"No problem!" Doug laughed heartily.
Felix smiled slightly upon hearing this and didn't continue the conversation with Doug. After ending the communication with Doug, Felix issued orders through the comms.
"Retreat!"
With these two words spoken, Felix piloted the Dawn to turn and fly toward the Victoria Spaceport. Under his command, the others promptly piloted their MS to withdraw from this airspace.
In a very short time, the previously bustling airspace became cold and deserted again. Beneath the airspace, the wreckage scattered across the ground bore witness to the intense activity that had taken place here.
The Dawn descended toward the ground under Felix's control as it approached the Victoria Spaceport. Just before reaching the ground, the Dawn separated from the Guuru beneath it. The Guuru landed autonomously under automatic pilot control, while Felix manually guided the Dawn's descent.
After landing smoothly on the ground, Felix piloted the Dawn toward the surface hangar.
Inside the hangar, the Dawn came to a steady stop in its designated position. The cockpit hatch opened, and Felix emerged, taking the elevator down to ground level.
"Leaving it to you," Felix said with a slight smile as he looked at the maintenance crew chief.
The maintenance crew chief raised his hand in a salute and responded in a loud, clear voice, "Leave it to us!"
"Mm." Felix nodded slightly and strode outward.
In the command center, "Have the losses all been tallied?" Felix placed his helmet on the table, pulled out a chair and sat down, looking at Doug as he asked.
Doug turned to face Felix, nodded slightly, and handed him the tablet in his hand.
Felix reached out to take the tablet, his brow momentarily clouded with a flicker of sorrow as he read the contents. After reviewing the information, he placed the tablet back on the table.
Looking at Doug, he said, "In the coming period, I'll coordinate with you for the offensive operations in Africa, aiming to turn the situation around as quickly as possible."
"Thank you for that," Doug said with a slight smile, expressing his gratitude.
Felix waved his hand dismissively and replied with a laugh, "No need for thanks. This is what should be done."
"By the way, were you specifically targeted?" Doug suddenly asked, as if remembering something, turning to look at Felix with a somewhat serious expression.
"Yes." Felix nodded at Doug and continued, "This time, when I engaged with the Earth Alliance Forces, I was indeed singled out."
"What was the situation?" Doug's expression grew even more serious as he pressed on with a grave tone.
Felix glanced up at Doug and continued, "It was a fighter squadron completely different in design from the Vanguard Fighters. These fighters outperformed the Vanguard Fighters, and their pilots were far superior to Vanguard Fighter pilots as well. They were much more troublesome to deal with!"
"How do they compare to our soldiers?" Doug asked, seated in his chair, a look of concern appearing on his face.
Turning to see the worry on Doug's face, Felix thought for a moment before speaking.
"In individual combat, they're inferior to our soldiers. But when formed into squadrons for coordinated operations, they're on par with our troops, even surpassing us in tacit coordination."
At this point, Felix looked at Doug and changed the subject.
"However, this only applies on Earth. In space, where MS can fully utilize all their maneuvering capabilities, they fall short." "That's not exactly good news."
The worry between his brows didn't fade as Doug looked at Felix and replied. After speaking, Doug stood up, patted Felix's shoulder, and smiled.
"I'm going to write my report now. We'll talk later."
"Mm!" Nodding slightly while looking at Doug, Felix said, "Let me know if you need anything."
"!" Doug nodded with a smile and walked out.
After Doug left, Felix stood up and walked toward the coffee machine in the room. He used it to make himself a cup of coffee.
"Instant coffee is still more convenient!"
Holding the freshly made coffee, Felix thought about the complicated process he'd just gone through and muttered a complaint.
"How can instant coffee compare to handcrafted, freshly brewed coffee!"
A voice reached his ears, growing closer. Recognizing the familiar voice, Felix looked up. Seeing Andrew enter with his lover Aisha, joy at reuniting with his friend appeared on his face. He set his coffee down on the table and spoke as if catching up.
"Back?"
"Mm." Andrew nodded slightly, walking over to Felix's side. He picked up the coffee Felix had made, gave it a slight sniff, and evaluated, "The timing's off. The coffee's aroma hasn't been fully brought out. This is a rather poor cup."
"It's drinkable."
Hearing Andrew's assessment, Felix took the coffee back and retorted with a laugh.
Andrew looked at Felix and smiled, then stepped over to the coffee machine and began fiddling with the equipment. As he started making coffee, he asked, "Aisha, would you like a cup?"
"Mm."
Hearing her lover's question, Aisha smiled gently and nodded slightly. Getting her response, Andrew smiled back at her and began preparing the coffee.
In the quiet moment, Andrew's apologetic voice sounded.
"Sorry for dragging you back to Earth again."
"It's fine." Turning to look at Andrew, Felix waved his hand and said with a smile. After speaking, he set his coffee cup on the table and added, "Work is work wherever it is, and being able to work with you again is quite nice."
Hearing these words, Andrew turned to look at Felix. Seeing the gentle smile on Felix's face, he adjusted his emotions, revealed a smile, and replied, "I'm also happy to be working with you again."
With that, the coffee in his hands was ready.
Picking it up, he asked, "Want to try some?"
"No."
Raising his own coffee, Felix declined with a smile.
Seeing this, Andrew handed the coffee he'd made to his lover. Aisha took the coffee from Andrew, accepted it with her hand, smelled the aroma, and praised, "Andrew, your skills have improved."
"As long as you like it."
Glancing at his lover, Andrew's smile carried a touch of affection as he replied very gently.
Standing to the side, Felix observed the two's behavior, and suddenly felt the coffee in his hand didn't taste good anymore.
"How are things on the moon?"
Turning back to brew coffee, Andrew asked Felix. Glancing at him, Felix took a small sip of coffee and replied.
"Quite well. The Lorentz Military Base has basically stabilized."
"That's good."
Nodding, Andrew felt much more at ease and stopped asking questions, quietly focusing on making the coffee in his hands. Felix took another sip of his coffee and walked outside with the cup.
"I'll be going now. Let's talk again tomorrow."
"See you tomorrow."
Andrew raised his hand and waved in response.
Outside the command post, Felix walked quietly through Victoria Spaceport, holding his coffee. He calmly observed the changes that had taken place in Victoria Spaceport over this period.
"The changes are really big!"
Taking a sip of coffee, Felix smiled with emotion.