Chapter Summaries

Xiao Ran gave Lelouch technical data on AS units and the Lambda Driver, while Lelouch grappled with revelations about his family and began planning to secure a factory and technicians. As the Variable Fighter project advanced amid growing Imperial scrutiny, Xiao Ran and Saki identified watchers near the Governor's Mansion and suspected infiltrators inside the research institute.

• Xiao Ran gave Lelouch AS and Lambda Driver data, and Lelouch realized Nanalie's injuries and his mother's supposed death were tied to secrets about their parents.
• Lelouch studied the files, erased the computer records, and hid the storage device around his neck as he recognized the need for a factory and technicians.
• Xiao Ran continued modifying the Variable Fighter, and Lloyd moved the core technicians to the new Special Envoy Research Institute despite the machine being less than thirty percent complete.
• Euphemia, Xiao Ran, Saki, Gino, and Anya attended the new institute's opening, where Gino acted respectfully toward Xiao Ran and Suzaku.
• Saki told Xiao Ran that the Empire had delayed his return, that the Knights of the Round were investigating the Black Knights, and that someone was watching the Governor's Mansion.
• Xiao Ran told Saki to strengthen Euphemia's security and said he would deal with the watchers and suspected infiltrators inside the institute.

Xiao Ran captured three participants connected to a mysterious organization and used GEASS to take control of the Special Dispatch. He brought the captives to Lelouch so Lelouch could use his GEASS to question them.

• Xiao Ran and Saki Maski discussed keeping their identities hidden and building up their strength before confronting other participants.
• Xiao Ran identified two participants infiltrating the Special Dispatch and used his powers to immobilize and capture them.
• Xiao Ran controlled the Technicians and Imperial intelligence agents gathered by Lloyd, securing the Special Dispatch for his plans.
• Xiao Ran captured the participant monitoring Euphemia and brought all three unconscious men to Lelouch.
• Xiao Ran asked Lelouch to use his GEASS to extract information from the captives, explaining that his own GEASS could not prevent them from hiding things.

Xiao Ran and Lelouch interrogated three Crimson Knights members and learned that multiple Legions were competing in a strategic mission centered on Sakura Stone. The chapter left Xiao Ran assessing the threat posed by the rival Legions and the resource restrictions that limited their power.

• Xiao Ran revived the three infiltrators and Lelouch used GEASS to command one to answer their questions and forget what happened.
• The controlled man revealed that the Crimson Knights were mercenaries serving Britannia and had come to seize Area 11 by controlling Euphemia and Lelouch.
• Xiao Ran learned that the Legions wanted Sakura Stone to unlock and supply their units, and that the Crimson Knights sought an independent territory of their own.
• After Lelouch left, Xiao Ran questioned the three men about the mission and learned that ten Legions were competing for resources, territory, and victory rewards.
• The prisoners said that Sakura Stone was the mission's key resource and that the strongest participants were Epic-level or higher, while most others were Elite-level.

Xiao Ran learned how the Legions’ Sakura Stone mission worked and tested whether Lelouch’s GEASS could override the restrictions imposed on Participants. He and Lelouch agreed to cooperate against the Legions while keeping their alliance and Lelouch’s identity secret, and Xiao Ran returned two surviving Participants to the Special Zone with their memories erased.

• Xiao Ran deduced that the Legions needed Sakura Stone and territory to develop their forces, and that they might target Area 11, Euphemia, Lelouch, and the Black Knights.
• Xiao Ran removed his control from one Participant so Lelouch could use GEASS to order him to kill a companion, and the Participant obeyed despite struggling against the command.
• Xiao Ran and Lelouch discussed using infiltrating Participants against one another, agreed to communicate secretly, and planned to establish Lelouch’s factory in Osaka.
• Lelouch left Nanalie in Xiao Ran’s care, and Xiao Ran knocked out the two surviving Participants and ordered them to forget what had happened.
• Xiao Ran discovered that the dead Participant had been monitoring the Governor’s Mansion and drove the two survivors back to the Special Zone.

Xiao Ran brought two captured mercenaries to the Special Dispatch and ordered them watched while work continued on the Variable Fighter. After explaining the threat to Euphemia, he arranged tighter security across Area 11 and proposed giving two Knights of the Round command over part of the garrison.

• Xiao Ran told Lloyd that two captured mercenaries had been mentally damaged and ordered the Special Dispatch to monitor them while allowing them to contact the outside world.
• Lloyd promised to complete the Variable Fighter within days and a new machine in three months, and Xiao Ran retrieved the Variable Fighter and worked on it through the night.
• At breakfast, Xiao Ran told Euphemia that infiltrators had targeted the Governor's Mansion and Special Dispatch to gain control of Area 11 and its Sakura Stone resources.
• Xiao Ran persuaded Euphemia not to contact the homeland and advised her to remain in the Governor's Mansion while the threat was investigated.
• Xiao Ran ordered Saki Maski to lock down the Governor's Mansion, strengthen security at Sakura Stone sites and routes, and verify everyone entering or leaving the city.
• Xiao Ran asked Euphemia to place part of the garrison under the command of two Knights of the Round, and she accepted his proposal.

Xiao Ran assigned Gino and Anya military responsibilities in Area 11 while tightening security after uncovering a plot against Euphemia. He was appointed a Knight of the Round and prepared to leave for the homeland, where he would receive his formal knighthood and face further evaluations.

• Xiao Ran told Gino and Anya that a member of the Crimson Knights had monitored Euphemia, then gave them command of the Sakura Stone mining area's security and the city's garrison defenses.
• Xiao Ran completed a two-day security overhaul of the Governor's Mansion before returning to the Special Administration to work on the Variable Fighter upgrades.
• Euphemia informed Xiao Ran that the homeland had appointed him the newest Knight of the Round and summoned him to Imperial Headquarters for his formal knighthood and rewards.
• Gino explained that Xiao Ran might face challenges, military evaluations, and assignment to a war zone, while Xiao Ran said he would leave Area 11's reforms and stability in their care.
• Xiao Ran explained that Lancelot could not withstand his piloting and that he needed a suitable mecha; he decided to take Jeremiah and Vireta to the homeland and left Saki in charge of the Guard Force.

Xiao Ran traveled to the Imperial Palace with Bismark, carrying portable BITs for protection, and discussed the Crimson Knights’ surveillance of Princess Euphemia and their need for Sakura Stone. Bismark hoped Xiao Ran would become a new benchmark for the Knights of the Round and help balance the Crimson Knights; Xiao Ran agreed to consider obtaining one of their Mechas.

• Xiao Ran arrived at the private airport with Jeremiah and Vireta carrying backpacks filled with his portable BITs, where Bismark received him.
• On the way to the Imperial Palace, Xiao Ran told Bismark that three Crimson Knights operatives had watched Euphemia or infiltrated Lloyd’s research institute, and that he had secretly eliminated one.
• Bismark explained that the Crimson Knights used a new kind of Mecha powered by Sakura Stone and admitted that he knew little about their motives.
• Xiao Ran reasoned that the Crimson Knights sought Sakura Stone and opposed other emerging factions, while Bismark said the Empire needed their strength despite distrusting them.
• Bismark said he had recommended Xiao Ran as a Knight of the Round so he could become a benchmark for the Empire and help balance the Crimson Knights.
• Xiao Ran agreed to explore acquiring a Crimson Knights Mecha after Bismark noted that they normally refused to let outsiders use their machines.

Xiao Ran was brought to Britannia’s imperial palace for a meeting with Emperor Charles, while weighing Bismark’s attempts to use him against the Crimson Knights. After Charles questioned his name and asked him to remove his mask, Xiao Ran kept his eyes closed, leaving his true identity and intentions guarded.

• Xiao Ran waited for hours in the palace with Jeremiah and Vireta before an attendant summoned him to meet Charles.
• Xiao Ran sent Jeremiah and Vireta outside the palace to spare them a potentially dangerous encounter with the Emperor.
• Bismark led Xiao Ran into the council hall and introduced him to Charles, who asked whether Lelouch Xiao was his real name.
• Charles asked Xiao Ran to remove his mask, and Xiao Ran revealed his face while keeping his eyes closed.
• Xiao Ran put his mask back on without revealing his eyes, avoiding a direct test of his identity or resistance to GEASS.

Xiao Ran accepted Charles's challenge to prove himself against the Crimson Knights' commander before becoming a Knight of the Round, while privately investigating the Crimson Knights' base. The next morning, he learned that his investiture would be broadcast across Britannia, and that Charles expected him to win.

• Charles told Xiao Ran that he would be invested as a Knight of the Round the next day and ordered him to face the Crimson Knights' commander in a trial.
• After leaving the audience hall, Xiao Ran suspected Bismark was trying to make him a counterweight to the Crimson Knights and judged that winning would improve his chances of obtaining a mecha.
• Xiao Ran contacted Euphemia, then secretly observed the Crimson Knights' base from a distance before returning to his residence.
• Belts and the military representative arrived with maids to prepare Xiao Ran for his investiture and explain his new duties.
• Belts told Xiao Ran that the ceremony would be broadcast throughout Britannia and that Charles had demanded victory, not defeat.

Xiao Ran became an official Knight of the Round and met several of his new colleagues before his public spar with the Crimson Knights. Bismark revealed that Xiao Ran would pilot the Lancelot against an opponent using a Knightmare Frame of roughly equal capability.

• Xiao Ran accepted five maids chosen by Charles and Bismark, including two whose Mental Power suggested they might be artificial GEASS users.
• After receiving a briefing on Britannia's military, Xiao Ran attended the palace ceremony and was formally named a Knight of the Round.
• Charles announced that Xiao Ran would spar with the commander of the Crimson Knights, and Xiao Ran recognized the red-uniformed group as participants.
• Bismark introduced Luciano Brandley, Nonette, Doretta, and Monica to Xiao Ran and explained that the Knights of the Round had long lacked a full roster.
• Xiao Ran asked about his machine, and Bismark said he had arranged for him to pilot the Lancelot against a roughly equal Knightmare Frame.

Xiao Ran prepared Lancelot for his wager battle with the Crimson Knights and considered how to exploit the growing distrust between them and Charles. He arranged for Lelouch to come to him and configured Lancelot with both a sustained normal mode and an eight-minute burst mode before the match.

• Xiao Ran judged that the Crimson Knights and Charles distrusted each other and considered using Lelouch and Nanalie to turn the Knights' allegiance toward a new emperor.
• Bismark told Xiao Ran that his opponent would pilot an Empire-made Knightmare Frame with performance close to Lancelot's, and Xiao Ran went to prepare for the match.
• Cecil showed Xiao Ran Lancelot's new electromagnetic weapon, which could destroy a target with one shot and briefly defend against incoming solid-projectile warheads.
• Xiao Ran contacted Saki and told her to have Lloyd finish a mecha by ten that night and bring Lelouch to him immediately.
• Xiao Ran adjusted Lancelot's settings to provide a sustainable normal mode and an optional eight-minute burst mode for the battle.

Xiao Ran faced a participant piloting a recreated Lancelot in a public duel, using an opening burst from his electromagnetic rifle to provoke him before accepting close combat. Their evenly matched machines launched into a rapid exchange of attacks, leaving Bismark shaken by their precision.

• Cecil summoned Xiao Ran to the training ground, where he found his opponent piloting a recreated Lancelot equipped for melee combat.
• The opposing pilot proposed a wager, but Xiao Ran refused to negotiate and cut off communications before Emperor Charles declared the duel underway.
• Xiao Ran fired his electromagnetic rifle, breaking the opponent's horn while deliberately avoiding serious damage, then put away the rifle and drew his swords.
• The participant, furious and frightened by Xiao Ran's opening attack, charged at him, and Xiao Ran met him head-on.
• The two pilots traded rapid sword strikes and kicks with almost flawless control, while Bismark watched in serious surprise.

Xiao Ran concealed his advantage while gathering data on the Crimson Knights’ Lancelot, then defeated it with his burst mode. After the battle, he learned that Charles had named him the Second Knight and that a harsher battlefield trial awaited him.

• Xiao Ran fought the Crimson Knights’ Lancelot evenly while Cecil recorded its performance data for later analysis.
• After Cecil confirmed that the data was complete, Xiao Ran activated Lancelot’s burst mode and swiftly destroyed the opposing machine.
• Xiao Ran ordered Cecil to preserve the data, arrange Lancelot’s return to Area 11, and prepare the machine for Suzaku Kururugi’s training.
• Bismark, Monica, and Luciano arrived, and Xiao Ran explained how patience and attention to an opponent’s habits could decide a duel.
• Bismark told Xiao Ran that the Crimson Knights had agreed to provide a machine and that Charles had appointed him the Second Knight, with a battlefield trial likely to follow.

Xiao Ran learned that Charles and Bismark planned to send him to the front lines to strengthen the Knights of the Round Table and curb the Crimson Knights’ influence, though he suspected they had deeper motives for removing him from Area 11. After meeting Lelouch in secret, Xiao Ran offered him a deal that could give him Britannia’s strongest elite force and help him or Nanalie become its ninety-ninth Emperor.

• Bismark explained that Xiao Ran would be sent to the front lines to restore the Knights of the Round Table’s prestige and restrain the Crimson Knights.
• Xiao Ran asked to bring Luciano and Monica with him, warned that he needed to know about any inspection team, and arranged for Lancelot to be transported back to Area 11.
• Xiao Ran suspected Charles and Bismark were rushing to move him away from Area 11 for reasons beyond suppressing the Crimson Knights.
• Xiao Ran attended a banquet for Britannia’s royalty and aristocracy, but Charles did not appear and Bismark soon left.
• Xiao Ran secretly left the capital and met Lelouch and Saki Maski beside a hidden Variable Fighter.
• Xiao Ran offered Lelouch a deal that could give him Britannia’s strongest elite force and help him or Nanalie become the ninety-ninth Emperor.

Xiao Ran explained the Crimson Knights and the other organizations to Lelouch, then proposed a deal to secure military support for overthrowing Charles and making Lelouch or Nanalie emperor. Lelouch accepted the plan’s general direction, and Xiao Ran said GEASS and his own influence could secure Britannia’s loyalty.

• Xiao Ran told Lelouch that the Crimson Knights needed Britannia’s resources and could be persuaded to support a rebellion against Charles.
• Xiao Ran described the ten organizations’ rivalry and their interest in the Akasha System, claiming he sought to protect it.
• Lelouch asked about Xiao Ran’s connection to the organizations, and Xiao Ran said they came from the same place but had no ties.
• Xiao Ran proposed that Lelouch negotiate with the Crimson Knights as a prince, offering resources in exchange for military support to seize the throne.
• Xiao Ran outlined a plan to provoke the organizations into war, expand the Black Knights, and eliminate the weakened groups.
• Lelouch questioned how Britannia would remain loyal after Charles’s fall, and Xiao Ran proposed using GEASS and recruiting the Knights of the Round.

Xiao Ran and Lelouch visited the Crimson Knights’ base to negotiate a deal, intending to use Lelouch’s GEASS to secure their loyalty. After Lelouch compelled Phillips to obey and Xiao Ran restrained the other guards, the Crimson Knights’ leaders confronted them at the commander’s door.

• Xiao Ran and Lelouch agreed on how to approach the Crimson Knights and arrived at their base under cover of night.
• Three Crimson Knights guards challenged them, and Xiao Ran asked Phillips to tell their commander that Lelouch had come to discuss a major deal.
• Phillips mocked Lelouch, so Lelouch used GEASS to forbid him from speaking without permission.
• When two other guards tried to seize them, Xiao Ran immobilized the pair, while Phillips froze before he could strike.
• The Crimson Knights’ two leaders emerged, and Xiao Ran asked which one was their commander.

Xiao Ran confronted Knight Koji and exposed what he knew about the Crimson Knights, including their dependence on Sakura Stone and possible restrictions tying them to Britannia. After demonstrating his power and proposing a deal on behalf of the royal family, he and Lelouch prepared to continue negotiations elsewhere.

• Xiao Ran rebuked Knight Koji’s subordinates and revealed that he had interrogated Crimson Knights operatives in Area 11.
• Xiao Ran described the Crimson Knights’ secrets and vulnerabilities, including their need for Sakura Stone and their apparent inability to betray Britannia.
• The bandaged man threatened Xiao Ran, who explained the powers of CODE, GEASS, the King's Power, and his own ability to restrict movement.
• Xiao Ran raised his hand and displayed green and blue light, prompting Knight Koji to apologize to Lelouch and Xiao Ran.
• Lelouch said the corridor was unsuitable for negotiations, and Koji invited him and Xiao Ran to follow.

Xiao Ran and Lelouch persuaded Knight Koji to make the Crimson Knights support Lelouch’s bid for the Britannian throne, offering Sakura Stone, GEASS, and imperial backing. Koji accepted the mission and GEASS command, and Lelouch tasked the Crimson Knights with expanding their influence and providing Xiao Ran with a powerful machine.

• Xiao Ran introduced Lelouch as the Eleventh Prince and explained that he had returned to claim the throne, while Lelouch asked Koji to support his coup.
• Xiao Ran offered the Crimson Knights Sakura Stone, protection for their past actions, and help eliminating rival organizations, while warning that Lelouch would bind them against betrayal.
• Lelouch pressed Koji to pledge the Crimson Knights’ support, and Koji received Prometheus’s legion-level mission to help Lelouch become Emperor.
• Koji accepted the mission and swore the Crimson Knights’ loyalty to Lelouch, then Lelouch used GEASS to command Koji and the bandaged man not to betray him.
• Lelouch ordered the Crimson Knights to expand their influence across the War Zones and provide Xiao Ran with a powerful machine.

Xiao Ran warned Koji that Charles planned to weaken and control the Crimson Knights, then outlined a strategy to keep them cautious while Lelouch built support for his claim to the throne. The group planned to use Xiao Ran’s upcoming tour of the War Zones to bring those regions under Lelouch’s control before the capital’s power struggle intensified.

• Koji questioned Xiao Ran about his strength, and Xiao Ran claimed he was a four-hundred-year-old guardian who had not yet needed to use his full power.
• Koji agreed to provide Xiao Ran with the best unit available, while Lelouch asked the Crimson Knights to collect Sakura Stone and report on the other organizations.
• Xiao Ran told Koji that Charles had made him Second Knight of the Round to restrain the Crimson Knights and planned to investigate their influence in the War Zones.
• Xiao Ran warned Koji about Charles’s memory-altering GEASS, Bismark’s precognition, and other dangerous abilities, and advised the Crimson Knights to lower their profile.
• Xiao Ran said that after his tour of the War Zones, those regions would be under Lelouch’s control and more than half of the Knights of the Round would likely support him.

Xiao Ran and Lelouch secured the Crimson Knights’ support, while Lelouch remained uneasy that their agreement had come too easily. They planned to take control of Area 11’s Sakura Stone supply, leaving Xiao Ran with the Crimson Knights as cover for his larger objective of controlling Britannia.

• Corgi agreed that the Crimson Knights would support Lelouch and Xiao Ran, while their promised units remained delayed until Charles supplied the resources he had pledged.
• After leaving the Crimson Knights’ base, Lelouch worried that they might be untrustworthy, and Xiao Ran assured him that GEASS and their desire for Sakura Stone would keep them cooperating.
• Lelouch asked how they would supply the Crimson Knights with Sakura Stone from Area 11, and Xiao Ran proposed taking control of the mining operation and concealing the diversion.
• Xiao Ran told Lelouch to keep the plan from Euphemia for now and said they should control the Knight of the Round overseeing the mining region.
• Saki Maski arrived, and Xiao Ran told her the Crimson Knights had joined Lelouch’s faction; he viewed their support as cover while he worked toward controlling Britannia and confronting rival participant legions.