Warhammer 40: My Fiancée Fulgrim

Page 373

This is not something a normal human being could do; clearly, Company Commander Titus has been corrupted by Chaos.

Or is he naturally immune? — Of course not, the holy texts don't include any additional entry about immune groups other than the soulless.

There was no way the judge could refuse to accept the case given how outrageous the situation was and the fact that someone had reported it.

Ultimately, with the help of the small Black Templar Company accompanying him, he took away the man who possessed the combined magic resistance of all Ultramarines—Titus.

......

An entire century.

Throughout the next century, the judges tried countless cruel methods of torture to force Titus to submit.

Even an Oglin could admit to being corrupted by Tzeentch under such intense criminal interrogation.

Yet it's as if they've never felt fear at all; there's absolutely no...

—Could it be that...Titus is actually innocent?

Do not!

So stubborn and defiant!

This further demonstrates that Titus was influenced by the power of chaos; it was this strange warp power that made him insist on not uttering a single word under torture!

Even though Judge Jerome did not obtain any evidence as a result, the current situation left him no choice but to believe it.

She detained and tortured a Ultramarines Chapter commander without any evidence for nearly a century. If Ultramarines Chapter Commander Kargar were to find out about this, it is unclear whether the Moon of Shame incident would happen again.

But Judge Sergei knew he had no way to escape.

"Seal him in a static field... As for the questioning of the Chapter Commander Calgar in Star Language, do not accept it; just pretend he has disappeared into the warp."

......

"Damn it, how did the human empire end up in this mess?"

The moment the static field dissipated, Casca couldn't help but exclaim.

Corruption, inefficiency, and incompetence mean that when problems arise, the first thing they do is try to cover them up.

To imprison an imperial war hero in this private prison without any charge, all for one's own wishful thinking... this is nothing short of treason.

Sometimes it's no wonder that there's a constant stream of Space Marines defecting to Chaos, even though they know Chaos is worse, because not defecting to Chaos means death, or a fate worse than death.

(Actually, even if you vote for Chaos, these are the two options.)

"Cough! Ugh...!"

With Casca's help, the moment the stasis field light dissipated, Titus's robust body collapsed to the ground, exhausted from the long interrogation, seemingly still panting heavily.

"How long are you going to hold out, Judge! Who are you?"

Titus, who had been half-squatting and struggling to stand up, looked the other person up and down with suspicion.

He had never seen a Space Marine like this before.

The other person was even taller than him, and with his gleaming and magnificent armor, he looked like an ancient warrior from a book who had descended to earth once again.

“My name is Casgar Sherlock, Chief Lord Commander of the Sons of the Emperor Legion.”

And just as he had expected, the ancient warriors from mythology actually appeared before him.

......

That's the situation.

"As the chief lord commander of the former son of the emperor, and the consort of Primarch Fugrim, I invite you to join me in the fight to save the entire human empire."

This time, Casca did not face his opponent with a false image, but instead wore his magnificent purple-gold Destiny Armor, removing his helmet to face the opponent directly.

"Hundreds of years have passed since the creation of the world Gallia, and the position of Second Company Commander of the Ultramarines has now been taken over by a newcomer named Cato Sicarius."

"And after my examination of Inquisitor Jerome Serks, I also found that he had committed serious acts of treason—he may have always believed himself to be a loyalist, but all his actions showed that he would destroy the entire human empire."

"During the investigation, we discovered a list of those who had been acquitted by the judge, and your name as the Second Company Commander of the Ultramarines was on it."

“That’s right, the Ultramarines company commander has been accused of corruption… They will be disgraced because of my crimes…”

Titus clutched his head in frustration. Although he was no longer tormented by the judges, and freedom lay ahead of him.

But at this moment, Titus found himself unusually afraid to face his former acquaintances.

Or rather, after a long interrogation, even Titus himself began to doubt whether he was truly affected by Chaos.

He also had no way of explaining why he was able to come into close contact with the subspace explosion without being affected.

"No. Although I didn't find any requests from the Ultramarines in Serks' letters, I think they will also protest because of this unjust trial."

Kasgar certainly wanted to tell them that the Ultramarines had been asking the Inquisition about his whereabouts, but had not received a response for a long time.

But he was also worried that Titus would run back to Macurag to rejoin the team without saying a word after hearing that the Ultramarines were still looking for him.

He's the only talent we've just recruited; we can't just let him get away like this.

Since there's no Ultramarines available for you to go back now, you might as well join Kasgar in rebuilding the Sons of the Emperor's Legion, which would be a way to continue contributing to the human empire.

"I understand, but we—"

Titus looked around in bewilderment at the countless Astartes, mortals, judges, and even aliens sealed within the stasis field.

"Are we just leaving like this?"

"And what about them? What exactly happened, Hero Casgar?"

“I have no doubt about your identity. Your strength and courage prove that you are the brave warrior who protected us ten thousand years ago—but...shouldn't we save them all before we leave?”

"Do not--"

Just as Casca was about to explain to Titus why he still needed to hide his identity and why he could only save Titus at this moment, the warning lights behind him flashed a dazzling red light.

[Beep beep beep—]

[Anomaly detected; unidentified individuals have breached the top-secret dungeon. Requesting strike team clearance to proceed.]

The Black Ship's defense system, or more precisely, its machine soul, detected the abnormal passage signal, which appeared glaringly obvious in its code.

Kasgar's psionic flames can deceive machines, but they cannot deceive machine spirits.

"Wait? Hero Casgar, how did you—you didn't just barge in here, did you?!"

Titus noticed that the other person was wearing an awkward smile.

“The human empire is currently in a state of internal turmoil, so I must keep a low profile.” With that, Kasgar put his helmet back on.

“I need your strength, Titus. If you are willing, you will serve as my lieutenant as Nullus and work with me to rebuild the Sons of the Emperor and eliminate all threats within and outside the Empire.”

"Of course, you can refuse me."

"However, in that case, you might need to explain to the judges yourself why you were released into the static field by the intruder."

"And in the end, you may never escape being judged as a heretic and bringing shame to the Ultramarines Chapter."

"I am not a heretic!"

Titus shouted anxiously, and he could even sense that it was a threat from the other party.

“I believe in you, Titus, and I also believe in your loyalty to the Empire of Man and the Emperor, but the entire Empire of Man has fallen into a morbid situation of mutual denunciation and exposure.”

“You know this best, Titus.”

Casca's words immediately silenced him.

As a proud Space Marine of the Imperium, he killed the invading Orc warlord leader in the Forgeworld, killed the leader of the rogue Space Marine warband who was ascending to demonic possession, and then detonated a Chaos artifact to blow up a warp rift.

From any perspective, he should be considered an undisputed hero of the empire.

But under the accusations of the judge and the newcomers to the warband, he, who was originally a hero, was forced to become the judge's prisoner and suffer torture.

Titus was certainly loyal, but that doesn’t mean he had to bear these accusations that he shouldn’t have to prove his loyalty.

Dengdengdeng.

Casca could sense footsteps approaching them from above at an extremely fast speed.

Judging from their pace and speed, and the calculated weight of their armor, they appear to be an elite Astartes squad.

The troops on the black ship are on their way here.

"We must save humanity, whether it be the aliens and chaos outside, or these High Lords and Inquisitors who have gone mad."

"it is good."

After a moment of contemplation, Titus slowly stood up, his gaze resolute.

"But if you have even the slightest selfish motive or intention to destroy the human empire, I will be the first to stop you."

“That day will not come, Lieutenant Nulus. Welcome to our ranks.”

Casca extended his hand and shook it.

Dengdengdeng.

The footsteps were getting closer and closer; it seemed the other party would soon be able to break down the door.

“Our identities must not be discovered by them yet. Prepare to teleport, Lieutenant Nulus.”

"Psionic teleportation? But—"

"There are no 'buts', Lieutenant. Those fanatics will only see us as heretics. We must leave here immediately."

"but--"

Before Titus could finish speaking, a blue light enveloped the two of them.

Kaska's psychic power is very strong now.

Through these days of practice and familiarization, he naturally became more adept at controlling his own spiritual power.

Especially short-range psionic teleportation.

With just a flash of light, he could be teleported from the black ship docked in near-Earth orbit above the planet Kasgo to the Red Scorpion camp below.

Just like it is now.

Bathed in a faint, chilling light, Tytus and Kasgar—

—Still standing in the same place.

They looked at each other in bewilderment.

......

broken.

Kasgar forgot about this B-Titus—he's immune to magic!

......

It can't be transmitted.

The psionic teleportation that had been so common since Kasgar awoke actually lost its function at this moment.

“Hero Casgar, I…maybe I was born this way.”

Deng Deng Deng!

The footsteps outside were getting closer and closer; Casca could even hear how eagerly the people on this side were trying to rush into the judge's private cell.

There's no time!

Kasgar needs to repel the Space Marine squad while minimizing the exposure of his own forces and ensure the safe evacuation of Titus!

That's easier said than done!

The people who could serve as Serks' assistants in this courtroom are very likely a squad of Space Marines from the Black Templars—Kasgar had previously seen these people when he infiltrated the Black Ship.

Black Templar, these are Black Orcs!

Once they're caught up in the frenzy, how could they possibly listen to their own words?

"It seems that we have no choice but to use that method..."

"I'm sorry, Your Majesty."

What do you want to do?

Titus asked Casca with some confusion.