"Oh." Upon hearing this question, most people would assume that Arsida, given his position as Deputy Foreign Minister, would surely fly into a rage.
After all, the Atlantic Federation practically had "Coordinator haters" written on their foreheads these days.
Yet here was the daughter of a high-ranking Atlantic Federation official, boldly declaring before Arsida that she wanted to invest in a Coordinator?
Wasn't this the biggest joke ever?
Could it be that the sun would rise from the west today?
Logically speaking, no matter how much Arsida doted on his daughter, he would never agree to this.
But what happened next was astonishing. Arsida merely glanced at his daughter before falling into deep contemplation.
After a long while, he looked up and didn't forcefully reject Flay's idea from his position as a father or as a high-ranking Atlantic Federation official.
Instead, he spoke in a tone of equal discussion:
"Explain your reasoning. Also, this is my personal opinion - instead of investing in Kira, why not consider Wang Hu?"
Hearing this, Flay revealed a smile that suggested everything was going according to plan. She explained softly:
"Initially, I also considered investing in Captain Wang Hu. But after some interaction and observation,"
"Captain Wang Hu is a man of strong will and intense self-determination. With such a man, I would only become his appendage."
"Of course, considering Captain Wang Hu's future development prospects, being an ornament by his side isn't entirely unacceptable."
"But then I discovered Kira!"
At this point, Flay's tone quickened slightly, as if eager to express all her considerations.
"Kira was my classmate at Heliopolis. During our studies, his performance was rather ordinary compared to his identity as a Coordinator."
"But when he first piloted the Strike Gundam, he displayed unparalleled talent."
"A mere civilian without any military training has now become a warrior capable of confronting ZAFT Forces' Red Coat Elites."
"Wait." Arsida interrupted his daughter for the first time, voicing his opinion.
"A powerful warrior certainly has value, but that's far from sufficient."
"Father, please let me finish." Flay gestured for her father not to interrupt.
"There's an ancient saying in East Asia: 'In troubled times, even commoners can become kings.' In this era of great competition, power can bring authority and status."
"And if I wanted to invest in Kira solely because of his power, that would indeed be rather thin reasoning."
"But combined with Captain Wang Hu's vision of following the strong and the wise, I believe the chance of failure would be infinitely reduced to zero."
"You're saying Wang Hu values Kira highly?" Arsida's eyes flickered, visibly moved.
If that young man called Kira had caught Wang Hu's eye, then his inherent value would be significantly greater.
As a high-ranking official in the Atlantic Federation's power structure, he knew exactly how much weight East Asia and the East Asian Army carried in the world today.
While the Allied Forces remained largely silent, only that nation's performance had caught people's attention.
Drawing from historical precedents, every major war inevitably gives rise to one or two dominant hegemons.
Undoubtedly, the East Asian Alliance had already surged far ahead of its competitors.
As someone born within the DEEO STATE circle with deeply rooted connections, Arsida had frequently discussed the future global landscape with his colleagues during gatherings.
Arsida lowered his head, weighing the pros and cons. Wang Hu was a steadily rising military star in the East Asian Alliance, and initially, Arsida had simply viewed him as such.
However, after observing his actions, listening to his words, and assessing his character today,
He realized that Wang Hu was far more than just a military star—his potential was immeasurable!
As the saying goes, "When a man attains the Dao, even his pets ascend to heaven." Kira, whom Wang Hu valued and who followed him closely, had a ninety percent chance of securing a high-ranking position within the East Asian Army!
"Are you confident you can control Kira? How much weight does Kira carry in Wang Hu's heart?"
Lifting his head, Arsida asked these two critical questions.
Otherwise, Arsida would rather have his daughter become a mere ornament to embellish Wang Hu's reputation.
"Kira will become my obedient subordinate, provided that Wang Hu and I don't clash. But rest assured, Father, I will never let things escalate to that point."
With naked ambition written across her face, Flay had a clear understanding of herself. Addressing her father's other concern, she added,
"Wang Hu pays close attention to Kira—so much so that he gave up piloting the Strike Gundam as proof."
"The Strike Gundam?" Arsida pondered again, gently tapping his knee as he combined this with his own observations.
Especially the East Asian Army's sudden deployment of the new Zeta Gundam in the recent battle.
"Perhaps Wang Hu didn't abandon the Strike Gundam solely because he values Kira," he pointed out, filling in the gaps for his daughter.
"It's possible that Wang Hu simply looks down on the G Project led by our Atlantic Federation, as the East Asian Army's own developed Gundam outperforms it."
"But..." Arsida raised a hand to stop his daughter's rebuttal and smiled.
"We can test the waters. Don't invest too heavily upfront—just keep Kira on the hook. It's not too late to place our bets once we're certain."
"Perhaps in the future, I might even need to leverage your connections to advance further."
"Father?" Flay's initial worry turned to joy as she asked eagerly, "What do you mean?"
"As the war has progressed, the Atlantic Federation is no longer a monolithic bloc. Behind Blue Cosmos stands the military-industrial complex LOGOS."
"However, LOGOS alone cannot dominate the Federation entirely. Voices from medical conglomerates, financial groups, energy sectors, and other systems are already grumbling over the Atlantic Federation Army's poor performance."
"If this continues and the Atlantic Federation's hegemony wavers while the East Asian Alliance rises, to protect their status and secure a foothold in the future landscape..."
"Flay, what do you think LOGOS will do then?"
"What choices will other power factions within the Federation make for their future? Capital is free-flowing and holds no loyalty."
"Then..." Flay's mind raced, her eyes gleaming with intensity!
"Vice Foreign Minister Arsida is quite an interesting figure," Wang Hu remarked as he returned to his room with Li Chengzhi and Zhang Hong.
While Flay and her father were discussing him and the East Asian Alliance, Wang Hu and the other two were also talking about that father-daughter pair.
"Making contact is possible. Arsida, who comes from the DEEO STATE group, is worth our investment."
Li Chengzhi nodded in agreement. "For the hegemony of the next era, it's necessary for us to place our pieces on the power map in advance."
"This way, when integrating the forces of the Earth Sphere, we can reduce a lot of unnecessary resource consumption."
"Hey, hey, hey." Zhang Hong stared at Li Chengzhi with wide eyes. "Don't constantly flaunt your 'I have connections' attitude all the time, okay?"
"It puts a lot of pressure on a soldier like me who comes from an ordinary background!"
"What are our current military ranks? Is it necessary to worry about such major matters so early?"
"If word gets out, you might not be laughed at, but I'd be laughed to death."
"Tch." Li Chengzhi, who had been properly strategizing for the development of the East Asian Alliance, felt quite annoyed as he looked at Zhang Hong waving his hands.
In Li Chengzhi's eyes, Zhang Hong, who was always informal and had a liking for tentacles, was practically a disgrace to the East Asian Army.
"Alright, don't be angry." Wang Hu, who also couldn't accept the tentacle preference, had a more flexible bottom line compared to his friend.
He turned to Zhang Hong and asked, "Tell us, what's the current situation of the war within the Earth Sphere?"
"Our information is too limited on the Archangel, and our army already has something as good as the Zeta Gundam."
What Wang Hu really cared about was the Zeta Gundam. After all, in his memory, the East Asian Army originally didn't have such a thing.
Zhang Hong directly sprawled out on Wang Hu's bed in a "Ge You slouch." "I brought the detailed battle reports, so I won't waste words here."
"But the matter of the Zeta Gundam is worth discussing, as well as the higher-ups' plans for our Third Battalion's future."
"Spit it out!" Wang Hu didn't mind Zhang Hong's attitude, but Li Chengzhi wouldn't indulge him.
Even his own father had kept tight-lipped about the Zeta Gundam, leaving him completely in the dark until it happened.
He had been itching with curiosity ever since he first laid eyes on their Zeta Gundam.
Not to mention something as crucial as the future of the Third Battalion, which concerned their advancement.
"The Zeta Gundam originates from VMSAWRS, the Variable Mobile-Suit And Wave-Rider System—that is, the Tactical Variable Mobile Suit and Wave Rider System."
"As you know, most of our pilots fly Mobius units. Considering the need to balance piloting habits and versatility in both the atmosphere and space, the development result is what you see before you."
"Oh." Wang Hu's eyes shifted. "Versatile weapons do match my family's consistent style. Getting twice the value for money has always been our tradition."
"Did our army start developing it when Halberton proposed the G Project?"
"No." Zhang Hong glanced at Wang Hu and shook his head. "It's said that Chief Engineer Zhu made a written pledge in front of the cabinet elders right after the Coordinators first deployed Mobile Suits."
"What?" Wang Hu and Li Chengzhi were astonished. When Mobile Suits first appeared?
At that time, the Coordinators hadn't yet deployed the Neutron Jammer.
Although Mobile Suits had an advantage on the battlefield, they weren't as overwhelmingly powerful as in the later stages. Back then, they were merely troublesome for the Allied Forces.
So that's when Chief Engineer Zhu and the others began taking action?
Such foresight is truly terrifying!
But wait! Wang Hu suddenly snapped back to reality. If that's the case, why was the East Asian Alliance so weak in the original timeline?
"You have no idea," Zhang Hong said lazily.
"They say it was incredibly difficult for Chief Engineer Zhu and the team back then to develop our own Gundam, especially one with overwhelming capabilities."
"Development progress was stagnant for the longest time. It wasn't until you made breakthroughs at Nova that the research suddenly accelerated like a rocket."
"Chief Engineer Zhu even joked privately that they were riding on your good fortune!"
"As for the G Project's results - we might as well take them since we invested in it anyway."
"That's an exaggeration." Wang Hu began forming some judgments in his mind. Could it be that besides the obvious templates, the Homeworld had also indirectly influenced his affiliated faction?
It must be! Based on his memories, Wang Hu could only reach this conclusion.
Otherwise, there was no explaining why the progress timeline aligned so perfectly.
"It seems you're quite the lucky star, Wang Hu," Li Chengzhi joked.
"Don't talk nonsense. Chief Engineer Zhu and the others were just making casual remarks. If such words spread, it could really hinder my advancement."
Wang Hu waved his hand dismissively - he certainly wasn't arrogant enough to claim such credit.
"So what about our future arrangements?"
Of course it was just a joke. Li Chengzhi understood this even better than Wang Hu did, and he smoothly changed the subject.
(End of Chapter)