Chapter 320: Let Us Wait and See
"Now I understand," Perturabo said.
"You have always been a soldier. I admit, you are a good soldier. You want to reclaim your honor as a warrior, to prove your identity—not as trash marinated in the warp, not as a slave, but as an Astartes."
"I have always been," Khârn replied.
"I disdain lies. I yearn to write this history, to carve our names into this war with sword and fire, just as we did in the Great Crusade. To go to war as pure warriors. We do not care about the outcome; we only ask that the Legion participate in this great campaign, even if what greets us is destruction."
"That is why I am here, and why I ask you to conspire with me."
The Regent of the World Eaters shouted his response.
"If you choose to retreat, then I will leave."
"If you choose to attack, you won't even see the plating of their hulls," Khârn said, his neck stiff as he stared down Perturabo. "We have no better opportunity than now, my lord."
Undoubtedly, he was questioning the Primarch.
Yes, they would have no better opportunity.
Perturabo did not believe he could unify the remaining Chaos forces through force in the time to come, nor did he believe his brothers, who were gradually controlling the Veiled Region, would sit idly by.
Their opponents would only grow stronger. If there was a moment when they were most vulnerable, it was now.
But only one person dared to say it.
Perturabo's gaze swept over the silent Forrix and Falk.
If only Dantioch were here, Perturabo thought.
"Yes, there is no better opportunity than now."
The Iron Lord's voice calmed down again.
He now held Abaddon in somewhat higher regard; the title of Warmaster of Chaos seemed to carry some weight after all.
"You understand, I understand, even They understand."
He reached out and patted Khârn on the shoulder.
"That is precisely why we need to retreat even more."
It wasn't time yet.
Looking at the star-chart where only the Iron Warriors were exerting effort, the figure who had regained his calm sneered and shook his head.
It was too early to go all-in. There were more pieces on the board to move.
"You mean..."
Khârn realized, finally catching up with the Primarch's train of thought.
"Yes."
Perturabo's response was brief and forceful.
After anger came the necessary strategy. He indeed hated the uselessness of these followers of the Four Gods, but he also knew how to use the greed of the Four Gods to achieve his own ends.
"This concerns the two of us. This is the achievement we both crave. Forget our opponent's genius strategy, forget the loyalist reinforcements. Time is our ally and their greatest enemy. It will weaken and erode the lives and patience of your brothers."
"Gather your troops. Ensure you suffer no losses as much as possible."
Then, the Iron Lord Perturabo did something more terrifying than any Warsmith had ever seen before.
He smiled.
"Let us wait and see."
7th Day, 12th Month, 773.M41 – The Cadian Gate
With the deployment of the Indomitus Line led by Romulus, fleets arriving from various sectors began to weigh anchor and set sail for pre-planned strategic objectives.
Among them, the fleet from the Calixis Sector, destined to be plagued by misfortune, had just completed its final maintenance at the Forge World of Agrippina.
Disaster arrived on schedule at the Mandeville Point.
The plasma core of a newly commissioned Retribution-class battleship suddenly underwent a chain reaction. The explosion tore a massive warp rift at the Mandeville Point.
This explosion not only caused a warp storm that destroyed five warships but also severely damaged twenty-three accompanying vessels.
Furthermore, a company of Space Marines from the Knights of the Ravine, secured by the Rogue Traders, fifteen Astra Militarum infantry regiments, and the war machines of two Knight Houses suffered considerable losses.
Initial investigation reports indicated this was an accident caused by a change in orders. The Calixis Sector believed it was a detection error by the Forge World of Agrippina, while Agrippina offered a dissenting opinion, claiming it was an operational error by the Imperial Navy itself, given that the two fleets they had delivered previously to the Primarch were intact.
But Inquisitor Aglaia Hesiod, after leading an investigation team to board the wreckage, offered a different opinion.
"This is likely deliberate sabotage caused by Chaos elements."
Inside the Dawnlight, an Emperor-class battleship, the Inquisitor walked down a corridor, accompanied by a kill-team composed of Titus of the Ultramarines, Belial of the Dark Angels, and Gabriel Seth of the Flesh Tearers. She was constantly communicating with the accompanying Grey Knight Justicar, Hyperion.
"In their investigation of the core area, the Grey Knights squad glimpsed traces left by a Khornate daemon known as Samus. It first appeared during the Horus Heresy, claiming to be the daemon that appeared when the first murder weapon in the universe was created."
Hyperion submitted his investigation materials. The elite Grey Knight had completed his task early.
The Inquisitor lowered her head, constantly verifying the information on it.
"I believe..."
Aglaia's boot suddenly hovered in mid-air, as if hitting an invisible wall.
Realizing the psychic block in her mind had failed, she immediately fell silent.
A unit of Untouchables blocked the team's path.
"My lady, please halt."
The lead Sister of Silence extended a hand pale as a corpse, a gene-scanner embedded in her palm.
Aglaia silently removed her gauntlet, revealing a forearm with bulging veins.
Her entourage, including the Astartes, two Battle Sisters, and a Mechanicus agent, all cooperated and extended their arms.
As the needle pierced her vein, the Inquisitor stared at the pristine, glorious bulkhead.
Preliminary investigation files had already been sent back. The fact that nearly half a strike fleet had been destroyed by an accident without even engaging the enemy had become the most concerning issue for the entire war headquarters.
Because Agrippina had previously been responsible for the production of two Retribution-class battleships, and these two ships had now been fulfilling their duties for a year, given the Mechanicus's rigor, it was almost impossible for technical hazards to appear in the Calixis Sector fleet due to maintenance.
This incident not only attracted the attention of the Dawnbreakers but the potential signal contained within was also keenly captured by two officers responsible for the Primarch's security: Custodian Shield-Captain Marcus Achallor and Victrix Guard Commander Drakus.
Although the reappearance of the Primarchs brought hope to the dark Imperium, as the war progressed, Romulus himself undoubtedly became the number one target in the entire galaxy.
Like a bonfire lit on a summer night in the grasslands, countless wolves, tigers, leopards, snakes, insects, rats, and ants all craved to devour Romulus's life.
And an accident with a warship's plasma reactor, combined with a chain explosion of the ammunition magazine and a sudden failure of the warp drive—this series of chain reactions was enough to send a demigod son of the Emperor to his grave.
Especially since Roboute Guilliman, who held the same position as Romulus, had frequently met with disaster in the past due to various assassinations and sudden attacks.
The Ultramarines Primarch naturally attracted hostility. Not only did his own side always think he was ambitious and untrustworthy, but the enemy also treated him as the most troublesome opponent and targeted him immediately.
Therefore, Commander Drakus, now responsible for the Primarch's security, had forced Romulus to stop holding large-scale offline fan meet-and-greets and had imposed a high-intensity lockdown on the entire Dawnlight.
Everything was to ensure the Primarch's safety.
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