"How about it?"
Bella straightened up, looking proud. Her rounded curves seemed ready to burst out of the uniform wrapped tightly around her slender body.
"The surroundings are great."
Xu De nodded as he looked at the beautiful, wealthy woman before him.
That was the privilege of wealth and status.
He had seen plenty of things like this in his previous life. The fig leaves covering the Atlantic world were no secret to him.
Some people were born already standing at a starting point others could never reach in their entire lives.
The layers of class were like rings of copper walls, dividing people into ranks and tiers.
What he had to do wasn't complain about his lot in life or cling to the powerful and become a corporate wage slave. He had to make his own way through sheer ability.
"Really? That's good, then!"
"I've never been to East Asia. I'm glad you're comfortable there~"
To be honest, if the original Xu De had received this much concern from a wealthy woman, he probably would already have fallen for her.
But Xu De's core had changed. It wasn't that he wasn't interested in such things; he just had more important matters to attend to.
Across from him, Bella saw that the young man remained calm and simply sat there without fawning over her, and she let out a quiet breath of relief.
They came from different worlds, and she didn't know what Xu De was really like.
Seeing that he hadn't immediately thrown himself at her like everyone else, and hadn't been especially impressed by the luxurious surroundings, put her at ease—but also left her strangely disappointed.
"About this assessment..."
Xu De asked softly.
He had contacted her as soon as he arrived on the Moon, and Bella had replied quickly. That was why they had spoken earlier at the camp.
"I asked my uncle about it."
"Five people will be selected this time. You have nine competitors."
"The assessment hasn't been decided yet. It could be a battle, or a comprehensive evaluation that includes one."
"The simulations should be ready in about forty-eight hours. Then you'll have two days to practice, and the battles will start after that."
Bella explained.
"Besides you, five of them have records of taking down Ginns single-handedly. The other four have records of taking down Ginns as part of a team."
"Here are their detailed files."
Xu De's expression remained as calm as ever as Bella handed him the digital files.
After saying, "Excuse me," he lowered his head and began to read.
There were ten people, or nine if he didn't count himself.
Bella's files weren't very extensive, but they included names, combat records, and evaluations from their commanding officers.
They were clearly internal files used for assigning positions.
Just as Bella had said, five of the nine had records of taking down Ginns single-handedly.
Their experiences were probably much like his, at least on the surface.
They'd all been scattered by the first three waves of attacks, then happened to get a chance to fight an opponent one-on-one.
Of course, every one of them was an elite, and all were junior officers.
The odds of an ordinary soldier breaking through their small universe in battle and taking down a Ginn alone were probably lower than Xu De's odds of winning the lottery.
Unless they ran into Kira.
The other four had destroyed several enemy warships and Ginns through teamwork.
They were all elite special-operations teams without exception.
Some had even come from top-secret units. The names of the units they'd served in had been blacked out so thoroughly that they were impossible to read.
"This one is the most dangerous."
As Bella spoke, she edged closer to Xu De, whether intentionally or not.
A faint fragrance drifted over. Looking down, Xu De could see the girl's butterfly-like eyelashes gently fluttering, as if ready to take flight at any moment.
He brought his thoughts back to the matter at hand and looked where Bella's delicate hand was pointing.
The young man was named Hal. He belonged to an elite flight squadron of the First Fleet and had taken down a Ginn by himself.
His commanding officer's evaluation read: loner, selfish, mildly violent tendencies.
"He might support Blue Cosmos, so..."
Bella raised her beautiful eyes, worry showing in them.
"So he might ignore the rules and target me directly."
Xu De finished the thought for her.
"That's right. The others probably won't help."
Most of the people selected for this and willing to take part were young junior officers who wanted to advance. They were aiming to become senior officers, pilot new mobile suits, and distinguish themselves in battle.
They were bound to resent a corporal like Xu De showing up.
Besides, they were all competing against one another. If Hal really did provoke him, it would be normal for the others not to help.
So Xu De's position wouldn't be an easy one.
"Are there detailed videos of their combat records?"
Xu De asked again.
"That might be difficult..."
Bella's head drooped apologetically.
"It's all right."
Xu De hadn't expected much. The black boxes recording combat feats were confidential, partly to prevent ZAFT assassination operations.
There was no way Bella could get her hands on them so easily.
After thinking it over, Bella added, "But there shouldn't be a problem getting training videos."
"If they've ever trained in a public training area, that is."
"Sorry for the trouble. I owe you one."
Xu De lowered his eyes as he spoke.
Training videos would still be useful. Especially Hal's—given his personality, he was sure to have videos of himself showing off in the public training area.
Know yourself and your enemy, and you'll never be defeated. The more information he could get on his competitors, the better.
It was like watching your opponent's style and moves before playing a game of chess.
Only after understanding them could you strike in a way that countered them.
That wasn't cheating. It was intelligence warfare.
It wasn't as if he was the only one with connections among the ten. The others might get to see his training videos too. In any case, it was best to be as cautious as possible.
"It's all right. You saved me, too."
Seeing how serious Xu De looked, Bella's fair cheeks flushed as she spoke.
Perhaps because she'd already formed a favorable impression of him, Bella thought he looked especially handsome like this, and her heart raced.
Xu De just smiled.
"Then we're even."
They had access to different information, after all. Xu De was only a corporal, while Bella came from a prominent family. They belonged to different worlds.
In the end, most things in the world were like war: whoever got more detailed information first had the advantage.
Although his knowledge of the story gave him a natural edge on the big picture, he was clearly lacking when it came to minor bits of information.
Bella's information was extremely useful. He really could consider his debt for saving her repaid.
"How can that be?"
Bella pouted in protest at Xu De's words.
Her sweet, girlish look, paired with her stunning figure, was enough to set anyone's imagination running wild.
"Anyway, I'm going to repay you!"
As she spoke, Bella handed him an electronic menu and proudly patted her equally impressive chest.
"Order whatever you like!"
"..."
So this was what it felt like to be kept by a rich woman?
Xu De stared at the prices on the menu. A single dish cost almost half a month's wages, and he couldn't help feeling speechless.
But he wasn't one to be fussy. He took the menu and asked, "Anything you don't eat?"
"Uh..."
Bella's heart beat a little faster at Xu De's concern.
It wasn't that no one had ever shown her concern before. It was just that, coming from Xu De, who usually had such a cool expression, it made her feel as if he were treating her with a special kind of tenderness.
"Probably... nothing?"
Bella answered softly.
"Then let's go with sweet and spicy."
Xu De nodded.
Before you continue