40k: Midnight Blade.

Chapter 177 2. Bad news

Conrad Coates mused.

He stood on top of a tall building, and the surroundings were extremely quiet.

The night sky, which would have been cut into a chaotic scene by the chaotic and brilliant lights, now looks exceptionally peaceful.The streets are new, too, where the gangs have viciously laid traps, and the traps have been bulldozed.

Life in the nest is boring, and gangs will do anything to get rid of this boredom that can drive them crazy-drugs, killing, alcohol, simple physical pleasure, and the simplest thing on Nostramo. entertainment activities.
torment others.

Torture some innocent people who are just passing by.In order to enjoy a kind of perverted pleasure, as well as the demented illusion of superiority.

The Lord of Midnight slowly raised his right hand and put it on the cold iron railing.

He gently rubbed its surface with his fingertips, feeling the roughness and coldness, and suddenly felt a little bit like a world away.But he quickly shook off that feeling.

Curz looked to the other end of the night, and accurately captured a silhouette extending from the top of a building in the darkness.That's number six, and it keeps watch over Nostramo.

It was there before, and it is now, so will it be here in the future?
Conrad Koz laughed silently, jumped on his knees and jumped out of the building, flying through the night like a ghost.He began to run sensitively and freely, as easily and naturally as before.

A few minutes later, he climbed through a deliberately left open window and entered another building.And Khalil has been waiting here for a long time.

He leaned against the wall, leisurely looking at a booklet with the help of the dim yellow light above his head.Conrad Curz glanced at it, and saw the words "Common Sense" written in Low Gothic.

He closed the window conveniently so that the temperature in the room would rise, and asked, "What are you looking at?"

"Common Sense," Khalil said without looking up. "A manual compiled by Lucretius Corvo. I have to say, he is very professional, Conrad, and there is even a professor in it how to make a meal with the seasoning and food handed down Simple and delicious dinner.”

"Does this kind of thing need to be taught?"

"Not everyone is like you, Conrad" Khalil glanced up at him. "Mastering 23 ways to cook rat is quite an achievement."

"Then you still like to eat fried mice." Conrad Koz glanced back with the same gesture. "And I'm not proficient, I haven't practiced it-do you want to try it?"

"No, thank you for your kindness, let's choose some normal ingredients." Khalil chuckled, put away the manual, and put it on the long table aside.

This is a conference room with a dark red carpet, simple decoration and a high ceiling, which is enough for them.A huge screen stood quietly at the front of the long table. It hadn't been activated yet. It looked like a mirror, and it was reflecting the two figures at the end of the long table at this moment.

Curz curled his lips, unwilling to continue on this topic—he already understood why Khalil insisted on hoping that he would stop eating mice, so this memory has now become a kind of memory Embarrassing episodes with a bit of a gag urge from time to time.

He approached the booklet, picked it up and began to read it himself.

Strictly speaking, only three people will participate in this meeting, he, Khalil, and Lucretius Corvo, so Conrad Curze doesn't want to be too serious—besides, he will Nor did he want to tell Lucretius Corvo about the Battle of Harkosus in a serious tone.

The whole thing sounds shocking enough in itself, if he said it in a serious tone with a straight face
"Bang, bang, bang."

What a coincidence.

The Midnight Lord narrowed his eyes, closed the manual, and put it back on the long table.

Khalil had already walked over to open the door, and Lucretius Corvo, who was wearing a light blue uniform, stood straight outside the door, waiting for the next words without turning his eyes - he still maintained that kind of Formal occasions never reveal the slightest casual strict attitude.

Khalil sighed, turned sideways, and asked him to come in.

"You don't have to be so serious, Lucretius." Conrad Koz couldn't help showing a smile. He gestured for the Ultramarines to sit in front of him, but Lucretius didn't Instead of doing so immediately, he glanced at Khalil first.

"How can I go beyond that?" The Ultramarine said with a serious face. "The seat next to you should belong to Instructor Khalil or your first company commander."

"Okay, okay—" Khalil sighed, pulled him to the table and sat down. "—you've worked hard and painstakingly on Nostramo all year, Lucretius, and the results are astonishingly good."

Conrad Koz picked up his words: "We have nothing but gratitude for you, so let's talk to each other in a different way, less serious. There are only three people in this meeting."

"but I."

"It's all right." Conrad Curz nodded to him, and Lucretius stared into those completely black eyes and could only obey.

He had dealt with quite a few Primarchs, and it seemed to him that Primarchs usually had strong emotions commensurate with their size.At this moment, what he saw in the eyes of the Midnight Lord was an obvious kindness.

And this is completely different from Khalil Rohars.Although the instructor was equally tall, most of the time he acted too calmly, everything was hidden, and it was impossible to see any obvious emotional reactions from him.

"I appreciate all your hard work this year," Konrad Coz said after he finally took his seat. "And this kind of gratitude cannot be expressed in words, Lucretius."

"For this reason, I hope that you will return to Macragge with a batch of gifts after the end of your three-year term. I know that you did not do this for reward, but I cannot deny it. Also, please forgive me I brought it up so early that I'm not really sure I'm still in Nostramo three years later."

The Ultramarines nodded silently—Konrad Koz covered all the points he wanted to refute, and, judging from the current form, he might still cover it with adamantine gold.

"So."

Conrad Koz pondered and made a gesture: "I believe you have heard what I want to talk to you on the way here, Lucretius?"

"Yes, my lord." The Ultramarine nodded, his voice hoarse with emotion—he wasn't stupid, of course he realized something.Whether it was this meeting alone, or the worry caught in the eyes of the Lord of the Night at this moment.

"I have to be honest with you, Lucretius, although this matter may become countless secrets that will be buried later. However, Harkosus has three planets in total, it is a federation, and it is also A lie, a vicious trap."

Konrad Koz put down his hands, both of his hands were placed on the table now, staying quietly, his fingers were long and slender, and blood vessels were clearly visible on the back of his pale hands.

Lucretius felt dazed for a moment, wondering why he had started looking at the back of a Primarch's hand.His throat rolled up and down, and he was immediately ready to continue listening.

And so the Night Lords continued.

"While the Ultramarines [-]st Chapter and your father were in charge of Harkosus III - it has now been completely destroyed, and the orbital bombardment of the Glory of Macragge has left it in a pile of floating The rubble of a dark vacuum. But, before that, something bad happened."

".What is it, my lord?"

"Your father is wounded," said Conrad Curze, and Lucretius began to breathe faster.

"He was despicably calculated, and the Harkosus took advantage of his desire to regain lost ground through peaceful means. They launched a shameless sneak attack. Dozens of bastards wearing self-destruct vests rushed towards Charged against your Primarch. And he was wearing only ritual armor."

Lucretius Corvo's expression looked as pale as if he was going to die—or, he was already dead—the Ultramarine took several deep breaths to calm down, and he said hoarsely: "Please You tell me he's fine."

"Of course he's fine." Curz replied softly. "He is a Primarch, Lucretius, he was just caught off guard by this sudden attack."

"He has long since recovered and is now fulfilling the traditions of your Ultramarines. Remember? Harkossus is a Federation, and he protected the innocent civilians on the only remaining Harkossus One. Until the Empire The colonial fleet has arrived."

Lucret let out a long and slender breath.

"Anyway, that's what happened," said Curz, looking at the Ultramarines, who were still recovering, and even cracked the joke again. "I should have sent my third company commander, Phil Zalost, to do this."

"Uh?"

"Inside information, don't tell others." Curz winked at him. "During the period when I first returned to the Legion, Fell was given a new nickname by his brothers because he often reported some bad news to me. They called him the Mourning Bird."

The corner of the Ultramarine's mouth began to twitch: "...It's really... a very special title."

"It fits their personalities very well." The Lord of Midnight raised the corners of his mouth and showed an obvious smile.What happened afterward was quite logical—Lucresio bid farewell and continued to return to work.

The news shocked him for a moment, but he was encouraged by the news that the Primarch was safe and might even pass Nostramo on his return flight.

At the same time, the gentle attitude shown by Conrad Koz also made him feel a sense of pride that is unique to being treated with respect.Of course, he didn't know that Konrad Koz, who was very rational and gentle in his eyes, was complaining loudly in the conference room at the moment.

"I can't believe Robert wants me to deceive his heir."

Curz covered his forehead, leaned back, and lay down on the chair.

"How long can he stay on that planet? His appearance will definitely be found to be wrong, and then Lucretius Corvo will find out that I lied to him."

"White lies are nothing, Conrad." Khalil replied in a low voice. He lowered his head and continued to read the pamphlet. "And Lucretius will understand why his Primarch wants this to be kept secret."

"Your tone sounds like—" Conrad Koz suddenly sat up from his chair, looking suspiciously at Khalil's profile. "—Like you have another plan that you don't want to tell me."

"Is it that obvious?"

Khalil laughed dumbfounded. He shook his head and said, "The truth about the Warp cannot be hidden, Conrad. So, sooner or later, Lucretius Corvo will find out the truth, just like he sooner or later It’s like being a company commander.”

"Will he be a company commander?"

"He can be selected by Robert Guilliman, bringing 490 nine Ultramarines to support us is enough to explain the problem, isn't it? The number of Ultramarines is much higher than ours, and Lucretius can Stand out among his brothers."

"So, I tricked a company commander of the Ultramarines." Konrad Curz said in a low tone on purpose.

"."

Khalil sighed again, this was the third time today - he put down the booklet slowly, then turned his head, and spoke calmly to Conrad Koz.

"You're not good enough, Conrad," he said deadpan. "Besides, I don't have any plans that I don't want to tell you. In fact, I have a plan, but I won't not tell you."

"really?"

"of course it's true."

Khalil pushed the booklet over, and he turned to the last page, and the content of that page made Conrad Koz's face instantly become strange.

"Savior of Nostramo."

Khalil narrated slowly with his strange expression, his voice was so low that it almost sounded like a ship's automatic voice announcement.

"Conrad Koze, who came from afar, and his Eighth Legion, saved Nostramo on behalf of the Empire. I have to admit one thing, the Ultramarines may really be born political players, He's already looking for a reason for you to rule Nostramo legitimately and legally."

"I—" Curz pursed his lips, his expression extremely complicated. "—isn't that a little too fast?"

"Well, I don't think so, but it doesn't matter if you don't want to be the ruler." Khalil shrugged and stood up. "Just make sure Nostramo gets better, don't you?"

He left the conference room with a smile, and handed over the remaining thinking time to Conrad Koz. After all, time alone is always precious.

As for himself. He has another meeting to have, one across the stars.

A meeting with Malcador the Handprinter.

　This chapter is 4k, updated.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)