MTLNOVEL Chapter 47: Chapter 48: Victory in Sight
Chapter 48: Victory in Sight
Inside the cockpit, both Eli and Amuro simultaneously closed their eyes, naturally avoiding the effects of the flashbang.
However, the tactic, which had previously worked against Ramba Ral, did not achieve much this time.
The enemy's two machines advanced in a single file. The first Dom was indeed affected, but the second one quickly moved up to fill the gap, blocking Eli's slashing attack!
"So, the Federation's White Devil and the Jungle Demon have joined forces?"
During the brief exchange, a voice transmitted over the comms.
It was none other than Gaia, the leader of the Black Tri-Stars.
"The Zeon intelligence network seems rather outdated."
Eli had no interest in bantering with a diehard Zeon loyalist. He gave up the struggle, pressing his Ground Type Gundam downward.
A beam of light streaked from behind, fired by Amuro.
The two had recently developed some synergy from fighting side by side, though it was unlikely they had reached a level surpassing the coordination of the Black Tri-Stars.
Yet, at this moment, Gaia was keenly aware of just how troublesome their relentless attacks were.
This was the type of pressure the Black Tri-Stars were supposed to inflict on others!
"Ortega, have you recovered?"
Inside his cockpit, Ortega shook his head, rubbing his eyes, which had turned red from the intense flashbang.
"I'm good. I'll help you right away!"
"No, we're retreating. We're no match for them."
Gaia, his expression grim, parried Eli's attack with his heat saber and continued issuing orders to Ortega.
"I've already called for artillery support. We're retreating immediately!"
The sound of shells tearing through the air echoed as Gaia piloted his Dom to jump backward.
Amuro intended to give chase but was stopped by Eli.
The barrage of artillery ahead made it too dangerous to move recklessly.
But Eli wasn't one to give up easily. He raised his beam rifle.
"Together, Amuro, like we did at sea."
Without further explanation, the Ground Type Gundam and the Gundam both raised their beam rifles.
Without any verbal communication, the two aimed at the same Dom.
Buzz!
Eli fired first. The pink beam pierced through the dense artillery fire, heading straight for the Dom.
But the shot missed.
The Dom seemed to have eyes in the back of its head, dodging the beam with precision.
"Hah, so the so-called devils are nothing but—"
Ortega, still bitter about being blinded earlier, couldn't help but mock.
Bang!
The next moment, a pink beam followed closely and pierced straight through his machine.
It was Amuro's shot!
Eli had forced Ortega to dodge, and Amuro anticipated the path of evasion, landing a decisive strike.
A simple tactic executed to perfection.
"Ortega too? Damn it!"
Gaia, who was fortunate enough not to be targeted, could only watch in frustration as another teammate was taken down.
Having retreated behind the hill, Gaia attempted to assess the situation with his Dom. However, two beams shot toward him before he could get a clear view.
Had he not retracted his machine in time, his Dom's head would have been penetrated, adding another tally to their record.
Clenching his teeth, Gaia ultimately activated the Dom's turbo engines and fled toward the mining site.
M'Quve had already decided to abandon this location.
With the defeat of the Black Tri-Stars, the stronghold meant to stop the White Base was neutralized under Eli's directed artillery strikes.
With both Gundams recovered, the White Base pushed forward at full speed toward the Federation's left flank.
The Zeon forces, noticing this movement, attempted to suppress them with Dabude-class artillery fire. They knew they couldn't let the White Base secure the entire battlefield.
However, this made their positions vulnerable. Each Dabude-class was quickly marked by the Federation and counterattacked by Salamis-class vessels.
The battle escalated into a duel of ground battleships.
But what gave the Salamis-class an edge over the Dabude-class wasn't their design or even the MS units.
It was the nearly overlooked atmospheric fighters: Tin Cods and FF-3 Saberfish.
While the Dopps were cost-effective to produce, they couldn't compete with the Federation's well-developed air force.
Tin Cod fighters relentlessly hunted the Dopps, while the Saberfish, used as heavy bombers, inflicted severe damage on the Dabude-class units, leaving them vulnerable to Salamis-class finishing strikes.
This starkly highlighted the importance of air superiority in ground battles, something Zeon had failed to anticipate.
After losing their Dabude-class artillery, even the hastily produced and error-prone GM units could confidently push the front line forward.
As a result, even before the White Base broke through, the Federation's forces began advancing toward the Zeon lines.
"What a sight…"
The Ground Type Gundam and the Gundam stood side by side, watching the advancing Federation forces.
After a grueling day and a half, with a brief pause for resupply, the White Base had finally reunited with friendly forces.
The Federation's reinforcements included GMs, Type 61 tanks, and numerous armored vehicles carrying infantry units.
In the sky, squadrons of fighters created persistent contrails.
Regardless of their branch, every passing unit saluted the White Base as they advanced.
The black smoke billowing from the battered ship made it clear that their efforts had spared the reinforcements from intense enemy fire.
Eli even saw a Ground Type GM dragging another damaged GM past the White Base, raising its hand in salute.
Eli chuckled and saluted back with the Ground Type Gundam, his gaze shifting to the White Base's port side.
The port side was damaged again…
Seeing the smoking hole, Eli resolved to reinforce the port side's defenses if he ever had his own ship.
For now, preparations for the final battle were underway.
It was clear to everyone that the tide had turned in the Federation's favor. Victory was within reach!
But M'Quve, that petty man, refused to admit defeat. He even intended to openly violate the Antarctic Treaty.
As expected, an urgent communication from General Revil reached Bright's ears.
What a dilemma—Eli didn't want the White Base to become bait like in the original story, yet he also wanted the protagonist and Amuro to meet Lalah in person. It was a tough choice.