The lingering echo of those words did not dissipate into the foul air.
It transformed into an irresistible warm current, flowing through Valerius's ear canal and pouring straight into the depths of his soul, which had long since turned into a gray and barren wasteland.
"I have received your loyalty."
It was not judgment, not pity, and certainly not the cold commendation from a superior to a subordinate that he was accustomed to.
It was a... recognition.
A recognition that transcended positions, identities, and even the boundary between god and mortal—an equal recognition.
Valerius lay stiffly on the ground; he could clearly feel the heart in his chest beating anew, each throb filled with explosive, youthful power.
The countless hidden injuries left by forty years of a blood-and-iron career, and the fatigue accumulated from suppressing pain time and again, were all washed away by that emerald-green light.
This body no longer belonged to him.
He struggled, using his arms—which had regained their full strength, or perhaps even surpassed their former state—to prop up his upper body.
He sat up.
The scene before him was an absurd tableau, interwoven with destruction and rebirth.
In the distance was the hideous, molten crater left behind by the demon's self-destruction, the cavern walls covered in cracks torn open by the shockwave, like scars upon the earth.
Nearby, his surviving Astra Militarum Soldiers were bathing in a soft, emerald-green halo.
They were unharmed, and the expressions on their faces were ones of fanaticism and devotion he had never seen before.
They knelt on the ground, murmuring words; the object of their prayers was no longer the cold Golden Throne on distant Terra, but the black-haired, god-like girl before them.
His Astra Militarum Soldiers... had been saved by a "heretic."
He himself... had also been saved by a "heretic."
The iron laws he had defended his entire life, used to distinguish between loyalty and betrayal, had in this moment become a ludicrous, self-deceiving lie.
A massive sense of absurdity, like an invisible tide, instantly submerged Valerius's reason.
Yet, upon this absurd ruin, a fragile seedling named "Hope" was uncontrollably breaking through the soil.
He opened his mouth, his throat aching with dryness, but he could not utter a single word.
He wanted to question, but found that he had long since lost the qualification to do so.
He wanted to refute, but found that deep within his heart, he was actually yearning for every word she spoke.
Leticia stood up, her black robe draping down like the night sky, and she looked down at him.
In those pure black eyes, there was no gloating of a victor, only a calm that had seen through everything.
"Your loyalty is not wrong."
Her voice was not loud, yet it clearly overpowered the prayers of the soldiers in the distance, striking precisely at the most vulnerable part of Valerius's soul.
"But your god is dead. Or rather, he has long been unable to respond to you, his people who bleed and sacrifice in his name."
"Your empire has only given you a cold imperial codex, a Bolter to execute your own kin, and a shackle called 'loyalty' that will never receive a response."
"No... that's not it..."
Valerius roared silently in his heart.
He wanted to refute, wanted to loudly recite the imperial creeds he had memorized countless times.
He wanted to say that discipline is the cornerstone of an army, that sacrifice is the duty of mortals, that the Emperor's will is above all else.
But he could not say it.
Because every word Leticia spoke was like a sharp scalpel, precisely dissecting the bloody reality he had spent forty years disguising.
He executed deserters, yet the defensive lines still collapsed.
He maintained discipline, yet his soldiers still suffered heavy casualties.
He offered his loyalty, but in return, he was toyed with like an ant by demons, waiting for death in despair.
Everything he had fought for his entire life had never, until this moment, given him even a ten-thousandth of a response.
Never had there been a glance to tell him, "I see your sacrifice."
Never had there been a word to tell him, "I have received your loyalty."
All his persistence, all his blood and iron, at this moment, seemed so hollow, so... pathetic.
Leticia looked at his face, twisted in extreme pain, and slowly extended her hand toward him.
It was a hand, pale, slender, and so graceful it did not seem like a mortal creation.
Palm upward, no weapon, no codex, only a calm invitation devoid of any coercion.
"Come to my side, Valerius."
Her voice carried a strange tenderness that could soothe the soul.
"Your loyalty should not be betrayed."
"Your shield should no longer be raised for those cold, hollow articles."
She turned slightly to the side, revealing the Blonde Girl behind her, whose hair was like the sun, clutching her robe tightly.
Terrania felt Valerius's gaze, which was filled with brokenness, confusion, and pain.
She was a little afraid and instinctively shrank further behind Leticia, revealing only a pair of pure golden eyes filled with timidity.
Leticia's gaze followed Valerius's line of sight and landed on Terrania.
"Look at her, Commissar."
"Look at the soldiers around you who survived."
"They are your 'people.' They are living beings who feel fear, experience pain, and know how to be grateful."
"I will grant you the power to truly protect them."
"Let the shield in your hand stand for warm, living beings."
Valerius's breathing completely stopped at this moment.
His gaze was fixed intently on the hand Leticia had extended.
Then, he slowly shifted his gaze away from that hand, past her, and looked at the Blonde Girl behind her, who looked like a startled fawn.
In that instant, he understood.
He finally understood the root of the pain and obsession he had carried for forty years with nowhere to place them.
What he longed to protect was never a codex, an emblem, or a concept on a distant throne.
What he wanted to protect were people—specific, real people who tremble in fear and smile when they are saved.
His entire life, he had used the harshest discipline to drive the flock, thinking this would protect them from the ravages of wolves.
Only today did he realize that what the flock truly needed was not a whip.
But a living god capable of driving away the wolves.
"My... faith..."
In his mind, the rusted, steel statue built from the imperial codex let out a final, unbearable groan.
Crack...
It collapsed with a roar.
Turning into dust that filled the sky.
Valerius used all his strength to drive this body, which had gained new life but also felt as if it were bearing a weight of ten thousand tons.
He knelt on one knee.
The movement was slow, yet as firm as a collapsing mountain, carrying a sense of irrevocable determination.
He lowered his head, that proud head of an Imperial Commissar that had never bowed to anyone, not even to any sector governor or Inquisitor.
Dust stained his smooth forehead.
He raised his eyes, no longer gray and defeated but reignited with flames, and looked up at the black-haired goddess before him. In a hoarse, tearful, yet incredibly clear voice, he offered his new, personal, and sole vow.
"My shield shall be raised for you."
"My life shall be fought for you."
"My... goddess."
The moment his words fell, the entire underground cavity seemed to resonate with them.
All the surviving Astra Militarum Soldiers witnessed this scene that overturned their worldview.
The Commissar they revered, the embodiment of the imperial will in their eyes, was offering the most humble loyalty to the goddess who had brought miracles.
This did not confuse them; instead, it pushed the fanaticism in their hearts to its peak!
"For the Goddess—!"
It was unclear who shouted it first.
Immediately after, a roar like a landslide and tsunami completely engulfed the ruins.
Leticia ignored the surrounding fanaticism.
Her gaze remained fixed on Valerius.
She could feel a pure, condensed, and even slightly paranoid power of faith flowing continuously from him.
This power was a hundred times purer than the energy provided by the purification altar beneath her feet.
In her mind, the system's notification sound arrived as scheduled.
"Detected complete allegiance of hero unit 'Valerius'..."
"His soul traits [Absolute Loyalty], [Iron-Blooded Order] meet the requirements for the 'Perfect Projection' protocol..."
"Correction... beginning..."
The next second, a soft, irresistible, pink-purple light mixed with divinity and charm surged from within Leticia.
That light, like a magnificent feathered robe, instantly enveloped Valerius, who was kneeling on one knee.
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