Upon hearing the two pieces of news, Char did not hesitate for long before making a decision and immediately ordered:
"Inform the frontline soldiers to engage in close combat against enemy Mobile Suits equipped with Electromagnetic Protective Shields. Ships should provide missile cover as much as possible afterward.
As for Haman, give her the Alpha Wazolon."
This order from Char genuinely startled Nanai Miguel, who was currently coordinating the troops.
Regarding the response to Mobile Suits equipped with Electromagnetic Protective Shields, Nanai Miguel had no objections.
After all, if even the main cannons of ordinary warships couldn't penetrate such defenses, there was no hope for the long-range firepower of ordinary Mobile Suits. Close combat was the only viable option.
But the Alpha Wazolon was a secret weapon on par with the Sazabi within Neo Zeon. Was it really appropriate to let Haman pilot it?
Thus, Nanai Miguel immediately objected:
"Supreme Commander! Haman cannot be trusted! It's too dangerous to let her pilot the Alpha Wazolon!"
However, Char was well aware of this issue. But where could Neo Zeon find a second person capable of piloting the Alpha Wazolon now?
No matter how important a secret weapon was, if it could only lie idle in storage, it held no significance whatsoever.
So Char directly overruled Nanai Miguel's objection, stating:
"Carry out the order, Nanai. Right now, we have no one else who can handle the Alpha Wazolon.
Besides, a beast that has just lost its offspring is the most dangerous. The ones attacking now are the very people who killed Amelias. Do you think Haman would betray us at this moment?"
Char could certainly recognize that the attackers were Reid's team, as the Gundam Barbatos Lupus Rex Angel Form he had previously fought was among the first wave of attackers.
Nanai Miguel could not refute Char's words and had no choice but to carry out the order.
Seeing that Nanai Miguel no longer objected, Char immediately sortied. The situation outside was dire. Although Neo Zeon had the numerical advantage, the enemy Mobile Suits seemed overpowered, and their own long-range firepower couldn't break through the defenses. They were currently being whittled down by the enemy's long-range attacks.
After sortieing, Char merely glanced at the Virgo IIs and recognized that these Mobile Suits were unmanned. For a Newtype, distinguishing whether a Mobile Suit was piloted was a simple matter.
However, it was only at this point that Char began to suspect that Reid's identity might not be quite right.
How could the Earth Federation possess such advanced unmanned Mobile Suits? With those people constantly clamoring to cut military spending, if they had unmanned Mobile Suits ready for combat deployment, they would have equipped their forces long ago.
There were over a hundred unmanned Mobile Suits here, enough to be considered mass-produced. The excuse of them being test units was simply untenable.
Unfortunately, Char had no time to dwell on this. After sortieing, he immediately deployed the two Double Hornet Funnels mounted on his backpack, merging them together.
With the output of the Double Hornet Funnels, their combined power was no less than that of a Super MEGA Beam Emitter.
A nearly ten-meter-thick green Super MEGA Beam then shot forth, sweeping across the battlefield.
This firepower clearly exceeded the tolerance limit of the Virgo II's Eight-Linked Circular Magnetic Floating Shield Particle Impact. Three Virgo IIs along the beam's path were instantly obliterated.
Char looked with satisfaction at the results achieved by the New Sazabi Floating Cannon and murmured to himself:
"It seems this Electromagnetic Shield cannot withstand attacks with high particle compression rates. Our warship main cannons will need upgrades going forward. If this continues, warship main cannons failing to penetrate Mobile Suit shields would make it better to just build transport aircraft instead."
However, just as Char finished muttering to himself, he suddenly sensed a surge of malice from behind.
Char swiftly maneuvered his mobile suit, executing a seamless upward tilt, leftward roll, and immediate recovery to a standing position.
Almost the instant the Sazabi tilted upward, a beam shot through the space where its lower body had been moments before.
At that moment, Neil, who had stealthily piloted the Jet Black Hunter to the outer gravity ring of Sweetwater Colony, watched Char evade his attack and couldn't help but grumble, "He could sense an attack from this far away, even from behind? This Newtype ability is downright broken."
But grumbling aside, Neil adhered to the sniper's rule: fire once, then immediately relocate.
Thus, he maneuvered the Dark Hunter Gundam to push off with its feet, using Sweetwater Colony's gravity ring to block the line of sight between his mobile suit and the Sazabi. He then reactivated the Obscurant Umbrella System to search for a second sniping position.
As it turned out, Neil's actions were correct.
After dodging the attack and turning around, Char immediately deduced the origin of the enemy's attack from the trajectory of the beam.
Without hesitation, he retaliated with the High-Energy MEGA Particle Cannon mounted on the Sazabi's abdomen.
Thanks to the redesign by Codename: Amelius Squad, the Sazabi's abdominal High-Energy MEGA Particle Cannon no longer suffered from the significant flaws of its original counterpart, which had reduced its power to that of an ordinary MEGA Particle Cannon despite being intended to rival the ZZ Gundam Head Cannon.
Now, this cannon was a perfect replica of the ZZ Gundam Head Cannon. If the Dark Hunter Gundam were to take a direct hit, even with its Beam Shield protection, its lower half would be severely damaged.
Fortunately, Char dared not fire this cannon at Sweetwater Colony's gravity ring. Instead, he swept it across the horizontal plane of the firing point, allowing the Dark Hunter Gundam to escape unscathed.
However, no sooner had the Sazabi forced the Dark Hunter Gundam to retreat than it was immediately ambushed by Mikazuki.
This time, Mikazuki sought out Char not on Reid's orders but because he had spotted the Sazabi—the mobile suit that had escaped him earlier—and actively pursued it to resume their previous battle.
Seeing Mikazuki approach, Char knew close combat would put him at a disadvantage. While continuously retreating, he fired at the Gundam Barbatos Lupus Rex Angel Form using the beam short rifle in its right hand and the two separated Double Hornet Funnels.
The Double Hornet Funnels were not like the original funnels on the Sazabi, whose beams were as weak as water pistols.
Although the Gundam Barbatos Lupus Rex Angel Form could withstand the high-powered MEGA Particle Beams, the particle impact would severely disrupt its movements and posture. Thus, Mikazuki only dared to tank the beam short rifle fire this time, opting to evade the beams from the Double Hornet Funnels.
Char's shooting skills and Awakening Value were exceptionally high. Seeing his enemy unwilling to withstand the Double Hornet Funnel beams, he decisively maneuvered the two funnels to attack from various tricky angles, forcing the Gundam Barbatos Lupus Rex Angel Form to spread the light wings of its Light Ring Propulsion System and flutter like a butterfly amidst the beams.
Fortunately, although the Double Hornet Funnels each had their own generators, they could not remain deployed indefinitely for sustained firing. After several consecutive shots, the Minovsky Particles within the funnels were nearly depleted, unable to generate sufficient MEGA Particles for further attacks, and thus had to return to the mobile suit for replenishment.
With the loss of its two Double Hornet Funnels, the Gundam Barbatos Lupus Rex Angel Form, like a beast freed from its chains, instantly accelerated with a burst of speed and closed in on the Sazabi, bringing the Rebuilt Sword down in a head-on slash.
However, after the previous battle, Char had emphasized to the technicians during the Sazabi's reconstruction to strengthen the Mobile Suit's arms and wrists based on combat data from the last engagement.
The structural integrity of the Beam Axe was also significantly enhanced, so this time, the Sazabi drew its Double-Edged Beam Axe to block the Rebuilt Sword's strike.
Nevertheless, the disparity in output between the two Mobile Suits remained evident. Even with its thrusters at maximum, the Sazabi was forced backward as the Gundam Barbatos Lupus Rex Angel Form pressed forward.
To make matters worse, Char sensed a surge of malice approaching from behind.
At this moment, the Sazabi couldn't turn around, so it once again deployed its Double Hornet Funnels, which hadn't been replenished with much Minovsky Particle.
To conserve particles, Char didn't fire the Double Hornet Funnels. Instead, he activated them in High-Energy Beam Saber mode, forming long beam blades at their muzzles to slash at the rapidly approaching malice.
The High-Energy Beam Sabers of the Double Hornet Funnels cleaved through the air, forcing the Mystic Lightning out of its stealth.
It must be said that various stealth Systems are inherently countered by Newtypes. Against Newtypes, especially powerful ones, ambushes are futile—one must confront them head-on.
Of course, facing them head-on doesn't mean fighting alone. Two sniper beams once again shot from afar.
This time, the target wasn't the Sazabi, as both the Gundam Barbatos Lupus Rex Angel Form and the Mystic Lightning were in close proximity, making friendly fire a risk. The Jet Black Hunter aimed instead at the two Double Hornet Funnels.
Char couldn't afford to let the two cannons be destroyed. He quickly maneuvered them to evade while firing two shots at the Gundam Barbatos Lupus Rex Angel Form in front of him, forcing it to retreat.
With the struggle broken, Char had no time to rest. He turned and flew sideways, swinging the Double-Edged Beam Axe in a horizontal slash behind him. Freed from the Double Hornet Funnels' suppression, the Mystic Lightning had already raised its twin blades, poised for a backstab.
But Char was Char. The Double-Edged Beam Axe struck the Thermal Blade in the Mystic Lightning's right hand, which was aimed at the Mobile Suit's abdomen, deflecting it with precision.
Simultaneously, the Thermal Blade in the Mystic Lightning's left hand, slashing downward in a follow-up motion, was blocked by the Sazabi's Shield. Using the impact to push back, the only cost was a deep dent left on the Shield by the Thermal Blade.
Char wasn't one to take a beating without retaliation. As the Sazabi retreated, he fired the cooled-down abdominal High-Energy MEGA Particle Cannon at the Mystic Lightning.
However, Belfgang wouldn't let the Sazabi create distance so easily.
Facing the Sazabi's abdominal High-Energy MEGA Particle Cannon, he manipulated the Mystic Lightning's left-wing vents to instantly release a massive burst of hot gas, causing the Mobile Suit to tilt sharply to the right and evade the beam.
At the same time, the Mystic Lightning's left-arm trident claw shot out, aiming straight for the Sazabi's right leg.
Char certainly couldn't allow the Sazabi to be ensnared by the enemy's claw. He maneuvered the Mobile Suit's right foot to kick out, sending the claw flying.
But at that moment, Mikazuki once again maneuvered his Mobile Suit behind the Sazabi.
Even Char felt he couldn't react quickly enough to control his Mobile Suit this time.
Even if the Double Hornet Funnels could be controlled through the Psycho-Frame's Psychic Control, the Mobile Suit itself still required time to move and react.
Having just fired its abdominal High-Energy MEGA Particle Cannon, the Sazabi was still using its thrusters to counteract the recoil, with its kicked leg still raised. If it forced a turn now, the Mobile Suit's posture control would instantly become chaotic. Even if it dodged the first strike, it would be useless because the next blow would inevitably be fatal.
Thus, with no other choice, Char could only once again manipulate the Double Hornet Funnels in High-Energy Beam Saber mode, attempting to block the downward slash of the Rebuilt Sword.
But if the Sazabi itself lacked the strength to contend with the Gundam Barbatos Lupus Rex Angel Form, how could the thrust of two Double Hornet Funnels possibly hold it back? This was no different from trying to block the downward swing of a Floral Great Axe with two bamboo poles.
Consequently, the two Double Hornet Funnels were directly knocked away by the Rebuilt Sword. However, they slightly altered the angle of Mikazuki's downward slash. In the end, the Rebuilt Sword failed to strike the main body of the Sazabi, instead cleaving through its main rear thruster.
But this was hardly different from destroying the Sazabi. With its main thruster destroyed, the Sazabi had lost the capability to continue fighting.
At that moment, Neil prepared to secure the kill. Taking advantage of the Sazabi being sent flying by the thruster explosion, two beams shot straight toward its chest.
However, a massive figure suddenly blocked Neil's beams.
The newcomer was the Alpha Wazolon, using its enormous body to shield Char.
Moreover, the Alpha Wazolon was equipped with an I-Field, so the two beams from the Jet Black Hunter struck it without causing any damage.
After blocking the beams for Char, Haman wasted no time. She immediately used the Head MEGA Particle Cannon to force back the Mystic Lightning, then activated all thrusters and charged directly at the Gundam Barbatos Lupus Rex Angel Form.
Including its leg thrusters, the Alpha Wazolon stood 108.26 meters tall with a fully loaded weight of 267.4 tons.
Even someone as fierce as Mikazuki wouldn't dare collide head-on with such a behemoth using the Gundam Barbatos Lupus Rex Angel Form.
This was the same principle as a human, no matter how sharp their sword, not daring to collide with a full-grown elephant.
Thus, Mikazuki could only dodge, giving up his position.
Naturally, the Alpha Wazolon crashed directly into the Sazabi, which had lost its main thruster, sending Char inside reeling.
However, this also freed the Sazabi from the predicament of being surrounded and attacked by Mikazuki, Belfgang, and Neil.
Once it was done, Haman opened a communication channel with the Sazabi and said,
"Char, eject immediately. Sweetwater can't be held. We need to leave quickly.
Don't worry, I understand Reid. As long as we escape, he won't linger at Sweetwater, nor will he trouble the Neo Zeon forces here. He has no interest in indiscriminate killing."
Upon hearing this, Char, fighting through the dizziness from the impact shock, retorted,
"Haman, are you still placing your hopes in that man who could coldly watch his own daughter die?"
Haman deliberately responded to this question with a hint of hysteria, raising her voice,
"What else? Should we charge out now and recklessly give away two more kills? You need to understand, as far as I know, only half of Reid's main force is attacking right now, and the two strongest among them haven't even appeared yet.
Where do you think they are? I'll tell you—they're waiting for my subordinates and the Mothership to show up.
"Therefore, I cannot reveal this trump card now. We'll go to Londo Bell and redirect the trouble towards them. When the time comes, you'll pilot this Alpha Wazolon, and I'll operate my own Mobile Suit. With Amuro's assistance, we'll have a fighting chance in terms of high-end combat power."
Haman's words left Char momentarily speechless; he couldn't refute her logic.
Thus, with practiced ease, Char ejected the prototype cockpit from the Mobile Suit's head.
Seeing that Char had taken the bait, Haman maneuvered the Alpha Wazolon to seize the cockpit and headed straight for Londo Bell, which was still near the Side 1 Colony at the time.
As for Reid, just as Haman had suspected, he had been secretly monitoring her all along, waiting for her to rendezvous with New Danuu's Child.
When the time came, Reid would deploy his full force.
Reid had already made up his mind: since New Danuu's Child was fully equipped with Nano-Laminate Armor and impervious to Beam attacks, he would resort to the most primitive form of violence. He planned to purchase a Nuclear Bomb from the G Coin Store and see for himself whether New Danuu's Child could withstand a direct nuclear strike.
(End of Chapter)