The Ever-Changing Situation (5.6K)

"That's right."

Mahiro then came over and gently took Nina's small hand in his, even feeling the coolness of her fingertips.

Although the handshake made Nina tremble slightly, she did not refuse, and her tense body gradually relaxed.

Seeing her like this, Mahiro, somewhat puzzled, "But I don't quite understand, Nina, why are you so scared?"

Nina was so scared after just passing through a tunnel that she almost hid under her seat.

This is no longer just a simple matter of loathing and fearing Eleven, is it?

It was like a nightmare...

"... Nina, is that alright?"

Milly was no longer the mischievous student council president she was in the academy; instead, she acted like a caring older sister, looking after Nina's feelings and asking for her opinion.

Few people besides Nina knew why she acted this way.

Nina looked up at Milly, then gazed at Mahiro for a moment before nodding slightly.

Having received her permission, Milly released her hand, sat up straight in her seat, her expression serious, and spoke in a solemn tone:

"Actually, Nina became like this mainly because of something that happened six years ago..."

Six years ago, it was the second year after Britannia occupied Japan and renamed it Area 11.

At that time, the Area 11 was not stable, with many resistance groups similar to those in the Red Moon or Saitama.

At that time, Nina had just moved to Area 11 with her parents and was not as afraid of Eleven as she is now. On the contrary, Nina's family was anti-war and wanted to coexist peacefully with Eleven.

They frequently visited impoverished areas to give alms.

But one day, an accident happened.

The resistance fighters suddenly appeared and killed Nina's parents right in front of her.

From that moment on, a seed of fear was planted in Nina's heart, and she harbored a great fear of ELEVEN, which haunted her like a nightmare.

After hearing this, even Mahiro fell silent.

Some people always seek out those who are kind to them to vent their emotions, but when faced with those who suppress them, they don't dare to utter a single word.

They were as quiet and obedient as lambs to the slaughter.

This is the inherent weakness of human nature.

"Don't worry, Nina. As long as your teacher is here, I will never let you get hurt by Eleven."

"Mahiro- sensei..."

"Don't worry, I'll take care of everything."

He gently took Nina's cold little hand in his, and solemnly made a vow to the girl.

Looking at the teacher's sincere face, Nina felt as if she had found her own knight in shining armor.

Soon, the train arrived at its final stop.

The Convention Center Hotel is an international hotel located not far from the foot of Mount Fuji, standing on the Lake Kawaguchi.

As Milly said, the people coming and going here are mostly Britannia, but there are also quite a few visitors from other places.

However, not all of these people are here for sightseeing. Today is the day of the Sakuradite Allocation Meeting, and these people are basically all members of the Allocation Meeting, here to attend this annual meeting.

In addition to that, there is good news and bad news.

The bad news is that Lloyd, that weirdo, didn't show up and stood Milly up.

The good news is that Lieutenant Colonel Kusakabe of the Japanese Liberation Front arrived as scheduled, and attacked and kidnapped the members of the 'Sakuradite' distribution meeting, led by Speaker James, as well as all the tourists.

"I am Kusakabe from the Japanese Liberation Front. We are fighting for the independence and liberation of Japan. Although you here are not soldiers, you are all Britannia, the ones who rule us!"

"You just need to behave and listen to me, otherwise..."

Inside the hotel, Lieutenant Colonel Kusabi stood in the doorway of a small room, loudly proclaiming his position and issuing warnings to the hostages held inside.

Nina, seeing ELVEN again, was trembling with fear, curled up in a ball, and was held tightly in Milly's arms.

And Mahiro was naturally among these hostages.

When Grass Wall filmed the hostages here and sent the footage to the outside world, intending to use it to warn the Britannia army not to act rashly.

Both Lelouch and Cornelia looked on in astonishment upon seeing the footage.

Is it true?! Mahiro- sensei has been kidnapped by terrorists?!

Perhaps this was the most absurd thing they had ever seen in their lives.

This is even more outrageous than the Japanese Liberation Front suddenly storming into Pendragon's Palace and kidnapping Emperor Charles!

After all, as students, they knew all too well just how strong Yotsuba Mahiro truly was.

However, when they saw Euphemia li Britannia among the hostages, they immediately understood.

It's highly likely that Mahiro chose to surrender because he was afraid these people would harm Euphemia li Britannia.

"Lord Guilford, summon the Knights of the Rounds to assemble, and order all your men to cease work. Surround the inn on Lake Kawaguchi and do not allow a single person to escape!"

"Yes, Your Highness!"

"Gentlemen, it's time for our debut. From this moment on, we will no longer be the Red Moon Resistance Army, but messengers of justice! We will punish all injustices, even the Japanese Liberation Front!"

Lieutenant Colonel Grass Wall acted recklessly, kidnapping ordinary people. He tarnished our righteous act of resisting Britannia. Let his life wash away this etched shame!

ZERO is giving a passionate speech.

He's like a natural orator, arguably no less skilled than the one in the pub.

At that very moment, Cornelia and Lelouch both sprang into action, gathering all their available power and preparing to head to the very center of this vortex of conflict.

"Order the special sniper team to remain in place. Squad leaders, please confirm receipt."

Night had fallen, Britannia army had been locked in a stalemate with the Japanese Liberation Front's Kusakabe side for several hours.

Despite numerous preparations, there was simply no way to break through the limitations imposed by the artificial lake.

I've tried several times, but each time I've failed.

Cecile, the Special Dispatch had been waiting on the other side of the river, was helping to adjust the Lancelot Z-01 that had been specially brought here.

Unfortunately, Lancelot didn't get any playing time.

Cornelia clearly distinguishes between Britannia and Numbers, and she doesn't believe in the so-called honorary Britannia at all.

As for why this system came into being, it can only be said that it was merely a means of appeasing the colonies.

"Speaking of Suzaku Kururugi -kun, the students among the hostages should be from the Student Council, right? The negotiations are still ongoing, so you don't need to worry."

In his spare time, Cecile chatted with Suzaku Kururugi, trying his best to comfort Suzaku Kururugi, who was a member of the Ashford Academy.

Unfortunately, she was overthinking it. Suzaku Kururugi didn't panic at all; on the contrary, he remained very calm.

"I'm a member of the organization, and I will prioritize adhering to the organization's rules over personal feelings!"

Suzaku Kururugi gazed silently at the hotel across the lake, and calmly replied, her words carrying a chilling indifference that slightly startled Cecile.

Even the work they were doing stopped for a moment.

Although Suzaku Kururugi's answer was not wrong, it was also somewhat incorrect.

"Miss Cecile, look over there!"

The next second, Cecile's attention was quickly diverted to Suzaku Kururugi's exclamation.

"What's wrong?"

"That is..."

Sitting in the driver's seat, Suzaku Kururugi shifted the image on the screen to the rooftop of the hotel building where the commotion had occurred, where several armed men were shoving a bound Britannia man.

In front of them was an edge as high as a twenty-story building.

"Could it be that they're going to take the hostages..."

"Stop it quickly..."

Cecile and Suzaku Kururugi looked on in shock at what they saw.

Cecile immediately had a bad feeling, and her premonition came true.

Under everyone's watchful eyes, the ruthless terrorists pushed the innocent Britannia citizen off the building, and even across the lake, they could almost hear the man's desperate screams as he died.

"Stop!!!"

Witnessing innocent hostages being brutally murdered before his eyes, Suzaku Kururugi roared in anguish, but his comrades could not hear his voice, nor would they change their will because of him.

"If there is no response to our demands, we will push one person off the plane every thirty minutes. For the sake of the hostages, we hope you will make a sincere decision!"

The image of Lieutenant Colonel Kusabi came again, showing his decision to massacre the hostages, proving that their patience was running out.

"They're making an example of those barbarians!"

Because of the terrorists' massacre of civilians, Cornelia, who was in the command center, once again discussed reliable solutions with her subordinates.

Even as a shrewd strategist, seeing the terrorists' resolute actions was a bit of a headache.

"How about we negotiate with them to release the women and children first?"

Guilford, the knight who accompanied Cornelia, offered this advice.

As long as they can rescue Princess Euphemia, they don't need to worry about the civilians and they can storm the hotel.

"No, if we start negotiating, it will be tantamount to condoning the terrorists' tactics!"

Cornelia immediately refused.

Compared to Suzaku Kururugi, who completely prioritizes rules over personal feelings, Cornelia values personal emotions more, but also has a strong sense of responsibility.

We must never compromise with terrorists!

The problem now is, how do we do it?

Cornelia was racking her brains for a solution, her gaze constantly shifting from her own knights to her other advisors, and finally back to the silent Knights of the Rounds.

Anya Alstreim Arustlayim, who kept her head down fiddling with her phone, Gino Weinberg Beinberg, who watched from the sidelines, and Monica Kulusevski, who looked like a quiet young girl...

"I say, Princess Cornelia, why go through all this trouble? With us Knights of the Rounds here, isn't a direct, frontal assault the best option?"

Chapter 261 The Unpredictable Situation (5.6K)

"I say, Princess Cornelia, why go through all this trouble? With us Knights of the Rounds here, isn't a direct, frontal assault the best option?"

Just then, an untimely, flippant voice quietly rang out.

The speaker was the tenth knight, Luciano Bradley Bulat, a tall male knight with orange hair and an orange cloak draped over his shoulders.

He was frivolous, bloodthirsty by nature, and had a strained relationship with the other Knights of the Rounds.

Just like now, Anya Alstreim, Gino Weinberg, and Monica are huddled together, while this guy sits alone in a chair, legs crossed, enjoying the service from his Valkyrie Squad, a throwing knife twirling between his fingers.

Even if they speak respectfully, there is no respect in their tone.

"You bastard..."

Cornelia's aides were about to react to Luciano Bradley's disrespect when Guilford stopped them.

He adjusted his glasses and calmly analyzed the situation:

"Sir Bulat, the top priority of our operation is to ensure Her Highness Euphemia's safety. Now, all the bridges connecting to the hotel, except for the main road, have been destroyed. The enemy also possesses air defense and underwater equipment. Even the underground cargo tunnel connecting to the conference center hotel has been blocked by a linear cannon modified from Glasgow."

"If we launch a direct assault, there's absolutely no way to force our way into the hotel; it would only enrage the terrorists."

"So, you're all a bunch of idiots."

Luciano Bradley's sarcastic words clearly reached everyone's ears, and the command center fell silent instantly, the air growing heavy.