40k: Midnight Blade

Chapter 372 101. The Burning of Five Hundred Worlds (11, 3.5k)

Valentus Dorro hurriedly walked to a side door. In his right hand, he held two Mechanicus data tablets that had just been rushed to him, and in his left hand, he held a stack of data from Robert Guilliman's office. Heavy documents.

This side door consisted of two huge blocks of marble, very large, even for an Astartes.

It's hard to say what the ancients who built them were thinking. Could it be that there were prophets among them who could foresee the future? The existence of the Astartes was known in advance, so a huge living room like this was specially built.

The two victorious soldiers pushed them open, and the roar of people coming from behind the door made Yingjie pause in his steps and made him sigh involuntarily.

You know, this reception hall has not been used for a long time. Although it is indeed huge and magnificent, it is unimaginable - but this is also the reason why Robert Guilliman criticizes it.

Lord Macragge was adamant that his court did not need a thousand-column reception hall, and he complained many times about this.

"This is too luxurious." He once sighed to everyone. "This is simply extravagant. Look at those decorations made of gold and silver. What do I need them for? To show my identity? It's ridiculous. Only incompetent kings need these things."

He originally wanted to demolish this place, but he couldn't do it because of its ancient history. In the end, all the decorations and paintings had to be sold for charity, but the hall was left empty, which made Robert Guilliman dislike it even more.

But now, if possible, Valentus would like to ask his primarch a question.

Are you sure you really don't need it, my lord?

Yingjie couldn't help laughing at his clumsy joke for a few seconds, then straightened his expression and strode into the hall. Two Death Guards who were talking to each other saw him. One of them gave him a serious look, while the other extended his right hand in a friendly manner.

"Do you need help, Lord Yingjie?"

"No, that's not necessary," said Valentus. "Please continue your discussion, Captain Jialuo, Lord Kaifa."

One of Mortarion's bodyguards, the gloomy and still sad-looking Kevare Morag, nodded. His old MK2 armor was well maintained and complemented his pale short hair.

To this day, it is not uncommon among major legions to still choose to wear old-model power armor. There are many reasons, including habit, honor, or simply unwillingness to change. Which one does Kefa Morag belong to?

Valentus didn't know the answer, but he noted it down and planned to notify the logistics department after tonight so that they could prepare more replacement parts and repair materials for the power armor for the Death Guards.

Compared to his brothers, Seventh Company Commander Jialuo seems to be more rational. He is not as silent as Kefa, but he does appear to have complicated emotions. He managed to gather his energy and chatted with Valentus for a few words, the eagle emblem on his forearm armor shining brightly.

"In short, we haven't drawn any useful conclusions yet. Defensive warfare is not what we are good at, Lord Yingjie. Maybe we are not good at anything."

Valentus pursed his lips. He didn't know what to say, but Gallo had already let him go. The battle captain smiled bitterly knowing he had made a mistake, raised his hand, pulled his brother who was still grieving, and cleared a way for Valentus.

The hero of Ocruz nodded gratefully and walked through it.

But navigating the crowded halls was no easy task.

The large pieces of stained glass reflected dazzling light, casting a psychedelic light on all the people, things and things he saw. The black and white checkerboard floor should have become an inconspicuous canvas, but due to excessive maintenance, this dazzling reflection has been exacerbated.

It's a visual torture, and so is the physical sensation, not to mention the smell.

Your Majesty, at least a thousand Astartes crowded together would not taste good. It's okay to gather before the war. No matter how strong the smell of the maintenance oil is, it makes sense.

But it's different now. Everyone in this hall except the Ultramarines has experienced combat and has just returned from the battlefield. Some people's faces were even stained with blood, and medical servitors were shuttled around them.

What's even worse is that almost everyone Valentus meets wants to chat with him.

He had just met the Salamanders with his front foot and answered the firewood guards' question about where the forge hall was in Macragge. He was about to answer the Iron Warriors' doubts about the terrain of Macragge with his back foot. They wondered if they could establish a defensive outpost on Macragge's famed Crown of Hera.

This is naturally possible. There are wartime regulations during wartime. Valentus told them. He decided to go to Ms. Euton to discuss the matter later - he knew that Ms. Euton would agree, but he and the Chamberlain still needed to convince Robert Guilliman's palace staff.

Macragge was known to be overpopulated, in every sense of the word.

In this way, it took Valentus half an hour to walk several hundred meters, which was extremely torture. The only thing that comforted him was that when he arrived in front of Perturabo and Vulcan sweating profusely, they both raised their heads from the projection of the tactical table and looked at him.

The heroes of Orcrus puffed up their chests and cleared their throats: "Dear Primarchs——"

"—Give me those papers quickly," said Perturabo impatiently. "I've already discovered you, why do you still cough to remind me of your presence before speaking?"

"Thank you, Yingjie." Vulkan raised his right hand towards him awkwardly. "Please forgive me, my brother is in a special state of mind right now. Well, I mean, he is not very polite, and he doesn't really want to be polite."

Valentus shrugged, handed over the file, and handed the data pad to Vulkan, while speaking in a low voice.

"It doesn't matter, Lord Vulkan, I'm used to this kind of thing. What I mean is that our Primarch may be more egregious than Lord Perturabo at certain times."

The Fire Dragon Lord looked at him in shock.

"It's true," Valentus said. "It is certainly reasonable for someone with such a heavy responsibility to lose his temper in some places. However, our Primarch will apologize to us when he has finished thinking about it."

"And I am not him." Perturabo immersed himself in flipping through the documents while answering Valentus's words coldly.

His tone sounded quite unquestionable, but Vulkan next to him showed a strange expression. The Fire Dragon Lord's hesitant expression was quite obvious.

"Let me tell you, Yingjie, I don't like red tape, and I hate beating around the bush. It's my nature to be straightforward. It's your job to bring these documents. Do you still expect me to thank you for this? Impossible .But you did a good job.”

Valentus frowned, opened his mouth, and looked at him silently. His expression was quite similar to Vulkan's. He also wanted to say something but couldn't.

Perturabo looked up from the file and waved to him: "Come here now, I have many questions for you - how many similar files like this are there in Robert Guilliman's office?"

"It depends on how much you want," Valentus replied as he stepped closer. "I mean, if you want, I can fetch all those file cabinets and data pads for you."

"Give me—" Perturabo lowered his head again, and then pulled out a thick document. "——This kind of thing, I want this kind of document with the emblem of your Ultramarines specially marked by him."

"clear."

"Still the old rules, you can identify by yourself which secrets should be hidden and which documents I can read. It's up to you to decide. I only need the data."

He handed the document to Valentus, looked at him seriously, and waited for an answer.

"Of course." The hero of Ocruz nodded as if accepting his fate. "And there are no secrets in war. I will take all the documents and hope that my original body will not be angry about this."

"He knows his priorities clearly." Perturabo lowered his head again, his voice becoming deeper and also taking on a mocking tone. "You seem to be looking down on your own original body, Yingjie."

The corners of Valentus' eyes twitched twice, and then he turned and left without saying a word - Are you angry? That's not true, but the resentment is definitely there.

To put it bluntly, he simply didn't understand how the Iron Warriors had managed to march and fight with such a Primarch for so many years. Is it possible that none of them have a temper?

With helpless resentment and admiration for Perturabo's immediate devotion to work, Valentus Dorlo left the reception hall again.

This time, he called five moving servitors and planned to move all the documents in Robert Guilliman's office directly, saving two more trips.

After he left, Vulkan carefully bent down and made a suggestion to Perturabo.

"Brother, don't you think your attitude towards Hero Valentus was a little too rough?"

"He'll get used to it, and he's already used to it," Perturabo said without looking up, and asked a question. "Tell me, how many military camps are there in Macragge City?"

"Twelve." Vulkan glanced at a data pad in his hand and quickly found the data the Lord of Steel needed.

"But." The Fire Dragon Lord made a gesture. "He is an Ultramarine after all, and Robert must be heading for his hometown."

"So what?"

"If you continue like this, I'm afraid there will be a quarrel between you and him."

"No, it won't."

"Why are you so sure?" Vulkan frowned. Perturabo's performance finally made him a little angry.

"Because Roboute Guilliman can become a man of absolute rationality when he needs to, and that time is now. Look, Vulkan, he will only thank me for giving him Macragge He was so well guarded that he didn’t even complain about me. As for the secrets I saw—”

The Lord of Steel raised his head and reached for the data pad in Vulkan's hand, with a half-smile on his face.

"——It's not classified at all. He is still as naive as ever and actually marked those things as secret. Also, there are thirteen military camps in Macragge. You are wrong."

"What?" Vulcan asked doubtfully. "But I checked the data pad?"

"I just looked at the map, and there was an error in comparing the data with the city's plan. According to the calculation, I think it is a hidden military camp, which is not marked on any documents. I'm afraid this can be regarded as one of Robert's little secrets ”

Vulkan looked at him and sighed: "Some of the characteristics you sometimes show really make me shudder."

"Try to get used to it, Vulkan," Perturabo told him calmly. "Like you get used to war."

There is still a chapter worth 4.5k, so don’t wait, go to bed early.