The time had reached noon, and under the sunlight, the temperature on the streets of the Kingdom of Foundation had risen considerably.
The previously ravaged Torrington Port had been cleared but not yet repaired. Wreckage of factories and weapons, dissolved by Beam Magnum or Agni Hyper Impulse Cannon attacks, were visible everywhere.
Several young men and women, dressed in the uniforms of the Kingdom of Foundation logistics troops, were observing the remnants of the Torrington Port.
Shinn, wearing a hat, looked at the ruins of a factory—which, according to video data, had been affected by the Unicorn's Beam Magnum—and reached out to touch the steel structure that still bore signs of being melted.
Not far away, the ground, which had been melted by the Beam Magnum and then cooled and solidified into glass, sporadically reflected the faint sunlight.
"This is... the Unicorn's attack power..." Shinn's eyes widened, feeling the texture of the steel structure, which was melted beyond recognition, in his hand. It was as if he could feel the temperature of the steel structure being melted through the coldness.
"It's like hell." Lunamaria shivered, looking at everything around her. "Can a monster like that MS really exist in this world?!"
'I miscalculated. I shouldn't have tagged along. Coming here to look at ruins is worse than practicing sniping back on the Minerva.'
Lunamaria genuinely didn't understand why, when she should be a frontline pilot driving a close-combat mobile suit, she ended up as a rear guard armed with a sniper cannon.
This feeling was as uncomfortable as piloting an 00 Raiser as a rear guard in EXVS. Lunamaria's current sniping skill meant that if she was even a little far away, the lock-on would turn green (long-range/unreliable), and the hit rate was quite pathetic unless the target was large, like a warship.
"But it does exist. It even appeared near an agricultural colony and we observed its combat firsthand." Rey tentatively placed his right foot on the vitrified ground, which made a slight crunching sound under his shoe.
"To be honest... setting aside us, even the famous Captain Le Creuset is no match for that machine right now..."
"Rey, you shouldn't say things like that..." Lunamaria instinctively tried to interrupt Rey's words. Although it was just the three of them here, if someone else overheard, Rey might be confined for "disrupting military morale" or even face a court-martial.
"That's a very fair assessment. Even Le Creuset wouldn't feel that anything was wrong with that statement."
At that moment, a familiar voice sounded behind them, freezing Lunamaria's movements like an unlubricated machine.
"Co... Councilman Durandal!" Lunamaria quickly turned and saluted Durandal.
"No need for formalities. Neither I nor Le Creuset would be angry at Rey's words, as what he said is quite correct."
Durandal, still in his councilman attire and holding a folder, walked leisurely up to the trio.
"After all, ever since he started piloting the Phantom Beast Type I, this Amuro has repeatedly gotten the upper hand against Le Creuset."
"But if Captain Le Creuset had his dedicated machine... he should be able to win?" Rey frowned, pondering for a while before offering this speculation.
"In fact, I'm not entirely sure, as the DRAGOON system on Le Creuset's dedicated machine has undergone significant modifications." Durandal shook his head. "You probably saw it too—he cracked the DRAGOON system in a very short time and completely hijacked the funnels to attack. Against such an enemy, wire-guided cannons are the best choice, as they guarantee full control."
"About that... I have a question." Rey looked at Durandal. "Why did the Library have the DRAGOON system?"
"Spies and insiders are everywhere, especially among partners. It simply cost a lot of money." Durandal casually brushed off the topic.
"Right, why don't you all follow me for a moment?"
He led the three young pilots through the ruins of Torrington Port, their eyes constantly taking in the wreckage all around—some caused by the Unicorn, some by the Strike, but most by those several gigantic mobile suits.
Finally, after turning a corner past a wall, the vast, boundless ocean appeared before their eyes.
The ground was shattered, revealing pits and long cutting marks that exposed the soil underneath. Numerous newly sprouted weeds swayed slightly in the sea breeze.
Seagulls soared on the sea breeze over this destroyed dock, which currently had only four visitors. Unfortunately, they certainly wouldn't find their favorite french fries here.
"It's quite marvelous, isn't it... the power of nature."
Facing the sea breeze, Durandal exclaimed, "In such a short time, this place has recovered from the appearance of hell to this state."
"It's truly... spectacular."
Rey's eyes widened instinctively, looking at the scene before him, where the edges and corners, due to the lack of human activity, were being encroached upon by vegetation, and seagulls were foraging, accompanied by their cries.
Lunamaria, at this point, was speechless.
Although she had just seen a pile of ruins, seeing this scenery now felt like it was worth the trip.
"If this place were abandoned for a few more years, the scene would be even more shocking."
Durandal shook his head. "Unfortunately, according to the future general plans of the Kingdom of Foundation's Prime Minister, this place will have to be redeveloped, as the investment is substantial."
"Also, the main force behind the reconstruction of Torrington Port is not the Kingdom of Foundation."
Durandal shook his head, but a subtle smile played on his lips. "The main funder of Torrington Port is an organization called Blue Cosmos. Shinn might be more familiar with them, as this organization participated in the attack on Orb."
"...Blue Cosmos?"
Hearing the unfamiliar name and the news that they had participated in the attack on Orb, Shinn's previously calm expression vanished, replaced by a frown.
"I haven't heard of them."
"An extremist organization deeply rooted in the Atlantic Federation of the Earth Alliance. The gigantic MA Shamblo that first attacked Orb, and the three new MS units during the subsequent Orb mass evacuation, were all their work."
Durandal flipped through the file in his hand. "Since this port is Blue Cosmos's largest investment project, I now have reason to believe that the Unicorn's attack was specifically targeting Blue Cosmos."
"Blue Cosmos... was it them?" Hearing what Durandal said, Shinn clenched his fists instinctively.
"But during my meeting with the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Foundation this morning, I also heard some interesting news."
Durandal casually flipped open a page of the folder, turned around, and showed the three young people a piece of intelligence.
"Logos, the military-industrial complex known as the 'Merchants of Death,' is the secret financier of Blue Cosmos. The nuclear missiles that attacked Junius Seven were funded by them."
"They probably wanted to incite some regional wars to make huge profits, but they didn't expect it to turn out this way."
Durandal sighed. "But now, I estimate these people have already made a fortune. The recent standoff was just a brief pause for both sides."
"For profit... have they completely disregarded what will happen to this world?" Rey and Lunamaria both looked grim after hearing Durandal's words.
"With 50 percent profit, capital dares to do anything; with 100 percent, it will trample all human laws; with 300 percent, it will commit any crime, even at the risk of the gallows."
Durandal subtly observed the three young people in front of him. "This classic theory from the A.D. era before the Cosmic Era can still be perfectly applied to our current situation."
"Those guys... those guys..." Hearing the intelligence Durandal had obtained through the Kingdom of Foundation, and the shocking news it contained for him, Shinn felt his heart was set ablaze with fury.
His destroyed home nation, his deceased parents, his sister who could only move with prosthetics and might develop a form of psychosis, forced to take medication for the rest of her life... Each event was like fuel, constantly being poured into Shinn's rage.
Shinn developed a killing intent towards the Logos organization, which he had never met, and Blue Cosmos.
"The reason I am telling you all this is so that everyone knows who our true enemy is and how to find a way to end this war."
Durandal looked at the young people. Their reactions were largely within his predictions... but was Shinn's reaction perhaps too extreme?
Thinking this, he closed the folder. "One piece of the puzzle to achieve the ultimate goal has been found, but some pieces are still hidden under the fog."
"...It seems everyone now knows the reason for fighting." Durandal narrowed his eyes; so far, Shinn's emotion seemed a little too intense.
"So we must be calm now, and slowly root out those who are hiding behind the scenes, stirring up this world."
"Let's conclude today here. I got carried away with my thoughts and almost forgot this."
With that, Durandal rummaged in his pocket.
"These are identification cards for the Kingdom of Foundation that I specially obtained from the Prime Minister."
Durandal casually pulled out three cards and handed them to the three young people in front of him. "This may be your last chance to relax for a while. I'm not sure what the next battles will look like. Take these IDs, don't expose yourselves, and take a moment to relax."
..................