"Is everything ready?" Standing on the top floor of the second-tallest building in Granada, Hymen Jamirov looked down through the glass window at the vehicles and pedestrians below, which appeared as small as ants.
"Everything is prepared, Lord Jamitov."
"Mm, let's begin."
"But regarding Lord Kinnikuman's side..."
Bang!
Giving no chance and showing no hesitation, Haman Karn directly shot the questioning subordinate, sending him to meet God.
The others present turned a blind eye to the scene as if nothing had happened, merely bowing their heads to Haman Karn.
"Clean it up."
"Yes!"
The body was dragged out of the room, and people quickly arrived to replace the carpet, cleaning everything thoroughly. They even scrubbed away the unpleasant scent of blood before everyone departed, leaving Haman Karn alone.
"Kinnikuman? Heh, nothing more than a useless pawn." Haman Karn continued to overlook the "ants" beneath his feet. With a curl of his lip, he walked to the wall, opened a secret door, stepped inside, and vanished.
...
In various parts of Granada and Von Braun City—whether they were high-level corporate executives, ordinary white-collar workers, or even vagrants in dark corners—the PADs of many people suddenly vibrated. Upon glancing at the messages, their gazes abruptly sharpened. Those who knew them and those who didn't all subconsciously took two steps back, startled by the sudden change in their aura.
But in the next second, even more people suddenly appeared beside them. Some were strangers, others were familiar friends or colleagues. Just as these individuals were about to act, they felt a slight sting in their necks, arms, or elsewhere. Sensing an unknown liquid being injected into their bodies, they immediately lost consciousness, slumped into the arms of the newcomers, and were silently carried away.
In an abandoned Port, several Salamis-class cruisers and Musai-class cruisers lay hidden. There was even a Magellan-class battleship, a Chibe-class high-speed heavy cruiser, and a Zanzibar-class mobile cruiser.
These warships were all equipped with enough MS, ranging from the Principality of Zeon's Zaku, Tiger, Dom, and Gelgoog, to the Federation's Mass-Production Astray!
"Lord Jamitov's orders. We may begin."
"Understood."
Whether they were crew members or MS pilots, their voices lacked any emotion, sounding as stiff as machinery. They went about their work with unquestioning diligence, executing the pre-arranged plan without independent thought or human vivacity.
As the order was issued, everyone received their mission plans and specific tasks, and they swung into action.
Engines ignited, warships set sail, and MS lifted off, but...
As they cleared the abandoned Port, human expressions finally appeared on the faces of these machine-like people.
Fear!
Waiting for them outside the abandoned Port were not their mission objectives, but swarms of Federation warships and MS. The dark muzzles of rifles and cannons were already locked onto them, their bright light held in check, ready to be unleashed.
"This is the Earth Federation's 32nd Mobile Fleet. Surrender immediately, or our forces will open fire. I repeat, surrender immediately, or our forces will open..."
"Sir, high-energy reactions detected! The enemy has opened fire!"
"Is that so?" The commander adjusted the brim of his cap and issued a cold order: "Begin the attack. Annihilate them all."
"Understood!"
...
In Earth-Moon orbit, Kinnikuman led his fleet toward the Moon, but before they could even see it, they were intercepted by a Federation fleet ahead.
"That's... Revil..." Looking at the black-and-grey Kirin-class warship at the center of the fleet, Kinnikuman recognized it as General Revil's personal command ship—the General Revil.
If he had only encountered an ordinary Federation fleet, Kinnikuman might have had a chance to use his status and rank to stall them. However, he never expected that General Revil himself would lead the team to arrest him. General Revil's personal presence meant there was no room for negotiation.
Beep beep beep...
"Sir, the General Revil is requesting communication."
"Patch it through."
"Yes."
The communication connected. Kinnikuman looked at the familiar face on the screen and slumped dejectedly into the captain's seat. His hair, which still had some grey, turned white at a pace visible to the naked eye.
"Heh, I didn't expect you to move out personally." No pleasantries, no questions, and no confrontation; the mere sight of each other explained everything.
"The unrest in Granada and Von Braun City has already... No, it should be said that there was never a chance for unrest to occur."
"Heh, old fox. As expected, everything is within your plan? You've been waiting for this moment for a long time, haven't you?"
"...I have been giving you chances, and I believed you wouldn't make this decision."
"Heh, true. But... what choice did I ever have?"
"...You knew all along?"
"Jamitov thought I was kept in the dark the whole time. But he doesn't know that back then, if it weren't for my secret assistance, his plan to destroy the Kleismann Family would have had no chance of success. Even after his success, I was the one protecting him in the shadows. Otherwise, he wouldn't have lived until now."
Indeed, Kinnikuman had seen through Haman Karn long ago and had even been looking after him, intentionally pretending to be ignorant while being used by him.
"Why?"
"...His mother... was my maternal aunt, although she was kicked out of the family back then."
"...You said you had no choice, but now I will give you two." Since the conversation had reached this point, there was no need to continue chatting; if they were to talk more, it would be in private. "Surrender, and I guarantee you can retire honorably with your current status. Or die in battle, under the charge of Treason."
"Heh, planning for decades, only for it to be for naught in the end." Kinnikuman laughed self-mockingly and waved his hand at his subordinates. "Disarm all weapons. Surrender to General Revil."
Kinnikuman gave up. It wasn't that he didn't want to resist, but that resistance was impossible. His fleet consisted of old warships, while the opposition had entirely new models. Furthermore, they were outnumbered in both ships and MS, and the enemy's armaments were far more powerful. There was no chance of victory in a fight.
Additionally, Kinnikuman was tired. He had already fulfilled the entrustment of his favorite aunt from years ago, and he had done well enough. Seeing no hope for success, he simply gave up. He could still retire with the highest benefits and enjoy a brief retirement, rather than ending his life bearing the infamy of a traitor.
Moreover, Kinnikuman could see that among his subordinates, no one wanted to resist, and no one wanted to become a traitor.
...
On Earth, in the Chairman's home, the Chairman's face was contorted with rage as he looked at Creuset sitting opposite him. The room was filled with large men in black suits and sunglasses.
"Creuset, do you have any idea what you're doing!?"
"I know exactly what I'm doing, Your Excellency."
"Kidnapping the Federation Chairman—that's Treason!"
"Firstly, this is your home; I haven't kidnapped you. Secondly... the one committing Treason isn't me, but you, Your Excellency. Or rather, the Continental Revival Foundation that includes you? Or perhaps the Restoration Society?"
"You!" Hearing the name "Continental Revival Foundation," followed immediately by the long-buried "Restoration Society," the Chairman's expression shifted from rage to panic. "What are you talking about? I don't know anything!"
"Don't be in a hurry, Your Excellency." Creuset maintained an elegant smile as he handed a document to the Chairman. "Take a look first. Perhaps it will help you remember something."
"..." The Chairman remained unmoved, refusing to look at the documents, clearly intending to play dumb to the end. But Creuset spoke another name that caused him to break once more.
"The Kleismann massacre?"
"You! How do you..."
"Look at it."
The Chairman knew he couldn't hide anymore. His hands trembled as he picked up the documents and flipped through them page by page. With every page he turned, his face grew a shade paler. By the end, the documents slipped from his hands, and his knees hit the floor with a thud.
"I beg you! Spare me! I was forced into it back then! I will recommend you to be the next Federation Chairman, just spare me! Right! And my assets! I can give them all to you! I can help you convince the others! And Haman Karn! I can tell you all of his arrangements and plans! Granada and Von Braun! He intends to strike at Granada and Von Braun! And Yang Hui's..."
"Tsk, tsk, tsk." Creuset clicked his tongue and shook his head. "Your Excellency, I'm not interested in things I already know."
"You... what did you say!?"
"Don't worry, that piece of old tofu... Mmm, I really like that nickname. Someone is already dealing with him, and none of his plans will succeed. So... Your Excellency, you should know..."
"I know! I know what to do! I will convince the others to support you as the new Chairman..."
"No, you're mistaken. First, I don't need you to convince the others. Second, I don't want to be the Chairman. You should nominate General Gopp as the new Chairman. Do you understand?"
"This..."
"Hmm? Is there a problem?"
"No... none at all! I understand what to do!"
"Mm, very good."
Creuset stood up and left. He left the documents with him; there was no need to leave anyone to monitor him. Since he dared to show him the documents, the Chairman would naturally realize they were copies and that backups existed, so he wouldn't dare act recklessly.
As for the assets mentioned earlier... it depended on his own initiative. Creuset wasn't interested, but if he were wise, he should cut his losses and hand them over to the Earth Federation under some beautiful pretext.
If he wasn't wise... heh.
...
In Granada, a convoy was driving toward the outskirts. Haman Karn sat in the central sedan with his legs crossed. The direction they were heading was precisely where Yang Hui's secret base was located.
"Heh, hidden quite well. It took me a great deal of effort to find the exact location, but all of it will be mine." As they drew closer to the target, Haman Karn's smile grew wider.
From the beginning, he had suspected that Yang Hui had a secret base. No matter how formidable Yang Hui was, it was impossible for him to develop entirely new MS in such a short time and bring so many new technologies to the Federation.
Furthermore, the people he had planted in Anaheim had not discovered Anaheim researching these technologies, and many emerging civilian technologies had appeared out of thin air.
This led Haman Karn to speculate, and after a difficult investigation, he had finally discovered the location of this secret base.
"Lord, we've arrived." The vehicles stopped, and the men inside were fully armed.
"Proceed. Kill everyone, and try not to damage the things inside."
"Yes!"
The armed personnel quickly exited the vehicles, found the hidden entrance, and swarmed in after opening it using a hacking program.
The sounds of battle were already carrying over from the vicinity of the Moon. Haman Karn listened, enjoyed it, and fantasized about a beautiful future. Everything was proceeding according to his plan.
But very soon, he noticed something was wrong. After his men went down, he didn't hear a single gunshot, and not even a report came back.
"What's the situation?" Haman Karn asked into the walkie-talkie, but there was no reply.
Specializing in self-preservation, Haman Karn immediately realized something was amiss. He scrambled into the driver's seat to drive away, but...
Thump, thump, thump, thump...
Heavy footsteps sounded right in his ears. The vibrations traveled through the seat into his body. Turning his head, he saw several Astray Gundams rapidly approaching.
"Damn it!"
He started the car and was about to floor the gas pedal when a voice came over the walkie-talkie, causing him to stop his right foot.
"Old tofu, come down and chat? Or die with the title of a traitor?"
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