'What on Earth are you?'
The Lion remained silent for a long moment.
He stared fixedly at Adam standing before him, a whole torrent of complaints wedged tightly in his throat, practically begging to be blurted out.
After all, he had never seen such a being before.
That so-called "Enuncia" Lorgar had displayed earlier was already unreasonable enough. With just a single word spoken, it could release a reality-warping blow—and the price was merely permanent damage to the speaker's lips and throat.
Such a contrast between effect and cost was simply incredible, completely unheard of.
Even for Lion El'Jonson, who had fought through the Great Crusade and personally annihilated countless xenos empires, he had to admit that the thing was exceptionally troublesome.
Yet what about this fellow right in front of him?
This so-called other Omnissiah was even more absurd.
He didn't even need to speak.
In a mere instant, a body that had been completely erased from the canvas of reality by Enuncia was instantly repaired and reorganized right before his eyes.
And standing nearby, the Lion himself hadn't felt even the slightest ripple from the Warp.
Still, he was the Lion.
He swiftly adjusted his train of thought, pivoting to ask another far more valuable question instead.
"So, are you a god?"
Adam froze for a brief moment.
"That question... now that really catches me off guard."
He turned his head around, casting a somewhat astonished glance at the Lion. "I thought you, having lived through the era of the Imperial Truth, would understand."
Adam said in all seriousness:
"I am no god."
Silence.
The Lion tried his best to maintain a composed expression on his face, but he had to admit that at this moment, he truly almost broke character.
How to put it?
Though he had anticipated it beforehand, when this fellow actually uttered those words out loud, it was still impossible not to find it funny.
The present moment mirrored the past so uncannily.
A scene so filled with 'déjà vu'—he felt as though he had seen it on his Father back during the era of the Great Crusade as well.
'Do all gods of us humans have something wrong with them?'
'Or rather, was this contagious, passed down from Father?'
"Are you playing with semantic ambiguities?"
The Lion ultimately failed to hold back.
Though fully aware that pressing further might be ill-timed, he spoke anyway.
"Setting aside the intelligence I've gathered—about how you can contend with the four Chaos Gods in the Warp, and display the grand power to seal the Eye of Terror."
"Even as a matter of fact, you are currently worshipped with fanatical devotion by humans across the entire galaxy, revered as a deity."
The Lion's gaze locked directly onto Adam.
"Even under these preconditions, you are still not a god?"
Adam glanced at him with a strange look in his eyes.
"Fanatically worshipped by humans across the entire galaxy—aren't you the same, Lion El'Jonson?"
Adam countered with a question: "Do you consider yourself a deity as well? A son of a god?"
The Lion: "..."
The Primarch's superhuman brain worked rapidly, analyzing and organizing the other's words.
Something suddenly surfaced within his mind.
Yes.
He realized something.
"The time I have been here is still far too short. Humanity's worship of me is inevitable unless I intend to break my own boundaries and actively do something about it, but that is impossible."
Adam shrugged, his movement casual and plain. "However, I still believe this is merely temporary. Humanity will one day wake up from the anesthesia of religion."
His voice wasn't loud, yet every single word reached the Lion's ears with absolute clarity.
"They will open their eyes wide, observe this universe with a clear mind, and truly stand tall in the galaxy—facing their history, facing their mistakes, and facing their future."
Adam paused for a second.
"It sounds very simple. But in truth, very few races in this galaxy can truly achieve it."
At this point, Adam let out a soft chuckle.
Ignorance was not the original sin.
Arrogance was.
In this universe, among all the species that had taken the galactic stage, almost none had escaped the sin of arrogance.
Humanity firmly believed themselves to be the greatest species in the galaxy, destined to expand their domain to the ends of the cosmos.
The Great Devourer firmly believed that no matter what lay ahead, it would be consumed by its hive fleet.
The Eldar wallowed in the refined superiority of their past, deeming themselves the pinnacle of civilization—showing almost zero self-reflection even after the catastrophic fall of the ancient Eldar empire.
The Necrons died to their own arrogance, recklessly walking into the trap of the C'tan and ending up in their current miserable, living-dead state.
And even the Silent King, who considered his technology second to none, built a Pariah Nexus that other galactic races still waltzed through like a public restroom.
Even certain blue-skinned xenos firmly believed that their tenets were the best and most universal in the entire galaxy... unfortunately, reality said otherwise.
By comparison, the Orks were actually the purest among them all.
However, Adam quickly regained that confident tone.
"Yet with our continued efforts, once we completely cast aside the interference of the four Chaos Gods, humanity will surely be able to do it. They will stand tall once again."
'That is what I firmly believe.'
Adam did not say those words aloud, but the Lion read them straight out of his eyes.
'Yes.'
'I understand.'
The Lion gave a slow, solemn nod.
Though his conversation with Adam had lasted only a brief moment, it was more than enough for the Lion to clearly grasp this man's personality.
As well as that soaring, unshakeable force of will.
'He might truly perform better than Father did in the past.'
The thought flickered through his mind.
Then, the Lion felt his spirit relax slightly.
For the Lion of Caliban, this was an exceptionally rare feeling.
Had it been in the past, he would never have permitted himself to relax to such a degree.
However, he was old now.
Ten thousand long years had slipped by, crossing unimaginable distances.
Yes, he truly was old.
Still, relaxing just a little like this didn't feel too bad.
And then, he heard the fellow before him speak up.
"In that case, since you're already here..."
Adam's tone suddenly became lighthearted, as if an entertaining idea had just struck him. "Would you consider meeting up with your brothers? It's been a long time since you last saw each other, hasn't it?"
The Lion widened his eyes.
'Meet up with my brothers?'
Instinctively, the stern and disciplined face of Roboute Guilliman flashed across his mind—whereupon the Lion shook his head in speechlessness, quickly banishing the image from his mind.
However...
Sanguinius.
Ferrus Manus.
Those two names illuminated the heavy dark clouds that had accumulated in his heart over ten thousand years.
Those brothers who had sacrificed themselves and fallen during the Horus Heresy... The Lion's heart rate spiked violently.
Something long buried was awakening inside his chest.
"Is that truly possible?" he couldn't help but ask. "They must have plenty of matters to attend to as well."
"Naturally," Adam scratched his head. "Though how should I put it... I've made a little bit of progress in counteracting the Hive Fleet war.
"Recently, through a few small tricks, I managed to score a minor staged victory. The Hive Fleet's offensive has slowed down considerably as a result, and they'll likely need some time to reorganize."
He lowered his hand and offered the Lion a warm smile.
"So, those brothers of yours genuinely have the time to meet with you right now. After that, you can return to the Webway and continue doing what you need to do."
The Lion did not answer right away.
He stood on the spot, remaining silent for a brief moment.
In those aged yet still razor-sharp pupils, something hard and cold was quietly melting away.
"Very well."
The Lion finally spoke.
His voice was soft, yet exceptionally clear. Upon that face accustomed to years of sternness, his expression suddenly turned soft and nostalgic.
"Very well."
He repeated it once more, as if confirming it to himself.
Adam flashed a smile.
"Then nothing could be better."