Lelouch's true objective

By nightfall, Lelouch had arrived at the Lake Kawaguchi Central Hotel.

Even without C.C's reminder, he would not have let this opportunity slip away.

His organization had only just taken the shape he envisioned, and it needed more fresh blood to grow. Using the Island Nation Liberation Front's hostage crisis was not merely a way to draw the public's attention and build momentum for his organization, but also to spread his ideal of "justice."

"Those who possess power, fear us."

"Those who possess no power, follow us."

Rather than simply promoting the idea of "liberating the Island Nation," as the Island Nation Liberation Front did, he would position the Black Knights on the side of the weak.

He would abandon the notion of treating ordinary Britannians as enemies and target only those who possessed power yet bullied the weak-in other words, the Britannian imperial family.

After this perfect debut, he would likely stir the blood of the Island Nation's people, who had been silently enduring their circumstances, while also giving ordinary Britannians and people of other ethnicities living in the Island Nation a shot of reassurance.

"They formed to resist the powerful, didn't they?"

"They aren't targeting Britannians, so we shouldn't get caught in the crossfire, right?"

It might be difficult for thoughts like these to spread through the population after just one operation, but a seed would be planted in the hearts of most ordinary people.

Whether that seed sprouted and grew into a towering tree or rotted in the soil would depend entirely on the Black Knights' next actions.

They passed through Britannia's defensive lines unimpeded, with permission from the governor of Area 11.

And yet...

Even after entering the Lake Kawaguchi Central Hotel openly through its front entrance, killing every member of the Island Nation Liberation Front, and rescuing the hostages, the sight of Euphemia's face still brought back the doubt that had lodged in Lelouch's heart not long before.

Why did Cornelia so readily agree to let us through... to allow Zero to act?

Beneath her expression, in that gaze filled with contempt and hostility, there seemed to be a trace of inner conflict.

It was as though she had known all along that he would come, struggled over whether to let him through, and reached her decision at precisely the moment he arrived.

She had shown no surprise whatsoever.

Was it because she had no better option, forcing her to swallow her pride and rely on Zero to rescue her sister Euphemia...?

Hmph. Once Euphemia's safety is assured, she'll wipe out both the Island Nation Liberation Front and us without a second thought.

Hidden behind his mask, Lelouch gave a contemptuous snort.

He had long since seen through the Britannian imperial family's hypocrisy. Whenever there was something to gain, an agreement made in good faith was nothing more to them than a scrap of paper they could tear apart at any moment.

He did not pursue the thought. All of this was baseless speculation, driven less by deduction than by a feeling.

He would not readily entrust his plans to a "feeling."

Click-

In a hall on one of the hotel's upper floors, formerly occupied by the Liberation Front, Lelouch reached out from beneath his black cloak and aimed a handgun at Euphemia.

"Come to think of it, Your Highness, you're a child of the Britannian emperor, just like Clovis."

"..."

Euphemia's eyes widened. Her gaze passed over the dark muzzle and fixed on the mask, as though she wanted to see the man concealed beneath it.

She was no saint who could disregard life and death. With a gun pointed at her, fear was inevitable.

But more than fear, she felt shock.

There was something familiar about the man whose face she could not see, yet she could never explain exactly what made him feel familiar.

Perhaps it was a sixth sense.

"So, do you intend to kill me too?"

Her voice was far calmer than she had expected. As a member of the Britannian imperial family, Euphemia possessed exceptional poise.

Even if she knew she would die, she could not compromise with "evil."

"Hmph."

Lelouch did not answer. There was a hint of self-mockery in his quiet snort.

"If I killed you here, that man would certainly make his move."

"That... man?"

With that, Lelouch put away his gun and called to the subordinates waiting outside the door:

"You there, take Her Highness back and put her with the civilians who were tied up. Remember, don't hurt any of them."

"Yes, sir!"

"Wait..."

Euphemia shook off the Black Knights member who tried to take her arm. In a rare display, her brows knitted, and even her expression turned stern.

A bold suspicion suddenly arose in her heart. To confirm it, there was something she had to know. "That man you mentioned... did you mean Ask?"

"Who knows? Take her away."

Lelouch waved a hand at his subordinates.

At the mention of Ask's name, a flicker of emotion seemed to cross the face beneath his mask.

Though the mask would have concealed it from everyone, he still turned his back to hide that flicker.

He clenched his left fist where those behind him could not see.

Ask Vi Britannia...

The more clearly that name surfaced in his mind, the more fiercely anger burned away at his reason.

Yet despite all the anger he felt toward him, there was not a trace of hatred mixed into it.

Instead, an indescribable tangle of emotions lay hidden beneath that anger.

"..."

He took a deep breath, relaxed his body, and brought his thoughts back to the present.

As long as Euphemia doesn't die, I won't need to guard against that man for now.

But that white mech... hmph. The Underground Passage should let me test its performance.

Well, whether it comes or not, it won't change anything.

But...

Lelouch stood beside the bed, gazing toward the distant Tokyo Settlement by the glow of the lights.

Why can you remain unmoved when Euphemia has been taken hostage? If another member of the imperial family dies in this Island Nation, it will have serious repercussions for both you, now that you've come here, and your faction.

Clovis had died before Ask's arrival. As the man responsible for commanding the frontline troops, Jeremiah had to bear responsibility.

And Ask's faction, to which Jeremiah belonged, would inevitably be implicated as well.

Publicly letting Clovis's "killer" escape had been another heavy blow Lelouch dealt to Ask's faction.

He did not expect these little tricks to have much effect on the Radical Faction, one of the Three Great Factions. They were no more than a stone dropped into a still lake, raising a few faint ripples before the water settled again.

His aim was to divert Ask's attention.

As long as Ask focused most of his efforts on resolving his faction's problems and had no time to spare for the Island Nation, Lelouch could develop his organization in peace.

Otherwise, with Ask's abilities and methods, dealing with an organization that had only just begun to sprout would be as easy as breathing.

To that end, aside from demonstrating his power to create "miracles," his greatest purpose in killing Clovis and abducting Suzaku Kururugi had been to shift Ask's focus.

He needed to maintain a delicate balance between arousing Ask's interest without giving him enough reason to lower himself to intervene personally, and causing minor disruptions within his faction that he would be forced to address.

He absolutely could not let Ask get involved in the Island Nation's affairs as well.

But if he killed another member of the imperial family, things would be different.

Ask had already arrived here. The death of an imperial family member right under his nose would be equivalent to slapping him across the face and loudly denouncing his incompetence.

No matter how good-tempered someone was, they would never tolerate that.

And Ask was a man who valued honor.

Lelouch frowned. Recalling Ask's dimly gleaming eyes and the smile that always rested on his face, he had never been able to guess what the other man was thinking.

This time was no different.

You still haven't acted...

Just what are you planning...?