Do You Want One Too?

Fulgrim and Kasgar spent thirty years together.

And he, Horus, and the Emperor had also spent [thirty years] together on Holy Terra!

In the play, Fulgrim said that Kasgar had given her a Centaur gold ring and promised that she would forever be his Centaurus.

And in those years of heart-to-heart talks between him, Horus, and the Emperor, the other had also told him that he would be his [Centaur]!

Good heavens!

How could such a coincidence exist in the world?

"Centaur, gold ring."

"Heh heh."

Horus's laugh came out a little strained.

He stared at the final subtitle—[It is love! The power of love allows us to save this world!]—lost in thought.

"Maybe Fulgrim is reminding us not to forget the good qualities of being human, just because of the cruelty of war."

This was a problem that had easily arisen after he became the commander of the Expeditionary Fleet.

Apathy.

As the war dragged on, he grew increasingly numb, and his sense of the reality of human life became ever weaker.

Everything was just cold casualty figures, an inevitable consequence of war.

His own Lunar Wolves were fine.

But as for the Space Marines of other Legions (like a certain Nineteenth Legion) and the mortal Auxilia, he had gradually, without realizing it, stopped taking them seriously.

He even used them as vanguard cannon fodder to open a path for the Lunar Wolves.

Then look at the mortal Auxilia under Kasgar.

They coordinated with each other seamlessly, were well-trained, and it was clear at a glance that they had undergone long-term drills.

Moreover, to reduce casualties during the assault, Kasgar even used a large number of precious Automated Mecha to provide cover for them.

The one thing the Imperium of Man never lacked was people.

Yet Kasgar valued their lives more than those precious Automated Mecha.

And the mortals under Horus's command who had joined the expedition—

Were they not, just like Horus himself, accompanied by their own [Centaurus] of [thirty years]?

Might those dead mortals also have been clutching a [Centaur gold ring] in their hands?

"I understand."

Horus suddenly awakened with startling wisdom.

He spoke a shocking sentence.

"We must bring [love] and the [Centaur gold ring] back to the Lunar Wolves and the 63rd Expeditionary Fleet!"

He made a shocking declaration.

Still here, before the strategium of the Vengeful Spirit.

If the Vengeful Spirit's Machine Spirit could truly speak—

Vengeful Spirit: "I was there."

"Whenever Horus muttered about the [Centaur gold ring], I was always present."

The order was thus issued.

Most Company Captains did not quite understand Lord Horus's intent.

The atmosphere among the Lunar Wolves was already quite harmonious.

Thinking they needed to further strengthen their bonds was undoubtedly borrowing trouble.

Or perhaps Lord Horus was so certain of the position of Warmaster that he was in a good mood and was just joking with them today?

"Lord Horus, I still have a question."

The Fourth Company Captain, Sanguinius, who had been silent all along, suddenly stepped forward and spoke.

"What is it, Fourth Company Captain?"

Horus remembered that when almost everyone thought Kasgar was a connection hire, it was this Fourth Company Captain who had the keen eye to recognize the other's exceptional nature.

For his question, Horus naturally listened with full attention.

"I want to know, if we were to truly meet them face to face, how long could their guerilla warfare tactics delay us?"

"With both sides being Space Marines, how long do you think they could hold out against the Lunar Wolves' offensive?"

The moment the question was posed, Sanguinius inwardly chided himself for misspeaking.

He felt he had asked an extremely... heretical question.

After all, every Space Marine was a soldier of the Emperor.

A scene of Space Marine fighting Space Marine would be unimaginable.

"In actual combat, then."

Horus rubbed his chin for a moment, analyzing the answer in his mind.

"At the very least, they could hold out for three months."

"As for if they were to obtain additional supplies and reinforcements, that would be even harder to say."

"It's possible that even a Primarch like myself would fall at their hands."

Horus replied with a smile.

Of course, these were nothing but hypotheticals.

They were all Space Marines of the Imperium of Man.

They were the disseminators of the Imperial Truth, the eradicators of all superstition and foolishness.

They would fight shoulder to shoulder with Space Marines from other Legions.

Except for drills and training, no Space Marine would ever turn his gun on his own battle-brother.

"Very well, thank you for your answer, Lord Horus."

Sanguinius withdrew in silence.

Thus concluded the first session of the [Great Learning of the Lunar Wolves].

The Company Commanders departed with laughter and chatter.

Horus's orders were simple.

From now on, the tactic of using other Legions or Auxilia as meat shields and cannon fodder would never again appear.

Every member of the Expeditionary Fleet was their battle-brother, every person a precious citizen of the Imperium.

From now on, the Lunar Wolves' tactics would take their own casualties as a key combat metric.

None of the Company Commanders had any objections.

Except for one final point—that from now on, the Lunar Wolves must also increase emotional bonding among themselves, fostering a harmonious atmosphere of battle-brotherhood.

Thus, the trend of warrior lodges spread earlier among the Lunar Wolves Legion.

"Brother."

"Brother!"

The group walked out of the strategy room, past the towering corridor carved with the names of the fallen, their boots striking the white marble tiles with heavy, echoing thuds.

Even now, a few mortal artisans were still gilding characters onto the ebony roof beams.

Those were the names of the newly dead from the Dalit Xenos cleansing campaign.

The fallen would remain there forever.

But the rest still had a path ahead to walk.

"Brother, I really like you!"

"I'm going to give you a Centaur gold ring too!"

Torgaddon laughed, wrapping his arms around Company Commander Abaddon from behind.

"Get off me, Tarik. I don't have that kind of hobby."

Amid the crowd's laughter, Abaddon helplessly shook off the joker's embrace.

"Then you're still my Cen↑tau↓r! I'm still giving you a Cen↑tau↓r gold ring↑!"

"HAHAHAHA—"

The cadence, as exaggerated as Fulgrim's, sparked another round of laughter among the already boisterous Company Commanders.

"And what are you laughing at, Dradaton? You want one too?"

Solar System, Jupiter Shipyards.

"Whoa—"

In an exquisite room atop this Forge World, where giant steel machinery flowed with promethium like blood, a woman over three meters tall stretched wearily.

She gathered up the half-meter-tall parchment scrolls before her, surveying the fruits of her hard labor.

The construction of their Legion's flagship, the Pride of the Emperor, was nearing its end.

The final design blueprints were complete; only a few more weeks of supervision remained, and the entire vessel would be finished!

Phew!

Such high-intensity work had left even her, a Primarch, slightly fatigued.

Time to properly admire her own radiant form!

With that thought, she rummaged through the bedside cabinet for that precious recording from her days at the Chemeos Theater, all those years ago.

With this, he replenished the energy of the Centaur Gold Ring that he lacked!

Eh?

But she didn't seem to find that recording device.

Why is it [Detailed Explanation of New Information Guerilla Warfare Tactics for the Great Crusade's Space Marines and Auxilia (by Kasgar)]?

Fulgrim's little head tilted to one side in confusion.

Ah?

Looks like I grabbed the wrong one?

Thanks to Old Solitary for the tip.

Thanks!!!!!!!!!!