Shinn's voice successfully shattered the amorous atmosphere in the captain's room. Lacus leaped out of Reid's arms like a startled rabbit, her face flushing as she hastily straightened her clothes.
As for Reid, he knew that even if they had continued, he couldn't have "eaten" Lacus just then. After all, even if Shinn hadn't shown up, they still had to go out and meet Talia, the ZAFT frontline commander.
That woman was a seasoned expert at shipboard affairs. If Lacus had just lost her virginity, Talia would have seen through it in a single glance.
However, no man could be expected to be in a good mood after being interrupted while flirting with a girl.
Although Lacus was quick and her expression management was impeccable, when the captain's room door opened, Shinn saw that their clothes were in order. Reid was sitting opposite the captain's desk, so Shinn assumed they were just discussing business. He naively placed the water and sandwiches in his hands on the desk and said, "Chairman, Miss Lacus, I'll just leave these here."
After speaking, Shinn saluted. Seeing Reid nod, he turned and left.
At that moment, Shinn had no idea that Reid was already considering whether to ask Captain Talia to borrow a Training GINN—now only usable as an engineering machine—for Shinn to pilot.
As everyone knows, pro players of Gundam fighting games eventually use training units to虐 Gundams to prove their mastery.
Reid felt that Shinn was currently in need of such a battle to prove that he was the protagonist of this era. It was time for him to pilot a Training GINN in actual combat against a Gundam.
After Shinn left, with reason having returned, Lacus also became shy and reserved. Hugging and cuddling were fine, but he could forget about anything else.
Moreover, the ZAFT forces here soon sent a second guide.
This guide was much more normal: Lunamaria Hawke.
The only problem was that when Shinn and Lunamaria met, they both froze for a moment.
Reid could clearly feel their eyes lock for an instant.
But because he had changed Shinn's destiny, he and Lunamaria were no longer red-uniformed classmates.
Their only remaining interaction was probably at the Armory One colony, where Lunamaria had heard Shinn's roars during a fight.
However, Shinn's chaotic battle cries alone were certainly not enough for Lunamaria to recognize him as the pilot of the Delta Plus from Armory One.
This was because as long as Shinn kept his mouth shut and stood quietly to the side, his innocent-looking face made him seem quite harmless.
So, although their eyes met, Lunamaria merely gave a polite nod. And Shinn, having been exposed to Mayu's diverse group of beautiful best friends, didn't stand there gawking either, returning the nod in kind.
Lunamaria then smiled with exceptional brilliance at Lacus and said, "Miss Lacus, welcome to this base. Mr. Orphee is not feeling well, so I will be your guide from now on."
Seeing Reid now dutifully acting as a bodyguard, Lacus understood that this Lunamaria before them was likely no problem. She switched on her friendly and welcoming persona, and in no time, she and Lunamaria were able to chat about topics like makeup and fashion coordination.
The subsequent meeting with Talia went smoothly. She invited Lacus for a simple meal. Perhaps feeling that they had lost a great deal of face this time, the four Coordinators never appeared again.
However, Reid clearly sensed Talia's attention lingering on him for a long time.
But Talia obviously didn't recognize the disguised Reid. This was a credit to Lacus's methodical journey to the front lines; Talia would never have suspected Reid.
After all, how could Reid, the Chairman of the Military Committee of the New Misurugi Kingdom, possibly neglect his domestic duties for half a month during a world war to act as Lacus's bodyguard?
As for why Reid was nowhere to be seen in the New Misurugi Kingdom? The envoys of various nations were used to it. It was standard operating procedure for Reid Isaac to be unavailable and even go into seclusion for months at a time. Who could blame him? The position of Chairman of the Military Committee was just his part-time job; his main profession was still a researcher.
After the meeting with Talia, Lacus received permission to move about in the nearby town. That evening, she flew the Pink Cross away from the ZAFT frontline base and found a relatively flat piece of terrain near the target town to land.
It had to be understood that the Pink Cross was, after all, a new, state-of-the-art warship from the New Misurugi Kingdom. Neither Lacus nor Talia would be at ease letting it spend the night in a ZAFT frontline base.
However, after the Pink Cross left the ZAFT frontline base, Reid and Shinn took advantage of the night to leave the ship in their Mobile Suits.
After quietly entering the ruined outskirts of Bogotá, the two used the GN Capacitors they carried to cover Shinn's GP-08 (Phantom Rose) α with a Stealth Camouflage Cloth, temporarily concealing it.
Shinn himself changed into local civilian clothes to scout the area around their hiding spot in the ruins.
Meanwhile, Reid, piloting the GP-08 (Phantom Rose) β, activated the Obscurant Umbrella System and flew deep into the city at high altitude. He used his sniper scope to observe the deployment of the Earth Alliance forces within the city, while also looking for any opportunity to launch a night raid and capture Neo Roanoke directly.
However, what Reid hadn't expected was that while he was away on reconnaissance, Shinn would have his fated romantic encounter.
To be honest, the area Reid had chosen to hide the GP-08 (Phantom Rose) α was not random. It was a massive crater, which at a glance was clearly made by something like a Positron Cannon.
From above, one had an unobstructed view of the crater's interior.
Therefore, the GP-08 (Phantom Rose) α, covered by the GN Stealth Camouflage Cloth, simply had to kneel on the side of the crater. No one would bother jumping into such a huge pit to walk through it.
The Mobile Suit's height was just right for the cockpit to be level with the crater's edge, allowing one to jump out with a single leap.
The surrounding city had been bombed into rubble and broken walls, filled with dangerously unstable buildings. Even if someone were around, moving through such a place by moonlight alone was extremely dangerous.
However, as Shinn was exploring the surroundings, he suddenly noticed a girl on a building ahead, dancing gracefully under the moonlight.
Normally, the combination of three elements—late night, a war-torn city of rubble, and a girl dancing in the moonlight—would make any normal person think they had encountered a ghost.
After all, what kind of decent girl would be dancing under the moonlight at this time, in this place? If you said she was a demon in human form, some would probably believe you.
But Shinn didn't care. His one-track mind could only come up with the most simple thought: "It's too dangerous for a girl like that to be dancing in such a place. The building below has been half-destroyed; it could collapse at any moment."
So, Shinn shouted up from the street below, "Hey! You, the one dancing on the roof! It's too dangerous! Get down from there, quick!"
At this time, in a city occupied by the Atlantic Federation, who else could be dancing on a rooftop?
Naturally, it was Stella Loussier, whose brain circuitry differed from that of a normal person.
Moreover, due to the drug experiments, she behaved very much like a small, easily startled animal. Of course, her reaction to being startled was usually to tear open the throat of whatever scared her with a weapon.
So, Shinn's shout made Stella's dance steps falter. Coupled with the fact that the building was already unstable and the roof wasn't solid to begin with, after a few frantic steps, the rooftop collapsed before Shinn's very eyes, slanting down to the next floor. Stella plummeted down with it.
At that moment, realizing he had caused trouble, Shinn rushed over to check on the girl's condition.
Then there was good news and bad news.
The good news was that below this half-collapsed building was a large pool of water, likely formed after the basement caved in and water pipes burst. The girl hadn't fallen to her death; she had fallen into the water.
The bad news was that the girl didn't seem to know how to swim, or perhaps the fall from such a height had made her so scared she forgot she could. She was now flailing about in the water.
At this point, Shinn's actions completely outpaced his thoughts. He totally forgot he was on a mission and that his own presence here at this time was highly unusual.
With the speed he used to change clothes in training camp, Shinn stripped off his jacket and trousers while sprinting, then dived directly into the water to save her.
However, the danger of a drowning person struggling during a water rescue needs no further explanation.
Stella was also an Enhanced Person, with strength greater than an adult male's. In an instant, she pushed Shinn, who was trying to lift her, back under the water.
Shinn clearly lacked experience in underwater rescue. Instead of first securing the victim's neck with his arm, he went to grab her waist.
It was a good thing Shinn was a genuine Coordinator, and that all the attribute points that should have gone to intelligence had been poured into his reflexes and physical constitution.
In addition, Stella seemed to realize Shinn was trying to save her. After struggling a little longer and scratching Shinn's face, she suddenly went still.
By now, Shinn was also exhausted, and for a moment, the two of them just floated on the water's surface.
After Shinn caught his breath, he finally dragged Stella to the edge of the pit and pulled her ashore.
It was the middle of the night, and both of them were soaked. Even in the equatorial region, they felt a sudden chill.
Moreover, after being rescued, Stella remembered the feeling of suffocation and, with a terrified expression, kept crying out, "I don't want to die."
At this moment, Shinn's emotional intelligence came online. Just like in the original story, he hugged Stella and promised that he would protect her, that he wouldn't let her die.
The following plot unfolded with a striking similarity to the original story.
The two found a less drafty building. Shinn used the items in the pants he had taken off before jumping in the water to find some combustibles and start a fire.
He then found some ropes in the ruins, strung them up over the fire to make a simple drying rack, and they both placed all their wet clothes on the ropes to dry. Then, the two young people sat back-to-back, naked, warming themselves by the fire before they began to tell each other their names and get to know one another.
Fortunately, at this point, Shinn finally remembered he was on a secret mission. He told Stella he was a local who had escaped from these ruins and had only come back at night to see if his old house was still standing, hoping to retrieve some personal belongings if it was.
As for Stella, she was lucky to be able to state her name clearly. For everything else, she was like a simple-minded girl, unable to explain anything. She just said she was out playing (which was the truth), and Shinn believed her.
At this point, Shinn's hormones were clouding his judgment. This time, there was no Athrun coming to their rescue in a speedboat, so after their clothes were dry, Shinn actually prepared to escort Stella back to the Atlantic Federation-controlled city.
However, good deeds are rewarded. On their way to the city, they encountered Sting and Auel, who had come out to look for Stella because she hadn't returned.
Perhaps it was because Shinn had saved Stella, or perhaps because Shinn looked like a teenager just entering society.
Sting and Auel mistook Shinn for an ordinary resident trying to escape the city and the war under the cover of night.
So, as the four of them parted ways, Sting, who had the clearest head when not in combat, said directly to Shinn, "Kid, if you want to escape the city, you shouldn't be heading in the direction you came from. That way leads to the ZAFT defense line; you could get shot on sight.
"If you want to escape, go out from the east side of the city. The patrols are lighter there. As long as you have the luck to get through the jungle, you'll be out of the warzone. Also, catch this."
After speaking, Sting tossed a bag to Shinn.
Shinn opened it and saw it contained emergency food like compressed biscuits, a few bottles of water, adrenaline, bandages, and antiseptic solution. It was clearly an Atlantic Federation military first-aid kit.
After tossing the bag to Shinn, Sting paid no more attention to this "civilian" and drove straight back to the military camp.
Shinn could only return to the crater where the GP-08 (Phantom Rose) α was hidden, holding the first-aid kit with a dazed expression, waiting for Reid to come back. His mind belatedly processed the situation.
"Crap, I've really screwed up, haven't I? That guy could casually toss out an Atlantic Federation military first-aid kit, which means all three of them are Atlantic Federation soldiers? No, wait, the Atlantic Federation is letting a girl like Stella on the battlefield!"
So when Reid, having circled the city and found no opportunities, returned in his Mobile Suit, he saw the scratches on Shinn's face, his still-wrinkled white T-shirt, and the Atlantic Federation military first-aid kit behind him. With a pained expression, he could only ask, "Ensign Shinn Asuka, you'd better tell me the scratches on your face are from trying to pet a stray cat, that you then accidentally missed your step and fell into a puddle, and that you were finally lucky enough to pick up a first-aid kit left behind on the battlefield by the Atlantic Federation military."
Shinn could only scratch his face awkwardly. Finally, he said in shame, "I'm sorry, Chairman. I seem to have rescued an Atlantic Federation soldier..."
Shinn then confessed everything, recounting his meeting with Stella and the subsequent romantic encounter in full detail.
After listening, Reid looked at Shinn with a strange expression, noting that the kid had somehow gotten entangled with Stella again, and that the romantic encounter from the original story had even been preserved.
Normally, Stella was completely naive and clueless, which was why she dared to strip naked in front of Shinn, a stranger, just because he promised to protect her.
Reid didn't believe for a second that Shinn hadn't taken a peek at Stella's naked body.
Fortunately, Shinn's self-control was decent, and he hadn't turned into a beast on the spot.
Of course, not turning into a beast had also saved Shinn's own life. If he had really attacked Stella, her emotional distress might have caused her to instinctively use her killing techniques to counter-kill him.
So, in the end, Reid could only summarize in a heavy voice, "Trading a few scratches on your face for a look at a pretty girl's naked body, you really came out ahead. That Atlantic Federation girl has a great figure, doesn't she?"
At that moment, Shinn seemed to be genuinely recalling Stella's figure. For a moment, he didn't catch the tone of Reid's voice and even nodded in agreement, only then realizing he had apparently done something incredibly stupid.
Sure enough, when Shinn looked up again, he saw Reid's face was dark with storm clouds. Then Reid said, "Ensign Shinn Asuka, due to your serious violation of the rules of covert operations, you will write a self-criticism of at least 1,000 words and a detailed report of 6,000 words upon your return. After I have reviewed and approved them, they will be read aloud to the entire army at your unit's regular monthly meeting.
"Now, go start up the Mobile Suit. Because of your reckless behavior, we have to change our position!"
(End of Chapter)