An Ancient Pact Witnessed by the Imperial Guard Commander!

Machine Spirit Certification is the step that Alvin is most worried about.

Although, in terms of genes, bloodline, and other aspects, he is undoubtedly a direct descendant of the Valshius Merchant Dynasty.

However, the Warhammer's Machine Spirit certification might penetrate deep into the soul, as evidenced by the Knight Family's recognition ceremony at the High King.

In the Warhammer Universe, the older the family, the more complicated the succession ceremony. Often, in addition to requiring pure bloodlines, the Machine Spirit and the memories of past leaders will also form a specific test. While confirming whether the successor is qualified, they will also do their best to eliminate the corruption of Chaos Warp!

So, here's the problem.

Will Alvin's soul be able to gain the approval of the Machine Spirit of this ancient family flagship?

Only after sitting on the mechanical steel throne did Alvin's heart finally settle down completely. From that moment on... he was undoubtedly the "successor"!

Those complex and ancient memories flowed slowly into the depths of Alvin's soul, following the patterns on the illuminated steel throne!

He seemed to see an endless galaxy of stars!

Even tracing back to the most glorious and dazzling moment in human history, that towering figure, enveloped in golden light and radiating boundless majesty, led Angels of Death powerful enough to shake the stars, conquering planet after planet and illuminating the vast territory of the Imperium!

Once again, let humanity be united under the same banner!

The Imperium's Aquila banner fluttered among the stars until... that bloody and cruel upheaval utterly shattered humanity's hopes, turning the entire galaxy into Purgatory!

The great Master of Mankind, dragging His severely wounded body, climbed the steps one by one and sat on the Golden Throne, enduring endless torment and pain!

Within the memories flowing through the Machine Spirit, Alvin was immersed in the scene, as if he could deeply feel the pain of the first patriarch, and the wails and cries of humanity among the stars!

Following the memories of the first patriarch, he piloted the Sword of Redemption to Holy Terra, giving his all to stop that damned traitor!

Then.

The first Valshius, led by a golden- Adeptus Custodes, stepped into the highest mountain in the world, standing on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, and arrived at the ancient palace within its walls.

He saw the Master of Mankind sitting on the Golden Throne, and at that time the Emperor had not yet been drained by the terrible "instrument of torture" and still retained his human form.

Valshius was not the only one who entered the palace with "him"; there were three others, but they did not speak to each other. Instead, they remained silent and knelt respectfully before the Emperor.

"In the name of the Emperor!"

"We... will certainly abide by the 'covenant'!"

"Passed down from generation to generation, until death do us part!"

The four kneeling beneath the Golden Throne solemnly swore an oath to the Emperor, who was now unable to speak.

Then... the memory was interrupted.

"A pact?"

Alvin muttered to himself.

These two words are as if they were engraved in my bones and branded into the depths of my soul, deeply integrated into my being.

He didn't know the identities of the three people kneeling before the Golden Throne besides the first Valshius, but... his intuition told Alvin that the "covenant" they mentioned was extremely important!

This is a "story" that has never been recorded in history!

According to his understanding, the Emperor had never met with anyone in private after ascending the Golden Throne, but the memories of the Machine Spirit of the Sword of Redemption clearly confirmed this!

The Emperor had made an ancient covenant with those four!

Regarding the identities of the three companions, Alvin speculated that they were very likely, like the first Valshius, Rogue Trader had been personally granted "Trade Charter" by the Emperor!

But... what exactly is a covenant?

The Machine Spirit's memories contained no detailed information about the "Covenant." Alvin frowned and pondered for a moment before asking, "Do you know... about the Covenant?"

"I'm sorry, Mr. Alvin."

As expected, the answer given by the Machine Spirit was, "Any information about the 'Covenant' is a top-level secret within the Valshius Family, and is not allowed to be recorded on parchment scrolls or copied by any form of Machine Spirit or Servitor."

"... Then how do each successor learn about the contents of the 'Covenant'?!" Alvin was puzzled. The "Covenant," which wasn't even recorded on parchment, would be lost if something went wrong?

"In fact, the true contents of the 'covenant' concerning Valshius have long been lost, Mr. Alvin."

The Machine Spirit suddenly dropped a bombshell. "The actual content of the 'Covenant' was not passed down orally, nor was it recorded in any form. The method by which the 'Covenant' was passed down was erased long ago." If it wasn't passed down orally, nor recorded in any form, could it be... that it was revealed in a dream by the Emperor Lord?!

Alvin pinched his throbbing temples hard, feeling as if he had received an enormous amount of information in such a short time, far exceeding the total amount received in the previous ten years!

"Do you know the identities of the other three?" Alvin wanted to confirm whether the three who met the Emperor with the first Valshius were indeed Rogue Trader.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Alvin..." the Machine Spirit said, seemingly somewhat apologetic, "Even within the Holy Terra Palace, there's no record of the four people's identities. The only person who knows their identities and witnessed the entire event is..."

At this point, Machine Spirit fell silent for a long time, a rare occurrence.

"What's wrong?"

Alvin was a little confused. Could the Machine Spirit be stuck?

"That one has been gone for ten thousand years..." the Machine Spirit said in a low voice, "He is none other than Constantine Vaul, the former Lord Commander of the Imperial Guard the Imperial Guard personally appointed by the Emperor!"

"..."

Holy crap, Alvin's scalp tingled instantly!

How did all of this involve Constantine Vaul, the Lord Commander of the Imperial Guard?!

This gentleman has been by the Emperor's side since the Unification Wars, participating in the suppression of the Thunder Warriors, the Great Crusade, and the War of the Webway. He's a true big shot!

His own combat strength is said to be no less than that of the "Primarch"!

Therefore, it's completely impossible to verify the contents of the "ancient covenant" with anyone.

Rather than trying to find Constantine Vaul, it would be more practical to go to the Imperial Palace of Terra and install a talking device on the Emperor Lord's Golden Throne.

At least, the Emperor Lord won't move his position.

The Adeptus Custodes and the High Lord couldn't find Constantine Vaul, and he didn't think he could find this old man himself.

Alvin was even more troubled. He thought that becoming a nobleman would allow him to enjoy a life of luxury, but it seemed that he had been drawn into an even larger vortex.

"Can you tell me how many Merchant Dynasty were personally granted Trade Charter by the Emperor himself?"

Alvin changed his approach, deciding to see if he could find any clues by starting from this angle.

"According to current records, during the Great Crusade, there were eleven Rogue Trader whose Trade Charter were personally signed by the Emperor." The Machine Spirit paused slightly, then continued, "But after countless ages, only... seven remain!"

Choose three out of ten...

Alvin sighed; the scope was simply too vast.

Moreover, he wasn't even sure if the original three were among the remaining seven members of the Xing Shang Dynasty family.

Covenants, Lord Commander of the Imperial Guard, Emperor...

Alvin suddenly thought of a possibility.

It's just a possibility. The Emperor himself possesses prophetic abilities, although he cannot foresee the entire future, and because of the interference of the Warp, the future is full of changes. So... is there such a possibility?

The Emperor foresaw the "failure," so he secretly summoned four men and, with Constantine Vaul, the Lord Commander of the Imperial Guard of the Imperial Guard, as witness, made an ancient covenant!

The contents of the covenant... perhaps concern the future of humanity, and are a move the Emperor made in advance to prepare for the failure of the Webway?!

Thank you to readers 2021061705922422, Jimmy Trouble, and Obsidian Amber for their generous donations!

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