"I remember."
"Second Lieutenant Murrue Ramias."
The captain of the Archangel.
For Xu De, that was a name he could never forget.
"You don't have to call me 'sir.' I'm just a technical officer."
Maliu's gentle voice was accompanied by the sound of a woman's fingers tapping away at a keyboard.
Being a technical officer didn't mean there was no distinction in rank, but their interactions weren't as strict as those between a superior and a subordinate.
"It's all the same."
Xu De replied.
"You're different from Libby."
Maliu smiled.
If that had been Libby, he would probably have seized the opportunity and pushed his luck.
He'd never be so serious.
Xu De seemed different from all the other men here. At the thought, the little deer in Maliu's heart gave an inexplicable hop.
But Maliu soon collected herself and focused even more intently on the inspection.
It wouldn't do if the boy ran into trouble in battle because of her.
"I'm just doing my duty."
Xu De smiled.
"Then I hope you'll win your first battle, young man."
With Xu De's current composure in the face of danger, he was sure to become an elite if he survived this.
Putting aside the faint, barely noticeable feelings stirring in her heart, Maliu said just that.
"I'll take your word for it."
As Xu De finished speaking, the streams of data before him slowly came to a halt.
"Everything's functioning normally. Next time, you'll have to do it yourself."
The moment she finished speaking, Maliu felt a faint twinge of regret.
She wasn't some clueless little girl.
Her words could easily be misunderstood, so she hurriedly tried to clarify.
"...Good luck in battle."
Maliu didn't talk to people much. Research was her main job, and she wasn't as socially adept as she would be later, when she became a captain.
As she spoke, she came across as a little more endearingly awkward.
"Okay."
Maliu's words were a little ambiguous, but Xu De was already focused entirely on the battle ahead and didn't notice anything amiss.
He wasn't someone without feelings, but some things mattered more than others.
There simply wasn't any room in his mind to think about that right now.
"By the way, sir, you remember where the escape ship is, right?"
"Ah... Hmm?"
Maliu was still embarrassed when Xu De's question caught her off guard, but she answered anyway.
"I remember."
"Good."
Xu De didn't say anything more. He'd done what he could.
Besides, if Maliu had come over in person, she would be able to make it back alive without him saying anything.
A brief reminder was enough.
He stopped worrying about the captain he'd only just met and turned his gaze back to the many instrument panels and control sticks before him.
Then he took a deep breath.
That familiar feeling rose from the depths of his heart and flooded into his mind once more.
His experiences here were gradually merging with those from his past life, and the corners of Xu De's mouth lifted slightly.
A wave of confidence followed, filling his heart.
"I never thought I'd get the chance to go into space and fight humanoid robots in this life."
As he thought about it, the medication's stimulating effects helped him focus more and more.
This was the first battle since he'd come to this world. He couldn't lose.
Only by taking this first step would he have a chance to keep moving forward.
In this dangerous world, standing still would only get him swept up in the tide of the times. He wouldn't even know what killed him.
If he was going to do this, he'd be the strongest of them all!
After working up his resolve, Xu De heard the order to sortie over his comms and started the engines.
"Xu De, Defense Team Three, sortie!"
As the name suggested, Xu De's defense team was responsible for defending the entire space station.
There were four squads in all, each responsible for a designated area.
Each squad had five Moebius units, twenty Mistrals, and three Drake-class warships.
A major was in command.
Their mission was simply to assist with the defense and intercept missiles fired by the enemy Ginns.
The advantage was that they had plenty of freedom.
If the troops at the front held their ground, their squad wouldn't have anything to do.
Just as mentioned earlier, most people stationed here were the children of high-ranking officials who had paid a hefty sum or used their connections to get assigned here.
They were only here to pad their records and earn some medals.
The twenty Mistrals were supposedly there to protect the World Tree, but it seemed more like they were there to protect the Moebius pilots.
Of course, Xu De was an exception.
In the current formation, Xu De had been left out.
"Bella, how long do you think the Coordinators will hold out this time?"
Someone in the squad's internal comms asked with a laugh.
"I give them about an hour."
"I heard command brought most of the nuclear weapons this time."
Bella was one of the few female pilots, and she had a sweet voice.
As soon as she spoke, the squad's comms erupted in chatter.
"Seriously? They're bringing nukes too?"
"They want to wipe out those monsters once and for all, after all."
"Ahem."
The commander's cough cut in forcefully, interrupting their carefree conversation.
"Stop discussing military secrets, unless you want to end up in a military tribunal."
Though he said that, the commander knew how close the people here were and didn't sound too stern.
"Got it~"
Bella answered, then obediently fell silent.
Not every child of a high-ranking official was a spoiled brat.
In fact, there weren't many spoiled brats at all.
If the world really worked the way it did in TV shows, it would have fallen into chaos long ago.
In reality, having received an elite education from childhood, every one of them was shrewd enough to inherit their family's position.
As for their attitude toward Xu De, it was simple.
They ignored him.
After all, they came from different worlds. They didn't need to mock him and make an enemy for no reason, but that didn't mean they thought highly of him.
They just couldn't be bothered with someone from a different world.
It was like how they wouldn't insult the servants for no reason, but they wouldn't chat with them, either.
They came from different worlds. Talking to him would only lower their status.
As for Xu De, he was perfectly happy that nobody tried to talk to him.
He didn't need to coordinate with them.
Once the fighting started, those rich kids were more likely to drag him down than help him.
Still, as he listened quietly to their gossip, Xu De got a clearer idea of the Atlantic's overall plan.
After all, it was a national-level strategy.
They had given it some thought.
Without the Coordinators' N-Jammer Cancellers, the Coordinators' resistance would likely end here.
One full salvo of nuclear missiles would probably wipe out the bulk of the ZAFT fleet.
There would be no need for any fancy Gundams.
After losing most of its fleet, ZAFT would have no choice but to surrender.
Unfortunately, the appearance of the Neutron Jammers had completely upended their plans.
Nobody here was safe. The importance of the Gundams would only grow in the future.
Once he got back safely from the World Tree, he needed to stay away from unnecessary battles and build up his strength.
That was what mattered most.
He wasn't really looking to serve the Atlantic or anything.
Before you continue