Each Harboring Ghostly Thoughts

Until the four arrived on the Conqueror. And yes, at some point the Death Guard's Primarch, Mortarion, had followed them.

His skin was unusually pale, and his eyes held a deep, hollow gaze. He wore Barbarus power armour, adorned with unique toxic gas censer.

That smell!

"Ugh~" Francis swallowed hard; the scent emanating from the other was rather foul.

"What's wrong, little Fran~"

Fulgrim, clad in purple and gold power armour, suddenly moved closer, then caught the scent and couldn't help but cover his nose.

"Who are you calling 'little Fran'? Do we know each other? Why are you getting so close?" Francis cried out, goosebumps prickling all over his body.

What the hell was 'little Fran'!

Come on, he was a man. Why must he make things difficult for another man!

Francis ran, Fulgrim chased, but in the end, escape was impossible.

"Caught you, little guy~" Fulgrim dangled him by his collar, his fingers lightly tracing the other's neck.

"Warmaster, save me!" Francis wailed, truly fearing he'd be sliced in half.

Fulgrim was the kind of guy who would actually kill his own brothers!

"Alright, Fulgrim. We have important business to attend to, stop messing around."

As soon as Horus spoke, the other calmed down considerably.

The four arrived at the World Eaters' ship section and saw no less than ten small groups inside, all in conflict with each other, fighting amongst themselves.

"What are you doing! Have you fed your honour to the dogs!"

"What kind of behaviour is this! If you're so fierce, go kill xenos and the False Emperor!"

"If that's not enough, fight me! Whoever wins will be the new Warmaster!"

With that, Horus leaped down, landing in the central area where everyone was gathered. The ground shook violently, the entire floor trembling.

The World Eaters all gazed greedily at Horus, who waved his hand and continued, "Come on! You want to take my place so badly! Come fight me!"

"What? Scared now?"

The World Eaters dared not speak in anger, and the crowd continued to stir until someone finally couldn't hold back and charged forward.

"Present the Warmaster's head to..."

Before the man could finish, Horus smashed him away with a single hammer blow, fragments of his power armour raining down like snow.

The air filled with the scent of blood, and a few more red-eyed individuals charged forward.

"Kill!"

"Kill, kill!"

They swung their chainswords at Horus, but as expected, all were sent flying by Horus's hammer, not even having time to scream.

Instantly.

The World Eaters quieted down considerably and silently regrouped.

Horus looked up and saw Francis giving him a thumbs-up.

At that moment, Horus felt as if his headache had lessened.

Led by the World Eaters, they arrived at the innermost room. Kharn stood guard outside, shaking his head helplessly.

"The Primarch doesn't want to see anyone, he just wants to be alone."

He then shot Francis a fierce glare, as if blaming him entirely.

"Don't glare at me, he wanted to wear it himself, and he wouldn't let me take it off," Francis felt as if he'd done a good deed that backfired.

But upon hearing this, Fulgrim's eyes lit up. "How about I take off the thing on his head?"

Suddenly!

A bold idea flashed through Francis's mind.

Francis wanted to laugh, but he couldn't yet, so he said with a solemn expression, "It's not necessary to go to such trouble."

"When those damnable loyalists arrive, you can just pull out the little rod on his head and throw him into the crowd."

"It's simple, convenient, and requires no communication, how great is that!"

Francis's words were like a sharp knife stabbing into the hearts of the World Eaters, and they roared in anger.

"What do you take our Primarch for? A weapon? To use him like that without regard for his feelings!"

"Warmaster, are you really going to do this?"

"..."

Hearing this, Horus raised an eyebrow. 'Loyalist' was a good word; he was going to overthrow the Emperor!

As for Angron's situation, he actually quite liked the idea, as it was the most efficient.

But saying it directly would have some impact on the World Eaters Legion. As he pondered a way to achieve both, Kharn's eyes were bloodshot as he growled, "I think it's possible. Perhaps only then can the Primarch find himself again. He's just temporarily blinded; he'll definitely come back."

Of course, that was his hope.

"Kharn! You!"

"Kharn, you..."

"..."

Clearly, the World Eaters hadn't expected Kharn to agree, but they couldn't say anything due to his strength.

Now, Kharn was temporarily in charge of the World Eaters Legion in place of Angron.

On the way back.

"Francis, where do you think we should wait for the loyalists?" Horus asked.

"Istvaan V. The climate there is pleasant, and the location is convenient for large-scale combat."

Upon hearing Francis's suggestion, Horus excitedly clapped him on the shoulder and said, "I never expected you to have the potential to be a Warmaster!"

"This idea aligns perfectly with mine!"

Francis's face flushed slightly. At that moment, he genuinely wanted to join Horus.

However, he remembered that the Emperor was still whole, and the Ten Thousand were still around!

He decided against it.

Francis was instead curious about what the Emperor was doing.

Terra Imperial Palace.

"Your Majesty, isn't this design a bit over the top? Do we really need so many hidden entrances?" the Adeptus Mechanicus Tech-Priest asked.

"Hmm, it's safer this way. After all, this is the Ling Clan's Webway."

Hearing the Emperor's words, the Tech-Priest felt they made a lot of sense. Since the Emperor had descended from his throne, the construction of the human Webway had clearly accelerated.

It was just tiring. The Emperor seemed like an unwearying machine. After descending from his throne, he had been constantly remodeling the Webway, not stopping at all.

It was at this moment that the voices of the Adeptus Custodes could be heard from behind them. "Your Majesty, please rest. You haven't rested in a long time."

When the Emperor turned around and saw the Adeptus Custodes he had personally created, he saw one holding a basin of hot water and a Sister of Silence carrying a towel.

"What are you doing? Who taught you this?"

The Emperor's tone clearly carried a hint of displeasure. They immediately knelt on the ground and replied, "Primarch Francis said it. He said it's good for your health and can relieve your fatigue, so we saw you working for so long..."

Magnus, who was originally on the throne, wanted to say something, but seeing the Emperor's extremely stern face, he swallowed his words.

In the Emperor's heart, it felt like a volcano was about to erupt!

"Where is he now? Have him come see me immediately!"

Before the Adeptus Custodes could answer, the Emperor felt the presence of Leman Russ and Rogal Dorn requesting an audience.

The moment he agreed, Leman Russ rushed in and said, "Father, Horus has betrayed us!"

"This time, there is conclusive evidence. They destroyed Istvaan III and are trying to kill warriors still loyal to the Imperium!"

"Francis is undercover within their ranks! I fear he can't hold on much longer!"

Hearing this, Magnus excitedly shouted, "Father, I told you Horus had turned, but you didn't believe me."

"Francis is not at fault!"