Lei Guang reflexively killed the captain of the Federation Army, the cockpit of the fighter plane was completely shattered, and the fighter that had not completely stopped running lost control and flew off into the distance crookedly.

Unlike Gabrisky, he didn't have the thrill of killing a strong enemy, only a faint sense of emptiness, as if something had been done.

Maybe there is a certain degree of fear, after all, he has walked between life and death, and unlike the war maniacs, his ordinary fear of death feels a little empty at the moment.

He took a look at the state of the airframe, then looked at the members of the MS unit who were gradually flying towards him, and decided to return to the ship for the time being to replenish, although it was a good choice to take advantage of the victory and pursue it now, and cover up with the defeated Federation flying team, but it might be better to take a little breath at this moment.

And, to be honest, he was feeling a little tired, and his body needed to be repaired, and although it was working fairly well, no one knew if there would be any sudden damage.

So he fired a signal flare to signal the troops to retreat, and at the same time reminded the fleet that he was retreating, so please prepare supplies and repairs.

Under his orders, the Zeon MS forces began an orderly retreat, and the first engagement between Zeon and the Federation ended in a complete victory for the Zeon Army, who lost zero casualties and downed 12 Swordfish fighters, including the Federation Flight Captain, with only moderate damage to Lear.

However, this encounter was not over, and the Federation Army had no intention of retreating after gathering the flying team, but continued to attack in the direction of the Zeon Army, while the Zeon Army was preparing to fight again after containing the MS troops and taking a brief rest.

The second round of battles is about to begin.

———— Dividing Line————

Rear Admiral Douglas had a look of regret on his face as Gabrisky was shot down by the Zeon's yellow body, and although he was a big ship and a cannon party, he still admired Gabriski's superb skills and fighting spirit, and regretted the result of his failure.

The battle between the two forces, although it may take tens of thousands of words to write, is really just a battle that takes place in ten minutes, from the first heavy damage of the flying team, to their brave fight again, from Gabrisky almost shooting down Zeon's captain's plane, but finally falling short, Douglas witnessed in just ten minutes a death match that he had not experienced in the past to destroy the pirates.

Francis....... What a pity, he couldn't help but feel sorry for the death of that brilliant pilot, if he had survived, Douglas swore that he would recommend Francis Gabriski to Admiral Rebier, join the Second Fleet, or even Chabro as a flight instructor or something, such a gladiator loss in such a battle is a real pity.

Thinking of this, he couldn't help but be full of resentment towards the guys in the intelligence department and the Joint Chiefs of Staff (Note 1), what is called the new weapon MS of the Zeon Army is just some big and useless toys, as long as you use the fighter unit, it can be easily eliminated, it has been proved that in front of those iron men called MS, the fighter unit is not to say that it is powerless, but also at an absolute disadvantage.

I'm fighting pirates in the faraway wilderness, and you wastes who have been blessed on Earth are just perfunctory to me?

He couldn't help but want to wait until he returned to the moon to complain to General Reybier, so that those corpses could feel the anger of the front-line officers and soldiers.

These weapons called MS are also quite good, and perhaps I should propose to General Rybir to replace our fighter units with such weapons.

He thought so, in the eyes of this general who has been exterminating pirates all year round, although of course it is still the highest cannon of a large ship, the flexible and fast carrier-based aircraft force is also a very powerful supplement.

But of course, it is still the big battle ships that are the strongest.

He never doubted this, even if his flying team suffered a 0-12, it was just a record of the flying team, and he was confident that in front of his main fleet, even if those MS performed well, what could they do.

Zeon's people have gone down the wrong path in the end, and no matter how good the MS is, it's just an enhanced version of the carrier-based aircraft, but this era is no longer the era of carrier-based aircraft.

It's a pity that Douglas doesn't verbally recognize the Zeon Wehrmacht, but he also communicated with the officers of the Muzo Self-Defense Force when the Federal Army was still stationed in SIDE3.

There are also a few powerful characters in it, and he has a faint regret in his heart.

"General, the flying team has asked for permission to land." The signal corpsman interrupted his thoughts abruptly.

"I ask for permission," Douglas nodded and said, "The boys have worked hard, let the people in the medical class arrange a physical examination as soon as possible, so that they can have a good rest." ”

"General?" His adjutant asked in surprise, "Don't you need to let them attack again?" ”

"The fighters who came back were not damaged," and those who were damaged basically couldn't come back: "As long as they carry out simple preparations, they still have the ability to fight again." ”

"No," Douglas said, "the boys of the flying team have done well enough to fight with such heavy losses, so let them rest." ”

"Although they have suffered heavy losses, they have also tested Zeon's combat power for us, and I am afraid that those giants are the weapons that Zeon has high hopes for."

"Let's do the rest for them," Douglas stood up and waved his hand heavily, with the momentum of a Federation general, "Inform the entire fleet that Zeon is running out of skills, and now is the time to deliver a fatal blow to them." ”

"Let us use the head of the traitor to comfort the fallen heroic soul!"

"Long live the Federation! The Federation Space Force wins! ””

Inspired by Douglas, the officers and men of the Union were not depressed by the defeat in the battle, but were enthusiastically warmed by the heroic sacrifices of their comrades, and their cheers could even be heard from the cabins on the ground floor to the bridge on the top floor.

The desire to fight is here.

———— Dividing Line————

"Preparation squad, hurry up and replenish ammunition!"

"Where is the spare parts for the thunderlight, hurry up and get ready!"

"Someone who is free to take care of the pilot and eat something!"

"I got a fight!!"

"Well done!"

Lear opened the hatch, he tried to stand up, but suddenly tripped forward, he was puzzled, but he reacted, his hand gripped the lever tightly, and he forgot to let go.

He let go of his hand with a wry smile, but his originally hard fingers began to tremble slightly.

I'm really 。。。。。。 He thought a little helplessly, after making so many determinations and making so many preparations, not only was his original form revealed as soon as he entered the battlefield, but even after he was safe.

This is not only the fear of almost dying, but I am afraid that there is also the fear of killing someone for the first time in two lives.

It's really different from the feeling of hunting in the wilderness survival drills, although they are all animals, but people and other animals are different after all, he is a little nauseous at most during training, but he quickly gets used to it, and killing, even if it is not stained with blood with his own hands, also makes people's stomachs uncomfortable.

He realized once again that he was not a genius, he did not have a genius in combat, or even military or politics, and the reason why he could still achieve certain achievements in all aspects was that in addition to down-to-earth efforts, it was nothing more than a high starting point, and there was also the bonus of insight brought by crossing.

I don't want to admit that it's too difficult to face who you are and what time you are.

He finally stepped out of the cockpit, and after refusing the food handed by the maintenance squad - he had no appetite now, and he was not to the point where he had to replenish his energy even if he had to be forced to do so, he said loudly through the loudspeaker on the thunder light: "Soldiers, you have an hour to rest, whether you want to rest, eat, or solve personal problems, hurry up." ”

"Is there a problem with us leaving for an attack on the Federation's fleet in an hour?"

"Nope!" ”

"That's good, but don't underestimate the Federation, their soldiers are still very capable," Lear said with a pretended lightheartedness, "As you saw just now, I and the unlucky guy over there were almost finished." ”

His words drew laughter, and the guy who had been swept away half of his leg by the swordfish's missile smiled wryly.

"So everyone has raised my vigilance, as long as we play the results of our usual training, the Federation Army is not difficult to deal with, you see, we just cut one of them and a duck egg," Lear said loudly, of course he knew that the battle ship and the fighter were different, the Federation warships were much more difficult to deal with than the fighter plane, but at this time he could only cheer them up: "Cooperate with your companions, concentrate your firepower, and don't turn your back on the enemy at any time, remember it!" ”

After speaking, he couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief when he heard the response that was not neat, but still very energetic and full of fighting spirit.

I'll go take a break, he thought.

"Are you okay?" Suddenly, a female voice came from the side, and Lear turned to look, but it was Aina.

"It's okay, thank you for your concern." Lear said with a smile, just looking at the smile is true.

Aina stealthily glanced at Lear's hand, which was still trembling slightly, clutching the railing.

"That's good." Aina said succinctly.

Although Aina's gaze was very hidden, Lear was aware of her gaze, and he smiled awkwardly, "I made you laugh." ”

"By the way, do you have anything to do with me?" Lear asked, trying to change the subject.

To be honest, Aina didn't know what was going on with him, she just came over subconsciously, but she quickly made an excuse: "Just come and have a look, congratulations on knocking down the Federation's ACE." ”

Although she hadn't shot and killed people herself, she was a skilled and excellent pilot after all, and naturally knew that Gabrisky was not an ordinary person, although she didn't want to congratulate others for the merit of the killing, but she couldn't find a better excuse for a while, so she could only go down and say: "What, aren't you happy?" ”

"What's the joy of killing," Lear said sullenly, but he felt that this speech was not suitable for the commander of the troops who was about to go to war, so he said, "By the way, I haven't had time to thank you yet." ”

"Thank me? For what? Aina took a few steps away, stopping at a distance where it was impossible to tell if they were talking to each other.

"You were the first person to shoot just now," Lear said casually, "It's a big favor, if you hadn't helped contain the captain of the Federation Army, I might not have been able to shoot him down." ”

"I didn't do anything," Aina said, shaking her head, "You could have done it without me." ”

"I didn't make much use of it at all, except for a few shots." Aina said, feeling a little depressed.

In the battle just now, she didn't shoot down numbers, of course, most pilots didn't shoot down numbers, but Aina herself knew what was going on, someone else shot but didn't shoot down, but she, except for the subconscious shot at Gabrisqui, who was suspected of falling Lear, she didn't fire a single shot.

It was as if some kind of force was preventing her from shooting.

This can't be done, she sighed inwardly, she can't help her brother at all, her sense of indebtedness to her brother Ginhas Sakhalin made her unconditionally obey her brother's arrangement, wanting to help him fulfill his dream of reviving the family, and even won a slightly ridiculous nickname like a puppet of the Sakhalin family in the upper circles, and she endured all this.

The family's business can't help, and even helping the family marriage was rejected by someone, and now, the only driving skill that is good at it is also worthless because he can't shoot at people, he came to the front line as a weapon tester, but now he doesn't even use weapons at all.

Lear seemed to see what she was struggling with, and said comfortingly: "Killing people is not a good thing after all, and there is no need to force yourself if you can't do it, there is no need to get used to this kind of thing." ”

"It's better to say that you shouldn't get used to it."

"If you don't choose another industry, don't you-"

"No way!" Aina suddenly said loudly, not only Lear, but also the technician of the training squad who was a little far away and was changing his arm for Thunderlight.

Aina, who realized that she was too loud, lowered her voice: "No. ”

She didn't say why she couldn't, and Lear had no intention of asking, everyone had their own secrets, and he and Aina weren't familiar enough to ask each other about their private affairs: "Anyway, just don't let yourself regret it." ”

"Don't let yourself regret it。。。。。。" "I don't regret it, I just feel like I need to work harder and live up to that person's expectations," Aina said. ”

"It's you," said Aina in a deliberately mischievous tone, "aren't you all trembling with fear?" You're the one who regrets it. ”

"Do you regret it? No, I don't. Lear said in a tone of genuine surprise, and he simply opened up: "If I want to say that I am not afraid, I am indeed a little scared, although I have made up my mind before the battle, but I am still a little afraid when it comes to facing death." ”

"But that's not the same thing as regret, I'm really scared, but I've never regretted choosing this path, as I said before, this is the only way to my ideals."

The path you chose for yourself?

Aina's path was not one she chose。。。。。。 No, that's probably not true.

Although the path was decided by Genias, Aina chose to obey his arrangement, which was also her own choice, which should be the same thing as the path she chose, right?

It should be the same thing, yes.

She was inexplicably a little unhappy, just at this time, she saw the figure of a certain girl, in order to avoid falling into the entanglement of others, she was not ready to say anything to Leardo, but kicked her feet on the ground: "I'm leaving." ”

"Huh? Ah, Captain Sakhalin! Lear suddenly said, "Be careful in the next battle." ”

"I'm not going to force you to shoot, you just need to protect yourself." For people who don't want to fight, Lear is not prepared to force her to fight, rather, as long as she doesn't get in the way of other people, such as saying in the army that I don't kill you and you are not allowed to kill people and other idiotic actions, Lear is not prepared to pursue anything, after all, he himself does not agree with this war, and try not to kill people unless necessary.

Aina didn't feel good in her heart, you know something, speaking in such a condescending tone, so she only replied, "Take care of yourself, second lieutenant." ”

Then he left without looking back.

Lear didn't understand where he had poked her anger, so he could only put down his hand in embarrassment, but thanks to Aina, his hands finally stopped shaking.

At that moment, Maggie appeared in front of him, tears still stained on her face.

Lear was at a loss, he froze in place, at a loss.

What should I do?

He hadn't been good at dealing with her since the past, especially when she was crying, which was rare, and Lear himself hadn't seen it a few times, but each time it was a bad memory he didn't want to recall.

He's a little confused.

"That 。。。。。。" He tried to break the deadlock: "Yes, I'm sorry, I was careless. ”

"I'm worried about you, this, I'll definitely pay attention to it next time."

"Ah, no, there's no next time, I won't want to fight alone anymore, no matter what kind of battle it is in the future, I will definitely bring my subordinates."

"By the way, this time it's really thanks to the body that my dad and you prepared for me, and thanks to the thunder light, I was able to come back alive."

"Eh, no, I didn't mean that, of course the defense of the thunder light is very strong, but I can come back safely without it!"

Just as Lear was incoherently arguing, Maggie suddenly spoke, and she didn't speak without crying, but in a cold and steady voice as always: "Lear, I have something to tell you. ”

"Huh?" Lear asked blankly, "What's the matter?" ”

"What are you going to do, what kind of existence is that philosophical self-study society, tell me, I want to join." Maggie said word for word, ignoring Lear's increasingly stunned expression.

Instead of waiting for Lear to confess to her, and no longer obeying Lear's will and pretending not to know what he was doing, she offered to be involved.

She was not prepared to continue to be a gentle and virtuous woman who gave unconditionally and did nothing to Lear, simply giving him a home to which he could go back.

This has nothing to do with what identity or how to get along in the future, it's just that I want to continue to stand with him.

It doesn't matter if it's not a wife or a lover, if Lear insists on carrying out his strange delusions of making himself happy, I'm afraid even his family won't be able to do it, but even so, with an identity, he definitely can't put himself aside and do dangerous things alone.

She can also exist as his comrade.

"What are you talking about? I don't know...... Lear saw Maggie's determined eyes, and suddenly felt that the two of them were really similar: "We'll talk about it later." ”

He didn't notice that he didn't feel like he had changed his mind, or that he didn't have time to think about his so-called idea of not putting his family in danger, and he could only give in to Maggie's momentum.

He was really bad at dealing with her from the past.

———— Dividing Line————

Note 1: The military command structure of the Federation is similar to that of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the United States, a professional advisory group composed of military chiefs of multiple arms, and provides military advice to the government, but in fact, in the latter part of the one-year war, almost all the power of the Joint Chiefs of Staff was held by Rybil and his subordinates, and it can even be said that Reybier at that time was almost a dictator of the Half-World Federation.

On the other hand, Zeon implemented a base camp system similar to that of Japan and Germany in World War II, in which the prince was the nominal supreme commander, and the actual power was in the hands of the military command department controlled by the commander-in-chief's office.