No one expected it would be him. In the Warhammer fandom, this one is the player's acknowledged next Great Wolf!

In Rhodes' mind, all the information about him surfaced at once—Ragnar Blackmane, the youngest Wolf Lord among the Space Wolves.

He wasn't even seventy, yet his legendary feats far surpassed any other Space Marine his age.

From the moment he became a Space Marine, he had accomplished countless achievements that left other Astartes in the dust. First, he discovered a secret base of the Chaos Thousand Sons warband on Fenris.

He then destroyed the base, killed the Thousand Sons sorcerer inside, became the bodyguard for a Navigator family on Holy Terra, and after thwarting a rival family's plot, was gifted the Frostblade.

Later, he even resolved the feud between the Dark Angels and Space Wolves, successfully preventing a misunderstanding between the two First Founding Chapters.

Upon returning to Fenris as Wolf Guard of the Great Company, he reclaimed the holy relic Spear of Russ in battle and slaughtered an entire Ork Warlord and his guards.

Then he single-handedly hunted down and killed the Chaos Space Marine champion who had murdered his own Wolf Lord, earning the praise of all his battle-brothers and being nominated as the new Wolf Lord.

That year, Ragnar was not even 50 years old—a true legendary hero. In the future, his most dazzling battle would be during his psychic awakening, fighting the Ork Warlord Borzag Khan.

A Primaris Marine, yet he perished together with a mighty Ork Warlord—note, Ork Warlords are on par with Primarchs!

The Beast once rivaled the Primarchs and even dealt grievous wounds to the Emperor himself. One can imagine how fierce this Young Wolf Lord was.

After that battle, both were gravely wounded: one underwent Primaris surgery, and the other was rebuilt by his Painboy.

Rhodes believed Ragnar's true combat power was not much less than a Custodian—a true formidable foe. If it were Titus fighting, Rhodes would be confident, but if it was Dres, Rhodes felt a bit concerned.

"This is my youngest Wolf Lord, but his strength is among the best of us.

If you, Dres, can defeat him, I'll acknowledge that the new generation of Astartes truly surpasses the original Space Marines," said Great Wolf Grimnar.

He knew well Ragnar Blackmane's combat strength—even Grimnar himself might not be able to handle the lad. It was as if the guy was born for battle.

His power far exceeded ordinary Space Marines. After his augmentations, he was much larger than most.

"I said it—no matter who it is, I will defeat them within 10 seconds. The difference between us is not something that can be bridged by courage or skill," Dres replied.

The gap was fundamental. He didn't know this new Wolf Lord, so the other must have risen rapidly.

"If you really beat me in 10 seconds, I'll kill myself," Ragnar Blackmane snorted.

In his career, he had faced Chaos, Grey Knights, and Ork Warlords—enemies supposedly stronger than him, yet all had fallen to his sword.

"Dres, always go all out, show respect to your opponent.

This Young Wolf Lord is extraordinary; don't underestimate him,"

Rhodes advised.

Arrogance leads to defeat, so Rhodes reminded his subordinate—don't be complacent just because you beat the Custodians. Even transformed, it took two Custodians to fight you to a draw.

Sometimes, defeat comes from pride and underestimating your foe.

"Understood, Lord Rhodes. May I use my berserk transformation?"

Dres asked.

"You must go all out, or the victory is meaningless. I've heard about you; I hope you've improved these years,"

said Ragnar, drawing his icy blue chainsword.

"I've confessed for my past mistakes—don't bring them up again, or you'll only anger me,"

Dres snorted, drawing his power greatsword.

His current armor, designed by Lady Salome herself, far surpassed standard Terminator armor, rivaling even the Custodians' auramite armor.

His weapon, issued when he joined Rhodes, was made of extradimensional metal, its power exceeding even Custodian power weapons.

"I do hope to anger you—then you'll show even greater strength! Howl!"

Ragnar roared, two fangs protruding from his mouth. Space Wolves had wolf genes—much like the Blood Angels, they were werewolves among Astartes.

Ragnar's speed was incredible. He lunged, swinging the Frostblade at Dres.

Dres' body erupted in crimson energy, his eyes and muscles swelling as he activated his berserk transformation at Rhodes' command. He immediately raised his power sword and slashed at Ragnar.

Normally, a chainsword couldn't match a power sword, but his was a Navigator relic, on par with a holy artifact.

Clang!

The two weapons collided. The silvery Frostblade was instantly cleaved in two by Dres' power sword.

Ragnar's eyes widened as he leaped back, trying to create distance.

Impossible!

His prized weapon, the best Frostblade from the Navigator family, was so easily broken. What manner of weapon did the opponent wield? Was it an artifact? Only an artifact could have such power!

But Dres gave him no time to think. With impossible speed, his massive frame charged forward, seizing Ragnar's left wrist.

The Young Wolf didn't even have time to react—he was instantly grabbed, feeling searing pain as the broken Frostblade clattered to the ground.

Ragnar kicked hard at Dres's chest, trying to break free. His boot thudded against the armor, but Dres didn't budge.

"Game over,"

Dres swung his huge fist, smashing Ragnar on the head and knocking him out cold.

This heroic Young Wolf Lord didn't last two rounds against Dres. His weapon was destroyed in the first exchange; he was knocked out in the second—defeated in less than 10 seconds, at the 7th second!

Dres had followed Rhodes' command, going all out from the very start.

Ragnar's strength, while far beyond most original Space Marines, simply wasn't on the same level—neither in gear nor in experience. Dres' battle experience was anything but lacking.

A Deathwatch veteran, and after following Rhodes, he'd been sparring with Custodians for months.

"Ragnar!"

"Relax, just knocked him out,"

Dres picked up the unconscious Wolf Lord and handed him to Great Wolf Grimnar.

Grimnar nodded gravely and had their Wolf Priest check Ragnar.

After examination, it was confirmed he was unharmed, just unconscious.

That battle had been a shock—Dres' strength was jaw-dropping!

Ragnar hadn't even been able to resist. In just an instant, he'd lost—his power and reflexes simply weren't in the same league.

Nearby Custodians just nodded knowingly. Any warrior who needed two Custodians to hold back when berserk, if he couldn't instantly defeat an original Space Marine, would be an embarrassment to the Custodians.

Even Rhodes was a bit surprised. He'd expected a titanic duel, but instead, the Wolf Lord had been instantly defeated! Without plot armor, original Space Marines stood no chance against Primaris super-Astartes.

Of course, Dres had the weapon advantage—his extradimensional metal weapon was no joke, even the Emperor himself coveted such metal. A Navigator family heirloom was simply no match.

Under the Great Wolf's shaking, Ragnar soon woke up. His injuries were mild—even that last blow, if Dres had used his power sword, would have decapitated him.

But the shame of defeat stung him. For the first time since becoming a Space Marine, he faced an opponent he simply could not overcome.

Before, no matter how strong the enemy, he always had a fighting chance.

But today, no matter how many times he fought, he wouldn't last more than a few rounds.