The shining Shoko Toyokawa

"Well, have you thought about it?"

The older sister, Naomi Misora, who was wearing black pants, a leather jacket, and boots, asked Aine as soon as she sat down next to her.

"Well……"

Aine frowned and asked cautiously, "Why me? I saw on TV that those who drive mobile suits have to be elites with strong physiques, sharp minds, and clear consciousness, right?"

"Don't underestimate yourself, Chihaya-san. Just in terms of courage, you've surpassed hundreds of your peers."

"Ugh?"

Aine was stunned for a moment, but she was not too surprised. Naomi Misora ​​knew what happened to January on the plane.

Although it was two young girls who hijacked the plane and saved everyone, this incident was very contagious, but for personal safety reasons, Xia Ya and Aine's appearance and names were not exposed to the public.

"If that's the case, I think my friends are much braver than me. There must be many people who are more suitable than me, right?"

If Aine had encountered this kind of thing a month ago, where she was suddenly chosen to drive Unit-01, she would have definitely shouted "I want to drive it" without even thinking about it.

That's something that's ahead of its time. Driving it is definitely more impressive than being the student council president of a junior high school!

But if you drive a mobile suit, you're going to the battlefield, right? Once you're on the battlefield, you have to kill people in order to survive, just like when January was on the airliner...

After returning from Sydney, Aiyin did not tell anyone what happened on the plane.

Her parents didn't ask because they saw that Aiyin didn't want to talk about it.

Because for her, killing is not something to be proud of.

Aiyin is a girl who likes fantasy.

When I was in elementary school, I wanted to be a magical girl, shining brightly, shouting something like "I will punish you on behalf of the moon" and defeating the villains again and again to save the world.

In her middle school years not long ago, she even imagined that one day a helicopter would drop from the sky.

Several incredibly cool men in black jumped down from above, respectfully put their coats on her and said, "Sama Saint Aine, the organization and the world need your help. To maintain a normal and legitimate world, please step forward once again!"

Then, she, Saint Ain!, flew away on a helicopter, with the principal, teachers, friends, and classmates looking up at her.

That would be really cool!

But now the 'man in black' is right in front of her, and what she is asked to drive is a mobile suit that is many times cooler than a helicopter.

But Aine hesitated.

Naomi Misora ​​noticed Aine’s hesitation and suggested, “Well, why don’t you meet another pilot with me first and then consider it?

She is the same age as you and attends Tsuki no Mori Girls' Academy."

"Huh?" Hearing the name of Tsuki no Mori, Aine's eyes widened. Her friend Ying Lili was studying there. It was a school for young ladies.

"He's studying there, and he's also a driver..."

Aine's eyes were filled with curiosity. "I haven't decided whether to pilot a mobile suit yet. Can you take me with you?"

"Of course, Chihaya-kun, please come with me."

Aine quickened her pace to catch up with Naomi Misora, but when she passed by the green belt of the campus, her steps stopped involuntarily.

A gray-haired girl was squatting on the ground picking up stones with great concentration.

You know, this is a high school campus, not a kindergarten or an elementary school. The girl is wearing a school uniform that is undoubtedly a school uniform.

Perhaps this scene was too incredible, or perhaps it was the girl squatting on the ground and carefully selecting stones, like a little squirrel looking for acorns, too cute.

Aiyin was stunned for a moment.

"Did you drop something?"

The little squirrel contentedly picked up an 'acorn' and put it in her pocket. When she raised her head, her eyes met with the pink-haired girl's.

She was stunned for a moment, then quickly left as if running away.

"She seems to be the girl that Miss Misora ​​just met? Is she also a pilot?"

"Hey, Miss Misora, wait for me!"

At that time, Aine didn't think about why Misora ​​Naomi called them "pilots" instead of reserve pilots or MS trainees.

Calling them drivers was like they were chosen from the very beginning to pilot MS.

…………

……

It was a spring afternoon, and Aine had just stepped into the 'realm' called Yuze.

sight,

attention,

And my heart was instantly taken away by the pure white in the store.

Her flaxen hair was as smooth as a waterfall, and her blue eyes were like the sky after a snowy day, with a few sad snowflakes floating in the air.

The sunlight at 4:23 in the afternoon cast a layer of beautiful light on her porcelain-white face.

As if noticing her gaze, the girl in the white lotus dress turned back to look at Aine and smiled gently.

That smile was so beautiful that it seemed unreal, like an ice crystal flower in the sun.

"Chihaya-san?"

After being reminded by Misora ​​Naomi, Aine finally came to her senses and quickly sat down next to Misora ​​Naomi and said, "Chihaya Aine, my name is Chihaya. I haven't decided whether to be a pilot yet. Sorry to bother you."

"Aine-chan, my name is Suyo..."

Chapter 36: Infinite Mobius Ring

"Aine-chan, my name is Suyo, Nagasaki Suyo, I attend Tsuki no Mori Girls' School, and I'm a mobile suit pilot."

"Ugh?"

Aine widened her eyes slightly, "Has Suyo-san decided to become a mobile suit pilot?"

"Yeah, Aine-chan, don't you think the world today is pretty unreasonable?" Sushi said, supporting her chin with both hands. "As for me, I want to make the world a better place."

"But an ordinary high school student certainly can't do it, but if you become a mobile suit pilot, maybe you can do it. So when Miss Misora ​​came to me, I decided—

I want to become a MS pilot, someone who can meet everyone's expectations!"

"Aine-chan, do you want to come with me?"

"Ugh?!"

"So dazzling, so dazzling, what's wrong with Sushi-san? It's just like the sun!"

"A boring woman,"

The sudden sound beside her startled Aine. She turned around and saw a girl with white hair and heterochromic eyes lying next to Aine without her noticing.

Aine was a little reluctant to admit that she hadn't noticed because she was staring at Su Shi-san.

"Interesting woman,"

However, when the girl with heterochromia eyes looked at Aine, she raised the corners of her mouth, like a kitten that had eaten cat food from a can.

"Ms. Misora, who is this child?"

Aine subconsciously asked Misora ​​Naomi, who sighed and said helplessly, "Kaname Rana, you're also one of the pilots. Kaname Rana, you're finally here today, aren't you?"

The reason why Naomi Misora ​​said that there was only one pilot she wanted to meet was because she didn't think Lenai would come today.

She had been stood up several times by this wild cat-like girl.

"Matcha Parfait,"

"Yes, waiter-san, one matcha parfait and one latte," after ordering, Naomi Misora ​​looked at Aine and Suyo.

"I'll just heat up the Earl Grey tea, what about you, Aine-chan?"

"Me too."

Aine closed the order clip and waited until the waiter left before looking at Misora ​​Naomi and saying, "So it's four people? The pilot? Me, Suyo-san, Rakuna-chan, and that kid from Haneyama?"

Why us?

Sushi-san is a student of Tsuki no Mori, and Lenai-chan seems to be younger than us. Logically, she should be recruited by the military, or a flight academy, right?"

After the waiter brought the single item and left, Naomi Misora ​​sipped her coffee and glanced around secretly.

"Nagasaki-san, Chihaya-san..." Seeing Lenna showing off her parfait, Naomi Misora ​​paused for a moment and said in a voice just loud enough for the others to hear, "Do you know the Mobius Ring?"

Aine said with a little pride, "You know, if you write it, it's a downturned '8', which means infinity. It seems to have evolved from the Ouroboros."

"If time is a Möbius strip, what do you think would happen?"

Aine was stunned.

In the minds of ordinary people, time moves forward continuously.

Today and tomorrow,

This year and next year are clearly divided.

If time is like a Möbius strip, doesn't that mean tomorrow is yesterday and next year is last year?

"MS are from the future, right?" Su Shi put down the teacup and said, "They are the Mobius strip. Their arrival changed the present, so they will exist in the future. The present and the future form a closed loop like the Mobius strip.

This is an explanation for avoiding the grandfather paradox (Note 1) in the thought experiment of time travel.

(Note 1: The general meaning is that if the time traveler kills the grandfather, the grandson will not be born. Because of this, the time traveler cannot kill the grandfather before the grandmother becomes pregnant with the father.

Otherwise, time travelers wouldn't exist, and no one would kill my grandfather.

And if no one kills Grandfather, Father, and the time traveler, they will exist again.)

"If MSs have authentication, or passwords, that means we're the pilots of the future. That's why Ms. Naomi Misora ​​found us, who are still students...

We have also been drawn into the Möbius loop, perhaps this is what is called fate..."

“Fate…” Aine fell into deep thought.

Naomi Misora ​​neither confirmed nor denied Suyo's statement.

Perhaps as an operator of the Atlantic MS International Countermeasures Department, Naomi Misora ​​has her own position and cannot disclose certain information.

“Matcha Parfait!”

Only Lenai, who is crazy about matcha parfait, has no worries of "adults".

"Sushi-san," Aiyin glanced at the photo she used as her screen saver and took a deep breath. "I kind of hate the idea that the future is completely predetermined.

But I admire Sushi Sang very much. I have a friend who is just like Sushi Sang. She knew it was dangerous, but she still did what she thought was right.

She is really a very brave and dazzling person.

As for me, I want to be like her..."

Aine thought about herself running away from the foggy city in shame. That feeling of running away was really annoying.

This time she didn't want to run away again. "If we're flying a mobile suit to do the right thing, I'm willing to join."

"I can guarantee this," Naomi Misora ​​said solemnly, "If the bigwigs above order you to do something 'wrong', I will risk everything to tell you before I die."

"Misora-san wants to prevent mobile suits from being used in war," Suyo twirled her hair with her fingers, "and reduce unnecessary deaths. Those are truly remarkable goals."

"Hey?"

Aine was stunned by this ambitious goal.

There is no doubt that the MS that keep appearing are excellent war weapons.

Even the most basic Zaku land combat type has a combat power higher than that of a tank platoon composed of main battle tanks.

In the Armenian campaign against Caucabaijan, Armenia deployed less than 20 Zaku tanks and defeated Caucabaijan, a country with a population of tens of millions, in a very short period of time.

This was of course based on a surprise attack, but in several small and medium-sized battles, including this one, MS had the upper hand.

No one can doubt the excellent role of MS as a weapon of war.

In the foreseeable future, following cannons, warships, aircraft and missiles, MS will become a major standard for measuring a country's military strength.

Preventing mobile suits from being used in warfare is like preventing airplanes and tanks from being used on the battlefield.

"Ave Maria set a very bad precedent," Naomi Misora ​​finished her coffee in one gulp. "Anyone or organization that obtains a mobile suit believes they can get everything they want through fighting, just like Ave Maria did. People are gradually losing their fear of war and death..."