The eighth episode of Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion was playing on television.
The fifth episode had primarily focused on the introduction of new characters: the Second Princess Cornelia, the new Governor of Area 11, and the Third Princess Euphemia, the Vice Governor.
Thanks to Euphemia's endorsement, Suzaku had been cleared of the suspicion of killing the Third Prince. He was reinstated in the military and resumed his role as the pilot of the Lancelot.
In the sixth episode, Suzaku enrolled in Lelouch's school. Since the school only admitted Britannian students, Suzaku, as a Japanese person with honorary Britannian status, found himself in an awkward position. His previous suspicion of killing the Third Prince made most students either fear him or instinctively avoid him.
Lelouch, however, remained his friend. Not wanting to damage Lelouch's reputation or expose his royal identity, Suzaku asked Lelouch to pretend not to know him in front of others.
Initially, Lelouch maintained this facade, until a near-catastrophic incident—Zero's helmet was almost exposed to the entire school due to a cat.
After resolving the crisis, Lelouch proactively revealed his friendship with Suzaku and invited him to join the Student Council.
Episode 7 marked the end of the slice-of-life segments and a return to the main plot.
The Male Lead, commanding scattered rebel forces, clashed with the Second Princess's forces and suffered a setback. If not for C.C. impersonating Zero to draw the enemy's attention and save his life, he would have been finished.
This incident made the Male Lead realize the importance of having his own organization. In Episode 8, he secured a base, summoned Karen and the others, and established the Black Knights.
Coincidentally, the Student Council, including Shirley, and the Third Princess Euphemia were taken hostage by the Japan Liberation Front, facing imminent death. This led to the Black Knights' first operation: rescuing the hostages and punishing the Japan Liberation Front.
Then, at the end of the eighth episode, Lelouch successfully rescued the hostages. The Black Knights, all clad in identical black uniforms, black hats, and masks, made a dazzling entrance under the lights. At their center stood Lelouch, draped in a black cloak and wearing a black helmet, his figure shining as he made his grand appearance.
Through television, Lelouch announced the existence of the Black Knights and proclaimed their manifesto:
"People of the world! Fear us! Seek us out! Our name is the Black Knights!"
"We, the Black Knights, are companions to all the defenseless, whether they be residents of Area 11 or Britannians..."
"I do not deny the necessity of combat, but the strong shall never be allowed to slaughter the weak. Only those willing to be shot have the right to fire a gun."
"When the powerful attack the powerless, we will reappear once more, no matter how formidable our enemy's strength may be."
"You who wield power, tremble before us! You who are powerless, seek us out! The world shall be judged by the Black Knights!"
Episodes 5 and 6 were slice-of-life, and while Episode 7 returned to the main plot, the Male Lead's setback did little to boost the animation's popularity.
Episode 8, however, was a game-changer. The Black Knights' debut, in particular, served as a mini-climax for the early part of the series.
With strong marketing and a compelling storyline, the animation's popularity and ratings surged.
Having already gained traction in the initial episodes, the show became unstoppable after Episode 8. While not yet a phenomenon, its popularity among new anime was unparalleled. The second most popular new anime couldn't even compare to [ Code Geass ].
After Episode 8 aired, viewers were buzzing. Online forums and anime communities exploded with discussion:
"Lelouch is so cool, I love him!"
"I want to buy Black Knights merchandise. I wonder when it will be released."
"[ Those with power, fear us! Those without power, pursue us! The world shall be judged by the Black Knights! ] I have to admit, the line is a bit chuunibyou, but it's undeniably cool."
"Just declaring this on TV is way cooler than Yagami Light."
"You're making me want to join the Black Knights too."
"Amazing! This episode was so satisfying to watch."
"All the frustration from the previous episode is gone. So satisfying! I hope they keep this momentum going."
Inside the President's office at L.S Production, Lin Zhiyan was highly satisfied as he reviewed the Lelouch of the Rebellion merchandise sent by various manufacturers.
The main product line consisted of five items: a model kit and a complete version of Mech Lancelot, a full set of Black Knights uniforms (including masks and hats), Zero's cape, Zero's helmet, and figurines of the main characters.
Of course, there were other merchandise items as well, but these were secondary and it would have been impractical to send one of each to Lin Zhiyan.
This was only the first batch of merchandise. The second and third batches were being produced at full speed and would be released gradually as the animation's plot progressed.
The prices of these five main items were quite high, especially Zero's helmet, which cost over 30,000 yen each. However, the craftsmanship was exceptionally exquisite.
With the animation currently airing and enjoying immense popularity, and the eighth episode featuring the Black Knights' debut—creating a minor climax—this was the perfect time to release the first batch of merchandise.
After reviewing everything one by one, Lin Zhiyan called in several people to store the items in the secure storage room for valuables. He then turned to Nanase Mayumi and said, "These items can be used as prizes for the year-end party raffle. Please make a note of that for me."
"Oh, alright," Nanase Mayumi nodded.
She couldn't help but add, "Senior, I can understand the other merchandise, but that Zero helmet costs over 30,000 yen. Does anyone actually buy them?"
"What I'm more concerned about is whether you can even wear the helmet while riding a bike," a Production Assistant chimed in.
"With a helmet that expensive, of course it's meant for collecting. Who would dare wear it while riding? If you accidentally dropped it, you'd lose a fortune!"
Lin Zhiyan shook his head slightly. "Someone will definitely buy it; it's just a matter of sales volume. Since these are custom-made, we don't need to worry about inventory or losses. Plus, there will be scenes featuring the Zero suit in the animation later—that's when sales will really take off."
This time, it was unlikely they'd have a runaway hit like the Death Note notebook. But hey, anything sold was pure profit. They'd just sell as much as they could.
With the first batch of merchandise finalized, Lin Zhiyan turned his attention to the animation's DVDs.
The DVDs were nearly ready for release. He wondered how well they would sell this time.
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