Dante seemed to sense the confusion in Alexander's eyes.
The old warrior, who had ruled the Blood Angels and Baal III for a thousand years, and whose tenure as Chapter Master was even longer than Sanguinius' time as Primarch, showed a smile on his lips:
"Lord Alexander, now that Lord Sanguinius has taken over the rule of all Baal and the Blood Angels, other Chapter Masters are still responsible for commanding their own Chapters, but the Blood Angels are now directly commanded by the Primarch. I have become the only one who doesn't need to bear any work."
"If a mortal were to say it, I should be retired. I might be the only Astartes in ten thousand years who can say he's retired."
"So what are you doing now?" Alexander raised an eyebrow, looking curiously at the Saint Blood Guard power armor Dante was wearing.
"The Primarch told me I could do anything I wanted, to enjoy myself."
Dante showed a slightly embarrassed expression:
"Unfortunately, in a thousand years, I haven't cultivated any interests. I originally wanted to retire to my hometown on Baal II, but it has already been destroyed by the Tyranids."
"I wanted to try growing grapes, but I couldn't keep even one alive. I wanted to learn painting, but the portraits I drew were so ugly they looked corrupted."
"Finally, having no other option, I joined the Saint Blood Guard to be the Primarch's personal guard."
As he spoke, a brilliant smile gradually appeared on Dante's face:
"I found that this is truly a good job. We are three people who take turns guarding the Primarch, and each of us only needs to work eight hours."
"In reality, there's not much I need to guard. The Primarch's power far exceeds our imagination, and he also has extremely strong prophetic abilities. I just stand at the door as a decorative element."
"During this time, I will recall my life, organize my thoughts, and write them down during my breaks. Perhaps I'll even write an autobiography?"
Alexander's expression was slightly stunned.
Good heavens, after a thousand years of taking the scenic route, Old Man Dante had finally found the right path as a security guard.
What he said was truly reasonable. Sanguinius, as one of the strongest Primarch, could only be harmed by a handful of beings in the entire material universe.
Moreover, he possessed powerful prophetic abilities, allowing him to avoid most dangers.
When there was no combat, Dante essentially stood at the door as a living statue, serving a ceremonial and decorative purpose.
So, this long-lived Astartes warrior began to contemplate his autobiography.
"But I haven't decided on a title for my autobiography yet... Lord Alexander, do you have any good suggestions?" Dante asked with a slight smile.
Then the smile on his lips turned a little bitter:
"Lord Sanguinius suggested 'Dante — The Longest-Reigning Ruler of the Blood Angels.'"
"But that title is too boastful and proud. I even feel like the Primarch is making fun of me..."
No need to doubt, he is making fun of you, Alexander thought silently.
"The title of the autobiography..."
He stroked his chin, thinking for a moment:
"'Regarding the Matter of Being the Son of a Salt Seller, Guided by Sanguinius, and Ultimately Becoming the Chapter Master of the Blood Angels and Leading the Chapter for a Thousand Years!'"
"Huh?" Dante's expression froze.
"Hahahahaha" A faint, clear laugh echoed from within the Red Great Hall.
Dante's face immediately flushed with embarrassment.
Seeing this, Alexander also smiled, nodded slightly to Dante, and then pushed open the door and entered the Red Great Hall.
The Red Great Hall was carved and built by Dante, commanding the Blood Slaves and the Blood Angels, filled with exquisite carvings and paintings.
But these artworks, any one of which would be enough to bankrupt a Planetary governor to purchase, faded in comparison.
This was because, by the marble table in the center of the spacious room, sat the embodiment of the concept of perfection.
Sanguinius' golden hair fell down; he was not wearing the silver chain headdress, nor was he wearing the adamantium forged armor, but rather a robe like a flowing flaxen river. His pure white wings, tinged with a hint of blue, hung behind him.
"My friend." Sanguinius nodded slightly in greeting to Alexander, pushing aside the mountain of documents piled next to him.
Alexander glanced at them; these documents had already been processed, and the ink on them had been dry for a long time.
For the superhuman intellect of a Primarch, the affairs of Baal's three sparsely populated planets were no burden at all.
Sanguinius had probably finished processing these documents long before Alexander returned.
Dante, guarding the door outside, was slacking off, and Sanguinius, inside the door, was actually slacking off too.
"Alright, little Horus, you're slacking off in here, making uncle go out and work for you." Alexander shouted in a rather loud voice.
"Hmm?" Both Alexander and Sanguinius clearly heard a confused and startled hum from outside the door, accompanied by a metallic clatter.
..."I have no objection to you calling yourself my elder, after all, you were born much earlier than Malcador."
Sanguinius said with a hint of helplessness:
"But since you have returned from that Sheath Wing Fortress, and have devoured the part of my Warp essence that belonged to the Dark Angel, you should already know what I truly am, right?"
Alexander nodded slightly: "The death of Sanguinius is the Warp essence of Sanguinius."
"..My Father, ten thousand years ago, obtained the materials for forging us from the Warp."
Sanguinius sighed softly, and said in a low voice:
"Twenty surging powers from the Warp were injected into twenty-one newborn bodies, into twenty-one reborn souls."
"It was those twenty surging powers from the Warp that shaped us, and it was we who, in turn, shaped those twenty unformed powers into an ordered form."
"Matter and the Warp influenced each other, becoming the twenty-one Primarchs."
"I don't know what my other twenty brothers are like, but my essence is my own death."
"I was killed by Horus on the Vengeful Spirit, and the Warp echo thus generated gave birth to my Warp essence, which in turn pierced through time to shape the Primarch named Sanguinius in the past."
Sanguinius looked at Alexander:
"Of course, also in the future, when you used the Time Cloak to repair Sanguinius' body and soul, mixed with the fragments of Sanguinius' soul shattered within the Blood Angels, the faith of humanity over ten thousand years, and the corruption you caused, this Primarch before you was resurrected."
Alexander nodded gently and said: "This is why you must die on the Vengeful Spirit, and inevitably will die on the Vengeful Spirit."
"If you don't die then, your Warp essence won't be born, and Sanguinius won't be born."
Sanguinius was not Sanguinius from ten thousand years ago for this reason.
Because Sanguinius and Sanguinius would not exist simultaneously; when he was alive, he was Sanguinius, and when he died, he was Sanguinius.
Just then, a somewhat flustered metallic clang came from outside the door.
Dante was sweating profusely, barely able to stand steady.
The Emperor extracted power from the Warp to create the Primarch??
My dad isn't pure anymore??
Is this something he should be hearing???