Editing KSGU:Volume 6 Chapter 2 (section)

===Part 13===

(…The test results for the “Zee Zulu” are rather positive, and the pilots respond very quickly to it. They heaved a sigh of relief when they know that they’ll be assisting you in battle, Chairman Mahdi.)

The masked face spoke on the monitor, and Loni did not feel that it was the face of a human. The nose bridge and the lips under the mask were too refined, and the thick blond hair reminded her of a puppet. ''Am I seeing a complete artificial image here?'' she felt some goosebumps as she stared at Full Frontal, who was calmly smiling. “This is the strategy you set.” and heard Mahdi answer beside her.

“Once the plan to suppress Dakar is complete, our comrades around the world will take action. At that time, the chance to save her Highness Mineva will probably appear. It is my sincere wish to be able to be of assistance to the revival of Zeon.”

(Those are reassuring words. As you know, we lost our ability to fight on Earth. I’m really delighted that you’re able to go beyond your belief of religion and accept us residents of space.)

The delicate choice of words caused Loni’s father to smile in front of the console. Loni and Mahdi were the only ones in the chairman's room where phone calls were forbidden, located in a corner of the port facility that belonged to Garvey Enterprises. In the midst of this darkness, where the only light was the reflective light of the monitor, Mahdi again shot a sharp stare at Frontal. “To me, you aren’t pagans, but children who lost their God.” He said as he opened his arms hidden under his white Arab Thawb .

“We’ve inherited the Highest blessing from the last prophet, so naturally, we have to help you. Islam opens its arms to all of humanity.”

(I understand. I’ll pray for the success of this operation. Insha'Allah.)

“Sieg Zeon.”

Frontal’s smiling face was the last impression as the communication was cut off. At the same time, the room was lit up, and the light shone on Mahdi, who was sat on the leather chair, and Loni, who was sitting diagonally behind him. At this place, they had no need to care about the stares of others. Mahdi was dressed in his Thawb and a bright striped Keffiyeh, but his expression was giving a subtle message, showing that he wanted to rinse his mouth.

That was the kind of response to be expected from a straightforward man who had to go through such social etiquette that defied his heart. Loni recalled the expression her father made when he said Sieg Zeon, and gave a bitter smile on her face. “How about it, Loni?” on hearing Mahdi’s question, she lifted her face.

“Do you think that is the son of Zeon Deikum?”

The reason why her father let her accompany him when he contacted Frontal was to affirm this. Unlike her two older brothers that were born to different mothers, Loni always had a mysterious instinct. She put her hand on her temples covered by the Hijab, “I don’t know.” and answered honestly.

“The man Char Aznable will change the way he appears according to the times.”

“Makes sense. I’ve never met Char before. Perhaps that is a descendant of Zeon who wanted to use the mask to become an idol…”

Mahdi obviously despised people who used such little tricks more than the idol worship that was a taboo. “Never mind. These are small things before the big things. For now.” He said that as he got up from the chair.

“Since the past, there were common Muslim landmarks on Africa, and the Federation government arrogantly built its capital here. Most sins would lose their meaning in front of this great sin. The Federation view those against them as terrorists, and continues to allow this opposition to exist so that they can maintain their army. In this sense, we’re the same as Neo Zeon…no issues with the feeding of information to those Federation rats, right?”

“Yes. With regards to the spies in the Intelligence Branch, I’ve already sent 4 sets of fake information to fool the enemy regarding our actual fighting ability, and I haven’t revealed them to the “Sleeves” pilots and the mechanics.”

“That’s good. Frontal will definitely take action on us based on the developments. Whether it’s the “Box” or her Highness Mineva, we know too much about the sleeves.”

“White men only know how to play tricks…do you mean that?”

“That’s right. This kind of logic works on Zinnerman too. The ones I can really believe are my relatives.”

Mahdi put his hand on Loni’s shoulder and showed the smile of a father. Loni felt a realistic sense of expectation as she stared at her father’s eyes from the front. However, not all white men were bad, and she recalled the warmth the boy called Banagher showed as her closed lips twitched. Mahdi did not seem to notice as he used his military diver watch to check the time and retracted his hand from Loni, saying, “It’s about time.”.

“Let’s head to the port. Who knows what will happen after tomorrow.”

Those were heavy words. Loni nodded silently and forgot about the moment of hesitation as she followed her father out of the meeting room.