explore were finite, and "resolving tragedies" would have to account for both natural and man-made disasters.
With an ever-growing population and limited resources, yet no conflicts allowed—eventually, the world itself would collapse under the strain. Then everyone would perish together.
After his silence, Reid spoke his mind:
"No. There are too many worlds for me to manage, and I don't have a perfect solution for resolving conflicts. So, for now, I need to find the right path before I can even consider bringing peace to all these worlds."
As soon as he finished speaking, Reid could clearly sense disappointment emanating from Teletha.
However, she quickly composed herself and said:
"Understood. Amelia S represents betrayal—that's valuable intel. I'll gather more information before deciding whether to help Amelia S bring you to her."
"Of course, Reid, if you ever figure out how to solve my world's problems, you can always return to my world and find me."
"At the very least, right now, your words are slightly more trustworthy than Amelia S's—if only because you didn't immediately promise me anything."
"But let me remind you, Mr. Reid, playing with a maiden's heart will get you kicked by a horse. Not calling is one thing, but if you do something worse, a maiden's vengeance can be terrifying."
"Well then, that's enough for now. Goodbye, Mr. Reid."
As soon as Teletha finished speaking, crimson code enveloped the Fallen Angel.
Seeing this, Reid was certain that Teletha hadn't lied to him—it was Codename: Amelia S who was causing trouble. Using crimson intrusion codes just to escape—only someone who currently had zero administrator privileges would do such a thing.
However, Teletha had left too quickly, and Reid still had unanswered questions. Before the transmission code completely overwrote the Fallen Angel, he quickly asked,
"Teletha, did Codename: Amelia S trick only you?"
She clearly heard the question, but her mischievous side took over. With a smile, she replied,
"Mr. Reid, guess—"
Mid-sentence, her Mobile Suit was teleported away, leaving Reid wondering what she wanted him to guess.
At this point, there was nothing more Reid could do. He had the system repeatedly scan both himself and the Hermes Zero for any strange injected data or tracking codes.
Once the system confirmed there were no unknown data traces, Reid decided to leave Full Metal Panic—this den of trouble—behind.
He would test whether Codename: Amelia S had truly dug a pitfall for him once he reached the next world.
(End of Chapter)