With a bang, sparks erupted once again from the left shoulder of Jerome's mecha.
Witnessing this touching scene, the captain of the Imperial army's mecha battalion, who had just fired a shot, couldn't help but laugh aloud.
Mocking voices echoed continuously over their communication channel, seemingly pitying the enemy while excited about their imminent victory over the Federation mecha.
"Major!"
Teresa, seeing this scene, felt a surge of rage. He frantically pounded the control panel, but the heavily damaged mecha could only stumble forward.
Even raising a gun for a counterattack was a luxury, and it was a miracle that its damaged engine hadn't stalled.
"Go! Go!"
Jerome roared.
The soldiers behind the two mechas could naturally hear their conversation. With red-rimmed eyes, they lowered their heads, quietly wiped their tears, and then ran desperately again.
This was a chance bought with the Major's life. They had no regrets escaping the Imperial army's encirclement, and now they just didn't want to disappoint the Major any further.
But there was so much hatred, for they couldn't kill more of those Imperial scum before dying.
The Imperial soldiers encircled them with a playful attitude, pressing forward step by step.
Although there were some strange reports from the east, they had a formidable strength of thirty mechas.
In such a singular battlefront, dozens of mechas were enough to turn the tide of the battle.
Thus, the Imperial troops fighting enthusiastically on the eastern battlefield didn't share the panic of their allies to the west.
They were even prepared for a direct confrontation in the wilderness.
However, the Imperial mecha pilots felt regretful that they hadn't seen the supposed enemy yet.
"Where's the reinforcement, and hidden troops... where are they? Come on then."
"Lieutenant Colonel Nimaiya, Squad 10 requests to launch an assault."
"Squad 11 requests to launch an assault."
In no time, various units requested Lieutenant Colonel's permission.
Stationed at the rear, Lieutenant Colonel Nimaiya, upon hearing these requests, was tempted but ultimately refrained after reading the messages relayed by the communications officer beside him.
He oversaw the overall situation. A mysterious force to the west possessed strong firepower yet vanished after defeating two squads.
Now, he needed to guard against possible sudden attacks by the enemy.
Thus, eventually, the cautious Nimaiya ordered, "Maintain the current formation, spread out the squads, seek out the battlefield high points, and guard against sudden assaults."
Hearing the orders, the mecha pilots, filled with suppressed frustration and helplessness, vented their anger on the two battered mechas.
With a loud bang, a Gauss rifle from a Stinger mecha hit Jerome's mecha's shoulder.
The armorless shoulder was instantly penetrated, and the raised arm in mid-air lost its power transmission, falling limply.
"Hahaha!"
Laughter erupted again from the Imperial camp.
"Teresa, this time I might really have to cover the retreat for you."
"Major, let me do it. I still have three Aggregation Bombs on me; my explosion can surely hold them off."
"It's of no use; the blame for this blunder lies with me alone. I have let my brothers down!" Jerome, this officer who had been unyieldingly strong from the beginning, started to weep.
How could he face the heroic spirits of so many brothers!
The disheveled hair on his head at this moment also reflected his mood, filled with despair and anger.
Curse the Imperial army, curse the 149th Division!
Especially Colonel Quinton, that deceitful bastard...
He bit his lip so hard that he didn't even notice.
The two mechas, originally one following the other, had drawn together due to their severe damage, supporting each other.
Several Fire Lizards and Twilights in the distance stopped their companions from preparing to fire.
These close combat mechas, which had been supporting their allies from afar, suddenly drew out their cold weapons and strode towards the two mechas.
In the final moment, they intended to execute the enemy mecha!
The rumbling began on the hillside as mechs, with heavy steps and sparks flying from their feet, charged furiously towards the two Gun Knight mechas.
At this moment, Teresa, upon seeing the surrounding environment, suddenly bowed and said, "Major, it seems we've reached Rocky Canyon."
Jerome, engaged in fighting and retreating, hearing this, controlled his mecha to glance back—at the ever-narrowing mountain path and the tall stone forest behind…
Unknowingly, he had reached his destination.
The soldiers leaning against the entrance of Rocky Canyon gasped for air, their dry lips and burning throats.
They had reached here following the Major's instructions, and then what?
With an intense survival instinct, they had come here, yet now it seemed they saw their beliefs crumbling.
It turned out that reaching here was just to find a resting place for their bodies.
"Major..."
Jerome's jaw muscles twitched unnaturally from clenching his teeth.
He couldn't explain to his soldiers; he didn't blame Mu Fan either.
Two murky tears rolled down his cheeks, and a resolve to die rose to its peak at this moment.
Finally, his lips quivered, and in a low, soft chant, he uttered:
"Iron and blood, forge our glory..."
Upon hearing these words, those soldiers on the brink of having their beliefs collapse first gleamed in their eyes, then burst into a shining light.
This was their battle oath declared since their first day of enlistment.
Upon hearing Major Jerome's soft chanting now, it was as if a lightning bolt struck deep within them.
The oath echoed more clearly in their minds than ever before.
First one person, then a group, the sound grew from a stream to a surging river, flowing through every soldier's heart, filling their eyes with tears.
They had never forsaken their beliefs from the beginning.
They had done justice to their country; they had never been lost.
So, those soldiers sitting on the ground struggled to stand, looking upon the Imperial army as if to face death.
Their oath resounded louder and louder!
…
"I dedicate my life to the greatest cause of my lifetime."
"Let blood spill across the stars, without regret in this life."
"Guarding the homeland, until death."
…
"After dark, dawn will follow."
"Federation's victory bloom..."
"Will flourish undefeated!"
The distant Imperial mecha pilots watched this scene with apparent surprise and almost burst into laughter.
"That everlasting bloom nonsense, they can go plant flowers in Heaven when they're dead." A Fire Lizard at the forefront with a shield was now engulfed in flames.
The pilot inside, his eyes flaring ruthlessly, eagerly anticipated the scene where these desperately holding-on soldiers were obliterated beneath him.
"Hahahaha." In the mecha behind, laughter erupted.
In front of the Fire Lizard, the two Gun Knight mechas stood no longer retreating.
Instead, they stood shoulder to shoulder, quietly watching the rapidly approaching mecha.
Teresa's fingers had long been poised over the blood-red self-destruct button.
As soldiers, they would honorably fall in battle.
In this life, they had no regrets.
Yet just at this moment, like lightning tearing through the night, like an eagle piercing the firmament.
The soldiers who survived many years later still distinctly remembered...
A beam of light, beyond description, like a sunrise bringing hope.
Descended from the sky, slicing through the long expanse.
With a thunderous might, it pierced through the charging Fire Lizard mecha.
The Imperial mecha storming forward stopped in shock.
"Apologies, Major..."
"I arrived late."
The calm voice reverberated like thunder across the canyon sky.