Alexander noticed Roboute Guilliman's gaze on him.
He slowly extended a finger and pointed at himself.
"Don't look at me, what's wrong with me?"
"I'm just a trash picker from the Lower Nest of a hive city. If Sanguinius hadn't appeared in my dream to conscript me back then, I'd still be picking up trash in the hive city!"
"That Reyna, you've met her, she's my gang leader. You should talk to her."
Roboute Guilliman waited gently for Alexander to finish speaking, then softly reminded him, "Madam Reyna claims you are a Saint, and even quietly told me that you might be a God."
"Of course, you were also present then and should have clearly heard these words."
"She sincerely shared with me her belief in one of the three divinities of the Omnissiah: original power of all things, the source of power within all life and machinery, the great prime mover."
"Furthermore, there is the eternal dragon, the one who devours the Tyranids, the leader of the Dying-worshippers, the Chosen of Death, the one granted the authority of death by the Emperor, who brought death upon the enemies of humanity in the name of Leman Russ."
At this point, Roboute Guilliman could barely maintain his expression.
In fact, Roboute Guilliman was already imagining what Leman Russ' expression would be like when he heard about the things Alexander had done.
Sanguinius also let out a soft chuckle, clearly thinking the same thing as Guilliman.
Guilliman heard Sanguinius' laughter and turned his gaze to him, seemingly asking what kind of being Alexander truly was.
However, Sanguinius merely shook his head and told Guilliman nothing.
Guilliman sighed helplessly and turned his gaze back to Alexander.
As for Guilliman himself, he didn't believe in gods.
But the so-called Warp Gods were objectively real. The Emperor had lied about this back then, but Guilliman would not lie to himself.
Perhaps within this seemingly mortal body of flesh and blood, a larger, more Warp-dwelling, god-like entity had truly squeezed in?
Guilliman still had some lingering memories of the visions he had seen in death.
He remembered the entity that shaped his body, that blue, round entity, which gave him death with its round hand and then molded Guilliman into form with that same hand.
"But Reyna, she has an intelligence problem, just like Magnus."
Alexander shook his head, quickly refuting Reyna's account by directly attacking the accuser's intelligence:
"And she's an illegal psyker."
When saying this, Alexander actually found it a bit hard to maintain his composure. He really hadn't expected Reyna to still be an illegal psyker. It was a good thing Greyfax had hastily written her a special exemption, otherwise, if she wasn't careful one day, she might have been taken away by a Black Ship to fuel the Astronomican.
Hearing Alexander directly accuse Reyna of having an intelligence problem like Magnus, and being an illegal psyker, Guilliman's expression subtly flickered with difficulty, but he quickly composed himself and continued, "It's not just Madam Reyna who claims you are a God. In fact, the entire Cadia 184th Regiment, and even the Blood Angels, have similar perceptions of you."
"The Eldar also claim you are the Human Death God."
Saying this, Roboute Guilliman looked at Alexander.
"Believe me, more people in this galaxy believe Roboute Guilliman is the Son of God."
Alexander retorted without hesitation:
"As for the Eldar, what good person believes what the Eldar say?"
Alexander's words made Roboute Guilliman nod slightly, falling into a moment of thought.
Alexander's rebuttal indeed seemed flawless.
But Roboute Guilliman could clearly feel a connection established between himself and Alexander, and genuinely sensed that Alexander's essence was far more powerful than he claimed.
This was an entity capable of bringing him back from death and removing the corruption caused by Fulgrim.
At least according to the Eldar, this was something only the Eldar Death God could do.
"I am really not a God."
Alexander noticed the lingering suspicion on Roboute Guilliman's face and couldn't help but sigh slightly:
"If you don't believe me, go ask Archmagos Belisarius Cawl."
"I believe Archmagos Cawl will make a rational and wise judgment, upholding the rigor of a scholar."
Roboute Guilliman was somewhat persuaded. Compared to the Eldar and Imperial citizens misled by superstition, perhaps his familiar Belisarius Cawl was a more reliable advisor.
"He is not a God!"
Belisarius Cawl was summoned into the Sanctum and solemnly declared to Roboute Guilliman:
"In the name of the triple will of the Omnissiah, the God of Machines, and original power, the wisdom of the Omnissiah has revealed to me that this Lord Alexander..."
Belisarius Cawl took a deep breath.
"..He is not a God! He is absolutely not a God!"
"You see, I am an Archmagos of the Adeptus Mechanicus. You can distinguish between me and the Omnissiah, right?"
"Then... then Lord Alexander is just a stronger Archmagos of the Adeptus Mechanicus. You can also distinguish between him and the Omnissiah, right?"
The Archmagos' words echoed in the sanctuary, and Alexander couldn't help but cast a look of approval at Cawl.
Only Roboute Guilliman's expression shifted slightly.
The pronoun 'He' that Cawl used to refer to Alexander is only used as the objective case of 'he' in low gothic.
But in high gothic, this word itself is also used as a third-person pronoun for a God.
Alexander didn't seem to understand high gothic, nor was he particularly familiar with low gothic grammar, so he didn't catch this detail?
But... but an entity capable of reversing life and death, and resurrecting two Primarchs, doesn't understand high gothic?
Roboute Guilliman didn't believe it.
It's like saying the Emperor, stripping away his Psyker powers, is just a socially anxious, slacker old father; no one would believe that.
Was he hoping to imply through Cawl that he indeed possessed some characteristics of the Warp Gods, but for some reason was unwilling to admit it?
Roboute Guilliman gently pinched his chin, then gestured for Belisarius Cawl to move to a marble pillar nearby.
This position was far enough away that even the superhuman hearing of a Primarch would struggle to discern faint whispers from such a distance.
But if Sanguinius wanted to listen, he only needed to use a little Psyker power, and Alexander could probably do something similar.
But this wasn't important; Roboute Guilliman just wanted to go through the motions and verify his hypothesis.
"Cawl, tell me, is that Lord Alexander truly a God?"
Belisarius Cawl was being watched by Roboute Guilliman, and sweat beaded on the half of his face that remained.
"My Lord, I still remember the events of the city of Perfectio, do you recall?"
Belisarius Cawl bowed deeply, somewhat apprehensive:
"I don't want to be Lorgar Aurelian of the Omnissiah."
Indeed, Roboute Guilliman felt his suspicions were confirmed. He turned his head to look at Alexander and Sanguinius.
The two also seemed to be whispering, but the distance was too great, and Guilliman, without Psyker powers, couldn't hear clearly.
However, it was likely they had heard Guilliman and Belisarius Cawl's conversation through Psyker means.
"He really looks like a Papa Smurf, with a Daddy Smurf and a bunch of Smurfs," Sanguinius whispered, lowering his voice.
"More than that, he also has a Smurfette," Alexander said, also lowering his voice.
"Yvraine?" Sanguinius couldn't help but chuckle at the remark. "She really is an elf..."
Watching Alexander and Sanguinius secretly whispering about some secret, Roboute Guilliman increasingly felt that his conjecture was correct.
But if he truly possessed some divine Warp characteristics, why would he refuse to be an object of faith and deny being a God?
Roboute Guilliman's superhuman brain began to work.
From his father's strong aversion to being worshipped as a God, to the destruction of the city of Perfectio, and then to the Warp changing according to the emotions of all beings, many fragmented clues gradually connected in his mind.
Faith, faith itself is an emotion...
So, would this emotion feedback onto the object of faith? Apparently, it would. The Gods draw power precisely because of this.
But thinking of the mad and depraved appearance of the Warp Gods, Roboute Guilliman shivered slightly.
Faith and emotions are primitive, chaotic, and easily go to extremes.
If it was truly as he suspected,
What had his father, the Emperor, become?
A sudden terror arose within him, but he quickly suppressed it deep in his heart.
Many mysteries still needed to be solved, but at least now he had unraveled one, understanding why Alexander and the Emperor resisted being called Gods.
He waved his hand, signaling Belisarius Cawl to leave, then returned to Sanguinius and Alexander's side, his face appropriately displaying an expression that suggested he now knew everything.
Alexander looked at him strangely, wondering what he had understood. Had he heard Sanguinius and him calling him a Smurf just now?
"I have come to understand that you are not a God."
Roboute Guilliman tried his best to infuse sincerity into his tone.
He still did not know Alexander's true nature, but he could feel the connection between himself and Alexander.
Undoubtedly, his life and death, and even his very existence, were now controlled by this being who claimed not to be a God.
Sanguinius seemed to be in the same situation, and apparently, he had also played a part in this matter.
But if this was the necessary price for him, for Sanguinius, to return to the Imperium and fight for humanity,
Roboute Guilliman chose to accept it. He trusted Sanguinius.
But he also understood that Sanguinius and Alexander's visit to Macragge clearly had its own requirements.
They needed the Five Hundred Worlds of Ultramar.
"What do you want from me?"
Population? Army? Sacrifices? Planets? Guilliman pondered what his bottom line could be.
"Money." said Alexander immitating a crab...
Alexander smiled. He liked talking to smart people.
Just as Archmagos had explained to Guilliman in a few words that he was not a God, talking to smart people saved a lot of effort.
Guilliman was slightly stunned, seemingly not comprehending what Alexander was saying.
"Money."
Alexander emphasized again, then explained:
"Valuable resources that can be exchanged for wealth, whatever they may be."
Upon hearing this, Guilliman's expression showed sudden understanding.
No wonder they wanted to resurrect him, no wonder.
Roboute Guilliman might not be the best fighter among the Primarchs, nor the wisest, nor even the best commander.
But he was definitely the best at managing and producing resources.
"That's too simple," Guilliman smiled. "You will find that even after ten thousand years, Ultramar will still be the five hundred most prosperous worlds in the galaxy."