My Life as A Death Guard
Chapter 477: Corax's Rotten Luck
"…"
"Are you alright?"
"…"
"…Not really."
Jaghatai fell silent. From the other side of the channel, Corax's weary whisper—thick with the scent of blood—seemed to sound directly beside the Khan's ear.
"Horus came. We had a brief fight—thank the Archmagos Trazyn, otherwise you wouldn't even be speaking to me right now," Corax said slowly, one word at a time. "Horus is a bastard. The most arrogant piece of trash in the galaxy."
The Khan moved his lips slightly and forced a lighter tone.
"I thought you wouldn't say such things in front of me. So you still trust me?"
"No," the Lord of Shadows answered bluntly. "I know your relationship with Horus. But I'll say this anyway—even if you were standing right in front of me, I'd still say it. And if you try to stop me, then you'll become the second biggest bastard in this galaxy."
The Khan let out a low laugh.
A few dry chuckles escaped him before they faded away.
He leaned silently against the command console. Static crackled through the channel. Corax also fell silent, though it sounded as though he was cursing quietly while treating his wounds.
"I'm sorry," the Khan said.
"Attacking our brother was never what I wanted. My warriors made a mistake. They rely too heavily upon the Warmaster. Horus gave them some unrealistic fantasy to cling to."
"Hah." Corax laughed mockingly. "I've got no right to ridicule you for that. My own sons obeyed the Warmaster too—even betrayed us."
The Khan scratched his head, staring at the fresh bullet scars across the command console.
Marks left behind by Jubal Khan's gunfire.
"What are you planning to do now?"
Jaghatai asked.
"Anywhere," Corax replied tiredly. "I can't beat him. My Legion can't beat his Legion. Damn it, anywhere at all—I just want to find somewhere to rebuild my forces instead of getting dragged into one absurd war after another."
Corax muttered another curse under his breath.
"Horus invited me aboard his ship." The Khan spoke quietly.
On the other side of the channel, Corax's gloomy voice sounded almost as though he were cursing the Khan himself.
"You're going?"
"My meaning is this—do you want me to take back what I just said about you still being salvageable?"
Jaghatai pressed his lips together.
"What was Horus like?"
"A madman," Corax replied.
"An egotist. A bastard. A man intoxicated by titles—far crueler and more arrogant than the last time I saw him."
"He hates me. Hates his brothers. Horus has absolutely lost his mind. He doesn't even bother hiding his hatred for me anymore. His desire to kill me was obvious. Khan, understand this—before now, Horus at least pretended to greet me politely for the sake of his precious title."
The Khan listened carefully.
On the other end, Corax coughed a few times with a bitter laugh.
"I could tell he'd gone insane. He kept spewing nonsense. He knew I could never be persuaded to join him, so he immediately tried to eliminate me."
"Thank Trazyn for this—he blew apart the corridor where we were fighting. That gave me enough time to retreat."
The Khan finally looked away from the bullet marks.
"Horus has gone mad." He repeated Corax's words, almost as though asking a question.
"Doesn't matter," Corax said. "To me, whether Horus is sane or insane changes very little."
"So after hearing all this… are you still going to visit that lunatic?"
The Khan remained silent.
He did need to see Horus himself.
He knew Corax's bias against Horus. Could he trust Corax's judgment completely?
And besides—Horus had played the "Magnus" card.
Truth could only be seen with one's own eyes.
"I need to go see him," Jaghatai answered simply.
"Then I'll make my own judgment."
Even if Horus truly had gone insane, Jaghatai—as Horus's friend—needed to witness that madness himself.
"Fine." The voice on the other end replied.
"There's nothing left to discuss, Jaghatai. Good luck. We're withdrawing."
The Khan blinked in surprise.
"Where are you planning to go, Corax?"
Corax laughed.
"Anywhere. Or should I wait until the White Scars and the Sons of Horus come together to attack me before retreating?"
"In the name of Jaghatai Khan, the White Scars will never attack the Raven Guard."
Corax drew a deep breath.
One hand pressed against the wound torn open by the Talon of Horus, the flesh still soaked crimson with blood.
"Very well. But I won't help you, not if you're planning to seek out Horus."
"No," the Khan replied. "No, what I mean is… if you truly want to find someone capable of opposing Horus…"
He paused.
"…If Horus truly has gone mad…"
"You should seek out Sanguinius."
The Khan spoke firmly, "If Horus has truly fallen into madness, then only Sanguinius can stop him."
Corax joked darkly, "Sanguinius? Let's hope he doesn't tear me apart alongside Horus."
"…"
Suddenly, the Khan's expression turned serious.
"Corax… has Horus truly become as mad as you say?"
"I swear it," Corax answered. "There is nothing more mad in this galaxy than him."
"Then," the Khan frowned, "then we need Sanguinius. Or the Master of Mankind."
Corax fell silent.
"And where exactly are we supposed to find them?"
The Khan thought for a moment.
"Horus. Horus knows where to find them. The answer lies aboard the Vengeful Spirit. Its Navigators absolutely know the route out of this place. Abaddon told my warriors that they possess a way to leave."
"Corax, I need to answer Horus's invitation. You can come with me."
"…And then?" Corax asked quietly.
"I'll keep Horus occupied. Meanwhile, you infiltrate his ship and find his Navigators."
"I can infiltrate the Vengeful Spirit… but…"
Corax paused.
"I'm not going."
"Can you leave this place on your own?" The Khan asked bluntly.
Corax hesitated. Then he clenched his teeth and shot the question back at him.
"Can you truly hold Horus off? I mean, are you actually confident you'll survive?"
"You're marching to your death, Jaghatai. The moment you board the Vengeful Spirit, your fate is already decided. Either you join him—or he kills you and takes your Legion."
The Khan laughed softly.
"A banquet at Hong Gate," he murmured.
"I know."
"But… this isn't our only option."
"There are others here besides us, Corax."
The Khan proceeded to recount, in full detail, the strange phenomenon the Stormseers had discovered.
"Strange…" Corax muttered. "Far too strange. Can this really work?"
"I'm confident it can."
The Khan spoke as he lifted his gaze toward his Stormseers.
"Come with me to the Vengeful Spirit, brother. At the very least, we need to learn how to leave this place."
"Otherwise, Horus can trap us here until we die."
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