"Compared to the clothes you were wearing before, this outfit looks much more like something a girl would wear."
Andrew sat on the sofa, smiling at the three people sitting opposite him.
Roz was sitting rather casually. Even though he complained that the coffee was bitter, he still drank it sip by sip. Kira and Cagalli, on the other hand, looked a little uneasy.
"Tch… say whatever you want." Cagalli, as if out of spite, picked up her coffee and was about to gulp it down.
"…It'd be perfect if you didn't speak." Seeing the once-elegant Cagalli's whole demeanor collapse as soon as she opened her mouth, Andrew thought for a moment and gave his evaluation.
It was the perfect moment for Roz to crack a joke, yet he didn't. Instead, he glanced naturally at a communication request flashing on his phone, pressed it, and turned off the screen, placing it on the coffee table.
"Family call?" Andrew noticed Roz's action and smiled. "Hanging up like that isn't great — maybe they can't reach you and are already getting worried."
"But it's not appropriate to take a call here, right?" Though Roz outwardly rejected the call, the earpiece in his pocket had already activated, linking to the communicator. "After all, this counts as a ZAFT military stronghold."
Anyone who had Roz's communicator number was someone trustworthy. Hearing what Roz said, they likely understood exactly where he was.
"Well, it's the headquarters, so yes, it's definitely a military area." Andrew waved his hand. "But with N-jammers around, the Earth Forces can't do much about long-range strikes here anyway."
Cagalli frowned, put down her coffee, and fixed her sharp gaze on Andrew.
"So that's why the Desert Tiger himself went into town disguised, grinning and wandering around?"
"…Sharp eyes." Andrew didn't answer her question; instead, he examined her carefully, squinting while his smile never faded. "So direct, so keen."
"What kind of person do you think I am? Cold-blooded, merciless? Maybe even a killer?"
"Being the ZAFT North Africa commander is just a job — one that happens to come with some status and danger." Andrew took a sip of coffee. "You have to separate work and life, right? Am I some machine that doesn't need rest? It's perfectly normal to put on something I like and go for a walk now and then."
"Besides, didn't you also come to my town to shop? Little guerrilla girl."
Hearing that, Cagalli and Kira immediately tensed up.
At the same time, aboard the Archangel, Murrue also froze.
She had just connected to Roz's communication line and overheard that shocking revelation. The moment Cagalli's cover was blown, her instinct was to order the ship to launch.
But soon, under Natarle and Christina's restraint, the Archangel didn't start up. Still, Natarle was already moving through the town, looking for a way to rescue those inside.
"I don't know which guerrilla unit you're from," Andrew said, setting his cup down and turning toward Kira and Roz. "But your attitude toward me is exactly like those other guerrillas we've captured."
He glanced at the clock. "It's about time. Let's move on to the last topic."
"The two gentlemen over there — tell me, how do you think this war can end?"
Andrew's eyes turned serious.
"You can speak freely, pilots of the Mobile Suits."
"H-how do you know that?!" Cagalli blurted out in panic.
Kira's pupils shrank instinctively.
Roz, however, kept drinking his coffee — not even bothering to stand or react.
"Being too direct can cause problems," Andrew said casually as he stood up and walked to a cabinet near the window. "War isn't a sports match — there's no timer, no score."
"So then — how does a war end? Where's the finish line?"
Andrew opened the cabinet, looked inside, and pressed a button on the object within.
"…Is it when you've annihilated every last enemy?" Andrew turned around, raising his hand toward Roz and Kira.
It was a pistol — the dark muzzle gleaming coldly under the light. Instinctively, Cagalli ducked behind Kira for cover. Kira, though frightened, spread his arms wide, trying to shield her as much as he could.
And Roz — was still drinking his coffee.
"…Forget about resisting. Even if you, the knight, are strong, I don't think you could cause chaos here and still leave in one piece." Andrew had clearly noticed Kira's subtle glances around the room.
"Roz! Do something already! Why are you just sitting there watching?!" Cagalli shouted, panicking as she looked at Roz still calmly sitting on the sofa.
"Regarding that, I'm also quite curious why you, Mr. Roz, aren't doing anything."
Andrew turned to look at Roz, curiosity in his eyes. "A normal person should be reacting like those two, right? Don't tell me it's my bitter coffee that's captured your attention."
"An elder friend of mine once said this — "Mealtime is a sacred time. That's when angels descend to the table."."
Roz calmly finished the last sip of his coffee and set the cup down on the table. "Even drinking coffee is no exception."
"As for why I'm not dodging…" Roz picked up his phone, stood up, and calmly positioned himself in front of Kira. "I wrote my will three years ago and have been updating it weekly ever since."
"Hahaha… you really are interesting."
Andrew burst into laughter, his booming voice echoing through the living room.
"All right, joke's over. Let's get back to the point…" His tone became serious. "I can feel that you share a similar presence with the other young man. Although I don't know your exact piloting skill, Mr. Roz, ZAFT has some intelligence that allows me to make a few guesses."
"You're the pilot of Cub, aren't you?"
Faced with Andrew's question, Roz admitted his identity calmly.
"Yes. I'm the pilot of what you call Cub."
"Heh… and that man over there — he's like you, an Coordinator, right?" Andrew pointed the muzzle of his gun at Roz. "I've had the honor of witnessing his combat — mastery over desert traction, swift adjustment to thermal convection, lightning-fast movement. Even among Coordinators, he's exceptional."
"I'm not naïve enough to think you're Naturals." Andrew's finger rested on the trigger. "I don't know why you're pointing your guns at your own kind, but right now, you're my enemies."
"…I bet your gun isn't loaded."
While Kira and Cagalli sweated nervously, frozen in place, Roz finally spoke.
"Oh? Want to wager your life on whether there's a bullet in it?" Andrew asked playfully.
"Don't bother bluffing. You haven't even disengaged the safety." Roz didn't recognize the model, but the safety indicator was clearly set to "LOCK." "Besides, there's no magazine in it. When you pressed the release earlier, I heard the click."
After a long moment of tension, Andrew chuckled, lifted the gun, and pointed it toward the ceiling.
"…Sharp insight. As expected of an ace." He turned the handle slightly, revealing the empty magazine well at the base of the grip.
"Still, it seems you didn't deny my earlier point — meaning, one side has to fall completely for the war to end." Smiling, Andrew returned the pistol to the cabinet and turned toward a machine nearby.
"You saved my life today. Besides, this isn't a battlefield. I'm not about to start a fight in my own home." Saying that, Andrew pressed a button on the machine.
Aisha, having received the signal, opened the door and looked into the living room.
"It's getting late. We bought replacements for the items you lost, and a vehicle is ready. It'll take you back to where you were dining."
Andrew exhaled, closed the drawer, and smiled. "I'm glad we could talk."
He then turned toward the three of them — more precisely, toward Kira and Roz.
"See you on the battlefield."
Just as Roz followed behind Kira and Cagalli toward the door, he suddenly stopped.
"I just have something I'd like to ask."
"Military secrets are off-limits," Andrew replied, turning toward the window with his coffee cup in hand.
"…Are you a NewType?" Roz turned around, looking at Andrew's back.
"…What?" Andrew turned, a puzzled expression on his face.
Roz stared at him for nearly a full minute. The silence in the room became awkward.
"…I see. I was overthinking it." Roz smiled faintly.
"You wanted to know my thoughts about how to end the war, right?"
As Roz began to speak, his mind drifted back to that moment — the first time he passed through the wreckage of Junius 7.
"I'm going to turn everyone into the same kind of person — whether Natural or Coordinator."
The words were childishly idealistic, yet Roz's tone carried unwavering conviction. It even made Andrew pause mid-sip.
"And then, I'll show them everything — about us, about humanity's future, about humanity's possibilities."
"The universe is so vast. Isn't it pathetic to keep fighting just around Earth?"
"…Such naïve thinking," Andrew said, chuckling softly. "What you're facing will be far more difficult than you can imagine. No matter the form it takes, I can already see the resistance your dream will encounter."
"But… the world's already like this. How much worse could failing really make it?" Roz smiled and turned around. "Even seemingly naïve ideas are worth putting into practice."
"I see…" Andrew sighed, as though seeing a page out of an old book describing Don Quixote. "The upcoming battles will escalate exponentially. Don't die out there."
"After all… I'm starting to look forward to that different future you spoke of."
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After Roz and the others left, the woman called Aisha finally spoke.
"Andy… the person who was speaking just now…"
"What is it, Aisha?" Andrew set down his coffee cup and walked over to her.
"…He looked very sad." Aisha reached out, placing her hand over her heart. "I could feel it."
"Yeah, I could feel it too. It's different from that knight's confusion — it's sadness." Andrew embraced Aisha, lost in thought. "I think I roughly understand where that emotion comes from."
"…By the way, Andy, about that copy unit… you really won't accept it?" Aisha sighed, voicing her concern.
"Of course not."
Andrew shook his head. On this matter alone, there was no room for negotiation.
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By the time Roz and the others returned to the market, it was already around four or five in the afternoon.
Watching the ZAFT jeep drive off calmly, Roz held a paper bag identical to the ones used when they had purchased supplies earlier — clearly, Andrew had arranged for someone to buy from the same store.
"Creak…" Just as Roz was thinking about whether to rent a vehicle, the sound of brakes echoed.
Badgiruel, who had been searching for intel and planning to infiltrate Andrew's residence to rescue Roz and the others, appeared in a familiar jeep right in front of Roz.
"Phew… I'm glad you're all okay." After carefully assessing their condition, Badgiruel exhaled in relief, looking slightly fatigued.
"Get in quickly. We've been exposed — it's time to retreat."
When Andrew had pointed out Cagalli's guerrilla affiliation, everyone accompanying her had naturally been flagged as part of the guerrilla team.
The longer they stayed in this town, the more dangerous the situation became.
Roz glanced at the street, riddled with bullet holes and explosion marks, and silently got into the jeep, lost in thought.
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