Fist (1)

Who are you?!

Looking at this other version of myself that appeared before me from nothing.

Lion El'Jonson would never admit he wasn't surprised.

"I am you, Lion El'Jonson El'Jonson, the Emperor's eldest son."

"Absurd!"

"To be more precise, I am the perfect you. I bear glory, known and loved by the world, unlike you, who carry those cold and heavy secrets like a corpse."

"You abandon your responsibilities? Do you even deserve to be called Knights?"

"I didn't shirk my responsibilities; I simply took on what I was supposed to."

"Absurd!"

Lion El'Jonson didn't want to waste any more words with the monster in front of him; he simply kept attacking.

"Think of yourself, the eldest son of the Imperium, yet you bear the darkest truth. All your glory is unrecorded, unacknowledged. The Imperium's dark secrets have tainted your Chivalry!"

"Your very existence is a defilement to me. I am the eldest son of the Imperium. Regardless of whether the Imperium's secrets are dark or not, whether the Imperium has any secrets at all, I have the obligation and the responsibility to bear these responsibilities!"

"Secrets may be dark, and actions may tarnish honor, but for the Imperium, it's all worthwhile!"

The king of Lions keeps attacking, but he can only rely on his own two hands.

Just when he was about to be overwhelmed by the opponent's fierce attack, he suddenly remembered one of Aequus's little tricks.

In the instant he turned to the side, Lion El'Jonson removed his helmet and slammed it hard onto the other man's head, then seized the opportunity to deliver a punch.

"A despicable and shameless sneak attack! You dare call yourself Knights? You don't deserve it!"

Lion El'Jonson didn't say anything, but simply stepped forward and suppressed his opponent, continuously attacking with his fists.

After throwing countless punches, just as his opponent was about to pass out, Lion El'Jonson swiftly snatched the weapon from him and sent him flying with a powerful punch.

Boom!!

"Indeed, your every word and action, your fighting etiquette, perfectly embody Chivalry; everything about you is impeccable."

"As you said, Caliban's Chivalric Way filled me with ideals of Knights, while the dark truth of the Imperium undoubtedly tugs at my heartstrings."

"But you're wrong. You're just a perfect Chivalry according to rigid Knights, not the perfect Knights in my heart."

"Ha, what? You think that Gang kid is the perfect image in your mind? You degenerate bastard!"

"This isn't depravity, monster," Mordred often said, and I'll pass that on to you today.

The most important thing in life is flexibility.

After saying this, the Lion picked up the weapon he had seized and slashed at the other's head with his sword, but there was no sound of metal cutting through flesh, and the feel was wrong.

Immediately afterwards, he heard the sound of a sword striking metal.

His hand was numb from the impact.

Upon closer inspection, the image within the armor had vanished without a trace; the armor itself was still the same, only now it was bound by thorns.

Seeing this, Lion El'Jonson was somewhat surprised, but then he picked up the sword.

He chopped down all the thorns, then set the place ablaze, burning it to the ground and reducing the armor and sword to scrap metal.

After the fight ended, Lion El'Jonson looked at his fist with satisfaction.

Then he continued walking forward along the road in front of him.

Once all the thorns had disappeared, a black wall appeared before him.

At that moment, Lion El'Jonson opened his eyes, and his consciousness returned to his body.

It has now been a full month since he began meditating.

At that moment, in the reception room, Han Mingxuan received a message from Lion El'Jonson.

"It seems you really put a lot of effort into studying that book."

"Yes, Uncle."

"Is there anything you want to ask, or anything you want to say?"

"No, Uncle, I just wanted to express my gratitude to you. Also, I'd like to have a proper talk with Aequus."

Han Mingxuan didn't find Lion El'Jonson's words strange at all.

After all, Lion El'Jonson is the Emperor's eldest son, and he is a loyal Primarch. He can understand many things and will not be easily Corruption by Chaos.

"That's no problem at all, Lion El'Jonson. You young people can have a good chat."

Lion El'Jonson then led Aequus to his study, or more precisely, his Operations Command Room.

"Lion, what can I do for you?"

"I have a secret mission for you, and only you can complete it."

What is it?

"Come closer to my ear."

Aequus stepped forward, intending to hear what the Lion had to say, but in the next instant, a huge fist filled his vision.

Bang!!

The Lion knocked Aequus down with a single punch.

But that's not all.

After confirming that Aequus had fainted, a hidden door suddenly opened in the Lion's Operations Command Room.

A team of Apothecary came out.

"Grown ups."

"Implant him with Gene-seed."

"This is!"

It would be an honor for them to have Space Marine as outstanding as Aequus as their comrade-in-arms.

And then... dozens of Gene-seed were simply wasted.

What exactly happened?

"Sir, Mordred possesses technology we cannot comprehend that prevents the fusion of the Gene-seed. Almost the instant the Gene-seed is implanted, it is automatically eliminated by the system within his body."

Tsk, Mordred's secret technology is really troublesome.

"Ouch... Damn, that hurts!"

At that moment, Aequus suddenly woke up.

What happened?

"Sir, it seems his internal system is automatically dispelling the anesthesia."

"Damn it, you guys actually launched a sneak attack!"

"Mordred, let us explain."

"Explain your old, calloused feet! Don't let me out, or I'll hang you in Octagon and parade you through the streets!"

"Calm down, Mordred!"

"Lion? You orchestrated this all along?!"

"Believe me, my child, you will become my finest Scions."

"Go to hell! I'm your equal!"

Upon hearing this, Lion El'Jonson frowned.

Then...

Bang!

One punch, physical anesthesia.

"Continue."

"But... sir, as you've seen, the Gene-seed has no effect on him."

"Then we won't use Gene-seed."

If we don't use Gene-seeds, what will we use?

"Use my stem cells."

"My lord! You mustn't!"

"There's nothing wrong with that. I firmly believe Mordred is Caliban's Scions."

"But what if the Eighth Legion finds out?"

"This is a secret between us; no one will know. Once we succeed, we'll erase this part of his memory."

"Yes."

What followed was nearly a month of gene implantation and modification.

Unlike the implantation and modification of Gene-seed, this is the first time that stem cells from the Primarch have been directly implanted.

They didn't know what would happen, and for Aequus himself, it was a challenge where life or death was uncertain.

So they need to wait.