"Hahaha... this world will be a gift from our Second Astartes Legion to Her Majesty!"
These Astartes warriors from the Second Legion were openly discussing matters of presenting captives, with no intention whatsoever of lowering their voices.
In their eyes, the downfall of the Britannian Empire was already a foregone conclusion. These captured Ashford Academy students were spoils of war, powerless and unarmed, completely incapable of posing any threat.
As for the possibility that among them there might be some hot-blooded student bold enough to attempt an assassination of Her Majesty after hearing such information... tsk, then come and try.
Not to mention whether you could even get close to Her Majesty. Do you really think we Astartes warriors are just decorations?
Let's see whether your reaction is faster, or our bolt rounds are.
Although they appeared to be chatting carelessly, the Astartes warriors were in fact keeping eyes in all directions and ears wide open, constantly devoting attention to every movement in their surroundings.
"Astartes Legion... Her Majesty?"
Hearing the conversation of the armored giants not far away, Lelouch murmured silently. Was the great figure who was about to arrive the emperor of the Holy Selene Empire?
At the same time, confusion welled up in his heart. His nominal homeland, the Britannian Empire, had encountered the most powerful enemy in its history.
Through the one-sided, crushing war in Area 11, Lelouch could foresee it clearly. Britannia, the country he had once sworn to destroy, was truly being destroyed.
"Heh... heh... Charles, my 'respected' father. You preached the doctrine of survival of the fittest, failed to protect Mother, abandoned Nunnally and me. Did you never expect that one day, a stronger existence would come and destroy you, this 'weak' being?"
Thinking this, Lelouch could not help but let out a low chuckle tinged with sarcasm.
But very quickly, Lelouch ended his mockery of his father. His brows were filled with worry. Wasn't this Holy Selene Empire far too similar to the Holy Britannian Empire?
From his understanding, just from the name alone it was clear that the Holy Selene Empire could never be a peaceful, free, or equal nation. It was an absolute autocratic state ruled by an emperor.
Everything he had seen since being dragged out of the basement allowed Lelouch to clearly feel their fanatical worship toward the emperor, as well as the rigid, cold imperial autocratic class hierarchy.
Those gray-armored giants standing at least 2.6 meters tall were clearly of the highest status. Next were the Imperial Auxilia wearing dark-colored light armor. And at the very bottom were the cannon-fodder Servitor Army troops, whose standard equipment varied wildly aside from the double-headed eagle insignia.
Lelouch had even seen Servitor Army soldiers kneel and salute the Astartes warriors. That humility, that utter lack of resistance, fully demonstrated just how cruel and rigid this empire's hierarchy was.
Although Lelouch held no attachment to the country of his birth and even felt a trace of pleasure at its destruction, how were he and Nunnally supposed to survive from now on?
Facing the nation that would rule over them next, the Holy Selene Empire, its high-pressure governance would likely be even worse.
Taking Britannia as an example, imperial states were often highly aggressive. Survival of the fittest. They did not support the useless.
In terms of governing philosophy, in a sense, Selene was very similar to Lelouch's biological father, the ninety-eighth Emperor of the Britannian Empire, Charles zi Britannia.
Thinking of this, Lelouch unconsciously tightened his grip on his sister Nunnally's hands.
Thud thud~
Whenever the blood-soaked, giant-like Astartes warriors passed by, Nunnally in Lelouch's arms would tremble uncontrollably.
Due to the bombardment of the Imperial Titan war engines, the Tokyo Settlement Governor's Office of Area 11 had already been completely destroyed.
Ashford Academy, located within the school district, had narrowly escaped disaster. It had not been a primary target and its buildings were relatively intact, so it was temporarily used by the Second Astartes Legion as the frontline headquarters for the conquest of Area 11.
As time passed second by second, more and more students hiding within teaching buildings were dragged out. There were even quite a few civilians from outside the school and disarmed Britannian soldiers who were escorted over.
Among these captured Britannians, some clutched their heads and sobbed uncontrollably, some stood in place with vacant eyes, and some curled their bodies up and sat on the ground.
At the same time, engineering teams from the Imperial Auxilia arrived and began constructing fences along the pre-marked boundary lines.
Scrreeech~!
The sudden noise instantly drew the attention of the students, who all turned to look toward the newly built fence entrance.
A middle-aged Imperial Auxilia officer walked in. Wearing a wide-brimmed hat, a terrifying scar almost spanned the bridge of his nose. His indifferent gaze was filled with undisguised arrogance, and his polished military boots did not look like those of someone who had just come off the battlefield.
"All right, prisoners. Registration begins now."
Behind him, Servitor Army troops immediately carried in tables and chairs, as well as computer terminals used for data registration.
"Starting with you." As he spoke, the officer swept his gaze around before pointing at the group gathered around Lelouch.
After saying that, the officer crossed his arms, slightly tilted his head to signal the soldiers to begin, looking entirely businesslike, with not the slightest hint of lust toward the noble young ladies of Ashford Academy.
After all, Selene had repeatedly issued strict orders. During the conquest of other worlds, as long as the local military commander gave the order, burning, killing, looting, and even large-scale massacres were permitted.
But one thing alone was strictly forbidden, rape and sexual humiliation. Violation meant collective punishment, with execution applied down to the most basic squad unit.
There was no room for negotiation. Regardless of status, even if a Legion Commander of the Astartes committed such an offense, Selene would kill them without exception. (PS: Khorne rejoices, Slaanesh frowns.)
Sitting behind the table, the Imperial Auxilia soldier spoke sparingly.
"Name?"
"Milly Ashford," Milly answered cautiously.
"Gender?"
"Female."
"Age?"
"18."
"Field of study?"
"Broadcasting and Television Studies."
...
After uploading the collected information to the central database of the Retributors of the Second Astartes Legion, with the world sequence number Conquer the world—37.
With a zzzt sound, a metal card measuring 85.6 mm by 54 mm popped out from a metal engraving machine nearby. Clearly engraved on it were Milly Ashford's most basic personal information and portrait.
"Mm. Take it." The soldier snapped the card out with a slap, did not even raise his head, and handed it over. "Next."
"Name?"
"Shirley Fenette."
"Gender?"
"Female."
...
"They're really confident. They've already completely decided that they'll win. The battle hasn't even fully ended, and they're already eager to establish rule." Lelouch frowned slightly.
The registration process encountered no complications. It took roughly ten seconds per person, until the line finally reached Lelouch and Nunnally.
"Sur... hmm? Her eyes and legs... is she doubly disabled?"
The soldier raised his head and stood up, looking toward the girl whose head was lower than the tabletop, to the point that the terminal's camera could not even capture her face.
"I'm sorry, sir. She's my younger sister, Nunnally... Nunnally Lamperouge. When she was young, an accident left her blind in both eyes and paralyzed in both legs."
Standing in front of Nunnally, Lelouch spoke in a panic. His bad premonition had come true.
"She truly can't contribute anything to the Empire, but I can. I'm her older brother, Lelouch Lamperouge. I can do double, triple the work all by myself!"
Hearing her brother's submissive voice pleading for her sake, although she could not see the situation clearly, Nunnally was not deaf. She knew she was dragging her brother down, and immediately loosened her grip on his clothes.
"Sir, what should we do?" Saluting the officer who had walked over after hearing the commotion, the soldier asked.
The Imperial Auxilia officer merely looked indifferently at the scene of sibling affection. Having fought wars across multiple worlds, he had seen this kind of situation many times. He waved his hand decisively.
"Unqualified. Take her away."
"Yes!"
"No! Don't!" Hearing this decision, Lelouch immediately lost control of his emotions and shouted loudly, but in the next moment he was pressed to the ground by several Servitor Army soldiers.
"Blind in both eyes, paralyzed legs... small problems. With the Empire's level of medical technology, they could be easily cured and repaired. Unfortunately, you're just grass of a newly conquered world. Your rank isn't high enough. You're not qualified to enjoy it."
With Honkai Energy–enhanced medical technology, disabilities such as blindness, missing arms, or crippled legs had basically vanished within the Holy Selene Empire.
On the battlefield, even if you were injured so badly that half your body was blown away, as long as you still had one breath left, you could be rescued. In the Empire's formal medical facilities, it would take no more than a few hours to repair the body, and after a few days you could shoulder a rifle and return to the front lines again.
As for why there were still so many scarred faces in the Imperial Army, that was purely because they regarded scars as honors of battle and were unwilling to remove them.
Sitting back down, the Imperial-native Imperial Auxilia soldier shook his head with some regret and was about to call the next person for registration.
"Rank? What rank? As long as you can save my sister, I'm willing to do anything."
"Aren't you trying to defeat the Britannian Empire and rule this world? I, Lelouch vi Britannia, the 11th Prince of the Holy Britannian Empire, can assist you!"
Still struggling, Lelouch heard the soldier's words and clutched at them like a lifeline, blurting out desperately.
Lelouch no longer had the mind to hide his identity. For the sake of saving his sister, he prayed that this identity he loathed would be of use.
"Wait!"
Hastily stopping the Servitor Army soldiers who were about to take Nunnally away, the Imperial Auxilia officer turned around, his face carrying a trace of excitement.
"You're saying you're a prince?"
Having the Servitor Army help Lelouch to his feet, the officer said excitedly, "You'd better be sure you're not lying. Otherwise, it won't just be the two of you siblings. They'll all die, and I'll make sure you suffer worse than death!"
There was no way for the officer not to be excited. Setting aside beauty, real, tangible military merit was something no one in the Imperial Army could resist. Promotion, wealth, or even the chance to be elevated into an Astartes. Any one of those meant crossing a bridge of countless competitors.
Even if he himself was too old to undergo the Astartes Honkai energy modification surgery, he still had a son. Transferring the qualification to a direct relative was permitted under the Empire's merit regulations.
And most importantly, upon closer inspection, this frail-looking youth before him exuded a cold, noble aura.
This kind of aura had nothing to do with personal strength. It was cultivated through family upbringing. As a middle-aged officer who possessed a minor, non-hereditary noble title, he had only felt it on nobles born into great families in the Empire's major cities.
"Cough cough... If you don't believe me, you'll know once you take down Britannia's capital or capture some members of the royal family."
Rushing quickly to Nunnally's side and patting his chest that still ached from being violently pressed down, Lelouch said, panting.
"Very well. I won't deal with you for now. I'll report this matter upward..."
Just as the middle-aged officer was warning Lelouch, a neat chorus of armor clashing suddenly rang out throughout Ashford Academy.
In an instant, the officer's face changed drastically. He murmured, "Her Majesty has arrived." He immediately forgot about merit, snapped to attention, turned, knelt on one knee, placed his right hand over his left chest, and adopted an extremely solemn expression.
The next moment, before the Britannian prisoners could even understand what was happening, they heard mountain-shaking battle cries erupting from all directions.
"Victory to the Empire!"
"Long live Our Empress!"
"My honor is my loyalty!"
"Where Our Empress' will points, there our bodies advance!!!"
"Für den Kaiser!"
"All Hail Selene (glory to Selene)——!!!"
Lelouch clenched Nunnally's small hand and whispered, "The Empress... has arrived."
Then, through the gaps in the fencing, they saw it.
Amid the kneeling welcome of countless Servitor Army and Imperial Auxilia, under the gaze of ranks of gray-armored Astartes warriors standing in perfect formation, a dazzling, resplendent, graceful figure gradually entered everyone's field of vision.
Accompanied by crisp footsteps, waist-length white hair draped quietly down her back. Selene, clad in a magnificent ceremonial robe of white, gold, and purple, strolled along the shattered stone road thick with the smell of sulfur and blood.
A group of Royal Guard in golden, specially crafted masterwork power armor, along with Sisters of Silence, accompanied her at her sides. Among them, Budo and Kinshasa, who towered over the Astartes warriors by more than half a body, were especially conspicuous.
"Your Majesty, my deepest apologies. My subordinates fought a bit too hard, and the city suffered severe damage. The environment here hasn't had time to be repaired yet. We have been discourteous to Your Majesty. This subordinate..."
Following behind Selene, Budo, standing 4.2 meters tall and always known for his iron-blooded general's demeanor, bent his body and spoke humbly.
"Heh, Budo, since when did you become so pedantic, like those nagging civil officials?"
Cutting off Budo's self-reproach directly, Selene waved her hand without even turning her head. Her gaze swept across the surroundings, as if searching for something.
"Oh? So you really are here..."