《In The World Of Sword And Magic As Space Marine》 Chapter 1 - New World, New Character William loves fantasy and sci-fi genres, the lore and stories intrigue him which he wants to learn more. This interest leads him into playing tabletop games such as D&D to Warhammer franchise ever since he was little. Now, as an ?du?t, this hobby became a part of his life. William''s story begins on Saturday night, as he and his friends just finish their quest of slaying the Cult of Damned, but during the final moment in the combat, William''s character died, which he wasn''t happy after the campaign was over. As traditional, William burns his character sheet and plans to make new characters for next week''s game session. Since his character dies with honor, Dungeon Master (DM) allowed William to make new characters with no restriction. This gave him a rare opportunity, so when William got home, he immediately began to create his new character, after hours of experiment and multiple failures, William finished his new character. "This is perfect since I can make any character as long as I follow the rulebook, DM can''t say ''No'' to this. Good thing I saved the digital copy of this class online." With excitement fade away William realized that he is tired and very sleepy, after checking his phone, he realized that it was 3 am in the morning, so after saving his new character sheet in his computer and quick hygiene, he went to bed with accomplishment. -------- William woke from his sleep when a sound of metal banging got louder and faster. "What is making that noise?" When William opened his eyes, the first thing he realized was that he was leaning on something, not laying down in his bed. The second thing was a strange creature in front of him, a humanoid and small as a little kid but with green skin and the ugliest face William has ever seen (but somehow familiar). The creature was banging William''s head with a wooden club and making metal banging noises, this was when a third and final realization came to William as he is now wearing armor from head to toe. Finally, the creature stopped banging William''s helmet and started yelling, in which more creatures appeared from the bushes. Two more creatures came and started talking to each other with a strange language, this was when William realized that these small creatures are goblins. "No freaking way, am I still asleep and having a realistic dream? Or is this real?" William started to wonder if his situation was real or just a dream, but one thing for sure, He has control of his body. William did what any other people would do, he grabbed two goblins using both of his hands and broke their neck with ease, this surprised him as he didn''t know his own strength. For the last goblin, he stood up and kicked the goblin in front of him, the moment William''s foot hit the goblin''s stomach, it just exploded as if it was hit by a truck. Blood and guts were everywhere, and William dropped two goblins as he understood that he was not dreaming, he killed someone or something and he was for some reason okay with that. "I guess all those times playing D&D campaigns actually paid off, but if this is not a dream then where am I?" William didn''t panic or freak out, but he was surprised due to the armor he was wearing. He wasn''t wearing typical armor like the knight''s full plate armor but very futuristic armor with black and white with the symbol of Maltese cross in both of his shoulder plates. It only took William only three seconds to recognize the armor and symbol he was wearing, it is a Space Marine power armor, more specifically an Imperial Fists'' Black Templar aka Rogal Dorn''s angry boys. This did not make sense to William, because normal humans can''t wear or even move due to weight and size unless the wearer is genetically modified Space Marine with gene seeds. William found an answer to his question, he realized that his body is not the same as his old one, instead of average Joe, he is now 7.5 feet tall and weighing 800 pounds. After a few minutes of little panic and critical thinking, William decided to find a civilization (if there is any) to find more answers. But first, check his equipment in his pouches and weapons. Currently, he has: [1 Bolt pistol with 4 magazines in belt pouches (10 rounds in each magazine), 1 combat knife (Size of a short sword for normal human), Chainsword and 4 frag grenades.] ''This is not even close to standard Space Marine equipment.. I got a Bolt pistol and Chainsword but Space Marines should have at least a standard Boltgun.'' William then thought ''What if'' and decided to check his new theory by saying "Status!" Chapter 2 - Counterattack Nothing appeared when William said ''Status'' which he now feels like an idiot. "So I have no status to see. Ok, what about inventory." When William said ''inventory'', a typical inventory screen appeared with a list of items in each slot. [Inventory: 100 Bolter pistol ammo, 10 food rations, 3 repair kits and 3 first aid kits] William closed the inventory and used other commands to see what else he had, in the end, he learned that he only had inventory and appraisal skills. "So that is it, no status, no level, no crazy cheat skills but just inventory and appraisal. Still, I''m a superhuman now so I will manage somehow." Finally, William decided to move on and get out of this forest to find any sign of civilization, after two hours on the walk he found a dirt road with a sign of a wheel track in the middle. Using his helmet, William found the freshest track and decided which direction to go, less than an hour later, he was finally out of the forest and saw small smoke in the distance. With new rejuvenating hope of finding people, William started to increase his pace, which is equivalent to going 25 miles per hour. It only took William 20 minutes to find the people he was tracking; it was a caravan of small 5 merchant wagons and 25 people taking a short break. The group of guards were aware of William''s approach and were on guard since it is hard to miss 7.5 feet tall giant with full armor running in their direction. William stopped 20 yards away from the group and greeted them with a friendly wave to show no hostility, guards saw this and realized that the giant wasn''t going to attack but maintain their guard. "Hi, my name is William and I''m kinda lost, are you guys heading to town or village?" A person who looks like a leader of the guard responds to William''s greetings. "I''m Herman, a leader of Fireblades, which lord do you serve Sir William?" William paused and thought about his options for response, it would be better to clear any misunderstanding before it becomes a bigger problem later. "I do not serve lord, I''m searching for a way back home," William explains his situation to Herman with the simplest possibility, by the time he finishes the story, few merchants join the guards to check the giant. "Wow, he is a giant." "If he is not a knight maybe he is an adventurer." "Maybe he is a hedge knight, you know, without a lord to serve." After explanation and gain a little bit of trust, Herman introduces William to the head merchant named Tom to determine what to do. "We are only two days away from a village called ''Greenhill'', it is a logging village with merchant and adventurer''s guild, you can join us if you want." William agreed to Tom''s offer and decided to join the caravan, that night, he got a chance to learn about the country he was in and current events as people shared stories. Next early morning, after breakfast, the caravan was ready for the road and William joins the guards for a quick brief from Herman. "With our current speed, we will be arriving at Iron Guard bridge tonight. It is a safe zone since the patrol outpost is located but stays alert for any bandits or monsters since we are now on a popular road for many travelers." After Herman''s brief, the caravan began their journey, since it was William''s first caravan ride, he was placed in the front side of the wagon. According to Herman, putting a new guy on the front in the first mission is an unspoken tradition that William didn''t mind since he wants to contribute. The morning was uneventful until after lunch break William saw a fallen tree blocking the road ahead, with his helmet sensor identifying 22 life signs hiding. William called Herman and Tom to notify the problem ahead, which they slowed down the speed of the caravan, so they wouldn''t alert the enemy but buy enough time to plan for a counterattack. After a few ideas were thrown around, William brought his old campaign strategy which would be perfect for the current situation. At the ambush site, the bandits were getting tired of waiting and started complaining. One of their lookouts saw a lone man approaching with a hunchback in the distance, fully covered in a large blanket and carrying a bag with all kinds of items hanging around.. It was clear that this person wasn''t a part of the caravan they were waiting for, but the leader decided to grab the lone man quickly without making noise before the caravan arrived. Chapter 3 - First Quest William was glad that his power armor came with temperature control or he would be dying with sweat and back pain. William''s plan was to be alone target with goods, but the problem was his size, so Tom decided to cover William with a large blanket and instruct him to show signs of struggle to attract the bandits. When William finally arrives at the fallen oak tree, four bandits jump out of both sides of the road and try to grab him but fail to move the target. It was at this moment William removed his blanket, grabbed a bolt pistol and fired his gun while shouting "For the Emperor!". This led to four dead corps with blown heads, remaining bandits were frozen from shock and William took this advantage to fire 6 more rounds, removing a total of 10 bandits including the bandit leader in 5 seconds flat. By the time William starts to reload his weapon, four bandits realize that they lost their leader and start to panic. William finished his reload and finished the remaining bandits. When Tom and the rest of the people arrived, William moved the fallen oak tree and moved 4 bodies to the side of the road. Herman asked William "What was that loud noise? Was it your doing?" and William replied simply with "Yes." It only took a few minutes to collect all the bodies of bandits and their ID tags in their neck for reward money, and since it was William who defeated them all, the loot and reward money goes to him. William now has 18 gold, 45 silver and 76 copper coins in his possession, which solve his current financial issue. The caravan continues their journey and finally arrive at the Iron Guard Bridge after sunset, Herman and William went to the patrol office to turn in the slain bandits'' tag and report the incident. A few questions and a vouch from Herman, William received a total of 65 gold coins for 22 bandits and 11 gold coins for bandit leader total of 76 gold coins. According to Herman, one day for the inn is about 25 copper coins and 100 copper is equal to one silver and 100 silver is equal to one gold. William also learns that since the war between the two kingdoms ended 3 years ago, there has been a lot of bandit activity, so the king personally ordered the increase of bounty reward as long as they have evidence to prove it. (This is why Herman vouch for William during questioning). The caravan will continue their journey the next day and manage to arrive at their destination much earlier than expected. The group arrived in the afternoon and went to the inn to stay for the night, Tom and his merchants planned to meet their business contact tomorrow morning, meanwhile, Herman''s party completed their quest and decided to have a little downtime. For Herman and William, they will head to the adventurer''s guild to find answers and register William as a novice adventurer since he shows great potential. After a big dinner and a few half dozen ales, William went to the barn to rest since the inn''s floor and bed can''t support his weight, but he did get a discount for the inconvenience. -------- The next day, outside of Adventurer''s guild building, William stares at the door and shows no fear but excitement. When Herman and William entered the guild building, then the place turns quiet instantly and everyone stared at two new people who just entered. Maybe because it''s a new face in the building or 7.5-foot-tall a heavily armored giant just entered the building with each step sounds like a warhorse. At the receptionist''s desk, receptionist Mia did her best not to freak out when a giant black knight entered the building. She tries to stand professionally and hold her position as a veteran receptionist. "Good morning, welcome to the adventurer''s guild, Greenhill branch, how can I help you?" Mia said with a smile and a welcoming voice. "I''m here to register this young man into the guild, I''m Herman, leader of Fireblades and I can vouch for him." "Yes, of course, please fill this form and the registration fee will be 10 silver coins." William removed his helmet to show his face since he didn''t want to be rude, when Mia saw William, she was surprised as he looked like a regular human (Black hair, brown eyes and strong jaw). After filling the form and processing it, William received his guild medallion, according to Mia, the guild medallion can be used as a border pass for an adventurer. It is also imbued with magic to track kill records. There are two reasons to imbued with magic, one is to keep in the track so there is no mishap with who slay what and the second reason is to record any murder or criminal act which it can be used as evidence. Herman explains to William that most of the application fees go to the production of medallion since it is a magic item, so the guild pays an award for retrieving a fallen adventurers'' medallion. With the registration process done, William was told that he is now an adventurer and good to start his own quest, which can be found in the quest board. "You are now adventurer; you can choose to come with us on another convoy or you can go on your own path. It is up to you but remembers to take care of yourself and don''t trust anyone, that''s my advice as to your senior." Herman gave his last word of advice to William. William was unsure what to do but he knows this is his adventure and must find an answer to how he got here. "I will go on my own and I will earn my place next time when I see you," William said to Herman. With a smile, Herman said, "William, I''m rank C, you are now E, which is beginner, you have a long way to go before meeting us on the same road. Come on, we need to get you a few things before starting the farewell party tonight." When William and Herman left the guild, the crowd of adventurers began to talk about the newcomer. Mia was hesitant to process William''s paperwork as some of the information didn''t make sense, such as William put the class a [Space Marine] with a note saying he specializes in mid-range and melee combat. The other problem is how she has to explain this to the Guild Master, a giant man with full plate armor register as a novice adventurer and he isn''t a knight or some noble, but a commoner, there is no easy way to explain this to higher-ups without digging more information on this new adventure. William only bought a few items such as dry food, waterskin, shoes and spare large cloths. After finishing his shopping, two men went back to the inn to meet up with the rest of the group. That night, William, Herman and Tom''s party have a big celebration to give William a farewell and welcoming of joining the rank of an adventurer. By the end of the night, thanks to his Space Marine biology William didn''t get drunk from the large amount of alcohol he consumed, but he did gain a drinking reputation equal to the dwarf. The next morning, William bid farewell to Herman and Tom as the caravan left the Greenhill, afterward he headed to the guild building to start his first job as an adventurer. At the quest board, William was looking for options, as quests for rank E are mostly typical such as herb picking, helping guild staff, and minor jobs within Greenhill. Interesting quests such as hunting monsters are given when the adventurer ranked is D or up and the only way for William to hunt at rank E is to join the rank D party. William thought it would be difficult to find a party willing to accept him as he is a new guy, but it turns out that his first impression from yesterday and the drinking reputation from last night''s party gave him the most wanted newbie. So, within 5 minutes, William joined a party temporarily in exchange for carrying heavy loads of supplies. The Sam''s party''s quest is to eliminate a band of goblins near the lumberjack site, it is a simple and clean quest which most of the adventurer prefer because goblins hunting is easy money, but it also an important quest because out of control goblin population can lead to horde which it can turn rank D quest to B rank.. After a quick introduction, Sam''s party head out to their destination with William carrying 7 days'' worth of food and other essential supplies in his inventory. Chapter 4 - New Weapons and Loots The party''s destination takes about 1 hour of walk from Greenhill. While on the road, Jones kept his eyes aware as his sight was better than anyone else (except for William). Halfway to the destination, the party encountered a large group of 35 goblins and 5 hobgoblins. William and Sam''s party prepared to fight as there is no way they can escape. William position himself in front of the party to act as a tank while Sam and Kol stay close to Jones and Andrew covers the party''s rear. The first to act was 10 goblins with throwing spears, but unfortunately, they all aimed at William as he''s the biggest target and most threatening enemy. All 10 spears bounced back from armor and in response, William threw a frag grenade right at the center of 10 spear goblins. With a large explosion, all 10 spear goblins and 3 hobgoblins in the back caught on the explosion and died instantly. With the entire front group of goblins obliterated, 20 goblins and 2 hobgoblins on the right side of the party started to panic. It was this moment when Sam, Kol and Andrew rushed toward the remaining goblins. Sam, who is the most experienced adventurer, rushed towards 10 goblins in the middle and Andrew went right side against 5 goblins, meanwhile, Jones tried to use his bow to take down goblins one at a time. After blowing up entire groups of enemies, William pulls out his chainsword and bolter pistol at 5 goblins on the right side, with a battle cry of "Die, Green Skin!" The loud roar of chain swords cleave 2 goblins and blast 3 remaining enemies with pistol fire. By the time William finished 5 goblins, Sam and Andrew were holding the line while Kol and Jones were attacking in the range, so William decided to flank the enemy on the right side and confront the 2 hobgoblins. The first hobgoblin tries to block William''s chainsword with its iron buckler, but it buzzes through and hits the hobgoblin''s shoulder. The second hobgoblin tried to attack William but instantly died from the punch in the head by William''s left hook. With two hobgoblins dead and an open opportunity to attack in the rear, William decided to wipe out entire goblins by unleashing his remaining 7 rounds from a bolter pistol. Because of the angle, he shot from he managed to take down two or more targets with one bullet, the remaining 3 goblins were finished by Sam and Andrew. The clean up was messy since most of the dead enemy turns into a puddle, the party manages to loot a few coins but there were no items worth looting, meanwhile Kol inspected the bodies and found something interesting. "They were in the battle not that long ago before ambushing us, it is unusual for this large group to come out this far away," Kol said "Maybe they got greedy and decided to take a chance with us", Andrew replied. Sam agrees with Kol''s theory, but it doesn''t explain why goblins had a prior injury or move this far from their territory. William didn''t say as he was focused on what he saw, vast in-game loots on top of the monster''s bodies with information floating just like in the game. William didn''t believe what he saw but they are indeed items related to fantasy and Warhammer 40K. William decided to pick all the items and put them into his inventory as Sam and others aren''t able to see or grab them. ''This is why I have an appraisal. Only I can obtain these items just like in the video game.'' William thought as he finished grabbing the last item into his inventory. [Inventory: Bolter rifle with 210 rifle ammo (Comes as 7 magazines each hold 30 rounds), 4 Prometheus grenades (Used by Space Marine called Salamanders. Burns large areas after it explodes)] By the time William completed inventory, party members came outside to brief him. "So, it turns out a small group of goblins is attacking more often than usual, according to the camp manager. Our job is to eliminate those goblins for the next 5 days, the lumberjack camp will be our base camp until work is done." Sam said as William now understood why the party had 7 days'' worth of food before leaving Greenhill, Sam instructed everyone to rest so they can hunt tomorrow in full strength. Since it was late afternoon, William decided to test his new weapons to get familiar, after a few adjustments of the bolter rifle, William patrolled the camp to see if there were any potential enemies in the area. After 20 minutes of patrolling around the camp, William found 7 goblins wandering around without purpose or sign of intelligence, it is as if they lost a reason to do anything. With no concern, William fired 7 shots from his bolter rifle, all of which are headshots. After checking there isn''t any more enemies, he went to the nearest goblin corpse to search for any loot. What William found was no loots but the realization that goblin body was already rotten beyond for normal, ''These goblins were undead before I killed them''. William stood up after finishing his appraisal loot, grabbed one of the dead goblins and started running back to the lumber camp. A few minutes later, William arrived at lumberjack camp, to find people either cooking for dinner, cleaning equipment, or playing cards to entertain themselves, finally William found the party and reported what he found. At first, they didn''t believe his story about undead goblins until the body of the rotten goblin was presented but suddenly screams and panic spread all over the camp. Large numbers of goblins and hobgoblins are approaching the main tent and they don''t look alive. "We are under attack by the undead, Sam we need the guild''s full force, this is beyond our ability to handle," Kol advises Sam while everyone else including William holds their ground as hordes of zombies approach the main tent. "We need to pull back with many survivors and go back to town, we need to warn everyone about the army of the undead," Sam told the camp leader, and the camp leader informed Sam that there is a warehouse with 5 wagons, enough to take everyone else to the town. "We will hold back the approaching undead while everyone else prepares the wagons for the departure." Sam gave instructions to his party while surviving camp labors retreat to the warehouse, William pulled his rifle back into his inventory and pulled out his pistol and chain sword for both range and melee to hold the line. The horde of undead goblins and undead hobgoblins slowly approach the defending line while Sam''s party slowly pulls back from the main tent to the warehouse, when undead comes to the main tent, William pulls out his new hand grenade and tosses it at the center of the undead. When the Prometheus grenade exploded, it was spectacular and beyond what William expected as undead and tents caught on flaming explosions leading into small firestorms. ''Holy crap, Salamanders do not joke around with their weapons.'' It wasn''t just him, but everyone was alarmed as the small metal ball caused so much damage. The explosion of the grenade made a breathing room for the rest of the party to pull back to the warehouse where the rest of the survivors ready the wagons. "We are ready to depart but there is a problem." The camp leader informed the party as he looks William, "He is just too big and there is only enough room to carry everyone, he has to follow us on foot." The camp leader said as Sam protest but William stop him, "You guys need someone to hold back the undead while leaving the warehouse, I can follow you guys on foot after you all leave," William said to everyone, after checking the road, William opened the warehouse doors as all 5 wagons with survivors left the camp at full speed. While wagons disappear into the darkness toward Greenhill, William checks his weapons as he turns around to face countless hordes of undead in front of him. William attacks the undead army with a smile as he knows his armor is impenetrable, within one hour all his standard pistol ammo was depleted (all 106), and he was fighting only with a chain sword. William ran toward the lumber processing area to look for any makeshift weapons, but unfortunately, there weren''t any, so he starts throwing logs toward a group of undead as they approach. Since there were plenty of logs, William felt he could handle the rest of the undead until he was struck by 12 bolts of magic missile and fireball in the ?h?st. William hasn''t injured thanks to the armor, but he was shocked by the magic attack, the magic missile didn''t do any damage, but fireball managed to push him off from the pile of logs he was standing on top of. The helmet''s life sensor indicates there are 5 life forms behind an army of undead, as William stands up, he pulls out his bolter rifle and frag grenade to face the new enemy in the battlefield. The explosion of the frag grenade gave enough distraction for him to run toward new enemies and fires his bolter rifle. The rounds hit 3 hooded men and at the same time, a large number of undead crumbled. Two remaining hooded men took cover behind the remaining undead, but it was useless as William can hear a chanting voice, this didn''t stop him from continuing his attack, so this time he used his second frag grenade and tossed it at the center of the undead army. With a large explosion, William charged with his rifle and tackled anything standing in his way like a truck. When he saw his target in front of him, William tackled him with full force, killing the 4th man.. At that moment a second target who is wearing fancy robes and cloths opens his palm and blasts William with flames which engulf William. Chapter 5 - Fame and Troubles Evan''s POV, Evan the Marked One is baffled by a mysterious black knight with a strange weapon at first. Believing he is just another adventure. Evan decided to turn the knight into his bodyguard after turning the knight''s corpse into an undead. But who could have guessed that this black knight killed his 4 followers and destroyed half of his undead army all by himself? Evan planned to massacre the people of Greenhill and grow his undead army bigger. Usually, this is impossible because it requires a large amount of magic and mages to maintain control of the undead. This all changed when his new mysterious patrons gave bountiful power. He doesn''t know this new patron or their ambition but if he can wield powerful magic, he doesn''t care what price he must pay. After the fourth necromancer died by the black knight''s attack, Evan unleashes all his power on the black knight and set him on fire. With the black knight dead and half of the undead destroyed, Evan approaches his dead followers, but the moment he turns his back, a burning black knight jumps out from the fire and grab Evras''s neck. --------- It was surprising how there wasn''t any discomfort from the fire, Space Marine''s power armor was designed to withstand any element attack with a certain limit. After realizing he wasn''t hurt or turned to ash, William jumped out of the fire and grabbed a hooded figure in the neck to prevent him from casting, the reason for keeping the hooded figure alive is because he needs information. "Who are you and why did you attack the camp?" Before William could get his answer, he saw a medallion a hooded man was wearing, it had an 8-pointed star necklace covered in blood. The moment William saw the medallion, he felt rage, a complete unstoppable rage that he never felt before in his life. Without hearing an answer from Evan, William crushed his neck and snatched the medallion as William dropped the body. Instantly William heard a cold voice around him. "Ah, Astartes, we didn''t expect you in this world? I see you have our marker, put it on and we will give you all you d?s?r?." Then he heard other voices, "I can grant you the power enough to achieve honor and glory," Said the angry voice. "I can grant you eternal life," Said the sickly voice. "I can give you what you d?s?r? most and bring your fantasy to life," Said a ?ustful voice. "Don''t you want to know how you got here? I can give you the answer you are searching for." said the first voice, the menacing voice. Hearing four voices in his head, William saw a vision of his d?s?r? and everything that can be achieved. A glorious battle in which no one can match his strength, living an everlasting life to witness empire rise and fall, a room filled with food, golds and women waving at him. Without realizing, William tried to wear the necklace, but suddenly something unexpected happened. "NO!" Another entity''s voice with rage and vengeance can be heard from William''s head then crushed the necklace into pieces. The voices of four beings disappeared, the marker was destroyed and a mysterious entity also disappeared, William standalone trying to understand what just happened. As far as William can understand, he is in the world of fantasy of sword and magic, but not this is not the Warhammer Fantasy world. There are two reasons why he was certain, first was the voices he heard, he is 100% certain that it was a voice of four chaos gods and one of the voice was likely Tzeentch who ask William why he was in ''this world'' as if Tzeentch didn''t expect to meet Adeptus Astartes at all. The second reason is that he is in the body of Space Marine that he created for the D&D campaign before coming to this world. With these two reasons, William is certain that everything that happened to him wasn''t done by chaos gods but by someone else. ''For now, I have to find how I got here and how to go back home''. With a new purpose, William starts looting the five dead bodies of necromancers, four only had herbs, and few silver coins (total of 80), the leader on the other hand have 45 gold coins, a magic book, a magic ring and 4 health potions. William was disappointed because the reward for fighting undead hordes wasn''t much at all, so he decided to check the undead for loot and he wasn''t disappointed as he now collected his rewards. [One ammo ?h?st (Contains 200 pistol ammo, 15 frag grenade, and 300 rifle ammo), one flamer with 5 canisters, and a power sword.] After William finished his looting and collecting his rewards, he decided to put all the damaged weapons and armor in his inventory for repairs as they were overdue from proper maintenance. The next day, a large group of adventurer including Sam''s party arrived at the camp, William was in his spare clothes, cooking his breakfast. At first, the group of adventurers didn''t know who William was until they saw his guild card for his identification. Sam and others were relieved as William was in one piece but surprised how he managed to slay an army of undead without a single scratch or turn to undead by the necromancers. Without his power armor, William looked like a tall adventurer but big and with his power sword in hand, no one challenged him regarding fighting the undead army and necromancers. With undead remains taken care of, most of the adventurers return to Greenhill while the guild posts a few groups to watch over the camp so that workers can return to work. The story of William''s deed spread all to the neighboring villages faster than the wind as the adventurer''s guild reported the incident to the headquarter in the capital. This became the most popular news in the kingdom and thanks to this, many nobles took a great interest in giant black knight and how to take advantage. Meanwhile, William and Sam''s party receive a hero''s welcome when they return to Greenhill. It takes about 8 hours to complete equipment repair, so William decided to take this opportunity to relax and enjoy the festival. By early afternoon, everyone was eating, drinking or dancing in the town square, Sam and his party can be seen among those people, while William is in his chair enjoying his food and drinks as young ladies bring it to him. For William the drinking ale and beer were great but unfortunately, he couldn''t get drunk or even feel the buzz from the alcohol. It was one thing that William regretted being a Space Marine. Due to the Space Marine''s gene seeds implant, it prevents him from poison, including alcohol. If he wanted, he could beat anyone in the drinking contest even if the opponent is a dwarf. Three people approach William''s table, it was Greenhill noble, guild master, and merchant''s guild president. The noble with expansive cloth starts the conversation, "Hello young man, I''m Baron Sternagel and I would like to officially welcome you to Greenhill". "Thank you, this is a lively town" William respond and finish an ale in one go, "I''m Caulifield, Greenhill''s guild master" a middle-aged man around his late 30''s intruded himself, and finally an old man with glasses said "I''m Leonhart, a president of the merchant guild here in this town". The conversation with all three was usual praise, William''s history and his armor. Baron offered William a position of officer in his military, while president Leonhart offered a prestigious job position within his business. But it was a guild master''s offer that got William''s attention, an opportunity to rank up twice if he can complete one job as a test. It was a never-ending conversation so William decided to end it, "I will think about your offers and give you my answer in a few days" With that conversation ended and William continue his free meals and drinks. The next day, William went for an early morning walk to get some fresh air as he thought about three offers. Baron and the president of the merchant''s guild wasn''t the right choice for him as it will ground him in this town. The guild master''s offer is interesting because William can get a higher rank if he passes the test, which he can move to another town after the test. In the end, William decided to accept the guild master''s offer but also earn favor from the other two without accepting their offer. By the time William realizes he ends up in the adventurer''s guild, "I guess I''ll give them my answer tonight" and headed toward the Inn that he was staying. The inn where William is staying is called [First Barrel]. It is a decent place since it comes with breakfast and a first-floor bed can hold his weight. The owners are decent people and they welcomed William before he earned his fame, so he decided to stay a little longer and help with small chores such as wood chopping. After breakfast William went to the back yard and started chopping wood to make firewood, it was a simple job but it gave the opportunity for him to test his strength and to see if he can rip firewood like Captain America. When William finished his shore, a group of people approached him. "Are you the adventurer who defeated the army of the undead in the lumberjack camp?" When William turned around and saw 5 knights in dark armor standing in front of him. "Yes, I''m William, how can I help you?" One of the knights steps forward, "In the name of his majesty and the Order of Black Flames, we are here to confiscate your armor and weapons. For civilians to possess this equipment is against the law" Knight said with a demanding tone as William tried to understand his situation. "You are joking right?" Chapter 6 - Expedition William was a bit confused as to why a bunch of knights decided to take away his war gear. The Space Marine armor is impossible for normal humans to use it as it will destroy their body moment they try to move it. The only thing William can make sense of is that those 5 knights just heard a rumor of a giant black knight and thought William might have stolen their order''s war gear. "Look, I have different black armor compared to yours. I didn''t steal or found it from some dead body, so there is no need for you to take my equipment away." William explained to the knights as he dropped the ax and picked up firewood from the ground. One of the knights who stepped forward didn''t give second thoughts as he once again demanded William to give up the armor. "If you refuse to give up the armor and weapon, we will take it by force." With that, all 5 knights draw their swords and point it at William. "Yea, I kinda knew you would say that." William threw the firewood at the first knight''s head and struck his ?h?st with his right kick. The first knight got flown away which hit two others behind him, the only remaining enemies William have to fight are the other two knights. With a quick gab of punches, the remaining knights were defeated without any lethal damages to the knights. "You guys are greenhorns aren''t you? Your coordination is all off and rushes to a fight while showing plenty of openings." William said as he pulled out his power sword from his inventory and carried it on his shoulder as he approached the down knights. All 5 knights were out cold which was disappointing as William expected more from them. ''I guess there is no need for a power sword since they can''t fight. I expected more from the knights but they are nothing but kids with fancy armors and swords.'' William thought as he was about to put his weapon away when he heard multiple footsteps approaching where he is. "I want those recruits back right now. Our expedition can''t be delayed, find those 5 idiots and I don''t care if they are the sons of nobles!" Sound of command can be heard as dozens of knights with dark armors run around checking each house. William''s head pops out from the corner of the inn''s back, ''Crap, there are more of them.'' With that, William grabs all 5 knights and tosses them into the middle of the street, "Knights are sleeping in the middle of the road!" One shout from ''someone'' causes every knight to turn their attention. This gave an opportunity for William to escape back into the inn and watch a group of knights carry their recruits back from where they came from. ''Ok, now that is done, I need to see the guild master.'' After making sure all the knights left the area, William re-equip his power armor and headed toward the Adventurer''s guild. It only took William 5 minutes to arrive at his destination, the main hall went silent as everyone turned their attention to ''Black Knight''. "So that is his armor. No wonder he could fight the army of undead all by himself." "He looks like a walking metal giant, I can''t see any weakness in that armor." "Do you think he will create a party? We should join if he does." "I''m here to meet the guild master, I believe he is expecting me," William said to the receptionist as the lady sent one of the workers to notify the guild master. After waiting for a short few minutes, William is led to the office on the first floor. Inside the office, William saw the guild master but also 3 other people as well. Two were Baron Sternagel and Lionheart of the merchant guild, but the last person is someone new. The man is around in his late 40''s, wearing heavy dark armor with silver decoration and a longsword in his waist. William could guess that this man could be the commander of the knights in the town and him being here means trouble. "William, thank you for coming. We were just talking about the possibility of you joining Sir Dolven''s expedition, of course, you will be paid handsomely." Said Caulifield while three men watch William in silence with a bit of concern in their faces. "What is the purpose of this expedition by the way?" William asks the guild master but before Caulifield can answer the question, Sir Dolven responds first. "We will be meeting with the rest of the troops and head to the east in 5 days.. We are going to take back Deron, the city of the vampire." Chapter 7 - Holy Fire "A vampire city. If you have an army to take on the vampire army why do you need me?" William asks Sir Dolven with curiosity, if they need additional muscle in the battle they could have asked for a more experienced adventurer. "With a special guest, we''ve been gathering various adventurers to join our causes. Your guild master recommended you as a representative from the Greenhill branch. Also, thanks to your reputation as a slayer of the undead, I''m certain you will make great additions to our military strength." Sir Dolven said as William looked at the guild master and the other two leaders of Greenhill. They seemed nervous but William can''t blame them as Greenhill doesn''t have a powerful adventurer, so when high rank noble from capital ''request'' people to fight for their king, the three leaders had no choice but to give William. "I understand, I will accept the special quest as long as I can rank up at the same time. Are we leaving today?" Hearing William''s word, all three leaders finally relaxed as their duty to the king and country was fulfilled without sending all their men power. "We are leaving tomorrow morning, it seems we have trouble maker this morning and caused a delay." Sir Dolven said with annoyance in his voice as he looked at William and his armor. If William can guess, Sir Dolven is a career military leader and holds high on the reputation of nobility. After Sir Dolven received the stamp and approval from the guild master he left the office, leaving William and three leaders alone in the office. "It seems no matter who''s a job offer I take I would end up in the service of the military expedition," William said to all three men as he turned around to leave the office, since Sir Dolven got the quest contract approved there is no reason for William to stay there anymore. Since his day is free now, William decided to go goblin hunting around Greenhill as many of the goblins made a camp after fleeing from an army of undead. -------------- 1 Hour Later, Outside of Greenhill, ''Seems like there are a couple of them wandering around but so far I see no camp or hideout of goblins.'' William pulls out his sword from the dead goblin as he looks around to see if he missed any enemies. After killing over 30 goblins, William is certain there is camp around Greenhill forest but he didn''t find any. ''Where could those goblins hide?'' William thought to himself as he grabbed the goblin corpse and realized something unusual. The goblin he is holding is dirty and covered with dust from top to bottom. This clue gave William an idea as he started scanning the ground for potential entrance. It took William two hours to find a hole hidden in the bush and trees, but the ground tells a different story as it is full of trails and tracks of goblins. ''Well, shit. No wonder I couldn''t find the camp. It was underground this entire time.'' William thought to himself as he removed the bush and trees to find the entrance. When it was cleared, he found a small hole that no ?du?t human can enter or a Space Marine can. After thinking about his options, William comes up with a good old fashion of fire trick as he pulls out flamer from his inventory. Just as he was about to pull the trigger, a group of adventurers came out of the forest. "Oh, shit. You are the Black Knight, slayer of the undead. What are you doing here?" One of the adventurers asked William with a surprised expression. "Hunting goblins." With that, William pulled the trigger and unleashed promethium fueled the fire onto the hole. In a second, the entire ground starts to smoke between cracks as screams of goblins burning alive can be heard. "Nothing helps me relax more than killing goblins with holy fire.." With that, William pulled the trigger once again at the entrance while a group of adventurers got nervous as they saw Black Knight laugh with malice. Chapter 8 - The Wild Beasts The flames of Flamer continue to burn underground, so William decides to check his inventory as he wonders how to retrieve the loot from the dead goblins. The group of adventurers left the area long ago ever since he gave an evil laugh. After taking a seat and going over the inventory, William found something interesting in the corner of the screen, an option to turn on the ''Auto loot'' ability. ''Is this what I think it is?'' William decided to turn on the ''Auto loot'' ability, and suddenly, his inventory started to stack up with bolter rounds, frag grenades, flamer fuel canisters and an increasing number of goblin ears. By the time it reached 122 goblin ears, the flame in the underground slowly died off and inventory stopped receiving the loots from the fallen goblins. ''I guess I''m done for the day. It is late afternoon so I better get back and turn this in.'' William stood up and before he left the area, he pulled out two frag grenades and tossed it on the goblin cave entrance. After three seconds, grenades explode and cave-in the entrance, no goblins or small monsters will make a nest on the cave again for a while as long as the entrance is blocked. -------------- Greenhill Adventurer''s Guild, William turned in the goblins'' ears and received a decent amount of rewards. He decided to spend his earnings on food as his inventory will store it without decaying it. Greenhill is a lumber town and middle stop for many travelers such as merchants, for this reason, it has various shops dedicated to the road food and ingredients. By the time William finished his shopping, he spent most of his gold and purchased three months of food, with that William decided to go back to the inn so he can prepare for tomorrow''s departure. -------------- Next Morning, William left the inn and found himself outside of Greenhill as a large number of knights on horseback and infantrymen waited for the order from their commander. Before William could ask anyone where adventures gather for the march, a group of adventurers approached him first. "You must be William the Giant, the hero of the Greenhill. I''m Gale, leader of ''Western Eagles'', this is our mage, warrior, healer and ranger." Gale introduced everyone to William but for some reason, they didn''t give a very strong impression to William (I''m not giving them names, they are just NPCs). "Nice to meet you all, I''m William and I will be joining to fight vampires in Deron. Where is Sir Dolven?" William asks the group as he looks around but unfortunately, the army starts to move and another group of other adventures can be seen in the front line. "The army is moving now, we have to move quickly if we want to earn our reward. Let''s go." Gale said to everyone as they also moved quickly to the front side of the army. "William, our job is to scout and kill any monsters blocking the marching army. You can find Sir Dolven after we finish our job today." Gale said to William as he started to run ahead. William, seeing this, decided to join Gale''s group instead of searching for a knight commander. ''I guess I''ll just talk to Sir Dolven later. It''s not like I''m that important, just extra muscle.'' 4 Hours Later, Nothing happened on the road for hours, no ambush from the bandits or monsters happened so it was an uneventful morning. But thanks to constant questioning from the Gales''s group it turned into an interesting conversation in which William learned few things about this campaign. William learned that his entire job until they arrive at their location will be nothing but scouting and vanguard for the army. From what Gale explained, the adventures are hired solely because they are much more expendable, unlike trained soldiers and knights. Still, the military pays very well so many highly skilled adventures tend to sign up for this kind of war campaign and retire after. The army will schedule to meet with the second army, who are specialized in brand new types of weapons. This interested William but unfortunately, none of the adventures knows what these new weapons are. The only thing they know is that they will meet them four days later, at the border of vampire land which the City of Deron is located. Just as William was about to ask about the kingdom and it''s leadership but it was interrupted when the party reached the top side of the hill. They saw a bloody fight between another group of adventurers and a large group of wolves. About 13 wolves were attacking 6 members of adventures who are losing the battleground as wolves'' attacking coordination is unnatural for normal animals. Seeing the trouble, William and Western Eagles jump into action to help the other adventures. Because William was equipped with a power sword and bolter pistol, it was no problem for him to eliminate the wolves in melee or short-range fights. Thanks to William''s space marine biology, he was able to run past the Western Eagles and reach the adventures first, which he fired his pistol to kill 10 wolves, emptying the entire magazines. The two remaining wolves looked scared but the third wolf stood strong. The third wolf is much bigger and has darker fur compared to other wolves, but one thing that interests William is its red eyes. The eyes are supernatural as if it was possessed by something else, which leers William with hate and bloodlust. William seeing this decided not to take any chance with the wolf with the red eyes as he slay two other wolves and charge towards the last remaining wolf. "Die!" William shouts as he swings his power sword at the wolf but to William''s surprise the wolf dodges the attack and proceeds to counter-attack by opening its jaw. To block the incoming bite attack William uses his left arm and manages to block it. The wolf, without any regard to its safety, continued to bite and didn''t retreat, which William used his sword to slay the beast. "What was that? That beast was very unusual, it was as if it didn''t care if he dies or not." Gales said to William when he reached him. The battle was over when his party arrived but they didn''t mind it because they were fascinated by William''s magic tool (Bolter pistol). As William turns his head to say something, the corpse of the dead wolf starts to glow red and starts to transform into something else. "Everyone retreat! Something is happening to the dead wolf''s body!" William gave an order to everyone as he pulled back and reloaded his pistol.. ''It seems we have a chaos problem.'' Chapter 9 - Hounds of Khorne "Someone is raising the undead wolf, there must be a necromancer nearby!" One of the adventures said as he grabbed his injured friend and retreated. Fighting the undead is challenging to the adventure when half of the party is injured but fighting an undead beast is impossible because they have superior speed and don''t get tired. William on the other hand knows better. He''s been familiar with Warhammer lore and units of every faction, so he knew this creature is something much more terrifying and dangerous compared to some undead animal. ''It''s a Flesh Hound. He is just testing me isn''t he?'' He thought as he put away his bolter pistol in his holster and pulled out a frag grenade from his pouch. Flesh Hound is a demonic beast in service of Khorne, a Chaos God of blood and murder. This creature is the hunting dog of the Blood God and never rests until it''s prey is dead. The Flesh Hound is much larger than a regular wolf, in real life comparison, they are a similar size to the ?du?t tiger. "Come at me you foul creature, taste the wrath of the Emperor and his Angel of Death!" William gave a battle cry and ran toward the Flesh Hound, but the demon beast dodged the Space Marine at the last moment. The Flesh Hound opened its mouth to bite William''s leg to reduce the movement speed but to its surprise, Space Marine expected this move. William, who anticipated the attack, made a quick stop and turned around to face the Flesh Hound, turning the fight into a close melee. Using the power sword, William blocked the demon beast''s attack and cut it''s mouth in half which he used the beast''s momentum to completely cut it horizontally. "I expected more of a challenge but that was easy¡­ way too easy." William stabbed the demon beast''s head just in case and about to put the grenade back into his pouch when he heard a scream in the distance. The corpses of the other 8 wolves turned into Flesh Hounds and started attacking the adventures. "They are not undead wolves! Form up a defensive position!" Gale gave an order to everyone as Flesh Hounds started to circle the adventures to attack the weakest prey. William sees this, pulls the grenade pin and rushes at the densely packed Flesh Hounds he could find. With three demon beasts closely together William threw his grenade and in a few seconds, all four beasts died from the explosion. The remaining five Flesh Hounds turn their attention to William and decide to attack him as he is a much bigger threat. "Come at me you beasts! Feel the wrath of the Emperor''s finest warrior!" William shouts at the Flesh Hounds as he pulls out Chainsword from his inventory to dual wield. With a power sword in his right hand and Chainsword in his left, William cranked the engine of the Chainsword to bring out deadly sounds. The Flesh Hounds were divided into three groups as two went to left and right and a single one stayed in front against William. First to attack William is the left side as two charged ahead as if they didn''t care for their safety. William sees this, blocks both demonic beasts using his two weapons and slew one of them with a Chainsword right in the head. This resulted in Chainsword stuck in the Flesh Hound''s skull, so William used his inhuman strength to swing the Chainsword, resulting in the dead Flesh Hound slammed into another beast. With the second Flesh Hound staggered, William struck down the demon beast with his power sword, killing it with one swing. But William''s back is now defenseless as two Flesh Hounds and one in the front charges to kill the Space Marine. Before they could do anything, the group of adventurers intercept the demonic beasts and start to do some damage as now adventures have greater numbers compared to Flesh Hounds. With Gale''s Eastern Eagles and other adventure parties combined, a total of 11 adventurers stand against three Flesh Hounds, giving William plenty of time to recover his Chainsword from the dead demonic beast and reposition himself. "Thank you for taking their attention for us, now we are more prepared to face these hell hounds," Gale said to William as everyone formed up standard Front, Middle and Back rank against three remaining Flesh Hounds. "No problem, I''ll handle two while you guys finish the last one," William spoke with a loud voice as he once again cranked the Chainsword engine and started walking toward ahead without any concern, leaving the formation. "Wait, what do you mean¡­" Gale tried to stop William but he had to stop as three demonic beasts charged at them. William once again rushed ahead to fight two beasts in melee combat, seeing this third beast turn at William but before it could do anything William kicked the third Flesh Hound which it knocked towards adventurers. "I''m busy, play with them," William said to the third beast as he continued his fight against two Flesh Hounds. Using his power sword, William stabs the first Flesh Hound as it opens its mouth while buzzing the second one''s belly with Chainsword. It was quick and swift in one motion as William killed the two demonic beasts at the same time. "We did it! We killed the hell hounds!" The rest of the party cheered as they survived a deadly encounter. William on the other hand knew this was just a beginning as Khorne was just testing him and soon other Chaos Gods will make their move against him. ''I need to think of something to fight against chaos. Flesh Hounds are just hunting dogs and if I''m not wrong, the entire hunting party will soon appear, bringing absolute death and destruction..'' William thought to himself as he cleaned his weapons and put away his Chainsword back into inventory. Chapter 10 - New Loot William and the rest of the party burn the corpses of the remaining wolves and bones of the former Flesh Hounds. Normally, adventures would retrieve the remains to turn it to the guild for small reward but as of now, their priority is to return to the army and report about sudden hellhounds ambush. ''When we get back, I should check my inventory to see what I got. If I''m guessing it right, the stronger the monster I defeat, the better loot I will get. So I hope I get something good from Flesh Hounds.'' William thought to himself as he took the rear guard within adventures. If there are any monsters or bandits, William will be able to find them thanks to his helmet sensor. The Space Marine''s helmet is built with filters, auto senses and various visual protection such as blinding lights or darkness as it allows the wearer to see in night vision, infrared and ultraviolet ranges. It only took one hour for the party to find the army as they were taking a break without any incident. William and Gale went to find Sir Dolven to report about their scout mission and what happened. It only took a few minutes when two men found Sir Dolven as he was walking over and talking to his soldiers. It was a sign of good leadership, who cared about his troops even though Sir Dolven himself is a noble and commander of the Order of Black Flames. There is something you can respect from the man only by the action instead of the use of words. "Sorry to interrupt your inspection but we have an urgent report," William asks casually, while Gale freaks out due to the way William talks to Sir Dolven. "William, I heard that you went on a scouting mission ahead of the army. I see you have already met Gale, so what is the report?" Sir Dolven spoke with interest and causal tone as he didn''t seem to mind the status difference. Gale stepped up to give the report, "During our mission, we encountered another party fighting wolves. When William and my party help them to kill the beasts, some of them turn into hellhounds. We manage to kill them and burn the body but I''m afraid we are already facing the enemy influences even before entering the vampire territory." When Sir Dolven heard hellhounds, he showed great concern and confusion as vampires tend to use necromancy, not demonic sorcery. "Are you sure it was a hellhound, not undead wolves used by the necromancers?" Sir Dolven asked as he looked at both Gale and William (Well, his helmet). "We are sure wolves were dead before they turned. But when we killed them, they turned into dust as only their bones remained." William explains and describes more in detail without giving away the influence of Chaos Gods. If they learn about Chaos Gods it will only welcome them into this world with more demons and nightmare monsters much scarier than typical monsters. "If somehow vampires managed to obtain the power of demons, we are in trouble. But the second army is already ahead of us and if we don''t meet them in time, we will lose the war before starting the first battle. We will continue with our schedule but I will make sure we prepare for possible ambushes from vampires." Sir Dolven said and ended the meeting as he now had to gather his lieutenants for new information. "For now our job is done. William, we will go back to the front after we take a short break. The other party can''t go since they have two people down due to injury. I''ll get you before we leave." Gale said to William as he walked away to find his party members. ''I guess I have time now to go over my loot.'' William found himself in an isolated area to relax and go over the new inventory. ''Let see, bolter rounds, more rations, first aid kits, repair bots¡­ oh this is new.'' With excitement, William checks the new items as he clicks it for more detail. [Oath of Loyalty (Purity Seal ) x1: To symbolize the first victory against minions of Chaos, the Emperor awarded you with a Purity seal. Grant the user better leadership and loyalty from allies.] [Support Order (Artillery Bombardment) x1: "Infantry win firefights, tanks win battles, artillery wins wars." An old saying from an Artillery Officer. Grant the user an ability to call down bombardment from Basilisk, a mobile artillery platform armed with a massive earthshaker cannon.] ''Holy crap, these two are very useful items. Didn''t know I can get support ability just like COD killstreak reward.'' With new items and supportability, William equipped the seal into his armor and artillery order in his hamlet display which appeared on the top left side. After organizing his new and old gear, William equips himself with a bolter pistol, power sword, and three grenades, the standard equipment William prefers as he wants to save ammunition for bolter and flamer until a real battle happens. When it was time, William met up with Gale and others to continue their recon mission. The army continued their march without any incident throughout the day and expected to meet the second army outside of the vampire town right on schedule. ----------- Outside of City of Deron, Four Days Later, "Battalion, halt!" With loud command, Sir Dolven stopped the army when they arrived at the second army''s base camp right outside of the City of Deron. With the first part of the mission done, adventures took a breather as they completed the main quest of the special quest. For the second part, adventurers can participate in the military battle as mercenaries for additional reward and opportunity to gain fame but for Western Eagles, they won''t join as they specialize in escort. "William, it was nice meeting you. We hope we can hang out next time and join you for a monster-hunting quest." Gale said to William as his party started to gather their equipment and supplies. "Oh, you guys are not staying?" William asks Gale with surprise. "The thing is we have an escort mission to the capital next week. So we have to go now if we want to make it on time. I know you are going to stay for the second part of the quest so here is my advice. ''Don''t be a hero,'' you only live once and there is no point of reward if you end up becoming undead." Gale explains and advises William as he grabs his backpack to meet with the rest of the party. "I will remember that," William said as he smiled as he was not wearing his helmet at this moment. With that, Western Eagles left the camp to meet their new client in the nearby town to start their escort mission. That Evening, William is requested by Sir Dolven to attend the war meeting as a guest of Sir Dolven and the only adventure participating in tomorrow''s battle. After Western Eagles left the camp, the other party decided not to join the fight as they were the only group left and there is a difference in war effort if they join or not. William on the other hand gladly decided to join the fight as he wants to gain more loot and extra reward from the second part of the quest. "William, before the meeting starts, I want you to stay quiet. The commander of the second army can be bit¡­ prideful." Sir Dolven gave a warning as they are the only group in the meeting tent. "Sure, I guess. If I may ask, why do you ask me tha¡­" Before William could finish his question, a group of heavily armored knights came to the tent as the person leading the group spoke out loud. "OK, let''s start this meeting. I have vampires to kill and a region to conquer for my father." A young blond man with gold and red armor said as he put his helmet on the table. Meanwhile, Sir Dolven and his followers only sigh as they already knew this would happen. "William, meet Sir Benton Pius Amadeus the 4th, the Crown Prince of the Alderim and Commander of the King''s army." Sir Dolven introduces the Crown Prince to William as everyone in the tent bow down to show respect. "You gotta be kidding me, a freaking crown prince is in command of this war?" William whispers to himself as he stares at the energetic prince as he starts to regret not leaving with the rest of the adventures. Chapter 11 - Identity of Secret Weapon The crown prince Benton made an entrance with the excitement of gaining recognition after winning this war. To be king, he must earn the respect of the king''s court and nobles, this meant that he must achieve something extraordinary before taking the throne when the time comes. "Sir Dolven, who is this giant knight behind you? Is he one of your finest men for tomorrow''s battle?" Prince Benton asked as he looked at the giant man with black armorer, he was certain that none of his men could do against this mountain as he could feel the presence of veteran warrior within. "No, your highness. This is William the Hero of Greenhill and the slayer of the undead. I hired him as part of a military escort and will take part in your campaign." Sir Dolven spoke quickly and tried to change the subject back into tomorrow''s battle. "So, he is the adventure I heard about. No wonder he could defeat the army of undead all by himself, tell me, slayer, is it true that you end up using your fist to fight off the undead? Prince asks William as everyone turns their head toward a giant adventure. "...Log," William said "What? Log?" Prince said with confusion. "I used the logs on the camp to kill the undead. Much faster and effective when gravity does all the work." William said to Prince Benton as he turned his head towards the prince. As everyone remained quiet, Sir Dolven broke the silence. "Let us start our battle plan, we don''t have all night after all." After Sir Dolven spoke, the prince and everyone returned to reality and proceeded to start the meeting. The meeting was rather boring, the one who talked most was Sir Dolven, who has the most experience in battle as his order has a long history of fighting against undead and monsters. It turns out, Sir Dolven isn''t just lord commander of the Order of Black Flames but also Count who governs his land given by Prince Benton''s father, King Benton Pius Amadeus the 3rd. When Sir Dolven was a young noble, he managed to defeat a savage beastmen tribe from the kingdom. King Benton rewarded him with higher status and the same land that Sir Dolven fought to protect. "I got it, Sir Dolven, we will follow your strategy and surround the town before sieging it," Prince said with a tired voice as the meeting was going on nearly an hour and a half. "Thank you, your highness. We will prepare the troops and get ready for the battle in the early morning." Sir Dolven ends the meeting and everyone proceeds to leave the tent but just as William was about to leave Sir Dolven stops him to talk to him in private. "I want you to keep your eyes on Prince Benton. He tends to¡­ act first before thinking. I know I''m asking a lot but he is the crown prince and he will one day rule but right now he is just a young man seeking glory and recognition from everyone." There was a heavy concern in Sir Dolven''s voice as he knew there was trouble coming. "I will do what I can," William replies and steps out from the tent to get ready for tomorrow''s battle. Managing the army and fighting against the undead is stressful enough but babysitting a prince who can''t think of the bigger picture is just pushing it. ''I guess I will do what I can. Still, I don''t like the idea that we will siege the town wall with full force. Not to mention, Prince kept the information on his so-called secret weapon secret during the war meeting.'' Had enough with politics, William went to his camp area to relax next to the campfire. ------------ Next Day, As William stands next to Sir Dolven as the army marches, Prince Benton and his guards approach them with a smile on their face. "I see your troops are ready for a long battle, but with my troops, we will end the battle by the end of the day," Prince said to Sir Dolven as his troops marched behind the front army. They had much better armor, weapons and fancy clothes than Sir Dolven''s troops and knights but what got William''s attention was the weapons particular troops were carrying. "Those weapons, what are they carrying?" William asked. "Those are our secret weapons. Court Mages managed to produce a flaming powder in which engineers designed the weapons to combine it. It is called ''gun'', effective and much more powerful than arrows or bolts." Prince proudly explains to Sir Dolven and William, the latest weapon against their enemy and next potential breakthrough to fight against enemies of his country. While Sir Dolven and the rest of his retainers watch with surprise on their face, William on the other hand was just dumbfounded by how basic the weapon is. The gun troops are carrying is a matchlock rifle, an ancient rifle single fire weapon that uses metal or lead ball but requires a lit match to ignite the gunpowder. On Earth, these kinds of weapons were used until the flintlock rifle was later introduced which took almost 200 years of ingenuity to reach modern-day weapons. Comparing Prince''s gun to William''s bolter is like comparing a baby''s toy car to a supercar with the latest engine. ''So this is their secret weapon. I can see a few ways to improve them and make the Emperor and Omnissiah proud.'' William thought to himself as he watched the two armies slowly move towards the City of Deron. It only took one hour for the entire army to make it to the outskirts of Deron. The Prince and Sir Dolven expected the undead to take defense on the walls of the city but for some reason, there was no sign of any vampires or undead within the walls. What is more ridiculous was that the main gate of the city was wide open as if it was abandoned. "We should send scouts to check the city. It could be a trap or vampires just abandon it but better to be safe than sorry at this point." One of the knights heard Sir Dolven''s word and sent 8 scouts to check the city. Within 10 minutes, all 8 returned and reported that the city is empty and there is no sign of living or undead. "Hahaha, I guess vampires ran away with their tails between their legs. Move the army into the city and secure it. If you find enemies, kill them on sight." Prince gave the order as everyone started to give orders, Sir Dolven protested that it could be a trap but it was useless as Prince overruled it with his authority. The main force of the army secured the city within 30 minutes and when Prince Benton, Sir Dolven, William and the rest of the leaders entered the city, Prince declared a reclaim of the City of Deron back into the kingdom. The troops cheered as it was an easy victory and there was no bloodshed but this celebration ended short as loud horns can be heard beyond the wall. "This is bad, supply wagons not only have food supplies for our troops but they also have our repair shop and ammunition for our guns." One of the Prince''s retainers shouts as people around him start to panic. "Prepare the knight cavalry and ready my horse. We are going out there to give the supply wagon enough time to escape the undead. I will take the minimum knights as it could be a trap and we need speed than large numbers." Sir Dolven gave the order as troops formed up within the walls. "Prince Benton, please stay here and guard the wall until we can get our supply wagons back to the city. We need¡­" Sir Dolven turned around to see the prince but he wasn''t there anymore. Suddenly, royal cavalry charged out from the gate as Prince Benton led the men into battle. "Are you freaking kidding me! He just left without hearing the plan at all?" William yells with rage as the useless prince leads his entire 360 royal knights cavalry right into a vampire''s trap. Chapter 12 - Punch and Earthshaker "They are everywhere!" "Hold the line! Hold the line!" "Skeletons are coming out from the ground. They were ready for us." "Your highness, we have to pull back. The supply troops are in a safe distance, we have to retreat." Sir Winton, the main retainer of the Prince Benton advice prince, but Prince Benton was busy slaying skeleton spearmen and zombie mobs. "No, we will hold the line here and end this now. This undead army is being controlled by a vampire lord, if we can slay it the rest of the army will fall." Prince Benton said to everyone around him as he killed two zombies next to him. Suddenly, three skeleton spearmen appear from behind two zombies and stab Prince Benton''s horse. With the fatal injury, the horse fell as Prince Benton stumbled to the ground and saved himself in the last minute with the roll. Prince Benton got up from the ground and struck the nearest undead while his retainers repositioned themself to protect the prince. "Hold the line, they are nothing but mindless minions." Prince Benton gave his command to his knights but he knew his troops were slowly overwhelmed by the undead while gaining new soldiers at the same time. As the fight continues, large monsters appear in the front line and start to devastate the knights left and right. 30 Minotaurs skeleton warriors with heavy weapons manage to overwhelm the knights on horseback with a single strike and crush their heads with ease. The balance of the battle changes dramatically and Prince Benton''s knights start to lose their confidence. "We can''t hold them anymore, we have to fall back to the city." One of the knights yelled but just as he was about to turn his horse around, a group of zombies slammed into the horse knocking him down. Seeing the opportunity of the stunned knight on the ground, zombies drag the fallen knight and start to rip him apart. Seeing this, Prince Benton lost his concentration for a second but that was enough for one of the Minotaurs skeleton warriors to hit him with bone mace, disarming the prince. "Your highness! Defend the Crown Prince, we need to..." Sir Winton couldn''t finish his order as a black arrow pierced Sir Winton''s left eye. With second leadership down, knights lose their fate and start to fall back more and more. With all this happening, none of the knights saw a giant black armored templar approaching the battlefield with unbelievable speed. ------------------ BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM!!! Four precise explosions destroyed the undead army''s push against knights, giving breathing room to the living. "TAKE THE WOUNDED AND RETREAT TO THE CITY! I WILL HOLD THEM OFF" With a booming voice, William gave the command to the troops as he pulled out more grenades. This time, instead of frag grenades, he pulls out Prometheus grenades to create a firewall between knights and undead. BOOM, BOOM, BOOM¡­ Multiple explosions can be heard once again as the violent fire starts to engulf the skeletons and zombies. Taking this chance, everyone slowly falls back to the city as William uses the flamer to create more firewalls. Eventually, everyone who is alive managed to make it back to the city gate. William, confirming that he is the last living being on the battlefield, put his flamer in the inventory and ran in full speed back to the city. Thanks to his Space Marine biology, William made it back in no time as his full speed can outrun any undead. Seeing this happening, Sir Dolven''s soldiers close the gate a moment William made it back to the city. "William, are you ok?" Sir Dolven asked William but William wasn''t listening to the single word coming from the knight commander. "How many did we lose?" "Only 120 knights made it back and half of them are injured and out of action until they are healed." Sir Dolven said to William with a saddened voice. Prince Benton''s royal cavalry is mostly composed of minor nobles'' sons that support Prince Benton in political ways. "Where is the prince?" "He is with the retainers. Well, there are only three of them now instead of 14." Sir Dolven pointed behind William, turning around William saw three people attending the prince near the closed gate. William, seeing where Sir Dolven pointed, starts to walk toward the group next to the closed gate. When he finally arrived, he immediately punched the prince''s stomach and face, denting the prince''s armor and helmet. "You stupid fool, I should have just let the undead rip you apart instead of saving your skin. You are not ready to be a king nor lead soldiers to the war!" William then lifts the prince and tosses him to the retainers. "Take him away and heal him. We are now in survival mode and have work to do." ------------------ "Do you know what you just did? You punch the prince, you won''t survive the wrath of the king when he finds this out." Sir Dolven said to William as he halted the other knights from attacking William. After all, William did punch their prince to the point he went unconscious with few broken ribs. "I will face that problem when we survive this mess," William said to Sir Dolven as he walked towards the wall defense. It will most likely be a difficult siege battle as the undead army will go on full force without fear or fatigue. Without killing the vampire lord, there will be unlimited undead for days to come. When William and Sir Dolven made it to the top of the wall, the fear ran down on Sir Dolven''s back as he saw on the other side of the wall. The fire died out as the battlefield is now filled with the undead army three times larger than before. The skeleton soldiers of all races, zombie hordes, ghouls of all sizes and finally a Grave Guards and Crypt Knights, a powerful undead knight with the finest weapons. "Looks like they were ready for us, this is three major armies altogether. This means we have not just one vampire lord but three total." Sir Dolven whispered to himself as he saw an unstoppable force in front of him. "When you said three vampire lords you mean those three right there?" William pointed his finger at three men riding a skeleton horse with expensive but tattered armor. Thanks to William''s helmet he could see them in close range compared to others who couldn''t see without focusing their eyes. "Yea, I see them. They are indeed vampire lords. Looks like they are keeping themself away from the combat range." Sir Dolven said to William, but what he heard next is a surprise to everyone as William gave an order to all. "Everyone take cover, do not peak your head out until bombardment is done!" With that sharp whistling sound of the artillery, an entire battlefield suddenly engulfed with fire and explosion, shattering the very earth undead is standing and bringing the might of the Astra Militarum Chapter 13 - Vargheists The Basilisk artillery bombardment on Vampire Lords'' undead army lasted a whole 10 minutes as it destroyed the very earth they were standing on. The Support Order ability was very simple and quick to use as William simply marked the area that he wanted to fire upon in his helmet''s minimap and confirm the strike. After 10 minutes passed, William and others peek their heads to see what happened to the enemies and the result is the complete annihilation of enemy forces. The entire field is now covered with impact craters as countless forces no longer cease to exist. Even if Vampire Lord somehow survived the attack, there is no corpse or bones to create a new undead army as there isn''t a single sign of remains on the battlefield. "Damn, that was more effective than I thought. I wonder if there are more options on Support Order than just artillery strike?" William said to himself as he stood up and observed the now destroyed battlefield. "You did this? How?" Sir Dolven asked William as he couldn''t believe what he just witnessed. The largest undead armies he had ever seen just a few moments ago are no longer there as William gave a sudden order to take cover which a second later, a thunderous sound and ungodly magic of sort shook the earth. "I had to use a rare magic item to wipe out the enemy. I was first hesitant to use it in the beginning as there was only one army but seeing how two other armies joined, I decided to use it and save us the trouble." William explained to Sir Dolven and others what he did and why he decided to use it. Hearing William''s explanation, Sir Dolven was moved by William for using a rare and powerful magic item to save his men instead of not using it. After all, a magic item powerful as this would go for a high price, especially if he sold it to the king or high nobles. "I have to admit, I''m glad I hired you for this expedition. If you weren''t here, I''m certain every one of us would end up becoming an undead puppet of the vampire." Sir Dolven wiped his forehead as he exhaled and took a deep breath. Just thinking about becoming a zombie or servant of the vampire is a nightmare to him as he will be forced to serve the enemy of mankind. "You''re welcome, after all, I took the job to see what a vampire is like. I just wish I could have fought one in 1 vs 1 duel instead of wiping them out like¡­" William didn''t his sentence as his helmet sensor went off with alarm to indicate one of the targets survived the artillery attack. "It looks like I will get my wish after all. One of the Vampire Lords somehow survived the attack and about to cast some sort of magic." William informs others as he steps forward to jump from the wall. Thanks to his power armor, William landed with superhero landing and started to run towards the last vampire on the battlefield. It only took a minute for William to reach the Vampire Lord as he saw a tattered and pale vampire finish his spell with a scroll in his right hand and a red bottle in his other hand. "What the hell?" Just as William finished his sentence, Vampire Lord crushed the bottle and drank from it as a scroll on his right hand burned into ash. Vampire stares at William, his body grows bigger and limbs extend, transforming into a monstrous giant bat with crawls as long as a short sword and wings big enough to cover man as a whole. ''Oh shit, it transformed into Vargheists. How in the world did he do that to turn it into a monster unit from a Warhammer fantasy?'' William thought to himself as he pulled out a bolter to shoot at the Vargheist. Fighting a giant monster isn''t a problem for William, but when that creature starts to fly, then it becomes a huge problem for him and others in the wall. With accuracy from the auto-targeting system, William managed to damage the left side of the Vargheists''s wing but that wasn''t enough to stop him from getting bodyslam by the vampire beast. Pushing him 20 feet from where he was before. "This is much better than fighting some human vampire. Now, you beast, face the Emperor''s greatest warrior and his wrath." William once again fired his bolter onto Vargheists as it slowly walked towards him, but somehow the beast withstands the bolter rounds briefly as if it was nothing. In close inspection, William saw the bullet wounds from the Vargheists''s body slowly regenerates as it pushed fragments out from the body. ''It seems I need to go old school.'' With that, William put his bolter back into his inventory and drew his power sword and brought out the chain sword from inventory. The sounds of chainsword crank out loud as the power sword starts to generate blue energy. William and Vargheists stare at each other for a few seconds before both fighters charge at each other. William was first to draw blood as he slammed the vampire beast with his right shoulder armor and proceeded to cleave the beast''s right arm with a chainsword. The chainsword rip and tear the Vargheists''s arm but before it could reach the right shoulder, the beast pulled itself back and rip the tattered arm. The missing arm slowly starts to regenerate as part of the right arm turned into dust. "Interesting regeneration, but is it enough for you to survive before I chop your head off?" With a battle cry, William once again charged with powerful force but Vargheists dodge the attack by jumping into the air and hovering with injured wings. Vargheists use this opportunity to counter-attack by striking William from the above as it uses its massive body as a weapon itself. William dodges the attack by rolling away and uses his quick feet to make a sharp turn to stab the beast''s back with a power sword. The Vargheists cry in pain when William finally stabs the beast and proceeds to slash its back with his powerful strength but Vargheists attempt to push William with its wing. William expected this counter-attack, so he did something unexpected, he let go of the sword and dodge the wing attack. Which he immediately use the chainsword with his two hands and cleave the Vargheists''s waist. The powerful chainsword engine roars in full power as it slowly rips through the Vargheists''s body, ultimately cutting it to two. The lower part of the Vargheists''s body slowly turns into dust as Vargheists cough black blood and cry in a low tone. William, who is now covered with black blood and guts retrieve his power sword and pull out his flamer from his inventory. "Now, burn and die you foul beast." With that William ignited his flamer and burned the Vargheists into ash as Promethium fueled fire engulfed the vampire beast, turning it into a pile of ash. Finishing his fight against Vargheists, William opens his inventory to see what kind of loot he got from destroying the undead army, two Vampire Lords and Vargheists. It turns out he is well rewarded as now he has thousands of bolter rounds, flamer canisters, grenades of different kinds and few interesting items. [Retractable Lightning Claws x1: A powerful power fist with retractable lighting claws built in it. A left-handed power fist] [Plasma Rifle x1: A powerful energy weapon design to deliver superheated plasma. It comes with 30 fuel cell magazines] [Heavy Flamer x1: Much more powerful and heavier version of the flamer. Heavy Flamer is powerful enough to melt armor and even tank armor. Use the same fuel canister but it is heavy even for Space Marine.] [Jump Pack x1: Give Space Marine the ability to jump across the battlefield in long-distance and safely land from a big height.. It requires Promethium fuel the jet pack (One canister can give five jumps).] Chapter 14 - New Information William returns to the City of Deron with a power sword in his right hand and chain sword on the other hand as troops in the town wall cheering his name. Soon, the fearful atmosphere disappears in the city as troops are once again busy with work as sergeants and lieutenants give orders to secure the city, marking sure that there is no additional surprise. Meanwhile, inside of the city castle, William is currently meeting with Sir Dolven to discuss the next step into resettling the city while planning for a possible counter-attack from other Vampire Lords. "As of now, we have enough forces to secure Deron. I already sent a message to the nearest regiment to send additional troops and supplies so we can move on to our secondary mission." Sir Dolven said to William and other officers in the meeting. William showed a confused face when he heard a secondary mission which Sir Dolven saw and decided to continue to explain. "Previously, when we launched this expedition, we expected a month-long siege on Deron, but thanks to you William, we have the city within a day. This moved our schedule ahead of schedule as we now have to move to the second part of the plan. When we receive the reinforcement, we will move our main force into Fort Stormfist and establish a defense against the Vampire army." Sir Dolven points at the map on the table as William turns his head to see the location. On the map, Fort Stormfist is located about half a day to the west from Deron within the mountain. This gives Fort Stormfist a perfect defensive location against any invading army as it is a geological choke point and able to withstand the invaders for months. Seeing this, William asks Sir Dolven the obvious question. "It is a perfect location to defend against an invading force, which right now is us. How do you expect to make a successful siege against the Fort defense?" William asked as a few of the officers from the Prince Benton''s nodded their heads. "We are ready for that. You see, Fort Stromfist has a few secrets that only the Royal family and few chosen nobles know about. First has a secret tunnel that leads into the main castle, this is meant for escape and secret supply run during the siege. So, while the main force attacks in front, a special unit will enter the fort and open the main gate. More detail will be discussed in the future, but if we secure the Fort Stormfist, we are guaranteed to secure this city and its resources for our kingdom." Sir Dolven explained the basic part of the second mission and moved on to current issues with the city itself. William learned from the meeting more detail about the city itself as Deron has two main resources available. First is the iron mine, which is located three miles in the north of the city and already has fully established facilities for miners and smelters to work. Second is the southern area outside of the city as soils are rich with nutrients to produce high-quality wine. In short, the City of Deron is a trade capital of the iron and wine for the western region of the kingdom of Alderim and a potential income boost for the lord who rules over. Soon, Sir Dolven ends the meeting but requests William to stay to talk to him. When they are finally alone, Sir Dolven grabs two cups and a wine bottle to share a drink with Undead Slayer. "You are full of surprise, you know that. Completely wiping out three vampire armies, killing the giant monster in a duel and finally, punching the living shit out of the Crown Prince of the Alderim. You would be perfect for royal politics back in the capital, there would be a lot of tension when other nobles learned that we successfully took over the Deron." Sir Dolven said to William and drank his wine. There is a different war coming and Sir Dolven isn''t equipped to fight the political battle as he is more of a military noble and prefers to battle defending his country. "I don''t mind, as long as I get my promotion and move up the rank, let the nobles fight each other," William said to the exhausted commander as he drank his wine. For William, he is more worried about Chaos Gods and their influence on this world than some political chess game. Sooner or later, William needs to get involved to build up enough military forces to fight against Chaos, but right now William needs to gather intelligence and learn more about this world so he can predict Chaos Gods'' move. "You may not want it, but you are already in as every noble knows or will know of your deeds from Greenhill and here." sir Dolven grabs the bottle to pour another drink for himself as William stops to look at the commander. "What do you mean by that? I''m just adventuring in a special quest, after completing the second part of this mission, I''m returning to the road." When Sir Dolven heard William''s comment, he gave a small laugh and gave the whole wine bottle to William. "What do you think will happen after this is over? Prince Benton will receive recognition from the king and other nobles which he will gain more supporters. On the other hand, I will return to my region to replenish my troops for the next expedition or war. Do you think King Benton will give this city and fort to some noble who never participated in this expedition? There is no next line of a successor as they all died out over 150 years ago when the vampire wiped them out. This means you are a potential candidate, no, THE only candidate as you single-handedly deliver the city back to the kingdom. Hearing this, William paused for full minutes to process the new information. He is just a simple commoner adventurer with no history of noble bloodline in this world. Unless there is a different culture and ways of doing things, there is no way the king or nobles will allow a commoner to control the region of rich resources and military fort. "You do know that I''m a commoner right?" William said to Sir Dolven after a full minute of pause. "Yes, I was once a commoner as well. You may not know this, but I join the war as a young man and earn my way through the rank within the military. By the time I reached my late 20''s, I received a knighthood and earned the nobility. Now, I''m in my late 40''s, I''m a commander of the Order of Black Flame and hold the title of Count. So, in my point of view, you have a chance to become a Lord of the Deron and Fort Stromfist. William, I rather have you rule this region than giving it to some worthless noble to lose it to vampires again. I will back you if you receive the king''s decree and decide to accept the title of nobility." With that, Sir Dolven put down his cup and stood up to return to his duty as he left the meeting room. "Damn," This was the only thing William could say as he sat alone in the meeting room as he once again paused to process new information and make plans for the possible outcome from this. ---------------- Prince Benton made a full recovery thanks to the healers and for the next few days avoided William like a plague. It seems William''s rough punishment for reckless leadership changed Prince Benton''s attitude and views on general things as his action led to the deaths of many royal cavalry knights. As for William, he was busy training ''gunmen'' as Sir Dolven finally saw the similarity between William''s bolter and royal gunmen''s gun. At first, William refuses to train them, but after seeing their training and how they managed to drop or fail to reload their rifles, he finally accepts the position of training instructor until reinforcement comes. William renamed the ''gunmen'' into ''riflemen'' before starting the training and gave the basics of the firearms from the scratch. While troops were learning the basics, William also gave special lessons to officers of each platoon, the military tactic called ''Volley Fire.'' William learned that riflemen fire all their weapons at once giving massive damages to the targets but due to the primitive design of the rifle, it took at least 30 seconds to reload their rifles. Seeing this, William decided to teach the old school military tactic from the movie when he saw it back home. "Simple but interesting tactic, I''m surprised we never considered this before. Will there be a better way to increase the efficiency of the troops reload time?" Prince Benton said to William as he was fully focused on the lesson. Prince joined William''s lesson in the middle as logic within the volley fire tactic made much more sense. "Prince Benton, you are welcome to join the lesson but please hold your questions until I finish the lecture," William said to the prince and continued his lesson. After 30 minutes of the lecture, William finishes his lesson and moves on to the prince''s questions. "As the Crown Prince asked before, there are multiple ways to increase the efficiency of the reload time. First is having a large number of riflemen to increase the line of volley fire, which gives enough time for each line to reload and ready for the next fire. This is costly as it requires huge military funds to train and equip the troops. For this reason, there is a second option, to equip the troops with better guns while maintaining medium size troops." William grabs his bolter and shows it to everyone. "This is called bolter, it holds 30 rounds of ammunition in the magazine and can fire all of them within 1.5 seconds in full auto. Unfortunately, there is no way we can replicate this weapon as we lack the technological skills to produce it. Still, using the basic function of the bolter rounds, I design an improved rifle with a new type of ammunition instead of the usual lead ball." William said to everyone as he showed his design of the rifle. It was a simple drawing of the rifle but with a big metal cylinder and hammer in the back.. William, using his helmet''s computer, introduced the revolver rifle with ammunition to the fantasy world. Chapter 15 - Reinforcement 8 Days Later, William and Sir Dolven were on the eastern wall gate, staring at the far distance with a dark cloud slowly covering the sky. With William''s helmet, he could see a glimpse of Fort Stormfist in the distance until clouds block the scene. While Fort Stormfist is covered by the dark cloud, the City of Deron is clear with sunny days as if two places in the same region have completely different weather patterns. "It seems vampires are gathering their forces in the fort. The gathering of dark clouds seems supernatural and will slow down our army''s mobility. " William said to Sir Dolven, but the old commander remained silent as if he was expecting an upcoming dire future soon. Before William can speak, a single long horn can be heard from the western side of the wall, which indicates a friendly approach to the city. "Seems, our reinforcement is finally here. Took them long enough, should have been here two days ago." Sir Dolven finally said to William with a small smile as he started to take the stairs to greet the incoming army. William, seeing this, follows the commander after checking his bolter pistol. "Sir Bullen, welcome to Deron. We were expecting you and your troops a few days ago." Prince Benton welcomes the Lord and his minor nobles first as Sir Dolven and William arrive at the western gate. Sir Bullen is a large fat man with a small goatee mustache, dressed in expensive-looking armor. Minor nobles are also wearing somewhat expensive looking armor and cloaks but their troops were in rough shape as basic troops had nothing but outdated armor and weapons on them. "Thank you, Crown Prince Benton. I was delayed due to fighting the undead army''s remnants, they might probably from your victory against the vampire lord''s army." Sir Bullen gave a large smile and explained why he was late. Before Prince Benton could speak Sir Dolven stepped forward to interrupt the conversation. "Well, it seems your men fought well, to survive the remnants of the vampire army it requires courage and bravery. Prince Benton, I believe Sir Bullen and his men should rest and continue our talk tonight after dinner." With that, Sir Dolven''s men guide the reinforcement to their quarters and barracks. Meanwhile, Sir Dolven, William and Prince Benton went to a secured meeting room to discuss a few things. "Sir Dolven, why are we here? We should be preparing for the evening briefing on the second part of the mission." Prince asked the old commander with a question as William stood in the door to prevent anyone coming in. "Your highness, we believe there is a traitor among the Counsel of Nobles. I believe vampire lords were well prepared and set up an ambush for us. There is no way they would know of this unless someone from our side informed them." Sir Dolven explained to the prince about his concern and the reason why. "Sir Dolven, that is a serious accusation. A member of Counsel siding with the vampire is a crime against the crown and will end in the execution of the entire family line. But if you are wrong, it could turn against you the same way." Prince said as he looked at Sir Dolven and then to William. "Don''t look at me, I don''t have any family line," William said to the prince. Hearing that, Sir Dolven gave a small smile as he learned something new about the black knight. "Your highness, Sir Bullen, mentioned the remnant of the vampire army delaying their match. This is impossible since William destroyed all three armies and slain the three vampire lords. As you know if a vampire lord dies, his or her army also dies with it, this means either Sir Bullen was lucky to survive a fourth undead army or he is lying about his late arrival." The reasoning makes sense to the prince as he heard and knew of the destruction of three armies and an epic duel between William and a vampire monster. "Ok, fine, but how will we confirm this before we arrest Sir Bullen and his men for treason against humanity?" Prince said with concern as he will be the judge to say the final say on the sentence. "Let me handle that," William said to the prince and Sir Dolven as he opened the door and left the room. -------------- In the Banquet Hall of the City Castle, The banquet hall is full of veteran soldiers from both Sir Dolven and Sir Bullen as Sir Bullen''s men took most of the hall as guests of honor. The foods were supplied and made by the cooks from Prince Benton''s army as the prince brought more than troops with him. "So, how did you manage to survive the ambush?" William asks Sir Bullen at the table as everyone turns their head, focusing on Sir Bellen. "Well, you see. We were only a day away from the city when we got ambushed by the large groups of undead. With diligence and a calm mind, I gave quick orders to my men and vanquished the enemies. Of course, we dispose of their remains to prevent them from rising again, this is why I was delayed." Sir Bullen said with a proud tone as his men cheered with mugs in their hand. "So, how did you slay the vampire commander?" Sir Dolven asks with interest since the undead army means there is a vampire lord around during the battle. "Well, he was injured, so it was easy for us to kill it without heavy casualties. I heard of your deed from others, how you slay the vampire beast and destroy their armies. It seems you missed one." Sir Bullen said to William with a mocking tone. Hearing this, many of Sir Dolven''s men show resistance as they fully know what William did for their survival during the last battle. "You are right, Sir Bullen. I slay the vampire beast and its army, I also can confirm that two other vampire lords are dead as well." There was a silence in the hall when William spoke. Sir Bullen breaks the silence as he slams the table. "Are you calling me a liar? You are nothing but an adventurer and peasant who earned the spot on this table because you killed some beast. You should shut your mouth when you are in the presence of his highness and us, nobles." The shout from Sir Bullen echoed through the hall and the rest as soldiers from both sides looked at the main table. "You are a liar, Sir bullshit. I know for a fact that there was no ambush or undead army as I''m the one who killed all three lords. Also, there is this." William pulls out a black pouch and puts it on the table, inside there is a letter with insignia and stamp of a noble house in it. "This is the pouch of the vampire lord who transformed into a beast. Lucky for me, his possessions were ripped from his clothes as he turned into Vargheists, a giant bat beast. This letter tells critical information about the Crown Prince''s troop movement schedule and numbers. Also, for information exchange, the person who sent this will be rewarded with the city and its resources. So, tell me, Sir BS. Why does this letter have your house insignia?" William slams the letter on to the table, this revaluation causes the banquet hall to divide in half as soldiers draw their weapons at each other. "That''s impossible, there is no way that letter is genuine, it is fake!" Sir Bullen protests as he and his men stand up with their weapons drawn. "No, this is real as it can get. I also intercepted a second letter from the undead messenger bird that was headed to Fort Stormfist yesterday. It contains information about your arrival with your name on it. You should have been anonymous with you penpalling with vampires." William gave an evil smile, which his side is full of soldiers with their weapons pointed towards at Sir Bullen. "No, there is no way you could have seen the messenger bird in the middle of a night. You are bluffing." Sir Bullen showed a panicking face when William informed him about the second letter but returned to normal when he realized that it would be impossible to intercept the messenger bird in the night sky. "I didn''t say I found the bird in the middle of the night. Now, how would you know that?" William said to a now sweating noble. "You¡­ you dare to accuse me of betraying Crown? No matter, you all are surrounded by my men the moment this banquet started. Surrender your weapons and I will spare you from turning into undead after your execution." Sir Bullen said with anger in his voice and weapon pointed it at William, Sir Dolven and Prince Benton but they seemed relaxed instead of scared for their life. "Sir Bullen, at this very moment, your men are all captured by my knights. Only you and your men here are what''s remaining as we speak." Sir Dolven said as he showed his disappointment to the fallen noble. "No¡­ no, no, no. All of you suppose to die in the battle, but when I heard of victory, I had to act quickly. Now, I just have to kill you all since my men outnumber yours." "No, you are at disadvantage." William pulled out his bolter pistol and fired four rounds, killing four men from Sir Bullen''s side. At the same time, a large group of riflemen appeared from the upper deck and pointed their weapons at the traitor''s men. "This is your Red Dinner, Sir Bullshit." Chapter 16 - New Training "Prince Benton, what will be your judgment for these traitors?" Sir Dolven asks Prince Benton after William executed four of Sir Bullen''s men. Meanwhile, William maintains his bolter pistol at Sir Bullen''s head and pulls out a power sword, intimidating everyone including his allies. "Of course, Sir Dolven. I, Crown Prince Benton, have witnessed the traitorous act from Sir Bullen as conspire against the Kingdom of Alderim by allying himself with a vampire faction. On behalf of my father, King Benton the 3rd, immediately, Sir Bullen is stripped from the noble title of Viscount and all his followers will face the same charge until the end of the investigation." Prince Benton announced his judgment to everyone in the hall in which minor nobles of Sir Bullen''s side started to show panic and great fear. "You hear that? Your lord is no more, so drop your weapon right now or else I will start chopping heads!" William gave a commanding shout in which the majority of enemies dropped their weapons due to the survival instinct. Still, few of the enemies maintain their ground but it was pointless as more of Sir Dolven''s soldiers come in and apprehend enemy soldiers. Eventually, all of the soldiers on the lower tables surrendered, leaving Sir Bullen and his remaining men all alone. "I advise you to surrender, but one wrong move and I will remove your head in a second," William said to Sir Bullen, as he secretly hoped to have an excuse to execute the traitor. Sir Bullen''s face turned pale as he realized he had no chance to survive this confrontation. In the end, he and his men surrender their weapons and are apprehended by the soldiers. Just as tension in the hall slowly died down, a soldier covered in blood rushed through the door to give an urgent report. "Report from outside. One of the soldiers freed himself and escaped on horseback." A soldier said out loud as the hall once again went rowdy. Sir Dolven was about to order but William stepped forward as he put his helmet on. "I''ll handle it." William went outside which the sound of his footsteps disappeared as he increased his speed. The moment William exited the gate, he used his helmet to track and found the soldier in the distance. Seeing a good distance between him and the soldier, William increases speed to full gear as he now runs at 40 miles per hour. As William started to close his distance, he equipped one of his new war gear, the jump pack and took a huge jump across and over the soldier. After landing 20 yards in front, William turned around to stop the charging horse head-on. "Are you crazy? You can''t possibly stop the warhorse all by yourself!" The soldier yelled, but William didn''t budge as he caught the horse''s neck and front side and flipped the animal with the rider on top of it. "Be glad I didn''t kill you on sight. I need to know who you''re going to report to." William grabbed the soldier with one hand and gave him a small smack on the head which he went unconscious. William puts his jump pack back into his inventory and walks back to the city with an unconscious enemy soldier in his hand and warhorse''s leash in his other hand. After walking through the gate, William dropped the soldier in front of Sir Dolven''s men and gave the warhorse to one of the knights. "I just smacked him a little, he isn''t dead," William said to Sir Dolven and Prince Benton as he approached them. "We need to redefine the term ''smack'' for you as you are not a normal person unlike that fellow there." Sir Dolven said to William and pointed it at the enemy soldier who is being dragged by the foot soldiers. Meanwhile, Prince Benton flinched for a moment as he experienced William''s punch 8 days ago. "I know my strength, I''m sure just smack him without any permanent damage." William gave his excuse and turned around to see soldiers escort the prisoners to the dungeon. Seeing this, William asked Sir Dolven a question that was in his mind all night. "What will happen to the soldiers? They are just foot soldiers and have nothing to do with treason." "They are soldiers but until we remove the Bullen''s family and his followers we can''t use them in our fighting force. For now, they will be confined in the dungeon, including Bullen and his followers." Sir Dolven explains the process to William as Prince Benton nods his head, agreeing with the old commander. "Does that mean we will postpone the second part of the mission?" William asks as he points out the main reason why Sir Bullen''s army came to Deron in the first place. "Probably, Prince Benton and I already sent the message to the capital, so it will take about another 2 weeks for them to send a relief force to Deron." Sir Dolven said as he took a deep breath. It seems this will impact him and others as 2 more weeks of delay will reduce the morale of the troops. "I can use that time to train the troops, not just riflemen but the footmen as well. I believe I can make them more effective in close combat and siege for the second part of the mission." William said to two leaders as he volunteered himself for more troop training. It is good to keep the soldiers busy so for William, he will be busy with a new training regiment and development of the next generation of rifles in the future. "Thank you, William. Soldiers look up to you ever since you defeated the vampire beast, so I believe you training the troops will increase morale until the relief force." Sir Dolven gave his thanks to William while Prince Benton raised his hand to ask William a question. "Can I join the training? Not the training itself but I like to compare the strategy and tactics of my lesson to yours." Prince Benton asks William with great interest as he wants to see the training regiments of the mysterious black knight. "Sure, bring all your gears and I will see you first thing tomorrow morning. Which is about 5 hours from now on." William gave an evil smile and walked away to prepare new training programs for the troops. ------------ 10 Days Later, William focused more on endurance and teamwork than strength as fighting an undead army is a battle of teamwork. Undead soldiers do not communicate with each other or display teamwork to defeat stronger opponents. For them, the strategy is all about overwhelming their enemy and replacing fallen soldiers with new corpses. So, William decided to work on the soldier''s endurance to strengthen their defensive line while teamwork to help each other to maintain the line. "Keep your shield above your head! Take each step one at a time together, one misstep will bring down the whole formation. If I break the wall, it is another 30 ??ps with the full gear." William said to the soldiers with tower shields as he prepared himself to charge the shield wall. At first, he did this with his power armor on, but after full protest from the entire army, he decided to test it without the armor. William slammed the shield wall with full strength, but it managed to withstand the impact with no one falling out from the formation. The soldiers who were watching the training cheered as they finally witnessed the possibility of passing the impossible task. "Not bad, you can break the formation now." William gave an order to the soldiers and tower walls break the formation to show fully armed soldiers, including Prince Benton. "I can''t believe we passed the test. I swear when you told us about this, I thought you went crazy due to lack of action on the battlefield." Prince Benton said to William as he removed his armor and dropped his tower shield. Prince Benton didn''t have to participate in this part of the training but he decided to join the soldiers to lead with example. "I told you it is possible. I knew you guys have shield formation already but it lacks endurance because you guys didn''t have me to break your shield wall. Now, the soldiers can withstand even if they get slammed by the cavalry head-on. That is if cavalry survives the riflemen and spearmen." William said as he waited for the next group of soldiers to form up the shield wall. Suddenly, the sound of the horn can be heard from the western gate as it signals an incoming friendly army approaching the city. "Deja Vu, this is familiar. Sergeants prepare the troops for the incoming army. I will be at the gate to see who it is this time." William instructed the sergeants and left the training field to welcome the new army. "I''ll come with you, I''m sure my father sent someone from my branch family this time to make sure there is no more delay." Prince Benton said to William as he gathered his gears to walk next to him. "Get yourself cleaned up first. If your father did send someone he trusts, you need to be presentable. I''ll buy you some time." William said to the prince and went to his room to put on his power armor. When William finally made it to the western gate, Sir Dolven greeted him as they waited for the relief army. Soon, the gate opened and they saw an army with a flag colored white and gold with a lion in the middle. "Oh no, Of all generals, King Benton sent her?" Sir Dolven whispered in silence the moment he saw the army flag. "Her? Who is it?" William asks as he has no idea who the flag represents. "Rana Bassilo Beckett, Duchess of Agrus and King Benton''s second niece. She is infamous for defending and launching counter-attacks against invaders three years ago. She is different from other nobles, so watch out." Sir Dolven warns William, as they see a single rider ahead of the army in full gallop. The rider stopped her horse a few feet from William and made a full circle around him. "You are Sir William the Giant? I expect you to be much taller for your given title." Duchess Beckett said to William as she removed her helmet. ''Oh, she is going to be one of those noble..'' William thought to himself as he prepared for another energetic trouble maker in military rank. Chapter 17 - Lioness of Argus Rana Bassilo Beckett, the Duchess of Agrus was one of the key players in the last war who brought victory against the neighboring kingdom. When her fort was under siege by the invasion force, she took it herself to fight the enemy in the middle of the night to launch a counterattack against unexpected enemy forces. The result was a complete victory for Duchess Beckett as she pushed the enemy to the border and wiped out any chance for them to push back again. From this, she earned herself the title of ''Lioness of Argus'' and strengthened the royal family''s influence as she is the second niece of the king. The Duchess of Agrus got off from her horse and approached William. She is 5.9 feet tall, in the mid-''20s with blonde short hair and sharp blue eyes. If she wasn''t intimidating looking, William would have thought she would be a perfect model back on Earth. Well, she does give off a serious vibe that people love to see in sports magazines. When she got close to William, she examined his detailed work of Mark VII Aquila Power Armour and his equipment within him which is a power sword and bolter pistol. While she is examining William, her followers and troops catch up to the city''s wall. "Impressive war gear, I can now believe the story of how you kill the vampire lord but I still have my suspicion that you single-handedly defeat the three armies. You better explain to me when we have time." The Duchess said the last part in a small voice to William as she turned around to talk to Sir Dolven and Prince Benton who just made it to the western gate. "Welcome to Deron, Duchess. Was your travel uneventful and full of peace?" Sir Dolven gave his greeting to the fearsome lioness but all he got was sharp eyes from her as she inspected Sir Dolven and his followers. "It was a boring and pointless trip. You should be able to handle the Fort Stormfist with your Order, but because you have a traitor, you delay the mission and bring me to fix your mess." The Duchess said to the old commander and moved on, there was tension among Sir Dolven''s men but they didn''t say anything as they are smart enough to not get involved. Prince Benton welcomed the Duchess with an open arm, but instead of warm greetings, he got a gut punch from her who is still wearing a metal gauntlet. "You, what did I tell you about leading the troops against enemies?" She asks the prince who is on the ground with his hands on his stomach. "Think before taking action." Prince Benton said to the Duchess and tried to stand up but got another punch from her in the gut as she punched him again. "If you remember my lesson, you would still have your knights!" The Duchess was about to punch the prince for the third time but was stopped by William as he grabbed her fist. "I believe he got your message, I also punched him for recklessness. So, let''s move on to our mission." William said to the Duchess while her followers drew their weapons at the giant armored man. "Fine, let us go to the city castle." The Duchess pulled her arm away from William and signaled her followers to lower their weapons. Sir Dolven walks next to William and helps the prince get back up, William on the other hand is baffled by the authority she gives off. ''She is a natural leader, she doesn''t ask for respect, but demands it by showing who she is.'' William thought to himself and walked next to Sir Dolven. In the meeting room, William, Sir Dolven, Prince Benton, Duchess Beckett and other officers attend the war meeting to discuss the second part of the mission and relief army''s duty. Just as the meeting is about to come to end, Duchess Beckett objects to her part of the mission. "I want to switch duty with the prince. I didn''t come all this way to babysit a city when there is a battle to fight within half a day''s distance." She explains her objection as Sir Dolven signs while the prince protests. "This is my campaign and I will finish this to the end, cousin. There is no way I''ll give up to you." Prince spoke with a strong and serious tone. Ever since William started the training, the prince gained self-confidence and self-esteem as he built a strong bond with his troops. Still, this wasn''t enough as the Duchess matched the prince with her serious presence. "Enough! I''ll stay behind. We had enough delay and I wanted to end this campaign last week." Sir Dolven slammed the table and gave his final say to everyone in the room. William was also tired of politics and was eager to fight the vampire faction so he could complete this special quest. "Sir Dolven, if you stay behind who will lead the special unit to kill the vampire lord?" Prince asked the old commander but he knew who would take the command of the mission. "I will take the mission, alone. I already have the detail on the hidden tunnel and other secrets of the fort from Sir Dolven. I''ll kill the vampire lord and open the main gate for you two to come in." William said to the young prince and battled the crazy Duchess. No one from the prince or Sir Dolven''s side said anything as they knew what William is capable of but Duchess''s followers whisper to each other as they don''t trust William and his ability. "You expect us to trust you, an adventure and someone we never heard of until now? Not to mention all by yourself to the fort filled with countless undead and a vampire lord?" One of the female officers said to William as she and others distrust the giant black knight. "Yes, what do you have to lose?" That is the only thing William said to the officer. The room went quiet, then the Duchess laughed out loud which disturbs most of the people as they didn''t expect this reaction from the lioness. "That''s what I said to my advisors when they asked me if I was crazy to counter-attack the invaders. It''s your call, old man. If you trust this giant then I don''t mind his crazy plan." The Duchess said as she looked at William, which was a bit uncomfortable for William since she gave a very different vibe compared to other commanders he met before. "It is settled then. Prince Benton and Duchess Beckett will take two armies to the Fort Stromfist while William infiltrates the fort and takes down the vampire lord and opens the main gate. We will begin our attack in two days, prepare your troops and get full rest for the upcoming battle." Sir Dolven declares the final decision and ends the meeting so everyone can prepare for the second part of the mission. Before William could leave the room, the Duchess stopped him to talk to him. "Is your sword sharp?" She genuinely asks William while pointing her finger at his power sword. "My sword never goes dull and no, you will not borrow it or my other weapons." William grabs his sword''s hilt to show he won''t let go no matter what. "I''m not interested. I want you to participate in tomorrow''s event before we start preparing for the mission." The Duchess said but there is a bit of disappointment in her eyes. "What are we doing tomorrow?" The Black Templar asks the lioness with curiosity. "Execution. I have it with me a decree from King Benton himself to execute the traitors and his followers. I want you to be the one who executes them tomorrow morning." ------------ Next Day, Main Square of the Deron, "In the name of King Benton the 3rd, king and protector of the Alderim have decreed that former Viscount Bullen and his minor nobles will be sentenced to death. May the gods pity your souls and give you peace." One of the female officers read the roll of documents to everyone in the square. In the center, a roll of traitors kneels with their heads on the chopping blocks. "Do any of you men have last words?" Sir Dolven stood up from his seat and said out loud so everyone could hear. This is more of a tradition to give the criminal a chance to repent (But criminals still get execution). The entire square remained silent as no one spoke or had a side whisper to speak their mind. Seeing there is no last word, Sir Dolven moved to the main event of the execution, execution of traitors. "Executioner, proceed and give mercy." Sir Dolven takes his seat next to Prince Benton and Duchess. The moment Sir Dolven''s word ended, a giant black knight with a large sword approached the platform and went to the first man. Without giving a moment of hesitation, William cut the man''s head and moved to the next. After the 8th man, it was the 9th man''s turn. A man who betrayed his country and sided with the undead to expand his territory, a former viscount Bullen. William looked at the man''s back head for a moment but that was just a second as he decapitated the traitor''s head in one clean swing. Everyone who witnessed remained silent and waited for the next step of the execution, which was confronting the Bullen''s soldiers. "The traitors are now dead and no more. Soldiers, will you remain loyal to the traitor or the crown?" Prince Benton said out loud and waited for the soldier''s response. "We will serve the crown!" Soldiers of former viscount gave their answer and swore loyalty to the King and his son. While this is going on, William puts away his power sword and checks his inventory to see what he got from the fallen noble. As usual, he got more ammunition for his bolter and flamer but the last item caught his attention as it was something very different. [Unit Summon (Penitent Engines) x1] "Only in death, their''s or the enemy''s, can forgiveness finally be earned." A giant combat walker, Penitent Engine attacks both friend or foes for they only seek to repent their sins.. This unit is equipped with a chainfist for close combat and a flamer for crowd control. Chapter 18 - Secret Passage Next Day, On the first light, the two armies march out of the City of Deron and head towards Fort Stormfist with their two leaders leading them. Meanwhile, giant Black Templar left the city last night to begin his part of the mission. In the main road, William found the secret path which directed him into a valley with a dead end. Scanning the area, William found the large boulder blocking something so using his superhuman strength and power armor he removed the rock to find a wall with a family crest he saw when he was at Deron. After pushing the wall with the crest, it revealed the secret passage to the Fort Stormfist. But because his armor prevents him from going in, William unequips his power armor and proceeds to go in with regular clothes and weapons in his hands. Power sword in the right hand and torch in his left, William slowly walks towards darkness as he burns old spider webs and silent his feet to maintain his stealth (As possible Space Marine can). After 40 minutes of walking in the secret passage, William found himself in the moderately sized room with three different passages. Above each passage, there seems to be a stone carving indicating where it leads to. ''Left leads to the secret door to the treasure room, middle leads to a door to the command center and right leads to back which is next to stables and the supply warehouse.'' William recalls the information he learned from Sir Dolven and proceeds to take the middle path to the command center of the Fort Stormfist. By taking the command center, William can freely move around the fort to find the Vampire Lords. When William reaches the end of the path, put his power armor back on and use his helmet sensor to see if there is movement on the other side. Sensing no movement, William pushes the secret door and finds himself behind a giant curtain of sorts. After moving himself out from the curtain, he found himself in a large room with a large table, multiple chairs and a giant map hanging on the wall (Secret passage was behind the map). ''Ok, it seems like vampires maintain the fort''s furniture and other stuff in good shape, I guess they do love life of luxury just like humans do.'' William then moves to the door to exit the room but the door suddenly opens from the other side to reveal two surprised humans with metal collars in their necks. William was the first to react in time, he grabbed the two human slaves, pulled them into the room and closed the door. It was quick and sudden because two humans didn''t have the chance to make a noise or alert the vampire. William points his power sword towards slaves and asks them a question. "Do not make any noise or it will be the last thing you will ever do. Now, how many vampires are in the fort and where are they?" William said with a gruff voice which gave an intimidating presence to the slaves who had never seen a giant metal knight before. "You shouldn''t be here, the master was expecting an army for days and brought his entire army to this fort." The oldest looking slave said to William with pleading and warning, which the second slave added with his warning. "You came here for nothing but death. Your entire army will be master''s unless you retreat right now. There is no hope to win, we should know as we were once soldiers to the throne." The second slave warned William but the giant knight didn''t budge or gave concerns to the warning. "Let me guess, he buried half of his forces outside of the wall and hid riders in the forest didn''t he?" William said to them which once again surprised the two humans. "How did you know?" Both men gave a surprised face when William guessed the master''s strategy. "Easy, his vampire lords used the same strategy on the battle of Deron. I guess that your master believes in superior numbers and overwhelming the enemy which is easy to predict the strategy based on that. Now, how many lords did your master bring to the fort?" William asks again which two men answer his question. "He brought four lords with him, which comprised his entire military forces." The second man said to William but William can see there is missing information from the man. "There is more isn''t it?" The black templar said as he moved his sword from the slaves. "Yes, since he brought his troops from all over the region, he also brought most fearsome creatures as well. One of them is a master''s mount and it is powerful enough to devastate your army by itself." The first man said with fear in his eyes as the second man finished for him. "He brought a zombie dragon with him. The same dragon he used to conquer this fort and Deron 150 years ago." -------------- Prince Benton and Duchess marched their troops over the hill as they saw the Fort Stromfist. The fort covered the entire mountain passage from left to right, blocking from passing to the other side. From the left side of the hill, a large forest blocks half of the open field before reaching the range of the fort towers which prevents the invading army from using siege machines. "Well, cousin. It seems like the vampires were ready for us just like William said." The Duchess said to the prince with a smile on her face. When she heard William''s plan it was crazy and stupid as he recommended not to use siege machines. Now, examining the battlefield, she can see the open field covered with fresh dirt and no overgrown grass, which supports William''s advice on the buried undead army. "Just like the battle of Deron, vampires plant their undead underground for an ambush. This also means they hid shock cavalry somewhere, possibly in the forest right over there." Prince Benton points at the dense forest. Suddenly, officers from Prince Benton''s order the troops to make formation with a tower shield, creating a big wall of tower shields with swordsmen and riflemen right behind them. The Duchess and her troops saw all this with amazement as they didn''t expect the prince''s troops to be well organized and disciplined. It was as if they were looking at experienced veterans on the battlefield instead of spoiled minor nobles'' sons and lazy army with expensive war gear. "All troops! Forward march!" Prince gave his order which entire wall of shields and troops behind them marched simultaneously. When the army reaches a certain point in the field, the undead starts to rise from the ground, preparing to kill the living. Unfortunately for the undead army, a wall of tower shields open gaps between and a volley of rifle fire shreds them before they could reach the living. As undead troops get wiped out from the field before they could do anything, the vampire''s shock cavalry reveal themself out of the forest with a sound of heavy hooves. The cavalry is composed of 400 Crypt Knights with heavy armor and 80 undead war dogs with light armor. In normal circumstances, it will take an entire wall of spearmen or company of crossbows to repel them, but Prince and William brought something new to this fight. "Riders are approaching! Bring out the big guns!" one of the prince''s officers calls out as soldiers in the rear bring out four wagons with something attached to it. The metal mounts on the wagons are made out of rifle-like barrels but much bigger and hold 8 rounds each. There are 16 individual barrels divided into four decks, making it rotatable after each deck fires the round. It is a fantasy world version of a Gatling gun and similar to Helblaster Volley Cannon from Warhammer fantasy Check (Total War Warhammer 2 for reference). "Fire the Volley Cannons!" The second prince gave his command, the four wagons with Volley Cannon fired, destroying the first and second lines of undead knights and war dogs in one set of a volley. The rounds from each cannon pierced Crypt Knight''s armor like it was made out of paper. The cannons continue their fire as they rotate to cool their barrels, by the end of the fifth volley, most of the knights fell and war dogs are no more. "That was much more effective than I thought. Good thing that we spend two weeks wisely by building these artillery weapons." Prince Benton said while the Duchess and everyone around her saw all this with their mouth opened. "Who exactly are you, Sir William?" The Duchess said to herself as she and the rest of the troops slowly followed the prince''s army. Chapter 19 - Penitent Engine Within the Wall of Fort Stromfist, "I am losing my forces faster than I can bring them out from the ground!" One of the three vampire Lords on the top of the wall yelled as he turned around to face his comrade. The two other lords start to panic as their ambush didn''t work and the massive loss of Crypt Knight riders start to lower their morale. "We have to stay with our Master''s plan. We will defend within our wall while you bring everything you have to delay their advance. Since they have no siege machines, our archers and capulets will take them down before they can breach the wall." A female Vampire Lord explains her plan and about to order her troops to ready their ranged weapons when loud sounds interrupt her concentration. Coming out from the supply warehouse, a big metal human-shaped walker with a female human attached on the front appeared. The woman is wearing white hooded clothes and is connected with multiple tubes on her body. The metal walkers have two long metal arms with weapons attached and slowly walk toward the inner wall open area while screaming "Repent in the name of the God-Emperor! Only he is the salvation!" "What the hell is that?" Male vampires ask others but before anyone could say anything, the Penitent Engine stopped and turned around to see the army of undead and three vampires on the top of the wall. "MUTANTS! No, Genestealers!" The woman shouted and the metal machine charged the undead army, thrashing them with a chain fist. As the army was standing between vampires and the Penitent Engine, they automatically went to the defensive formation and counter against a madwoman in a big walker. "What is the meaning of this? Did humans somehow infiltrate the fort?" The female vampire said as she commanded his knights with a lance to repel the Penitent Engine. All this was pointless as the moment undead knights approach the Penitent Engine, the machine turns its arm with two attached flamers and unleashes the promethium fueled fire. The entire undead knights engulfed by the fire and turned into dust. With more enemies dead, Penitent Engine continues her attack, destroying foot soldiers and wiping out anything blocking her way. "I got this, focus on the incoming army," The third vampire said as he summoned his skeleton monsters to fight against the Penitent Engine. In front of the Penitent Engine, three big skeleton minotaurs with axes and swords block the path. As two sides are about to attack each other, a blue plasma hits one of the skeletons which exploded and turns the area into the hot superheated ground. "Damn, that was much more effective than I thought. Penitent Engine, continue your repent for your sins!" Standing on the roof of the building, William gave his order to the Penitent Engine as he used his jetpack to hover in the air. The Penitent Engine continues her attack and slashes or burns anything standing next to her. "Archers, kill that flying human!" The female vampire shouted out loud in which skeleton archers fired their arrows at William but it was useless as arrows couldn''t penetrate William''s power armor. Hovering in the air, William aimed his plasma gun at the three vampires and fired it. Boom! The three vampire lords couldn''t react in time to dodge the blue plasma as it was too fast for them. With a large explosion, the three vampire lords died instantly, at the same time their undead armies collapsed to the ground as if puppet''s strings were cut. "Three down two more to go." William landed near the steaming ground where three vampires just died. The Penitent Engine meanwhile, stomps the undead as she searches for something new to crush. Just as Penitent Engine is about to leave, four zombie trolls appear out of nowhere and attack Penitent Engine. "I''m impressed, human, but this is where you die," A male Vampire Lord with fancy clothes appears from the back as four zombie trolls attempt to crush the Penitent Engine while an army of undead zombies with weapons approach the wall. "If you are impressed by this, you would love this." William grabs two hands full of grenades and throws it at an approaching zombie army. The handful of grenades exploded and destroyed many zombies but that wasn''t the end of it as William pulled out heavy flamer from his inventory and unleashed devastating fire on the remaining undead army. The black smoke covers the blue sky and the stench of burning corpses can be smelled by the slowly approaching human forces. "NO! Who are you? How are you doing this?" The vampire started to freak out and didn''t notice Penitent Engine charging at him while the lady sinner used her chain fist to cut the vampire in half. "Nice, all of this should have caught their master''s attention by now. Where is¡­" William couldn''t finish his sentence as a giant red zombie dragon swooped from the smoke and snatched the Penitent Engine with its mouth, crushing it. "You cost me my followers and army. I will enjoy crushing you and the living as I will replace my army with their dead body." A vampire wearing red armor said to William as he turned his zombie dragon mount to face black templar. The zombie dragon crunch Penitent Engine multiple times before spitting it to the ground and stomping it to finish it. "Damn, I''m gonna need a bigger gun." ---------------- The undead army suddenly fell to the ground while the prince''s army slowly approached Fort Stormfist''s wall. The troops maintained their shield wall formation as sergeants and officers knew archers could still attack them behind the wall. Not even a minute goes by, a cloud of black smoke rose from behind the wall and the smell of the burning corpse reached the prince''s army. "Continue your march, we have to breach the wall and gate to help William. The fallen undead proves that William killed one of the vampire lords in commend. Prepare yourself for true battle beyond the wall." Prince Benton shouted to boost the troops'' morale but at that moment something big could be seen above the black smoke. As if a powerful gust suddenly appeared out of nowhere, a black smoke cleared out, revealing a giant dragon with rotten flesh on it. "That is Blood Duke''s zombie dragon." One of Prince Benton''s men said as everyone including prince and duchess turned pale. The legendary zombie dragon of Blood Duke that wiped out the city of Deron''s defense force finally appeared after 150 years. The zombie dragon was big enough to top over the wall and was crunching something in its mouth. Fearing the worst, the prince couldn''t speak or think as he saw nothing but death in front of him. "Prepare the Volley Cannons and reorganize the troops! No matter where we go or hide we are an easy target for that dragon but we have guns with us so we will stand our ground and hit it with everything we got!" The Duchess was the first to recover from her fear and gave a loud command to the troops as all of them were terrified by the zombie dragon''s presence. Eventually, seasoned officers and sergeants recovered from their fear and ordered soldiers to prepare them for life and death battle. Just as two armies finish their formation and ready all weapons, something big approaches from the air. Soon, a black-armored knight with a jetpack lands in front of the army while holding a plasma gun in his hand. "William, what happened? Did you killed the dragon?" Prince Benton asked William but he was stopped by one of his men as a zombie dragon climbed over the wall to stand over high up. "That thing isn''t an ?du?t or very old dragon. That thing used to be an ancient dragon, a red ancient dragon.." William reloads his plasma gun and puts additional grenades in his pouch as he stares at the gargantuan sized dragon roar, shaking ground and trees. Chapter 20 - Space Marine vs Zombie Dragon The gargantuan zombie dragon finishes its roar and expands its wings to take flight. The fearsome creature flapped its wings and started to ascend into the sky which many of the men began to panic. Quickly losing their confidence, both young and veteran soldiers begin to break formation which William jumps to boost their morale. "Do not lose your hope and faith! If you flee, this foul creature will hunt us down in our backs. But if you stay strong and believe in me, we will slay it and retake the fort, restoring the honor that we lost 150 years ago. Now, prepare yourself for the battle you will remember forever!" After finishing his speech, William aims and fires his plasma rifle at the center of the zombie dragon. A jet of blue hot plasma hit the zombie dragon and exploded which created a cloud of smoke. Witnessing this, many of the soldiers and officers cheer which boosts more of their morale. Unfortunately, before the smoke could clear out, the zombie dragon emerged and opened its mouth to fire its breath attack. A long stream of fire came out from the zombie dragon''s mouth and was about to engulf a large number of troops. The dragon''s flame was stopped by the wall of ice that suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Surprised by the sudden appearance of the ice wall, William turns around to see a dozen wizards from the Duchess''s army all exhausted. ''They must have rushed the spell and used most of the magic they had. I should ask about the magic of this world when I have the chance.'' William finished his thought, aimed and fired the plasma rifle at the dead center. He wasn''t sure how the zombie dragon survived the previous attack as he doesn''t miss it. Seeing the breath attack didn''t work, Blood Duke stopped his undead dragon in midair and made a quick turn to fly back. Not giving any chance, the senior officer of the Volley Cannons gave orders to attack the retreating zombie dragon. "Fire everything! Bring it down from the sky!" Immediately, thunderous cannons fire can be heard as all wagon units unleash everything they have at once. The volley of baseball size cannonballs was stopped right before it could hit the target as purple magic shielded the creature. "Damn thing is protected by magic. The rider must be the one casting the protection spell. Keep firing at it, eventually, he will run out of magic." Prince Benton said and ordered his entire range units to open fire. The riflemen and artillery units fire at the zombie dragon to deplete protection magic, but to their surprise, the magic didn''t break or show signs of weakening. The zombie dragon made a full turn and about to make a second attempt to attack with a breath attack again. Seeing the creature opened its mouth and aiming at the army, William jumps into action to intercept its attack. "Not this time," Put aside his plasma rifle, William used his jetpack to fly up and approach the zombie dragon before it could unleash its fire breath. Before it could finish charging, William flew right into the zombie dragon''s mouth. "WHAT THE HELL?!" Everyone yells at the same time the moment they see a giant black templar get himself devoured whole by the zombie dragon in midair. Before the duchess or prince could say anything else, a multiple explosion can be heard from the zombie dragon''s head, neck, and body. After receiving internal damages from eating Black Templar, the creature falls from the sky. Boom! The undead creature crash lands on the ground with a heavy impact. Before the army could surround the now defeated zombie dragon, its rider rose from the ground. Blood Duke, seeing his mighty mount defeated, gather his magic. With magic gathered in dark purple color, Blood Duke unleashes a devastating wave of magic at approaching the army. The first and second lines of the troops got pushed back from the magic and paralyzed by it. Seeing this, a platoon of riflemen fire their weapon at Blood Duke but their target disappeared from their sight. Confused by the sudden disappearance, they all paused for a second, but this was enough for Blood Duke to cut them all down with the swing of his sword. "Riflemen, pull back. Swordsmen, cut him down!" Prince Benton gave his command to his troops as his royal swordsmen stepped forward to attack Blood Duke in close combat. Meanwhile, the rest of the riflemen drag their wounded soldiers the best they could, including paralyzed soldiers from the first and second lines. "You may have beaten my army and pet. I still have my blade and magic from my benefactor to defeat all of you all by myself. Bring me your best so I can slay them." Blood Duke said to all of the living and once again unleashed his magic. This time, instead of pushing away approaching soldiers, it raised recently killed soldiers as undead zombies. After finishing his dark magic, Blood Duke ordered his 50 zombies to rush the swordsmen. The clash between zombies and royal swordsmen is a one-sided battle, favoring swordsmen, but the moment Blood Duke joins the fight, it turns into carnage as he kills and resurrects them into zombies. Seeing this, Duchess orders her mages to attack the rear side of the enemy formation with fireballs but before it could hit their target Blood Duke''s magic shield blocks the fireballs from destroying his zombies. As every ranged attack didn''t work, the prince ordered all his troops with melee weapons to form up and attack the increased number of undead. Just as both sides are busy fighting, they don''t hear the chainsword''s engine cutting through the belly of the zombie dragon. Finally, coming out from the belly of the zombie creature, a Black Templar reappeared, covered in blood and guts. "Never again will I ever jump into a dragon''s mouth, living or dead," William said to himself and turned around to see the conflict between Blood Duke''s army and Prince''s. Seeing this, William checks his inventory to see what he received from defeating the zombie dragon before engaging Blood Duke on the battlefield. [Heavy Bolter x1 (With x 300 Rounds): A belt-fed powerful bolt weapon used for anti-infantry and a fire support weapon. Also known as ''Backbreaker'' for its oversize and heavyweight, only Space Marine and certain few people with enough strength to carry it without a tripod. Due to the bigger size, the heavy bolter uses .998 caliber bolt rounds which is bigger than the standard .75 caliber bolt.] [Assault Bike x1: Light vehicle used by the Adeptus Astartes for fast speed attack and scouting. This armored bike comes with mounted two-linked bolters for range attack before ramming the enemies in front of the vehicle.. The ?ssault bike uses promethium as a fuel and is tough enough to break through solid walls at full speed.] Chapter 21 - The Weapon of She Who Thirsts Blood Duke kills his enemies with his sword and raises undead at the same time what seems an unlimited supply of mana on him. The source of unbelievable power came from Blood Duke''s new deity whom he doesn''t know the name of or which domain his new deity came from. The only thing that mattered to Blood Duke was defeating his enemies and quenching his thirst for blood that haunted him for hundreds of years. This new god gifted Blood Duke with a weapon that could accomplish both. A beautiful sword, a hilt made of gold and rare gems with master craftsmanship that could make every man envious. A magnificent purple blade that could cut flesh without wasting a single drop of blood as it can drain the victim in a second. Finally, a pommel of the sword, branded with a strange purple-colored symbol which represents Blood Duke''s new master and god. The Sword of Pleasure is the perfect weapon for a vampire as it connects the wielder with chaos magic and draws its mana, giving an infinite supply of magic. Feeling the various p???sur?s and satisfaction of killing his enemies all by himself, Blood Duke grinned while experiencing foreign magic from the sword itself. Looking at his sword, the Sword of Pleasure, Blood Duke saw no blood from it as if he never used it on living before. The only difference is that his sword pommel is now glowing with dark purple color while blood within slowly rotates as if it is alive. Turning his head to see the battlefield, Blood Duke saw no blood-soaked grass field, instead, he saw a dying grass field and his undead continued their attack on his enemies, ever-growing his numbers of undead. ''I can feel the power of my new army as if I''m part of them and they are part of me. I no longer have the cursed thirst as I can now enjoy blood without drowning myself. My power can overrule the other vampire masters without the need of minions or armies!'' Blood Duke thought to himself while raising his sword to unleash more undead soldiers in his command. All of this is interrupted by the unnatural sound of thunderous noise as if a herd of beasts charging at the battlefield. VROOM! VROOM! A Black Templar is riding a mount that could be described as a fast metal horse without a head. William, seeing a large horizontal line between living and undead, changes his direction. Heading towards the edge of the enemy line, he then makes a sharp turn to start the ramming of an entire line of the undead, from one end to another. While running over the undead, William opens fire mounted two-linked bolters which devastate more undead soldiers ahead of him and free allied troops from getting pushed back. "I LOVE THIS THING!" That is the only thing anyone can hear from the Black Templar as he passes the front line of the living soldiers while breaking the entire enemy line with a single swoop. After reaching the end of the line, William once again made a quick turn to make a charge attack on Blood Duke, who was baffled by the sudden arrival of the black knight who he thought was devoured by his pet zombie dragon. "YOU! You should be dead! And what is that outrageous creature you are riding?" Blood Duke demanded an answer but the only thing he got from William was engine revving as William cranked his ?ssault bike''s engine louder and louder. VROOM! VROOM! VROOM! William''s ?ssault bike charged at Blood Duke with unbelievable speed as the master vampire couldn''t dodge it in time. Blood Duke didn''t get run over but instead, he got hit by the bike and now holding his life in dearly as William increases his bike speed to go faster. Seeing his target is right in front of him and in the point black range of bolters, William unloads all of his bolter rounds which Blood Duke receives most of them as he tries to protect himself. "Now prepare yourself, you undead piece of shit!" William said to the vampire and moments later, he, his ?ssault bike, and the vampire break through the wall of the Fort Stormfist. Blood Duke, who was between the fort''s wall and Black Templar''s bike, received a full-blown impact of the damage and thrown to the inner wall open ground. Seeing a heavily defeated vampire with tattered red armor, William got off from his bike to approach his enemy to deliver the final blow. "I had enough with skeletons, zombies, and vampires. After finishing you off, I''m going to take a long vacation, away from this depressing place." William said to Blood Duke as he drew out his power sword. Meanwhile, Blood Duke struggles to move away from the approaching giant death itself as he crawls away inch by inch. Sensing his end approaching, Blood Duke grabbed whatever he could grab and to his surprise, he somehow got hold of his weapon, Sword of Pleasure. Seeing hope, Blood Duke unleashes the chaos magic from the sword within which quickly regenerates his wounded body and repairs his red armor. "Oh no, you don''t!" William strikes his sword at the vampire but now fully powered vampire blocks the attack and pushes the Black Templar with an unnatural magic blast. William uses his power sword to anchor himself from push back to the fort wall. By the time he stops himself, Blood Duke stands up from where he was and shows a powerful aura of purple around him. William seeing this, let go of his sword and pulled out a heavy bolter from his inventory to blast everything he had onto the vampire. Unfortunately, Blood Duke used his newly founded magic and created a magic shield, blocking all of the heavy bolter fire. William, seeing there is no effect, retrieve back now emptied heavy bolter back to his inventory and grab his power sword from the ground. Two fighters stare at each other as they prepare themself and their weapons for an undeniable duel. William, using his power armor''s helmet, finally saw the symbol of the sword Blood Duke is using. William immediately recognizes the symbol as without a doubt it is the symbol of one of the Chaos Gods. ''So, Slaanesh, The Prince of Pleasure is the one who is powering this fool. I have to destroy that sword before it could corrupt the minds of the living.'' William thought to himself and made the first move to start their duel. As William and Blood Duke began their fight, Prince Benton and Duchess moved their remaining armies closer to the Fort Stormfist. After William broke the enemy line and pushed the Blood Duke away from the battlefield, they managed to destroy the remaining undead and move forward to help William. This tactical decision was reasonable under normal circumstances, but unfortunately for them, the influence of Chaos Gods isn''t something they are prepared for.. As they get closer, Slaanesh''s influence starts to corrupt the heart and mind of the soldiers, which begins to slowly open a small warp portal and bring out something that shouldn''t exist in this world. Chapter 22 - Black Templar vs Blood Duke The clash between two fighters began with the sound of a bolter pistol. William drew his pistol with his left hand and began to fire everything he had as he approached the vampire. Meanwhile, Blood Duke stands his ground and uses his magic to shield himself, waiting for the Black Templar to come closer. When William emptied the pistol, he put away the weapon to which he readied the power sword to strike. Blood Duke, seeing the moment, uses the magic of the chaos to match the speed and strength. With Sword of Pleasure in his hand, Blood Duke swung his blade at William but instead of the power sword hitting back, William dodged the attack using his jet pack to take a short flight. Seeing the knight on-air, Blood Duke was too distracted to realize that William left a Promethium grenade on the ground. BOOM! The explosion consumed the vampire and everything around him as William landed safely. Knowing that this fight isn''t over, William prepares himself with dual weapons of chain sword in his left hand and power sword in his right. Coming out from the fire, Blood Duke lifts his free hand to gather fire around him which creates a condensed fireball the size of a basketball. "Now, it is my turn." Blood Duke throws his fireball at William which Black Templar simply charges ahead on, surprising the vampire. Boom! A fireball exploded right at William''s shoulder armor and engulfed him with a huge fire. Seeing this, Blood Duke slowly approaches the small firestorm to check if his enemy is dead. When the vampire got close enough a giant metal boot came out from the fire, kicking the vampire''s ?h?st. Blood Duke flew backward, stunned and landed on the ground with a massive dent in his armor. Coming out from the fire, William made a quick dash toward the dazed vampire with two powerful melee weapons. The chainsword is the first to strike the vampire as it hits the Blood Duke''s right arm, tearing the undead flesh with the sound of a roaring engine. The power sword came next, the blade went through the vampire''s armor and pin him to the ground as the entire blade sank to the top of the vampire. "Checkmate," William said to his enemy as he ready his chainsword but then, he felt a sharp pain from his right hip as if something was stabbing him. Turning his head down, William saw a Sword of Pleasure pierce his armor and slowly bleed out from it. "If I die, you will come with me." Blood Duke said to William, believing Black Templar will pull back from the duel to save himself. The Sword of Pleasure starts to drain the blood of the Space Marine fast, the pain and blood loss could kill the man in a few seconds. Unfortunately, the anatomy of a Space Marine is very different from regular humans as Space Marine have multiple implants that give him additional organs and give superhuman abilities. William let go of the power sword and grab the Sword of the Pleasure from the vampire. Before the sword could influence the new wielder, William pulled the sword from his stomach and used his superhuman strength to snap the sword in half, destroying the weapon of the chaos. "NO! Do you know what you have done?" Vampire protested but it was too late as his pact with his new god was broken. The blessing of the Slaanesh left the Blood Duke''s body but with interest as chaos magic drained everything from the vampire. Blood Duke, who sought salvation from his everlasting thirst and p???sur? of blood, starts to lose his body mass, skin shrinks and eventually turns into dust. "This is why you don''t make a deal with any of them," William said to himself as he pulled out a first aid kit from his inventory to heal his wound. Thankfully, for some reason, the Sword of Pleasure didn''t damage or corrupt William''s body. Whether from his purity seal, ''The Champion of the Living'' or autonomy of the Space Marine stopped the chaos corruption, William didn''t care as he was glad he survived the boss battle. Just as William finished patching his wounds, he heard the cries of torment from the other side of the wall. Using his jet pack, William stands on the top of the fortress wall to see a bloodbath as the army is b?r?ly defending against a small group of demons on the battlefield as one large demon leads them while dancing. "Kill them in the name of Prince of Pleasure!" Hearing this, the Herald of Slaanesh makes a quick swift attack on the soldiers with their deadly blade hands.. Seeing her target, The Masque of Slaanesh dances her way to Prince Benton and Duchess as they are fighting on the frontline. Chapter 23 - Fury of Lioness "The daemons broke through the rank! Protect the Crown Prince and Duchess!" One of the officers of the army yelled out loud to his soldiers as daemons with claws broke through the tower shield walls. The royal knights on foot intercept the daemons to stop their advance but the large one, The Masque of Slaanesh managed to kill 4 knights instantly and break through the line. "You have a pretty face, dear. I will take your face," The Masque said out loud as she quickly approached the Duchess first. Seeing the approaching daemonette, the Duchess pulls out her main weapon, ''Griffin''s Talon''. The ''Griffin''s Talon is a spear crafted with materials from griffin and imbued with magic to give extra damage. "Come at me you daemon! Lioness of Argus will send you back to hell," Duchess yells out loud and charges her horse against the approaching daemonette. Meanwhile, Prince Benton also drew his weapon to protect himself and take command of riflemen to prepare for close combat. "Fix bayonets! Prepare yourself for combat after firing your weapon!" Prince gave a command to his riflemen as a few of the daemons passed the knights and ran towards them. The officer gave an order as riflemen fired their weapons to hit the targets. But due to weak caliber and firepower, it only slows down the daemons a little bit. Still, this was enough for spear soldiers to make a formation of a spear wall to impale the approaching daemons as swordsmen shop their head, killing them. The duel between the Duchess and The Masque is intense as both fighters strike against each other while protecting themself from each other. Riding her horse, the Duchess used her skill and the speed of her mount to match the Masque''s speed. The Masque on the other hand was just playing with her opponent as she was dancing and attacking with her three limbs (One hand, two claws). "You are just wasting your time, human. This world is new and untainted like a v?r??n but sooner or later, my lord will come to claim this world, just like countless worlds did before." The Masque taunts the duchess while dodging the attack which only enrages her opponent more. "You can try but you will fail. I don''t know which deity you serve but this isn''t the first time your kind has attacked our world before." Duchess said to the daemonette as she twisted her spear to make a sharp turn to strike. The spear hit the dancing daemonette''s right shoulder but to the Duchess''s surprise, her attack hit the Masque''s shoulder armor. At the last moment, Masque used her dance movement to block incoming attacks with her armor. "I can smell an unbroken seal within you, dear. No scent of man taint or nectar of sweet blood. You are a v?r??n! How delightful, The Prince of Pleasure will have fun with you when I bring you to him," The Masque increased her attacks which put the Duchess on the defensive. Eventually, one of the claw attacks struck the horse''s leg, decapitating it and bringing the rider to the ground hard. The Duchess made her roll save and quickly stood up to face her enemy, but it was too late as daemonette already got close enough to slice the spear in half. Seeing her main weapon destroyed, the Duchess retreats to reach for her sword in her hip right after she threw her broken spear at the daemonette. The Masque just swipes the broken spear and proceeds to attack once again with fearsome speed. Facing a purple daemonette, Duchess did her best to fight back but it was pointless as none of her attacks could hit as the enemy just dodge while dancing. Finally, Masque disarms the Duchess''s sword using her second claw and superior strength. "Now, be a good human and embrace my lord''s p???sur?," The Masque put her main claw arm at Duchess''s chin and slowly brought it down to scratch the metal armor. "Magic Missile!" Multiple magic missiles struck the Masque in the back as Duchess''s mages cast their remaining spells at the Daemonette. All this was pointless as Masque was unharmed from the magic attack and turned around to unleash her chaos sorcery on them. The madness took over the mages as their heads started to bleed from mouth to ears while their sensation of pain increased tenfold. Eventually, Duchess''s mages collapse where they stand as their faces show expressions of agonizing pain while covered in blood. "No!" The Duchess cried out loud and pulled out a dagger to stab the daemonette''s stomach. The dagger hit the daemonette but it didn''t do much as Masque just smiled with a sound of p???sur? coming her. "Their souls and magic were tasty. If this world can provide this kind of flavor, I''m sure my lord will remove my dancing curse and place me back as head of his handmaiden," The Masque smacks Duchess with her dance staff as she opened her mouth to bring out her tongue and taste the air as if she was eating something. Seeing this, Prince Benton couldn''t do anything as his riflemen''s gun could hit his cousin and he couldn''t attack the daemon due to his bodyguard refusing to let him go. "Do what you want, daemon. I will not easily break from your torture." The Duchess said to daemonette while trying to get up from the ground. The Masque hearing this slowly approaches the woman and stabs the stomach with her claw. "That''s the spirit, dear. Try to last as long as possible when you enter the Palace of Pleasure, hahaha." Masque mockingly laughs at her prey as she twists her claw to give more pain. The Duchess cried out loud in pain but didn''t beg for her life as she denied the Masque a p???sur? of despair. While this is happening, none of them saw fast approaching Black Templar as William dropped from the sky with a power sword in his hand. With a powerful landing, William lands a few steps away from Masque and proceeds to attack the daemonette. He didn''t land next to the daemonette as he didn''t want to harm the injured Duchess with his heavy landing. The power sword cut Masque''s main claw, freeing the Duchess, then William unleashed his bolter rifle at now retreating daemonette as she fell back to the remaining Herald of Slaanesh. "What? You, a subhuman minion of anathema. How are you here in this world?" Injured masque said in surprise as she recognized the Space Marine. At this point, humans managed to slay most of the Herald of Slaanesh as their numbers diminished into half a dozen. "Go ask your master after I send you cooking," William then brought out a heavy flamer from his inventory to fire the weapon at the gathered daemons. The flame from the heavy flamer quickly engulfs the remaining herald and masque as soldiers pull back to a safe distance. The fearsome Promethium flame burns everything as all of the heralds burned to nothing, leaving not even an ash. The Masque was the last one to stand as she managed to survive the powerful flame attack. Masque, now missing the main claw hand, tries to treat back to warp after witnessing the presence of Space Marine in the New World. Before Masque could do anything to return to immaterium, William charged forward with the jetpack with the power sword. From a single strike from the power sword, William decapitated Masque''s head which daemonette''s surprised face roll to the ground. Witnessing the end of the last daemon, many of the remaining soldiers cheered with a victory but experienced officers and soldiers remained vigilant as they feared more daemons would appear out of thin air. Meanwhile, many of the healers from the church begin to heal the wounded and cast purity spells to purify the battlefield from daemonic corruption (They never experienced the chaos but they do have knowledge and history from daemonic beings from this world before). Putting away his power sword, William went to Duchess to see her injuries. The Duchess is still on the ground as healers are casting healing magic and purifying spells to remove any taint on her. "What took you so long? I almost had that daemon before you jumped in and stole my victory." Rana (Duchess''s name) smiled and complained to William as she looked at the giant black knight, then she saw the damage from the Blood Duke on William''s armor which stopped her smile. "Looks like you''re not invincible as you seem, Sir William. Do you need a healer?" Rana asked William but before she could get her answer, a great shock wave came out of nowhere as a giant warp portal appeared not far away from the army. "This is not good. Prepare yourself, we have more daemons coming! Take the Duchess and other injured soldiers back," William shouted, giving an order to all soldiers. "No, I can still fight," Rana tried to protest but she stopped knowing that she will be the only burden to William. "No matter what''s coming from that portal, you better survive and answer my questions. You hear me?" The Duchess yells out loud as she is being carried away. William hearing this only nodded and prepared himself for the second wave of Chaos attack. Another shock wave, much stronger than before erupts which forces everyone into the ground. William was the only one to stay standing as he saw what was coming out from the warp portal. A huge humanoid creature with four arms, two holding a large sword and the other two in the shape of sharp flesh blades. The huge daemon is covered with a few cloths of silk around its body while wearing a beautiful golden crown on its head. This daemon is known as ''Bringer of Temptation'' and one of the most powerful daemons of Slaanesh.. The greater daemon of Slaanesh, the Keeper of Secrets, steps out from the war portal and unleashes a powerful psychic aura that puts every man and woman on their knees as they feel anguish and ecstasy. Chapter 24 - Reforged Against Terror The powerful psychic ability of the Greater Daemon made everyone unable to move the moment it appeared into this world. Unable to do anything, William desperately searches for anything from his new loots to see if it can help him. From defeating the Blood Duke: [Thunder Hammer x1: A two-handed heavy melee power weapon of the Space Marine. By emitting the energy field within the hammer''s head, when struck to its target, it releases powerful and concussive force at once to devastate the enemy.] [Storm Shield x1: A power shield used by the Space Marine to protect from heavy projectiles and enemy melee attack. Equipped with an internal gravitic energy field generator which makes powerful blows ineffective. Requires a short time to recharge.] From defeating Zombie Dragon: [Summon Order (Militarum Tempestus Scions) x1: As elite soldiers of the Imperium of Mankind, Tempestus Scions are the Special Forces of the Imperium and are capable of various types of missions including raids behind enemy lines. Summons 50 Storm Troopers of Tempestus Scions equipped with Carapace Armour, Omnishield Helmet, advanced lasguns, and grenades.] [Adeptus Astartes Drop Pod x1: Drop from the low orbit, Standard Drop Pod carry 10 Adeptus Astartes and 2 Techmarines (Same Chapter as the Player''s) equipped with standard bolter, bolter pistol, chainsword and a combat knife. Will follow the Player as he will be placed as Battle-Brother in Command.] From defeating The Masque of Slaanesh: [Bane of Chaos (Purity Seal) x1: A Purity Seal that gives the user resistance against Chaos corruption.] [Dreadnought Drop Pod x1: Drop from the low orbit, Dreadnought Drop carries one Dreadnought from the same chapter of the player. The left hand is armed with twin-linked M34 autocannon with armor-piercing and standard round. The right hand is a power fist and has a heavy flamer under the arm. The Dreadnought is also equipped with extra armor plating and mounted with a launcher to fire smoke grenades and short-range mortar rounds.] The moment William saw the purity seal, he equipt the seal which allowed him to move again and stand up to fight against the Greater Daemon. Still, because of the powerful psychic ability of the Keeper of Secrets, William decided to summon only one unit that could help him as the rest would only be immobilized the moment they got summoned. Using his helmet, William dropped a 30 tons (27,215.5 Kg) Drop Pod right on top of Keeper of Secret. Boom! With the heavy impact, the drop pod hit the Greater Daemon''s head which stunned the daemon underneath. The drop pod opens and a huge Dreadnought comes out from it, scanning the battlefield including soldiers and William. "Brother, I have arrived. I serve now...and Forever!" The powerful mechanical voice said out loud and walked out from the drop pod. As Dreadnought steps away from the metal platform, the Greater Daemon starts to remove the heavy metal pod above its head after recovering from the stun. When the drop pod was removed, Dreadnought saw what was behind him as it quickly recognized the enemy. "A Heresy, be judged," Within a second, Dreadnought open fire his left arm''s autocannon, unleashing devastating firepower of the heavy ballistic weapon at the Greater Daemon. Seeing this, William went into action as he drew his plasma rifle from his inventory and fire at the Greater Daemon. The dust began to engulf the Keeper of Secrets which blocked the visual of the target, but for William and Dreadnought, they continued to fire their weapons as they could see the Greater Daemon through their targeting system. ''Can''t take chance, must kill it before it could regain its posture,'' William thought to himself as he didn''t want to allow the Greater Daemon to have a fighting chance. Just as William finishes his thought, from the dust cloud, Keeper of Secrets charged through with metal plating of the drop pod its hand, using it as a shield. "Brother, evasive maneuver," William gave the command to Dreadnought but the Greater Daemon was too quick to evade as Dreadnought got hit by the metal plating and pushed back by the daemon. "You can''t stop me from doing my master''s bidding, human" Keeper of Secrets said to William while throwing the metal plating away. Just as William is about to fire his weapon, the metal fist smacks the daemon''s face making the daemon step back a few steps away. Walking forward, Dreadnought widened his feet and the engine in the back began to roar as smoke rose from the exhaust pipe. Seeing that Dreadnought is still standing, daemon charges forward at the Dreadnought as the walking tank of the Imperium receives the attack head-on, not budging an inch. Now, two titans of the war and battle are in close combat as both sides push each other in the battle of strength. "Switching to melee," Dreadnought uses his right arm to punch the daemon''s face again, but the daemon quickly recovers from the attack and uses its third and fourth arms (Which are flesh blades) to try to stab the Dreadnought. Seeing the danger, William uses his jetpack to jump high above the daemon''s back and use his new power weapon, the Thunder Hammer to attack the daemon''s head. The blue energy of powerful force unleashed upon the Keeper of Secrets'' head as William''s hammer made contact with its target. The powerful blow staggered the daemon enough to stop the attack and it gave an opening for Dreadnought to reposition its power fist to fire flame from a heavy flamer attached under the fist. The fire covered the Greater Daemon as it began to scream in pain. Seeing possible weakness, William dropped his Thunder Hammer to pull out his heavy flamer from the inventory and fire at the screaming daemon. The continuous flames from Dreadnought and William burn the daemon but just as William starts to think they were winning, the daemon starts to swing its duel swords wildly. One of the swords stabbed William, wounding him as the blade cut through power armor and appeared in his back. As daemon continues to swing wildly, William gets thrown from the sword and to the battlefield near the fight. For the Dreadnought, he b?r?ly dodges bone blade and continues his attack adding autocannon. The Greater Daemon receiving heavy firepower from the Dreadnought decide to change tactics by using superior speed. With swift feet, the Keeper of Secrets begins to dodge the attack while attacking the blind spot of the Dreadnought. The tide of the battle quickly changes as Dreadnought starts to get pushed back and receives a powerful slash attack. Still, thanks to the heavy metal plating, Dreadnought didn''t receive critical damage to its mechanism but is unable to make an effective attack on the daemon. William is on the ground, laying on his back with a huge wound in his stomach as his gene-seed does everything to keep him alive. Now broken and unable to move, William''s power armor locked in place, making William watch the battle helplessly as a battle between Dreadnought and Greater Daemon continues. Slowly, William loses his consciousness as darkness slowly pulls him into a void, ultimately leaving his body. [Where am I? Did I just die?] William asks himself as he realizes that he is still in the body of a Space Marine but without his power armor or weapons. Around William, the place began to dim without actual light sources as various humans and other races started to appear in distance. A closer look, William saw those people look rather transparent and wandering around as if they are lost or don''t know that they are dead. [I''m in the afterlife, I died after all. Why am I still in Space Marine''s body?] William began to think but before he could get any answer a man in a full plate of armor and carrying a sword appeared in front of William. [You are in the wrong place, my friend. I didn''t retrieve your soul from the material plane, rather something dragged you here. Someone or something wants your soul, enough to disturb the natural order. Sorry, where are my manners? I''m Kelemvor. The Lord of the Dead and Judge of the Damned.] Kelemvor said to William as he was about to explain William''s situation. Suddenly, a dark purple portal appears out of nowhere and four different hands come out, reaching William. One of the hands, the red and bloody hand changes its direction and attacks Kelemvor. The Lord of the Dead defends himself as the red hand continues to attack him but eventually, the hand grabs Kelemvor''s body and crushes him like he is nothing but a bug. As this was going on, a green rotten hand, blue thin hand and purple feminine hand, pulled William against his will and to the portal which disappeared from the plane of the souls. Between the Forgotten Realm and Immaterium, [You should have joined us, mortal.] A menacing voice said to William as other voices joined in. [Now, you will serve us just like your brothers. You will fight day and night against my minions.] An angry voice said as a bloody hand grabs William. [Your fight against my servants was entertaining. Maybe I will keep you like my collection, just like Fulgrim.] A feminine voice came from the purple hand. [You will be my new experiment, you won''t escape this time.] A sickly voice from the rotten green hand said to William while William struggles to free himself. William, now in big trouble, continues to fight back but this time it was hopeless as he is now fighting the material form of the four Chaos Gods. Unfortunately, no voice came to save William this time as his soul is now traveling through the warp, heading to the Realm of Chaos. [Shit, this is it. I''m about to enter the 40K universe.] William thought to himself and about to give up all hopes when a powerful bright light came out of nowhere and vanquished the four hands of Chaos Gods, freeing William. William, seeing hope, embraces the blinding light which helps heal his mind and purify the corruption of the chaos. Soon, William lost his consciousness but before that happened, he heard a voice he didn''t recognize. [I shall reforge you in the fire of my will. You will be the shield and sword against the terror. Now, go!] The last word from the light woke William as he opened his eyes to see that he was now standing on his feet and able to move freely again. Looking around, William saw soldiers, including Prince and other knights, now on their feet, free from pain and suffering. The battle between Dreadnought and Keeper of Secrets paused as if something is blinding them. Stepping forwards, William finally realized that his power armor is different as he is now wearing the older but much more advanced power armor of Black Templar and holding a two-handed black power sword. "The Battle-Brother has returned from the brink of death. Now, chosen as Champion of the God-Emperor." The dreadnought said out loud in a mechanical voice as Greater Daemon took a few steps back as light generated from William began to burn its skin. "Wait, I''m WHAT?" William said to himself as everything around him purifies due to the blinding light removing corruption of the Chaos and healing the allies around him.. The Emperor''s Champion of the Black Templar enters the battle against Chaos in the New World. Chapter 25 - Victory and Next Step The presence of the daemon''s chaotic aura suddenly disappeared from the battlefield when William returned from death. The soldiers including Prince Benton and even the Duchess who is in the rear of the army witness the golden light coming from the Black Templar. With each step from William, the Greater Daemon retreat because of the burning light damaging the surface of its skin all over the body. "This light, how can this be? Only my master knows of this new world," Greater Daemon screams with pain and denies to believe the impossible. Meanwhile, William who now understood the situation stepped forward with his new power sword in his hands and charged towards the retreating enemy. "Your time is up. Meet your maker back in Immaterium and don''t ever come back," William said to the daemon and ignited his black sword which its blade came to life as blue light engulfed the blade. Seeing the coming attack, Greater Daemon clashed its blades against William''s black power sword but it was pointless as daemon''s blades got cut in half by the black sword like a hot knife through bu??er. William, now having an upper hand in the fight, proceeded to decapitate Greater Daemon''s two arms from the lift side using his sword. Crying in pain, Greater Daemon fought back with the remaining two arms but it was pointless as Champion of the Emperor dodge effortlessly and counter-attack with his sword once again. Striking true, William removed one more arm and managed to cut deep in the right leg before retrieving his blade. Not giving a moment to recover, William attacked the daemon, this time going for the stomach. With quick steps and speed unlike no other, the sword cut through the stomach of the Greater Daemon from one end to another. "No! This is not the end. My master has plans for this world and for YOU. I will come back and more will come with me," The Keeper of Secrets gave its last words before the entire body turned to dust and disappeared from the material plan of the New World. The two armies cheer the moment they see the victory and daemon''s defeat. Many soldiers cried with happiness that they have survived the unsurvivable battle against daemons from the unknown deity. At the same time, many among the military ranks witnessed the miracle from the Black Templar who called upon iron titan and returned from the dead as a paladin of his deity. In the end, with the vanishment of the Greater Daemon, the battle of the Stormfist finally ended. The two armies of the Alderim survived not only massive armies of the vampire and zombie dragon but a small army of daemons and its chaos commander. The number of casualties was big but not as big as the adversity they faced. Still, from this war, the legend is born. The foundation of a new era is set on stone as a new religion is founded and the creation of a new empire to fight against chaos starts right after. "Batte-Brother, the Emperor''s Champion. I have witnessed the second resurrection of the Emperor''s servant and your action strengthened my faith. First was the return of his son, Roboute Guilliman. Now, your return as Champion proves that he is watching over us, even in this unknown world." The Dreadnought said to William as he turned his entire body to see the two armies celebrating the victory. William just nodded his head and retrieved his weapon from the battlefield. "Are they also servants of the God-Emperor? Or are they just ''help''?" This question from the Dreadnought got William paused as he thought deeply about what to say. If he says the wrong word, the Dreadnought will purge the ''heretics'' without hesitation as Black Templar are infamous for purging non-believers. "They are natives to this new world as this world was hidden from the taint of the Chaos. But one thing I can ?ssure you, brother. They are allies against the Emperor''s enemy as I heard his voice, ordering me to fight against terror as shield and sword. I believe I''m the shield to them as I''m sword against Chaos. William explained best he could as he dodge the keyword ''heretic.'' Dreadnought mentioned the return of Primarch Roboute Guilliman which means he also knows the involvement of the Eldar from the Craftworld. At this point, William needs all the help he could get and this means help from the other race of the world. Just like in the Total War: Warhammer game, the diplomacy and defense alliance are a must if William plans to raise the army big enough to fight against Chaos forces in the future. "... I see. In this dire time, we will need ?ssistance from the locals but they will serve the God-Emperor before we leave this world for our next crusade." The Dreadnought replies to William and watches over the military forces in deep thought. "Thank you brother," William thanked the old Dreadnought and proceeded to walk toward armies as Dreadnought followed behind him. During his path to meet the two leaders, every soldier and officer kneel before the Champion and show great respect to their savior as they believe William is the Great Paladin of the deity. When William arrived to meet the prince and duchess, Dreadnought stood a few steps behind while Prince Benton and Duchess bow before the Champion. This made William panic inside but maintain his posture as he is being observed by the Dreadnought. "Raise your heads, I''m the same person as before. Since this campaign was yours, to begin with, what will be your decision on Fort Stormfist?" William asked Prince Benton which he quickly answered as if he knew this question was coming. "Our forces were nearly wiped out but thanks to you and your titan, we survived the battle. I will leave half of my forces on the fort while I return to the capital and send additional help to enforce this region. I will also talk to my father to put you, Sir William, as the official regent of this region as long as you remain loyal to the crown." Prince explained his plan to William but the moment he mentioned the last part, Dreadnought went full alert and turned his entire body towards Prince Benton, aiming his weapons. "Battle Brother William is a loyal champion to the God-Emperor of Mankind. His loyalty is only to God Emperor and serves no other, against this is heresy." With a mechanical voice, Dreadnought said his ''concern'' to the prince as William turned around to ensure his battle brother. "Don''t worry, I believe they know the consequence," William whispered to Dreadnought and turned around to talk to the prince and duchess. "My loyalty is to God-Emperor, but following his teaching, I will protect his subjects even if they do not know him yet." William ensures everyone as everyone lowers their tension. Seeing this, the Duchess joined in the conversation between prince and William. "Sir William, if I may. Who is this God-Emperor? Is he the one who blessed you to fight against daemons?" Hearing this from the Duchess, Dreadnought immediately went into action to answer her question. "God Emperor is the living God of Mankind. He protects mankind from the Xenos, mutants and heretics while guiding us, his Angels of Death to fight against them in the time of war. Only from the Emperor''s light, there is salvation, from his will there is Imperium of Man. The Emperor Protects!" Dreadnought said out loud enough from his speaker to have every man and woman in the armies to hear the words. The Duchess didn''t say anything as she got her answer while Prince Benton was caught off guard as he just saw religious doctrine he never heard of from the iron titan who came from heaven (Sky). "Thank you battle brother for sharing your wisdom. Prince, I would like to keep my battle brother here on the fort to enforce defense against potential invasion force from the vampire. I can guarantee you personally that he will defend the fort until you return from the capital." William said to the prince but to his surprise, Prince Benton said something unexpected. "Of course Sir William, but you will accompany me to the capital as I report back to my father. Knowing my father, he will want to meet as you didn''t just defeat the vampire faction single-handedly but also slay daemons and improve gun technology to the next level." Prince Benton invites William to the capital as the Duchess gives a small smile to the Emperor''s Champion. ------------------------------ From defeating Keeper of Secrets: [Gene-Seed of Grey Knight x1: A genetic material directly comes from the Emperor himself that allows for the creation of the Grey Knight. When used, the player will go through the change which will allow him to use psychic ability and be able to slay daemon much easier. The Armor and vehicle''s skins will change to match the Grey Knight Chapter. The player will lose the direct command of the Space Marine of the previous summons since the player is no longer in the same Chapter.] [Spark of Astronomican x1: A glass sphere that contains a small fragment of the Emperor of Mankind''s psychic light. When the sphere is destroyed, it will release a powerful psychic force that purifies Chaos corruption within the area and lights a short psychic beacon to summon allies from the 40K Universe. Warning: As it is a powerful beacon, it could attract unwanted beings as well.. There is a small chance to summon something else instead of allies.] Chapter 26 - Feast and Formal Clothes It only took half a day to secure Fort Stormfist and leave the fortress as half of the prince''s military force was left behind to protect the fort. As Fort Stormfist is a barrier between humans and vampire factions, the fort has two parallel walls defended from any invaders. This means that while half of the army was repairing the breached walls that William created during his fight against the Blood Duke, the other half of the army was on the opposite side of the fort patrolling and securing the second walls. Before leaving the fort, William leaves behind the Dreadnought to aid and give additional fighting force just in case another vampire faction decides to invade the fort. William learned the Dreadnought''s name which is Veteran Battle-Brother Raduriel who participated in the many crusades such as The Fall of Agrella and Third War for Armageddon. It was during the Third War for Armageddon where Raduriel fell in battle and was reborn as Dreadnought to continue his duty. During wall repair and securing the fort, William checks the Dreadnought''s weapon system and the condition of the machine. To his surprise, William learned that Dreadnought has a similar loot function just like him, able to collect additional ammunition, repair drones and new weapons or parts after defeating the enemy. For some reason, Battle-Brother Raduriel wasn''t bothered by the loot system or ability to gain weapons as if it was a normal thing. He was even able to quickly switch weapon systems just like how William does with his collection of an arsenal. As for the loot, it was different from Williams''s and it seems individuals get their own loot which was good news for William. One key thing Raduriel got was Leviathan Storm Cannon which is a heavy-duty four autocannon that could rapidly fire and destroy anything on its path. With this new weapon, Dreadnought can defend the fort all by himself without any help. Following William''s order, Raduriel stays behind to defend the future base of operation of Adeptus Astartes while William returns to Deron with Prince Benton and Duchess Argus. The return trip wasn''t boring since William was riding his ?ssault bike which many of the knights including two leaders of the armies envied him. By the time two forces returned back to Deron, the Duchess was riding behind William. This scene wasn''t hard to miss by Sir Dolven which he chuckled the moment he saw William''s arrival. "I received the news from your messenger, your highness. If I knew there would be such hardship, I would have gone with you." Sir Dolven said to Prince Benton who arrived right behind William''s bike. The entire city of Deron was in cheer as soldiers welcomed the returning troops and horns were blown to signal the success of the campaign. "Thank you, Sir Dolven, it was a hard fight but thanks to the effort from William and Duchess, we successfully captured the Fort Stormfist and left forces to hold it. Send the message to my father of this good news and tell him that we will be there within 9 days from now." Prince Benton instructed Sir Dolven after he got off from his horse. Meanwhile, William helped now recovered Duchess get off his bike since it was twice bigger than a regular motorcycle. Seeing this, Sir Dolven whispers to the prince as if he won the bet on the gamble. "I see that the Duchess got close to William during the second campaign. You owe me 10 gold coins." Sir Dolven said to the prince and signed him to hand over his reward which the prince did as he gave a sour expression. "I knew I bet on the wrong side. How did you know they would get close like that?" Prince asked which old knight just shrugged and put away coins into his pouch. "It''s an insight you will gain when you''re my age. William and Duchess have personalities that clash against each other but eventually, they would bond, especially during battle. That is if they didn''t kill each other during the clash." Sir Dolven silently laughs as William and Duchess approach two gamblers. "When are we leaving for the capital? I ?ssume there will be a minimum number of troops between Deron and Fort Stormfist." William asked the old knight as he removed his helmet and held it on his left arm. "My army will leave the city and escort Prince to the capital while the Duchess''s army will remain in Deron and wait for a new order from the king. When we arrive in the capital, I will send my troops back home while I will remain with you all. William, don''t worry about housing since you can stay in my mansion as my guest. Also, nice armor, much more stylish than your old one, I guess being a paladin comes with some perks, I see." Sir Dolven said to William as he examines the Armour of Faith and Black Sword. William smiles with embarrassment while Duchess clears her throat to get the three men''s attention. "If you two are done giggling like kids with new toys, I would like to prepare our return trip. We will be heading to the capital two days from now. Before then, I would like to make sure my subordinates are briefed and coordinated on the supply line between Deron and Fort Stormfist." Duchess Beckett said in a strict way that almost killed the joyful vibe. "As strict as your fury, cousin. Enjoy the day and relax will ya? Troops need time to recover from the fatigue and we do have a feast tonight. Sir Dolven will take care of those, so don''t go ruin everyone''s mood." Prince said to the Duchess that she did some help as she thought for a second and agreed with the prince''s logic. In the end, everyone decided to reorganize the troops and equipment while Prince''s chefs work on tonight''s feast. For William, he decided to reorganize his war gears and sort what he had left. With so much reward he received from the previous battle, there were few concerns that came. First was the gene-seed of the Grey Knight and Aegis Terminator armor, they are indeed powerful weapons against daemons but to use it means he has to surrender his Black Templar gene-seed in exchange. This also means he will lose the command since he will no longer be Black Templar, the only way William will use these items is if another Greater Daemon appears in this world. Until then these two items are not useful to William right now. The second concern is the biggest of all, which is the Fragment of the Emperor''s psychic light, the Spark of Astronomican. According to the description, this item will purify the chaos corruption but will summon random allies or something from the 40K universe. The last part really concerns William as this could summon nightmare things imaginable from 40K such as T''au (Just kidding). The nightmare things such as Tyranids, Necrons or Green tide itself, the Orks. Orks of the 40K are so different from standard orcs of the fantasy D&D world. There is a reason why Orks are called Green Tide as they are unstoppable war factions that will fight anyone or anything as long as they can achieve the war or in their language, ''WAAAGH!'' Not to mention their ways of reproducing their numbers are by fungus spores. This means Orks can increase their number within days or weeks without using additional resources to nurse them to maturity. Also, their technology literally breaks the natural law of physics thanks to their power of imagination because their weapons and vehicles are nothing but made out of scraps of metals and completely random unlike humans or any other factions'' technology. So, the Spark of Astronomican is beyond dangerous if William isn''t prepared to fight nonfriendly without heavy backup. The only way he will use this item is only if chaos brings their full force on to this world and William has no other options in his hands. Until then, this item will stay in his inventory and safe. For the summon order and drop pods, William will keep them equipped as long as possible until he gets the permanent settlement. Without a stable line of incomes and a place to put a roof over their head, William can''t just summon an army of soldiers and Space Marines. Unless William receives the City of Deron and fort from the king officially, there aren''t suitable places he could organize his army. After finishing organizing his war gears, William decided to look around the city castle since he will be gone for a while. With his new power armor and black sword in his hip, William went to various locations within the city castle such as a library, main hall, etc as he recalls the old D&D campaign from his old world. Just as William was about to finish his walk, William met the Duchess and her entourage in the hallway. "William, why are you still in your armor? Why aren''t you wearing something more comfortable? We are not on the battlefield you know," The Duchess said to William as her entourage who were all women giggled in the back. William, seeing he is out number decided to explain his situation as he doesn''t have formal clothing. "Well, I don''t actually have fancy clothing for the feast, so I usually wear my armor," William explains to the Duchess who isn''t surprised or amused by his excuse. "If that is the case, you should talk to the prince and get his tailors to make you something presentable. I''m sure he won''t mind since you did save mine and his skin on the battlefield after all. I will see you tonight and you better not be in your armor, my dear." The Duchess then left with her followers, leaving William confused by what the Duchess just said to him.. Afterward, William decided to visit Prince Benton and see if he could get something to wear for tonight''s feast. Chapter 27 - Visiting Tailor By the time William made it to Prince Benton''s room, it was near lunchtime (Around 11:20 am). After passing multiple knight guards and escorted to the main chamber, William was welcomed by one of the prince''s servants as the prince himself welcomed the giant paladin. Entering the room, William saw 5 servants placing various foods on the table as it seems William interrupted the prince''s lunchtime. "Sorry if I interrupted your lunch. I was told by the Duchess that I need formal clothing to attend tonight''s feast but unfortunately, I don''t have one suitable right now. She also told me that you could help me with the clothing issue since you have few tailors available with you." William asked the prince which got the prince''s attention. Prince understood that William does not have fancy clothes as he is an adventure and they do not have the resources to purchase formal clothes. Quickly, the prince got into action and paused the whole lunch and summoned his head butler, Jon. "I can see why you came to visit me. Don''t worry, I will have everything taken care of. Jon, please take Sir William to the tailors I brought with me from the capitol. As of right now, this priority job for them and they have until tonight to have clothes fitting for William. Make sure they understand that and let me know when they are done." Prince Benton gave his order to Jon which immediately head butler escorted William and took him to the other side of the city castle where noncombat workers reside. "The Crown Prince is very fond of you, Sir William. He has great respect for you and sees you as an example of what an honorable knight should be." Jon said to William as they walked towards the other side of the castle. Feeling embarrassed, William didn''t say much except "I see," and remained silent afterward. "I see you''re a man of short words. I will be in your service since we will be traveling together to the capital. Please let me know if you have any issues in the future and don''t hesitate to ask anything. After all, you did save the Crown Prince''s life from external and internal enemies." With a strange remark, Jon and William made it to the large room where a large group of people was working on various clothes repairs. After a quick scan of the room, Jon found an old man who was repairing the knight''s clothes. Approaching the old man, Jon gets the old tailor''s attention and explains his reason for visiting, "Mr. Harper, by the Crown Prince''s order I bought Sir William for your service. He needs formal clothes for tonight''s victory feast, suitable and presentable for the nobles. This will be a priority request coming from the Crown Prince himself." Jon explains to the head tailor as Harper turns his head to see a large black knight. After a quick look, the old tailor stood up from his workstation to walk around William for a better look. "Ok, Jon. I got a general idea. Let the prince know I will take care of this new challenge before the feast tonight." After hearing the confirmation, Jon left the room as William remained still as Harper continued his examination. "I need you to take your armor off and wear something casual. I can''t get good measure if you remain in that bulky armor," Harper said to William and pointed his finger at the small room where tailors are using it as a changing room. "Sure, I will be right back," William replied and followed the instructions to make a quick change. Inside the changing room, William unequips his armor and puts everything in his inventory. Thanks to his unique ability of inventory, William only has to pull out his inventory screen and just unequip the equipment. The same thing for casual clothes as William can either equip or bring out clothes from the inventory to put it on. After taking his time, William left the changing room to find a small army of tailors (Around 20 tailors) waiting for him as Harper stood in the middle with a long measuring tape around his neck. "Ok, team. We only have until tonight to make suit fitting for this giant. I want three groups to handle the upper, middle and lower parts of the clothes. Also, make sure we use durable materials since the wearer isn''t a standard knight. Now, get to it!" With Harper''s command, all 20 tailors went to their stations as the head tailor gestured his hand to William so he could stand in the three large mirrors. "Young man. I have a few questions regarding what type of suit you want while I measure your size." Harper said as he began his measuring of William''s body. "What color do you want your suit to be?" "Black and dark blue" "Good. How much room do you want? Enough to dance or enough to swing a sword?" "... Enough to use a sword." "I see. Do you want to be the center of attention or blend in with the crowd?" "Center of attention since I won''t be able to blend in with the crowd. But I do not want anything outrageous like decorations or extra stuff within clothes." "Ok, ok, don''t worry about having large flowers on your clothes as decorations. I will make sure you have something fitting to your stature. Last question, do you want your suit to be easy to put on or more complex? Complex means it will be significantly more fancy looking to others." "Easy to put one since I don''t want to feel suffocated," William answers the last question which ends the measuring session. Harper, receiving the notes from the ?ssistant and reviewing the numbers, the head tailor-made a few notes and gave them to his ?ssistant. "That will be all, I will have your suit by tonight and send someone to retrieve you before tonight''s feast." With that, William left the tailor''s chamber and decided to go to the kitchen since it is now past lunchtime. The kitchens are well supplied with ingredients since Prince Benton, former noble Bullen and Duchess brought plenty of food for everyone to eat well. Because they are in former vampire''s territory, there aren''t many wild animals but thanks to large supplies from the capital soldiers from three armies have the opportunity to eat decent meals and with large meat once a week. As two armies are leaving and returning to the capital in a few days, the feast will increase soldiers'' morale as the prince allows the distribution of ales and foods tonight. Sitting on the table outside from the kitchen, William received a decent portion of meal which consisted of beef stew, bu??er loaves of bread, steamed potatoes and a large cup of ale. For William, this isn''t much as it is only an appetizer for the feast and he could technically survive without eating or drinking water for a few days while fighting non-stop. Still, William loves the flavor and warmth of the food as he can learn more things by just eating ingredients from the food. By the time William finished his lunch, a kitchen staff came to retrieve the empty dishes from him which got William''s attention. After thanking the staff for cleaning his table, William decided to ask the staff if they need any help. With few words and persuasion, William obtained a few side quests to help move heavy supplies from the storages, move fresh water from the well and cut firewoods. Feeling nostalgia for chore quests from his old D&D campaign, William gladly helps out with heavy lifting and difficult workload. By the time he was done, William managed to move enough supplies to last a few weeks and firewoods for months. It was around this time when a young boy approached William to let him know that the suit is ready and the head tailor is waiting for him. "Lead the way, boy. I can''t wait to see what kind of clothes they made," William said to the kid after putting down two barrels of freshwater. When William and the kid arrived at the tailor chamber, Prince Benton was also there as he was nearly done putting his formal clothes on. "William, your suit over there. Mr. Harper will help you with the final touch of the suit." Prince Benton said as he put his red jacket on. Prince is wearing red formal clothes with gold lines while a jacket has a royal crest on the ?h?st pocket. "Thank you for the clothes, but I have a question. Why do you have so many tailors with you? Not just them but it seems you bring with you a lot of staff from the capital." William asked the prince which prince laughed slightly and explained his reasoning. "Well, that is because these tailors aren''t just clothes tailors. They are also skilled in armor repairs such as chain armors and leather armors. If our blacksmiths need more help, Mr. Harper''s tailor teams will help with various repairs and even crafting armors given enough time." Prince explains to William as Harper approaches William. "Enough with explanation, we need to fit this giant for an upcoming battle. Those nobles will butcher him if he attends a feast like this," Harper points out William''s casual clothes as he leads Space Marine to another room to show his new suit. "This is what we got for you. Now, put it on," Harper displayed the new formal suit on the wall which got William''s full attention. The formal suit is big and large to fit William''s unnatural size. The suit''s top is black but the pants and suit jacket is dark blue with a crest of a white cross in his ?h?st pocket, the same as William''s power armor shoulder symbol. The one unique thing about is that there is a shoulder plate on the jacket which isn''t much heavy looking but a decent size to protect William from blunt weapons. "Am I expecting some kind of duel during the feast? I mean I know it is more of a banquet but it won''t be like last time when we had to fight Bullen''s men." William asked Harper as a head tailor to bring out a pair of black boots, matching the clothes. "Young man, in the noble''s world the formal banquet or feast of celebration is a battlefield. It''s the place where alliances are made and where enemies are identified. I know this because I make clothes for those occasions. Trust me, this tells other nobles that you are a formidable warrior and you are ready for anything. Also, your shoulder plates can be used as small blunt gauntlets, if you ever need to punch your way out.." With a small chuckle, Harper instructs three people to help William put on his suit and ready for tonight''s feast as noble sons from many houses and influential people from the capital will soon attend the main yard of the city castle. Chapter 28 - The Victory Feast The feast started with the 8 loud rang from the city bells (8 pm) as three armies celebrated the success of the campaign against the vampire faction. While normal soldiers eat and drink to their heart''s content around the city, many young nobles from the three armies gather in the banquet hall of the city castle. Many of the young nobles are from minor and middle nobles'' houses who aren''t the first line to the family hierarchy. For this reason, many of these young nobles picked military careers as they don''t have a chance to inherit the family wealth. Growing up from the influence of the noble families, these young men still have certain characteristics of the nobility such as tradition, aristocratic and political behavior. This means, their real battle is in the political field such as campaign feast and other celebratory events where anything can happen which could shake the future event. In the Banquet Hall of the Deron Castle, William entered the banquet hall ahead of Crown Prince Benton as the most important person supposed to enter the party late. According to the prince, the reason why royals attend the party late is that they want the rest of the people to feel less pressured by the royals and let them enjoy the rare events where many nobles gather to meet. When William entered the hall, everyone including servants all turned around to see the giant hero as musicians paused their instruments. With the entire banquet hall staying silent, William didn''t know what to do until the old knight commander clapped his hands which everyone did the same, giving a round of applause to the hero of the campaign. "From destroying three enemy armies to defeating the daemons, you are the key player of this campaign and no one is going to ignore that. Still, I didn''t expect you to come in with a new suit, especially since I ?ssume you didn''t plan to attend this kind of event during the expedition." Sir Dolven said to William with curiosity while looking at William''s new black and dark blue suit. "Well, the Duchess told me to get one so I asked Prince Benton to help me acquire one for tonight. Still, I prefer my armor since it is much more comfortable than this suit. I mean, this suit is also comfortable but you know what I mean," William tried to explain to the old knight as one of the servants brought a drink which William quickly grabbed one to drink. The alcohol didn''t do anything but it gave William a few seconds to think while Sir Dolven laughed after seeing giant paladin struggling to fit in with the environment. "Don''t think too much about it, just be yourself and don''t try to impress anyone by being something you''re not. You already earned everyone''s respect and admiration with your action on the battlefield. I will teach you how to handle nobles in the capital during our trip there." Sir Dolven said to William which made the giant man ease up since he was an awkward person at a party back in his world. With that, William finally relaxed and began to look around to see many young nobles looking at William as if he is a celebrity. Rana Basslio Beckett immediately saw William and Sir Dolven and approached them while dismissing her followers to do freely as they wish. As the Duchess approached two men, Sir Dolven bowed his head to welcome the lioness but William just froze where he stood since the moment he saw her enter the hall. "Sir Dolve, William. It is good to see you both. William, I see you took my advice and got yourself a nice formal suit, I guess there is hope for you after all." Duchess Beckett said to William with a smile as Sir Dolven chuckled silently. William finally returns to reality and quickly toss the plate to the side to welcome the lady properly. "Sorry about that. Yes, I decided to get one, just that I didn''t know how formal this feast would be tonight." William quickly said to the Duchess and tried to be formal which the Duchess gave a small smile. "Don''t worry about putting an act of nobleman at the party here. We all are friends and there is no need for you to strain yourself as someone else." The Duchess ensures William and grabs a large mug of alcohol from the table to chug the whole thing in one swing. After finishing the mug, the Duchess grabs the second mug from the table and raises it to signal an announcement. "We, the proud soldiers of the Alderim began this expedition to recapture the lost city of Deron and the infamous Fort Stormfist. During this campaign, we lost fellow soldiers and faced impossible odds against supernatural enemies. But, we also found a friend who we can rely upon on the battlefield and survive to return to our families in the end. To you Sir William, the Black Paladin of the God-Emperor and a new friend to the Kingdom of Alderim." The Duchess gave a victory speech in which everyone in the banquet hall cheers and raises their drinks to honor William. William, who is now a center of attention again raises his right hand to accept the cheer from everyone. With a short celebration speech done, the Duchess grabbed another drink and gave it to William which two of them drank their mugs. "Sorry if I put you on the spot, but you are the one who deserves the recognition." The Duchess gave a quick wink to William which made him blush a little bit, but before he could reply, there was a sound of a throat clearing behind William which Duchess, William and Sir Dolven turned around to see who it was. "Cousin, I was going to give that speech but of course you stole my thunder," Prince Benton said to the Duchess as he looked a little upset and turned red as if he drank a few alcohols before entering the party. "Oh dear, I didn''t know you were even there at the banquet hall, prince. There should have been an announcement when you entered the hall." The Duchess said to the prince in the most outrageous way as she gave little gasp for the extra. "I was about to enter the hall when a group of ladies cut in front of me and burst through the door as if they did see me at all. So when they entered the room, I got mixed with them to which no one realized I was here." Prince Benton explains his misfortune of missing the entrance as the Duchess covers her mouth with a fan to hide giggle and Sir Dolven just sighs due to mischief of two commanders of the elite armies. "Well, at least you are here to celebrate the victory of your expedition. You faced undead armies, vampires, the Blood Duke and daemons to earn significant support from the noble families when we return to the capital. Also, you have a new blueprint for the weapons to which we can start producing them for every army in the future." William reminds the prince''s original goal as he raises his drink. Hearing this, Prince Benton thought for a second before returning to a bright mood as he grabbed his drink and joined the celebration. The party continues and reached the late phase, in which many of the young nobles retire to their rooms. The only people who are still in the banquet hall are a few older nobles from Sir Dolven''s army, Duchess''s entourage, and four VIPs. When the city bell rang once indicating it was 1 am, Sir Dolven was the first from the four to excuse himself to retire for the night. "Well, it looks like time for this old man to go to bed. This was a great feast, Prince Benton. See you tomorrow after lunch and start planning for returning to the capital." With that Sir Dolven and his followers of older nobles left the banquet hall. "I guess I will head back to my room as well. Please, enjoy but make sure you two get enough rest as well." Prince Benton said to the Duchess and William which afterward followed Sir Dolven''s example to retire for the night. "I guess it''s just you and me, Rana. Maybe we should call it a night and continue our conversation again tomorrow." William said to the Duchess but to his surprise, the young commander was rather energetic than usual. "What! But I was having a nice time talking to you. How about this, let''s go to the training field to enjoy the night sky with more wines. Hey! You guys can go back for the night, I will be with Sir William for more¡­ discussion on politics and military strategies," Rana, who is now red as apple said to her followers which many of them refuse as their commander is very drunk. "My lady, you should come with us. You had enough drinks tonight," One of the young ladies said to Rana, to which she refused and gave the same order to dismiss all of her officers. "I will be fine as long as William is here with me. Now, to the field!" The young lioness said out loud and grabbed four wine bottles to which she began to walk towards the main door. Seeing this, William did the only thing he could do, follow the stubborn lady with her followers following a few feet behind him. "Sorry my ladies, I guess we have to follow her until she passes out, hopefully soon." William apologizes to the group of ladies as both of them start walking faster to catch up with the Duchess. "William, when I arrived at this city to help my cousin and Sir Dolven and saw you for the first time, do you know what I wanted to do to you in person?" The Duchess quietly said to the Space Marine as she pointed him to get closer. William, who is now nervous to hear what kind of answer he would get from drunken beauty, followed her instruction and took a knee to get closer to hear the Duchess''s words. As he got closer, he smells sweet flower perfume from her and saw the bright red colored expression on the lady''s face which made his two hearts beat faster than usual. "What was it that you wanted to do when we first met?" William asked the young lady and waited for her answer. What came next surprised him as Rana Basslio Beckett, the young prideful lady of the hero from the last war gave her answer to the giant Black Templar and Emperor''s Champion. "I want to have mock combat with you! You and me, no fancy armor or weapons but with training weapons, right here, right now. The loser of the fight owes a favor to the winner." The Duchess challenged William to the duel to which all of her lady followers facepalms as if they saw this coming. ".... Ok, I guess I will accept your challenge, my lady." Chapter 29 - Second in Command William took his jacket off and placed it on the bench as one of the Duchess''s ladies came to him with a concerned face. Meanwhile, the Duchess removed her long skirts to reveal that she was already wearing pants under the dress. The same type of pants that knights wear under their armor as it gives decent defense against small knives or sharp objects. "I''m so sorry, Sir William. When the Duchess gets comfortable with people she trusts, she gets out of control with alcohol. Please bear with her and try to knock her down as quickly as possible." The lady said to William which got him curious about the Duchess''s motive to challenge William. "I kinda get the idea why she wants to fight me since she explained to me just now, but does she challenge every strong opponent in a duel?" William asked the lady which expression changed from concern to depression as she sighed and closed her eyes for a second as if it was painful memories. "Your guess is right. The Duchess tends to challenge anyone she believed to be a strong opponent. So far, two people managed to win against her. They are her father and Sir Dolven as him who taught her how to fight since she was a young lady. Few people got close to winning but unfortunately, they all lost including few nobles who proposed to her." The lady once again sighs after explaining the Duchess''s history as William realized how battle crazy the Duchess is. "She will have a third loss tonight. I''ll make sure she won''t get hurt during this match," William ?ssured the lady and proceeded to enter the duel arena as the Duchess did the same from the opposite side. "You took your time," Rana said to William as her face remained red and the smell of alcohol could be smelled from her. Still, she took her fighting stance and showed no flaws as she wielded wooden staff as her weapon. For William, he picked a wooden greatsword since it was big enough for William to wield it as a regular sword. "Now, let us begin," William said to Rana while the same lady who talked to William earlier signaled the beginning of the duel. When the duel began, two fighters didn''t initiate the first strike as both of them waited and observed each other. After a few seconds, Rana began her attack as she charged forward with her weapon ready to strike. When the attack came, William blocked Rana''s weapon with his own and pushed her with his brute force which made the Duchess push backward significantly. Returning to her original spot, Rana once again charged at William but changed her pattern to confuse William which direction she was coming from. From left to right and shuffling the direction at each step, Rana''s speed increased and made people who were tracking her unable to follow but for William, it was a different story. With a powerful blow from the practice weapon, William struck from the above. Seeing the attack, Rana used her weapon to block it but her weapon wasn''t strong enough to stay intact as her staff broke in half. Still, thanks to her weapon, Rana managed to escape without receiving any fatal damage except her arms felt heavy vibration from William''s attack. With a broken weapon in her hand, the Duchess changed her fighting stance to dual wielding and circle around William. Having enough, William decided to finish this fight and start pressuring Rana''s defense. With multiple quick attacks, William made sure he wasn''t going to hurt the Duchess but use enough force to push her into the edge of the arena. Unfortunately, the Duchess expected this from William and dodged the majority of his attack and proceeded to use her agility to fight against William''s strength. The Duchess''s counter-attack came right after William''s wide swing as she rolled between William''s legs and immediately attacked William from the back. With quick strikes, Rana made sure she aimed her attacks on critical points such as knees, shoulder, hip, and elbows. The fast but powerful attacks turn William to take a defensive stance to which Rana continues her strike. In the end, William got into his knee while Rana stood in front of him with a heavy breath and her stamina exhausted. Seeing William receive damage in the critical areas and his knee, Rana was about to give her final strike but to her surprise, William stopped her attack by grabbing both of her hands. William lifts his head and moves to stand up which Rana ends up dangling in the air as a giant of a man uses his strength to lift her like a doll. Still, Rana did her best to fight back with her kicks but it wasn''t enough as William let go of her right arm and flick her forehead with his free hand. The powerful flick from William''s finger was enough to faint Rana in one shot as the Duchess lost her consciousness. This concluded the duel between Rana and William as the Duchess''s followers came to ?ssist their lady. "Well, I think you should call the healer to check her head. I didn''t use my full strength but you never know," William said to one of the ladies as he looked over to make sure Rana''s forehead wasn''t bleeding. Thankfully, there was no blood but her entire forehead is now bruised with dark purple which will give her a big headache tomorrow morning. "One of us is a healer so don''t worry, Sir William. Thank you for ending this quickly as you did but I''m afraid she won''t remember due to alcohol and her injuries." The same lady said to William with little concern came from her voice but there was relief at the same time. "That is good to hear. I believe gals got this and I will head to my quarter. Thank you and let''s keep this between us since Rana won''t remember what happened tonight," With that William left the training field and returned to his room. "This is going to be interesting, I can''t wait to let everyone know when we arrive back in the capital." The mysterious person said to himself and disappeared as he is the last person to leave the scene. ------------------------- Next Day, The day started late as everyone began their meal with lunch. When William entered the main hall where meals were served, he saw most of the people recovering from the hangover. Especially for Prince Benton, he has dark under eyes as if he stayed up late and had a few hours of sleep. "You look like you''re about to join the undead. What happened? I thought you went to sleep after leaving the party." William said to the prince as he placed his tray of food on the table. Before the prince could answer the question, an old knight commander joined the table with his lunch. "The Crown Prince had a few more drinks after he went to his room and somehow escaped through the window. This is what happens when I allow young royalty to roam free without supervision." Sir Dolven said to William and Prince Benton which made William laugh while the prince covered his ears to ease his headache. "It was worth it. I was able to enjoy the night sky here since I can''t see any stars in the capital night sky." Prince explained his reason why he took a night stroll as William simply shrugged his shoulder as it was nothing significant. "For royalty to walk alone at night isn''t allowed especially during military campaigns. This is why you have royal knights following you wherever you go. Even the Duchess has bodyguards as she is a member of royal blood even if she is a branch family member. By the way, where is she? It''s not like her to struggle with a few drinks from last night." Sir Dolven''s question made William freeze for a second as he might be the reason why Rana isn''t here having lunch with two other commanders. After all, today is the prep day before returning to the capital tomorrow morning. As Prince Benton left half of his army at Fort Stormfist, the Duchess will leave her troops as a security force on Deron. After receiving a decree from the king, the two military forces will be relieved by the new lord of this region and go back home. As for Sir Dolven''s force, they will escort William, Rana and Prince Benton back to the capital and head back home while Sir Dolven stays behind to give a full report. "I''m sure she is late because of William," Prince said to Sir Dolven with a questionable remark and left William in a difficult situation. "Did something happen, William?" The old knight asked William and gave him a serious face which put William on the defensive. "Well¡­ After you two left, Rana and I had a little duel. Don''t worry, no one is dead or anything but I might have given her a bad headache during our match." After listening to William''s explanation, Prince Benton laughed hard and Sir Dolven fell silent as he began to feel a headache. "Ok, that explains everything, I''m guessing she is in her bed and she will send her second in command to handle today''s preparation. William, you are going to visit the Duchess and help her out." Sir Dolven gave an order to William which forced the Space Marine to follow through. After lunch, William went to the Duchess''s quarter to visit her and get additional instruction on how to help her army. When he arrived, he was welcomed by the same group of ladies from last night and told to wait in the main room. After a few minutes later, the Duchess came in with one person William is familiar with, the same lady who asked him to knock Rana out cold before the duel began. "Sir William, my apologies for not meeting you and others earlier. It seems I couldn''t handle the alcohol from last night. I don''t know what happened but it seems I blacked out halfway to the party." The Duchess gave her sincere apologies to William which made him turn his eyes to the lady in the back. Seeing William''s eyes, the lady placed her index finger at her lips to signal William to keep it a secret. Realizing the situation, William decided to go with it since it will create more problems if he tells the Duchess the truth. "Oh, yea. You were drinking nonstop, I had to admit you impressed me and others with your drinking ability." William gave a big smile and continued to explain his reason to visit her. "I came here to confirm that you are alive but I''m also here because I was told by Sir Dolven to help you with tomorrow''s return trip. Since you are not feeling well, who do I report to help?" William asks the Duchess to which she gladly accepts William''s help and turns around to introduce her second in command. "This is Silvi Greenheart, my second in command and best friend since I was a little girl." After the quick introduction, Lady Greenheart, the same person who asked William to beat up the Duchess, gave a small smile to William. "Hello Paladin, it is nice to finally meet you.. My name is Silvi Greenheart and I will be in your debt from now on." Chapter 30 - Road to the Capital Captain Silvi Greenheart is a young woman around her early 20''s and of an average height of 5.5 feet (170cm). She has tan skin texture with ?h?stnut brown hair and wears the same military white uniform just like the Duchess. Examining the uniform, unlike the Duchess''s gold and red, Silvi has green to represent her family line and silver to represent her rank as captain. Overall, William can tell that Silvi Greenheart presents herself as a reliable second in command and calculating person. After leaving the Duchess''s room, William and Captain Silvi walked towards the city wall where the Duchess''s forces are stationed. On their way, William realized that Silvi wasn''t carrying a sword or shield but an old oak staff and standard dagger as a backup weapon. Remembering that this is a world of D&D, William guessed Silvi could be a magic-user class like wizard or druid. "I can see that you are wondering why I carry staff instead of a sword, Paladin. Unlike Duchess Beckett who is a pure combat warrior, I''m a wielder of magic. More specifically, I''m a druid, focused on support and healing using magic from nature itself." Silvi explained to William while showing her staff to William. Receiving the wooden staff, William used his appraisal skill, it displayed the information to his helmet with much more detail. [Heart of Emerald Oak: Staff made from the ancient oak tree with properties received from nature itself. Gives the user wisdom and dexterity boosts while grant ability ''Conjure Woodland Beings: Red-Tailed Hawk'' 1 per day]. ALERT! UNKNOWN WARP-LIKE PRESENCE DETECTED! CONTACT NEARBY INQUISITOR TO PURGE THIS HERESY! After finishing reading the detailed information about the magic staff, William''s helmet gave an alert to him as sensors detected unknown magic from the staff. This never happened to William''s original helmet before but currently, he is equipped with the Emperor''s Champion set of armor which is much older but advanced war gear. Because of this, William''s helmet went out of control the moment he used his appraisal skill as it was somehow linked to the helmet. ''Ok, this needs to be turned off for now. I guess I need to reduce the sound since it went off like a fire alarm,'' With that thought, William returned the staff to Silvi and continued their conversation as they reached the city wall. When William and Silvi arrived, many of the soldiers and knights welcomed the two commanders as they continued their work. Some were carrying bundles of arrows to the storage while some were unloading boxes of supplies such as dried food and repair tools for the weapons. Overall, it was routine tasks for many of the soldiers as they are always ready for combat. For the knights, some took care of their horses and equipment even though they have squires to manage them. In a sense, the Duchess''s knights were more direct with their equipment than Prince Benton''s knights. After a few hours of supervising and giving helping hands, Captain Silvi was satisfied with the transition of the city defense as most of the hard work was already finished by Sir Dolven''s men weeks ago. Today was mostly replacing Sir Dolven''s men and resupplying the wall defense as old knight''s troops will leave the city tomorrow with Crown Prince and Duchess Beckett. "So, since you are now officially the defender of Deron, what will you be doing until the king sends the replacement?" William asks the captain as he removes his helmet and places it next to him on the table. Currently, they are standing on the top of the gate wall where the command station is with a heavy roof and a large table. "I will be securing both Deron and Fort Stormfist, so I will be sending a messenger every three days to the fort to make sure it is secured. As for potential enemies, there is not much as the main fighting force was undead but I will be sending a few groups to handle local wildlife such as wolves and other monsters. It is important to control the population of the monsters so they won''t go out of control." Captain Silvi explained her mission to William and placed her finger at the map on the table. On the map, the city was surrounded by the forest and natural barrier of the mountain which only ways for enemies to reach from the other side are through Fort Stormfist. With satisfaction, William knew these two places were in good hands as Captain Silvi is more of the support and military strategist. This unusual command structure was created because the Duchess never bothered to stay back and coordinate the military command during battle. So, as second in command, Captain Silvi decided to handle the troop movement while the Duchess charged first with her shock cavalry. "That sounds boring, I don''t think you will receive the king''s new order and troops for a few weeks at least. Are you ok with that?" William asks the young captain to which she shows no sign of concern at all. For her and everyone else, this was standard military procedure taught at military school. Also, they will be more of a peacekeeper and security as the enemy was defeated just a few days ago, so there is nothing to worry about the new enemy army coming to take the fort. "We will be fine, for us this is considered a vocation rather than a military mission. We have enough food and supplies to last the whole year, not to mention local wildlife and plants to extend it to one more year. I''m more worried about you and others since you will have to explain the situation regarding traitor nobles and their crimes. Even though the king gave the order for their executions, many of the nobles will pressure the crown for an official investigation." The words from Captain Silvi made William realize what he has to face in the capital when they arrive there. For now, his identity won''t be questioned as he is currently an adventurer from the guild but many will ask questions about his weapons and armor due to their pride as noble and jealous. "I guess I will face them when I get there. For now, let''s worry about today and move to tomorrow''s problem," William gave a smile and waved his hand to dodge the problem since this will be future William''s problem (We all do this). "I understand. For now, we are done for the day so please return to the city castle for your travel for tomorrow. I will handle the rest here," Silvi said to William as this concluded the transition of the Duchess''s force taking over Deron and Fort Stormfist''s defense. Before William left the druid, he gave her a message to pass to his battle brother. "Tell Brother Reduriel that I will return after meeting the king. Also, tell him I will bring more battle-brothers with me." ------------------------- Next Day, William was waiting for everyone to get ready to depart as he was sitting on the ?ssault bike. When everyone got to their horses, Sir Dolven''s army and the rest of the commanders left Deron around 9 am in the morning. The pace was slow due to the size of the army, carriages and troops on their feet, it will take at least four days to get to Greenhill. The same town where William registered as an adventurer and received a special mission to go on an expedition with the military. With his dual-mounted bolters and fully fueled tank, William took the lead as a scout since his ?ssault bike is much better armored to handle an ambush from a large group of bandits or monsters. The first two days weren''t much eventful as there were no monsters, enemy ambush, or any signs of chaos pawns. By the third day, William who is 2 miles away from the main army got to do something as he saw large dust clouds in the distance ahead of him. Using his helmet''s scope, William got to see what was causing the cloud of dust. To his surprise, it was a small army of orcs marching without any coordination or formation while a large number of people were in chains and following in the back. ''Oh, thank the Emperor. it''s just an Orcs, not the Orks.'' Chapter 31 - Ork or Orc? "Ere We Go, ''Ere We Go, ''Ere We Go!" This is the standard Ork chant during "WAAAGH!" as the unstoppable force of Green Tide has the potential to wipe the entire galaxy. The Orks or known as Greenskins are warmongers, savage and barbaric species in the 40K universe. Created by the Old Ones for the ''War in Heaven'', Orks can reproduce through spores and grow like a mushroom as they only focus on fighting. When the Ork population on the planet reaches the critical mass and the strongest Warboss unleashes ''WAAAGH,'' the physic level in unimaginable level singles the beginning of carnage on the galactic scale. As the Ork war campaign and migration move from planet to planet and system to system, the Orks increase their numbers to the point that even the Imperium fears for the extinction of the human race. One thing for certain, Orks'' ''WAAAGH'' is also a religious tribute to their gods Gork and Mork as Orks build Gargant and Stompas to honor their deities. In short, the Ork from the 40k universe is the most successful race and destructive force to reckon with. But for MC, he is about to face standard fantasy orcs which are about 6 to 7 feet tall, primitive and possess lesser tier equipment such as iron swords and shields. In other words, MC is about to destroy those orcs like how Master Chief from the Halo series beat the living crap out of grunts with a pistol. ------------------------ William saw from the distance a small army of orcs around 80 to 90 of them headed his way. Behind, about 40 humans in shackles follow them while few orcs whip them to move faster. Because they are still far away, William couldn''t identify the people but he is certainly most of them are women and children. ''Where are the men? Don''t tell me those orcs ate the men and took the rest as slaves.'' William thought his theory while changing his scope to the approaching army. The small army of orcs doesn''t have any sense of organization as there is no formation at all. The only thing William could identify is the leader of the army as the biggest and toughest looking orc is leading in front. Currently, William on top of the hill and orcs are on the plain which gives a great advantage because of William''s ?ssault bike. With no natural obstacles on the grass field, William can attack just like how White Scars (Different Space Marine Chapter) initiate hit and run tactics using an ?ssault bike while shooting bolter rounds. ''I better attack from the side and turn around to hit them on the back. This way, I don''t have to worry about hitting the civilians with the twin-linked bolters rounds.'' William moves his bike and prepares himself to launch a surprise attack on orc slavers. ------------------------ "How long before we reach the next settlement? We are just one more raid away from huge profits." Orc said to the orc leader as they have been walking at a slow pace non-stop for two days straight. Three days ago, 84 orc slave raiders attacked the human settlement called ''Greenhill'' and captured a large number of humans to sell them as slaves. After the successful raid, orcs feasted on the fallen human warriors and men as they didn''t have enough force to push back the orc raiders. By the time the entire Greenhill burn to the ground and skeleton remains to scatter around, the orcs chained the remaining humans and dragged them out from their homes. Because orcs walked non-stop, many of the human slaves are now dead tired, hungry and thirsty which forces orcs to drag them on the dirt, injuring many. "We are moving up north soon. The human leader (Baron Sternagel the Greenhill noble from Chapter 5) told me there is more human settlement and they are defenseless since they are fighting undead in the east." The Orc leader said to his lieutenant and continued to walk which made the orc ask another question. "What if the human leader lied to us? I didn''t see any human man in the back," This question from the orc made the orc leader smile wickedly. "He told me the truth after I ate one of his legs. Hahaha, you should have seen his face when I chopped the rest of body parts after he spilled everything to me." This made a few of the orcs nearby laugh as it created a chain reaction of waves of laughter. While this was going on, few of the orcs realized the approaching ?ssault bike at high speed. VROOOOOM! "What is that noise? Is that a wild boar?" One of the lesser orcs asked his fellow buddy as they heard unfamiliar noise from the distance. "No, too loud for a wild boar. It sounds bigger and meaner." "It could be a bear, it''s been a while since I had a bear meat," "Nope, I think it''s bigger than that. I think¡­" Before the lesser orc could finish his sentence, his lower half of the body exploded. Other orcs around them couldn''t respond in time as they also died right after. Soon, a source of unknown deaths finally revealed itself as William ran over the horde of orcs with an ?ssault bike. Immediately, William makes a large right turn to run over another group of orcs. By repeating this, William made donuts and forced a large number of orcs to gather around closely. After making the last circle, William made a short turn and changed his direction towards the back end of the orc army. Just as William is about to reach the back end of the orc army, the slavers position themselves to fight the Black Templar. Their effort was useless as their shields didn''t do anything against bolter rounds. With orc slavers dead and human civilians in his back, William positioned his bike towards the remaining orc army with twin-linked bolters pointing at them. "EAT BOLT ROUNDS, YOU DIRTY ORCS!" William pulls the triggers and unloads the remaining bolter rounds from his bike. As the majority of the orcs are closer together, the bolter rounds penetrated multiple orcs and shredding body parts. By the time William devastated most of the orcs, few orcs managed to survive including the orc leader who was in front. Through the helmet''s visor, William identified the surviving orcs and got off from his bike with a heavy flamer equipped. With heavy flamer armed and orcs to burn, William unleashes a firestorm which consumes all living and dead orcs. After a good three minutes of turning bodies into ash, William removed his finger from the trigger and put away the heavy flamer back to his inventory. After another scanning and making sure there are no survivors, William turns his attention to human slaves who are terrified and fear for their lives. William couldn''t blame them for fearing for their lives as a single giant lone black knight wiped out 80 orc hordes single-handedly. Just as William was about to ask who he could talk to he heard a familiar voice in the back. "Is that you, William? It''s me, Mia. The receptionist from the adventurer''s guild," Mia came out from the crowd with a tattered receptionist uniform and shackles on her hands and feet. "Mia? What happened to Greenhill after I left?" William said with shock and removed his helmet as he started to recognize a few familiar faces from the first town he ever knew. Chapter 32 - Raid on Greenhill Three Days Ago, Mia starts her day with a simple breakfast as she opens the guild''s reception window as other staff members get ready to open the main door. It was the same routine as yesterday and days before as adventurers entered the guild building to accept quests based on their ranking. All this was interrupted when Greenhill''s security bell rang every three times continually, signaling the town''s invasion from foreign intruders. Mia and many others in the guild building went full alert as they went outside to witness many civilians running away from the southern gate while guards ran towards them. Before Mia could stop one of the civilians to ask a question, one of the town guards came running, acting as a messenger. "We need every available adventurer in the southern gate now. The orc raiders are coming and it seems they somehow evaded border guards," The messenger explained the situation and moved on to report to northern guards. After learning the dire situation they are in, the entire guild staff members stop their daily duties and begin coordination to defend their home. Most of the Greenhill adventurers aren''t high-level since they are D and E ranks. The reason is that Greenhill is a lumber town located close to a heavily fortified outpost. With the military presence and routine patrols, the region doesn''t experience high-level monster threats. Greenhill experiences low-level monster threats, which the military considers pests and does not move their force unless they encounter them during patrols. For this reason, the kingdom utilizes adventurers to handle goblins, wild beast, or low-level bandits. Unfortunately, Greenhill is about to experience disaster known as orc raiders as somehow they evaded military patrols and about to attack a small town with a population of 230. "Gather everyone; I don''t care if they join the guild today. I will personally lead the adventurers and defend with guards. Meanwhile, I want everyone to bring supplies from the storage and send emergency messages to the nearest city to send additional force." The Guildmaster instructed everyone on their new tasks and left the guild building with 30 adventurers following him. Mia and others follow the guildmaster''s order and secure various health potions to spare weapons from the storage. It seems everything was going to be ok until everyone saw a large explosion coming south gate. BOOM! The shockwave knocked down everyone while a black cloud appeared in the distance. Before anyone could realize what just happened, wooden debris from the explosion hit the houses and streets as the sound of battle once again can be heard. Unknown to everyone, including Mia, the orcs brought a one-of-a-kind weapon to a mysterious supplier to the raid given to them. The reserved item was a large two barrels with a fuse that connected to the top. The supplier gave the orc leader simple instructions in the common tongue, "Light the fuse with fire and place it on the wall." The Orc leader, who previously received new weapons and armor supplies, didn''t question the supplier when he saw this new product. The Orc leader knew this supplier is human but didn''t understand why he is doing business with orcs just like him. As long as orcs have enough gold to pay for it, they received everything they needed for the next raid. The Greenhill fell by late afternoon as many civilians were either captured or killed by the orc raiders. When the raiders left the town with captured human slaves, they razed the village to the ground, leaving nothing but ashes and human remains. ------------------------ William retrieved three months'' worth of food supplies from his inventory he purchased a few weeks ago. It was enough for 40 people to eat and regain their energy while William listened to Mia''s story and waited for Sir Dolven''s army. Soon, a group of knight cavalry led by Sir Dolven arrived at the orc massacre and saw who was responsible. Not surprised, Sir Dolven ordered his men to secure the area and send a single knight to deliver a message to the approaching army and two commanders. "The moment I heard explosions from a distance, I knew it was your doing. So, who are these people? Some of them look familiar." Sir Dolven said to William after getting off his horse and saw Mia. Seeing her metal crude shackle, Sir Dolven got a general idea of what happened and who those people are as he recognized Mia''s guild uniform. "They are from Greenhill and I''m not sure where to take them since the town is no more," William said to Sir Dolven with great concern as they can''t take them to the capital. At best, they could drop these people off at different regions run by other high nobles, but this idea didn''t agree with William. "That decision has to be made by Prince Benton. They will be here soon and I will make sure healers and engineers take care of them. What worries me is how orcs managed to reach all the way here without encountering patrols." Sir Dolven asks essential regional security questions since this region previously belonged to a fallen noble who betrayed them two weeks ago. Following the king''s order, someone from the capital would replace the traitor and maintain the region until official replacement received the king''s edict. "That is a good question and I think we should investigate when we reach Greenhill," William said to the old knight commander and looked beyond to see the approaching army with two other commanders leading them. It seems the young prince and the Duchess decided to see what exactly happened and make proper decisions with former townspeople of lumber town. When the army arrived, Sir Dolven gave instructions to provide the best care to civilians and make sure they record the incident. Mia volunteered to help with the report since she can work closely with townsfolk. Sir Dolven will eventually report to the capital bureaucracy and determine what to do with the destroyed town. "William, I believe our best course of action is to send these people to Deron. I will have knights escort them and we will continue our way to the capital." Prince Benton said to William and other commanders as he had other obligations to reach the capital in time. It seems callous, but with three armies spread thin with new territories from the expedition, the prince made the only choice he had with a sudden raid done by orcs. "I agree, but it will take six days for knights to return here and catch up with us. I don''t know how much we can spare, not to mention we also have to check the outpost to find out how this incident happened." The Duchess added the additional issue after Prince Benton explained his plan. Hearing this, William steps forward to solve the first solution. "I will escort the townsfolk to Deron and return fast as possible. With my ride, I''m sure I can make it back here on the fourth day and meet you all at the outpost the next day." ------------------------ Meanwhile, The Southern Border Outpost of Alderim, A large man with a crude battleax slowly walks over countless bodies in the hallway as his armor and weapon drip trails of blood. When a man exited the hallway and stood at the edge of the watchtower''s top, he saw a crimson sunset. The large warrior smiled behind his hamlet and tossed the enemy commander''s head, which hit the ground below him and bounced off. The mighty warrior raised his right hand, still holding a bloody ax, signaling the victory over their enemy with absolute slaughter. On the ground floor, witnessing the blood ax raised, a high, large band of warriors (115 men) howled and raised their weapons high. The large man shouted out with all his might, giving everyone below him the thrilling sensation on the ground level. "BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD! SKULL FOR THE SKULL THRONE!" [M36 Kantrael Pattern Lasgun x 50: The standard issue weapon of the Imperial Guard and most reliable weapon against enemies of the Imperium. This laser rifle can be modified a thousand different ways and can withstand harsh weather. While powerful and effective against other humans, it is the weakest weapon against other race factions including chaos.] [Unit Summon (Astra Militarum: Catachan Jungle Fighters) x 30: From the deadly home planet from Catachan, Catachan Jungle Fighters are known for jungle warfare and heavily developed physiques. Each fighter is equipped with flak armor, Catachan knives, explosives and Mark IV Lascarbine.] [Support Order (Valkyrie Deployment) x1: Call air support of three Valkyrie ?ssault carriers armed with multi-laser, hellstrike missiles and door-mounted heavy bolters.. After the bombardment, all three Valkyries drop a total of 30 standard Imperial Guardsmen.] Chapter 33 - Purge "So yea, that is how we took back the city and fort from the Blood Duke." William finished his explanation to Mia while they sat around the campfire and watched the sunset in the distance. Mia, listening to William''s tale and adventure, stayed silent, which made the giant man nervous. "Ah, Mia? Are you listening?" William asks the former guild receptionist and looks at her, to which she suddenly returns to reality after finishing processing all the information. "Yea, sorry. I couldn''t believe you experienced such a crazy adventure. From destroying undead army to slaying dragon and daemon is just beyond what we asked you to do." Mia said to William and expressed shame that she failed to ?ssess William''s unique quest properly. Even though it was the guild master who recommended William to the expedition, Mia signed his quest contract and last to see him go on that Day. After hearing what he accomplished in a few weeks, Mia is amazed and regrets sending William to the higher tier than his signed adventurer rank. "Don''t worry about feeling bad about the guild sending me to war. After all, I decided to go there and fight the vampire for my curiosity." William reassured Mia and her guilty feeling since there is no point in regretting it. After exchanging a few stories, William got called by Sir Dolven to discuss the next plan since William will begin his escort mission tomorrow morning. "Ah, William. Thanks for coming. After talking to the prince, we decided to investigate Greenhill for any survivors and determine what happened to the south region''s outpost. I''m sure we will find our answer by the time you return from Deron." Sir Dolven shows the map to William and explains the next destination. William agreed with the first part but was concerned with the second, checking up the outpost that somehow allowed orc raiders to pass their security. "Are you sure about checking the outpost without me? I have a bad feeling about this." William said his reasoning, which gave Sir Dolven second thoughts on checking the outpost. But since he is the senior commander, he has an obligation and duty to review the military border. "I know what you mean, but I still have to check if there is a problem within the outpost." Sir Dolven said to William and placed his finger at the map where Greenhill''s name is marked. "We will be here for four days and wait for you. When you return from the escorting survivors to the city, we will go together and check the status of the outpost." The old commander informed William that William agreed since he could make it back in three days using his bike. ----------------------------- Next Day, After breakfast, William and 40 survivors of the Greenhill said their goodbyes to Sir Dolven and the rest to begin their march. With little help from the Duchess, William''s small band received enough supplies and a large wagon to take weak refugees. Their destination to Deron was uneventful but slow since all 40 survivors were women and children, but they made enough progress to arrive in the city of Deron on the third Day in the late afternoon. "Hello again, captain druid, we had a situation, so Sir Dolven sent me back, but I will be heading back soon," William said to Captain Silvi when her soldiers opened the city gate to welcome the refugees. "I received a message from the Duchess two days ago through messenger bird, so I know the situation. I had my troops prepare the buildings for the citizens and food for them from the long walk." Captain Silvi said to William and instructed her soldiers to take in the survivors. With his job done, William prepares for his return trip by refueling his bike and checking his equipment. As he was about to finish his maintenance, Mia came to William with a new request of her own. "William, I want to join you on the trip to the capital. I have to let the main guild know what happened to the Greenhill branch, not to mention I think it is better to establish a guild branch in Deron since this place will be busy with new business in the future." Mia explains to William that he didn''t mind having a companion and it will be better for the guild to know the situation regarding Greenhill and Deron. "I don''t mind, but we have to let Captain Silvi know I will be returning to the main force with an additional person." With everything ready to go, William and Mia went to where Captain Silvi is. When they finally found the captain, William realized something was off as he saw Silvi''s distress before he got to talk to her. "Silvi, is there a problem?" William directly asks the young druid, to which Captain Silvi turns to face the giant man. "Remember how I said I received the message from the Duchess through messenger bird? That was the last message, and I haven''t received any other messages from her or Sir Dolven. I''m afraid something must have happened if they didn''t send a second messenger bird after the first one." Silvi explained as she told William that there is always a second messenger bird around the third Day. But now, it was overdue after receiving the first message. If the main force couldn''t send messenger birds, they would have sent an emergency magic message to notify her. There is no messenger bird nor the magic message that tells her that something must happen to the main force. "I see what you mean, Sir Dolven told me they would wait for me in Greenhill until tomorrow, but if they couldn''t send the message, that must mean something must have happened to them. I will head out right now; also, I will be taking Mia with me to the capital since she will personally inform the main guild about this incident." William afterward grabbed Mia and went straight to his bike without hearing Silvi''s reply or Mia''s. With the engine revving like thunder, William and Mia left Deron with the max speed, making Mia scream due to the suddenly increased speed she never experienced before. Because of Space Marine''s body, William didn''t require any sleep or rest as he rode for 7 hours to reach the location where he met the orc raiders. Using his helmet, William scans the area to find the sign of the main force''s track and heads towards where Greenhill is. As this is going on, Mia finally got used to the bike after fainting four times while holding William''s back. "They indeed left the campsite after we left. I''m sure they are at Greenhill waiting for us, or at least I hope they are waiting," William then revved his engine and followed the path which led to the ruins of Greenhill. After riding for another 8 hours on the road, William and Mia arrived at Greenhill but what he saw was his fear come to real life. Sir Dolven''s force made it to Greenhill and set their basecamp at the same location where they made camp before outside the town. But that same place where William met other adventurers was no more as the base camp of the Order of the Black Flames was destroyed, and corpses of the knights are everywhere. The knights'' bodies are impaled to the wooden stake with their heads missing. Not to mention the wagons holding volley cannons were utterly destroyed, including the weapons. Using his helmet, William saw the casualties but couldn''t find three commanders or any survivors from this massacre. That was until he found a large monument made out of human heads and large metal in the shape of a unique mark. The maker was colored with the soldiers'' blood and flesh, but what got William''s attention was the head placed on top of the marker. The Mark of Khorne, the very symbol of the Chaos God of Blood and Skulls, has the enemy commander''s head to add onto Khorne''s skull throne. The head of Sir Dolven was on top with a smaller marker carved onto his forehead. Seeing this, Mia collapsed to her knees while William stood with his hands shaking with rage overwhelming his body. The same source fuels the Chaos God engulfs William''s emotion, to which he pulls out a power sword to cut the marker in half. With the marker destroyed, William picks up his friend''s head and covers it with a clean cloth. "Mia, I need you to take Sir Dolven and hide until I take care of the people who did this." William gives Mia the head of the former commander and summons the new unit to begin his first purge. Chapter 34 - Vengeance Not Revenge "Kill, kill, kill!" A large number of warriors shout as they surround the makeshift fighting arena while eating and drinking ales. Kharak quickly kills four out of five prisoners with nothing but an ax in his hand. The last man, equipped with black armor and sword, kept his distance with fear in his eyes. Kharak, the leader of his Warband known as ''Khorne''s Ravagers,'' wasn''t wearing his armor as he knew he had all the advantages and upper hand against native people in this world. His face is animal-like with sharp teeth, multiple scars and metal plates attached to his back head. The mere sight of his face would make even seasoned warriors second guess their survival or ability to fight. Seeing how his last prey is retreating slowly, Kharak grabbed his ax with both hands and threw it, decapitating the last prisoner in half, including his black armor. Crushing the corpse''s head with his metal boots, Kharak exits the arena where his throne and power armor are. Next to the throne, Kharak''s wargear is placed, composed of a bolter, chain ax and several frag grenades, but one thing that gets everyone''s attention is his power armor. The armor color is red and gold, while the shoulder plate is painted with the World Eater''s symbol, clarifying that Kharak is a berserker of the World Eater. As a Chaos Space Marine, Kharak made his God proud as he slaughtered the weak and recruited the strongest warriors in this new world after breaking their sanity. His Warband is 100 men strong, all of them composed of natives of this world. Few of his men have died during the last raid, but this only strengthened his force as only the strong survive. Kharak has 35 prisoners, including two leaders who will be the main entertainment as he would enjoy converting them or slaughter them. After putting back the power armor with help from his slaves, Kharak took his favorite skull cup and drank from it. With straight victories and growing numbers of most formidable warriors under his command, the World Eater Space Marine found new glorious ways to kill and gain favor from the Blood God. If Kharak could deliver this world to Khorne, he could be rewarded with the possible ascension to Daemonhood. "Bring out ten prisoners from their cages. Let us see if they have the potential to serve our God." Kharak gave the order to which several warriors followed his command to bring out seven knights and 3-foot soldiers. After placing them in the fighting arena, four chaos warriors threw ten weapons in front of the prisoners, which made prisoners confused but stayed quiet. "Take your weapons and show us who you are. Kill your brothers in arms and bring their head; if you accomplish this, I will let you live and have a fighting chance to join us in the end." Kharak''s words shocked the prisoners, but they immediately took the weapon from the ground and slaughtered people close to them. The blood bath continued until only five stood in front, with each holding a severed head in their hands. Satisfied by this, Kharak signals five chaos followers to go down and collect the new trophies and give them a drink to quench their thirst. The five survivors were given five skull cups with ale mixed with the Blood of the victims the survivors just killed. "Drink from the cup and you will receive blessing from our God who will only ask for blood and skulls in return." Hearing this, five prisoners hesitated to drink but eventually drank, which gave them supernatural strength but the thirst of murder and slaughter that could never be satisfied. With a new chaos warrior in his command, he repeats this, to his disappointment, all ten prisoners refuse to kill each other. This time, his followers killed 30 of his warriors butchered all ten prisoners without mercy. Finally, the main event approaches as two commanders and royal Blood are placed in the Blood soaked arena with their weapons in front of them. "Prince Benton, the crown prince of this small country and commander of the royal military. Rana Bassilo Beckett, the Duchess of Agrus and champion of the previous war. You two will fight each other and offer the loser''s head to me; by doing so, you will win your life back." Hearing this, the badly beaten Crown Prince and the Duchess look at each other but stay silent. Two commanders take their weapons and stand up without talking to each other, but to Kharak''s surprise, they take back to back and point their weapons towards their enemies. "You want the head of a loser? Come and I will give you your head," The Duchess said to Kharak with fire in her eyes as her fighting spirit once again lit with a new flame. "I don''t know who you are, but I will make sure to take as many as possible before I fall. I''m the future king of my people and you shall not see me beg or betray my subjects." Prince Benton declared his loyalty and took an arm next to his cousin, smiling and proud of the young prince. "This disappoints me, but this isn''t my first time seeing foolish acts of courage from the young royals. I will grant your deaths and bring your heads for the world to see when I place them on the top of the capital." Kharak jumped down from the throne and entered the arena as a fully equipped Chaos Space Marine. With the roaring sound from the chain ax in his left hand and battle-ax in his right, Kharak slowly approached the two commanders. The Duchess made the first move against Kharak as she thrust her sword at the throat area. The attack hit the armor, but it didn''t do much as her blade didn''t even scratch Kharak''s power armor. Receiving the first attack, Kharak attempted to strike the Duchess, but prince Benton charged in with his sword at World Eater''s right arm before he could. The strike was decisive and accurate, but it was useless as it merely bounced back. Kharak, who is now irritated, slams the prince with his right arm without using a battle-ax as he didn''t have enough space to swing it. Prince used his sword to block the attack, which he succeeded but unfortunately pushed to the other side of the arena and lost his consciousness for a second. Meanwhile, the Duchess continued her attacks and aimed at possible weak areas of the armor. Without any concern, Kharak struck the Duchess with a chain ax to which she successfully dodged, but at the moment she avoided, the Chaos Space Marine hit her with his knee, which made her cough blood. "You think you could win against me? I''m the one you all should fear and despair of as I''m someone you have never experienced before!" Kharak yelled with rage and bloodthirst at the Duchess, but he heard something he was very familiar with and impossible in this world before he could. Kharak listened to a sound of a sound barrier-breaking as a single large black drop pod coming right on top of his men. "Impossible!" A single word came from the Chaos Space Marine as he saw a drop pod coming down from the sky. When the drop pod hit the ground and crushed 20 chaos warriors, the pod''s heavy plates opened. Immediately, 10 Loyalist Space Marine and 2 Techmarines from the Black Templar came out with bolters hot as they fired their weapons without hesitation. The rush of battle began as Kharak witnessed his mortal enemies in the new world. With a new purpose, Kharak ignored the two commanders and started ordering his chaos warriors to fight back. Even though he took the command, his men weren''t ready as more enemies appeared from the Astartes'' opposite side. 50 Stormtroopers of Tempestus Scions began to strike the rear side with their advanced lasgun, blocking the exit. "How is this possible? My watch guards would have alerted the camp if 50 Storm Troopers were coming!" Kharak shouted and began to fire his bolter at Astartes, but it was useless as he was being pushed back. He received his answer to camp guards as 30 Catachan Jungle Fighters appear from the shadow, with one particular Black Templar leading the charge. Armed with a black sword and bolter in his hands, William unleashed the Imperium''s best of the best at the servant of the Chaos.. There is no room for Kharak to escape or survive this as William is not the embodiment of revenge but vengeance for the fallen and messenger of the Emperor''s will. Chapter 35 - Traitor vs Loyalist "Blood for the¡­" The chaos warrior didn''t get to finish his warcry as his head got sniped by one of the Storm Trooper''s lasgun. 50 Storm Troopers from the left side slowly approach the enemy as they fire their weapons accurately, while 12 Black Templars from the right bulldozer the warriors of Chaos without restraint. Meanwhile, 30 Catachan Jungle Fighters led by the Emperor''s Champion quickly cut anyone attempting to fight back as William decapitated with a single swing of his black sword. Soon, Kharak realized that he was cornered like a rat as his followers fell to the ground left and right. Still, he is a World Eater Space Marine as he would not fall without killing at least a few royal Astartes, including Champion. Pulling out two grenades, Kharak threw both of them at the Black Templars, but before the grenades could hit the ground and detonate, sharpshooters from the Storm Troopers hit the grenades in the midair, destroying them. At this point, Prince Benton and the Duchess recovered from the injuries and gathered their strength to escape. Just as they were about to get out of the fighting pit, three chaos warriors jumped in to kill them as Kharak gave the order of executing the remaining prisoners. "We will collect your heads for our lord and god," The chaos warriors attack two commanders with their crude weapons. Seeing the attack, Prince Benton counters all three with his sword while the Duchess appears from the side and delivers a killing blow at one of the warriors in the neck. Now, with two opponents in front of him, the prince attempts to hold them where they stand, but one of the warriors kicks the prince, and the second turns around to face the Duchess head-on. Prince Benton quickly recovered and dodged the attack from his enemy. This angered the warrior as he expected this to be an easy kill, but to his surprise, the young prince managed to avoid each attack as if a chaos warrior is a simpleton. With rage clouding his judgment, the warrior swung his weapon wildly, which made him open wide for the prince to stab him. On the other hand, the Duchess single-handedly killed her opponent with her blade without any problem, even though her previous injuries decreased her fighting ability. With their executioner taken care of, two commanders finally escape from the fighting pit and manage to keep their distance away from their dreaded captors. Dragging his feet, Prince Benton was supported by the Duchess as she didn''t stop her pace even a second, even though she had a few broken ribs. Meanwhile, the battlefield is in Chaos as two different military factions are killing each other (More of a one-sided carnage), and sounds of thundering bolter rounds and lasguns could be heard loudly. Just as two commanders are about to collapse due to exhaustion, 6 Stormtroopers appear out of nowhere and grab them to escape the danger. Stormtroopers quickly escort the two VIPs to safety with incredible strength and speed and have the medic check their injuries. Baffled by effectiveness and unusual fighting style, the Duchess couldn''t speak or ask the right question but realized that she was safe. On the other hand, Prince lost his consciousness once again due to pain and injuries, but thanks to the advance medical skills from the Stormtroopers medic, he will fully recover in a few days. "Did William send you? Where is your commander?" Rana asked with hope in her voice which one of the Scion pointed his finger toward the battlefield. Focusing her eyes, the Duchess saw a giant black-armored knight fighting her captor in melee combat. Each time their weapons clash, the spark can be seen, and the sound of metal grinding can be heard. The duel between loyalist and traitor Astartes began with the intent to kill, and only one will come out as the victor. ----------------------- "I never expected to meet you here, cousin, still serving that corpse Emperor of yours?" Kharak, who is holding a chainaxe strike at the Champion of the Emperor. William, who anticipated the attack, managed to block with his chainsword, which in contact generated a spark. A few minutes ago, William reinforcement completely devastated Kharak''s Warband, which made Kharak a sole enemy on the battlefield. Kharak fired his bolter at Jungle Fighters with rage, but to his surprise, a single Black Templar blocked the rounds with a storm shield. The battle turned into a duel between two Astartes as William challenged Kharak the Berserker. Kharak is equipped with a chainaxe and battle-ax while his bolter hangs from the side while William is equipped with chainsword and storm shield. Both fighters are wearing their respective power armor as William''s black armor, and Kharak''s red blood armor is the center of the attention. "Your appearance itself shows the corruption of Chaos, traitor. I know all about your legion and how Angron forced the butler''s nails on his sons'' heads. That explains your stupidity and ignorance of believing you will win this fight." William insults the World Eater and pushes him to have little distance to use the move he learned from a movie he saw not long ago. With the storm shield''s gravitic energy field activities, William''ss shield bash Kharak''s head which had a powerful impact that staggered the traitor but only for a second. Still, this was enough for William to attack a second time and strike his chainsword at Kharak. The chainsword of loyalists struck the traitor''s right arm, which began to rip the armor plate and flesh. The agonizing pain made Kharak''s butcher''s nail generate more chemicals to the wearer, which boost physical strength and aggression to the next level, even for Space Marines. Kharak quickly kicked William and prevented the complete loss of his right arm, which is now dangling from his shoulder. With implants blocking his pain and other emotions, the World Eater Astartes charge in full force while wildly swinging chainaxe. Seeing Kharak gone entirely berserk, William placed his shield in front while quickly switching his chainsword with a black power sword. The clash between two Astartes shook the ground around them while William''s small army watched in the distance with weapons still hot, ready to kill with no hesitation. With William sliding his feet and b?r?ly dodging Kharak''s weapon, William slashes Kharak''s stomach with his black sword activated. The black sword cut through the World Eater''s power armor and his gut, which he immediately began to bleed and internal organs spilled out. Without any hesitation, William stood up behind and cut Kharak''s backside with a full strike. The slash diagonal cut the power armor''s backpack and its power source; this forced the Chaos Space Marine to his knees as the weight of the power armor and injuries weighed him down. "I''m not¡­ I''m not done. I will not lose to you who never witness what I have seen. I''m Kharak the Blood Axe, I will ascend just like Primarch, I will¡­" Kharak didn''t finish his sentence as William had enough with Chaos Space Marine. William switches his black sword to a thunder hammer and smashes Kharak''s head and entire upper body. The thunder hammer''s fearsome impact crushed everything from the bones to the former World Eater Astartes'' power armor. "The Emperor protects, but not you because you are a jackass," William said to the body of the traitor Space Marine and smashed it again with a thunder hammer for good measure. With the death of Kharak, the chaos Warband was destroyed, and William''s force quickly moves to the next step of the operation, which is to burn and purge all of the chaos corruption within enemy corpses and everything else. Guardsmen gather the bodies while Black Templars pull out their flamers from their inventory, similar to William''s as they also received new weapons. ----------------------- [Missile Launcher x1: Imperial Guard heavy weapon which could destroy heavy vehicles and even tanks. It comes with ten missiles and can be ?ssigned to one guardsman under the player''s command.] [Summon Order (Cadian Shock Troopers) x1: Summon the full infantry company of the Cadian''s best of the best as they stand between Eye of Terror and Cadian Gate for ten of thousands of years. The company comes with 150 troops and ten troop transport vehicles.] [Land Raider Crusader x1: Armed with heavy bolters, lascannons, and havoc missile launchers, this battle tank/troop transport vehicle is the primary vehicle of the Imperium. Note: Comes with 3 Tech-Priests for repair and to perform Machine Spirit ceremony] Chapter 36 - City of Colors Three days passed since William''s force defeated Kharak''s Warband and rescued two royal family members from converting the chaos. With the death of Sir Dolven and his order of knights, William stepped forward and took charge on an escort mission to the capital. Before leaving the ruin of Greenhill, William summoned additional troops and left a small group of 50 Cadian Shock Troopers, 10 Catachan Jungle Fighter, and three Black Templar Space Marine with one happens to be Techmarine. William''s forces comprise 50 Stormtroopers, 100 Cadian Shock Troopers, 20 Catachan Jungle Fighters, 8 Balck Templars and one Techmarine from the Black Templars. The food wasn''t much of an issue since they managed to regain their supplies from the Kharak''s storage after purging remains and corrupted equipment. Unfortunately, Prince Benton''s guns and volley cannons weren''t recoverable, but William managed to bury fallen knights and soldiers, including Sir Dolven''s body. Four Space Marines led the formation on the road while the rest of the troops followed and the remaining four Space Marines covered the flank. All 20 Catachan Jungle Fighters went on scouting missions since they are the master of stealth and jungle warfare. Sometimes, some jungle fighters return to the army with big games such as wild boars, giant red deers and bears. These were processed by the same soldiers and placed on supply wagons William''s force managed to repair before departure. "With our current speed, we will arrive in the first city by this evening. The city is called Draphia and governed by Viscount Zachary Lindver, a strong supporter of my father and the royal family. They were expecting us two days ago, but I''m sure they will welcome us and we will have an opportunity to send a message to my father about what happened to Sir Dolven." Prince Benton informed William that Duchess and Mia were riding on the back of a wagon while William walked next to it. "The viscount will have one hell of a shock when he sees this much unknown military force entering his doorstep. I recommend encamping outside of the city while us three and few selected soldiers enter the city." The Duchess adds information to William as she is somewhat familiar with Draphia. Hearing this, William agrees to it as he tries to avoid potential conflict between his military force and Viscount Lindver''s defense force. "I will have one of my battle-brothers take charge when we arrive in Draphina. Please make sure viscount doesn''t get any idea when we stay in his city since I don''t want to have the second city burn to the ground." William said to Prince Benton with a bit of joke added, which made two commanders scorn William for dark humor. "You have to tell us how in the world your fellow brothers and small army end up appearing right when we need them." The Duchess said to William, to which he gave a simple answer. "Miracle from the God-Emperor," William said to the Duchess and Prince Benton, which two immediately gave a dirty look at William as if they didn''t believe William at all. This only made William chuckle silently as he told the truth, not to mention William himself doesn''t know where all these game items come from. William was also glad Prince Benton and Duchess are back to their old selves as they were somewhat depressed and shocked by the death of Sir Dolven and the experience they went through with Kharak, the Chaos Marine. After burying the dead in the Greenhill, Prince Benton and Duchess weren''t doing well mentally. The loss of a teacher and old friend to the family was too much, not to mention the harrowing experience they had to go through with Chaos Marine''s Warband. Physically, both of them are fine as medics gave proper treatment and enough medication to knock them out for most of the day. When they woke up from the well-rested sleep, they were already on the road to the capital with Mia staying next to them on the wagon. It took the whole day and a half for the Duchess to regain her posture back to warrior commander, but for the Crown Prince, it took near the end of the second day, where he finally accepted the loss. William was glad they were strong-minded as facing brutal acts from the follower of chaos will only bring either death or eternal suffering as a follower of the Chaos. For now, William will make sure there is no sign of corruption and maintain his awareness of chaos''s influence. From hounds of Khorne, Greater Daemon of Slaanesh to World Eater in this world concerned William as he believed this is just a beginning of the invasion of chaos force. ''I have to build and grow enough fighting force to counter them. I hope there is enough time before those Chaos Gods send their main force,'' William once again made his mind and prepared for future events that could bring destruction to this world. For one thing, there are no other factions such as Orks, Tau, Elder, or Tyranids, but that doesn''t mean they won''t end up finding this place through warp or interference from the Tzeentch''s eternal schemes. By early evening, William''s force made it to the Draphia. The city is famous for its production of clothing goods such as clothes, dyes of all colors, and even the finest craftsmanship of armors in the entire kingdom. For this reason, Draphia is also known as City of Colors for its unique products and specialty when it comes to clothing. Prince''s tailors are from this city as many skilled people practice their craftsmanship in this city (Prince left most of his noncombat personal back on Deron to provide support to two armies). As William''s army approaches the city wall, many defense forces from Draphia position themselves to defend potential invaders. But they didn''t attack and began opening the main gate when they saw one of the banners William''s army was carrying. The royal family''s flag, the Crown Prince''s, ease the tension of the Draphia as they realized the military was part of the Crown Prince''s escort. "Crown Prince, we expected your arrival with Sir Dolven and Duchess Beckett two days ago. May I ask where Sir Dolven is and who are those men escorting you?" Viscount Lindver welcomed Prince Benton and the rest as he came out of the city wall to greet members of the royal family. "There are many things we have to discuss regarding my delays, but for now, let me introduce you to a man who helped us. This is William, Paladin of the God-Emperor and commander of the finest army. William, this is Viscount Zachary Lindver; he governed Draphia and four other towns as his family did for many generations." Prince Benton introduced Viscount Lindver to William. But to the prince''s and other''s surprise, the viscount wasn''t fazed but welcomed William as if he already knew who he was. "Ah yes, William the Giant. I heard of your achievement through my uncle, Tom Lindver. You saved my uncle from the bandit''s ambush and escorted his entire merchant convoy to Greenhill. You have my thanks, and I welcome you as my guest of honor, including Crown Prince and the Duchess. Welcome to Draphia, the City of Colors.." Viscount Lindver welcomed William and everyone as citizens of Draphia gave heroes'' welcome with cheers and flower petals in the air. Chapter 37 - Last Dinner Guest The Draphia, City of Colors, welcomes the Crown Prince and the rest of the heroes as they march through the main street with cheers. Prince Benton and the Duchess rode their horses since Viscount Lindver provided the mount after realizing VIPs were in rough shape. Meanwhile, William and his two personal guards (One Space Marine and one Tech Marine) follow the VIPs on foot. There was no need to ride a horse since their superhuman physical traits allow them to match the pace or outrun them; no horse could carry a fully equipped Space Marine due to their weight. Keeping his promise and following the city''s protocol, William left his army outside the city with Sergeant Space Marine in charge until William returned. Thanks to the helmet''s short-range radio, William can communicate with his army and his bodyguards if it is needed. As for the army, they immediately set up the camps and guard positions, making sure there was no weakness from possible attack. Half of the Catachan Jungle Fighters disappeared into the forest to which no one was able to find out what they are up to as they merged into shadow. When the group arrived at the Viscount''s castle, they were welcome again with many servants and minor nobles. A particular group of servants caught William''s attention as he recognized the Crown Prince''s servants and head butler, Mr. Jon. William was already aware that Prince Benton left most workers back at Deron but retained his servants when they left the city a few days ago. Sir Dolven and his knights bought enough time for non-combatants to escape when Kharak''s Warband ambushed them. "Mr. Jon and the rest of the servants arrived this morning. They were tired and exhausted, but Mr. Jon managed to inform me of the ambush, which I immediately began gathering forces to send tomorrow morning. Imagine my surprise when city guards alert the entire city for a possible siege after hearing the news." Viscount Lindver explains to Prince Benton as Crown Prince''s face brightens up after seeing his close friends survived the ambush. The reunion was tearful as Mr. Jon, and the rest of the servants cried with joy and swore never to leave Prince Benton ever again. Even Mia and the Duchess wipe a small tear from their eyes while servants of other nobles admire Prince''s servants'' will and noble strength. On the other hand, William and his two battle-brothers were stone faces as they didn''t felt any emotion. This realization was a bit weird for William as he knows the circumstance of the situation, but his mind refuses to express any sad emotion for some reason. ''Strange, I''m not feeling any sad emotions at all. This also happened when I found about the destruction of Greenhill and the death of Sir Dolven. Am I losing my humanity?'' William thought to himself while he hides his face behind the helmet. One thing for sure, William has more questions than answers as he stays in this world. A few minutes later, the reunion ended with Mr. Jon, and other servants reposition themselves as personal servants of Crown Prince with professionalism and composure. The residents of the castle and minor nobles welcome the Crown Prince and his companions as they entered the castle with Viscount''s servants taking each VIP into their rooms. When it is William''s turn, the servants ?ssumed he was one of the knights of Crown Prince since William and two Space Marines were fully armored from top to bottom. For this reason, they were escorted to a lesser room suitable for lesser nobles or knights. William didn''t mind the downgrade since he preferred privacy so he could think about the current situation. The two battle-brothers simply refused the room and stood guard in front of the door, making sure no one could disturb the Emperor''s Champion. Thanks to two Balck Templars, William has peace and quiet to organize his thoughts, including Sir Dolven''s loss. William considered Sir Dolven a friend and mentor to this world''s knowledge. The death of a significant person such as him is painful and a massive loss as Sir Dolven was a prominent ally of William in this kingdom. The loss of Sir Dolven would mean a power vacuum within the nobility, including an investigation and possible blame game which could result in death. William now has to start playing the political game of this world if he wants to start building forces for the upcoming Chaos. Of course, William could take over the kingdom with the force he has and subjugate the people, but this would only waste his time which he doesn''t have. The support from Crown Prince and the Duchess are essential to have as they have the heart of the people and influences to move nobles loyal to the crown. Suppose William does obtain the Deron and the Fort Stormfist. In that case, William can focus on building more forces and firepower from defending the region from the remaining vampire factions and Orc raiders from the southern border. William''s thoughts were interrupted when he heard the knock from his door. William stands up and opens the door to see a very nervous man with fancy blue clothes standing between two Black Templars giving death stares through their helmets. "Sir William, Viscount Zachary Lindver request your presence in the main dining hall to attend dinner with Crown Prince and the Duchess." The messenger delivers the message to William best he could while nearly wetting his pants as two Black Templars stay silent and continue to unleash the presence of death itself onto poor fellow. "I accept and will be there shortly. Please wait outside for few minutes." William said and closed the door to change his into formal clothes. After a quick change of clothes (Thanks to inventory and equipt ability), William left his room with a messenger, quickly leading the giant man and two other giant kights following them to the diner hall. William and his battle-brothers arrive at the dining hall entrance, to which a messenger knocks on the door to announce William''s entrance. When the door open, William entered the hall while two dozen nobles and servants silently watch the giant man walk past them, breaking all types of protocols and etiquette in front of Crown Prince, Viscount, and the Duchess. William passed everyone at the long table and took the seat next to the Duchess seated across Viscount Lindver. Meanwhile, two Black Templars follow William and stand few feet behind him while scanning the room for potential ?ssassins. Crown Prince and the Duchess smiled in silence but decided to help William with awkward room silence. "William, you have to introduce yourself to Crown Prince," Duchess Beckett whisper to William so the dinner can officially begin. "Oh, ok," William whisper back to the Duchess and turn his head to Crown Prince, and spoke out loud. "Hey, kid. Sorry for coming in late. It looks like I was holding everyone from their dinner plates.." The entire room gasps with shock except for the Crown Prince and the Duchess as they couldn''t hold back their laugh anymore, confusing every noble even more. Chapter 38 - The Neighboring Kingdom "You uncivilized barbarian. How dare you speak vulgarly in front of Crown Prince and Duchess of Agrus! How can you present yourself as a noble?" One of the nobles in the table a few seats away shouts at William after recovering from the initial shock. Many guests, including servants (Except for Crown Prince''s), whispers to each other as they just witnessed the rude behavior towards Crown Prince. William was supposed to introduce himself to Prince Benton and request permission to take a seat. Also, bringing fully armed followers is considered an act of rebellion, especially in the same room with the royal family. It makes sense if William thinks about it for a second, but to him, it doesn''t matter as he was sitting next to two friends, not high-ranking nobles or royal family members. "Sorry if I was rude and all, but I''m not a noble. I''m an adventurer hired to help them out with vampire problem." William explains the misunderstanding and quickly signals two battle-brothers to remain still. The two Black Templars were ready to draw their bolter pistols and unleash the punishment, but after seeing the signal from their Champion, they remain where they are. "An adventurer? My lord, how can we have a mere peasant be present in this hall? Guards, remove them at once!" A second noble gave an order to make the entire situation much worse as William''s battle-brothers are about to end their tiny lives. Before blood could be spilled, Prince Benton halts the guards and stands up from his seat to announce. Crown Prince''s action silence everyone in the room once again. As for two Black templars paused their action thanks to William once again signaling them to stand by for further instruction. "Lords and ladies of Draphia. I''m aware that my companion William doesn''t hold noble titles similar to you all. But, I have to remind you all that he saved my life multiple times during the military campaign and earned my trust as a friend." Crown Prince spoke with emphasis and firmly, which surprised everyone. For the nobles of Draphia, there was no arrogance or ignorance of the next heir of the crown, but rather the presence of veteran warriors in front of them. "Of course, your highness, it seems some of us made a mistake due to lack of information. William, please forgive our rudeness. I will personally take responsibility for their actions as highest lord in Draphia." Viscount Lindver apologizes to William, which he quickly accepts to reduce the tension, especially two very murder-hungry Black Templars standing behind him. With the end of ''misunderstanding,'' the head butler of Viscount claps his hands to begin dinner. Many maids serve various dishes while footmen pour drinks to empty cups of each guest. William is aware of multiple dishes served during dinner but not familiar with how to conduct himself to eat different types of food. Thankfully, Rana (Duchess Beckett) quickly takes the initiative on each meal so William can copy her second after. There were eight-course meals that started with soup and ended with sweet desserts such as puddings and fruits. William had no problem finishing each meal and drinks as he receives new information from each meal and immune to alcohol (Space Marines are can easily consume poison and obtain knowledge from the food). When dinner is finally over, and most of the nobles excuse themselves to retire. The leading group William, Crown Prince, the Duchess, and Viscount, also left the dining hall to the Viscount''s study to continue their tales of the previous war and the vampire campaign. As for the two battle-brothers, William places them outside of the door to continue their ''guard'' duty. "William, I know you are an adventurer, but I''m still boggled by how you became a commander of personal military force. The giant black knights, high-quality equipment, and men under your command, I need to know the truth. Who are you?" Viscount Lindver asked William with curiosity as he wants to know William''s true identity. Prince Benton and the Duchess already know William''s answer to the question but open their ears to learn new information. "Well, as you know, I''m William and an adventurer of Greenhill, but I''m also a servant of God-Emperor, the Master of Mankind. I''m his Champion which I believe is equal or greater to the Paladin. For the men under my command, they are also servants of God-Emperor, and black knights are my battle-brothers who sworn same oath just like me." William carefully explains his background and avoids the potential spread of chaos or misunderstanding. For these reasons, William decided to pursue the religious path since it is easier for natives of this world to understand (The Emperor''s Champion = Paladin). "I see. Prince Benton already told me about your achievements and how you stopped the daemons during the Battle of Stormfist. As I trust his highness''s words, I will believe you. I hope you will do the same when the time comes." Viscount Lindver easily accepts the legitimacy of the religion and William. For many generations, Lindver noble family followed the royal family and supported them. A single word from Crown Prince was enough for the nobleman to believe William''s tale and his accomplishments and compare the story from his uncle, who was saved by a giant man with black armor many weeks ago. The conversation continued with Prince Benton''s tale of battles, victory dinner after the campaign, and new guns that could be a potential new weapons project for him when he comes back home. The Duchess also agrees with the young prince''s d?s?r? to start a new weapon project as she saw the effectiveness of the rifles and Vollet Cannons. If the Kingdom of Alderim could manufacture the new weapons and train the soldiers to be efficient, neighboring kingdoms will think twice before invading Alderim again. When Prince Benton mentions the capital city, Viscount Lindver''s facial expression changed as if he has bad news to deliver. With her sharp perception, the Duchess of Agrus was the first to saw the sudden change of emotion from the host nobleman. "Is there something you want to tell us? I can tell you have great weight on your shoulder," Rana asked the host, to which William and Prince Benton turn their attention to the Viscount. After a quick second of silence, Viscount decided to spill the bean right after taking a quick sip of his drink. With heavy breath Zachary Lindver, the Master of the Draphia explains his concern to the Crown Prince of Alderim. "Your highness, before the beginning of tonight''s dinner, I received the message from the Royal Court that emissary of Legellan arrived today. They will meet with your father tomorrow and discuss a possible alliance with Alderim." Viscount explained to Prince Benton and gave a piece of paper he received to prove he was telling the truth. Reading what was written in the paper, Prince Benton crushes the message and throws his drink at the fireplace. The alcohol sets the fire and brightens the study for a second before it calms down. William, who is confused by the Crown Prince''s reaction, turns to ask Rana. But when he did, he saw the same bitterness and anger from the Duchess, just like Prince Benton. Seeing there is no way to get an answer from two commanders, William turns to Viscount, to which he quietly explains the situation. "Three years ago, Alderim was invaded by the neighboring kingdom, Legellan. We won the war, but it was costly, and we lost several towns from the invading forces. Just a day before the Legellan declaration of war, they publicly executed our ambassador and former Crown Prince, who was visiting the embassy. They killed our first prince, Prince Benton''s older brother, for the false accusation of the ?ssassination attempt of King of Legellan''s life.." Viscount''s explanation helped William understand the situation as he foresaw a new problem when they make it to the capital city. Chapter 39 - It must be Tzeentch Since MC received various items, summons, and abilities, I made a complete list. I will also put ''Used'' next to the items to show that MC used that item currently. ''Items'' [Combat Knife x1] [Bolter Pistol x1] [Bolter Rifle x1] [Heavy Bolter x1] [Flamer x1] [Heavy Flamer x1] [Plasma Rifle x1] [Missile Launcher x1] [Powersword x1] [Thunder Hammer x1] [Retractable Lighting Claw x1] [Storm Shield x1] [Jump Pack x1] [Assult Bike x1] [Champion''s Armor with Black Sword x1] [Frag Grenade x Many] [Prometheus Gernade x Many] [Purity Seal: Champion of Living x1] [Purity Seal: Bane of Chaos x1] [Aegis Terminator Armour x1] [Gene Seed of Grey Knight x1] [Spark of Astronomican x1] ''Summon Items'' [Artillery Bombardment x1] Used [Penitent Engines x1] Used [Militarum Tempestus Scions x50] Used [Dreadnought x1] Used [Catachan Jungle Fighters x30] Used [Cadian Shock Troopers x150 with 10 Trucks] Used [Valkyrie Deployment x3 with 30 Imperial Guardsmen] [Land Raiders Crusader x1] Note: Please let me know if I missed anything else. ------------------------------------------------- "I will not accept this!" Prince Benton shouts with rage in his voice while the Duchess remains silent to process the information. Meanwhile, William and Viscount stand in the side and watch two commanders'' very different reactions. "I will personally meet the emissary of the Legellan and show them who was the victor of the war three years ago!" Crown Prince made his mind at the moment of the rage to which the Duchess got up from her chair and approached the prince. "Smack!" The Duchess''s hand slap the Crown Prince''s face, which stunned and stopped the prince''s rage tantrum. The room went silent, to which Prince Benton tries to recover from sudden pain in his right face. "As I understand your pain and suffering, we need to know more before barging into capital and go murder happy. If Legellan sent an emissary to talk of peace and alliance, then we have to find out what their intention is." The Duchess said true to her words, but William can tell she was holding her emotion back. The sudden burst of rage and destroying isn''t something royalty should do as it will show only the weakness of unable to control themselves and the situation. That is William''s job. "Let us return to our rooms and continue our conversation tomorrow with a fresh mind," William said to both Prince Benton and the Duchess, which both agree in silence while Viscount opens the door to show exist. When the door opened, and two Black Templars move to the side to make a path, both Prince Benton and the Duchess left the study room and went to their rooms separately without saying anything. William, who saw and felt the tension still looming around two young commanders. Before he heads out to his old room, Viscount summons a single footman by ringing a small bell. "William, please accept my apology for tonight''s dinner. It was unacceptable to treat Crown Prince''s gust the way minor nobles did tonight. Please follow the footman and he will show you your new room. Of course, your bodyguards will have their own next to yours." Viscount gave his sincere apologies to William and went separate ways to return to his room. As for William and his battle-brothers, follow the footman to his new room, which thankfully was the first floor and ample room. After showing William''s room, the footman tried to show two intimidating Black Templars to their rooms next to William''s. That didn''t work well as two Black Templars stood still in front of William''s room, guarding against any unwanted introducers and potential ?ssassins from the Chaos faction. To the Black Templars, Emperor''s Champion isn''t just an honorary position within ranks of the Space Marine but also highly esteemed through millennia of endless war and conflicts. Of course, it doesn''t mean Emperor''s Champion can outrank the Chapter Master of the Black Templar or other Space Marine chapters when it comes to chain of command. But as of now, William is the commanding battle brother due to his unique position and blessed one by the Emperor himself. After exploring the room, William didn''t sleep that night. Even though he saw the finest bed since he came to this world, he didn''t bother laying there as he has multiple things in his mind and requires his attention. The introduction of Chaos gods and their puppets entering this world became more frequent. One after another, the Chaos gods are sending a small number of army and agents to test this world and how they will react. Worst, this could be happening globally, and William can''t stop all of them without any intel or base of operation. Thankfully, William is receiving small items such as summons and weapons to fight the local Chaos, but it is not enough. He needs a way to speed things up fast, and this means there will be a lot of bloodshed in the possible future. The more enemies William kills, the more loots he will acquire, and his army does the same, making them stronger and much more deadly. This means one thing for the Champion, and he needs to start a war, knowing exactly where to look for. ------------------------------------------------- William watches the sun rises from the window while consuming a tiny snack he got from his inventory. He found few possible paths to begin his war, and all of them are equivalent to war crime and crimes against humanity (Current UN standard). First, William could form a mercenary company with his current forces to wage war which sounds reasonable. After all, who wouldn''t pay at full price for a 100% victory guarantee? Second is taking a noble position within Crown Prince Benton''s kingdom and hold a region of lands while building number and influences. This path is more diplomatic and suitable for administrators and old nobles who want to rule and retire. This could mean William has to kneel to the local king, which is a big no to him and his battle-brothers. Sure, he is an average human in Space Marine''s body, but his perception of reality changed when he ends up possessing a body of Space Marine he created the night before coming to D&D world. Something is changing him, including his humanity and sympathy, and his personality starts to act somewhat of a military veteran. Lastly, the third option for William is to wage a crusade in this world. Like how Emperor united the Old Terra with his Thunder Warriors and embark on the Unification War, William can do what the Emperor did, just like in the novel. The problem is resistance from the local humans, other races, monsters, and the possibility of native deities interfering with William''s work. All three options are on the table and only require William to pick one at the end. Path of becoming soldiers of fortune, go native and serve the mortals of this world as one of them. Finally, becoming a conqueror of the new and old world just like how Emperor did. All these choices are very different, but the result will ensure and increase William''s fight against the Chaos faction. The question is how he will accomplish this without making serious mistakes or making the situation much worse. (Example such as Emperor failed his sons as they later failed him, William''s interference could expand the influence of the Chaos or the possibility that William is playing a dangerous game between gods of this world and Chaos) ''Well, for now, I have to wait and see how Alderim and Legellan will resolve their political matters. If anything goes wrong, I will jump in to help my friends, and if it gets worse then I will start shooting my bolter and see who stands afterward.'' With a light joke at the end, William turned around and left his room to meet his friends. He is sure their anger is now subsided by now, and they will have a much clear mind compare to last night. When they arrive at the capital, it will be a game of political mind and house of cards. Both Crown Prince and the Duchess will need to make plans to be one step ahead of Legellan''s emissary. After all, there is a possibility that this could be a game and schemes from Tzeentch himself. Image Marvel movie''s Doctor Strange with his time stone exploring infinite possibilities while irritating everyone else by asking them questions such as "What is destiny and how do we know all of us are alive?" or "How do we know we are not just a fish dying and thinking what the world is like?" Tzeentch is a complete mind blender and irritation to other Chaos gods and all mortals. Like how Slaanesh''s rival is Khorne, Tzeentch''s is Nurgle, the plague god, the master of decay, death, despair, and destruction. William knows he will soon face either Tzeentch or Nurgle, and by the sound of the situation he is about to face in the capital, he is sure it will be Tzeentch. For this reason, William is determined not to get mixed with Tzeentch''s twisted mind game and solve the issue with good old fashion chainsword and bolter rounds. William arrived at Prince Benton''s door. However, instead of knocking on the door, William burst through the room and shout with authority. "Wake up, you fool! You lacked discipline last night, and this means you need more training. I''m going to make you a formidable warrior by the time we make it to the capital!" Chapter 40 - The Crown Prince’s Trial Viscount Lindver was generous enough to give his carriage and additional supplies to William, so the Duchess and Mia coils travel at ease. The Duchess and Mia became close friends during the trip ever since Mia cared for them after the rescue from the Chaos Marine. William''s party left the City of Colors the day after the dinner party as dire news from the capital accelerated the schedule. It takes five days to travel from Draphia to the capital city. There are few small towns and guideposts on the road, but this doesn''t mean it is safe to travel alone as dangers roam most at night. The number of bandits and monster activities has increased since the war between Alderim and Legellan three years ago. Deserters of Legellan who couldn''t return home turned into bandits, while unchecked monsters during the war continued to raid and increase their numbers. With all these unknown dangers and rough roads ahead, for five days, Crown Prince of Alderim went through the toughest training in his lifetime. Ever since William burst through his chamber door, Prince Benton''s life went from internal suffering into physical and psychological devastation. Last time William was focused on training and preparing the army of the Alderim for the siege, but this time it is different. The Crown Prince is the sole focus of William, and he isn''t alone in training the little prince to become a warrior king. Day One: Sergeant from the Cadian Shock Troopers drilled Prince Benton''s body and mind the whole day. The goal of the infamous Cadian training wasn''t to break the physical body of the trainee but to demolish the current mindset and rebuild it like a fortress worthy of the name Cadia. Of course, this takes time when it comes to making a perfect Cadian soldier, but William''s goal wasn''t to make a Cadian soldier but a warrior strong enough to withstand potential danger from the Chaos. Day Two: Prince Benton''s next instructor is a lieutenant of the Tempestus Scions who taught Schola Progenium''s Art of War and Espionage. This not only helped the Crown Prince''s ability to lead and launch successful military plans but necessary to have a calm mind during dire situations. For this reason, five other Tempestus Scions attempt to ambush and ?ssassinate Prince Benton for his final trial (With four medics ready to bring the Crown Prince back to the world of the living when he fails.) Day Three: For two days, Prince Benton went through survival and escaped training from the infamous Imperial Guardsmen known for Death World of Catachan and the deadliest jungle warfare in the galaxy. Sergeant of the Catachan Jungle fighters dragged the poor prince and disappeared entirely after a few words with William. Catachan Jungle Fighters are known for many things, and being a weakling isn''t one of them as each jungle fighter went through a baptism of fire by surviving one night on their planet. Another thing the Catachan are known for is their master-crafted Catachan Fighting Knives, to which Orks of the 40k seek them as prized weapons from the ''Humies.'' Day four: Somewhere in the woods, surviving. Day Five: Prince Benton and Sergeant return before breakfast with multiple minor cuts and dirty uniforms but show dramatic changes, especially his eyes. After breakfast, William gathered everyone to announce Prince Benton''s final test before entering the capital region. With a makeshift fighting pit, Crown Prince and single Black Templar entered the pit with no weapons or armor. The two fighters began their fight with the sound of a lasgun shot in the air. Black Templar (No power armor or weapons) initiated the first attack by throwing the first punch at the prince. With a quick jab, the punch went for the opponent''s face which the prince blocked with both of his arms but the power and strength of the Black Templar pushed him to the edge of the pit on his knee. "Ahhhh!" Shouting in all his might, the prince kicked his right leg at Black Templar''s face as the Space Marine didn''t return to his stance from the previous attack. The kick made contact with Black Templar''s face, but it b?r?ly did anything as the prince felt pain and electricity running down on his leg. "Good kick but not enough," The giant warrior grabs the prince''s leg and lifts him as if the prince was made out of twigs. Black Templar slams the prince''s entire body onto the ground with no effort, making him faceplant. When lifted again, Prince Benton''s face was bloodied and b?r?ly recognizable due to his injuries. Just as Black Templar was about to repeat his previous attack, the prince who was still conscious opened his one eye and threw the sand from his closed fist at Black Templar''s eyes. The sand hit the Black Templar''s eyes and blinded him, but he endured the sharp pain while not letting the leg go. Still dangling upside down, the prince kicked the Black Templar''s face with a free leg and freed himself while the opponent staggered back. Now freed from the opponent''s grasp, Prince Benton charged head-on, intending to bring down the giant warrior by attacking one of the knees. But with all the effort and planning, the prince failed to achieve this as Black Templar quickly recovered from the sand splash and caught a glimpse of the prince''s location. With his superior speed and reach, Black Templar punched the prince''s stomach at the right moment, instantly knocking him out from the fight. Immediately, two Cadian medics and one Tempestus Scions medic jump into action to check on the prince while Black Templar exits from the pit and regroup with the rest of the battle-brothers. "Sir, the prince is dead," One of the medics said to William while the Duchess, Mia, and the rest of the prince''s attendants began to panic. The Crown Prince died just outside of the capital region and it wasn''t to protect the innocents but from the training done by William. Many of the attendants, including a head butler and Mia began to cry in sorrow, but William remained silent. "Very well, bring him back," William gave his order in which two medics inject a serum and restart the prince''s heart. After a few shocks and patching the wounds, the prince returned to life as he took his first breath. "What¡­" Prince Benton couldn''t finish his sentence as medics continued their work. While this is happening, the Duchess wipes her tears and glares at William. After all, the prince''s death gave her her own version of heart attack and she didn''t expect William to go this far on training. "William, explain what just happened," The Duchess demanded the explanation from William, which he gave. "I already knew the prince''s chance of winning was near zero, but I had to see his result of the training. Of course, I also knew he could die from the fight, especially facing one of my battle-brothers in hand-to-hand combat. That is why I had the healers (Medic) ready the moment the prince fell and had enough resources to bring him back from the dead. Don''t worry since medics of the Cadia and Tempestus Scions are known for reviving the dead recruits from the dead multiple times during their training." William reassures angry lionesses and the rest of the attendants with an explanation of the prince''s ''resurrection.'' "But this means he failed your trial. Isn''t it? Mia asks William as she also wipes her tears. This question interested everyone as Prince Benton failed to win the fight against one of William''s finest warriors. "Failed? No, this trial wasn''t to see if the prince can win the fight against my battle-brother. The purpose of this trial was to see if he had what it takes to face death and survive. Well, he needs to work on ''surviving,'' but overall, he passed the trial." William said to everyone and joined the medics to see how the prince was doing. Others join the Emperor''s Champion to see the prince''s well-being, which to their surprise, he was able to stand up from the ground with two medics supporting him. "I failed you, William. I''m ready to redo the whole training once I recover from the injuries. I will not disappoint you again." Prince Benton swore with no hints of doubts as he said to William. Seeing the newfound testament from Prince Benton made William happy as the current prince is very different from the arrogant person he first met many days ago. "You didn''t fail anyone, Prince Benton, but you pass the trial and every training I throw at you. My troops and I recognize your tenacity and will to fight even in death. Your training isn''t over yet, but from now on, Black Templars will ?ssist you in your time of need and won''t be alone on the battlefield. The Emperor protects!" "The Emperor protects!" All of William''s troops repeat his last sentence as they all stand tall with the determination that could demolish any foe''s will. With that, Prince Benton''s training ended for now, and everyone began to make overnight camp. Tomorrow, William''s army will enter the capital city, and the battle of politics between Alderim and Legellan will begin. "Rest up tonight. You deserve a good night''s sleep," William said to the Crown Prince and slapped his back to cheer him up, but because William was wearing his power armor, Prince Benton received the full impact. It didn''t take much as Prince Benton, who is still b?r?ly alive, fell to the ground and stopped breathing. "He died again! Reviving once again, clear!" Black Templar who won the fight: [Plasma Rifle x1 and Heavy Bolter x1] William: [Summon Order (Commissar Ciaphas Cain) x1: One of the greatest heroes of the Imperium and rare individual who survived multiple conflicts with various Xenos races. Ciaphas Cain usually charges ahead with his troops to fight the enemy, earning great respect from many Imperial Guardsmen. However, unlike most Imperial commissars, Commissar Cain doesn''t readily sacrifice soldiers and shows a savage level of discipline for which many commissars were known for. Ciaphas Cain is responsible for countless successful campaigns during his military service and known for surviving multiple deadly conflicts that Imperium permanently marked him as ''Missing In Action..'' Commissar Ciaphas Cain equipped with a large chainsword and laspistol.] Chapter 41 - Relationship Problem "I understand what you are trying to do, but I disagree with your last approach with my cousin. You killed him twice for the kingdom''s sake. What would you have done if he didn''t come back from death itself? Did you take a chance with his life?" The Duchess of Agrus ask William as both of them took a little walk away from the main camp to have a private conversation. William understands why Rana is distraught after witnessing the Crown Prince''s trial. After all, Rana has a close relationship with her cousin as both of them had the same teacher and mentor, Sir Dolven. Also, there is the fact that Prince Benton is the next future king of her county, and William did kill him more than once. "You are right, I did take my chance with his training from the beginning, and the result was what I had hope for. Of course, I didn''t do all this without taking extra measures to make sure Prince Benton survives each training. But at the end of all this, Prince Benton persevered every obstacle and proven his might not just to me but everyone else, including my brothers." William explained his reasoning and the chance he took to ensure Crown Prince''s survival. After all, William was preparing the Crown Prince for potential Chaos invasion in case William fails. "I know this isn''t just proving his worth to you and your men. You have an ulterior motive for a while, and I waited enough. I want answers, NOW!" Rana, who now ran out of her patience, demands an answer and wants to hear an answer from the man she started to trust. Without any doubt, this time, Rana will get straight answers from William without his puzzling answer of ''It is Emperor''s will.'' Ever since joining the vampire campaign and meeting William, she experienced new things and supernatural events past month than her entire life. Especially when they were attacked by barbarians led by an armored man who has similar weapons and armor just like William. William takes the helmet off and holds it to his side. She directly looks at Rana as she glared back at him without any hint of backing out. William''s mind ran light-years as he asks himself multiple questions. Should he explain to her what is to come? The invasion that is beyond any mortal''s imagination and terror. William, a mear mortal from the ''real world'', is doing his best to prepare for an invasion that no one knows. These questions weigh him heavily more than his power armor. "There are forces, supernatural entities that are trying to come to this world. I can''t tell you their true names as they will have an anchor to this world but what I can tell you is that they are the eternal enemy of God-Emperor and the Imperium of Mankind." William did his best to explain what kind of force he and his army is facing. No names, no true nature of their existence, and any information that could give them the opportunity to grow roots like a weed. To minimize the influence on this world is, to say the least, an amount of information to natives. But William also knows this is how Emperor did to his sons by hiding the truth, which backfired, literally in his face. "Is that it? Enemies of your god are coming to my world, and that is your best explanation to me?" Rana was furious about William''s simple answer to her questions. How can she defend her country and her people from unknown enemies when a single person who has direct answers to defeat them isn''t telling jack shit? "I can''t say more. As I said, they will have the anchor to this world if I tell you who they are. If that happens, there will be no ways to remove their grips from this world and everyone you know." William''s explanation didn''t help much as Rana understood it differently. After all, her world has multiple deities, and some of them previously caused problems before, so supernatural invasion isn''t something new for Rana''s knowledge. "What about your god? The God-Emperor? Why doesn''t he directly handle his enemies like a true warrior you claim him to be? Isn''t he a god?" Rana asks William with frustration after hearing William''s stonewall answer. With everything, William told her about God-Emperor is true, then Emperor must be doing something to stop his enemies. "He is, and you are looking at it. I''m here to protect you, but Emperor can''t directly take action just like his enemies can''t. This fight is my burden, and it isn''t yours to be part of." The last sentence from Emperor''s Champion ends the discussion as William doesn''t want to push any further. The war between Chaos and Imperium indeed came to this world, but it doesn''t mean this has to stay here forever. William will find a way to push the Chaos and close every gap of warp that leads to this world, the only problem being if there is a way to seal the gaps. The Duchess didn''t say right away after William finish his last sentence. From her perspective, William declares that her help isn''t needed as she isn''t part of his religion. The religious movements are something Rana heard and saw plenty as various deities exist in this world. Some are gods or goddesses of something and tend to cause problems once every hundred years to which group of heroes or adventurers usually stops it. Still, those people need help from local lords, king or queen as logistics of the holy campaign are needed. William declines that significant help on his holy campaign to defeat some unknown evil gods and even told Rana to ''Backoff.'' Once again, there was a silence between William and Rana as both just stare at each other and wait for one of them to speak. William is doing his best to protect people who were kind to him in his known world. Rana is willing to help the Paladin of the Emperor on a holy mission to defeat evil gods. Finally, Rana spoke first, breaking the silence. "Then add me to your group. I don''t belong to any particular religion, so if I convert to your religion, then I will have all my questions answered, and you will have my help, problem solved." Rana''s answer surprised even William as he didn''t expect to hear the change of religion from her. Yes, this will somewhat solve the current problem, but it doesn''t mean it won''t come back to haunt William in some ways. What if Rana goes complete Sisters of Battle against Chaos and ends up getting killed? Or worse, what if she joins the Chaos after learning Emperor''s lore and history of Imperium? If Tzeentch is genuinely messing with William, this is it for sure. "I¡­ I will think about it. For now, I will hold your request for religious conversion until further notice. Until you become a full-pledged member, you won''t get any answers to your questions. Please be patient and let us handle local political problems first." William somehow redirected the topic of the sudden religious recruit and put on his helmet back on. While Rana is somewhat satisfied with the temporary solution, William has more questions on what will happen if a native of this world gains knowledge of a completely different world''s religion. William sends the Duchess back to the camp first with the excuse of wanting to be alone to think further. When the Duchess finally went away, William stands alone as the calm wind blew away gently. Turning his head to his left and right, William finally said to himself through his helmet. "You may come out," Second later, two Tempestus Scions came out from the shadows of the trees. Living up to their elite status, they killed their presence and guarded William against any potential enemy, even from an internal one. "The area is secured, and everyone is ready to move them the moment you give the command. I sent two others to follow the Duchess back to camp in case anything happens to her, including a sudden change of heart," One of the Scion reported to William, including sending escorts to the Duchess, which William wasn''t aware of. ''Damn, there were four of them? I didn''t saw the other two from my helmet sensor.'' "Good, we will be arriving at Prince Benton''s home tomorrow, but I want to make sure there isn''t any surprise for us. Pass the order to Catachan Jungle Fighters to send 5 of their best scouts to check areas, including the border between Alderim and Legellan. I have a feeling there is more to this alliance of two kingdoms." William gave his order to which the second Scion immediately went on radio to pass the order. With new order given and William had enough for the night, he and two Scions return to camp. The silence welcomes William, but he knows at least a dozen eyes are watching the perimeter for any unwelcome guests. Knowing the coming of tomorrow''s political game, William went to his spot to relax, which is a large tree big enough to support his back. The night continues without any incident as William closed his eyes and forced himself to sleep. The darkness quickly consumed his mind, and William fell asleep. But to his surprise, he was standing in a garden with two chairs and a table in the middle, sitting on one of the chairs, a mysterious entity covered in the light signals William to take a seat. "William, come and sit with me. I wanted to meet you ever since the other one met you." The mysterious figure happily welcomes William as it prepares snacks on the table. "Who are you? What do you mean the other one?" William asks the mysterious figure as he takes the chair to sit. There was no sense of bad intent coming from the figure, and William can tell he was in a safe place for some reason. "Sorry, it''s been ages since I talk to anyone new.. You can call me Numen, but you know me as Star Child, the soul of the Emperor of Mankind, and I''m here to help you with your relationship problem." Chapter 42 - The Talk "Just bang her already," Numen (Star Child) said to William with both hands raised to express his frustration. After hearing a simple sentence from Numen, William was shocked and confused as he didn''t expect to hear this from the soul fragment of the Emperor. "...What?" William asked with a simple word after processing what he just heard, which took him half a minute to respond. "Did I stutter? I said bang her. You know, lock and load your bolter so you can do the dirty deeds. I mean, I can''t be more clear on cementing two people who are attracted to each other. What are you expecting? An Inquisitor suddenly appears out of nowhere and accuse of heresy?" Numen explains again to William with an expression of disappointment. Even though his face is shiny with light, William could tell Star Child was making a face of looking at the simpleton. Once again, William was shocked and baffled by what he is experiencing as a fan of Warhammer 40k. "Are you sure you are not some schemes from Tzeentch or Slaanesh''s trick? Because I didn''t expect to hear s?x advice from you." William is now suspicious of this encounter. After all, the last time he talked to a higher being was when he died and was almost dragged into the 40k universe by four Chaos Gods. "Don''t compare me to those foolish beings called ''Gods.'' Tzeentch is nothing but a disturber of the universe with his tentacle fingers, and Slaanesh is overpriced STDs with extra steps. I mean, who in the right mind within the celestial world would touch that? Not even Tyranids would eat her after actually thinking what they are about to consume." Numen''s voice shows a great expression of disgust and strong disapproval. Comparing the entities of exaggerated emotions from the Warp or Immaterium to Emperor (His soul) is just insulting. "Ok, ok, sorry. I just didn''t expect to hear that from the soul of the Emperor to Space Marine about birds and the bees," Black Templar Champion said to Star Child with an apologetic voice. "I understand what you mean, but you are not truly Adeptus Astartes, aren''t you?" This shocked William, and he went defensive as he got up from his chair. "What do you mean not a true Space Marine? I''m a member of the Black Templar Chapter." William did his best to act like a Black Templar he knows of from the books and lore. If his true identity is discovered, there is no telling how gods of this world or 40k would react. Not to mention limits they will go to obtain information from William''s head. "I knew you were not who you appear to be the moment I saw you. If a real Black Templar saw me, he would either go for his bolter pistol and shot me or bow down depending on if he knew who I am." Numen''s explanation and reasoning made sense to William. He was too relaxed with his act as Astartes since natives of D&D don''t know what Astartes is. "Does the other four knows who I''m? I already met them twice, and I''m not sure if they can read my mind or see through my soul." William asks Star Child if he already gave his true identity away. Next time he meets them, and if they know who he is, the intel they could gain from his mind could change everything, not just the 40k universe but the world of D&D as well. "They can''t read your mind or see the soul from your body. You are an anomaly even for my standard. You are completely cut away from the road of fate, from this (D&D) or the other world (40k). Tzeentch himself can''t foresee who you really are or able to manipulate your destiny, not to mention finding where you are. Of course, this means they will do everything in their power to kill you or, worse, bring you to their side." Numen answered one of William''s major questions ever since he encountered Chaos Gods from the lumberjack camp. According to Numen''s information, William is under the Chaos Gods'' radar, but this doesn''t mean he is immune to their powers or influences. At least Tzeentch won''t be able to mess with William''s natural fate or change them to his advantage. Still, it won''t hurt to have few bolters rounds to solve his problems when they send their servants at him in the short future. "This only applies to you and only you. So, they won''t find you if you travel alone, but if you have a company, that is a different story entirely." Numen made clear that William is invisible but only if he is alone. Since William is traveling with many people from both worlds, Chaos Gods are certainly tracking William and scheming for the next move to screw him over. "Is that mean they know I''m talking to you right now? After all, they are tracking me right now." William points the obvious question to the Star Child, but Numen shakes his head. "No. For one, I''m not an amateur. Do you really think I would let those parasites listen to our conversation? They also have the problem of playing an away game, to a certain point of view." This answer confused William, which is understandable for Numen since it is beyond the knowledge of mortals. "Let me explain the way you can understand. Those four idiots can''t fully use their powers in this world or interact properly due to different rules already established before them. In the Realm of Chaos, those four parasites place themselves as rulers of certain emotions when they gain enormous psychic powers from the material universe. But here, those emotions and positions are already taken by the gods of this world, and there isn''t enough to go around for invasive species." Numen explained best he could to William simply as possible. To a certain level, William understands Chaos Gods'' situation and how much they struggle to invade this world. D&D already has three dozen of deities from lesser to greater, not to mention Ao, the Overgod of all gods. The source of their power are natives of this world, so for the Ruinous Powers to draw the strength, they need to also draw from natives or bring it from their home turf (which takes great effort and limited). It is a New World for Chaos Gods, and the New World already has nations, rulers, and laws established long ago. It is an invasion in celestial proportion, and for once, Chaos Gods are at a disadvantage even with their combined effort. "I''m already aware of their goal ever since I met their forces. I faced the forces of Slaanesh and Khorne and won. I''m already halfway from victory against Ruinous Powers." William put his right fist on his ?h?st proudly as he can. But this only made Numen laugh uncontrollably as he bangs the table with his hand. "Hahahaha, you think you made a difference by winning against few scouts? Until now, you fought nothing but few daemons and one Chaos Marine. The main forces of Chaos will come and eventually establish a stronghold unless you get your head out of your ?ss." Numen said to William with a serious look and gave a dire warning to which made William rethink his ???ky attitude. Numen continues without giving William a chance to defend himself. "Ruinous Powers are sending their forces through multiple warp tears in this world. Eventually, all of them will heal themselves like small cuts except one. The last one is big that it requires surgical hands to close it. You need to exterminate every last influence of the Chaos and close the warp tear that connects the two worlds. Like Eye of Terror and Cadia, except you can''t fail." The last one really put pressure on William. He knew he has to stop the upcoming invasion, but the size and consequence of the final conflict are beyond his imagination. The faith of the two worlds depends on him, and he just realized he had bitten more than he could chew. William paused himself from speaking his mind, to which Numen understood what was going through fake Space Marine''s mind. Star Child isn''t sure who indeed possesses Black Templar''s mind and body, but he knows he could be a great ?sset against the war on Ruinous Powers. That is if he can endure the struggles and roadblocks ahead of him in the short future. "I think I know what I need to do. You gave me enough clues as to what to do against Chaos. I will do what I can and find the tear between reality; I hope I can figure out how to close the damn thing by then." William ?ssures the Star Child and puts his helmet back on (It is rude to have a civilized conversation with his helmet). Witnessing strong will from William, Numen smiled as if he knew he could trust the anomaly in front of him. After all, this is an unusual situation and it requires very unique tools to fix the problem. Not to mention there is something familiar about this one. The way William presents himself and talks reminded Numen of the Old Era before the Age of Technology. Needless to say, Star Child is glad to have refreshing conversations ever since he separated from his main body all those millennia ago. "Well, you convinced me from possessing your body for a ride. I''m sure you will be able to push against Chaos itself in the end. Also, take this for your lady friend. Don''t worry, it''s safe¡­ for a human," Star Child summon a single golden feather out of his hand and gave it to William. William examines the feather carefully before storing it in his inventory. The golden feather gave off illumination similar to when he resurrected as Emperor''s Champion. "Now, with everything in order, it is time for you to go back. Just make sure you don''t show that feather to a certain living saint if you ever meet her. She will kill me for taking one of her feathers." Star Child giggles menacingly and sends away William with the snap of his finger. When the Black Templar disappears from the higher plane to the material world, Star Child took a small sip from his drink and sigh, releasing stress from his shoulder. "If Ruinous Powers nor other me didn''t send him, then who could have done this? Who in the right mind and motives would place mortal soul into one of my Adeptus Astartes?" Star Child said to himself as he prepares for the upcoming event that will shake the two worlds.. The result of the celestial war will change the balance of both Immaterium and the material world, just like how War in Heaven did eons ago. Chapter 43 - The Gift [Feather of Saint Celestine x1: A small feather from one of the Saint Celestine''s wings. This legendary item generates a blinding light that can harm the minor creatures of Chaos when they are near. The Feather of Saint Celestine can grant a miracle to whoever possesses this item as long as the user''s intention is genuine and willing. Note: This item can only grant one single miracle and will disappear] ''Shit, you got to be kidding me,'' William said to himself after checking his inventory to check if his minor dimensional meeting with Star Child actually happen. Aside from learning new revelation of multiple warp tears and his invisibilities from four Chaos Gods, William is more shocked by what he received from Soul of the Emperor. ''A freaking miracle and area damage to minor Chaos creatures? Damn, I kinda a wish I could keep this instead of giving it to an angry lioness.'' The thought of powerful wishes and potential advantages came to William. He could wish for Imperator-Class Titan that has enough firepower to blast the entire fortress to the crater or an Emperor-Class Battleship, a gigantic spaceship that could lunch planetary bombardment from the orbit and have enough ordinates to execute Exterminatus on the planet. ''It is so tempting¡­ but I have a feeling this is a trick. Numen told me to give this to her, knowing that he knows what I can do with this. That means either Numen is testing me or knows this feather will help Rana in the future. Damn, I really really want titan under my command.'' William thought to himself and went over the cons and pros of his options. Ultimately, he decided to go with the flows and make the ''right choice.'' ''Fuck it. After this whole political shit is done, I''m going to hunt down giants and see if I can get at least Warhound-Class Titan.'' With the final decision made, William closes his inventory to see the surrounding environment. The sky is still dark, and nothing is changed as most people were still sleeping (Except for guards). William checked the time from his helmet to find out that only a minute passed before he went to sleep. This means his entire conversation with Star Child, which lasted one hour, was less than 60 seconds in the real world. Seeing no changes, William decided to go back to sleep with no interruption from higher beings bothering him. ----------------------------- Five Hours Later, William didn''t need to have a five-hour sleep as his body is built to require only an hour or two and could last weeks without any sleep during combat. But as a normal human being, William loves the peaceful sleep process and waking up full of energy which reminds him of his old life. The morning began with loud noise as many of the troops move around the camp. Some of them start making breakfast while others began packing tents and sleeping bags. Few of the soldiers check the vehicles for maintenance checks, including fuel levels. With soldiers doing everything like a well-oiled machine, William got up from his tree and joined the group after quick washing from the nearest water bucket. The breakfast was uneventful, and everyone native to this world was eager to arrive at the capital. Meanwhile, most of William''s troops weren''t excited as they rather be on the battlefield than mix with some small political game. But this allows them to have more leisure personal time and enjoy decent meals provided by Catachan Jungle Fighters. Before convoys resume the final trip to the capital, William decided to have a private talk with the Duchess. William doesn''t know if he will have another chance to have a one-on-one moment with her when they make it to the capital. After all, she is royalty, and there won''t be any room to have an honest discussion with all the court rules and stuff. "William, did you decided to have me as one of you? If my cousin can pass your test, you know I can pass it as well." Rana is the one who starts the conversation the moment they have some privacy. William didn''t answer immediately but once again remove his helmet to have face to face. "I''m sure you could, but I didn''t bring you to talk about that. I want to give you this since you mentioned my god last night. I hope you will accept this and reconsider what you said last night. Let me do what I must do while you handle the situation in the capital and other nations." William said to Rana and pull out the Feather of Saint Celestine from his inventory (While pretending to pull it out from one of his belt pouches). The feather didn''t glow any light, but pure white and golden feather were enough to dazzle anyone, including the Duchess. "Where did you get this? It''s beautiful," Rana covers her mouth and is about to take the feather from William but stops herself as she paused to admire the beauty. "Well, let''s just say I had a little visit from home last night," William explained it to the Duchess and quickly gave the feather. He isn''t used to giving gifts to a girl, especially a girl who expresses herself freely and can duke it out with daemons on the battlefield. "You sure I can have this? This feather gives me a strange but present feeling. It''s like I can fight non-stop and enjoy the beauty of life itself." Rana gave a small protest but showed great appreciation for a gift she received from William. Ever since she reached ''of age'', many suitors approach her and her father for hands in marriage with various gifts as a tribute. Many tried but failed, from treasures ?h?sts to beautiful clothes as those didn''t attract Rana''s attention. But this single feather from William was different. It is remarkable and important to William, and he gave it to her as a gift that touched Rana''s heart a little bit (More than little, as Rana, doesn''t want to admit yet). "Yes, I want you to have this feather. Just remember not to lose it or give to anyone as it have a special property." William quickly said to Rana and didn''t give much description of the feather. When the time comes, William will tell her the wish ability, but he will only tell her about protection against minor daemons of Chaos. "What kind of special property? Is this mean something for your culture?" Rana asks with curiosity the moment she heard what William said. She doesn''t know much about William when it comes to culture and how things work in his world, but it seems feather has importance behind it. "Well¡­" William was about to tell her about the first property within Feather of Saint Celestine, that was until he heard radio chatter and the sound of lasguns fired in the distance. William immediately put on his helmet to find out what is going on as he didn''t expect any trouble so close to the capital. "Status report, what is going on?" Willam didn''t immediately receive the report, but after four seconds of silence, someone reports back through the vox-caster (Imperial radio transceiver). "Brother Champion, we encountered moderate size of Orks in the distance. The guardsmen are handling the situation as they don''t seem to be much of a challenge. The convoy will be ready the moment you return back to camp." One of the Black Templar report back to William regarding of situation. William turns around to tell Rana about the orc attack on the convoy when suddenly a band of orcs appear out of nowhere and surround William and the Duchess. ''No shit.'' William thought to himself as he pulls out his power sword and bolter pistol while Rana draws her sword to fight orc ambush. ----------------------------- "Since when did orcs use teleportation magic?" The Duchess said to William as she slays one of the orcs who blindly attacks her. Even though these are standard fantasy orcs, they still are dangerous and deadly to normal humans. "I have no idea, but I believe this isn''t some random orc attack. I think someone sent them to wipe us out before reaching the capital." William said to the Duchess as he cleve two orcs'' heads in one swing and immediately turn around to fire his bolter pistol to put down three other orcs. A total of 15 orcs appeared out of nowhere and ambushed two humans. But, unknown to these foolish orcs, they end up doing the opposite of the very thing they were sent to do, killing. Quickly the number of orcs decreases as William and the Duchess slay one after another. Just about four orcs remind in the field, William saw a single life form detected from his radar in the distance. Without giving a second thought, William shot three orcs and swiftly change his weapon. With a bolter rifle in his hand, William changes his direction and aim; half a second later, he fired his weapon and hit the target, so he thought. With the Duchess killing the last orc, William rush to the location where the target was. When he arrived, there was nobody except the destroyed tree from the bolter round. Rana catches up to William and looks around to see what William was looking for. "Did you saw another orc here?" Rana asks giant Black Templar as he stares at the ground. "No. Whatever it was, it escaped before I could hit it. It seems this one managed to escape using the same method as to how orcs appeared out of nowhere." William said to Rana as he went to his knee to check the ground. "How do you know he or she escaped using the same method of magic?" "Because the ground is scorched with burned grass and dirt as if something scalding suddenly hit the ground." William shows the hand full of black burned dirt to Rana. "It seems someone doesn''t like us very much, not to mention taking extreme measures to use orcs as a tool of ?ssassination. This changes things." William said to the Duchess as he got up and radioed his troops to start the convoy. After giving the order, William summons his ?ssault bike and signals the Duchess to hop on. "The ?ssassin will try again before we make it to the capital.. So we are going fast, fast enough to give the ?ssassin no chance at all." Chapter 44 - Knight Lord of the Metal Before coming to the New World, William never drove a motorcycle or owned one before. The closest thing to riding anything on his own was his bicycle, which he used until his college year. There was no reason to have personal transportation as a city kid unless traveling outside the city limit or having enough money to buy one for a personal hobby. William is currently going near the max speed as he is speeding through the vast field on his ?ssault bike while the Duchess hugs William in the back. William already radios his troops to follow and eliminate anyone or anything until they regroup at the capital. That is after the Crown Prince fails to convince anyone who blocks their way to the city. "Are we sure it''s a good idea to leave them and come to the capital first?" The Duchess finally asks William after he slows down his bike after an hour of pure speed. "They are fine. I pity anyone who goes against my brothers and soldiers. You can''t imagine how bored they are and eager to fight something to have a good day." William points out the obvious thing about his troops which the Duchess believes to be very accurate after witnessing what they were capable of. "By the way, I think we are here," William stops his bike as they reach the top of the hill to see the large city with high walls and traffic of people going in and out. The capital city wasn''t as grand as William thought, but it was big and wide enough to house tens of thousands of people. The main wall is as immense as the walls of Fort Stormfist, and from the top of the hill, William could see various types of buildings from houses to fancy buildings that look important. At the edge of the west side, another section of the wall protects a unique tower which William guessed to be a wizard''s tower of sorts as his helmet gave off warning of unknown energy signature. "That is the Scholar''s Pillar where wise wizards and mages conduct research and experiments. They also teach many of the children of high nobles and members of the royal family." The Duchess saw the direction William was staring, so she explained the tower he was looking at. The Scholar''s Pillar and its researchers made a few history-changing breakthroughs such as new ways to imbue runes, the discovery of celestial bodies, research of ancient civilization, and of course, the discovery of the first black powder (Gunpowder). "I see, so they are the teachers and scholars of the ivory tower. I would like to meet the one who invented the black powder," William said to Rana and quietly scanned the city once more. After finishing the ''admiration'' of the view of the city, William and the Duchess descended from the hill and went back on the road, heading towards the main city gate. When the ?ssault bike approaches the main road, many of the people move to the side of the road and stare at the approaching ''Black Metal Horse.'' Many show great fear as they saw William as some sort of evil knight while few young folks saw with envy and admired William''s war gear. "I think you are attracting too much attention," Rana whispered to William as she saw how many eyes were focused on them. She is a bit embarrassed as she is riding in the back, sitting in a weird position. "You sure it''s me they are looking at? Not the beautiful warrior maiden I''m being accompanied by?" William teases the Duchess which responded with a small punch on William''s back which didn''t bother him. "The guards from the main gate will definitely stop us for sure. Let me handle them before you start blasting with your strange gun." Rana said to William with a mix of seriousness and a bit of joke. She is very familiar with how deadly William can be in combat, and it wouldn''t surprise her if her uncle, King Benton, might acknowledge William and bestow him the honor of becoming the knight or starting his own noble house. "Sure thing, just make sure they don''t start demanding my stuff for no reason," William said to Rana as he stopped his bike and disembarked as they reached the main gate of the capital city. -------------------------------- Captain of the Guard''s POV It was another day in the capital city as people came and went to conduct business. Most of the people I''m familiar with, but there are always new people visiting the city and few start trouble which it is my job to stop them before they have the chance. So imagine my surprise when a fully armored black knight approaches the gate riding a black metal horse (Without the horse''s head attached). I served the crown for almost two decades, and I have seen it all, from a drunken fistfight between two nobles to the explosive demonstration of a new invention from the scholars. A black knight riding a black mount without a horse is something new and terrifying even for me. ''Either he is a very important adventurer from the guild, or he is the fearsome evil knight of the children''s bedtime story.'' I thought to myself as I watched my men ready their weapons and prepare to move the moment I give the command. Still, I could tell they are shaking in fear due to the sheer presence of the armored giant. As a captain of the gate, I have the duty to the crown and his people. So I step forward instead of sending my guards as I have to handle the situation carefully. With my left hand on my sword handle to show a sign of caution but no intention to arm myself, I approach the black knight. "Halt in the name of King Benton. I''m Captain Morin of the Capital guard, and I need to know whom I''m speaking to." I said with authority and confidence as I did thousands of times before. It should come naturally by now, but this time it took a decent amount of effort to maintain the appearance without making a fool of myself. After finishing giving my command, I saw precise detail and decoration of the armor itself. From a distance, I only saw the plain black color of the armor and white shoulder plate with the cross symbol, but after having a closer look, the edge of the armor line was decorated with pure gold and various wax seals with thin paper attached to it. From the civilian''s point of view, the very presence itself could cause fear even for fully grown ?du?ts. As a military man, I could only admire the master craftsmanship of the armor fit only to legends of the bard''s tale. "I''m William, an adventurer from Greenhill, escorting Rana Bassilo Beckett, the Duchess of Argus to the capital. My brothers in arms will arrive shortly with Crown Prince Benton and his entourage." The black knight''s voice was unnatural and very strange as his helmet doesn''t seem to have any opening, but somehow, I could still hear his voice without any trouble. When I heard Rana Bassilo Beckett''s name, I hesitated for a second as I clearly remember seeing her and her army leaving the capital a few months ago. There was no way she would travel with a single knight on a strange mount. Not to mention I don''t see her except for the giant in front of me. "If you are the escort, then where is the¡­." Before I could finish my sentence, a young lady with white armor steps out from the giant''s back and shows herself to me. I didn''t have to ask for her identification as I already knew the moment I saw her face. She is the Duchess of the Argus, the famous lioness who launched the counter-attack against invading forces from Legellan three years ago. I immediately got into attention and saluted the war hero who saved the nation. "Captain Morin, I need you to notify the royal family and the Prime Minister that the Crown Prince is returning to the capital with a private military force as an escort. William and I will stay here to wait for his arrival. Also, make sure capital guards are notified as well with this information. We will have a hero''s parade today" The Duchess gave her command to me, which I guarantee she will follow every instruction she gives me. With that, I rushed back to my men and gave the exact instructions to the teeth. It was a sudden change of tension now as every man, including me, turned from fear of death to fear of death by failing our duty to the crown. Another day in the capital turned into a once in a lifetime event as the Crown Prince and the Duchess return from the deadly expansion campaign with a terrifying ally by their side.. Their new ally and ''friend'' later would be known to all as ''Knight Lord of the Metal'', who embarks the spearhead campaign against the daemons of Legellan. Chapter 45 - One Side Alliance The capital city''s welcoming of the Crown Prince is much grander than Draphia''s. Many of the young maidens cheered for the prince''s name, and some threw flower petals from the second floor of the building window. The men, young and old, also cheer for the prince''s name on how he brought back a successful campaign against dreadful vampires. Meanwhile, Prince Benton rides his horse in front of the marching army as he waves his hands and gives a big smile back to his people (He still has a few bruises, but this only shows his participation during vampires). The Duchess rides right behind the prince while William leads his battle brothers and the rest of the guardsmen march in formation, showing power and fear against the enemy of humankind. They moved from the common district and main market area, the noble district (The inner area of the capital city), which was grander (Expensive) than before. At the end of the district, before entering the royal castle, the royal guards and elite knights waited in formation, giving a salute to the hero of the hour. Before entering the palace, William stopped his main force and signaled three battle brothers (Two Space Marine and one Tech Marine) to follow him. Of course, the main force will be taken to more open areas of the city to make camp and settle until the end of the political drama. When the party entered the royal palace''s main yard, many of the nobles from low to high and royal family members waited for the prince to come and meet them. Everything seems normal except that the King of the Alderim is missing between his Queen and Prime Minister. From William''s scan, the King isn''t present at the welcoming party, giving William a bad feeling. "Rana, I don''t see the King from the welcoming committee. Does he have any condition that prevents him from meeting his son?" William asks the Duchess in a whisper as he scans the area once again, to which he finds no signs of the King of the kingdom. William''s comment made the Duchess realize who was missing from the welcoming committee and was confused as well. "When I left the capital, King Benton personally saw me leave with my troops weeks ago, and he was perfectly fine." The Duchess said to William as she and William followed Prince Benton in the back as he approached the Prime Minister and Queen, his mother. "Son, welcome back home," Queen herself welcomed Prince Benton with sweet words and a hug. William could tell the Queen of the Alderim is a very protective mother, but this can be understandable since the previous Crown Prince was killed more than three years ago. "Crown Prince, welcome home, and congratulations on your successful expansion campaign." The Prime Minister of the Alderim joins the heartful meeting as he happily welcomes Prince Benton. While this is happening, William looks around to see divided emotions between nobles around them. Half of the nobles were expressing a welcoming and positive mood as they cheered and clapped their hands. The other half of the nobles indeed clapped their hands, but they showed negative and some hostile emotions. William clearly saw divided ranks among nobles as one side supported the royal family and one didn''t. "Thank you, mother and Prime Minister Waylon, for the warm welcome, but where is father? Did something happen to him while we were gone?" Prince Benton asks about his father''s absence, to which both the Queen and Prime Minister''s faces turn dark. William, Rana, and Prince Benton saw a sudden change of facial expressions, which gave warning of bad news. "Let us talk in the private inside," Prime Minister Waylon said to Prince Benton quietly as he didn''t want to give clues to the absent King in front of opposition nobles. Prince Benton clearly saw the Prime Minister''s intention, so he decided to enter the palace with William and the Duchess following him. William''s three battle brothers follow their champion as their massive bodies and armors make thumping noises each time they step forward. There was a small protest from royal guards as William and his brothers were potential threats to the royal family, but the Crown Prince immediately turned this down. The group finally made it to the audience room with comfortable furniture such as sofas, chairs, tables, and portraits hanging on the wall. Everyone except four Space Marines sat down, and Queen''s maids brought cartloads of snacks and tea sets. As for William and his brothers, they stood behind the sofa where Rana and Prince Benton sat. This was countered by seven royal guards standing each corner of the room with the hands-on hilt of their swords but not drawn out. The Prime Minister spoke first after the maids left the room, "Would you care to introduce us to your new friends?" Prime Minister Waylon''s eyes went to William''s direction as he grabbed a cup of tea from the table. "Ah, yea. This is William. He is an adventurer we hired to help us with the expansion campaign. Of course, he is more than just a simple adventurer as he represents his deity the ''God-Emperor'' and commands a very effective military force." Prince Benton introduces William to his mother and Prime Minister, to which William takes his helmet to show his face. "It is nice to meet you. As the Crown Prince said, my name is William and Emperor''s Champion." William didn''t know how to interact with royals, so he introduced himself short and straightforward. After hearing William''s words, both the Queen and Prime Minister show welcoming expressions as they somewhat understood (Or in this case misunderstood) William''s status. "I see. You must be the one that Sir Dolven mentioned in his report. I must say, I thought that the old knight must be pulling out legs when his report said a giant man in black armor with great power was helping the Crown Prince with training." Prime Minister Waylon said with astonishment as he examined William''s and three Space Marine''s black armors. Just by looking at them, the Prime Minister saw master-crafted armors and perfect decoration of symbols that gave off some authority and status. "Talking about Sir Dolven, it is a shame what happened to him and his knight order. After all those years of service to the crown, the royal family lost a great supporter and close friend. Your father will be saddened when he hears the news." The Queen said to everyone as she remembered the report they received from Draphia. The death of Sir Dolven is much more than a loss to the military might of the Alderim. Sir Dolven was one of the senior members of the nobles who were supporters of the crown, and with his military force, he secured the kingdom from domestic threats from monsters to rebellious minor nobles (Noble rebellion is rare, but it does happen). "He fought bravely and to the last breath. He gave Jon and the rest of the servants enough time to escape from the barbarian Warband as he and his knight charged head-on, giving no room to pursue them." The Duchess recounted Sir Dolven''s act of heroism as she explained more in detail how William''s force later rescued her and Prince Benton. By the time Rana''s story ended, Prime Minister Waylon and Queen were speechless and shaking in horror as they couldn''t believe the terrible experience of becoming a prisoner of the Chaos Marine. "You have our thanks, William. I won''t forget your service to my son and niece for the rest of my life." The Queen said to William as she expressed gratitude and thanked the Emperor''s Champion. The Prime Minister also joined her as he personally bowed his head to thank William. "You save the next bloodline and generation of the Alderim. I can''t thank you enough for what you did," Prime Minister Waylon said to William, to which William quickly accepted but showed no emotions for his battle-brothers who were standing behind him in silence. "Talking about the next generation, where is father? Did something happen to him while I was gone?" Prince Benton asked with concern, to which both the Prime Minister and the Queen went silent. Finally, the Queen spoke as motherly as possible to break the news to her son. "Your father, the King, succumbed to illness. This unknown illness took his body and mind. We don''t know what it is or what caused it, as none of the healers couldn''t figure it out. This illness made him unreasonable and unstable, to which many of the nobles question his condition to lead." The Queen said to her son as she wiped tears from her face. The bad news continues as Prime Minister Waylon continues as the Queen couldn''t due to her sadness. "King Benton was silent and weakened to the point he b?r?ly moved, but when the emissary of Legellan came to form an alliance, he simply agreed to their terms without consulting with me or any other advisers." The Prime Minister explained the situation and struggle they went through to change the King''s mind, but it was pointless as the King''s entire personality had changed ever since the emissary came a few days ago. "What exactly did they want from us?" The Duchess asks to find out what her former enemies want from making peace with her country. The last time they sent an emissary, it was to declare war and send mocking news of the death of the eldest prince, which didn''t go well for them last time. "By forming an alliance, the emissary wants you, Rana. They want you to come to Legellan for some reason and join ''Holy White Mountain'', their new religion, as a priestess.." The Prime Minister said to Rana as he shook his head in regret as he and others couldn''t stop the King''s decision. Chapter 46 - Archbishop "Blasphemy!" "Heresy!" "By the name of Omnissiah!" Black Templar TechMarine and two other Space Marines yelled with rage and disgust after hearing the new religion. The level of need to purge the heretic went from 9 to 10 (Max) the moment they learn of a new religion just existing. "I see your men are furious as we are." The Prime Minister misunderstood the reaction of Black Templars as his own and said to William with somewhat agreement. Prime Minister Waylon has known and was a former Alderim ambassador in the Legellan diplomacy for almost 30 years. That was until Legellan invaded three years ago with a false accusation of an ?ssassination attempt on their king''s life and unjustified execution of Alderim''s Crown Prince (Prince Benton''s older brother). According to emissaries of the Legellan, the religion ''Holy White Mountain'' emerged almost three years ago after the war and gained a massive following through food distribution and medical supplies. Within two years, Legellan fully recovered from post-war economic downfall and re-established themselves with a new type of government by replacing the monarchy with theocracy (A country ruled by religion). Legellan decided to expand their religion and recognition as a new nation with their newly founded leadership by re-establishing a relationship with Alder. Typically, Alderim didn''t recognize the legitimacy of the Legellan''s new government at first, but that all changed a few weeks ago when Legellan officially sent a gift. Among many gifts, one particular was sent with an explicit name of the receiver, King Benton''s name. The gift was a master-crafted ring with flawless amethyst attached to it. At first, King Benton was hesitant to wear it since the gift came from the country that killed his firstborn son. But this all changed the next day as the king wore the ring in his central finger for all to see and decided to give Legellan a second chance to form non-aggression between the two nations. It was this day that King Benton''s personality slowly changed, and his health began to wither. King Benton is a politician and in excellent health as he occasionally participates in swordsmanship and other physical activities to stay healthy, both body and mind. Now, he appears to be more of an old man and long past his prime as his appearance looks doubled his current age. Prime Minister Waylon and Queen, who work closely with King Benton, recognized the change but couldn''t figure out what caused it. All gifts, including the ring King Benton is currently wearing, passed every check for the potential curse, hex, or spells by the royal court wizards. So, it was a mystery and puzzling why King Benton decided to make peace with the enemy who caused him painful loss (Both personal and in general overall). "Why in the nine layers of hell do they want me to be their priestess? Do I have to go back to Legellan and burn it down to the ground again?" The Duchess is irritated and angry after hearing of the alliance terms. Emissaries from the Legellan had the audacity to demand Rana''s corporation, which she is considering slaughtering them right now. "I understand your frustration. I was the first to object to this the moment the king agreed to this in public but unfortunately, he did even regard any protest and shut me and others with ironclad." The Queen''s explanation shocked Prince Benton and the Duchess as they know King Benton to be a wise and careful leader when making essential judgments. From declaring war to the well-being of his people, King Benton listens to others and weighs the consequence of his action. "I have to see my father NOW!" Prince Benton stood up from his seat and proceeded to walk towards the door, but the Prime Minister stopped him before the prince could go any further. "You can''t. Your father forbids anyone from seeing him in his room. The only time anyone can see him is during a public appearance that is happening tomorrow. The Legellans will be there as well since it will be their last day before returning to their country¡­ with Rana." Prime Minister Waylon finished his sentence powerless as he couldn''t accept the situation they were in. "Tomorrow? Ok, we will meet everyone at once and take care of this once and for all." Prince Benton composed himself and went back to his seat where the Duchess, his mother, and William were. "Is there something I''m missing? Why can''t Prince Benton meet his father even if he forbids it?" William asks with curiosity because he would immediately kick down the door to talk to King Benton if it was him. "It may sound like a weird outsider''s point of view, but no one is allowed to meet the king without his invitation or permission. This is one of the royal procedures, and everyone must follow no matter who they are, even if that person is his own blood." Rana explains to William as she knows he isn''t very familiar with royal court rules. For this reason, she made sure William will follow him closely until they leave the capital with a replacement army for the Deron and Fort Stromfist. William and his force are deadly and dangerous to anyone who dares to challenge him. The longer they stay in the capital, the higher the chance a river of blood could flood the city as nobles with their mighty high attitude will be their death warrant. Individually, a single noble family has a small military force, but if they form a decent coalition size, it will be big enough to challenge the royal army. The only reason this doesn''t happen is because half of the nobles are loyal to the crown, but this all changes when William and Sir Dolven unearth the conspiracy of traitor nobles within and possible clues after William captured a runaway soldier during the event ''Red Dinner'' (Ch 15-16). The soldier who William captured spilled everything he knew and few names. To no one''s surprise, all the names were minor nobles who weren''t supporters of the crown and have held a grudge since the war with Legellan. Losing a trade agreement with Legellan on precious metals could get bad terms with the royal family. This is why King Benton approved the expansion campaign towards the vampire lands since Deron has mines and forests to ease the nobles'' tension. "Just follow my lead and make sure you don''t do anything harsh like crushing skulls." Rana said to William, but this message didn''t go well with William''s battle-brothers as they protested the part ''not crushing skulls''. "But heretics. They must be purged with holy fire." "With a holy sword." "What about making them servitors?" TechnoMarine attempts to find alternative ways to purge the traitors, but Willam immediately sends them outside of the room due to their ''creativity.'' "Sorry about that. They can be very dedicated to their mission." Willam apologized to everyone and went back to his spot, but this didn''t end anything as 5 minutes later, loud noise can be heard outside with louder voices that happen to be Black Templars''. "Excuse me," William walked as fast as possible to the door and opened it. In front of him, three Black Templars drew their weapons from chainsword to TechMarine''s mechadendrite holding plasma pistol (Mechadendrite = robotic arms). "A filthy Xeno dares to approach this room? We swore to Champion not to spill the blood in this castle, but disintegrations don''t count in that subject." With a plasma rifle, Black Templar points at his weapon at the person who attempted to enter the door without permission. In front of three Black Templars, a male elf with noble clothing stood tall with no worries even though weapons were pointed at him. Behind the elf, three men with similar clothing stand as eight fully armed soldiers with different armor draw their swords, ready to fight the Black Templars. "What in the hell is going on?" William demanded an explanation from one of his battle-brothers, but the answer didn''t come from them. Instead, Prime Minister Waylon spoke behind William. "They are the emissaries from the Legellan. William, let me introduce you to Archbishop Elashor Herydark.. Legellan''s most recently appointed archbishop of the Holy White Mountain and first elf to join their religion." Chapter 47 - Modern Art Sculpture "Heard that our future priestess arrived today, and we came to greet her. After all, she will join us to dedicate herself to Mother, the goddess of the Holy White Mountain." The male elf known as Elashor Herydark said to everyone normally while tension between two sides was high and ready to kill each other. The Archbishop has a slim body, green eyes, white skin, and golden hair of an elf race. His clothes were a long white robe with gold lines decoration showing his status as a high-ranking religious group member. Around his neck, he wore a golden necklace with a white mountain symbol in the middle made out of silver. In his hand, he holds a gold staff with a small green emerald in the middle with four different rare gem orbs around the middle piece, showing rainbow color. As for the three men, they wore similar white robes but without the fancy coloring of gold but had the same golden necklaces just like Archbishop Herydark''s. Unlike the Archbishop, the three men show terrified faces as they see four giant warriors clad with full armor and strange devices glowing in blue. But unfortunately, the moment three men saw Prime Minister Waylon behind William, they regained their postures, for they misunderstood William and his battle-brothers as members of the Order of Black Flame, elite knights loyal to the crown. "You¡­ you should control your dogs, Prime Minister Waylon. If one of us gets injured by your knights, it will spark another war with our goddess and her holy crusaders." One of the three men said with an ignorant and condescending tone to the Prime Minister as they have diplomatic immunity as members of the Legellan representative. William didn''t say anything or do anything as he waited patiently. If this happened outside of the capital city, William would gladly crush all their skulls with his b?r? hands for insulting him and his battle brothers. The only reason he isn''t doing this is because of a promise and deal he made with the Duchess for bringing his three battle brothers to the palace. "I''m sorry, but William isn''t¡­." Prime Minister Waylon couldn''t finish his sentence as the same man stepped forward from the Archbishop and pointed his finger, pressing it at William''s ?h?st armor (More like his stomach area). "You, so-called Knights from the Black Flame, are nothing but hypocrites and cowards. How dare you show your presence in front of us while we are trying to retrieve that murderous whore of a¡­." The man didn''t finish his words, more likely couldn''t, as his neck and entire body were snatched from the ground by a giant hand and lifted in the air with a single motion. No one couldn''t stop this, for it was beyond a mortal''s ability to stop or even react as Space Marine''s superhuman strength and reflex can''t be matched. William''s face was all to see, for he left his helmet in the audience room previously. His eyes are burning with a raging fire equal to the surface of the sun and emitting death itself as if the wrath of God Emperor himself was coming out from him. The moment William grabbed the foolish mortal''s neck, his three battle-brothers blasted their weapons, disintegrating all eight soldiers of the Legellan in a second. As for the rest of the Holy White Mountain representatives, two men fell to their rear, for they instantly saw their bodyguards'' death. As for the Archbishop, he didn''t flinch or show any sign of emotion. If he did feel it, he has great willpower to hold himself from showing it. William pushed the mortal''s entire body to the wall and placed him at his eye level so the man could see William''s face and eyes. The Emperor''s Champion could have easily crushed the windpipe, but he wanted to deliver a personal message for the insult he said without thinking first. "You, a nameless mortal, dares to insult the follower of the God-Emperor? The pure insolence and audacity to demand her presence is nothing but a mockery to my brothers and me. Be grateful that I will spare your life at this moment, but that will be all as I only made a promise not to kill." At the end of his sentence, William pulled the man''s body and shoved it to the wall, leaving a small crater and planting the mortal in the wall as if he was a modern art sculpture. William''s hand left the man''s body and turned around to see the four men from the Legellan. He knew he broke the promise and was in big trouble for his action, but what was done was done, for he must either pull back or push to cement his responsibility. "You will not see the Duchess of Argus or take her for your false religion. I, the Emperor''s Champion, won''t allow this even if you bring an army." William drew his black sword and placed the edge at the Archbishop''s face. William''s action itself is a declaration of war, and it will spark the war between Legellan and Alder. Prime Minister Waylon''s face is pale as white snow, for he understood what just happened. This was the same for Prince Benton, Rana, Queen of the Alderim, and the rest of the royal guards, as they just witnessed the damage William caused. The two priests of the Holy White Mountain were both blue and pale as they couldn''t believe how a simple knight demolished the diplomatic relation between two nations and killed one of the senior religious figures in front of the Archbishop. Compared to two simple mortals, the Archbishop showed a completely different reaction. His emotionless facial expression is gone, and his smile can be seen as if he just found lost treasure or excitement that was gone long ago. Moving the edge of William''s black sword with his left hand, the Archbishop Herydark faced the giant Black Templar with no show of fear or anger. "You said you are an Emperor''s Champion? I''m not familiar with this title, but I ?ssume you are not a member of Alderim''s knight order nor serve them whatsoever. More like a religious mercenary, if I have to guess." Archbishop Herydark guessed it with 100% accuracy, for his composure didn''t show a single sign of doubt. This revelation shocked the two men, for they realized their mistake of misunderstanding William for a member of Black Flame. But their fear disappeared as William, and his battle-brothers committed murder in the royal palace, which many of the royal guards were summoned due to plasma weapons fire. "I serve only the God-Emperor and his will. I do not present Alderim or their crown. This means I just declared war against your Legellan and so-called ''Mother of Holy White Mountain.'' This is between you and me, not Alderim." William said out loud to deliver his intention and current situation. For one thing, this was true as William doesn''t serve anyone from Alderim as he holds no title or position within Alderim (If he was given one more day, he would have held a small title from the crown for his achievement). From a political point of view, a mercenary leader just declared a separate war against Legellan without any backing from the host country, Alderim. In the history of both two nations, this kind of ridiculous scenario never happened or was thought of by no one. If Legellan wants to, they could request military ?ssistance from the Alderim to crush William and his forces since they previously formed an alliance with the crown. This is possible as no monarchy would allow presents to be armed and overthrow the official government, even if it''s from a foreign nation. "I see, but someone invited you here. Someone who has enough authority to invite you and three armed soldiers to the royal capital. I will personally demand reparation from King Benton for your action today, and I look forward to our war on the battlefield." Archbishop Herydark said to William and waved his hand to pull out his man from the wall using magic. A nearly dead mortal levitates in the air, three Black Templars once again ready their weapons to full charge and about to purge the psyker and his warcraft. Unfortunately, they couldn''t commit their action to the fullest as William blocked them with his black sword. "Save it for the battlefield. We broke enough promises, for we shouldn''t tarnish the Holy Throne''s name for our action." The Black Templars obey William''s order, for which if it were a normal situation, they would have ended the war right here right now. The only time they ever restrained their tradition was during Celestinian Crusade, where they had to use their full willpower to stop themselves from purging the Aeldari faction known as Ynnari and Xenos witch Yvraine. "As the Emperor''s Champion commands." The Black Templars stand down and power down their energy weapons, to which everyone finally draws their breath after holding for the Emperor knows how long. "Killing their bodyguards should be enough warning for them and will take my declaration seriously, for if they want to take Rana, they have to go through me." William turned around and said to the main group in front of him as if it was nothing.. The only thing he received from the group is a single punch to his face coming from Lioness of Argus. Chapter 48 - Assassin of Horror and Pain Never in his life did Prince Benton expect to see the Duchess jump high up and deliver a punch right at the giant''s face. Not only is she still wearing her armor which weighed around 33 pounds (15kg), but she managed to complete this with a single motion as if she was moving with the river current. Prince Benton was confident William didn''t mind or felt the punch since he was the most formidable warrior prince have ever met, but the situation became much drier and more complex than before. Honesty, everyone saw and heard the insult from one of the priests about Rana being a ''Murderous whore'' and how they came to retrieve her as if she was something they could walk in and take her away. Worst of all, that same priest said that in front of William, which is equivalent to provoking an ancient dragon while desecrating the creature''s treasures. From Prince Benton''s point of view, William''s action was justified. William was protecting Rana''s honor which his father and many other nobles failed to do. Because those priests were representatives of the foreign nation, even the Crown Prince couldn''t do much unless he wanted to start the war, this time marking Alderim as an aggressor. Prince Benton and others who were present at that time can vouch for William''s action and how noble it was to defend Rana''s name and honor. As Rana was the previous hero of the war against Legellan, many of the loyal nobles will back William, but the problem lies with a large group of minor nobles who were more concerned with maintaining their current power and positions instead of supporting Alderim and the royal family. Minor nobles were a headache for the royal family long before Prince Benton was born. Their hold on citizens of Alderim using their private military has been a mockery to the noble titles and jab on the side, slowing bleeding the Alderim from uniting as one nation. The royal family and high nobles didn''t crush the minor nobles because of their large numbers (Estimated 4 to 1 against loyal nobles) and control of the citizens within their territory. Even if the crown could remove all minor nobles from their power, there is no way the crown can replace that many nobles and maintain the stability of all of the territories. But now, with William in the picture, the problem could be solved even if Prince Benton doesn''t know it right now. After the Duchess punches William''s face because he just caused an international incident by killing eight guards, ?ssaulting one of the representatives to near death, and declaring war against Legellan, everyone returns back to the meeting room to discuss what to do next. After hours of intense conversation between the Duchess, Prince Benton, Prime Minister Waylon, and the Queen, it is decided that William has to officially declare his war against Legellan tomorrow in front of everyone, including King Benton. The Queen and Prime Minister did their best to change William''s mind, but it was useless since William was still angry with the priests, especially that elf priest. As for Prince Benton and the Duchess, they didn''t even bother to try William''s mind since they knew it would be pointless to attempt it. The best they can do now is prepare for the worst-case scenario and have entire royal knights ready for an all-out blood bath tomorrow. Near the end of the discussion, the Duchess decided that William can''t stay at the palace since representatives of the Legellan and William in one location is a bad idea. So, William will be staying at a separate building within palace land with dozens of guards guarding the building for one night. The three Black Templars are to be sent back to where the rest of the troops are as punishment for disintegrating the eight Legellan guards. Obviously, all three Black Templars strongly refused to follow that demand, with Tech Marine willing to replace eight dead guards with eight servitors (As long as Alderim supplied him with eight criminals). William eventually stepped in and ordered his battle brothers to return to camp, ensuring he will be fine and it will allow him to clear his head for tomorrow. This didn''t go well with the three Black Templars, but they followed William''s order and returned to camp as the champion commanded. Both body and mind exhausted, the meeting ended with William leaving the palace with five royal guards escorting him to a separate building at the edge of the palace land. William didn''t go alone since Rana followed him to make sure William wasn''t up to no good (Also mixed feeling of punching him). The building was an old royal knight commander''s office with a complete training field. Even though it is an old building, the royal family''s land caretakers kept it maintained with a fully working kitchen and bathroom. After checking the entire building, William was satisfied and comfortable with his new housing location. Meanwhile, Rana already had servants bring cartloads of food and drinks to the building. When William asked Rana why she ordered so much food just for him, she answered his question by sitting down at the table as maids and butlers prepared the dinner table. That night, William had a rare opportunity to have dinner with the Duchess as both enjoyed each other''s company and shared wine until late at night. ----------------------------------------- After the Duchess left the building, William turned the light off and went to bed. Unknown to William, a dark figure emerges from the shadow and approaches the building silently with deadly weapons on both hands. The guards who were guarding William''s place didn''t notice the dark figure approaching as they fell one by one without making a noise. The deadly needle filled with poison massacred the guards as one little jab from the ?ssassin quietly ended their life. With all guards eliminated, the ?ssassin quietly entered the building and ready his weapons to kill the Space Marine. As the ?ssassin passes the window, the moonlight reveals the dark figure''s identity, bringing terror with him. The ?ssassin is fully equipped with deadly weapons and dark suits, allowing him to blend in with the dark. The ?ssassin is holding a bolt pistol equipped with a Needler that can deliver a toxic dart filled with neurotoxins from his right hand. His hand is equipped with a neuro gauntlet that can inject deadly poisons through needle fingers on the left hand. A single touch from this gauntlet can end the man''s life, as this already ended a dozen guards'' lives tonight. Lastly, the ?ssassin''s suit was equipped with two additional arsenals, a powerful sword that was strong enough to cut his victim in atomic level and a melta bomb powerful enough to destroy armored vehicles and buildings. This bomb is only used as a last resort to kill the targets and the ?ssassin''s life in extreme circumstances. Wearing a skeleton helmet, the Eversor Temple Assassin quietly entered William''s room with his bolter pistol aimed at the bed. The room was dark, but the Eversor saw clear as day and observed the surroundings using his helmet. The ?ssassin''s target was sleeping in the bed with a blanket covering it, and the armor of the Emperor''s Champion was standing next to the bed with a black sword on both hands pointing down as if it was protecting the target sleeping in the bed. Without any hesitation, the Eversor ?ssassin fired multiple toxic darts, enough to put Space Marine in a coma. The toxic darts filled with neurotoxin hit the target, sleeping in the bed but before Eversor had a chance to approach the bed and see his target, the armor of the Emperor''s Champion moved with a sword striking the ?ssassin''s head. Eversor quickly dodges backward before the black sword could remove his head. Unfortunately for the ?ssassin, his bolter pistol got destroyed during his escape as he was still aiming at the bed. With the ?ssassin''s pistol done, the Eversor drew his power sword to face the Emperor''s champion as the Dark Templar Champion stepped forward and flipped the bed with one hand, making room for their duel. "I knew someone was aiming for my life, but I didn''t expect to meet one of the Imperial Assassin to do the deed. Who is your master? Did that elf send you? How ironic that Eversor Assassin is doing Xenos''s bidding." William asks with curiosity since he knows Eversor Assassins are known for their insane method to kill multiple targets. One thing for sure, they do NOT sneak around and be subtle during their ?ssassination as they are filled with all kinds of combat drugs, chemicals, and psychotic rage enough to slaughter everyone, including friendly. The only way Imperium managed to utilize Eversor is to freeze them and drop a drop pod directly at the target, all drugged up and filled with rage. For their insane reputation, this Eversor approached very differently to kill William. Lucky for the Emperor''s Champion, he planted a decoy on the bed using a mountain of pillows and stayed alert inside of his armor, expecting one of the priests to seek revenge. The appearance of Imperium Assassin was one thing, but to aim for his life was unexpected beyond his imagination. Once again, William thought, ''It must be Tzeentch'' as he prepared his blade. The Eversor didn''t answer William, but instead, he screeched and attacked William like a mad man. With incredible speed and reflex, the ?ssassin swung his power sword aiming at William''s head while using his left hand to strike needle fingers at gaps between the shoulder and main body of the power armor. Already expecting a berserker attack, William deflected the power sword with his black sword and immediately countered the neuro gauntlet needles by hitting the ?ssassin with the pommel of the sword. The decisive strike from the pommel didn''t stop the ?ssassin for a second as he quickly recovered and moved to the side to hit William''s blind side with his power sword. The Eversor''s power sword was much more potent as the ?ssassin''s enhanced body, and strength carried the strike more deadly. Sensing the deadly strike once more, William moves quickly and pulls out his storm shield from the inventory. The storm shield''s gravitic energy field generator made Eversor''s sword ineffective as it bounced back before it could touch the shield surface. Seeing the perfect opportunity to counter, William charged at the ?ssassin using a storm shield as a battering ram. The superhuman speed and strength of the Space Marine rammed the Eversor like a ragdoll as William pushed through multiple walls and furniture as they ended up outside of the building. Now, standing in the middle of the training field, William returns to his battle stance while Eversor quickly gets back up even though half of his body, including his right arm and skeleton helmet, is broken. Filled with combat drugs and countless unknown chemicals, the Eversor didn''t seem bothered or feel any pain, but after realizing his power sword is missing from his hand, he immediately pulled out a melta bomb to activate self-destruction. Seeing Eversor going full Predator, William rushed forward with incredible speed and slashed Eversor''s arm before it could detonate. At the exact moment, the black sword decapitated the ?ssassin''s hand, and William dropped his shield and pulled out his chainsword from his inventory, and stabbed the ?ssassin. The chainsword''s engine cranked up as the weapon''s cutter teeth mutilated the ?ssassin''s internal organ painfully and bloody. William immediately finishes the ?ssassin''s life by cutting his head using a black sword and goes to where the melta bomb is to retrieve it before it goes off prematurely. Luckily, the ?ssassin couldn''t activate the bomb in time so William put it away into his inventory for safety''s sake. ''Now, who sent you?'' William thought to himself as he grabbed the dead man''s head and the body to examine it. To his surprise, he found his answer as a piece of broken machinery dropped from the ?ssassin''s back of the head. Guessing the impact of his shield push damaged the machine, William picked it up to scan it using his helmet. Before the helmet completes its scan, William realizes the true identity of the machinery as he once saw a similar type before in his previous life. The only one word came out from the Emperor''s Champion''s mouth as he realized who sent the Eversor. "Fuck." Chapter 49 - The Preserver Next day, The death of a dozen guards caused more tension in the royal palace. The nobles tighten their groups as they leer at each other suspiciously while royal guards and knights of the capital city lockdown the palace. William, the only survivor of the massacre, told the captain of the knight what happened last night but left the part about how he killed the ?ssassin. After all, the Eversor''s body vanished after William retrieved the loot from the dead ?ssassin''s body and piece of machinery that caused William to panic for a short time. "After arming myself with my sword, I fought the ?ssassin, but before I could deliver the killing blow, the ?ssassin escaped through the window and disappeared into the night. The room was dark, so I didn''t see much except the ?ssassin''s blade (This is a lie as a Space Marine can see in near darkness almost as daylight)." William ''gave'' his side of the story to the knight captain and his two other knights as he recreated the last night incident. The story is believable and makes sense since there is no trace of blood or body, not to mention this incident brought shame to the royal guards'' reputation for they failed to guard the Crown Prince''s guest. "Thank you. I will have this report to the Prime Minister. I''ll leave a few of my knights to guard you since you are the target, and I''m sure Legellan is up to no good for what you did yesterday. Personally, when I heard the news, I felt little satisfaction since they need to be reminded of what they did three years ago." The captain said to William and was about to leave his knights to William when Rana and three Black Templars entered the building. "That won''t be necessary, captain. I believe William prefers his brothers beside him before meeting the King today." Rana said to the captain and sent them away while she and three Black Templars closed the door to have some privacy. "So, 12 more dead, and we don''t know who sent the ?ssassin. What is going on, William?" Rana asks William with great concern on her face as she starts to believe William''s enemy once again appeared in her front door. At first, Rana thought Legellan sent one of their ?ssassins to handle William for his action against one of their priests. But once she heard that the ?ssassin escaped from William''s grasp, she knew it was something else and more deadly. This is why she called back William''s three battle brothers to protect William once again, for they are much more lethal than anyone she has ever met. "I think I know what is going on, and I have a plan, but you are not going to like it," William said to the Duchess as he put his helmet on his head. He told Rana about what happened last night, including the identity of the ?ssassin. That one of his faction''s ?ssassins went for his life and how he handled the problem with his swords. The problem now is how to handle the situation since representatives of Legellan might be related to last night''s incident. "Ok, so what is your plan?" --------------------------------- "Your majesty, may I present to you William the Giant, the Paladin of the God-Emperor." The royal court officer announced William''s presence to the central court as the door opened, and a giant man, fully armored with a helmet in his left hand, entered the room with a fearsome presence. Many noblemen watched William pass by them as many tried to hide fear, and some admired his armor and the very presence of confidence. Many noblewomen were more focused on William''s height and appearance as they hid their giggles and blush behind their fan. The representatives of the Legellan can be seen not far away from the throne on the right side. The priests'' leader, Archbishop Elashor Herydark, stood tall with a slight smile on his face as he watched William approach closer and closer. Meanwhile, his followers show smirks on their faces, for they are filled with revenge and overconfidence. They are ready to present their defense and put William in the corner using diplomacy and politics, just like what politicians do. Behind William, three of his battle-brothers followed him a few steps away as they kept their hamlet on but maintained their weapons on the holster. Meanwhile, Prince Benton and Rana stood near the left side of the throne while the Prime Minister stood next to the King and the Queen sat next to her husband. As for the King, his appearance was a mess. The King of the Alderim sat on his throne with a hunch on his back while his clothes resembled a dark bedgown than what the King of the country should be wearing. His hair and beard are white and messy as if he didn''t wash for many days, while his skin is pale as if he''s been sick from bad flu or something. The only thing that shows the appearance of the King is the fancy gold crown and metallic green emerald ring on his right finger. William stopped a few paces away from the throne and stood still. Few seconds passed, and many nobles started to whisper to each other as William was supposed to kneel before the King to present himself in a royal court tradition. William''s ill manners against the royal court angered a few nobles, including the royalist faction. Finally, one nobleman steps forward to teach William a proper manner if he must force William to kneel. "You uneducated fool! Kneel before the King and swear your loyalty and thanks." The young nobleman shouted with anger as he stepped forward from the sideline. Many nobles nod their heads and agree with a young nobleman as their fear vanishes, and confidence in nobility starts to grow once again. Before the entire courtroom gets out of control, William turns his head towards the young noble and says something unimaginable. "I do not kneel to mere mortals. I serve the God-Emperor and only him, for I''m his champion and his weapon. Your words are nothing but squeals from the mouse, so return to your corner and silence your mouth." William''s words silenced the entire room as both minor and major nobles of all ranks were too shocked to process what they just heard. Meanwhile, Rana laughs silently while Prince Benton covers his face with one hand as he knew this would happen. As for both the Prime Minister and the Queen, their reaction was the same as yesterday when William''s men disintegrated eight Legellan guards. "Now, back to business. King Benton, aren''t you a sore sight for your eyes. I expected more from the father of the Crown Prince, but there is no help if you are under mind control." William''s last word once again shocked the courtroom, including Rana and Prince Benton, as they didn''t know about this information from William beforehand. "What do you mean mind control? Who is doing this to my father?" Prince Benton asked William for an answer and fear for his father, but before he could get his answer, William drew his bolter pistol and fired the weapon at Archbishop Elashor Herydark. The bullet from William''s bolter pistol hit Archbishop''s head as the leading representative of the Legellan fell to the ground. The courtroom turned to chaos as nobles ran for their lives while three Black Templars and royal guards drew their weapons, but the royal guards didn''t draw their weapons at William instead towards the remaining Legellan priests. "What is the meaning of this? We have an alliance agreement!" One of the Legellan priests said with a fearful voice while guards surrounded him and his colleagues to the corner. "That doesn''t count if the King was under mind control. After all, Mindshackle Scarab from the Necron Overlord should be foul for proper diplomacy." William said to the priest as he approached the dead elf''s body to see if it transforms into Necron. To William''s surprise, he saw no change coming from the headless Archbishop''s body as his body remained the same while red blood spewed where the head used to be. "Any minute now¡­." William said to himself, but he started to doubt as the Archbishop didn''t change into an undead robotic skeleton after a few seconds. Before William can turn around to face Rana, William gets hit with a green blast in the side, but thanks to his personal iron halo, it shields William from deadly disintegration. Everyone turned around to see who fired the weapon, and to their surprise, the green blast came from Prime Minister Waylon as he levitated from the floor with green energy surrounding him. "You were correct on mind control but mistaken in who is controlling who," Prime Minister Waylon''s voice changed from regular humanoid to unnatural machine as an advanced hologram changed his appearance from top to bottom. The flesh turns to a living metal known as Necrodermis as Waylon''s entire body turns into a robotic skeleton, and his clothes are replaced with similar metal materials with various symbols of unknown language while glowing in green light. The metal hood covers the head while the cape flares behind him as if the wind blew it gently. With his secret revealed, the Necron reaches out with his left hand, and Archbishop''s staff levitates from the ground and returns to its true owner, with appearance also changing into Necron origin. Trazyn the Infinite, Overlord of Solemnace, master of the Prismatic Galleries, a great liberator of ancient artifacts, and a being who has known death a thousand times, reveals his true identity to the New World. Chapter 50 - Gotta Catch Em All Necrons are one of the oldest races in the Warhammer 40K universe. More than 60 million years ago, they waged war against Old ones and later allied with C''tans (Their Star Gods) to win the War in Heaven. To achieve victory, Necrons (previously known as Necrontyr) traded their weak flesh for an immortal mechanical body with an unimaginable level of technology by going through Biotransference. Unfortunately, it cost Necrontyr their souls, which C''tans consumed and took command of their race once and for all. By the end of the war, Old Ones were no more, and C''tans began to fight each other. Seeing once and only opportunity, Necron''s leader, the Silent King, led a rebellion against their Star Gods and ultimately shattered C''tans into countless shards, scattering it all over the galaxy. In the end, the Necron race went to Great Sleep to wait until the time was right and once again able to retake the Milky Way galaxy as they are destined to. With many worlds turned into tomb worlds, very few Necrons stay awake to watch over them and wait patiently as the galaxy continues to change and many races come and go while Necrons wait for their Silent King to return from his self-exile. Trazyn the Infinite, on the other hand, took a different route during the 60 million years of his life. Unlike his Tomb World guardian colleagues, he dedicated himself to collecting and preserving the galaxy''s history for Prismatic Galleries. This mainly involves stealing from other Necron Tomb Worlds, raiding the world before their extinction event, and trickery by any means possible, including waging decoy wars for decades. In short, Trazyn is a soulless robotic skeleton with Kleptomania with plenty of time to wait out the entire race just to steal a few artifacts. Of course, Trazyn is a Necron Overlord, which means he has great authority, such as command of legions of Necron Warriors and rule of many Tomb Worlds. With his advanced robotic body and weapons from War in Heaven, Trazyn is considered one of the powerhouses of the Necron faction (Even though he doesn''t prefer fighting as he wants to keep his enemy in pristine condition for eternity). To catch and contain his collection, Trazyn uses mind-shackle scarabs to hold control of other alien races and command them like a puppet. This is how the Eversor ?ssassin was sent to kill William; Archbishop Elashor Herydark (His head is gone, but he did have scarab) was sent to form an alliance to retrieve the Duchess and King Benton''s gifted ring that contained the smaller scarab variant to make diplomacy much easier. His staff, Empathic Obliterator, is a unique staff, rumored to be old as War in Heaven and believe to contain the technology of the Old Ones. The staff has the power to kill an enemy and creature with a similar mind and purpose by generating a shockwave from Trazyn''s body. In short, if Trazyn kills one Space Marine with his staff, he can kill an entire squad of Space Marines with a shockwave burst due to their similar mindset and purpose to kill Trazyn in the battle. Finally, Trazyn has surrogate hosts in his arsenal. Because he made many enemies due to his occupation, he utilized an arcane device to take over his underling''s body if he ended up dying or damaged. Once transferring his memory, consciousness, and war gears are complete, Trazyn can morph the new body into the identical body of his old one. This is why he earned himself a nickname of ''the Infinite'' as he rose from thousands of death multiple times throughout eons. ---------------------------- "It''s a shame. I was going to retrieve that unique elder after I complete my mission to collect specimens of this world. The good thing is there is plenty of his kind once I finish my work here." Trazyn the Infinite said to himself aloud while his green energy shield blocked multiple bolter rounds, Heavy Flamer flames, and plasma shots from the plasma pistol coming from four Black Templars. With his plan ruined and the loss of many new collections, Trazyn decided to restart from scratch, starting with Emperor''s Champion. "I was going to capture you near the end ever since you slaughtered the Orks of this world. Who could have guessed that you were the one who killed my Ork raid bands from Greenhills and Ork kidnappers from yesterday? If you want the job done right, do it yourself. Let''s start with you." At the end of the sentence, Necron Overlord opens the dimensional pocket and pulls out four Tesseract Labyrinths (Two cubes are empty), fist-sized cubes capable of capturing many living creatures against their will. With a simple throw from the Trazyn, one empty cube went towards William as he continued to fire his heavy bolter. Just before the Tesseract Labyrinth cube could hit William, one of the Black Templar intercept and immediately disappear as green energy consumes the Black Templar after surrounding him. "Damn, that was a special Tesseract Labyrinth for the rarest specimen. Good thing I have a spare one just in case." Just before Trazyn could throw another cube, two remaining Black Templars (One Tech Marine and one regular) charge ahead with chainswords in their hands after witnessing one of their brother''s disappearance. The Dorn''s fury rushed out from the two Black Templars as their rage consumed their mind of any strategies, and only the wrath of their Primarch emerged. "Die, you abomination!" The Tech Marine was the first to attack as his chainsword strike hit the green energy shield. His two Mechadendrites (Robotic arms similar to Doctor Octopus from Spiderman) were equipped with a plasma pistol, and the bolter pistol continues to fire point-blank range. Meanwhile, after moving to the Necron''s blindside, the second Black Templar swung his chainsword with all of his might. Unfortunately, all of their efforts were for nothing, as their attacks didn''t even break Trazyn''s energy shield or show any sign of depleting. Seeing this, William equipped himself with a jump pack and changed his weapon from Heavy Bolter to Thunder Hammer, capable of smiting powerful strikes by unleashing tremendous amounts of energy at once. With a single thrust from the jump pack, William leaped from the ground and reached his target, close enough to fight in close combat. William''s Thunder Hammer strike hits accurately as stored energy within the weapon unleashes at the moment it hits the energy shield. The force generated from the hammer created a shockwave and loud noise powerful enough to shatter every glass window of the throne room. But to William''s disappointment, Trazyn''s energy shield remained unshattered while his two battle brothers fell into their backs due to the energy shield redirecting the impact force of the Thunder Hammer to two Black Templars. Meanwhile, just like two Space Marines, many people, including nobles, Legellan priests, and guards, fell unconscious after witnessing a terrifying fight between demigods. As for Prince Benton, the Duchess and the queen took cover behind one of the marble pillars to shield themselves, which saved them from deadly small debris. As for the king, he remained untouched as Trazyn''s energy shield extended to him as he is one of the collections for the New World expedition in Prismatic Galleries. ''You gotta be kidding me. I knew Trazyn is powerful for Necron Overlord, but this is too much for just four Space Marines.'' After he landed on his knee, William thought to himself, right in front of the Necron Overlord, who remained silent until he saw the damage within the throne room. "No, no, no. I can''t have this remarkable room full of unique history to be ruined by our little fight. Let us change our location." Trazyn''s staff shined bright, blinding the remaining people who survived the energy impact, and William and Trazyn disappeared from the throne room and reappeared at the outside royal courtyard, wide enough to fit an army. "Now, it is just you and me. Emperor''s Champion, eternity awaits" Just as Trazyn threw his last empty Tesseract Labyrinth cube at William, who was still on his knee when a hail of Heavy bolter rounds hit the cube and destroyed it in midair. "What? Who dares to defy me?" Trazyn the Infinite enrages as he no longer has an empty Tesseract Labyrinth cube to capture one of the rare Space Marine for his collection. "We do! Fire at will!" A single man in commissar greatcoat and cap came from the gate, riding on top of the Chimera (Standard Armoured Personnel Carrier, APC) with Heavy Bolter mounted on the top hull shouted as William''s main force, including the rest of the Black Templars, rushed in with weapons hot. Commissar Ciaphas Cain, the hero of the imperium, honorary member of Valhallan Ice Warriors, and Tanna tea enthusiast entered the battlefield as he led a large number of various Imperial Guard. From Militarum Tempestus to Cadian Shock Troopers, all of William''s forces open fire their weapons at Trazyn, bombarding and stressing Overlord''s energy shield to its limit. "Well, well, well. It looks like a vast number of potential specimens outnumbers me. But, this is why I brought my two additional Tesseract Labyrinth just in case." With that, Trazyn the Infinite placed one of the cubes on the ground and unleashed one of his collections at Astra Militarum. Emerging from the pocket dimensional gateway, a large horde of savage warlike greenskins rush out with a battle cry loud enough to flinch Commissar Cain and veteran Imperial Guardsmen for a second. Leading the Warband, Orkboss armed with Power Klaw and Big Choppa unleash iconic warcry of the Ork. "WAAAGH! Time to fight stupid humies, boyz!" Chapter 51 - Imperial Guards VS Orks Part One Night before, After William killed the Eversor Assassin and collected his reward, he decided that there will be a battle the next day. After finding a destroyed Mindshackle Scarab from the Eversor''s dead body, William decided to summon Commissar Cain to ensure a higher chance of victory. So, imagine his surprise when Commissar Cain was summoned with his personal Chimera tank and Jurgen as a driver. At first, William was hesitant because he expected to meet Cain alone, but he welcomed the Hero of the Imperium and gave instructions, including command of his troops. As for Cain, he was surprised to see a clear night sky and giant Adeptus Astartes standing tall in front of him. From his own experience as Commissar and access to numerous files within Imperium, Cain knew this Space Marine wasn''t a normal one as he was clad with advanced armor and numerous symbols within armor including two distinguish purity seals. ''Calm down Cain, you talk to Adeptus Astartes before. Well, I wouldn''t say talk but clearly, he is a member of the Black Templar and a servant of the Emperor.'' Cain, with his legendary composure and quick thinking, hides his surprised face and kneel before alone Space Marine as Jurgen did the same. "Commissar Ciaphas Cain reporting. Who do I serve and what is my mission?" The Hero of the Imperium humbly asks a question to Black Templar while the palm of his right-hand starts to tingle which indicates coming danger. "I''m William, member of the Black Templar and chosen champion of the Emperor. I call upon you, Ciaphas Cain for an aide against forces of Chaos and Xenos invasion on this New World." William did his best to stay in character as he knew Cain have a keen sense and sharp intuition when it comes to bullshitting. ''Emperor''s Champion? This must be serious if the champion is fighting both Xenos and Chaos at the same time. At least this time we have Black Templars in this campaign.'' Chain thought to himself as sighs of relief and concern rush him at the same time. From his experience with Chaos and Xenos, there are sure to be casualties on the battlefield and he prefers to stay on the side to ensure his higher chance of survival. (This usually backfires at Cain''s face every time whenever Cain attempt to do a ''side mission'' to avoid frontline battle. From the discovery of the Necron tomb to uncovering the Genestealer cult conspiracy, Cain managed to survive each deadly encounter and somehow appear to everyone as a selfless hero willing to fight for fellow man, woman, and Imperium) "As you command, Lord William. I serve the Imperium and God-Emperor," Cain said to William which William accepts. William began to explain the current situation and political issues they are about to face. Clearly, William has an advantage against the natives of this world but Necron is another story since no one is certain if Necron was here before or came through warp portal like other Xenos. "My lord, if you are right, we need more than a hand full of Space Marines and few platoons of guardsmen. From my personal experience, Necrons are hard to kill since they usually come back to life within few minutes." Cain gave his insight and knowledge to William after understanding the situation. Worst case scenario, William''s force would be outnumbered and outgunned, which not even Hero of the Imperium could do against. "Good point, but that is why I''m going to request additional help from an old friend. For now, you need to join my main force and prepare for the upcoming battle tomorrow. You, Commissar Cain, will lead the charge personally." William said to Cain and began to make a new strategy while Jurgen prepares two bowls of Tanna tea in the back. Morok the Darkstampah, the member of the Ork clan Goffs, stood tall while signaling his warbands to charge forward. The first wave of his Orks bullrush with their melee weapons in their hands while shooting their range weapons (Most end up missing their target as Orks are bad at proper aiming) as Clan Goffs are known for being the most brutal Orks in the combat. "Dakka Dakka Dakka! Need more DAKKA!" One of the heavily armed Ork shouts his lungs out as he continues to fire his slugga (The most common Ork range weapon), which suddenly blows up from his hand. But this didn''t stop other Orks as they continue their ?ssault with no concern for their own safety or show any battle tactic. With heavy projectiles coming from sluggas and shootas, William''s force starts to have wounded, and casualties as a few of the lucky shots end up hitting troops. Still, no one from William''s side pulls back as each troop is an experienced soldier and veteran of the grim darkness of the far future. Cain didn''t like the idea of charging ahead but being protected by his personal heavy vehicle gave small safeguard from certain death by Orks. Also, having Black Templars on the battlefield gave Cain security as Orks prefer to fight Space Marine than guardsmen. "Jurgen, fire at will!" Commissar Cain said to his loyal aide as he fires his heavy bolter from the top hull. Cain didn''t have to aim with his mounted weapon since a wave of Orks is just coming without any show of formation. "Yes, sir." Ferik Jurgen, a most loyal aide to the Commissar Cain, Melta weapon specialist, and a Blank (Null), pulls the trigger of the heavy flamer inside of the Chimera. The promethium-fueled flame soaked the first three lines of Orks as powerful flame burn the walking green mushrooms like a bbq. The heavy flamer kills the Orks in large numbers and cleanses Ork spores from escaping from the battlefield. Usually, Ork infestation is impossible to remove altogether, but because these Orks are introduced at the battlefield, the chances of Ork spores spread out of control are very slim. If it is done right, Orks won''t set root on this World unless Trayzn decided to release more in large numbers. Meanwhile, William''s troops changed their target the moment Trazyn unleashed his Orks onto this world. Three dozen lasguns fired while Black Templars fired their bolters accurately at larger Orks within rank. The Cadian shock troops and Tempestus Scions focused front line with their lasguns while Catachn Jungle Fighters set up heavy weapons in the back to support troops in the front. Even though William''s troops were ready to fight and well equipped, the Orks continue to push forward, with most of them giggling and smiling. The Ork''s primal instinct to fight and physical ability to absorb multiple wounds made them difficult to kill. Lucky, Orks didn''t possess any heavy equipment or vehicles, but their sheer number is enough to push guardsmen and Space Marine. "kill all ''umiez an'' Space Marine! All we need iz dere scraps," Morok the Darkstampah gave his command as eight large Goff Nobs (Most prominent and stronger Ork) armed with choppas began to walk forward. Before Goff Nobs got into the firing range, they grab smaller Orks or Gretchin (Ork version of the goblin) and use them as meat shields. "Focus all your fire on them! Those Orks could be trouble," Cain instruct Catachan Jungle Fighters, which they turn their heavy bolters at incoming Nobs. The rounds of heavy bolters shredded Nobs'' meat shields and injured a few of them with direct shots, but the remaining elite Orks continue to push on. Coming close, the Black Templars change their weapons to face Nobs in close combat. Armed with chainswords, the Black Templars charge head-on as their chainsword engine roar in full power. The clash between giants from two sides became the center of the battlefield as skilled swordsmanship of Space Marine rip Ork flash into pieces while a brute force of Ork''s strength breakthrough power armor and heavily injuring Space Marine. The melee combat eventually came to the point where some of the Nobs use nearby Gretchins as a throwing weapon while Space Marine uses their combat knives to dual wield to have a little more advantage. The battle between Space Marine and Nobs didn''t stop the guardsmen or Orks forces as two main forces eventually clash into their close combat. "Prepare for the close combat!" The senior member of Cadian Shock Trooper gave the command as most of them prepare to use their bayonets while Catachns continue to fire heavy bolters now much faster firing rate. When two forces finally clashed against each other, the battle turned into a one-sided bloody slaughter as Imperium forces are getting hacked and slashed by Goffs Warband. The brutal slaughter got so bad that Commissar Cain retreated inside of the heavy vehicle and ordered Jurgen to just run over the small group of Orks with Chimera. Because of possible friendly fire, Cain couldn''t fire either heavy bolter or heavy flamer but having a ten-ton tank is enough to ram approaching Orks with ease. "Do not stop. Continue to run over the Orks until we reach the Warboss. If we can beat the Ork Warboss, we could reduce their momentum." Cain orders his aide while reloading heavy flamer. If he could kill the Warboss, the Orks within ranks will start to fight each other to take command, making them lose command structure once and for all. When Cain''s Chimera is about to reach the middle line of the Ork force, Cain saw something he wishes he never encounter again in his life. A large single squig (A two-legged creature with a large mouth) covered with bombs and TNT in its mouth ran towards Cain''s Chimera, intending to blow itself up. Cain took a side bolter mount and fired everything he got at the incoming bomb squig, seeing the approaching danger. "Come on, come on! By the Emperor''s throne." Commissar Cain said to himself as he continues to fire bolter rounds at the bomb squig. Near his end of bolter rounds, Cain finally hit the bullseye as one of the bolter rounds hit the TNT in the squig''s mouth before it could reach the Chimera. The explosion and destruction of the squig killed the Snotlings riding it and Orks nearby at that moment. "Yes! Praise the Emperor," Cain celebrates his kill and escape from certain death when suddenly explosion from the opposite side flip the Chimera 180'' degree, damaging it inoperable. While Cain was focused on the incoming bomb squig, a second bomb squig reached the opposite side of the tank and detonated, pinning lynchpin of the Imperium unit a sitting duck behind the enemy line. ''What just happened?'' Cain thought to himself as he regains his composure and picks up a fallen commissar hat from the ground. The explosion knocked him out of breath for few seconds but it wasn''t enough to bring down Cain and Jurgen out from the fight. Now, Cain''s palm began to tingle more than usual as he moves quickly to find his aide. "Jurgen, are you ok? We need to get out of here," Commissar said to his aide and was about to move to check on him when the main hatch open and Ork armed with shoota aim his weapon at Cain. Due to the injury from the explosion, Cain couldn''t react fast enough to draw his laspistol. Just as Cain was about to accept his death and join Emperor''s fallen warriors, multiple lasgun shots killed the Ork with two in its head. "Sorry sir, it seems we lost the Chimera for now," Jurgen appears from the corner with his lasgun in his hands and said to Cain apologetically. "It''s ok, Jurgen. I''m sure Lord William could spare few cog boys to repair after this." Cain smile as best he could and pull out his laspistol to join the fight outside. Cain isn''t an expert marksman or possesses the superhuman ability, but no one can surpass him when it comes to his survival instinct, and he isn''t planning to die in the New World. "Let''s get out of here before more Orks comes and start causing problems." Commissar said to Jurgen and approached the opened hatch with his weapon ready. Just before Cain pop his head outside, he heard something heavy drop from above as his damaged Chimera and ground shake for a second. "What in the Golden Throne?" Cain said to himself and step outside, using Chimera as a shield since the bottom of the Chimera is now facing Ork''s main force while the hatch was towards Imperium forces. When Cain sneaks his head to see what caused the ground to shake, his heart and hope brighten as Dreadnought from the Black Templar engaged Ork rear rank of Warbands alone. Above Dreadnought''s head, two Valkyrie airborne ?ssault carriers drop 30 additional Imperial Guardsmen while additional reinforcement from the ruin of Greenhill arrives with vehicles running over Orks from the right side of the battlefield. Seeing the hope, Cain opened his vox device and gave hopeful words to encourage the remaining troops and pull them from despair. "Emperor watch over his faithful servants. For the Emperor!" Chapter 52 - Imperial Guards VS Orks Part Two Morok the Darkstampah is having a bad day. A tin boyz somehow captured him and his boyz which is disgrace enough, but now he ends up fighting the tin boy''z battle. At least Morok is fighting humies which he is ok with that. After all, everyone knows humies got best scraps than pointy-eared gits or fishies, not to mention they also have more numbers to be krumping by Morok''s boyz. "Keep fight''n'' or else I will be da wun krump''n yer all!" Morok shouts his command as his boyz are getting pushed by the Dreadnought. Morok''s victory was sure when he successfully blew up Chimera using squigs. That was until Dreadnought suddenly drops from the sky and starts demolishing his troops with his ''shootas'' while two Valkyrie hovers above and start shooting and sending more human troops. "Dis isn''t ova yet! Send out battlewagon!" After hearing Morok''s command, a large red truck armed with ramming spikes, various shootas and loaded with Ork troops push through unfortunate gretchin foot soldiers in the battlefield and went straight for the Dreadnought. "Ere we go, ere we go, ere we go!" The Ork driver and the rest of the Ork front passengers yell as if they are celebrating someone''s birthday. "Bracing for the impact." The honorable Battle-Brother Raduriel was already prepared for this encounter since he overheard the Morok''s very loud command on the battlefield. With his quick ability to switch his weapons, Randuriel immediately changes from range weapons into close combat fists with few short-range weapons such as heavy flamers and power fist attachments. The red-painted battlewagon struck the Dreadnought head-on and pushed the 12-ton killing machine backward, but this didn''t last as the Dreadnought regain his ground shortly. The clash between two factions'' heavy units continues as the battlewagon, and Raduriel''s engines produce black smoke from the exhaust pipe. "Shot it!" The driver of the battlewagon shout and every Orks within the truck aims their shootas at the Dreadnought. But before they could pull their triggers, a large flame blast reaching thousands of degrees hit the top side of the truck, killing all Orks and turning them into smoking ashes. "Nicely done Jurgen," Commissar Cain said to his aide as he stands tall above Chimera and aims his laspistol at the Ork driver. With a single shot, Cain hit the diver''s head and disable the vehicle for a moment. "Thank you, sir," Jurgen, who is kneeling next to Cain reloads his meltagun and fired again to destroy the rest of the top side of the vehicle. Meanwhile, Commissar Cain stood tall, posing with chainsword and laspistol in his other hand while the Dreadnought steps forward to block any incoming projectiles, protecting Cain unintentionally. "Push forward and burn them all!" Cain gave his command, and immediately 30 Imperial Guardsmen and the rest of the troops who defeated Nobs charge ahead with thundering voices and new inspiration. "For the Emperor!" "Follow the Commissar Cain, the Hero of the Imperium!" "Bring victory and honor!" Soldiers of the Imperium, now drunk with inspiration and near victory, rush forward with every kind of weapon hot and ready to kill. The volley of lasguns stopped the Ork''s advance while heavy bolters carried by jungle fighters slay them. The soldiers armed with flamers unleash red hot flames as Dreadnought joins the BBQ to wipe every living lifeform on the battlefield. Meanwhile, Black Templars once again armed themselves with bolter guns and flamers to eliminate any greenskins who managed to escape guardsmen''s front ?ssault to maintain the control of the battlefield. "Spare no one, let them experience Emperor''s might!" Cain once again gives inspiring words while emptying his laspistol. ''Thank the Emperor. I hope Lord William is doing fine just as we are," Cain thought to himself when suddenly, an Ork warboss jump out from the flame of walls with dead Ork in his power klaw. "Dis isn''t over, ''umiez" Morok the Darkstampah uses one of his underlings as a meatshield and charges the first line of guardsmen while swinging his big choppa in another hand. The Ork warboss''s carnage began as each swing of big choppa killed four guardsmen. Seeing this, Dreadnought went to a melee stance and was about to attack the warboss, but a sudden sneak attack intercepted him by Ork tankbustas''s rockets (Ork version of rocket launchers). While this is happening, Morok continues to charge as he swiftly slaying any humans blocking his way. His main target was clear, Morok was aiming for the leader of human troops, a man known as Ciaphas Cain the Hero of the Imperium. "Continue your fire! Takedown that Ork!" Cain gave his order while maintaining his posture on top of now destroyed Chimera while inside of his head, he panics as an oversized Ork didn''t slow down for a second ''Shit, shit, shit!'' Warboss didn''t seem bothered by the lasgun injuries, and when he was finally about to reach fallen Chimera, Cain jumps out from the top with his chainsword cracked up. When Cain landed safely, he quickly rolled to keep his distance away from the warboss. "So, you want to fight me directly. I guess I have to kill warboss for the second time," Cain said to Morok and ready his duel stance just like he practiced million times. "I will have yer teef if ''dat iz ''da last fing i have ta do" Morok shouts and proceed to throw his meatshield, but instead of throwing at Cain, Ork warboss threw it at incoming guardsmen and prevented them from firing their weapons at him. "This iz duel, no interference," Morok said to Cain and swing his big choppa, aiming for Cain''s head. Seeing the giant metal ax coming for him, Cain quickly dodged to the side due to the significant difference in strength. From his combat experience against Orks, it is best to dodge instead of blocking it. Right after dodging the powerful Ork attack, Cain quickly swings his chainsword at Ork warboss''s head, but just as Cain is an experienced fighter, Morok is also an experienced fighter on his right. Morok, use his power klaw to block the raging chainsword and push Cain with his monstrous strength. The incredible force made Cain flew backward in few inches high and made him redirect his attention to his landing. The Ork warboss once again charged his big choppa up high, but before he could swing again, a meltagun blast hit Morok''s left side, which burned the entire left body, including the left hand holding big choppa. Morok managed to survive the deadly blast thanks to his heavy power armor but it wasn''t enough for him to stay standing which he ends up on his both knees. Ork usually tolerates pain and injuries that could kill an ordinary man. Their biological makeup was designed to endure pain and lethal injuries thanks to the Old Ones. "Sir," Jurgen said while his meltagun barrel smoke comes out. Cain''s loyal aide came to his rescue and blasted his weapon when Cain wasn''t close to the Ork warboss. "Ah!" Cain shouts as he raises the chainsword high and brings it down with all his might at the Ork''s head. Just as chainsword was about to hit Morok''s head, the Ork Warboss blocked it with his power klaw and got back up on his two feet. Morok raises his power klaw to his eye level while holding active chainsword and Cain, holding on to his weapon with both hands. "WAAAGH!" The Ork warboss gave his faction''s signature warcry when a human''s face reach the same eye level as his own. "AAAAH!" Cain counters Ork''s shout with his own and immediately let his left hand go and drew his laspistol from his hoister. Before Morok could do anything to Cain, Cain aimed his laspistol at the Ork''s mouth and empty his weapon before Ork could close his mouth. Morok, who is badly burn, couldn''t move an inch as his brain is cooked from inside. The power klaw slowly open which Cain quickly retrieve his melee weapon and land safely which he proceeds to do what he previously meant to do. With the Ork warboss frozen for a moment, Cain jumps high and strikes the greenskin''s head. The chainsword''s teeth ripped the Ork''s skull and tear everything without stopping as Cain use all his weight to push down his weapon all the way. By the time Cain finish the Ork warboss off by cutting him in half, Morok was no more as he was already dead when Cain ripped and crushed Ork''s entire head. The covered in Ork''s blood, Cain put his chainsword back in his sheath and walk away from the body so Jurgen can burn the body once and for all. Commissar Cain''s victory engulfs everyone with the motivation to increase their fire rate and much more deadly. ''I miss my retirement,'' Cain thought to himself and was about to drop to the ground from exhaustion, but his iron will help him stay on his feet as he needs to maintain his appearance as a hero and a leader. With the Ork warboss dead and the rest of the Orks without leadership, Imperium Guardsmen quickly exterminate every greenskins using lasgun and holy fire. As the last greenskin burns to death, a sudden green burst of energy knocks everyone down. When the dust cleared, everyone saw battle-tattered William on his knee while Trazyn holds the Duchess as a hostage with a big smile on his face. "As I said, Champion, you will be part of my exhibit for an eternity." Chapter 53 - Assassins and Choice "Look what you made me do. Those orks were my early collection of Warband during War of the Beast and now I have to find suitable replacements worthy of my ork galleries." Trazyn said to William as he hold the Duchess in his arm while holding his staff. While Commissar Cain and William''s troops were fighting the orks, William fought Trazyn with everything he got in his inventory. From bolter pistol to heavy flamer, none of the weapons made any dent on Trazyn''s energy shield while old Necron Overlord made yawning expressions to mock the Champion. While this was happening, Rana arrived on the battlefield with her sword in her hand, intend to help William in any way possible. Still, in her dress back in the throne room, Rana rushes forward to attack Trazyn with her blade in her hand, but Trazyn quickly disarmed Rana with a single-hand motion and captured her using Necron technopath. "You know, I originally came here to capture her and bring her to being called ''Mother''. For some reason, she is very interested to meet the Duchess since three years ago. But you, you are a bonus." Trazyn said to William while holding his evil laugh as he remember his loss of a few collections. Still, for Trazyn this is a small loss as his reward will be much greater when he turns the Duchess to the ''Mother'' and get one of the rarest items for his collection. "What can you possibly get from Legellan''s deity? With your technology, you can just take it like you usually do? What? Almighty Trazyn can''s steal it from primitive god?" William said with a mocking tone to buy himself more time and gather more information from Necron Overlord himself. "You seem to know me more than my friends, dear Champion. But as you said, I did make multiple attempts to steal what I was looking for from Legellan and their pompous temple where their goddess resides. Unfortunately, I couldn''t even step one foot into the temple without getting myself disintegrated by an unknown defense mechanism." The last part made Trazyn shiver as if he relived a bad memory. This makes sense since high-ranking Necrons have the most advanced body and perfect memory. Trazyn continues. "So, I decided to capture the Duchess and make a trade with ''Mother'' since she is looking for this little human. I won''t get everything I want but this is the most unique situation which I''m willing to comprise. For this reason, I infiltrated two nations'' highest ranks and acquired everything I could including Archbishop and King Benton, not to mention the vast number of historical items for my exhibit." Trazyn finishes his last sentence with pride and excitement as he recalls a few of his rare treasure hunting including native beasts which will require temporal cages. "That is why you were disguised as Prime Minister Waylon. He has extensive knowledge of local politics and influence to achieve your goals." William quickly catches on as it starts to make sense. Behind the scene, Trazyn made noble factions against each other while he unleash native orcs within Alderim to enforce the ever-growing infighting between nobles. Adding Legellan''s demand for Rana would just pour gasoline to a house fire which two nations will go back to another war. This all seems overplanned and unnecessary for powerful Necron Overlord but this is Trazyn we are talking about. He once declares a decade of war against Salamander Space Marine just to have the opportunity to steal the Spear of Vulkan which he failed. By having war between two nations, Trazyn will have all the opportunity to steal anything he wants including something from the ''Mother''. After all, war is good for business and looting riches if you know where and when to look for it. Rana, who was standing still without any words finally move with inhuman speed and body twists. Pulling a weapon from her dress, in her hand, the Duchess was holding a plasma pistol and aimed right at Trazyn''s chin which she immediately fired her weapon. Bam! The energy blast from the plasma pistol hit Trazyn''s face in a point-blank range which his energy shield couldn''t do anything as weapon fire was too close. Even Necron advanced body couldn''t withstand the plasma blast as half of Trazyn''s face melted and few critical systems are damaged which will take few hours to repair. Trazyn was lucky to survive the sneak attack and quickly put himself at a distance as he cover his face with his hand. "I didn''t expect you to share your weapon with native, Champion. When did you give her your pistol?" Trazyn said with irritation as his body start to regenerate his damaged face. "I gave it to her last night after I killed the Eversor ?ssassin you sent. I have to thank you, as you gave me an opportunity to ?ssemble ?ssassins for today." William said as he stand up and armed himself with a black sword. With Trazyn damaged, the Necron Overlord won''t be able to show his full power including his energy shield. While this is going on, Rana Bassilo Beckett the Duchess of the Argus begins to twist and reshape herself as if she is made out of flesh mud. The chemical known as Polymorphine allows the person with Rana''s face to return to its original form. A half-minute later, Rana was no more, and instead, a woman in a dark black suit stand next to Champion with a plasma pistol in her hand. The Callidu Assassin simply waves her hand as she once again aims her weapon at Trazyn. ''That darn shapeshifter. I knew something was off about the Duchess the moment I held her hostage. Too quiet and very calm unlike Prime Minister Waylon. Wait, ?ssassins? A plural?'' Trazyn thought to himself and immediately raise his staff to teleport but before he could complete his teleportation, something hit him as his energy shield show multiple cracks and began to weaken. From two miles away, a Vindicare ?ssassin from Officio Assassinorum fired his second shield-breaker round which shattered Trazyn''s energy barrier and burst into pieces. Half a second after the destruction of the energy shield, a third bullet hit Trazyn''s right arm which separate Necron Overlord from powerful staff. "Two ?ssassins. Well, this is a bit overkill don''t you think?" Trazyn said to William who is now standing in front of him with a giant black sword ready to strike. Trazyn smiled even though he can''t express it due to his robotic face as he knows this isn''t the end. Just as William finish off the Trazyn, the real Duchess, and Prince Benton came out with knights behind them. In front of them, the entire courtyard burns as Space Marines and guardsmen scorch ork remains using promethium-based weapons while medics help any survivors with medical ?ssistance. Witnessing the purging with extreme fire paused natives of this world as Rana approach William without taking her eyes away from the fire display. "So, what did we missed?" ---------------------------- Meanwhile, behind one of the dark sides of the moons The conscious mind of the Trazyn arrives at his backup body which begins to power up from sleep mode. Sitting up from his chair, Trazyn waves his hand to activate screens of multiple monitors, and the light of the command room came to life. After a quick status check, Trazyn opens the dimensional pocket to bring in additional ?ssistance as Necron warriors enter one by one. "Now, let us take this world one more time," Trazyn said to himself as his tomb ship emerge out from the moon and begin to hover above the ground. While this is happening, far away from the moon where Trazyn is, a large warp tear can be seen from another dark side of the moon as something evil and feeble exits from the warp dimension. ---------------------------- From defeating Trazyn the Infinite, [Black Templar Veterans x30: An elite Space Marines of Black Templar with each member served more than 100 years for the God-Emperor. Each veteran is armed with a standard bolter gun but has unique melee weapons of their own such as lighting claws, power sword, or thunder hammer.] [Blood Angel Assult Squad x1: Fast and deadly Space Marine from Blood Angel chapter. These five Blood Angels can strike with precision and effectively accomplish critical objectives before moving to the next objectives.] [Salamenders Space Marine x 20: Salamander Space Marine are known for their famous flame weapons and giant status even for Space Marines. Covered with green armor and bright red eyes, Salamanders are fearsome warriors of Primearch Vulkan and forge master craftsmen equal to none.] [Ultramarine Space Marine x 30: Consider as one of the strongest and honored Space Marine chapters of Imperium of Man. From the homeworld of Macragge, Ultramarine has a long history of victory against enemies of mankind and battle experience above other Space Marines. With a warcry of ''Courage and Honour,'' Ultramarine can accomplish any mission no matter how deadly it is.] [Magos of Tech-Priests x 6: Masters of tech and science divisions. Previously captured by Trazyn while exploring the unknown Necron world, these tech-priests are armed with advanced war gears provided by Archmagos and STC data from the Adeptus Mechanicus vault.] Must pick one: [Astra Militarum, 334th Death Korps Siege Regiment x 1: A siege specialist regiment of the Death Korps of Krieg and master of trench warfare. The regiment is composed of 1500 Krieg troops each armed with a lasgun, trench shovels, gas mask, and other critical equipment. The regiment also comes with heavy vehicles, various artilleries, and supplies for logistics.] Or [Lord Ursarkar E. Creed: Last supreme commander of all Imperial forces of Caida and master strategist during Abaddon''s 13th Black Crusade, Ursarkar E. Creed is 50 years old military commander with a long history worthy of heroes and legendary leaders of Imperium history. Captured by Trazyn near the end of the Fall of Cadia, Creed survive the destruction of the planet but officially went missing in action (MIA). Ursarkar E. Creed is armed with two master-crafted Hellpistols, a power sword, a refractor field emitter, and a ''tactical genius mind''. Additionally, Creed comes with 50 Cadian Shock Troops who stay behind with their supreme commander during the last moment of destruction of Cadia.] Chapter 54 - The Cog Boys William selected Lord Ursarkar E. Creed as he quickly realized that he needed a legendary commander to command various types of Imperial Guard effectively. Lord Creed has vast experience in battlefield strategy and utilization of different types of troops effectively. For this reason, William decided to go with Creed instead of Death Korps of Krieg, even though he is a big fan of shovel melee. ''Next time, I hope.'' William said to himself and summoned his captured battle brother and veteran Black Templars for additional support on purging the Ork spores. Immediately, 31 Black Templars run through the main gate with weapons in their hands and scan the area for any enemies on the battlefield. "I have returned with reinforcement! Where is the Necron scum? Black Templar announces his presence on the battlefield while the rest of the troops stare at him for a second before returning to burning Ork remains. "You missed out, brother," Tech Marine and the other two Space Marines join the party and explain the situation. Meanwhile, Battle-Brother Raduriel flips the damaged Chimera while Commissar Cain watches with a painful expression, and Jurgen pulls out a flask containing Tanna tea. "Tanna tea, sir?" "The damage is¡­ extensive." Rana (The Duchess) said to William and turned around to face him. "We have to make sure to exterminate Ork spores right now. If we don''t, it will be beyond our control within weeks." William explains to Rana and hands over his flamer and heavy flamer to two additional Black Templars who don''t have them. As for the Crown Prince, he sends troops to the palace''s outer wall to maintain the peace and gives the knight captain strict orders to prevent anyone from interrupting William''s forces. Prince Benton trusts William and his troops enough not to question their action even though the fight is over. At best, they are doing the post-battle cleanup job, which is considered a minor job for foot soldiers and presents. ''I''m sure there is a reason why they are burning my mother''s flower field and the rest of the trees.'' Prince Benton thought to himself and joined William and Rana with a bit of concern. "I see. While you were fighting ex-Prime Minister Waylon, we handled the throne room, but unfortunately, the remaining representatives of the Legallan ran off back to their country. I ?ssume they accepted your declaration of war and believe we are part as well." Rana explains to William what happened to the throne room during his fight with Trazyn. "They ran off? If that''s the case, I will send a few soldiers to pick them up." William told Rana, but he shook her head as if there was no point sending troops after Legellan priests. "They used teleportation spells to escape. I guarantee they are currently explaining the situation to Legellan counsel with you as the main topic of the discussion." Rana calmly said to William and saw the giant''s surprised face as if he had forgotten something important. "I need ten men and any available medics to the throne room," William said through vox communicator and entered the main palace door as people made room to stay away from the giant armored man. -------------------------------- In the throne room, The friction between the two noble factions finally erupted long before William and the rest entered the throne room. The verbal fight between the two factions went to the next level when they saw William entering the room. "This is all his fault! This mercenary killed the head representative from Legellan right after ignoring the rules of the royal court. We demand immediate execution and a message sent to Legellan with his head as an apology." Head of the minor noble faction demanded William''s head and re-establish political relations with Legellan as they feared another war with a neighboring country. The previous war caused them significant depletion of resources which the majority of nobles provided. Most of the war resources came from major nobles who supported the royal family, while minor nobles held back most of their portion with various excuses. For this reason, after the war, nobles who withhold their support to the king didn''t receive awards from King Benton compared to nobles who supported him. This caused many minor nobles to distrust their king and the royal family to the point they side with Legellan than their king. "This man single-handedly eliminated metal daemon within our ranks and showed those cowardly priests not to mess with our nation. You are a fool if you think we will let you do as you wish, just like how you failed to provide troops three years ago." The head of the major noble faction yelled, and people behind him continued to shout as if their words could be heard. This continues to go on for another minute until a single shot of bolter fire silences the room, and every eye turns to the source of the bolter sound. "BOOM!" While William is scaring the shit out of nobles from both sides, Rana and Prince Benton quickly lead the medics to the meeting room, where one of the nobles shows the way. Inside, they found King Benton lying on the sofa while his queen sat beside him to comfort him. Also, in the room, There were already a few court healers and mages present as they attempted to remove the mind-shackle scarab from the king but failed as they had no idea the true identity of the scarab. "Clear the room. We will handle the Necron tech sorcery," One of the medics said to everyone as other medics armed themselves to remove scarab. -------------------------------- Back to the throne room, "So, you were saying something about my head?" William asks as if it was a common question, but his giant figure and power armor told a different story, for no one in the room or city can stop him from ripping apart naive nobles. "You¡­ you dare to speak to us without permission? How dare you don''t know your place¡­." One of the nobles from the minor faction steps forward with little courage he could muster and demands to make William know his place in the hierarchy, which it didn''t do much. This is because no soldiers from both sides or royal guards step forward to protect them from the giant death. The young nobleman didn''t finish his sentence because William finished it for him. With a simple gesture from William, he placed his power fist on the noble''s shoulder (William still has his retractable lighting claws attached to his power armor) and put small pressure, which immediately made the young nobleman get on his knees as he cried from the pain. "As you said, I don''t know my place, but from my point of view, all of you don''t seem to know your place at all. Thanks to my informant, I know all of your deceptions and schemes against the crown three years ago whom you swore an oath to serve until your dying breath. Maybe I should help you complete your service by executing each one and every one of you right now." William said out loud and pulled out his black sword for additional points for threatening presence. While this is going on, nobles on the other side of the room are glad they stay loyal to the crown because they didn''t wish to be on the other side of the room. "Please! Remove your hand. You are killing him," Alone noblewoman steps forward from the back to plead to William to stop hurting the young nobleman. Witnessing a woman instead of a man step forward to prevent bloodshed, William silently smirks, for he just saw a lady demonstrating more courage than any man in this room. The noblewoman is in her late middle age, around 46, 5.6 feet tall (170.6 cm), brunette with few white strands of hair, and presents herself with dignity, which is saying something compared to other nobles within the minor faction. "I''m Countess Danel Van Shaw. I maintain the northeast region of the country, right above where Deron and Fort Stormfist is." Countess Shaw introduces herself in front of William without showing fear or weakness as she maintains her ground against the Emperor''s Champion. Unknown to William, Countess Shaw is the only member of the minor noble who sided with the crown during the war only to switch sides after losing her only son and husband from the war. Her husband and son join King Benton''s main army to fight the first battle against Legellan''s invading army, but unfortunately, half of their military forces get decimated by Legellan''s army led by their hero. "Countess Shaw, are you the one who speaks for your group? Because the way I see it, you are the only one who stands between me and soon-to-be fertilizers." William places his sword to his shoulder and demands an explanation not to kill anyone from the countess. The way William sees it, it is better to clean the house before starting repairs, and Prince Benton''s house is long overdue. "For now, I do, and I will not have any barbaric confrontation while the king lay sick," The countess said to William and looked towards the door to the meeting room. Many nobles talked among each other as they realized their priority was misplaced. Just when William is about to respond, one of the medics comes out of the room and requests William''s help. "Lord Champion, we need a cog boy if we want to remove the Xenos device. I believe we don''t have much time." The room again went silent as no one could understand who this ''cog boy'' is, to which William gladly demonstrated as he summoned Magos of Adeptus Mechanicus. A few seconds later, the door to the throne room opens, and six Tech-priests enter the room with the leading Magos introducing himself to William with a slight bow of respect. Unlike the typical sound, the tech-priest speaks with a mechanical voice with a muffled sound. [Magos of Adeptus Mechanicus are here to serve the Champion of the Omnissiah.. I''m Magos Valadus Callias of the Metalica and loyal servant of the Omnissiah.] Chapter 55 - The Meeting [Author''s recommendation: Warhammer 40K Mechanicus OST - Children of the Omnissiah] "There is no truth in flesh, only betrayal." "There is no strength in flesh, only weakness." "There is no constancy in flesh, only decay." "There is no certainty in flesh but death." - Credo Omnissiah The Adeptus Mechanicus is one of the factions of Imperium of Man. They are scientists, engineers, technicians, and keepers of technology which they rarely share their knowledge with Imperium. Imagine if your standard mechanic or engineer has a bachelor''s degree in engineering and a Ph.D. in theology (Study of religion and the nature of God in this case Machine God). Due to their ancient treaty with the Emperor of Mankind early during the Unification Wars, The Adeptus Mechanicus maintained their religious beliefs of Machine God and authority for 10,000 years. Suppose anyone has a problem with their authority, religion, or simply how they look. In that case, Imperium of Man will experience a sudden delay of war supplies such as weapons, ammunition, and even heavy vehicles such as Baneblade, the super-heavy tank. In other words, Admechs (Short for Adeptus Mechanicus) is one of the critical cogs for the never-ending war of the 40K universe. Most citizens of Imperium knew Tech-priests with their strange and heavy modification of their bodies. There is also their signature red robe which signifies their pledge and dedication to Omnissiah. Unknown to many, red isn''t the only color. Depending on the location of Forge World, where the Tech-priests came from, the color of the robe is different. The Tech-priests from Mars and many Forge Worlds put upon red robes while Forge World of Metalica wears white robes with little red color to indicate their dedication to Mars. [01101000 01100101 01101100 01101100 01101111...mmmmmmh¡­..aaaaahhhhh¡­] Magos Valadus Callias of Metalica made weird mechanical sounds for short seconds until he cleared his throat and spoke with a natural voice. "My apologies. We haven''t spoken with our true voice for a half-century. How may we ?ssist you, Champion?" Mangos Callias spoke with curiosity while his fellow Tech-priests looked around as if they were studying everything, including building itself. "We discovered the existence of Necron within this New World. I need your help with the removal of the mind-shackle scarab from the local king. Of course, you can keep the scarab for your research." William further explains the situation to Magos Callias which at the end the Admech nods his head. While this is going on, many nobles attempt to understand the situation but can''t due to their inability to comprehend who these people are. The white-robed beings with strange tools aren''t something ordinary people can simply move on as Admechs are otherworldly. "Fascinating. The first Necron tech in the New World and the potential first step to counter mind control devices. We will handle this procedure with extreme care to undamage the subject." The head Admech said with excitement as if he was about to open Christmas presents. "You mean your priority is to save the king''s life, right?" William reminds the Magos why they are here and sends them away to handle the king''s health issue. After six Tech-priests left the throne room, William wondered if he made the right call. Admechs are famous for two things. One: They do not invent. They improve upon already existing versions to make it work. As long as they can obtain data pieces of STC (Holy Grail from Dark Age of Technology), Adeptus Mechanicus can manufacture anything and modify it to fulfill their needs. Two: The Adeptus Mechanicus are notorious for touching everything they don''t understand. One time they found a strange ruin in one random planet and decided to explore with itching fingers (All six hands, including Mechadendrite ones). Next thing you know, the entire Necron tomb world awoke and started blasting gauss rifles. The point is, Admechs will risk everything as long as they can obtain already existing technology even if they end up awaking 60 million years old undead gods killing machines. The process of removal of mind-shackle scarab took about 30 minutes. With six Admechs in one room, William thought it would be much faster, but he doesn''t know much about Necron tech, so he waited outside with the rest of the nobles. During the wait, many of the nobles from the minor faction decided to halt their plan to take William''s head after realizing it would be an impossible task. But due to their ego and pride as noble, William is confident they won''t give up no matter how long it takes. For this reason, William decided to make the first move after solving the current issue with the king and establishing relationships with the major noble faction. "Thank you Magos Callias. I did not doubt your ability to remove the Xenos device. If all of you are done here, I have troops who need your expertise." William''s words Prince Benton signal one of the guards to guide the six very tall and weird men to the rest of strangely dressed soldiers of Knight Lord of the Metal. After Magos Callias and his Admechs are gone, the Crown Prince dismisses the nobles from both sides of the faction. With the Prime Minister gone, half of the palace on fire, and King Benton in his sickbed, the kingdom of Alderim must reorganize before moving forward. With all these problems stacked, Prince Benton stepped forward with authority and leadership never shown before. After sending away unnecessary and unimportant nobles, the Crown Prince sent the capital city on high alert to maintain the peace. While this was happening, he also sent emergency messages to the forts between Alderim and Legellan border for possible invasion once again. There are few other issues Prince Benton has to take care of, but with his newfound confidence and backing of William, the prince managed to maintain the control of the capital without resistance from ambitious nobles. Three days later, "As of now, you are no longer a member of the adventurer''s guild and wouldn''t be able to use our resources, including taking quests. This is directly coming from the guild master." Mia, a former guild receptionist from the Greenhill branch, said to William as she passed a stack of papers with additional information on it. Ever since Mia arrived in the capital, she reported back to the main guild headquarter regarding what happened to Greenhill and residents'' whereabouts. The guild master decided to send an official guild party to investigate and coordinate with the royal court if the court decided to recolonize the ruined town. As for Mia, she is ?ssigned as a guild representative to William and his military force. After William officially declared war against Legellan, the guild had no choice but to excommunicate William to maintain neutral status. From the guild''s point of view, they can''t have one of its members go to war against an entire nation without receiving political backlash from multiple sides. The guild revoked William''s membership to maintain neutrality but still maintained their relationship with him through Mia, who has a history with William. "Well, I saw this coming since I obtained my troops. I wasn''t so sure if the guild would allow me to have my forces and take most of the quests simultaneously. I don''t mind losing the membership, and it''s not like I have time." William said to Mia while pointing his thumb at guardsmen doing various tasks, including vehicle maintenance, physical training, etc. At the same time, Mia and William can hear the religious hymns and musical instruments similar to organs as three Admechs are performing rituals on Cain''s Chimera. "I understand. It''s just that I was pushing for your promotion and reestablishing guild branches to Greenhill and Deron since you would be heading back there. You just had to declare war, didn''t you?" Mia sighs because she knew William would do something incredibly outrageous, and this was coming from someone who registered William on his first day as an adventurer. "I''m sure the Crown Prince will send someone to handle Deron and Greenhill. I''m just happy to stay away from politics. It gives me a headache just by thinking about it. Now, if you excuse me, I have my politics to take care of." With that, William left with Mia wishing him luck. Knowing what is to come, William needs all the luck he could get as he opens the door to a large meeting room where four different Space Marine chapters currently are. --------------------------- Inside the large meeting room provided by the royal family, representatives of the four different Space Marines chapters sat quietly while servants poured fine wines to their cups. Out of five chairs, four were occupied as each representative sat without their helmet while two of their chosen Space Marines stood behind their respected leader. Black Templar, Blood Angel, Ultramarine, and Salamander, last time this kind of gathering happened was during Abaddon''s 13th Black Crusade, where it took multiple Space Marine chapters to defend the Cadia. As the room''s atmosphere intensifies with silence, the door opens as William, the Emperor''s Champion, enters the room with two people accompanying him behind. The first person is Commissar Cain, the Hero of the Imperium who saved multiple Imperium worlds from Xenos to Chaos forces. The second is an old military commander wearing a Cadian style uniform and smoking a thick cigar in his mouth. The man is also missing one arm as one of his shirt sleeves is folded to maintain the professional appearance of a military leader. Lord Castellan Ursarkar E. Creed of Cadia made his entrance as a representative of the Astra Militarum with a special invitation from the Emperor''s Champion.. The campaign meeting for the New World began as each group discussed military strategies, mission objectives, and most importantly, who would be the leader of the entire military force once and for all. Chapter 56 - Codex and Territory "The Codex Astartes doesn''t support this!" The Ultramarine representative, Sergeant Dioricus, rejects the plan offered by William. With four significant chapters gathered and without a proper chain of command structure, William made a plan to take charge of the entire military force, with each representative becoming his lieutenant. "Here we go again with the codex," Veteran Sergeant Sariel, the Blood Angel representative, said out loud to himself as if he foresaw the very sentences from the Ultramarine. Blood Angels and a few of the original Astartes b?r?ly follow the codex rules, for they do not share the ideal principle of the Ultramarines and their gene father, the Roboute Guilliman. After all, Blood Angels have their problems, such as Red Thirst and Black Rage, which go against codex rules due to mutation within gene-seed. "You dare to believe the Emperor''s Champion isn''t fit to lead us to a new crusade?" Veteran Cantus of the Black Templars challenged Dioricus''s words and got up from his chair with rage. Everyone in the room knew that William demonstrated the Emperor''s miracle during the battle with Greater Daemon of the Slaanesh thanks to the testimonial given by Battle Brother Raduriel of the Black Templars. There is no doubt that the Emperor chooses William according to the Dreadnought and multiple witnesses from this world, but Space Marines are still humans, and they tend to reject certain things if it''s against their point of view. "William may be the Emperor''s Champion, but he is the Champion of the Black Templars, not of ours. By the codex, no one shall command multiple chapters at once." Ultramarine sergeant said to Cantus with bitterness and reminded everyone why codex exists in the first place. For ten thousand years, no one held power and authority of commanding Astartes Legions since Warmaster Horus, and that didn''t go well for humanity, especially for the Emperor. Ironic to what Sergeant Dioricus said, the current military forces of the Imperium are led by Roboute Guilliman himself as Lord Commander of the Imperium. But then again, Roboute Guilliman is the lone active loyalist Primarch of the Imperium and the only hope against the Dark New Age. "It is true Emperor''s Champion is the title of chapter''s Champion given by Black Templars, but we can''t ignore the unique circumstances and situation we are currently in. Gentlemen, the Emperor''s mortal enemies are already here, and all we have is a handful of guardsmen that I won''t even consider a regiment." Lord Creed said to everyone, which caught everyone''s attention. As Space Marine''s ego is high and mighty, they must recognize the Cadian Supreme Commander when he decides to speak his mind. Lord Creed may be a mortal man with a short lifespan compared to Space Marines, but his legendary accomplishments and reputation are more extraordinary than anyone in the room. "Lord Creed is right. We are in an unknown world facing multiple enemies on multiple fronts. We have no military or logistic support from our homeworlds and no ship to send messages through the warp. We are all we got, and Champion is the only one connected with the Emperor''s light." Commissar Cain adds additional problems and the weight of disadvantage they are facing. Logistical issues and troop limitations, all these problems can be solved with William''s ability to ''Call or summon units,'' which everyone at the meeting table realized. This information placed William as the most valuable person and powerful evidence that the God-Emperor chose him. Few had a theory that they might have a similar ability just like William, such as gaining additional weapons and ammunition but couldn''t summon units under their command. "Both Lord Creed and Commissar Cain are right. We have limited supplies, troops, and other essential supplies to continue without Imperium''s help. As we are cut from the Imperium, I suggest we form a second Imperium Secundus just like the old days when Primarchs of old days did during Horus Heresy." Lieutenant Bolic Firehammer of the Salamander finally spoke after quietly listening to the entire meeting until now. Bolic held the highest rank of lieutenant out of four representatives with years of experience and old historical knowledge of the Imperium of Man. "You do bring up a good point, and this means we must vote to elect the head of state and form our own government until we reunite with the rest of the Imperium. Does anyone have an object? If not, then let us select a candidate." Sergeant Dioricus of the Ultramarine chapter made a clear announcement and waited a few seconds to see any objection from others. With no one objecting to the proposal of the second Imperium Secundus, each representative placed their votes to determine who would be the leader of the new government. Without complicating, everyone wrote a name on the piece of paper and placed it on a hat provided by Commissar Cain, who later counted each vote. Lord Creed and Cain can''t put their name for the leadership, but they had the honor to vote as it impacts every faction of Imperium. Sergeant Dioricus of the Ultramarine: 1 vote Veteran Sergeant Sariel of the Blood Angel: 1 vote Champion William of Black Templars: 5 votes The room went once again silent with the facial expressions of the two Astartes representatives sour with disappointment. Meanwhile, Lord Creed quietly smiles with a cigar still in his mouth, and Veteran Cantus of the Black Templars widely smiles as if he won first place in the competitive tournament. "It looks like we have our leader, gentlemen. Champion William will be our Lord Supreme Commander with five votes until we reunite with the rest of the Imperium. Of course, the official title won''t be Imperator Regis (Commander of the King), but an Imperator Fratrum (Commander of the Brother) for only Primarch Sanguinius held the Imperator Regis." Lt. Bolic said with an official tone and pointed his hand to William, signaling William to say some sort of speech for this historical event. This made everyone in the room turn their heads towards William, who was silent until now. "Thank you for your kind words. I will not waste your time with long speeches or how I''m qualified to lead this group. I can only promise you all that we will reunite with the rest of the Imperium, and when that time comes, I will fold my position just as Great Angel did. Now, let us continue with our meeting and plan our next move." William finishes his speech and immediately changes the subject, for he knew he had many things to do before leaving the capital city to invade Legellan. By the end of the meeting, three main problems came to light and must be taken care of before leaving the city. First is the stability of the Alderim, in which minor nobles are a thorn in the side for both Prince Benton and William. Ever since William almost crushed the young nobleman with his hand, he was the prime target of both political agenda and potential ?ssassination attempt. Removal of a giant warrior who commands a small army and an ally of the royal family would be a big sigh of relief. The second is filling the gaps when the first problem is solved. The power vacuum would destabilize the Alderim, which could start a civil war. It is something William can''t solve with bolter gun nor chainsword but with political strategy and negotiation. For this, William thought of one person who could accomplish this with authority and trustworthiness. Lastly, the third problem is maintaining Alderim after William''s force leaves for a military campaign. There is no guarantee that all of the Ork''s spores are terminated. William can''t allow the reemergence of Greenskins. Also, there is the possibility of Chaos''s force invading Alderim or the return of Trazyn with a more powerful force. To solve this problem, William decided to use his new authority as Imperator Fratrum when Legellan was conquered once and for all. Next Day, Rana Bassilo Backett, the Duchess of Argus, was on her seat while taking a small sip of tea, enjoying the taste of citrus and refreshing scent from her cup. Meanwhile, her host, Countess Danel Van Shaw, waits patiently as her maid places another cup and a small snack on the table. "I didn''t expect to meet you so early, your grace. I would have prepared more appropriate tea if I knew you were coming." Countess Shaw said with a neutral tone as she picked up her cup to drink the content. Since four days ago, many rumors have been of William''s true identity and the army he commands. Not to mention the sudden recovery of King Benton''s health once again rebalances the power structure between noble factions. "My apologies, I don''t have much free time ever since the chaos event happened three days ago. I''m sure you are aware of my uncle''s recovery and how he began to praise Lord William''s achievements, including the successful campaign of Deron and Fort Stormfist." The last part spoken by the Duchess gave a hidden message to Countess Shaw, for she is very aware of the potential reward King Benton might give to William for all his accomplishments. As a member of the minor noble faction, the countess knew this could change the scale of power tremendously. Every noble knew and saw two potential choices, either join the winning side or resist and perish. "Let us not exchange hidden words but talk more directly. Rana, why are you here?" Countess Shaw put down her teacup and looked directly at Rana''s eyes without giving any sign of weakness. Countess Shaw isn''t a battle-hardened warrior or a great military strategist, but she is a renowned politician and trade negotiator who could destroy business negotiation. For this reason, Countess Shaw''s region is prosperous and well equipped compared to the rest of the minor nobles within Alder. "I will be straightforward then. I want you to support the royal family once again." The Duchess''s request sends a clear message for Countess Shaw, and the room goes silent. Even maids hold their breaths due to seriousness. The faction change is one thing, but Countess Shaw already changed her alliance before, and doing it again shows weakness. "And why would you think I would do that?" The million gold coin question hit the mark which Countess Shaw expected to receive a grand excuse such as supporting the royal family or love for the country. "It''s simple. The royal family will give the city of Deron and Fort Stormfist to you. For generations, your family struggled with the southern border with rogue vampires and a small army of undead. Now that the royal family retook the Deron and Fort Stormfist to block the potential vampires from invading, I believe you are the perfect person to govern the city." The Duchess explained with ease and took another sip of tea from her cup. The original purpose of the campaign against vampires was to gain recognition and display of strength for the crown prince. This all changed when Sir Dolven hired William, and a giant black knight single-handedly slew multiple vampire armies and mysterious daemons. "Are you sure? I was under the impression that William would take over the city and fort with the recommendation of Sir Dolven, rest his soul." The countess said with curiosity in her voice. This was one of the common knowledge since William arrived in the capital city four days ago. Of course, rumors are nothing but rumors since Prince Benton took extra measures to prevent any information leak. "Does this mean William has no problem with losing territory full of resources and a formidable fort? I know guilds are sending large groups to rebuild Greenhill and a southern border outpost. I''m sure he wouldn''t want to lose the potential gain of wealth and recognition." The last sentence piques everyone''s interest except for the Duchess and waits quietly to hear the answer. "You are right, but he personally declines the idea and asks if he could give it to someone worthy to rule. I believe your action from three days ago impressed William because he recommended you right away.. As for his portion of the territory, William considered taking over Legellan from current ''residents,'' his word not mine." Chapter 57 - The Secret Meeting The negotiation between the Duchess and Countess Shaw went for another hour, with Rana able to persuade the countess to change her allegiance to a major faction. In exchange for Deron and Fort Stromfist ?ssimilating to the countess''s territory, Rana gained natural resources for William''s war effort and military support for the crown. Lastly, there was something Rana gained from the newly appointed governor of Deron. The names and locations of minor nobles who are determined to be extreme and dangerous for the Alderim. Rana and Wiliam knew a certain number of nobles would go to extreme measures to go against their king and country. These acts are nothing but heresy and traitorous in Imperium standard, from plotting systemic economic ruination to gathering rebellious military armies. If this were happening in the Imperium world, the Inquisition order of Ordo Hereticus would happily search and burn every traitor until the entire planet is covered with traitors'' ashes. To the Duchess''s surprise, the countess freely gave the list of names and a location of their secret meeting without hesitation. It turned out Countess Shaw knew of these extremists and kept track of their activities even though they were fellow members of minor nobles. The countess might have been a traditionalist and not a military genius, but this doesn''t mean she would blindly follow anyone without conducting her own investigation. "Trust me, Rana. If you didn''t ask for their name, I would have done it myself eventually. I may be a number pusher and politician, but I know when to slit my enemy''s throat and bury the body in an unmarked grave." Countess Shaw said delightfully as if this information was insignificant compared to news of William''s plan to conquer a neighboring country. The list of names was more extensive than Rana or anyone would have expected. More than a dozen names, few of them holding critical positions, including regional budgets and trade within Alderim. ''I knew minor nobles were upset with King Benton and his loyal court, but this is ridiculous.'' Rana thought to herself as she quickly reviewed the piece of paper with a list of names. Most noblemen on the list were first or second sons, but few prominent names held essential positions within internal regions. "I had the same reaction just like yours when I received the paper. Please don''t mistake my action to provide this information for my unconditional loyalty to the crown, Duchess. I''m doing this for Alderim and her people. Consider this my participation in cleaning the house." Countess Shaw points out her reasoning and finishes her tea from her cup. With this, the meeting between the Duchess and Countess Shaw ended with both parties obtaining certain rewards and new things to do in the future. The critical information of traitors will go to Prince Benton and William, but since William asked for this information, it is most likely he who will solve the problem thoroughly. ------------------------------- Two Days Later, "Gentlemen, we need to make a move before Prince Benton takes over our country. We must show our strength and take it by force to save Alderim." The leader of the secret group started the meeting while the rest of the nobles quietly sat and paid their attention to the main nobleman. The meeting location is secret to the outsiders and many minor nobles who didn''t ''earn'' their rights to be members, but their membership and influence grow broader with each passing time. "I''ll say we should take over the palace and force the foolish crown prince to abdicate the power and the entire royal family''s title. We need a leader who can take charge and believe in our way of thinking." One of the young noblemen quickly said for everyone to hear. Hearing this, many young men in the room nod their heads, and some cheer for an arm. "And what should we do with the royal family? Should we let them live and let their influence spread without retaliation?" One of the older men said mockingly as if the young man''s words were nothing but foolish and a half-witted plan. "A simple solution would be public execution of all royal blood and anyone who stands against us. We can''t have a revolution without the complete removal of previous rulers and their blinded loyal followers. Let us take arms!" The same young man slammed his fist on the table and started routing others to follow his lead. The room went louder and called for blood as if they were hungry dogs ready to devour their prey without hesitation. "Keep the women and kill the rest." "And take their riches and lands." "Now, now. We can''t simply force our way into the palace and take heads without a plan. Don''t forget, wizards of Scholar''s Pillar still support the royal family, and the crown''s noble dogs hold greater military forces." The elder nobleman next to the leader reminded everyone why they remained in the shadows and didn''t challenge right on equal footing. Even though minor nobles are many, their military forces are small compared to their opposition, not to mention their military gears aren''t the latest to match the royal guards. The minor nobles blamed royal taxes and conflict three years ago, but the truth is minor nobles have a habit of spending more for themself than investing in their territory nor the well-being of the people in their territory. "Don''t forget the giant scum aiding the prince and the Duchess. We need to remove him quickly before it gets out of hand. I suggest hiring ?ssassins from the underworld to resolve this new problem." The second older man on the other side of the table spoke as if the subject was related to killing a stray dog. After mentioning ?ssassins, the old nobleman raises his silver cup, signaling one of the slaves to pour wine into his cup. Seeing the silver cup, a slave girl immediately approached the nobleman to fill the cup. Just as she was about to finish filling the cup, another nobleman spoke without holding any restrain. "Who needs ?ssassins when I can kill him with a much better result? Just say the word, and I will hunt him down like how I killed the wild boar with my dagger." A young man sitting next to the old nobleman pulled out a fancy dagger and slashed the air with no precision. But because the young man wasn''t paying attention, he accidentally cut the slave girl''s arm, and the girl dropped the wine bottle, spilling everywhere. "You useless girl!" The older nobleman quickly got up and threw the silver cup at the slave girl''s head. The cup hit hard, and the slave girl started to bleed, but she quickly picked up the cup and wine bottle while asking for forgiveness. "Get lost, you piece of waste. I should have flogged you when I was done with your sister." The nobleman kicked the slave girl, and the girl quickly left the room, disappearing back to the kitchen while her tears mixed with blood on her face. "Let us not hear your dominance while we are conducting an honorable meeting, sir. I''m sure she will repay your mercy tonight. Hahaha," At the end of the leader''s words, many noblemen in the room laughed as if this was normal. The rotten minds of privileged men show no humanity, for many of them secretly have sickening luxurious self-indulgence and overindulgence with riches to cover their crimes (Slaanesh would be proud). "Well, let us end this meeting with a pin on the subject ''Knight Lord of Metal'' for the next meeting. Until next time, feel free to kill the giant and his mercenary army." Just as the leading nobleman was about to end the meeting, a young nobleman sitting next to the man with a dagger suddenly got up and grabbed the weapon, and slashed the man''s throat with a single motion. "What?!" One of the nobles who saw from the other side of the table reacted after realizing what just happened, but during that time, the killer already slew the second nobleman and threw the dagger in a fraction of a second towards the leader. The blade hit the target''s head, instantly killing him without allowing a moment to think or time to dodge the attack. The entire room fell apart as both young and old noblemen ran around like a chicken without its head. Meanwhile, the killer quickly blends into the shadow of the corner of the room. A woman with an athletic body wearing a black suit emerges from the shadows, armed with a green blade and chemical pistol. William''s Callidus Assassin continues her mission with extreme prejudice, for she doesn''t have any problem killing human trash. "Run!" Few young nobles attempted to open the main door while the rest armed themself with daggers and small swords to defend themselves. Due to panic and witnessing carnage in the meeting room, the young man couldn''t find the right key or place it while the female ?ssassin slowly approached them in the hallway. "Damn it, Richard. Hurry up! She is coming." One of the young men cried with fear on his face while holding a small sword with both hands. The last time he held any sword was when he publicly killed a beggar four weeks ago for not quickly moving away. "I''m trying," Man named Richard shouted with frustration while searching for the right key within the key ring. Just as the ?ssassin approached closely, other young noblemen gathered much courage to muster and attack the ?ssassin without any sign of teamwork. One by one, Callidus Assassin dodged undisciplined swordsmen and decapitated them using her C''tan phase sword. The living weapon cut everything in its path as the green blade left no one alive. With melee fighters all gone, the ?ssassin pulls out her Neural Shredder (A short-range psionic disrupter with enough power to kill the target by liquidating brain matter and spasming the entire body) and fire her weapon at two other nobles who were right behind Richard who is busing attempting to find the right key to the door. "HAAAA!" The painful screams made Richard panic more, and for some miracle, he found the right key and managed to open the door while his companions died with unspeakable pain. "I can''t die here; I can''t die here.'' Richard dropped everything and ran as fast as possible. Running outside of the big mansion in the middle of the night, the last surviving minor noble made a quick escape towards the main gate as he regretted every decision he made to join the secret group. From killing his father to become head of the family to ''donating'' a few local girls to the right members of the group, Richard did everything to get himself a seat at the table. Finally reaching the gate, Richard smiled while breathing heavily, for his chance of survival increased higher. ''Yes, yes, yes! It can''t be the end of my legacy.'' Just as Richard was about to escape through the gap of the gate, a single projectile went to the back of his head and out through his forehead. A fist-sized hole can be seen in Richard''s head, killing the last extreme minor nobleman while a Vindicare Temple ?ssassin moves his head from the scope and repositions himself on top of the mansion roof. "Target eliminated. No survivors on sight." The Vindicare Assassin said with a cold voice to the vox communicator while Callidus Assassin cleaned her blade using one of the dead noble''s clothes. "No survivors here," The female ?ssassin replies and disappears into darkness as she accomplishes her mission. After receiving a reply, the Vindicare Assassin packed his equipment and left the site without leaving any sign or clues. Chapter 58 - The Grand Royal Ball From ?ssassinating a large group of traitors, [Astra Militarum, Sentinel squad (Cadian Pattern) x1: A two-legged one man, all-terrain, combat walker armed with various anti-infantry weaponry. The Cadian sentinel is equipped with standard autocannon and armor-piercing weapons such as heavy bolters or multi-meltas. The Sentinel squad comprises five walkers with additional heavy armor plates and vox communicators to communicate to each other.] [Astra Militarum, 8th Mordian Iron Guard Regiment x1: Composed of 1500 finest soldiers hail from Hive World of Mordian (Known as World of Eternal Night). Mordian Iron Guard is known for highly disciplined, perfectly formed ranks during battle and fancy uniforms with bright, elaborate decorations. Armed with Triplex pattern lasgun, explosive packs, and stim packs, the guardsmen of Mordian are ready to kill the Emperor''s enemy with clean uniform and deadly volley fire.] [Astra Militarum, 333th Death Korps Siege Artillery company x1: Composed of 250 men and women, the Death Korps of Krieg are known for their mastery of trench warfare and fearsome appearance of gas mask and WW1 style uniform. Krieg''s men are known for their grim reputation attitude (Even in the grim dark future of the 41st millennium) and uncompromising nature to retreat or surrender, for they do not fear death but fear of failure to find Emperor''s forgiveness. The artillery company is armed with 15 Basilisk artillery pieces with a troop compartment and gunnery platform. The troops have standard lasgun, trench shovels, gas masks, and other critical equipment to support or defend the artillery units.] ------------------------------- ''Well, this is a surprise," William thought to himself as he went over his new loot obtained from ?ssassins he sent to ''clean house'' a few hours ago. Currently, William just entered the grand ballroom of the royal palace, where 60 to 70 nobles from major and minor factions gather to entertain themselves with music, dance, and finest food they don''t seem to consume. William could only guess many restrain themselves to look dignified and perceive themself to look defined. After all, a fancy party hosted by the Crown Prince isn''t something you want to be remembered for overeating for the public to see. "My lord. The party atmosphere seems to be a bit... hostile even for my taste." Commissar Cain said to William while grabbing a few snacks from the passing plate as the servant moved away from him. William considered bringing Lord Creed and a few of his battle-brothers with him, but after heavy consideration (which took him a second), he decided to bring someone who had experience with formality and diplomacy. Ciaphas Cain is known for his masterful conversationalist and approachable personality as he selects his words carefully. This skill also saved his skin multiple times, for many guardsmen stood next to Cain and watched back during combat. For this reason, William selected Commissar Cain as one of his two entourages. "I do see a few deadly stares and tension between people, but that is not my concern. Let us enjoy the party before we head out to the battlefield." William said to the commissar as he looked around to find familiar faces. William is wearing his formal clothes, for he didn''t want to destroy the palace floor with Champion''s power armor. He kept his black power sword on his side as most noblemen wore, but he is certain no one would challenge him since there is a size difference between them. "Yes, Lord Imperator Fratrum." Commissar Cain replies with ease, but William can tell the man is stressed and concerned about something else. ''The party is fine and all, but how can I use my reputation when none of them know who I am? Calm down, Cain. If you can handle the Genestealers cult, Necrons, and inquisitors, you can handle simple natives of the New World.'' Cain thought to himself while finishing the last snack in his hand. Cain left his aide, Jurgen, outside of the palace for his smell and appearance would be more harmful, but Cain did send a servant with food which he is sure Jurgen is enjoying this world''s delicacy. ''I''m sure he is being a Cain. Probably thinking about how to avoid being part of the frontline invasion force.'' Recently appointed Imperator Fratrum said to himself and continued to look around. Finally, William found the person he was looking for. Rana was in her fancy dress talking with other noble ladies, slightly laughing behind the fan. "I will meet you later commissar, I have to be a diplomat now," William then made his move and approached Rana while Cain stood alone with nowhere to go or talk to. ''Ok, Cain. Time to break some ice and show them why I''m the Hero of the Imperium." Cain then walks towards another group of noble ladies after he repositions his commissar hat. Ciaphas Cain didn''t return to the base camp that night, for he had few lady friends give him a welcoming party in a private room until the following day. ------------------------------- "I must say, I didn''t expect to see the Crown Prince leading a charge against an undead army when they started coming out underground. You have to be there to believe me." Rana said with exaggerated tones while ladies around her absorbed the story with admiration. Most of the tales told by Rana focused more on Prince Benton and his ''heroism'' while a particular person was only mentioned once and taken out from the rest of the event. "What about Knight Lord of the Metal? Surely, he must have achieved something." With that, many ladies turn their eyes back to Rana, who is holding her manners, and quickly recover to maintain her story. "Ah, yes. William did an excellent job infiltrating the fort and holding off vampire reinforcement while the main force took down the vampire threats. Please remember that William did a great deed to our country, for he took a huge initiative to help this campaign." Rana quickly finished her story and excused herself from the group as William appeared in the short distance. As Rana left the group, many noble ladies saw her headed in the direction as everyone saw William''s upper body and up among the crowd. ''Of course, she would hide the greatest warrior for herself,'' A young lady with long brunette hair thought to herself as she carefully watched Rana approaching the giant man. This young lady knew of William and his deeds thanks to her information gathered over the past few days. But, most of all, the name of the giant came to light that fateful day when her mother, the Countess Danel Van Shaw, stopped him from murdering the poor fool of a noble with metal hands. ''I will have my chance after tonight. Enjoy your time, for now, Beckett.'' Lady Gabriella Van Shaw made a silent remark and left the main hall with a few of her followers while ignoring young noblemen. Gabriella Van Shaw, also known as a Great Analyst and Northern Fox, smiled as she saw the next prey to conquer. ------------------------------- "I see you''ve been busy. May I ?ssume you were appraising Prince Benton while leaving me out of your tales?" William made a very accurate guess while teasing Rana. He didn''t pay much attention to the rest of the nobles from both sides, for he considered them a waste of time. After a few days after the Trazyn incident, many heads of the noble family learned of William''s tremendous and impossible achievements from Greenhill to Fort Stormfist. From his humbling beginning as a rookie adventurer to a paladin leader of a new pantheon, William is a once-in-a-lifetime catch to gain power only possible in the legend. But considering what William did during the incident and displaying his power towards nobles, only a few took the courage to approach William headfirst without investing more time studying the man. "I ?ssure you, dear paladin, I was only telling those young ladies what I saw that fateful day with few editing of my own. I just left unbelievable parts since no one will believe me even if I tell them." The Duchess made a reasonable but straightforward excuse to William as she genuinely smiled. She knew everyone eventually will learn of William''s achievements, but she will enjoy William all for herself until then. "Of course. So, how is this ball different from the one back in Deron? Do we have to stay all night until someone dies out of starvation?" Wiliam asks with a bit of regret since he needs an alibi and many witnesses. Ever since Rana passed the information related to the secret meeting to Prince Benton and William, William made sure no one knew of this information, especially when he sent two elite ?ssassins to ''clean the house.'' "It will be over soon, but please enjoy it just like your friend is doing," Rana said to William and pointed her finger at a small group on the other side of the room while William turned his head to see who she was talking about. On the other side of the room, a small group of wizards listens to the discussion of a particular theory while a giant metal man dressed in a black robe gives a lecture related to the holy machine spirit and the theory of all knowledge. William''s second entourage, the Magos Valadus Callias of the Metalica, is currently busy converting a bunch of Wizards into potential tech priests. Chapter 59 - Never Ending Quest and New Intel "Knowledge already exists in the universe, and it is our organization''s great duty to find them," Magos Callias said to a group of educated ''psykers'' of the New World. After receiving an invitation from Lord Imperator Fratrum, the leader of Admechs appeared right on time even though the ballroom was empty and few servants were conducting the finishing touches. Eventually, people started to come in, and when Magos Callias saw a group of intellectuals, they got along with the topic of science. "Interesting point of view on knowledge itself. What about our ability to discover and to invent through research?" One of the old men with a grey robe holding staff replies to Magos Callias''s remark. It is rare to find an educated man outside of the Scholar''s Pillar who could hold a conversation in equal terms or beyond their level. "The idea of ''inventing'' is contradictory to our belief in Omnissiah, for he already made everything that could be made. Inventing is nothing but an illusion as it goes against Omnissiah''s will and twists his divine creations into an abomination. The discovery is another word for enlightenment as an individual who learns the will of the Omnissiah is on the righteous paths." The Admech continues to explain as more wizards, and a few nobles gather to hear the new idea of higher ideals. "Your institution ''discovered'' gunpowder recently, but we have known the gift since ancient times, and we mastered it. We made various modifications to fit our needs and maintain the divine knowledge without distributing the machine spirit. This is the true and only way of the Omnissiah''s will." The Admech finishes his sentences and proceeds to ''drink'' wine through his mouth area, which a metal port opens, and Magos simply pour the whole drink into it. Many of the wizards and nobles didn''t fully understand the Magos''s point of view, for they simply couldn''t grasp the idea, but few of the archwizards and scholars managed to understand within a limit. "It is true that an individual''s discovery could already be found by someone else previously. To prevent wasting time and resources, we keep a record of our knowledge with tomes and books. I have to ?ssume you do the same, right?" The elderly woman with a fancy red robe asked with interest as she held a small chained book in her hand. "Every tech-priest has their methods and passes the information to Mar''s library. But these are small fragments compared to an STC (Standard Template Construct) from the Dark Age of Technology, which holds tremendous knowledge of the Omnissiah. To find the location of STC is our ultimate quest. To obtain the STC is absolute no matter the price." Mangos Callias''s last words were more than just lecture style, for his tone of voice changed into more religious. The topic of the STC is nothing to joke about, as even the whisper of the location or whereabouts could launch the whole armada of ships from Mars itself. Once in the 40K universe, small guardsmen found an STC that only had one blueprint. This one blueprint was enough for Adeptus Mechanicus and Imperium to reward them with planets and rule them however they wanted. That blueprint from the STC was instruction on how to make a combat knife, to which it became standard equipment for all Space Marines to have afterward. Because STC is from the Dark Ages of Technology, it is scarce to find one intact, not to mention finding one without corruption of chaos is near impossible. "This is a very interesting ideology. You must come to Scholar''s Pillar and give an open lecture with rest. I''m one of the senior educators of the institute, and I''m sure the headmaster will welcome you with open arms." The same old man with a grey robe said to Magos that he accepted the invitation as long as William allowed it. "Well, looks like you are going to have your wish to visit the Scholar''s Pillar after all," Rana said to William while holding his right arm with both of her hands. "I think I''ll pass. Since Magos Callias and his cog boys have more understanding, I will instruct them to make a few adjustments with gunpowder weaponry." William said to the Duchess and moved away from the group. Before summoning the Admechs, William planned to visit the Pillar to see D&D wizards and magic school. All this changed ever since William got busier with a war effort and duties of the Imperator Fratrum. The best thing he can do is distribute the workload to each staff member specific to their specialty. After the couple left the first group, they were about to see the second group when a sound of five horns gave a sign of announcement to be made. Standing next to the main entrance, an announcer steps forwards and announces the news. "May I present the Crown Prince Benton Pius Amadeus the 4th of the Alderim and his ladyship, Mia Vamini Spire of the Adventurer''s Guild." The crowd went silent while the main attraction entered the room. Before making their descent from the stairs to the main room, the prince raised his right hand to signal that he was about to give a small speech. "Thank you for attending the party tonight. I want to thank everyone who supported my campaign as I have learned a lot and gained important allies who helped me open my eyes to understand how big the world is. As you all know, we are about to face a new military campaign against our neighboring country who took advantage of our country and king. I''m making an official decree tonight that the royal family and country of Alderim is supporting our new allies, the Knight Lord of the Metal and his military force." At the end of the prince''s speech, most of the nobles in the room clap their hands, with a few joining the rest two seconds later. It''s well-known that Prince Benton''s new friend is a giant man who has a mysterious mercenary force equivalent to the entire country''s military might. Because of their victory against ''orcs'' and ''metal golem'' a few days ago, many nobles, including the minor faction, started to support the war against Legellan. Their reasoning is to join the winning side as long as they won''t spend many resources, especially the workforce and money. Eventually, the clapping stopped, and the party resumed back to normal. Not many nobles approach the prince and Mia as they don''t want to bother the important meeting between influential people. "I didn''t expect to see you with Mia, Prince Benton," William said to the prince while Mia hid her blush using her fan. Meanwhile, Rana smiled and enjoyed the awkward moment her cousin was experiencing. She already knew how close the prince and guild representative is ever since rescue from the barbarian warrior who worships the blood god. "Well, Mia is still new to the capital and doesn''t know anyone in the city. Since she is attending the party as the representative of the adventurer''s guild and William, I decided to accompany her for the night." Prince Benton made a very understandable excuse, except it didn''t work since the prince''s face told a different story. "Of course, how a gentleman of you." Rana made a small comment which weakened the prince''s defense and made him make an awkward smile. Mia, seeing the prince about to crumble, changes the topic of the conversation by providing new information. "William, we have new intelligence for you regarding Legellan. The guild''s and Alderim''s spies gathered as much information as they could and reported back just this afternoon." Before Mia could continue, Rana interrupted her from spilling more information since many ears are around them. "Let''s move to a private room before continuing our conversation. This party is too dull for us anyway." With Rana''s request, the four people quickly left the party and regrouped in the private room similar to the one where Admechs healed King Benton. After confirming there are no other ears, Mia continues her report on new information. "There isn''t much regarding Legellan''s army since their military couldn''t refurbish their numbers in the short time since three years ago, but what got our attention is their hero''s party." The last part got William''s and Rana''s attention since it was the first time hearing anything about the hero. "Hero? What hero? Like high ranking adventurers from Legellan?" William made the best guess using his previous knowledge from the D&D campaigns. If there is anything such as a hero''s party, it makes sense that this would be a group of adventurers who achieve fame and recognition from completing high-risk quests. As for William, this would mean some challenges and more loot for him. "Yea, your guess is right. A party of adventurers from Legellan''s guild officially join the war effort, and we don''t know what their reasoning is. Every guild has a similar policy, such as joining the international conflict since adventurers'' jobs require them to travel between borders, so not many accept the war quest unless they are desperate. The vampire campaign is a different story since they are monsters, but human conflict could get complicated." Mia explains the basics of the guild policy as every guild within known countries have similar rules and agreement with other guild offices. "We don''t know name or age, but according to the spymaster, this fighter holds the title of the hero and is rumored to be a chosen of the Mother. As for his armor, it is reported that his armor is big, bigger than yours, and powerful enough to survive the black dragon''s acid breath and didn''t melt the armor plating." End of Mia''s words, both Rana and Prince Benton are shaking with fear after hearing the fighter''s description, which resembles the barbarian who slaughtered their mentor and captured them for his entertainment in the fight pit not long ago. "Do you know the color or any noticeable symbols within the armor?" William asks nervously because, depending on Mia''s answer, William has to change his approach. ''Could it be another Chaos Marine sent by one of the ruinous powers or one of the royalist Space Marines?'' "There aren''t any noticeable symbols, according to the report. As for the color of the armor, it is steel grey.. The giant armor''s color is grey." Chapter 60 - The Protagonist Located on the northwest of the Alderim''s border, the nation of Legellan was ruled by the royal family and many nobles who were loyal to the crown. Like Alderim, Legellan has forests and mountains filled with wild animals and monsters but with a notable geographic difference in which half of the country is a flat plain. Because of this, Legellan''s economy mainly focused on raising animals and farming, while the military''s main force was the knight''s cavalry. Before the war with Alderim, Legellan experienced ten years of rich harvest and relevant peace, having a surplus of resources and military force without anyone to fight. Many of the nobles and a few royal families supported the idea of expanding the border towards Alderim. Using an ?ssassination attempt on the king as an excuse, Legellan publicly executed the Alderim ambassador and firstborn prince without trial or enough evidence to support the accusation. This was Legellan''s first and last mistake as a nation. After Legellan lost the war three years ago, the country went through a year of economic depression and civil disorder. It came to the point where the royal family of the Legellan scattered as some took refuge in other countries while most were executed by the angry mob of hungry and sick people. With the end of the crown, many of the noble families follow a similar faith, with some eventually perishing just like the royal family. From the near destruction of the country itself, the name Legellan was saved by the newly founded religion and goddess known as ''Mother.'' One night, the white mountain emerges from the underground near the Legellan capital city. With curiosity and fear, the adventurer''s guild sent an expedition to investigate the white mountain. At first, many believed the white mountain was a new dungeon which the guild could use to make some money, and few believed it was a divine sign from the deity. So, imagine their surprise when they found what appears to be an entrance blocked with a smooth white gate. After a long investigation, the people of Legellan discovered the power of the white mountain by placing their sick or wounded on the entrance. The mountain entrance didn''t open, but it shined and healed individuals instantly the moment a sick or wounded person stepped on the doorstep. If there is no one to heal, the mountain provides the people with basic food supplies for the needy out of nowhere. The miracles ended the famine within a month, and many began to convert into new religions, and it began to spread like a fire all over the country. Having no royal family or anyone with a crown to rule the country, Legellan changed its political status into a theocracy, and the Church of the White Mountain formed an official ruling government with priests of the church governed according to their rank. With the country stabilized and people calmed down from their anger, the only problem Legellan now faced was an economic problem in which the country owed massive amounts of debt. This is where the hero party of the Legellan came to light as the hero, and his followers took many quests and quickly raised the rank. No one knew this hero''s past or where he came from, but one thing for sure the hero was blessed with Mother''s armor and weapons. With powerful war gears at his disposal, the hero formed a powerful party and eliminated monsters, highwaymen, and other dangerous quests. Eventually, the Church of the White Mountain began to support the hero and officially recognized the hero as a national hero and gave status equal to high noble. In exchange, the church requests the hero to solve the financial debt once and for all by giving one of the most challenging quests known to Legellan''s guild. With the church backing the hero, the party hunted down an ancient black dragon and looted the dragon''s lair. The fight between the hero''s party and the ancient dragon was a challenge, but in the end, the hero delivered the killing blow to the black dragon and conquered the lair filled with enough treasures to remove the nation''s debt. Escaping the economic depression, Legellan fully recovered and once again became a stable nation. It was this time when ''Mother'' finally spoke for the first time. "Bring me the one known as Lioness of Argus. Bring me, Rana Bassilo Beckett." ------------------------------- Nine Days Later, William''s army crossed the border two days ago and entered the plain field. Before leaving Alderim, William left a few Salamanders Space Marines and a dozen guardsmen to guard the capital city. The reason is simple: William wants to make sure no Ork spores survive the conflict with Trazyn and Salamanders are famous for purging with flamers. After a secret arrangement between Rana and Countess Shaw, Countess Shaw sends her military force and a small army of workers with their family to the City of the Deron to relieve Rana''s army who were stationed there. After returning back to the capital, the Duchess''s army rested until William was ready to move his army to Legellan. "Why can''t I just take my army and take the capital city in a one sweep whoop?" William asks his question one more time to understand this world''s rule of engagement. Initially, William planned to visit his entire army to every town, village, and city to test out the water of the war. At the same time, he would send a few of the Tempestus Scions to gather information regarding this ''Mother'' and determine which Chaos god this might be. William''s bet is on Tzeentch since the course of a nation changed with one single religion. If there was any rumor or signs of ?ust, excess, or p???sur?, that is Slaanesh which William won''t bother himself anywhere in person. He would just bomb the hell out of the entire land, let it burn, and bomb more until there is nothing but ashes and dust. "In the old days when nations declared war, there was unnecessary death of people and pillage which did more harm than bringing honor and glory. So now, there is an untold truce where two nations in war will gather in designated locations to fight without burning the whole country down. Of course, there are conditions and rules, but if one of the countries breaks the rule such as ransacking towns not on the course of the meeting place or needless murder and massacre, then it''s all-out war." Rana explained it as simply as possible and pointed out the soon-to-be battlefield. When William first hear this he thought it sounds ridiculous, but it gave off some sense of old Earth''s rule of engagement during the Napoleonic War where kings of countries have some sense of honor and chivalry (Of course, they burn the invading country and pillage, but it is all about maintaining their reputation). "Ok, I guess we will wait here and see what they will bring." William took his helmet off and placed it next to his right arm while enjoying the endless sight of the grass field. "I think you don''t have to worry about what they will bring compared to yours." Rana turned half of her body to see the army William brought with him. Behind Rana and William, the largest army, the Iron Guard Regiment stands still while weapons shine from the sunlight and uniform spotless from any dust even after days worth of walk. The Cadian Shock troops were handling all vehicles, including air support Valkyries and land raiders, while Catachan Jungle Fighters disappeared after Lord Creed gave order right after they arrived. The rest of the Space Marines (Except for Salamanders) are doing their own thing as a group. Some are talking with Admechs regarding their weapons, while some are talking to Battle Brother Raduriel. "Yea, I think we are good," William replies to Rana as he also turns half of his body to see the overall sights of his troops. "It will be a shame if the other side declares a duel instead. All the work and effort wasted," Rana quietly said as she but William heard her. "A duel?" Before William could ask more questions, the loud horn could be heard, and on the other side of the field, the army of Legellan appeared within distance. Without using his helmet''s scope, William could tell that most of the enemy army is made out of foot soldiers, archers, knights, other medieval units armed with iron swords and chainmail armors. Leading the enemy army, William saw very distinguished figures, which he ?ssumed was the hero''s party. Behind them, a large solid wooden carriage pulled by four oxen while the content of the carriage is hidden with a white blanket, but after hearing the information from Mia''s spies, William guessed that it would be grey power armor he heard of. "Did they finally arrive? About time." Commissar Cain approached William and the Duchess while his aide stood behind a few feet away while looking through a high-tech binocular. "My lord and lady, the man in the middle wearing unusual clothing, he just stopped the army." Jurgen, the personal aide of Cain, spoke as he described the situation on the other side. What is he doing now?" Cain asked with curiosity while both William and Rana waited. "He is turning and approaching one of his entourage. It''s a young woman, and she is wearing armor, a sword, and a shield. Now they are kissing and hugging as if they are lovers. Oh¡­" Jurgen paused and removed his eyes from the binocular before putting them back on. "What is it?" Commissar Cain asked a question since he could b?r?ly see with his n?k?d eyes. "Yep, that''s it. We are wasting time, and this guy is pissing me off. Jurgen, prepare for the artillery bombardment! We are doing the Emperor''s Will and purging the sinners." Commissar Cain gave his order with a mix of rage and jealousy while forgetting who was standing next to him. "Easy now, Commissar. I know this ''man'' is disgracing the battlefield with his followers but let us meet first before burning them entirely." William halted the previous order and turned towards Rana to gain some support. Meanwhile, lieutenants of four Space Marine chapters and Lord Creed came to investigate the sound of the horn and commotion coming from the Commissar Cain, known for his legendary composure. "We still have to follow the rule of engagement. If we don''t, the people of Legellan will not easily accept you as the new ruler. They will resent you and create civil unrest just like the previous royal family. Now, let us meet this ''pig'' and get this over with." Rana spoke with disgust as she rode her horse towards the middle of the field. William followed her while on the other side, the man who was busy kissing women and a man dressed in priest robe approached as well. When four people met on the field, William saw the two representatives from the Legellan. The priest wasn''t much to look at, except his robe was decorated like a Christmas from top to bottom with gold and silver jewelry. The hero got William''s attention as the young man was wearing something resembling a diver''s white-colored wetsuit with multiple injection ports all over the body, mainly on the upper body and legs area. The one other thing that got William''s full attention was man''s ethnicity. He was a young ?du?t around 20 to 23, and he is Asian, like black hair, brown eyes, and other characteristics of either Japanese, Chinese or Korean. The hero of the Legelland spoke first before the priest or Rana could. "My name is Makato Amano, and I''m here to take Rana Bassilo Beckett to be a priestess of the Mother and as my seventh wife.. I''m the hero of the Legellan and the chosen one from another world." Chapter 61 - The Holy Relic "By the nine hell, I will not!" The Duchess said with a sudden eruption of rage equivalent to Khorne Berzerkers on the battlefield. As for William, his face showed signs of disappointment and anger since he was holding his helmet in his right hand. At least he didn''t pull out his bolter pistol and blow the guy''s face out of pure rage. William''s rage is indeed related to ridiculous demands coming from a guy who has the gull to identify himself as ''Chosen one from another world'' and attempt to take Rana as his seventh wife. Like countless nerds and people who want to escape to a different world, William can understand the fantasy of living in a different world. Still, it doesn''t mean you can toss your principle and common sense because you are in a different world. William has no problem meeting another person from Earth. If the situation were different, he would love to have a conversation and compare notes regarding which Earth time the other guy came from and form some sort of alliance while living their own life. Honestly, William doesn''t mind the other guy having six different wives (I don''t know about you, but one relationship is enough for a lifetime, in my opinion), but coming after his Rana being all, ''I steal your girl'' is out of line. "What don''t you like about it? You will have great respect as a priestess and as one of the wives of a national hero. You should be honored and thrilled by the once-in-a-lifetime luck." Makoto said with a confused tone as if someone had just thrown away free money. Hearing this, William stepped forward to defend the Duchess and put this punk in his place. "You should be more respectful to people you just met, or did you lose your proper mannerism after gaining fame?" William used his giant body to stand between Makato and Rana. This usually intimidates regular people by now, but for some reason, the other guy didn''t show any sign of fear or even caution. "Don''t interrupt my conversation with my future wife, you second-rate NPC. Your fancy armor and size don''t impress me at all. Why don''t you go get some refreshment while ?du?ts talk business?" The rude protagonist shushes away William with his hand gesture while he moves himself to look at Rana''s face. After hearing this, William had enough and was about to place his left hand with a combat knife to draw, but Rana beat him to it to his surprise. The Duchess jumped off from her horse and stepped forward to get close to the other guy. This only took a second, and Rana slapped Makato''s face without hesitation when she got close. The sound of slap echo can be heard on the battlefield, and a second later sound of ''Ohh'' could be heard from William''s side as Commissar Cain watched the entire thing from a Jurgen''s binocular. Rana wasn''t done with just a slap. After slapping the man, she moved back a few inches and pulled back her right fist, and was about to punch the man''s face with full might. Just as Rana is about to one punch Makato (Remind you, she is wearing a metal gauntlet with sharp knuckles), William quickly moves to stop her from killing the man. At this point, what is done is done, and any room for negotiation of one''s surrender is gone. After letting Rana''s right hand go, William returns to his original spot and declares his demand to Legellan''s leaders. "As you can see, we will not follow or meet any of your demands. If you want Rana Bassilo Beckett, then you must go through my troops and me to do so." William then put his helmet back on and was about to leave with Rana next to him when his helmet gave off a warning from his sensor. [Warning! Unknown technology detected. Sending notification to the nearest Tech-Priest.] When William turns his head back at Makato and the priest of White Mountain, the helmet zooms in at Makato''s face and scans the area. The helmet focuses on a small white metal piece on the Makato''s side of the forehead and takes a quick snapshot. With that done, William''s helmet went back to normal, and the warning signs disappeared, but soon William heard a loud metallic-like voice of ''What!'' coming from his side. ''Oh crap, did my helmet just send an image to Magos Callias?'' William thought to himself and was about to return to his troops quickly. The talk is now pointless, and this Makato guy is pissing him off. By looking at William and his armor, the guy should realize that he isn''t the only one who came from Earth. Instead of greeting fellow isekai travelers, the guy deliberately ignored William''s existence and called him a second-rate NPC. Now that is rude even for fellow Terran. "I CHALLENGE YOU TO A DUEL!" Makato, with a bloody face and broken nose, said out loud enough for two armies to hear the declaration. When the challenge was announced, Makato''s side cheered with excitement as if they had just heard a surrender from the other side. Meanwhile, William''s side was busy with something else and didn''t pay much attention as if they found something more important than winning a war. "Fine, I accept your challenge. So, will this be a classic 1 vs 1 to the death?" William said with no interest since he was more focused on his troops. No one responds to his vox radio call, or any primary vox handlers are Admechs since they do all the rituals to ensure all machines work correctly. "Yes. You have 30 minutes to get ready, and there is no restriction. The fight will end when one of you dies, and no one can interrupt the duel. If this happens, then it is automatically considered surrender without question." The priest of the White Mountain quickly explained the rules. Just before both sides were about to return to their side Makato who was covering his face with one hand, gave a middle finger at Rana and William with his free hand. "After I kill your man toy, I will make you the ninth slave instead of my wife," Makoto said with a sharp knife tone and proceeded to walk back to his side with each step in anger. When Rana and William arrived back to base, both of them saw all tech priests comparing notes and sharing image data captured from William''s helmet. Even tech marine from Black Templar was in the group while other commanders, including Lord Creed, watched quietly in the side as if they had just received dire news from tech-priests. "What in the golden throne is going on here?" William said with a loud voice to get everyone''s attention. To his surprise, it worked too well since every tech-priest turned their heads at the same time at William''s direction without saying anything. Magos Callias is the one who approaches William up close and answers the Lord Imperator Fratrum''s question. "The holy relic is here. One of the holy relics of the Dark Age of Technology is here in the New World, and our enemy has it." A few minutes later, Magos Callias pulled out the image, which was from William''s helmet. The close image of Makao''s side head can be seen as a red circle at the white metal piece. The white metal is triangle-shaped with nothing much to pay attention to or mention. At best, it was something people would think of as jewelry, and according to Jurgen, all of Makato''s harem have the same metal piece on the side of their forehead. "Ok, what is so special about this metal thing? It can''t be STC, can it?" William finally asks the question, which causes Magos Callias and the rest of the Admechs to tremble with excitement. "This metal piece is not an STC itself but part of the holy design. According to Mars''s data library, there is no name, but we have a piece of record indicating it as a sort of communication device with a large range. This relic allows individuals to communicate without speaking, and there is a legend that it allows one to share minds with others as long as they have the devices." Callias explains the whole thing within 30 seconds and shows an old picture of a similar metal piece from Mars''s library. "Wait, you can share your thoughts with others using that tiny device?" Rana said but couldn''t believe what she had just heard. This magical item is unheard of, and if there is, there is no way something that powerful could be that small. "Yes and no. Share thoughts, but only the primary relic can do such a thing and more. According to the record, the primary relic can negate others'' will and even push others to absolute authority by giving a command. The theory is that this relic was used on a harsh labor colony and even on the Men of Iron, but this is only a theory until now." Magos Callias said the last part only to William through vox radio, for he is the only one allowed to know the existence of Men of Iron as the head of the state. ''That explains one thing regarding what we saw earlier. Makato maybe is bending those girls and others using this device against their will. Man, I hate sinnister isekai MC. They are human garbage and give bad rep.'' William thought to himself and connected the dot, but a voice called everyone''s attention before he could say anything. Makato, who is now fully healed thanks to the healing magic, walks towards the carriage that four oxen pulled on another side of the plain. After giving a few words, the soldiers climb the carriage and remove the white blanket covering the content. Shining bright from the sunlight reflection, a large silver-grey armor in a kneeling position revealed itself. After kissing one of his girls and looking in the direction of William''s base, Mankato turns around and pulls himself up on the carriage, in which he proceeds to open the upper part of the armor. The ?h?st and head of the armor open like some sort of mech pilot chamber, and cables of various sizes automatically reach out and attach themselves at Makato''s suit injection ports. With a swift motion, Makato got inside, and the armor closed itself. A second later, the armor itself is light on, including a helmet (The helmet is shaped like an Aegis pattern, but instead of two eyes, it has a long thin visor. It is similar to Felix from the Red vs. Blue series). When ready, Makato''s armor got up and grabbed his weapons placed beside the carriage. Long halberd with a golden blade in his left and a large power hammer in his right, the armor jumped off the carriage, and the entire Legellan army erupted with cheers and chants of Makato''s name. "I''ll be damned. By the looks of it, that is terminator armor, but I''m not familiar with which pattern it is." Sergeant Dioricus of the Ultramarine said and looked around to see if others knew what pattern the armor was. All of the Space Marines shake their heads, and even LT. Bolic Firehammer from the Salamander couldn''t answer the Ultramarine. "That armor isn''t something widely known or seen since the Age of Strife. I have seen that armor once from the STC vault library of the Metalica. It is a terminator armor from the Dark Age of Technology, and its name is Hercules pattern.." Magos Valadus Callias said to everyone while they continued to watch Makato in his armor walk towards the middle of the field with powerful weapons in both hands, ready to kill William once and for all. Chapter 62 - The Duel Part One Tactical Dreadnought Armour, simply known as terminator Armor, is one of the technologies developed during the Dark Age of Technology before humanity fell from their prime and superpower dominance within the Milky Way Galaxy. Many of the Admechs and Imperium scholars of history believed that the terminator armor was first used during the Emperor''s Unification Wars of the 30th Millennium. From techno-barbarians who allied with the Emperor to his first Space Marine Legion, the terminator armor further improved and reforged into current day heavy duty armor used by Space Marines of the Imperium. When the Great Crusade launched from Terra (Earth), many of the Legiones Astartes who were worthy wore the first generation terminator armor and went beyond the Solar System to reunite lost worlds. Acting as the Emperor''s sledgehammer, the elite squads of terminators devastated many of the enemies of the Imperium from boarding the enemy spaceship to open the battlefield where nothing could stop them once fighting started. The original purpose of the terminator armor is a mystery, but many theorized that the armor was used between the 15th Millennium to 25th Millennium as an environment suit for extreme hazardous on-foot planet survey. It was also believed that terminator armor was much easier to use for regular humans since there was no superhuman augmentation treatment, such as the creation of the Space Marine. But, as humankind is very familiar and has a long history of war, the idea of using heavy power armor able to withstand extreme environments as a weapon of war is apparent. Of course, humans have true AI and advanced robots to make their war for them, but it doesn''t mean it is not possible. "For, mankind thrives on war and death as long as victor wields a bigger stick than vanquished." By me, the author. --------------------------- "Tell me everything about this Hercules pattern terminator armor, Mangos Callias." Lord Creed is the first person to break from shocking news and ask the head of the Admech regarding this mythical power armor. Like many of his predecessors before him, Lord Creed understood the war and the quality of the soldier doesn''t guarantee victory, for there are countless factors included such as quality of weapons, strategy, etc. "Since the enemy revealed the existence of this terminator pattern, there is no need to withhold the information." Magos Callias expresses no emotion while one of his metal limbs opens and projects a holographic image of ancient text. The ancient text wasn''t written in high or low gothic but rather unusual letters. Even William wasn''t familiar with the unknown language even though he is somewhat familiar with 21st-century languages from many exposures (This doesn''t mean he knows the language but somewhat recognizes it). Callias continued while everyone''s attention went towards the image. "The Hercules pattern is only mentioned twice in this ancient text of Mars. According to the tech-priests of that period, the armor was designed to wage total war against other humans who would turn against the common cause of old expansion. Even though Mars has the armor, we, the select few Magos of the Metalica, don''t fully understand it since it is above our rank. Only the Fabricator-General of Mars has full access and what the armor is capable of based on the ancient research." The revelation of this information didn''t help much since William, and everyone knew Mars was very secretive with their knowledge and technology. One thing is sure, this new terminator armor is bad news, and no one was expecting to face one here in this New World. Commissar Cain asked a crucial question of ''How do we defeat the ancient war armor.'' "The second text mentioned how the ancient tech-priests of Mars defeated the Hercules pattern during the war. Even though many fell on the battlefield, the Will of the Machine God and Machine Spirit prevailed by using the most powerful weapon Mars could manage at that time. The ground-shaking power of the god-engines wiped the opposition, but for the exchange of the certain victory, the devastating power of the god-engines brought down Mars'' atmosphere and survivors evacuated to underground as we know it." When Callias ended his sentence and turned off his projector, everyone remained silent while their jaws dropped. It took the god-engines of Mars, the Titans, to defeat the terminator armor. Of course, it wouldn''t have been just terminators since it was a large-scale war on Mars, but to hear that it took Titans to beat terminators is ridiculous. Either Mars lacked military manpower and firepower to face the enemy, or they decided to burn down the whole planet just to go back home for dinner in time. "Ok, ok, ok. So what you are telling me is that I need a fracking Titan to fight that egomaniac? Why not just Exterminatus the whole planet?" William said while being irritated with unbelievable revelation. At this point, William is about to face a downsized Titan in a duel and is expected to win the fight and survive. "That would exceed beyond reasonable firepower to defeat the armor, but it is logical in our current situation," Callias responded to William''s question, which didn''t help much. The tension of the meeting went higher while the time limit of 30 minutes would soon end. "We could try the artillery until we hit the crust of the planet, but this is a duel between champions, and it would be against codex." Sergeant Dioricus gave his idea of using full military might, but his honor-bound codex prevented him from acting on it. Others, including Jurgen, gave different ideas and strategies to win the duel; unfortunately, the sound of the horn signals the end of 30-minute preparation with no solid plan to win the fight. Before William left his base, he asked Callias if he could interrupt the mental connection between Makato''s metal piece and others. After hearing this, Magos gave a simple shrug response and told William he and others will perform a Ritual of Prime Dominance based on his knowledge related to Necron mind-shackle scarabs. Looking back at Rana and the rest, William walks towards the battlefield with heavy hearts to meet his opponent. William stopped 15 yards (45 feet) away from Makato, who was already on the field with his helmet open to meet William face to face. "I was expecting you to run away or break the rule by using modern weaponry on me. I give you props for that one, second character." Makato said to William mockingly while he looked towards William''s military force and then at Rana. He continued after a glance of William''s side, "After I''m done with you, I will show that bitch who is the master and slave all night long. Maybe I should put your severed head in her direction while I''m fu?k?n? her so I can break her much faster." The hero of the Legellan laughed as if this was a normal conversation and closed his helmet to start the fight. "I have one question for you before we start this fight," William said with a neutral voice while putting on his helmet. At this point, William is beyond furious from Makato''s inhumane expression and acts, but he isn''t going to waste his rage on a mere talk, for he is saving it for the fight. "What is it?" The simple response with iteration came out from the helmet mechanical vocal speaker. "Do party members of yours know what you did to them, or are they just mindless dolls for you to play with?" The question from the Emperor''s Champion surprised Makato and hit his ego. Makato realized William was just like him after seeing him and his military forces through his helmet. He didn''t recognize the weapons, vehicles, or the armors the giant men were wearing, but he played enough video games to recognize the power armor similar to the Halo series and Fallout. "So, you know of my little secret. So what if those bitches are fully aware of what I have done to them? They are nothing but tools and p???sur? dolls in the bed. You should have seen their faces when I gave each of them an inferior mind receiver. Until they put it on, their faces were full of love and smile as if it was an engagement ring or something. As if I would settle down with a primitive woman like some light novel MC. So, did I answer your question, Mr. Nobody?" Makato said with no indication of any shame or compassion to William. This completely burns down William''s hope to befriend him as fellow Earthing as William pulls out his heavy bolter from his inventory. The fight began with a loud sound of heavy bolter as .99 calibre bolt rounds fired from William''s weapon. The anti-infantry weapon, powerful enough to shred hundreds of Tyranid Warriors, hits the terminator armor with full fury, but the outcome was the complete opposite as the terminator walks towards William as if bolter rounds are nothing but raindrops. Equipped with a halberd and a power hammer, the near-indestructible armor walks forward with no hesitation. The heavy bolter rounds simply ricochet before hitting the armor plating as if an invisible barrier protected it. Thankfully, William''s helmet catches this and analyzes it within a second, the result of the information disheartens William, and he immediately stops firing his heavy bolter. According to the helmet, the terminator armor has a conversion field similar to William''s iron halo, generating an invisible force field. Unlike William''s, the terminator''s force field absorbs the kinetic energy of the rounds and converts it into energy to maintain the force field indefinitely. Not willing to give additional energy, William put away the heavy bolter and pulled out a flamer, and attached a jetpack to escape incoming attack while counter-attacking at the same time. Immediately after William puts his jetpack, the enemy''s power hammer strikes down from the right side with blue lighting sparking around it. With a quick superhuman reaction, William jets it away to his right (Makato''s left) and turns around to fire his flamer. As if anticipating the next move, the terminator strikes forward with a halberd right at William''s ?h?st to William''s surprise. The long golden blade hit William right away before he could fire his flamer, but with a quick muscle reaction, William blocked the attack with his flamer weapon''s metal barrels which cut it in half like melted bu??er. The flamer didn''t do off after being damaged by the blade, and the blade itself didn''t hit William''s armor, but he suspected that it would have gone straight into his heart through power armor plating. Keeping his jet on, William threw the flamer at Makato after rigging it to explode and took out his storm shield and Champion''s signature black sword. When the rigged flamer went off, the whole terminator armor was engulfed by the chemically mixed promethium fuel. The raging fire burned the entire grass field around the armor, and two armies could feel the burning heat from their sides. Knowing this isn''t the end, William stands where he landed and activates the storm shield and black sword to face his adversary. "Hahaha. Is that all you got? I was expecting more, but it seems your machine gun and flamethrower are nothing but inferior versions of real firearms. I should know; I''m from Texas, where real men use real guns. Also, it looks like you have some sort of ability, just like me. I can master any tools to their full potential. You?" Makato said as he walked out from the blazing fire without any signs of damage or even a burn mark on armor plating. "Oh, you are American? I thought you were from Japan based on your name. I have the inventory, by the way. It looks like both of us have some sort of cheat after all." William said with a little bit of surprise and slight regret of ?ssuming Makato''s nationality. William didn''t mention his second ability since it wouldn''t matter right now, but one of his old questions is finally answered after a quick exchange of words with Makato. As for his ?ssumption on Makato, both William and Makato weren''t sure if either of them were speaking the languages of Earth since they were given the ability to speak the native language of this world. "Third-generation American with Japanese and Korean heritage. Who gives a shit about that anyway? So, I ?ssume you are also American?" Makato said with curiosity as he put down his hammer to the ground and wiped his shoulder with his free hand. "Yea, I''m from Richmond, Virginia. By the way, how did you end up here? Truck, bus, or car?" William replied to Makato''s question and asked if he ended up here with a typical trope of car accidents known among Isekai novels. "Neither. I was hit by the incoming train after my ex pushed me from the station. She found out I fu?k?d her other sisters at the same time the night I got back the day early." Makato said with a wide smile as if it was nothing. "How about you?" "I went to bed and woke up here." "What a puss? way to come to my world. Guess what? Maybe you will wake up after I stab you with my spear." Makato swings his halberd wildly and points the tip of the blade at William with curiosity. This also made William question the possibility but considering who he is fighting right now. He quickly decided to test that on Makato rather than himself. "That''s called halberd, dumbass. Know the difference if you are using it to kill me with it." William corrected Makato and anticipated the incoming attack mixed with hatred. "Fuck you, v???n? man. I can call it whatever I want as long as you are at the end of the stick." The terminator picks up the power hammer and then charges with full speed with both weapons high. Meanwhile, William raised a storm shield and pulled back his black sword above the shield with a formidable stance. Makato may have powerful armor and weapons, but William has a century-long muscle memory training with him. The two power armors clash head-on while the sky darkens as black clouds slowly cover the blue sky.. Unknown to everyone in the field, a being of unimaginable powers and responsible for giving Makato''s war gears watches above as the Mother changes her mind and grand plan. Chapter 63 - The Duel Part Two While two champions are fighting to the death as each of them swings their weapons at each other, a lady in a blue aura watches the entire thing above while smiling at something that has gotten her attention. Previously, a lady in blue aura wanted the Duchess, but after watching the interaction between her so-called ''Campion'' and William, she changed her mind because she saw a much more significant gain from the man in giant black armor. [Well, it''s not like I had much of an option, to begin with anyway. I do need him alive and somewhat intact. I guess I need to lure him to me instead.] ----------------------- Makato''s terminator armor bull rushed at William with two weapons up high. Even though terminator armor is bulky and slow in terms of speed, Makato''s armor isn''t regular armor. Built for war, the Hercules pattern terminator armor came headfirst towards William while the Emperor''s Champion firmly placed the storm shield between him and the charging 1,500 lb (6,800 kg) tank. When Makato swings his power hammer at William, William activates the storm shield''s internal gravitic energy field generator and negates the devastating energy. With the first weapon taken care of, William moved his entire body low and went around Matako''s lower body like a single motion of a river moving around a mountain. Escaping through the opening, William immediately strikes his opponent''s back with his black sword, a power cell already activated and generating blue lighting. William''s only solution was close melee combat after witnessing the energy shield previously from heavy bolter fire. With the black sword generating its own disrupting energy field around the master-crafted blade, William''s attack should be able to penetrate the energy shield and armor plating of the terminator. As for Matako, thanks to his ability to master any tools to its full potential and pilot suite from the Mother, Makato can move normally and react in real-time. But, due to his lack of training and ego, he doesn''t have much experience when it comes to fighting a veteran swordsman in a real fight. The only reason he still managed to survive is because of his armor, but right now, his armor''s bulky size and a wide opening made him unable to react on time even if he is linked with the armor neural cables. Clang! The sound of metal hitting metal can be heard out loud. The black sword of the Emperor''s Champion went through the terminator''s energy shield, but the blade itself was stopped by the armor plating of the giant suit itself. As a tip of the pencil on the surface of a metal table, the sword wasn''t able to penetrate or even scratch the armor plating, even with an energy field boosting the weapon''s sharpness. "How?" William said to himself out loud and retreated to return to defensive form with his shield up. The best chance to defeat the terminator just went to zero percent while Makato fully turned around and launched a counterattack using his golden halberd. With the wide swing of his golden weapon, the long blade side of the halberd hit William''s storm shield. The weapon''s impact didn''t do anything to the shield as it negated the entire attack, but the problem didn''t stop there. Receiving no damage, William attacks the terminator with a wide diagonal slash. Thanks to his superior muscle training from the body of the Space Marine, William managed to deliver three quick slashes while Makato couldn''t do anything but receive them all. This would have been epic death blows, and the end of the duel with Makato cut into pieces. Unfortunately, just as the piercing strike didn''t work, none of the slashing attacks didn''t do anything to the terminator armor. Now panicking, William pulls further back to re-strategize and buy more time for his cog boys to disconnect the mind link between Makato and his party. ''More time. I need more time to complete my Xanatos gambit. Even if I die from this fight, I can''t have him as a victor without losing everything he holds dear.'' William knew from the start he could die from this fight, but it doesn''t mean he would just die without causing all sorts of problems for Makato in the end. William''s Xanatos gambit is simple. Disrupt Makato''s house of cards which is built from multiple crimes and manipulation against his party members. Sure, adventurers aren''t much when it comes to status within the social hierarchy, but Makato''s party is different. According to Mia, the hero party recognized by the host country has tremendous influence among social classes, including peasants, because it impacts their lives. So imagine what would happen if the most potent adventurers from the hero party were free from Makato''s mind control and raised half of the country for his head? If that happens, Makato better wear that suit 24/7 because he won''t survive the danger from the former allies. The same armor that brought all his fantasies of the harem will be his own coffin and walking tomb in the end, which William is willing to die with a big smile on his face. "Come back here, you agile gorilla. I''m not done with you yet." The terminator continues to make wild and wide attack attempts to hit William while Willam is blocking or dodging the incoming attack. ''The heavy bolter didn''t work because of the energy shield. The black sword didn''t work because of armor plating. What do I need to do to deliver actual damage?'' William thought to himself while he deflected the incoming golden blade with his sword. He is just glad that this terminator armor isn''t equipped with range weapons such as storm bolters or an ?ssault cannon. If that were the case, this fight would have been done long ago with William unable to defend or get close to fight in close combat properly. As William and Makato continue exchanging deadly strikes and unable to deliver significant damages to each other, it was at this moment when Magos Callias connected himself with William''s vox machine to talk to him. "Just do the damn ritual. Cut the connection when I give you the order." William gave his order and cut off his vox communicator when out of nowhere, a tree root suddenly came out from the tall grass and grabbed his right foot. One foot tangled and immobilized him from moving freely. William went into an entirely defensive position as Makato began to bombard him with heavy strikes. "Looks like your time is up. Too bad the reason for your downfall is some random root." Makato made minor remarks enough for William to hear but not loud enough for everyone. At the same time, Makato turned his head towards his side of the army, which William quickly did, and saw a young woman in a green cloak, holding wooden staff chanting with her eyes closed. It is evident to William that Makato decided to cheat after his frustration boiled over the limit and unable to kill William quickly as he wanted. Makato gave a secret command before Callias could begin his second ritual to cut the link of the control device. ''Damn it, Callias, why did you spend extra time burning incense and chanting instead of doing actual tech work? Now, I''m going to die because of your traditional ritual ceremony.'' William thought to himself with the irony of how his gambit was delayed because the head cog boy decided to go by the ritual book in the middle of a life and death duel. The duel became a one-sided fight as terminator armor delivered devastating blows one after another while William attempted to free himself with his sword while defending with a storm shield. Finally, one of Makato''s attacks hit hard and true as his power hammer struck the shield''s side edge instead of the surface, emitting the gravitic energy field. The consequential damage of the power hammer destroyed the shield''s energy generator and deactivated the whole field. Seeing the chance to end it all, Makato raised his halberd up high to strike down. Seeing the killing blow, William raised his now deactivated storm shield while continuing to slash the tree root and put his jet engine on maximum power. William didn''t make his escape in time as the golden blade of the terminator armor struck down just as William freed himself and pulled himself away from the incoming attack. The moment the golden blade connected to the shield, the blade cut through like a hot knife on melted bu??er. The shield is cut in half, and it doesn''t stop there as the golden blade continues and cuts William''s black armor-plated arm and to his flesh. When the blade hit the ground, William''s left arm holding a storm shield was no more as his half of left upper arm was cut clean. "Haaa!" No one heard William''s cry of pain because he put his helmet on mute while he was speaking to Callias. With his left hand gone, William wielded his black sword on the one hand and did his best to return to fighting stance while his armor and superhuman anatomy slowly stopped the bleeding. Thanks to his jet pack, William has more than enough distance between him and Makato, but his problem continues to grow. None of the weapons in William''s inventory is doing anything, while Makato''s could kill William slowly. Even if he could stop Makato''s allies from cheating, there is no way William could cut the terminator armor no matter how much he tries. ''The damn armor is the problem. If I can disable that armor, he can''t lift any of his weapons from the ground or use it on me. How in the world am I going to do that? Attack the power source? Somehow disable one of his legs? Or initiate Astartes'' cow-tipping onto his back?'' William thought of possibilities, but none of them gave possible solutions that could deliver a victory. Just as William is about to move, terminator armor decides to launch a ranged attack by throwing the halberd right at William''s dead center. Seeing a fast and powerful weapon coming right at him, William narrowly escaped by firing his jet pack to the side. Unknown to William, just as he changed his sight from terminator armor to flying halberd, Makato activated his trump card by teleporting where William would be standing after dodging the attack. Krack! With a cracking sound of lighting, the giant terminator armor disappeared and reappeared out of nowhere, right in front of William. By the unexpecting teleportation, William couldn''t react or do anything on time as the power hammer struck and hit William''s entire left side. The devastating blow to the black armor was terrifying as William''s Iron Halo energy shield instantly shattered when the hammer''s energy field hit the energy shield. The damage didn''t stop there as an impact strong enough to destroy the tank hit William''s left shoulder armor and destroy the armor plating, breaking his entire left arm, ribs and damaging a few essential organs, including one of his heart. ''What just hit me? Damn train?'' William opened his eyes and thought to himself as he began to put back a few puzzles together. He was now lying face up towards the sky while he saw both blue and red colors, which took him a moment to realize that half of his helmet was blown away, including the red left lens. As he is down on the ground, William feels earth shakes as heavy footsteps approach closer and closer. "Now, to finish your miserable life from my story." Terminator armor said to William and grabbed William''s throat as a giant power fist slowly began to crush William''s windpipe and everything else. "Do you hear that? I don''t know if you can hear it, but your side is completely gone crazy. I''m sure your senses are mostly gone after the last hit, but I can see my future slave crying her heart out for you. How sweet and delicious is that expression?" Makato said to William and was about to deliver the finishing crush when suddenly his terminator armor powered down and froze in place. "What the hell?" Makato panicked as his screens went dark, and none of his commands didn''t do anything. Meanwhile, William is still stuck at the terminator''s power fist while dangling in the air, unable to touch the ground. Makato panicked more and more as nothing he did reboot the armor. Not even his command link to his party worked, even though the link is still connected. Meanwhile, William found his salvation from the mysterious voice whom he guessed as the ''Mother.'' "Initiating emergency armor removal, right gauntlet." After giving his voice command, William''s right side armor hissed, and the right gauntlet detached itself, revealing William''s b?r? hand and arm. "What? What are you doing?" Makato questions William''s action right after he manually opens the terminator helmet to get fresh air. William places his right hand at the terminator''s fist and answers Makato''s question best he can. "I''m gonna repo your armor.." With that said, William stores the item he was touching into his inventory, and immediately, the Dark Age of Technology terminator armor disappears into thin air, and Makato falls to the ground with an expression of disbelief. Chapter 64 - The Duel Part Three [Terminator Armor, Hercules Pattern: Created to fight during the Dark Age of Technology, this heavy-duty power armor is designed and made to lead AI drones during combat by one person. With built-in teleportation and multi coordination panel, the Hercules Power Armor is a walking command center with compatibility to take over command of an entire company of drones if the situation demands. Range and melee weapons not included.] ------------------------------ "You freaking cheater!" Makato screams his lungs out with hate and irritation the moment his terminator disappears into thin air. With his armor gone, Makato knows he is doomed and unable to fight William, who is still standing even though he is heavily hurt and missing his left hand. "I demand the return of my armor and immediate surrender, right now." Makato quickly moved from blaming William to unconditional surrender even though no rule was broken from William''s side. In all honesty, Makato is the one who should be the loser of this duel since he did give a command to his party member to interfere using magic. "Yea, no." William gave his answer and took one step forward towards Makato, still sitting on the grass. Even though he is heavily damaged and missing his left hand, William now has control of the duel and the opponent''s prized possession tucked in his inventory. Makato quickly back-peddled with his hands and got himself up from the ground. Even though he lost his armor, Makato saw his two weapons near him and attempted to grab one from the ground to fight back the black-armored giant. But without his armor, he struggles to lift the heavy weapon from the ground, and before he knows it, William gets close and gives Makato a backhand slap with his missing left hand. "Our fight isn''t over yet. One shall stand, one shall fall!" William activates his black power sword, igniting blue lighting around the blade, giving off an imposing and intimidating appearance. "Screw this fight and screw you." With half of his face swollen purple, Makato ran away and retreated back to his side of the army where his party and army are. Meanwhile, William watched pitiful retreat and pulled out his bolter rifle from his inventory. With no left hand to hold the rifle, William uses his left arm as support and aims his weapon at the Makato''s back. Before William could pull the trigger, he received a vox call from Magos Callias, which he answered but maintained his aim at retreating Makato. "Magos Callias, if you are calling me, then I ?ssume you are done with the ritual?" [Your ?ssumption is correct, Lord William. I''m waiting for your order to cut the connection. Still, I''m more concerned with the missing holy relic of the Machine God.] Callias''s answer was machine-like due to his dedication to Cult Mechanicus. William couldn''t help but sense a slight sense of nervousness coming from the Magos. "Don''t worry, Magos Callias, I have the armor, and you will have the opportunity to study it when we are done with this fight. By the way, cut the connection right about¡­." Still observing through bolter scope, William ordered to cut the single between Makato and his companions after he saw something interesting happening. Meanwhile, Because of Mother''s previous interference, Makato couldn''t make his party members do as he wished or communicate at will. Makato''s frustration increased when the general and the priest of the White Mountain demanded an explanation of breaking the duel, which he initiated. "What are you doing? You just admit your defeat by coming back here." The general said while his two officers followed him. "You lost a fight you could have won easily because of your ego. Either you get back to the duel or¡­." The priest couldn''t finish his sentence as Makato drew a sword from one of his companions and stabbed the priest in the stomach. Everyone around him was shocked, and some drew their weapons but didn''t attempt to fight back or anything. Meanwhile, none of Makato''s companions reacted or moved even when Makato drew the sword from one of the party members. Like puppets without a puppeteer, they didn''t move or respond to Makato''s command ever since Mother paused the primary link between their devices. "I don''t give a shit about the rules or fight with honor. General, send your troops to engage the enemy now!" Makato pointed his sword at the general and demanded movement of the army with rage until someone behind him grabbed his shoulder and turned him around. Before Makato could turn around completely and see who it was, a solid punch hit his face, the same face William slapped him in previously. The punch was much weaker than William''s, but it was significant enough to hurt Makato and put him down to the ground with a few teeth missing. To everyone''s surprise, including Makato, the culprit of the punch came from one of his party members. More specifically, it came from a fighter named Tina, who was the first member to join Makato''s party when he first started as an adventurer. "Why?" Makato said to himself with a questioning tone until the answer to his question came to him with a shiny metal piece tossed to his ?h?st. "This is why you piece of shit. For everything you have done to us, you are going to pay with blood and pain." Tina picks up the sword from the ground and says to Makato while the rest of the party members remove the metal device and approach the fallen hero. Consumed by the unmeasurable anger and d?s?r? for revenge, each party member attacks the hero while everyone watches it happen. The swords decapitate body parts, daggers stab nonvital organs, and lute smash the groin while binding spells prevent escaping, and healing spells didn''t give quick death to the ex-leader of the hero party. This continued for 30 minutes while no one, even from William''s side, bothered to stop the torturing of the disgraced hero of the Legellan. By the time everything settled, Tina had dragged the beaten body of the Makato towards William while the rest of the party members followed her with faces with different expressions. "Here, take this thing and end it. We want nothing to do with it." The girl named Tina tossed the ragged body of the Makato, who is still conscious, at William and stepped aside to make room. "Hey, I see you have a relationship problem. Do you want my advice?" William put his bolter and black sword away while asking Makato the same question Numen asked him a few days ago. "Go fu?k yourself," Makato spoke to William powerlessly. Makato is sure his body is missing a few essential body parts and in so much pain that he can''t move around to check at all. "You have to be honest, man. You can''t just manipulate people close to you like chess pieces. Trust me, I know someone who has done something similar, and it didn''t go well for him in the end." William said to Makato with a sympathetic tone as if put away his bolter rifle and black sword. This action gave crippled Makato hope to live even if he had to be a prisoner of war. "Does this mean you will spare me from them?" Said Makato. Hearing this, William pulled out his weapon from his inventory and lit it up, ready to use it. Even though William is missing his left hand, he can still hold the weapon with his primary hand and use it without any problems as long as he doesn''t have to move or change direction. "What is that? A flamethrower?" Makato''s hope went to zero percent the moment he saw William pull out a strange weapon with fuel cans and torch ignited from the end of the barrel. "Oh, this isn''t called a flamethrower. It''s called flamer, a heavy flamer." William answered Makato''s question and unleashed the flame hot enough to melt tank plating armor in full force. In a second, Makato''s body is washed away, and the duel between two champions of two factions ends with William as the victor. ------------------------------ The army of the Legellan surrendered to William without any resistance after the duel ended. Knowing what William is capable of and seeing more giants with similar armor, many soldiers of Legellan, including the officers, willingly lay down their arms. William''s army captured 5,000 soldiers, 800 knights, and 1,000 non-combatants such as cooks, servants, and other supporting personnel from Legellan. With an exceptional record of only two deaths (Makato and the priest), William''s first military campaign so far had no casualties or wounded, except for William himself, who is missing left hand, wounded, and power armor needing heavy-duty repairs. Even with clear victory and no loss, William faced an overwhelming number of prisoners of war and trouble with handling them. William has to be responsible for the prisoners and their needs, including food and shelter, which he doesn''t have a number or location to handle them. There is always an option of wiping them out with bolters and flamers, but William decided to avoid it since Rana would surely disagree with that solution. "How about you confiscate their weapons and let them go? Of course, you will hold important prisoners such as high-ranking officers, but it will reduce your responsibility significantly. Also, you don''t have to worry about prisoners coming back since they are more than willing to run back home and stay hidden instead of facing the death penalty for desertion." Rana said to William when he asked her about how to handle Legellan prisoners. Hearing this, William decided to go with this direction since he will be ruling the same people in a few days, but many of his own people object to this idea for many reasons. "You can''t expect them to stay hidden. What if they come back with more force?" Veteran Cantus of the Black Templar said to Rana while a few of the Space Marines nodded their heads with an agreement. Fewer words came and exchanged while William sat silent while a few medics treated William''s missing hand. William is not on his armor since it requires repairs, and due to heavy damage, it would take two weeks to completely repair it, according to his repair drone in his inventory. As for the terminator armor, William can''t really use it since the Mother could manipulate the armor just like she did to Makato. So, William gave it to Magos Callias to be researched, and this includes two weapons they recovered from the grass field. Until then, William decided to wear his plain civilian clothes with his standard war gear with him. "I don''t think we have to worry about them coming back any time soon. I agree with the Duchess, gentlemen. I know soldiers when I see one, and they are nothing but peasants mixed with politics of heretical religion. If they come back, let us handle them with flamers and bolters." Lord Creed said out loud, which silenced the room and made Black Templar sit back down. "I agree with the Lord Creed. We could end this war by the end of this week. Holding this many prisoners will just slow us down and waste needed resources. As for the mass execution, that won''t do us much good if we are to hold the land in the end." Veteran Sergeant Sariel of the Blood Angel said with an agreement to the Duchess and Lord Creed advice, which even Commissar Cain agreed to it. "We are going to release them. There is no need to have an extra mouth when we have our own people to take care of. Commissar Cain, please oversee this matter and separate the prisoners based on their importance and status. If they trouble you, you have my blessing to execute them accordingly. Brother-Lieutenant Bolic Firehammer, please handle the weapons we confiscated. I''m sure you can make something out of all those irons with your skill of forging. As for the rest, we will move once Commissar Cain and Brother-Lieutenant Bolic Firehammer are done with their ?ssignment. Prepare yourself. We will end this war and destroy this ''Mother'' once and for all." William ends the meeting while having Lord Creed stay behind. When everyone left the meeting tent and made sure no one was around, William asked Lord Creed what had been bothering him since the end of the duel today. "Lord Creed, I need your honest opinion from you. What I''m about to ask isn''t something I want others to know." William said to Lord Creed with a severe face and tone. This made Lord Creed curious on what could make William, the Champion of the Emperor, serious enough to keep it secret from the rest. "What is your concern, Lord Imperator Fratrum?" Creed pulled out his flask and gave it to William as he asked with a neutral tone. William received the flask and took a small sip from it, which he could taste the bitter but somewhat smoky flavor from the drink. Afterward, William returned the flask and didn''t say anything until Lord Creed took a swing from the flask. "I think this being called ''Mother'' isn''t Chaos but rather something else.. I''m not sure, but we have to reconsider our next plan of action." Chapter 65 - The Identity of the White Holy Mountain From slaying Makato Amano the Hero of Legelland [Order of Our Martyred Lady x1: Also known as Fiery Heart, this order uses military standard doctrine in which they wore classic black and white colors of the power armor. They live for the near-suicidal belief of martyrs on the battlefield. The order sends 50 Sisters of Battle with war gears of bolt guns, power swords, and minor power armor.] [Orders Hospitaller: A order of healing which aids the poor and sick through the medical use of surgeons, physicians and nurses. They serve all departments of the Imperium armed services except for the Adeptus Astartes. All members of the Orders Hospitaller are veteran warriors and skilled fighters before learning the art of healing. The order sends 50 Sisters to heal unfortunates and followers of God Emperor.] [Space Wolves x30: Known as Wolves of Fenris, the Space Wolves are the proud warriors and once led by Primarch Leman Russ. Renowned for their savage barbarian culture similar to Vikings, the Space Wolves are masters of melee combat, wolf-like physical senses, and epic deeds worthy of their gene father''s name. Space Wolves are also great at throwing a party and brewing special ale, strong enough to make superhuman drunk which is not recommended for normal humans to drink from.] --------------------------------- William''s army decided to hold high-ranking officers and former party members of Legellan heroes as prisoners of war until further notice. The total number of POWs was 25 prisoners and the rest were sent away as free men and women. Of course, to discourage them from returning with numbers, William had the Krieg artillery company fire a few rounds to scare the living hell out of them for good measure. "Looks like we have two destinations. The capital city of Legellan holds the main governing church and reserve army for city defense. The second choice is the White Mountain itself where the Mother resides as the sole protector of the newly founded religion. Where would we be heading to?" Rana said to William as she poured herself a cup of wine and for William. Currently, it is late night and most of the personnel are asleep except for the night guards. After William and Lord Creed had their discussion regarding William''s theory about ''Mother,'' Rana came by to check William''s condition. Missing his left hand and still managing the overall command of the military force, William had guardsman medics patch things over. But because the weapon used to decapitate the hand was golden hot, the hand can''t be reattached back. Few gave recommendations to William regarding replacing the missing hand, Salamanders offered to give mastercraft metal hand while Admechs offered to replace the entire left arm with an artificial limb that comes with a storm bolter. Hearing this, William decided to hold on to that idea until a better option comes to light, one possibly moving towards him having an actual hand instead of a machine hand like a certain family of jedis. "I''m considering capital before we left for the campaign but now I''m thinking of going for the White Mountain. Who knows? Maybe the entire capital city will fall in line if we defeat the Mother before besieging the city." William said to Rana as he accepted the wine cup from her with his only hand. Seeing this, Rana gives slight hesitation for she is looking at the man who gave up a piece of himself to save her. Never in her life, Rana the fearsome lioness of war had someone who went beyond his or her duty to protect her before. Not to mention none of the marriage candidates could possibly match William''s courage and determination to face an impossible enemy in a one vs one duel. "Is something wrong?" William asked Rana the moment he sensed her discomfort and uneasiness. He heard the sudden rise of Rana''s heartbeat and smelled nervousness from her which he quickly realized that she was staring at his missing hand. "Nothing, it''s all good." The Duchess lied with a fake smile but William knew better. In his normal life, he would have not sensed the minor signals but as a Space Marine with superhuman senses, he can tell a sudden change of emotion (Space Wolves can do much better and accurately). "Rana, I can tell and see you are unease with my condition. Don''t worry, I can manage until I can find the better option." He ?ssured Rana and gestured to her to sit next to him. "I don''t know how you can move on like it''s nothing. I saw men lose their hope and will to live the moment they managed to survive the treatment. Some say they still feel the missing body part even though it is gone completely." Rana said to William after she sat down close to him. Up close, she saw William''s left stump covered in clean bandages but she clearly remembered the moment Makato cut William''s hand clean off which she will have a nightmare for a few nights. "Oh, I''m not completely fine. I''m just good at holding my own emotion and pain. Trust me, I start to feel everything the moment the fight is over. I guess I was on fight or flight response until medics began to patch my wounds." William calmly said while deep inside he is just glad that his human emotion is somewhat unnatural compared to his original. "Oh," Rana said with a quiet tone and began to feel something towards William. She knows this feeling is something she never experienced but is aware of thanks to many tales told by others around her. That Willam could be the one who could be next to her forever until death. From delivering victory to defending her own life, William did everything that a proud man would speak of in words to impress a lady. But it was William''s action and ability to stay true to himself that Rana finally realized that she fell for him long before she knew. "Don''t worry about me. My men are capable and I''ll finish what I started in no time. Even if it means I have to pull back from going headfirst on the battle from now on." William gave Rana a small smile and finished his cup of wine. The tent went quiet and bit awkward when none of them spoke. Rana avoided William''s eyes and William didn''t know what to say to her. Both of the finest warriors from the two different factions didn''t know what to do until Rana finally spoke with a loud voice. "William! I was wondering if you would accompany me after this campaign is over. I would love to introduce you to my family." Rana finally said to William with a peach red face while holding an untouched wine cup in her hands. Meanwhile, William paused everything in his head to process the information he just heard from Rana. An invitation from a beautiful girl who is also an expert swordswoman. There is no question about it, William is about to enter the relationship status of "Meeting the Parents" with the girl he likes. Just as William is about to answer Rana''s question, someone suddenly enters the tent without William''s permission. "Lord William, we are receiving an unusual signal from the terminator armor you gave to investigate. I believe the signal is originating from the White Mountain near the capital city." The Magos Callias announce his discovery to William to which he realizes that there is another person sitting close to him. Meanwhile, both William and Rana turn their heads around and act as if nothing happened but once again the room went silently awkward which includes Callias as well. "Yes, thank you Magos Callias. I will take that under your advice and coordinate with others first thing tomorrow." William said to Callias and dismissed the Admech which Callias gladly did. After the cog boy left the tent, Rana quickly got up from her seat to leave. Seeing this, William calls Rana by her name which she stops to turn around. "Rana, I would be honored to visit your family after this is over." William gave a sincere smile to the fair lady and bowed his head. Receiving the answer she wanted, Rana approached William and gave a quick kiss to his side cheek after using one of the chairs as a ladder to match the giant''s height. "I will hold you to that, Sir William the Giant." --------------------------------- Following Callias''s report and Lord Creed''s secret advice, William decided to handle the Mother once and for all before overthrowing the Legellan government. According to Magos, the signal now identified as beacon ping is sending a particular signal towards where White Mountain is located. "My lord, I''m not so sure if this information can be reliable but if it is possible we can use the White Mountain to regenerate your left hand." Commissar Cain said to William to which few agreed with the Commissar but others strongly disagree with the use of foreign deity''s power of healing. "We don''t fully understand the identity of this being nor do we know if it can spread corruption through healing. We shouldn''t take chances at all. I say we bomb the entire temple and burn it to the ashes." The Black Templar voiced his opinion to which other representatives agreed. Even Lord Creed nodded his head as his own experience with unknown forces such as Chaos and Xenos gave him a hard lesson to live by as a leader. "Let us first see what we are about to face in person, ladies, and gentlemen. We will be there soon at our current speed and I will personally make the decision to either burn the temple to the ground or bomb until we see the mantle of the earth." William reassures everyone including his new additional reinforcement of Sisters of Battle and Space Wolves representative Brother Vaskell the Wolf Seer. "I have no issues with learning the identity of our enemy before bleeding them in the battle," Vaskell said his opinion while two representatives of the Sisters of Battle remain quiet but maintain their sight on the Rana. For some reason, sisters b?r?ly spoke even when a foreign goddess was mentioned which disturbed William and made him concerned if he made the right choice of summoning them. "For now, make sure we are ready for anything and notify all guardsmen for a possible fight. I''m sure no one left the White Mountain undefended since it is the enemy''s holy ground." William then dismisses the war meeting and proceeds to advance his army with absolute certainty that he will fight one of the chaos gods when he reaches the White Mountain. --------------------------------- "Well, this is a surprise," Commissar Cain said to himself when the entire army reached the destination with no resistance nor enemy army present. The army halted their advance when William gave the signal. In front of him, William saw an abandoned temple square that used to hold service and line towards where White Mountain is. Following the main road, William reached the place called White Holy Mountain where people were healed from sickness and fed thousands of mouths without spending a single gold coin. The mountain has a smooth white surface like snow and doesn''t have trees or grass-like normal mountains should have. Instead, the entire mountain is made out of one solid metal and there is no trace of any gaps except for the entrance where William is currently facing. The entrance is giant circular with a white metal door big enough to have three Baneblades line up and drive through. After witnessing the White Mountain as not an actual mountain but rather a gigantic metal object William looked around using his helmet to have a much closer look. ''How can it be?'' William thought to himself scan the area in which his helmet screen redirected to something written above the giant door and reveal something hidden from n?k?d eyes but able to see through the technology. [Mother of Salvation. May the hope of humanity reach beyond the edge of the galaxy. Launched Earth year 24,459.] "By the Holy Terra. This mountain isn''t a mountain at all, but rather a ship. A ship from the Dark Age of Technology.. It''s from home." Chapter 66 - Not a update Hey guys, I got my booster shot because of my work. I was down for the entire weekend and unable to think or move due to side effects. I will post a new chapter next week. Chapter 67 - New Gene-Seed and Chance of William was shocked to hear the proposal given by the Mother. As a fantasy and Sci-fi genre nerd, William had never heard of this obscure and insane idea before coming to this world. Not to mention, William isn''t sure if this will work at all. What if his ability didn''t work as planned and end up somewhere else with crazy AI with a mission to repopulate the human race in a different galaxy? If William has to help Mother, he needs to test a few things before committing to it. "We need to test this before I start pressing the lunch bu??on. I know I can easily put away decently big stuff like terminator armor but storing the ship size of a mountain is pushing it without testing the theory." William said to Mother, who is hovering a few steps away from him and after hearing his thought, she gave a second of slice be before answering him. "I see your point of view, and I agree. I can''t risk having a hitchhiker with me while continuing my voyage beyond visible space. What do you propose then? I do have a few constructs you can test out. Of course, you have to return it since it will be no use to you." Mother said to William and motioned her hand which the entire floor began to move away from the main control room. The floor stopped when William and Mother reached another room much bigger than the archive hall. By its look, William can see that this room is an engineering/manufacturing room as he can see four dozen drones rooming around above them. "This room is called matter construction room where I can convert matter to build or create anything I need. You can test your ability by storing environment roller and all-purpose hub settlement for a starter. If you need a bigger object, we can construct bigger items until you are satisfied." The lights begin to turn on, and William can see the full size of the room for miles beyond his n?k?d eyes. In front of him, the room is filled with machinery beyond William''s imagination, and he is confident he just saw a giant robot big enough to crush Leman Russ tank with a single step. "Before we begin, can you do something about my missing hand?" William raises his left arm to show bandaged stump where his hand used to be. Mother, turn around to see William''s missing hand, with no sign of any emotion, one of her drones moved close to William and began to remove the bandages using the laser. William didn''t resist or freak out when the drone removed his bloody patches. The bandage removal was quick, and the drone quickly turned it into matter using its converter. At the same time, the two more drones, much bigger than the first one, came and gently held William''s arm and stabilized it in midair. Without any instruction or words, the two drones'' robotic arms open, and two different rays point towards William''s arm and fire cone of ray. When the ray hit William''s flesh, the missing left hand began to regenerate from the stump, and within 30 seconds, William saw his left hand, fully functional and better than before, while two drones let go of the arm and disappeared to somewhere else. "I believe your new hand will be good as your old one. Don''t worry about the medical bill. This one is on the house." With that, William had his hand back, and they began to test the inventory limit as William spent a few hours storing and taking out more oversized items one after and another. By the time William was done with storing a four-story tall earth remover vehicle, he was sure there was no limit to what he could put in his inventory. He decided to store everything at once to see if there was a capacity limit that Mother approved to test the theory. In the end, Mother concluded that William''s inventory ability could store anything and any size as long as it''s not a living being. "I believe we are ready to begin our lunch sequence. Is there anything else you want to do before putting me and my ship away?" The AI asked William to make sure he didn''t withdraw from the previous agreement. As humans tend to second guess decisions, the Mother is well aware of the possibility that William would change the term of their agreement or want more to gain something. "I was thinking for a while. You said you have all the data related to the reconstruction of the human race, right?" "Not just human race but everything from the Earth. I have the full blueprints of every creature of Earth and the capability to create them within my ability. Also, I have every history, philosophy, mathematic, science, etc. Known achievements since the dawn of humanity. What is your question?" "Just that, since you have access to the human gene codes, I was wondering if you can also study and manipulate them. Like a lab, if I have to simplify it." The last word from William''s mouth gave Mother a clear understanding of what he wanted. In a few minutes, the moving floor took William and Mother into a different room where countless drones move around while holding data slates with names of different species from Earth. "This is the genetic archive where I can study and replicate the genetic construct of anything, including plan life. What do you have for me? I doubt it is anything from this planet I haven''t studied before." Mother said to William with a bit of smirk as if nothing could surprise her at all. After hearing the insult from the AI, William decided to shock the advanced AI with something he held on to for a very long time. From his inventory, William pulls out the gene-seed of the Grey Knight. The very same item that could grant him the ability to change his chapter and the ability to use psychic power from the warp itself. The Grey Knights are the pinnacle of daemon hunters, and each member is a potent psykers with the capability to strike down Emperor''s enemy like a hammer. The Grey Knights are also Space Marines with no heritage of any Primarchs whatsoever. Their gene-seeds directly came from the Emperor of Mankind by order of Malcador the Sigillite, who selected the purest of men to be humanity''s shield and blade against Chaos. In short, William is about to give a gene-seed that contains a small piece of Emperor of Mankind to AI from the Dark Age of Technology with power beyond the current Imperium ability. "Interesting object you have there. The genetic material is of unknown origin, and according to my basic scans, this is indeed a human gene, but something is off about it. It is not from any past human genome I know of, and I have a long record of most genomes of humanity. Where did you get this?" AI asked William with a surprisingly curious tone and took the container of Grey Knight gene-seed. The Mother''s drone hoover away with the container and placed it on the lab table, where a few more drones joined in and began to take samples to test it. After a few minutes of initial testing, the drone projecting the AI quickly returned to William with excitement as if she had already discovered a habitable planet. "Who and where did you get this from? This so-called gene-seed contained various chemicals and other materials to grow beyond the limit of the human body, but the primary donor of this genetic map is beyond any humans of my time. It is evolutionary. This is like witnessing humanity reach its end of evolution and embark on the next unknown journey. Who is this from?" Mother''s excitement and disbelief made William proud of holding on to the Grey Knight gene-seed for an extended period. He knew Grey Knights are mighty Space Marines directly linked to Emperor through gene-seed but very different from Primarchs. The only reason he held on to it for so long was that William feared Grey Knight''s ability to use the psychic ability, and if he lost control, there is a chance of warp tear and bringing forth daemons unwillingly. But with Mother''s help, there is a possibility that William could modify or improve Grey Knight''s gene-seed beyond what others could have done before. Maybe, just maybe, William could make something new out of the genetic blueprint of the Emperor with a new purpose by the end of this event. "I''m sure you know of the existence of the Imperium and Emperor of Mankind by hacking Admechs before our meeting. That genetic print came from the Emperor himself, to create an army of daemon hunters and to protect evil of the Chaos." William said to AI as he explained the purpose of the Grey Knight gene-seed. "Yes, I knew of this Emperor the moment you entered the border of two nations. I''m saddened by the knowledge of how the humanity I know of fell from their grace as an explorer and race of expansion. And I''m not surprised that this Emperor took the opportunity to take over the Earth just like conquerors of the old." Mother said those words bitterly but mixed with sadden tone, for she is one of the last legacies of humanity before they fell into an age of darkness. "This may be another shock to you, but Emperor isn''t some new world conqueror of the old. Rather, he is from the bygone age before humans built great cities and waged a few great wars. Anyway, what can you do for me with this?" William told the long-lost history of the Emperor to AI since it wouldn''t matter if she knew or not. What matters is what Mother can do for William using gene-seed. "I see. This information will enlighten me to examine humanity''s history once I''m on the voyage. As for your request, I worked on it while we were exchanging knowledge. According to the analysis, the primary genetic codes are only 18% intact, and the remaining 82% of the genetic codes are missing on purpose. This means, only a fraction of this Emperor''s genetics is passed on to his warriors, but it is enough for me to construct genetic codes with a much higher percentage. Based on what you provided, I increased it from 18% to 23%, removing excess chemicals and unnecessary design to prevent defectiveness such as mutation or incompatibility. Please place your hand on this datapad so I can include your genetic data in it." One of the drones came with a medical datapad with a large needle next to it. "You will include my blood into it? Is that a good idea?" William stared at the needle and drone while expressing a great question of why to Mother. "This part is to make sure all you and warriors of similar ''condition'' can easily be ?ssimilated. Please note that it requires the subject to be in peak condition physically and mentally. Now, place your hand for blood extraction." The drone approached William closer, and William placed his right hand on the pad. The needle stabbed William''s hand with mighty force to break his tough skin, and unknown to William, a metallic liquid made out of millions of nanobots entered his body. With very strict order from the Mother, these nanobots remain hidden for most of William''s adventure. To observe, study, and protect an only living ?sset of the Mother long as possible until they reunite if they ever cross each other again. Four hours later, "The newly created gene-seed is complete. An additional one thousand gene-seed are in production, estimated time of completion is 35 minutes. Copy an STC on production, the estimated time of completion is 2 hours and 10 minutes." A broadcast of the announcement hit William like a brick to his head. Mother provided William with a newly created gene-seed but additional resources, including STC. A freaking STC, Magos Callias, and the rest of Admechs will gladly accept this holy gift even if they learn how William obtained it. "Are you sure? I didn''t expect you to give me such a treasure as STC and additional gene-seeds." William couldn''t hide his surprise and sudden blessing of this magnitude. "Don''t be too surprised. This STC is nothing but a small fraction of the full knowledge I hold in my archive. If I wanted to give you a full copy, it would take me 44 years and half of my reserve energy. What I''m giving you is enough to help your Earth and this Imperium from stagnation and maybe, redirect her (Earth) to the right path." Mother said to William and signaled the drone towards William. The drone approach William holding a container containing a newly improved gene-seed of the formally belongs to Grey Knight. Now it is something else, never before seen or thought of within Imperium as one of the Emperor''s greatest creations, and AI of Dark Age of Technology made an entirely different kind of Space Marine for William. William took the container from the drone, and when he did, the message appeared to William''s sight. Same as the reward message after defeating every foe, William saw the description of the gene-seed with surprise at the end.