The Astartes Family's Notebook

Unfortunately, times have changed. Given the current state of the Sabat world, Kaz really has no intention of making a big deal out of it.

Regardless of kinship, class distinctions exist. Merchants and wandering warriors all rely on the empire for their livelihood, and in matters of principle, they are even more reliable than many planetary governors.

So things progressed quickly on the Mantis Warriors side.

All military supplies needed by ordinary troops will be shipped directly. For power armor and more advanced fortress cannons, you'll need to contact Foundry World for details.

Katz, without any hesitation, directly "escorted" Cantonpe Darrenfast towards his fiefdom.

The reason is simple: it's on the way.

Originally, the world of Sabat wasn't small, but it wasn't very big either, after all, it only had a physical space volume of one-third of a standard star sector. If you really wanted to find an Epsilon, you could send out your gang members to stake it out, and you could definitely find someone.

But our Company Commander Katz has such a broad mind. He's almost twenty, how could he possibly hold a grudge? Absolutely not. Company Lieutenant Draven can vouch for that.

To emphasize the solemnity, and also to prevent Epsilon from escaping, Katz preferred a thorough search rather than a Star News broadcast.

It highlights a Mare Fakosap's arrogant posture.

Epsilon, however, did not experience this surprise; instead, it was the Chaos Warband...

"Company commander, I recognize that paint scheme."

Kaz didn't send the veterans he brought from Blood Duck to the company as ordinary sergeants; instead, he gathered them around him as honor guards.

The Astartes who had been involved in the Warbands didn't care much; the Empire's job security was still reliable, and the terracotta porridge from the Desolace was truly delicious.

Most importantly, anyone who has ever been involved in a war gang understands how precious trust is.

Whether it's Kaz or Samar, whether it's the Eighth Company Commander of the Desolate Wings or the legendary gang leader [Destroyer Blade], as long as Brother Samar can provide everyone with enough to eat and fine equipment, he's a good big brother.

Kaz had spoken with them privately as well. He said that the Chaos Gang was all about relationships and bloodlines, and the Chaos Brigade was no different. The Wastewing was already considered one of the more open-minded ones, but it was unlikely that they would rashly accept Astartes, whose origins were unknown.

However, as you can see, our Desolation Wings are taking a rather unconventional approach, and we intend to delve deeper into the Deathwatch. Don't misunderstand the Chapter Master's meaning; Lord Saladin is very magnanimous.

To be honest, this statement is not very credible.

However, after learning the details of how Desolationwing obtained weapons and equipment from Deathwatch to replenish the Chapter, the credibility becomes quite high.

Being able to mingle with the Desolation Wings Chapter within the Imperial circle while remaining unrestrained by company discipline, being a Deathwatch member must be quite an enjoyable experience.

So the former Chaos Astartes who transferred from the Warband were quite interested in finding Epsilon to pay homage to.

Therefore, when there is an opportunity to highlight value, we will never hide it.

"Tell me, what's the background of this Zhan Gang?"

"The world-devouring madman, what was his name again, Crimson Blade?"

"..."

Are you kidding me? Believe me or not, I'll send you to work as a kitchen helper in a restaurant, where you'll first cut ceramic steel ingots into one-centimeter square pieces and then grind them into powder by hand.

Crimson Blade...

There are at least eighty or eighteen Khorne Warbands inside and outside the warp that use this name; they're just kidding.

"Boss, their names don't matter, what matters is that I recognize their paint scheme."

You'd better say something useful.

"They really do have a [Crimson Blade], which is said to have been won by the first gang leader in a bet with a god-like vampire."

This is getting more and more outrageous. I would believe you if you said that the Devourer killed the God and the Bloodletter and stole it. The Devourer, made a bet, won against the Bloodletter, and then... the God?

"It seems that the knife can suppress the butcher's nail."

Heavenly Venerable, is that you?

Kaz waved to indicate that he understood.

He's suspected of being a Khornean follower manipulated by Tzeentch; let's label him like that for now.

In typical story settings, the loyalist Astartes are always manipulated by the Chaos traitors hiding in the shadows, who use their schemes and tricks to do futile things, and even do good deeds that turn out badly.

But is our Commander Kaka that kind of person?

Kars could easily bring down a deeply entrenched merchant ronin family with a simple push, but he just wouldn't make that final push.

It's better to make mistakes than to focus on merits. Let's capture the Chaos War Gang first, then torture them severely. The truth doesn't matter anymore, okay?

Kars never forgot the day he was forty, standing like a lackey, being chased all over the map by the rabbit-eared giants of the World Eaters in Omidas' Nest. He should know his shame!

They resort to sting operations because they're short-handed. This planet isn't directly under the control of the Wasteland Wings. Do they need someone to teach them how to conduct a thorough search?

Draven glanced at the intelligence he had painstakingly gathered, then tossed it aside without getting angry.

The reason was simple: the company adjutant was also furious.

He only brought a few tactical squads, and they were no match for the Chaos Warband in a head-on fight, so they could only conduct non-contact intelligence gathering.

Now that the main force of the company has arrived, everyone has their moments of temper.

No matter what schemes or tricks the Chaos Warband has up their sleeves, let the brothers talk to them with their blaster guns.

The Wings of Desolation are truly well-off. Without clashing with the newly formed groups or those established factions, they were able to equip a reserve company like the Eighth Company with twelve sets of Terminator armor. Saladin is truly virtuous.

As a result, Kaz was preparing to use the position of head of the merchant lord to command his managers. He had just set up his formation and hadn't even warmed up the atmosphere when this Crimson Blade War Gang couldn't help but jump out.

What an understanding Chaos Warband! If only the Chaos Warband in the Eye of Fear had all believed in Khorne, the Empire would have swept through the Chaos forces long ago.

TM's thirty or fifty-man warriors helped you swagger around in the Eye of Fear. Brother Samar didn't care about your reasoning. But when you came to the real universe, you came to fight me head-on with a full-strength loyalist company. Who gave you the courage, the Fear Master?

Khorne's blessing indeed grants Astartes, who worship Him, extremely high resistance to ranged weapons.

However, Katz is a seasoned fan of the God's Finger. Using the Fury Interceptor and Starhawk Bomber in atmospheric combat is quite expensive, but Katz is rich and knows how to make money.

First, bomb the area where the Chaos traitor is hiding, then use overwhelming troop superiority to sweep through the ruins.

The result was that nothing was gained.

"They escaped through underground pipes?"

"The traveling merchants said they didn't know the specifics of the underground pipeline system either."

Hahahaha, I'm sorry, it was my mistake to have expectations of the empire's bureaucratic system. I, Kaz, hereby issue this edict of self-reproach.

Undeterred, even though the art style wasn't particularly savage, the fact that the disparity in strength between them and their enemies remained unchanged. Kars had plenty of time to play with them at his own pace.

However, as World Eaters who are constantly used as pawns, it would be a disservice to the Butcher's Nail in their heads if they didn't have other Chaos Warbands hiding behind them.

"How did you manage to attract the Wings of Desolation?"

"You know this chapter?"

"The Pacific Star Region is very famous."

"What do you mean?"

"They are notorious for their lack of martial ethics, and sometimes their methods are even more despicable than those of us who are involved in the Great Vortex."

"What should we do? Should we lay low for now? Those madmen who only know how to kill have been completely exposed. Should we continue with the plan?"

"Whether they've exposed us or not, let's see how things go first."

In fact, most of the Empire’s citizens have never seen Astartes, let alone distinguish between the Loyalists and the Chaos Warbands.

So the warband hiding behind the Crimson Blade is going to play a dirty trick, directly disguising themselves as loyalists to lure and launch a sneak attack.

However, Katz's arrival disrupted their plans.

Should we continue?

"How about we forget about it? According to you, the Wasteland Wings are a veteran warband, they're not easy to fool."

"We bought the Red Viper's identity with real money, don't you want to give it a try?"

"Then let's give it a try."

Sometimes, even the Chaos Warband isn't so easy to deal with. The Empire is even stricter about protecting its own loyal Astartes than the Chaos Warband, and the current situation is that the number of loyal Astartes has become quite scarce.

This has made it so that the Chaos Warband can't even grab any loyalists they want.

And now, they've even pulled off some underhanded tactics, like pretending to be loyalists to double-cross and drive away the World Eater, and then using the debt of saving their lives to force a traveling merchant to place orders for the World Forging Project.

Sigh, life is tough for everyone.

Chapter 486 Earthen Jade

"Test your knowledge: The Japanese Prime Minister visited India. What Chinese idiom does this represent?"

"Answered instantly, unfathomable."

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What the soldiers of the empire feared was never death, but a death that was meaningless.

Of course, you can also interpret this as a case of a dog taking advantage of its master's power.

It's not entirely clear how these Khorne followers came to the planet, but the number of Chaos Astartes is less than that of the Loyalists, the number of Chaos Cultists is less than that of the Asgardian Army, and the leader of the Chaos Warband is no match for the Eighth Company Commander of a mere reserve company of the Desolation Wings Chapter.

In a battle with the wind at your back, even ordinary soldiers are incredibly brave, okay?

Aside from the fact that Samar is unremarkable, which sounds a bit odd, the other descriptions are fine.

The Astartes, whether loyalists, traitors, or chaotic rebels, generally adhered to social Darwinism.

Kaz was very dedicated to teaching new recruits, wishing he could impart all the knowledge he had acquired in his life.

But when it was time for his brothers in the company to go to the battlefield, he never had the so-called motherly mentality.

Those who don't work hard in peacetime will die in wartime.

If you can't beat them or hold them off, what's the point of keeping such trash around?

Katz never issued any orders that required the complete annihilation of the enemy. His instructions were clear and unambiguous: search for and trap the enemy, and let the company sergeants assess the situation on their own.

If you think you can win, then fight. If you win, there will be rewards. Whether it's finely crafted equipment or power armor with engravings, what's yours will be yours.

If you think it's too risky to win, you can either keep them at a distance or use maneuvering to outflank them. Send a signal and reinforcements will arrive in ten minutes.

A battle between Astartes is a matter of life and death in a matter of seconds at most. Why don't you run? Two well-fed Astartes chasing each other could circle the planet's equator without stopping for a while.

This battle was a blatant teaching exercise. Kaz wasn't a genius, at least not the kind of self-taught tactical genius found in fantasy novels. His fighting style wasn't some wild idea that came to mind on a whim; it was the experience and lessons learned by generations of warriors in the Wasteland Wings through iron and blood. That's how the veterans of the Fourth Company taught him, and that's how Kaz learned it.

Now, it's the Eighth Company's turn for the big test for the new recruits.

The situation is beyond our control, so we must keep pressing forward and apply maximum pressure.

Come on, you traitors of chaos, struggle! Struggle with all your might! Shall we play you a Caesar-themed background music track?

Kars's strength is undeniable, and it is also something that the brothers in the gang wholeheartedly admire.

Because Kars's growth experience is clearly traceable, his character arc is full and well-developed.

Well, the Empire has an abundance of brilliant Astartes, and there are plenty of tough guys who can fight better than Katz.

But these guys, well, they seem a bit inhuman.

It's the kind of situation where you wouldn't be surprised if someone punched you in the head, but it's incomprehensible if a single finger could pierce through the chest and back of a power armor suit.

Kars is not the kind of Astartes who sweeps everything away with absolute power.

His strength was evident even to new recruits.

It is a fusion of skill and strength, a martial art honed through countless trials.

That feeling of understanding something yet being unable to keep up with it is what makes "Destroyer's Blade" so appealing.

Katz wasn't a superhuman who fell from the sky; he was a towering tree that struggled out of the mud.

Qiong En has a lot to say about this.

"It's been so many years since I wore the Terminator armor, it feels a bit strange."

"You never really liked Terminator A back then."

The company commander and his adjutant were exchanging witty remarks during maintenance work, and all the dozen or so men in the maintenance room were listening intently.

It's one thing for Qiong En to hang out with Kaz normally, but for large-scale company activities like this, he has to fulfill his duties as a technical sergeant and dutifully serve the veterans of the Terminator Battalion alongside another full-time technical sergeant from the Eighth Company.

I must say, working together as a team definitely improves efficiency a lot.

"When I first joined the company, I was naive and thought the Terminator armor was too bulky and would affect my performance."

"I thought you were going to say it was all Tyrant's fault."