Chapter 139: Playing the Game, Selecting the Flagship Captain

On the first floor of the villa in the courtyard, the Primarch browsed the files of the five candidates for flagship captain, then spoke to the Primarch Attendant.

"Arsena, what do you think of these five?"

The Primarch Attendant looked up and stated his thoughts.

"Lionel Toure, 42 years old, has the most illustrious background among the five; his family has a long history and is a powerful family of Terra."

"But Lionel himself is a typical traditional officer; one can tell from his command logs that his tactics are overly conservative."

"The result of seeking stability in every battle is that he will win battles where his side has the advantage, but he will have to pay a greater price, unable to avoid losses that could have been avoided."

Ninglu nodded slightly; Arsena Dunn's assessment of Lionel was the same as his own.

"Continue."

The "Reader" had already taken the aforementioned data into his mind and completed the analysis; he analyzed the background, strengths, and weaknesses of each candidate one by one, occasionally citing their battle records as evidence.

"Diana Polin, 33 years old, has the most ordinary background among the five; her family cannot even be considered powerful in Sabadia."

"But Diana herself is extremely outstanding; she possesses an agile mind and has performed excellently in every position."

"In logistics positions, she demonstrated meticulous traits; she can process information accurately, quickly, and clearly."

"When she coordinated the expeditionary fleet, she transferred large numbers of soldiers from one node to another, ensuring they arrived on time, with ammunition ready, rations sufficient, and support properly arranged; everything was orderly."

Arsena recalled the battle records from the Data Slate, "In battles against pirates and Xenos, her actions were swift, precise, and lethal, which aligns with your way of thinking."

Ninglu tapped his fingers lightly on the back of the chair and nodded in approval.

"She is indeed a suitable candidate."

He did not necessarily have to choose one from the candidates, but if he were to choose, it had to be a suitable person.

"Arrange a time; I want to meet with her."

Ten days later, Ninglu met Diana Polin; she was wearing a neatly tailored military uniform with golden buttons arranged in order, and three shining military medals pinned to her chest.

Her blonde hair was tied up neatly, and her deep eyes appeared even sharper against the backdrop of her military cap.

Diana walked with a vigorous stride, stepping in front of the Primarch.

"Lord Ninglu, Diana Polin reports to you as ordered."

The Departmento Munitorum had not yet been established and would not officially begin work until the eve of Ullanor; currently, both the Astartes and the Solar Auxilia had only job functions but no military ranks.

The Primarch noticed that Diana's blue-green eyes wanted to look away for a moment, but she pursed her lips, suppressed her natural reaction, and overcame her physiological instinct with willpower.

Ninglu nodded with satisfaction, "Sit."

"Yes."

Diana sat with her back straight, and only then did she notice two game boards placed in front of her.

"Regicide, or Go?"

Hearing this, Diana understood that the Primarch wanted her to choose; this was a test for her.

"Regicide."

Regicide is a board game popular among people of all social strata, similar to chess, but the board is circular.

The pieces in Regicide include the Emperor, Empress, Prince, Priest, General, Steward, Fortress, Citizen, Warrior, and Samurai.

Diana explained: "I only have slight contact with Go."

"Regicide has a clear goal and a clear route—kill the Emperor, and you will win the victory."

"But the Go board has no Emperor for the players to kill. Or rather, there are many Emperors on a Go board."

"Begin; you go first."

Ninglu nodded slightly; Regicide was widely used for games among the Imperium's command level, while Go was only relatively popular among the future "White Scars."

With a gesture of his hand, Diana's expression became solemn as she picked up the General.

The Primarch and the female Commander started with fast movements, then slowed down.

Diana's brows furrowed; every move was within her expectations, yet she had a sense of crisis, a sense of unease.

"One more move, and you will lose."

Ninglu lowered his voice and said, "I think you want to use the 'Priest' to play the 'Blind Man's Kill' gambit."

Diana was caught off guard by the Primarch stating her train of thought and immediately fell into unease, but she steadied herself and examined the board one by one.

A moment later, she gave a bitter smile and said helplessly.

"Your 'Prince' can play the 'Traitor's Gamble' at any time; I have lost."

"Your performance has been excellent enough."

The Primarch said with a smile; no matter how outstanding Diana was, she had the limitations of a mortal, and her ability to calculate and deduce could not compare to his own.

He looked at the dejected female Commander, "You will be the captain of my flagship; finish the handover of your current work immediately."

Diana was stunned for a moment; she had not held much expectation before coming, and after losing the game, she had given up completely. She had not expected a sudden turn of events, that she would actually be appointed by the Primarch as the captain of the flagship.

A few seconds later, she came back to her senses, rose from her seat, and said excitedly.

"Lord Primarch, thank you for your trust in me; I will certainly strive to serve you."

Ninglu nodded and said.

"Arsena will send you the status of the Eleventh Legion."

"If you have free time in the future, you can put some energy into Go; it can teach you to perceive threats from all directions and deal with a wide variety of enemies."

"Considering all factors thoroughly and seeing the situation clearly in time will make you a more excellent Commander."

Diana was thoughtful, "As you command, my Lord; I will certainly devote effort to studying this in the future."

"Then, I look forward to our next game."

At the same moment Ninglu selected the flagship captain, in the upper levels of Iphigenia Hive.

Gray rain fell in a fine mist; Tierni, wearing a black hood, was just like anyone else strolling through the commercial district.

But the "Thief"'s seemingly aimless gaze was actually conducting observation; having undergone the Astartes visual control organ surgery, with the bonus of "Superior Observation," he took in the surrounding environment at a glance.

The "Thief" suddenly stepped forward, walking toward a middle-aged man wearing a blue robe with a golden lion emblem on his chest.

Kales, the Patriarch of the Rena Family, had just sent off the attendant sent by the Sigillite to inspect the commercial district, and was now walking toward the airship docking area with his guards.

As he walked past the corner of a jewelry shop, the guard holding an umbrella behind him suddenly slipped, lost his Balance, and stumbled to the ground.

The "Thief" had anticipated this; his "Superior Observation" had captured a slight depression in the slippery ground.

Tierni had predicted that someone among Kales's entourage would inevitably slip.

And in that instant, the guards would fall into a moment of chaos, which was his opportunity.

The "Thief" slid forward, his "Agile Hand" allowing him to maintain the stability and flexibility of his wrist and fingers even at Rapid speed; he reached out his right hand toward Kales.

The "Thief" easily "stole" the key from Kales's inner pocket, a lion-shaped metal key engraved with thirteen runes.

Kales did not notice a thing; seeing the guards regain order, he frowned and scolded them angrily.

"Useless!"

At eleven o'clock at night, just as Kales was searching for the key in his bedroom and study, a black shadow silently climbed up the Hive Tower of the Rena Family.

(End of this chapter)