Warhammer: I don't want to become a stinky can!

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True power should be used where it is truly needed.

[Petulabo] said with a cold laugh, but [Killiman]'s words clearly pleased him, and [Motalian] quickly seized the opportunity to chime in.

[Our father would be proud of you… I think I should retract my earlier opinion that Dorne was more suitable, Perturabo—when I saw an impregnable fortress.]

[Oh!]

[Peturabo] suddenly waved his hand, opening the door to the main hall for the two Primarchs. The Primarchs stood to the side of the door with stern faces.

[I know what you're thinking—while I admit you're absolutely right, don't try to get close to me anymore. I won't say anything nice for you in front of him.]

[It's so heartbreaking. I thought our bond would grow even stronger.]

[Killiman] chuckled and joked, but without pausing, he went straight into the magnificent main hall. [Motalian] glanced at [Peturabo] one last time before leaving.

[Petulabo] frowned and blinked. He seemed to have just seen something between the eyes of the Pale Primarch, but the strange light flashed by in an instant.

The main hall was resplendent in gold, like a mountain of gold coins piled up by a dragon plundering its treasures. Countless dazzling reliefs danced and sang on the walls. In a trance, the intricately carved figures and monsters seemed to come alive in the flickering candlelight and lamplight, their faces moving eerily under the shadows and light.

A colossal crystal chandelier, the size of a Land Raider, hung above the hall, radiating blinding light. Each crystal was enough to buy an entire Class A star system. Countless distorted figures of servants were reflected on it, flowing past like a stream.

The melodious music filled the hall. It was not yet time for the banquet to begin. Mortalian looked around and, apart from the mortals who were walking around the hall in a hurry yet with elegance, he immediately spotted the Primarchs who had arrived before them.

[Killiman! Mortalian! Here!]

Magnus raised his goblet high, laughing as he called the two Primarchs over. His red hair was flowing, and he was full of vigor. After all, if nothing unexpected happened, today would be an unprecedented victory celebration—celebrating the successful conclusion of the Great Crusade.

Unfortunately, this banquet will ultimately remain only in Magnus's imagination; the delicacies will be splattered with blood, and the son will slit his father's throat with a sword.

The two Primarchs, each with their own ulterior motives, walked past, and Mortalian sensed that Magnus seemed to breathe a sigh of relief—

Magnus and Fugen seem to have little in common, and Phoenix is ​​too serious and only befriends Fernus.

Therefore, Guilliman and Mortarion, who have a good reputation among the Primarchs, are actually better conversationalists for Magnus.

Magnus raised his glass to Fugen, and the two Primarchs clinked glasses and drank once. Magnus then used this as a signal to end the conversation and looked at Guilliman and Mortarion.

Oh, Magnus greeted Guilliman first, and then Mortarian—after all, Robert Guilliman was the war commander who led them to victory in the Great Crusade.

[A toast to our wise and brilliant commander.]

Magnus said, raising his glass, the wine flowing in his glass, and the Primarchs present drank another round.

[Killiman] downed his drink in one gulp, smiled, and slightly raised his hand in greeting.

[It's all thanks to each and every one of us brothers here; I'm just taking the credit.]

[When did you become so humble, Guilliman?]

Magnus said rashly, perhaps the victory celebration had made the Primarch complacent, or perhaps he was just naturally arrogant.

[I remember you weren't like this back then—Guilliman. I remember when we first got on Terra, you really loved stealing the spotlight, and I remember Ruth was quite defiant about it.]

[Motalian] noticed that the blue in [Guilliman]'s eyes deepened slightly, which might be a sign of anger, but [Robert Guilliman] never showed his true emotions; he only displayed just the right amount of anger when he needed to.

[That was a long time ago.]

[Guilliman] waved his hand, then casually picked up a new glass of wine from the tray of a mortal servant beside him. The gazes and attention of the crowd, following the Primarch's hand, were subtly interrupted.

[I don't remember much about what happened on Terra when I was a child. Apart from my respect and love for our father, I only remember the pain of the final disaster.]

[Ah—I do remember some of it.]

Magnus, completely unaware of anything amiss, continued to follow Guilliman's lead. Fugen remained silent, presumably waiting for Finus, and also failed to notice anything amiss.

[Our father's strictness and kindness, his wonderful knowledge—especially the surprise and wonder I felt when I first used psychic powers...]

[Magnus] seemed lost in endless memories, as if he were about to begin praising the wonders of psychic energy.

Mortarion had no desire to listen to Magnus's long-winded explanations, and often at this point Magnus would drag Mortarion, one of only two psionic Primarchs, into it, forcing Mortarion to acknowledge the wonders of psionic power.

Out of politeness and other needs, [Motalian] will feign admission.

But in the Pale Primarch's view, as they discussed the wonders of psychic powers, Mortarion sadly saw two puppets: he himself was stained with three different chaotic lights, while the eloquent Magnus was overflowing with bright blue.

Fortunately, Guilliman intervened in time to stop Magnus from advancing further.

[Psionic...Excuse my intrusion, my friend, are your eyes also created by psionic energy? I vaguely remember that on Terra, you still had two eyes.]

【Guilliman】 looked at 【Magnus】 with amusement. The Red Primarch was suddenly stunned, and it was clear that the memory of losing his eyes had been simply and crudely erased from the Primarch's mind.

I really don't remember...

Guilliman's words were rather abrupt and offensive. Even Fugen, who was standing there in a daze, frowned slightly and looked at Guilliman. But the door suddenly reopened, interrupting their thoughts. The Primarchs looked towards the doorway.

Peturabo brought in Sanguis and Anglon.

[Killiman, Mortalian,]

Perturabo, who had been standing by the door watching the two Primarchs enter the hall, shouted something into the hall, his expression and tone unfriendly.

[Father is looking for you… Don’t keep him waiting too long—ah, how fortunate, he hasn’t personally summoned his sons for decades… especially his great warlord, oh, Mortarion, you might be an exception.]

[Motalian] blinked, no longer angered by verbal offense. He raised his glass and downed the drink in one gulp, casually setting down his glass before walking towards the exit. Behind him, [Guilliman] didn't forget [Magnus], smiling back with a hint of teasing in his smile.

They brushed past Saint Gilles and Anglon, exchanging only brief nods—as if they weren't very familiar with each other.

But in reality, [Motalian] has already seen the shared butcher's knife in their hands.

Magnus stood behind them, his thoughts interrupted by Angron's loud laughter—

Guilliman's question seemed to have truly puzzled the Red Primarch. Magnus frowned and began to ponder why he had never considered these questions before, nor had he ever paid attention to this matter.

What happened on the day Terra fell and the Primarchs were scattered across the galaxy? Why has he been missing an eye ever since?

He was left behind by Guilliman, who smiled and walked toward Peturabo, leaving the main hall together with Mortarian.

[Petulabo] coldly pressured the two Primarchs, furious that the [Emperor] had called them instead of [Petulabo].

Then, Peturabo slammed the door shut behind them, a hint of anger in his voice.

The first step of the plan is progressing smoothly.

The second person to come and call them out was not [Petulabo], but [Alpha], who was leading the way for them.

The smile on Killieman's face vanished, and the trees in Terra Garden cast dappled, shifting shadows on his face.

......................................................

[The Past of the Past]

Another Fate Line

[Blue psionic energy... fucking... blue psionic energy! Magnus, look me in the eye and swear—you fucking saw blue light coming from Makado!]

In the Primarch's dormitory late at night, Ruth suddenly grabbed Magnus's arm and shook him violently, causing Magnus to almost foam at the mouth.

[Wait—I'm number fifteen, my name isn't Magnus!]

Number Fifteen—the unnamed Magnus—roared softly.

[Stop shaking! I definitely saw it. The day before yesterday, when we went to the outdoor arena, I saw Macardo hurry past a window via the side corridor. I can't believe I saw a fleeting glimpse of blue on him.]

Upon hearing Magnus's words, Russ abruptly released his grip, and the Wolf King lowered his head, racking his brains in thought.

A moment later, Ruth's face turned deathly pale.

[Side corridor...the side corridor connects to the underground labyrinth—is Macado going to tamper with the network?! Or is it the Golden Throne...?]

A being with Tzeentch's power is roaming freely within the palace... Could it be that the Lord of Changes intends to use [Macado] to destroy the Webpath before the Primarchs have a chance to rise to power?!

Why did Makado betray them?!

Ruth growled in disbelief once again. Even though he had expected it, Ruth found it extremely difficult to accept after it was actually confirmed. After all, the old man was one of the few normal people who had given him warmth and friendship since he came to this world.

After abandoning Magnus, Ruth paced anxiously in circles around the room. Finally, as if he had figured everything out, Ruth made up his mind.

Regardless, the problem with [Macado] must be reported to [The Emperor].

[Listen carefully, Magnus. We're leaving your room now to report to the Imperial Guard. Have them take us to the Emperor immediately. When the Emperor questions you, tell him everything truthfully. I'll explain the rest.]

Having figured all this out, Ruth immediately grabbed Magnus without saying a word and headed towards the dormitory door.

[Huh?! Wait! First, tell me what blue psionic energy represents—and it's curfew! You idiot! How are you going to explain to our father that you were in my room during curfew—we'll be punished!!!]

Forget about that pathetic punishment! What we need to report is far more serious than violating a curfew!

The wolf king roared, forcibly dragging the unwilling Magnus to the door, then yanked it open—

"Those who stay up late aren't good kids, my bad boys."

In the silent darkness, an old man with a calm face and carrying a lantern stood at the doorway and spoke slowly. The lantern in his hand emitted a deep blue light, illuminating [Macado]'s face.

【Makado】's eyes were unblinking, and countless furrows etched across the old man's face, making him appear even more ferocious and terrifying.

【？！！！】

Completely unexpected, Ruth wanted to yell to attract attention, and before his thoughts could even process it, his fist had already swung out, hurtling heavily towards [Macado]—

But the next moment! A sudden gust of wind swept up from beneath [Macado]'s feet! Some immense force tightly covered Rus's mouth, preventing him from shouting, and then he was thrown into the house along with [Magnus].

Bang! ! !

Despite the loud noise, no one could hear it. [Macado] took a leisurely step forward and entered [Number Fifteen]'s dormitory. The door slammed shut behind him, completely isolating the room from the outside world.

【Ugh—Ugh!】

Ruth tried frantically to open his mouth and shout, but he couldn't; the body he was in was still that of a child—but even as an adult Primarch, [Maccard] had the ability to hold one down for a short time.

"Look what I've found! Two naughty boys, violating curfew by gathering in secret—number six and number fifteen. I regret to inform you that you will not be attending class tomorrow. As punishment for your violation of the rules, you will be confined for a day."

Then [Macado] glanced at Russ with disdain.

“Reckless,” he said. “If I hadn’t covered for your actions, you would have been discovered long ago.”

[Wait—Teacher! It was Number Six who forced his way in! I've been trying to get rid of him, but he threatened me with force!]

Unaware of the truth, Magnus immediately switched sides, and Rus was so angry he almost fainted. Now their only hope was Khan, but in order not to involve Khan, Rus had kept a distance from him—would the White Scar Primarch be able to detect that something was wrong?

But before that...

Rus stared intently at Macado with an extremely hostile and contemptuous gaze. Noticing Rus's gaze, Macado chuckled and waved his hand, plunging the noisy Magnus into a deep sleep.

“Clever little fellow… Leman Russ, right? I don’t remember your father giving you that name.”

The wolf king felt a small opening suddenly appear in his throat, which had been tightly gripped. In the intense feeling of suffocation, he opened his mouth, blood spilling from the corner, as he uttered his curses and questions.

[Macardo...why...betrayed...]

[Macado] blinked, and the blue lantern in his hand shone even brighter.

"Why betray? Leman Ruth, perhaps I should be asking you that question—"

Why be loyal? Number Five, what is the reason for your loyalty?

Seeing the look of astonishment on Russ's face, [Macado] gave a wry smile and did not want to say anything more. Among the Emperor's many sons, he favored Russ the most, but he did not expect that Russ would blindly trust the Emperor.

"Sleep well,"

"[Macado]" said, turning to leave. Russ felt a sudden, overwhelming drowsiness wash over him; his eyelids began to crease and tremble.

"After tomorrow... you will understand that I am saving you."

The door was opened gently and then closed again.

Only the two little ones who had fallen asleep were left inside.

................................................

Magnus shivered, his eyes glazed over, feeling a chill run through him. He stared at the wine in his glass, his crimson face reflected in the blue liquid, where one eye was gone forever.

He remembered part of it.

[Killiman] and [Motalian] had been gone for a while, and with the addition of the warm-up king [Angron], the entire main hall was filled with laughter and joy. The best of each legion had also entered, but now [Magnus] was becoming indifferent.

He chose a dimly lit corner, frowning as he pondered what had happened. Cold sweat trickled down his forehead, but among the Primarchs who were laughing and discussing loudly, it seemed that only [Fogan] noticed [Magnus]'s odd behavior, while [Angron] continued his lively conversation with [Sanguielles].

[Are you alright, Magnus?]

While [Angron] and [Saint Gilles] were talking to the same Emperor's Son, [Fogan] frowned and asked [Magnus] in a low voice. At this moment, the Crimson Primarch's face was pale and ugly.

But for some reason, [Angron] and [Sanguielles] seemed not to see it at all. Were they Primarchs like this before? [Fogan] frowned deeply, and he began to look forward to [Fenus] arriving here soon.

[I...remembered something from the past.]

Magnus chuckled.

There are too many people, I'm going outside to get some fresh air.