"The final battle has begun, and I wish you a victorious start."

"You'd better get off to the top."

"Because at this moment, the Three Holy Councils are watching this area with my eyes on me: although I am not the best person to be an observer in their hearts, but in this era of withering and slumber, the council's choices are really not many, and I am the one who is famous."

"Privately, as your unrecognized friend, I would be happy to pray for your victory and give you a little help, but for Yu Gong, once you fail, I will not hide the slightest, because the Three Holy Councils have never been known for waiting, and their patience with me has never been much."

"No way, who told my career to always be accompanied by those unwarranted slanders?"

"In this matter, a sharp weapon is already all I can give: this is the expectation and recognition of you, and for the human race, and in the future, I will enforce the law impartially: this is for my race."

"The statement of the Council of the Three Saints is very clear: as long as he dares to step out of this galaxy, the dynasty will be mobilized and the army will be mobilized, although because most of the dynasties are still indulging in their eternal sleep, although we do not want to have more conflicts with your race now, but if the development of events crosses the red line in our hearts, the Empire of the Feared Dead is still fearless."

"After all, what he stole is enough to provoke our anger, whether it is the World Engine or his attempt to fuse the Star God Fragments, it will attract direct interference from the Three Holy Guards: when the Three Holy Guards come, there will be nothing left in this star sector."

"So, good luck."

"Do what you can."

"Kill him, so that I can take the World Engine and the Star God Fragment back to the business, then our next meeting will not be a sword fight: believe me, the war with us will not benefit your so-called empire."

"Kill him."

"For your empire."

"It's for yourself, too."

……

……

"You're going to kill him, right?"

——————

Of course I'll kill him. 】

[The legion is ready, the battle line is in order, everything after that has been sent to someone who can be trusted enough, and now, this war is only a clean decapitation operation from the end. 】

"You always like to behead: it's not really the art of war."

[The situation dictates it. 】

"So, which legion will you send? Or is it a coalition of several legions? ”

[No, it will only be the First Legion.] 】

[The other legions will not stay near the spire, and once we enter, they will begin to shrink their fronts, retreat to the vicinity of the landing base, and then begin to gradually withdraw from this world and return to the fleet. 】

[Whether it is the madness of my brother or the demon army from subspace, the confrontation with these things has become meaningless, and this war is no longer for these Astarte warriors to interfere in. 】

If we complete the decapitation of Heydrich, then what we need to do next is to destroy the world completely: this is the work of the navy. 】

And if we fail, then after I tow my brothers back to the battleship, we will need to use the means we never dared to imagine to carry out a frenzied destruction in this galaxy: these are tasks that even the Navy cannot interfere with. 】

"It's a clear sense of self, and I've always admired you."

"However, retreat will not be as easy as you say, not to mention anything else, this world has become a hell of flesh and demons, how can you retreat calmly? And what to do with the mortal auxiliaries who stay on the ground? ”

"Although they are only a few sappers and supplies, and a very small number of combat auxiliaries, their numbers are so large that they cannot be completely evacuated in a moment: anyone can do it when they start the war, but no one can do it away from the war."

[Leave it to my children: they won't let me down.] 】

“……”

[Any more questions?] For the sake of the artifact you've provided, I don't mind answering you a few more questions. 】

“……”

"Why is it that only the First Legion will be involved in the final battle: have they not already paid so much in this battle that they themselves are unbearable, and now, they have to leave more blood behind?"

【……】

[In the face of the most difficult tribulations, it is natural to seek the greatest soul. 】

[Not to mention......]

Johnson would not trust anyone in this matter: he would only trust his legion and his warriors, and he would not trust even the Praetorian Army, or my Daybreaker. 】

"It's heartfelt."

"But even if he trusts his heirs, will his sons trust him: the contradictions and whispers among the dark angels are not a deep secret, and even I know it, is your brother not aware?"

【……】

He will take care of all this. 】

"You gave him a tip?"

[In this regard, I am not qualified to point fingers at him, but, even without my help, he will complete these tests and trials on his own: look and see, just wait and see here.] 】

[After all, he's my brother, he's ...... Johnson. 】

——————

"You're proud of that?"

Johnson deserves my pride: he will always deserve it. 】

——————

"Five hundred."

"I need five hundred."

"I need to select five hundred people from among you: not the best five hundred, but the most suitable five hundred, to follow me in the next battle, to follow me to death."

“……”

The air was quiet, as if the sun was dying.

In the specially carved out of the disgusting flesh-colored clearing, the breeze on the face brought the smell of a distant battlefield, the smell of blood and the smell of corpses, a horror that stemmed from human instinct, a monster that required great courage to defeat.

And now, there is no shortage of courage here.

There is not even a shortage of legends here.

Thousands of soldiers of the First Legion were gathered here, or tens of thousands, their shawls sharpened, fully armed, and silent, and they were divided into large and small, staggered queues according to some law or classification that no outsider could ever know, like a God's envoy spreading his merciless wings, each snow-white feather was no different from the sharp blades of the sword, and these blades gradually converged, gradually converged, and finally concentrated on the body of the angel.

And at this time, the angel here is the genetic prototype, which is Johnson.

Everyone revolves around him.

Everyone: Warrior of the Emperor, Astarte, Uncrowned Prince, Celestial, Serap, Dark Angel, Son of Johnson......

These people have had countless names, these people have changed countless identities, but the only thing that has not changed is their strength and glory, that is, their determination to fight to the death in the name of the emperor and the empire.

This determination stems from the glorious years hundreds of years ago, from the allegiance sworn by the first batch of 5,000 Astarte warriors to the Lord of Mankind: there is no shortage of those 5,000 Astartes who have experienced more wars and history than anyone can imagine, and the name of any one of them is a living legend.

But legends have come to an end, maybe today.

But legends have Terminators, perhaps Johnson.

Or rather: it must be Johnson.

"This time, I will not use my five hundred men, nor will I use my guards: it is not a matter of ability and attitude, but because of their own function and nature, they are not fit to participate in this war, and that this glory and burden do not belong to them."

The Primordial of the First Legion stood at the front of the clearing, standing on a hill that resembled a parade platform, combining the senses of the Primordial Superman with the specially created amphitheater-like terrain around him, allowing the Lord of Caliban to truly observe the faces of each of the dark angels gathered in front of him.

Johnson watched them, and every time he uttered a word, he would be silent for a short time, carefully observing every face in front of him: he observed so slowly, and so greedily, that it seemed to imprint every face in his mind.

Johnson knew them, he knew each of these tens of thousands of faces, he knew their names, he knew their positions, he knew what role they played in his First Legion, and what kind of toil they toiled.

He didn't tell anyone how hard it took him to remember everyone in the Legion and every face in the Legion when he first came into contact with the Dark Angel Legion, and how he built the system of the First Legion today.

These warriors in front of them, they have their own strengths, they have their own shortcomings, they have their own uses, they are cleverly arranged in those positions that can best exert their abilities, and they are separated from the old organization. Become part of a new organization: Changes like this have reshaped the entire Dark Angel Legion almost from start to finish. And every tiniest detail of this remodeling was handled by Johnson himself.

So, the Caliban knew every face in the legion: even if some of them had never looked at him for a long time, and had never communicated with him once, he could call them by name when he observed the subtle features, or simply glanced at the coats of arms and markings on the shoulder blades.

He can do that.

It's just that he never did.

He never told anyone about these things.

He knew that perhaps some of the dark angels would be closer to him if he was willing to take time out of his busy schedule to learn from some of his brothers, to greet his children, to call them by name and to their merits, and to make it one of his great abilities with great fanfare.

But he wouldn't do it: his warriors were no different from himself, they were all emperor's blades, they were all nameless daggers wielded by the empire into distant lands, and one blade did not need to bow down to the other, nor did it need to be grateful.

As long as the dark angels obey his commands, as long as they don't disobey his demands and ideas, he doesn't care what they think of him: they are his knights, and he is their commander, and the contracts and obligations between them are the most important relationship, and everything else is irrelevant.

“……”

In Johnson's mind, once again the thought crossed it, as bright as a star and as solid as a rock, a truth that could never be shaken, and just as the Lord of Caliban affirmed this thought again in his mind, his words had already set off a small wave among the thousands of Astarte warriors in front of him.

Some were whispering, some were expressionless, and some were almost unconcealed in their dissatisfaction, looking at the genoplasm with no real respect: standing on a high place, Johnson was able to take it all in easily.

He didn't continue to speak, just waited quietly, waiting for the whispering below to gradually subside, waiting for a Terra veteran to finally step out of the array and ask everyone's questions.

"Is this a call to fight? My lord? ”

The voice was hoarse, sounding like it came from Gramayer, and Johnson cast a glimmer of silence at his heir, whom he recognized.

It was a warrior recruited by the First Legion in the industrial world of Granmayer, who had been serving in the Great Expedition for at least seventy years: Granmayer was the temporary home planet chosen by the Dark Angel Legion after leaving Holy Terra, and to this day, it holds a very important place in the First Legion's system.

The Lord of the Caliban gave the warrior a solemn look, and he knew that the warrior's inquiry was in the hearts of everyone present: if it was just an ordinary tactical task, there was no need for such a great deal of effort.

The original body withdrew his gaze, and instead of focusing on a single person, he looked evenly at the thousands of warriors in front of him, his voice loud, like a monarch on the throne calling for the next war to his lords and generals.

"Nope."

"I need you to be clear: this time is different."

Johnson narrowed his eyes slightly, his emerald pupils emitted a cold light, he didn't seem to look at anyone, and seemed to be looking at everyone, in front of his edge, even the most unruly warriors, couldn't help but straighten their waists and wait for the battle.

"Listen up."

The primordial's tone was low.

"This time, I'm not ordering you to fight."

"I command you to die."

“……”

The commotion and louder whispering in the crowd seemed inevitable, but Johnson didn't care, his next words were as cold as his pupils.

"Here I am not going to hide the truth of the matter from you, to see the minaret behind me, the blasphemous fortress hidden on the horizon: our enemy, the culprit responsible for this expedition and all this. Hidden inside, my blood relatives and I will go in and kill him, put an end to it, and fulfill the mission that the Empire has entrusted to us. ”

"And in doing so, I need an army to follow us, and I need five hundred of the most elite warriors, strong enough to help us stand in our way, to cover our way to the last bastion: that's all they have to do."

"But I can also tell you that these five hundred are not there to fight, they are to be sacrificed, because that final fortress has become a kingdom of nightmares and tyranny, and you cannot return alive, because your minds cannot resist his pollution, and you will surely become slaves of the fallen there."

"Unless, before you are completely controlled by him, you end your lives with your own weapons, or with your brothers: I hope you will do this, and I hope that you have completed the mission that the Empire has entrusted to you before you do so."

“……”

On the other side of the clearing, Riemann Ruth and Conrad, who were watching in silence, glanced at each other, shook their heads helplessly, and exchanged their eyes.

"Has he always been like this?"

“……”

"Yes, that's Johnson."

"This is Johnson."

“……”

——————

The silence continued until it was drowned out in the increasingly turbulent whispers of the Dark Angels, and even some of the voices of protest and slander in the military array were too obvious to be concealed, and they could reach the ears of the genotypes.

And Johnson seemed to be deaf to all this, he just stood there, firm enough that nothing could stop him.

"This time, I've gathered your best veterans for this task, and I'm not going to assign it to any team: my five hundred, my guards, or any of my knights."

"I'm not going to assign anyone, I'm going to wait here, wait for about three minutes: during these three minutes, those who want to participate in this operation, please come out on your own, your strength needs to be strong enough, your experience needs to be rich enough to ensure that you can complete this mission with the greatest possibility."

"I need five hundred, and I'll wait three minutes, and if there aren't enough of them after three minutes, I'll start choosing from among you to fill the ranks: I hope this disgrace won't fall on us."

"Now, if you have any questions, you can ask."

"I'm right here, I'm not going anywhere, and I'm not going to shy away from any questions."

“……”

Johnson finished the words in his chest in one breath, he did not wait, he did not hesitate, just like there was not even the slightest mercy and softness in his tone, the ruthless command was like a heavy steel hammer, smashed on the heads of many dark angels, and many warriors who had fought for hundreds of years even looked at each other, a little incredulous what they had just heard.

And many more people, who seem to have accepted the content of Johnson's words, are not angry. There was no cursing, and there was only an eerie silence when the genetic prototype was returned.

The Caliban, on the other hand, just confronted his sons with the same silence, and he seemed to be waiting for the first question, waiting for all the questions to be answered, and then starting the three-minute timer.

For a time, silence became the theme: silence has always been the theme of the Dark Angels, and it is also the theme of Caliban.

Johnson waited, he didn't wait long.

Soon, a question was raised from the array of dark angels, and the primordials couldn't see the questioner's face clearly, because he was standing in the center of the First Legion's array, or rather, no one cared who the questioner was.

"Will you fight with us, my lord?"

"Of course."

Johnson just nodded.

Another question rang out.

"This battle will end everything, and it will declare victory on the expedition, right?"

"Of course."

Nod again.

“……”

"Will both the Empire and Terra be safe again? My lord? ”

“……”

Johnson didn't respond, he just nodded again.

And his affirmation didn't make the dark angels appear half active, only an increasingly depressed aura, like a black cloud overheading everyone's heads: until the question that everyone wanted to ask was finally spoken.

“……”

"Are you asking us to die for the sake of the Empire? My lord? ”

“……”

Johnson's eyes narrowed.

He seemed to be looking for the questioner: but he didn't, for he answered the question almost without thinking, as if he had been prepared.

"Yes."

"I'm asking you to die, or sacrifice."

“……”

“……”

"Then you don't want to talk to us about anything?"

For a while, I don't know who shouted this question in a hoarse voice, and this question even made the dark angels feel stunned, and they began to look at each other again: because this question is too bad for the dark angels.

But no one refutes the question: everyone seems to be curious.

“……”

Johnson lowered his eyebrows, no one could see what kind of light was shining in the emerald pupils, he seemed to be laughing, but he seemed to maintain a kind of sad cry, but when you watched carefully, you will find that he always maintained that expressionless, bloodless face.

"I'm not going to say anything to you anymore, and I'm never going to promise you anything."

"I'm only going to do one thing, warriors."

The original takes a step forward.

"I will only fight side by side with you, I will only be at the forefront of all of you, I will only be the first to join and the last to quit in this war, I will only be an equal fighting brother with you: in the last battle of your lives."

"I order you to fight, because I will join this fight as well."

"I command you to sacrifice, for I will meet this sacrifice as well."

“……”

This low, self-destructive sentence had an even more serious impact in the First Legion's array than the previous ruthless sentence, but Johnson didn't stop his words, he just looked around at his legion again, and didn't even have time to carefully observe the familiar faces.

"I will fight with you, side by side, and expose our enemies to punishment from the Empire and the Emperor."

"If we fail, I will not run away, we will die here together, and someone else will come and take our place until the Emperor's will is carried out most completely."

"And if we triumph, I will return to my ship in solitude: I may not be able to take your corpses. I may not be able to have your names inscribed on the Legion's Wall of Fame, and I may not be able to have everyone in the Empire sing of your exploits as the Shadow Moon Wolf or the Fist of the Empire. ”

"If we win, then this war, then this great enemy, must be completely forgotten: oblivion is the best reward that the Empire will give us."

"And there's not much I can give you."

“……”

"What will it be? My lord? ”

It seems that there are a lot of people shouting this.

“……”

Johnson didn't look up, but he did look at each one, saying every name.

"My warriors."

"I'll remember your names."

"I will remember your sacrifice."

"I will use the sword of my heart to carve characters in my mind, so that the name of each of you will be engraved in my soul."

"I will use my fleet to completely destroy this world to ensure that your sacrifices will not be wasted in the slightest, our enemies will be completely destroyed, and the security of the empire will be truly guaranteed."

"I'll ......"

The original body suddenly fell silent, and he was like a tiger, trapped in a cave filled with rocks, his resolute lips biting together, as if struggling to spit out the next sentence.

“……”

Before the Dark Angels were in turmoil over this, Johnson spoke.

"I will find our enemy, I will do whatever it takes to defeat him, I will gamble with my life to end his threat to the Emperor and the Empire: I will take him down, I will cut off his neck, I will cut off his head."

"No matter what, no matter what it costs me, I'm going to do it."

"I'll kill him."

“……”

“……”

"Avenge you."

——————

“……”

"Did three minutes start?"

[Started: What's wrong, Akau?] Do you feel lost because you weren't drafted to Johnson as a veteran? 】

"No, sir."

Beside the Lord of Avalon, the Lion King Steward shook his head in some disappointment.

"As a Caliban, it's normal that I didn't join that team, because I'm far from a veteran, and at this point, Arachos on the battleship is even more unlucky than me, after all, he is definitely qualified to stand there."

【……】

[So: You are not qualified to stand there, so why do you still want to go there until I stop you?] 】

“……”

The Lion King Steward glanced at the arm that was lying in front of him and sighed, he knew that he couldn't get around the Primordial's block, and he had to give a reason.

"Because I'm going to join that team: you know what a dangerous mission it is, and if you want to get five hundred fighters to die voluntarily in three minutes, you have to have an example."

[Do you want to be that role model?] 】

"There must always be a first man: since the father of my genes trusts me and values me, now is the time for me to repay him."

If you really want to repay him, then stand here, live, and live into the future, Akau, and, don't underestimate these Terra, they are not cowardly enough to need an example to bear the brunt of it. 】

The Lord of Avalon curled the corners of her mouth, ignoring the somewhat confused Coswayne behind her: when her gaze returned, Morgan had already seen the first dark angel to take a step.

No one knows what time it is in the third minute, maybe it's almost the end of the three-minute line, or maybe Johnson is just starting the time.

But none of this is relevant.

For when the last words of the First Legion's genoplasm landed, a silence and silence swept through the clearing, and then, then, briefly, imperceptibly, there was a commotion and thought: after these had only occupied a momentary stagnation, there were already dozens of figures that began to move.

Ten.

Twenty.

Thirty pcs.

Forty ......

More and more, faster and faster.

There was a full 10 seconds between the first and 10th volunteers, and the 70th and 80th volunteers were listed almost at the same time.

In the end, the Dark Angels almost rushed to their genetic father, and even Astrand, who was originally in the last row of the line, looked at Johnson with negative eyes. After there were few empty seats in the volunteer team, he finally gritted his teeth, sighed in his heart, and took his own steps.

He wasn't fighting for Johnson.

Astran whispered in his heart.

He was clear about one thing: he was fighting for something nobler, not for Johnson: only in this battle, Johnson would fight alongside him.

Whispering as he moved forward, Astraan could feel the envious gaze cast on him as he passed through the fighting brothers who were standing still.

It made him feel a little better.

However, just as the veteran Terra veteran gritted his teeth and was about to rush into the queue of volunteers, someone pulled him on the shoulder, and the smoky Gramayer accent came to his ears.

"Wait a minute, brother."

"Can you please give me the last seat?"

“……！”

Astran turned back and saw the Gramaille warrior who had stopped him: just before the war began, they had had a short exchange in the corridors of the Queen of Glory, and in fact, this warrior with a smoky voice was one of the few friends of Astra in the Legion, and their friendship was the most precious thing to the Terra veteran.

"But ......"

Astraan tried to name his friend, but the Gramaille warrior simply smiled and interrupted him.

"There is nothing to do: this operation needs the most suitable people, not the strongest people, keep your abilities, the future of the legion still needs people like you to support, give me this sacrifice, give me this glory."

“……”

"You don't have to fight for Johnson, brother."

Astran gritted his teeth.

"He will only give us forgetting."

"I know, and I've never fought for him."

The Dark Angel warrior from the industrial world smiled and shook his head, his voice still hoarse, but full of determination.

"I'll fight."

"I'll sacrifice."

"But not for Johnson, not for anything else."

"Just because, I am a dark angel, and I am the six wings of the emperor."

"Just because, I'm the first army."

"If death and oblivion are the end that the emperor has given me, then let me hug and kiss them, then let me die silently as a loyalist."

"There is no better ending, no better reward."

"After all......"

"Loyalty, in itself, is its reward."

(End of chapter)