Chapter 161: Coup (2)
Septum looked at Treize with a puzzled expression.
"Hm? What is it?"
"General Septum, please come this way."
"Huh? Isn't the space shuttle over there?"
"For safety's sake, it's better to split up when boarding the shuttles. There's a personal shuttle of mine parked at the F-sector airfield. It can't carry too many people at once, but it's the latest model."
The moment Septum heard it was the latest model, his eyes lit up. Excited, he followed Treize to the F-sector airfield.
The battle at the New Edwards Base was still raging on. By now, the Sandrock Gundam and Heavyarms had also arrived at the scene.
As always, Duo started by firing a massive volley from a distance—his chest Gatling guns, leg-mounted homing missiles, and shoulder micro-missiles all launched simultaneously, wiping out a dense cluster of Leos.
Then, piloting Heavyarms, he advanced while firing both his beam rifle and handheld Gatling cannon, charging straight into the New Edwards Base and cutting through the Leo ranks.
Quatre shook his head helplessly. The Sandrock didn't have the same long-range firepower as Heavyarms, so he had no choice but to sprint forward. Raising his heat shotels in both hands, he cleaved through the Leos one by one, splitting them cleanly in half.
Seeing that everyone had gathered, Tolle piloted the Savior Vanguard Gundam, soaring out from the nearby river channel.
He unleashed continuous fire from the plasma convergence beam cannons and beam cannons—four beams sweeping through the Earth Unified Alliance's MS formations, cutting down more than thirty Leos in one burst.
Reaching the airspace above New Edwards Base, Tolle transformed the Savior Vanguard Gundam into MS mode. Gripping his beam sabers, he used the recoil thrusters on his shoulders to glide forward, charging straight into the Leo swarm.
Performing a Gundam-style "musou," he danced through the battlefield, slashing and cutting down Leos in a dazzling display of swordsmanship.
When the Leos fired their rifles from a distance at the Savior Vanguard Gundam, Tolle didn't even bother dodging. Relying on his PS armor and Gundanium alloy's superior defense, he didn't bother switching weapons—he simply aimed his head-mounted Vulcan cannons and fired to suppress them.
But the Vulcans' power was still limited; they barely scratched the Leos' armor.
So Tolle instead targeted their head-mounted main monitors—slowing them down was good enough. After all, if they ran away, who would he use for his musou performance?
Under the overwhelming might of the five Gundams, the Earth Unified Alliance's mobile suits were completely wiped out. But as soon as the last ones fell, Heero and Duo raised their beam saber and beam scythe, turning their sights on Sandrock, Heavyarms, and the Savior Vanguard Gundam, wary and ready.
However, Quatre and Duo had already learned of the others' existence beforehand. Quatre opened a comm channel and said,
"We're not your enemies. We all—"
Just then, the OZ space shuttle carrying the pacifist officers of the Earth Unified Alliance lifted off. After confirming through inspection that the shuttle indeed belonged to OZ, Heero immediately transformed Wing Gundam into MA mode and flew toward it.
Once above the shuttle, he switched back to MS form, drew his beam saber, and sliced down in one powerful strike.
The OZ shuttle carrying the pacifist officials was obliterated under Wing Gundam's attack. Marshal Noventa, who had wholeheartedly sought peace, perished in that instant.
At the same time, the shuttle carrying General Septum and Treize quietly took off from another direction, escaping swiftly from New Edwards Base.
Just as Heero was feeling smug about his success, Chang Wufei burst onto the scene in Shenlong Gundam, shouting to everyone,
"You fools! Don't you ever get tired of these pointless battles?"
Annoyed that his good mood was interrupted, Heero frowned. "What did you say?"
Wufei opened his cockpit and continued,
"Don't you see it yet? You've all been tricked by OZ—completely."
Hearing that they'd been used, Quatre exclaimed in disbelief, "What are you talking about?"
"If you don't believe me, open the Earth Unified Alliance's intel channel and listen for yourselves. You've just wiped out every last pacifist within the Alliance government."
Upon hearing that they'd killed the wrong people, Heero immediately accessed the Alliance's intelligence feed—where he saw General Septum's broadcast.
OZ had pinned the blame for Marshal Noventa's death and his faction's assassination on the colonies, declaring total war.
They claimed that the colonies had sabotaged the peace talks and murdered Marshal Noventa's group—an act of brutal, inhumane aggression.
Only then did everyone realize the enormity of their mistake. The chaos on Earth had officially begun…
Inside the shuttle, Lady Une turned to the dejected General Septum, who had just finished delivering his speech.
"You've done well, General Septum. Now that your performance is over, you're no longer needed."
Then she flipped the switch beneath his seat, ejecting him out of the shuttle.
"Your acting was truly convincing. It's a shame your role ends here."
She fired a single shot at the falling Septum, hitting him squarely in the head.
"But I can't allow Lord Treize's feet to be dirtied by your presence."
Watching this through his monitor, Tolle thought wryly that "Glasses Lady Une" was a true ace among villains—ruthless, talkative, and always delivering the final blow without leaving any chance for survival.
He couldn't help but think he preferred "Saint Lady Une." This version was terrifying. Thankfully, he'd once forced her into becoming the saintly version; otherwise, reprogramming her would've been a nightmare.
Meanwhile, in another cabin, Treize reclined comfortably in his chair, eyes closed, speaking to himself in satisfaction.
"Act One, Scene Two—has begun. Things are about to get busy."
At that moment, a large number of Leos, Aries, and Tragos units from nearby Earth Unified Alliance bases converged from all directions, completely surrounding New Edwards Base.
From a distance, they opened fire with cannons and beam rifles, unleashing a full assault on the five Gundams inside.
Unwilling to let Treize manipulate them any further, Wufei and Duo decided to seize one of the base's shuttles to pursue him.
Meanwhile, Heero, Quatre, and Tolle remained behind, continuing to battle the encircling Alliance mobile suits.
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