An elite private army from the Spire.
Led by a PDF colonel.
Covered by orbital heavy artillery bombardment.
Single out any one of these factors, and it would be enough to bring every high official in the Mid-hive to their knees, begging for mercy.
A crisis at the door?
Since the Minister of Military Affairs had used some bug to impound the palladium he explicitly demanded, he might as well use this shipment to teach the minister a painful lesson.
Colonels, fleets—it didn’t matter.
Anyone standing in his way was a heretic.
This unshakeable composure, unflinching even if Mount Tai collapsed before him, left Alicia—standing just behind him—utterly spellbound.
This Sister of Battle, usually so cold, stern, and deadly, had just stripped off her heavy, dark-silver power armor.
All that remained was an extremely tight black tactical undersuit, hugging her body so closely it almost bit into her flesh.
An impressive bust, perfect abdominal lines, and long, straight legs outlined breathtaking curves beneath the dim, warm light.
Alicia stepped beside Seth Knight, leaning in of her own accord.
“The way my lord faces powerful enemies… it is even more captivating than the ancient heroes recorded in the scriptures of the Ecclesiarchy.”
Her breath was slightly hot, fanatical adoration welling up in her eyes.
Mixed with a hint of seductive provocation, she extended a slender finger, lightly tracing down the taut, bulging contour of Seth Knight’s chest muscles through his clothes.
With the potent scent of Seth Knight’s hormones lingering at the tip of her nose, a vivid flush rapidly crept up the tips of Alicia’s ears.
Seth Knight tilted his head.
Ignoring her little game of playing hard to get, his right arm suddenly lashed out.
His large hand swept down, aiming straight for her supple waist.
Just as his fingertips were about to touch her skin—
*Swoosh.*
Like a startled wildcat, Alicia jolted backward half a step as if struck by electricity, dodging his grope.
She crossed her hands in front of her chest and bit her lower lip.
Her seductive demeanor vanished, replaced by the dignity and restraint typical of an Ecclesiarchy fanatic.
“My lord… please respect yourself.”
Alicia turned her head slightly, her eyelashes trembling.
She invoked the iron rule carved into her bones since childhood:
“The Imperial Ministorum has strict decrees.”
“The soul of a Sister of Battle belongs only to the Emperor, and her body must remain absolutely pure.”
“Any action that crosses the line is a desecration of dogma.”
She tried to use this cold dogma as a shield, hoping to reclaim a shred of initiative in this game of power and attraction.
She couldn’t let the man before her view her as a plaything to be casually toyed with.
Seth Knight chuckled.
“You’re rejecting me with dogma that isn’t worth the scrap paper it’s written on?”
An arrogant smirk tore from his throat.
He gave Alicia no room to breathe.
*Thud!*
Alicia’s entire back slammed heavily against the cold, transparent floor-to-ceiling glass.
A suffocating surge of pure masculinity instantly robbed the air from around Alicia, making her breath hitch completely and her legs grow uncontrollably weak.
Alicia raised her sleek, glamorous face, panic and astonishment flashing in her eyes.
She was still holding out.
“E-Even if my lord is a Living Saint,” Alicia stammered, clinging desperately to her last shred of composure, “without an explicit revelation from the Emperor… without a divine miracle… I can never…”
“You want to see a miracle?”
Seth Knight raised his free right hand, spreading his fingers wide.
*Boom!*
A wisp of brilliant, pure, and utterly domineering golden psionic flame exploded directly in his palm!
This majestic power—overwritten by the System’s core logic to appear perfectly as the Blessing of the Emperor—instantly pierced through the dark room.
Wherever the golden light swept, all coldness and impure thoughts were crushed to dust.
An unquestionable divine pressure slammed into the depths of Alicia’s soul like a bursting dam.
*Thump.*
The Ecclesiarchy’s line of faith didn’t hold for even half a second against this pure psionic gold before crumbling into dust.
Alicia’s knees slammed hard onto the metal floor.
She looked up, her beautiful eyes wide with shock.
The breathtaking face that had just quoted strict dogma now held nothing but bone-deep shock and ultimate fanaticism.
What dogma?
What purity?
The golden light before her was truth itself!
It was the God-Emperor!
“I was wrong… my lord… forgive my foolishness…”
Alicia pleaded in a trembling, incoherent voice.
Her hands clutched Seth Knight’s pant legs tightly, terrified of being abandoned by this supreme presence.
She raised her head, her eyes filled with servile longing.
“To appease my lord’s wrath… I am willing to use the Sisterhood’s most secret holy oil… to serve you without reservation. I beg for my lord’s permission.”
Seth Knight snuffed out the golden light, a satisfied smirk curling his lips.
An aloof Sister of Battle?
She just needed to be put in her place.
Turning around, he strode over to the large, soft velvet bed.
He unbuttoned his trench coat, tossed aside his shirt—revealing a perfectly chiseled upper body—and lay face down on the bed.
“Get up here.”
As if granted a divine pardon, Alicia scrambled up.
She quickly rose and adeptly pulled a small, solid-silver oil flask from a concealed pocket on her person.
Straddling Seth Knight’s firm waist with her long, straight legs, she unscrewed the cap and poured an intensely fragrant, pulse-racing oil into her palm.
Her hands pressed tightly against the contours of Seth Knight’s lats.
The very hands that usually gripped bolters and chainswords, knowing only slaughter, now transformed into those of a master masseuse.
From shoulders and neck, to his spine, and down to his waist.
Every stroke bore supple strength.
The warm skin-on-skin touch combined with the blissful sensation of the secret holy oil seeping into his pores.
The intense contrast between her usual chill and her current heat allowed Seth Knight’s day-long tension to unwind completely.
“Mmm…”
Seth Knight buried his face in the soft pillow, letting out a deeply satisfying grunt.
*This* was the treatment power truly bought.
Squinting half-asleep, he relished the exquisite service of the warm, soft beauty on his back while summoning the Myriad Realms Card Draw System in his mind.
A deep-blue light screen unfolded across his retina.
A glaring line of golden data caught his eye:
[Remaining Card Draws: 1,111!]
A colonel blocking the gates?
A fleet threatening him?
Perfect.
He’d use these foolish weaklings to test out his new trump cards.
Seth Knight opened his eyes, a fierce, fanatical glint erupting from the depths of his pupils.
The aura around him began to surge wildly!
Straddling his waist, Alicia instantly sensed the shift.
Her hands trembled, freezing in place with alarm.
She felt as though a monstrous beast capable of devouring the stars was awakening inside Seth Knight!
“Keep massaging. Don’t stop.”
Seth Knight commanded coldly.
Then, in his mind, he issued the ultimate command with total decisiveness:
“System, execute a 100-card draw!”
In an instant—
The system panel on Seth Knight’s retina flashed frantically.
Blinding red, purple, and golden lights collided and intertwined.
Phantom outlines of one hundred cards, their backs emblazoned with starry vortices, rapidly coalesced within the golden radiance.
Rapid-fire notifications exploded in Seth Knight’s head, announcing a dazzling array of resources and gear.
But Seth Knight’s gaze was locked onto the card at the very center of the screen.
It was a mysterious card radiating intense golden light!
The edge of that mysterious card slowly peeled upward.
Beneath the blinding light, its true face was revealed…