The Emperor’s Angel of Death

Hearing Sablin's unique way of handling cases, Soshiyang couldn't help but burst into hearty laughter.

"Hahaha! I didn't even think of that. Sablin must have noticed that the woman wasn't injured. How could a drunken man subdue a strong, young woman with his bare hands without using violence? If it were coercion, there should be a weapon. Since none of these exist, it can only prove that the woman is lying!"

"That's right, Sablin solved the case that way and saved a young man."

"Yes, I also admire this warrior in the Eleventh Company. He's brave, resourceful, calm, and capable. Even Sevatar speaks highly of him, saying he's like himself when he was young."

As he spoke, Soshiyang opened his eyes and said thoughtfully:

"So, I often say that gene-seed doesn't determine everything."

While he was speaking, the plump, rosy fruit kept swaying in front of his eyes. After a moment of silence, he suddenly opened his mouth and gently held the sweet bud.

"Mmm~"

Viletz, who was massaging his forehead, suddenly groaned, and almost fell on Soshiyang's face as her shoulders trembled.

"…You're so old, and yet… um… why are you still like a child…"

After the blanket was lifted, Soshiyang embraced Viletz's shoulders, gently flipped over, and supported himself on the bed with his hands, assuming the posture of a huge predator that had hunted down a petite prey.

"Your Highness, no matter what reason the enemy launched the attack, Swordwind has vowed revenge. The seers have determined through divination that the first attackers came from the Imperium of Man."

Inside the Phoenix Palace, Beytan's War-Captain Aroyk Sunspear, clad in military attire, passionately expressed his desire for revenge.

Soshiyang knew that the "Swordwind" he was referring to was Beytan. Sitting on the throne, he simply replied calmly:

"I also feel sorry for the soldiers and civilians of Beytan who sacrificed themselves, but it is unwise and arbitrary to start a war based solely on the prophecies of the seers, and many tragedies have already occurred because of this."

"Then, can Your Highness tell Beytan who attacked us?"

"War-Captain Aroyk."

Doral, standing on the first step to Soshiyang's right, immediately reprimanded:

"Do you know who you are talking to? Please remember the etiquette that your ancient family taught you, and do not say such presumptuous words again."

"I am just seeking an answer, otherwise Beytan would have already begun his revenge!"

The War-Captain's tone was very firm. Not only did even Starbane frown, but Duran, who was holding a halberd beside the throne, also narrowed his eyes. Doral was about to reprimand him, but Soshiyang raised his hand to stop Doral from speaking, and then said slowly:

"I will send people to investigate. Please believe me, I value this matter more than any seer in Beytan, because on the surface they are attacking Beytan, but in reality, they are targeting the Royal Court, or rather… targeting me. I am absolutely convinced of this. Therefore, when considering this matter, let us first put aside the prophecies of the seers and analyze it from reason and logic. What power does the Imperium have to do this? Your side should have records of all the Astartes Chapters and Craftworlds. It is impossible for there to be any unknown Chapters. I have also seen the images of those attackers. They were wearing old-fashioned power armor that the Imperium of Man has long since淘汰d. The history of this power armor can even be traced back to the early days of the Great Crusade, and it has been modified a lot. It does not belong to the current identifiable equipment of the Imperium of Man. This situation often occurs among the rebels in the Eye of Terror."

"The seers deny the possibility that the first attackers were related to the Great Enemy. Do you think the Beytan Seer Council is wrong?"

"I didn't say that, but all my judgments are based on logic and interests. No one would do something that is not worth the effort, even the Imperium, which extremely hates non-human races, will make trade-offs in key actions."

"Then, what other possibilities are there?"

"Regarding this, I currently have some clues. In the distant and dark Ghoul Stars, there seems to be a renegade legion that defected from the Imperium of Man ten thousand years ago, but did not embrace Chaos. Their characteristics are most consistent with the attackers."

Hearing this, Aroyk Sunspear's sword-like, sharp eyes widened slightly.

"If that's the case, then they are the most suspicious. We will immediately—"

"War-Captain Aroyk, please do not be impatient. The Ghoul Stars are a dangerous and dark place, and are filled with many violent warp phenomena. Rash actions will only be counterproductive. Since the Royal Court is the suzerain of Beytan, then it should be responsible for the safety of Beytan. Having just experienced a series of great battles, the Craftworld needs to recuperate the most. The investigation of that renegade legion in the Ghoul Stars will be handled by the Royal Court. I will give Swordwind a satisfactory reply as soon as possible. And during this period, my only request is that Swordwind not act rashly and break the fragile balance of the galaxy at this time, which is not beneficial to any party."

Aroyk Sunspear was silent for a moment, then nodded.

"I will convey your meaning to the Seer Council."

As soon as Aroyk Sunspear left the hall, another group of people walked in. They were wearing spiky, jet-black armor, led by a Deggura of the Haemonculi coven with a respectful, even obsequious expression. Each of the five Haemonculi warriors held a chain, and at the other end of the chain were the necks of five handcuffed giants. Soshiyang knew these chains, called neural-restraint chains. Once they were handcuffed, they could control the target's limbs. Moreover, these people had bald heads with black headbands, which were also torture devices used by the Gomorranians to restrict psychic powers.

These five people were almost stripped naked, leaving only a pair of rough cloth trousers. There were traces of neural interfaces on their bodies, proving that they were all Astartes. At the same time, their torsos and limbs were tattooed with dense text, and their backs were tattooed with an image of a four-headed, eight-armed demon with dark skin, treading on mountains of corpses and seas of blood.

"Your humble servant Kharon, greets Your Highness. May you live ten thousand years and be ever victorious!"

Kharon then knelt on the ground and performed an extremely nauseating kowtow to Soshiyang.

"Rise, what gifts have you brought me?"

"Your Highness, you see, these are the five so-called Phantom Warriors that we caught from the Screaming Vortex. We originally wanted to catch a dozen, but the people below were a little heavy-handed, so only these five tongues survived."

Then, Kharon pointed his finger down and scolded:

"Base apes, Chaos dogs, why don't you kneel down when you see the great Phoenix King!"

Although these warriors of the Second Legion gritted their teeth one by one, trying to resist the neural-restraint chains, their uncontrollable limbs eventually made them reluctantly kneel on the ground one after another.