40k: Midnight Blade.

Chapter 543 61.Primal Fear (V, In the Blood)
"I've lost weight and you've aged," Khalil said.

He walked in the corridor filled with blood, surrounded by noisy shouts and cries. The victorious troops are working hard to maintain order and tell the civilians why they are here.

The crew members were calmer, and although they were still trembling with fear, they were able to continue to work strongly, carrying ammunition, or setting up defenses along the church with the victorious troops.

Robert Guilliman walked behind him, walking very slowly. His gesture earned Khalil many unwanted looks.

"I think we are all getting old," said the Primarch. "I look a little older. Although you don't, you sound like an ordinary old man when you speak now."

"If I were really an ordinary old man," Khalil laughed out loud. "That's not a bad joke."

Guilliman looked down at him, his friend's hands now empty again. The blood vessels pulsed on the back of his hands and wrists, showing a faint cyan color under the pale skin.

These hands don't look like the hands of a warrior, but they are far beyond the scope of what the word 'artist' can describe. For art, they go beyond.

Even if he is not holding anything, the hands of Khalil Lohars habitually maintain a chilling posture.

Guilliman could tell from their small swings and slightly curved finger arcs that they were ready to swing their swords anytime, anywhere, a strategy, or rather, a nature.

Among the serious blues, he saw a living company commander.

This incident made him deeply frustrated. At this moment, the pharmacist gently patted the back of his neck, and the cold gauntlet forced Sicarius to get goosebumps.

The realization struck him as a bit ridiculous - how could anyone be born to kill?

Therefore, if the fourth company were to launch an attack on the monster under Idaos's order later, he might not be able to provide any help.

Without any hesitation, Sicarius knew immediately the first moment he saw him that this was the legendary Idaos, the hero who Robert Guilliman jokingly called the one who ignored the scriptures.

He looked at Seral, who mocked silently with a half-smiling look.

Of course, he had never seen Idaos, but this did not prevent him from distinguishing the difference between the company commander and the battle brother from the painting of the armor.

Guilliman shook his head and stopped. He was standing behind the sixth layer of fortifications that had been built, looking like a landmark building.

"And I'm worried about this chain being destroyed," he whispered. "Some things, once lost, can never be regained."
-
Sicarius looked to his protector.

He told the truth calmly.

"I'm concerned about the impact this may have."

"They understand that the Astartes are humans like themselves, not monsters. The Astartes also have strong emotions, they can be sad, happy, and afraid, so people believe that we are protectors."

"You're in a daze," Khalil said, a hint of surprise in his voice. "What's going on, Robert?"

Ah, speaking of armor.
Sicarius frowned, once again aware of his current burdensome position. He had no armor, no weapons, and was even a seriously injured person.

"Do not talk."

Seral warned again with a whisper that was close to lip language. He was still staring down intently. Sicarius gritted his teeth, resisted the impulse in his heart, and looked at the other battle brothers of the fourth company. .

"In terms of trust," Guilliman said. "For centuries, the people of Ultramar have trusted us. They know that these giants in ceramite armor are not destroyers or killing machines without blood or tears."

At normal times, Sicarius might have been angry at this kind of ridicule, but it was different now. Not only was he not angry, he even became slightly calmer at this kind of warm ridicule.

"What kind of impact?"

He frowned, his expression becoming extremely serious and hinting of sadness.

"This chain of trust is forged by many things. It was tempered in the furnace of war and became indestructible today. Every Ultramar person knows that what exists under the ceramite steel is Their brothers, their relatives."

His calmness lasted until the monster's voice came from below again.

"——Do you know who I am?"

People answered its questions with cries and howls, and many titles were thrown out one by one, most of which had religious connotations, such as Son of God, or the Thirteenth Star, and other titles that were widely circulated among the people.

There were also a few people who called out his name and gave him various honorific titles, such as Lord of Macragge, Protector of Five Hundred Worlds, and a series of other titles that had truly proven Guilliman's honor.

But the monster who was surrounded was not happy at all. He looked at the people coldly, as if they were just livestock.

Suddenly, he roared.

"I am Robert Guilliman, Lord of Macragge, but I am definitely not the son of the false emperor!"

His words silenced the cries of the crowd for an instant, and also made many battle brothers on the high platform become extremely angry. They cleverly concealed their anger in their trembling gauntlets or the weapon safety switches that flicked back and forth.

Sicarius was also one of them. He really couldn't keep calm anymore. Just hearing this thing talking made him feel as painful as his internal organs being burned.
He gritted his teeth and kept grinding them, as if he wanted to sharpen them into weapons so that he could jump down and bite the monster to death.

At this moment, there are only two people left here who can remain calm. One is Idaos and the other is Seral.

The glorious company commander maintained a standard hidden observation posture, staring motionlessly below without making any unnecessary movements.

Pharmacist Seral looked completely indifferent, as if the monster had never said a word from beginning to end. He held the dagger calmly and pressed his other hand on the back of Sicarius' neck.

"What I said is true!" The monster continued to roar, its voice sweeping through the crowd like thunder.

All mortals who heard his voice were stunned. They did not expect to hear such treasonous words from Guilliman's mouth. If someone else had said such a thing, they would probably have swarmed him and started using physical means to silence him.

But it was different now. Now, it was Robert Guilliman who said this to them personally.

So they can only continue to listen in fear. "Do you know why we are encountering such a disaster today but cannot get support? Do you know why the five hundred worlds have never received the light of the Star Torch in the past ten thousand years? Do you know why the insects, demons and those lowly Why do these aliens continue to invade our homeland?”

The crowd's uneasiness began to grow at his words.

"For hundreds of centuries, the people of Ultramar have endured torture and pain in disaster and despair, but has the liar on the throne ever really sent support? No! There is no support, only constant requests!"

"He even asked your protectors to spread their forces and go to the borders of his so-called empire to protect other people who are not Ultramar! Isn't this ridiculous? Isn't this infuriating?"

"He has made ten million demands from us, but has never given us anything in return! Is this God? Is this what a god can only do? Think about it carefully, people of Ultramar, has that so-called god ever existed? Have you responded to your expectations?”

The crowd looked at each other, and slowly, under the gaze of the monster with the face of Robert Guilliman, their emotions began to boil. Unity is a virtue of human beings, but unity can also bring about another kind of problem, that is, blind obedience.

Sometimes, demagogues don't even need to be highly skilled to turn large groups of peaceful people into resentful mobs.

What's more, they are now facing Robert Guilliman - can the words spoken by the original body be false?

Under their gaze, the monster slowly raised its right hand and clenched it into a fist, giving it a strong sense of power.

"I've endured it for too long, you've endured it for too long, and I won't endure it any longer."

"Your suffering will end from today." The monster changed his voice and made a calm announcement.

"I will no longer continue to watch you continue to be deceived by the false emperor and false god. I have returned, and I have returned as the son of Ultramar! I will lead you into a bright new century!"

"Fire," Captain Ideos said.

More than sixty bolt guns were firing at the same time without any hesitation. The bolts that spun out of the gun chamber carried the user's fury and rushed towards the giant surrounded by people, with no intention of killing. There was a moment of clarity like this.

The monster raised his right hand as expected, blocking with superhuman speed and falling down just in time to avoid the rest of the bombs.

They could only roar and hit the long pillars at the back of the hall and the company flags of the Ultramarines, tearing those representatives of honor into pieces.

Blood splattered and the crowd screamed. Idaos stood up resolutely and left the high platform at the first step. The team led by him quickly followed, completely surrounding the crowd and the fallen monster, leaving the pharmacist and Sicarius alone.

"I'm going down too," the scout said to his protector.

"Don't even think about it," Seral replied calmly. "You have no right to participate in the battle, let alone."

He shook his head, and Sicarius looked at him in confusion and annoyance, but did not repeat the request. The situation below changed again, attracting his attention.

Facing the heavily armed Ultramarines, the crowd trembling in fear did not get out of the way. In fact, on the contrary, they even stood firmly in front of Robert Guilliman, pretending to protect him.

Even when faced with the muzzle of a bolt gun, the terrified people did not flee.

"Get out of the way." Sikarius heard Captain Idaos yell. "You have all been deceived! What you are protecting is not our genetic father, but a monster who is pretending to be a deceiver in his face!"

The crowd roared again, and many of them could recognize that the person speaking was the company commander of the Ultramarines - and now, between the original body and the company commander, what choice should be made?
They looked back and forth hesitantly. In the end, this hesitation was completely shattered by the monster who barely sat up.

"Let them come."

He spoke angrily, squatted down with the help of several civilians with tears in their eyes, and even lowered his head weakly, his whole body completely hidden behind the mortals.

"They have all been brainwashed by the false emperor. Don't sacrifice your lives for me. Disperse, my people. If my fate is to be killed by my own son, then I will accept it happily. All I ask is that this is not the case. It will bring more unnecessary bloodshed and sacrifice.”

Sicarius stood up suddenly. Regardless of the broken sutures and the pain on his body, he was about to jump off the high platform to join the battle. Seral pressed him down again with unquestionable force, and then calmly gave his veto.

"Don't make me knock you out." He said firmly and coldly. "Stay here and obey Captain Ideos's orders. Do you want to be punished by military orders, Cato Sicarius?"

"But--"

"——No but, what is happening down there is called incitement, psychological attack and torture. It is just right to push you ultramarines to a dead end, do you understand?"

Sicarius looked at him blankly, just like the other battle brothers below who were undecided.

Seral smiled mockingly and took off his helmet, revealing a pale face with black hair and black eyes, his skin color was like alabaster, and a crow made of steel cast a glance at Sicarius on his forehead. A vicious glare.

"This is not something you, the heirs of nobles, can be so cruel as to do. Once bloodshed occurs, that thing will probably take advantage of the chaos and do something that none of us want to see."

He stood up slowly, and there was a burst of suppressed and angry scolding from under the high platform. The crowd of people actually started to counterattack the battle brothers of the fourth company.

They loudly rebuked these Astartes, thinking that their attempt to murder the Primarch was extremely shameless, and some even began to question them bitterly. No matter how they explain, these people will never take a step back.

Seeing this scene, Sicarius suddenly felt uneasy in his heart.

Perhaps this matter is not surprising in the wild world. People who have not received basic education are indeed easily incited by simple words.

However, everyone aboard the Macragge's Glory will receive an education, and those who are interested can even study in a separate academy.

Logically speaking, those words that were full of loopholes and extremely absurd should not have confused them to this extent.
He thought as Apothecary Seral stood up.

In front of Sicarius, he disappeared into the shadow of the dais. Ten seconds later, he stabbed a short knife into the monster's chest.

The crowd was horrified. Captain Idaios seized the opportunity and roared and fired at the ceiling, forcing the crowd back while striding forward. But the monster did not die.

He looked at Seral with a smile, grabbed his right arm armor at lightning speed, then opened his mouth, bit off half of the pharmacist's face, and swallowed it in a big mouth.

Blood spattered and Sicarius's pupils shrank sharply.

(End of this chapter)