Chapter Seventy-Six: Kira Yamato, the Magical Boy

Skill: "Earth's Healing," no level requirement, consumes 80 energy points, releases an earth-element healing aura to all units within a radius of 1000 meters, restoring 10% of their maximum HP per minute, lasting for 10 minutes (exclusive to Gundam mobile suits).

This skill originates from the "Trails" series, yet is now being used by a character from Gundam SEED, and even more impressively, it's being activated through their mobile suit.

One cannot help but admit that having a technical specialist by your side means you'll often be surprised by the innovations she brings.

While Hao Ren was being scorched outside, Tia Yu, concerned about the situation, took over control of the crystal decoy. She used it to install a specially designed tactical orbment on the Strike Gundam's left wrist—originally intended for the Black Astray. Into it, she embedded two special crystal circuits: the Amber Radiance Pearl and the Phantom Glow.

With the Amber Radiance Pearl of Earth 7 and the Phantom Glow of Illusion 3 and 4, this orbment could cast 27 different spells. But, thanks to Kira's precise judgment, only two types of earth magic were used—energy was limited, after all, and not to be squandered.

The second spell Kira cast was called "Crystal Barrier: Renew."

Skill: "Crystal Barrier: Renew," no level requirement, consumes 30 energy points, emits an earth-element defensive aura to all units within a radius of 1000 meters, temporarily increasing their defense by 25% for 10 minutes (exclusive to Gundam mobile suits).

This explains why physical munitions couldn't damage the Archangel or any of the mobile suits. Combined with everyone's PS armor, Shadyak's subordinates were on the verge of despair.

Having been forcibly stuffed into the Mobius Zero, Ur hid, rather shamelessly, between the Archangel's two gigantic legs.

You could call it self-awareness—knowing that stepping out would only add another soul to the void of space, Thor decisively switched off his communicator, ignoring Millialia's furious outburst from her post as communications officer.

Cunning indeed...

Twelve minutes earlier, when Kira hurriedly boarded the Strike, he discovered a small notebook on the keyboard. Its cover read "Orbment User Manual," signed by Black Flame Dragon.

Seeing a message from his idol, Kira immediately became excited. He delayed his sortie by two minutes, but managed to figure out how to use the orbment, which led to the current stalemate.

With his defense greatly increased, Shar, relying on the power of his Beam Mega Cannon Rifle, first ambushed and took out two space-type Zakus, then, at the cost of one leg, managed to destroy three GMs and the main camera of the Thunder piloted by Nicoll.

A rifle rivaling a main cannon is truly a game-changer!

Shar's Unicorn was heavily damaged!

Seeing a vulnerable target, the GMs, like starving men spotting meat after three days without food, fired their beam spray guns recklessly toward the Unicorn, even forgetting their mission to suppress the Archangel.

"Damn!" Entangled with the Original Gundam and Rick Dias, Kira, seeing the battered Unicorn, forgot it was AI-controlled and couldn't help but yell out.

Suddenly, an unprecedented clarity surged through Kira's mind, and it felt as if something within him shattered.

He closed his eyes, then opened them again.

Kira's originally light brown pupils turned ashen gray, a deathly silent hue.

"I'll shoot you down!" Diego, serving as long-range support, pressed a button on his control stick—the missile pods on Storm Gundam's shoulders opened, releasing eight missiles in irregular trajectories, all aimed at the Unicorn.

"Damn! I've overdone it! The suit's energy!" With black smoke pouring from its left leg, the Unicorn's targeting system issued a warning. Shar, desperately dodging the green beams from the GMs, tried to fire his rifle at the distant target, but nothing came from the barrel.

The suit's energy reserves were exhausted—it could no longer generate the beam for the cannon rifle.

"Great! The mistresses are going to tear me apart!" Facing the incoming missiles, Shar showed not a hint of fear about being shot down—rather, he grew even more excited.

Uh, was this guy deliberately courting death?

A very real possibility...

"Not a chance!" Eight beams shot out, precisely intercepting all eight missiles.

Not far away, the Strike's muzzle glowed faintly red.

"No way..." Diego, inside the Storm Gundam, froze for a full five seconds.

"What an opportunity!" Mule, piloting the Original Gundam, eyes gleaming, unhesitatingly hurled his morning star at the Strike's unprotected back.

But the jet-black Strike, as if it had eyes in the back of its head, instantly shifted right, evading the lunar titanium-forged morning star. In one fluid motion—rifle holstered, saber drawn, spinning around—he cleaved the morning star in two with a beam saber radiating an otherworldly glow.

Immediately after, the saber slipped from the Strike's hand, flying to the right and lodging itself straight into the barrel of Rick Dias's rocket launcher.

Bang!

"This is impossible!" Rick Dias threw aside the now useless weapon, drew a beam pistol, and fired wildly at the Strike.

Kira didn't even bother dodging this erratic barrage.

Shadyak had lost his wits.

"Shadyak! The protagonist must have triggered his SEED mode! We can't face him head-on! Retreat!" Mule's piloting skills were nothing special, and none of his summoned creatures were humanoid—just tentacled beasts or birds, useless in this fight. As a complete novice piloting the White Devil into battle—especially against the most powerful awakened Newtype—the outcome was obvious.

"Phoenix Seeker! Where's that damned woman? Is she just waiting to reap the spoils? Retreat? I've lost two men—how am I supposed to face them after running away?" The energy gauge in Shadyak's cockpit flashed red, finally prompting him to cease his pointless firing.

Bitterness over his own incompetence was joined by resentment at the hero merely watching from the sidelines.

"If her monster enters the battle..." With the screams of his dying subordinates echoing in his mind, Shadyak's eyes behind the mask were bloodshot.

When players first entered this scenario, they all received basic S-level piloting skills, but summoned creatures weren't so lucky. So, in battle, masters took the front lines while their summons were left to cheer from the sidelines.

"Phoenix Seeker? That she-male never intended to do anything but wear us down—she's just biding her time, probably saving her strength for the Eighth Fleet. That's the real big prize," Mule analyzed coldly. The failed raid was partly his responsibility.

Rushing into a super battle without gathering sufficient enemy intel is a fatal mistake!

Everyone had been blinded by the lure of the Archangel—no one realized that its "meaty legs" were as tough as PS armor.

Shadyak didn't respond, biting his lower lip so hard blood seeped from the corner of his mouth.

"Zeon Revenge Corps! Full retreat!" Shadyak forced the words out with every ounce of strength he had left.

"Second Federation Army! Cover the retreat! Let's pull back as well!" Seeing that Shadyak was finally willing to listen, Mule let out a sigh of relief.

The two forces withdrew in disarray, and Kira and his allies did not pursue further.