Lelouch arrived at the scene of tears and slight relief a while later.
Upon Nobunaga's return to his side, she wasted no time in ensuring his safety. That included phasing her way through several tens of meters of earth and cement, quickly appearing out of thin air in the blind spot of his flashlight, scaring the hell out of him with her devilish smile, and finally suffocating him in her bosom.
All of that culminated with her teasing with the line 'Did you miss me?'
To which, he replied, 'Not in the slightest if this is what you plan on doing all day.'
Needless to say, it took him a few minutes to pry her off of him but even less to convince her to march their way back to the surface the long way around. That being doubling back via the service catwalk and up the nearest manhole. Which, surprisingly, took way too long.
It only added to his concern when Nobu sensed something off back up above.
'It would've been easier to blow a tunnel straight through to their dungeon…' Lelouch quite easily advocated for the direct path. But…
"Blowing the floor beneath them twice over would've only made it worse, no?" the woman so easily read his thoughts. Not that he'd hidden them, to begin with. "Besides, you already collapsed that worm's exit path to the underground with your first bomb. Wouldn't anymore just collapse the entire estate?"
There was that. Had he not gone down here for that contingency, Zouken undoubtedly might've escaped. It was because he had no way out that, in his most desperate moments, he tried to kill Kariya from within, igniting the sleeping Crest worms into a frenzy.
"If it wasn't for Berserker, he'd be dead…" Arms crossed, the boy narrowed his gaze at the sleeping Master of said Servant.
Beside him, the child he'd saved was draped in some modicum of clothing while, sitting on the other side, the man Nobu introduced as Kariya's older brother finished tying up the bandages. Picking up the discarded bottles of the last of their elixirs, the man seemed to tense when he turned their way. Although, it seemed more of his attention was on Nobu than Lelouch himself. Lelouch opted to lighten the man's mood.
"I trust Kariya will survive then?"
"My little brother… will be fine…" Averting his gaze from the Servant, the man gave him a somewhat wary stare. "But, considering Zouken's demise… … well…"
"Something wrong?" Lelouch asked, tone concerned.
"The worms within him still live. They're less frenzied now that their owner is… gone. But they're still eating away at him, very slowly at that."
"Will it be a problem?" the boy considered it. "Will they have to be removed?"
"I don't recommend that." The man said before going silent once more. "With his… contract to Berserker… it might be best to keep them in him for a while. The mana they provide would keep that… thing… from draining him dry. At the very least, it buys him time… Just not…"
"Just not much, is it?"
Byakuya nodded. "Their continued presence will sustain the madman, but it will continue to drain him. Just slower than before. It's not life threatening yet, but if he pushes himself—" Byakuya stopped himself to shake his head. "Nevermind. It's not my place to say. Kariya just… my little brother just needs some sleep…"
"Then he can have it." Lelouch nodded back and gave the man a reassuring smile. "Considering what had happened, I wouldn't fault him or his family for thinking so."
"Th-thank you… for understanding…" The man shifted uncomfortably under Lelouch's gaze. Maybe it was the fact that someone as young as he wasn't intimidated by the older, taller man, but Byakuya remained tense. A couple of times, he made to open his mouth in an attempt to speak. But it took a while before he actually said anything more. "You… what do you plan on doing with him?"
"Nothing." Not the truth, but it wasn't entirely a lie. He'd accomplished his objective, but this war was not over. "What comes in the future is now up to your brother. While I do have a need for him, I will not force Kariya if he isn't up to the task. After all, he has accomplished his goal for this war already. And his further staying out of it benefits me as well."
"I… see…" With that, the man shuffled around them, keeping quite the distance away from Nobu while he massaged his cheek. That was… odd. "I'll… prepare the guest room for you… As a favour for… getting rid of that pest from our lives forever."
"Quite the cheap payback, don't you think—?"
"We'll accept, Mr Matou Byakuya." Cutting Nobu off, Lelouch offered a respectful bow, hoping it would ease the man to relax a bit. Thankfully, the colour seemed to return to Byakuya's face.
"Then I'll leave my brother… and niece… in your care for a bit… Mr Lamperouge." Leaving them alone, Lelouch's attention returned to the man and child sat nearby.
The fight had rendered the place a ruin with debris everywhere. But somehow, Kariya managed to doze peacefully on the stone floor with nothing but his older brother's coat underneath his head. Even the girl, who only had a tattered jersey jacket in lieu of proper clothes, lay with her head atop the man's chest. Tears had dried on her cheeks as she'd apparently cried herself to sleep as well.
Seeing such a sight, Lelouch didn't even hesitate to drape his own coat over the sleeping pair. It wouldn't cover them both, but it'd serve well enough that the girl at least wouldn't catch a cold.
"Aw, how adorable…" a voice whispered behind him.
Noting the cheeky smirk on Nobu's face, Lelouch couldn't help but ask, "What is?"
"I didn't know you could make a face like that, Master." The cheekiness turned into knowing as she suddenly draped both her arms around his neck and pulled him back to rest against her chest. "Then again, as expected of a softie like you. Really now… Despite being hated as a demon emperor, you're quite the cutie when you smile like that, Lulu~~~!"
Even as she snuggled her cheeks against his, Lelouch couldn't do anything but ponder her words.
He didn't even notice he'd been smiling. Was it due to the success of their operation? Was it because of another job well done that resulted in no deaths?
Or was he simply relieved they were saved?
These people, Kariya and Sakura, by extension, Byakuya as well, had lived under the tyranny of what he'd heard to be a monster of a parent. After tonight's events, they'd move on. They'd be given the chance to live happier lives than before. At least, if they were to suffer, it would be on their own terms, no longer shackled by the oppression of their so-called grandfather.
It was a funny thought to consider, now that Lelouch thought about it. 'I wonder… Had people felt the same… when I died?'
A lot of them despised him. But then he also had many that confided in him. One would definitely outlive them all and have to come to terms with his annulling their first contract. However, he knew C.C. wasn't the type to dwell on the past. Not anymore.
So, the answer to his query was a 'maybe, maybe not'. Who was to say exactly, more so when he was the one to wrought the oppression? Just like Zouken would never come to know of the peaceful expression on his son and adopted grandchild's face as they slept, Lelouch wouldn't know the smiles his former friends had, the people he saved, would wear from then on…
It was a bit cruel, considering he only had the briefest of moments to smile after reuniting with his sister. But the former emperor hoped if he was permitted, that her smile would live on.
However, in this time and place, what did it matter? He wasn't allowed to influence that world further and he'd yet to finish his final task here. The nostalgia could be saved for later. For when it was truly over.
Besides, this night was not his victory to enjoy. Out of a whim, Lelouch had just seen it through. Even if he'd lent so much support and wasted a bit of time to cull the other competitors, he'd done it out of goodwill for someone who needed it.
Matou Kariya was a man who cared dearly for something and was willing to dirty his hands for the sake of it. As someone who'd rebelled against his own oppressor and won, Lelouch was well-aware he had to bow off the stage for a moment to let the man savour his long-awaited and hard-fought victory.
The boy couldn't help but look back not a few days ago. This man he barely knew had risked so much. Having experienced the same, how could he not respect him? The same might've been said for Nobu as she mumbled.
"Perhaps he wasn't as pathetic of a man I assumed him to be…"
"Hoh, that's rare." Lelouch stifled a chuckle. Whispering to her, he asked, "For you to complement another, did his appearance tonight spark some respect within you, Nobu?"
"Ara, ara," she didn't hesitate to tickle his ears again. "Is that envy I sense, Lulu, darling?~~~"
"No, don't misunderstand—"
"Oh, how happy it makes me feel!" He couldn't get a word in edgewise when she suddenly jumped. He was still trapped in her grasp as she spun around. "Truly! I haven't felt this satisfied until I cleaved that traitor Azai and their vassals' heads clean of their shoulders."
"Mgh! That's nice and all… but Avenger…" Lelouch couldn't repress his annoyed tone anymore. Risking waking the pair up, he hissed at the carefree woman. "Can you please put me down?"
In the process of her exclaiming his supposed 'envy', she'd pulled him in for more than a hug. In fact, he was completely trapped by her arms when she spun around and he was now being carried bridal style by Nobu who seemingly didn't plan on letting him go.
'This is what you get for making me spend all that time away from you, Master!' Nobu's smirk and thoughts weren't at all hidden from him. In the darkness of the basement pit, the eager gleam in her eyes betrayed the desire to tease. "Hmm, how about you make me, Lulu~~~?!"
The gap of their physical strength was as wide as that of a parent and child. He couldn't escape this embrace no matter how hard he tried.
"Guh…" Lelouch couldn't help but count this as his defeat. "You're quite the headache sometimes…"
"Deal with it. I'm not leaving you alone again next time."
Something about her tone and smile told him she was dead serious.
***
Authors note:
Hope you enjoyed it as well. Zouken is gone for good and little Sakura is now finally saved. Thankfully Lancelot didn't try to seduce another British Royalty while he was alone with Lelouch. Otherwise, Nobu would have burned the entire city :D
Special thanks to ReavesTheReader for this chapters because I myself had issues about how to finish this arc. Now to deal with remaining masters and servants. Also!
Interesting fact from ReavesTheReader: Did you know that in the original King Arthur legend, Lancelot did not exist? Apparently, he was only added in after the legend was transcribed into French and the original adultery role was filled in by Mordred who married Guinevere (Another side fact: Guinevere was romanticized French for the original name of the queen, Ganhumara).
Basically saying, Lancelot's one of the first and most popular fanfiction OC that was canonized as part of the main cast of the old legend. And it was all because, during the time, stories of having affairs with lowly yet honourable knights were popular in the courts