I'm in another world, and I start out transformed into Lancelot.

The menacing, jet-black claw that had just torn apart the Empire's steel touched Euphemia's cool hand with an almost cautious, incredibly gentle touch, with the back of its finger covered in cool scales.

At the same time, a clear, ethereal voice, even carrying a hint of soothing, resounded directly in Euphemia's mind, dispelling the oppressive pressure:

"Is this scary? It doesn't matter, there's no need to feel ashamed. I am Meliuchina from the Fairy Kingdom."

"It is a dragon fairy, a fantastical creature incompatible with humans."

She withdrew her claws from Euphemia's hand, her right hand, covered in black scales, pressed against her chest again, and gave a slight nod in greeting:

"Master, the battlefield has returned to calm. Command: Erasure... Execution complete."

The fairy's voice paused briefly before returning to the calm characteristic of a non-human being: "I... will wait for the next time you need me."

As soon as she finished speaking, her figure, along with the Wings of Concept, turned into a blurry phantom.

Like a reflection in water wiped away by ripples, it silently blends into the night sky, a mixture of moonlight and gunpowder smoke, leaving no trace.

On the terrace, only Euphemia remained, along with the strange touch of the cool scales lingering on her fingertips.

The declaration of "a fantasy species incompatible with humans" still echoed in her ears, intertwined with the gentle whisper of "no need to be ashamed," stirring an indescribable tremor in the princess's heart and a deeper understanding of this inhuman contract.

Chapter 49 Burn it all! Burn it all!

Inside the Governor's Mansion command center—the cold tactical map has been restored to its safe blue glow.

However, the air seemed like solidified colloid, filled with the lingering smell of gunpowder and an overwhelming silence.

The lingering warmth of victory was replaced by a deeper sense of awe and instinctive unease stemming from witnessing inhuman power.

"call out--"

A barely perceptible spatial tremor, like a polar wind sweeping through an ice crevice, swept by.

Just a few meters in front of the main control console in the command center, next to Lelouch, who had just withdrawn his finger from the screen and whose expression was complex but who remained calm.

The space is as if it has been precisely cut and then reassembled!

Without any warning or lighting effects, Fairy Knight Melsin—in her third spirit origin form—already "exists" here!

The distance is too close!

Lelouch was so close that he could clearly see the black patterns flowing on the surface of the dragon fairy's body, and he could feel a certain deep chill on the scales of the dragon claws.

When he got close enough to be stared at by those molten gold vertical pupils, a cold sensation from the depths of his soul, a sensation of "complete alien existence," instantly pierced through all his barriers of reason!

Even this prince, who had experienced death and rebirth and believed he had glimpsed the dark side of the world—

call!

Lelouch's body was almost uncontrollably thrown back a step with tremendous speed!

His purple pupils instantly contracted to their limit, and for the first time, the usual calm mask on his face was torn apart by pure, instinctive fear.

It wasn't a fear of death, but something more primal—a genetic-level rejection and wariness of an absolute "other" that exists outside of one's own understanding and is beyond one's control!

This step back echoed clearly in the deathly silent command room.

Melosin stood silently, her body covered in ferocious dragon claws, her molten gold vertical pupils staring intently at Lelouch.

It was as if one could read directly through his purple eyes the pages of his memory, buried deep within blood and lies.

"Hmph..." A faint, cold, inhuman hum pierced directly into Lelouch's consciousness, which was filled with fear and rapidly racing thoughts.

Then, her ethereal voice, like ice crystals colliding, rang clearly in the command room: "Just dealing with them isn't enough, is it? Your father's so-called..."

Lelouch, who had memories of his past life, naturally knew what she was referring to.

“VV…Marianne…Charles…” These names were like red-hot irons, burning hard on Lelouch’s nerves.

The face that had just lost its composure due to Melusin's inhuman oppression was instantly filled with another, more complex and intense emotion.

Is it the shock of having your hand exposed? Is it the excruciating pain of having your deepest wounds cruelly ripped open?

It was an overwhelming rage, enough to consume all reason, against the endless hypocrisy and betrayal represented by those three names!

"You—!" Lelouch roared, his voice hoarse and distorted from intense emotion.

He took a sudden half-step forward, trying to use the action to mask the turmoil in his heart.

A terrifying light erupted from the depths of his purple eyes, almost tearing apart his calm facade.

All the memories of Geass, of the C world, of how his parents treated him and Nunnally as cold pawns in achieving their "ideals".

It was completely ignited by Melushin's few words!

That was more than just pain—it was the hatred that had driven him and Nunnally to the depths of hell, a hatred powerful enough to incinerate the entire world!

This hatred even briefly overwhelmed the biological fear of the dragon fairy before him!

Melusin's vertical pupils captured all his shock, anger, and deep-seated pain.

A faint, almost compassionate, yet chillingly inanimate curve appeared at the corner of her mouth.

"How laughable! A light-stealer crawling on the edge of despair... dares to presume to have touched the realm of the gods?"

Her words hovered in the deathly silence for a moment, like frozen icicles.

Then, those molten gold vertical pupils locked onto Lelouch's eyes once again.

It was as if they wanted to imprint the raging, dark flames of revenge there onto the eternal star map.

"The flames are burning in your eyes, Lelouch vi Britannia."

"Very good, go burn!"

The calamity of fire that once burned down the fairy kingdom addressed this rebellious son in an aria-like tone:

"Burn this rotten dream of the old world...together with your pitiful parents...to ashes!"

Melusin's arias, like the calamities of an abyss, her words filled with destructive allure.

The air in the command room was assaulted like a cold tide.

However, this voice, imbued with superhuman magic, failed to shake the core of Lelouch vi Britannia's will.

Deep within his purple eyes, the flames of vengeance still burned, but beneath that all-consuming rage...

A cold, absolute light of rationality belonging to strategists pierced through the clamor like a sharp blade cutting through the fog.

"Why?!"

A thought, like lightning, cleaved through the chaotic vortex of emotions! Lelouch's pupils trembled slightly from the intense thought.

"Urgent!" This unusual urgency!

Whether it was earlier on the edge of the terrace, where he relentlessly pushed Euphemia to issue that "erasure" order that exceeded all limits.

The target is the Knights of the Round Table, the symbol of the Empire's top military power—to wipe them all out! No room for retreat!

At this very moment, just as Euphemia had regained her composure and the threat from the Imperial fleet had been temporarily averted, she was taking a breather.

He immediately appeared with lightning speed, directly exposing the core plan of Charles, Marianne, and VV.

And he pointed the finger precisely at his high and mighty father—the very architect of the “dream of the old world”!

The pace of all this action... was too fast! Too oppressive!

But just as he was trying to further analyze that inhuman motive—

"Put away that pointless deduction." The fairy's voice cut directly into his mind.

Cold and clear, like moonlight filtering through a pine forest, there is no anger or intimidation, only pure statement.

Then, her unique, inhuman voice flowed clearly into Lelouch's mind:

“Lelouch vi Britannia.” The dragon fairy’s voice was steady, as if reciting a given fact.

"Just like the veto procedure you successfully completed last time, this time simply destroy that logically twisted core creation."

Her voice paused for a millisecond, her molten gold vertical pupils, though not visible, seemed to be everywhere.

It seemed to pierce through Lelouch's eyes, gazing into the core of vengeance pulsating deep within his soul:

"Or... do you choose forgiveness?"

"Have you decided to let those parents who treat their children as sacrifices inscribe their twisted will into the fundamental rules of the world?"

"Questioning" is not the same as interrogation.

It's more like laying out the cruel options in front of Lelouch, coldly reminding him of the inevitable cost and end of all his actions.

Lelouch stood still, his purple eyes gleaming even more sharply from the cold, logical analysis.

Those words did not ignite his anger; instead, they acted like coolant, solidifying his resolve.

Yes, destroy that core "creation"—this is the goal that must be accomplished.

And Melusin, a person who shouldn't exist, and that unparalleled power.

It was more troublesome than he had anticipated, but also... more exploitable.

Chapter 50 The Witch is Very Sad

The warship Avalon, suspended high above the clouds, tore through the air currents, and the outline of the target island resembled a lurking behemoth at the horizon.

In the command center, Lelouch stared at the shadowy figure through the panoramic screen. Memories of his past life, when he and two others stormed the Divine Realm, surged back, even with the experience of being reborn. The solemnity was still palpable as he stepped into this ultimate battlefield once more.

Lelouch's deep voice carried a sense of strategic precision: "Just like that... head straight for that man's throne room?" It wasn't hesitation, but rather a clash of complex thoughts arising from the overlap of paths from past and present lives.

Click—the heavy alloy lock on the command room door clicked open, and a faint chill rushed in with the airflow. Against the backdrop of the bridge's indicator lights, a slender, languid figure strolled in.

Her long, emerald-green hair cascaded over her shoulders, and her crimson-gold eyes were like frozen lava. CC was indeed carrying a steaming box of pineapple pizza. She strolled as if in her own backyard, ignoring the almost frozen atmosphere and the focused gazes of everyone present, and walked straight to the central control panel.

Then, with remarkable ease, she leaned back and sank into the spare chair next to the commander-in-chief. She crossed one long leg, clad in a knee-high sock, and slowly picked up a slice of pizza.

"Crunch!" The crisp sound of biting into it was exceptionally clear in the silence.

*Whoosh!* Almost the instant she settled into her seat—in front of the air slightly warmed by her body heat and the aroma of the pizza—rippled! Azure stardust flowed! The half-body phantom of Melusin's Third Spirit Origin suddenly materialized, its molten gold vertical pupils precisely locking onto the witch in her seat. That inhuman pressure was like an icy sea pouring in, even the air seemed to freeze slightly.

A clear, ethereal voice pierced through consciousness: "...The false divine throne will inevitably crumble, its remains destined to vanish into the cracks..." The fairy's gaze swept over the pizza crumbs on CC's lips, pausing for a barely perceptible fraction of a second. "...It's up to you."

"Tsk." CC clicked her tongue and put down the pizza. Her bright gold eyes met his cold, vertical pupils, her languid tone carrying a hint of complaint, but the last syllable of her voice trailed off: "You're still so arrogant when you're ordering people around... I'm not anyone's maid, you know?"

Melusin's illusory form didn't tremble, but the posture of her right arm, which covered the dragon's claw, underwent an extremely subtle adjustment. From a straight, angled stance, it became slightly more inward-curving, and the coldness in her molten gold vertical pupils seemed... to melt a crack. A more private, more obscure sense of "knowledge" leaked out from the crack, directed solely at the green-haired witch before her, who was casually munching on pizza.

A very faint hum resounded in CC's mind, like a reminder in a private channel, "Focus... on the target." This response was like an encrypted signal; to others, it seemed that Melusin was silent for a moment, and the pressure intensified.

Only CC's lips, out of sight of others, subtly curved upwards in a smile that seemed to indicate she had caught the signal. A mischievous gleam of pleasure flickered deep within her crimson-gold eyes, as if she had successfully plucked a dormant string.

"Yes~ yes~" The witch's drawn-out tone was filled with an endearing, helpless charm. "Special service order for cleaning up the mess received..." "...As for the payment..." Her gaze swept over the dragon-scale-covered claws of the illusory figure of Melusin with a half-smile. "...Same as always, owed to me for now."

Melusin's illusory figure seemed to freeze almost imperceptibly for a moment, her face covered with black patterns turning slightly towards the void outside the porthole. Her molten gold vertical pupils avoided CC's burning gaze, revealing a kind of... almost "disheveled" evasion.

It's not the right time... How can I make a promise that's destined to be delayed when the future can't be held back? This silent thought flashed through her core like lightning.

Only CC accurately captured this fleeting shift; her crimson pupils suddenly contracted. The wisdom of the millennium-old witch instantly grasped something, and the mischievous smile froze on her lips. It then settled into a deeper, more piercing pain, a realization of the cruel truth, causing even the knuckles gripping the edge of the pizza box to turn slightly white from the force.

Melusin's head was almost forcibly snapped back, the emotional crack that had just leaked from her molten gold vertical pupils frozen solid. Inhuman coldness and sharpness once again took over. Her voice, resolute and decisive, seemed to seal the final chapter of this abrupt interlude: "As my final task, I will freeze the illusions of Charles de Britannia...right here!"

From the deliberate tilt of his head to this declaration of cutting off all possibilities, the air of escapism was so intense it almost froze into frost. CC's heart sank suddenly, as if falling into a bottomless abyss of ice, deeper and colder than being locked in the cult's magic-suppressing box.

*Whoosh—!* The phantom formed of azure stardust vanished without warning, like a holographic projection suddenly shut down, without any dissipation. That area of ​​space distorted violently, emitting a short, mournful cry of energy overload!

The command room fell into a suffocating silence, broken only by the groaning of the pizza box that CC had crushed beyond recognition in her hand, and the almost synchronized heartbeats throughout the room.

Lelouch gasped, his purple eyes instinctively glancing at the witch radiating a menacing aura from the chair. This ancestor's past transgressions, affecting innocent bystanders when her mood plummeted, were far more unpredictable and elusive than the threat posed by the emperor.

CC slowly loosened her knuckles, which were almost embedded in the cardboard box. The greasy sauce clinging to her fingertips was the only "real" feeling she could experience at that moment. She didn't look at anyone, only at the void that rippled alone due to spatial overload. In a murmur so low that only she could hear it, a murmur that had carried a thousand years of time yet ultimately returned to "habit," she whispered: "...coward." The voice was as light as dust, yet it etched a fine mark on the ice that had never melted for millennia.

As the grotesque outline of the target island filled the panoramic screen, Lelouch's icy voice, as if tempered by fire, forcefully pulled the world back on track: "Target! The Throne Central!...All-out attack—begin!!" Avalon, like a spear of judgment, roared as it tore through the final distance, piercing into that hell entrenched in despair.

The roar of the engine vibrated the cold metal deck. CC simply sank deeper into her seat, as if trying to embed herself into it. The edge of the now-cold pizza in her hand was unconsciously and almost cruelly crushed into a sticky paste.

A few strands of her emerald green hair slipped across her forehead, obscuring the turbulent undercurrents in her crimson-gold eyes. Her gaze pierced through the thick composite armor porthole, locking onto that chaotic shadow that devoured the light. There lay the slaughterhouse where the fairy was about to complete her "mission," and also the stage for her final curtain call.

The "mission" was nearing completion. And what she awaited... seemed to be an answer that would never be settled. That abrupt disappearance, more glaring than any lengthy farewell, proclaimed—a final parting was imminent, worldly ties severed.

She tugged at the corners of her mouth, trying to conjure a familiar, mocking smile, but found her lips stiff as if stitched together by invisible threads.

[A plea to stay?] A cold, thousand-year-old witch's voice echoed in the core of consciousness. [What's there to say...? For a monster that has already drifted in the river of time for countless centuries...][Separation is nothing more than another repetitive note in the eternal prelude... one that has long been heard to death.]