Emperor's Bane

Chapter 748: On the War Marshal

"Let me go back and work for you again?"

"And under threat?"

"As expected of you, Neos."

"You haven't changed at all: you're still such a jerk."

＋Thanks for the compliment. ＋
The innocent smile on the girl's fragile face was enough to soften the heart of even the hardest man: but as long as he thought of a monster called the Lord of Mankind lurking under this beautiful appearance, Orpesson couldn't help but want to run away.

But on the surface, he still had to snort confidently to cover up the hot sweat on his palms: Neos, who was leaning forward, was so close to him that he could not miss any subtle changes on the immortal's face.

Calm down, Olpersund.

The Immortal encouraged himself in his heart.

Don't look at his face, don't pay attention to those pupils and that smile: and don't fucking think about Cleopatra anymore! That's all in the past! It's all in the past! You have nothing to do with this bastard now!

Stay calm, you have lived with this damn guy for thousands of years, you know his mind and methods: don't succumb to his words because of a temporary threat, otherwise you will regret it later.

None of his promises can be trusted.

His words are equally unreliable.

He guarantees nothing: capriciousness is his motto.

and so……

＋So, Or, you really won't reconsider it? ＋
"no."

The Immortal had a stern face, and he straightened his back unconsciously, pressing his back tightly against the chair: the disgust and rejection hidden in his words were already obvious.

"Let me be frank with you: I no longer want to serve a tyrant whose mind is filled with conquest and power. Grand narratives are too heavy for me. If you are really interested, you should think about how to convince your sons."

"They are your minions, and they can bite you all over in return."

+You seem to have no confidence in me? +
"If I didn't know you, I would have some confidence in you."

"But alas, Apocalypse: there is no one in this galaxy who knows you better than I do."

"Check your conscience. In the tens of thousands of years since we met, your followers have changed one after another, and some of them broke up with you peacefully. You even forced Erda to leave. I can't imagine how much of a jerk you are now."

"That's Jalda, the most innocent and kindest of us all."

+People change, Or. +
When the name Erda was mentioned again, even the smile on the face of the Lord of Mankind could no longer be maintained: he did not try to argue for himself, but just shrank back his body somewhat dejectedly.

Before Orpersun could secretly breathe a sigh of relief for his own cleverness, he discovered that the Emperor did not actually sit down, but instead supported himself with his arms and simply climbed onto the table, then sat down on the edge of the table to Orpersun's right.

The ironed snow-white shirt was inevitably stained with oil because of this action, and wrinkles appeared on the black knee-length skirt, but the emperor didn't care about these things. He just swung his legs casually and knocked dusty marks on Orperson's favorite table with his leather shoes.

"..."

Where did he put the dagger he brought back from the Tower of Babel?

＋What a shame. ＋
Facing Orpesson's increasingly hostile and cold eyes, the Lord of Mankind continued to smile as if he was unaware, and even did not forget to extend a hand to his old friend, picking up the threat that had just been interrupted.

+ I thought you knew: as a member of the Avalon Auxiliary Army, you do have a considerable retirement savings, but if you want to receive it in full, the first condition is that you cannot leave any bad criminal records during your service. +
＋Not to mention, Miss Cyrene, who is about to graduate, will have a certificate of academic achievement that is of great significance to her. Any word written on it, especially the final comments from the school administrators, will have an extraordinary influence on her life. ＋
"..."

How does he know so much about these things?
Especially the pension issue: It’s like they’ve checked it in advance?
Before the Eternals' confusion was over, the Lord of Mankind began to laugh triumphantly.

＋But unfortunately, you don't seem to realize that both of these things seem to be in the hands of my only daughter: a person who can pass orders to her desk with just a touch of my lips. ＋
"Yeah, that's a shame."

Olpersong sneered.

Of course he could tell that Neos was not threatening him at all: this guy never had the courage to threaten him, but this did not prevent Orpesson from using a corresponding tone to mock the guy in front of him, whose self-confidence was inflated to the sky.

"But, isn't it a coincidence? I also happen to know something you don't know."

"It is said that the Primarch who manages my retirement savings and also controls Cyrene's future after graduation is very proud of the reward and punishment system he created, and is a person who never tolerates any grain of sand in his eyes: it is as difficult to make her break the law as to find her back from the galaxy."

"Not to mention, the only daughter of a certain emperor never seemed to like to obey the orders of her bastard father. Who else is so pitiful that he dares not even show his true identity when shopping in his daughter's house?"

+...+
This time, it was the Emperor's turn to remain silent.

She was silent for a long time, and finally turned around and picked up a plate of after-meal pastries.

+After so many years, I didn't expect your cooking skills are still so poor, Or. +
+ Dry and bitter, with no sincerity: I gave up a good meal for this. +
"..."

The Immortal endured for a moment.

But how could I bear this?
"If you like it, eat it. If you don't like it, get out!"

＋Still so irritable. ＋
The emperor stared at his old friend, his white teeth deliberately chewing the biscuits with a crunching sound.

Then he laughed again.

＋However, what I need most right now is your temper. ＋
"That's disappointing for you."

The Eternal One forced himself to suppress his anger.

"Like you said, I am now an old man counting my pension. The Far East is a good place for retirement. I am no longer suitable for being irritable. You should find an immortal who is willing to work for you. For example, the seal holder looks good."

＋It's okay. ＋
Who would have thought that the Lord of Humanity would smile with a look of success.

+ I have a place here that requires sophistication, plus a little of my favorite temper: Seriously, Or, you really don't want to come back and try again? We can start over, and this time, neither of us will make those little mistakes. +
The Immortal felt that he seemed to have been silent more often tonight.

"Tell me first: how long has this position you're talking about been around?"

+Five seconds ago, it suddenly occurred to me that the current human empire needs such a position: its owner must be a stable and irritable guy, and also have rich military experience. It would be even better if he is a well-informed immortal. +
+ I said, well: I can entrust him with my army. +
"Don't you have a Warmaster?"

Orpersun pointed to the wall: it was covered with newspaper clippings he had made, covering the return of each Primarch, as well as the wars and investiture ceremonies that took place on Ullanor.

＋This is not a conflict. ＋
The Emperor shook his head proudly, admiring his own broad thinking ability.

+ Orr, if you are willing to return to my cause, I can give you a more important position than Warmaster: you can become my Sun Lord, a military position with the power to check and supervise the Warmaster, and can also sanctify all the armies under Terra. +
"Your Warmaster will be unhappy."

+ He's easy to coax: I only need five minutes to get him to accept the change. +
"what……"

The Immortal sneered. "Why don't you take five minutes to ease your unique father-daughter relationship?"

+...+
The Emperor pondered for a moment.

＋Because it is not necessary. ＋
+Some hounds are destined to be kept in the wild, to maintain a semi-domestic, semi-wild lifestyle, and to provide them with a minimum amount of meat: if you want to maintain their vitality and ferocity, you should not show them too much tenderness. +
"Are you talking about Morgan?"

＋Applies to half of my son.＋
After saying this, the emperor thought about it again and added another sentence.

＋More than half. ＋
"Not including the Warmaster?"

Orperson was sure that the smile on his face could be defined as a mockery: if he dared to show such a smile to the golden emperor in public, even the Queen of the Far East would not be able to save him.

But then again, the Eternal himself wasn't quite sure what kind of feelings he had towards Horus as a substitute: Orperson had never cared about the so-called position of Warmaster, and he didn't want to have anything to do with this position anymore.

He was certain: becoming the Emperor's Warmaster would only mean misfortune from now on.

Therefore, towards Horus: Orpesson still had the majority of people showing compassion.

"Your beloved wolf-god Horus: the only one worthy of being Warmaster in your opinion?"

+Does this make you angry? +
The biscuits that were originally being chewed with a crunchy sound were stuck in the emperor's teeth. The Lord of Mankind stopped all his actions and looked at his old friend cautiously: the little girl's face showed that she had experienced unnecessary setbacks, as if she was thinking about some decision in her heart.

+Oul...if you really...+
"hands-free."

The Immortal raised his hand.

"I have no interest in being your guard dog."

＋Not a guard dog: What I need now is someone I can trust absolutely. ＋
+You are the best choice, Or. +
The Emperor looked at him: there was so much sincerity in those bright copper eyes.

Almost, just almost: Olpersund was almost trapped again.

"Go aside!"

He clenched his teeth, struggled to squeeze the words of rejection out of his throat, and waved his hands hastily, as if he was dispelling some deadly germs: which is not accurate, the Emperor is much more deadly than germs.

"If you're talking about this, there's nothing for the two of us to talk about."

"Again: the door is on the left."

+...+
The Emperor turned his head, and after a few seconds, the creaking sound came back.

＋Oel. ＋
"what happened again!"

+Your dessert-making skills are far inferior to my precious daughter's. +
"..."

For tens of thousands of years, the Immortal had never realized that his temper was so violent.

"Then why don't you just go back and eat your cookies in your daughter's arms?"

"Let her chew it into foam, and then feed it to you mouth to mouth! See if she will do it!"

＋No. ＋
The emperor refused flatly.

+ I don’t really like this way of eating anymore: the flavors will get mixed. +
"..."

Olpersong looked away.

He needed a break, a break from the torture of his brain: to any human spirit, even the briefest exchange with Neos would be a far greater drain on it than commanding an apocalyptic war.

He looked at the newspapers again: the Wolf God's smile filled the entire page. Even when put together with every major galactic event that had happened in the past two hundred years, Horus and his Warmaster's crown were so dazzling.

Olpersong stared at him, not even noticing that the chewing had stopped.

"Apocalypse."

Tonight, this might be the first time he took the initiative to start a topic.

+What's wrong? +

The Emperor hastily withdrew his nostalgic gaze from Orperson's face.

"Why do you want to establish a Warmaster again?"

Orperson narrowed his eyes. Horus's proud smile made him feel a lot of emotions, as if he had returned to a long time ago: so long ago when he and Neos were still very young, so long ago when he had also shown the same smile for the crown of the Warmaster.

"You know: this isn't a good thing."

"He'll be grateful to you now."

"But from now on, he will be wary of you, he will not understand you, he may even turn around and attack you or even want to kill you: Warmaster is a cursed title, and its appearance represents the malicious smile of fate."

"If your Warmaster knew what you were trying to do with him, he would surely regard you as an enemy."

"and……"

Olpersong glanced at the Emperor.

So real: anyone would think this is a young girl about to bloom.

"If he knew that you were taking advantage of his feelings and innocence, and that you were still unaware of this: not to mention that he was your son, your flesh and blood..."

＋Be at ease, Or.＋
Orpesson wanted to say something more, but ten thousand years of loneliness made it impossible for him to organize his words in the first place. However, the tacit understanding between them made the Lord of Mankind immediately understand what he was worried about.

The Emperor simply smiled in response.

+ Do you think I didn't expect this? +

+Don't worry, Or. +
+ Cultivate feelings, confess your true feelings to someone, and use him to the extreme behind the true feelings, and finally look at his red pupils after his emotional collapse, and the blade and love that penetrate my heart... +
＋It’s not like I haven’t done it before. ＋
＋It is quite interesting: but after playing it for hundreds of years, it is no longer interesting. ＋
"That's not what I meant. I meant that he is your son..."

＋I know. ＋
The emperor smiled, his thin lips revealed his neat white teeth, his bright copper pupils were filled with an innocent smile, his long black hair fluttered in the wind in the air: but his nonchalant words froze everything in place.

+ Things like falling in love with the flesh and blood that you [created], or that crawled out of your belly, and then ending up killing each other... +
+I got tired of this tens of thousands of years ago. +
＋Just like any kind you or anyone can think of...＋
+Hmm...+
She was laughing: an arrogance that would have put the princes in the silver palace to shame.

＋It's like crossing the bottom line. ＋
(End of this chapter)