“Mr. Lloyd, what’s going on?!”

  Sitting withiill-opened cockpit of the La, Suzaku turned around and asked the genius stist and creator of the La, Lloyd Asplund, anxiously.

  Discrimination against the honorary Britannian pilot caused the La to be pced far from the front lines, even further than those statioo guard the rearlines.

  “Hm, something quite unnatural, I should say.”

  “Unnatural?”

  “It’s unfirmed, but there are reports that the Bights have appeared.”

  “Zero…!”

  Suzaku mumbled under his breath in shock. Memories of his meeting with him when the mysterious leader of the Bights “rescued” him from his false vi for Prince Clovis’ murder.

  “gratutions~! We may get our turn after all~”

  “My. Lloyd!”

  “That’s reckless!”

  From his side, Lloyd’s assistant and fellow engineer, Cecile y, admonished Lloyd’s words, to which he just ughed it off.

  “Anyway~ Until the high as all the information, we’re stuck trying to figure out how to react, right~?”

  Meanwhile, within the headquarters, chaos and anxiousness surrounding the Viceroy elia’s safety filled the head and room.

  “Is the viceroy alright?!”

  “She was outside the slide flow, so she’s most likely safe… But sihe units seg her rear moved in, she’s now practically isoted.”

  “What the hell are those purebloods doing?!”

  Officers and advisors to the Viceroy stood around in frustration at the sudden ging tides of battle. And standing in their midst was the beautiful, pink-haired princess and little sister to elia, Euphemia li Britannia.

  She stood firm, masking her ay and worry for her sister with a firm, strong expression in front of others.

  Sister… Please be safe…

  --------------------------------X--------------------------------

  “Guren, Excalibur, head to your designated area!!! The remaining forces here will go after elia!”

  “Yes!”

  “Got it!”

  “We’re gonna pull this off!!!”

  Karen, Mordred, and Zero split off from the rest of the knightmare frames, the ones from Ainz’s unit and e as reinfort for Zero, and made their way to the location they’ve designated before.

  Despite having a few knightmare frames and most of the members being on foot, the Bights have mao pick off several squads of the Britannian army whicluded several units with Suthernds and tank units.

  Ae Zero’s words to “go after elia”, the Bights didn’t actually pn on attag units directly under elia’s and. There was o fight against enemies who both out matched them in terms of teology and skill. All they had to do ick off easy targets and further isote elia so that their greatest ons, the Guren and the Excalibur, could fight her without any interruptions.

  And that’s exactly what was going on.

  Within the head aer of the Britannian Army, the officers were being increasingly frustrated as danger loomed their Viceroy.

  “The Purebloods have beeed?!”

  “Y-Y-Yes Sir! We have lost signals from Sir Jeremiah, Sir Kewel, and Lady Viletta’s units!”

  “Tch! Useless fools! Send in the air troops for support! Do we have any units still free?! We o get the Viceroy out of there!!!”

  “Wait! Something’s approag the Viceroy from behind!”

  Euphemia warhe moment she noticed two small red dots approag her sister’s units from behind.

  “What?!”

  Approag from behind enemy liwe trucks drove up the mountains right into the battlefield.

  No drivers sat behind the steering wheels, which had been fixed to point straight forward by a lobsp;

  All passengers withirucks have all bordered the knightmare frames that were loaded behind them.

  “All units, are you ready?”

  ““Yes, sir!””

  “Alright. Deploy the Burai s!”

  ““Moving out!””

  Five knightmare frames resembling the burais at first gnce, but different and wielding a massive katana in its hand slowly rise from behind the moving trubsp;

  Sitting within the o the very front, the one in white amongst the dark brown color of the other four knightmare frames, Tohdoh addressed his team.

  “Am I clear? If this ndslide was man-made, then we’ll be able to take elia’s rear. Capture elia! Right now, we’ll pay them back for what happened seven years ago!”

  “Yes! By the honor of the Four Holy Swords!”

  Immediately upoering the battlefield, Tohdoh and the four holy swords ripped apart through the rearguards guarding elia.

  Wielding the powerful Revolving Bde Swords, which were superheated rotating bdes that was equivalent and the ao Britannia’s Maser Vibration Sword which La and Excalibur wields”, the aces of the Japan Liberation Force cut through the enemy Suthernds with ease.

  “Don’t assume they’re mere burais!”

  “This sure reminds me of seven years ago~”

  “But it’s different now. This time, we have knightmares as well!!!”

  Tohdoh’s squad tio cut through the Britannian knightmare frames one by one, ing closer and closer towards their goal; elia.

  “Yhness! Please leave them to us! Withdraw from this pce at once!”

  Guildford leaped into battle, right towards the white burai kai which beloo Tohdoh, and halted his unstoppable advan its tracks.

  “Very well… Then I shall leave this to you, Guilford!”

  “Yes!”

  “Once you fend them off, meet me at point 9!”

  “Point 9…? Uood!”

  elia retreated away from the fight, breaking through the guard of the two of four holy swords that came to prevent her escape.

  “Out of the way!”

  “Kuh!”

  “Dammit!”

  elia swung her giant nce, pushing one of the knightmare to the sides, and maneuvered right iween the space she had created for herself.

  And just as they were about to pursue, elia’s knights in Gloucesters blocked their path and forced them into a fight.

  Meanwhile, Guilford faced Tohdoh in a one otle.

  “Kuh…!”

  He fought hard, brandishing his nd utilizing his masterful skill with his knightmare to gain even a sliver of the upper hand against the knight before him. But to his shod frustration, he could only find himself a match for his skills.

  “This is… I’ve heard there was someone in Area 11 with the abilities of a general and a knight… this be him? Tohdoh?!”

  To be able to see through this chaos… Uanding that if this ndslide that isoted elia from her forces was man-made, then the ones who caused it would be aiming at elia right now. Deg to pin down her guards and isote elia even further… And actually realizing it by fighting on par even against him, lia’s personal knight.

  He didn’t expect that he would meet him right here in this situation…! But…

  “Even so… he’s no mate!!!”

  Chaos tie from every front. And the Britannians, who ohought they’d annihite the st remaining fire of hope in the form of the Japan Liberation Forow found themselves worried and desperate to get to their Viceroy and princess, who had been isoted from her forces.

  In their and headquarters, Euphemia also found herself in aremely hard pce. She was never as good as her sister in terms of strategy… Nor anything. However, right now, she must do something that would save her sister! Yet, she couldn’t see any solutions to this mess.

  “Sub-viceroy Euphemia, we must charge in with the G1 and save the Viceroy!”

  “No!”

  “But with even ander Guildford pinned down, Viceroy elia’s life is in danger!”

  “We ’t! There’s also a field hospital set up here! Not to mention civilians who have evacuated the area!

  Besides, this G1 base represents our main headquarters! The viceroy specifically ordered me to not move it, no matter what! That’s why… That’s why-!”

  Suddenly, a video window popped out from the s right in front of Euphemia.

  “Hi there~! Advanced Special Envoy Engineering Corps, at your service~!”

  Lloyd’s voice resouhroughout the head and room of Britannia’s headquarters, shog Euphemia and her officers who had been tense sihe ndslide happened.

  “How dare you barge into the head and’s unication lihout permission?!”

  “Yurs should be quiet and stick to !”

  In respond to the officers’ harsh words, Cecile replied meekly.

  “U-Uhm, yes, sir. N-Normally we would, but…”

  “But all this waiting around with nothing to do is getting to us, you see~”

  “Sub-Viceroy Euphemia… I beg of you. Please order us into bat!”

  Suzaku begged, his voice firm aermined, and resonated with Euphemia’s heart. From the tone of his void the look in his eyes, she knew he was being sincere.

  “How shallow! You just want the glory of resg the viceroy!”

  “If just one mae could ge the situation, no one would be having any trouble! And with a the trols?”

  “So~? What’s the harm iing us try~? Even if we fail, it won’t reflect badly on you, will it~? Hey, are you listening~?”

  Euphemia stared at Suzaku as she pted her decision. When suddenly, she noticed his lips moving, as if whispering to her.

  Euphie…?

  Memories of the time she spent with the honorary Britannia soldier before her resurfaced in her mind.

  His ki. His determination. His principle. And his strength. Even towards those who had ridiculed him and even put him unjustly in the guillotine for Clovis’ murder, he defehem when they needed help.

  Such a strong-willed man with an iron-cd principle… Perhaps if it was him…

  “Uood. I shall leave it to you.”

  “Alright~!”

  “Thank you very much!”

  “Yes! I swear to succeed!”

  --------------------------------X--------------------------------

  “Dammit…! He’s good!”

  Ba the battlefield. Tohdoh and his team were still struggling to fight against Guilford and the rest of the royal guards as the two sides were stu a stalemate.

  Both were equally skilled. And although the Britannians had slightly more advanced maes, it didn’t give them the upper hand against the famous and skilled veterans that were Tohdoh and the Four Holy Swords.

  “el! What about elia?!”

  “If Zero’s the man I think he is, then he’ll definitely have a pn! All we do now is trust him!”

  Meanwhile, within the cockpit of the Gloucester that beloo Guilford, a uniessage came to his attention.

  “My lord. Zero has fallen back!”

  “What? Are you serious?!”

  “Y-Yes! Acc to the st transmissio by an officer who had been struck down by Zero’s rear guards, he seemed to be retreating! We will be sending reinforts to your location as soon as possible!”

  “Zero es first! Give me his location!”

  “Y-Yes sir! This is Zero’s projected course!”

  Guilford’s eyes widened in shock as soon as data on Zero’s projected course appeared on his s.

  The red dots, which represented Zero and two other units, were heading towards point 9…!

  Bloody hell! The Bights are headed to where she inteo lead Tohdoh and the others!

  “Princess elia!!!”

  “I hear you… Guilford.”

  On the opposite side of the battlefield, standing within a ravih walls of rock stretg up higher than the height of her knightmare frame, elia replied solemnly to her personal knight as she stared at the sight before her.

  A crimson knightmare. A slightly different Burai which she assumed to be Zero. And a jet-bd crimson knightmare that slightly resembled the La, but brought with it a far more sinister air.

  In that standstill, the silence was suddenly broken as both the Guren and elia’s ized Gloucester charged at each other.

  “elia!!!”

  “Lowborn scum!”

  Karen charged with her fork knife held in front of her and her silver, cwed right hand ready to grab elia’s knightmare for a devastating Radiant Wave Surge attabsp;

  elia pulled back her massive nd thrusted right towards the Guren, who dodged tht with a small leap. And as soon as the crimson knightmare nded ba the ground, she luowards elia with her cwed hand.

  The britannia princess dodged the cwed hands by shooting her ssh harkens to the rocky walls and pulling herself towards it in a split sed decision.

  But with all the teags and practice she had gotten from Mordred, Karen’s trol over her Guren had improved vastly.

  In that split-sed instant, Karen turned around and shoot her ssh harken right towards the fleeing elia, aiming to strike her right iorso.

  “What the-?!”

  elia barely mao deflect her ssh harken by sacrifig her rifle and mao gain distance away from the strange Crimson Knightmare.

  “That’s not just a ized mae, is it…?”

  elia observed the crimson knightmare frame before her keenly. The pilot was obviously skilled. But the knightmare’s agility that allowed the pilot to do such a lightning quid precise maneuver was also a w threat to her current situation.

  To make it worse, its greatest strength seemed to be melee bat, and she had just lost her gun.

  No… Perhaps, was that what she was aiming for…?

  To shoot her harken ssh at her from that position with that timing… She might’ve aimed at her torso, but perhaps, she did it not to harm her directly but to damage her gun and knock it off of her hand.

  Either way, she’s dangerous…

  Her mind spun intensely as she tried to think of a strategy to beat the crimson knightmare that stood between her and her freedom.

  When suddenly, from the periphery of her vision, she noticed another knightmare fnking her and shooting her.

  She quickly dropped back down from the walls of the ravine when bullets peppered the part where she was just a few moments ago.

  “This is already a checkmate, elia.”

  Upon hearing the unfettable voice, elia spun around and saw a horned burai knightmare frame standing above the walls of the ravine she was in. There wasn’t even a need for her to guess who it was as she had reized the man by his voibsp;

  “Zero?!”

  “Yes. Perhaps we should celebrate our reunion. However, before we do, I’d like you to please answer some of our questions and agree to some of our requests.”

  Zero kept his gun aimed at her, ready to pull the trigger at any time, as he tinued.

  “Oh, and please perish the hope of your reinforts ing in time. Even if they do, they will simply fall before them.”

  He gestured towards the jet-bd crimson knightmare by his side and to the Guren.

  “I have won, elia.”

  Silence fell upon the ravine.

  The hopelessness of the situation arent even to elia herself.

  Having lost her gun, and her energy reserves at half, she k would be almost impossible for her to defeat the crimson knightmare before her.

  And even if she did… She couldn’t see a future in which she could also defeat the bd crimson knightmare and capture zero. It would take more than a miracle to do it.

  But, as a Viceroy and the Princess of Britannia, she would never show her weakness even ‘till the very end.

  She raised up from the ground and smmed the hilt of her o the rocky ground.

  “Don’t be a fool, Zero. This one… If I just destroy this ohe path for my escape will open itself!”

  elia shot both of her ssh harkens towards the Guren. But with agility that far surpassed even her ized Gloucester, it simply dodged with minimal movement and used its knight to cut the string off of her ssh harkens.

  “What a clever one you are!”

  She charged and thrusted her nce right towards the ter of the crimson knightmare. But it caught her h its silver, cwed right hand.

  Then suddenly, bright red energy and crag of lightning burst forth from within its hand.

  “What?!”

  Her nce began to bulge and swell before her right arm holding her a simir fate.

  With quick rea and deaking, she detached the right arm from her knightmare frame despite knowing the implication of losing both her only o and a hand to fight with.

  But it proved to be the right decision, as in the moment, they both explht before her.

  Bck smoke billowed and covered her entire vision. When suddenly, a ssh harken pierced through it, aiming towards her.

  “This is bad!”

  elia failed to dodge the ssh harken aimed towards her and barely mao deflect it at the cost of her remaining arm.

  Then, a crimson knightmare appeared from within the cloud of smoke. Her cwed hand reached forward.

  “As long as I get some distance-”

  She reversed her movement backwards, aiming to create some distaween her and the crimson knightmare. But the cwed hand suddeended, catg her head.

  elia’s eyes widened in shock. Her body reflexively forced her knightmare to go back as fast as possible, only to find it uo overe the strength of the crimson knightmare.

  Her life fshed before her eyes as she waited for the red burst of energy and lightning that came from the hand grasping her head right now to appear and cim her life.

  But it didn’t.

  Instead, it crushed it into pieces. And with its hold on her vanishing, she stumbled bato the ground and nded on her side.

  “How about now…? Are you willing to listen now, elia?”

  “...”

  VergsX