Seeing that Kulen had fallen asleep, Karen couldn’t drift off himself, so he turned his head to look at Horus.
Bored, he wanted to find a topic to chat about.
Since Kulen was a son of The Lion, Karen naturally thought of The Lion in his twilight years, Lion ElJonson.
“Horus, in your memory, what kind of person was Lion ElJonson?” “Lion was a perfect warrior, an impeccable Legion commander, but he was not a perfect brother.
His heart held only the hunt and the Emperor’s orders; he never left any room for familial affection.
We are the Emperor’s sons, yet he was only willing to be the Emperor’s weapon.” Horus sighed, reminiscing about the past.
“The First Legion was also the legion that utilized Exterminatus orders the most.” “My other two brothers: Konrad Curze’s killing was to make others fear him, Angron’s killing was to soothe his own pain, but Lion’s killing was simply because it was the fastest and most thorough way to complete a mission.
He wouldn’t shed an extra drop of blood for the sake of killing, nor would he kill one person less for the sake of so-called mercy.
That is the most terrifying kind of warrior.
And no one would ever know what he did.” “Well, that’s because they’re dead.
After all, dead men tell no tales.” Karen quipped.
“Who told him to be the Emperor’s sharpest blade, hidden in the darkness?
Oh, and then there’s the black-gloved Wolf King, Leman Russ.” Hearing this, Horus didn’t get angry; instead, a low chuckle rolled from his throat.
“Indeed.
Among all the Primarchs, only Jonson truly grasped the underlying logic of war.
War was never about some damn honor or pageantry; war is only about winning.” Horus’s gaze was piercing as he gave a rare, exceptionally high appraisal.
“He would use any means necessary to win.
Karen, to be honest with you, if there were ever someone who could completely corner me in tactical simulations and on the open battlefield, or even defeat me…
that person could only be Lion.” Getting into the spirit of the conversation, Horus suddenly changed the subject.
His oppressive eyes turned toward Karen, a playful smile curling at the corner of his mouth.
“Karen, if you lived in the era of the Great Crusade and happened to have the luck to pass the trials and become an Astartes, which Legion would you choose to join?” “Would you come to my Luna Wolves?
Or go to Lion’s Dark Angels to be a ruthless knight?
Or perhaps, go under my most perfect brother Sanguinius’s command to be an elegant Blood Angel?
If you came to my Luna Wolves, maybe I’d make you my equerry.” An equerry?
Never mind.
Horus’s previous equerry, Malochast…
the real Malochast had been dead for over five years by the time of his seventh-day rites.
During Horus Heresy, the muddled-headed Warmaster often mistook Argonis for Malochast, not to mention the long-gone Cyannus.
After hearing this, Karen answered decisively.
“I’d go to Jaghatai Khan’s White Scars to race, or live a low-profile life in Corax’s Raven Guard,” Karen stroked his chin, analyzing seriously.
“If I wanted stability, to work a steady job and stay within the system, I’d definitely choose Roboute’s Ultramarines.” “…” The smile on Horus’s face froze instantly.
“My friend, that answer of yours truly saddens me,” Horus spread his hands, looking quite aggrieved.
“I thought that with our friendship, you’d at least show some bias toward my Legion, even if just for the sake of politeness?” Karen laughed out loud.
But Horus asked in return.
“And what about you?
Karen, in your eyes, what kind of image does my brother Lion project?” “Me?
In my view, The Lion is the image of a classical knight.” Memories of official books surfaced.
Karen remembered the portrayal of Lion’s knightly image in the books ‘sons of the forest’ and ‘Angels of Caliban’.
However, Karen’s favorite was the returned Lion El’Jonson in ‘sons of the forest’.
The old knight was incredibly cool.
After sleeping for ten thousand years, the old man woke up having shed the rashness and coldness of his youth, instead distilling all the fine qualities a classical knight should have: courage, temperance, wisdom, and justice.