After dropping several emotional tear-jerkers throughout the season, Code Geass was finally approaching its finale. Simultaneously, during this same week, the Sword Art Online novel officially surpassed an average sales volume of 2.8 million copies per volume.
As industry insiders had noted, Haruto's only remaining rival was himself.
In the few years since its inception, Sword Art Online had seen its popularity grow relentlessly, evolving into a massive franchise with an annual output value exceeding billions of yen. With the continuation of the series, its commercial value was only expected to climb higher.
Meanwhile, the Hunter x Hunter had transitioned smoothly from the Heavens Arena arc into the Phantom Troupe arc. Although the story was still in the early stages of world-building for this new chapter, the introduction of the vivid, distinct members of the Troupe kept fans in a state of constant anticipation. Currently, the manga's average sales per volume had broken the 2.6 million mark, leaving a gap of only a few hundred thousand copies before it claimed the title of the best-selling manga in history. In truth, no one doubted that Hunter x Hunter would achieve this milestone.
While Code Geass, Sword Art Online, and Hunter x Hunter were objectively exceptional works, their record-breaking success across Japan wasn't just due to their individual quality. Ordinarily, if a newcomer had released these three titles as their debut works, they likely wouldn't have reached such astronomical heights. The crucial link between these projects was Haruto himself.
It functioned much like a cinematic universe.
When certain characters or series gain massive popularity, they pull all associated works upward with them.
Haruto's past and present works formed a massive, collective fanbase that moved between his different projects in the manga, light novel, and anime industries, creating a self-sustaining vortex of growth.
Once Haruto reached the summit of the anime world, his fame radiated into the manga and novel sectors. Conversely, once he became the top creator in those fields, the momentum flowed back into his anime projects, allowing Code Geass to eclipse even the cultural phenomenon of Madoka Magica. This was unique to Haruto. Other creators weren't just competing against a single title like SAO or Hunter x Hunter; they were facing the combined might of Haruto's entire unified fanbase.
This was why Haruto held such a commanding lead in the entertainment industry. It was a strategy that others simply couldn't replicate because the industry had never seen a genius capable of simultaneously serializing three masterpieces of this caliber. Even in other eras, finding such a talent would be impossible.
In the world of creative arts, speed and quality are the ultimate weapons. Haruto possessed both.
Over at the Prime Manga office, seeing that Hunter x Hunter was just a step away from becoming the number one manga in history, the editors decided to go all out.
They planned to invest tens of millions of yen in advertising for April, launching various promotions and gift-with-purchase campaigns to push the average sales past 26.5 million copies. Haruto had already been notified of these plans and was busy coordinating his schedule for the coming month.
But for now, March belonged entirely to Lelouch.
On the third Sunday of the month, the Haru-Yuki Animation website hosted a day-long livestream to build hype for the finale.
In major cities like Tokyo and Osaka and others, promotional banners and posters for the final episode of Code Geass were everywhere.
They dominated subways, bus screens, billboards, and the massive LED displays in Shinjuku and Shibuya. Lelouch, C.C., and Suzaku were visible at every turn.
During this season, Sword Art Online had been the only show capable of rivaling Code Geass, with its twelfth episode breaking a 6% viewership rating.
However, during the week of the Code Geass finale, the production team at NOVA respectfully held back on their marketing to ensure they didn't steal the spotlight from Lelouch's curtain call.
Across Japan, millions of anime fans spent the day in a state of restless excitement, waiting for 8:00 PM to arrive.
At anime conventions in major coastal cities, nearly ninety percent of the cosplayers were dressed as Lelouch, C.C., Suzaku, Kallen, or Shirley.
Downstairs at the Haru-Yuki Animation headquarters, over a thousand fans gathered during the day, holding signs and banners to show their support for Haruto. Haruto himself stayed home, having anticipated that showing up at the office would result in being mobbed by the crowd.
Even for him, the feeling was bittersweet. The sense of reluctance wasn't limited to the fans. While he could technically pull another hundred masterpieces from the memory fragments in his mind, Code Geass was unique. Once it ended tonight, that was it.
While several theatrical films were already in the pipeline and set for release soon after the TV broadcast ended, Haruto knew those were largely commercial ventures. They expanded the world-building, but they weren't the core story. He viewed them more as high-budget side stories or OVAs rather than true sequels.
Taking a deep breath, Haruto tried to steady his nerves as he browsed the forums. Even though it was only 5:00 PM, the online communities were already in a frenzy. On the major social media platforms, seven of the top ten trending topics were related to Code Geass. Even the evening news spent fifteen seconds mentioning the cultural impact of the series finale.
By 7:00 PM, a huge portion of Japan's youth had canceled dinner plans and ignored their phones, sitting silently in front of their televisions. At the Tokyo TV1 headquarters, the building was ablaze with lights. Staff members stayed late, monitoring the real-time viewership data.
Code Geass had been breaking records for weeks, and the network was desperate for the finale to set a benchmark that would leave future competitors in despair. In an era where traditional television was starting to decline, they wanted a record that would define the industry for years to come.
Asuma took a deep breath, turning his gaze from the ads on his phone to the television screen. He had ignored his boss's request for overtime and rushed home at 6:00 PM. After sitting in his living room for two hours, the clock finally struck eight.
The finale of Code Geass began. The first thing Asuma noticed was that the opening theme song had been changed.
"They redesigned the entire opening sequence and used a new track just for the final episode? This production team really is loaded," he thought, leaning in closer. He watched the new visuals carefully: images of armies, a coronation, an execution platform, Nunnally's tears, and finally, Zero.
Asuma frowned, sensing that the opening contained subtle spoilers, but he didn't linger on the thought. After all, the answers would be revealed in the next twenty minutes anyway.
The story picked up immediately from the previous cliffhanger.
After using a surprise attack and Geass to control Schneizel, Lelouch confronted his sister, Nunnally, who held the firing key to the nuclear Damocles fortress. He demanded she hand over the weapon that could destroy the world.
Nunnally, though physically disabled, refused to back down. Outside the floating palace, Suzaku and Kallen were locked in a fierce, final duel.
"Brother, you do not have the right to rule this world," Nunnally said, filled with rage. "You have trampled upon the will of countless people."
"Then tell me," Lelouch replied, looking at the sister who now viewed him as an enemy, "was hiding your identity in fear of an assassination by the Imperial family the life you wanted? Everything I did was for your future."
His heart was likely breaking, but his face remained a mask of imperial coldness. He had won the world, but other than his title as Emperor, he had no one left by his side.
"When did I ever ask you to do any of this!" Nunnally screamed.
Watching this, Asuma felt a chill run down his spine. There is nothing more painful than hearing a loved one say, "I didn't ask for this, you did this to yourself." Everything Lelouch had sacrificed to build a world where they could live in safety was dismissed by Nunnally as worthless.
Lelouch knew better than anyone how terrible the power of Geass was. It twisted the will of others and trampled on their dignity.
Because of that, he had never wanted to use it on the person he cherished most.
While the world outside was still embroiled in the fires of war ignited by the Britannian Empire, the real battle was here. If Lelouch could reclaim the key, the Black Knights and the allied forces would have no way to resist him.
At that point, the entire world would have only one King.
Emperor Lelouch.
"Damocles shall become a symbol of hatred," Nunnally said, clutching the key. "I will draw the world's hatred upon myself, and for that reason..."
Asuma finally understood Nunnally's intention.
Whoever controls a weapon of mass destruction becomes the target of the world's fear and loathing.
The world needed a Sword of Damocles, but the one holding it would be the source of all conflict, the common enemy of humanity.
Nunnally intended to use the weapon to end the war, sacrificing millions of lives if necessary, to become the ultimate villain of history so that a new era of peace could begin with her as the scapegoat.
The logic was sound, but Lelouch didn't hesitate.
"Lelouch vi Britannia commands you... hand over the key to Damocles." He used his Geass.
As the wars across the globe reached a fever pitch, Nunnally awoke from the Geass command. Seeing the key in Lelouch's hand, she burst into a fit of vitriol. To her, her brother was dead; all that remained was the world's most hated dictator.
Then came one of the most iconic and powerful scenes in the history of the medium. A blinding light erupted in the sky as the Damocles fortress was destroyed. Every television station in the world broadcast a single image: Lelouch, holding the firing key, announcing his victory to the planet.
"Attention, the entire world! I am Lelouch vi Britannia, Emperor of the Holy Britannian Empire! Schneizel has surrendered to me, and the Black Knights no longer possess the strength to oppose me. At this very moment, the world belongs to me!"
"Lelouch vi Britannia commands you: World, submit to me!"
Lelouch swept his hand forward, pointing at the citizens of the world watching their screens.
Across Japan, fans were cheering in their living rooms. After fifty episodes, they had finally reached this moment.
"Is this really the end?" Asuma felt a wave of excitement, followed immediately by a sense of loss. It was a great ending for a conqueror, but was this solitary throne what Lelouch really wanted?
Nunnally was his enemy. His former comrades were his prisoners. While Lelouch's hegemony had stopped the wars, the suppression of human desire was only temporary.
Hatred, if left unvented, would only grow stronger under the surface.
The scene shifted. Two months had passed.
Lelouch sat atop a magnificent, oversized float, surrounded by a grand military procession.
Not far away, the leaders of the Black Knights and the United Federation of Nations, including Nunnally and Kallen, were dressed in prisoner's rags, being paraded toward an execution platform.
"Wait, is he really going to kill them all? Isn't that overkill?"
"Is Suzaku really dead? He blew up during the fight with Kallen, but dying like that feels so empty."
"Something feels wrong! How could Lelouch execute Nunnally and Kallen? That would make him a true monster!"
The fan groups were already starting to complain about the direction of the plot.
But then, an unexpected character appeared.
A figure in a black cloak, wielding a large sword and wearing a familiar mask.
Zero.
"Zero?" Asuma's heart skipped a beat. He sensed a turning point but couldn't quite grasp it yet. If Lelouch was on the throne, then who was under the mask?
The imperial guards fired their rifles at Zero, but they couldn't land a single hit on his agile form. Jeremiah Gottwald, the cyborg commander, provided the ultimate assist by ordering the guards to hold their fire, claiming he would duel the assassin with a blade. He then took a spectacular dive, allowing Zero to use him as a stepping stone to leap directly onto Lelouch's platform.
The scene cut to a flashback of a conversation between Lelouch and Suzaku in a darkened hall.
"As we agreed," Lelouch's voice rang out, "you are to kill me."
Asuma held his breath. The flashback was brief, but it revealed everything: why Suzaku had helped Lelouch and what they had planned.
While the top brass of the Black Knights knew Lelouch was Zero, the common people did not.
To the masses, Zero was still a symbol of justice and liberty. Lelouch had spent the last two months intentionally making himself the focal point of the world's hatred. He took upon himself the sins of the Britannian Empire and the pain of every war. He became the embodiment of tyranny. By having Zero assassinate the Evil Emperor, the hatred of the world would die with Lelouch. Liberty would triumph, a new era would begin, and the dictator would become a memory of the past. It was the ultimate act of sacrifice for human progress.
"Lelouch is going to die... for the world," Asuma realized, his eyes widening.
The background music shifted into a haunting, emotional melody. Zero, Suzaku in disguise, plunged the sword through Lelouch's chest. In front of the entire world, in front of Nunnally and Kallen, the Emperor was struck down by the hero of the people. That was the truth the world saw.
But for those who knew the man behind the mask, the truth was far more devastating.
Blood stained the screen. Lelouch's lifeless body tumbled from the throne, falling onto the path where Nunnally and Kallen were chained. As the blood pooled on the ground, Asuma's heart pounded. A shiver ran from his toes to his scalp.
Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion.
This anime, in its very last minutes, had achieved a level of storytelling that he could only describe as divine.
"Lelouch, you wished to atone for the sin of using Geass," C.C. said softly, looking at a statue in a church with tears in her eyes.
This one sentence elevated the entire series.
Lelouch knew exactly how much suffering his power had caused, how much pain it had brought to Shirley, Nunnally, Euphemia, and Suzaku.
This realization transformed his character into something truly transcendent.
Asuma watched Lelouch's body lying on the ground, and he couldn't stop the tears from falling.
"Only those prepared to be shot should ever take the life of another."
The words Lelouch spoke in the very first episode when he first used Geass to kill had finally come full circle.
The story was complete.
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