At night, atop Turris Castle, groups of knights shouted loudly.
"The Red Duke is beheaded!"
"The Red Duke is beheaded!"
"The Red Duke is beheaded!"
Sea God Knights rode their warhorses throughout the castle, with the standard-bearer holding high the head of the Red Duke, inspiring the garrison. Seeing the Red Duke dead, the morale of the defenders in Turris Castle soared.
Outside the castle, the vampire army was gradually approaching. The vampire forces attacked without drumming or making loud noises, everything was eerily quiet.
A vast horde of zombies and skeleton troops silently advanced towards Turris Castle, notably composed almost entirely of zombies and skeletons, with very few Tomb Guardians among them.
As the undead army drew near, the castle's defenders, still reveling in the joy of defeating the Red Duke, paid little attention. Only a few soldiers took out longbows, lit the arrow tips on fire, and shot them towards the opposite bank of the river.
"Whoosh~" This was a necessary action for the defenders at night. Every one or two minutes, fire arrows were shot from the castle walls to scout the surroundings.
When the fire arrow landed, it pierced through a zombie's shoulder, igniting the corpse oil, and the zombie was immediately turned to ash in the flames.
"Enemy attack!" A piercing shout came from the castle, and the human army quickly regrouped. Peasant bowmen drew their shortbows, and spearman and swordsman units gathered, followed by swarms of questing knights.
The long standoff had conditioned the defenders for rapid response. When the undead's ladders barely reached the walls, the garrison inside the castle was fully prepared for battle.
An intense battle was inevitable. However, after half an hour of fierce fighting, Bodrick, Francois, and even the peasants felt something was amiss.
The vampire's assault seemed fierce, but in reality, it was weak. The large numbers of zombies and skeleton troops indeed appeared formidable, but after some time, the defenders realized the absence of higher-tier units. The powerful Tomb Guardians, undead knights, and Bloodfiends were all missing.
Their enemies were left with only endless hordes of zombies and skeletons.
These forces were so weak that even the peasants could overpower them, as the control of necromancers over zombies or skeletons was extremely limited. Any damage would cause these undead to fall immediately and lose control.
The more the peasants fought, the more confident and high-spirited they became. They firmly held back the undead tide at the walls and gates. If not for Bodrick's caution against possible traps, forbidding any sortie, the peasants even felt they could chase these undead scraps back to the river to feed the fish.
"Fire~" Dwarven Engineer Dugan shouted, and the heavy cannon fired, blasting a straight line through the undead ranks, pulverizing dozens of zombies.
No matter how it was viewed, the defenders firmly held the upper hand, but the undead kept up their current tactic of attrition.
"Something's strange." Inside the keep, Bodrick and Francois, surrounded by knights, observed the battle. The Duke of Bordeleaux found it odd: "It's understandable that Blood Knights and Bloodfiends, Bloodwolves don't join the fight, but it's unlikely for vampires not to deploy even Tomb Guardians. These scraps could be dealt with by a charge from the Sea God Knights."
"I don't know. With the Red Duke dead, I'm not sure who's commanding these undead forces. It's hard to say whether this is another arrangement or a carefully designed trap." Francois slightly shook his head.
Known as the Enemy of the Undead, Francois had once defeated the great necromancer Heinrich Kemmler. He knew well that without the Red Duke and their siege weapons, the vampires no longer had the means to take the castle. Thus, Francois's strategy was to endure, relying on the high walls and defenses, as the undead would definitely collapse first.
The war entered a stalemate phase. The battle on the walls was intense but not brutal.
The night battle continued until dawn. As the first light of dawn appeared, the undead army began to collapse and retreat en masse. When Bodrick appeared on the walls, he witnessed an unbelievable scene.
The vampire army's camp across the river was completely deserted, all forces withdrawn, leaving behind the discarded undead scraps without control, becoming true corpses.
After a long night of battle, the human garrison in the castle felt extremely exhausted. They had no strength to pursue the vampire army, and Bodrick ordered the burning of corpses and the clearing of the battlefield.
Ryan also arrived. Bodrick, Francois, Ryan, and Julius observed the now-empty vampire army camp, remaining silent for a long time.
Julius, with a serious expression, said, "It looks like... the vampires have retreated?"
"No... from my understanding of vampires, they don't seem like they would give up so easily. Even if they really planned to retreat, it wouldn't be in this manner." Francois found it strange: "Generally, if vampires plan to retreat, they would press all their forces into one final battle. If they really can't win, then they would choose to use a horde of zombies and skeleton scraps to cover their retreat..."
Suddenly, Francois thought of something. He first looked at the Red Duke's head hanging on the castle flag, then at Ryan, and finally towards the vampire camp.
The duke's face changed dramatically: "Damn! This isn't a retreat; it's a strategic maneuver. They're seeking revenge, revenge for the Red Duke! Ryan, this is bad, the vampire army must be heading towards your domain!!!"
Francois, who dearly loved Sulia, realized his daughter was in danger and became somewhat panicked, stuttering with anxious expression: "They must have set off overnight, damn it, your domain is defenseless, we might not catch up with the undead."
"Quick! We must gather the knights and chase after them immediately. It was you who helped me before, now it's my turn to help you!" The Duke of Bordeleaux also realized something was amiss and immediately instructed his lieutenant, Sir Holf: "Gather all the knights, we'll march forcibly to chase the vampire army!"
"No need." Ryan, however, signaled that it wasn't necessary.
"Why??" Julius, worried about his sister, was the first to express his confusion.
"Let them go." Ryan showed a meaningful expression: "They won't reach my domain."
"Never will they reach, nor will they ever return."
...
The time moved to the afternoon of the next day.
Inside the Châlons Forest, at the outdoor courtyard of the riverside valley, the banquet continued. Grilled golden-brown tuna steaks, delicious butter beer, fresh broccoli—these common foods in the Old World were rare delicacies for the Emperor and Kyril. The Emperor even mentioned he hadn't tasted real beef in twenty thousand years.
The open space in the outdoor courtyard was filled with various food remnants, as if a number of griffins had passed through.
Sunlight streamed through the forest, illuminating the wooden table where the Emperor, Kyril, and Angron were discussing matters.
"You said you trust us, so you handed over the Great Crusade to us, while you returned to Terra to continue your plans. When we asked about your plans,
you didn't trust us enough to reveal anything but deceived us with so-called Imperial Truth." Angron, after a big gulp of butter beer, complained incessantly: "Father, you should bear responsibility for Horus's fall and betrayal."
Kyril's hands trembled slightly. The ultimate warrior gene-seed, the current Regent of the Imperium, looked expectantly and apprehensively at his father, waiting for his response.
The Emperor's expression was as cold as the eternal permafrost of the far north, but he still spoke.
"Gene-seed, I created you to be my assistants and subordinates because I couldn't be everywhere at once. I hoped to have someone to help me." After a long silence, the Emperor spoke.
Kyril and Angron nodded, understanding this point, as all gene-seed shared this consensus.
"But as you know, things went awry. When I created you, I used powers related to the warp, which alerted the Chaos Gods to my plans. After you were created, the Chaos Gods unleashed a terrible warp storm, sweeping you all away." The Emperor picked up his coffee cup, added milk and a little sugar, and continued: "That's one of the reasons I launched the Great Crusade. You are my children, my masterpieces, and I had to bring you back."
"After the Crusade began, I found you one by one, but many gene-seeds were already corrupted by the warp storm. For instance, Angron, I tried everything to remove the Butcher's Nails from you, but in the end, my physician told me it was impossible unless I killed you." The Emperor's expression changed slightly: "You became a madman, a complete lunatic, but I couldn't bring myself to do it, always hoping there might be another way. Many original beings were like this."
Angron and Kyril looked somber; what had happened had passed so many years ago.
"What about Horus? Among us, you trusted and liked him the most, even appointing him as Warmaster, but he ultimately chose the path of betrayal, leading half of the legions in rebellion." Kyril continued.
"Horus was once the one I valued most and had the greatest hope of inheriting my will." The Emperor remembered that tragic duel, a trace of pain flashing across his face: "But in the end, he failed to understand my painstaking efforts. That time, all four Chaos Gods personally intervened, twisting his entire mindset. In a way, Horus didn't betray me, but he couldn't resist the full power of the Chaos Gods."
"I was the first to join Horus's ranks with the World Eaters." Angron said with self-mockery: "At that time, I had fallen into madness, only seeking to satisfy my bloodlust and revenge."
Roboute Guilliman considered more.
The Emperor generously shared the truth with his sons, giving him more insight. Before, he always felt his father treated the Primarchs as tools, not subordinates, but tools, like a craftsman's file.
"You don't completely distrust us, nor do you completely trust us. You only trust us to a limited extent, so you can leave us to return to Terra to build the Webway, yet you're unwilling to reveal the secrets of the Webway. The only one you can fully trust is Magnus the Red, your close battle brother." Guilliman's words were pointed.
"That's because in the end, you all proved to be unreliable, and only Magnus was truly dependable, my friend, my closest battle brother, my most trusted servant." The Emperor's words also hit the nail on the head: "The results proved I was right, half of the Primarchs chose betrayal. After testing, the other half might be trustworthy, but by then, it was too late."
Guilliman and Angron both looked at Fabius Bile, confined in the machine, with Mechanicum Archmagos Belisarius Cawl adjusting the device. Guilliman thought Cawl must be eavesdropping on their conversation.
Such a conversation atmosphere made the two Primarchs feel relaxed. They enjoyed the feeling of speaking openly, which made them feel very comfortable, truly having a father-son moment.
"Who's next, Father?" Guilliman didn't want to dwell on the topic any longer.
"Vulkan is wandering outside the galaxy, he has received my command to return. Leman Russ has been found and is currently being treated on Terra." The Emperor's expression returned to its impassive state: "He ventured into the Eye of Terror alone, luckily I found him before he was completely dead."
"Some idiot who doesn't like to follow traffic rules has been turning in the Webway under Black Library for ten thousand years without finding an exit. To have him return, we must wait until the Webway is repaired. Dorn's whereabouts are currently unknown, I'm not sure where he went, but he should still be alive."
"And Russ?" Guilliman was most concerned about the whereabouts of his brothers, and upon hearing Russ's name, Angron turned his head away in disdain and awkwardness, instead dealing with his half-eaten chicken.
"Russ is here..." The Emperor was about to continue when a custodian approached: "My Lord, an undead army numbering in the tens of thousands is approaching this location. At their current pace, they will be near here in two hours."
"???" The Emperor frowned, turning his gaze to Angron: "Didn't Ryan go to the frontline to fight the vampire army?"
"Ah, my foolish brother. Clearly, he's botched something. Seems like it's time for this older brother to step in, hehe." Angron laughed carelessly, eager to show off.
Guilliman thought no matter how you looked at it, Angron was eager to prove himself.
"It seems someone doesn't want us to continue this discussion and banquet." The Emperor stood up, and almost instinctively, Guilliman and Angron also stood.
"Let's go solve the problem, Angron. Haven't you always wished for the chance to fight alongside me?" The Emperor's sword, burning with golden flames, was drawn as he spoke indifferently.
"Of course, Father."
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