Chapter 249 – The Agreement
"Titans brought quite a few of Earth's elites into space, so I originally thought that Green Wyatt and Bask had at least some redeeming qualities."
Now that the conversation was fully open, General Jamitov no longer held back his opinion of the Titans.
"But it turns out they failed to recognize the true value of those elites, nor did they grasp the core issues plaguing the Federation. All they saw were petty gains."
Jamitov's disdain for their actions was unmistakable.
In terms of vision alone, Jamitov clearly aligned with the ideals of the Revil faction.
"So, Eli, since the enemy was the one to ignite the flames of war first, then let's answer the call. Let's seize this opportunity to carry out our ideals and root out the parasites infesting the Federation."
In this respect too, his thinking was very much in line with General Revil's.
By all rights, such a decisive stance should be conveyed in a more roundabout way before the other party's position is fully understood.
But General Jamitov had the audacity to speak his mind directly to Eli even now.
Because Eli's earlier response had already made his stance abundantly clear.
"In that case, General—let's do it! Before he was schemed against by Green Wyatt, General Revil had already paved the way for us and even issued orders to rally the Assembly against the rebels. Since that's the case, I want to take those willing to follow me and change the Federation as it stands!"
At this moment, Eli no longer adopted a deliberately humble posture.
"Please lend your support to this wish of mine, General!"
The sincerity in his words was enough to surprise even Jamitov.
Though Eli still maintained a respectful attitude, his fundamental goals had clearly shifted.
"But of course. Helping you is helping me realize my own dream… Eli, you too are dissatisfied with the mindset held by the people of Earth today, aren't you?"
"Yes."
"Good."
He had indeed descended to Earth with the intention of leading this resistance, this conflict—this war.
Whether by legal authority or sheer experience, as the true leader of A.E.U.G. and a far more seasoned commander, he was objectively more qualified than Eli to take the lead.
But after seeing the look in Eli's eyes, Jamitov ultimately chose to trust him.
In that room, the two of them reached an agreement that could very well change the course of UC history.
"Speaking of which, Eli, your intuition is as sharp as ever. You already sensed that the Titans were planning to strike at Dakar?"
Jamitov let slip an alarming piece of intel in a casual tone.
"Eh? Ahem… Yes, that's right."
Eli's awkwardness lasted only a moment before he quickly regained composure and waited for Jamitov's next words.
"General Revil's move has proven highly effective. Of all the Federation bases, only 36% have chosen to continue aligning with Jaburo, and most of those are being tied down by other bases and unable to commit to combat."
Jamitov began by filling Eli in on information he and his team had missed while they were on the move.
"And because of that, Green Wyatt has rallied the lunar business consortiums, led by Anaheim, with the intent of proposing a motion at the upcoming Federation Assembly—to have the Titans take over Earth's defense."
"That proposal is insane!"
Never mind whether the Titans are even capable of fulfilling such a role—if the proposal passes, the scale of the Titans would grow to an unimaginable extent.
In that case, no matter how many precautions General Revil had taken, it would inevitably deepen the conflict between Earth and the colonies.
"The Federation Assembly wouldn't approve such a proposal, would it? Senator Gopp is still part of the Assembly."
"Even so, there's only so much Senator Gopp can do. No matter how much military backing he has, the old political families will always try to sideline him. Right now, he's struggling just to maintain his position in the Assembly."
Jamitov shook his head as he delivered the bleak reality.
"I went to the Moon earlier precisely to secure support from the other lunar consortiums. But businessmen won't act without guaranteed returns—in the end, all I got were verbal assurances."
Compared to Eli, Jamitov clearly had a more thorough grasp of the political landscape.
"It's obvious the Titans have already laid their groundwork in the Assembly. As long as that proposal is submitted, it will at least make it to the debate stage. And once that happens, the lunar consortiums won't hesitate to further invest in the Titans."
At this point, Jamitov even let out a sigh.
"To make matters worse, the Massenas have announced their intent to run for the next Federation Prime Minister. I doubt they'll pass up this opportunity."
All these developments were clearly disadvantageous to A.E.U.G. Objectively speaking, the only silver lining was that Dakar Base was still under the command of people appointed by General Revil.
However, the Capital Defense Forces were loyal to an entirely different faction.
"So, Eli—under these circumstances, what exactly are you planning to do in Dakar?"
"I wanted to expose the crimes of the Titans, to show the Assembly what kind of brutal regime they truly are… but now it seems that's pointless."
Eli stated his thoughts candidly.
This was what Char had done in the original timeline—a speech considered the turning point of the Gryps Conflict.
But that had only worked because the Titans had deliberately concealed what was happening in space.
"You're as idealistic as ever. I don't know whether to say you still have faith in the Federation Assembly—or that you don't. Still, your idea isn't without merit… After all, the Assembly's proceedings are broadcast to the public. Announcing our actions and legitimizing them there would be the perfect move."
Jamitov didn't outright reject Eli's plan.
"What's more, we can't let the Titans be the only ones to seize the spotlight. We must show the people our ideals so they know which path to choose. Go, Eli. Mobilize the troops. Head for Dakar."
"Yes, sir!"
Now that they had reached an agreement on this point, Jamitov—unskilled in the finer points of field command—left the logistics to others.
His next steps were to contact all Earth-based installations and confirm each commander's position one last time.
And to coordinate with the Capital's troops on a route to enter Dakar.
Finally, there was the matter of how to help Eli make the biggest possible impact at the Assembly.
To put it bluntly, even with a letter written by General Revil himself, if Eli were to give a speech on his own, the reaction would most likely be—
"Who even is this guy?"
After all, this was the Federation Assembly they were talking about.