"Just now, what did you send him again?"
During the Freedom's return voyage, Xia Chuan suddenly asked curiously.
During the earlier exchange with Athrun, he had noticed Lu Tianming discreetly sending a file at the last moment.
Files required decoding for Xia Chuan to understand, and at the time he couldn't be bothered to decode it. Trusting Lu Tianming implicitly, he forwarded it without a second thought.
"A detailed list of Creuset's crimes."
Lu Tianming replied succinctly.
The so-called file he had just sent was indeed a document recording Creuset's crimes... As an agent of chaos, he had been inciting conflict between the Earth Alliance and ZAFT, attempting to push humanity toward self-destruction.
Though called a file, it didn't contain much concrete evidence but rather reasonable speculation based on current circumstances—such as how the Earth Alliance obtained data for all G Series Mobile Suits except the Strike Suit, suggesting Creuset had been transferring the data as an intermediary.
After all, practically speaking, aside from PLANT's upper echelons, only Creuset's team and personnel aboard his battleship had access to the G Series Mobile Suits.
"Psychological warfare... You tactical types really play dirty."
Xia Chuan thoughtfully tapped Haro's head and quipped.
Even he could see it. Lu Tianming sending such baseless material was probably meant to further unsettle Athrun's convictions.
"I'm just giving him a final push. After all, that file isn't convincing enough to be decisive. If his will is truly firm, he won't be swayed by my file."
Lu Tianming smiled as he spoke. The file he sent couldn't directly reverse someone's beliefs.
If Athrun wanted to leave, this file might give him the push he needed. If he didn't, then this file alone wouldn't change anything.
"Never mind that... Didn't your dad pull off something awesome this time? That rainbow cannon just blasted through the Forbidden's turtle shell in one shot. With skills like mine, don't I deserve to be called 'dad'?"
Xia Chuan snorted twice and began recounting his highlights from the battle.
"You think you've got skills? Then let me ask you, without me, would you have noticed the Blitz's ambush?"
Lu Tianming raised an eyebrow, fully engaging with Xia Chuan's presumptuous attempt at a father-son rivalry.
Hearing this, Xia Chuan paused; he had actually forgotten about that.
The sneaky Blitz hiding underwater had indeed been spotted by Lu Tianming. Without him, the chances of Xia Chuan plunging into the ocean were quite high.
But Xia Chuan wasn't about to back down easily. Reviewing the entire battle, he immediately found one of his own shining moments:
"Let's set the Blitz aside and talk about the Duel... Come on, without my smooth, incredibly cool slashing combo, would the Duel have been drained of power?"
"Give me a break. Besides forward slashing, what else can you do? The Duel retreated because it couldn't stand being worn down."
"Then let me ask you—"
"Then let me ask you again..."
The long return journey passed in the back-and-forth banter between the two... Lu Tianming and Xia Chuan had finished analyzing all the strategic points of the battle and still hadn't arrived, eventually even starting to dig up old grievances from the past.
Their verbal sparring continued until the Freedom docked at ORB's port, when the cockpit finally fell into a brief silence.
This was merely for propriety's sake... Otherwise, they might have kept arguing until the dawn of creation.
"...Damn it, just wait until I properly review the data. Next time you come aboard, I'll roast you alive—"
Seeing that Lu Tianming needed to disembark for debriefing, Xia Chuan felt unsatisfied. He regretted not gaining the upper hand in their exchange and even felt strangely disappointed at the sudden absence of bickering.
He ultimately resorted to throwing out a fierce threat, silently deciding that when Lu Tianming returned, he'd make his taunts the startup sound effect.
"Give it a rest. When you say 'review,' you'll probably just slack off in the end."
"Like that time in school when you claimed you were going to study at the library, but as soon as you got there, you just propped up a book as a decoy and started scrolling through your phone."
"And another time you straight up fell asleep on the desk, drooling all over the pages... and that book was fucking mine, by the way."
Not one to let Xia Chuan have the last word, Lu Tianming fired back with these embarrassing revelations before making his escape from the cockpit, leaving Xia Chuan fuming helplessly at thin air.
Xia Chuan had originally planned to explore around in his Haro body after returning.
But Lu Tianming's remark ignited his competitive spirit—he was determined to prove that he wasn't just a slacker!
Though, come to think of it, after such an intense battle, taking a break first was perfectly reasonable... right?
Meanwhile, Lu Tianming, who had descended to the ground, glanced back and was surprised to see that Xia Chuan's Haro hadn't flown out as expected. He briefly wondered if Xia Chuan had actually changed his ways.
But before he could ponder it further, a voice accompanied by loud, hurried footsteps approached him:
"I heard you were ambushed by Earth Alliance MS earlier? Are you alright?"
Lu Tianming turned toward the voice and saw Cagalli, still wearing a light green full-length gown and high heels, holding up her skirt as she strode over with slightly unsteady steps.
Battlefield updates weren't broadcast in real-time, and by the time the information reached Cagalli, it had been distorted and delayed. She had only received reports of Lu Tianming being ambushed by the Earth Alliance.
She had no knowledge of what happened afterward.
Worried about Lu Tianming, she rushed over as soon as she heard the Freedom had safely returned to port, not even bothering to change her clothes.
Seeing the unconcealed concern in Cagalli's eyes, Lu Tianming smiled slightly and replied:
"Not just fine... I'm actually doing great."
"Out of the three Earth Alliance MS, one sustained severe damage to its Mobile Suit. It won't be operational for quite some time."
He reported the battle outcomes without hesitation... after all, he'd have to share this information sooner or later, and combat details weren't exactly classified intel.
"You scared me... I should've known someone of your skill wouldn't be in any real danger."
Cagalli patted her chest, her expression finally relaxing somewhat.
"By the way, have you spoken with your father? How did it go?"
Lu Tianming waved his hand modestly. Then, noticing Cagalli's attire, he seemed to recall something and suddenly asked.
"Complete victory!"
At this topic, Cagalli placed her hands on her hips, an irrepressible triumphant smile curling at the corners of her mouth.
"That guy, my father, couldn't argue against me at all. Of course... after all, I was personally taught by you and Lacus."
As she spoke, Cagalli looked at Lu Tianming, her eyes carrying both gratitude and a certain... indescribable emotion.
Calling it admiration felt too distant, calling it gratitude felt too formal—even Cagalli herself couldn't quite define what that feeling truly was.
The only thing she was certain of was that she didn't dislike this feeling.