40k: Midnight Blade

Chapter 138 41. Day Star

At midnight, the Lord of the Eighth Legion returned to the door of his office, keeping a discreet distance so as not to have to let the automatic door slide open.

The corridor of the Night Veil was dim and lightless. The heat interacted with the pipes in the wall, and the overflowing light mist gathered at the soles of his feet. With no one standing guard, Konrad Curze did not need to be protected by his heirs.

He stood there in silence across the wall. The clothes knitted by his brother Fulgrim were still neat on his body, and the black dress with many exquisite details shone in the light darkness.

Konrad Coates didn't enter his office, he just stood outside the door, that's all.

The party was very good, and no one among them had any grudges anymore. Robert Guilliman and Angron were people he had never seen before, nor imagined.

Guilliman was sane and gentle, yet steadfast and stubborn in his hope that Konrad Curze would forgive him for putting Khalil in such danger. The original one-sided apology turned into a funny scene where the two parties felt sorry for each other, which also made the last bit of resentment in Koz's heart disappear.

Angron was different. He didn't speak in most cases, his silence was like a reassuring mountain range.

The things on his forehead were tormenting him, and Curze could see it—he could see it in Angron's occasional twitch of facial muscles and frown, and whenever those two things happened, the nails It will make a close friction sound, which is very creepy.

He was tortured, suffered, and tortured, and yet he had no complaints. Granted, he didn't talk much, but every time he spoke he made the atmosphere better. That's why the party lasted until late at night.

This was also the first time that Konrad Coates got to know two strangers quickly. On the way back, he kept guessing whether it was related to blood, but he did not come up with an answer. He only felt that they were both Nice guy.

They are good people like Fulgrim, Ferrus Manus, and Rogal Dorn. And there is also a kind of enthusiasm in them, a kind of Lorgar Aurelion-like enthusiasm for brothers.

Conrad Coates pursed his lips, and a golden face covered by dense scriptures flashed before his eyes. If asked, he would confess that he didn't like Lorgar Aurelion, but that didn't mean he hated him either.

Hate was a strong emotion, and he didn't feel that way towards Lorgar Aurelion.

Sighing, the Lord of the Eighth Legion closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, he had turned into a midnight ghost.

His shoulders relaxed naturally, and his back was curved without being rickety, but it was not straight either. Lifting his legs, he stepped into his office, where he was not surprised to see another pale giant.

He is correcting documents.

"That's my job," Midnight Ghost hissed.

"Do you want me to apologize for this?" the pale giant replied without looking up.

"I don't want you to apologize for this."

Khalil raised his head, looked at Midnight Ghost, and smiled suddenly: "So, do you want me to apologize for another thing?"

"I don't dare." Ghost hissed in reply, clasping his hands in an obvious gesture of resistance. "After all, you saved so many people. How dare I ask a hero to apologize to me?"

Khalil did not answer this sentence. He lowered his head and finished correcting the last official document. In this way, the construction of the twelfth public school founded by the Ultramarines will begin early tomorrow morning.

After doing this, he put down the pen in his hand, raised his head, and stared at the midnight ghost without saying a word.

He carefully observed the child he had brought out of the underground mine and felt a sense of funny absurdity.

The Midnight Ghost is very different from what he once was. The child in the filthy night wind of Nostramo has disappeared, replaced by a growing young man that he is not very familiar with.

The childhood of the Primarchs is so short, and a few months is enough for the Midnight Ghost to become thoroughly familiar with the identity of Konrad Curze.

but

"I'm not a hero, Ghost." Khalil spoke calmly, almost gently. "It wasn't the case before, it's not the case now, and it won't be the case in the future."

"You just say that because of your paranoid sense of morality. You don't allow yourself to be called a hero because you feel you don't deserve it, because you feel you haven't been able to save more people."

Khalil was silent. After a brief thought, he chuckled and asked, "Did you learn this knowledge from books?"

"Yes." Ghost said. "There are many books for me to read on the Nightfall."

"Have you finished reading it all?"

"I've read them all, a total of 2,233 books."

"So—" Khalil spread his hands. "—Let's talk, Ghost. Now that you're no longer a child, let's talk to each other in a more rational way."

"Okay." Ghost pursed his lips and nodded.

He pulled a huge chair over with great movements and sat opposite Khalil.

"You have a grudge against me." Khalil spoke first. "Don't deny this."

"I won't deny it." Ghost replied calmly, holding his hands.

"So, will you admit it?"

"."

"Can you, Ghost?"

"I'll admit it."

"No, you won't admit it." Khalil stared at the ghost and shook his head slowly.

He did not seek what he wanted from the ghost, and the ghost never looked at him.

"You are just talking, Ghost, you are running away. You are afraid to admit this fact, why? Are you afraid to admit that you are angry with me? You don't even dare to look at me."

"Why wouldn't I dare?" Midnight Ghost turned his head provocatively. "Why don't I dare to look at you?"

Khalil looked at him calmly. Their eyes met for five seconds before the ghost turned his head again.

"Whatever you say." Ghost replied as he stared at the wall. "Looking at each other proves nothing."

Khalil sighed.

"Yes, looking at each other can't prove anything, but whether you dare to look at each other can prove my guess. For example, you are afraid of admitting something. You are afraid of admitting that you have grievances against me, thereby disappointing me. What are you thinking about? ,ghost?"

"I have no idea."

"I hope you can answer me seriously."

"I have no idea."

"Really?"

"."

"Is Khalil Lohars really that special to you, Midnight Ghost?" Khalil asked.

His thoughts were gradually calming down, and the bitter truth was intertwined with reality, turning into a subtle emotion that even he was a little at a loss for.

"Are you so special that you dare not blame this person?"

He couldn't help but chuckle again.

"If you have a grudge against me, you should say it outright, Ghost, rather than bottle it up and use the bad habits you learned from me to stifle your normal emotional development. I'm not a very good person. "

The Midnight Ghost was silent, as quiet as a statue. His lips were quivering and his masseter muscles were moving. Tense and relaxed, twitching nervously.

"On the one hand, you want to be angry with me and release your emotions, but on the other hand, you are afraid that releasing this emotion will make me think you are not mature enough and will make me disappointed in you."

"But the question is, why should I be disappointed with you? You have done a good enough job. Besides, if you are really mature, you should get rid of this emotion."

Khalil Lohars stood up slowly.

"In a sense, Konrad Curze," he deadpanned in High Gothic. "You are still in the same mine as before. When will you be able to come out?"

"Then when will you be able to look at me?"

Konrad Coates stood up abruptly and replied fiercely: "You never told me your plan, and you never told me what I should do next. You only explained part of it, and then hid the more important parts."

"You don't tell me why you died and came back to life, nor why you were pierced by the imperial army. You don't even tell me why you came back as a skeleton. You just lightly turned them into a kind of Just a casual joke. You accuse me of being immature, but have you ever thought about what you’re doing?”

Yes, that's it, Conrad Coates.

Khalil smiled.

"I'm doing something that only I can do." He looked at the child who looked at him stubbornly with a little regret.

"You're just sacrificing like a stupid fool!" Konrad Curze roared.

"You are just trying to put everything on your own shoulders over and over again! Why are you so arrogant, Khalil? Am I not enough to share this with you?!"

"I don't need anyone to share this with me." Khalil shook his head. "Because these things are not 'responsibility' in the first place, they are my own choices. And why should you share it for me? 'Share it for me'. Conrad, have you done everything so far? Is it to help me?"

"I just want to make you proud," Konrad Coates replied shakily. "I just don't want to see you dripping with blood again."

Staring at this child who had not really grown up, many images flashed before Khalil's eyes.

He remembered the first time he taught the ghost how to kill, and also remembered how the ghost asked him with innocence and enthusiasm if there was a way to save Nostramo.

In spite of himself, he smiled. The smile was natural and wide-ranging, not at all like an expression that Khalil Lohars would make, but it just happened, extremely smoothly.

"I've always been proud of you," he said gently. "But I would rather you see every corner of the world with your own eyes, just as if you decided to join the Empire. So, stop trying to ask for my help in everything, Konrad."

He walked out of the desk with a chuckle, patted Conrad Coates on the shoulder, and left the office.

——

+I'm curious, have you had children in the past? +

+There was a long time ago. +

Neos did not avoid this topic. He transmitted some pictures through psychic communication. They were several residual pictures, showing one or two children playing in a wheat field. Their faces were blurred.

+And I can no longer remember their faces and names. +

+Regret? +

+ Of course. +

+And they actually say that you are a ruthless madman and an arrogant careerist. +

+I am indeed, it is impossible for a non-madman to make such a plan. All rulers throughout the ages have only been active on earth. They may be wise or foolish, and their goals are simply insignificant and terrifying compared to mine. +

+You sound arrogant. +

+I am very arrogant, aren’t you too? +

Khalil burst into laughter. He raised his head and fiddled with the files that had been kept in front of his desk. This action has no meaning. Just like this conversation, it is just to express some emotions.

+Arrogant, cruel, greedy monster, a liar who steals the name of the world, a tyrant who will destroy the world sooner or later. They use these words to call me, some are strangers, some are soldiers who despise me because the land has been invaded, and some are my friend. +

+They don't understand me, but I understand them. I have lived with the mentality of an ordinary person for a long time, and I understand how at a loss a person can be when facing a rapidly changing world. Like you, Khalil, I have lit a fire on Terra. +

+This flame dazzled everyone who saw it. Some of them were attracted by it and joined me, while others were shocked and frightened by it. They could briefly see into the future I described, so they knew the consequences if I failed. Humans cannot afford to fail, so they don't accept me and my fire. +

+Feel sad? +

+No. +

The Emperor laughed, for the first time as Emperor.

+I'm just proud of them. They saw clearly the ambition of this mask and the possible consequences of this dream. Isn't this enough to prove their excellence? +

+ Human beings have been so contradictory since ancient times. There are heroes, villains, greedy and cruel people among us, but there are still many stars among us. I've seen these stars with my own eyes, Khalil. Therefore, I will never allow the future of mankind to remain bleak like this+

+Darkness is coming, and if no new stars appear, then let me. +

+If you plan to illuminate all of humanity, you will burn yourself to death. +

+And you know that I don't care. +

Yeah, you won't care.

Khalil shook his head.

+The ravings of a madman.+

+But this psychic communication was initiated by you. +

+Did I say I wasn’t? +

There was a burst of happy laughter from the other end of the communication, and half a minute later, it was hung up. Khalil lowered his head calmly and continued correcting the document.

The night is long, but it will pass. And after that, what will people see?

This is the first update today. After reading Teeth, half of my face was numb and I couldn’t write much. I shamelessly begged to vote.

By the way, starting from tomorrow, I will try it every day for a week to see if I can maintain the quantity and quality.