Chapter 294: Euphemia, Very Moist
"Shh~ Look what I found? A wild Suzaku Kururugi, with seven times more official ambition than the average Britannian soldier. Just throw him some imperial benefits and he'll wag his tail and beg, ready to be used at will. And another one, Kallen Kōzuki, as tender and juicy as chicken meat!"
Mahiro crouched in the bushes, imitating Bear Grylls' tone as he pushed aside the obstructing dense foliage to secretly observe the two fighting.
The pink wallet-shaped dagger danced like a butterfly in Kallen's hands, the whistling sound of it cutting through air growing increasingly frequent, mirroring Kallen's escalating irritation.
Being stranded on a deserted island was bad enough, but to encounter the traitor Suzaku Kururugi while searching for food the next morning was even worse!
As a member of the Black Knights and as Kallen Kōzuki who resisted Britannia, she naturally wouldn't let this opportunity slip by, determined to eliminate this major threat.
Yet her target kept dodging her attacks, despite Suzaku having sustained serious injuries beforehand.
This stamina monster!
But that didn't stop Kallen from holding back her sharp tongue.
"Tch, whether it's luck or misfortune, I've encountered you, traitor. In that case... Suzaku Kururugi, you'll die here!!!"
Kallen swung her dagger again with a sharp whistling sound.
Suzaku instinctively leaned back, the blade missing his throat by mere centimeters.
But more than that, what concerned Suzaku more was—
"Kallen, Kallen Stadtfeld, I never thought you really were..."
"Don't call me by that name!"
Kallen shouted with a roar-like fury: "I am Kallen Kōzuki! I am Japanese! I am with the Black Knights! I share no common ground with a traitor like you!!!"
Every slash the girl delivered was fierce and sharp, as if carrying boundless rage and resentment.
Ever since learning that the Lancelot's pilot was Suzaku Kururugi, Kallen had wanted to kill this man countless times.
Unfortunately, each time she was either called away by Lelouch at the crucial moment or stopped by Mahiro.
But now was the perfect opportunity.
How could she possibly let it slip away!
Her cunning assassination techniques would have left an ordinary person with countless wounds by now.
Probably every major artery would have been sliced open multiple times.
But regrettably, Kallen wasn't facing an ordinary person—she was confronting Suzaku Kururugi, this world's most bug-like character who enjoyed nearly the same treatment as the protagonist!
Having been Toudou's disciple combined with his superhuman physical prowess, Suzaku's close combat skills were exceptionally formidable, not to mention his current cybernetic enhancements.
Facing the incoming attack, he countered by grabbing Kallen's wrist and applying slight pressure. In pain, Kallen immediately released the dagger.
Then, the girl was slammed hard onto the ground by Suzaku's shoulder throw.
"Don't move! Kallen Kōzuki, I'm arresting you for the crime of rebellion against Britannia."
"Let me go, you hypocrite who only knows how to wag your tail for Britannia!"
Kallen lay on the ground struggling wildly to get up, while Suzaku directly mounted her, firmly gripping the girl's shoulders with both hands and using his full body weight to pin her down.
Though the other's struggle caused pain in his other injured arm, Suzaku gritted his teeth and persisted.
But just then, a crisp round of applause suddenly rang out.
Clap, clap, clap—
"What an entertaining show you've put on for me."
At this moment, Mahiro no longer concealed himself, emerging from the woods while clapping his hands.
"Ma... Shadow!"
In her excitement, Kallen nearly called him by the wrong name and immediately corrected herself.
When Suzaku looked up at Shadow, his expression gradually shifted from astonishment to alarm and gravity.
"You... vile scoundrel, release Princess Euphemia at once!"
Seeing Euphemia following behind Shadow, even though her expression was calm and showed no signs of pain or the fear of being captured, Suzaku completely overlooked this in his panic.
He instinctively assumed Euphemia had been kidnapped by Shadow.
However, Suzaku's outburst did provide Mahiro with a rather clever idea.
Mahiro grinned, then theatrically grabbed the young woman's wrist.
"Release her? I'm afraid not. This princess is my safeguard—why should I let her go just because you say so?"
Euphemia allowed herself to be held without resistance, merely looking somewhat resignedly at her teacher. She knew, from her understanding of him, that this smile meant he was about to start causing trouble.
"But I must say, I'm quite surprised... Tsk, tsk, tsk. To think that the son of Genbu Kururugi, Britannia's lapdog, would do such a thing to the young lady of the prestigious Stadtfeld family out in the wilderness..."
His suggestive tone and ambiguous gaze made his meaning clear even to the most oblivious observer.
Kallen's face flushed crimson, and she shot Mahiro an angry glare.
Though she knew this was meant to provoke Suzaku Kururugi and save her, she couldn't accept such a portrayal under any circumstances!
She was only temporarily subdued—far from and never likely to reach a "defeat CG" scenario.
If a man like Suzaku Kururugi were to defile her, she would rather commit suicide on the spot to preserve her purity!
If Kallen felt this way, Suzaku Kururugi was even more incensed. He practically leaped away from Kallen and hurriedly explained, "I didn't!"
It was unclear whom he was defending—himself, or someone else?
But when he noticed Kallen attempting to roll away and escape, he grabbed her, pressed a pistol to her temple, and took her hostage.
"Oh ho, you just called me villainous, and now you've taken a hostage yourself." How amusing... truly amusing."
It was so absurd that Mahiro almost felt like applauding him, but Suzaku retorted, "No, I'm not like you!"
"How are you different? More despicable than me?"
Suzaku Kururugi: "..."
He gritted his teeth, his heart tense with anxiety.
Suzaku knew all too well that Shadow was not Zero. Whether in verbal sparring or physical combat, he was no match for Shadow and couldn't afford to let his guard down for even a moment.
So he changed the subject:
"I have a proposal, Shadow. Release Princess Euphemia, and I'll return Kallen Kōzuki to you. How about it?"
"..."
This was quite unexpected.
Suzaku Kururugi would actually choose to exchange hostages.
"Shadow, don't mind me! Kill the traitor Suzaku Kururugi right here, then capture that doll princess to blackmail her sister! If this can bring something for Japan, my sacrifice would be worth it!"
Compared to her own safety, Kallen was more captivated by her obsession with resisting Britannia. She spoke with righteous indignation, her eyes filled with determination to sacrifice herself.
Kallen wasn't lying or bluffing—she truly was willing to give up her life.
However, her remark about "doll princess" thoroughly provoked Euphy.
She immediately shouted:
"What did you say?! Lieutenant Suzaku Kururugi, fight! Don't worry about me, arrest that woman and hand her over to my sister for punishment!!"
These two women, both captives, were actually getting into a heated argument across the distance.
However, neither Mahiro nor Suzaku paid any attention to the two women.
"So, what do you say?"
"Fine, but you have to release Kallen first."
"Why? We should release them together!"
"Heh, you must be dreaming."
Mahiro looked at Suzaku with contemptuous eyes as if gazing upon a fool, saying: "Which do you think is more important—a soldier of the Black Knights, or the Third Princess of the Britannian Empire? The scales were never balanced from the start, and you want simultaneous release?
Are you still asleep, Suzaku Kururugi?"
"You... despicable!"
"Thanks for the compliment."
Mahiro smiled faintly, while Suzaku gritted his teeth secretly, his eyes filled with resentment.
The other party was right—compared to Kallen Stadtfeld, Princess Euphemia was indeed more important.
After weighing the situation internally for a moment, Suzaku compromised:
"Fine, take her!"
He directly pushed Kallen toward Shadow. But after receiving Kallen, the corner of his mouth curled into a teasing smile once again.
"Heh, just kidding. Even if you released Kallen, I wouldn't let her go."
Upon hearing this, Suzaku's eyes widened immediately as he raised his pistol to aim at the other.
"You shameless, despicable person! Release Her Highness Euphemia at once!"
"Ha, since you've already called me shameless and despicable, shouldn't I live up to your evaluation by doing something shameless and despicable? Don't you think so?"
Mahiro shrugged indifferently.
He had taken shamelessness, lack of principles, and absence of bottom line to their extremes.
However, seeing Suzaku pointing that dark gun barrel at him, he slightly shifted his position, as if using Euphemia as a shield, saying cheerfully:
"Also, is it really okay for you to point that gun at me like this? Aren't you afraid it might accidentally hit your princess?"
Euphemia: "..."
Kallen: "..."
Euphy was currently speechless.
Although she had long been aware of her teacher's personality—extremely reliable and charmingly handsome when being dependable, but truly having no bottom line when showing his worst side—experiencing it again after so long still made her turn her face away, unable to bear watching.
Meanwhile, Kallen witnessed this scene and heard his words. Beyond surprise and astonishment, she felt an unexpected delight!
Seeing Suzaku being humiliated brought her immense satisfaction, so much so she nearly laughed aloud, inwardly cursing, "Serves you right!"
Only Suzaku remained in a state of indecision.
He couldn't decide whether to raise his gun or not, trapped in deep internal conflict.
"What's wrong? Not planning to shoot? If you're not going to, I'll be on my way."
"Wait! What will it take for you to release Princess Euphemia?!"
Suzaku finally gave up aiming. Seeing that Mahiro seemed about to leave, he quickly called out to him, demanding loudly.
"Heh, only a fool would let her go. If you're unhappy about it, just shoot."
Mahiro continued to toy with him, even adding a cutting remark:
"Oh, by the way, let me share a little secret with you. I have to say, your Princess Euphemia is... quite moist."
"Huh?!!"
This exclamation didn't come from Suzaku, but from Kallen, who stared at the two in utter shock.
Euphy looked at him with a stunned expression, but then seemed to recall something, instantly blushing and turning her head away in silence.
Witnessing Euphy's reaction, Suzaku felt as if he could hear his own heart shattering.
What... what did that man say?
Prin... Princess Euphemia... is moist?!
Euphy's response was fully visible to Suzaku. Though she was wrapped in a dark overcoat, making it impossible to see what she wore beneath, the sight of her exposed, smooth calves made his pupils contract sharply.
Euphemia was like a goddess to him. From their first meeting, she had seemed pure and flawless, like an angel. But due to their difference in status, he had always suppressed these feelings, not daring to touch or cross that boundary.
But now...
"You bastard, I'll kill you!!"
A hatred deeper than if his own father had died surged through Suzaku. As if seeing red, he cast aside all caution, raised his gun, and fired at Shadow.
"Oh ho, he's angry, he's angry! Time to retreat!"
Having achieved his goal, Mahiro felt immensely pleased. With a sweep of his cloak, he enveloped both Euphy and Kallen, then activated Shangri-La.
Under a veil of purple light, the three vanished from the spot in an instant.
Leaving only Suzaku behind, kneeling on the ground, roaring with impotent fury.
"Princess Euphemia!!!"
"Search teams are moving to Sector A."
"Find her! Dig three feet underground if you have to, but find Princess Euphemia!"
On Shikine Island, Britannian forces were conducting a carpet search for Euphy's whereabouts.
The operation commander, Lieutenant Colonel Fayer, wore an expression as if his own mother had died—face grave and dripping with cold sweat.
Why did the vice-governor, who was supposed to be a mere decorative figure, have to cause such trouble?
If Princess Cornelia were to find out about this...
Not only would he lose his position, but his very life would be in jeopardy!
Given the temper of that Empire's Witch, it would be a miracle if she didn't skewer him with her spear like a kebab!
Just as he was extremely tense, his peripheral vision caught Beatrix, Princess Euphemia's knight with pale golden long hair, casually strolling around the scene carrying a long sword as if nothing was wrong.
"Hey, you! As a knight, aren't you worried about Her Highness Euphemia's safety?!"
"Why should I be worried?"
The questioned Beatrix stopped walking, tilting her head with a blank expression as she retorted.
"Euphy is still alive. With that person around, there's absolutely no need to worry about her safety."
"What did you say...?!"
Colonel Fayer didn't understand who she was referring to. Just as he was about to vent his anger, good news suddenly came through the communication channel.
"Report, this is Zone D. We've found Her Highness Princess Euphemia! Repeat, we've found Her Highness Princess Euphemia!"
"Really?! Begin rescue operations immediately, quickly!"
Colonel Fayer breathed a sigh of relief as if a weight had been lifted.
Great, his life was saved.
Meanwhile, Beatrix just shrugged, making a "See, there was nothing to worry about" expression before leisurely heading toward the rescue site.
At the same time.
On a distant mountain peak, Mahiro slowly withdrew his gaze after seeing that Euphemia had been found and rescued by Britannian soldiers.
"Alright, we can leave now too."
Mahiro activated Shangri-La again, taking Kallen away from Shikine Island and teleporting back to the Tokyo area, to an absolutely safe location.
However, after landing, Kallen asked an outrageous question.
"Hey... did you really do it with that doll princess?"
"?"
Mahiro slowly formed a question mark, "Do what?"
"That thing! That thing!"
Kallen shouted, her face flushed red with embarrassment in an extremely cute way, making Mahiro unable to resist teasing her:
"Oh, you mean that... Are you hoping I did, or hoping I didn't?"
"Just answer me!"
"Alright, alright."
Facing Kallen's serious questioning, Mahiro spread his hands and sighed:
"Of course not. No matter what, Euphy is my student, someone I've watched grow up since she was little. How could I do something like that? I only said that to mess with that Kururugi Suzaku. Don't you think it was pretty funny?"
She did indeed think it was funny.
But...
Kallen couldn't help but turn away and mutter quietly:
"If you wanted to... I could actually do it too..."
"Hmm? What did you say?"
"Ahhhhh, seriously, I didn't say anything!"
Kallen excitedly shouted, completely drowning out all other sounds, looking more amusing than ever.
But speaking of which, did they forget something?
Mahiro quietly pondered.
Thinking carefully, it didn't seem like anything was forgotten... probably.
At least that's what he genuinely thought.
But in reality, Lelouch, who had been left behind on Shikine Island, was currently dodging bullets and stealing the experimental unit Gawain right in front of Schneizel and Lloyd.
And he even succeeded.
After obtaining the experimental unit Gawain, Lelouch seemed to gain wings like a tiger. Utilizing its flight system and scattered hadron cannons, he successfully escaped from the Shikine Island.