Recaps

Xiao Ran welcomed Koji to Area 19 and arranged for the Crimson Knights to retain their independent organization as the campaign’s main force. After Cornelia joined them, Xiao Ran explained that the Crimson Knights’ support would help Lelouch and began outlining the battle plan, leaving the operation’s details to be discussed.

• Koji arrived in Area 19 ahead of the Sakura Stone shipments, hoping to discuss the battle plan and arrange for the Crimson Knights’ main force to follow.
• Xiao Ran told Koji that the Sakura Stones were not ready yet and promised the Crimson Knights a separate base and independent combat organization.
• Cornelia met Koji, and Xiao Ran explained that the Area 19 campaign would support Lelouch rather than Charles.
• Koji pledged that the Crimson Knights would send their strongest forces, while Cornelia realized that they had chosen Lelouch’s side.
• Xiao Ran showed Cornelia and Koji the battle map and explained that the enemy held the advantage along the current defensive line, which needed to be breached or destroyed.

Xiao Ran laid out a plan to defeat the EU and Rebel Army, then offered the Crimson Knights Area 19’s main base as bait for an ambush. Korg agreed to the risks but debated whether to give Xiao Ran a stronger mecha, ending by asking what kind of machine could match his abilities.

• Xiao Ran identified enemy supply routes and strongholds, explaining that the EU’s stretched forces and the Rebel Army’s reliance on the Mysterious Organization shaped the campaign plan.
• Xiao Ran assigned the Crimson Knights to pressure the EU while he led Cornelia’s Guard Force and some of Korg’s people against the Rebel Army, with a later plan to flank the EU.
• Korg warned that the strategy would create enormous battle pressure, and Xiao Ran promised Area 19 and Area 11’s resources, including more Sakura Stone.
• Xiao Ran told Cornelia to move Area 19’s forces and supplies forward and hand the main base over to the Crimson Knights as bait for an enemy ambush.
• Korg weighed whether to lend Xiao Ran a powerful mecha, then asked what level of performance Xiao Ran needed to show his full strength.

Xiao Ran persuaded Koji to provide him with a more powerful mecha and helped the Crimson Knights prepare for a campaign in Area 19. As both sides concealed their true plans and moved forces into position, Xiao Ran returned to the abandoned main base at Koji’s invitation, with the preparations for war complete.

• Xiao Ran explained why he needed a stronger mecha, and Koji agreed to provide one in exchange for Sakura Stone beyond their existing arrangement.
• Xiao Ran, Koji, and Cornelia discussed their plans, while the Crimson Knights began taking over Area 19’s main base and military forces mobilized.
• The EU and Rebel Army misread Area 19’s movements as preparations for a defensive stand or counterattack and increased pressure on its front lines.
• Koji received vast quantities of Sakura Stone from Areas 19 and 11, which the Crimson Knights used to unseal and summon powerful mecha in secret.
• The Crimson Knights moved their main force into Area 19, relocated the Command Center without public knowledge, and completed their preparations while tensions at the front temporarily eased.
• At Koji’s invitation, Xiao Ran returned to the abandoned main base, which had been left as bait.

Xiao Ran inspected the Crimson Knights’ modified Mazinger Kaiser SKL and arranged to use it in the coming offensive. He set the attack for the following dawn and left Korgi searching for information about Gaia after hinting that he could explain it.

• Xiao Ran arrived at the base, recognized the blood-red Mazinger Kaiser SKL, and confirmed it had been modified with Soul Reaver capabilities.
• Korgi described the unit’s weapons and agreed to transport it to the new Command Center while preparing its files for Xiao Ran.
• Xiao Ran decided the allies would strike first at dawn, and Korgi confirmed the Crimson Knights could field more than two hundred combat-ready pilots along with their stronger units.
• Xiao Ran urged caution, departed for the airport, and told Korgi that the world had a collective entity called Gaia.
• Korgi ordered Toray to gather information about Gaia after Xiao Ran left.

Xiao Ran prepared Mazinger Kaiser SKL and took command of Area 19’s front-line forces as the planned assault approached. After adjusting the unit and issuing new orders, he launched into the sky as the first phase of the operation began.

• Cornelia helped oversee the unloading of the concealed Mazinger Kaiser SKL, and Xiao Ran inspected its cockpit and the file Kogi had provided.
• Xiao Ran reviewed the unit’s altered capabilities and prepared to rewrite its systems before completing its combat preparations.
• At the Command Center, Cornelia briefed Xiao Ran on the deployment plan, and he later returned to his quarters to rest until dawn.
• Xiao Ran took front-line Command Authority from Cornelia, studied the tactical map, and issued revised orders to the forces and Kogi.
• Xiao Ran piloted Mazinger Kaiser SKL out of the warehouse and into the sky as he transmitted the order to begin the first phase of the operation.

Xiao Ran launched a solo assault on the Rebel Army’s defensive stronghold in Mazinger Kaiser, while Cornelia secretly sent five B-class Pilots to support him. He evaded the rebels’ heavy defenses, announced his identity, and began his attack after the enemy refused to surrender.

• Cornelia arranged for five B-class Pilots to follow Xiao Ran and rescue him if he encountered danger.
• Xiao Ran flew Mazinger Kaiser toward the Rebel Army’s stronghold, drawing the rebels’ attention and triggering an emergency response.
• The Rebel Army assembled its Participants and unleashed a dense barrage of anti-air fire, but Xiao Ran calmly evaded it.
• Xiao Ran identified himself as Lelouch Xiao, Second Knight of the Round, and ordered the rebels to surrender.
• As the countdown ended, Xiao Ran evaded the Participants’ missiles and beam attacks with afterimages, then dove low and advanced on the stronghold while firing his pistols.

Xiao Ran drove Mazinger Kaiser toward the Rebel Army base, overwhelming its defenses before five Super Robot pilots moved to intercept him. He defended against their coordinated attacks, but their machines closed in from all sides as the Crimson Knights raced to reach him.

• Xiao Ran used Mazinger Kaiser's pistols to punch through the Rebel Army's defensive KFs and rapidly advanced toward the base.
• Five participants descended to stop Xiao Ran, deploying a defense-focused machine, two power-focused machines, a speed-focused machine, and a long-range attacker.
• The long-range machine fired beams and cluster missiles, but Xiao Ran evaded the beams and used the transformed battle axes to block the missiles' small warheads.
• The defense-focused machine extended its arms toward Mazinger Kaiser while the two power-focused machines and the speed-focused machine charged through the smoke to attack.
• The Crimson Knights saw Mazinger Kaiser surrounded and rushed forward at full speed to help Xiao Ran.

Xiao Ran piloted Mazinger Kaiser through a five-unit encirclement, destroying all five enemies before the Crimson Knights arrived. At the Rebel Army outpost, dozens of participant units surrounded his forces without attacking, while Cornelia ordered reinforcements forward and Xiao Ran recognized that her move could worsen the danger.

• Xiao Ran drove Mazinger Kaiser through the five enemies’ coordinated attack and destroyed two units in quick succession.
• Xiao Ran pursued and destroyed the remaining three units before Korgi’s support squad arrived.
• Xiao Ran sent the five Crimson Knights units to suppress the Rebel Army outpost and monitored enemy movements from above.
• Dozens of Rebel Army participant units appeared around the outpost and formed a silent encirclement, prompting the Crimson Knights to urgently contact Korgi.
• Cornelia ordered her concealed Guard Force to advance and prepared an airdrop force, but Xiao Ran saw her orders and frowned at the risk.

Xiao Ran weighed the danger posed by the enemy force surrounding the stronghold and ordered the five Crimson Knights pilots to withdraw while he probed the enemy. After learning they had requested reinforcements from Kogi, he suspected the enemy was using them as bait and warned the Crimson Knights to halt their advance.

• Xiao Ran overrode Cornelia's reinforcement order and directed the incoming Guard Force to stop and conceal themselves away from the battlefield.
• Xiao Ran assessed the enemy's numerical advantage and stayed above the stronghold as the standoff continued and its defenders were wiped out.
• Xiao Ran ordered the five Crimson Knights pilots to escape, but their captain said they would stay and help hold off the enemy because they had special escape measures.
• Xiao Ran learned that the five had requested support from Kogi and suspected the enemy was waiting to ambush the reinforcements.
• Xiao Ran ordered the five to stop the reinforcements, tell Kogi to follow the original plan, and escape while he intercepted their pursuers.

Xiao Ran realized the Rebel Army had trapped them and blocked communications to ambush Korgi’s reinforcements, then fought to protect the Crimson Knights as they tried to escape. The Crimson Knights’ squad leader and three others fled to warn Korgi, while Xiao Ran turned back toward the encircling enemies with Quantum Assimilation active.

• The Crimson Knights’ squad leader discovered that communications were blocked after he tried to cancel the request for reinforcements, and Xiao Ran suspected a mole had informed the enemy of Korgi’s movements.
• Xiao Ran ordered the Crimson Knights to retreat and charged Mazinger Kaiser toward the enemy while the encircling forces sent fast machines after the squad.
• The squad leader and three others stopped to hold off the pursuers so one knight could escape, but Xiao Ran teleported in front of the enemy machines and destroyed them in seconds.
• Xiao Ran scolded the squad leader for doubting his promise, then ordered the four Crimson Knights to leave and stop Korgi’s reinforcements.
• Xiao Ran activated Quantum Assimilation and used his ultra-miniature GN-BITs to enhance Mazinger Kaiser as he faced the remaining enemies.

Xiao Ran saved the Crimson Knights, then used Mazinger Kaiser to overwhelm the pursuing Restoration Army forces and hold them hostage. Legion Leader Selucius arrived to negotiate, and Xiao Ran asked what price he would pay for his subordinates’ release.

• Xiao Ran helped the five-man Crimson Knights squad escape, then turned to destroy the remaining enemy units.
• Xiao Ran spread ultra-small BITs’ GN Particles across the hostile forces and used their beams to disable every machine without killing the pilots.
• Xiao Ran piled the wrecked machines together and ordered the captives to summon their ambush force and superior within an hour.
• About fifty minutes later, Selucius arrived with a large force, introduced himself as Legion Leader of the Restoration Army, and asked Xiao Ran to release his subordinates.
• Xiao Ran said the captives could leave but demanded to know what Selucius would pay in exchange.

Xiao Ran offered Selucius the choice of withdrawing the Rebel Army from the war or submitting to him, and Selucius proposed a duel to test Xiao Ran’s strength. Their mechs fought evenly at first, but Mazinger Kaiser gained the advantage, leaving Selucius facing defeat.

• Selucius negotiated with Xiao Ran for the hostages’ release, and Xiao Ran demanded that the Rebel Army either leave the war or submit to him.
• Selucius challenged Xiao Ran to a duel, wagering that the Rebel Army would surrender if Selucius lost and that Xiao Ran would leave the continent if he won.
• Xiao Ran accepted and flew Mazinger Kaiser away from the hostages to an uninhabited desert, where Selucius followed in his custom mech.
• Selucius charged with his flame-winged mech, and he and Xiao Ran traded more than thirty evenly matched clashes.
• Mazinger Kaiser erupted in red light and knocked Selucius’s mech backward as Xiao Ran declared that the battle was effectively over.

Xiao Ran defeated Selucius and secured the Rebel Army's loyalty, then reported the outcome to Kogi and Cornelia. He left the story with plans to bring Lelouch to meet Selucius and turn the Rebel Army into an ally in the struggle over Britannia.

• Xiao Ran overwhelmed Selucius in Mazinger Kaiser, battering Phoenix into the ground and demanding his surrender.
• Selucius accepted defeat and agreed that the Rebel Army would serve Xiao Ran, then contacted his former partner to end their cooperation.
• Xiao Ran ordered Selucius to gather the Rebel Army and withdraw from the front lines before departing.
• Xiao Ran reconnected with Kogi and Cornelia, explained that he had won over the entire Rebel Army, and asked Kogi to bring Lelouch to meet Selucius.

After defeating the Rebel Army and arranging for Britannia to seize its abandoned territory, Xiao Ran returned to base and told Cornelia he needed time to recover from Quantum Assimilation. He slept through her vigil, then woke to find her still handling his work and warning him not to risk leaving himself unprotected again.

• Xiao Ran told Cornelia that the Rebel Army had agreed to a wager, ordered Lelouch to negotiate cooperation, and directed Britannia’s forces to seize the abandoned territory and maintain pressure on the EU.
• Xiao Ran returned to the frontline base, handed Mazinger Kaiser over for repairs, hid its BITs, and told Cornelia he needed one or two days to recover from using Quantum Assimilation.
• Xiao Ran vanished in front of Cornelia, then reappeared in his room, released Quantum Assimilation, and collapsed from exhaustion.
• Xiao Ran slept deeply while Cornelia stayed in his room and handled official business, unaware that he had lost all awareness of his surroundings.
• Xiao Ran woke and learned Cornelia had been there for a long time; she warned him not to repeat the risk because Britannia had other people who could fight.

After recovering from using Quantum Assimilation, Xiao Ran directed Lelouch to bring the Rebel Army into the Black Knights while keeping the Crimson Knights and the new force balanced. He then returned to Area 11 with Saki Maski to inspect Lloyd’s work and discovered a Black Knights hangar built to house Variable Fighters.

• Cornelia told Xiao Ran that the Rebel Army and EU had withdrawn, and Xiao Ran ordered the Crimson Knights to halt deep-strike missions and focus on breaking through enemy defenses.
• Xiao Ran contacted Lelouch, warned him not to rely on GEASS to secure the Rebel Army’s loyalty, and told him to invite the Rebel Army into the Black Knights rather than Britannia.
• Xiao Ran explained to Lelouch that bringing the Rebel Army into the Black Knights would balance the Crimson Knights and instructed him to discuss the plan with Koki.
• Xiao Ran met Saki Maski, who retrieved his hidden small BITs, and asked her to take him back to Area 11 so he could see Lloyd’s progress.
• Saki Maski flew Xiao Ran to a coastal warehouse in Area 11, where he found a Black Knights hangar holding more than a dozen KFs.

Xiao Ran inspected the Black Knights’ growth in Area 11 and visited Lloyd’s research institute to check on a secret unit built to his specifications. The unit was over seventy-five percent complete, and Xiao Ran ordered Lloyd to finish it within a week for his upcoming plan in Area 19.

• Xiao Ran learned from Saki Maski that the Black Knights had expanded to more than a dozen bases and gained supporters by protecting stability and freeing oppressed workers.
• Saki Maski told Xiao Ran that Lelouch was building a research department but still needed a capable leader for it.
• Xiao Ran met Lloyd at the Special Envoy Research Institute and inspected the secret unit under construction.
• Lloyd reported that the unit was over seventy-five percent complete, used a deuterium Nuclear Energy Engine, and included the requested equipment and Dragon Fangs.
• Xiao Ran ordered Lloyd to complete the unit within one week so it could support his plan to maintain a stable transition in Area 19.

Xiao Ran ordered Lloyd to complete the mecha in Area 11 within a week, then returned to the frontline base and warned Cornelia about a new force aiding the EU. Meanwhile, Lelouch met with Selucius and secured the Roaring Lion Legion’s agreement to join the Black Knights, with details still to be negotiated.

• Xiao Ran ordered Lloyd to devote the Special Envoy Research Institute’s resources to finishing the mecha within a week.
• Xiao Ran declined to visit Euphemia, returned to the frontline base, and told Cornelia to strengthen its defenses and investigate the EU’s new support.
• Cornelia reported that the Britannian forces had taken over more than sixty percent of the Rebel Army’s territory while the EU remained entrenched.
• Lelouch arrived at a Rebel Army base under Koki’s escort and met Selucius, commander of the Rebel Army and leader of the Roaring Lion Legion.
• Lelouch offered to bring Selucius’s forces into the Black Knights, and Selucius agreed to join under Lelouch’s leadership.
• Selucius arranged accommodations and proposed discussing the new members’ obligations and tasks after dinner.

Lelouch met with Selucius and secured the Roaring Lion Legion’s merger into the Black Knights as an independent force, though Selucius refused to fight the EU. Xiao Ran planned to expand the Black Knights’ influence in Area 19 and revealed that a unit Lloyd was building would be completed in a week, giving him the strength to act even without the Roaring Lion Legion.

• Lelouch accepted Selucius’s invitation to the Roaring Lion Legion’s headquarters, while Koji stayed in his unit and sent a subordinate to guard Lelouch.
• Selucius welcomed Lelouch and promised that the Roaring Lion Legion would protect him; Koji monitored their visit and kept Xiao Ran informed.
• Lelouch reported that the Rebel Army had merged into the Black Knights as an independent force, and Xiao Ran received confirmation of the expansion.
• Lelouch told Xiao Ran that Selucius had conditioned the merger on not fighting the EU or joining operations against it, and Xiao Ran accepted the restriction.
• Xiao Ran said he intended to intervene in Area 19 and revealed that Lloyd’s unit would be finished in a week, after which Xiao Ran alone would have enough power to carry out the plan.

Xiao Ran commanded a full-scale war against the EU after Charles’s reinforcements disrupted his plans, while Cornelia warned him that the mounting casualties and attrition could leave Britannia badly weakened. Xiao Ran acknowledged the crisis but said he lacked the time and resources to break the stalemate, leaving the war’s direction unresolved.

• Xiao Ran left the Roaring Lion Legion’s arrangements to Lelouch, who planned to relocate them to Southeast Asia and sent scouts to find a base site.
• Charles sent Area 19 a force several times larger than its previous troops, prompting a full-scale war with the EU across much of Africa.
• Xiao Ran remained in the Command Center to direct the fighting, while participants on both sides shifted from front-line attacks to clashes and special operations.
• As the war dragged on, Xiao Ran’s forces suffered severe casualties and supply losses, and he could not leave Area 19 for Area 11.
• Cornelia confronted Xiao Ran over the escalating deaths and warned that the war could damage Britannia; Xiao Ran said he needed time and something he lacked to break the stalemate.

Xiao Ran persuaded Cornelia to preserve Area 19’s tacit understanding through deception while he left to handle preparations elsewhere. He reached Lloyd’s institute in Area 11, reviewed the completed unit’s data, and prepared to begin testing it in secret.

• Cornelia admitted she feared losing Area 19 and her standing, then agreed to buy Xiao Ran time by continuing the fight.
• Xiao Ran instructed Cornelia to hide his departure, remove Mazinger Kaiser, and maintain their established command style while he directed operations remotely.
• Xiao Ran secretly left Area 19 in his black Variable Fighter and was picked up by Saki, who brought him to Lloyd’s Special Envoy Research Institute in Area 11.
• Xiao Ran told Lloyd to let the exhausted staff rest, then asked Saki to assist him and keep his return secret from Euphemia.
• Xiao Ran reviewed the completed unit’s specifications and, after Saki prepared his room, went with her to see the unit.

Xiao Ran inspected the newly assembled mecha, rewrote its systems, charged its GN Particle Storage Tank, and worked with Saki to test it. After Lloyd returned from resting, Xiao Ran arranged for the remaining repairs to begin quickly because Area 19 was vulnerable to an EU assault.

• Saki showed Xiao Ran the completed mecha and explained its untested GN Particle systems, spare parts, and the limits on building another one.
• Xiao Ran decided not to order a second mecha immediately and entered the cockpit to overwrite its systems and charge its Particle Storage Tank with GN Particles.
• Xiao Ran and Saki spent several hours checking the mecha's systems, adjusting parameters, and carrying out small movement tests.
• Lloyd returned to his office after resting, while Xiao Ran finished remotely coordinating combat missions with Cornelia in Area 19.
• Xiao Ran told Lloyd that repairs had been marked in the maintenance computer and urged him to start work quickly before the EU could exploit Xiao Ran's absence from Area 19.

Xiao Ran completed the new machine, returned to Area 19 as the EU advance threatened the Command Center, and outlined a plan to destroy the enemy force pushing into Britannia territory. He ordered several legions to regroup as Area 19 prepared to cut off the EU’s spearhead.

• Xiao Ran and the technicians spent a week fixing more than two hundred flaws in the new machine, then completed its preliminary tests after three days.
• The EU intensified its attacks in Area 19, sending participant forces on a direct advance toward the Command Center while Xiao Ran directed the defenders remotely.
• Xiao Ran returned to Area 19 in the concealed new machine, left Saki to guard it, and entered the Command Center, restoring the officers’ confidence.
• Xiao Ran explained that the EU aimed to seize the Command Center and reveal whether he was still in Area 19, and said their straight advance left their forces vulnerable to attacks from both sides.
• Xiao Ran ordered the Seventh, Eighth, and Ninth Legions to gather in Area 21 and the Sixteenth, Seventeenth, and Eighteenth Legions to gather in Area 25, while reorganizing the two defensive lines around the Tenth and Fifteenth Legions.

Xiao Ran organized a counterattack against the EU forces that had advanced deep into Britannia’s territory, planning to strike their vanguard while the Crimson Knights cut off its retreat. As dawn broke, he led Koji and several machines out to begin the operation.

• Xiao Ran ordered the defensive forces to withdraw and regroup, while telling Cornelia to seal the Command Center and follow his instructions.
• Xiao Ran met Koji at a concealed rendezvous, where Mazinger Kaiser and the Crimson Knights were waiting.
• Xiao Ran assigned Koji’s elite combatants to support his attack on the EU vanguard and tasked the remaining Crimson Knights with blocking the enemy’s retreat.
• Xiao Ran warned Koji that the EU’s unusual advance might conceal additional strength or a secret plan, and urged him not to let his subordinates fight recklessly.
• After resting in Mazinger Kaiser’s cockpit, Xiao Ran announced their departure, and his unit launched into the air with the Crimson Knights.

Xiao Ran and Kogi led the Crimson Knights into battle against EU mechs, where Xiao Ran encountered an enemy with phasing and short-range Teleportation abilities. After identifying the mech as Epic-level, Xiao Ran suspected the Roaring Lion Legion was hiding additional strength.

• The EU cautiously advanced into Britannia's territory after Britannia withdrew, and its participants ordered ordinary troops to retreat when Xiao Ran's force approached.
• Xiao Ran charged ahead in Mazinger Kaiser, with Kogi and the Crimson Knights following as both sides began fighting.
• Xiao Ran engaged Kogi's scythe-wielding rival, but his greatsword and launched fist passed through the enemy when it phased.
• Kogi warned Xiao Ran that the enemy could phase to evade attacks and use short-range Teleportation, though it could not move or attack while phased.
• Xiao Ran used Scout Skill to identify the enemy mech as Epic-level and wondered whether the Roaring Lion Legion was concealing other powerful participants.

Xiao Ran crippled the Grim Reaper Mecha and exposed the EU’s preparations before they could use them. The EU assembled Seven Gods Combination, and Xiao Ran launched an attack on it.

• Xiao Ran severed the Grim Reaper Mecha’s head and legs, then used psychic force and Mental Shock to knock out its pilot.
• Corgi ordered a squad to recover the disabled machine and return it to base as six EU machines combined, joined by a seventh to form Seven Gods Combination.
• Xiao Ran criticized his allies for letting the EU regroup and ordered Corgi’s experts to charge while the others provided fire support.
• Xiao Ran led the assault toward Seven Gods Combination, shrugging off the EU machines’ attacks as the giant robot moved to block him.
• Xiao Ran teleported above Seven Gods Combination and brought his greatsword down against the yellow barrier protecting it.