"What did you say!?"
Seigell's shuttle had just been repaired and was ready for takeoff.
Yet before the shuttle could leave the passageway, news of a disaster from the Lunar Sphere arrived.
A bomb terrorist attack had occurred on lunar Copernicus—the "Copernicus Tragedy."
All Earth Sphere Allied Nations representatives and the entire United Nations leadership, including the Director-General of the United Nations, had died. There were no survivors.
Meanwhile, PLANT representative and parliamentary chairman Seigell Klein had escaped disaster because his shuttle malfunctioned and made him late.
"What are you going to do?"
Patrick Zala, dressed in a purple parliamentarian uniform, asked from his office.
"Call a meeting! Clear ourselves of suspicion!" Seigell Klein replied wearily.
Listening to his old friend's answer and seeing the rare exhaustion on his face, Patrick Zala sighed, shook his head, and ended the video call.
Although this news was good for Patrick Zala of the Pro-War Faction, it was too good!
If mishandled, then...
"Who was it?"
Seigell Klein looked out at PLANT, a faint cold gleam flashing in his eyes.
He was no fool. Even a three-year-old could see through such blatant scheming and framing.
Yet the framing did not chill him. What truly enraged him was the traitor!
A traitor had actually appeared within PLANT!
The timing of the shuttle's damage was too perfect—perfect enough to make his blood run cold!
'PLANT's conspiracy!'
'PLANT must pay for the representatives who died at the lunar conference!'
'Seigell Klein failed to arrive at the lunar conference on time due to a shuttle malfunction. His luck was truly good!'
'The conflict between PLANT and Earth!'
'Seigell Klein, the accidental survivor, made his first statement: He deeply mourned everyone who died in the lunar tragedy. PLANT would spare no effort in personally executing the criminals responsible for this tragedy!'
'PLANT's strategic deployments mobilized and gathered.'
'...'
Public opinion flooded both Earth and PLANT, with each side holding to its own story.
PLANT's reaction was manageable, but Earth's response was the most intense.
Under deliberate media guidance, countless experts' conspiracy theories surfaced.
Why had Seigell's shuttle broken down at exactly the right time? And why had it been repaired right after the explosion?
As PLANT's parliamentary chairman, how could his shuttle possibly malfunction? And malfunction so conveniently?
Just as PLANT and Earth traded barbs in an attempt to clear themselves of suspicion,
On February 7, CE 70,
A piece of news shook the world and ignited the entire planet.
On February 7, the Atlantic Federation, represented by a member state, proposed issuing the Alaska Declaration.
It claimed that the terrorist attack on the lunar conference had been carried out by PLANT, and that it was a declaration of war by PLANT against Earth—or rather, against all Naturals.
It also announced the establishment of the international organization known as the "Earth Alliance," intended to replace the United Council, whose leadership had suffered massive casualties in the lunar conference and was on the verge of collapse.
Orb, an island nation in the southern Pacific, possessed industrial and military strength vastly disproportionate to its tiny territory and scarce natural resources.
Its indiscriminate policy of accepting Coordinators had made it Earth's only "paradise for Coordinators."
At the same time, because it had accepted Coordinators, Orb had developed cutting-edge technology far beyond that of other Earth nations. It also possessed its own Mass Accelerator and the space colony resource satellite Heliopolis.
"Do they not know what this means?"
Uzmī Ula Asaha, the current Head of Orb United Nations, sat in his office, staring at the projected broadcast of the Alaska Declaration with countless thoughts running through his mind.
"Father!"
The door opened, and a woman with short golden hair pushed her way in.
Her tone and choice of words were as masculine as a man's, if one ignored her slightly youthful yet beautiful, sharply defined features and her clear voice.
"Cagalli? You... why are you dressed like that again?" Uzmī Ula Asaha looked at his tomboyish daughter, and a trace of sadness rose within him.
If only back then...
"That's not important! What matters is, what are you going to do, Father?" Cagalli rushed to Uzmī Ula Asaha's desk, her brown eyes fixed tightly on him.
She might have been young, but that did not mean she was stupid. Anyone with a brain could see that this declaration meant things were about to go terribly wrong.
"Orb! Will forever remain a neutral nation!" Uzmī Ula Asaha looked into Cagalli's determined eyes, and suddenly felt a little comforted.
Even if she was not a boy, she could still inherit our will, couldn't she?
"What do you intend to do, Father?" Cagalli quietly breathed a sigh of relief. She was truly afraid—afraid that Orb would be dragged into this.
The current situation was no longer merely tense; it was poised to erupt.
Orb appeared powerful, but its population was small. Whether facing PLANT, whose technology surpassed its own, or the Atlantic Federation, whose population and military far outnumbered it, Orb stood no chance.
"You'll know tomorrow."
Uzmī Ula Asaha said nothing more. He merely stared absently at the azure ocean beyond the window. The world was in chaos!
February 8.
As nations around the world joined the Atlantic Federation one after another, the Head of Orb United Nations issued a declaration of neutrality to the entire world, including PLANT: "No matter how events develop from this day forward, Orb will always uphold the principles of independence and neutrality! We will remain neutral forever!"
It was also known as the Orb's Neutrality Declaration.
"Neutrality? Only two kinds of people in this world can remain neutral!"
Yet just as Uzmī Ula Asaha delivered his neutrality declaration, a man in a golden robe sat in a certain conference room, swirling a glass of red wine as he murmured, "Those with absolute strength, and the utterly weak with no value at all!"
"Neutrality... what a wonderful word. Unfortunately, if a nation like that remains neutral, wouldn't I lose a great deal of fun?"
Anyone with discernment knew that from this moment on, the world was truly in chaos!
This was merely the beginning.
Time returned to February 13!
July Colony~
"Aunt Lenoya? Is Brother Noer not better yet?"
Today was the third day since Noer had been sent away. Anna walked up to Lenoya Sala and asked cautiously.
"Don't worry. He's recovering well. Before long, you'll be able to see each other again!" Lenoya Sala put down the documents in her hands and turned to look at Anna, who had been despondent for days.
Seeing Anna's haggard face, Lenoya Sala could not help pulling her into an embrace. "How about this? In a few days, you can come with me to visit Noer."
"But... I... I'm afraid to go."
A flicker of life appeared in Anna's eyes, but when she thought of Noer's face, the stir in her heart turned into terror and unease.
Perhaps she would never forget the sight of Noer lying in that room, crimson blood staining the entire floor.
Every night, she could see Noer's expression twisting in pain.
"It's all right. You didn't do it on purpose, and Noer even asked me to tell you that he doesn't blame you!" Seeing Anna's expression, Lenoya Sala felt a faint ache in her heart.
Coordinators might be intelligent, but that could not change the fact that she was only an eight-year-old child.
Before you continue