Warhammer: I don't want to become a stinky can!

Page 524

He sensed a change in Hades' expression, and before Booz could speak, Hades spoke first, slowly walking up to him and crouching down.

"I apologize for not reporting the battle situation immediately; this may have led to a misjudgment by your command."

Hades said he stared intently into Buz's eyes.

"But thankfully the battle is over. Now let me introduce myself. I come from Barbarossa, Hades."

Booz heard the quiet cheers of the Barbarian bastards behind him.

"Of course, he might also be called... Hades?"

Booz has already decided on the next course of action.

He took off his helmet, revealing a standard smile.

"Buz Bella, a Macurag."

He saw Hades' eyes widen in surprise, but Buz maintained his standard speaking pace and continued speaking in Barbarossa.

"My father, to make it easier for you to understand, please forgive my arrogance—my position and honor are: Commander of the Emergency Son of Hades Chapter, Imperial Hero, former Imperial Regent, Archbishop of the Church of Hades, and the chief author of the legislation to make the Church of Hades one of the state religions,"

Booth slowed his speech, emphasizing his words and making his tone more arrogant.

"The record holder for seventy-seven victories in the Friendship League between the Son of Hades and the Death Guard, first place in the Macragge group of the Baking Skills Training... Macragge Glory Exhibit... After assuming the position of Regent of the Empire, I am generally affectionately called the Empire's lackey and old bastard by my brothers in the chapter. In return, I affectionately call them little bastards—but please allow me to be impulsive, Father, you may call me 2B."

After he finished his lengthy title and self-introduction, Hades' eyes widened even more, and Booz confirmed that it wasn't a look of disappointment.

"This is truly a pleasant surprise..."

Hades said in a low voice, then turned to look at Black behind him.

"But we already have a 2B (Blake Butcher) here?"

The instant Pluto turned around, Boots' eyes met Black's. That rebellious, psychic-hiding brat—Boots saw it clearly—Black's eyes were blatantly saying…

Slippery old bastard.

And Booz's expression made it very clear; his smile conveyed it perfectly.

The mouthless brat.

“Then call me Buz, Father.”

Buz answered readily.

“I am honored simply to be addressed by your name.”

Hades had probably not heard such emotionally intelligent words in a long time, and he quickly turned around, hoping to chat a little longer—

I think you need to postpone the scenes of catching up and reuniting with family.

Magnus's phantom flickered beside Black, and Booz gave the Primarch a "friendly" look.

He was the one who, together with the Grey Knights, banished the fallen Magnus.

Perhaps it was Booz's gaze that was too sharp, for Magnus paused for a moment, then the Primarch raised his voice and spoke in a high-profile manner.

[Son of Hades—Even though I know you have disrespected knowledge, persecuted psychics, and lived in ignorance and darkness, I have decided to forgive your mistakes and give you a chance to be baptized by knowledge anew.]

Even though Hades' lower face was covered by a cold mask, Booz could tell from the subtle movements of Hades' eyes that Hades' mouth was twitching.

This was a situation that Booth was already familiar with; he answered neither humbly nor arrogantly.

"Distinguished guest, thank you for your kindness. Perhaps your status is special, but provided you abide by the rules of the Son of Hades, you can spend a pleasant time within the Son of Hades."

Before Magnus could speak, or rather, he interrupted Magnus, Buz continued,

"But I hope you can give us some space, sir. For offspring, meeting the father of genes is a solemn occasion."

Magnus got stuck; his afterimage flickered, and then with a snap, it vanished.

"He actually withdrew his psionic detection?"

Hades suddenly spoke, and Hades laughed, patting Booz's shoulder armor.

"here you go."

Hades then lowered his voice and spoke quickly in a conspiratorial tone,

"What does the Empire think of someone like Magnus?"

Booth, in tacit agreement, lowered his voice and sped up his speech.

“The Son of Hades will not let the Empire see Magnus until the time is right.”

"Hahaha, good!"

Hades chuckled and patted Booz's shoulder armor again, then curiously looked Booz over once more.

"...Truly worthy of being a warrior whose blood flows through my veins."

This strange sense of familiarity was not obvious during Hades' years with Black, but looking at Booz, with his similar face and the feeling of being on the same wavelength, Hades couldn't help but sigh in his heart. Ten thousand years ago, no one understood his dry humor, but ten thousand years later, the sons of Hades appeared.

Hades was convinced from his brief conversation with Booz that the warrior was a shrewd and politically astute individual—and a son of Hades.

Since their thoughts were aligned, Hades thought, "The most urgent matter now is not to meet."

"What is the current situation of the battle in the Euclius star system?"

Hades abruptly changed the subject, saying that before he lost control, the Orks and Tyranids should have been almost completely wiped out.

"The alien greens are currently engaged in combat with the Imperial army, with Commissar Arek and Sage King leading the charge. Their chances of victory are 90%—the remaining alien forces in the Octarius region have also been significantly reduced to a manageable level."

Booz took a deep breath.

"...Thank you for your efforts, Hades."

He still couldn't bring himself to say the truth about Hades playing the role of a green-skinned creature fighting off the insects.

"It should be,"

Hades said, looking into the distance,

"Anyway, there's nothing else to do... and luckily I arrived among the alien races first."

Pluto lowered his obscure gaze and looked at Booz.

"It seems you know something?"

"That's what Lord Karas told me,"

Booth calmly found a scapegoat.

“My father, it has been ten thousand years since you left the Death Guard. Your former comrades have pondered the possibility of your return.”

"...Did they anticipate this scenario?"

"This scene is not uncommon."

"..."

"How is Mortarian?"

“To be honest, my father, I don’t know. The last message from the Death Guard was, ‘Do not worry, do not fret, do not concern yourself’—I think that’s what they left for you as well.”

"But it seems like Senior Karas isn't doing too well," Buzz said frankly.

Hades coughed twice suddenly. Could these almost inhuman gods really choke? Buz was skeptical.

"Ah...haha...hahaha...him, I'll go see him later."

Hades then sighed.

"It's been ten thousand years, it's really time to go see Karas."

"Senior Karas has rushed into the warp to find Lord Mortarion, Father. After that, you should be able to see them at the same time."

Hades remained silent for a moment, looking somewhat dejected.

But Pluto quickly rallied again.

Hades raised his hand and tapped the half-metal mask he was wearing on his face.

The smooth, silvery-white metal half was cold, and the exposed metal chain at the mouth resembled roughly sewn surgical sutures.

This seems like a kind of self-reflection, or perhaps a promise. But after witnessing the previous scenes, Booz believes that it also contains the sense of helplessness in trying to salvage the situation after Hades's failed attempt to control his expression.

It would be best to add a muffler to this.

"Just as you thought, Karas was right,"

Hades paused for a moment.

"I am indeed... not quite normal."

"Does this mean you personally planted the green plants and promised them a super big WAAAGH?"

Buz asked calmly, but he couldn't help himself in the end.

"What?! Isn't this a brilliant move?!"

Hades asked in surprise, and Buz glanced at the open-minded people of the Great Crusade era, realizing that he was still too conservative.

"There are some...logical, legal, and ethical irregularities here,"

"But it's no big deal," Buz said. "We can make it compliant, Father. Please continue."

Hades suddenly smiled and patted Buz again.

"Yes—you were once the regent of the empire, so I imagine you are very skilled in handling government affairs and official documents?"

A bad feeling.

A sense of urgency and crisis flashed through Buzz's mind; he keenly sensed something.

If he were to give the next slightly careless answer, he would plunge into an abyss of bureaucratic inferno.

"It was,"

Buz said it softly, while maintaining a certain sadness.

"After the battle against the Rebellion Primarch, his brain was damaged. The apothecary suggested that he spend more time on the battlefield and less time processing official documents."

Hades was looking at Buz with a forced smile, his hand resting on Buz's shoulder armor remaining still.

Buz maintained his polite smile, the corners of his mouth remaining unchanged.

"I can introduce you to a candidate among the new generation who is good at handling political affairs, Pluto, I guarantee you will be satisfied."

"Hahaha, good!"

Hades decisively dropped the subject, and they tacitly skipped it.

"actually……"

Hades said, “My own condition is not stable—you need to remember that, Buzz Bella, always remember that, and I will remember it too. We’ll talk about the rest later. Let’s retreat first…”

It's not convenient to say those things here.

Hades remained silent for a moment, then sighed inwardly.

He should get more sunshine.

Hades rose, his gaze sweeping over the sons of the underworld, giving them an apologetic yet encouraging look.

After confirming there was no emergency, those bastards started acting recklessly, shouting in Barbarossa.

"Pluto! Pluto! Our Pluto!"

Booz stood behind Hades, giving them a look that said, "Things are definitely not going to be easy for them."

But the demons ignored it. After applying to disband on the spot (which Buz did not approve), the warriors gathered in twos and threes, followed by cheers and whistles.

They cheered for Hades in a cacophony of voices, some even trying to do somersaults and fire guns into the air. People crowded around, trying to get Hades' autograph.

At the same time, they tacitly blocked the sages who had been silently gathering.

Hades refused them for the time being, giving them ample time to get to know each other. Blake was still lying there half-dead, and Hades felt it necessary to get the injured man medical attention first.

Surrounded by a bunch of little brats with similar expressions and appearances, Hades finally realized—ah, he really did have his own warband.

"Let's go back first, Blake needs treatment."

Hades said that the children of the underworld who were cheering around him fell silent for a moment, but then resumed their previous atmosphere.

“And—” Hades pushed his way through the underworld children, “Long time no see, friends of Faos, you are…”

Hades stared at the Natural at the front, whose hands trembled as he held the Burner fragment; he had black hair, brown eyes, and was unusually thin.