On the bridge of the Nazca-class vessel known as the Vesalius, Creuset was "slightly regretful" as he inspected the battleship's damage status.
"Hmm... I understand. While the battleship can currently undergo repairs, it's still recommended to undergo formal maintenance, correct?"
Holding the phone, he repeated the report from the maintenance team on the other end, a faint smile curling beneath his mask.
Although the Nazca-class ship had nearly been destroyed by the Strike Suit's long-range sniper attack last time... this significant damage had actually served his purpose.
After all, the nominal objective of his current mission wasn't to intercept the Archangel, but to search for Lacus.
From a normal perspective, failing to complete the mission while the ship sustained damage... should have been two unfavorable outcomes.
But the coincidence was that Creuset had never intended to seriously search for Lacus from the beginning.
"Athrun, you should know how to report this operation without me having to tell you, right?"
Thinking of this, Creuset instinctively turned to Athrun, who was waiting nearby for his instructions, and spoke with a smile.
Athrun paused for a moment before reluctantly nodding:
"I understand... After exhaustive investigation, no trace of Lacus was found. While preparing to conduct further in-depth searches, we encountered the Earth Alliance Forces and engaged in combat. During this process, the battleship was attacked by enemy MS, rendering us unable to continue the investigation."
Athrun clearly understood Creuset's intentions, or rather, the answer his father wanted.
"Excellent report. Actually, your report isn't fundamentally different from what we actually experienced... isn't that right?"
Noticing Athrun's somewhat resistant expression, Creuset patted his shoulder as he spoke.
'No trace of Lacus found,' 'engaged in combat with Earth Alliance Forces,' 'unable to continue investigation due to MS attack'—objectively speaking, these were all factual statements... just slightly embellished during the narrative process.
"No need to make such an expression. This is merely applying a bit of linguistic artistry... or are you feeling distressed about Lacus's disappearance?"
Creuset added teasingly, though he didn't actually believe this to be the case.
Although Lacus and Athrun had a good relationship... he didn't think Lacus could truly shake Athrun's mindset.
"Athrun, you need to grow to be like your father—capable of bearing PLANT's burdens alone."
After leaving behind these words spoken in a somewhat unusual tone, Creuset exited the bridge with his current 'good mood.'
Watching Creuset's retreating back, Athrun shook his head with slight self-mockery:
"Be like my father... become someone who only knows how to fight?"
"But if I don't do this... what else can I do?"
He sighed inwardly, turning to gaze into the dark expanse of space.
I wonder if the Strike Suit's pilot... shares the same concerns as me.
How is Kira doing aboard that battleship now?
Speaking of which, I heard Yzak and the others have boarded another battleship and are launching a final assault on the Archangel, which has exposed its coordinates... I hope Kira can continue to survive safely.
Currently, the Archangel had completed the transfer of refugees. Two Union battleships, loaded with refugees, were slowly heading into the depths of space, while the Archangel, as planned, continued along its original route toward the Eighth Fleet.
Before departure, the vanguard fleet had revealed an interesting piece of information—apparently, the Eighth Fleet had a new backpack for the Strike Suit, which could be tested upon arrival.
"A new backpack... Was there such a thing in the original work?"
At the moment, Lu Tianming was sitting inside the Strike Suit, looking bewildered as he asked Xia Chuan.
He didn't recall any special backpacks appearing in the original work... Didn't they just descend to Earth after meeting up with the Eighth Fleet?
"Seems not..."
Xia Chuan was also confused. Although he felt his memory had improved a lot since becoming a Machine Spirit, thinking back over the plot he'd seen before, it really didn't seem like there was any mention of the Eighth Fleet having a Strike Suit backpack.
Not just in the main story, but even the side stories didn't mention it.
"That's strange."
Lu Tianming lowered his head in thought. Where did that backpack come from? And what kind of backpack was it? Could it be the work of some other transmigrator?
Or... had their presence caused some unexpected changes in the original storyline?
Lu Tianming couldn't figure it out for the moment, but he didn't dwell on it. As long as there was new equipment, who cared where it came from?
"By the way, it looks like Kira is treating the Manta Ray like a technical testbed for the Aile Pack. I've seen him making modifications to the Manta Ray several times recently."
Seeing that Lu Tianming didn't care about the backpack's origins, Xia Chuan decided not to think about it either—if even his external brain couldn't figure it out, why bother exerting himself?
Being a freeloader was fine; after all, letting his mind go blank was truly satisfying.
With the backpack topic exhausted, Xia Chuan immediately switched subjects, casually bringing up the Manta Ray.
When two guys got together with nothing to do, aside from discussing politics, they'd just chat about new toys.
"What's been modified? Last time, it worked pretty well as a flight platform."
Lu Tianming was curious. Based on his previous combat experience, the Manta Ray as a flight platform had already met his initial expectations—providing mobility for the mobility-lacking Sword Pack and Launcher Pack equipment, while also serving as a backpack transport.
"The Beam Rifle we picked up at Heliopolis was dismantled. The beam generator was modified and installed on the Manta Ray as two additional barrels."
"The Beam Saber didn't escape either... Based on the Armor Schneider's design, its output was adjusted and mounted next to the two balance wings, boosting its close-combat cutting capability."
"Also, it seems the built-in AI was recoded. Probably, it won't need the Zero to tow it when delivering backpacks in the future—it can navigate automatically."
Xia Chuan listed off the changes to the Manta Ray 2.0 in detail, leaving Lu Tianming astonished—adding barrels and beam blades? At this point, it really was like a budget version of the Justice Pack.
Kira was just too amazing... Not only could he handle new projects, but he could also iterate on old ones. Was Kira's true calling actually as a technician?
Just as Lu Tianming was about to ask more, hoping to uncover some new surprises—a sudden alarm sounded throughout the ship, pulling him out of his excited conversation.
Hearing this warning, the two of them clicked their tongues in near-unison.
So, to reach the Eighth Fleet... another battle was unavoidable after all?
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