The Emperor's New Clothes

"Company Commander?"

"Any footage of the intruder?"

As he remained silent in shock, the Black Templars Space Marine beside him immediately stepped forward to examine the image on the Thinker's screen—

Click.

Before the other party could even get close, the Black Templars Commander grabbed the Thinker and slammed him shut.

"Company Commander?"

"No." The Black Templars company commander slowly uttered two words.

"No."

The company commander's reply was firm, just like his previous responses to all their inquiries, remaining tight-lipped.

This struck the Black Templars Space Marine who had circled around behind him as particularly odd.

"But platoon leader, I saw the change in the light emanating from the Thinker Array's screen onto your helmet."

It was a golden light that then turned brown and hit your helmet, and the reflection seemed to be that of a human body—"

"Shut up!"

The company commander quickly restrained the talkative fellow.

And this guy is getting close to the truth!

What should he say?

Or rather, what else could he say?

Are we just going to tell them all that the Emperor has appeared to them?

This light is emanating from the manifestation of the Emperor!

Normally, such a high concentration of Psychic Power fluctuations inside a ship would almost corrupt the entire Black Ship —before returning, the company commander had already prepared for a great battle against the corrupted demons.

But the actual situation was more normal than he had imagined, and it didn't seem like corruption from the abyss, but rather like a blessing.

That's right, it's about bestowing blessings.

According to the Inquisition's thorough examination of those affected, although many mortal crew members and Black Templars Space Marine strike squads were subjected to this "attack" on their souls, the subsequent tests showed that not only did these people not show the slightest sign of corruption in their bodies, but even their previously incurable wounds and diseases were completely healed under that golden light.

Limbs can regenerate, and one is immune to all diseases.

It can even cure baldness!

In other words, although an absolutely impossible Emperor form appeared under the illumination of this light, the fact that everyone was able to recover without any Chaos corruption seems to truly prove the arrival of the Emperor's Light!

Could it be that this is not a trick of Chaos?

—This woman, dressed in very little clothing and with a large, fiery figure, is the Emperor!

Hiss.

The Black Templars Company Commander gasped.

Wrong.

The Emperor's Psychic Power allows him to appear in a thousand different forms. He might appear as a tall and beautiful woman in his own eyes, which is very likely because he himself desires the Emperor to be a very hot, dark-skinned, big-breasted woman.

The problem isn't with the Emperor, but with him— the Black Templars Company Commander himself!

This was the image he had always hoped would be projected towards the Emperor.

Therefore, when responding to his wishes, the Emperor will appear in the form he most desires to see!

So--

The facts likely suggest that this was indeed a great Emperor using his methods to save the people of the Imperium.

It is very likely that in the eyes of others, they saw a wise, powerful, majestic, and brave figure, like a king or father.

The reason he would see a scorching, dark-skinned, burly Emperor is very likely because he—

Sexual misconduct!

His faith in and loyalty to the Emperor were tainted with impurities that should not have been there!

!

As if something in his brain had snapped, the company commander fell into a prolonged state of confusion, unable to extricate himself from it for a long time.

But... that's impossible!

That's absolutely impossible!

How could he possibly have such thoughts about the great Emperor!

The company commander vigorously shook his helmet.

He vehemently refuted his own thoughts, deeming them filthy and vile, and utterly impossible for them to exist in his mind.

As a company commander of the Black Templars, his devotion to the Emperor has never wavered since birth.

He firmly believed that the Emperor was the savior of mankind, and even though the Emperor was now just a skeleton sitting alone on the Golden Throne, the fanatics of the Black Templars still upheld the ancient mission and oath.

The Black Templars' expedition against the Xenos, Chaos, and traitors will never end.

The Black Templars Chapter is the offspring of Rogal Dorn and one of the main Chapter of the Second Founding.

The splitting of the Legion occurred after the Horus Heresy, when Primarch Robert Guilliman of the Ultramarines ordered the Space Marine Legion to be broken up into many Chapter.

This clearly caused a huge uproar among the remaining Loyalist Primarch the Imperium.

Dorn considered Guilliman a coward who hadn't shown up in the fight to defend Terra because of his own Five Hundred Worlds.

Neither side was willing to yield. Primarch Leman Russ of the Space Wolves and Primarch Salamanders Primarch of the White Scars sided with Dorn, as they did not want their legions to split. Meanwhile, Primarch Corvus Corax of the Raven Guard and Primarch Khan Jaghatai of the White Scars sided with Guilliman, as another civil war was about to erupt after the Imperium had just endured a devastating war.

In the end, to avoid another civil war, Rogal Dorn granted Guilliman's request, splitting the Imperial Fists into several subgroups.

The sub-group led by the Emperor's Champion Sigismund is the Black Templars.

Since the first High Marshal, Sigismund made the vow upon leaving Terra that he and his new Chapter would prove their loyalty by never giving up against the Emperor's enemies, Sigismund spent most of this time on guard against the Cadian Gate, firmly believing that one day the Horus traitors (namely Abaddon) would return and wreak havoc on the Imperium once again.

Then

Then he grew old and died.

To be precise, it disappeared from Imperium records at some point a thousand years after the expedition.

Sigismund never saw his brother Don again until his death.

Unfortunately, because Guilliman was still alive, Abaddon could only stay obediently in the Eye of Terror for those thousand years.

As a proud member of the Black Templars, a loyal and courageous Sons of Dorn, and a devout believer who prays to the Emperor at all times, how could he not become a loyal guardian of the Imperium?

How could he possibly see the Emperor as this?!

No! No!

I don't want to see the Emperor throwing away his son!

I don't want to watch!

Black Templars Commander: "."

Oh well, nobody knows anyway!

After a considerable period of internal strife, the Space Marine captain ultimately chose to cover it all up.

As long as nobody knows, that's fine!

First, quickly delete the video of the Emperor's apparition when no one is around!

At worst, he can repent for his sins in the Fortress-Monastery and kill a few more of the Emperor's enemies to prove that his loyalty to the Emperor is pure and unadulterated!

"Us--"

The company commander, who was about to turn his head, was horrified to see that the Black Templars Brother seemed to be getting impatient from waiting for too long, so he chose to connect the Servitor's data to his own Thinker Array.

Because he was facing away from the screen, he couldn't see what the other person was seeing at all. But seeing the shock on his face, which was still clearly visible even under the helmet, the Black Templars's company commander sensed something was wrong.

"Company Commander, what... what is this?"

"It's exactly what I saw in the video feed from the Servitor connection. What, did you see something else in this video?"

"No!"

The Battle Brother suddenly denied it loudly. "I saw nothing but the great Emperor!"

"Emperor, yes, Emperor."

After a moment's pause, the company commander abruptly asked, "What kind of image does the Emperor have in your eyes?"

The other person suddenly shuddered at this question.

"Company Commander? Why are you asking that?"

"Answer my question!"

"I... I saw the Emperor's Guanghua. At least it looked like the Emperor's Guanghua, and the mortal crew and strike teams were all captivated by Guanghua. I saw the great Emperor slowly emerging from the light, and he seemed to be accompanied by an equally robust Space Marine."

None of them addressed the core issue, namely, the Emperor's specific appearance.

"The Emperor was a burly man, yes, wearing heavy, Auramite armor, wielding a longsword that shimmered with the fire of righteous wrath and lightning-fast, powerful power claw. His figure was so large—no, so imposing—that it took me a while to breathe."

That's right.

In his eyes, the Emperor was exactly the same as the Emperor in legends and church reliefs. Yes, that's right.

"Besides that, what else could Emperor be? You agree, right, Company Commander?"

"Company Commander?"

"Ah! Hahaha, of course! In my eyes, the Emperor is also so tall and majestic, and has a breathtaking beauty—I mean charm, charm, charm that makes people want to follow him."

Hahaha.

For a moment, the entire cabin of the Black Ship was filled with a cheerful atmosphere.

The matter of the Black Ship being stormed into the Inquisition was simply left unresolved.

The search and interrogation conducted by the Black Templars Astartes Company Commander, who had rushed back to the scene, yielded no useful leads.

Even all the records and documents inside the Black Ship were destroyed for unknown reasons.

No one has ever seen these things again.

People were simply telling tales of a miracle that descended upon the Black Ship of the Inquisition, and what they saw was the mercy and grace of the great Emperor.

The tall and handsome Emperor, clad in Auramite armor, pardoned all their sins and purified the impurities of every crew member.

Even those suffering from serious illnesses and disabilities could be successfully rejuvenated under this Emperor Radiance.

Of course, the Emperor also brought judgment upon the ship.

Inquisitor Serkes's private cell was activated by the Emperor's Wrath, and all the people and creatures imprisoned there instantly rushed into the entire Black Ship.

Despite the Inquisition's attempts to suppress the matter, the number of people involved was simply too large— Inquisitor Serkes had imprisoned far too many unconvicted individuals in his private courthouse. This included even his superior, Judge Ferean, the court's special Chief Judge who was supposed to oversee the Inquisition of the Badab rebellion.

They even locked up their boss?!

"I never expected it to turn out this way."

"However, it is also a good thing that the Badab problem can be resolved peacefully— Hurons himself is quite capable, and if he can become a loyal guardian of the Imperium, the Maelstrom will no longer be afraid of the harassment of the Chaos dregs."

"Sir, can-"

"We will make new arrangements after the fleet at the front has finished clearing out the Maelstrom."

"As for now, the Inquisition has more urgent tasks to handle."

Chief Judge Ferean, who had already announced his unfortunate death, reappeared before everyone and gave orders.

He immediately issued his instructions after reviewing the existing documents.

Chief Judge Ferean recalled that, at the very moment he emerged from the Stasis Field, he saw the Emperor's prophecy about the future.

Although the Emperor's image was somewhat impressive, he still remembered the other's warning.

[Stop the Minotaur Chapter's carnage in the Minotaurs Pale Stars and maintain the fragile peace with the Tyrant of Badab.]

This is an Emperor decree!

Although this Emperor looks somewhat...

Not as Emperor as some people think.

"Prepare ships and weapons. All members of the Inquisition will accompany me to the Pale Stars to stop the Minotaur Chapter's operations."

"Let's go now!"

Inside the Black Ship, in a torture chamber unknown to anyone.

This is where the Space Marine commander is located.

"Company Commander, what are you doing? Those are instruments of torture used in the Inquisition, things used on the most heinous and unforgivable criminals!"

"It's nothing, I can handle it."

"Consider the absence of the Pain Glove in the Black Ship a punishment for me."

"But! Company Commander, you haven't done anything wrong, so why use the Pain Glove to punish yourself?"

Has he not made any mistakes?

The Black Templars's company commander fell silent.

No.

From the moment he saw "The Emperor," this company commander of the Black Templars... he—

He had already made a mistake.

How could Emperor Emperor be so beautiful and perfect in his eyes!

He should only have pure reverence and affection for the Emperor, not like this, seeing a scantily clad, burly Emperor on the screen of the Thinker Array!

This is wrong; this is heresy!

He should have known, and he had thought so too, but just not quite—

It feels so good!!!

Sizzle sizzle sizzle.

"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh-"

From the interrogation room of the Black Ship came the agonizing screams of the Black Templars company commander.

He was also recalling the beautiful Emperor he had seen on the Thinker's screen earlier.

Why don't we wait until the company commander is done, then he can go up and punish himself a little?

Endymion System.

This area falls under the jurisdiction of the Mantis Warriors. As one of the Guardians of Badab, this Chapter enjoys a degree of autonomy over the region.

Despite some tensions following the signing of the peace agreement, the Red Scorpions Chapter from the Imperium of Man is preparing to send a diplomatic team to the other side, stationed at the local camp until the cleanup of the Maelstrom is completely finished.

"Now, with Red Scorpions's protection, the Inquisitor's men shouldn't be able to track us here."

On the transport ship, two Red Scorpions Chapter Space Marine in full armor walked and talked in the passageway.

After several twists and turns and with the help of the Red Scorpions Chapter, Kasgar and Titus successfully infiltrated the group.

"So, our mission is simply to become special envoys of the Imperium of Man? Is it that simple?"

"Titus said."

He preferred the simple and effective task of killing a few animals to the task of being a diplomatic envoy.

"Of course not. If it were truly just an envoy delegation, someone else would have replaced us, but—"

"A man-eating shark swimming in the void has its eyes on this place."

According to Inquisitor Serkes's secret documents, the two Chapter sent by the High Lord to assist, the Carcharodons Chapter and the Minotaur Chapter, were not easy to deal with.

If handled improperly, the already fragile peace could vanish in an instant.

Fortunately, for Minotaur Chapter that only obeys the High Lord and the Inquisition, Kasgar successfully awakened Chief Judge Ferean and, in the name of the Emperor, compelled him to restrain the Minotaur's actions.

As for the Carcharodons, they are heading to the Endymion System of the Mantis Warriors.

If left unchecked, the Carcharodons will, in accordance with High Lord Vandire's will, plunder the Endymion System of the Mantis Warriors for Blood Tithe and resources to enrich itself.

Especially since the main force of the Mantis Warriors has already gone to the Maelstrom to sweep as ordered by Otis, the Red Scorpions Chapter, the defenses in the rear are now very weak. The Endymion System, which has lost its protection, is like prey, locked on by the Carcharodons.

"You should have heard of the name of the Carcharodons. They are known for their bloodlust and cruelty. They show no mercy even to former citizens of the Imperium."

"The only targets they set their sights on are those destined to be torn apart and die completely."

Once their massacre unfolds in the Endymion System, the fragile agreement maintained between the two sides is likely to break down on the spot.

"We must stop them."

Us?

Titus was somewhat stunned.

He wasn't afraid; rather, he hadn't seen anyone more unaware of fear than himself in a long time.

"Just the two of us?"

"That's right, just the two of us."

Still on that Black Ship the Inquisition.

Grin.

With a slight flicker, unnoticed by everyone, a figure lurking in the shadows slowly moved forward.

Grey Knights.

They arrived with extreme secrecy; each Grey Knights was a powerful Psyker. By concealing their Psychic Power, they could temporarily avoid some unnecessary trouble.

The Grey Knights came here primarily to investigate a rumor that had spread from a nearby star sector.

Someone once witnessed the Emperor's divine power beneath the Hive City —the demons were instantly driven away by the burning Gold-Red Flame;

The trading ship suddenly returned from the Warp, and the crew believed they had seen the Emperor in his Centaur form.

Not long ago, an even more sensational rumor originated from here.

The Emperor's miracle descended upon this Black Ship of the Inquisition.

The Grey Knights need to retrieve the evidence.

This time, lurking in the shadows, he set his sights on an ordinary crew member.

With the help of Psychic Powers, he was able to easily read other people's memories and experiences, and investigate the truth behind the Emperor's miracle.

Yes, it's this memory I want to see.

Wait, what about the Emperor?

The Emperor... oh no, it should be the Emperor.

"What! What is this?!"