Bruce's explanation alone naturally could not make the Primarchs believe him.
But what if evidence was added?
What if reasoned, well-supported deduction was added as well, along with Horus's own stance and testimony?
So, in the end, Bruce, a former corporate wage slave from an internet company, was merely the final decorative touch.
Horus had been transformed into her current state after being framed by a conspiracy. Angron had been harmed by Lorgar and turned into a little girl. The Blessed Sons of the Word Bearers had been found. Chaos symbols had been discovered within Word Bearers territory. The Alpha Legion had connections to secret cults, and so on.
This chain of evidence made the Primarchs present recognize one thing:
Corruption had existed from the very beginning.
A conspiracy was enveloping the entire Imperium of Man. Some people had not yet noticed it. Some had already been corrupted. Some had resisted corruption and paid the price for doing so.
"Even so, you cannot prove that Fulgrim has betrayed Father, Horus."
Faced with this ironclad evidence, Ferrus could accept all of it. He also knew what he should do.
Only Fulgrim's fall was something he still could not believe.
Who was Fulgrim?
His dearest brother!
What sort of person Fulgrim was—would Ferrus not know?
How could he possibly become some bastard who dared defy Father because of a xenos artifact?
Ferrus's reaction was actually within Bruce and the others' expectations. Aside from possessing world-shaking intellect, Primarchs had also inherited the Emperor's stubbornness. Unless they hit the wall head-on, they would not turn back.
Seeing this, Bruce and Horus exchanged a look with tacit understanding, then nodded to each other.
"Ferrus, I understand how you feel. I also understand how unbreakable the bond between you and Fulgrim is."
Horus spoke in a low voice.
"But among all our brothers right now, aside from Lorgar, he is the one most deeply sunk into corruption."
If Lorgar had actively embraced Chaos, fully aware that learning evil was wrong yet willingly falling for the sake of seeking stimulation—
Then Fulgrim was the classic example of someone who touched something foul without realizing there was a problem, only to discover when he tried to withdraw that he could no longer return.
Corruption was like ice.
So long as you did not touch it, nothing would happen.
But once you did...
Ending up as a delivery-service victim would already count as a comparatively pure-love outcome.
"..."
Ferrus glared fixedly at Horus, furious yet unable to speak.
What right do you have to say that about him?
Fulgrim respects Father so deeply. Among us, he is the one who most wants to become the perfect son in Father's eyes!
He would be corrupted?
What kind of joke is that?!
"If you do not believe it, then prepare yourself for what comes next."
Seeing this, Horus understood that unless she produced something substantial, Ferrus might very well ruin the matter.
Brotherhood was a good thing.
But sometimes, it was also an enormous obstacle.
And because Horus had taken that into consideration, she had also prepared accordingly.
"I will judge for myself."
Ferrus clenched his fist and watched as Horus picked up a remote and pressed it.
Immediately afterward, a holographic projection sprang out. A scene resembling recorded playback began to unfold.
In the image, "Horus" was speaking with Fulgrim.
First, the two embraced. Then "Horus" took this brother's hand and intimately led him into a secret chamber. After that, she began to openly express certain evaluations of and dissatisfaction toward the Imperium and Father.
Fulgrim listened with great interest. He did not become angry over the Warmaster's words, nor did he voice any other objections.
On the contrary, he even seemed somewhat excited.
Then "Horus" began explicitly saying that she intended to resist the tyranny of the Imperium of Man, and that she planned to overthrow Father's rule and reclaim humanity's glory from his hands.
After Fulgrim heard this, his expression first changed. Then he rebuked "Horus" for her treason and stated that he would report the matter to Father.
Faced with his brother's accusation, "Horus" merely calmly asked Fulgrim one question:
"Do you not wish to revive humanity?"
To let the human species once again become the overlord of the galaxy—what Father could do, they could do as well.
That glory and that great undertaking had been abandoned by Father for the sake of his so-called plan.
But they were different.
Together, they would realize them and become the greatest heroes of the human species.
Aside from that, "Horus" also brought up the various problems of the Emperor's Children Legion. As their Primarch, Fulgrim had to do something.
After his reason was pierced through by those three blows, Fulgrim first became conflicted. But before "Horus" left, she gripped his wrist and guided him to the star map.
She directly began describing the future plan for a new Imperium of Man.
And it was from that moment that the elegant phoenix began turning mad.
In a visibly loathsome manner, he became intoxicated with the grand blueprint and supreme honor promised by "Horus."
This projection was not exactly long, but neither was it short.
Ferrus's expression throughout the entire thing was wonderfully varied. Especially at the end, when he saw Fulgrim's somewhat unfamiliar expression of dark delight, he fell completely into despair.
Words could lie.
But the true emotions of the person involved absolutely could not.
As Fulgrim's closest brother, Ferrus naturally knew whether Fulgrim was pretending, or whether he truly wanted to do this.
And he knew the answer.
Everyone else knew it too.
Even Curze, who had a decent relationship with Fulgrim, showed disgust when she first saw this side of him.
This fellow actually had such a dark side.
Who could have guessed...
"That person was not you... was it?"
Ferrus asked Horus.
"Yes."
Horus did not argue, nor did she intend to lie. She nodded and answered.
"It was me. I used Lord Warmaster's image to set a trap for Lord Fulgrim. I did not expect him to truly take the bait. I admit that my method may not have been particularly honorable, but this truly did happen."
Bruce voluntarily stepped forward and took responsibility.
"You bastard!!!!"
Ferrus slammed the table and stood, about to grab Bruce and beat him savagely.
Fortunately, Vulkan reached out and held back his furious brother. While restraining Ferrus's movements, he used reason to soothe him.
"Ferrus! I know you are angry, but the problem is not him. It is Fulgrim!"
"He betrayed Father! If he were loyal, he would never have taken the bait so easily."
"Look carefully at his face! He has already changed! His heart, his soul, even everything about him, is no longer the brother we knew!"
"Let me state this in advance, Lord Ferrus. I never intended to hide any of this. If he had passed the test, then the one who died would definitely have been me."
Bruce raised both hands and answered:
"The fact that he failed to see through my disguise already proves the problem."
"His ambition is just like a venomous snake."
Regarding Fulgrim's transformation, even Bruce, who had known the truth in advance, nearly could not hold himself together.
Because from the perspective of his own contact with this Primarch, Fulgrim had been an elegant and noble gentleman. Bruce had not expected him to fall after just a little temptation.
It was honestly hard to endure.
He was like a perfect, flawless apple. From shape to peel, he seemed so alluring. Yet when you truly bit into him, you discovered that the inside had already gone rotten and foul.
"I told him I needed a trap to solve certain problems, and that Isstvan V was an excellent stage. Then he happily went off to execute that order."
Horus added at this moment.
It was precisely because Fulgrim stepped forward that the plan had gone so smoothly. The rebel faction they expected to purge had all finished assembling on Isstvan V.
So awarding Fulgrim MVP really was not unreasonable.
One could even say he absolutely deserved it.
"Is it because of that artifact?"
Corax asked.
"Yes, and also no."
Vulkan answered from the perspective of a craftsman.
"Even if that xenos artifact is the root of the fall, had Fulgrim not accepted it, he would not have reached this point."
"I even suspect that his soul has already been completely occupied by that artifact."
As the most emotionally rich among the invited Primarchs, Vulkan felt deeply pained by this result. But he also understood that the mistake had to be resolved before it grew larger.
Otherwise, the error would only deepen!
"..."
Mortarion remained silent throughout.
But he, too, already had an answer in his heart, and knew what he had to do.
Since Typhon, that traitor, had already submitted to a xenos faith, then Mortarion would make him explain everything clearly.
He would give Mortarion an answer!
"When do we begin?"
Ferrus, gradually calming down, stopped struggling and asked rationally.
"Three days from now. Once those shameful traitors complete their assembly, we begin."
Horus answered.
"Good!"
Ferrus stared deeply at Fulgrim's ferocious smile. In a low voice, he made his request to Horus.
"Leave the Emperor's Children to me. I will personally confront him over this debt."
I will personally execute that damned traitor!
You betrayed Father.
And you betrayed me!
Join here to read ahead.
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 178)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 180)
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 285
"Is this chat group even serious?" 150
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (This matter is completely finished.)
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 77
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 255
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 210
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass Volume2/20
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 305
Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 76
Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 66
My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 65
Uma Musume: The Dark Trainer (This matter is completely finished.)
Uma Musume: A Calamity Born fr 154
I, a Reincarnation-Loop Player Volume4/40
The Violent Girl Group Is Beat 130
Uma Musume: The Horse Girl Who 67
Uma Musume: From Beginner 155
Becoming a Horse Girl, I Will 85
Uma Musume: I Want All 120
I Can Copy Unique Skills 120
Summoning an Evil God, but the 75
Supernatural Multiverse 155
My Harem Is Indescribable 105
Jujutsu Kaisen: Heroic Spirit 110
Uma Musume: Today Is Another Romantic Battlefield 110
Still playing traditional Honk 96
The Most Filial Son Under Heav 95
What Should I Do After Switchi 51
Reincarnated as a Demon, Skill 80
Hell-Difficulty Dungeon? 55
Transmigrated as Sukuna 105
Checking In in Demon Slayer 95
The Reincarnating Trainer of Tracen Academy 105
I Refuse to Become a Heroic 95
My Best Friend Into a Slime? 80
A Saiyan Stands Above Marvel (This matter is completely finished.)
What Do You Mean by Using a Lab Mod to Be the Hero? 95
Tanya Starts from Re:Zero 90
Why did they assign me to Uma 80
MYGO Beauties 75
DanMachi: Emiya the Giant Hero 80
The Gacha Merchant Who Started 100
Honkai's Otherworld? Wait—Who Are You People?! 120
Emiya Shirou, Determined to Slay Every Curse and Evil Spirit 65
The Uma Musume Who Became 70
I'm Definitely Not the King of 105
After Maxing Out Every Class 110
Honkai: World Modulation Mode 95
I, the Elden Sword Saint 60
Dio Brando Is Challenging FGO 60
No One Knows Pokémon Better 60
I, Sakazuki, Won't Go Down Tha 69
From Trilobites to Titans 57
Chainsaw Man: Contracted with 75
DanMachi: My Party Members Are 86
An Anime Heroine Darkened 60
Yu-Gi-Oh!: Duel Links 70
Honkai: The Fire Devil 70
Honkai Transformation Cards Volume2/30
Age of Heroes, I'm Just a Back 60
Uma Musume Has No Weird Fan Le 74
At age 8, she co-starred with 42
Honkai: Schicksal Media 30
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