บท 109: Chapter 107 ~ The Princess’s Conviction
"I was wondering why you were trying to meet me so much… So this is what you wanted me to look over, Euphie?"
"Yes…"
Euphemia li Britannia, the third princess of the Holy Britannian Empire, stood before his sister Cornelia's desk nervously. She kept a calm expression on her and stood in an elegant manner with her back straight, chin up, and hands in front of her stomach.
But no matter how much she tried, her hands kept sweating and her heart pounded within her chest.
And everytime her sister turned over the stack of proposals she had prepared page by page, her nervousness doubled.
She knew that there was a slim chance that her sister would even consider reading the proposal she had prepared to the best of her abilities after reading the first few words of the title. But, she still went to meet her and gave her the proposal, despite having been turned away multiple times before due to her sister's busy schedule, in the hope that she would consider it.
Cornelia read through the proposal her dear little sister had made. And honestly, she was shocked when she first read the title.
A Proposal for the Establishment of a Special Administrative Zone of Japan.
It was something that was unheard of.
To create a special administrative zone which would give the colony they had conquered their right to rule its people within a designated area meant that they would be essentially giving up their hold on the land they've conquered.
Such a thing… If it was her from before, then she would've thrown these papers into the trash and placed Euphemia on probation immediately.
But now… When she read it, Zero's words resounded within her mind. And as she continued to read it, his words began to set deeper and deeper into her thoughts until she couldn't get rid of it anymore.
This proposal… Was this the way for them to stop the fighting? Was this the way for Britannia to keep their hold on Area 11 and stop the conflict?
Although they won't be able to completely take it over, they would still have great influence even within the special administrative zone if they were to play their cards right. In fact, this might be a more efficient way of conquering. Not by bullets, but by bureaucracy.
But…
"Are you serious about this, Euphie?"
Cornelia glanced up towards her little sister, her eyes cold and dignified, a far cry from the caring and gentle look she had always given to her little sister.
Euphemia felt herself shudder under her gaze. But she nodded nonetheless as sweat began to drip down the side of her face.
"Yes, sister… I believe this would bring an end to the conflict and the deaths of our soldiers and people."
Cornelia placed the documents onto her desk and leaned back on her chair. She closed her eyes and massaged the bridge of her nose for a few moments before facing Euphemia once again.
"I will review this proposal. When I'm done, fix them and bring them back to me."
"Y-You mean…!"
"...Yes. Given the current situation… I will at least consider it as one of our possible courses of action."
"T-Thank you very much, sister!!!"
For the first time since coming to this room, the bright smile and shining eyes that Cornelia had always known Euphie for appeared before her. Her face seemed to shine more, and her shoulders no longer droop, as if a huge weight had been lifted up from her back.
Euphemia bowed to her sister and thanked her with eyes filled with determination and gratefulness.
"Thank you very much for your time, sister! I will do my best to make this work!"
"Mm."
She nodded. But as Euphie was about to turn and leave, she stopped her.
"Euphie."
"Yes…?"
"...If you want this to work, then you will need a way to show your sincerity to the Elevens."
"Sincerity…"
Cornelia leaned her head on her hand as she casually picked up one of the documents on her desk and read them over.
"Do you think, after all that has transpired in this land, that the Elevens would simply come to the special administrative zone you want to build happily without holding any distrust and anxiety?"
"T-That is…"
The determination and excitement she had before quickly disappeared as worry and uncertainty filled her. She lowered her head and thought over her sister's words.
"Think of something that would show the Elevens your true intention. If you can't even think of that first step, then don't bother coming to me to talk about this again."
"...Yes, sister."
Euphemia bowed and left his sister's office with her head lowered, trying her best to think of a way to clear this first challenge.
--------------------------------X--------------------------------
"Thank you very much for accommodating us on such short notice, Zero. We couldn't tell you that we are coming, and… even our arrival here was done with the utmost secrecy to prevent us from being tracked back to his location."
"Pay it no heed. Though, I was certainly surprised when Ohgi told me of your arrival."
Zero sat on the couch, with Mordred and Karen standing behind him, in the living area of the first floor of the Black Knight's luxurious double-decked mega car that served as its command vehicle. At least, for now.
Lelouch managed to gain this mega car, which was akin to a land yacht or a large modified coach with spacious living, communications equipment that hides its location from intercepting Britannian signals, and even a television set with a full surround sound system. After all, although they had a "proper" base in the form of "Amaterasu", it was still too soon to reveal its existence to even the core members of the Black Knights.
Sitting opposite him, on the other side of the coffee table where several Japanese tea cups with an aromatic Japanese green tea rested on, was a man with sharp, rugged looks, akin to a battle hardened warrior. And standing behind him were three men and a woman, standing at attention as they eyed Zero, Mordred, and Karen one by one.
"Welcome to the base of the Black Knights, Lieutenant Colonel Kyoshiro Tohdoh of the Japan Liberation Force, as well as the fabled elite unit, the Four Holy Swords."
"Thank you very much. Although our journey had not been the best, I am glad we were able to reach here safely."
"As do I. So, what does the miracle-worker of the Japanese military and his four holy swords wish for by coming to us?"
Tohdoh nodded, appreciating Zero's straight to the point attitude as he, himself, was not as eloquent with words as he was with the sword. Rather than talking in circles which many Japanese or any officials called "diplomacy" and "bureaucracy", he prefers speaking bluntly and honestly. A truly "warrior-like" trait to have.
"First of all, we would like to thank you for your timely rescue of the Major General during our absence. Without the Black Knights' interference… The Britannians might've successfully dealt a lethal blow to the Japan Liberation Force. So, thank you."
Tohdoh placed his hands on his knees and lowered his head. And alongside him, the four holy swords bowed deeply towards Zero, Mordred, and Karen.
"We knew Cornelia would try to attack the Major General to wipe out the remaining pillar of the Japan Liberation Force. So we intervened not only to save the Major General, but to also corner Cornelia even further. It is a beneficial venture for us as well. But… I accept your gratitude."
Zero nodded towards Tohdoh and the Four Holy Swords as they raised back up. Tohdoh nodded back towards the mask man with a slight, rare smile adorning his rugged face.
"Secondly, we have been sent by the Major General to act along with the Black Knights and be under the command of Zero for the time being."
"Eh?!"
"Oh? The Major General did? "
Zero responded with a slight hint of surprise layered beneath the surface in his tone. He didn't expect that Tohdoh would still come under his wings, albeit temporarily, since the Japan Liberation Force was not destroyed.
In the anime, Tohdoh and the four holy swords joined the Black Knights because the leader they served under, Major General Katase, was gone. And, after Tohdoh was captured by the Britannians, the four holy swords seeked the Black Knights' help to rescue him, which subsequently leads to them joining the Black Knights after the successful rescue of their leader.
But now, the Japan Liberation Force and Major General Katase still lived. There was no reason for Tohdoh and the Four Holy Swords to join the Black Knights instead of protecting the Japan Liberation Force as its last bastion of defense.
And the Major General didn't seem like the kind of person who would simply give up his trump card to Zero just because he was grateful for the Black Knights saving his life. There must be another reason.
Yuuji, who was similarly surprised by Tohdoh's words, reached the same conclusion as Lelouch. But Karen was clearly shocked enough that she unintentionally raised her voice in surprise.
Tohdoh nodded towards Zero and continued.
"The Major General and the remaining Japan Liberation Front are currently in an undisclosed and safe location, thanks to the Kyoto House. There, they will focus on rebuilding the Japanese Military and strengthen their defenses. But… The Major General didn't want us to stand idle on the sidelines. So, he ordered us to fight along with the Black Knights."
"I see."
The Major General might be safer if he had Tohdoh and the four holy swords by his side. However, he knew that even if Tohdoh and the four holy swords were with him, the Japan Liberation Front currently will not have the strength to oppose Cornelia's army, battered as they were.
So, the Major General must've chosen to let Tohdoh and the four holy swords fight alongside the Black Knights and make them more powerful, so that they would be able to keep Cornelia busy while the Japan Liberation Front healed and rebuilt their power.
It was a win-win situation for both the JLF and the Black Knights. JLF would be able to rebuild their strength without Cornelia's obstruction, while the Black Knights will have extremely skilled knightmare frame pilots and field commander on their side.
Lelouch then looked up towards Mordred and Karen.
"I doubt we have any objection?"
"None. It'd be an honor to fight alongside the legendary commander himself and the four holy swords."
"M-Me too. I have no objections.
"Very well. Then, we, the Black Knights, will formally welcome Kyoshiro Tohdoh and the Four Holy Swords into our ranks. We look forward to working with you."
Lelouch extended his hand for a handshake, and Tohdoh nodded his head and reached out towards it, and shook it.
"Likewise."
After shaking hands, Zero raised from his seat and gestured towards the exit of the command vehicle.
"Well then, shall we go meet with the others? I'm sure they will be thrilled to hear that you are all going to join our ranks, albeit temporarily."
Tohdoh nodded, and replied with a smile.
"It would be our pleasure to meet with our future comrades."
"Then, let's go."
With that, Tohdoh and the Four Holy Swords were lead by Zero, Mordred, and Karen to meet the rest of the Black Knights members.
The legendary warriors that created miracles for Japan and defended it for so long didn't need any introductions to the Japanese members who had already idolized them for so long. But, while they were going around, Zero also announced that they would be joining the Black Knights for the foreseeable future, which excited every single member of the Black Knights.
They didn't only get to fight alongside legends, but they were also reassured by their presence. With Zero as the commander, Mordred, Karen, Tohdoh, and the four holy swords as their trump cards in battle, Silver with his incredible innovation and improvement with the knightmares, and Ainz who made their organization run extremely smoothly thanks to his organizational skills and leadership, the Black Knights have grown even more powerful now than ever, sparking their determination to free their homeland from the invader's control.
Then, after having their fill of meeting the legendary miracle worker and the four holy swords of Japan, members of the Black Knights all returned to their tasks.
Zero left for the command center vehicle to rest and plan for their possible operations in the future. And, as Mordred and Karen were also about to go do their daily maintenance on their knightmares, they were stopped by Tohdoh.
"Mordred, Kozuki, I look forward to fighting alongside the Grim Reaper and Red Demon of the Black Knights."
Mordred and Karen turned around and looked at Tohdoh in shock for a moment, before nodding.
"L-Likewise! It's an honor to be fighting alongside all of you."
"Likewise, Kyoshiro-san. It would be my honor."
Tohdoh smiled and his eyes narrowed towards Mordred.
"I've seen your skills with the sword while you were piloting that jet-black knightmare. Are you perhaps… skilled with a real sword as well?"
Yuuji stopped for a moment before he answered. He did have Swordsmanship Proficiency that he got from the gacha reward after completing the mission in Tatsuya's world, which would make him peerless with the sword. But, saying that he was peerless would make him seem like he's full of himself, especially if he said it to someone like Tohdoh, who was a master with a sword himself as well.
"I have experienced using a real sword as well, yes. However, whether or not I'm skilled… Well, I've never had anyone tell me if I'm skilled or not, so I wouldn't know. Though, if I were to be compared with Zero, then I would say I'm skilled, since he wouldn't even be able to hold a katana properly."
A rare chuckle resounded from the stern, dignified leader of the four holy swords, as well as some of the four holy swords as well.
"Well, seeing your swordsmanship with the knightmare, I would guess you are extremely skilled with a real sword as well. How about a friendly match?"
Tohdoh walked towards Mordred and stood before him with a friendly smile, which still seemed sharp and fierce due to his sharp eyes. But, Mordred responded with a lowering of his head and accepted.
"It would be an honor to be able to test my skills with a master such as yourself."
"I'm no master. I'm just someone who still chose to train with the sword in the age of guns and knightmares."
Mordred smiled, though it was unseen by anyone due to his devilish mask.
"Then, shall we find an empty space? Ah, would you like to bring your sword, or would you like to borrow a wooden one from ours?"
"A wooden one would be fine. It's just a spar, after all."
"Understood. Then, this way please."
Mordred then led Tohdoh and the Four Holy Swords towards a place they could spar in. And Karen, not wanting to go and do maintenance on Guren alone, decided to join along and watch Mordred fight against the legendary Kyoshiro Tohdoh.
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EclypseX AN: I hope you guys enjoy this chapter~! Please comment your thoughts~! I would love to hear what you think about it~!!!!
Also, if you'd like to read additional chapters ahead and get a pdf version (Light & Dark), please feel free to check out my at patr.eon.com/verglasx ~!!
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