Gundam: Changing the World Even with a Mass-Produced Unit

Chapter 9: Capturing the Position

Before Eli and Amada Shiro had to wait long at the designated attack point, the sound of continuous battle erupted from the front of the Zeon artillery position.

It seemed Sanders and Karen had launched a frontal assault.

"Time to move!"

"Right!"

The two shared no further words and immediately drove their machines toward the mountaintop.

Eli directly activated the thrusters on his back-mounted pack. With a burst of light and flames, the machine leaped into the air, reaching the same level as the defensive facilities on the mountaintop.

Not only did the 100mm machine gun fire, but the 60mm Vulcan Cannon in the chest also unleashed a barrage, striking the position.

This was completely an asymmetrical battle. With the Zakus already sent to intercept Karen and Sanders' mobile suits at the front, the only remaining threats to the MS from within the base were the just-launched helicopters.

However, those threats were quickly neutralized by Amada Shiro.

The Ground Type Gundam he piloted dodged the rockets fired by the bizarre-looking Zeon helicopter. With just a few bursts from the 100mm machine gun, he brought the helicopter crashing down.

Yet Amada Shiro clearly remembered there was supposed to be another helicopter earlier.

Shaking his head and dismissing the thought, he turned the machine gun toward the warehouse, shredding the ammunition depot.

With this, the only remaining active forces aside from the turrets were infantry.

But those infantry, facing two Gundams rampaging through their position, were unable to organize any effective counterattack. Most could only flee in panic.

Eli had just neutralized a warehouse when he noticed terrified soldiers running out.

His finger hovered above the multifunction launcher trigger. With one press, he could obliterate the soldiers with anti-personnel shells.

However, hesitation flashed across his expression.

"Boom!"

At that moment, a shoulder-mounted rocket exploded near the Ground Type Gundam's head.

As the flames and smoke cleared, Eli turned the machine's head to look.

From the outside, it seemed as if the Gundam's eyes lit up as they emerged from the smoke.

"Long live Zeon!"

The soldier who had mustered the courage to attack the Gundam with the rocket launcher stood his ground. Seeing he had caught the enemy's attention, he boldly raised his right hand and shouted his slogan.

Eli pulled the trigger.

A rain of anti-personnel rounds instantly engulfed the man.

Eli had no time to spare for further thought. He turned his machine toward the two turrets.

"It's finally over," Amada Shiro muttered. Three hours of marching for ten minutes of combat made today feel endless.

He aimed at the turrets, about to fire.

"No, not yet."

Eli immediately refuted Shiro's words and turned his machine around, firing a barrage toward the rear.

He clearly remembered: this was when "Tiger King" made his first appearance!

Moreover, he had a distinct feeling that someone was approaching from behind.

His Newtype intuition allowed him to sense the incoming enemy.

Sure enough, two Zakus suddenly burst out from the forest behind Eli.

Each Zaku charged toward Eli and Amada Shiro, clearly aiming to drive the Gundams off the high ground so the turrets could regain control and stabilize the defensive line.

"Not a chance!"

Eli refused to yield and met the Zaku's attack head-on.

The Ground Type Gundam's small shield in its left hand was raised, intercepting the heat axe's path.

The heat axe struck the shield, leaving an ugly scar.

But this bought Eli enough time to crouch and draw his beam saber from his calf.

The motor at the Gundam's left elbow roared to full power, compressing the Zaku's movement space.

Then, in the instant the Zaku pilot tried to pull back and recover, Eli thrust the beam saber straight forward!

"Too obvious!"

A mature male voice came through the comms link, confirming Eli's suspicions while alleviating his concerns about Amada Shiro.

After his failed strike, Eli didn't pursue. Instead, he opened the Gundam's arms and pushed its chest forward, unleashing a dense burst from the 60mm Vulcan Cannon. The barrage forced the Zaku back, shielding itself with its shoulder armor.

The two sides briefly entered a stalemate.

However, such a stalemate atop this high ground could not last long.

Eager to drive the enemy off the high ground, the Zaku charged forward.

Its right hand wielded the heat axe, while its left hand, unnoticed earlier, now revealed an MS-grade grenade that it lobbed toward the Gundam.

Eli didn't dare take chances. He stepped the Gundam back a few paces without trying to destroy the grenade midair.

After all, the Vulcan Cannon's ammunition reserves were running low from the continuous battle. There was no need to gamble on destroying it.

Retreating momentarily allowed Eli to focus more attention on the approaching Zaku.

Seeing its tactic had failed, the Zaku pressed on, swinging the heat axe in a horizontal slash.

This time, Eli countered directly, blocking the strike with his beam saber.

Visually, the Zaku's heavier build seemed to have the advantage in this clash.

However, in practice, it was the Zaku that found itself gradually pushed back as the beam saber bore down upon it.

This wasn't due to pilot skill but simply a disparity in output.

The Zaku's nuclear reactor produced 976 kW of power, while the Ground Type Gundam boasted an output of 1350 kW.

Even this "stripped-down" Gundam, bearing the Federation's hopes, had an overwhelming performance advantage against Zeon's MS.

"What terrifying performance…"

The Zaku pilot, Norris Packard, couldn't help but marvel at the Gundam's sheer power.

Although he had been stationed on this land for a long time, most of that was spent defending the base. Rarely did he fight directly on the front lines.

This time, however, he had been inspecting the occupied zone to ensure stability for an upcoming weapons experiment.

Yet now, facing a Gundam in real combat, he had been caught off guard.

Norris didn't doubt his skill as a pilot—he was already among the best.

If he couldn't defeat the Gundams with a Zaku, then other soldiers stood even less chance.

That was why Ginias' plan was so critical—for the revival of the Sahalin family and Zeon's victory.

As he thought this, Norris began preparing to retreat.

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