"M-My lord, is there some kind of misunderstanding?" An elderly bishop had begun to tremble as he spoke. Years of comfort had made him quite fat, and when he was afraid, all that flesh quivered.
"A misunderstanding? What kind of misunderstanding? Are you questioning me?" Guilliman scrutinized the elderly bishop. "I built this great Imperium alongside my father and witnessed the Ecclesiarchy's first beginnings. Do you think I am unqualified to judge your actions?"
"N-No, my lord, I never meant that." The elderly bishop was almost in tears upon hearing those words.
Even his mechanical Bionic Eye was trembling. Guilliman's overwhelming presence had stripped him of every trace of his former dignity.
It was not merely a fear of death. More than that, Guilliman had denied the faith in his heart.
"We have always served the Emperor faithfully and have never committed any act of defiance." Another bishop spoke. He was no better off, but at least he could still speak fluently without stammering.
"That is why I did not execute you immediately, but chose to come here in person and investigate. If I had obtained proof that you were indeed heretics, then it would not have been me who came, but the Exterminatus decree I signed."
The cruelty in Guilliman's words made the bishops tremble with fear.
They had not forgotten that the Emperor's son possessed another title as well: the Demigod of War.
The Imperium had been founded only upon the ruins and slaughter of countless Xenos empires and human powers unwilling to submit to the Imperium.
Every Primarch was an embodiment of war, utterly merciless toward their enemies.
"My lord, we are absolutely loyal to the Imperium and the Emperor. We are not the rebels you speak of."
"Yes, my lord."
"My lord, you must believe us. We have never entertained any thought of defying the Emperor."
Guilliman revealed a meaningful smile. "I also hope you have been deceived rather than truly turned traitor. I have seen your piety, and I sincerely hope it is genuine."
"Our piety is genuine, my lord."
"Yes."
Guilliman pointed at the sinners imprisoned in iron cages, screaming in agony. "Then can you tell me what that is?"
"They are heretics. They reject the Emperor's enlightenment and refuse to believe."
"We punish them so they understand the consequences of not believing in the Emperor and not respecting the Emperor."
"Pain will purify their souls and make them repent."
"So you mean my father needs to use fear to win followers? Like those Chaos Gods, using schemes and death to terrorize the ignorant, forcing them to kneel before the Emperor's statues and offer their faith?" Guilliman questioned the bishops before him coldly. The smile on his noble face became cruel and icy.
"My lord, that is not what we mean." The elderly bishop cried out. "We have never harbored such thoughts."
"But that is what you have done. You have twisted my father into one of the Chaos Gods, no different from those Warp Chaos Gods humanity despises. You have turned fear into a means of preaching His name and used death to coerce the people. How are your actions any different from the Chaos traitors my father detested? Those traitors harmed my father's people, and so have you."
"Those Chaos Gods use false lies to take everything from people, leaving them with nothing but pain to endure. My father loathed this and swore to bring salvation to humanity. Yet now, you invoke my father's name to commit such evil."
Guilliman's voice contained terrible fury, and everyone could clearly feel the rage in his heart.
The bishops' fear reached its utmost limit.
"M-My lord." The bishop wept. "We only wished to preserve His glory."
"Preserve it with fear and swords? Heretics, you have twisted my father. You twisted his mercy into fear, his kindness into cruelty, and his benevolence into bloodshed. Kneel, or I will declare you heretics and sentence you to the flames."
Guilliman drew the Emperor's Sword. With a sudden whoosh, golden flames surged upward, dazzling and brilliant.
The bishops dropped to their knees one after another, trembling all over.
Guilliman glanced at them, then walked toward the podium that had been prepared for him.
He raised the Emperor's Sword high, fury burning in his eyes.
A Servo-skull with red light blinking in its eye sockets hovered beside him, broadcasting his every movement in real time.
Massive projection screens appeared throughout every city and town on Espandor.
All the faithful watched Guilliman. They looked at one another, unsure why the Emperor's son had made the bishops kneel.
"I am the Emperor's son, Lord of Ultramar, Imperial Regent, and the Holy Emperor's sole spokesman within the Imperium. Kneel, ignorant believers, or you shall be declared heretics."
Guilliman's voice was carried across the world through the Servo-skulls. Even in the desolate deserts, his voice rang out.
His voice carried immense power and pressure, and the faithful exchanged astonished looks.
They did not know why the Primarch had issued such an order.
Yet out of faith in the Emperor, they still knelt.
All the believers prostrated themselves upon the ground, afraid they would be denounced as heretics.
Those who came to Espandor were the most fervent believers. They would never allow the slightest flaw in their faith.
As the Emperor's son, Guilliman held the Emperor's Sword. He was the Emperor's most legitimate spokesman, at least far more rightful than bishops or saints.
Other than the Emperor appearing in person, no one could challenge Guilliman's position.
"I am sincerely delighted by your devout faith. Yet certain selfish and greedy people have deceived and manipulated you in every way for power and wealth. They have shaped my merciful and loving father into something like those disgusting Chaos Gods."
"I must correct this error, judge those infuriating heretics, and restore my father's glory to you. From this day onward, anyone who defies me is a heretic. Anyone who distorts my words is a lackey of those Chaos Gods. I will show no mercy."
After saying this, Guilliman turned to the bishops kneeling on the ground. "You have committed unforgivable crimes. You became the claws of those evil entities, twisting my father's glory and bringing endless pain to those who follow and love him. I should send you to the stake and execute you."
"But my father taught me to be merciful, to love every human who has not fallen into the abyss. Therefore, I will give you an opportunity. You may choose atonement, or choose to end your sinful lives."
"I am willing to atone, my lord."
"So am I."
Watching the Space Marines carry out enormous pyres one after another, how could the bishops dare debate religion with Guilliman?
Debating others could demonstrate their understanding of the Emperor's glory and raise their reputation.
Debating a Primarch meant only one outcome: the stake, followed by condemnation as a heretic.
"Very good. You have made the right choice and proven your piety. Rise, all of you."
Guilliman's words brought a hint of relief to the bishops' faces, as though they had survived a disaster.
Having dealt with the bishops, Guilliman turned back toward the kneeling faithful. "I will reexamine Espandor and inspect whether your faith contains heretical thoughts. If it does, and you refuse to repent, then I will grant you the cruelest destruction. I will never permit anything that defiles my father's glory. Rise now, and prepare to be examined, citizens of the Imperium, devout believers."
After saying this, Guilliman declared the speech finished, turned, and strode into the magnificent cathedral.
The cathedral was immensely grand. Its height alone reached hundreds of kilometers. Its area was unknown, but it was terrifyingly vast, comparable to a small city.
Many aerial walkways had been built within it. Believers walked along them, singing praises to the Emperor.
The thousand-meter-high ossuary walls were filled with the remains left behind by believers known as saints.
Skulls were arranged within dark shrines, and the flickering candles added an even more sinister air.
Guilliman surveyed the place, then walked deeper into the cathedral. He did not stop until he stood before a statue of the Emperor clad in golden battle armor.
Several bishops followed Guilliman into the cathedral uneasily.
When they saw him stop before the Emperor's statue, an unprecedented terror rose in their hearts.
Had they truly been wrong? Had heretics deceived them all along?
"Now, let us discuss what those traitors and heretics have distorted, and what truly embodies my father's divine nature." Guilliman glanced at the Emperor's statue before turning toward the bishops.
Before you continue