+ I thought you'd use a war of annihilation as the first card. ＋

[Annihilation war? 】

+ Yes: When I play this game with the Palm Sealer, whoever is the commander of the war is used to starting it all with a war of annihilation. ＋

[Why?] Haven't you tried anything else? 】

+ Tried: but never succeeded. ＋

The Emperor spread out his palm, and he expounded his point with a gentleness that Morgan had never felt before, like a teacher instructing his rebellious students.

+ If you can't establish your superiority at the beginning of the war, you'll be greeted with a desperate numerical disparity: loyalty has its rituals, and no matter how legitimate the commander's reasons may be, people will habitually obey the orders of Holy Terra in most areas of the galaxy. ＋

+ You can certainly divide one side at the edge of the empire, but secession will not allow you to win this war: Holy Terra is the end of everything, there is no doubt about it. ＋

"I don't think so. 】

The Lord of Avalon retorted to her Father of Genes with a soft sigh, and then she took a new card from the pile next to her: Morgan noticed that no matter how many cards she took out, the pile itself remained unchanged.

+You can give it a try, I'm looking forward to the possibilities from you. ＋

The Lord of Humanity laughed, and he placed one of his arms on the table against his square chin, a stern look in his eyes, but not utterly ruthless.

+ Keep playing: Before all your pieces are played, you have more moves and room to move: the perfect privilege for the betrayer. ＋

[Pretty reasonable, isn't it?] 】

Morgan ignored the teasing of the Emperor's words, arranged the drawn cards in front of her, and then took a moment to observe the whole situation: the situation on the chessboard may be in her favor, but it is not solid.

Holy Terra occupies the westernmost part of the galactic hammer, Avalon is entrenched in the easternmost part, and the Maelstrom region is just right in between: the Eye of the Galaxy, the pawns of the Emperor and the Warlord, respectively, have cut the entire human empire into two almost equal parts.

In the western half of the galaxy, the Invincible Fortress is stationed at Holy Terra, his fortress as immovable, while the Hungry Wolf and the shattered Lord of Hearts are at its side, ready to support the scorching battle ahead.

The position of the [Rigoletto] belonging to is arranged behind these three chess pieces, it seems that it has not officially played, and its funny body is shrouded in the shadow of the emperor, which is ridiculous and pitiful.

[I'm curious: If Horus is defeated by my plan, how much power will his Shadowmoon Wolf have, and will he be able to continue to participate in the next battle?] 】

+ Being badly wounded can make a warrior less powerful, but the anger of the betrayer more than makes up for it: you don't think of the Shadowmoon Wolves as the most powerful legion, but don't take them lightly either. ＋

Morgan glanced at the Emperor, and instead of answering the praise of the Lord of Mankind, she stared at a card that appeared in the Emperor's hand: a three-headed hellhound with angry eyes had already appeared on the crystal-colored card, which clearly represented the monstrous fury of the Sixteenth Legion.

She pronounced the name of the card.

[Vengeful Cerberus? 】

[Who is Cerberus?] 】

+ Anyone can: Noble, courageous, and furious will eventually make a Shadowmoon Wolf choose his path and die unto death. ＋

Morgan snorted, no longer dwelling on the issue, but looking at the area marked with the maelstrom: the main forces of the Lord of Humanity were concentrated in this area, and most of them were still unaware of this betrayal, and had no more vigilance.

[Shadow and his Nineteenth Legion roam the southern part of the galaxy, Chagatai Khan is clearing the Maelstrom area, Vulcan and his warriors are resting on their home planet, St. Giles is trapped by me, and Ferrus is trying to break free from Vogrim's entanglement and rush to the place where Horus has an accident: he is your new commander-in-chief?] 】

+Your layout leaves me with no choice, don't I? ＋

As he spoke, the Emperor raised a brief smile, he didn't seem to be very worried about the current situation.

[So, where is Alpha and his legion?] 】

+ Who knows? ＋

The Lord of Humanity didn't answer seriously, he was concerned with another question.

+ What are you going to do with the angels? Do you really have a solution to his heart disease? ＋

[Chaos has. 】

The Spider Empress held up the [Great Vision] in her hand: to be fair, this card brought out by Luo Jia in the Eye of Fear was indeed very useful and omnipotent, but it always made Morgan feel a certain unease.

Chaos can't be unrequited: she knows that very well.

The Lord of Avalon placed the Great Vision on top of the Angel, the symbol of St. Giles, but she didn't let the cards get into the pieces: Morgan hesitated, wondering if this was the right choice.

On the other side of the table, the Emperor caught the expression of the original body without any omission: after recognizing the hesitation and thought, the human lord's pupils flashed with sincere joy, and the corners of his mouth were hooked, and he spoke softly.

+ If you don't play the Great Vision card in your hand, then you can't get the Angel on your side: he's just being swayed by you right now, but still doesn't want to join your side. ＋

【……】

Morgan's pupils twitched, and she thought for a full minute before she gritted her teeth in response to the emperor's taunt.

[Not needed! 】

[I have enough cards: I didn't intend to woo him either, all the steps were just to make him no longer useful to you, and it turns out that I did a beautiful job in this mission.] 】

+ Definitely. ＋

The emperor sighed with heartfelt emotion.

Hearing this compliment, whether sincere or mocking, Morgan raised his eyelids and glanced at his genetic father: he saw that the Lord of Mankind was already in his seat, and even crossed his legs, as if he had expected everything to develop.

And of course: he's been playing the game at least a hundred times, and he's undoubtedly a damn old bird in this regard.

Morgan cursed, took back the cards, and only removed the four pieces from the Ghoul Stars and came to her Avalon base camp.

She finally decided to put an end to the corruption of St. Giles: Angel's current state of decadence was exactly what she expected, and although this chess piece was stained with the blood red of the war commander's power, it had not yet had time to become a chaotic character like Luo Jia.

Just swaying, but not falling.

That's enough: perhaps the gods of the High Heavens will crave this sacrifice, but the Spider Queen, as careful as ever, has no intention of offering more people to the gods.

As for the Great Vision card, it's time to put it to use: when it starts to backlash, throw it away.

Morgan made up her mind in her mind, but she didn't notice what a meaningful smile the Lord of Humanity smiled as the Emperor observed the thoughts on her face.

The Spider Queen began the next step: this time it was no longer a petty fight.

With her will, all ten of her chess pieces began to move: Magnus, Roga, and Motarion, who had been exposed, began to advance towards the home planet of the Holy Blood Angel [Baal], which is the only important town in the north of the Far Eastern Star Domain, and one of the directions in which Ferus is heading.

After Morgan had completed this step, she took out the Uncrowned King and the Void King: their Twelfth and Thirteenth legions were entrenched in the five hundred worlds in the far southeast of the galaxy, ready to go north at any time.

After returning to Avalon, the two chess pieces became huge and shiny, telling of sufficient combat power, and after they left the Far Eastern Frontier, they joined up with the long-awaited Perturabo and also headed in the direction of Bal.

As for Morgan herself: her Kingkiller and Angel arrived at Baal early, and then she pulled out a new card, Interference.

[I think there's something wrong with the name of this card.] 】

The Spider Queen smirked.

[Think about it: Horus was struck down by three fallen primitives, and Vogrim was their accomplice, so, in the absence of the commander, Holy Tyra ordered Ferus, who had seen through Fergrim, to serve as commander and dispatch a large army to quell the rebellion. 】

[Of course, isn't it?] 】

+ Indeed. ＋

The Lord of Humanity nodded cooperatively.

+ Even Machado doesn't have any more doubts about it. ＋

[So ......]

Morgan pushes her pawns, and the Emperor's pawns follow suit, and together they rush to the stage chosen by the Spider Queen, preparing for a bloody show.

[The three rebel legions are heading towards the home planet of the Blood Angels, while St. Giles and Morgan, who arrives with them, are holding on to their help: this is simply the perfect time to be caught in front and back, and it is impossible for Ferus not to be moved by it. 】

+ What if he doubts? ＋

[It's simple.] 】

Morgan held up the Perfector, the symbol of Forgrim, and she looked at the obscure contamination on the chess piece, frowning: after being contaminated with Chaos, this piece gave her a very different feeling than before.

[Let Fergrim march towards Baal as well: With the affection between Ferus and Fogham, if he finds out that the Phoenix is against him for betraying the Empire, the anger in his heart will be enough to consume the steel shell. 】

+ Will Ferrus do this? ＋

The Emperor frowned.

[You don't really think that he is a cold and heartless person, do you? 】

Morgan curled the corners of his mouth.

The Lord of Humanity did not answer, he just quietly observed Morgan's layout.

Sure enough, when the four traitor legions that had been exposed marched towards [Baal], Ferus quickly followed, and instead of choosing to start a war immediately, he called out to all the Imperial legions around him.

Chagatai Khan and Vulcan, who were also in the Far Eastern Star Domain, quickly responded to the call, and the unknown [Shadow] and his legions were also actively rushing from the south: when the four legions were assembled one after another, the [Three-Headed Dog], which symbolized the remnants of the Shadow Moon Blue Wolf, also appeared next to the crusading army.

[Five legions, huh? 】

Morgan let out a smug snort from the depths of her throat, and she saw a hint of iron blue on the emperor's cheeks: after these legions entered the Far Eastern Star Domain one after another, only the two legions of the Imperial Fist and the Space Wolf were left on the side of the Holy Terra, as well as the Alpha Legion, which had never been seen.

Now, let's wrap up the curtain on this drama. 】

Morgan whispered as she lined up the four warlords who had been exposed in Barr to confront her and St. Giles, while the five legions, led by Ferrus, were rapidly attacking from behind the attackers.

But these five legions don't have a single support force: behind them, the [Loyal] Iron Warriors, Dark Angels, and Midnight Lords also attack in full force, and the [Double-edged Sword] representing Johnson is also intimately following the slightly slower [Shadow].

+ Why send Johnson. ＋

The Lord of Humanity pointed to the two pieces.

[I'm not sure what kind of power this unknown brother has, if he is a being who can turn the tide of battle, then Johnson's role will be revealed.] 】

Morgan spread her hands, and she pointed to the only one on her side that didn't move.

[Again, I'm not sure what kind of power and character the King of Nothingness has, so I didn't put him in the main battle, but let him act with Killiman, who is always trustworthy. 】

At the fingertips of the Spider Queen, the [Void King] and the [Uncrowned King] are taking advantage of the gathering of heroes in the galaxy to secretly set out from the Five Hundred Worlds, and the soldiers are directly aimed at Chogoris and Nocturne: due to the departure of the two legions of White Scar and Salamander, the defenses of these two areas are now extremely weak.

And once they change hands, the entire Far Eastern Star Domain will no longer have any home planets affiliated with the Loyalist Legion, and the Five Hundred Worlds and the Far Eastern Frontier will disappear from the front of the human lords, and the Matroel will become a new confrontation position.

While this terrible change was quietly taking place, the sky was already falling apart and blood was pouring from the vicinity of the Baal system: the swaying Blood Angels cowered on their home planet, making no movement, but their actions were irrelevant.

Morgan, Fogham, Roga, Magnus and Mortarian in front, Johnson, Conrad and Perturabo in the back: eight crimson pawns surrounded the five legions on the Emperor's side, and the outcome of the war was sealed from the start.

Morgan had carefully chosen the right time and place, and the Emperor's legions were in chaos before the ensuing betrayals: although they stubbornly integrated against countless fallen brothers, in the face of the non-stop offensive led by the Iron Warriors and the Dark Angels in turn, even the tenacious [Iron General] appeared more and more ugly cracks, and they were already crumbling.

And at this point, Morgan officially stopped her operation: she looked up at her genetic father, and smiled humbly and flawlessly.

[At this point, all my chess pieces have undoubtedly been exposed: according to the rules of the game, now, it's your turn to lay out, father. 】

[Please.] 】

She smiled maliciously.

——————

+ You left me with an endgame. ＋

The emperor did not immediately take the son.

He sat there, his pupils shining like torches, and he looked intently at every corner of the game, as if he wanted to engrave everything in front of him into his mind.

When Morgan looks at him, she realizes that her genetic father is not perfect: the human lord has a sign of age on his cheeks, and his eyes seem to be hardened and haggard by a long and unforgiving life.

Obviously, just now, it wasn't like this.

Morgan sighed inwardly as the Emperor began his move.

+ It seems that if I don't give up something, I won't be able to break this game. ＋

[After all, the art of war is nothing more than bullying the few and losing the car: I have just demonstrated the first point, father, but I have not really tried the second point. 】

[Maybe, can you help me?] 】

Morgan spoke lazily, and she returned the Emperor's silent taunt.

+ Bad sarcasm. ＋

The Emperor didn't seem to be provoked, he pointed to the heart of the slaughter, and held up the card that was determined for revenge: the next moment, the engulfing Cerberus let out a wolf howl that looked up to the sky, and it rushed to the junction of the Perfectionist and the Chosen One in a rage, tearing open a bloody wound against the two legions.

Morgan stared at it all, a flash of astonishment in her pupils for the first time.

[You're cheating again, father: How can a broken legion that has lost its genetic protogens penetrate two legions, although the Bearer is not worth looking forward to, but the name of the Emperor's Son was given by you personally. 】

+ No, my daughter. ＋

+ This is not a defeat, but a breakout. ＋

+ is determination. ＋

+ is a sacrifice. ＋

The emperor did not laugh, he answered the question very seriously.

【……】

Morgan didn't speak, she just thoughtfully held up the [Three-Headed Dog], trying to witness the tragedy of the Shadow Moon Wolf: but before her fingers could touch it, the card that had made an immortal achievement had already turned into a cloud of ashes scattered across the galaxy, and it burned out its own strength, ushering in this somewhat too hasty ending.

You lost this card. 】

+ Maybe. ＋

The Emperor just nodded.

The Spider Empress acquiesced, her gaze sweeping over the gap that had been forcibly opened in the web: it was no longer worth arguing about whether it was justified or not, and now she began to think about how to make it up.

[Do you think these four legions can all break out?] 】

+ Maybe. ＋

In response, the Lord of Humanity placed the Iron General, the symbol of Gorgon, on the gap: in the face of this former friend, the newly retired Perfectionist quickly clinged to it, and the Iron General also raised the hammer.

[Who will win?] 】

+ No one. ＋

The emperor said yes.

On the chessboard, at the moment when the [Iron General] was about to confront his brother, the little light of the [Three-Headed Dog], which had been turned to ashes earlier, floated over and stuck to the [Iron General], and the genetic prototype of the Iron Hand, as if thinking of something, put away his weapon, and broke through the gap without hesitation amid the roar and curse of the Phoenix Maharaja.

The Chosen One seemed to try to stop him, but was knocked out casually.

Seeing this, Morgan looked up, and she found that the emperor had just used up a card, and in the ashes that had not yet dispersed, she guessed the name of the card.

【Witnesses】

+ When they march forward at the sacrifice of their comrades, the most reckless man will cherish his own life: for his life is no longer his own. ＋

The Emperor declared all this reasonable, and Morgan didn't want to argue anymore, she cared about the fate of the remaining Imperial Legions in the siege.

In the gaze of the Genetic Primordial, the Soaring Eagle was the second Imperial pawn to emerge from the encirclement, and it was more shattered than the first Iron General, but it did not delay its speed in the slightest: on the contrary, it was faster.

However, this second breakout did not leave quickly, it continued to swim and flank near the gap, contributing its strength, so that the gap could never be completely closed.

But everything it did seemed pointless: within the siege, the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Corps were exhausted, and they were even completely separated, with only a faint connection with each other.

Vulcan stood at the rear, desperately delaying time for his brother, but [Shadow] had been bitten by [Double-edged Sword] and could not escape, while Morgan's pawns quickly strangled the two prey.

[I think, are these two outcasts abandoned by you? 】

[It is also understandable given the role of the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Legions.] 】

Morgan's words only drew a chuckle from the Lord of Humanity.

+ You still don't know me, my immature daughter: I will not abandon anything in my hand as long as I have the opportunity, because I always have more means and cards to complete the plan in my mind. ＋

The Emperor's actions were accompanied by his words, almost just right: just as the [Double-edged Sword] was about to kill [Shadow], the Lord of Humanity held up a card, the one he had been holding in his hand.

+ Hydra. ＋

He said.

With this command, the entire chess game was clouded in the next moment, and the aqua-blue [Twins] appeared in response to the position where the [Shadow] was, but the [Double-edged Sword] swept the strange chess piece to the ground without the slightest hesitation.

With the twins falling, Shadow appears outside the siege and quickly flees: but the broken piece is only one step away from death, and it is placed on the edge of the game by the Emperor, seemingly untouched by all subsequent actions.

Almost at the same moment, Vulcan in the encirclement collapsed in the joint efforts of Magnus and Perturabol, and his pawns rolled to the ground with a grunt, turning a lifeless gray-white again.

【……】

Morgan didn't speak, she just looked at the [anvil] in silence, feeling the sadness in her heart: although she knew that it was just a game, when the news of [Vulcan's death] slowly appeared in her mind, the Lord of Avalon, who had always been proud of his cold reason, still fell into unprecedented silence and loss.

One of her blood brothers died: as her booty, died.

【……】

This is ridiculous.

The pain of tearing only for a moment, it occupied Morgan's thinking field for a long time, and at this moment, even the emperor's cheating [Hydra] could no longer arouse any interest from Morgan, she watched the gray-white chess piece fade away, and was silent for almost a minute before turning her attention back to this chess game.

From this moment on, this game seems a little different.

+ It's your turn. ＋

The voice of the Lord of Humanity was still full of calm and slight sarcasm.

Damn sarcasm.

Morgan did not respond to him.

+ If you still can't get out of the virtual future of killing a brother, then I can wait for you for another minute: but you have to remember that no one will wait for you in reality, after all, your great cause is glorious, but it is not secure, is it? ＋

【……】

He may have provoked her.

She can't be provoked.

[You don't have to worry about it. 】

The original body responded coldly, and she began to look at the game again: although it seemed that her encirclement network had failed, the general purpose had been achieved, the sixteenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth legions had been nearly completely wiped out, the salamanders had lost their original bodies, and the white scar had not only suffered heavy losses, but the home planet had also been taken away, but the Iron Hand still seemed to have a little vitality left, but it was better than nothing.

She inflicted heavy losses on five legions in one fell swoop, including two absolute main legions, and excluding the Holy Blood Angel squatting on the home planet, the specific situation is unknown, but it has indeed lost one of their original alpha legions, and the human lord is only left with the Imperial Fist and the Space Wolf, two worthy of battle.

And they were still in Holy Terra, thousands of miles away from the center of the Milky Way.

【……】

Morgan began to think.

For a moment, a flame of ambition ignited in her heart: the Imperial Legion was so weak now, and even though her pawns had suffered a certain amount of attrition from the previous battle, if she gathered all her pawns and pounced on Divine Terra in one fell swoop......

I have to say that this idea is indeed very tempting and feasible.

The Spider Empress's heart fluttered, but when she raised her head, she couldn't help but look at the position of Divine Terra, and almost inevitably saw the Emperor: the indifferent smile on the face of the Lord of Humanity completely shattered the illusion in Morgan's heart.

No way.

Now is not the time: the Emperor must have more cards than she thought, and even if her genetic father is exhausted, he can easily turn the tide of the war on his own.

But......

Why didn't he attack?

A brief moment of confusion crossed the Spider Queen's mind, but it didn't stop her fingers from starting a new round of activity: she reunited the victorious legions and advanced towards all corners of the Far Eastern Star Field, holding this half of the empire tightly in her hands in the blink of an eye.

The Lord of Humanity watched Morgan's every move with great interest: as she struck the Far East, Morgan's movements were astonishingly skillful, as if these routes had been played out in her mind countless times.

+ Are you going to fight a protracted war? ＋

The Emperor asked.

Morgan didn't respond immediately, and was supposed to acquiesce to the question.

[I have the intact Five Hundred Worlds and the Far Eastern Frontier, and there are also a large number of manufacturing worlds in the eastern part of the Galaxy, although Reza, Annverus, the Triple Galaxy and Metalica are not as good as Mars, but they are not an order of magnitude apart, plus the Ultramarines, Whisperers, Dark Angels and Iron Warriors on my hands, even if your legion recovers firepower, I have the capital to fight and even defeat. 】

[One of the biggest reasons why the Great Expedition can go so smoothly is that the entire galaxy is in a state of simultaneous strength: when half of the galaxy is united, the gap between the east and the west is very small, as long as I take the entire Far East star field into the palm of my hand, then at least the situation will not become particularly bad. 】

+ Indeed. ＋

The Emperor nodded.

+ However, you forgot a little. ＋

[What? 】

Morgan looked at her genetic father, but only got a smile.

The emperor gestured to the chessboard.

+ Who are you going to send to oversee St. Giles and Barr? ＋

[I came in person, plus Peturabo in Olympia, it was enough. 】

+ Who is going to occupy the south? ＋

[The Lord of Nothingness and the Lord of the Clouds: The former has not suffered much loss, and the latter's legion home planet is in the Storm Star Domain in the southern part of the galaxy, and his main range of activity is also there. 】

+ Who is defending in the maelstrom? ＋

[Johnson and Conrad's legions have just been replenished in Avalon, which is suitable for this mission, and the home planet of the Thousand Sons and the Emperor's Son is in the Maelstrom region, and four legions are enough. 】

The Emperor smiled.

+ So, you plan to let the Bearers, who have lost a lot of troops, go to Avalon to replenish their troops? ＋

【……】

Morgan silently glanced at the [Chosen One], which symbolized Roga, and the growing traces of chaos on the chess piece made her feel uneasy and alert.

[No, he went to those places near the Five Hundred Worlds to replenish the staff, as long as he didn't go deep into the core area of the Five Hundred Worlds, presumably Killiman wouldn't care about this problem. 】

The Lord of Humanity nodded, looked at his daughter, and slowly drew a card from his deck.

+You know what, Morgan? ＋

+ As a chess player, you and I have different advantages: you are the commander of the game, you are able to get off the court and take the most important tasks in your own hands, while I am the emperor, and my greatest advantage is on the sidelines, on the observation deck where things happened, in the future and in the past. ＋

He used the card and whispered the card's name.

+ City of Perfection. ＋

On the crystal card, the palatial city is burning with raging anger, and the believers who are kneeling down have tears in their eyes and hideous faces.

And in the next moment, an ominous color began to ignite in Morgan's hand.

The Spider Empress realized something, and she moved her neck almost with difficulty, looking at the back of her pride: that was where the Five Hundred Worlds were.

Over there.

The flames of war ignited.

Evil thoughts run rampant.

The sneer of the Chaos Gods, accompanied by the fanatical countenance of the Chosen One, was burning wildly in the land of Otram: it was definitely not Morgan's thoughts.

The emperor's chuckle came to his ears.

+ You've miscalculated a little, Morgan. ＋

+ Time, in fact, is not on your side, you are the one who needs to take urgent action. ＋

+ You'll understand right away. ＋

+ Chaos has given you so much. ＋

+ Now, it's their turn to ask for it. ＋

(End of chapter)