The Mobile Suits of Code Amelias's squad were actually quite easy to identify. According to Hoshino Ruri's confirmation, there were thirty-three in total, among which Haman's Butterfly Shadow Qubeley and Chang Wufei's Meteor Shenlong Gundam were old acquaintances.
There was also a new Gundam suspected to be modified from the Gundam Bael, undoubtedly piloted by McGillis.
The remaining Mobile Suits were all of the same model—the EMS-11 Amakusa, an unmanned Mobile Suit that Haman shouldn't have known about, yet around thirty of them had now appeared in the flesh.
In truth, Code Amelias's squad obtaining the Amakusa was an accident.
Back when Haman was in the database of the four border Colony Satellites, she learned about three F90 units that utilized the piloting data of Amuro, Char, and Kamille, respectively.
So, when she later wanted to supplement their combat strength with unmanned Mobile Dolls, she had Loli Amelias summon a Mobile Doll with Amuro's piloting data.
The reason she didn't use Char or Kamille's data was simply because Haman thought the two of them were weak.
Char, the guy who kept losing battles, was not even worth discussing. As for Kamille, during Haman's fight with her, Kamille in her normal mode wasn't necessarily more skilled than the ace pilots of the Titans.
Kamille's strength lay in her New Human Ability, which Mobile Dolls couldn't simulate. Thus, Haman didn't value Kamille's piloting data.
Then, Loli Amelias took it upon herself to think that since they were summoning a Mobile Doll with Amuro's data, they should summon the strongest one possible.
And so, the EMS-11 Amakusa was summoned.
Normally, when a Mobile Doll was summoned without anyone controlling it, Haman and the others could easily dismantle it.
But the EMS-11 Amakusa, in its most original version, contained a Bio-Brain. This Bio-Brain was created using simulation data from the FF-X7 Core Fighter of the RX-78-2 Gundam during the One Year War, and it could even resonate with Newtypes.
Thus, the EMS-11 Amakusa wreaked havoc in the spatial gap where Code Amelias's squad was located before its limbs were destroyed, leaving only its main body.
However, none of the four members of Code Amelias's squad specialized in biology, and Teletha didn't know how to cultivate a Bio-Brain either. So, they only used the data they obtained to train an AI.
Therefore, the Amakusa that appeared now was no longer the original Mobile Suit. It merely replicated the appearance and armaments to match the operational habits in the data.
The internal power system was completely converted to use Ahab Reactors. Code Amelias's squad used all the remaining Ahab Reactors from building warships for these units.
Although the Mobile Suits were equipped with ordinary Ahab Reactors, which likely reduced their output compared to the Minovsky Reactors of Universal Century 0136, they gained near Beam Immunity in Mobile Suit combat.
The AI cultivated from Amuro's piloting data during the One Year War was exceptionally powerful. Its Mobile Suit's mobility and movements were incredibly fast, leaving Xia Yulan, Neil, and Belfgang scrambling to keep up. Their occasional counterattacks couldn't inflict serious damage on their opponents.
Gaia's Trio had it the worst. The Mobile Suit clearly contained behavioral logic data from them, and their proud Super Jet Stream Attack was easily countered. Even Ortega's Kampfer EX Backpack had both its gun barrels sliced off.
Currently, the three Mobile Suits were also being surrounded and attacked. Fortunately, the CE Beam Shields were holding up well; otherwise, the three machines would likely have lost limbs by now.
As for Ange, she was now being besieged by three Mobile Suits: the Butterfly Shadow Qubeley, the Meteor Shenlong Gundam, and an unidentified new Gundam.
Having just used Trans-Am, the Ice Phoenix Gundam now lacked burst capabilities. Facing three opponents alone, while not in immediate life-threatening danger, retreat was inevitable.
Moreover, this brief retreat was something Reid had allowed, as Salamandine was leading the first wave of reinforcements and would arrive soon.
Salamandine, piloting the Phantom Dragon Gundam Epyon Armor, had a clear objective: first, to assist the Black Tri-Stars, as they were currently the only ones at risk of being shot down.
The Mobile Dolls of Codename Amelias' squad clearly utilized the intelligent AI technology from Full Metal Panic. Seeing the enemy reinforcements arrive, they fired a few shots but found them completely blocked by the Circular Magnetic Defense Shields. As the enemy charged forward with the Great Treasure Sword raised, they decisively retreated.
The Virgo IIs on Reid's side were certainly not as fast as Amakusa, but the output of the Miniature Nuclear Fusion Reactors far exceeded that of ordinary Ahab Reactors.
Now that beam attacks were ineffective on both sides, the battle was shifting to close-quarters combat. To use an imperfect analogy, the Virgo IIs were like heavy cavalry—high defense, high attack, but low mobility.
Amakusa, on the other hand, was clearly positioned closer to light cavalry—high mobility, average attack, but relatively poor defense.
When light cavalry encounters a charge from heavy cavalry, especially when outnumbered, staying put is tantamount to waiting for death.
Moreover, the second wave of reinforcements, the Tekkadan members, were also nearing the battlefield. They were professionals when it came to fighting Mobile Suits equipped with ordinary Ahab Reactors.
Additionally, Reid's Joyeuse Gundam was also rushing back at full speed. If Reid were to return as well, it would escalate into an all-out decisive battle.
Teletha, commanding from inside the New Danuu's Child, saw that Reid's reinforcements were continuously returning and decisively ordered a retreat. After all, the assets they had painstakingly gathered could not be risked in a head-on confrontation with Reid here. The gap in both the number of Mobile Suits and the quantity of top-tier units was vast. A direct fight would inevitably result in Reid's side paying a certain price before annihilating them completely.
The other members of Codename Amelias' squad trusted Teletha's judgment completely. This wasn't like their previous mission to McGillis' home base; the plan this time was to avoid combat and gather resources.
Haman, however, had intended to engage in a real fight with Reid's side this time. Her main goal was to eliminate all the women around Reid who opposed her, leaving him with no other choice.
Since this was meant to be a battle, temporary victories or losses were unimportant. Haman withdrew immediately, but before leaving, she used Laser Communication to speak to Ange inside the Ice Phoenix Gundam:
"Ange, please relay a message to Reid for me. Tell him I'm ready to meet him this time. I look forward to the moment we reunite. I'll take my leave for now—there are still people in this universe I wish to see."
Upon hearing this, Ange felt that Haman was provoking her—this was definitely a provocation! Haman actually wanted her, of all people, to deliver a date invitation for her, the other woman!
But before Ange could even start cursing, McGillis' communication also came through. He chose this highly inappropriate moment to interject:
"Miss Ange, please also convey a message to Reid for me. Tell him that I and the Gundam Bael Supreme King Form eagerly await our battle with him."
Ange was feeling a bit speechless at the moment. Why did this McGillis also want her to pass on a message? Come to think of it, Reid had mentioned that this McGillis had once... Could it be that his target this time was Reid?
To be honest, if Reid were to find a mistress outside, even if it were Haman, Ange could reluctantly accept it. After all, although she disliked Haman, she was willing to admit that Haman was a high-quality woman.
If it were just some harmless wildflower by the roadside, Ange wouldn't have cared this much.
It was precisely because Haman posed a clear threat to her position that Ange, like a dragon guarding its treasure, despised Haman as a thief.
But if Reid wanted to play something perverted, just refer to Ange's attitude when she first met Nein—she would genuinely consider enforcing household discipline on Reid.
However, Ange was certain that Reid didn't like men. It seemed now that, at most, this McGillis was just harboring some unrequited feelings.
McGillis had no idea what kind of image he had been reduced to in Ange's mind. After declaring his challenge, he quickly retreated.
Of course, Salamandine wouldn't let the enemy escape so easily and immediately ordered the others to engage Code Amelias's squad.
But the New Danuu's Child once again demonstrated its power.
The armor on its head section opened from the middle, revealing a massive cannon that was clearly already fully charged.
Seeing such a massive cannon, Salamandine had no other choice but to shout in the team voice channel,
"Everyone, evade!!"
The next second, the massive cannon fired, sweeping through Reid's Virgo II forces.
It could only be said that, fortunately, this massive cannon didn't use any Buster Beam Rifle technology. It was simply a pure energy-based High-Energy Laser Cannon. However, with the New Danuu's Child equipped with over a hundred Ahab Reactors, its energy reserves were simply immense. As a result, even an ordinary High-Energy Laser Cannon could deliver power comparable to the Wing Zero Twin Buster Beam Rifle.
At the very least, within its firing range, blasting through a Colony Satellite would be a trivial matter.
Fortunately, Salamandine had previously ordered the Virgo II units to prepare to encircle Code Amelias's squad, so their positions were relatively spread out. This wave of attack only destroyed a little over twenty Virgo II units.
However, with this Beam Cannon strike and the subsequent missile cover, all of Code Amelias's squad's Mobile Suits returned to their ship.
Immediately afterward, the New Danuu's Child turned around, pushed its thrusters to maximum, and began its escape.
By the time Reid arrived at the battlefield, the New Danuu's Child was almost out of sight. Even Reid had to admit, "This thing's propulsion is seriously impressive. It feels like our Mobile Suits would need to activate various burst modes just to catch up with the Danann's Child at this point."
However, Reid wouldn't order the others to give chase now. What good would a few Mobile Suits pursuing do? They'd likely get ganged up on, and it was highly probable they wouldn't even manage to keep Code Amelias's squad from escaping, let alone risk losing some of their own people in the process.
Fortunately, it was clear that Code Amelias's squad had no intention of leaving this world yet. There would be more battles ahead; this was just a minor setback.
Yes, Reid had to admit that his attempt to have it both ways this time was a mistake in judgment.
In truth, given Reid's current combat capabilities, he could have achieved victory earlier whether he focused on fighting Neo Zeon and Londo Bell or waited specifically for Code Amelias's squad to arrive.
However, Reid had divided his forces and underestimated the Code Amelias squad that had previously fled from him in disarray.
Reid had guessed that after gathering so many resources in the Iron-Blooded universe last time, the Code Amelias squad's combat power would greatly improve.
But he had completely failed to anticipate that they had already advanced to the point where they could withstand the Trans-Am Great Treasure Sword powered by twin GN Drives.
This directly led to the troops ambushing the Code Amelias squad being overwhelmed, resulting in Char and Amuro slipping away without being captured.
Indeed, when Reid rushed to Ange's side, he could only see the exhaust flames of the New Danuu's Child.
On the other side, Amuro and Char at Luna V sensed that the super Newtype Reid had departed and immediately ordered their forces to retreat.
Now Luna V was left isolated in this space zone, with Neo Zeon's Rewloola-class ships and the Ra Cailum from Londo Bell all vanishing without a trace.
Thus, for Reid's side in this battle, the only gain was the G-Coins obtained from destroying Luna V. However, according to recent statistics, twenty-three Virgo II Mobile Suits were lost.
In this way, not a single strategic objective was achieved, and twenty-three Mobile Suits were lost. It wouldn't be excessive to say Reid's side suffered a minor defeat.
But Reid wasn't someone who couldn't accept defeat; he would simply have Hoshino Ruri meticulously record the decision-making errors for future reference as a warning.
The loss of twenty-three Virgo II wasn't too significant; it was fine as long as personnel were unharmed.
After all, materials for the Virgo II could be purchased from the G Coin Store and quickly replenished using the factory inside the Gran Chaos.
As for the next destination, Reid had two choices: one was the Side 1 Colony at Earth-Moon Lagrange Point 1, where Char and Amuro would both head next.
The other was the Sweetwater Colony where Mineva Lao Zabi might be hiding, as Haman might go there.
Because Haman had accessed the Database of Border 4 Colony in Universal Century 0116, she knew that Sweetwater Colony was the birthplace of Neo Zeon under Char during the Second Neo Zeon War.
Given Haman's feelings for Mineva, it was normal for her to go and check.
After hesitating for a while, Reid decided to move toward Side 1 Colony first; Londo Bell and Neo Zeon would still fight there later, so he could go and observe beforehand.
Reid decided that next, he would wait for the Code Amelias squad to reveal themselves.
Being in the light while the enemy was in the dark was too disadvantageous, so Reid declared he would also hide, putting both sides in the dark.
In terms of tracking skills, the Veda Unit 2 on the Gran Chaos was professional. In the UC universe, only battlefields suffered communication disruptions due to Minovsky Particles; elsewhere, networks were intact.
As long as they could find an interface connecting to the Earth Sphere network, Hoshino Ruri could monitor the network using Veda Unit 2.
Whenever the Code Amelias squad dared to appear in public locations, Reid would be able to locate them.
Thus, after venting his frustration by dismantling Luna V, Reid led his forces, activating stealth and maintaining silence, heading toward Side 1 Colony.
Meanwhile, Haman, whom Reid was searching for, had actually contacted Neo Zeon through various accounts she had five years ago after confirming Reid wasn't pursuing her.
Then, through several intermediaries, Haman quickly connected with Char.
To be honest, Char never expected Haman to still be alive. When he heard she was looking for him, he almost thought someone was playing a joke on him.
But as the Danann's Child moved near the main fleet of Neo Zeon, Char initiated a video call. Seeing Haman on the other side, he spoke with unusual caution:
"Haman, I never thought you'd still be alive. But why reappear now of all times?"
Seeing Char's guarded expression, Haman felt nothing but disdain. You, Char, inherited the foundation of my Neo Zeon, and now you dare speak to me like this?
But Haman had long considered herself on a different level than Char. This time, she merely intended to use him, so she replied with exceptional calm:
"I suppose you're disappointed that I'm alive, but no matter. I'm here to ask for help.
Char, my husband is hunting me down, so help me take him back."
Upon hearing this, Char found himself utterly unable to comprehend her words—akin to those phrases on the Chinese internet that Chinese people feel require "Chinese-to-Chinese translation."
First of all, Haman actually had a husband? What man possessed such courage, and such misfortune, to take this woman?
Then, Haman was being hunted by her own husband, yet she wanted Char to help her retrieve him? Char truly could not make sense of this statement.
Thus, with a slightly twitching expression, Char replied:
"It seems the situation is quite complicated, Haman. Care to come aboard my ship for a detailed discussion?"
(End of Chapter)