"Just as I thought!"
The entire Colony shook so violently that it had to be an external attack. For it to be so sudden, the only thing Yang Hui could think of was the [Solar Ray System] he had warned about earlier.
"A direct hit from the homeland's strategic weapon!" Degwin Sodo Zabi also heard the report. He froze, his face turning incredibly pale. "That fellow Gihren..."
"Heh, it seems someone doesn't want you alive, Degwin," Char mocked.
"Casval..."
"Don't worry, Degwin. You are safe here—safer than you would be at home."
"...The meeting tomorrow..."
"Proceeds as scheduled. However, I hope to conclude everything tomorrow."
"...I understand."
Char nodded and walked out of the room with Yang Hui. Left alone, Degwin Sodo Zabi seemed to age instantly, the light in his eyes turning cloudy and dim.
Gihren Zabi had prepared a long-range strategic weapon. He didn't attack sooner or later, but chose to strike just after Degwin had arrived at the Zeon Republic, leaving Degwin Sodo Zabi with no excuses to justify Gihren Zabi's actions.
He had known for a long time that Gihren Zabi was mad, but he never truly believed that Gihren Zabi would actually kill his own father.
At this moment, having been targeted for death by his own son, Degwin Sodo Zabi felt as if the entire world had turned gray.
"Fortunately, Garma... Garma is still here..."
...
Yang Hui and Char bid farewell to Degwin Sodo Zabi and went straight to the command center.
"Report the situation!"
"A high-energy reaction was suddenly detected from the direction of Side 3. We didn't hesitate to immediately activate the [Umbrella] system, and then we were struck. This is the video record from that moment."
As the officer spoke, the footage played on the large screen. A torrent of bright white energy, enough to blind the eyes, slammed into the energy shield deployed by the [Umbrella] system. For a moment, space-time distorted, and an electromagnetic storm raged. The camera lost its feed instantly. When the image restored a few seconds later, countless electric arcs were seen dancing across the [Umbrella] system, and the shining energy shield had dimmed significantly.
"The first one is confirmed," Yang Hui and Char thought simultaneously. What kind of trump cards Gihren Zabi held was the intelligence they needed most. Now the first card was turned over; how many more were left?
"Status of the [Umbrella] system?"
"Energy consumption is at 40%, estimated recharge time is 3 days. Equipment wear is at 25%. For attacks of the same magnitude, the equipment will be scrapped after 3 effective defenses..."
"Damage to the homeland Colony is minor; there are currently no casualties..."
"Phew~ It seems the quality of your stuff is up to par," Char teased Yang Hui, letting out a breath of relief.
"Heh, if you don't trust it, don't use it."
"Haha, how many more trump cards do you think Gihren Zabi has left?"
"At least two: the Colony Satellite Bomb and the [World Tree]."
"The [World Tree]? That Plasma Cannon? Wasn't that project abandoned after it failed?" Char asked in surprise. He had still been within the Principality of Zeon when the [World Tree] underwent combat testing, so he was quite well-informed.
"The Principality of Zeon doesn't have many people left now. They've either died in battle or defected. To continue fighting the Federation, there are only two paths to take. One is strategic weapons of mass destruction like the [Solar Ray System] and the Colony Satellite Bomb. The other is using more powerful weapons that require fewer people to operate, such as the [World Tree] and MAs."
"So you suspect he chose both paths?"
"I call it a reasonable prediction."
"Since when can 'reasonable predictions' be applied to a psychopath?"
"...Then guess for yourself! Are you just here to be a contrarian!?"
"Cough, cough. Please continue."
"Tsk. Besides those two, the most likely possibilities are the research results of the Psycommu System and the Newtype Force."
"NT..."
"Get ready. After we finish talking tomorrow, we'll see what Degwin Sodo Zabi knows. If we can get valuable intelligence from him, we won't have to be so passive."
"No problem."
...
The next day's meeting ended quickly. The Principality of Zeon surrendered to the Zeon Republic, with Yang Hui, representing the Federation, sitting in his seat as a spectator.
Degwin Sodo Zabi did not have many specific demands, because he knew Char would accept the civilians and territory of the Principality of Zeon and lead them toward the goals he and Zeon Zum Deikun had once worked for together.
However, there was one thing Degwin Sodo Zabi insisted Char must promise: do not kill Karma Zabi. He was willing to give his own life to Char in exchange.
Char certainly intended to take Degwin Sodo Zabi's life, for he was the father of Gihren Zabi and the Sovereign of the Principality of Zeon. Regardless of whether he had participated in Gihren Zabi's crimes, he had to take responsibility.
As for Karma Zabi... Char promised Degwin Sodo Zabi that he would not kill him, but he would not release a tiger back to the mountain either. After consulting with Yang Hui, it was finally decided to send him to Granada to reunite with Dozle Zabi and his family.
"Gihren kept me in the dark about what he was doing, so I am not clear on the current state of the Principality of Zeon."
Unfortunately, no valuable intelligence could be gained from Degwin Sodo Zabi.
It was merely a pity. Yang Hui had anticipated this result from the start. Gihren Zabi, who had always viewed Degwin Sodo Zabi as a stumbling block to be removed, how could he possibly let Degwin Sodo Zabi know his trump cards?
Fortunately, while Degwin Sodo Zabi provided no useful information, Yang Hui's personal intelligence network discovered something very important.
"Heh, Gihren Zabi really doesn't disappoint at all." Looking at the intelligence, Yang Hui sneered, his expression becoming colder and colder.
"Is he doing this for victory, regardless of the cost?" Char's face was as dark as ink. If this intelligence was true, then Gihren Zabi was putting everything on the line—a typical "if I lose, you get nothing" attitude.
The intelligence showed that Gihren Zabi had emptied three Colonies in Side 3, moving the original residents to other Colonies. Those who couldn't fit were given a small amount of food and stuffed into Shuttles, left to fend for themselves.
Of the three requisitioned Colonies, one was a residential Colony with a high population density, while the other two were agricultural Colonies—the two most important food production sites in Side 3. Their requisition meant that the Principality of Zeon would soon fall into a desperate food shortage.
According to Gihren Zabi's style, the civilians would certainly be the ones to suffer. Even if civilians starved to death, he would make his soldiers fight on empty stomachs.
Furthermore, these three requisitioned Colonies were not being converted into Colony Satellite Bombs. Instead, three [Solar Ray Systems] were being built. One was already completed, and two were currently under construction.
Yang Hui's prediction had been slightly off. The Principality of Zeon had indeed squandered its remaining resources to build ten [World Tree] Mega Particle Cannons, deployed separately at A Baoa Qu and Side 3. At the same time, they halted the construction of warships and barely produced any MS, using all remaining resources to manufacture various large MAs.
Why wasn't the [World Tree] Mega Particle Cannon deployed at Solomon Fortress?
This was where Yang Hui's deduction had erred. Gihren Zabi did not manufacture more Colony Satellite Bombs; instead, he directly modified Solomon Fortress, turning it into a massive Asteroid Bomb intended to be dropped on Earth.
If Solomon Fortress successfully struck Earth, it wouldn't be as simple as the destruction of Australia. Life would be extinguished, the ecosystem would completely collapse, and a massive amount of dust and aerosol particles would block the sunlight, causing global temperatures to plummet and triggering phenomena like climate change and rising sea levels.
In a word, Earth would become a dead star unsuitable for life!
"Like you said, he's a psychopath." Yang Hui shrugged, though he felt a great deal of emotion in his heart.
After all, in another future, Char was the one who pushed Axis toward Earth; he really wasn't in a position to criticize Gihren Zabi.
"He must be stopped."
"Correct. Therefore, the previously established battle plan needs to be changed."
As soon as he finished speaking, Yang Hui took out his Quantum Communicator and immediately contacted Revil, who was far away at Axis.
"I've got the intelligence. The battle plan needs correction."
"Is the situation bad?"
"One piece of good news and one piece of bad news. Which do you want to hear first?" Yang Hui asked Revil, just as Revil had once asked him in the same way.
"Let's hear the good news first."
"Our predictions were correct, and Gihren Zabi hasn't prepared any other Colony Satellite Bombs."
"Ho, that really is good news. So... what's the bad news?"
"Gihren Zabi plans to use Solomon Fortress as a substitute for a Colony Satellite Bomb."
"You should have just said that! You bastard!" Revil cursed loudly. He had felt a moment of relief hearing there were no more Colony Satellite Bombs, as they were the greatest threat to Earth. Other weapons might cause massive Federation casualties, but they couldn't overturn the war's outcome or threaten the planet itself.
But replacing a Colony Satellite Bomb with Solomon Fortress... Gihren Zabi was aiming for the destruction of Earth!
"My unit will terminate all previous plans. They will head to Solomon Fortress along with the main fleet. Leave the rest to me and Char."
"...I will order ten fleets to rendezvous with the five fleets stationed at the Zeon Republic. We will attack A Baoa Qu and Solomon Fortress simultaneously. You and Char's people just focus on moving forward," Revil said seriously.
"I understand. I will destroy the Beam Saber and his confidence until nothing remains," Yang Hui replied solemnly.
"Mhm. I'm leaving it to you."
"Don't worry."
The communication ended. Yang Hui looked at Char, who rolled his eyes in annoyance and complained, "Why do you always like to go on suicide missions? And you always like to drag me with you!"
"Haha, you're wrong about that. I've never gone to my death, otherwise, I wouldn't have lived until now."