"Mm," Patrick hummed softly, lowering his head to continue reading the document in his hands. As he looked at the file, he continued, "I don't think Creuset is that kind of person."
"I don't think so either," Yuri agreed with a nod, then his tone shifted. "But sometimes, what we think doesn't match reality."
Patrick froze at his words, then nodded after a brief silence.
"You're right."
After this quiet acknowledgment, Patrick said no more, calmly flipping through the documents in his hands.
Watching Patrick, Yuri reported again.
"The tests for the ZGMF–X11A are basically complete. This MS can now be officially commissioned into service."
After his report, Yuri asked Patrick, "Who are you planning to assign as its pilot?"
"If there are no issues with Creuset, then this MS will be given to him to pilot."
Patrick looked up at Yuri and stated his thoughts. Hearing this, and thinking about all the test work Creuset had done on this MS, Yuri nodded in agreement.
"If there are no issues with him, this MS is indeed very suitable for him to pilot."
Hearing this, Patrick looked at the document and asked Yuri, "Is there anything else?"
Yuri glanced at Patrick, shook his head, and stood up.
"I won't disturb you any longer."
With that, Yuri walked toward the office door.
After leaving the Chairman's office, Yuri glanced at the time on his watch and made a decision.
"I'll make a trip to the hospital."
Muttering to himself, Yuri looked up and strode out of the PLANT Supreme Government Office Building.
Two days later.
"This is a summary of my movements inside and outside of PLANT from April until now."
Having finished writing the last of it, Creuset handed the report to the person in front of him. The man responsible for supervising Creuset took the document and nodded.
"Thank you for your cooperation, Captain Creuset!"
He then stood up, saluted Creuset, and walked out of the office.
Watching the man leave, Creuset asked in a gentle voice, "Do I need to continue staying here?"
"I'm sorry, but you will need to remain here until our investigation is fully complete."
The man glanced at Creuset and spoke apologetically.
Creuset's heart sank upon hearing this, but he managed a calm smile.
"I understand."
"Please make yourself comfortable. I have to get back to my work."
The man replied before turning and leaving.
As he watched him exit the room, the smile on Creuset's face gradually vanished. He stared blankly at his surroundings, thinking to himself.
PLANT is no longer safe. I should leave this place.
With this thought solidified, Creuset began to formulate a plan to escape.
Meanwhile, on the moon.
Felix stared at the data on his computer, his calm expression unknowingly knitting into a frown.
A moment later, Felix leaned back in his chair, somewhat dejected.
"No matter how I calculate it, no matter how I alter the tactics, the simulated casualty numbers still won't go down."
As he muttered to himself, the doorbell rang.
Hearing the chime, Felix shed his dejected look and reached out to press the button to open the door.
The door slid open, and Felix saw Aric walk in.
"Is something wrong?" Felix asked him.
Aric walked up to Felix's desk and, after a long moment of contemplation, spoke.
"Captain, there's something I want to ask you."
"If you have a question, just ask," Felix said with a faint smile, seeing how troubled Aric looked.
Aric thought for a moment before speaking. "Captain, after this attack on Ptolemy Military Base, will we be facing the final decisive battle with the Earth Alliance Forces?"
Hearing the question, Felix gave a calm smile.
"That's obvious."
Receiving his answer, Aric asked again, "Will the Earth Alliance use nuclear weapons against PLANT again?"
At this, the smile on Felix's face slowly faded, replaced by a much graver expression.
"As things stand now, that possibility is almost a certainty."
After speaking, Felix glanced at Aric, stood up, walked over to him, and patted his shoulder.
"Don't worry, PLANT will be fine."
Aric looked at Felix, then voiced the question that had been weighing on his mind.
"Captain, when will we be able to end the war?"
The question reached Felix's ears, and his expression faltered. The hand patting Aric's shoulder stilled, resting quietly upon it.
Under Aric's gaze, Felix remained silent for a long time before speaking.
"Are you talking about temporarily stopping the war, or ending it permanently?"
Aric blurted out, "Ending the war permanently."
"That will take a very long time. I can't give you a precise answer. If you mean temporarily stopping the war, I can give you a more definite outcome."
Felix removed his hand from Aric's shoulder, sat back down in his chair, and looked at him.
Hearing the answer, Aric's hands, hanging at his sides, clenched into tight fists. After relaxing them, he looked up at Felix, his eyes conveying his thoughts without a word.
Seeing the look in Aric's eyes, Felix continued, "In the next battle, we will bring a temporary halt to the war."
Aric's expression turned to one of surprise. "Really?"
Felix looked at Aric's astonished face and nodded very seriously. "Completely ending the war and achieving world peace is our ultimate goal. But stopping the war from continuing and preventing it from spiraling to a point of no return is our objective for the current stage.
"So, all we need to do is temporarily stop the war and prevent it from reaching an irreversible point, understand?"
Aric nodded and replied, "I understand, Captain."
Hearing Aric's response, Felix gave a calm nod. He glanced at the content on his computer screen and said to Aric, "Tomorrow, we march on Ptolemy Military Base."
Hearing the order, Aric stood up straight, his expression serious. He raised his hand in a salute and replied, "Yes, Captain."
Felix gave a slight nod and asked, "Is there anything else?"
"No, sir."
Aric shook his head in response.
Hearing this, Felix waved a hand at Aric and said, "I'll send you the finalized plan in a bit. Give it to the other squad leaders. If they have any questions, have them contact me directly."
Nodding slightly, Aric replied, "Yes, Captain."
With that, Aric turned and walked out of the room.
...
The next day.
PLANT homeland.
"Councilman Yuri, after cross-referencing the data, we've found no issues with the contents of Captain Creuset's activity report."
"Has everything been compared?" Yuri asked his temporary subordinate.
Lango nodded and replied in a serious tone, "Yes!"
"In that case, temporarily clear Creuset of suspicion and end his current detention."
Yuri glanced at Lango and gave the order.
He paused, then his tone shifted.
"But keep him under covert surveillance!"
Hearing the order, Lango saluted Yuri and said, "Yes, sir!"
After Lango left, the computer on Yuri's desk beeped twice. Hearing the sound, Yuri turned his gaze to the screen.
Seeing a new file had been opened, he used the mouse to click on it.
As he quickly scanned the contents, Yuri's relaxed brow furrowed.
...
In the room where Creuset was being temporarily held.
Lost in thought, Creuset heard the sound of the door opening. He opened his eyes and looked toward the entrance.
Just then, Lango walked into the room under Creuset's gaze.
Seeing Lango enter, Creuset adjusted his emotions, putting on a gentle smile and speaking in a mild tone.
"Is there a result?"
"Captain Creuset, thank you for your cooperation."
Lango looked at Creuset, raised his hand in a salute, and spoke respectfully.
Afterward, Lango lowered his arm and said to Creuset again, "Captain Creuset, you have been cleared of suspicion for now. You are free to leave."
Hearing that he was cleared, Creuset thanked Lango.
"Thank you for your investigation."
"You're too kind," Lango replied with a faint smile.
With that, he stepped aside, indicating that Creuset could leave. Creuset saw the gesture, stood up, straightened his clothes, and walked out of the room.
After leaving, Creuset acted as if nothing had happened and headed for his home.
Back at home.
Creuset, showing no signs of abnormality, poured himself a glass of water. As he stood in the living room drinking, his eyes darted furtively toward the window.
Looking outside, Creuset recalled the strange feeling he had on the way and sneered inwardly.
Covert surveillance?
It seems your suspicions about me haven't been put to rest.
With this thought, Creuset placed the glass on the coffee table.
He sat down calmly on the sofa, leaning back as he contemplated his departure from PLANT.
As he thought, an idea came to him regarding the MS he had been testing.
A smile touched his lips as he made a decision.
Taking it with me might be safer.
With his decision made, Creuset began to think about how to get close to that MS again.
In the Chairman's office.
"It seems there's a new result."
Seeing Yuri arrive, Patrick put down his documents. A hint of joy appeared on his stern face.
Yuri nodded at Patrick. Sitting down, he said, "After our investigation and cross-referencing, the activity report Creuset gave us has no problems."
"It seems our intuition wasn't wrong."
Patrick smiled upon hearing the result, his expression relaxing slightly.
Yuri didn't respond to that. Instead, he shared his own thoughts with Patrick.
"I haven't completely cleared Creuset of suspicion!"
"What are you planning?" Patrick asked, his expression surprised.
In response to Patrick's question, Yuri gave his reason.
"Creuset's genetic test report!"
"Genetic test report?" Patrick murmured, then realized he had never looked into it. He asked Yuri, "Is there a problem with Creuset's genes?"
"Shortened telomeres!" Yuri stated bluntly.
Patrick's expression turned to one of astonishment, which in the next moment became grave.
"A clone!"
"That's right. Creuset is a clone. And according to our deeper investigation, he isn't a clone of just anyone."
As he spoke, Yuri placed a newly printed file on Patrick's desk.
Patrick looked at the file on his desk with a hint of confusion, then reached out to pick it up. As he read its contents, Yuri's voice sounded again.
"Creuset is a clone of the late head of the Flaga family, Al Da Flaga."
"The Flaga family?"
Patrick looked up at Yuri, muttered the name, and then continued reading the file.
A minute later, Patrick placed the file on the desk.
"If we hadn't been investigating Creuset these past few days, we probably would never have known about his origins."
"Mm."
Yuri nodded in agreement.
Hearing Yuri's hum of agreement, Patrick thought for a moment and seemed to realize something.
He immediately said to Yuri, "Have Gilbert Durandal taken into custody!"
"Gilbert Durandal?"
Yuri voiced his confusion for a second, then instantly remembered. He looked at Patrick and nodded with extreme seriousness.
"I'll arrange for someone to do it right away."
"Also, increase the manpower for the covert surveillance on Creuset. We must ensure we have a constant grasp on his whereabouts!" Patrick ordered again.
Yuri nodded. "I will increase it."
Afterward, Yuri stood up, bid Patrick farewell, and turned to walk out of the office.
Patrick watched Yuri leave, then swiveled his chair to face the side wall. Recalling his earlier relief, he frowned, his deep voice laced with a murderous tone.
"Creuset, oh, Creuset. I hope you don't betray the trust I have in you!"
Meanwhile, on the moon.
At Ptolemy Military Base.
"Commander, the ZAFT Forces are advancing on us again. And this time, their advance seems different from before," Paramount reported, standing before Richard.
Richard looked up at Paramount and asked, "What's different?"
"This time, their marching speed has increased, and the scale of their forces has grown!"
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