Chapter 372: The Path Forward, Continued
Mu looked at Athrun's serious expression and continued, "Isn't that what you're thinking too? You're the son of Patrick Zala, the current Chairman of PLANT."
Hearing Mu's words, Cagalli suddenly bristled like an enraged lioness, baring her teeth as she snapped at him in displeasure. "Who Athrun's father is has nothing to do with what we're discussing right now! Why are you suddenly dragging that into this?!"
Playing the role of the hardliner, Mu reprimanded her sternly. "As a soldier, leaving your own military without authorization and throwing yourself into fighting for another country is far more complicated and painful than you imagine—especially when the opposing leader happens to be your own father.
"If you can't firmly believe in your own convictions, you won't be able to bring yourself to fight against your former comrades. This is a major crossroads, a turning point in life—how could it possibly be as simple as you think?
"And his situation is completely different from Kira's. He's a regular soldier of ZAFT.
"I'm very sorry to say this, but if we're going to fight together in the future, I hope I can trust you completely.
"Can you do that? What do you think? Please think it over carefully."
At this point, Tolle played the role of the conciliator, persuading Athrun by taking a step back. "Athrun, don't take it too personally. Uncle Mu is saying this for your own good.
"After all, leaving your army without permission, defecting to another side, and helping them fight—that counts as treason and collusion with the enemy.
"So… you really need to think carefully about your future. Don't do something you'll regret for the rest of your life."
After weighing the pros and cons, Athrun still felt that being with Kira mattered more. With a firm expression, he said, "In Orb… no, I should say, in PLANT and on Earth, I've seen many things, and I've heard many things.
"After that… I thought about a lot—what was right, what was wrong, what I understood and what I didn't. Even now, I still haven't sorted it all out.
"Still… the world I long for… to be honest, it's the same as everyone here—a peaceful, beautiful world. You might not believe me, but that's how I truly feel right now."
Listening to him, Tolle couldn't help thinking that this was very much Athrun—truly worthy of being called a professional warrior. His way of speaking and thinking was completely hopeless, with zero political sense. A real pitfall of a kid.
If Athrun weren't such a valuable asset on their side, Tolle would have wanted to go over and punch him.
Mu, hearing Athrun's words, also praised him helplessly. "You're really strong. Very different from Kira."
Kira, not understanding Mu's underlying meaning, thought he was genuinely praising Athrun's straightforwardness. It was clear he didn't understand the art of adult language either.
After all, something not pretty could be called "cute"; something neither pretty nor cute could be called "having character." Someone not very smart could be called "pure," and someone really not smart could be called "innocent and pure," and so on.
Naturally, Kira—who had never studied the profound subtleties of such linguistic arts—wouldn't grasp this.
Looking at Athrun, Kira even smiled proudly and said, "He's always been like this since we were kids. He's much stronger than me."
Seeing Kira's innocence and Athrun's innocent naivety, Murrue couldn't help but smile wryly.
Tolle, meanwhile, struggled hard not to laugh. Fortunately, he'd undergone special training—unless something was absolutely hilarious, he wouldn't laugh.
Mu could only sigh helplessly. "The responsibility Orb has entrusted to us… really is enormous."
Murrue also shifted the topic helplessly. "Yes, that's absolutely true. But what should we do next?"
Spreading his hands, Mu replied, "Relying on just these three ships to rebuild Orb and create a peaceful, beautiful future…
"But… can we really do it? To be honest… I think it's impossible."
Kira smiled with determination. "Let's try to believe. A single spark can start a prairie fire."
Athrun followed up, "There's someone in PLANT who thinks the same way."
"Lacus?" Kira said her name without hesitation.
Hearing this, Mu asked them, "The pink-haired princess?"
Unaware of the tension, Kira once again poked at Athrun's sore spot, saying, "That's right—she's also Athrun's fiancée."
But Athrun replied with a downcast expression, "Not anymore. She's now considered a traitor to PLANT and is being hunted by my father."
At this moment, Tolle felt the timing was about right. He would need to make a trip to PLANT's colonies soon to retrieve some things—if he went too late, there'd be nothing left.
And he had to reach PLANT before Athrun returned; otherwise, there wouldn't be enough time.
Tolle spoke up. "Everyone, I have some things I need to handle on my own. I may have to leave for a while.
"But the Huayan will stay with you and head to the L4 colony cluster. I'll go alone in an MA."
Kira asked with confusion, "Is it something important? Do you need me to go with you?"
Tolle shook his head. "No, Kira. I'm just going to pick up a new unit. Too many people would only complicate things. Besides, you need to stay and protect everyone. Don't worry."
Cagalli asked in confusion, "Are you going to the Pillar of Heaven? Wouldn't it be better if we all went there together? Wouldn't that be much better than going to the L4 colony cluster?"
Tolle casually found an excuse and shook his head as he brushed it off. "Cagalli, we're already being watched by the Earth Alliance. We absolutely can't go openly to the Pillar of Heaven right now.
"We can't bring the flames of war there. Right now, it's full of innocent civilians who've just lost their homes.
"So until all this is over, we can't go to the Pillar of Heaven."
Erica also stepped in to help smooth things over. "That's right, Cagalli. The Pillar of Heaven is Orb's only remaining territory, and it doesn't have much defensive strength. We can't let the war spread there as well."
After hearing this, Kisaka felt it made sense and nodded in agreement. "That's true."
With an unhappy expression, Cagalli said reluctantly, "Then be careful. Come back as soon as possible. We'll wait for you in the L4 colony cluster."
Tolle nodded, then gently patted her head. "Don't worry, Cagalli. I'll come back safely."
---
[Thanks for reading! Support future releases and read more at patreøn.com/craxx_real.]