Chapter 231: A New Identity, A New Beginning

"Sigh, starting over again."

On a beautiful morning, Yang Hui woke up from his sleep and went to the bathroom. Looking at his reflection in the mirror, he couldn't help but sigh at his youthful, delicate features.

Of course, Yang Hui wasn't lamenting how handsome he was—he wasn't that narcissistic. He was simply reflecting on how, once again, he had been "reset" in this new world, starting over as a baby and growing up all over again.

Even though sixteen years had passed, Yang Hui couldn't help but feel that the setup of the Prometheus Fortress was truly frustrating.

"Knock, knock~"

"Come in."

"Young master, breakfast is ready. The master is waiting for you."

"Alright, I'll be there shortly."

After tidying himself up, Yang Hui walked through the long corridor and finally arrived at the dining room.

At the head of the long rectangular table sat a middle-aged man. His meticulously groomed hair gleamed, and his square face carried a gentle, scholarly smile. The glasses on the bridge of his nose added an air of refined elegance.

"You're here. Take a seat."

"Yes, Father."

The dining room was luxurious, but the breakfast was quite simple—Chinese millet porridge, shrimp dumplings, and steamed buns.

The father and son ate in silence, savoring their meal at a leisurely pace. Once they were done, they headed to the study together.

Yang Hui looked at his father's silent back. Although the man wasn't usually talkative, Yang Hui could sense that he had something important to share today.

The two sat facing each other, and Yang Hui noticed a hint of seriousness on his father's face.

"Lord Uzumi approached me to discuss something."

"Lord Uzumi?" Yang Hui's brow furrowed slightly. "Father, as the head of the Yang Family, one of the Five Great Families of Orb, shouldn't matters between you and Lord Uzumi be kept private?"

Indeed, the scholarly man before him was none other than Yang Hongyu, the head of the Yang Family, one of the Five Great Families of Orb, alongside the Athha and Sahaku families. As his only son, Yang Hui was essentially one of the princes of Orb.

The world of Gundam SEED was divided into two major factions: the Earth Alliance, represented by nations such as the Atlantic Federation, the Eurasian Federation, the East Asian Republic, the United States of South Africa, and the South American Union; and PLANT, an independent nation composed of a new cluster of Colonies.

The Earth Alliance and PLANT harbored deep-seated animosity toward each other. The Atlantic Federation, the strongest nation within the Earth Alliance, influenced by a shadowy organization, had taken up the slogan "Protect the Pure Blue World" and was determined to eradicate PLANT.

The origin of this slogan was closely tied to the terms "Natural" and "Coordinator."

Coordinators were individuals who had undergone genetic manipulation, granting them superior abilities compared to ordinary humans. Their genetic makeup had been artificially adjusted, optimized, and enhanced. Compared to Naturals, Coordinators excelled in intelligence, physical capabilities, and learning speed. They were immune to many diseases and often possessed more attractive appearances.

Naturals, on the other hand, were ordinary humans who had not undergone any genetic modification.

Orb, along with the Kingdom of Scandinavia and the Equatorial Union, remains one of the very few neutral nations that refuse to participate in the war between the two sides and do not lean towards either party. Moreover, Orb advocates for peaceful coexistence between Naturals and Coordinators. As a nation on Earth, it is the only country that has both Natural and Coordinator citizens.

The Atlantic Federation is naturally displeased with the actions of Orb, the Kingdom of Scandinavia, and the Equatorial Union. However, for one, the territories of Orb, the Kingdom of Scandinavia, and the member states of the Equatorial Union are small, with sparse populations and locations that lack strategic significance. Secondly, the Earth Federation still has PLANT as its major enemy to deal with. Therefore, they turn a blind eye, as long as Orb, the Kingdom of Scandinavia, and the Equatorial Union do not openly support PLANT, they will not take drastic measures.

However, Orb is significantly different from the Kingdom of Scandinavia and the Equatorial Union. The Earth Federation truly disregards the Kingdom of Scandinavia and the Equatorial Union because they pose no threat to the Earth Federation, nor could they ever pose any threat. But Orb... has always been an object of the Earth Federation's desire to win over, yet also an object of extreme dislike.

Orb, officially known as the United Emirates of Orb, contrary to its small territory, boasts military technology that ranks among the world's best. Orb's rapid military development is facilitated by its location in a volcanic belt, which provides abundant energy, and its policy of not rejecting Coordinators. The state-owned enterprise, Dawn Company, located on Koryu Island, is a symbol of Orb's military industry. Orb also possesses its own mass driver, Kaguya, and resource satellite, Heliopolis, facilities that rival those of a federal nation. It is precisely because Orb possesses such formidable strength that it is also nicknamed the "Sleeping Lion."

Economically, Orb is an archipelago nation composed of large and small volcanic islands, with very scarce resources. However, it possesses highly advanced industrial technology and scientific capabilities. Its state-owned military enterprise, Dawn Company, is favored in the international market.

In Orb's complex political system, power is concentrated in an elected parliament and five representatives from the original ruling noble families of Orb. Among the five noble representatives, one is elected as the head representative to oversee national policies.

The first representative of Orb was Uzumi Yura Attha, referred to as "Lord Uzumi" by Yang Hongyu and Yang Hui. Yang Hongyu himself is one of the five noble representatives.

"It's about Orb, and it's also about you."

"...Has it been discovered?" Yang Hui smiled upon hearing this, as he guessed what Yang Hongyu was going to discuss with him.

"You should know that Orb is a neutral nation."

"Yes, I know."

"Then what about the X Series?"

"It's a kind of deal."

The X Series, after the Earth Alliance forces were utterly defeated on the battlefield by ZAFT's most elite MS weapons from PLANT's National Defense Force, was proposed by Commander Duan Halbaton of the Eighth Fleet as a development plan for the Earth Alliance's own MS. However, it faced strong opposition from the higher-ups. Yet, deeply aware of the crisis posed by MS, he secretly initiated the development with a group of like-minded comrades, bypassing the headquarters.

Thus, the [G Project] was launched. Under coercion and incentives, companies like United Space Dynamics and Fujiyama Corporation jointly began the development of MS for the Earth Alliance.

However, the MS being built was based on data obtained from captured GINNs, aiming to surpass the performance of the ZGMF-515 [CGUE], the successor to the GINN, which had already been confirmed at the time. Additionally, MS weapons themselves were designed with the physical capabilities of Coordinators in mind. The OS developed for the GAT Series, based on the GINN's OS, was clearly unsuitable for Naturals. Despite recruiting a large number of civilians to participate in OS development, the progress was extremely slow compared to the arduous efforts.

Ultimately, they had no choice but to seek assistance from Orb.

Uzumi, the representative leader who adhered to the principle of neutrality, flatly refused. However, not everyone shared this view. Koto Sahaku, the head of the Sahaku family, wanted to develop MS for self-defense, seeing it as an excellent opportunity to acquire the technology of the Alliance's MS.

Yang Hui, who also agreed with Sahaku's idea, believed that Orb's military might appeared strong but was merely a paper tiger. Its individual combat strength couldn't match ZAFT, and its numbers couldn't rival the Earth Alliance. If either side decided to act against Orb, Orb would have no power to resist.

Therefore... the development of MS was imperative.

Yang Hui secretly contacted Koto Sahaku and assisted the Earth Alliance in finally completing the OS development for the X Series, albeit a stripped-down version.

The Earth Federation was no good, and Yang Hui wouldn't stand by and watch it grow stronger.

The original OS could only make the X Series move, but it was a complete mess, even giving Coordinators a headache.

Yang Hui's OS was even more extreme. He developed it entirely based on his own piloting habits. Not only was it difficult for Naturals to control, but even Coordinators found it challenging. Yang Hui roughly calculated that, at this time, only the Crew might have the ability to operate it. The inexperienced Kira and Athrun definitely couldn't.

Of course, such an OS couldn't satisfy Duan Halbaton. But... when Yang Hui sent his simulation data over, Halbaton was dumbfounded and had no choice.

We're all Naturals. If I can do it, and you can't, you can only blame yourselves for being incompetent. It's not my fault!

Although this was Yang Hui's secret operation, there are no permanent secrets. Any action leaves traces.

And sure enough, it was discovered.

Moreover, Yang Hongyu was Uzumi's most loyal supporter, firmly adhering to the principle of neutrality.

"What kind of deal?" Yang Hongyu didn't believe that his son was close to the Earth Alliance, because he had asked Yang Hui more than once about his views on the Earth Alliance and PLANT, and Yang Hui had repeatedly expressed his disdain and contempt for the Earth Alliance, even disgust.

So Yang Hui must have a deeper meaning for doing this, and the deal he mentioned must be very important to Orb.

"Time and technology."

"Time and technology?"

"Exactly, Orb needs time and technology to expand its military capabilities..."

"Yang Hui! Orb is a neutral country!"

"A neutrality without power is meaningless. The Alliance is already in decline in the war, and they will definitely try to rally all the forces they can to fight against ZAFT, and Orb will be the first to bear the brunt."

Apart from the earlier shout, Yang Hongyu was not angry at all, but listened quietly as Yang Hui explained his reasons. His son had been a genius since childhood, and it was largely thanks to Yang Hui that he could steadily sit in the position of Orb's second-in-command.

"The development of MS has become mainstream. Unless the technology of MA and warships suddenly advances by two or three generations, there is no way to compete with ZAFT's MS units, and Orb does not have its own MS technology. The Alliance's [G Project] can pave the way for Orb. With the technology for MS development, Orb can secretly build its own MS units, so that whether it's the Alliance or ZAFT attacking, we won't be without the ability to resist."

In fact, this was all an excuse. Orb didn't need the technical data from the [G Project] to develop MS. Yang Hui's mind was filled with ten times more technology than the [G Project], and it was even more advanced.

The reason he said this was just to find an excuse, otherwise Yang Hui really couldn't explain where he learned the MS technology.

"But isn't MS only for Coordinators to pilot? Although Orb has Coordinators, most of them joined Orb because they hate war, and we can't force them..."

"Who said MS can only be used by Coordinators?"

"Huh? You mean..."

"An OS that Naturals can use." Yang Hui waved his hand indifferently, the smile on his lips impossible to hide. "Not hard to solve."

(End of Chapter)