Ten millennia had passed.
After awakening, the Lion finally sat down calmly with his 'progeny', Zabriel, to inquire about the truth of what happened back then.
The Primarch was not foolish.
Although to outsiders, the Lion often appeared domineering, he was actually extremely meticulous.
Especially after sleeping for ten millennia, the tempering and sculpting of time had made the Lion much more composed, teaching him empathy and understanding.
However, one point was extremely awkward.
Facing his gene-father, Zabriel was at a loss for words. Ten millennia of guilt, sin, self-reproach, and resentment filled his gaze when he looked at the Lion, adding many layers of complexity.
And the Lion?
He was also very awkward. He had just brutally beaten Zabriel, and although it was because the other party had fired at him first, after he calmed down, he replayed the original incident and also felt there were many suspicious points.
"Tell me, Zabriel."
Finally, the Lion was the first to speak.
"At that time, I heard—that he was going to rebel, so I led the fleet back to Caliban, but I was attacked by ground artillery. What exactly happened?"
Zabriel was silent for a long time, and only under the Lion's flickering gaze did he slowly begin to speak.
"That year, under Luther's command, we mobilized a large number of Dark Angels. Some obeyed his orders, but others believed he should have applied to you. However, due to Luther's personal prestige, we ultimately agreed to his deployment."
"Continue."
When the name 'Luther' was mentioned, Emrys keenly noticed a subtle change in the Lion's eyes and expression for a fleeting moment.
It seemed to be sorrow, and also hatred.
"What happened next is a bit different from what you said." Zabriel took a deep breath, straightened his back, and looked at the Lion.
"My company was stationed in the Caliban armory, but we were bombarded by the space fleet without any warning, and the identification signal of the attack came from your exclusive warship."
The Lion frowned, his eyes dark, but he said nothing more.
"Continue."
Seeing that the Primarch did not refute, Zabriel continued, his memory seemingly dragged back to the brutal war ten millennia ago.
"My brothers and I were inexplicably subjected to an airborne attack. They were all brothers from the same Legion—the ones you took away."
"They shouted 'For the Emperor,' while we became the 'traitors' in their mouths—"
At this point, Zabriel's expression was extremely pained, his eyes bloodshot.
"I didn't know what happened. Luther said—you launched a rebellion and wanted to seize control of Caliban. We were forced to counterattack."
"It was too chaotic—we didn't even know the reason and were forced into this civil war. We were clearly all Dark Angel Legionaries, yet we were slaughtering each other on our homeworld. I tried to explain all of this, but—they didn't give us a chance."
Zabriel clenched his fists, his teeth grinding with a chilling sound, as if he wanted to chew up all the hatred of ten millennia.
"Then, Caliban was attacked. An unprecedented explosion tore the entire world apart.
My surviving brothers and I were also swept into the Warp, scattered across the universe."
A trace of sorrow surged in the Lion's pupils, and his voice seemed a little low.
"What happened next?"
"Next?" Zabriel's face was bitter, and he lowered his head.
"You disappeared, Caliban was destroyed, and we were also identified as part of the rebellion, branded with the stigma of 'Fallen Angels,' and hunted by our former comrades, hiding and barely to live."
"As you can see, we are Fallen Angels, the culprits who destroyed Caliban, the root cause of the Dark Angel civil war, and even—the shame of the First Legion!"
Every time Zabriel mentioned it, he felt a sharp pain in his heart.
"Lion!"
His eyes were bloodshot and contorted, veins bulging on his forehead. Looking at the Lion, who sat before him, their gene-father, he questioned loudly.
"I want to ask you, besides those who followed Luther, are all of us—in your eyes—Fallen Angels, traitors?!"
In Zabriel's questioning, the Lion fell into a long silence, as if he didn't know how to answer.
Yes, there were too many mysteries surrounding the events back then, but besides those who truly pledged allegiance to Luther, were the rest of the Dark Angels truly traitors?
From Zabriel's description, the Lion could easily deduce that a considerable number of Dark Angels were purely forced into the civil war.
They had no idea why their beloved gene-Primarch would wage war against Luther, or why he would consider them traitors.
"Ahem, may I say something?"
Looking at the silent Lion and the angry, wronged Zabriel, Emrys knew he had to step forward.
He had to ease the atmosphere.
"You?"
The Lion frowned slightly.
"What does this have to do with you?"
"Well—" Emrys scratched his head.
"Actually, it does have a little to do with me, because before I met you, I happened to encounter a chapter of Fallen Angels."
Whether it was an illusion or not, the corner of the Lion's eye seemed to twitch a few times. "You—have quite a nerve."
"The Chapter Master of this Fallen Angel chapter is named Olsen." Emrys felt a little guilty, deliberately avoiding the Lion's gaze and turning to look at Zabriel.
"He was also a Fallen Angel from ten millennia ago. You should know him, right?"
"Olsen? He's still to live?!"
Zabriel was a little shocked, but then he became even more curious.
"You dare to shelter Fallen Angels? How did he agree?"
"Listen—"
Emrys suddenly didn't know what to say.
But the Lion, beside him, saw through his thoughts and sneered.
"You wouldn't—have promised them that their sins would be absolved, would you?"
"Listen, this matter is more complicated. What I mainly want to say is that the source of the Caliban rebellion was actually due to you and Luther, because of the uneven distribution of power and unclear hierarchy, which ultimately led to the civil war. Many Dark Angels were actually unaware, and they were also innocent victims caught in it." Emrys' string of explanations left him almost hoarse.
The Lion listened quietly, then asked.
"Olsen, I know him. He's very stubborn, but he wouldn't easily believe other people's promises, so—under what name did you get them to serve you?"
"Uh—."
This was a death question!
Emrys broke out in a cold sweat, wondering whether to answer truthfully or use Lan's name?
"Let me remind you, if you mention Guilliman, his name cannot convince the Fallen Angels." The Lion looked at him with a half-smile, then added.
"As for the name of the other one, they would believe even less."
Well, all his escape routes were blocked.
Emrys was speechless, and finally, dejectedly, he simply gave up.
"It was you. I told them you would have a coming home and would forgive their sins, and retake command of the First Legion, the Dark Angels."
"They believed it?"
The Lion's gaze seemed to pierce through people's hearts.
"Well, of course not." Emrys hesitated, then said.
"I used another method to convince them that my prophecy would come true, and provided them with a safe place that would never be found."
"That makes sense."
The Lion nodded slightly, without any displeased expression. Instead, he looked at him meaningfully, and after a moment of thought, showed a look of sudden realization, sighing softly.
"So—it was you."
What does that mean?!
This inexplicable sigh left Emrys a little confused.
"From now on, you will stay by my side."
The Lion slowly rose, his towering figure, illuminated by the fire and shadow of the bonfire, truly seemed like a majestic lion.
His voice was filled with an undeniable sternness.
"Didn't you use my name to win over the Fallen Angels?
If so, then this task is yours. In my name, gather the scattered Fallen Angels!"
Damn, he'd been conscripted!
Emrys was drenched in a cold sweat, feeling completely unwell.
Until this moment, Emrys was still bewildered.
He was clearly a wandering merchant, so how did he suddenly transform into a conscript snatched by the Lion King, and what's more, a thankless choice responsible for gathering the Fallen Angels?!
"Wait, wait—" His expression was a little twisted.
"Lion King, shouldn't gathering the Fallen Angels be something you do personally? What's with giving it to me? Besides, as a wandering merchant, what do I have to gather them with?"
Could he do this?
He couldn't!
Who were the Fallen Angels? They were lunatics who dared to draw their blades and charge at the Lion King himself. Sending him would be suicide!
"Don't worry."
The Lion King patted his shoulder and said earnestly, "With me here, what is there to fear?"
It's precisely because you're here that this matter is so difficult to resolve!
If the Lion King weren't here, he might have been able to gather a few scattered Fallen Angel warbands who still held loyalty, using his ability to deceive.
But the problem was, the Lion King himself was here!
Don't think the Fallen Angels held no resentment towards the Lion King. Just look at Zabriel; he was already considered one of the most loyal factions among the Fallen Angels!
In those years, he neither defected to Chaos nor caused ran, and he steadfastly upheld the honor of the Dark Angels.
But even such a loyal Fallen Angel, upon seeing the Lion King, his first reaction was to draw his gun and shoot, which showed how much resentment he held in his heart.
If he encountered a Fallen Angel like Olsen, who had one foot in Chaos before, it wouldn't be a simple matter of shooting; it would most likely be drawing a knife and fighting!
"Can I refuse?"
Although he knew hope was slim, Emrys still held a glimmer of expectation.
"You can." The Lion King sneered, clenched his fist, and made a cracking sound.
"Good, this old man has slept for ten thousand years, and his bones feel a bit loose. How about—taking this opportunity to help you train?"
Looking at that fist as big as an iron pot, Emrys was utterly speechless. If that fist landed on him, would he still be well?
"No, no!"
Emrys hastily waved his hand, his face full of despair.
"I'll do it, I'll do it, alright?"
Then, the Lion King turned his gaze to Zabriel, his voice like thunder.
"Tell me, Zabriel Koslovich, for whom does your sword swing?!"
Zabriel looked into the Lion King's eyes, his heart seemingly trembling. A moment later, he also stood up, slowly knelt on one knee, and lowered his head.
"My blade is for the Emperor, for humanity, and for those brothers who were forgotten in the rifts of time and branded with infamy!"
"You have not forgotten the glory and motto of Caliban, Zabriel."
The Lion King looked down at the kneeling Zabriel. Although his tone was still majestic, it also held a touch of tenderness.
"You used Caliban combat techniques just now, didn't you?"
Zabriel lowered his head.
"Yes—Lion King, it was Caliban combat techniques taught by Luther. I have never forgotten the glory of the past, nor have I ever forgotten the oath of the Knightly Order!"
"Repeat it."
The Lion King's voice suddenly rose.
Even the surrounding forest bowed in the wind, as if celebrating the coming home of this king.
"Honor is the chain!"
"Protect the people with the sword!"
"Loyalty until death!"
"Purify the vile!"
With each oath, the dim light in Zabriel's eyes seemed to be lit, and his silent heart rekindled and revived in the fire!
The Lion King's eyes showed a hint of satisfaction.
He slowly drew the 'Lion Sword' he always carried and walked towards Zabriel, who was kneeling on one knee.
"I can forgive your identity as a Fallen Angel, but—what does it mean to wield a sword against a Primarch?
You should know very well, shouldn't you?"
"It's rebellion."
Zabriel replied.
"Very good, it seems—you have come to an understanding, Zabriel." The Lion King nodded, gripping the Lion Sword tightly, his gaze calm.
"Yes, Lion King."
Zabriel's body moved slightly, but in the end—he still chose to close his eyes, quietly waiting for his final fate to arrive.
Perhaps, from the moment he left Caliban, it was destined that today he would be purged as a traitor!
Zabriel did not regret it.
Nor did he believe that shooting at the Primarch was a sin. He just wanted to vent his grievances; years of fleeing had completely exhausted him.
To die here, to die at the hands of the Lion King, was an honor for a Fallen Angel!
But fortunately, before his death, he got the answer he wanted—the Fallen Angels would be pardoned by the Lion King, and he was willing to pay the price for his actions!
However, just as Zabriel was lost in thought, the blade symbolizing the Lion King landed on his right shoulder guard, making a crisp sound.
Immediately after, the blade grazed over Zabriel's head, landing on his left shoulder guard with the same angle, same posture, and same force.
This was... Zabriel's mind went blank, and he opened his eyes, looking at the Lion King with some confusion.
"Rise, Knight."
There was no hint of blame in the Lion King's eyes, as calm as a clear lake.
"Caliban has perished, but its will must survive, even if it carries sin."
His tone then deepened, carrying the pain of the past, and he said in an exasperated, muffled, and resonant tone.
"From today onwards, uphold the Knightly Oath, and those who wield their swords against Chaos can still be my descendants. Your past sins shall be washed away with the blood of daemons!"
Touching the shoulder with a sword was an ancient enfeoffment ceremony popular on Caliban, and also a form of recognition!
Zabriel's pupils trembled violently, his lips quivering, as he looked up at the figure like a towering mountain.
"You—you forgave me?"
The sin he committed was not just being a Fallen Angel, but something far more serious: daring to attack his own genefather, the Primarch of the Dark Angels. This was an unforgivable sin!
"I forgive you, Zabriel."
The Lion King nodded.
"Your actions and the oath you upheld over the years have proven your loyalty to me. You are still my descendant!"
"You acknowledge us as 'Dark Angels' again?" Zabriel asked excitedly.
But this question made the Lion King show a rare bitter smile.
"No, you will be 'Sons of the Forest,' a legion that does not need to atone or repent to the Rock Fortress."
The misunderstanding between the Rock Fortress and the Fallen Angels was an enmity that could not be easily resolved overnight.
And although he was not yet clear about the current situation of the Imperium, he vaguely felt a sense of urgency in his heart.
Therefore, the Lion King made the decision that best suited the current situation, allowing the Fallen Angels to become independent, avoiding the enmity between the two sides, and concentrating their strength to solve the problem!
This was the most suitable solution for the current situation.
The Fallen Angels were renamed 'Sons of the Forest,' and as pardoned Angels, they would avoid conflict with the Rock Fortress, thereby concentrating both forces!
Then, the Lion King looked at Emrys.
"You will temporarily serve as the Grand Sir of the 'Sons of the Forest,' the First Watch Knight. These former Fallen Angels, including Zabriel, will all be under your management and discipline."
"Me?!"
Emrys was stunned for a few seconds, dazed by this inexplicable windfall.
This was... a meteoric rise!
Lion King Lion El'Jonson personally appointed him as the Grand Sir of the Sons of the Forest and the First Watch Knight. In the future, as more Fallen Angels returned, his power would also grow, even—second only to the Lion King, truly one person below, ten thousand above!
But what about the price?
Emrys fell into unprecedented confusion; the unknown price behind this power made him somewhat at a loss.
"Didn't you gather a Fallen Angel?"
The Lion King's face was solemn, but his lips curved slightly as he said.
"I have given you the title and the power. Now let me see how far you can go, Merlin Emrys."