Killing four enemies in ten seconds looked impossibly fierce, and impossibly cool.
But in truth, Bruce was on the verge of collapse.
An explosive burst of power like that always came with a price, and the price was exhaustion. He simply did not have the stamina left to fight Erebus for much longer. He had to end this quickly. He could not afford to drag it out by even a second.
Right now, all he wanted was to kill this scourge as fast as possible, then find somewhere to lie down and rest.
As for how he had managed to do what he just did, Bruce himself did not really know. He had simply followed his instincts from start to finish. If he already knew how the enemy would move and how they would attack, what else was there to think about?
It felt better than cheating.
"?!"
Mid-charge, Bruce sensed danger and leaped aside at once.
But black ripples rose from the deck and pursued him, several arms of corrupt energy stretching toward him.
His lightning claws carved through the air with a shriek, yet there were simply too many of those wicked limbs. Even while moving, Bruce was still caught.
The instant they wrapped around him, he felt the little strength he had left being siphoned away. The harder he struggled, the faster it drained.
"Hahahaha! Did you really think I had no way to deal with you?"
A moment ago, Erebus had been trembling in fear. Now, seeing Bruce trapped, he burst into laughter and began gloating.
"I was ready for you from the start!"
"You can never defeat me! Never—"
A throwing knife punched through his throat.
Erebus's eyes bulged. Clutching his spraying neck, he dropped to his knees. He was a powerful Astartes, yes, but even one like him could not immediately shrug off a wound like that.
"You thought I wouldn't know?"
Bruce drew on psychic power with instinctive ease and tore himself free of the Chaos bindings.
Golden light blazed from his crotch, dispersing the vile energy. In that moment, he shone like a saint.
Bruce had always known Erebus would have a final trump card. He had seen the bastard chanting just moments ago.
He had been chanting while Bruce killed four guards, then suddenly stopped.
If there was nothing suspicious about that, who would believe it?
"..."
Erebus could no longer speak, but the hatred and venom in his eyes said everything.
"I let you think you had the upper hand," Bruce said as he dodged another volley of bolter fire.
"Protect Lord Erebus!!!"
The Word Bearers fighting Huafarin and the others immediately rushed to reinforce him when they saw the situation turn.
But at this distance, and at this moment, it was already too late.
"Say goodbye to your Chaos gods, Erebus!"
Bruce weaved through every incoming bolt and lunged at the kneeling Erebus. The crackling howl of his lightning claws sounded like a death knell, battering at Erebus's terror-stricken heart.
Save me... save me, gods of Chaos!
I don't want to die!
But no answer came.
Bruce's claws ripped straight through Erebus's skull, then tore open his chest and shredded both of his hearts.
The moment he finished, Bruce bent down, snatched up the throwing knife from the floor, and hurled it toward the Chaos sorcerer hovering nearby.
The floating sorcerer screamed in agony when the blade struck. The souls gathered inside him burst free all at once.
Soon, the Chaos energy shrouding the Hand of Fate began to dissipate. With its support gone, the Warp could no longer intrude into realspace.
The ship, which had been running on Chaos power, finally ground to a halt. The daemons aboard were rapidly weakened, and some simply vanished.
"Come on! Keep fighting!"
Bruce whirled and charged the Word Bearers who were still firing at him.
What kind of monster was this? How was he so fast?!
When Bruce seemed to flash in front of them in an instant, the remaining Word Bearers nearly lost their minds.
What kind of Astartes had those stats?!
Very soon, the enemy's resistance crumbled. Working together, Bruce and the others wiped out every last foe in the command chamber.
The whole thing had taken less than ten minutes.
As for casualties, only one assault marine had lost an arm after being hacked at by an enemy, though he had dragged that foe down with him by wrapping a chain around him and killing him in turn.
Trading an arm for an enemy life was not too terrible a deal. A mechanical prosthetic could be fitted later. He would fight just the same.
"Are you all right, Acting Commander?" Alfred asked, breathing hard.
Of everyone present, he was the most exhausted. He had been using psychic powers the entire time. But thanks to the Librarian's support, their losses had remained light. Without him, several of them would certainly have been killed in the crossfire.
"I'm fine. Just a little tired."
Now that the murderous surge inside him had faded, Bruce felt dizzy. But not so dizzy that he was about to collapse just yet.
"Huafarin, treat the wounded!"
"Alfred, try contacting Lord Lion and Captain Krulu!"
"You two, secure the door!"
"And you—finish off the ones still breathing. Don't give them a chance to fake their deaths!"
Leaning against the railing, Bruce issued orders one after another.
"Yes!"
Everyone moved at once.
Not long after, Alfred successfully took control of the battle barge and relayed an important update: the main force was boarding and would join them soon.
Which meant this ambush-turned-boarding operation had succeeded.
Bruce had taken the ship and decapitated its objective with only seven companions at his side.
"He's really dead... right?"
After resting for quite a while and swallowing a packet of energy gel he had brought with him, Bruce finally had enough strength to move again.
He walked over to Erebus's corpse and checked it several times. Only then did he dare conclude that this scourge of the Warhammer universe was truly dead beyond all question.
Really dead?
The thought still nagged at him.
When he had killed Shavok before, the change had been so great that Tzeentch had dragged him away. But this time, nothing at all had happened.
It could be explained by the Emperor's blessing shielding him from Chaos interference.
Even so...
Wasn't this almost too easy?
Too easy to believe.
"Acting Commander! Can you hear me?"
Krulu's anxious voice came over the comms, snapping Bruce out of his thoughts.
"I'm here! Captain Krulu, what is it?"
"Thank goodness! As long as you're alive, that's enough. I heard from your people that you took the battle barge with just a handful of men?"
"That's right."
"And the target?"
"I killed him myself. Took his head personally. There's no chance of revival."
As he spoke, Bruce stuffed his last explosive charge into Erebus's ruined corpse.
I'll blow you apart, then blow this entire battle barge apart too.
If you're dead in pieces, I refuse to believe you can still come back.
"Understood! It's enough that you're safe! I'm on my way to your position now. Please wait for me!"
"Huh? Is that necessary? I was just about to withdraw with my team."
"No. To avoid any possibility of error, please remain where you are until we arrive."
"Fine..."
Since Krulu insisted, Bruce could only wait. At least this way they could confirm Erebus was as dead as dead could be.
Then, almost the moment that channel closed, another private communication came through.
It was Lion.
"Bruce! I heard you killed Erebus?"
"Y-yes..."
Only then did Bruce remember the wager.
Which meant...
He would not be dragged back to the Invincible Reason for more of Lion's unbearably embarrassing cosplay games.
He had escaped disaster.
"Just as I'd expect from the battle-brother I chose! I may have lost this wager, but I'll win the next one back!"
Has it occurred to you that I never agreed in the first place? And why do you sound so energized after losing?
"Since I lost, you may ask anything of me," Lion said, fully prepared. "Anything at all."
"Anything?"
Bruce was tempted for a moment, but reason quickly crushed the thoughts rising below the waist.
Yes, Lion wore the form of the King of Knights now, but at the end of the day...
She was still the Primarch of the Dark Angels.
Better not entertain dangerous ideas.
Even if that kind of scenario did hit the spot.
The defeated King of Knights, willing to accept any punishment, submitting to seven days of being toyed with at will until she became a drooling shell that could only whimper.
Bruce coughed awkwardly.
"Let's talk about that later. There's still work to do. Don't forget, killing Erebus was only the first step."
"Horus is what matters."
"You're right!"
Lion acknowledged it immediately.
"Still... hm... never mind."
Bruce stared at the dead Chaos sorcerer, his gaze settling on the Chaos Eye embedded in the man's forehead. It made him deeply uneasy.
So then...
Had the timeline truly changed?
Had Curze's prophecy been overturned?
Bruce did not dare say for certain.
At the same time, deep within the Warp—
Tzeentch was once again attempting to summon a Hero from Another World, while her greater daemons stood nearby in silence, watching their mistress at work.
What would come out this time?
Last time, she had summoned some human brat who screamed in terror, called himself a P.E. student, and insisted on making Tzeentch part of his harem.
He had tasted pretty good.
Hopefully this one would be more interesting.
"Now! Answer my call, Hero from Another World!"
Brandishing her bud-topped staff, Tzeentch locked onto the target at lightning speed.
The next instant, space tore open, and a small white figure tumbled onto the ground.
"?!"
The daemons froze.
Another human?
And a little girl, too?
Their first reaction was confusion. Their second was hunger. They turned hopefully toward their mistress, wondering if they would be allowed to eat this delicious little thing.
But this time, the situation was different.
The little girl scrambled upright with astonishing speed, then burst into tears and crawled frantically toward Tzeentch, throwing herself at her legs.
"Waaah—!"
"G-Goddess! You have to help me!"
"Hm?"
Tzeentch stared down at the overly familiar little girl in confusion.
Wait.
According to the summoning data, this one's name was Dong Xuelian.
But why...
Why did she carry such a familiar aura? And why was her soul so utterly steeped in Chaos?
Hold on.
Had the summoning gone wrong?
"You're Erebus? A Chaos believer?"
Tzeentch remembered this extraordinarily evil human well.
After all, it was thanks to him that a Primarch had been successfully corrupted. Otherwise, breaking apart the Dark King's great design from within would not have been so easy.
"Y-yes! You still remember me!"
Erebus wailed with gratitude.
Then, suddenly, she noticed something was terribly wrong.
What happened to my powerful body?!
Why... why am I a woman now?
Only then did Erebus realize her voice sounded completely different.
"Honestly, I'm not all that fond of your type," Tzeentch sighed, wearing an expression of helpless resignation. "But since I summoned you, I suppose you're my responsibility."
"So, tell me what you want. I'll grant it, and then you can go off to defeat the Demon King."
"...Huh?"
Erebus still had no idea what was happening.
"O Hero from Another World, the world is facing the greatest crisis in its history. You must defeat the mighty Demon King known as the Dark King. Only then can the world be saved."
"Now, state the power you desire, and you may depart."
Tzeentch pointed to a mirror-gate nearby.
"...Huh?"
Erebus still did not understand.
"Never mind. You're half a local anyway, so explaining more won't help."
Tzeentch patted Erebus on the head.
"Since you've at least been useful to me, I'll grant you one skill."
A flash of light passed.
A new skill appeared in Erebus's mind: Eastern Snow Lotus.
Then a mysterious force lifted her into the air and whooshed her straight toward the Mirror Gate.
"Phew! Done!"
Watching yet another Hero embark on the path to defeating the Demon King, Tzeentch immediately felt that today's contribution score had gone up again.
Honestly, after working this hard, she deserved a reward.
A drink, then a nap in bed.
Perfect.
"All right, children! Today's Hero Summoning Ritual is over! We continue tomorrow!"
Hoisting her staff, Tzeentch walked off under the disappointed gazes of the daemons.
What kind of pull would she get tomorrow?
How exciting~
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 178)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 115)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League ( 126 )
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter110)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter116)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter82)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter144)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 65
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 77
From Junkman to Wasteland 66
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 46
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 118
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 65
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 111
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass 80
The Way the Umamusume Look at 68
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 112
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 65
Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 76
Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 66
My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 65
Uma Musume: The Dark Trainer 95
Uma Musume: A Calamity Born fr 89
I, a Reincarnation-Loop Player 53
The Violent Girl Group Is Beat 61
Uma Musume: The Horse Girl Who 65
Uma Musume: From Beginner 61
Becoming a Horse Girl, I Will 37
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