Cold and Efficient

"Hmph, you weak coward, you have no right to judge my methods."

Are you humiliating me?

"Yes, Mr. Luther, I'm humiliating you. Can you kill me?"

"You!"

"What? According to the Eighth Legion's Laws, this kind of scum should have been shot, but what did you say?"

"You actually call me cruel? You actually call a fair Judge cruel?"

"Your cowardly act of open surrender will only earn you my ridicule and humiliation."

"Enough, Aequus. The Imperium needs more than just conquering a Planet; Imperium needs loyalty."

"Forgive my bluntness, Lion, but according to the Evernight Code, those who do not acknowledge the Imperium should be completely purged."

"They are human beings too."

"Humans who deal with Xenos Heretic not worthy of being called human. They are more despicable than Heretics and Xenos. What awaits them is not a trial and judgment, but Exterminatus."

"The Imperium needs people, and it needs their loyalty, without a doubt!"

"We've been arguing about this for a long time, and I've been telling you my bottom line."

"Trash is trash, and it should all be swept away to create a more livable environment for the newborn citizens of the Imperium."

"And then what? According to your understanding, you'd wipe out more than 80% of all life on the Planet?"

Lion El'Jonson said that on purpose.

Admittedly, the First Legion is rational and efficient, but in the face of Aequus, First Legion rationality and efficiency appear so weak and powerless.

The First Legion's standard operating procedure was to use Orbital Strikes and Exterminatus to clear the ground, followed by a ground assault.

They value efficiency.

But when Aequus arrived, they discovered how inefficient the efficiency they had previously pursued had been.

Aequus's combat logic is very simple.

If Exterminatus can handle the problem, there's no need for Space Marines to get involved.

But when it really comes down to the Space Marines needing to step in...

The first thing to do upon seeing an enemy is not to draw your sword and fight.

Instead, they threw a Micro-Exterminatus at the other person's face as fast as they could.

Moreover, this operation is usually accompanied by a pretext.

First, Aequus will challenge the opponent to a duel, and then, as the opponent draws their sword, Aequus will throw out a whole box of Micro-Exterminatus.

Because of this, the Lion spoke with Aequus more than once, urging him not to be so cold and cruel.

But Aequus's rebuttal left a deep impression on the Lion, and he could not forget it to this day.

"You are the Primarch of the Imperium, Lion. You are the elder brother of all Primarch. You are too merciful, too cowardly, and too slow in your work."

"The Great Crusade requires efficiency. We need to win more worlds for the Imperium, and my approach is to improve efficiency."

These were Aequus's exact words at the time.

Lion El'Jonson has refuted this more than once.

"Didn't your Uncle teach you? Human nature is inherently good. You should educate them, you should..."

"A person's character is a product of their environment. In a country of traitors, only traitors will emerge. The probability of finding a loyal follower of the Imperium in a country of traitors is lower than winning the lottery."

"Human nature is inherently good—this statement may be true, but it presupposes that those who are not good are not human."

Every time this topic comes up, the Lion is rendered speechless by the other party's rebuttal.

Normally, given the temperament of the First Legion Commander, he should have immediately embedded this arrogant Space Marine brat in the wall.

But he couldn't bring himself to do it.

Was Aequus's approach extreme?

Of course, it's extreme; not only extreme, but also ruthless.

But Lion El'Jonson didn't dislike it; in fact, he admired Aequus's actions.

More accurately, Lion El'Jonson looked at Aequus now as if he were looking at his own past self.

Embrace what honorable dogma cannot tolerate.

To face what the code of Knights forbids with equanimity, even if it is considered unworthy of the name of Knights, one must always uphold one's own bottom line and pursuit.

To the Lion, Aequus was not only an officer from the Eighth Legion stationed in the First Legion, nor was he merely a Space Marine with exceptional combat prowess.

He is also a mirror of himself.

However, the mirror did not reflect his true appearance, but rather the most authentic version of himself that he hoped to achieve.

The Lion repeatedly reminded Aequus because he hoped the young Knights wouldn't be consumed by excessive darkness.

To be honest, the Lion had absolutely no way to deal with Aequus.

Admittedly, if he really wanted to make a move, Aequus would have no choice but to dodge, but the kid just happened to be very good at dodging.

Moreover, he always possesses some kind of unspeakable technological power.

With Curze's personal guard, each member of which has the ability to blend into the shadows, it's very difficult for him to catch them.

Now that his Uncle has arrived, Lion El'Jonson deliberately brings up his dishonorable act in the hopes that his Uncle will provide an answer.

Or perhaps he hoped his Uncle could provide some guidance and education to Aequus.

"Aequus, is this true?"

"Yes, Uncle."

Lion El'Jonson looked at Han Mingxuan with expectant eyes, hoping that his Uncle could teach this young Knights who was always walking on the edge of a cliff a lesson.

"Your approach is a bit too extreme, Aequus."

"Uncle is right."

Yes, that's it, Uncle. Keep educating him, tell him not to dance on the edge of a cliff, tell him not to walk on a tightrope.

But what Han Mingxuan said next stunned Lion El'Jonson and filled the entire Dark Angels with Despair.

"I've told you more than once that the Scouring is a delicate undertaking. You can't just bombard it indiscriminately. While that might eliminate the rebels' fighting force, the damage to the Planet's environment would be immeasurable."

"I suggest you contact the XIV Legion and have them equip you with some specialized Virus Bombs."

"Your suggestion is very helpful, Uncle, thank you."

"Hmm, this child is teachable."

???

No?

Wait a minute?

Is this speaking human language?

But are these two human?

That's a bit too cruel.

"Lion El'Jonson, do you think there's anything we should add? After all, you're an expert when it comes to using Exterminatus."

Forehead...

Replenish?

What should be added?

Can you add more types of Virus Bombs?

"Nothing to add, Uncle."

"You're condoning his slaughter!"

Lion El'Jonson was speechless, stunned by his Uncle, but Luther was unconvinced.

In his view, the Father of Night's teaching of Aequus was entirely about turning him into a weapon of war.

As the Knight Grand Master of the First Legion, he could see that Aequus and the Lion had many similarities.

You could even say that in Luther's mind, Aequus is a miniature Lion.

And he's even more outstanding than the Lion in his youth!

He couldn't bear to see such a promising young Knights ruined by the old bat!