This is bad…
Why did I have to blurt that out? I'm such an idiot. Really, truly…
Becoming the Primarch's agent meant Bruce no longer had to worry about dying, and he had instantly risen to the top.
But where there were benefits, there were naturally drawbacks.
And the drawback was…
…the entire burden of the Nostramo Sector was now pressing down on him alone.
Especially the hive worlds Nostramo I through V. As the Legion's home system, they were the highest priority of all.
You want me to manage a sector-wide alliance dominated by the Night Lords?
Are you serious?
Just a few days ago, Bruce had still been a lowly intern-slave to corporate life. Now he had somehow become the leader of an entire sector—and the kind of leader who couldn't even refuse the job.
And the worst part was, there was no wriggling out of it.
Whenever he tried, the replies were always the same:
"You are the agent personally chosen by the Primarch."
"The Night Haunter Council has already discussed it and reached a decision. You will serve as the Primarch's representative."
"Give the order, Acting Commander! For the Night Lords!"
"Our loyalty belongs to the Primarch!"
The sheer absurdity of it all gave Bruce the bizarre feeling that he'd been forced into a palace coup.
So in the end, he had "voluntarily" sat himself down on this damned golden throne—no, wait, the Night Throne.
"That is the current situation, Acting Commander. Do you have any instructions?"
After summarizing the latest report, Sevatar looked to Bruce and asked with impeccable sincerity and respect.
Of course, most of that respect was actually directed at Curze sitting beside Bruce. Ever since she began following him around in the role of "the agent's accessory," she had remained nearby almost constantly. And because of that, the little bat-brats behaved themselves most of the time.
Even if most of them looked down on Bruce as some random recruit who'd come out of nowhere, they still had to show at least a little respect to this so-called child of the Primarch.
"I…"
"Your teacup is empty, recruit."
Curze, who was reading a book, pointed at the empty cup in reminder.
"Yes, yes, yes, milady, I'm filling it right now."
Bruce hurried to top off the tea, then sat back down and swept his gaze across the assembled Legion officers with the sternest, calmest look he could manage.
It was the only thing he really had going for him.
No cowardice. No humiliating loss of composure.
"Captain Seva—"
"During working hours, just call me Sevatar. Or First Captain, Acting Commander."
Sevatar's cold correction cut him off.
The nominal leader of the Legion had changed, after all. While Sevatar held absolutely no real expectations for Bruce, the Primarch had given the order. That meant it would be carried out.
"Fine!"
Bruce swallowed the internal bleeding in his soul and forced himself to say:
"First Captain."
"Yes, Acting Commander?"
"Holy Terra still doesn't know our father has gone missing. Correct?"
Bruce began with what he thought was the most crucial point.
"That is correct. Because of the Great Crusade's pace, Holy Terra has questioned the Primarch several times, but overall, they have not yet discovered the problem."
"I think that's a good thing," Bruce said, giving his own view. "Right now, what our Legion needs is tighter development of its controlled territories, not endless expansion for expansion's sake."
As a lore-fan, the historical event Bruce remembered most clearly was this:
Horus, after being wounded and corrupted, was going to launch the great rebellion.
And then, with that single betrayal, the achievements of the Great Crusade—the grand endeavor begun by the Master of Mankind—would instantly be knocked back by several stages, leaving humanity as a race half-dead in the ICU forever after.
If the Legion—and the Imperium—were to have any future at all, they had to find a way to consolidate what they already held. Otherwise, the faster they pushed forward, the more it would all become a castle in the air, until in the end nothing remained.
Not to mention that the Ghoul Stars, where the Night Lords operated, were a particularly nasty place. Resource-poor, riddled with mutants and alien powers, a textbook wasteland—exactly the sort of place that even a dog would look at and refuse to step into.
"Acting Commander."
One of the members of the Night Haunter Council, Sarr Harek—the so-called Dark Arbitrator—was visibly displeased by Bruce's remarks.
He challenged him on the spot.
"The Great Master of Mankind ordered us to wage the Great Crusade so that humanity's glorious civilization could be reforged. And yet here you are, thinking about the Legion's future?"
Bro.
Are you okay?
"…"
Bruce looked at him in silence.
Not because he felt ashamed.
Not because he had no answer.
He was just genuinely speechless.
This was ridiculous.
If someone didn't know better, they'd think you were from the Imperial Fists.
The Night Lords are destined to turn traitor sooner or later—isn't that common knowledge? And you're standing there lecturing me with that look of loyal outrage?
Are you sure there's nothing wrong with that?
"Repeat what you just said," Bruce asked coolly. "Do you think it even convinces you?"
"What do you mean by that?" Harek shot back, having clearly caught the sarcasm. He didn't even bother with honorifics anymore.
"Let's be honest, my battle-brothers. No one here would give up everything for the so-called Imperium of Man. At least, not for the Imperium as it exists now."
"I know that among us, some are loyal to the Master of Mankind, and some are loyal to the Primarch. But absolutely no one is truly loyal to the Imperium itself."
"In fact, I have seen a few fragmented images of prophecy."
"I need to prepare for those utterly disastrous visions."
Much like the Blood Angels, the Night Lords also possessed prophetic potential. The difference was that the Night Lords paid a far uglier price for it.
Bruce could use that trait as cover to reveal things about the Horus Heresy without sounding so absurd that no one would believe him.
Of course, at this point in history, if you claimed Horus would one day become a traitor, forget the Night Lords—even Lion El'Jonson would think you'd gone insane.
"In the near future, the Imperium of Man will be engulfed in a civil war. When that happens, Legion will turn on Legion. Primarch will turn on Primarch. Everyone will draw their blades against one another."
"And in that catastrophe, we can remain outside the worst of it, preserve our strength, and at the most critical moment make the choice that best serves our interests."
"You mean…" someone said slowly, "…you foresaw a civil war that would engulf the entire Imperium?"
"Heh."
Kellen Ophion, known by the charming title of the Coward, gave a dismissive sneer before offering his own opinion.
"So after learning all that, your answer is to sit back and do nothing? Wait for the Imperium to be weakened by civil war, and only then act?"
"No, you misunderstand me," Bruce answered calmly. "What I mean is preserving our strength—for the sake of our Legion, yes, but also for the Imperium."
Because Bruce knew what the future looked like.
He knew just how catastrophically ruined the Imperium would be after Horus's civil war. Someone had to clean up that disaster in the end.
Originally, the Ultramarines and Guilliman had actually done a pretty good job. Logically, they should have been able to guide the Imperium back onto a stable path step by step.
But alas—plot demanded otherwise.
"I…"
"Are these your own words," Sevatar cut in, stopping the others from pressing further, "or the Primarch's?"
Though he found Bruce fundamentally unreliable, there were still a few things about him that Sevatar appreciated.
His attitude toward the Imperium.
His loyalty to the Legion.
With those two points alone, he was already ahead of many in the Night Lords.
Men like that were a minority within the Legion.
"Well…"
Bruce turned his head toward Curze, who remained absorbed in her book.
When she noticed his glance, she merely flicked her eyes toward him once, then gave no further reaction at all.
And when a person made no statement—
their meaning was obvious.
Silence meant consent.
"I can speak on the Primarch's behalf," Bruce declared, emboldened by Curze's lack of objection.
"…"
The members of the Night Haunter Council fell silent, then collectively looked to their real boss:
Sevatar.
Because the Night Lords' true decision-maker had always been the First Captain. The Primarch never built the Legion, and frankly, had no talent for doing so.
"Then what do you think we should do next?" Sevatar asked.
"First, inform Holy Terra and the other Legions that our Primarch has gone missing. But also make it clear that we will continue participating in the Great Crusade—our pace may simply slow somewhat."
"And if the Warmaster blames us?"
"Then push me out front."
"That may not be enough." Sevatar shook his head.
"It's fine. Just report it that way and answer accordingly."
Bruce replied with total confidence.
After all…
Baldy Horus didn't have many good days left anyway.
Bruce did want to save Warmaster Horus from the corruption waiting for him.
The problem was, that difficulty level was basically comparable to killing the Chaos Gods themselves and ending the great game of the gods once and for all.
So in that case, wouldn't it make more sense to develop quietly first, then make a move later?
Best case scenario, he could find some way to keep Magnus under control too.
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 135)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 115)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League (Chapter 110)
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter105)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter100)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter67)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter85)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 60
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 65
From Junkman to Wasteland 50
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 35
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 40
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 37
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 27
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 26
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass 26
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