"First, let me introduce myself properly. Here—have some tea. We can talk while we drink."
Bruce placed a cup of richly fragrant black tea in front of the silver-haired, red-eyed girl.
Since it was brewed to suit Curze's tastes, the tea was a deep crimson, almost the color of blood. If you leaned in close, you could catch a faint floral fragrance beneath it, something like roses.
The tea leaves were the same. The method was the same. Yet no matter how hard Sevatar and the others tried, they could never reproduce this flavor. At best, they could only imitate it by adding blood and floral essence afterward. How Bruce managed it remained a mystery to this day.1GaL2
"Th-thank you."
The silver-haired girl thanked him repeatedly, looking both startled and flattered.
So the Acting Commander wasn't as terrifying as Warfarin had made him sound. If anything, he seemed like a perfectly respectable gentleman. And this tea—just smelling it already made her feel at ease.
Anyone who could brew tea this well had to be a proper gentleman, right?
"My name is Bruce Wayne, Acting Commander of the Night Lords Legion." Bruce puffed out his chest proudly. "Which means that in the Eighth Legion, aside from the Primarch herself, I'm the boss."
As long as Curze was alive, Bruce's standing in the Eighth Legion was untouchable.1GaL2
"As for my glorious exploits and my sterling character, I'm sure Warfarin already told you all about them. So you don't need to be nervous. Just say whatever you want. I've always been the sort who judges matters, not people."
"You don't need to burden yourself too much. The conflict between us and the Thousand Sons is already over. Your Primarch has accepted the appropriate punishment. What happens now is between you and me."
"I understand..." the silver-haired girl replied, then took a cautious sip of the tea.
The moment it touched her tongue, she froze.
It was almost magical.
What an exquisite cup of tea. How had the Acting Commander managed this? Was this some sort of psychic technique? Truly wondrous.1GaL2
"So..." Bruce prompted gently when he saw her happily drinking tea without getting to the point. "May I ask who exactly you are?"
"Apologies. Your tea is simply too delicious, Acting Commander. Please forgive my lapse."
She hurriedly stood and introduced herself.
"I was formerly Menes Calliston, Captain of the Fourth Fellowship of the Thousand Sons, of the Corvidae Cult. Of course..." She lowered her gaze. "That name belongs to the past now."
"You may call me Kagari no Kirie. It suits my current form. The sinner I once was is already gone. Now I must atone—for my Legion, and for my Primarch."1GaL2
"You may never have heard of me. I was away on campaign and only rushed back after hearing that our homeworld was under attack. But by the time I arrived..."
She trailed off awkwardly.
She had believed she was hurrying home to defend Prospero from invaders. Instead, it turned out her own Legion and her own Primarch had been in the wrong. Luckily, her fellow Thousand Sons had warned her in time. Otherwise, there was a very real chance she would have attacked on sight and ended up purged for it.1GaL2
"I see. Got it."
Bruce nodded, understanding.
Kirie wasn't the only one. A fair number of Thousand Sons captains who'd been leading forces elsewhere were only now filtering back home. Their homeworld had been stabbed in the gut. Of course they'd return.
And their return was useful in one sense: it gave Magnus a chance to explain to them in person that the blood-change that had tormented the Legion for so long had now become... another kind of mutation.
A relatively benign one, at least.
No one needed to worry about the Emperor exterminating the Legion over uncontrolled flesh-warping anymore.1GaL2
"Then... Kirie?"
"No, no, Acting Commander, please." Kirie shook her head quickly. "Just call me by my name."
Though they were worlds apart in age—by the time Kirie had become a Fellowship Captain, Bruce had probably still been somewhere on Terra playing in the mud—none of that meant much beside rank and status.
What was Bruce now?
The strongest being beneath a Primarch.
And what was she?
To put it bluntly, a former rebel under suspicion.
The fact that she was sitting here at all, face-to-face with him aboard the Remilia, was already almost unbelievable.1GaL2
Any other ship would have dragged her straight into a black room the moment she stepped aboard.
"Alright then. Kirie." Bruce poured her a second cup of tea. "How exactly did our chief apothecary get in touch with you?"
Something was off here. He needed the full story.
"It was... an accident, really."
Kirie thought for a moment before answering.
"I was in the prisoner camp after being transformed into this form by the curse, and Warfarin happened to see me. She took me away after that."
"We talked a great deal. Then she extended an invitation. She said your company was short-handed, and that perhaps she could help arrange a position for us, so..."
Bruce smiled.
"What an impressive bond of trust. One person bold enough to say it, another bold enough to believe it."
Under the table, however, his fist was clenched so tightly it nearly cracked.1GaL2
Warfarin.
When had he ever said he wanted to expand the company?
Once again she had gone behind his back and made decisions for him. Was she the company commander here, or was he?
"Our Primarch also said that the Thousand Sons would be split up soon," Kirie continued. "Though there was no certainty which Legion any of us would be assigned to. If we had a preferred Legion, we were told we could report it to her, and she would try to accommodate us."
"But wasn't there also the option of staying on Prospero as instructors if you didn't want to continue the Great Crusade?" Bruce asked. "I'm fairly sure that was one of the arrangements."
The breaking up of the Thousand Sons was one thing. But they were still one of the Emperor's Legions. Anyone transferred out to serve elsewhere would be more like a specialist attachment than a common convict on labor detail.
If they truly wished to remain on their homeworld, no one would hold it against them.1GaL2
"But someone has to pay for what happened, Acting Commander."
Kirie's expression turned solemn.
"Our father bears much of the blame, yes. But so do we."
"We must atone for him. For the Emperor. For the Imperium. We still have to offer up our strength."
"Besides, if all of us stay on Prospero, then the honor of the Thousand Sons will never return. We have to do something."
"I understand."
Bruce nodded again.
In that case, most of the Thousand Sons really were decent people. They were still willing to keep fighting for their Legion and their Primarch, even if it might amount to nothing in the end.
Recognizing one's fault and being willing to pay the price for it was admirable in itself.1GaL2
"Then why us?" Bruce asked. "Shouldn't this sort of thing be left to the Warmaster's assignment?"
"Because Warfarin told us," Kirie said frankly, "that even the Warmaster gives you a measure of deference. And because you have good relations with so many Primarchs. Your company also happens to be short of people. If we joined you, that would be good for the Thousand Sons too."
She wanted in while Bruce's command was still in its growth phase.
If he truly rose later, then perhaps, through him, the Thousand Sons might one day rise again as well.
Anyone who could move so easily among multiple Primarchs had to be someone with extraordinary ability and extraordinary connections.1GaL2
"Your intentions are noble enough..." Bruce said.
He liked Kirie's blunt honesty.
It also gave him a headache.
"There's another reason we chose the Eighth Legion." Kirie continued. "Compared to the other Legions, the Night Lords are more tolerant. And more independent. Even though we are psykers, you wouldn't reject us over it."
"Beyond that, you seem to take a more open view toward certain types of research and experimentation. That matters to us."
"And the last reason?" Bruce asked.
"The Warmaster." Kirie hesitated, then pressed on. "We studied some of her previous tactics and operational patterns."
"And we came to a conclusion that wasn't exactly encouraging."
"If we joined the Sixteenth Legion, there is a very high chance we'd be used as expendable spearhead units—to hold the line, to break the line, and only after that would the Warmaster arrive with the main force. That would be deeply unfair to us, and we would have no real way to refuse."1GaL2
"As for the Eighth Legion's tactical style..."
She coughed lightly.
"How should I put it... you seem better at keeping your own people alive. If you can avoid frontal engagements, you avoid them. I think that's excellent."
Bruce stared at her in silence.
Just admit you didn't want to be thrown into high-intensity line combat.
And for the record, the Eighth Legion specialized in raiding and infiltration. It wasn't as embarrassing as that made it sound.1GaL2
"I understand the situation now." Bruce leaned back slightly. "But I want to know what you can offer my company."
"What do you want? Please, say anything." Kirie drew a breath and straightened. "We'll do everything we can to satisfy any condition you set."
So long as he hadn't said no yet, there was still hope.
And she intended to seize it—for the chance to help the Legion rise again.
"This..." Bruce rubbed his chin as he looked her up and down.
Captain Kirie, I know you're a good person.
But wearing a skin like that and saying things like this makes it very hard for me to remain a good person.
"Any condition?"
"Any condition," Kirie repeated, "so long as it is within our power."
In that case...1GaL2
Don't blame me for being ruthless, Miss Kirie.
You came right to my door.
And you just so happen to have silver hair and crimson eyes—one of my precise weak points.
It's time to activate my plan.
If you can't endure it, don't hold it against me.
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
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Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 150)
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TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter110)
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I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter225)
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Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 77
From Junkman to Wasteland 66
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 46
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 195
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 65
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 170
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass Volume2/5
The Way the Umamusume Look at 68
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 225
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 65
Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 76
Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 66
My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 65
Uma Musume: The Dark Trainer 210
Uma Musume: A Calamity Born fr 154
I, a Reincarnation-Loop Player Volume4/30
The Violent Girl Group Is Beat 115
Uma Musume: The Horse Girl Who 67
Uma Musume: From Beginner 130
Becoming a Horse Girl, I Will 85
Uma Musume: I Want All 105
I Can Copy Unique Skills 100
Summoning an Evil God, but the 70
Supernatural Multiverse 90
My Harem Is Indescribable 85
Jujutsu Kaisen: Heroic Spirit 90
"I'm just a Valkyrie passing through." 68
Uma Musume: Today Is Another Romantic Battlefield 100
Still playing traditional Honk 69
The Most Filial Son Under Heav 75
What Should I Do After Switchi - Volume2/3
Reincarnated as a Demon, Skill 60
Hell-Difficulty Dungeon? 55
Transmigrated as Sukuna 71
Checking In in Demon Slayer 75
The Reincarnating Trainer of Tracen Academy 80
I Refuse to Become a Heroic 66
My Best Friend Into a Slime? 58
A Saiyan Stands Above Marvel 65
What Do You Mean by Using a Lab Mod to Be the Hero? 63
Tanya Starts from Re:Zero 59
Why did they assign me to Uma 55
MYGO Beauties 56
DanMachi: Emiya the Giant Hero 45
The Gacha Merchant Who Started 49
Honkai's Otherworld? Wait—Who Are You People?! 36
Emiya Shirou, Determined to Slay Every Curse and Evil Spirit 35
The Uma Musume Who Became 30
I'm Definitely Not the King of 35
After Maxing Out Every Class 35
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