The Primarch's return had indeed caused a massive shockwave across the various departments of the Imperium.
At the same time, the willingness to reform that the Primarch openly demonstrated thoroughly stunned the established holders of vested interests. They had considered that the return of the Lord Regent might significantly impact the Imperium, but they never anticipated that Guilliman's reform measures would be so idealistic, so completely disregarding the actual circumstances of the Imperium.
In truth, Guilliman's reform proposals were not entirely unreasonable. They amounted to nothing more than trying to raise the Imperium's standard of governance back to the level of the Emperor's Great Crusade.
However, this meant that every single department would have to work themselves to death with overtime, and they still wouldn't stand a chance of completing the targets on the checklist.
"Motherf—" Every High Lord present was cursed under their breath at this fantastical political decree.
They held the long parchment scrolls with expressions that screamed they would rather die. The shorter parchment scrolls could be unrolled all the way from the Imperial Palace on Terra straight to the Sichuan Basin. As for the longer ones? The dossiers containing the reform proposals could practically stretch from the Imperial Palace across to the Pacific Basin.
"This is pushing it too far! This is absolute tyranny!"
"I could work overtime for a hundred years and still not finish all this!"
"And now His Excellency the Lord Regent expects us to implement a five-year plan to complete this step-by-step? Is he joking?"
"And what the hell is this Indomitus Crusade?!"
"Under current conditions, how can we launch a crusade?"
"Does he think he can just deploy an entire massive fleet by wagging his tongue?"
"If we pull those fleets out, what happens to the sector defenses they leave behind?"
The Inquisition's reaction was particularly explosive. After all, the reform dossier Guilliman had left for the Inquisition was the longest of them all, and it didn't hold back on criticisms of their conduct. It was a blatant reprimand, an outright mockery that stripped the High Lords of any political dignity.
Looking at the mountain of dossiers piled high on the table, the High Lords grew completely numb. Problem after problem was thrust directly in front of the Council of High Lords. Even the attendants at the bottom had to carry massive bundles of parchment just to read out the Regent's decrees. These reform measures were enough to make one's head spin just by listening to them once, let alone trying to execute them.
"I propose that the Officio Assassinorum should attempt an assassination on Guilliman!"
"His reform proposals are far too detached from reality. If we carry out his orders, the current Imperium will completely collapse!"
A Grand Inquisitor stood up and declared. By now, they had already formed the Hexarchy—the majority of the political strength within the Imperium's core departments rested in the hands of this six-man alliance.
"Assassinating a Primarch? Holy shit, have you lost your minds?!"
"Let me ask you one thing: if the Primarch dies and more than two hundred thousand Ultramarines go absolutely berserk on Terra, how do you plan to handle it?"
This single sentence from the Grand Master of Assassins instantly froze everyone in the room.
Right. Guilliman hadn't returned empty-handed; the man had brought a massive army numbering in the hundreds of thousands back with him! If this went sideways, they would all be utterly doomed.
Fadix held a dissenting view. However, due to the machinations of Tzeentch, his opposition wasn't going to be very useful.
Snap!
Fadix, who had been actively attending the council meeting a moment ago, was suddenly and inexplicably teleported onto a resort world.
The Hexarchy was holding their meeting, but the Changer of Ways had warped the timeline, sending Fadix—the lone dissenter—off on a vacation! Even Fadix himself genuinely believed that he was supposed to be on vacation right now. So, looking out at the sunny beach, he prepared to enjoy a lovely holiday.
"How troublesome, Lord Fadix isn't present. Fortunately, I obtained his signed authorization before coming, otherwise today's meeting couldn't proceed!"
The Grand Inquisitor actually produced Fadix's warrant of authorization from his robes. This was perfectly aligned with Imperial protocol, which meant the council officially approved the meeting to assassinate Guilliman.
At this point, the thoughts of the insiders within the Council of High Lords were quite simple. All they needed to do was invite Guilliman to a meeting. After all, Guilliman was now the Lord Regent; it was completely normal for the High Lords to invite the Regent to discuss matters of critical importance to the Imperium, right? Once he arrived, the other assassins could take Guilliman out. As long as the Lord Regent died on Terra, the entire planet would plunge into total chaos.
Thus, these leaping clowns actually discussed how to assassinate Guilliman and how to slaughter a Primarch right in front of Caleb.
[Campaign Mission Incoming.]
[Purge the Rebellion of the High Lords, allow Guilliman to reintegrate the factions of the Imperium!]
[Reward: Indomitus Crusade Reinforcements for subsequent campaigns.]
[Simultaneously triggers the awakening of Guilliman's Warp essence.]
[Extra Reward: Authorization to alter the Emperor's model. You will be able to modify that corpse on the Golden Throne.]
"Hehehe!" Seeing this reward mission, Caleb swore in his heart that he would complete the special objective. This time, he didn't even need to design a picture; he directly sent the image of the grey-skinned Emperor to Linde!
"Linde, my brother, help me make this model!"
"There will be a massive reward once it's done!"
"Don't worry about the money, just quote me a price when you finish it!"
Perhaps because their economic transactions had been quite frequent lately, Linde replied very quickly after receiving the message. The chat software showed that the other party was typing, and then Linde's response popped up.
"No problem~"
"By the way, brother, your tastes have gotten a bit heavy lately!"
"You even want a gender-bent miniature of the Emperor? You really are a degenerate among degenerates!"
"Screw off!"
To deal with a good friend, one must always respond in the simplest way possible. Caleb couldn't be bothered to argue with this guy—Linde's own record wasn't clean either, yet he dared to call him out! Setting aside the massive pile of "underworld" figurines hidden under Linde's bed, the guy had manufactured plenty of cast-off models himself.
Caleb briefly wondered whether he should make the Emperor's model capable of having its armor removed too. But on second thought, an action like that might drastically increase the power of Slaanesh.
[The Emperor: Achoo!]
[Malcador, I have an ominous premonition. I am not talking about the matter of those High Lords plotting a rebellion!]
[I am saying it feels like something is attempting to distort me!]
[Malcador: My Lord, you do love to joke. Within the current Warp, is there truly any existence capable of distorting you?]
[Well, though you say the Immaterium has indeed been highly unstable lately, the will of the Immaterium seems biased toward humanity, isn't that good news?]
Had the Emperor revealed a few secrets or details about Caleb to Malcador? When Malcador learned that a mysterious will was using higher-dimensional authority to assist humanity, he instantly fell into a state of pure ecstasy.
Nowadays, Malcador didn't bother going to his regular shift or keeping himself buried in endless work. Every day he just loitered around the Imperial Palace, chatting with the old Emperor whenever he felt like it. Occasionally guiding Guilliman and handling minor issues along the way constituted his entire life now.
Of course, he had also taken a trip to the Grey Knights to retrieve a certain portion of his own ashes. Regarding the fact that his subordinates had turned his ashes into a weapon, Malcador couldn't really blame them; after all, he was the one who had issued that order before ascending the Golden Throne.
Now, the Emperor had the Custodes, and Malcador had the Grey Knights under the Inquisition's umbrella. Malcador had actually already taken control of the Grey Knights; the Inquisition just didn't know it yet.
Looking at the massive carcass resting upon the Golden Throne, even Malcador couldn't help but complain.
"I say, my Lord, how about I find a way to switch your body?"
"Even though changing your body won't let you step down from the Golden Throne, at the very least it might fix your current issue of slurred speech!"
"Screw off!"
Time and space seemed to overlap at that exact moment. The Emperor and Caleb had uttered the exact same phrase within the same general timeframe. Except Caleb wanted to distort the Emperor into a grey-skinned lolita, while the Emperor wanted to put a stop to all of it, refusing to let old Malcador run wild!
[The Emperor: Malcador, if you are so idle, why don't you go help Guilliman!]
[The boy has so much on his plate right now, and next he has to face an assassination plot from the Hexarchy. It's not easy for him.]
[This child will highly likely be the political pillar of the Imperium in the future. If you still want to enjoy peaceful days, you better help him.]
Malcador chuckled. Regarding Guilliman, he naturally had arrangements in place. Malcador used to be the true Regent of the Imperium; when it came to certain political maneuvers, he was far more practiced than Guilliman.
"You bet!"
"If anything happens to that child, the next one working overtime will be me!"
"Since the boy's Warp essence has undergone some kind of change, I am indeed quite willing to give this good child a hand."
In Warhammer 40k, there weren't many people left with functioning brains. After resolving the issue of Guilliman's Warp essence, Malcador found Guilliman much more agreeable to look at. Now these Primarchs could truly be considered to have acted like proper human beings, and as a perpetual and effectively an elder figure, Malcador would naturally give them a push forward.
"Regarding the matter of the assassination, I believe it's highly likely those damned Chaos remnants are acting up again!"
"Even though they dare not openly interfere with the Imperial Palace, do not forget, my Lord, the Webway beneath your seat still hasn't been repaired. The Chaos Gods can still exert influence through the tiny tears!"
The Emperor knew very well that everything Malcador said was a factual reality. Or rather, the Emperor was intimately familiar with the methods of the Chaos Gods. Those four entities caused him trouble all day long, constantly trying to influence the Imperial Palace and cooking up massive schemes against him. If his backside hadn't been firmly planting the seal down, Terra would have been finished long ago. Fortunately, Malcador was here now, meaning he could handle those wretched Chaos remnants on his behalf.
[The Emperor: No matter, I have already warned Guilliman.]
[With that child's political wit, he shouldn't—]
The Emperor had just finished stating that Guilliman shouldn't walk straight into a trap, but it turned out that Guilliman, perhaps a bit dazed from working overtime into the night, actually marched straight to the council chamber accompanied by only a small entourage.
Looking at the massive stack of documents cradled in Guilliman's arms, it seemed he was genuinely prepared to discuss the upcoming reform text. Those documents even outlined the specific demands or political compromises intended for certain Lords. To some extent, Guilliman was incredibly thorough when it came to political bargaining. He had successfully grasped the political pursuits of these High Lords even without making direct contact with them. Perhaps if there were no interference from Chaos, Guilliman could have actually handled these High Lords by relying on these strategic calculations.
"Sicarius, help me push the door open!"
"There are too many documents, I can't see the path ahead!"
"Primarch, is it possible that I can't see it either?"
"Why don't you just use an advanced data storage device? With Alice's help, we don't have to go through all this trouble!"
Sicarius advised his Primarch, but the Primarch knew very well that under the current circumstances, he absolutely could not allow these people to come into contact with high-tech equipment.
"Forget it, I have looked into it. They will never accept anything pulled from that kind of device!"
"If I used a storage device to display the upcoming policies, they would definitely claim it's a trick by Tzeentch or a conspiracy of Chaos!"
Guilliman spoke to Sicarius in a soft, gentle voice. Hearing this made Sicarius feel incredibly warmed, even though the Primarch was merely discussing standard administrative matters.
"The Primarch truly thinks of everything. It seems my political capabilities are still far too inferior compared to yours!"
Guilliman shook his head while cradling the massive stack of documents. He didn't want his child to underestimate himself, nor did he want to hear his child utter such defeatist words.
"Sicarius, I have told you before, you are a good child. You must have confidence in your own abilities!"
"When I wasn't around, didn't you and Calgar manage Ultramar splendidly?"
"Mother hopes you will become a pillar of the Imperium in the future—so from now on, you must never say such discouraging things, alright?"
Faced with the Primarch's incredibly gentle tone, Sicarius felt his heart practically melt. Mother Primarch spoke with such profound warmth, always looking after the feelings of her children.
[The Emperor: Wait, the absolute fool is actually going?]
[You've managed to anticipate all those complex political calculations, yet you didn't even consider a basic trap?]
Watching the current Guilliman walk into the trap alone, the Emperor could only sit tight and worry. He initially wanted to have Malcador do something, but Malcador had also closed his eyes, seemingly held back by something.
"Dammit, Lord of Change!"
How could the Emperor not know that it was yet another scheme by the wretched Changer of Ways? The current Warp was nowhere near as stable as it had been during the 30k era. Malcador was extremely powerful, the strongest human psyker save for the Emperor himself. However, a psyker of this tier meant nothing when facing the true Chaos Gods. They possessed endless methods to stall Malcador, perfectly content to use their own Greater Daemons as disposable cannon fodder.
Right now within the Warp, nine Lords of Change were utilizing Rubric sorcery to restrict Malcador's movements. Meanwhile, in the absolute center of the ritual array, there stood a figure that made the Emperor grind his teeth in pure rage!
"Father, your beloved little Magnus has returned!"
"Father, you really should just stand up from that wretched throne. Everything has already ended anyway, we can change nothing!"
Magnus, who had long since transformed into a crimson monstrosity, called out to the Emperor in a bizarre, distorted voice. He had lost his Warp essence long ago, becoming a mere pawn of Tzeentch, a dog on a leash. Yet, as a pawn, Magnus remained utterly oblivious to the fact that he was being completely played by Tzeentch. Magnus even believed that this Rubric sorcery was a masterstroke of his own design, a supreme spell he had extracted by deceiving nine separate Lords of Change!
At this moment, a continuous stream of dark blessings was being funneled into his body—and simultaneously—the Emperor's Webway gate was suffering a non-stop onslaught from Chaos forces.
"Aaaaaagh!"
"Magnus, you absolute fool!"
"I truly should have let the Wolf King butcher you completely!"
The Emperor remained silent, forcing his psychic might down to firmly seal the wretched Warp rift beneath him. If he didn't hold it shut, the Imperial Palace would be completely undone, and the political core of the Imperium would collapse. When that happened, the disaster would inevitably spread to all of humanity, turning Terra—the historic political heart of mankind—into the next Eye of Terror.
At this moment, Guilliman had no idea his father was currently holding the line against a massive breach. He simply waited patiently for Calgar to open the door, waiting for Calgar to push open the grand council doors so he could enter and discuss the upcoming administrative adjustments.
"Lord Guilliman, after you—"
Calgar, having arranged everything, prepared to take over the documents from the Primarch.
However, he never expected that the moment the grand doors swung open, a massive round fired from an Vindicari Exitus rifle would tear straight toward the Primarch's face!
"Primarch!"
It was too late. Everything unfolded far too quickly. Though the reaction speeds of the three paragons were incredibly fast—fast enough to visually track a bullet—a fast reaction speed didn't mean your physical limbs could keep pace. The velocity of a death round fired from a master-crafted Exitus rifle was unbelievably high. A single shot was enough to obliterate the skull of any carbon-based life form into a mist of blood.
"How entirely dishonorable!"
"A pity, because if things go down like this, there probably won't be many survivors left."
Caleb smiled knowingly. Immediately, he activated the ability he had acquired from the previous campaign.
[Za—Warudo!]
Time ground to a halt. Everything that was about to unfold upon the chessboard froze instantly. The bullet hung suspended less than two feet from Guilliman's face. For the current Guilliman, reacting to a bullet at this distance was physically impossible. Perhaps the Lion or Sanguinius could have maneuvered around it, but Guilliman, whose individual combat capability was relatively modest among his brothers, clearly did not belong in that category.
[Deploying: One Punch Man—Saitama.]
[Deployment Cost: 5000 Deployment Points!]
The moment that bald man, famously known as the ultimate cheat code, was deployed right in front of Guilliman, the entire matter was already settled. Caleb hadn't expected this guy's deployment cost to match the tier of a Void Dragon shard! Then again, it made perfect sense; after all, the man had never truly had to try in a fight.