Chapter 48

Just as Li Boyong was immersed in the daily training of the MS unit.

On May 25th, the ZAFT forces launched a raid on Panama as a retaliation for the Alaska incident, and the Panama garrison also deployed the two earliest-formed MS units to resist.

Unfortunately, the ZAFT forces spotted the weakness that the Alliance's MS operational technology was not yet mature and used a large super-EMP weapon called Gungnir.

While destroying the Panama orbital elevator "Panama Gate," it caused the Earth Alliance's MS operating systems to fail completely; subsequently, Panama fell, and the ZAFT forces carried out large-scale executions of prisoners.

After the news broke, public opinion exploded, and the hatred of Naturals toward Coordinators went off the charts.

At the same time, the MS units under formation across the Alliance hurriedly made emergency remedies for this weakness, and the Fifth MS Composite Brigade to which Li Boyong belonged was also in a state of chaos.

Having hung around this San Antonio Joint Base for so many days, Li Boyong had gained some understanding of this Fifth MS Composite Brigade.

Its predecessor was an ordinary armored composite brigade; after temporarily receiving about twenty Strike Daggers, it became the Fifth MS Composite Brigade. It was not highly valued by the higher-ups in the military; in fact, it should be said that the entire San Antonio Joint Base was not well-regarded by the military high command.

The reason has to be traced back to the factions within the Atlantic Federation military. After the war began, the radical forces of Blue Cosmos rose rapidly within the military. The bases and units on the West Coast and some space fleets basically fell under the control of the Blue Cosmos faction, while the East Coast and the remaining few space fleets were held by the original ruling faction that was dissatisfied with Blue Cosmos.

It's not that this faction dissatisfied with Blue Cosmos was particularly noble or friendly toward Coordinators; they were just not as radical. The struggle between the two sides was, in the end, a struggle for interests.

But regardless, at a time when hatred toward Coordinators was rapidly escalating, Blue Cosmos gradually took control of important power departments in the military headquarters, and the anti-Blue Cosmos faction was naturally suppressed.

And this San Antonio Joint Base, to which Li Boyong belonged, was the sphere of influence of the anti-Blue Cosmos faction. Understanding this, Li Boyong finally realized why he, a remnant of the Eighth Fleet under Halbadon, was transferred here to serve.

However, Li Boyong had no time to pay attention to the internal power struggles of the military and just threw himself more into MS training.

No matter how the higher-ups fight, they, the small soldiers, always have to go to the battlefield. And after going to the battlefield, whether one can come down alive depends not only on luck but also on one's own strength and the strength of one's companions.

So Li Boyong gritted his teeth and learned a Commander skill for himself from the system.

Commander: Slightly improves the host's tactical literacy, while slightly improving the hit rate of squad members and reducing the probability of subordinates disobeying orders, cowardice, or panic. (Learning costs 10 Plot Points; the minimum learning requirement is the rank of Lieutenant.)

This was the choice he made after comparing for a long time; the things improved by the Commander skill were relatively comprehensive for the entire unit.

With a bunch of rookies under his command, this skill could prevent many unexpected incidents on the battlefield.

Moreover, this skill could continue to be improved, but it required a higher rank and more Battle Merit Points.

Damn it, the skill learned with Plot Points requires Battle Merit Points to upgrade, which almost made Li Boyong's obsessive-compulsive disorder flare up again.

However, this skill was indeed useful. In the subsequent training, Li Boyong quickly integrated his subordinates through training and arranged some tactical routines suitable for MS warfare.

As the days passed, the world outside also became turbulent.

After the Battle of Panama, the Earth Alliance lost all its spaceports, so it was inevitable that they would turn their eyes elsewhere.

On May 29th, at the Earth Alliance summit, military industry director Murrue Azrael instigated an attack on Orb. Although the Eurasian Federation and the East Asian Republic opposed attacking Orb, the proposal was forcibly passed by the Atlantic Federation. At the summit, it was also decided to launch the "Victoria Recapture Operation."

On June 1st, the Earth Alliance called for an "us or them policy" to neutral countries such as the Orb Union, the Scandinavian Republic, and the Equatorial Union. The Earth Alliance used media and other channels to conduct large-scale propaganda warfare against the public; privately, they demanded that various governments join the Alliance with an attitude bordering on intimidation.

On June 13th, the Atlantic Federation's 4th Naval Fleet headed south as the main force, demanding that Orb representative Uzumaki Ashura resign, the parliament be dissolved immediately, and force be abandoned, giving Orb 48 hours to consider. At the same time, a large number of follow-up troops entered the combat readiness sequence against Orb.

However, the Fifth MS Composite Brigade to which Li Boyong belonged was not dispatched to join the operation against Orb, but instead joined the recapture operation of Victoria, which was the Third Battle of Victoria.

After all, the faction to which Li Boyong belonged was not on the same path as Blue Cosmos, so Azrael, as the head of Blue Cosmos, did not want to use such a unit.

Just like that, the Fifth MS Composite Brigade was dispatched as support by the Atlantic Federation and incorporated into the Victoria front, under the joint command of the Eurasian Federation and the East Asian Republic.

This arrangement was almost like saying to the Eurasian Federation and the East Asian Republic: "Here, this is cannon fodder for you; use it as you please, don't be polite with me; consider it my apology for the Alaska incident."

In the command post of the Fifth MS Composite Brigade, the roar of the brigade commander could be heard everywhere.

But this didn't change anything; who told Blue Cosmos to be in such high spirits now.

On June 15th, the Atlantic Federation launched the so-called "Orb Liberation Operation."

And here in Victoria, various units arrived one after another, entering the final preparation stage before the battle.

The Fifth MS Composite Brigade was assigned to the first line of the northern attack army's flank. According to intelligence, they were facing the defensive forces of a ZAFT unit.

To be honest, this intelligence was practically useless because the ZAFT military system was quite special. Even for the same unit, the difference in combat power could sometimes be worlds apart; who knows how much combat power this unit on the other side actually had.

Li Boyong squatted on the shoulder of his Strike Dagger, looking at the excellent defensive position formed by two cliffs in the distance, and a sense of foreboding welled up deep in his heart.

The next day, at 6:00 AM, the Third Battle of Victoria officially began.

Li Boyong led his Third MS Combat Company into the scheduled deployment position, and then the artillery support from the rear showered the distant ZAFT defense line as if it were free.

Amidst the roar of artillery, one of Li Boyong's pilots asked with a trembling voice on the communication channel: "Cap... Captain, we can survive, right? The higher-ups said the Strike Dagger is much stronger than ZAFT's MS..."

Li Boyong was silent. He remembered this pilot was named Bob, only 18 years old today, with a mother and a younger brother at home. His father died in the April Fool's Crisis, and because of the poor economy, he joined the army.

As it turned out, whether it was good luck or bad luck, he was chosen as a Strike Dagger pilot because of his good sports performance in school, with less than six months of formal military service.

As for the other two pilots, their ages were about the same; they were basically student soldiers who had undergone emergency training after emergency enlistment, with basically zero combat experience.

Letting such soldiers go to the battlefield is basically sending them as cannon fodder.

The three little guys also had some self-awareness, knowing that the only person they could rely on on the battlefield was this Lieutenant Captain Li Boyong, who didn't look much older than them but had relatively rich combat experience.

Unfortunately, Li Boyong himself also had some self-awareness; this was his first time piloting an MS in combat, and it was also a ground battle, damn it.

But he still had to go against his conscience to boost morale: "Of course, as long as you act according to my orders, nothing will happen. We are on the flank, and our purpose is to contain. Don't be stupid and go up there to throw your lives away. Do you all understand?"

"Yes, Captain."

"Very good. After today's battle is over, I will treat you to my special collection. That's good stuff; I guarantee it will make you drool."

"Got it~~"

The three teenagers' answers carried a bit of ease and pleasure, but it only deepened the guilt in Li Boyong's heart.

The bombardment and missile baptism lasted for nearly fifteen minutes, after which the Victoria front general command issued an order for all units to advance.

"All company, listen to the order, follow me and advance."

Li Boyong operated the Strike Dagger, moving forward with the shield held up, followed by three Strike Daggers and a few combat support vehicles.

【Mission】

Within today, use a beam saber to shoot down any one enemy MS. (Mission success rewards 1 Battle Merit Point.)

The system's mission popped up, and Li Boyong's eyebrows twitched.

Damn it, this devil system wants me to rush up and risk my life?

Oh, sister, my melee attribute is very low...