Yuuya was counting seconds: 3…2…1… as he immediately pressed play. After a couple of seconds, it might have felt like a crash, but it was just the internet being jammed for a moment before the video started playing.
As it started to play, on screen appeared the same intro that was shown in the teaser. Yuuya thought, So did they just only release the intro of the anime? Still, he didn't skip ahead.
As the intro ended with Lelouch saying, "I will obliterate Britannia," Yuuya, watching, felt still-goosebumps, this line he had heard like 20 times at least. The opening theme started to play, heavy with synths and horns, and just from hearing the drums and intro, Yuuya felt another wave rush through him. Yuuya, who always experienced anime to the fullest, thought about how people say openings spoil the anime. That was just an exaggeration. If you're not actively looking for spoilers, then you won't notice. People complain because they've read the manga or spoilers online, then blame the opening. To a normal viewer, nothing is spoiled.
As the opening kept playing, the band name and song title flashed: "Song: COLORS, Band: Flow, Composition written by Mizushiro." Yuuya thought he read it wrong, so he double-checked. Sure enough, Mizushiro's name was there. So he's written the music too? Does this mean he wrote all those songs? All the rumors going around that Mizushiro wrote music for his manga too? He snapped out of his thoughts and focused again as the opening ended.
The story started in the year 2010 of the Imperial Calendar, seven years after the Britannian Empire had invaded Japan and renamed it Area 11.
The scene opened with the military observing and following a truck from above. Two Britannian pilots in helicopters discussed that the cargo was dangerous and they must not let it reach the ghettos. The scene then shifted to a room where the TV played news about a terrorist attack. A nobleman and a businessman were watching while playing chess. The MC arrived in his school uniform, playing on behalf of one of the businessmen. As he came forward, he said, "Hmph! A nobleman, huh?"
As he sat opposite the nobleman and started to play chess, the scene cut to the school, where a girl worried about where Lelouch was. The president and other members teased her about worrying over Lelouch.
Scene shifted back to the military. After confirming that terrorists were involved, they began to dispatch forces.
As Lelouch and his friend Rivalz exited the building, Rivalz said, "You beat him in 8 minutes 32 seconds. That's a new record." Lelouch spoke of nobles as parasites. Hearing this, Yuuya thought, Is he Japanese? Then immediately Rivalz said, "Why not try one on the Elevens? They're not like us Britannians." Hearing this, Yuuya thought, So he's Britannian. It's different from the MC where his people are oppressed and he will guide them to freedom.
As they continued on, leaving the building, a huge screen broadcasted the terrorist attack. People nearby said, "Why do the Elevens always do such things?" Hearing this, Yuuya rolled his eyes. Are these people dumb or what? The broadcast was interrupted by Prince Clovis, the third prince of Britannia, giving a speech about the terrorist attack. The way he spoke and acted, Yuuya immediately knew this was the villain. He was right, as the next scene showed Prince Clovis attending a party while continuing the speech. As people around him flattered him, a soldier rushed in, informing him the terrorists had stolen something. Clovis ordered the deployment of the army and Knightmare Frames.
As Lelouch and Rivalz rode on the highway on a motorbike, a truck sped up behind them. Rivalz increased the speed, but the truck was still faster. The driver turned into the next section, a dead end, and hit the brakes, skidding into a construction site. Lelouch and Rivalz stopped to watch the crash. Rivalz said, "Was this our fault?" Lelouch replied, "Probably not."
They reached the railing to see the crash. Dramatic horns played in the background. Yuuya thought, Oh, what a horn section. Who wrote this? It's so heavy and dramatic. Lelouch went down to help, but the bystanders only watched, no one helping or calling for medical teams. Lelouch reached the truck, the front section stuck inside the wall. He tried climbing from above. As he leaned down, a voice echoed in his mind: "Finally, I have found you." Lelouch assumed it came from inside the truck. As he dropped down, the truck suddenly started moving, the hatch closed, and it drove away with him trapped inside.
The military arrived, giving warnings to stop the vehicle before opening fire. The truck entered a tunnel, buying some time. Inside, a girl said, "I will handle the military." She moved toward the back of the container. As she passed, Lelouch hid behind strange cylindrical objects, shaped like bombs. He thought, I've seen her before… Rivalz arrived at the crash site, but Lelouch was nowhere to be found.
During the chase, a long hook shot out from inside the truck, striking and destroying a helicopter. A Knightmare Frame emerged from the truck, moving side to side to destroy the remaining helicopters. The military's Knightmare Frames soon arrived with even more firepower.
Scene shifted to a general in uniform, speaking with a scientist. The general confirmed the terrorists had stolen a chemical weapon. Their plan was to follow the terrorists to their hideout and wipe them out there.
As the military advanced into the Shinjuku Ghetto, soldiers were deployed. These honorary Britannians, Japanese who gained a few more rights than other Elevens, were sent in first.
The truck entered an abandoned tunnel. The driver, injured, tried moving forward but got stuck. He opened the container's side hatch. A soldier spotted the weapon inside the truck and also saw Lelouch near it, assuming he was a terrorist. The soldier attacked him. Lelouch said, "This mindless murder is enough." He kicked the soldier off, shouting, "This poison gas is Britannia's doing! If you don't want more death, then why not obliterate Britannia?" Hearing this, Yuuya thought, Oh, so he's not just a cold mastermind, he still has strong emotions. I don't think I've seen that combination anywhere else, or maybe I've just forgotten.
The soldier, surprised, removed his helmet. "It's me, Suzaku." Both recognized each other. But then the chamber opened, and inside wasn't poison gas, but a girl with long green hair.
As the royal soldier arrived at the location Suzaku had given him, he saw Suzaku with Lelouch and the girl beside them. He spat at Suzaku. "Being honorary Britannian doesn't excuse what you're doing."
"But I was told this was poison gas," Suzaku protested.
"You have no right to protest," the officer snapped. He handed a gun to him, ordering him to shoot both of them.
Suzaku tried to argue. "They're not terrorists. They're civilians caught up in this. I will not shoot them," as he turned back toward the officer.
"Very well, then, if you will not shoot." The officer fired at Suzaku as he collapsed. The officer ordered to capture the girl and kill Lelouch.
Inside the truck, Nagi the terrorist detonated the truck.
On the royal ship, they received the report that the pair had escaped. Prince Clovis heard the news and snarled, "If knowledge of her gets out, I will be disinherited. Tell them back home we're carrying out a planned urban renewal. As Clovis, third prince of the empire, I order you: destroy the Shinjuku Ghetto."
A Knightmare Frame launched from the royal ship. Foot soldiers moved house to house, killing everyone they found. Fear tightened around Lelouch. He grabbed the girl. "What's happening? This is because of you, isn't it?"
Lelouch and the girl darted for the exit, but the royal guard was already there; they knew the tunnel's end. He hid, his heart thudding, when his phone rang. It was Shirley calling. The royal guard was about to leave, but hearing the ring, they stopped and closed in to capture him. The leader of the royal guard raised his pistol and fired.
The green-headed girl stepped between them. "Don't kill him," she said.
Lelouch felt something break inside. Suzaku was dead, this girl was also dead, and he was about to die without having done anything with his life. The girl took his hand. In his head, he heard the voice again: You don't want it to end here, do you? You appear to have a reason for living.
He thought the girl could not be real. She said, "If you had power, you could live. I'll make a deal with you: in exchange for power, you must grant me one wish. Accept this contract and, while you remain in the world of humans, you will not live like any other human. The power of a king will isolate you. Are you prepared for that?"
Lelouch answered, "Very well. I accept your contract."
He rose and dramatically covered his face with his hand. "Tell me, how should a Britannian who hates Britannia live?"
The officer sneered. "Are you some kind of radical?"
"Why not shoot your opponents?" Lelouch asked. "Is it only students who should die? Have you realized the only people who should kill are those prepared to die themselves?"
Lelouch swung his hand. "I, Lelouch vi Britannia, order you all of you die." Yuuya's entire body was covered in goosebumps hearing this line.
Power flowed from his eyes into the guards. It rewired their minds. One by one they raised their guns to their heads. "Yes, Your Highness," they said.
They fired. All of them died.
Since that day, I have lived a lie, the lie of lying. I was sick to death of a world that could not be changed. Even in my lies I refused despair. Now I have this power.
The screen cut to black and the end credits began to play.
As episode one ended, he looked at his cold dinner. He had eaten one-third of it and forgotten the rest. He decided he would eat it later after watching the second episode. He thanked God that Mizushiro hadn't ended the episode on a cliffhanger, but as he had watched the first episode, he didn't even know when the whole episode had finished. There were few anime he could count on one hand where the story and pacing were so smooth that he didn't even feel the whole episode was finished.
As he continued with episode two, and as for meeting his expectations, they were blown out of proportion. The music, the animation, the direction, he couldn't say anything except that it was perfect down to every last detail. As he started the second episode, he resolved to thank Mizushiro daily for releasing two episodes of this perfection every week.
[Note: If any of you are wondering, the horn part is from the Code Geass OST, Occupied Thinking]
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