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

Page 333

Thor's mind was a complete mess. He was certain he was caught in a much bigger vortex, but he had no idea what it was... unless... Thor remembered what he had said earlier, and his heart skipped a beat.

What happened at Luojia?

The voice asked softly.

Thor felt as if his blood had frozen; he gasped for breath.

"What happened? Have the other adults realized anything, sir?"

Thor shouted, only to be met with another heavy blow from Santo, who, for his evasive answer, felt shards of his power armor embedded in his back.

"Yes, someone has realized that, and that's exactly why I'm here."

The voice spoke slowly and deliberately.

"Now, answer my question, Thor, what happened to Luo Jia?"

Saul gritted his teeth, smelling the blood in his mouth, and screamed.

“Something has changed! My lord, I mean—Lord Luojia is acting strangely. He has started compiling new doctrines, not… not about the Divine Emperor.”

Footsteps sounded, and Thor could imagine the adult slowly pacing behind him.

"Where are the guards? I remember that the gatekeeper, Vidan, is not a negligent person."

Thor felt his blood run cold, and his mind went blank. He was now absolutely certain that the people on the other side were there to deal with the Word Bearers. The Word Bearers were absolutely certain that the God Emperor had never revealed to the other legions that the Word Bearers were being garrisoned by the Imperial Guard, and even those who had seen the Imperial Guard would not be so clear about the name of these Imperial Guards.

Not to mention that the other side directly named Vidana, the head of the Imperial Guard.

But...but...Saul struggled to think. Before he was exiled, he had already heard the news that his good brother Angortai had been suddenly demoted. He had secretly gone to see Angortai, who told him some unsettling news.

Thor didn't live to see that misfortune happen, because he was subsequently thrown out of the main fleet for going to Angorte on his own.

But is this kind of news really appropriate to tell the person who came to solve the problem? It would definitely incur punishment, Thor stammered.

"I'm not quite sure why the Imperial Guard isn't well-liked among the Word Bearers."

The footsteps stopped.

"Then, Vidana and the others must have already sacrificed themselves."

That voice softly uttered an extraordinary decision.

Do you agree with me, Saul?

Thor remained silent, feeling cold sweat trickling down his forehead.

With a sigh, the voice hardened.

"This means that one layer of protection we placed around Luojia has failed,"

The stranger said calmly,

“This is not surveillance, this is protection, Saul. This is exactly the kind of situation we are concerned about.”

Thor's teeth were chattering, and he spoke in a trembling voice.

"My lord, if I may be so bold as to ask—who are you?"

The voice paused for a moment, as if judging whether Saul deserved to know his name.

Hades,

Hades said,

"Perhaps you are more familiar with my other name, the Silent One."

Hades watched as the Word Bearer's body collapsed to the ground, seemingly drained of all strength. He nodded slightly. Santo released Thor, and the Steel Hand, pointing the Explosive Gun at Thor's head, slowly stood up.

But Thor didn't stand up; he remained limp on the ground like a dead fish. After a long while, Thor's faint voice finally broke through the air.

"My lord... please save us! Something is definitely wrong. Father... Father is not normal."

Out of the corner of his eye, Thor saw the silent man's expressionless face, shrouded in darkness.

"So you don't know much either."

Hades said disappointedly that he probably shouldn't have expected someone exiled to a fringe squad to know anything, and now Hades was quite clear that they had encountered a few soldiers far from the center.

Hades thought to himself as he told Fenus to give the opposing team a few perfunctory answers, and then use the pretext of visiting Luojia to continue his investigation.

Now it's confirmed that there are at least two legions, Hades thought to himself. The Word Bearers' corruption might not be that deep, but that could be an illusion... And Perturabo... Hades frowned as he thought, why Perturabo?

Two legions—this meant the upcoming battle might be difficult, but now was not the time to retreat or hold out. Hades frowned; the enemy had already spotted them.

Even if the Iron Hand chooses to retreat now and wait for reinforcements—as long as the Eye of Fear is activated before the reinforcements arrive, all that remains is defeat and death.

In other words, the key to victory this time lies in preventing the Eye of Fear from being activated and holding out until reinforcements arrive.

Thor's voice interrupted Hades's thoughts.

"My lord, I have a map of this star system, marking the star systems where the Iron Warriors and the Word Bearers are stationed."

Thor gritted his teeth, his teeth clashing together.

“The Iron Warriors are definitely up to something; I’ve made a point of collecting their maps.”

Hades raised an eyebrow.

"You did it all by yourself?"

Thor took a deep breath.

“There were others, other exiled people.”

He gave a wry smile.

"We are thinking of informing the outside world about the situation."

Silence fell. A hand reached out and pulled him up. Thor heard the mournful cry of his power armor.

Hades patted Thor's shoulder armor. Thor turned his head and saw an unfathomable darkness.

"Well done,"

Hades said,

"You have earned my respect for those who cherish words."

--------

As it turns out, even Phineus understood the art of language.

Hades was thinking as he sat in the command room, calculating Thor's map over and over again. The unfortunate news was that Thor told him the Iron Warriors seemed to be paying extra attention to planets with alien architecture.

Hades thought of the worst-case scenario. He connected the planets where the Iron Warriors were stationed, and even Hades, who knew nothing about psionics, could see that these planets had some commonalities in their locations.

Meanwhile, Fernus kept a close eye on the situation around the fleet. The Iron Warriors, led by the Word Bearer exploration team that Fernus had successfully persuaded, were venturing deeper into this star system.

Hades was puzzled as to how Phenus managed to persuade the Word Bearers, but in any case, Phenus did it.

Perhaps he shouldn't underestimate Finus, who often communicates with Fugen.

Should we delve deeper?

Finus's voice rang out amidst the ticking of instruments.

We are about to enter the Iron Warriors' territory. We expect to receive a communication request—or artillery fire—from the Iron Warriors in three minutes.

Hades was sitting calmly at the command table, but Phenus could hear the slight irritation in the sound of Hades tapping his fingers.

"The threads that opened the Eye of Fear are closing quickly."

Hades said,

"This line is extremely long and lies far behind the Iron Warriors Line of Defense. Currently, only a few planets and the anchor point—the most crucial point—have not shown to have been captured."

Hades paused for a moment.

"Given that Thor's map is somewhat outdated and one-sided, we don't have much time left."

Phenus frowned.

"You mean, the Steel Hand needs to penetrate deep into the Steel Warriors' territory and prevent the line from closing in? Then we can attack their weak points."

Hades stopped, and Phenus could feel Hades's gaze fixed intently on him.

"I'm afraid things aren't that simple."

Hades said softly, seemingly unsure of what to say.

“I don’t know how the other side treats the Blackstone Obelisk. If they choose to destroy it directly, it means we can only go to the central anchor point to guard the last obelisk.”

"but……"

Hades said hesitantly.

"If they choose to reverse the polarity... logically, we should be able to interrupt the expansion of the Eye of Fear by occupying a section of the front line."

So what are you hesitating about, Hades?

Phenus asked,

Hades took a deep breath.

“I don’t understand psionics, so I consulted my great sage Kirkland. His reply was that the battle lines are about to close, and unless we can occupy at least one-fifth of the defensive line in a short time, even a small loss will not be enough to stop the final outbreak of the Eye of Fear.”

The problem is, Hades isn't sure if Kirkland is right or wrong.

As for where Kirkland learned psionic skills... the Great Sage was originally a psionic researcher on Mars... Moreover, Hades only recently learned that Kirkland had been following Mortarion after he left the Death Guard.

In other words, Kirkland used numerology to calculate this for Hades.

First, Hades could not fully trust Mortarion's numerology; second, numerology of anyone other than Mortarion was even less reliable.

But Hades was at his wit's end. He consulted Iron Hand's think tank, but they replied that they were powerless to help.

In other words,

Fernus said calmly,

Now we need a sharp blade to pierce their anchor point and ensure that the largest source remains unopened, is that right?

"Yes."

Hades said, looking at Fernus and nodding.

【Then let's fight.】

Finus said,

Hades, I know what you're hesitating about. If things really go as you say, we're about to face two legions—but you should trust that the Iron Hand is not weak.

The Iron Hand is the legion that most adheres to Social Darwinism.

"And the Demon Army."

Hades added,

Fernuston paused,

Can the Silent Order deal with them?

Hades blinked, and finally he chose a word.

"can."

Hades said he saw Phenus give a cold smile, and anger seemed to begin to ignite in his iron-gray eyes.

If they truly betray us—abandoning the Empire under the temptation of their own desires—then I will show them the fury of steel. Though I haven't spoken much with Ruth, steel is far colder than winter.

Hades lowered his eyes, the shadows obscuring them, and he smiled helplessly.

"Be prepared... an empire on the verge of collapse is coming."

The true fratricidal conflict is about to begin, lasting until death.

The audience members in the stands applauded.

5.1k, that's all, yay!

Chapter 399 Steel Naval Warfare

Since we're going to fight, there's no need to worry about anything else.

Hades then checked the distress signal he had sent out once more. The good news was that Medusa, the homeworld of the Steel Hand, was to the northwest of the Eye of Terror, and not far from Medusa was Caliban, the homeworld of the Dark Angels.