Inside the Star Fortress, Curze headed straight for the command room as soon as the battle ended.
He moved swiftly through the corridors. His Arm Blades had retracted, but his armor still bore the marks of battle.
He did not stop to tend to the damage, or even spare it a glance.
His gaze remained fixed ahead, on the closed Metal Door of the command room.
When Curze pushed open the command room door and entered, Anna was standing before the Tactical Table, her fingers dancing across the Holographic Projection as she adjusted the Fleet's deployment and the configuration of their defenses.
At the sound of the door opening, Anna raised her head and looked at Curze.
Her brow furrowed even more deeply when she saw him enter alone. She set aside her work, strode over to him, and asked coldly, "Where is Lorgar? What happened to him?"
An irrepressible urgency edged her voice, an emotion she rarely revealed.
As far as she could remember, she had never lost her composure like this.
But now, she had no time to worry about appearances or etiquette. Lorgar was her most important companion, the only person in this world she truly trusted.
If anything happened to Lorgar, the entire Millennium World, all of Colchis, and even the whole Imperium would face unpredictable consequences.
Curze was silent for a moment, meeting Anna's gaze.
He could see the anxiety and worry in her eyes, the emotions flickering in her azure irises, as real as any human's.
He took a deep breath, then spoke slowly, his voice calm and heavy. "He's gravely wounded. He's dying."
Those few words struck Anna's heart like a hammer.
She froze.
Her body went rigid, her gaze vacant.
Her mind went blank, with only those few words echoing endlessly through