Celestial Being's five mechas had basically tied down the machines of those participants bold enough to provoke a story faction. Graham had also taken on the modified Leo alone. Though both were D-class mechas, there was still quite a difference between the Flag and the Leo.
Before its modifications, Xiao Ran considered the Leo inferior to the Flag. Its armor might have been somewhat thicker, but its speed and mobility were nowhere near as good as the Flag's. It was roughly on the level of a Zaku II.
After being modified, however, the Leo had been fitted with high-speed thrusters. The armor strength of the Turski-mounted sections had been enhanced again, and it used Beam Cannons similar to Turski's, greatly increasing its firepower. Its modified speed could now rival the Flag's, though that also showed that the thruster pack used by the Leo was inferior to Turski's.
Another key issue was that its melee weapon, the Beam Saber, had been restricted. It could only keep its distance and attack, and even at extremely close range, the Flag piloted by Graham could easily evade it.
Graham's control of the Flag could be called perfect. He had brought out every bit of the Flag's performance, and it was the Flag's own limits that restrained him. He was someone who could pilot a Mook Unit and still contend head-on with a Gundam. Against a restricted modified Leo, as long as he watched the direction of its gun barrel, evading its attacks was actually quite easy for Graham.
Graham evaded the Leo's fire once more while operating the Flag to return a shot. He then opened all thrusters, drew the high-frequency short blade from the Flag's left hand, and charged straight at the modified Leo. "Just a machine with no melee capability? Boring. Even