Emperor's Bane

Chapter 609: Fulgrim is shocked
Fulgrim has always considered himself a modest and cautious person: he would never do anything stupid beyond his ability. Those things that seem incredible to the world are just less obvious "confidence" to him.

But only when he is sure that he can afford it, will he begin to seek spiritual satisfaction.

This was what happened decades ago when he led only eight descendants to [capture] a fully armed hostile planet.

At this moment, the act of brazenly confessing and snitching in front of so many brothers was also within his expectations: since such a thing could bring him more happiness and would not cause any irreversible consequences, why not do it?

This is what Phoenix thought. Not only was he looking forward to the moment of surprise on the faces of the several Primarch brothers present when they heard this "bomb", he was also looking forward to the good show that was to come: since their Gene-Father could go to great lengths to mobilize so many Primarchs and legions in order to set the stage for Horus, then why couldn't he, Fulgrim, have some fun with it?

The Emperor would certainly not punish him for such trivial matters. On the contrary, Horus should thank him for tipping him off. As for the brothers around him, Phoenix did not think they would be angry: he was sure that the personalities of the people present were actually quite good. The only exception was Jonson, whom he was not afraid of.

To be honest, he was actually looking forward to fighting with the Calibanites in the arena, but he didn't know how many rounds this great knight, who was rumored to be famous for his superb swordsmanship, could survive under Fulgrim's attacks.

After all, when it comes to swordsmanship, Fulgrim considers himself to be the best among the Primarchs: Jonson's swordsmanship is superb but he has little actual combat experience to back it up, the same is true of Jaghatai Khan, Guilliman's swordfighting is just mediocre, and Horus, Angron, and Sanguinius are not focused on this.

As for Morgan's sword, it was indeed worthy of praise for its agility and moves, but its power was still too weak. In the eyes of masters like Fulgrim or Sanguinius, the Spider Queen's melee ability could only be described as [passing]: it was enough to fight with them for a while, but there was absolutely no possibility of winning.

Of course, everyone knows that the Spider Queen's ability lies not in close combat, but in the invisible power in the warp: Fulgrim can also comment on this point. After all, he has witnessed Morgan on the battlefield not long ago, and has also witnessed Magnus' performance in the war.

how to say?

Phoenix thought about it.

If he was facing Morgan, Fulgrim would have to find a way to lurk within a range of at least a thousand meters to be sure of threatening the life of the Spider Queen. If he was facing Magnus, he would have to consider how long it would take to end the battle.

That's a guy who wouldn't fail even on Leman Russ.

The thought made the Phoenix Lord smile, but the happiness in reality soon called him back: after hearing the strange noises coming from other locations, Fulgrim immediately looked around with anticipation, eager to see the expressions on the faces of his Primarch brothers.

But soon...

He was just disappointed.

"Bros?"

The Phoenix's face still maintained the same cunning look and arrogant smile as before. After he confessed his tip-off, Fulgrim deliberately remained silent for two or three seconds, allowing his brothers to digest the information, and then he looked at everyone's face leisurely.

According to the principle of eating sugar cane, start with the person with the lowest expectation.

So, Phoenix Dajun turned his attention to the Lord of Macragge.

"Guilliman, my brother?"

"……what?"

When the Phoenix saw him, Guilliman seemed to be thinking about something. Fulgrim's call brought him back to his senses. He was stunned for a moment, and then he realized the meaning of the Phoenix's words.

As expected, on that handsome face of Macragge, there was no change or shock that Fulgrim expected: after thoroughly digesting the contents of the Phoenix's words, Guilliman nodded rather seriously and asked a question impatiently.

"Did Horus reply to your letter, Brother Fulgrim? What did he say?"

Guilliman's stern manner made him ignore the frown on Fulgrim's brow.

"If he replies to your letter, please help me pay attention to whether he mentions the possibility of our two fronts launching a pincer attack or other coordinated operations. If Horus is interested, I think I may have to revise my original strategic plan. If the Wolf God does not mention this in his reply..."

Guilliman thought for a moment.

"Forget it. Just in case, I'll write a letter to Mulang myself..."

The Macragge was still sitting there talking, completely absorbed in his own logic, but Fulgrim had lost all interest in him and impatiently turned his gaze away, no longer looking at Guilliman who was talking to himself: this guy's verbal plan had already spread to the issue of material supplies after the two fronts merged.

Why hadn't he noticed before that this Macragge was so boring?

Fulgrim asked himself.

Guilliman's behavior is as if you punch him for no reason, or even punch him a few more times, he will not get angry: instead, he will look confused and sincerely ask you what on earth he made you angry about.

"Guilliman indeed."

Phoenix smiled, and while muttering, he took the opportunity to see Chagatai.

"What do you think, Chagatai?"

Fulgrim's gaze was like a boiling spark, cast towards the Great Khan, and what responded was a lake of cold water pouring down on his head.

The Khan stared at the Phoenix, and his gaze alone was enough to extinguish Fulgrim's newly-aroused interest once again: the Phoenix waited patiently for almost seven or eight seconds before it received a question from Chagatai.

"You have contacted Horus?"

"Of course, Chagatai, I am..."

"Did you tell him the details of the situation here?"

"……what?"

Phoenix was still in a daze, and Khan's words came at him like a barrage of artillery fire.

"The march route, which legions, where we have reached so far, the strength of the troops and the casualties, as well as the actual performance of the greenskins on the Eastern Front, and other things worth referring to: You didn't just tell Horus this insignificant little thing? Did you start a war just for this sentence?"

"Uh...I..."

The phoenix licked his lips. He was still organizing his words in his mind. Chagatai, who had already gotten the answer from his performance, shook his head: the Khan's disdainful attitude hurt Fulgrim's heart, and even the perfect smile on his face could not be maintained.

"Forget it, Phoenix, it's okay."

"I'd better write a letter to Horus in person after the meeting."

"He needs a little more solid advice."

"Sorry to bother you...Brother..."

Fulgrim's face flushed red, and his impulse almost made him draw his sword. Only the propriety in his heart restrained him. Just when the Phoenix stood there at a loss, the laughter that resolved the deadlock finally came: Morgan cleverly seized this opportunity and temporarily resolved the ruthless sword confrontation between the two blood brothers.

【Fulgrim.】

She took the initiative to speak.

"I'm here, sis."

Phoenix forced a smile, his flawless face hiding a hint of shame: the Spider Queen was of course also within the scope of Fulgrim's ridicule this time, although he vaguely realized that Morgan was the same person as himself, but precisely because of this, Phoenix wanted to see Morgan's loss of composure even more.

This feeling of victory will be extra sweet.

But unfortunately, the sweetness this time may belong to Morgan.

Morgan sat there, still holding the insignificant miniature star map. Fulgrim's earth-shattering words did not shake the Spider Queen's expression at all: since joining the Ullanor War, Morgan had become visibly less talkative, but her status had become increasingly obscure and transcendent.

She rarely spoke, but every time she spoke it was enough to change the situation.

This gesture always reminded Fulgrim of the one he had to address respectfully.

Including this time.

[You only told Horus? ]

"what?"

This was the third time Phoenix was stunned in one minute: he seemed to be the one being laughed at. [I mean.]

Morgan leaned back in her chair, casually questioning her brother.

[You should know that the Emperor is with Horus at this moment: For important news like the Eastern Front Legion's advance, you can just privately inform them before everyone makes a decision. After all, as the Primarch, you have such power, and you will all do so.]

Having said that, Morgan smacked his lips in annoyance as Khan glanced at him in silence.

[But when you informed Horus, you didn't inform the Emperor? ]

"I……"

Finally, a drop of cold sweat quietly flowed down from the ends of Fulgrim's silver hair.

[Forget it, it’s okay. ]

After staring at each other for two seconds, the Spider Queen sighed and waved her hand in the same way as Chagatai Khan, and showed disdain: But this time, Fulgrim sadly discovered that he didn't even have the strength to be angry.

And he also noticed that, unlike Khan's contempt, Morgan's actions revealed a feeling of exhaustion and indifference to the bad things happening in front of him.

[I'd better inform the Emperor in person after the meeting.]

These casual words immediately attracted the attention of the two Primarchs.

"You can communicate with the Emperor in real time?"

The Great Khan looked over, and Guilliman's gaze followed.

[In the subspace, it is still possible to slap his fat belly. ]

Morgan leaned back in his seat, tilted his head back, and muttered to himself. His voice was so weak that it sounded like he was talking to himself, but it plunged the entire room into an unprecedented silence.

"The Emperor..."

After a few seconds, it was Guilliman who spoke first, hesitantly.

He wiped the sweat off his face.

"Won't he be angry?"

【Ah, it's okay.】

Morgan smiled indifferently.

[I can tattoo an imperial double-headed eagle on my palm in advance, so he knows who means it this time.]

[Are you right, Phoenix? ]

"Cough cough..."

Fulgrim coughed twice: he didn't know what else to do.

Phoenix did not answer Morgan. Although Fulgrim was a man of fun, he was definitely not a fool, nor was he unable to have fun. After realizing that his self-entertainment seemed to have completely backfired, Phoenix had already put away his arrogance in time.

But on the other hand, there were some changes in his pupils when he looked at Morgan: the last person who made him feel this way was the kind-looking but cold-hearted Sanguinius, and Phoenix had also suffered several losses at the hands of the angels.

At this moment, a bold idea came into Fulgrim's mind.

Perhaps, he should find time to bring Sanguinius and Morgan over. The three of them should have a lot in common. If the three of them are willing to join forces on certain things, they will definitely be invincible, such as the Psychic Conference that everyone is looking forward to.

Even...Ullanor?

The joy of the future soon dispelled some of the haze in Phoenix's heart, and also reminded him of something he had previously overlooked: after quickly adjusting his inner state of mind, Fulgrim turned his expectant gaze to the last person present, his Caliban brother.

Jonson.

"Ah... Brother Jonson."

As soon as the Phoenix saw the Caliban people, he laughed with great joy.

Because Zhuang Sen's performance was the only one among the four that met his expectations.

It's Jonson indeed.

The lion was looking at them, concentrating on all of them, his emerald green eyes wide open, with obvious confusion and dullness in them, but also some emerging thoughts: Obviously, the Caliban people were thinking about the meaning of the Phoenix's words.

And obviously, the part of his brain responsible for this area does not seem to be sufficient to support such complex logical behavior.

It's not that he can't handle it, but it seems a bit difficult for Zhuang Sen now to digest so many words and meanings in such a short time: especially when his external brain keeps silent.

#Lion, Universe#

However, after Fulgrim observed with great patience for more than ten seconds, the Caliban man finally understood the meaning of the Phoenix's words bit by bit. The expected anger was only a momentary thing, but his next action revealed Zhuangsen's true thoughts.

After the other four Primarchs present had thought about it and even communicated with each other, Jonson suddenly realized and nodded.

He finally understood the first sentence Fulgrim said.

It’s as if I have figured out the supreme truth of the universe.

"Fulgrim: Have you told Horus everything that happened here?"

"Yes."

Phoenix nodded and silently placed his fingers on the hilt of the sword at his side.

"In other words, Horus already knows that the Eastern Front Legion will march to Ullanor under unified command?"

"of course."

This nonsense made Phoenix raise an eyebrow.

"That's it..."

Zhuang Sen nodded, lowered his head and thought for a few seconds. When everyone's eyes were focused on him, the Caliban man looked at the Phoenix very seriously: on that lion-like face, there was a rare look of expectation.

I am eager to try.

Fulgrim had seen such vicious anticipation only once before: the look on Perturabo's hardened face when he learned that his Iron Warriors would be sharing the battlefield with Dorn's Imperial Fists.

Unfortunately, Perturabo no longer has such an expression.

But Jonson still does.

Even extra happy: it was a joy and anticipation that came from the inside out.

"Well, did you tell him?"

"I am leading the Eastern Front?"

"..."

"what?"

(End of this chapter)