Upon hearing Lu Tianming's words, Saib was momentarily stunned before nodding with a smile.
"In that case, I've been thinking too narrowly... You're right. Ultimately, our resistance organization exists so people can live better lives."
"Exactly. You need to become an army of the people."
Lu Tianming nodded, leaving it at that... He had included more detailed explanations in the materials stored on the hard drive.
Whether Saib would read them or how much he would understand was his own affair—at the very least, Lu Tianming had done what he needed to do.
"An army of the people..."
Saib repeated the phrase, seeming to have gained some insight, yet it felt as if a veil remained, making it difficult to articulate his thoughts clearly.
"So, what do you think? Our Tianming has a solid grasp of politics, doesn't he? Occasionally, he hits the nail on the head with just a word or two."
Seeing Saib on the verge of enlightenment, Mu chuckled, slung an arm around Lu Tianming's shoulder, and boasted proudly.
"Indeed, he's quite impressive... It's no surprise, coming from someone raised in a space colony. The level of knowledge here is simply different from ours."
Saib nodded, feeling somewhat emotional.
"If only the children here could receive the same education someday."
As if realizing his words had strayed from the topic, Saib waved his hand and changed the subject.
"By the way, what are your plans from here... Are you really heading to ORB?"
"Is there any other choice? Right now, there's nowhere else to go besides ORB."
Lu Tianming spread his hands and was about to continue when someone, as if catching a keyword, leaned in abruptly.
"What about ORB? You're going there next?"
Cagalli, like some keyword police officer springing into action at the mention of a trigger word, immediately poked her head over, curiosity written all over her face.
"Yeah, where else could we go... Should we really try to join up with the Earth Alliance? We'd probably end up being thrown into the front lines as cannon fodder."
Lu Tianming sighed helplessly. Based on the new intelligence they had gathered recently, the true nature of the Earth Alliance had been laid bare since the Battle of Alaska... They had started openly using soldiers to fill the front lines without hesitation.
If the decoy plan worked, they'd use it repeatedly. They could always report it as the enemy's highly lethal weapons—after all, those who fought would be dead, and those who didn't wouldn't know what really happened.
Lu Tianming roughly estimated that this situation might have arisen because the war had progressed faster than in the original timeline. With both time and technological conditions lagging behind, they had failed to produce MS in time to counter PLANT's retaliation.
"If you're really going to ORB, take me with you... alright?"
Hearing that this was indeed the case, Cagalli hesitated for a moment before speaking up.
"Take you?"
Mu was momentarily surprised by Cagalli's request. It had never crossed his mind that this young girl would have such an idea.
Unaware of Cagalli's true identity, he instinctively glanced at Lu Tianming... Could it be that she, too, was joining the ship because of him?
What a man burdened with sin...
"Yeah, is that not allowed?"
Cagalli didn't notice the meaningful look in Mu's eyes, simply assuming he was unwilling to let her board the ship.
"I can do many things! I can help with supplies and everything else!"
As she spoke, she turned her gaze toward Murrue, hoping the Captain of the Archangel would grant her request.
"Even if you look at me like that... the decision isn't ours to make."
Murrue shrugged helplessly, though she also felt somewhat amused. Cagalli was working so hard to persuade them—if only she had approached the right person, this could have been settled with a single word.
"...Huh?"
Cagalli was bewildered. She remembered Miss Murrue was the Captain of the Archangel... Even if military rank took precedence over position on the Archangel, logically, Mu should be the one in charge.
If neither of them had the authority to decide, then who did?
It couldn't be...
Suspicious, Cagalli turned her head and cast a doubtful glance toward Lu Tianming.
"What are you looking at? It's me. Got a problem with that?"
Seeing the suspicion in Cagalli's eyes, Lu Tianming lightly flicked her forehead with a chuckle, feigning annoyance.
"...But why you?"
Rubbing her forehead, Cagalli couldn't figure it out no matter how hard she thought—Lu Tianming seemed only a few years older than her, and his military rank didn't appear high either. How could he possibly hold the decision-making power for the Archangel?
"Who knows? Since you're curious, why not just come aboard and see for yourself?"
Lu Tianming spread his hands with a smile—he had never intended to reject her request to board from the start.
Yet, he couldn't shake a strange feeling... as if he had somehow turned Gundam SEED into One Piece.
Just as Cagalli was about to say more, a member of the resistance approached and whispered something to Saib.
Saib nodded and sighed softly:
"According to tradition, it's time to bid farewell to our fallen comrades... Would you like to join us?"
After exchanging glances, the group decided that Murrue would stay behind to look after the intoxicated Badgiruel, while the others would accompany Saib to pay their respects.
Led by Saib, they arrived at the "cemetery" within the resistance base.
The cemetery was small and poorly maintained—merely a sheltered area surrounded by cliffs designated for this purpose.
After all, the warriors had endured enough hardship in life; they deserved a windless harbor as their final resting place.
As they arrived, several shells were launched into the sky via makeshift anti-aircraft guns, while the most respected elder among the residents stood before the crowd, reciting the names of the deceased.
Lu Tianming lifted his gaze to the cemetery across the crowd... countless simple tombstones stood there, making it difficult to count how many had bravely sacrificed their lives in the war against ZAFT.
Witnessing this scene, Cagalli sighed softly and said to Lu Tianming:
"...If not for your arrival, the frontlines would likely have stretched even longer, and more people would have been buried here in the future."
"Though the fighting here has temporarily ceased, what about other places? In unseen corners, more people will likely perish in this war."
As she spoke, she gazed somewhat bewildered at Lu Tianming, her tone tinged with uncertainty.
"That true peace you and Lacus spoke of... can it truly be achieved?"
Lu Tianming pondered for a long moment before surprisingly shaking his head:
"The path to peace is long and perilous. Whether we can achieve it in our lifetime—I truly cannot guarantee."
"But if we give up because of this, if we hesitate and stall, then no matter how long we wait, peace will never arrive."
"If we want peace... we must fight for it ourselves."
At the very least, regardless of what others might think, Lu Tianming's resolve on this matter would never waver.
For him, peace was not merely an ideal—it was his only hope at present.
The sole hope that would allow that fellow Xia Chuan to live properly in this world.
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