Chapter 131 ~ Tragedy

"All members of the Purist faction!!! In the name of Euphemia li Britannia, I command you! Lay down your weapons and stop this atrocity immediately!!! I repeat! Lay down your weapons and stop this atrocity!!!"

Yuuji sped through the chaos of the massacre, using his <<Elemental Sight>> and senses beyond human limits to hunt the ones engaging the Japanese people most first. 

He could hear Euphemia's desperate plea over the speaker that resounded loud and clear throughout the entirety of the stadium grounds. But her words fell upon deaf ears and no members of the purist faction stopped pulling their triggers and killing the Japanese. 

So, he continued to hunt. 

With one swing of his crimson red sword, a Sutherland of a purist, lost both arms in an instant. And with another, their torso slid off their legs the next moment. 

Jet-black, dagger-like slash harkens pierced through the air and destroyed the rifles and heads of the purists' knightmare frames. 

Many only saw a jet-black blur before everything went dark. While those who were shooting down the Japanese saw it appear before them suddenly. 

Their bullets rained down upon it. But no matter how much they shoot, a light green barrier protected it from every single one of their bullets as it stood still. Even when multiple of them shoot at it from all directions, a nigh-unbreakable shield seemed to encompass it in its entirety.

In the next moment, it disappeared from their view, just like a ghost. And before they knew it, their sutherlands had lost their arms and legs, before finally, their heads as everything went dark. 

For the first time since hearing about Cecillia's past, Yuuji's eyes shone in a cold light. The desire to erase, kill, and destroy all that only sought to harm all he cared for. 

Truly… He was tired of this. 

Why can't we just live in peace…?!

Fortunately, although he truly yearned to just erase these scums that had no good reason to live from existence, he was able to retain some of his conscience. 

Or perhaps, he had thought of something that would fit these trash more. 

Rather than letting them die a martyr for their beliefs… A better punishment for these kinds of people would be letting them live in humiliation, their pride shattered, and their dreams drown in mud. He'll make them regret this moment and suffer for the rest of their lives. 

Just then, a familiar voice resounded within his mind through the <<Message >> spell, snapping him out of his daze.

["Yuuji!"]

"Satoru-san?"

["I'm really sorry. The purists faction… They concealed their knightmare frames and weapons as part of the security measures to make sure of the safety of the ceremony. That's why we didn't notice anything amiss… They totally went under our radar…"]

With how much Euphemia emphasized on increasing the security level during the ceremony to protect the Japanese people, and General Darlton seconding that order in preparation in case the Black Knights chose to attack, much more resources were put into the security of the stadium in preparation for the ceremony. 

Using this as a veil to cover their own preparation, the purists amassed the weapons they'd need to commence this massacre. 

And considering how in concert they were in their act, this must've long been premeditated. 

"It couldn't be helped… No one expected this to happen either. Even I didn't expect that my… "background" would create such an effect."

With his anger taking a backseat for a moment upon being snapped out of it by Satoru, guilt began surfacing within his heart once more as Yuuji clenched his teeth.

And soon, the anger quickly replaced the guilt inside his heart once more as another Sutherland, who was shooting his rifle at the running Japanese people, fall to the ground with its limbs and head separated from its torso. 

"Please have your Phantoms help us protect the people, Satoru-san. It might still take a bit before Karen and Tohdoh-san's team arrive."

["Of course! But… It might look weird if these Sutherlands suddenly fall to the ground, or something stopped the bullets mid air or hit an invisible barrier. W-What should I do?"]

"Prioritize healing the ones who are still alive. We need to save as many people as we can. I will take care of these Sutherlands in the meantime."

["What about… reviving? I can have a phantom of Lupu do it a few times… I also have some items that could help…"]

Lupusregina Beta, one of the six battle maids NPC called Pleiades Six Stars, was a cleric with the ability to revive those who had just fallen. In addition, Momonga and several of his clan mates also have several revival items that they could use. 

They would only have items that he could remember them having, given they were born from his memories, but he could potentially use them over and over again after depleting their charges by summoning the Phantom who owned them. 

The potency might be lowered, due to them being projections instead of the real item, but it would be sufficient to revive regular humans. 

Yuuji thought for a moment before answering.

"...Do it stealthily. We can't let anyone see people be revived. It's a power that shouldn't exist in this world."

["Alright!"]

Satoru's determined answer resounded within his mind before the <<Message >> spell ended.

Just then, from the corner of his eyes, he saw a Sutherland aiming his rifle at him, ready to unload. 

"Hah! I got you, devi- Kuaaah!!!!"

The deranged voice coming from the Sutherland suddenly shouted in shock and pain when his Sutherland was suddenly kicked down by a white and gold knightmare, and it's rifle destroyed by a similar, yet slightly different, crimson red sword to Excalibur.

"Mordred! I'll help!"

Yuuji nodded as his Excalibur turned towards Suzaku and the Lancelot. 

"Appreciated. But prioritize the Japanese people and their safety. Anything else is secondary."

"Alright!"

"Are the Britannians doing their job?."

"Yes. General Darlton had dispatched the majority of the knightmare frames to apprehend the purist faction, and the rest to protect the fleeing Japanese people."

"Alright. The Black Knights will be coming soon to help as well. Tell them not to attack."

"Yes! We've received the orders to not attack members of the Black Knights."

"That's good. Now go."

The Exaclibur and Lancelot immediately burst into speed towards different directions, but with the same goal in mind. 

Neutralize the purists faction, and protect the Japanese people. 

As Yuuji hunted down the purists, he had also been using his gravity magic to make them "miss" their shots by bending the trajectory of their bullets ever so slightly. It was extremely difficult to do as he would have to individually bend each bullet's trajectory, consider the direction and location of each Japanese People, all the while battling them from within his knightmare. 

It was truly only possible due to his [Elemental Sight] and enhanced senses. 

But even for him, while he was not physically fatigued, the mental toll he had suffered from everything that had happened had made him quite… exhausted. 

["Yuuji!!!"]

A worried and panicked voice of a familiar girl resounded from the private communication within the Knightmare frame, snapping him out of his tunnel vision of destroying the purists. 

He looked to the side and saw the beautiful figure of his beloved, crimson-haired girlfriend in a whole-body crimson red body suit that Rakshata specifically designed to increase the effectiveness of knightmare frame pilots. 

And thanks to the Guren's unique cockpit model which was similar to a sport bike seat, he could see her large breast dangle down her chest. 

Having experienced squishing them and burying his face in between them, he knew very well of how heavenly they were. 

But, tantalizing as they were, he didn't have the luxury of enjoying the sight, as he looked at her expression filled with shock, anger, and sadness. 

["What happened?! How could this…!"]

"The purist faction… They were the remnants of the Morningstar radical fanatics. It seems like the shadow of my "father" still lingers to this day…" 

["Those f*ckers…! I'll kill them all!"]

"Take care, Karen. Don't let your anger blind you. Although they're trash, they're still elite pilots."

["I know!"]

Karen immediately shut down their private communication and burst into action. Soon, he could hear the sounds of explosions, one after another, coming from the north-side of the stadium, where the main entrance into the stadium was. 

And then, another line of communication was opened. This time, it was from a regular channel that the Black Knights used for general communication during battle. 

The figure of a sharp, stoic, Japanese man with sword-like eyebrows in his middle age appeared. His cold yet strict and determined expression that normally inspired respect and admiration, was now filled with a quiet yet obvious rage that resembled a volcano on its cusp of eruption. 

["Mordred, did your meeting go south?"]

"No… It was going very well. The third princess genuinely wanted to give the Japanese peace and freedom, at least within this zone. The second princess, Cornelia, and even the second prince, Schneizel, also showed their genuine support."

A look of surprise flashed across his face, before something got his attention, causing him to look to his right. Then in the next moment, a yellowish crimson flash lit up his cockpit from the direction he was facing, before he turned his attention back to Yuuji.

["Then how did this happen?"]

"The cult of the Morningstar… The purist faction, as they now called it, couldn't stand the fact that the Japanese were given… freedom. So they chose this drastic act of atrocity and utter idiocy."

["...I will kill them, even if you choose not to."]

"...I will not prevent you from doing so. But be sure to not let yourself drown in rage and forget your surroundings. Depending on the situation, we might be… fighting an even bigger battle later on."

["I know. Zero has taken command, and he has given me and the four holy swords free movement."]

"Noted. And… I'm sorry, Tohdoh-san."

["There is nothing for you to apologize for. Then, I shall talk to you later."]

"Yes."

As soon as the communication line was cut, Yuuji let out a deep sigh. 

"I hope there aren't too many casualties from this ridiculousness…"