Simultaneous Time Travel: Gundam? All Teammates are Old Six

Chapter 26: The Ghost of Chessboard Modification and Remodeling

Maru stood there, lost and dejected, Ling Yu's flippant yet enigmatic whisper swirling in her mind like a curse.

"Archangel, launch!"

What kind of line is that?

Isn't this just a regular command?

But in that man's mouth, this simple command seemed imbued with a heavy sense of destiny, enough to crush an entire fleet. A script? An actor? What exactly did he want him to do?

Before Maru could recover from her chaotic thoughts, Ling Yu had already whistled and strode into the passage leading to the hangar with an air of nonchalance, leaving behind a dashing yet utterly irresponsible figure.

【Archangel, Hangar】

"No, absolutely not!"

Sergeant Madeke, the maintenance chief of the Archangel, was blowing his beard and staring at a scribbled, illegible modification sketch drawn by Ling Yu.

"Add three extra large thrusters to a reconnaissance Zeon? Or a burst-type thruster? Do you want it to fly out of the pilot's effective visual range in three seconds, and then become an expensive pile of space junk after running out of fuel?"

Maddek pointed to an extremely outrageous structure on the blueprint, spitting as he spoke, "And here! Three times the amount of coolant tank and fuel tank as usual, but no reinforcement to the frame? Are you trying to make it disintegrate the moment it accelerates, putting on a spectacular fireworks show? Young man, I admit you're a bit clever, but MS design emphasizes 'rigor,' not your kind of fanciful thinking."

"Hey, Dad, don't get so worked up." Ling Yu didn't seem to care about being scolded at all. Instead, he picked up a rag from the toolbox and meticulously wiped the Strike Gundam's ankle armor. "This isn't wishful thinking, it's called 'asymmetric warfare thinking.' Think about it, if you can run fast, you're less likely to get hit, right?"

"Bullshit! What's the use of running fast but being unable to control it!"

"Then all we need is a pilot who can control it, right?" Ling Yu chuckled, leaning closer and lowering his voice. "Besides, this thing isn't for fighting. Change the paint job to the deepest matte black, with a hint of gray, and let's call it 'Ghost.' I'm thinking, something that can't be seen, can't be caught, and can suddenly pop out at a crucial moment to annoy people should be quite useful."

"I don't care if it's called a ghost or a devil!" Although Madeke was tough on the outside, his hand had already unconsciously picked up the electronic pen and started correcting the unreasonable structures on the sketch. He muttered, "The skeleton joints must be reinforced with G-series alloys, and the energy pipelines need to be rerouted... This is ridiculous, why am I doing this kind of thing with a madman like you..."

Watching his father grumble and swear while getting to work, Ling Yu grinned like a cat that had just stolen some cream. This "Ghost" was the first "surprise" he had prepared for the upcoming battlefield on Earth.

[Flagship "Menelaus", Second Operations Conference Room]

When Ling Yu stepped into the conference room again, his entire demeanor had undergone a dramatic change.

He was no longer the frivolous guy with an energy bar in his mouth, his eyes darting around, spouting nonsense. He sat quietly beside Maru, his back ramrod straight, his gaze calm yet sharp, like a drawn sword that silenced the surrounding clamor.

Many officers noticed his change and were secretly amazed.

[System notification: 'Hathaway the Flash' (R card) is equipped.]

[Card Trait: 'The Pressure of Thought' - Temporarily enhances tactical planning and strategic insight, granting exceptional sensitivity to flaws in established plans.]

[Activated dialogue: "I'll handle this. I'll show you the power of our small spark." (Not activated)]

Ling Yu ignored the system's prompts and stared directly at the star map. After General Halbarton spoke, he got to the point in a calm and unquestionable tone.

"General, gentlemen. Before discussing specific tactics, I must point out a critical issue. We are likely facing a force that is not a conventional ZAFT unit."

He stood up and walked to the star map. "The fact that the Kruze team could maintain such a high-intensity pursuit even after suffering setbacks, and launch such a precise offensive during the window of opportunity when we rendezvoused with the Eighth Fleet, must be due to an extremely skilled commander. Our previous victories were largely due to luck. If we continue to use conventional thinking to predict his moves, we will undoubtedly lose."

The staff officer who had previously reprimanded him couldn't help but retort: ​​"We have numerical superiority, and with General Halbarton in command, victory is inevitable."

"Number advantage?" Ling Yu's lips curled into a cold smile. "Faced with a revolutionary MS like the G series, the 'box formation' of the Nelson-class battleships is nothing more than a larger, more conspicuous target. The enemy only needs one highly maneuverable 'Duel' or one beyond-visual-range sniper 'Storm' to tear a hole in our formation and then advance unimpeded. At that time, the fleet formation will completely collapse, and our so-called number advantage will only turn into a chaotic free-for-all."

These words hit the nail on the head, causing many experienced officers in the conference room to change their expressions. They had to admit that traditional naval warfare theories were indeed incredibly vulnerable when facing these superhumanly capable monsters.

"So, what's your proposal?" Halbarton's voice remained calm, but the interest in his eyes grew stronger.

"It's simple, a feint." Ling Yu extended his finger, drawing several sharp arcs on the star map. "Abandon the rigid formation and divide the fleet into three battle groups, with the Archangel as the core, deploying in a triangular formation for 'flexible defense.' The vanguard fleet will no longer be a shield, but a 'bait.' What they need to do is not to hold their ground, but to fight and retreat, deliberately creating openings to lure the enemy assault force to our predetermined point A, which is that asteroid debris belt."

He paused, then his voice became even more forceful.

"That will be ZAFT's slaughterhouse. Captain Mu's Möbius Zero units will lay an ambush there. And the final, fatal blow..."

Ling Yu's gaze shifted to Kira, who had remained silent.

"This will be accomplished by Kira Yamato piloting the Strike Gundam."

All eyes were on Kira. The boy was a little nervous, but when he saw the trust and expectation in the eyes of Maru, Mu, and even Natal, he slowly stood up and solemnly gave a not-so-standard military salute.

"I... understand. I will take action to protect everyone."

[ZAFF command ship "Gamov", bridge]

"Report! The analyst has provided the latest tactical simulation! Based on the Eighth Fleet's standard 'box-shaped defense formation,' our forces have a 92% probability of breaking through its outer defenses within 30 minutes and a 75% probability of severely damaging its flagship within one hour!"

The bridge was filled with jubilation.

Only Xiao Ran, seated at the command post, had a slight frown. On the screen in front of him, countless lines representing the trajectories of warships were rapidly analyzing the battle situation. This was the tactical simulation function attached to his cheat system, the ZAFT Armory System.

"It's going too smoothly...it's so smooth it's like a trap."

Xiao Ran murmured to himself. He stood up, walked to the huge porthole, and gazed at the silent starry sky in the distance.

"My 'kind,' if you were really on that ship, you would never allow them to adopt such a foolish, textbook formation. It was like an easy question, so tempting."

His fingers traced lightly across the cold porthole.

"You're trying to seduce me. So, where will you hide your trump card? The asteroid belt? Too classic, but also the most practical."

He slowly turned around, his face displaying a calmness and maturity beyond his years.

"Pass on my orders." His voice wasn't loud, but it instantly drowned out all the noise.

"The first and second combat formations will carry out the feint attack as planned. The third and fourth formations, namely Yzak and Diego, will break away from the main force and circle around to the rear of the target asteroid belt from the Z-7 coordinate axis."

A glint of wisdom and calculation flashed in Xiao Ran's eyes, and a cold smile curled at the corner of his mouth.

"Since you want me to be part of your script, then I might as well... help you rewrite the ending of this scene ahead of time."

"Go, tell those Earthlings, war..."

This is not a game that can be controlled with just one or two so-called "trump cards."