The Thalesians Addicted to Flashy Performances

Segmentum Pacificus, Tanith's high-altitude orbit.

Sanchez, the Chapter Master of the 7th Legion, stared at the holographic image of Tanith and spoke to the Chapter officer beside him.

"The Thalesians' warships are not in the star system; we must take this opportunity to annihilate the Xenos on the surface of Tanith."

"Before setting off, the Primarch reminded me of the characteristics of the Thalesians."

The Thalesians viewed war as a performance; they planned their tactics based on the spectacle and dazzling nature of the battle, rather than on sound tactics.

The hunter's eyes gleamed as he lightly touched the planet Tanith with his large hand, enlarging it.

"The Thalesians' tactics were quite bizarre; they would send out columns of gleaming war machines, and in subsequent battles, they would send out poorly equipped and lightly protected infantry."

"The two extremes of 'overemphasizing' and 'underemphasizing' often appear in a strange succession, lacking a continuous overall strategic thinking."

"Their tactical maneuvers are so bizarre that they are difficult for us to predict."

Company First Company Captain Szczesny, whose left shoulder was branded with the high-gothic letter "I" and ocean wave patterns, spoke with a furrowed brow.

"No," Sanchez shook his head, "We don't need to predict, we just need to throw out the bait."

"They pounce on the elaborate bait, then launch a targeted attack."

The Reaper Lord scattered fifty-two baits in Tanith, and the 333rd Regiment of the Solar Auxilia, which had been fighting alongside the 7th Legion, was ordered to move out.

They were once again used as bait, but unlike Triken, this time no one could be sure which bait the main Thalesians force would take the bait on.

The Fourth Sun after the bait was laid, the Thalesians made their move.

Jorginho, with waves and the high Gothic letter "II" painted on his left shoulder armor, examines the battle report.

"The Thalesians' thinking is truly incomprehensible. The three strategic points they focused their war machine on—the seventh, twenty-third, and forty-ninth—had completely different characteristics."

"The seventh strategic point is located outside the forest and is poorly defended; the twenty-third strategic point is located at the edge of the Nalwood Tree and is surrounded by minefields; the forty-ninth strategic point is located on a hilltop, where the Auxilia leads his guard to build a fortress, and where the legion's artillery is concentrated."

"In addition to these three strategic points, the Thalesians launched attacks on twenty-five other strategic points, but they only sent infantry equipped with rudimentary weapons, which were easily defeated by the Auxilia."

While the Second Company Captain was speaking, the First Company Captain his brains without finding a solution.

"Completely illogical, not even the kind of logic a normal person would have..."

Szczesny paused for a second before finding the right phrase. "Like a gambler rolling dice."

Is there a conspiracy involved?

The Reaper Lord pondered silently for a few seconds, then decisively shook his head, his tone firm and resolute.

"Won't!"

"These are the Thalesians my father spoke of; their offensive makes no sense whatsoever."

"Szczesny, your target is strategic point 23; Jorginho, strategic point 49 is yours; I'm in charge of strategic point 7, use Mass-Reactive Shell to attack."

The Chapter Master looked at the other Chapter Master and their adjutants, "For the remaining strategic points, use Hiss bullets as previously arranged."

Seeing that Sanchez had given the order, Szczesny said nothing more. He didn't believe that the Monarch would make a mistake, but his father had sent him to the 7th Legion, and his responsibility was to advise the radical and audacious Reaper Lord.

The Vox Master reported the meeting's results to the flagship of the 12th Chapter, and the commanders of the two Chapter quickly boarded the spacecraft.

The black drop pods grew increasingly dark and scorched during their journey through the atmosphere before crashing violently into the earth, sending up clouds of dust and flying debris. Then, with a thunderous roar, they opened one by one, slamming their wide hatches heavily onto the ground.

The Shadow of Order swiftly burst from the drop pod, dispersing mechanically. The squads linked end to end, forming a circular line to launch an attack from behind the Thalesians.

Sanchez looked ahead at the gleaming war machines. The Thalesians were unresponsive to the enemy forces that had descended from the sky and appeared behind them; they were like mindless beasts, stubbornly continuing their attack on the seventh strategic point.

The Reaper Lord was only stunned for a moment before he came to his senses and issued orders to the Honor Guard and the special operations teams selected from the third to Fifth Company.

"Attack!"

Sanchez strode forward, raised his left arm, and fired Mass-Reactive Shell at the dazzling armor that shone even brighter than the Luna Wolves Pearl White Armor.

The Mass-Reactive Shell mercilessly pierced the work of art that was the Xenos armor, penetrating the lower pair of its two longitudinally arranged forelimbs.

The explosion shattered the longitudinal nerve axis encased in protein structure, leaving only the head and cephalopod-like tentacles of the squid-like body.

The Reaper Lord repeatedly pulled the trigger, killing several Thalesians.

Sanchez pressed the Runic Rune, charged forward, and immediately appeared behind the magnificent war machine, unleashing a slash with the 23rd move of "Osberh-Vaya".

The roaring Chainsword tore through the gleaming mechanical shell, striking the Space Squid precisely in the back.

Amidst the roar, blood mixed with protein splattered into the air, and the squid head wearing a gleaming helmet spun through the air before crashing to the ground.

The seasoned "hunter" weaves through the Thalesians, using his senses and "Warp Insight" to analyze the Space Squid- men in battle.

He opened the command communication channel and issued the latest orders.

"The Thalesians put more effort into their physical appearance than into their fighting style; their physiques are not suited for combat, and they lack a fighting spirit."

"By the Primarch, he is very interested in the eyes of the Thalesians and wants to cut off their heads as much as possible."

After hundreds of Thalesians were killed, the Space Squid seemed to recover from the spectacular battle display. The war machines, with dance-like steps and twisting bodies, charged towards the Black Armor Warrior as if they were putting on a show.

The Shadow of Order seized the opportunity presented by the Thalesians' battlefield dance, mercilessly striking without any appreciation.

Sanchez discovered that the main force of the Space Squid remained engrossed in their spectacular displays of overwhelming force and attacking weak defenses.

Two words involuntarily came to mind: "Clown" and "dressage".

At the same time, a performance I saw at the Terra Festival when I was seven years old flashed through my mind: heavily made-up Clown and actors dressed as horses dancing.

While pondering his actions, the Reaper Lord continued his efficient slaughter of the Thalesians.

At the same time, Szczesny's exclamation could be heard through the headphone channel.

"Space Squid are far more glamorous than sea squid, and also more..."

Just as Szczesny was carefully choosing his words, Jorginho spoke up.

"That's the complexity of species; squid left the sea and became a magnificent space species."

When Sanchez led his troops to surround the Auxilia, something even stranger happened.

Commander Thales, clad in magnificent armor, showed neither anger nor sorrow, nor did he attempt to flee.

He danced a strange, upbeat dance in the cell, moving from one side to the other, displaying a variety of colors.

The "hunter" stared at the magnificent Space Squid for a moment, unable to comprehend the Thalesians' bizarre thought process.

The Reaper Lord flashed forward, swung his longsword, and ended the battle.

My meticulously planned hunt ended up being nothing short of a farce.

After the conquest of Tanith, Sanchez began collecting the eyes of the Thalesians.

Biologis Magos dissected and analyzed the four visual organs of Space Squid and found that they have a 230-degree field of vision.

Upon dissection, a water-like outer membrane and a spongy "retina" can be seen. The two anterior eyes have a large number of cone cells, which are conducive to seeing long-wavelength light, such as infrared light; the two posterior eyes have more rod cells and have extremely high photosensitivity.

The bewildering sensation of the Nalwood Tree constantly being uprooted from the earth and falling back down had no effect on the perceptive Shadow of Order. One by one, the Nal-grub were collected, ready to be offered to the Primarch.

The 12th Chapter remained in Tanith to establish order and guard against Thales' fleet.

When the 7th Legion returned with its spoils, aboard the Shadow of the Throne, Nimrod discovered that the Dice of Prophecy had been fully charged.