Warhammer: Black Emperor

Chapter 580 After the Second Randan War, the Shadow of Order remained the largest legion.
The Shadow of Reigns, Primarch Office.

“He didn’t even see me; he just had Bendreig tell me to go back to Caliban immediately and fulfill my duties.”

Luther's tone was complex, filled with pain and disappointment.

They didn't talk, didn't hold anyone accountable, and didn't even question the obvious changes in his body.

As a seasoned "lawyer," he didn't need to use the prepared arguments, but he felt no relief whatsoever.

Nimrod looked at Luther and Zaharie behind him with a scrutinizing gaze; they were sad and lost.

[Yes, Ryan's handling of the situation was exactly as I expected, but I didn't anticipate his decisiveness. I had intended for Luther and the others to enjoy the victory celebration.]
As Ninglu pondered, Urian Bendreg spoke with a gloomy expression.

“Father has ordered me to go to Caliban.”

Urian recalled his father's sharp gaze and knew that he had already noticed that he was keeping Luther and Lord Nimrod's secret.

He was exiled.

“My lord, I pledge my allegiance to you.” Urian performed the knightly salute of Caliban.

Ninglu got up and walked toward Urian, whom he had "corrupted".

From the moment he chose to keep the secret, today's outcome was already predetermined.

Nimrod drew the Val's Sword, "misrepresenting" it as a knight's sword, and placed it on Urian's shoulder.

"I accept your allegiance."

“You may wait outside for a while.” Nimrod then went to the “Land of Chaos” and ordered the space monkeys to concoct the potions of “Briber,” “Nightmare,” and “Arbitrator.”

Nimrod hoped that Urian and Luther would complement each other's abilities, but he was not suited for the "dreamer" approach.

Urian is better suited than Luther to win over the hearts of the Terran Dark Angels. He possesses a convincing charm and sufficient authority as an "arbitrator," making Caliban a suitable "sheriff" for his jurisdiction.

A moment later, Ninglu pushed the three bottles of medicine in front of the three people.

With a thought, he sent Urian the common knowledge he needed to know, and sent mind pulses to Luther and Zaharie, telling them how to activate the "Euclid Symbol" and the ritual procedure for praying to the Black Emperor.

"Thanks be to my Lord."

“Thank you for your gift, my lord,” Urian paused for a moment after hearing the two address him, then corrected himself, “Thank you for your gift, my lord.”

Ninglu nodded slightly, signaling the three of them to stand up, and then sent a thought pulse to Luther.

"Offer me the 'Sirius Knights' tomes that you have kept hidden away."

Nimrod knew that Luther's betrayal was related to his reading of the Sirius Knights' scriptures.

Luther trembled slightly, looking at the Black Emperor with awe.

When he purged the Sirius Knights, no one knew about the books he had secretly kept, including Ryan, but the Black Emperor knew.

Luther recalled the distinctive patterns on those covers, a graphic consisting of an octagonal symbol, a circle, and an arrow.

He had the idea of ​​reading those books to gain strength.

But now that he has received the Black Emperor's gift, he has lost interest in those books.

[Since my lord is interested, why not use them to bribe him?]
The “briber” thought silently, bowing to the Black Emperor.

After the three left, Arcena Dunn, carrying the data tablet, walked into the Primarch's office.

"My lord, I have compiled a briefing on the Battle of Tarks."

"The Shadow of Order has killed 34,950 people, and since the start of the war, nearly 58,100 have died."

Ninglu felt a chill in the throne he was leaning against, he thought to himself in silence.

Including the ongoing battles on all fronts, the Second Randan War resulted in losses of nearly 60,000 men.

Compared to the 90,000 casualties suffered by the "Dark Angels," who were originally the main force, this is 30,000 fewer.

This was mainly due to finding effective methods to deal with the Brain Eaters, Bone Eaters, and Sloth before the final battle, and also because I mobilized more Primarchs and Astartes to participate in the war.
Ninglu then thought that, until the very end, Old Man Huang had not released the Void Dragon fragments of the Eternal Night Labyrinth.

[Old Huang is indeed unreliable. If the Void Dragon had been there to help, the battle would have ended sooner, and at least 10,000 more people in the Shadow of Order would have survived.]

After all, I can only borrow the power of the Tears of Silence through a spell, which is not as effective as directly summoning the Void Dragon.
While Ninglu was pondering, the original body attendant continued to report.

"The legion was reinforced with 15,600 men during this period, bringing the total number of men to 242,600."

"The think tank director's report indicates that more than 1,800 think tank members are expected to join the legion."

After reporting on the situation of "Shadow of Order," Alsena continued.

"Despite Master Urian's intelligence, the casualties of the 'Dark Angels' in Turks are still difficult to estimate, but are estimated to be around 29,000."

"The number of casualties in defending the fortress was 19,040."

“The figures provided by Glenn Wosoto are accurate; the number of people in the Turks is 13,850, up from 4,760 previously.”

The superhuman brain of the original genomicon instantly produced the numbers he needed.

The Dark Angels currently number between 150,000 and 200,000, of whom at least 50,000, and at least half of the future recruits, will be controlled by Luther and Urian. The Ultramarines currently number around 100,000, and Glenn can only influence the 12,000 Terran.

Yes, as the main force, after the "Second Randan War," the "Shadow of Order" remained the largest legion, unlike the "Dark Angels," which suffered heavy losses.
He gathered his thoughts and instructed, "Star map."

The silver-haired Alsena immediately picked up the control staff and brought up the holographic star map.

"Besides the Seventh Battle Group, the mission of the remaining eleven battle groups is to eliminate the aliens."

As Nimrod spoke, he outlined twelve paths centered on the Turks and numbered them.

"The remaining task forces under my command will form the Seventh Combined Fleet."

"We must completely eradicate all the aliens that have invaded the empire within three years."

After quickly recording the data, the Primarch's servant put away the data panel.

"My lord, the Emperor has summoned the War Council, which will be held in five days."

After the decisive battle at Turks, the terracotta-colored warships were the first to depart.

Luther and his companions were sent back to Caliban aboard Urian's warship.

Ryan Eljonsson didn't even wait for the War Council before ordering the fleet to leave.

After a brief exchange with Omega, Ninglu left.

Guilliman arrived at the Shadow of Kings with ten newly selected members of the Honor Guard.

At the same moment Nimrod met Guilliman, in the Limitless Starfield, in Mankola.

A magnificent black building was constructed atop the highest peak.

Amidst the swirling clouds and mist, the cries of griffins echoed.

Ethan, who had been promoted to clerk, reported to Thomas, the director of the think tank.

"My lord, the first batch of candidates who passed the test totaled 1,960 and can become formal apprentices."

“They have all mastered the unique psionic technique you created—'Griffin's Roar'.”

As Ethan spoke, he gently stroked his griffin.

As Thomas's confidant and a knight of the royal court, he had his own griffin.

Although the "beast tamers" among the apothecaries enter Mancora to provide modification surgery support for think tank candidates and begin taming griffins, most think tanks can only use the griffins on a rotating basis.

Apprentices can only come into contact with it during instruction and in group use, making the most of limited time to comprehend the "Griffin's Roar".

"I compiled the editors' records and made some discoveries."

"Nine hundred and thirty of the candidates are from Mankola, and they are also more likely to master the 'Griffin's Roar' than other candidates."

"I also discovered that all the think tanks based in Mankola have mastered the 'Griffin's Roar,' while only 11.6% of the think tanks based elsewhere have mastered it."

Thomas nodded slightly and gave the order.

“Send apprentices to join various battle groups according to the established allocation plan, take over the think tank, and take turns to study in Mankola.”

He gazed at Ethan. “Your next duty is to go to Prospero to study and hunt Soul-Eating Bees for my lord.”

Thomas patted Ethan's griffin fur. "Make the most of your flight time."

“It would be an honor to serve my father.” Ethan accepted the order with excitement at the thought of serving his father, who had been rescued from Mortarion in Barbarossa.

Ethan flipped and leaped onto the griffin, stroking its thick, golden fur.

With its head held high, it strides forward like a proud lion.

Its wings flapped, and its hooked beak emitted a sharp cry.

A strong gust of wind whipped against the psionic hood. Ethan took a deep breath, gathered his psionic energy, and let out a roar.

Those with etheric vision can clearly distinguish that the roars are layered and converge toward the center.

They would be even more astonished to discover that this roar not only echoed in the real world, but also swept across the warp.

One kilometer ahead, three of the six wolves collapsed, while the other three ran off in panic in different directions.

Ethan felt the "Griffin's Roar" and thought to himself.

[Munkora is a truly magical world, home to such wondrous creatures as the Golden Griffin.]

"Griffin's Roar" is an even more magical psionic technique, causing greater damage to creatures more closely connected to the warp.

The damage inflicted on psionicists exceeds that on ordinary humans, and on warp creatures, it exceeds that on psionicists.
Ethan recalled what the think tank director had said: Mancola was the recruitment world his father had chosen for the think tank.

"Father, you are wise."

(End of this chapter)