"Welcome back, Your Excellency."

"Avalon is always waiting for its owner to come back to it, you have been absent for too long."

Has my absence caused you any trouble? 】

"Not really, sir."

"Avalon remains loyal to you, every inch of its land and every breath of air is still loyal to your cause, after all, this is the only, divine purpose for which their lives can exist and survive."

[You're getting more and more proficient in your flattery, my trusty Semiramis.] 】

"It's all good for you."

I don't remember that I needed this. 】

"I guess you didn't store this in your memory list, my lord, my Minerva array told me very clearly that you practiced these praises just before your first meeting with your genetic father......"

【……】

The Spider Empress frowned, her displeasure flickering with the vibration of the air, and as for the [Cassiopeia] standing in front of her, the caretaker of the world of Avalon, she slowly raised her head and smiled extremely meekly at her creator.

There was a panic in her pupils, apparently realizing that she had said the wrong thing, but she didn't know how to fix it or make up for it.

Morgan blinked, and it took her less than a second to stare at her creation, to determine what was in her smile, and then only to sigh slowly.

[I shouldn't have installed humor-inducing components in your algorithms: your performance is simply terrible, and your sense of humor and actual level are not even as good as those of Virgos, who have the lowest humor in theory.] 】

The Spider Empress's words were cold, neither angry nor harsh, but they were enough to make her star maid obediently bow her head, and her face was already full of emotions called guilt.

"My mistake, my lord, I just wanted to lighten the mood between us."

Morgan heard the sincerity of Semiramis's words, but she snorted softly and expressed her displeasure: fortunately, Cassiopeia remained rational, and she chose to say something kind when she didn't have any Dawnbreaker present, and chose to say something that she had never really mastered.

[But the performance is not good, and I remember that the task list I gave you did not seem to create a de-eliminating atmosphere, and you reasoned that this was reasonable?] 】

"I'm just reasoning...... Adults may need this kind of thing. ”

【……】

Morgan raised an eyebrow, and instead of answering the sentence immediately, she slowly paced in front of her second creation, stretched out a finger, raised her unresisting jaw, and looked carefully at the pale yellow pupils of Cassiopeia.

Cassiopeia, or Semiramis, is the second stellar lady-in-waiting created by the Spider Queen, and the governor Morgan used to oversee Avalon's secular things, and is one of her arms.

As a tribute to the queen of the ancient Assyrian Empire with the same name and surname, Cassiopeia's face was pinched by Morgan into a typical Middle Eastern beauty, with quite three-dimensional facial features and breathtaking eyes, and she was undoubtedly a man of all persuasion: although her appearance was still completely incomparable to that of Mormon, it was enough to be proud of herself in the stars.

And now, the countenance of this beauty, which is enough to plunge a kingdom into madness, is being occupied by a most pure uneasiness and apprehension, a guilt that is not involved in conspiracy, a cowardice akin before parents as young children cower because they have made mistakes.

It's a kind of emotion that is quite real, not made up of data and machinery, and can only be possessed by mortals.

Morgan blinked, and there was an instinctive gleam in her pupils, a genuine pride in her creation, like a knifesmith's arrogance in the blade he had made: but not much.

[Your emotional module is awakening: it's not that kind of performative emotion, but the feelings I left for you, those feelings that are no different from mortals, in the real sense? 】

"Yes, my lord, about eight Terra standard months ago, I realized that these things could not be reasoned with the Minerva array, but they were indeed interfering with my arithmetic, so I have been trying to solve them, but they are not the same as the observations and imitations I usually use, they do not seem to have obvious results and benefits of reasoning, and I cannot properly deal with them."

[This is normal. 】

The Spider Empress returned to her silver throne, listening to her Andromeda's uneasy words, and couldn't help but feel a little funny: the star maid Fairy Queen, whom she had specially created to maneuver and arbitrate among various interest groups, would be so fragile and dazed when the emotions she had germinated, and she was not at all as skillful as she had played with people's hearts before.

In her heart, the Lord of the Second Legion mercilessly ridiculed his creation, but she did not think at all that just a few years ago, when her emotions gradually awakened, her confusion was more than Cassiopeia.

But who cares, the Spider Empress has long forgotten the troubles of that time: since she forgot those things, then the things that made her embarrassed must never exist, and they must be illusions that only appear in her sleep.

Morgan thought so, and she felt an emotion called pleasure.

But after the pleasure, the Spider Queen couldn't help but wonder.

[If I'm not mistaken, although you are all stellar maids, Virgo is the first to be born, and you are the second: then why, on the contrary, is your emotional mod the first to awaken? 】

The suspicion of the original gene blew into the room like a cold wind, making a certain original maid who was silently making tea in the corner of the room can't help but point to the edge, and a few drops of hot tea also stained the precious tablecloth.

Do you have any clue about this, my Aniah? 】

When the genetic queen slowly looked at her personal maid, she found that she had already run into the kitchen behind the throne room with a tea set.

【……】

Count her as a fast runner.

Morgan could only turn his gaze back to Semiramis once more.

[So, let's sort out our thoughts a little: About eight months ago, shortly before I set out on my expedition, you realized that the mortal emotions I left you were gradually awakening in your brain, and this caused you trouble, and you tried to adapt to them, and the idea of adapting to them was: improve your relationship with me? 】

"I just reasoned out...... Maybe our relationship should be softer. ”

[For example?] 】

[You are my creation, I am your creator, what relationship do you want?] 】

The Queen of Genes was entrenched on the throne, and her blue pupils flashed a few hints of genuine curiosity: Morgan was really curious, after all, the decision to keep some of the human emotions of these stellar maids was just a mechanism specially set up by her and Perturabo in order not to do things in a desperate way.

Neither she nor her Olympian brother knew what these mortal emotions, which were not complete, but did exist, would have changed the Stellar Handmaidens: in fact, if it weren't for Semiramis being wrong today, the Spider Empress would have almost forgotten about it completely.

But nothing hindered her, and she was now looking forward to the next unknown answer.

“……”

Cassiopeia was silent for a moment, she seemed to be trying to adjust her breathing and stabilize her mind, and the front armor of her chest, which was stronger than Morgan, also fell violently together, revealing the nervousness of the stellar maid.

But eventually, she mustered up her courage and looked at her Creator, revealing the knot that had plagued and tormented her for several Terra Standard Months.

"Your Excellency."

[I'm here. 】

"We, whether it be me, or Virgo and Orion, are your creations, you have given us a second life, you have given us strength and mission, and you have not even deprived us of the emotions that belong to us, these are facts, there is no doubt about them."

【…… So? 】

"So, judging by our relationship with you, and from all that we have received from you, even the power and the great mission you have given us, we are not fundamentally different from the so-called Dawnbreakers who stand outside this room, bow down at your feet, and call you their mother."

【……】

Morgan blinked: she could probably guess what Cassiopeia meant.

At the same time, the genetic prototype also keenly discovered that the original Virgo, who had left, was quietly going and returning, standing next to her throne, also posing an unusually well-behaved appearance, looking at her with the same eyes as Cassiopeia.

"So, sir."

Cassiopeia stood up straight, and she looked up at her Creator, her words already filled with a pleading emotion that flashed like a child pleading with her parents.

"We can call you our ...... like them"

"Mother?"

【……】

"Is that okay?"

Semiramis's plea lingered in the progenitor's ears, and Morgan kept her silent, blinking.

[That's what you think?] 】

"Yes, this is the strongest desire that my thinking array has received after grudgingly accepting those emotions: my desire to be your daughter, to return to my true position, to give you everything I have in a more intimate gesture and with a stronger normality, and this emotion does not conflict in the slightest with my basic arithmetic logic, which proves that this is exactly what you expect from us."

【……】

Morgan's pupils twitched, and she noticed that something was wrong: the emotions she left for her stellar maids can be roughly divided into two parts, the first part is the main emotion common to all the maids, that is, [loyalty] and [fanaticism] that can be completely matched with their basic operation logic, etc., and the second part is their respective personality characteristics, which may not be completely consistent with the basic operation logic.

In other words, since the desire to be her daughter is an emotional product that fits into the basic logic of operations, it should be common to all the maidens of the stars, except Cassiopeia......

In hindsight, the genogen slowly turned her head and looked at the pink-haired maid beside her, who had always been silent and petite, and stared at the pair of red pupils that were as cold as the genogen.

This time, the Spider Empress finally saw clearly, and in the depths of the pupils of Virgo, which seemed to be like a thousand years of ice, there seemed to be a flash of some kind of heat that was too well hidden.

"Your Excellency."

Virgo spoke slowly, she tilted her head slightly, and then showed a rather calm smile, the fourteen or fifteen-year-old cheeks, her soft double ponytail, still looked so well-behaved and trustworthy.

She smiled.

"What about your decision?"

——————

Do you have any other demands, my dear daughter? 】

"No, Mother."

[Then let's get down to business.] 】

"As you wish."

Morgan snorted, pleased with Semiramis's unchanging deference, and she sat reclining on her silver-white throne as always, a kind of laziness and relaxation that no dawnbreaker would ever be blessed with.

Virgo was quietly held in the arms of her Creator and Mother, letting her long hair be molded from the Fist of the Empire into a space wolf by the somewhat bored Spider Empress, and a smile seemed to be on her lips.

If you combine that with the slightly narrowed pupils of the original maid, the low muttering of the Spider Queen, and the intently gaze of Virgo looking at her Creator, then even the calmest of wise men can't help but fall into real doubt: which is the mother and which is the daughter?

Of course, these are all minor problems, innocuous ones: at least in the face of the information recorded on the electronic board that Cassiopeia pulls out, they really don't matter.

"In fact, Mother, just about a month before Terra, several envoys from the White Scar Legion traveled to the Avalon Sector and asked to see you: upon learning of your absence, they politely declined Lord Marshall's invitation and did not stay, leaving behind a few books and letters."

Morgan furrowed an eyebrow.

[My Eagle brother actually took the initiative to communicate with me: this is really beyond my imagination, I thought he would not want to discuss anything with me in his life.] 】

The Spider Empress laughed, her words were not jokes, but the true thoughts recorded in the depths of her heart: after all, Morgan had only one communication with the Chagatai Khan, that is, when she was still in the First Legion, she was once lost due to a subspace storm, and finally as an unofficial envoy of the Dark Angel, she helped Horus and other primordials who met by chance win a war.

And Chagatai Khan was one of the three primordials at that time, so he had several connections with Morgan, who was still a mortal: in fact, on the whole, the lord of the Fifth Legion did not have a good attitude towards Morgan, but the last primordial who was present at that time was Motarian......

The Lord of Death's malice towards Morgan and all psykers was so incomprehensible that the Chagatai Khan, out of absolute reason and public welfare, said a few words to Morgan in disguise: although he may just want to choke Motarian's paranoia.

But in contrast, Morgan's impression of Chagatai Khan is not very bad, but it is not very close: they are just strangers after all, anyway, the Spider Queen has never thought of being able to get along with all her brothers, and she does not see a way to extract surplus value from Chagatai.

I can't think of it now...... Hey......

Morgan was amused, and she was instantly aroused: Is there anything that the eagle and her can talk about?

[Did you bring the book?] 】

"It's all here, Mother."

Cassiopeia respectfully handed over several books and letters, these books made of animal skins and hemp rope of unknown material look so crude, but if you look closely, you will find that although these seemingly barbaric books do not seem to be worthy of any noble word, they are indeed a work of art.

Morgan didn't open it immediately, she just gently stroked the covers that were softer than she had imagined, and although there were no complicated author introductions and gold trim patterns, she could still perceive the ingenuity of the makers of these books in the delicate touch.

Even before she opened the book, the Spider Queen already knew: the book was worth reading, and its deceptively crude nature was only the fact that its writers did not bother to spend energy on these superficial ornate events, but were convinced that the true value of the book lay within it.

The Lord of the Second Legion laughed, and without further hesitation or thought, Morgan chose to turn the page after placing a random probe spell.

With just a cursory glance, the Spider Queen's eyes widened: the pages that appeared in front of her were divided into two perfectly symmetrical parts, and on the left half was the contents of her psionic codex, which had been reproduced little by little with the most elegant notes, and the deep sense of artistry that emanated between the lines made even the original body sigh with emotion.

On the other side, the Spider Empress found an even greater surprise: in the corresponding places of the original words of the Psionic Codex, one or more masters of the psionic realm displayed their common wisdom on it, some admired the subtle parts of the Codex's words, some were merciless doubts and criticisms, and more were a discussion, a question, a rational word to be answered, a valuable new path, which seemed to be waiting for the Spider Empress to think about and improve.

Such words are so precious, sometimes they surpass the original words in the Psionic Codex, and they are so numerous and so detailed that the Psionic Codex, which was originally only one book, has been divided into four or five equally thick books, which are enough to complete all the words of the Storm Prophet and the Chagatai Khan.

【……】

For a moment, even the air in the throne stopped flowing, and the two stellar maidens clearly saw the concentration and frenzy on their mother's face, and they chose to quietly retreat to the side, waiting for Morgan to flip through the priceless tome in front of her one by one.

The Spider Empress flipped through the books lined up in front of her, quickly and attentively, she counted the [Comments] of the white scars one by one, in terms of word count, there were almost three psionic codexes, although most of the ideas were just arguments and incomplete ideas, but the value of them was enough to support the Lord of the Second Legion to pick up the pen again and completely upgrade her masterpiece.

At this thought, Morgan's heart even crossed a trace of emotion that was extremely close to [gratitude], and with this enthusiasm, the Spider Queen picked up the last book, which was slightly different from that of her colleagues, because the Lord of the Fifth Legion had written some words on its cover.

The words were short and concise, summing up the entire book in almost a few sentences: out of gratitude and a certain amount of thought, the Chagatai Khan wrote this book about how his Legion harnessed the power of psionic energy, about the traditions and methods of the Storm Prophets on Chogoris, and how he had adapted the contents of the psionic code into a useful volume suited to the situation of the White Scar Legion itself, referring to the actual situation of the Fifth Legion.

At the end of the discourse is the Eagle Khan's gratitude to the Spider Empress: this sentence is not a thank you at all, but in Morgan's mind, it means more than any flowery thank you words.

Morgan read it slowly.

[Morgan, I still don't like you, my hypocritical blood relative. 】

[But, but only on the path to this goal: if you can maintain the current cautious attitude, if you can continue with the business you have started, if your work will still be beneficial to humans and psykers, then, no matter what difficulties you encounter, you can contact me, and I promise that I will do my best.] 】

[Finally, I hope you can keep your current thoughts, I hope you can continue to recognize the storm in the subspace, I hope you can stick to your path, this is very important, this is important for many people. 】

[Good luck, my blood relative.] 】

【……】

Morgan looked at the words.

I watched it again.

She stroked, pondered, and flipped through it over and over again.

Finally, laughed.

It was a rather sincere, relieved, even relaxed smile, and when it hung on the immaculate face of the Spider Queen, it actually looked a little glaring, a little inappropriate.

“……”

The two stellar maids glanced at each other.

"What are you laughing at, Mother?"

【……】

[No, nothing.] 】

Morgan shook his head, closed the book solemnly, and with great care, put the quaint works of art together on the armrest of his throne, and then respectfully picked up the first one, ready to begin her most serious and careful reading.

[I'm just...... Saw a rather rare and interesting smart person. 】

[Really smart people. 】

The genogen raised an eyebrow at her two cheap daughters, and was ready to plunge into her own world of infinite intelligence, when Cassiopeia raised her hand.

"Mother, you forgot those letters."

【…… Correspondence? 】

"Yes, according to the visitors to the White Scar Legion, the letters were sent by someone they had received, and were not the work of them or their genetic fathers."

[By whom?] 】

"Hmmm......"

"I remember: Space Wolves."

——————

"It's been a long time, Lord Luther."

The friendly voice came, causing the Caliban knight who had just boarded the ship to raise his head in some astonishment, and then, he saw the smiling acquaintance not far away.

"Erwin?"

"It's me, Lord Luther: it's not easy to see you now."

The old knight laughed, and the two commanders, who were also mortals, embraced each other, their friendship had grown from a battle side by side a few years earlier.

Luther's smile was tinged with genuine pride: for he knew very well that Erwin was not lying.

As one of the highest-ranking mortals on the Aurora, Erwin, who is a lieutenant general of the Empress Avalon Legion, was only able to get the honor of being the first to welcome the Caliban veterans through some personal connections.

After all, Luthor is now the red man of the entire Far Eastern Frontier: after a few years of trust indulgence and constant conquest, even the most uninformed, officials in the entire Avalon Sector have long known their uncrowned empress, and their boundless trust in the old knight of the Caliban.

Luthor's requests had never been denied, his army had the highest priority supply sequences and transport routes, and the conditions were good enough to make the most open-minded mortal general jealous in the dark, and he was never short of new troops and allies, the only thing he had to think about was how to use this constant force wisely.

The Caliban Knights, on the other hand, delivered answers that were perfect enough to dispel any doubts: Luther's fleet had been engaged in a fervent reconquest over the years, his conquests spanning hundreds of galaxies, and countless resisters had been reduced to dust, whether they were fallen human pirates or the heinous alien realms, all of which were annihilated by Luthor's aggressive onslaught, and their kingdoms had grown in size and sustained new great conquests.

The aged Caliban knight was holy in this process: he managed to reconcile the conflicts between his different legions, the mortal auxiliaries of different worlds, and the different naval fleets with unimaginable skill, he was able to maintain friendly relations with any force, he was respected by Astarte, he was respected by the Katakan jungle warriors, he was treated as equals by the Imperial knights, and even the taciturn friendship of the Omnisaiah followers.

Luthor's sophistication and composure in the war, and his frugality, which was undevoid of any spoils, even paled in comparison to this great ability to reconcile factions: the Daybreakers who accompanied him had feared that the mortal would eventually be lost in victory and ambition, but they soon discovered that their fears were pure overwhelm.

Rather than worrying about Luthor's ambitions, it is better to worry about his daily aging body, and even the sages of the Raza Forge World who accompany the army have been blunt in their communication with the Caliban knights: if he continues to throw himself into endless warfare so frantically, even if he is reformed, he may not survive to the dawn of the next century.

With a serious look on his face, the Caliban accepted the suggestion that he had less than twenty Terra standard years to live, and he returned to his command: even more frantically engaged in the almost never-ending battle.

Many times, the military lieutenants and even the Astartes around him had to respectfully drag Luthor away from his command post and let him rest: only at such times would even the dark angels who accompanied Luthor choose to turn a blind eye to everything.

But such an act was only a drop in the bucket after all, and the countenance of the Caliban knight grew haggard in his insistence and the worries of others, and although his brows and eyes were always filled with a passion that was no different from that of a young man, anyone with a discerning eye knew that it was more like an extremely unhealthy state of euphoria, or even a return to the light.

And this situation, in the end, through countless reports, attracted enough attention from the Lord of Avalon: in front of Morgan's handwritten letter, even Luthor had to really leave his command post and come back to meet the genetic protogen who gave him real trust.

He didn't know what Morgan was going to do with him: but whatever it was, Luthor wouldn't choose to disobey him, he had already gotten so much from Morgan that he had conquered hundreds of galaxies that he couldn't repay the trust of the Queen of Genes in his eyes.

So, when he said goodbye to Erwyn and led him all the way to the very center of the Dawn Goddess under the guidance of the two Dawnbreakers who respected him immensely, Luther still had a little curiosity in his heart.

"This is it, Lord Luther."

Lana, the chief old guard who was leading the way in front, glanced up at the door, then turned around and nodded to the mortal behind him with a seriousness second only to meeting the emperor and the genetic protogen.

"Ah, okay."

The Caliban surveyed his surroundings, but he couldn't tell the difference between the same seriousness and strangeness, and in the end, he chose to turn his attention to Rana: even Luthor, who was preoccupied with the war, had heard of Lana's name and his high position.

Chief Praetorian Guard of the Genotype: No matter what legion you are in, this name cannot be seen as a mere title and status.

"What's the matter?"

Sensing Luthor's gaze, Ranner made the expression on his face as casual as he could: though he was used to being serious, as his fighting brothers had said, if he was still holding the noble stand of a so-called Astarte warrior in front of such fine mortals as Luthor and Erwin, then the act itself was a joke.

"I just...... Some are not so sure. ”

Luthor touched his cheek, he could feel the old and dry from a few years ago, but he didn't regret it even a mob.

"After all, I think you know, Lord Rana, I had already undergone a modification operation when I left Caliban, so I was a little skeptical: can my modified body be remodeled?"

Lana nodded.

"Theoretically, it's very difficult, but ......"

[However, here I am. 】

The door danced, and a pale figure with silver hair stepped out of it, wrapped in a white coat, white gloves, and goggles, and looked like a Rana in height, a genetic prototype ready to go.

[Your friend, Morgan is here.] 】

The Spider Queen looked at the old knight of Caliban, at one of her pen pals, at the mortal friend who had been slightly approved by her at some point, and smiled enough to reassure anyone.

[I'm here, Luther, your friend Morgan is here, I'm bringing the transformational surgery that I've written and innovated specifically for you, I've brought the safety that has been piled up by at least a hundred clinical trials, I've brought the most cutting-edge and finest medical supplies in all of Avalon. 】

[Finally, I also brought with me a genetic protogen, the Lord of the Second Legion, your friend, myself: I will personally take charge of this remodeling, and personally take care of all the processes and procedures until I see you safely off the operating table. 】

Rana raised an eyebrow at such words, and he instinctively looked at Luther, but after seeing the frost and wrinkles, the Chief Old Guard finally fell silent, and he chose not to say a word, a kind of respect for the devotion that finally extinguished his anger.

Like a cold spring breeze, the Spider Queen slowly approached Luther, patted the Caliban on the shoulder, and skillfully chose to expose the indescribable emotion on the old knight's face and the distortion of his face as she tried to control it.

She just looked at Luther's pupils, in her most sincere tone.

Believe me, my friend, I will do everything I can. 】

[So that you can regain your life.] 】

You should never be bound by anyone or anything, my Luther. 】

You are worthy of any greatness. 】

(End of chapter)