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

Page 262

If it were an ordinary person, Hades would ask why he didn't say so earlier, but given that the person opposite him was the Emperor, Hades decided to be polite.

He gave a forced smile, a sign of yielding to the emperor's emotional intelligence.

"Thank you, but it's not necessary now."

“I have a rough understanding of your plan, Neos, at least for now.”

"So what's next? We go to the City of Perfection and witness its destruction? But I want to remind you, within the Legion of Luojia, there exists—"

"I know."

The Emperor interrupted Hades, golden flames burning in his eyes.

“Every legion harbors hidden dangers. I know they exist, but I cannot accurately sense who they are.”

"You know who they are, don't you, Hades?"

Hades paused for a moment, then nodded firmly.

"At least I know some of it, like those two bastards hiding in the Legion of Word Bearers."

Two shots, fire them both, Irebas!

The emperor gave a faint smile.

"They are associated with the belief in the Four Gods, aren't they?"

Hades looked at the Emperor.

"you know……"

“I know a fragment of the story, and thanks to your hint, I can deduce the rest. Before I found Number Seventeen, there were indeed traces of chaos on Colchis, where Number Seventeen landed—and Luo Jia launched a war, claiming to have erased those blasphemous beings and established a faith about me throughout the planet…”

The emperor stated calmly.

"But if he falls, it proves that those traces have not been completely erased; they have simply been hidden in a more insidious way, waiting for me to make a mistake."

"That's why you're here, Hades."

Hades silently gave himself a pep talk, which sounded like the prelude to empty promises.

The emperor, of course, had no idea what Hades was thinking, and he continued,

"Do you believe those traces exist in Monazia? Or on other planets conquered by the Word Bearers, Devon, Corosa, Uvand..."

Monaco is the perfect city, on a planet called Kerr.

Hades remained silent. In fact, in the original story, when Kolfaron, Loka's adoptive father and one of the worst scoundrels in the Warhammer world, was trying to persuade the wavering Loka, he admitted that he and Erebas had left behind... cultural ashes on the planets conquered by the Word Bearers.

Of course, the ashes here refer to the chaotic faith that once existed on the home planet Kolchis.

Hades nodded, deep in thought.

"As far as I know, the probability of its existence is quite high—you want me to find any traces of corruption that might exist in the Perfect City, Neos?"

The Emperor smiled, confirming Hades's conjecture. He paused for a moment, then spoke again.

"Before this, I had asked my descendants what they thought about destroying the perfect city."

Hades paused,

What do they think?

The emperor gently shook his head.

"There was nothing new, but in their eyes I saw the terror buried deep beneath the hard shell—they thought I was cruel."

Ruth even tried to exonerate Loka, and what amused the Emperor was that during their conversation, Ruth revealed that he had read the Book of the Holy Word.

Hades' words interrupted his recollection.

"Do you feel guilty?"

The emperor smiled.

"No, Perfect City is destined to be burned. Number Seventeen needs to realize his mistake, and burning Perfect City will serve as a wake-up call and a form of protection for him and the Legion—"

"At the same time, faith that has not been tempered cannot withstand the storms, Hades."

The emperor naturally uttered terrifying words.

“If Number Seventeen can truly live up to my trust in him, then he must accept my punishment—he needs to prove whether he has genuine piety.”

“He must prove he can survive the next storm, or I will reduce the size of his legion.”

“I will personally point out the errors in his faith, his impurity—and you need to help me find the evidence…at the same time, purge the rotten flesh from the Legion.”

Hades pondered for a moment,

"It seems we need to check the schedule."

"It's natural."

--------------

If Hades were to comment on the Emperor's plan, he would only say it was too arrogant, truly too arrogant.

But the emperor had the right to be arrogant, so Hades refrained from commenting.

“I suggest you have at least one serious talk with Killieman, Neos.”

The Emperor looked at Hades.

“Macado said the same thing to you, Hades.”

Hades nodded in acknowledgment.

“You really need to talk to Guilliman. I don’t want to see the Ultramarines…”

"I will."

The Emperor promptly interrupted Hades and decisively changed the subject.

"Hades, in the stories you know, how many of the Word Bearers were traitors?"

"At least two people."

Hades immediately said,

"okay, I get it."

The Emperor spoke calmly, but Hades seemed to hesitate.

“Nios, if we punish the sinners we now know, will they choose new messengers?”

"This is inevitable."

"That--"

"Let them choose,"

The emperor said casually,

"Don't be deterred by a pebble on the roadside, Hades. We are about to step into a far grander battlefield. If we cannot save humanity from it, then let the galaxy perish."

...Another madman, Hades thought in despair. The Mortarian he remembered seemed to have become less extreme.

That's it! We've finally finished talking! Yay!

I talked to the Emperor's mother for two whole days! (1 words)

Chapter 313 Interlude: A Midnight Conversation with the Lord

【Nightfall】

A rustling sound came from the cold darkness, and frost climbed up the metal wall.

Sevita stood calmly to one side of the hatch, breathing steadily and listening to the faint hiss of his power armor's circulatory system.

The night in the room murmured softly and rapidly, accompanied by the sound of a quill pen gliding across parchment, dripping water, the clinking of metal, and labored breathing—and then everything suddenly fell silent again.

Sevita closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

When he opened his eyes again, the enormous and hunched Primarch appeared before him.

"Peace be with you, Lord of the Night."

Severta bowed calmly. Conrad Coz's pale face was obscured by his disheveled hair, with only his dark eyes peeking out from between the tangled strands.

Sai, are you alright?

Koz hissed as he tried to breathe, his respiratory system was having problems due to the effects of Mortarian's gas.

Sevita paused.

"I am well, my lord, thank you for your concern. We are about to arrive in Nostramamo, please prepare yourselves."

Conrad fell silent. The enormous monster bent down and placed his two claws on Sevita's shoulder armor, looking at Sevita.

I... saw the decay above, and this place will eventually decay—not just here, but everything, everything, is angry, extremely angry.

Sevita maintained his breathing rhythm, imagining himself as a machine standing quietly.

"My lord, I personally believe we need to consider the current situation. This is the last time the Legion is allowed to obtain supplies; at the same time, we need to fulfill... the Death Guard's order, or we will have no future."

Sevita finally finished speaking, and he waited, waiting for punishment, or something else, whether he was knocked away, or worse, whether he was given the red glove.

But in a corner of his mind, he genuinely hoped that the Primarch wouldn't do that.

To his surprise, Conrad Coz did not punish him; he simply looked at Sevita quietly and melancholically, as if asking a question or as if weeping.

Then Conrad Coz shook his head, then nodded.

Sai, do you want to know how you died?

Sevita felt his mouth was dry.

“My lord, we said we would not discuss this topic again, and I never wanted to know the date of my own death.”

"and,"

Sevita stared at Conrad Coz,

"My lord, the legion needs you now."

Conrad made a shushing gesture, but to Sevita's surprise, a strange, mischievous smile appeared on the Lord of the Night's lips.

Sai, I don't actually know where you ended up.

A low, gurgling laugh emanated from the depths of the Primarch's throat, like the howl of a strange bird in the dead of night—empty, then quickly dissipating into the darkness, indistinct and indistinct.

Severta was certain he had seen Conrad Coz's pupils twitch violently and abnormally for a moment, but then Conrad Coz looked at him calmly again.

A melancholy shone in his eyes, like the unchanging polar night.

In the end, everything was destined to crumble, sliding into tragedy. It was nothing but the dream of the arrogant; we were all pawns...

But I don't care anymore.

I don't care anymore.

Sevita tensed his muscles as he silently observed Conrad Coz's soliloquy, as if two souls were trapped in one body, tearing at each other, one loudly proclaiming sorrow and darkness, the other sobbing and gnawing.

Finally, Konrad Coz looked at Sevita.

The future has no meaning.

He whispered,

They...are constantly changing, but they'll always remain the same; there's no place for us in the future.

Sevita softened his breathing.

"What do you wish us to do, my lord?"

Sevita's words caused Conrad Koz to pause for a moment, but the Lord of the Night continued.

Do what you want, Sai.

Koz's hand, which was pressing on Sevita's shoulder armor, twitched slightly as the Primarch was lost in painful memories.

I...don't care anymore. That day I saw too many possibilities, all leading to destruction—those tragedies, those sounds of laughter...

But in the end, you're still alive, Sai. You have billions of futures, but you only have one present.

Sevita pursed his lips, trying to force a foolish smile, but he failed.