Code Geass: Oz the Reflection - Photo Story Translation

Chapter 8: "A Dangerous Game"

"I don't hate it. That kind of movie-like situation."

The afternoon sunlight shined down from the gaps in the deep-green tree canopy, and illuminated the surface of the river with speckles of light. Kicking up dark waves as it went along, a civilian transport ship slowly went upstream on the river. It was a river transport ship with a structure common to this region—the southern borderland of the Chinese Federation near Southeast Asia. The one steering the ship in the simple-structured bridge was Ganabati. Although it had the dull appearance of a transport ship, it was actually a Peace Mark camouflaged transport ship that carried Knightmares, which Ganabati had rallied to construct using all his brainpower and technology.

After confirming that signs of human habitation could no longer be seen on the coast and that other boat traffic had also stopped, Ganabati read the readings on the situation of the river bottom displayed on the sonar screen.

“Oz, the water depth around here is the deepest we can find.”

“Roger.”

Orpheus’ voice flowed out from the ear monitor that was placed in Ganabati’s ear.

“Just as planned, I’ll wait here for 12 hours. If you and Ze don’t return by then—”

“I have no intention of making you wait.”

Ganabati shrugged his shoulders at Orpheus’ voice that did not convey any emotion. It was foolish of him to have asked such a question.

A large air-tight container was attached underneath the bottom of the transport ship. Orpheus’ Byakuen and Ze’s Glasgow were stored inside it. Since the container’s surface was covered with an optical refraction membrane, it could hardly be seen at all even if one peered in from above the water.

The Byakuen and the Glasgow slowly left their hangars. Ganabati had stopped the ship at this position because if they went further upstream, the hangar would grate against the river bottom.

Watching the uprush of water on the river’s surface that signalled the movements of the two Knightmares, Ganabati then cut the ship’s motor and brought the ship’s hull alongside the bank out of habit.

“…Geez. That Miss X sure brings us troublesome requests each and every time.”

After murmuring that, Ganabati waited for the return of Orpheus and Ze while pretending to be an unfortunate captain whose motor had broke down.

“Have you guys ever heard of Kyushu?”

In response to Miss X’s question, Ze shrugged his shoulders, and Ganabati made a joke asking if it was the name of some new cocktail.

“It’s a district in Area 11.”

Only Orpheus responded expressionlessly.

“As expected of you, Oz. You’re different from those pieces of junk over there.”

“Oz is just too serious and diligent. I at least know about Kyushu, you know? Since it was where Britannia and the Black Knights had a combined operation together not that long ago.”

Ze retorted. Based on Ganabati’s expression, it was clear that he too knew about that place.

“I’m relieved to hear that.”

Without showing any sign of anger towards how those two made fun of her, Miss X continued speaking.

“Then, you must naturally know who was the central figure of that incident, right?”

“!…”

Ze and Ganabati involuntarily found themselves unable to respond. As Miss X gave a satisfied smile at their flustered reactions, Orpheus opened his mouth.

“Sawazaki Atsushi. The last Chief Cabinet Secretary from the time when Area 11 was the sovereign nation of Japan. Sawazaki conspired with General Zhao of the Chinese Federation, and tried to release Kyushu from Britannia’s rule. The ones who defeated him were the leader of the Black Knights, Zero, and the then Sub-Viceroy Euphemia’s knight, Kururugi Suzaku.”

“That’s…correct.”

Miss X was taken by surprise by Orpheus’ knowledge.

“Then, this time, are we going to Area 11?”

Ze’s eyes gleamed in interest.

“Speaking of which, Rakshata, the one who attached wings to the Byakuen recently, also cooperates with the Black Knights, right? Is it perhaps related to that?”

“Hey, hey, didn’t the Black Knights’ leader Zero disappear, and their organization got scattered and dispersed? Is it all right to help a group that’s on the decline like that?”

Ganabati spoke with a suspicious tone.

“Don’t worry. This offer is related to neither Area 11 nor the Black Knights.”

Miss X smiled sweetly, and then began explaining the mission this time. The content of the operation was the elimination of a certain person—in other words, an assassination.

“Sawazaki Atsushi had a son named Yukimaro. Your target is him.”

Miss Z showed the photo of an Oriental man to Orpheus and the others. Although he was still young, his eyes were full of ambition and cunning. Yukimaro’s father Atsushi had failed in his uprising at Kyushu and been captured, and had later been executed by Britannia. At that time, Yukimaro, who had already been working as his father’s right-hand man, had escaped Britannia’s investigations and washed ashore in the Chinese Federation. Normally, he would have at most been kept as a useless pet by the Chinese Federation, but this man had demonstrated his real value from there on.

Yukimaro had been captured along with his father, and afterwards he had been repatriated along with General Zhao due to negotiations with Britannia and given over to the High Eunuchs of the district military party that had supported the general, and then he had been recognized as the successor to Sawazaki Atsushi who had declared himself the legitimate Japanese government. And then, he established the Japanese government-in-exile in the southern border regions of the Chinese Federation.

“Government-in-exile? That didn’t appear in the news, now did it?”

Ganabati tilted his head in puzzlement.

“It hasn’t been announced yet. Because of a certain reason.”

Miss X’s words touched on conviction.

In his cockpit, Orpheus repeatedly checked the surroundings of Yukimaro’s headquarters through the Byakuen’s Factspheres. And the more he looked it over, the more he had to admit that the place was an invulnerable stronghold.

“This Yukimaro is one sly guy. After getting on the good side of the High Eunuchs and shrewdly getting this base, he makes friends with Britannia.”

“He probably intends to maintain the power balance as a small-time crook.”

Orpheus responded to Ze’s voice that flowed out from the communications system. The headquarters of the reborn independent nation of Japan were in the middle of ancient Chinese religious ruins that the two of them were now surveying. Yukimaro had converted the huge ruins, which had been built by drilling into a mountain surrounded by jungle, as a base for the militia group he commanded. However, that was not the reason the client wanted Yukimaro to be eliminated. Yukimaro was likely going to hand over this facility to Britannia as a base for Britannia’s conquest of the Chinese Federation. It was a piece of unskillful double-dealing diplomacy. This, Miss X had told them, was the reason that Yukimaro still hadn’t been announced as the head of the legitimate Japanese government.

“He probably intends to keep himself safe by playing both sides with Britannia and the Chinese Federation…but his use of mentioning the N-funds to ensure his own safety was fatal for him.”

The N-funds were the huge amount of military fund that were said to have been concealed by the former Kururugi government just before Japan surrendered unconditionally to Japan. Yukimaro intended to manipulate the Chinese Federation’s High Eunuchs and certain members of the Britannia Imperial Family by dazzling them with the existence of those funds. However, that was a mine he never should have stepped on. Yukimaro had provoked the dark force of imperial wrath by using the rumor of the N-funds.

“These so-called N-funds are, after all, like an urban legend, right?”

“Whether or not it’s a legend, the offer to Peace Mark is a fact.”

Orpheus said that curtly. Yukimaro had dabbled in a dangerous game, and offended someone. The time to pay the price of that had come.

“Even if you say that…The more we learn about this place, the more it has a troublesome structure.”

Ze sighed as he checked through the data the client had provided them beforehand and then the data the two of them had actually gathered themselves. Yukimaro’s headquarters was literally a cave. The mountain that surrounded it had a strength that could withstand even airstrikes. That was the reason the Byakuen wasn’t equipped with its Float System this time as well. Ground troops would have to be sent in order to take down Yukimaro who was confined inside a cave. However, the jungle that was in their path hindrance a large force, and if they did go in Yukimaro would easily escape and conceal himself. Therefore, the attack would have to be done with a force of a select few.

“It’s just as we thought. There’s only one strategy to use.”

Orpheus said. Just as they planned beforehand, they would launch an attack with brute force.

Even among the weapons of the 7-Type Integrated Armaments Unit that was equipped to the Byakuen, the one with the greatest power was the variable-caliber super-acceleration electromagnetic cannon. By narrowing down the bullet and combining it with the environmental data obtained from the Byakuen’s strengthened Factspheres, it was easy to shoot down two sentry Knightmares located at the entrance of the ruins used as Yukimaro’s base.

Orpheus fired a 30mm Teflon-coated Tungsten bullet into each of the two targets he had locked onto. Since the discharge interval between shots was so short, Ze only heard the sound of a single shot from beside him. The two Gun-Rus whose cockpits had been directly pierced continued standing as if nothing had happened due to the stabilization mechanism in their three legs. But, the pilots inside them had already died, with grey brain matter splattered inside the cockpits.

“The interior of the ruins has a three-layered structure. The headquarters, where Yukimaro is, is on the highest floor. Each floor is heavily protected by Gun-Rus and Burais. In other words, in order to take down Yukimaro, you have to break through the squadrons that protect each floor.”

In response to Miss X’s words, Orpheus gave a faint smile for the first time.

“I don’t hate it. That kind of movie-like situation.”

Orpheus’ Byakuen and Ze’s Glasgow rushed into the ruins at once.

As an alarm resounded noisily inside the base, they would eliminate all the enemies blocking their way and go kill their target Sawazaki Yukimaro.

The enemy’s Knightmare forces were comprised of variants of Gun-Rus, originally developed by the Chinese Federation, and Burais, a Japanese copy of the Britannia’s Glasgow. Both were outdated Knightmares, and the Gun-Ru in particular had considerably inferior mobility due to its two-leg walking control system being incomplete and as such could not strictly be called a Knightmare. However, Yukimaro had tried to compensate their lack of mobility with pure numbers, and that method had been considered effective enough in these ruins—until the two Knightmares from Peace Mark came.

The first floor.

The Byakuen took out its large blade from the 7-Type and rushed into the midst of the enemy while violently swerving left and right. In an instant, a group of Gun-Rus had their arms, legs and torso cut off and scattered around all over the place as scrap. Following behind Orpheus, Ze’s Glasgow originally had the same basic structure as the Burais, but thanks to a refit done by Ganabati at Ze’s request, it had been improved to the point that it could almost be called an entirely different machine.

“You mass-production models will be in trouble if you come at me together!”

Ze horizontally fired his two anti-aircraft guns and filled the surrounding space with bullets. The throng of enemies had their armor torn off and scattered as if sent through a shredder.

The Byakuen and Glasgow reached the second floor.

Gan-Rus and Burais formed a thick phalanx and rushed forward in order to block the corridor that connected to the floor above. Orpheus changed the Byakuen’s weapon from the blade to the drill. Then, he literally dug a hole through the enemy’s wall.

The Byakuen rushed forward and skewered the Gan-Rus and Burais all at once. An enemy tried to attack him from the side as the Byakuen momentarily stopped moving, but it was taken down by Ze’s Glasgow. With their close formation destroyed, the enemy Knightmares got in each other’s way and restricted each other’s freedom of movement. On the other hand, Orpheus had no such restrictions. All the machines around him were enemies. Therefore, he could simply take them all down. By mowing them down, tearing them apart, smashing and piercing, the Byakuen opened a path through the throng. Orpheus used his Slash Harken to instantly jumped into the center of the enemy. Ze’s Glasgow was still fighting with the enemies at the bottom of the passage.

The third floor—where Sawazaki Yukimaro was. The enemy attacked the Byakuen with an impenetrable defence around the throne where Yukimaro had barricaded himself. Hatred and terror was visible on the face of the man in question when Orpheus caught a glimpse of him through a gap among the enemies.

The enemy drove at the Byakuen in throngs. Even if he overpowered them in performance ability, they could have reliably crushed the Byakuen with their numbers. However, at that instant, all the Knightmares suddenly lost power, Orpheus had activated his diffusive radiation wave device—the Gefjun Breaker! The power supply from the Sakuradite was cut off, and not only the Knightmares here, but all the machinery within the area stopped functioning. Of course, the Byakuen wasn’t an exception to this either. But—

“Hey, sorry for the wait!”

Ze’s Glasgow slowly appeared from the second floor. In its hand was a spare Energy Filler which had been placed under the influence of the Gefjun Breaker. It was for this reason that Ze had remained on the floor below.

In the short time it took for the Byakuen to reboot, the pilots of the disabled Gan-Rus and Burais scrambled out of their machines and ran away. Not a single one of them tried to protect Yukimaro with their firearms.

“Oh my, Yukimaro-kun really isn’t popular.”

Ze laughed.

Orpheus switched the Byakuen’s equipment to the electromagnetic acceleration cannon, and aimed it at Sawazaki Yukimaro, who was unable to get up out of terror.

“Playtime is over.”

A shower of rapid-fire 30mm Teflon-coated Tungsten bullets rained down, and Yukimaro’s body exploded like a water balloon and scattered into the surroundings before vanishing.

(To be continued)