40k: Midnight Blade

Chapter 261 32. Judgment Day (1)

As the words fell, the chill disappeared. At this moment, Alkas Far turned his head sharply.

Where did that voice come from?

He tried to find the answer, but there was no one behind him. The Crow Guards stood a few meters away and stared at him, silent.

The trigger-type shields on the shoulders of the cavalry-style terminator were shining steadily, and countless heavy medals were hung on the steel tassels hanging from the bottom of the shoulder armor. The ribbon representing honor snaked around the top of the breastplate, like a sparkling golden river, cutting straight through the cold black and white paint of the Raven Guard.

It seems like everything is business as usual.

So, who was speaking just now?

Alkas didn't get an answer, and his distraught became the source of evil that drew his attention at this moment. He turned around, and a pale skeleton suddenly appeared in his sight.

The stacked ribs have an almost human-like shape, solemnly guarding a scarlet gemstone located on the chest. Alkas slowly raised his head and saw a skull face, with nothing in the deep eye sockets, like black holes, swallowing up all light.

Alkas subconsciously wanted to draw his sword, but the skeleton reached out his hand one step ahead of him and pressed it on the wrist of his sword-drawing hand. The force was not rough, it could even be called gentle, but Alkas was still unable to pull out even one millimeter of the sword blade.

At the same time, the coldness struck again, ruthlessly taking away his control over his body.

The skeleton retracted his hand and turned towards the two originals. Alkas roared in his heart and tried to stop it verbally.

He didn't understand why the Shadow Guards behind him didn't move, let alone why the Night Blades who saw all this clearly stood by and did nothing. But he had to protect the original body.

But does his original body need it?

In his eyes, the skeleton walked towards the two original bodies. What happened next was far beyond Alkas's understanding.

"Ah, you're here, Khalil." Conrad Coates turned his head and greeted with a smile. "I was just wondering where you were. What took you so long?"

"I went to see Yago Severtarion." Khalil answered the Lord of the Night's question while looking at Corvus Corax inquiringly.

The latter nodded to him and gave some kind of answer silently. A strange tacit understanding emerged during their exchange. Enric Barbatos, who was standing by, raised his head intently and began to wonder why the atmosphere suddenly became so weird.

Of course he couldn't find the answer.

"...and Sergeant Alastor Rorschach," Khalil continued. "He has woken up from his coma."

"I hope Jago Severtarion is okay," said the Primarch of the XIX Legion. "I saw the look of his left hand. Alastor's desire to win crossed something he shouldn't have."

"Oh, don't say that." Cozz leaned back, propped up his cheek with his right hand, and spoke in a tone of lack of interest. "Sevita is not much better either. He is full of bad habits."

Khalil shrewdly let the conversation fall into silence for dozens of seconds. He made no attempt to pick up the conversation, lest it make the atmosphere even weirder.

And the announcer they invited—or rather, the narrator Bellos who was the guest announcer—started his work again.

The voice is resonant, the words are well-chosen and even humorous. He is very professional, so professional that one can’t help but wonder if he has done something similar before.

"Wonderful battle!" Bellos said loudly, and began to bombard the microphone one after another.

"Captain Jago Severtarion of the Midnight Blade and Sergeant Alastor Rorschach of the Raven Guard put on a wonderful battle for the celebration! Please cheer for these two warriors!"

"Please enjoy the delicious food on our table and wait for the next battle to begin! Under the watchful eyes of the two primarchs and the entire Nostramo, the combatants will represent the Midnight Blade and the Raven Guard. Fight, their battle will lay the foundation for the friendship between the two legions!"

"He really knows how to talk," Conrad Coates commented with some surprise, and grabbed a piece of dried sand eel from the round table in front of him.

It has undergone rigorous processing and has now completely lost its activity. The dried meat itself is about the same length as a finger of the original body, with a flat surface and crystal clear flesh, reflecting light like glass under the light.

The Lord of the Night twisted it with his fingers, and a rich meaty aroma instantly filled the air. Corax looked over expressionlessly, just in time to see Curze swallow the dried meat whole without chewing it, his eyes narrowed slightly, with a hint of satisfaction.

".Does it taste good?" asked Corvus Corax.

"Of course." Conrad Coates smiled slightly, picked up a large plate of dried sand eels on the round table and handed it over.

His brother looked at him for a moment and took the smaller one with a most peculiar kind of care. He took it in his hand and looked at it carefully for a while before opening his mouth.

As he chewed, the taste of the food bloomed, exploded, and proliferated on the surface of his taste buds. Corax's eyes widened and his throat rolled several times before he swallowed the piece of dried meat.

"Do you want more, brother?" Cozz asked with some anticipation.

"No or no." The Lord of Crows closed his eyes tightly and answered this sentence in a slightly gloomy tone.

He enjoyed the taste of the eel jerky, but he wouldn't allow himself to eat more. This food was so delicious that he didn't want to have any extravagant desires for it. After all, Corax knew very well that food like this would cost a lot.

The Raven Guard is not a very wealthy legion. Although he and the Emperor have reached many agreements, the time is still too short, and they have not grown enough to feed the Legion.

"Aren't you going to eat?" Cozz asked slightly surprised.

"No, brother." Corax opened his eyes and slowly shook his head. "My stomach is not used to such food."

The lie blurted out after a moment's thought, and the primarch smiled bitterly in his heart - what a cheap lie, what on earth was I talking about?

He lowered his eyes, avoiding eye contact with the Lord of Night. He was convinced that Conrad Coates would be unhappy because of such lies and rejection. But he was wrong. Konrad Coates expressed no displeasure.

His brother just patted him on the shoulder and said in a calm tone that did not sound like much comfort: "I understand this feeling, Corax. But the price of sand eels is actually not high."

Corax looked at Curze in slight shock.

"Are you surprised?" The Lord of Night shrugged. "Actually, the answer is very simple. For ordinary people, its overly rich taste is a poison, enough to destroy their taste buds and sensory nerves."

"Moreover, creatures like sand eels are too dangerous for ordinary people. They are about one meter long when alive, are extremely fast, and are powerful enough to crush steel plates. They are specially supplied to the Astartes. and Legion food, so it’s always cheap.”

He stretched out his hand and handed over the silver disc again.

"A ton of dried sand eel meat is even cheaper than the same weight of nutritious porridge." The Lord of the Night said with a smile. "So, feel free to eat it. As long as you don't eat it every time like our Kege."

"Are there any consequences if you eat every meal?"

"Yes, you will be addicted." Conrad Coates looked serious. "Then you'll be famous for it like Kegel."

The corners of Corax's mouth twitched and he seemed to smile.

Khalil observed them silently, his fingers hidden under the cloak trembling slightly.

found it.

In the empty eye sockets of the skeleton, there was a flash of dark anger.

——

The celebration ended successfully twelve hours later, and the invited workers and hive managers returned to their respective homes in vehicles. The civilians who had been watching the celebration in their dormitories or at home finally went to rest contentedly.

Twelve hours of continuous viewing is not an easy task for anyone, but no one wants to miss such an opportunity.

What's more, due to the visit of another primarch and his legions, factories and mines are on holiday. If we don't watch now, when will we wait?

Of course, the end of one thing often means the beginning of another. At this moment, deep in the 'lair' beneath the Quintus Hive, Khalil was walking side by side with Corax.

"Conrad said you were experienced in this sort of thing."

"What kind of thing?" Khalil asked.

"I don't know. Judgment?" Corax sighed with a slight headache. He did not have the airs that were common among the Primarchs. In other words, he was serious only when necessary. In private, the Lord of Crows is quite real.

At least it's more real than Perturabo.

"The trial method I am good at and what you need now are probably two different things, Corax." Khalil smiled slightly. "Besides, I am an outsider after all. Do you really think I should be involved in this matter?"

Corax stopped and looked at him for a moment.

"You are not an outsider," the Primarch said in an odd tone. "I mean, if my father trusts you so much, who am I to question his trust in you? I don't doubt him, anything, anything. I promise I will be loyal and supportive and so will he."

Khalil shook his head and did not put too much energy into this matter. He has found a new argument——

"But I still need to tell you something, Corax. The evidence I have in hand cannot be recorded, cannot be mentioned, and should not even be trusted."

The Primarch of the XIX Legion thought carefully for a moment and made a gesture.

“I’d rather seeing is believing,” he said. "If it is really as Conrad said...beyond reason, maybe it will be a good thing for my legion."

Also, code.