Anxiety showed in Leila's brow.
Anything that could make her look like that had to be connected to the final plan.
Ask let Leila straighten his clothes as he took the documents and read through them carefully. His eyes widened.
"Kamine Island?"
It was an uninhabited island on the Area 11 Border. Britannian troops should never have set foot there, and yet...
The photograph in the documents showed an enormous, palace-like structure, engraved with a symbol Ask knew all too well-
Geass.
These were Geass ruins!
This was a major discovery!
During his time in the EU, Ask had conducted extensive research into Geass and established a dedicated laboratory, managed by General Bartley.
Back then, they had thoroughly studied the two ruins within the EU and reached one conclusion: no two ruins were exactly alike!
They had been built in every corner of the world, like parts of an enormous system, with each set of ruins serving as one module.
Ask did not know what would happen when all the ruins were activated. There simply was not enough information!
They had to study as many of the ruins as possible individually.
"As it happened."
Emperor Charles was doing exactly that.
That was also the biggest reason Ask could not mobilize large numbers of people to search for the ruins.
Now that the ruins on Kamine Island had come to his attention, he could not ignore them, even at the considerable risk of exposing himself to the emperor!
As Ask carefully examined the details in the photograph, he asked:
"Have we sent anyone to take a look yet?"
"Not yet. This is a satellite image sent over by Lady Beatrice. From above, there are quite a few signs of human activity on the ground. This track looks like it was left by a vehicle."
Leila pointed to the marks in the photograph.
Although it was a satellite image, the entire site was still clearly visible.
"In other words, the emperor may well have been here already..."
The absence of anyone in the photograph suggested that the survey of these ruins had long since ended. Whether anyone would return to study them remained uncertain.
After thinking for a while, Ask gave his orders:
"Send a team to investigate first, and transmit the data back to EU Headquarters. Tell Lady Beatrice to focus on monitoring the emperor's movements for the time being. If he heads toward Area 11, notify me immediately."
Now that they had confirmed the location of the ruins in Area 11, they could predict the emperor's movements.
For a man who called the war between Britannia and Area 11 "mundane affairs," the only reason to visit Area 11 would be the Geass ruins.
As for offering condolences, conducting an inspection, or attending Prince Clovis's funeral? Those were all pure fantasy.
Catching up on sleep would be more realistic.
"Also, keep an eye on Schneizel's movements. This elder brother of mine likes having his subordinates research all sorts of strange things, too. Even if he discovers where the ruins are, that can wait until we've finished our research."
Ask was not worried about Schneizel discovering Geass. He was worried about him discovering Ask's connection to Geass and C.C.
No secret stayed secret forever. A "trivial little matter" discovered by Schneizel could easily reach the emperor's ears and become "a major matter requiring special attention."
In short, he still had to conceal his interest in the ruins as much as possible and treat them as nothing more than architectural remains left behind by ancient people.
Leila acknowledged his orders and immediately called Beatrice.
Ask turned to C.C., who had finished getting dressed, and asked:
"By the way, did Lelouch send you to Kyushu to negotiate with the Chinese Federation so he could stir up trouble and divert Cornelia's attention and mine?"
"Ideally, he wanted to draw both of you away so he could rescue Tōdō. A prison break could turn into something big or stay a minor incident, after all, and he couldn't predict whether you would intervene... He still seems quite afraid of facing you head-on. Apparently, even with Geass, he's no better than that."
"Because he knows I won't step into the spotlight and face him directly. That means he can't find an opportunity to use Geass, and he can't deal with my adorable Knight of the Round, either. All he can do is avoid me as much as possible."
Ask chuckled and continued:
"Then let's give him what he wants. I'll be staying at the Clovis Memorial Hall for a while. It's just as well-the place is about to open and hold its commemorative events."
Mao had fled to the slums of Shinjuku.
After losing his fight with Lelouch, he had managed to escape by sheer luck, thanks to his opponent's poor aim.
This was his temporary hideout.
With his Geass running out of control, he had to stay as far from crowds as possible. Most of the Elevens here had died in the war, leaving only a handful of vagrants within a one-kilometer radius.
Parts of the buildings were still fairly intact, so they remained habitable.
Besides, whenever anyone entered the range of his Geass, he could hear their thoughts. He did not have to worry about a surprise attack.
The Shinkansen passed by from time to time, but it was outside his ability's range. All he heard was the rumble of the tracks, which was no great problem.
At that moment, he was sitting amid the ruins, thinking about his next plan.
What he failed to notice, however, was the dark muzzle of a gun aimed at his head from the rooftop of the building directly opposite him.
"So that's him. The Geass user."
Origami murmured to herself.
She studied the man's disheveled appearance through her scope, carefully comparing him with the photograph in her hand.
Once she confirmed his identity, her slender finger decisively pulled the trigger.
Bang-!
The gunshot happened to coincide with the passing Shinkansen, which drowned out the sound.
It startled only the birds hiding in the ruins and attracted no other attention.
The bullet flew with a flash of sparks and struck Mao squarely in the temple. He collapsed without even a scream.
Origami cautiously checked her surroundings, packed the sniper rifle into her backpack, and went downstairs to Mao's body.
She stripped off his coat and burned it, disfigured his face with a silenced pistol, then buried him beneath the rubble.
She carried out the entire process with seamless efficiency.
Even if someone discovered the body, it would not matter.
No one knew who he was, and no one cared about an "Eleven" who died in a place like this.
Besides, Mao was an orphan.
The perfect crime.
Origami took out her phone and called Ask:
"Your Highness, the target has been eliminated."
Before you continue