Drift Without Brakes

"Good!"

On the other side, the instructor in the observation room slammed his fist against the armrest of his chair after seeing his top student successfully secure a victory.

That solid, clanging sound felt like a war drum, perfectly synchronized with the cheers erupting outside the window.

Thomas would surely secure the spot for Moebius this time; having such a valiant Champion under his command was a point of pride.

Revil was old, after all, and his judgment was failing.

Thinking this, he looked toward the man with anticipation, wanting to see astonishment and shock in his eyes.

However, he was quickly disappointed.

Revil hadn't even opened his eyes, simply keeping his head lowered as if he were dozing off.

He looked exactly like... his own father back home, sitting in a chair and falling asleep while watching a boring, deadlocked baseball game.

"..."

The red-necked instructor's face was truly red now.

Suppressing the urge to commit insubordination, the instructor opened his mouth and said, "Colonel, Xu De is taking the field."

If he didn't like watching a god-tier Champion, then he could watch how that inferior, second-class plebeian was utterly crushed by the Ginn.

After all, it was this General who had pushed through the opposition to approve the one-to-one operational difficulty of this Ginn.

"Mm."

Hearing this, Revil opened his eyes.

He only glanced at the instructor once, but those sharp eyes seemed to have seen through his thoughts, scaring the instructor so much that his gloating smile instantly withered.

However, Revil quickly withdrew his gaze, as if it had all been the instructor's imagination.

As for Xu De, amidst the many gazes—some cold, some disdainful, some curious—he walked past Thomas, who was currently looking at him with a provocative and smug expression.

The man's thick eyebrows were practically flying up to the heavens.

Needless to say, the cheers and applause of the crowd had greatly satisfied Thomas's ego and self-esteem.

"Thanks."

Ignoring Thomas, Xu De quickly entered the simulator.

Everything was exactly as it had been in the memories of the original host.

Xu De gently placed his hands on the control sticks.

Instantly, a familiar sensation surged up within him.

This wasn't a golden finger or a system, but the familiarity with fighter jets from his previous life.

"Come on."

Sitting in the cockpit, Xu De whispered to himself, and his previously calm, ripple-free eyes lit up.

Although it was merely an adjustment of his posture, the impression he gave off was like a precious blade being unsheathed—sharp and piercing.

The battle began amidst a field of ruins.

The debris belt rotated slowly between zero gravity and Earth's pull, like building blocks discarded by a child.

Xu De had chosen the debris belt in low Earth orbit as the battlefield.

Seeing the scene and weapons Xu De had selected, the crowd began to voice their various opinions.

Naturally, the loudest and most supported view among the supremacists was that Xu De was simply courting humiliation.

After all, in a combat zone with so many obstacles, they, as recruits, would crash if they were even slightly careless.

Conversely, the Ginn, capable of agile movement, would be completely unaffected.

Furthermore, the weapons Xu De chose were a Vulcan Cannon and a Linear Cannon, which meant he wouldn't even be able to deal effective damage.

"What a coward."

"I told you, how could that monkey be so brave?"

"I don't know how anyone could think this guy compares to Thomas."

"Utterly ridiculous."

"I think you'd better cut ties with this softie soon, Hans."

Listening to the crowd's words and the subtle gazes cast his way, Hans clenched his fists, keeping his head down in a display of forbearance.

On the other side, the instructor in the observation room let out a scornful laugh and snuck a glance at Revil, who now had his eyes wide open.

The instructor's gaze held a hint of mockery.

Seeing the look of surprise on Revil, it was clear he realized he had misjudged the situation.

However, since the other party was several ranks higher than him, he simply offered a few more words of praise for Thomas and left it at that.

As for Xu De, unaware of the discussion outside, he did not charge directly toward the Ginn upon entering the battlefield.

Instead, he moved in a circular pattern among the colony debris surrounding the Ginn, weaving nimbly through the wreckage.

"What is he trying to do?"

"Stalling for time?"

Doubts were being voiced throughout the company.

Yet, in the midst of this, some had already begun to notice something amiss.

Especially those who had just piloted the Moebius themselves.

Xu De's proficiency did not look like that of someone piloting for the first time at all.

He utilized every bit of inertia perfectly.

He was even picking up speed; he wasn't fleeing or stalling as others claimed, but rather seemed to be familiarizing himself with the machine and the combat environment.

The only reason they could maintain control was because the system was reasonably intelligent.

If they felt like they were driving a sports car with no brakes, then Xu De was currently drifting a sports car with no brakes at high speed.

It was as if the machine they were flying and the one Xu De was piloting were two completely different things.

Gradually, as Xu De's pace increased, the clamor in the training area died down, replaced by stunned silence and hushed discussions.

Likewise, the instructor's expression grew increasingly grim as he watched the screen.

After all, he never imagined that Xu De might actually know how to fly.

"Impossible. He only read the manual, how could he..."

The instructor couldn't stop muttering to himself.

Indeed, for an ordinary person, reaching Thomas's level after only reading the manual—while technically cheating—was still a decent feat in terms of pure results.

But Xu De's movements, while not yet on par with the elite pilots or the Zero pilots he had seen, could by no means be attributed to a typical recruit.

On the other side, Xu De was completely immersed in the battlefield from within the cockpit.

He didn't care at all about the opinions of those outside.

After using another sharp turn around the debris to evade the Ginn's machine gun lock-on, Xu De did not choose to continue circling this time. Instead, he adjusted the thrusters on both sides, silkily executing a sudden stop and turn that would be nearly impossible for a recruit.

The Moebius he piloted seemed to be nudged by an invisible hand, elegantly carving a tighter arc through the debris, not only avoiding obstacles and lock-ons but also seizing the opportunity to close the distance to the Ginn.

The maneuver looked clean, crisp, and simple, yet everyone watching collectively gasped.

Such a movement, where the machine felt like an extension of the pilot's own arm, was impossible to achieve unless one was an elite pilot.

Having finished his warm-up, Xu De's operations now allowed him to anticipate the inertial impact of every movement the machine made, enabling him to make adjustments in advance to ensure the machine always maintained its maximum speed.

Even his turns were handled this way.

The amount of calculation involved was enough to make an average person suffer a mental breakdown.

It was like performing a precise surgery—a surgery where the slightest mistake meant death.

If he had experience, it would be one thing, or perhaps his talent and intuition were just that strong; such things weren't unheard of.

But! He was a recruit!

This was nothing like the movements a recruit should be capable of; to them, it was a dimensional strike—it was simply too bullying.

Thinking this way, many felt that Xu De's previous dismissal of Thomas was no longer a big deal.

If someone is that powerful, what does it matter if they ignore you?

This was the mindset of another segment of the Atlantic Federation, aside from Blue Cosmos.

Simply put, it was the Darwinism of survival of the fittest.

The strong and the elite naturally possessed many privileges.