Warhammer: In the Name of Nirvana

+So...+

+ He said I told him so? +

[According to the message Perturabo wants to convey to me: This is it. 】

+...No! +

+I'm not, I haven't. +

+Don't listen to his nonsense there. +

The Lord of Mankind waved his hands repeatedly. His expression was like that of an old man sitting in a public shuttle underground in the hive city, holding a portable small data tablet and looking troubled: But his next words were still Full of divine Terran confidence.

+In fact, when I first arrived in Olympia and met Perturabo, I am convinced that I acted more sincere and sincere than most of the times in the past, and I am also convinced that every word I said There is no problem with the words. +

【……】

+ I have tried my best to show Perturabo my compassion, instill my love for him, convey and even warn him of the difficulties he will encounter in the future: and he has promised me that he will pay Everything, swore to me the eternal loyalty in his chest. +

+ Be patient and sincere, this is my attitude towards Perturabo, and this is what Perturabo gave me in return. We are not only father and son by blood, but also spiritual companions. At this point , your Olympian brother is no different than his brothers. +

【……】

+ In the life blueprint I designed for them, they joined this great expedition as my assistants, not as my servants. In this regard, your Olympian brothers are no different from others. +

+ I treat every descendant with my blood like this: they first agreed with my ideas and the necessity of the Great Crusade and the Human Empire, and then they officially became the Primarch of the Human Empire. +

+This is true for every one of my descendants. +

【……】

#stare#

+Your look is very disrespectful, my daughter Morgan: Is there anything you want to say? +

[Hmm...I was just thinking...]

The primarch hesitated.

【Am I adopted by you? 】

+...+

The Emperor turned his head in astonishment and looked directly into Morgan's narrowed eyes: The Lord of Mankind almost instinctively wanted to exude an aura that would make his daughter retreat in spite of difficulties, but the Avalon Emperor was already used to this. The Lord just raised a smile, glanced at her, and tore into pieces the gorgeous clothes that she had long been accustomed to.

[We have met many times. Father: How many sets are these every time? 】

As a result, the Lord of Humanity could only cough slightly embarrassedly.

+ Your situation is relatively special. Morgan, you should not compare yourself with your blood brothers. Moreover, you should also admit one thing: Q was not forcibly dragged into this great expedition by me. +

+You joined on your own initiative. +

[What about Conrad? 】

+ Conrad’s situation is also quite special, and he did not refuse... +

[What about Angron? 】

+ Angron is also a special one, and he also did not refuse... +

【……】

Morgan stopped talking.

The Lord of Avalon just showed an extremely fake smile and stared at her genetic father quietly. This smiling attitude was so vicious that even the Lord of Humanity could not continue to pretend not to see it: His voice actually became a little weak.

+Can’t you choose a more normal case, Morgan? +

[Ah, of course. 】

The primarch raised her voice slightly, her voice sounding a little shrill.

[Then let’s pick a guy you like, a guy who completely matches your quirks in dealing with people: Mortarion, how about it? He must have joined the Great Crusade from the bottom of his heart, right? 】

+...+

The emperor's silence made Morgan's happiness almost clear on his face.

[Look, father, even the idiot Mortarion, who has always been favored by you, does not meet the point of view you said: So the question is, what are the heirs you mentioned? who? 】

The emperor was sluggish for a moment and did not answer the question directly.

+You seem to be dissatisfied with Mortarion, Morgan: Are you slandering your brother in front of me? +

[Ah, you misunderstood, father. 】

Morgan's smile grew brighter.

[I am actually restrained in front of you. I will be more direct in other places, especially in front of Mortarion: the brotherly love between me and Mortarion is as deep as Magnus , as well as the heart-to-heart between Leman Russ. 】

[Anyway, I can beat him: that slow guy is a living target. 】

+...+

[Also, don’t go off topic: Even so, I can confirm that Mortarion did not join the Great Crusade completely voluntarily, and his understanding of the Great Crusade seems to be different from yours: That’s it, Or your very favorite heir? 】

The emperor pursed his lips and took advantage of Morgan's tirade to organize his words.

+ But you have to admit that whether it is Mortarion or Angron, they are now fighting for the Human Empire, and they are performing quite well. I will even condone their shortcomings in other aspects for this reason. +

+ They identified with the Great Crusade, even if it was just the Great Crusade in their minds: But then again, the Great Crusade in everyone's mind is different, and I have no right to be an arbitrary tyrant in this regard. +

+ There are ten million kinds of Great Crusade in the hearts of ten million people. The Great Crusade in the eyes of Mortarion and Angron may be different from mine, but they are indeed bleeding for the Great Crusade: this is enough, Because that's all I ask of them. +

【whispering sound! 】

Morgan snorted.

[Do you really want to skip the process and just look at the results, Father? And it's still in front of me, the client: There are no outsiders here, let alone those stupid golden corns under your hands, there are only two of us. 】

[In front of your daughter, in front of the poor person who was captured by you and soaked in the laboratory until his fingers became calloused: Why did Angron join the Great Crusade? Don’t you have any idea in your mind? 】

+...+

The emperor's eyes were sharp, and his expression finally became a little stiff and ugly.

+What about you, Morgan? +

+ Why did you deliberately choose these extreme cases among your brothers, or in front of me, the father of genes: why didn't you give examples like Dorne, Sanguinius or Guilliman? +

+Does it mean anything to you to embarrass your genetic father? +

【……Um……】

It was Morgan's turn to smile.

[This, isn’t this to prevent you, the client, from being confused by the authorities~]

After noticing that her genetic father's words had become a little colder, the Lord of Avalon didn't even hesitate for a moment. She took a step back, her voice became flattering again, and even her pale face was blinking. In a short period of time, the transformation from [sharp questioning] to [friendly smile] was completed, and even the emperor could not find any more faults.

Morgan spread her hands, and her voice sounded so sincere.

[No way, why are you surrounded by bastards like the Forbidden Army who have high ambitions and low abilities, or are imbeciles who can't even speak half a sentence under your intimidation: As your most filial and capable daughter, I think it is necessary for me to point out to you the problems that have been lurking too deep in the short time we have been together. 】

Seeing his daughter puffing up her chest as a matter of course, telling a lie that even a guy like Magnus wouldn't believe without changing her face or heart, the Lord of Humanity felt like his breathing had stopped. For a moment: It’s a suffocating feeling that I haven’t seen for a long time.

+...+

+You really did it without even a hint of pretense. +

The Emperor smiled sarcastically.

[Because I choose to give you the truth, just like you did to me, father: you gave the false affection to others and left the cruel truth to me. What a touching thing. I just I'm just using the exact same method to repay you. 】

Morgan's counterattack was unstoppable.

+...When will I...+

[Do you need me to help you recall the scenes when we first met? 】

+...+

The emperor stopped talking. His eyes and face were slowly leaving Morgan's sight, looking into the distance, toward the nothing but wonderful horizon. A long silence followed: At this moment, How fatal the absence of those Custodes guards was.

After a long time, the Lord of Humanity coughed with some difficulty.

+ Let’s talk about your brothers, my daughter. +

【OK. 】

Morgan smiled.

[Who should I start with? 】

——————

+...Perturabo? +

When asked by Morgan about his Lord of Olympia, the Emperor hesitated for a second before slowly chewing on his heir's name: as if he needed special time to recall the story about the Man of Steel. Anything from the Lord.

[Yes, Perturabo. 】

Morgan looked to the left and right. The Emperor's Dream was still the same as before. It was so splendid and magnificent, far superior to any of the Empire's Glory Queens. However, its appeal to Morgan was not high: compared with these gorgeous sculptures and Compared with the murals, the Custodes guards who were specially ordered by the Emperor to stay in place and were unable to follow the Lord of Mankind and the Primarch were more pleasing to the eye in Morgan's eyes.

[I'm quite curious about how you tried to appease Perturabo. You even separated the two of us for this reason, letting me stay on my battleship so that you and Perturabo could be alone together. Time: And where are my Olympians now? 】

+In my library. +

The Emperor walked ahead of Morgan, about half a body length ahead.

+ I took Perturabo to a secret library I had on the Emperor's Dream. It was a place that even Malcador didn't know. It is a thing of new knowledge: he can read and study to his heart's content in it, and enjoy the only new knowledge in the whole galaxy as my reward for him. +

+ At the same time, I also told him that my library needed a marble statue worthy of it, and that in the Empire I could only leave this task to him: he might stay there for ten years. You need to notify the Fourth Legion of this matter for a few days or even longer. +

【Ah...no problem. 】

The Lord of Avalon did not cover up his long sigh.

+What? Do you have any ideas? +

The Emperor turned around, only to see his daughter smiling uncomfortably.

[Nothing, I'm just sighing, when will I be able to be like you, who clearly sends others to work for me, but also makes others grateful for it: To be honest, father, your set of smooth deception methods have been something I've never seen for a long time. I was already greedy before. 】

+This is not cheating, Morgan. +

The emperor was a little helpless.

+ I am just fulfilling your request and satisfying Perturabo's desire... +

【right! This is what I want to learn! 】

+...+

The Lord of Humanity looked at his daughter in astonishment. It was only then that he began to think belatedly: Compared with the previous times they met, was there something wrong with his Morgan?

+You have changed a lot. +

[No, father. 】

The Lord of Avalon shook his head as if he had expected it.

[Actually, this was what I had in mind when we met several times before. But this time, I expressed these thoughts: After all, you are so special to me (emphasis added). I miss you. You need to reciprocate, right? 】

+...Then why this time? +

【Is this...】

Morgan smiled defiantly.

[I think even you should understand my current situation: I just climbed out of the vortex called Dorne and Perturabo that you threw, and then you stopped me. I was dragged here, and I am about to accept the next new task. I think it is normal for any normal person to have some mood swings at this time. 】

+ Mood swings? +

The Lord of Humanity turned a deaf ear to Morgan's overly obvious sarcasm. Instead, he turned around and continued to ask his daughter with interest, as if he saw some familiar shadows in Morgan.

The Spider Queen, on the other hand, just treated her genetic father coldly.

[Any questions, father? 】

+ No, it’s nothing. +

The Emperor turned back and continued to lead his daughter by half a sinking position. It took a while for his laughter to reach the ears of the Spider Queen: it was not an angry laugh, but a laughter about the past life. Nostalgic, like nostalgic for something before the Great Crusade.

+Have I ever told you that you look a lot like Malcador, Morgan? +

[You have said it many times, father. 】

+Then I will say it again. +

The Emperor's voice sounded earnest, as if he were speaking to his daughter of some galactic truth: a burning brand that Morgan could not resist, ignore, or even forget.

+You are very similar to Malcador: you are almost identical. +

【Is this a good thing? 】

+For me, not exactly. +

The Lord of Mankind didn't look back, but Morgan could hear him laughing.

+ Because they are so similar. +

The Emperor sighed.

+ There are some things that I will only discuss with Malcador, but there are also some things that I will only discuss with Morgan. If you are too similar, it will cause me trouble in this regard: for example, when it comes to your brothers Regarding the issue, Malcador's words have no authority at all, so I can only listen to your story. +

[I don’t feel like Malcador in this regard: never. 】

The Spider Queen clasped her hands behind her back, wandering behind her father. She wasn't sure where to lead her: it was always the unknown secret corners deep in the [Emperor's Dream], after arriving Before the southernmost point of the Storm Star Territory, which was far away from the Emperor, she and the Emperor still had a lot of time to spend in secret chamber conversations like this.

+ It's best. +

The Lord of Mankind slowed his pace. He glanced back at his daughter, then turned back: Although it was only for a moment, Morgan was able to confirm that the emperor's eyes at that moment were indeed extremely serious, and his words were more like a strong warning rather than weakness. suggestions.

+ You need to always remember that you are a Primarch, Morgan. You can get close to mortals, but you cannot confuse your identity. You can learn the rules of mortals, but you must know where the roots of the rules are: I don't expect Guilliman to understand this now, but you must. +

+ You need to always remember: you have to keep yourself in this state, and you also have to let your brothers, especially the brother who is about to come to you, also understand this. He is a rare idealist among you. +

+This is important because you are about to take on more responsibilities. +

[Because you are leaving soon? 】

Morgan didn't notice that his voice had some fluctuations.

+Dorn told you? +

[He doesn't think it's a secret. 】

+He is always smart. +

The Emperor shook his head. He did not say anything more, but quickened his pace. Morgan, who followed with silence, rushed into the deepest part of the [Emperor's Dream]. There were not even a few people visible here. Among the Imperial Guards, only a dark figure flashed in the corner. It was the black-armored Imperial Guard who had a relationship with Morgan.

The Lord of Mankind walked around in these complicated corridors, and finally led his daughter into a room that was not spacious: the interior decoration of the room was not enough, and it looked no different from a mortal conference room. The only thing What is worth noting is the huge star map of the Milky Way facing the door. The accuracy of this star map even amazed the original body.

Well, a new gold coin...

Morgan watched as his genetic father's fingers clicked on the galaxy star map, accurately reflecting the location, specific situation, and even major events that had happened on any imperial planet: And when the Lord of Humanity continued With a wave of his hand, the star map, which was originally only the size of a wall, expanded in the blink of an eye to the size of an entire conference room. The boundless holographic projection showed millions of stars and the clear outlines of the imperial world. This scene was enough to make Ah Lord Wallon felt a little jealous.

+What did Dornish tell you? +

【……Um? 】

Morgan was even stunned for a moment before she came back to answer the emperor's question. She deliberately let out a smile to cover up her embarrassment, but the original laziness and joking in her pupils disappeared, replaced by Absolute concentration, the Primarch knew that now was the time to work and listen.

[One-eighth of the Far Eastern Star Territory? 】

But on the lips, the Lord of Avalon still put on a layer of disguise for himself.

+ That’s not all. +

The Emperor just shook his head and pointed his finger at the Far Eastern Starfield, where colorful spots appeared one after another, each symbolizing a country within a country or a sphere of influence established by a certain primarch. And the Lord of Man seems to know these things very well.

+ The Federation of Avalon, the Five Hundred Worlds of Ultramar, the Ghoul Ring Defense Belt, the Kingdom of the Wolf, the Red Sand Protectorate, the Baal Enclave, the Prospero Alliance, and the Nocturne Common Defense Commune: Finally The two are the names Terra gave to the sphere of influence that your two blood brothers are about to establish. +

From light blue to beautiful silver, and then from deep red to gray, bright colors exploded around Morgan, making the face of the original body look uncertain, while the genetic father standing in front of her was just knocking With a click of his fingers, these countries that spanned countless worlds returned to the emperor's palm one by one, and the entire Far Eastern Star Territory was also involved.

+ This is all they see: and they are worried about it. +

The Lord of Mankind smiled.

+ But they can't see any more. +

With another wave of his hand, he saw that the other star fields of the empire also appeared one after another. On each star field, there were more or less colored spots. The only exception was the sun star field, where there were only symbols. The nothingness of Holy Terra, without a trace of color.

+ In the north, in the Obscure Star Territory, Ferus and his Iron Hand Legion have an extremely loose [One Hundred Worlds] with their home planet Medusa as the core: My Gorgon is the first to invest. One of the Primarchs of the Great Crusade, he was among the top in terms of the number of worlds he recovered. If he were not obsessed with ruling, this country could have expanded two to three times, but even so, the Tenth Legion can still affect most of the hazy world. Domination of the Star Territory. +

+But they are not alone: ​​because Luther's request received official approval from Holy Terra not long ago, and the support of Machado's individuals, he attracted thirty-six core worlds to Caliban in one go. In the Alliance, there are hundreds of resource worlds, outposts, and nameless worlds that are also in his territory. +

+Of course, don’t forget my wolf god Horus. His kingdom of wolves spans the Far Eastern Star Territory and the Hazy Star Territory. If you look at the current territory alone, it is second only to your Far Eastern Three Kings Territory. But the entire north of the galaxy will be the stage for Horus. One day, the country of the Luna Wolf Legion will be a force that cannot be underestimated in the galaxy. +

+ In the other two fields, in the Storm Star Territory and the Pacific Star Territory, there is a lack of such a conspicuous presence: Luo Jia is still wasting time on his Perfect City, but he uses the Perfect City and the Legion Home Planet With Kull as the core, a small interstellar kingdom was built, but this kingdom was very loose internally and could not provide more power to the Word Bearers Legion. +

+ By then, further south, in the Storm Sector south of Terra, the Imperial Fists and the Death Guard each operate a small but prosperous military empire, controlling the power of a dozen to dozens of core worlds: think again. Considering the special nature of the brother you are about to return to, it is very likely that there will be three small frontier vassal states coexisting in the Storm Star Territory, maybe. +

+ In this way, among the eighteen Primarchs who have returned, thirteen have established their own kingdoms, and being alone has become an exception: When the Great Crusade entered the second hundred years, my The heirs finally remembered that they were born kings, not generals dragged onto the battlefield. +

[Does this worry you? 】

Morgan raised her head and carefully observed the kingdoms divided by the emperor: she was slightly relieved to find that just the three kingdoms of the Far East owned by her, Conrad, and Robert were larger than all the other kingdoms combined. If we add the fourth-ranked Wolf Kingdom, which is affiliated with Horus, then almost a quarter of the territory of the galaxy will be torn away.

+ Worry? +

The Emperor replied with a smile.

+Morgan, my daughter, let me ask you a question: Do you know why characters like Vulkan and Magnus would actively choose to build a state within a state, and at such a fast pace? ? +

[…With your permission? 】

The Primarch raised a brow.

+ is Terra's. +

The Emperor smiled.

+ Whether it is Magnus's Prospero Alliance or Vulkan's Nocturne Common Defense Commune, they are all allowed and even supported by Terra: Not only that, Terra is also planning to let the Legion's home planet Several other Primarchs near the Maelstrom. For example, Fulgrim, Khan, and Perturabo also established their own spheres of influence. +

【……Why? 】

For the first time, Morgan felt a little confused, but her genetic father did not answer directly, but used the same emperor-style answer method as always: starting a new topic from somewhere else, and then talking about it.

+Why? +

The Emperor shook his head.

+Morgan, do you know how many imperial worlds there are in the human empire we rule at this moment in the Great Crusade: guess as big as possible, guess as high as possible, there are more than you think. +

【...Three hundred thousand? 】

+ No. +

The Emperor wrote a number.

+650,000, 654,357. This was the exact number one hour ago. It is expected that this number will fluctuate by one to three in the next hour: while Ma and I Cardo's final estimate is that the Great Crusade will eventually bring more than one million Imperial worlds to the Empire. +

【……】

+ Then how many of the one million worlds that will be owned by the empire do you think the imperial government on Holy Terra can effectively manage: Or now, in this mere 650,000 empires How much of the world is being effectively managed? +

【……one eighth? 】

+ too many. +

The Emperor smiled bitterly.

+ I can’t even guarantee whether Terra can effectively manage one-eightyth of the 650,000 worlds. After all, that is more than 8,000 core worlds: if you really want Holy Terra to be able to shoulder the responsibility If it has such a huge administrative function, then there will be nothing on this planet except administrative personnel and the servants who serve the administrative personnel. And we obviously cannot let Terra become like this, and we are not qualified to do so. . +

【……qualifications? 】

Morgan chewed the word.

+So, whether it is the expansion of you and your brothers, or the contraction of Holy Terra's direct jurisdiction, it is the result of discussions between Malcador and I: your suggestion on Terra is indeed feasible , my capable daughter, especially considering that if I want to return to Terra early, then many things will have to be compromised. +

After saying that, before the Lord of Avalon could say anything else, the Emperor waved his hand and changed the shape of the star map in front of him. The empire's territory was rapidly expanding, just like the predicted scene at the end of the Great Crusade: This At that time, the entire Milky Way was like a roll cake, divided into three clearly structured circles.

In the innermost layer, Holy Terra firmly controls the entire solar star field, as well as the parts of the four star fields close to the sun star field. The only exception is in the far eastern star field: it seems that Malcador and his Tai The government doesn't even want one-eighth of the Far Eastern Star Territory.

Outside this inner layer, in areas such as the Maelstrom, or at the northern end of the Storm Starfield, there are several small Primarch nations scattered throughout. Their owners are such as Dorn, Fulgrim, and Jaghatai. A reassuring guy like Khan, from a distance, looks like armor wrapped around the Sun Star Field.

Outside this armor are those huge countries with divided territories: Morgan, Robert and Conrad in the east, Horus, Ferus and potential Jonson in the north, and Jonson in the west. Lorgar is also drawn into a false outline: any one of them can be compared with the sum of the small primarch kingdoms at the core of the galaxy.

[Is this your ultimate vision for the Great Crusade, father? 】

Morgan looked at all this and muttered to himself.

+ is just one of the options. +

The emperor's words were concise and to the point.

+ The enfeoffment system is a system that has gone through a long test and has endured for a long time in the long history. It has been picked up again and again by the rulers, which itself can explain its charm and Where is the vitality: When the size of the empire far exceeds its administrative capacity, only enfeoffment and military control can be implemented for distant areas. +

+ Moreover, this enfeoffment is not subject to Terra’s will. +

The Lord of Mankind shook his head.

+In fact, even if Holy Terra desperately grasps the power in its hands, your brothers have long been on their own in the local area, establishing a country that makes them feel comfortable, and even an auxiliary army system: now, there are not even many The Primarchs would use the Solar Auxiliaries that Terra had sent to them. +

[So, is this just going along with the flow? 】

Morgan wanted to laugh.

+ No. +

The emperor was serious.

——————

＋This is not a smooth process. +

+This is the bottom line in my heart. +

+ For the distant future, the final acceptable bottom line. +