Chapter 131: Black Templars: What, there are Iron Warriors?
Romulus tilted his head slightly, his gaze fixed on the Rogue Trader, Hendirek, at his side. The voices of Arthur and Ramesses echoed in his mind, their words from different perspectives confirming the truth of what Hendirek had said.
Despite this, Romulus's face remained as calm as still water, showing no hint of concern.
"I understand," Romulus said with a slight nod.
These Rogue Traders had been tailing the crusade fleet all this time, witnessing the various battles the fleet had fought while re-establishing the trade routes. They had a clear understanding of the intensity of the wars the crusade fleet had faced.
Many conflicts that were extremely troublesome for the local sectors were, in the eyes of the crusade fleet, merely "relaxation activities" that could be resolved in an instant. In some cases, the assault force would even have an internal duel to warm up.
However, the Iron Warriors were a different matter.
In void combat, the Iron Warriors were perhaps not the strongest among the Astartes. But if they were defending a fortress, the situation was completely different.
Take Dantioch as an example. He had once, with only a few tactical squads, held off an assault by tens of thousands of Space Marines, not only annihilating thousands of them but also destroying an Emperor-class Titan. Although other Warsmiths might not have a record as absurd as Dantioch's, under Perturabo's harsh torment, their fundamentals were still solid.
And these fortresses were usually equipped with permanent void shields. The fleet's fire support could barely cause any effective damage to them.
Romulus's eyes flickered slightly as he continued to ask, "Then, Mr. Hendirek, what does your dynasty wish to gain?"
Hendirek waved his hand slightly, a bitter smile on his face. His eyes held a hint of helplessness and resignation, as if he had long since seen through some unchangeable fate. "From the moment the Drukhari annihilated my entire mobile fleet, I understood that the things on that planet were no longer something I could touch."
Romulus's eyes narrowed slightly, seeing through to the calculations in Hendirek's heart. This Rogue Trader's mentality was as clear as day—since he could no longer get the things on that planet, then no one else should get them easily either.
'So you specifically emphasized the Iron Warriors, right?' Romulus thought to himself, a faint, almost imperceptible smile on his lips.
It was clear that Hendirek's dynasty was indeed ancient. He even knew the grudge between the Iron Warriors and the Imperial Fists like the back of his hand.
Romulus would bet that if someone were to casually mention, "The fortress on this planet was built by the Iron Warriors, and now these Chaos traitors have reoccupied it," then High Marshal Helbrecht would unhesitatingly lead the warriors of the Black Templars to charge in, storm the fortress on that planet with an unparalleled offensive zeal, and then build an even stronger one in its place.
You could see it in Helbrecht's change in attitude. This High Marshal, who had just been sharing combat experience with the Primaris Space Marines, was now in a listening posture, clearly having developed a strong interest in this planet.
This master of the dynasty had not even pulled back or opened an isolation field, but was discussing these matters directly in front of the Astartes. It was clearly intentional.
'Full of little tricks,' Romulus thought to himself, his face still calm. "Thank you for your warning," he said with a slight nod, a hint of faint distance in his tone.
Hendirek's move was nothing more than to hint that there was something important on that planet, while also pointing out the risks, trying to use this to coerce the Astartes into his service.
This master of the dynasty was indeed perceptive. He seemed to have caught the true purpose of the crusade fleet's journey from some clues.
'One of the raw materials supplied to the Legio Sinister's psychic Titans in the past... hiss... don't tell me they were digging up an Eldar infinity circuit?' Ramesses's voice sounded in Romulus's mind, a hint of interest in his tone.
Everyone knew what the most precious thing on an Eldar ruin world was. And it was a great regret that they hadn't run into any Eldar Corsairs during the crusade. They had already copied the soul stones collected by the Rogue Traders, but they didn't have many clues with just the soul stones.
Romulus felt that they had to go and see for themselves. For the sake of safety alone, they had to go. Although the Iron Warriors were a rare type among the Chaos Space Marines that rejected mutation, this did not mean they would not use the power of Chaos. The Eldar, whether their creations or themselves, were considered the highest quality sacrificial material for Chaos in this universe.
"What I can tell you is that we will still be going to that planet," Romulus's voice was steady and firm. "If it is still resisting, we will liberate it. If it has fallen, we will destroy it and reclaim that star system. But if we choose to flee, I fear a new war and crisis will sweep across the entire human world."
"Understood." Hendirek responded seriously, his face showing no emotion.
Seeing his reaction, the Rogue Trader also understood that he should not say any more. He bowed slightly, respectfully, then took a letter from his coat and presented it with both hands. "Then I will take my leave." Hendirek's voice was respectful. "May victory always be with you."
Romulus took the letter and put it in his coat, a faint smile on his face. "May you walk the path of exploration and the unknown," he said, then turned and left his seat, his steps steady and composed.
The lights in the room flickered slightly, reflecting a cold gleam on Romulus's armor. His figure gradually disappeared at the end of the corridor. Hendirek stood not far away, his gaze deep, as if he were pondering something. He then let out a long sigh of relief.
"Lord Romulus!"
Helbrecht hurried over, a rare urgency in his steps. Behind him, Pedro and the Executioners' Chaplain followed closely, as if they had smelled something important.
Clearly, the reaction of the Imperial Fists' lineage to the Iron Warriors was indeed extraordinary.
"Here is the detailed information on the situation on the planet Optus." Romulus raised his eyes slightly, his gaze sweeping over the few of them. He then took the carefully packaged letter from his storage compartment and handed it over.
"Each Chapter will begin its tactical planning, and then we will have a joint tactical discussion."
"Yes, my Lord." Helbrecht took the letter, his movements clean and decisive, without a hint of hesitation.
He did not think Romulus's actions were unnecessary. On the contrary, he seemed to take it very seriously. Although on the battlefield, Romulus's command could free the Chapter Masters from the heavy burden of tactical thinking and allow them to focus on their own martial arts, the crusade would one day end, and Romulus could not be their commander forever.
Romulus's greatest advantage was his almost battlefield-AI-like analytical ability. Although his combat experience was not necessarily richer than these battle-hardened warriors, he could quickly consolidate existing case studies and select the most suitable tactics from them.
In any case, the combat concepts that had been summarized were worthy of reference and study, and had considerable practical value. And the transmigrators, aside from holding back on their knowledge of the Warp, had no other taboos about spreading their knowledge.
After two years of the crusade, Romulus had already compiled many war-cases into a manual. The commanders of the crusade fleet were all currently studying it. Even if it would not be applied, this process was needed to constantly encourage them to think and to select members who were suitable to bear the responsibility of command.
(End of Chapter)