How can a retired savior be considered retired if he drops to 40,000?

She didn't think about it at all, and naturally understood where this anger came from: a girl in the city who was suspected of being able to trigger a holy miracle was enough to worry her, and now there was an inquisitor outside the city who claimed that he could communicate with the Emperor? Fujimaru Ritsuka could understand this feeling very well. One wave of troubles had not yet subsided when another wave of troubles arose. She would be annoyed too.

But this anger was quickly suppressed and eliminated when Sister Iolanth saw Fujimaru Ritsuka himself. The latter was temporarily unable to think, so she could not tell whether the "elimination" at this moment was due to the Sky Eagle Scepter, because of her age, or because the nun felt some energy field that was indeed diffused throughout the city. However, she could still tell that the other party's anger did not disappear out of thin air, but was suppressed for some reason.

"My name is Fujimaru Ritsuka." She briefly thought about the wording, but finally chose to give up all the descriptive words and just said, "I know you are skeptical about everything I say, and I also understand that you need to be cautious during special times. So... well, let's do it this way."

She gently paused the Skyhawk Scepter in her hand, and an invisible but warm breeze blew through the completely sealed room due to epidemic prevention requirements. At this moment, Iolanth did not use her senses to confirm any actual changes in the material world, but she immediately knew from the depths of her soul that she had never been as close to the Emperor as she was now.

"——What? What did you do?" The nun drew out the bolter from her waist in panic, aiming at the girl who wanted to deceive her with witchcraft after a disagreement. Her muzzle was instantly in place with the muscle reflex accumulated from repeating the same action tens of millions of times in the past, but when she moved her arm, she realized that the state religion pendant on her chest was glowing faintly.

"Don't be too nervous. Everyone knows that Chaos' tricks cannot leave any effect on the Emperor's symbol. Even if it is corrupted, that is after the symbol itself is destroyed." Fujimaru Ritsuka's expression was still very natural, as if he was not pointed at by a gun, or he was fully confident that the gun in front of him could not hurt him. "Just think of it as a reward for your many years of service and devout faith. The pendant is now a holy object."

Iolanthe instinctively grabbed the pendant on her chest in confusion. A warmth that was different from the past and seemed to reach her heart was transmitted to her heart through her gauntlet in a way that was totally against the laws of physics. Her reason told her to continue to question the other party cautiously, but the trembling joy could not be stopped from surging from the depths of her soul, making her stand there for a while, caught between two thoughts, not knowing what to do.

"I know this is hard to understand at the moment, but the Emperor is indeed watching - otherwise I would not be able to turn an ordinary force field amulet into a holy object." Fujimaru Ritsuka paused and began to doubt himself again, "...Is the order wrong? I think I should show you the identification code first...?"

Unfortunately, the senior nun could hardly listen to anything at this time. She put down the gun in her hand under the last bit of safety awareness. Her face was almost as red as her armor because of excitement, and her breathing became heavy: "You-what did you say? The Emperor-"

"..." Fujimaru Ritsuka sighed, "Yes, yes, sister, the Emperor is watching Parmenio."

She knew it would turn out like this. But it was more acceptable than the two sides questioning and arguing meaninglessly in an empty room for more than three hours.

The shaky Sister Iolanthe screamed in excitement and looked like she was about to faint. This unusual sound attracted the other two sisters guarding the door and broke in with guns. Under extreme vigilance, they only saw their commander crying with joy and randomly reciting prayers from the "Sacred Word". The other girl in the room holding the Sky Eagle Staff looked embarrassed, helpless, tired, and guilty.

"I didn't mean to do that!" Fujimaru Ritsuka explained randomly, "I, I didn't expect her to cry..."

Lanmarok, who was also standing guard at the door, looked calm on the surface, but in fact he refused to get involved in this mess. He had indeed learned about the customs of the Empire of this era from the howling of his cousins ​​in the Iron Hands when facing the Primarch, but every time he saw the corresponding scene, it would bring a new shock experience to his heart that believed in the truth of the Empire.

In short, after five minutes of chaos, the emotions of the senior nuns of Iolan finally stabilized and they could communicate normally. On the contrary, the other two younger nuns were in a state of mental agitation. It can be imagined that the excitement brought by this religion will soon spread throughout the city in the form of passing the parcel... Fujimaru Ritsuka sighed and said that she would talk about it later. After all, she was not the archon.

"The Emperor has chosen a girl in this city who must have performed miracles in the city." She tried to bring the topic back to the direction she needed. "I believe this girl is currently under the protection of the Sisters of Battle. I must see her no matter what, the sooner the better."

"That's right. But - God, what have we done..." Sister Iolansi recalled something while speaking, and the blood color on her face quickly faded, turning into an unhealthy pale color, and she fell into a desperate anxiety for a short time. But perhaps because she had experienced a round of emotional shock, this time, she could at least express her meaning clearly while being anxious:

"That girl - that girl is being tested! But she is pure, and the Emperor has indeed chosen her! Tell them to stop - no, I will tell them to stop myself!"

The senior nun was so flustered that she forgot all manners and etiquette, leaving everyone behind and rushing out of the room like a whirlwind. The two young nuns who didn't have a clear understanding of the current situation stayed where they were in panic and confusion caused by their superior, while Fujimaru Ritsuka just looked at Iolanse's back as she left and sighed softly.

That sigh contained fatigue, helplessness, sadness, and a little anger that was well hidden.

Meow (no more).

Question: This Sister Iolanthe actually has a model, is she an important character?

A: No, I just wrote it on the black picture. I think this hairstyle is very weird and very 40K popular fashion, so I hope everyone can appreciate it together.

And it’s no use saying that I’m short. Five thousand a day is the limit for working people, and it can’t be longer (peaceful).

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 81 No One Made the Wrong Choice

The so-called "tests" imposed on possible heretics in the Empire are actually a torture ritual.

The purpose of this ritual is to push the subjects to their limits, even to the brink of death, through long-term, extreme physical and mental oppression. This behavior will undoubtedly greatly stimulate the subjects' instinct for survival, and they will use all their strength to struggle under the urging of their instincts. If the subjects are tainted with heresy in any sense, they will always be exposed in this process.

——Of course, it is not uncommon for subjects who need to be tested for purity to die in the process. The Imperials would view such things in this way: at least we have proved that this person is still pure when he dies.

No one can say that this is a merciful act, and even the imperial people themselves would admit that the process was quite cruel. In the world where Fujimaru Ritsuka used to live, this behavior would undoubtedly be labeled as extreme, stupid, ignorant, crazy, disregarding human rights, and even anti-human, and then be attacked by all walks of life.

Fujimaru Ritsuka thought the same thing, but she said nothing.

This behavior is indeed extreme, stupid, ignorant, crazy, disregards human rights, and is anti-human. But in this galaxy torn apart by the Great Rift, in this universe where the flames of war never cease, in this current situation where malicious eyes and hands behind the curtain are always ready to grab human souls, it is this behavior that supports the survival of the entire human race:

Among the people who have gone through the torture of the test, perhaps only one in a thousand is a true heretic, but if this one true heretic is missed, the loss may very well be billions of lives on the entire planet. It is better to kill a thousand by mistake than to let one go. This overly extreme measure, under the overly extreme consequences, naturally gave rise to the rationality and correctness of its existence.

Because of this correctness, Fujimaru Ritsuka said nothing. Sister Iolanthe was not wrong.

This was not only a city with a large population, but also an important fulcrum of the war zone on the front line. When it was impossible to tell whether the girl was performing a true miracle or a heretical trick, Iolanthe first thing to consider was her responsibility - the safety of the entire city, rather than what would happen to a single young girl who might be innocent or guilty.

If she were in his shoes, Fujimaru Ritsuka would not be able to make a more correct decision than this one. So she said nothing.

She followed the sisters of the nunnery through the streets that were noisy with reconstruction work, and moved quickly towards the target facility. Lanmaroc and his tactical team caused excited shouts and whispers among the workers around them, although there was a little confusion mixed in, but it was harmless.

For the common people of Ultramar, Space Marines are not just a distant legend. Since the Great Crusade, the Ultramarines and their various successor groups have been responsible for ruling and planning in this area for a long time, until today, thousands of years later.

The majestic figures and gorgeous armor of the Angels of Death were often seen by civilians in various forms of broadcasts; the trust between the Space Marines and the people was also strong during the long-term rule of the Ultramarines. This diluted the tension that the people in this area might have when seeing the fully armed humanoid war machines, and also caused the ups and downs of cheers on the roadside to make Lanmalok and his warriors feel uncomfortable.

Not that they hadn't enjoyed this kind of treatment before, but this wasn't Caliban.

Even if the warriors who came here were not the blue and white warriors that the locals were more familiar with, the fact that the Emperor's angels appeared here was unquestionable. Even if the parties did not look away and just hurriedly passed by the crowd, this fact would be interpreted and spread by the civilians who witnessed it, and they would be excited or depressed by the correct or incorrect conclusions they drew.

Morale is particularly important in a war zone, so this is also an issue that needs to be dealt with as soon as possible, but Fujimaru Ritsuka doesn't want to think about it for the time being. She just mechanically follows the direction of the nuns until the headquarters of the Battle Sisters becomes conspicuous among the ruins and roughly rebuilt facilities, and the entire team steps into the gate decorated with a skull symbolizing purity and a noble eagle.

Sister Iolanthe, who had arrived earlier, was standing across the hall again, carefully holding "the girl" who had been the center of conversation. Parmenio's gradually sinking sunlight shone through the broken windows of the building, and the tiny orange-red spots of light refracted through the glass fragments and fell on the ground in the center of the hall, like a fire pit sunk into the ground.

"She's here, sir. This is the girl." The senior sister spoke softly as she slowly walked forward, as if she was afraid that her voice would destroy such a sacred atmosphere.

"Thank you, Sister Iolanthe. I know she's obviously not in good health right now, but please let her try and see if she can stand up on her own now."

There was a hint of hidden sadness in Fujimaru Ritsuka's voice, but when everyone's attention was focused on the girl in the arms of the senior nun, no one noticed this sadness.

Ranmalock had originally wondered in his mind why a man of Fujimaru Ritsuka's age could call another person "girl" without any discomfort, but when he saw the real person, he immediately realized that the word was just a description of objective facts.

The girl was also obviously underage. She had brown hair and eyes, and fair skin, which seemed to be common among the Parmenians. At this moment, she seemed to be pale due to the torture she had just suffered, and there were bright red and hideous scars on her exposed body, all of which made her extremely weak. Judging from her appearance alone, she was obviously about the same age as Fujimaru Ritsuka, but the latter often had a certain temperament that she did not have now. The slight uneasiness and confusion she naturally revealed in the current situation also made her look younger.

She was wearing only a thin white dress, the fabric was stained with red spots from her own blood, and she didn't even have shoes. Lanmalok didn't think that Fujimaru Ritsuka gave the right instructions at this time, but the girl still tried hard to stretch her limbs again with the help of Iolanth, so that her bare feet could support her weight again. This process was very distressing to others, but after a few seconds, she succeeded shakily. The girl staggered forward, stumbling, until Fujimaru Ritsuka came forward and reached out his hand to her, and she also reached out her hand -

The two hands clasped together under the orange-red sunset of Parmenio's evening. Under the scattered light spots, everyone seemed to hear the faint hymns coming from the sky. In this sacred scene, everyone unconsciously held their breath and concentrated, and the wound on the girl's body caused by the so-called "test" healed and disappeared quickly in two breaths, as if rewinding, without even leaving a scar.

Amid the rising joy of the crowd who had witnessed a miracle with their own eyes, the girl stammered:

"...Sister." She addressed Fujimaru Ritsuka like that, earning a helpless smile from the latter.

"Did 'he' tell you to call me that?"

The girl didn't say anything, but nodded blankly and ignorantly. She stared at the surrounding scene for a while, as if she was not looking at anything, but was simply immersed in her inner thoughts. Fujimaru Ritsuka let it all go, and just continued to hold the girl's hand, which had become cold due to blood loss, until she sorted out her thoughts and asked again:

"The test didn't end," she asked unexpectedly, "was it because I did something wrong?"

"No, it's just to test whether you have been deceived by heresy." Fujimaru Ritsuka answered as calmly as possible, "After I proved your purity with my own authority, it is no longer necessary. Continuing is just a meaningless torture."

This may sound irrational, but Fujimaru Ritsuka understands why the girl would ask this question. For an ant, there is almost no difference between a brick wall and a concrete wall in front of it. The same is true for tiny humans. When facing an overly large existence, most people cannot clearly recognize what they are facing. She did trigger the Holy Miracle under the guidance of the Emperor, but how could she know that it was really the Emperor who led her?

Protecting herself from unnecessary torture was certainly the right thing to do, but for the girl herself, it was more correct to ensure that she would not hurt others in the future because of her sudden differences. When the nuns told her that there was a way to find out what was going on, she would certainly agree eagerly, even though she already knew what was waiting for her - in terms of proving her purity, she might be more eager than Sister Iolanth.

Ritsuka Fujimaru knew all of this, so she didn't say anything.

"…But I didn't pass the test." The girl seemed to be a little obsessed with this, while Fujimaru Ritsuka just sighed helplessly.

"Don't take it too seriously," she said, but she was not trying to prove to the girl once again that she was pure. "From the moment you were chosen by the Emperor, you had no other choice. In the future, you will encounter things that are a hundred, a thousand, or even ten thousand times more painful than this test. It is better to save your strength from now on so that you can face those things in the future."

"What?" The girl looked at her blankly.

She was taller than Fujimaru Ritsuka, had a bigger frame, and looked stronger, but at this point, she was just... a girl.

"You have been chosen by the Emperor," said Fujimaru Ritsuka, "You don't understand what this means yet."

"I... I know. 'He' told me." The girl answered timidly, "'He' said it would be painful, and that I would die. But 'He' also said that he would make my death meaningful."

Fujimaru Ritsuka sighed slowly and heavily.

She wanted to free him from this responsibility that did not belong to her, and wanted her to go home and reunite with her parents: before being chosen, she and her parents were hiding in a basement in the city.

It is of course correct to reunite lost relatives, to allow lives that would otherwise die miserably to live freely, and to allow lives that would otherwise stagnate to continue in happiness, but -

"Lan Malok." Fujimaru Ritsuka said coldly, "I need you to bring people to cooperate with Sister Iolanthe to investigate and destroy and blur the background of this girl. Make up some incorrect statements to blur the real things. Tell her parents that their daughter is going to devote herself to a greater cause, so they will never see her again. Ask them to move or use some means to cleanse their memories, but don't kill them. I do this to blur the source of her existence in mysticism, and the blood of blood relatives will easily make this matter flawed."

Under the girl's shocked gaze, Fujimaru Ritsuka let go of her hand, leaving her alone under the warm light.

She is also using a greater right to murder a smaller right.

No one made the wrong choice.

Mi (six o'clock)

No more changes, just put it on!

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 82 Pretend there is a title here

The next thing that was ordered to be disposed of was all the blood left by the girl during the torture.

When the person was placed in the temporary infirmary at the Battle Sisters' headquarters and confirmed that Asclepius would conduct an in-depth examination on her, all the places she had passed through and all the objects she had touched before - the torture chamber, the interrogation room, the tables and chairs, and even Sister Iolanthe's armor, were quickly cleaned with strong detergents in an almost destructive manner. As for the torture instruments that were inevitably stained with blood and difficult to clean thoroughly due to their own shapes, they were directly thrown into the incinerator and melted into a pile of debris by the high temperature generated by the plasma reaction.

Fujimaru Ritsuka had no doubt that if the people here were given a chance, they would definitely worship those blood-stained torture instruments as symbols of the saint's suffering. At this time, she finally began to be relieved that the authority she held was too high - even if she still believed that she was unworthy of the position, she could still use this (and the emperor's name) to easily make the nuns completely and uncompromisingly execute this order that they were not very willing to do.

Then, she contacted the Lion's Mane during this short period of time and confirmed that the current situation was neither good nor bad. She was just waiting for the process of internal intelligence transmission within the Imperial Fleet. Then she sighed with mixed feelings.

"Any questions?" Because Lanmarok took his Fire Wings to deal with intelligence issues, the one who asked this question beside Fujimaru Ritsuka was the Captain of the Terror Wing, Zaentik Aphpa, a Terran who had fought in the Randan War and made great contributions. He was undoubtedly a reliable commander. It was obviously a waste of talent for him to lead a tactical team of only ten people. However, times have changed. In this situation ten thousand years later, he could only get Fujimaru Ritsuka's worried, hesitant, and slightly uneasy look of distrust.

"Captain Aphrodite, I have no doubt about your professional ability, but we should first make it clear that the situation is different from before." She did not answer the other party's question, but started to talk about other things. "All our defense forces now are not well-trained Space Marines, but a group of Astra Militarum who have inevitably felt fatigued in the protracted war. Moreover, their armored forces have been almost consumed in the previous tug-of-war."

The captain did not take off his helmet, but even so, his surprise was clearly conveyed even without words. He did not speak, but he had obviously guessed what order Fujimaru Ritsuka would give next.

"It is reasonable for us to defend this city," she said. "I believe that tomorrow or the day after tomorrow, we will be able to officially airdrop reinforcements from the Lion's Mane, and then things will become simple. But before that, we can only mobilize 20 Dark Angels warriors, two troop transports, and the local garrison force - we will definitely get a traffic ticket from the Regent, and if we lose the city again, things will be really serious."

Fujimaru Ritsuka's statement did not mention any specific missions, which actually left the other party some room for refusal. As long as Captain Aphrodite did not want to lead a bunch of mortals to fight this mess, he could pretend not to understand and let the local garrison fend for themselves - unfortunately, he did have some inappropriate self-esteem that made him not want to command those soldiers who he considered unqualified, but his self-esteem did not allow him to watch the front that originally belonged to the empire being lost in vain.

"I understand." He agreed with great reluctance. "I will communicate with the defenders here to see if there are any areas that need to be filled, rebuilt or relocated, and coordinate this defense battle."

"…You are sure you understand that this is a defensive battle, right?"

"Of course I know!"

Captain Afupa said angrily, and then stormed off. He took his entire tactical team with him, so now Fujimaru Ritsuka was left with only the Fire Wing warrior left by Ranmalok as a security guard.

After all this trouble, Parmenio's sun sank into the horizon. As night fell, Fujimaru Ritsuka finally got some time to rest. She and her bodyguards quietly ran into the temporary infirmary, intending to get a bed or a chair here. Unfortunately, while she was still looking for a suitable target, Asclepius, who had completed the examination, appeared.

"Her condition is not good." The veritable "God of Medicine" said straight to the point, "Psychic energy healed her superficial wounds, but it was only 'superficial'. I temporarily blocked her psychic energy, but this is only a stopgap measure to stop the situation from getting worse. It doesn't matter if it stays like this for a week or so, but no matter what, I will need the equipment and resources on the Storm's Edge within a week."

——The Emperor's psychic energy is very violent. Even if the person on the throne intends to control it, and the little girl happens to have the right qualifications, it is not something that a mere mortal can endure for a long time. The girl herself has no experience in such things. As a "bottle" that receives psychic energy, she doesn't know how to turn off the often-open "high-pressure faucet", and she doesn't know how to reasonably discharge the excess psychic energy. In the long run, the final result will only be that the bottle as a container will be broken by the excessive pressure.

In the current situation, Asclepius turned off the tap for her when the bottle just started to crack. Although it would be fine for the time being, the cracks that had already appeared still had to be repaired.

"I understand. I will arrange it as soon as possible according to the situation." Fujimaru Ritsuka nodded tiredly. "If everything goes well, we will send the ship down tomorrow or the day after tomorrow. If not, we will use teleportation to return to the Lion's Mane."

Asclepius nodded, then looked at her quietly for a while - he did not leave to do other things, nor did he urge Fujimaru Ritsuka, who was on the verge of overwork, to rest quickly. He just stayed there quietly, and the scene they were in was even a medical clinic.

For someone like Asclepius, who is a bit of a workaholic in his job that he loves to the point of obsession, this is really... not right. Therefore, Fujimaru Ritsuka asked in confusion: "What's wrong? This doesn't seem like you?"

"I'll return your words." Asclepius snorted in his usual ruthless manner, "I didn't expect you to say such words in front of that child."

"I didn't expect you to care about the patient's psychological problems." Fujimaru Ritsuka teased before adding, "She has no choice. Sooner or later, she will know what she is going through. In this case, I think it is better to tell her clearly from the beginning rather than hiding it. Besides, saving the world is not an easy job - not being able to see your parents again in the future is just the most insignificant thing."

Asclepius paused for a moment and asked, "Is this based on experience?"

"I speak from experience." Fujimaru Ritsuka forced a smile and changed the subject she didn't want to talk about any more. "By the way, how do you feel? You've been a little too quiet along the way. Nothing happened, right?"

"…Am I not quiet enough?"

"Two different things. We landed in a position blessed by the God of Plague, and I had prepared a plan to grab you if you wanted to run deeper. With so many 'new cases' around, you really behaved too calmly. You didn't even talk much along the way, not even to yourself."

"…The scene brought back memories." Asclepius was silent for a while, then suddenly asked, "Did I look like that when I was in the Indian Lostbelt?"

——This is about how when he was one of the "Guardian Gods", he used the power of the underworld god Yama to summon the dead as soldiers, and used the power of the water god Varuna to continuously strengthen and heal the holy beasts in front of Chaldea.

As the person being blocked, Fujimaru Ritsuka just shrugged his shoulders and said, "It's obviously different, right? At least the battlefield was clean back then."

"Tsk, don't try to fool me with such words." Asclepius, who has spent his life developing medical skills and maintaining "human dignity" in the hope that one day "excellent people will not die in vain because of the anger of the gods," said angrily, "Although there are only records, I can probably guess what I was thinking at that time."

"Then just take it as a lesson from past failures," said Fujimaru Ritsuka in a relaxed tone, "and I'm here too. If your research goes astray again due to some weird thing this time, I, as your sponsor, will be the first one to punch you in the face."

“There has to be a limit to arrogance,” Asclepius chuckled behind his beaked mask. “You’ve got a *Greek swear* universe to drag behind you, and you still think you have the time to care about other people’s mental health? I’m a doctor myself, so you don’t have to worry about it. Now find a bed and sleep while I study the samples I collected nearby.”

He left with these indifferent words, but the long snake floating in the air pushed Fujimaru Ritsuka towards an empty bed that had been reserved before.

Meow meow meow (gone and shriveled)

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 83 We brought it with DA's ship

Somni walked quietly along the wide and luxurious corridors of Macragge's Glory.

Six hours and forty minutes after the Lion's Mane appeared out of nowhere in the orbit of Parmenio Prime, the relevant instructions were finally delivered from the desk of the Imperial Regent. As one of the representatives of this "out of nowhere" force, he was personally summoned by the Regent himself.