"I want to save Fulgrim. Come to the palace at the center~"
An unbearably sultry, seductive voice rang out in Francis's mind.
Just from the sound of it, Francis knew she had to be a stunning beauty!
Francis fell silent for a moment, then decided to do something that went against everything he'd been taught.
"I don't want to save him. Can you let me go?" Francis cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted.
"..."
"Don't you want to save Angron? He's on the third level."
Sure enough, that pleasant voice came again. Francis savored it carefully this time, then continued, "With a voice that sweet, you can have Angron too!"
"Aren't they your brothers?"
"I have twenty brothers and several thousand sons. I can spare one or two."
"If you want them, they're yours. I didn't bring a welcoming gift anyway."
"So, how about letting me go?"
Francis's words were like a cold November wind, ruthlessly sweeping through the hearts of the demons hiding nearby.
They'd never met anyone so cold-blooded!
Francis waited a long while, but received no answer.
The humans in the cages gazed at him pleadingly, while Francis stared right back at them.
One of the people in a cage swallowed and said, "Honored Primarch, please give me a gold coin. Just one will do~"
"Maybe next time! I'm in a bit of a hurry."
Then Francis walked past the demons. What ordinary human would know about Primarchs?
With no other choice, he could only keep heading outward.
Soon, he saw countless ornate gemstones embedded in the surrounding walls, and lifelike golden statues stood along every path.
Clearly, anyone who touched the gems or golden statues would turn into a golden statue themselves.
Francis didn't take anything. He wandered toward the exit, muttering as he went, "This test of yours is no good! You should be whispering in my ear nonstop about how valuable and rare all these treasures are."
Sure enough.
As soon as Francis finished speaking, he heard those tempting voices whispering in his ear.
"I mean, save that spiel for someone else. I'm the Emperor's son. Even if I only get one-twentieth of the Milky Way, I'll still be richer than you lot with your measly scraps."
"This makes me seriously doubt the competence of you demons."
"Please, act like professionals."
Three days later
He still hadn't found a door leading outside. On the other hand, he had found the door leading deeper in.
"Fine, fine~ So that's how you want to play!" Francis covered his face. When people were speechless, they really did laugh.
Francis casually picked up a warblade. It didn't look too old, so its owner had probably entered not long ago.
"Then I'll go take a look!"
With that, he walked through the pitch-black doorway. Beyond it lay a vast open space. Countless small islands were linked by bridges, and each island had nothing but a huge dining table.
All kinds of exquisite food were laid out on them. Heaps of flesh surrounded the tables, wolfing down the food. When they got thirsty, they lowered their heads to drink from lakes of wine.
Though their eyes were filled with despair, their bodies kept swallowing frantically.
"Won't someone save me? I'm so hungry! Why am I always hungry?"
The bloated gluttons wailed, until at last they burst apart, leaving only a revolting mess behind.
"Rest in peace."
To spare them any more suffering, Francis gave each one a clean death with a single stroke, then hurried on to the next level.
The third level was a field covered in soft wheatgrass.
Young women and men wearing animal masks frolicked and played, naked. Angron lay atop a golden haystack, a blade of grass between his teeth.
Countless young women surrounded him as he basked in their company.
"Angron!!"
Francis ran over to him and shoved the others aside. "Wake up! How did you end up here too?"
In response to his question, Angron stared at the sky without saying a word, as if he were asleep.
"Hehehe~"
No matter how much Francis shook him and shouted, Angron just kept grinning foolishly, as if his frontal lobe had been removed.
Francis gave him a few hard slaps, but Angron was already lying there, mindless.
"Phew~ What did you do to him?"
Meanwhile,
the young men and women Francis had pushed aside began to twist. The masks on their heads gradually changed into their true faces. Their limbs writhed, and extra breasts sprouted across their bodies.
"Roar~"
At last, they drew enormous bone blades from their backs and charged at Francis, their faces twisted with rage.
Clang!
Francis blocked a strike with a backhanded swing, then turned to face them. "If any of you can tell me what happened, I'll leave this one's corpse in one piece. How about that?"
The dozens of demons looked at one another. Some even snickered, speaking in a language Francis couldn't understand.
"Ugh, this is why I don't like dealing with demons. You really don't understand a word people say."
As he spoke, he darted forward and plunged into the demons. His warblade flashed in his hands, and every downward stroke was accompanied by a demon's wail.
One demon lashed out with its sharp claws, trying to stop Francis's attack. But the moment its claws met the warblade, there was a clang. Francis brought his blade down in a backhanded slash, splitting the demon in half from head to toe. Black blood sprayed everywhere.
Then he swept his blade sideways, cutting three demons in half at the waist as they tried to ambush him from the flank.
Their bodies spun through the air, letting out piercing shrieks before crashing helplessly to the ground.
Every time Francis swung his blade, another demon's head came off. Before long, all that remained was a heap of severed limbs.
"I'm a Primarch too, you know. Did you really have to be that bold?"
"I'm a peaceful man. I just don't like fighting!"
The demon head at Francis's feet mumbled something, but it had no jaw, so Francis couldn't make out a word.
Then he dragged Angron along and continued to the next level.
He reached the fourth level.
As soon as he entered, Francis saw a man clad in golden armor, holding the Imperial flag. Behind him stood many Primarchs, the High Lords of Terra, and countless Astartes.
"Francis, come here. I'm entrusting the Imperium to you from now on." The man in golden armor looked at Francis with great tenderness.
"..." Francis stared at them expressionlessly and walked up to the man.
Then he swung his blade, cutting through empty air.
"So it was an illusion. You should've made it real. At least then I could've landed a couple of satisfying hits!" Francis shouted toward the center.
He continued onward.
There was a garden, its winding paths covered in beautiful flowers and thorns.
A gentle, fragrant breeze blew past, while countless flattering whispers appeared in Francis's ears.
"You cured the Thousand Sons' Flesh Change~"
"You saved countless loyal Astartes~"
"You are the Emperor's most exceptional son~"
"..."
The Emperor's reflection appeared in the mirror lake. On closer inspection, it was actually Francis wearing the Emperor's Power Armour.
Francis: "..."
Francis seriously wondered if anyone would actually fall for this.
To him, it was like carving flowers into a pile of garbage. No matter how much you carved, it was still garbage.
Then he spotted figures being tortured in the distance. They stared intently at their reflections in the mirror-like lake, held in place as thorny branches silently pierced their flesh.
At last came a golden beach.
An endless stretch of shore, with a choir singing lullabies. The sea smelled sweet, gently soothing Francis's taut nerves.
The warm sun overhead was golden, and gentle waves lapped at the shore.
A voice seemed to urge him to rest for a while, promising the most comfortable experience if he lay down here.
"Sigh~"
Francis let out a soft sigh. He had no choice but to cut down the entire choir.
The instant the singing stopped, countless bones appeared across the beach.
Leaving the beach behind, Francis finally arrived before the glittering palace.
An impossibly tall fortress stood atop slender, twisted pillars. High towers coiled around one another like living vipers in their nest.
Inside was what looked like a circular hall, with mirrors hung everywhere, reflecting one another. Countless images of Fulgrim remained in them.
Some looked normal, some had four arms and a serpent's tail, and others had twisted into lumps of flesh.
"Congratulations, you've made it through. Come on in~"
Hearing that voice again, Francis let out a long sigh after surviving all six trials.
"You don't even have a prize for beating them."
"Why don't we just call it quits? Your six trials were really boring~"
"I'm tired today."
"No relationship can work when the feelings aren't mutual. We can't be together, understand?"
"Forced love like this is suffocating."
"We're not right for each other!"
Francis spoke every word with complete sincerity.
A piercing scream suddenly filled the entire space, and Francis felt the world spin.
Then he was back on Isstvan V.
"Francis, what's wrong? Why are you spacing out?" Fulgrim tapped his forehead, leaving a faint mark.
"Were you asleep just now?"
"No. You froze up when we were talking about whipping the Emperor."
"Yikes, this is really bad. She's coming after me specifically!" Francis touched his chin. Things seemed to be taking a turn he hadn't expected.
"How about this? I have another way to purge the demon inside you. Want to try it?"
Before you continue