Fireworks Show (93K)

Night had already fallen, yet the temperature had not dropped in the slightest. It remained dry and scorching. Sevatar looked up and saw starlight scattered across every corner of the sky, forming ribbons and dispersed clusters. The moon rested quietly in its proper place, basking in the embrace of the surrounding stars.

He had not seen such a clear night sky in a very long time.

As for the state of his homeland, there was no need to mention it for now. Bringing it up in a conversation like this would only be asking for trouble.

Still, gazing at the night, Sevatar thought back and realized with surprise that he had only seen such beauty on certain garden worlds. This meant that Nuceria's government must have paid extraordinary attention to the planet's natural environment.

The War Hounds and Angron likely had not played much of a role in this. After all, when Nuceria had first been brought into compliance, it had been the Ultramarines who laid out its initial political and architectural blueprint.

As for later, the Sons of Red Sand and his Legion, having joined the Great Crusade, clearly had no spare time to deal with matters back home. Fortunately, the Ultramarines had indeed left behind an excellent foundation. It was so solid that when Angron returned here after the Horus Heresy, he found that there was scarcely anything for him to address.

Because of their painful experiences in the past, Nuceria's people were almost fanatically vigilant against corruption and the like. At the same time, as descendants of slaves, they possessed immense enthusiasm for building. It could even be said that this enthusiasm had not faded even today.

It simply no longer carried the influence it once had.

Something was stirring in the shadows.

The War Hounds could