AN: Hello, my dear readers, and I invite you to read the next chapter of this story. I would like to apologize for the long waiting time and congratulate you on the enormous patience you have had while waiting for this chapter.

Now, however, and without unnecessary prolongation, I invite you to savor what I had the honor of preparing for you.

Occupied Egypt, United Republic of Europia

February 2017 A.T.B.

Carl Tallgeese, and his team of engineers, arrived in the occupied part of Egypt only a few days ago. This was undoubtedly good news, especially as they were transporting the new machines for testing on the battlefield. However, to the great surprise of Prince Lucius, the chief engineer did not want to stay at Ricardo Citadel, and instead asked for permission and resources to build a secret underground factory behind the front lines, complete with a huge hangar that could house the newly manufactured machines. It was, to say the least, an interesting request, especially in view of the difficulties with the logistical aspect of this venture. Regardless of the difficulties, Lucius decided to fulfill this request and did everything in his power to build the factory as soon as possible.

Now, the young Prince and the Guard Commander were on their way to see the first results. It was around two in the afternoon when the two arrived in a well-guarded convoy to a factory that had been erected about thirty kilometers south of the citadel. Only the commandos of Knights of the Purple Rose and the entire Knightmares company, made up entirely of Gloucesters Swordmans, were the protection here. Apart from the hangar, the complex stretched many hundreds of meters and contained not only assembly lines, but also a workshop where the chief engineer and his staff could work without hindrance to improve all the machines used by Knights of the Purple Rose.

Eventually, they made it to the personal office of the chief engineer. Rather, Lucius expected to see inside the chaos and disorder that characterizes all geniuses who are thus able to work in the most efficient way possible. Instead, inside was pleasing to the eye. All documents and diagrams were properly organized, with no room for even the slightest trace of disorder. There were even a few bags with properly segregated rubbish. Lucius had heard many jokes of Carl's obsession with order before, while attending Colchester, but what he saw here surprised even him.

However, to the great surprise of both the young Prince and the commander of his guard, there was not even a living soul in the office. For a few minutes Lucius had no problem with it and decided to wait, finally, the chief engineer could still be on some projects. It was likely especially since the young Prince entrusted his friend with quite a few. But as the minutes went by, Lucius began to get a little impatient, and after another ten minutes he finally lost all his patience. He ordered Ciaran to find the chief engineer as soon as possible because of the need to go to the council where I would like to present my special operation plan.

But before the commander of the princely guard could go anywhere, a fair-haired teenager stepped in with a smile on his face, his pace completely free. It was a man Lucius had waited far too long for his arrival.

"Carl." Prince greeted coolly, his gaze seemingly able to dominate even the wildest animals in the world. "I trust the reason we had to wait is very important research into new types of Knightmares?" He asked calmly, but even cooler than before.

"Indeed, Your Highness." The Chief Engineer remained calm nonetheless, and replied with a small mischievous smile on his lips. "I'm working on a somewhat simpler and pilotable Knightmare aces. This particular model is planned as the basic machine for our armored infantry forces."

Lucius, on this occasion, frowned and decided to fall into a little reflection. "Armored Infantry, Armored Forces. Can anyone properly explain to me how Knightmares are classified?"

"Well, to tell you the truth, it has never been clearly defined. Knightmares was originally designed for armored infantry support. However, your mother, Empress Marianne vi Britannia, opted to use these machines as a standalone force on the battlefield. , no one has ever been tempted to classify Knightmares accurately, so that the machine can be considered both an armored unit and an infantry machine. " Carl replied. "Honestly, I personally think they should be classified as armored infantry equipment, but both are correct. However, I suspect you came to talk to me for completely different reasons than naming issues."

" Indeed." Lucius nodded. "I am curious about your progress in terms of new machines based on the KPR-00 project."

The chief engineer could not help but smile proudly, then began to explain the progress made: "So far, we have been able to simplify the KPR-00 systems and reduce their overall size a bit. In addition, we have managed to slightly improve the adaptability of the new machines."

"What do you mean, Carl?" The last sentence undoubtedly caught the attention of the young Prince.

"Well, in the era of research and development, we came to the conclusion that it would be much cheaper and more efficient to have one universal machine that could be efficiently and easily modified. The engineer rubbed his head." I found it the best because it allows us to easily update the equipment and our machine systems, instead of constantly developing new Knightmares. "

Lucius nodded, as the arguments for such a solution were all too obvious. "What are the first fruits of your work on this universal machine?"

Carl didn't answer, at least not right away. Instead, he went to his desk and took out a rather large tablet from one of the drawers. Upon activation, he briefly searched the data located inside the drive for a specific pattern. Once found, he wasted no time and immediately showed it to both Lucius and Ciaran.

"This is the first effect of our work, KPR-01" Mass ". Intended in this specific and basic variant, for construction works. However, as I mentioned earlier, it can be easily modified and I already have two variants, C and S. Variant C, is designed for aces and commanders, equipped with systems and sensors that allow you not only to fight effectively, but also to collect a large amount of data about the environment in which the machine found itself. Variant S is adapted to ordinary pilots, however it still offers remarkable mobility, firearms are special and experimental Assault Rifles, and as a melee weapon for each individual unit, two Master Vibration Swords were selected, in the long one-handed variant. "

Lucius nodded understandingly as the potential of both variants became clear to him. At the same time, however, he couldn't help but ask for one more thing. "When will we be able to equip our Knightmare Frames companies with these machines?"

There was a gleam in the eyes of the Chief Engineer, which might have been a sign of a satisfactory answer for the young Prince. "I believe we will have about ten or more by the end of next week. Only if, of course, we maintain our current pace of work and the supply of new raw materials and components remains intact."

Lucius was pleased and satisfied with such answers. Prince had a look at the first S-Variant model - which he christened the Stormtrooper - before he and Ciaran and the rest of his team left the factory and then headed back to Ricardo Citadel. On the other hand, after arriving, they immediately headed towards the conference room specially prepared for the next occasion. The most important officers involved in the planned special operation were to gather in this place.

Lucius, along with Ciaran, entered the said room, where several other officers were already waiting. Including: Colonel Garma, Captain Char, Major Schnee, and several Knightmares Knights of the Purple Rose company commanders. Additionally, completely new faces could be seen quite easily.

The first, and whose presence was most dominant, was a man in his twenties with emerald eyes and long, dark blue hair tied back into a ponytail, not counting the few locks that fell over his face. His robes were mostly white and airy, there were numerous gold ornaments, and only in some places was scarlet present. Additionally, he kept sabers to the byok, tucked into a highly ornate scabbard. This man was fairly easy to recognize as he was Shin Shaing, the new Grand Master of the Holy Order of Michael. He seemed to be calm and composed, but something about this man seemed strange, hard to name, spreading some sinister aura around him. At least Garma and Lucius felt that way, because the rest seemed calm around him.

The other two new people were much less untrustworthy or suspicious. The first was a disciplined teenager with a composed expression, red, relatively short hair and bright purple eyes. Additionally, she wore a dark colored tunic - with a gold Britannian Military cross - and long white high-heeled shoes.

Lucius had read in the reports several times about this woman, who appeared to be something like the right hand of the new Grand Master, and his most trusted person. Lady Jean Rowe, who in her career became famous for breaking up quite a large branch of European Knightmares, having at her disposal her machine and the only surviving subordinate of the branch.

The last one was a ginger and red-eyed teenager with a rather confrontational and arrogant expression on his lips. Dressed in a red tunic with a gold Britannian Military cross and black hem. His name, Sir Ashley Ashra.

Prince Lucius also associated him, specifically his almost psychopathic desire to constantly murder his enemies. Including the statistics of those who laid down their arms and surrendered. Honestly, Lucius was inclined to compare him to a certain Knight of the Round, and that wouldn't be that far from the truth. The same obsession with fighting and murdering enemies, although in the case of Sir Luciano it seemed to be more of a way of life than an obsession.

"Gentlemen." Prince made his presence known to everyone, then walked over to the table where they were all sitting and added. "And Lady. Can we start?"

Everyone nodded at the question, and Lucius was pleased he had no objection.

"Excellent." He stated, however, kept his whole manner and did not show the slightest hint of emotion on his part. Subsequently, he turned to the members of the Order of Michael. "I am also pleased that the Knights of the Order of Michael have decided to accept my invitation."

"It's nothing like Your Highness." Grand Master Shin raised his hand with a smile that can easily be called cold, and his gaze is interesting as well as analytical. "It is an honor to ask for help from one of the princes."

Lucius did not believe his false words for a moment, and at that moment he lost any confidence in the man, but showed nothing of himself. "I enjoy that. Now, let's get to the point."

He activated the console built into the table, and on one of the electronic maps, detailed plans for the upcoming and prepared operation appeared. The plan was simple, but at the same time it guaranteed that few things could go wrong.

"The first Special Operation Knights of the Purple Rose is designed to destroy the enemy's stockpile and equipment to be used or in reserve in their planned offensive." Lucius stated calmly and not even a single glance at the map. He was making a plan, so he knew it by heart. "In order to achieve these goals, first, massive artillery fire will be launched at several completely different and often very distant points of the front. Then, let us launch decisive attacks from the lakes towards the EU's main supply base in Egypt. This is where they are stored. the aforementioned supplies and equipment. "

Lady Rowe, visibly tensed, while Sir Ashley's eyes widened in surprise. There was no doubt that this was directly due to the boldness of the plan that Prince Lucius was going to implement.

Meanwhile, Grand Master Shin seemed to be overwhelmingly interested in Prince himself, which did not go unnoticed by Lucius, who was after all devoting special attention to the new commander of the Michael Order. Honestly, the young Prince was sure at this point that the man had at least a strange personality. However, despite everything, Lucius could not allow himself to be picky about the choice of allies or associates at this point. Any failure could lead to serious political complications. Especially because of the ancestry of the young Prince who was half a commoner. Each of his defeats would have a much more painful political effect than it would have been for other high-ranking royal descendants in the army.

"The operation and its assumptions are undoubtedly ambitious." He started calmly and with a subdued tone of Grand Master Shin's voice. Above all, he was cautious, for he wasn't sure what to expect from Prince Lucius. "It is also quite risky. EU troops will protect these supplies and equipment at all costs. I have no doubt that the fighting will be fierce. This could cost Knights of the Purple Rose and the Order of Michael heavy losses, well-trained and experienced pilots. "

Lucius cast a glance at the Grand Master, although his words expressed an apparent concern for the welfare of the soldiers, the Purple Prince absolutely did not believe in the sincerity of his intentions. Perhaps it was some remnant of Lucius's ancestors, but it did not change the fact that the young man had no intention of trusting this man and was physically unable to bring himself to do so as a result of his intuitions. Regardless, however, the meeting had to be continued and the operation carried out.

"This is one of the possibilities, Sir Shin." Lucius replied, in a calm and unfazed tone of voice. "This is a risk every commander in history must take if he is going to obtain the desired results. So we must carry out these operations if we are to halt this offensive and do so with as little personal loss as possible. This is the main reason we use false fire. artillery."

Gran Master nodded while Prince Lucius went into the details of the operation. It was nothing complicated or impossible, a concentrated attack of a huge force in a small area, and completely unexpected by the enemy. Everything is based on lightning-fast blows and moving from one point to the next. In the event of a shortage of ammunition or problems with Energy Filers, drops have been planned.

"It all depends on our blunt action, gentlemen." Lucius finished his explanation, then looked into the eyes of everyone gathered, he looked at each of them quite carefully. "We must complete the entire operation within a maximum of an hour. Thanks to modern technology, surprise and superiority in firepower, and the quality of our combined forces, we should complete the operation within a maximum of fifty minutes. However, if we exceed this time, then beyond a doubt, our enemies will organize reinforcements and reinforcements during this time. "

For a few moments, none of the officers and knights assembled here squeaked even the slightest squeal from their lips. Only after some time, an absolutely maniacal voice, or rather hysterical laughter, which could only be compared to the purest madness imaginable, resounded in the conference room. The source of that laughter - which all gathered very quickly noticed almost immediately - was Sir Ashley. The knight seemed completely oblivious to everyone around him, and the reactions were different. Sir Shin and Lady Rowe looked at the representative of their order with apparently indifferent-stoic expressions. However, the Grand Master seemed actually amused by this reaction, while his right hand was trying with great difficulty to hide its own disgust and embarrassment. Lucius, on the other hand, was not so much surprised as more interested in this reaction and its reason. However, he did not have to wait too long for an explanation.

"A highly risky - but carefully thought-out - plan that sets extremely difficult goals in a very short time." The knight laughed once more, to the dismay of all the others not mentioned before. "This is pure madness. So what are we waiting for? We should move immediately to kill as many of our enemies as possible."

Lucius looked at him with half a smirk and half a shock. The reason was not difficult to guess, as a similar view was shared by almost everyone in the room. There were, however, a few exceptions to this rule.

"Sir Ashley ..." Lady Rowe almost snarled, but kept an outwardly stoic facade. "We are in the presence of the Prince of Britannia. I can imagine that etiquette and appropriate behavior are beyond your reach, but at least don't compromise our order and the Grand Master."

The Purple Prince, had to struggle to suppress snorting at this insult. It reminded him of certain times from his younger years, when he was teasing his older and younger siblings. These were times fondly remembered by Lucius, despite their ultimately painful overtones that came very quickly after their appearance. But the torn and unhealed wounds didn't hurt as much as they used to. Regardless, though, Lucius had developed over the years an immunity to pain that seemed to never end. Though it would be more appropriate to say that the Purple Prince was simply indifferent to this pain, directly related to the loss of valuable family members.

One blink of an eye later, Lucius returned to reality. After a short while, his keen eyesight fell on Grand Master Shin, who also cast a glance at him, and after a short moment he spoke: "Your Highness, this is most certainly one of the most difficult operations and plans I have had in my life so far. to my service. After all, what matters to victory is not the potential chances of victory, but the belief in the possibility of triumphing over the enemy. Even in the face of completely unfavorable circumstances. "

Lucius understood the message behind these words, and decided to respond as soon as possible to all gathered so that they would not have any reservations about undertaking the mission. "It will undoubtedly be something extremely difficult. We will have to perform surgeries in the middle of the night, in addition, it will be necessary to take substances that support thought processes and give strength. Because we cannot afford any failure. Indeed, it is something that punishes risky and verging on desperation. Nevertheless, there are risks worth taking, despite the extreme risks. The truth is that we must execute the whole plan flawlessly, otherwise the operation will fail - at least - at best. In the worst case, our two orders will be massacred. and they will not rebuild quickly. Nevertheless, it is worth making this effort, because it gives us a chance to stop the enemy offensive and secure initiative in this part of the world. Additionally, the element of surprise and confusion on the side of the enemy will work to our advantage. "

A smile - after a short moment - appeared on his face. At the same time, it was coupled with a steely determination in the eyes and led to a strange, perhaps even unique, mix. "Let me put it bluntly, we will have to do our best and I do not expect an easy victory, but I will not give up on such a bold and completely changeable balance of power operation. That is why I will be there, along with the vanguard of our forces."

The last assignment elicited a series of violent sighs among almost all gathered. Even Sir Ashley, was very impressed with the Prince's statement. There was no doubt that this was an act of tremendous courage and an attempt of obvious encouragement to take up this challenge. It was clear that when someone of such a social position and such great power tried to take on the impossible, the refusal could very easily be considered cowardice.

Of those gathered here, only Sir Shin remained calm and then smiled at Prince. "The Order of Michael will support this extremely bold plan, which can bring us great glory, and bring the empire for which we all fight closer to total hegemony in this world. Refusing to participate in something of such great caliber and military importance is the greatest for the less of the greatest. the possible honor and duty of a true knight. "

Lucius - although he was undoubtedly grateful for the words, which are the decisive argument at this point - was nevertheless concerned. The Order of Michael Grand Master was, in his opinion, a person completely untrustworthy, at least in the Prince's opinion. This opinion was also shared by Garma. However, apart from these two people, no one seemed to share these views particularly closely. However, despite all his aversion to this man and serious prejudices, Lucius could not afford rejection or bad relations with the man so essential to the plan.

"I am more than happy that your view of the matter is so idealistic and purely chivalrous." Were it not for Lucius' many lessons in etiquette, correct behavior, and keeping his emotions to himself, the peacocks would have snorted at the end of these words. There was not the slightest hint of sincerity in this extremely sublime statement, from the side of the Prince.

The rest of the meeting was generally fairly relaxed, and was used by all the people here to refine the last details and discuss a retreat plan, both in the event of failure and in the event of a successful operation. Both options assumed strong support from the Knightmares in reserve and reserve, followed by an immediate retreat behind the front lines.

After the meeting had ended and they had said goodbye to everyone, Lucius and Garma headed towards the office of the former, but quite unexpectedly someone else joined them.

"Your Highness, Colonel." Sir Shin spoke up, with Lady Rowe accompanying him. Both of them moved with an unhurried and balanced pace. "Can we join you wherever you go?"

While it was quite surprising for Lucius, he did not even show that he could be surprised by this offer. A light and warm smile appeared very quickly on his stoically calm face. "Here you go, I will be honored with the Grand Master."

After these words, all four set off on this rather strange march. On the one hand, Lucius and Garma stayed close to each other and within a noticeable - albeit quite short - distance from the Grand Master and his right hand. On the other hand, Sir Shin and Lady Rowe also seemed slow to close the distance. However, it never had time to fall into awkward silence, because the Grand Master of the older order broke it extremely quickly.

"Honestly, I didn't expect to hear anything else today." Sir Shin, commented on the plan proposed by Lucius with remarkable lightness in his voice. "I've read a lot about your accomplishments and victories. If I should expect anything from you, it would be something so bold, Your Highness."

Lucius smiled coldly at him, continuing his march. "Grand Master, if you've read so much about me, you should be aware that flattery is not a good idea to gain recognition from me."

"It's not flattery, Your Highsness, but pure facts." Sir Shin deftly countered the Prince's accusation. "The fact that you have not experienced any defeats in your career is a proof of your skill. Both in terms of piloting, fighting for tactics. However, many of your successes can be described as failures at the same time, at least for some people."

Lucius remained calm, but beneath the façade of a cold smile, there was a genuine and earnest desire to fully understand this man's intentions. "I am curious to see what you think could be considered a failure, Sir. I only recall a handful of military operations that resulted in slightly more losses than the enemy, or that in the long run, could risk annihilating my subordinate units. However, such situations, were usually dictated by the circumstances or priorities of the missions assigned to me. "

"I will agree with you completely here, Your Highness." The Grand Master nodded, and seemed rather pleased with Lucius's way of thinking. "Indeed, the tasks you were faced with often required quite a lot of fear, but you always tried to make up for it by inflicting more serious damage on your opponent. First of all, in terms of war materials."

"In fact, it was actually much more beneficial and smarter than massacring more and more divisions." Lucius replied, but was becoming more and more curious as to what the Grand Master was actually up to. At this point, young Prince decided to be direct and cut to the chase. "Sir Shin, I would prefer this conversation to climax. We have an abundance and an excess of time at this point, but that does not even change the fact that I would prefer not to waste it. In politics and war, time is extremely valuable capital, the waste of which is highly inadvisable and harmful. "

The Grand Master simply nodded and did exactly what he was asked to do, albeit implicitly and indirectly. "I look forward to a fruitful collaboration between the two of us, Your Highness."

Lucius was not a bit surprised at the level of sincerity he received from him. In fact, he was rather a bit intrigued by the offer he received from this man. "What exactly do you mean by fruitful collaboration, Sir Shin?"

Before the Grand Master could respond, however, Prince continued without heeding his intentions. "As you probably know, I have many powerful enemies in the structures of our army, administration and government. They are often people who do not hesitate to use extreme or disgusting means against their enemy, as I have experienced many times myself. Of course, I do not want to discourage you, nevertheless, I prefer to be honest and warn you early enough about the dangers of working with me or my coalition and the Prime Minister. "

Then, all four stopped, and they all started staring at each other. Although Lucius tried to measure the Grand Master himself with his eyes and examine him as much as possible at the moment, the stoically calm facade prevented this from happening. As for Sir Shin, in fact, he has remained completely calm and has a cool facade. Regardless, however, he also examined his interlocutor and noticed his analytical gaze. However, at this point he ignored it because it didn't matter that much.

"I was aware of all these dangers before you even came to this part of the world, Your Highness." Sir Shin replied with total conviction and without the slightest sign of deception. It was as if he was trying to convince Lucius of his honesty. "I know perfectly well that your whole life as a Britannian Prince is basically balancing on the tip of a blade. One too serious mistake can turn out to be the last and fatal. As someone who is not a Britannian I am perfectly able to understand this."

Though Lucius was undoubtedly curious, he knew at the same time that walls could have ears and they had been talking for far too long anyway. Consequently, he nodded, and the four of them resumed their march towards the Knights of the Purple Rose Grand Master's office.

"I suspected it." Prince at one point stated, referring directly to the nationality of the second Grand Master. "Your name and evidently your features made it more than obvious. At the same time, however, you are probably aware of my attitude towards your gender, bearing in mind an incident many years ago."

Garma almost gasped, but remained calm nonetheless. Lady Rowe seemed tense at Lucius' memory of the death of her siblings. Meanwhile, Sir Shin kept his cool and poker face without revealing any signs of nervousness or losing control of the situation.

"I'm aware of that too, Your Highness." The other Grand Master nodded. "At the same time, however, I would like to point out that your reluctance is directed only towards the Japanese, and I am only half of them. As you may know, in the other, I am European. However, this does not mean that he is ignoring my heritage as a man from the land of the rising sun. "

"What are you getting at, Sir Shin?" Lucius asked the question as they both reached the Prince's office. Garma and Lady Rowe remained outside to await the conclusion of this meeting.

Knights of the Purple Rose Grand Master took his seat behind his desk while Sir Shin took his seat opposite. The Order of Michael Grand Master pondered the answer to the question for a moment while the Purple Prince looked at him and analyzed his behavior, even the slightest manner. In fact, while Sir Shin had been calm and almost unemotional before, now he's become definitely more expressive. It became clear that at this exact moment all cards would be revealed. Secrets and secrets will cease to matter. The curtain covering everything was about to fall and let everything be revealed.

"My Highness is your best candidate to replace the current Emperor." He replied bluntly or even the slightest attempt to smooth out what he had to say at the moment. It could even be considered treacherous words, if not for what was added after a short while. "Of course, I don't want to suggest an assassination attempt on our mighty ruler. Rather, I meant a situation in which he would either die a natural death or be murdered by someone else."

Although the offer to work with another elite unit of the Britannian Military was very tempting, Lucius narrowed his eyes as his instincts and distrust acted almost automatically and instantly. "Is this a provocation after which I am to be arrested, Sir Shin? Anything on charges of treason or conspiracy against the Emperor?"

Lucius' reaction and his timbre was so intense that the other Grand Master flinched at the sharpness. Nevertheless, this reaction and the expression of Sir Shin's eyes told the Purple Prince extremely quickly and clearly that the man was more than sincere in his declaration. Regardless, however, Lucius chose to exercise caution and did not reveal that his attitude had changed in any way.

"The accusation is untrue and my declaration is completely honest." Blue haired young man, he replied with all the firmness available to him. "You know it as well as I do, Your Highness. Besides, if it were otherwise, such a provocation would rather not take place here in Ricardo Citadel. In a place where there is an army of people who are loyal to Princess Cornelia above" all. Although the two of you are not official allies, your common past places their soldiers automatically in a position where they value your orders and authority as much as the Princess herself. Neither of them would ever believe the accusation of treason, directed at you. "

Lucius nodded, for the words were perfectly logical. Nevertheless and regardless, one thing only wondered the young Prince. "If you want to ally with me, I need to know exactly what your intentions and motivations are, Grand Master. I doubt you would ally with me without expecting anything in return."

"You are absolutely right, Your Hgihness." Sir Shin nodded calmly. "Indeed, in return for my loyalty and help, I expect some support."

Prince continued eye contact for a moment and began to analyze the interlocutor in a way that was much more subtle and inconspicuous. "My guess is that it may be indirectly related to your Japanese heritage. Well, on that point I am forced to disappoint you immensely, which is probably not that unexpected for you. While I'm more than willing to help improve my position with the rest of the numbers, the Elevens can't count on my help. "

"I didn't mean help numbers, much less Elevens, Your Highness." Sir Shin replied without flinching at the use of a numerical designation for his own people. "In fact, I stopped caring for them a long time ago. It was when I fully realized how insignificant human beings are."

Lucius raised it, but not out of shock. Prince had heard such opinions many times or read about it in philosophical books, so it was nothing new to him. What surprised Lucius, however, was the directness and quite a bit of calm in expressing such a view.

"You talk about it extremely calmly and openly, Sir." Prince stated in response. "To tell you the truth, I'm a bit confused now, so let me ask you directly and demand a completely honest answer. What do you expect from me in return for the support given to me?"

On Sir Shin's lips, a cold and quite sinister smile appeared. "What is expected in return for my help is vengeance, on behalf of all mankind. The blade of this vendetta is to be directed against a group of people who for many generations had basked in privileges and wealth and at the same time destroyed all who were below them. "

"Do you expect me to abolish nobility and titles after I come to power?" Lucius asked in response, wanting to make sure there was no second and perhaps unspeakable meaning behind it.

"I don't care to abolish nobility and titles, Your Highness." Grad Master Shin replied almost immediately, and it was clear he meant something else. "I want to destroy the oldest noble families, which for generations have been occupied only in the struggle for power. I want revenge on behalf of all mankind against those who have done nothing to deserve their position and who only inhibit the development of mankind. Although I consider mankind as a whole to be something vile and extremely defective, but I believe that getting rid of a bunch of privileged parasites can be the first and most difficult step in turning humanity into something much bigger. "

Lucius pondered his words for a brief moment, hiding his surprise with great difficulty. The views expressed by him testified to incredibly far-reaching plans on his part. On the one hand, it was admirable, but on the other, it could turn out to be extremely dangerous at some point. Regardless, however, the offer at this point would bring them both many tangible benefits, and it was not something that could be turned down so easily.

"I accept your offer, Sir Shin." Lucius said with a satisfied smirk, then stood up and held out his right hand towards Grand Maste for a handshake. "I sincerely hope that our cooperation will prove to be fruitful and beneficial for both parties to the agreement."

Shin stood up, his hair pinned up quite noticeably under the influence of the air. "I am also counting on a fruitful collaboration between us, Your Highness."

After these words, Grand Master accepted the hug, and a moment later left the office. He and Lady Rowe then headed in a direction known to them only, and most likely toward their order's quarters. But inside, Colonel Garma Zabi entered, who almost immediately began asking Lucius about the details of the conversation.

"What did he actually want, Luc?" He asked right away, standing practically on the threshold of the desk, and his eyes demanded an almost immediate and clear answer.

"In a nutshell, and without going into insignificant details, Sir Shin has offered to cooperate with me at the cost of destroying his rather powerful enemies." Lucius replied, then crossed his arms over his stomach and continued. "All he wants is to destroy all the old bloodlines that he believes are completely inhibiting the development of mankind."

Garma nodded understandingly, then without asking, took a seat in one of the armchairs. "Well, it's not that much of a contradiction to what we're going to do with the old and corrupt nobles when they come to power."

Lucius nodded with a small and sinister smile at his statement, which basically told the truth about the plans of the Prince himself. "Initially, I planned to slaughter the most reluctant people in power, and make the rest of them obedient - not even allies - but only vassals. Over time, however, and on the occasion of this conversation, I fully understood that gaining power, glory and changing this country for the better would not be possible. something neither simple nor something that can be achieved without getting your hands dirty. "

Garma understood his friend perfectly well and nodded his understanding. "Indeed, this is not something that can be achieved without doing some dirty work. My older brother Gihren, my older sister Kycilia and my father always understand this perfectly. I have always received the appropriate warnings and the necessary guidance to resort to some tricks or actions that, at best, can be called the lesser evil. "

"You put it very mildly, Gar." Lucius couldn't help but chuckle a little unexpectedly from his lips. "I suspect that the slaughter of the old nobility and all of the oldest families - regardless of age or gender - is not the worst thing we will have to do in the future."

Garma just shrugged, and the reason was more than obvious. "Well, the future is unpredictable. We can set a goal, but having precise plans for people with finite knowledge and information is a waste of time. My personal opinion is that you only have to make short-term plans and then adapt them to the situation."

"We are deviating far too far on the question of deliberation. While it is absolutely essential to make some final preparations for the upcoming operation." Lucius at that moment rose from his comfortable armchair, straightened up completely, and stretched some of the muscles in his body. "Can I count that from the logistics point of view, all preparations will be completed as well as always?"

The purple haired teenager nodded with a smile, which was a sign of his confidence in his own abilities. "Everything will be perfectly prepared, don't worry, my friend."

After these words, the two saluted each other and the teenager in charge of Knights of the Purple Rose logistics simply left the office. It was clear that the Colonel was headed for his office, which was located quite close to Lucius's.

Regardless of everything and the upcoming operation, however, the Purple Prince knew perfectly well that the upcoming battle, combined with the alliance, was basically putting everything on just one card. Defeat, it could mean that the foundations of the very delicate structure that he and the White Prince had erected with so much difficulty were shaken. In fact, the power of the Vi-El Britannia coalition was what could be at best a political paradox, at least at first glance. Apparently, it was the party most disliked by the old and influential families, whose members viewed the reforms proposed by the Princes pair very unfavorably. In fact, the level of dissatisfaction should directly lead to the collapse of their power and the seizure of power by other parties at the court, centered around other representatives of the imperial family. So much for the theoretical. In practice, however, no one wanted to destroy this extremely delicate structure, and the reason for this was almost trivial. Everyone was terrified of a power struggle that would break out after something like this, and which many of the nobility or the royal family might not have survived. Fear of what was unpredictable chaos turned out to be a much better motivator for many to leave Quo status than any promises, blackmail, threats or bribes. However, if in the face of some extremely serious failure the position of the coalition were to be upset, undoubtedly all the players and I was subordinate to them would try to gain power for themselves, or yank as much as possible.

Lucius shook his head. The scenario that flashed through his mind was basically just the worst possibility that had a really small chance of coming true. At least Lucius could see to it that such chances were minimized as much as possible. For a night was coming when he would have to do his best. There was no room for failure, never was. Nevertheless, the forehead is as clear as ever at this point. It is as if the Damoclean sword hanging above him was about to be on the verge of falling on him.

For a few seconds, he also thought about his newest ally. Shin Shaing, although he was undoubtedly sincere in his declarations and endeavors, did not in the least arouse sympathy on the part of Lucius. It was clear that the Purple Prince was only meant for him to pursue his own goals. As for the motivations of the second Grand Master, they were interesting to say the least. On the one hand, there was a desire in them to allow humanity to evolve and to give it the opportunity to develop. On the other hand, there was quite a bit of inconsistency in this, because while all the statements about the old families of the Holy Britannian Empire were true, the man seemed to ignore the fact that the EU and the Chinese Federation had equally bad or even much worse elites. Regardless, the alliance was a fact, and the benefits that could be derived from it were quite measurable.

Lucius didn't even try to suppress the smile that brushed his lips. Regardless of everything, however, he had a strong feeling that he would be able to accomplish a lot in his life. Despite his good mood, he had to let it go and go back to work. As the Grand Master of Knights of the Purple Rose, owner of Flash Robotics and the Holy Britannian Empire Prince, he had a lot of responsibilities and work to do. Putting it all off could have had consequences that he did not want.

AN: And here it is. Before I conclude this chapter definitively, however, I would like to share some insights with you.

First, I have significantly changed Shin Hyuga Shaing's character and motivations. The reason was extremely simple, but completely justified. His original motivations and ultimate goal (absolute chaos and destruction) drenched in an extremely strong sauce in the form of madness are simply meaningless. Much more interesting - at least in my opinion - will be some inversion and twisting of what both Lelouch and Suzaku represented.

That said, I changed a lot of the character's original characters. Leila is a young and pragmatic girl who will do anything to save the values and ideas of the democracy in which she was brought up. Akito in my version is - at least to some extent - a nihilist, who, however, tries to find someone or something that he will care about. Meanwhile, Shin is a fanatical progressive who is ready for literally anything to push humanity forward at all costs. The Grand Master sees corruption in human souls and recognizes its existence, but wants to change it and push it towards the better.

As for Lucius and the characters who do not appear in the story in general, I would describe him as the hound of glory who wishes to make the memory and glory of his deceased mother eternal and last long after him. The Vi Britannia mid laner does not want revenge, however, because - and unlike his older twin brother - he found it pointless stuck in the past and an attempt to take care of something that can no longer be settled.

The Zabi family are pragmatic opportunists who, thanks to the support of Charles, were able to obtain noble titles. What distinguishes them from the originals from Gundam UC, however, is their sincere willingness to enter the empire as high as possible, using their connections with Lucius Vi Britannia. The exceptions to this rule are Dozle and Garma. First, has no interest in politics and is focused on a military career, while the second has developed a sincere friendship with Lucius.

In addition, I hope you enjoyed the development of Knightmares, which will join the ranks of Knights of the Purple Rose in the future. One of the readers sent me some ideas for adapting some Mobile Suits, but I decided to do something different and leave the reader much more room for his own imaginations. You can expect many more variants based on Tallgeese in the future.

I love you all and have a nice day. See you in the undefined future.