AN: Hello, dear readers, and I apologize right away for the - quite a long - time before the publication of the next chapter of this story. My long writing time was mainly due to a lack of willingness to continue working and a distraction which in turn was due to working on Black Fire of the Drak Raven. Nevertheless, I return temporarily to publish this story.
This chapter will be mostly focused on the narrative of story, rather than showing specific moments or scenes. Initially, I planned to do the whole arc for Lucius' stay at the academy. However, I found it a waste of time, both mine and yours, and a waste of my strength. Especially since I can briefly tell you about it and leave you room to think about what happened. Additionally, in this chapter, I would like to outline for you future conflicts and rivalries between individual characters. There's going to be a massive time leap going on here, and I also want to give you my version of some details about Holy Britannian Empire or Europia United that we haven't experienced in manga, series, movies or ova series.
In addition, I will introduce here a lot of important - in future chapters of the story - characters responsible for creating new and original technologies that do not appear in the original. Additionally, I'm going to refer to one of the comments - in the story itself - but I won't say exactly what it is. I also decided to include more references to the Gundam mark in the chapter - mostly because of my sentiment - and to the story.
Now, however, let me respond to your comments:
- invitious321 -Thank you very much. I hope you will read it to the end.
- tl34lt12 - Lucius (at least in my mind) It really has little to do with Char Archetype, even Lelouch has no. Comparing Lucius to Char, is almost as wrong and inadequate, as comparing Light to Lelouch. Perhaps Lucius (like Char/Casval) has long-lost relatives and light hair, but the similarities end there. When Char's actions was - at least on the beginning - driven by a thirst for revenge and desire of destruction. Lucius is driven by a desire to build something and honoring the legacy of the deceased mother, without sinking into revenge. He rejected - under the influence of Charles' words, during moment in the throne room and expulsion of his siblings - way of revenge, because it concerns something that he could no longer regulate. This is also the bigest difrence betwen Lucius and Lelouch. The younger of the twins, he is more humble, definitely much less stubborn and also more elastic. He still is determined to fulfill his plan and desire, however, is driven not by revenge, but by ambition instead. But apart from these points, I also have to mention that Lucius: Don't have 'Cool Mask'. Don't have title, directly related to the color he is using. He isn't enigmatic servant and he will not betray his best friend. Also, decided to reply to your comment in the form of creating one character.
-Incognito74 - I hope so.
Swungant - You should hailing Britannia, using all the strength of vocal cords :).
Now let's get down to business.
Philadelphia, Holy Britannian Empire
October 2013 A.T.B.
"Your Highness, we'll be at the academy soon." The chauffeur driving the black limousine announced. The man himself was quite a slim and graying man in his fifties. Although he grew older, he never had his own offspring.
Prince Lucius had no doubt that the chauffeur of his limousine was a man who valued his loyalty and happiness more than his happiness. It was both pleasant for the young prince and irritating. On the one hand, this type of man was undoubtedly loyal and trustworthy. On the other hand, however, the man appeared to be somewhat pathetic. Yes, loyalty has always been a trait Lucius coveted among his subordinates, but there was a certain limit beyond which loyalty became incredibly irritating, downright disgusting. The limit was absolute obedience, without caring for yourself or leaving anything behind in this fleeting world. This was the opinion of the young prince on this matter.
The last few weeks and months have been devoted to intensive preparation and training to prepare him for the upcoming time at the New Colchester military division. In the preparations and all trainings, the support and advice of Princes Cornelia and Nonette Enneagram turned out to be extremely helpful, as they prepared the young prince perfectly, especially in the field of combat. While Lucius underwent high-quality Knightmare Frames pilot training, in the case of training with new instructors, the level of difficulty and intensity of training definitely pushed him to gradually push the limits of his maximum endurance. This was especially true of the training with Knight of Nine who did his best to mentally destroy Lucius. However, such intense and far-reaching training caused a certain weariness in the prince, which was manifested above all by his reluctance to start education in New Colchester.
"Excellent." The prince answered casually, clearly half tired and half bored. Honestly, while he had waited a long time for this moment, he was not thrilled at the prospect of attending the New Colchester military department. It was quite surprising considering the many years of prince preparation, Knightmare Frames piloting and handling training, and advanced training in tactics, strategy, organization and martial arts, should you need to engage in direct combat with any opponent.
Lucius' attitude towards the new school was noticed in the blink of an eye by his chauffeur. An elegant boy, he sat with an indifferent and lifeless expression on his face. At the same time, however, he stared blankly at the scenery outside the window. They were actually driving down the streets of Philadelphia, but the academy was on the other side of town.
"Your Majesty does not seem to be in the best mood." He noticed aloud, which caught Lucius' attention, who looked in the mirror, meeting the chauffeur's blue eyes. "What's the cause of your mood?"
Lucius didn't reply immediately to the question, just sighed deeply, then rubbed his eyes. In fact, it was an unpleasant reversion to reality that came after quite a bit of getting stuck in my own thoughts. Much more than education, he was interested in the design of the new Knightmare Frame model in which the prince was - to some extent - involved. The prototype, code number VZ-00KF, also known as Tor. There where also question of one more Prototype, RPI-209, known as Gloucester and probable successor to the already obsolete RPI-13 Sutherland.
"I'm more interested in graduating from the academy as soon as possible, joining the military and starting to build my reputation." The prince replied, then turned his gaze back to the window and what was behind it. "I have been preparing for education in New Colchester for many years, I have the necessary knowledge to complete the academy quickly and without problems. Honestly, I doubt that so-called education there could give me any new experience or teach me something new."
"Maybe." The chauffeur said, still focused on the road and on the conversation with the prince. "However, the school is also a unique opportunity to make completely new acquaintances and friendships that may one day prove extremely useful."
Lucius once again shifted his gaze to the rather talkative chauffeur. "You know this from experience?"
"Of course, Your Highness." He replied, but he did not intend to limit himself to a few words. "Thanks to my acquaintances from high school, I managed to get out of a rather poor financial situation and take the comfortable position of a chauffeur. Acquaintance with someone who after many years turned out to be the emperor's butler himself, probably saved my life. attending the academy. "
Lucius suspected there was more to the words and a tiny fraction of the story, but he had no intention of asking about it. Especially that after a while they were in front of the huge and resembling a Renaissance palace building of the military department of New Colchester. The complex was hundreds of meters wide and encompassed not only what was above the surface, but also what was below it. From the story of his older sister Cornelia, Lucius was fully aware of the newest addition to the underground arena dedicated to Knigtmare Frames. In addition, a hangar has been added directly to the arena, which can accommodate up to twenty machines and allows repair of damage as well as maintenance.
After leaving the limousine and saying goodbye to the chauffeur, the prince made his way confidently towards the great assembly square where all the first-year cadets were to be assembled.
Lucius made sure that he looked at least presentable in his unadorned, deep blue cadet uniform with a high collar. He finally took a confident step forward, determined to end the next three years as soon as possible. He already had several ideas for his future career in the military structures. First - as it is easy to guess - he had to be successful and gain the respect of the army, which was crucial for most of the past princes aspiring to the honor of becoming the emperor of the empire. The reason was simple, and it was the constant need to have a strong backbone and methods of putting pressure on the elite. Besides, in the prince's mind there was more and more a certain idea of his personal strength, which, however, had to wait until the right moment. A concept, not only for his personal strength, but also for an elite squad that he could freely dispose of.
In all honesty, the prince had several options to make his concept a reality. The first and most obvious was the military faction that would enable him to have custom equipment. However, this solution would not be ideal, as factions in the Britannian Army were assembled due to shared political views or a supported candidate for the throne of the empire. If Lucius had decided to create a faction, he would undoubtedly have to fill it - at least half - with people indicated either by the Prime Minister or by the Marquis of Zabi. There was, however, another option, but it was equally imperfect, and it was the creation of a special unit, but this would require the approval of the Prime Minister and the Minister of War. The last option was to create a knightly order. Such orders in the army of the empire were dependent on the emperor's approval and funding by the members of the order. This, however, was the best solution, because the order was so subordinate only to the emperor, and only he could order the grand master to deploy or subordinate to someone else's command. However, without an imperial order, the chivalric orders had almost complete freedom of action in terms of the location and actions they undertook.
As Lucius took step by step and finally began to move closer to his target, he could practically feel the gaze of everyone around him. Although the roll-call would not start until about ten minutes, a lot of students were out of it. The glances that the individual assemblies gave the prince were extremely varied, but usually they corresponded to their social status. Usually, the townspeople and noblemen of new families were cordially inclined and with sufficiently respect. Not all of them did that, but they were overwhelmingly large. However, one could sense the all too obvious reluctance on the part of the descendants and heirs of old families with long traditions. For the latter, Lucius was unworthy of the position of a prince, due to his semi-common ancestry, and all persons associated with him should be stripped of property and titles, and then banished from the country.
The prince entered the assembly square fairly quickly and wasted no time talking, especially since no one had spoken to him yet. It was a kind of surprise for him, because he expected to see the youngest son of his faithful ally, and the lack of him was extremely puzzling for the prince. But then, he felt a touch on his right shoulder, and when he turned, he immediately recognized the distinctive, cheek-length purple hair.
"Garma, my good friend." Lucius smiled, then reached out for a friendly embrace that was immediately reciprocated by the purple-haired youth.
"Lucius." Garma answered as they both squeezed hands. "Good to see you again." There was a malicious twinkle in his eyes, presaging teasing. "For a moment I had the feeling you might not get here on time, or you thought New Colchester was a waste of time."
His words made the prince even smile. "I had this feeling many times, but Cornelia successfully convinced me to attend the military department." In the next moment, Lucius's attention was caught by a brunette, tall for his age, who was behind Garm. "And who is your companion?" He asked without showing the slightest doubt.
"As always, nothing escapes your attention my friend." Garma turned sideways to the prince and pointed with his right hand at a blue-eyed brunette, also dressed in a deep blue uniform with no insignia with a high collar. "This is Ciaran de Revill, grandson of Duke Gustav de Revill."
"It's an honor, Your Highness." The Duke's son greeted him and then bowed to the prince respectfully. However, this was counterproductive, as the prince began to chuckle. His chuckle clearly threw Ciaran off the beaten track. "Did I Do Something Wrong, Your Highness?" He asked, completely confused by the prince's chuckles, Garma began to chuckle as well.
"Not." The prince said briefly and in between giggles, but soon suppressed a laugh. "I just don't find it necessary to show me exaggerated courtesy now that we are cadets in the same year and basically will be comrades in the fight."
Ciaran smiled at the prince's words, but also blushed at the slight embarrassment. "Please forgive me."
"I have nothing." The prince replied, then held out his hand for a hug. "Ciaran."
The newly met acquaintance hesitated for a few seconds, but finally shook the prince's hand with a heartfelt smile on his lips. "Of course, Lucius."
Shortly thereafter, there was a welcome roll call for freshman students. The roll-call square was filled to the brim with new students eagerly awaiting the commencement of specialist military education. The rector of the military institute, retired aviation major Colonel Thomas Werwick, wasted no time with his new clients. The rector's speech was extremely short and meaningful, devoid of unnecessary pomp or exaggerated pathos.
This is how the Prince's three-year education at the New Colchester military department began.
XXX
Though initially the Duke was highly reluctant to attend New Colchester, he very quickly discovered the great advantage of attending an extremely prestigious academy with many talented cadets. Indeed, it was an excellent opportunity to make as many friends as possible, which the prince eagerly used. A key role was played by his incredible charm and manners. These extremely attractive qualities of the young prince attracted crowds of supporters and sympathizers who sincerely admired him, and no wonder. It was hard not to admire someone so intelligent and extremely charismatic.
In addition to the son of Duke Gustav de Revill, Lucius met a few more noteworthy people who were in the same year and were of a similar age to the prince: Schnee Hexenhaus, Ledo Offen, Char Anzable, Mariemaia Khushrenada, and Carl Tallgeese. Each of the five had some skills to offer for the prince that could be easily used.
Schnee Hexenhaus, coming from the powerful, influential and wealthy Hexenhaus family. In addition to his background and associated connections, Schnee possessed a certain tactical flair and leadership skills that made him an ideal candidate for the future commander of the Prince's Guard. His Knightmare Frames fighting and piloting skills were also of a high standard, which only gave him even more value in the eyes of the prince. His only perceivable flaws are some problems with hiding his emotions, and an overconfidence that sometimes bordered on arrogance. Not to mention his belief that death for the empire is good death.
Ledo Offen, admittedly, did not have the impressive tactical skills or family connections as in the case of Schnee. However, he was extremely perceptive, somewhat cunning, and highly skilled at piloting Knightmare Frames. Additionally, he always looked extremely composed and calm, which was extremely important in combat. His composure, however, seemed to border on the difficulty of showing any emotions, perhaps even antisocial personality disorder.
Char Anzable, nicknamed Full Frontal, or Red Commet, by the prince and most of his friends. The first nickname came from his direct fighting style as well as his confrontational personality type. As if that was not enough, the long-haired blonde had the amazing piloting skills of Knightmare Frames, which by far surpassed even the skills of the prince. But what was also characteristic of Char is the fact that he has practically always tried to pilot the Knightmare, which is an aggressive red color with some black additions inside the machine. Personally, the prince admired this man, not only for his skill and lack of noble lineage or status, but most of all for the fact that despite having oversensitive eyes and having to wear sunglasses, he was able to achieve so much.
Mariemaia Khushrenada, daughter of the Marquis and who died tragically during the invasion of Japan by OSI Colonel Treize Khushrenada. A red-haired and extremely talented girl, with evident talents for manipulating other people, and carrying out behind-the-scenes activities, or complex intelligence operations. She attracted Lucius' interest due to the fact that the prince had no intention of relying solely on Kycilia Zabi and her talents in intelligence and assassinations.
The last - but not the least important - of the prince's closest circle was Carl Tallgeese. The fair-haired boy was not only a great military man and a Knightmare Frames pilot, but also showed amazing engineering and technical-electronic talents. At one point the Duke even asked him why he hadn't actually enrolled in the civil division of New Colchester, but he simply stated in response that it was too boring for his taste. Additionally, Carl was not - unlike most of the wonderful inventors and scientists he had encountered - an eccentric sociopath and always put pilot's comfort and safety first.
However, the New Colchester period was also full of acquaintances of a different kind, enemies. Despite his talents, intellect and extraordinary charisma, Lucius - due to his mother's descent - gained several enemies, but most of them were descendants of families conflicted with the Vi and El Britannia coalition, such as: Gustavus Black, Adriana von Wittelsbach, Waclaw Luxembourg and Eric Vasa . Most often, their houses were either related or were members of the La Britannia party. There were also a few others who, however, did not come from noble families, such as John Parker or Jesica Smith.
However, aside from the allies and enemies acquired, these three years were probably one of the most productive in the young prince's entire life so far. Although he initially treated the academies as a waste of time and a distasteful joke, the classes and training sessions turned out to be an invaluable experience that allowed him to acquire a lot of skills.
Initially, that is throughout the first year, the lecturers and instructors tried to assess the skills and talents of their pupils, mainly in order to assign them to the appropriate courses in the next year. For the first year, the focus was primarily on operating in the field and conducting simulated battles that best defined the raw talents of the students. Lucius - thanks to his brilliant mind and commanding sense - was assigned to the officer faculty as the best student of his year. However, it was only in the second year that he was able to fully develop and use all his tactical and organizational talents. Not to mention his training in piloting Knightmare Frames. It is true that he graduated from the latter as the best student, but he had no doubts that the main reason for this was his long-term training with Cornelia and Nonette.
Also, in the officer faculty, Lucius had the opportunity to improve his command skills. This particular direction involved carrying out the most realistic battlefield simulations, one of the best examples of which was the numerous games with Wargame. Wargame, was a game that was based on Kriegsspiel in its premise. Like the Prussian predecessor, the Wargame was intended to reflect the realities of the battlefield as accurately as possible and to train in tactics. However, the Britannian version was much more dynamic, thus, it was adapted to training in the realities of the modern battlefield, where the course of a skirmish can change very quickly, and you need to react as quickly as possible. In terms of tactics and command, Lucius undoubtedly shared his brilliant mind with his twin brother. In the course of the Wargame games, Lucius was defeated only in a few crashes, mainly due to his exhaustion. For although the prince was an extremely diligent and precise student, in his case it did not exclude a colorful social life. Every few days or so, he would party with his large group of friends until the early hours of the morning, but it was never something outrageous or embarrassing. Neither Lucius allowed himself to do something like that, nor anyone from his closest circle.
The last, or third, year at the military department of New Colchester with an officer faculty was the most intense for the prince. Not only for him, because it was this year, he was supposed to evaluate all the skills acquired by students. All of them were forced to alternately show their peak physical or intellectual skills. There were no excuses even if an injury was acquired. The reason for doing so was extremely simple, in a chaotic battlefield, the smallest injury could be death. Capitulation also did not guarantee survival, because people were too diverse and unpredictable. To be honest, the most interesting for the prince was sparring using knightmares, which were characterized by the greatest dynamics and intensity. After these two years of training, his friends and companions closed the gap between them and the young prince. Especially Char, who won a training fight with Lucius several times. However, not only Full Frontal, but also Garma, Ciaran, Ledo and Schnee have improved their skills.
However, thanks to its intensity and dynamism, the third year at the New Colchester military department seemed to be ending much faster than the previous two years. It is true that at the end of the year the students - including the prince and his friends - were exhausted on the verge of mental endurance, they eventually survived until the end. However, some enemies of the prince and his entourage were not tough enough. Jesica Smith could not stand it and committed suicide with the use of cleaning products. Eric Vasa tried unsuccessfully to commit suicide, which ended up being sent to a psychiatric institution for treatment.
At the end of the school year, a great gala took place, but it was repeated every year. However, this time it was decorated with much more splendor than before. This was due to the fact that the Britannian Prince was graduating from Akademie. It is true that he was not the only imperial descendant to graduate from the New Colchester military department that day, but his half-sister Marrybell mel Britannia and her friend Oldrin Zevon were a completely separate topic that could be discussed at a completely different time. However, it was not a less colorful topic than the previous ones.
The prince's completion of three years of education directly coincided with his joining the ranks of the Britannian Army. As lieutenant and commander of the companies of fifteen Knightmares, he was sent straight to South Africa, where there were fierce battles with Europia United forces. However, he was not alone in the presence of people he did not know. Garma, Ciaran, Ledo, and Schnee accompanied him to the battlefield from day one, often fighting alongside him on the front lines. Due to the prince's tactical sense and the empire's colossal technological superiority over the rest of the world, losses and win-to-failure ratios were phenomenal and previously unheard of in modern empire history. The best example of this was the overnight occupation by the companies of Prince Lucius, the capital of Angola, which was one of the many EU colonies in Africa. The company, under the command of the prince, managed to infiltrate the city center - using the underground network of sewers - and then eliminate the staff of the local EU garrison, breaking the chain of command and disorganizing the enemy army.
However, Africa was not the only place Lucius visited. Philippines has also become a battleground for the promoted Major Lucius. The Chinese Federation forces there turned out to be a bit more competent than the Europia United army. Perhaps the federation was a poor, backward country and ruled basically by corrupt warlords, but spending on armaments and trying to catch up with the Holy Britannian Empire on Knightmare Frames was absolutely successful. Chinese Gun-Rus turned out to be as mobile machines as Britannian Glasgows, Sutherlands and definitely better of European Gardmares, which made fighting in Philippines much more demanding than in Africa.
By the end of 2016, Lucius was promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel for numerous merits. In addition, he began efforts to create his own knightly order, which would give him considerable power in the structures of the empire's army, and only one superior in the form of the emperor himself. He had to appear before the imperial court in this matter. It was not an easy matter for him from the purely mental point of view, because the last time he appeared in the throne room, his twin brother and younger sister were banished and, in fact, sent to their deaths.
XXX
Pendragon, Holy Britannian Empire
Imperial Palace
January 2017 A.T.B.
Emperor Charles zi Britannia were in a bad mood, not that the last few decades of sitting on the throne of the most powerful empire in world history should have been otherwise. As king on the chessboard, he had to reign over his kingdom at all times and pursue a plan to create a Ragnarök connection that would unite mankind into a single entity with a common consciousness. It was extremely tiring and deceptive, but fortunately for him he had the right people to handle these issues. His second son, Premier Scheizel El Britannia, was an excellent steward of his vast domain. Meanwhile, his older brother, Victor i Britannia, was largely focused on managing the Geass Order and taking care of the smaller details of the Ragnarök connection.
However, despite numerous simplifications and having the right people in the right positions, he still had to participate to some extent in governing his country and its citizens. However, signing and reviewing tons of documents was the least of his worries and rage. What has made him absolutely furious over the last decades is the imperial court and the need to listen to numerous complaints or requests from the nobility, the commoners, the military, or representatives of the largest corporations of the empire. It was extremely tedious, and the emperor had no doubts that even a Buddhist monk would lose his patience hearing all these matters. Fortunately, however, the emperor over the years developed incredible patience and great mental endurance, thanks to which he could listen to matters addressed to him. Additionally, each day he listened to a maximum of ten people, not one more person, which allowed him to focus on other aspects of being emperor of the empire.
At this point, however, his third son, Prince Clovis la Britannia, was standing before him, he was the last person scheduled for an audience today. He just arrived and without unnecessary wasting his and the emperor's time he went to the specifics, or in fact one particular thing, which was a request to assign him a competent and experienced military commander. Charles had no doubts that his third son was incompetent in command and administration. Yes, he was an excellent actor and an excellent artist, but these qualities made him a person suitable only for a figurehead and nothing else.
When the emperor heard his son's request, he almost immediately sighed deeply, thereby disturbing all those gathered. Over the years of performing in front of an audience composed of the most eminent nobles, he has mastered the art of manipulating the atmosphere and moods of everyone gathered in the throne room without exception. Due to Carles' position as the Emperor of the Holy Britannian Empire, his manipulations were greatly facilitated due to his enormous power and power within the boundaries of the empire. In fact, as the absolute monarch of the Holy Britannian Empire, he could sentence all the nobles gathered in the throne room to death without any consequences, if he were of course willing to do so. However, such a course - although at times extremely tempting - would instantly result in hundreds of attempts on his life and destabilization of the empire, which he would prefer to avoid.
"Prince Clovis." He started with stoic calmness and a deep, thoughtful tone of voice, he narrowed his eyes a bit and intensified his gaze at his kneeling son. "I thought you were talented enough to run Area Eleven on your own, at least that's what I felt when you asked me for the position of Viceroy. Prove you are worthy of this office, or prepare to disinherit and leave disgrace."
A clear threat ended the audiences. The third prince rose, made a deep and respectful bow, then headed for the exit from the throne room. Clovis was clearly frightened by the emperor's obvious threat, which made Charles laugh a little. There were low murmurs throughout the hall that directly related to the third prince's request. It quickly became known among the crowd about his ineptitude in administering Area Eleven, and about the unusually high level of terrorist activity in that area.
Just as it seemed as if the court cases and audiences were over, the Imperial Herald stepped in. This surprised everyone in the throne room, but the emperor remained, as always, unmoved and completely composed.
"What happened?" He asked in a raised voice, and the echo echoed throughout the throne room and repeated several times.
"His Imperial Highness, The Twelfth Prince of the Holy Britannian Empire, Lucius vi Britannia, he asks for an immediate audience with Your Imperial Majesty." The herald announced with the greatest dignity possible at the moment, then fell silent.
The entire hall turned expectantly towards the emperor. Everyone gathered breathlessly as he waited for his reaction. For his part, the emperor subtly glanced at a relatively small group of nobles who had purple roses attached to their clothes, which determined their political affiliation. The aforementioned purple rose symbolized their support and affiliation with the constantly growing in strength vi Britannia party. This group of people included the bald and trainee Marquis Degwin Zabi, his first son and Deputy Prime Minister Gihren, and Duke Krushevsky. The three were especially interested in the decision made by the emperor.
"That should be interesting." The emperor muttered softly under his breath, then raised his voice. "Let him in, I will hear his plea."
The Imperial herald moved out of the aisle almost immediately, then solemnly announced: "His Imperial Highness, The Twelfth Prince of the Holy Britannian Empire, Lieutenant Colonel Lucius vi Britannia!"
All those gathered turned to the great and open gates, the threshold of which was soon crossed by an athletic and handsome young man. This man had an aura of power and self-confidence around him. His cheekbones were prominent, his hair short and brushed to the left side. His height was about one hundred and seventy-eight centimeters tall. He was undoubtedly handsome and moved with regal elegance, but combined with military style. His filet eyes were seemingly distracted and unfocused on anything in particular, but in fact, the young man's gaze remained extremely alert and judged everyone gathered until he rested on the emperor. The perfect image was effectively completed by an elegant uniform, the cut of which was directly based on the uniforms of the former British Empire from the early nineteenth century. His boots had high soles, a small heel and were perfectly polished, the jacket was almost entirely purple with a few gold ornaments, a high and black collar with gold patterns. Additionally, on the prince's right arm, a black and purple half cape was slung and hung on a golden chain. The purple rose, which hung above his chest, about the same level as his heart, was not without significance.
The emperor watched his twelfth son with a small, well-measured smile on his lips. His second favorite son has become a truly powerful and dangerous man over the years. Perhaps Charles pretended most of the time a total disinterest in such mundane matters as his descendants, but in fact he was interested in the fate of the brightest and most useful to him. Such examples were Schneizel, Cornelia, Marrybell, Carine, Castor, Pollux, and Lucius. All five were of great value to the emperor due to their undoubted talents and quality, which, unfortunately, could not be said about the rest of his offspring.
Lucius stopped a few steps in front of the steps leading to the platform and throne, then knelt solemnly before the throne and the emperor. Charles rolled his eyes at his theatricality and performance in front of the entire imperial court, but had no intention of scolding his son for giving him a few moments of fun.
"What business do you come to see me with, Prince Lucius?" Charles asked without taking his eyes off his twelfth son for a moment.
Lucius raised his head and, with a faint half smile, looked straight into the Emperor's eyes, showing no sign of respect or fear. It was brazen, however, the emperor could not punish his son. It was, in fact, a subtle and well-thought-out provocation, because this exchange of views would only remain between them and no one else, no one else would even know about it. The exception to this rule would be the giant standing a few steps next to the throne, the Knight of One and the commander of all Knights of the Round, Sir Bismarck Waldstein, the best knight of the empire and the emperor's personal bodyguard.
"Your Majesty!" Lucius started out, and his tone of voice was momentous and solemn, maybe even pompous. It was another reason for the emperor to roll his eyes, but this time, Charles restrained the reflex. "First of all, thank you for listening to my cause. However, getting to the heart of the matter, I would like to ask Your Imperial Majesty, for permission to establish a chivalric order under my direct command and with me as a great master."
Much of the nobility in the throne room gasped and showed even more interest in the young prince. Such a request was in fact a request to put himself above the Imperial General Staff or the Chief General of the Imperial Army. The fulfillment of this demand meant that the prince would be subject only to the emperor and would have complete freedom of action without his orders.
While most of the court members were surprised, the emperor was more than pleased with his son's request. Honestly, after forming a knightly order with Lucius as the grand master, he could safely send him to any battlefield. At this point, he had a specific plan and intention for his twelfth son to send him to the Egyptian Front, which at that point was stagnant. However, the seizure of the EU's colonial holdings in Egypt would open the way to the Middle East and a seamless seizure of another Thought Elevator. Which would be invaluable in the effort to finalize the Ragnarök connection and the unification of humanity into one. With his watchful eyesight, the emperor also tried to investigate the prince's motivations.
In the crowd, however, there was one woman who was seething at the mere sight of a man who, in her opinion, was a brood half the blood of the commoner and simply should not exist. It was the Imperial Consort Gabrielle la Britannia, a decision-maker in the party of la Britannia and gathered around itself the lion's share of Darwinist nobility. The sight of the son of the deceased Empress Marianne vi Britannia drove Gabrielle to a state of fury. Frankly, the empress and her supporters attempted an attempt on his life several times, but to no avail. It was particularly risky, difficult and dangerous, as the present emperor made it clear to everyone that he did not wish to return to the time of the Emblem of Blood. In turn, disobeying his orders could turn out to be a pass to the grave. Therefore, the empress could only helplessly and with hidden vigor observe the prince.
"What is the reason for your request? Prince?" The emperor asked his son in response, curious about his explanation. It is true that he was aware of the most likely possibilities, but he wanted to hear it from his mouth and in front of everyone gathered.
"Because it will allow me to form an elite unit that could be used effectively in one of the campaigns." The prince replied impassively, but continued on. "At present, our army is the most powerful military force in the world, prepared to face the enemy in large-scale conflicts. This is not a criticism, of course, but the result is the dispersion of many talented pilots and soldiers between individual divisions, companies or battalions, which results in dispersion of power and non-adaptability. At this point, the only formations that can very quickly adapt to the situation and successfully counter rapidly emerging threats are: Princess Cornelia's personal forces, five other knightly orders, Castor and Pollux Elite Siamese Corps, and Knights of the Round. However, this is still not enough, and the formation of another elite unit with people chosen and indicated by me, could additionally strengthen the capabilities of our army and the power of the empire, and it can never be too much. "
The emperor, however, noticed that the prince seemed to be hiding another reason from him, which he had chosen not to disclose for some reason. "But?"
Lucius realized very quickly that his father wanted to know one more and so far unspoken reason why he should allow it. He did not let the emperor wait too long for an answer. "I can form a new order in no more than two weeks. In turn, a newly formed unit can be very quickly transferred to Egypt and help the front that has stagnated there."
At first, virtually no one - who had any idea about the organization - believed his statement. Only the pages of it with the purple roses attached to its chest were fully aware that the young prince was telling the truth and not throwing words into the wind. The emperor believed in the words of one of his most talented descendants, so it did not take long for him to make a decision.
"Excellent." He announced, then continued. "I grant permission to form the next knight order. You have two weeks to form and equip the unit, after that time, you are to move to Egypt and support the offensive with the army under the command of the Second Princess, Cornelia and Britannia!"
Lucius rose and bowed respectfully. "Thank you, Your Majesty. Knights of the Purple Rose will be coming to the front in two weeks and will change the tide of this campaign, you have my word." Then he clenched his right fist and placed it on his chest. "All Hail Britannia!"
AN: And here the next chapter comes to an end, I hope you are satisfied and that you will leave your reviews.
SO! Lucius and his party are gaining more and more power in the empire and his opponents are powerless. However, this is just the beginning. In the nex chapter, Luc finally organizes his order, but UE does not remain idle and deaf to danger and also forms an speciall unit.
Besides yes, listing the Chara and Full Frontal combination here is my reply to your review, tl34lt12. You seemed to be complaining that Lucius is next Char Archetype, so I decided to put a clone of Char, in addition mixed with his other clone. Deal with that.