Artesia's Attitude

"Why are you here?"

Eli quickly composed himself and returned his attention to the supply list in his hands.

But the next moment, Eli saw a finger reach in front of him and point to an item on the supply list.

"Bright said a new mobile suit had arrived and asked if I could pilot it, so I came."

"A new mobile suit?"

Eli silently drew his gaze back from the slender finger that had already disappeared from sight, then looked at the supplies Sayla had pointed to.

"The G-Fighter. I see, it's a support unit for the Gundam?"

It was a support fighter for the Gundam stationed aboard the White Base. In a way, it was just another way for Bandai to sell more model kits, so Eli had almost forgotten the Gundam even had a component like this.

Eli understood and looked up at Sayla.

But before he could say anything, her actions made him freeze.

Sayla was holding the finger she'd just extended against her chest with her other hand, glaring at Eli with even greater hostility.

When she saw that Eli was looking at her hand, she drew both hands to her side as if trying to keep them out of his sight.

Apparently, Eli had forgotten one thing: Sayla, who had Newtype potential and had been making her way in the world on her own from a young age, was highly sensitive to other people's gazes. Even though Eli had tried to restrain himself, she'd still noticed.

"Don't be like that, I..."

"Pervert."

Sayla cut Eli off in a cold voice, took the list from his hands, and followed its directions to find the cargo container holding the G-Fighter.

Eli was left where he stood, surrounded by one "pervert" after another.

"Lieutenant Eli? What is it, having a spat with your girlfriend?"

Just then, Matilda, who was overseeing the unloading, came over to Eli. She rested one hand on her hip and smiled as she spoke.

Behind her was a team of professional maintenance crew, ready to head to the port side and carry out more thorough inspections and reinforcement work.

Seeing this, Eli's first thought was, Bright can finally stop worrying so much about the port side.

The White Base's port side had been through so much; it had been targeted several times.

"It's rude to look elsewhere when you're talking to a woman, Lieutenant Eli. No wonder Miss Sayla's angry with you."

Seeing that Eli was paying more attention to the cranes, excavators, pile drivers, and other construction equipment being used by the crew behind her than to her, Matilda deliberately put on an indignant expression.

Compared to the teenagers who'd just taken a photo with her, Matilda clearly felt more warmly toward Eli.

"Don't tease me, Miss Matilda. You know I haven't been aboard this ship for long. How could Miss Sayla and I be in that kind of relationship?"

Eli gave a wry smile and half-turned to look at the cargo containers being brought in by forklifts.

"Who knows? These things happen."

As she passed Eli, Matilda deliberately placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Trust me, I have a fiancé who loves me very much, so I can tell. Miss Sayla is quite interested in you, though not in a romantic way yet."

Even as Matilda struck that pose, Eli could tell she was still a capable, decisive, and principled woman.

He could only say that women really were interested in this sort of thing.

Matilda chuckled and waved goodbye to Eli.

She was probably going to meet Bright in the captain's quarters.

Crack.

At that moment, Eli thought he heard something shatter.

Following his instincts, he looked in that direction.

Amuro was standing there, frozen, holding a photograph.

Just seeing the look on Amuro's face was enough for Eli to understand everything.

In a way, Amuro had something in common with Char: he was drawn to women with a nurturing presence.

To the boy, Matilda had been someone to look up to.

And now, caught completely off guard by the news that she had a fiancé, the love that had just begun to blossom in his heart had shattered.

Oh no. Now I understand why Matilda, usually so bold and confident, acted like that just now.

Eli copied Matilda's earlier gesture and put a hand on Amuro's shoulder.

"It's all right, kid. Men are creatures who seek acceptance and understanding. I can understand how you feel."

After saying that, Eli gave Amuro's shoulder another hearty pat, took the group photo of Amuro, Kai, and the others with Matilda from his hand, and tucked it into the pocket of Amuro's uniform.

Then he placed both hands on Amuro's shoulders, turned him around, and steered him toward Frau, who was sulking nearby.

"Haro! Heartbroken! Heartbroken!"

At that moment, Eli noticed a round green robot at Frau's feet.

Oh no. I want to laugh.

Looking at Haro, which was twisting the knife with its emotionless voice, Eli's eyes were full of amusement.

If they hadn't been standing right in front of him, Eli would probably have burst out laughing.

"Is that so? Men are creatures like that?"

As Eli struggled to hold back his laughter, Sayla walked past in a pinkish-red uniform, carrying the G-Fighter's operation manual. She spoke those words in an indifferent tone, making Eli freeze up all over again. He could only manage a couple of awkward laughs.

Sayla showed no intention of stopping. She walked straight into the corridor, still holding the manual.

What the others didn't see was that once Sayla entered the corridor, the faintest hint of a smile appeared on her face.

Sayla returned to her room and put away the manual, then went to the dining hall to get a meal.

Carrying her meal, Sayla headed for the ship's brig.

For the past few days, she had taken on the task of bringing food to Ramba Ral.

It should have been Frau's job, but Frau seemed a little afraid of Ramba Ral, so Sayla had volunteered to take over.

"Uncle Ramba Ral, it's time to eat."

Only when they were alone could Sayla be Artesia.

Only then could she call Ramba Ral "Uncle" and remember the happy childhood that had almost faded from her memory.

After just a few days in the brig, Ramba Ral already looked much more haggard.

His physical discomfort was secondary. More than anything, Eli's words had dealt him a blow, leaving him dispirited.

"Uncle Ramba Ral, I think I have to head to the battlefield too."

As Ramba Ral chewed his food, Artesia told him what she had decided.

Ramba Ral froze.

"W-why? Your Highness, you shouldn't..."

"Because I want to see for myself. I want to find out whether that man is truly determined to change the world, just as he said."

Artesia gently clasped her fingers as she spoke to Ramba Ral.

To be honest, the G-Fighter didn't seem all that useful. But the main reason I wrote it in was that, when connected to the Core Fighter, it could serve as a Sub-Flight System, which made it pretty convenient in its own way.