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

Page 228

Every now and then, Hades would pull Vox into his armory with a mysterious expression and try out new weapons. Usually, Hades would be surrounded by a group of guys muttering to themselves, among whom the sage with a black stone hanging on his robe looked particularly crazy.

Vox disliked them, and he cautiously mentioned it to Hades in private, but Hades merely paused for a moment before giving a relieved smile.

“I understand your concerns, don’t worry about it. I know about this, Vox. But thank you for reminding me anyway.”

What could he possibly know?! He didn't even know anything about the Death Guard. Vox was very anxious. If he hadn't been involved, Vox would have almost revealed the Death Guard's private affairs.

The generous Hades was deceived by everyone, and Vox felt guilty for a long time after returning home, which caused him to stay away from the fighting training department for a long time.

But when he went there again, Garo merely glanced at Vox indifferently, then said cryptically, "He saw and knew more than anyone else; he's the one who should feel guilty."

Vox didn't fully understand the meaning of Galo's words, but he still decided to elevate Hades's status in his heart to another level.

Galo knocked silently on the door, and the familiar "Come in" came from behind it.

The combat company commander opened the door and saw Hades summarizing the day's intelligence.

Unlike Vox, who writes a diary every day, Hades also has his own daily hobby: organizing the intelligence he gathers each day.

Hades could find out everything those little brats who thought they were hiding so well, even what they had under their pillows.

Hades sat behind his large desk, still wearing a loose-fitting technical sergeant's vest stained with machine oil, clearly having just come from the laboratory—a typical technical sergeant's attire.

Although no one dared to underestimate him, Hades's desk was covered with all sorts of intelligence and data, and Galo knew that only two people in the Death Guard were qualified to view these.

Galo walked skillfully to Hades' desk, stood up and began to report the intelligence, while Hades did not look up and continued to check and summarize the documents.

After the report was finished, Galo fell silent, and an emptiness filled the room, broken only by the rustling sound of Hades turning the pages.

Hades did not let him leave, so Gara continued to wait in the silence.

"War is imminent."

Hades spoke in an almost whispered voice.

Galo nodded seriously. It was coming soon. According to the pace of the Great Expedition, the Death Guard had been here for a long time.

After a long sigh, Hades spoke.

"As of today, the Death Guard has been in Barbarus for 293 days, establishing cooperative relationships with 37 worlds and direct relationships with 9 worlds. Among these 9 worlds, there are 2 hive worlds, 4 death worlds, 1 mineral world, and 2 plains worlds."

"Most of these treaties were signed under the supervision of me, you, Vox, and mortal officials, while Mortalian was responsible for the recruitment agreements in the world of the dead."

The four dead worlds are: the barren land filled with rocks, the eternally dark desert covered with strong acid, the churning ocean ravaged by storms, and the erupting volcano with its magma undercurrents.

Hades was curious as to why these four worlds of the Crouching Dragon and the Phoenix Chick were grouped together and adjacent to Barbarus, but that was no longer important. According to the contract, the Death Guard would establish several habitable human settlements on these planets and apply for Imperial tax exemptions for them.

They need to assure the Death Guard that those who want to fight and are eager to strive will join the Legion, and the Death Guard will use these four planets as training grounds for new recruits, where candidates from other worlds will learn the true meaning of resilience.

Due to rapid construction and Hades' ongoing efforts to conduct population statistics, the recruitment age for the Death Guard in Barbaros and Galaspa is being lowered further and further, giving these aspiring Death Guard children ample time to hone their skills before undergoing surgery.

"To this day, the number of ships that can be transported in the Barbarus star system has reached a balance. Even if the Empire does not officially acknowledge it, Barbarus has become the hub world of this star system."

Hades paused for a moment.

"Galo, do you think this is a good thing?"

Galo stared at Hades.

"I've always thought you weren't the type to dwell on whether things were good or bad."

Hades laughed, but the laughter didn't reach his eyes; he quickly became serious again.

"Yes, that's right. In any case, Barbalus is indeed developing and driving this star system, but that also means it's more vulnerable to being targeted and attacked—"

"I have faith in the galactic defense system set up by Lord Mortalian."

Hades widened his eyes in surprise, then slowly said,

".you are right"

“Well,” Hades shrugged. “Anyway, the Empire’s orders should be arriving soon; we just need to wait.”

"I still hope that the black ship that came with the orders didn't carry anything, even though they gave me a surprise last time and gave us some gifts."

Hades resumed his indifferent attitude, rambling on about how Makado was heartless and swindled people, and even suggesting dog execution and other outrageous things.

"It's alright, Jialuo, you can go back to your work."

Hades issued an order to leave.

Galo didn't move; he gave Hades a deep look.

Don't put too much pressure on yourself.

He said.

Hades opened his eyes in surprise once again, then immediately began acting. Those who saw him for the first time might still be fooled, but Galo was no longer fooled.

Hades exaggeratedly covered his eyes with his hands and began to sob.

"Galluto, you understand me best! Every day like this! They even drugged me! And if they did, why didn't they take more food to drug me too! They even sold my information! And why did Vox have to buy it? He even kept it from me!"

"Only you, Galo, only you! You can give me a little warmth in the cold Death Guard—"

"stop."

Galo said,

"Otherwise, I'll drag you out from behind your desk and beat you up."

Hades instantly recovered, sitting upright in his chair as if nothing had happened.

“You shouldn’t be so violent, Gara.”

"Then you shouldn't put so much pressure on yourself, Hades."

"Barbarus' diplomacy, his negotiations with the Mechanicus, the development of new equipment, the training of talent... you've done enough."

“Actually,” Hades said seriously, “I directly assigned most of the tasks; I didn’t do them myself.”

"Moreover, Mortalian, you and Vox, along with the Death Guard led by Obi-Ry, did the bulk of this work, and the mortal archons also helped us a lot."

"Motalian oversaw the establishment of a defense system for an entire star system. Vox was in charge of a new round of recruitment on three planets. While I was tied up by the Mechanicus, you were in charge of most of the Legion's daily operations."

"But you followed and supervised them throughout the entire process, and the task of connecting with the Mechanicus alone was already a huge workload. On top of that, you were also in charge of other affairs and managed the intelligence of the entire legion."

Galo retorted expressionlessly.

Hades, as if deflated, slumped onto his desk, his upper body instantly buried under a mountain of official documents.

"Okay, you're right, oh yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes."

Cover yourself with a small blanket under the bridge, and tell everyone you meet, "That's right, that's right."

"I know what we might face in the future, Hades, we all know."

Jialu spoke carefully, choosing her words precisely.

“But I sense that you are more afraid of it than anyone else. You are still afraid in your heart, aren’t you? I didn’t notice this before because you always appeared calm and composed in front of others.”

“But I think, if it weren’t for fear, no one could work so hard in a relatively stable environment. Hades, I don’t know how to describe it, but your workload is like having a monster chasing you.”

Hades's muffled voice came from the document.

"You're wrong, Galo, you're wrong."

"When you have nothing, when reality remains the same, there's nothing to care about."

"But," Hades weakly raised a hand, and immediately the image of Barbalus was projected onto the table. In the hands of technology and nature, the planet was now quite beautiful.

“Construction has already begun, development has already begun, and I cannot tolerate it being destroyed again.”

Hades rubbed his head in anguish, muttering under his breath about how this was weakness and how the damn cesspool had suddenly become fragrant.

War leaves no time to consider anything else, but in the long river of peaceful time, facing the possible future, Hades always hopes to do more and more during this rare and precious period of time.

After all, there will never be a day when you are fully prepared, but every extra bullet you prepare increases your chances.

Garo spoke curtly, "I have faith in Lord Mortalian's galactic defense system."

Hades waved his hand.

"You and I both know that I'm referring to more than just these things."

"Then let's get back to our original topic. You've done your best."

Galo stepped forward, pressed Hades' shoulder, and patted him. At that moment, Galo transformed back into the elder brother who led Hades into the legion, instead of the office worker calmly waiting to die in the document room.

Although this change was largely due to the commander standing before him.

"Hades, you have taught me a lot about responsibility and about building. There was a time when I firmly believed that the expeditions for the Empire were everything, war and bloodshed, resistance and destruction. But you have shown me another possibility, another path that the Empire can take."

"Although I hate the documents I have to approve for them, I hope you will stop assigning me these tasks."

Galo quickly read the sentence aloud and continued speaking expressionlessly.

“You may not realize it, but I know how many things you have changed, how many people you have changed. You have done enough. You have brought them the present. There is no need to demand more of yourself about whether you can bring them the future.”

"Hades, you know a lot. You know everything about the Death Guard, but what you don't know is your importance within the Death Guard, and the silent changes the Death Guard has made for you."

Hades raised his hand, signaling Galo to stop.

"Change? You mean telling each other lame jokes?"

Hades gave a cold laugh, as if mocking himself.

Galo looked at Hades coldly, her expression unchanged, her face serious.

"Your understanding is too superficial, Hades. You haven't taken the various changes within the Legion seriously, or rather, treated them equally. You've always felt that you're guiding the Legion from a position of authority."

"Is not it?"

Hades said something in a low voice.

"Perhaps you arrogantly believe that you have changed the Death Guard, Hades, but in fact, the Death Guard is welcoming you."

"They are welcoming you, acknowledging all the efforts they have made for you, and all the efforts you will make for you."

"If the Death Guard doesn't approve of you, no amount of policy will be anything but empty words."

"Don't you realize you don't look like a Death Guard?"

Galo aimed for the vital point, delivering a fatal blow.

"So the Death Guard is also trying to change themselves, and we hope you can integrate into this legion."

If Galo were to summarize Hades's so-called quotes, she would only summarize one.

That is to tell the truth, and at the same time tear away Hades's usual unreliable exterior.

In fact, Hades himself may not even realize that he is the type who is warm on the outside but cold on the inside, because only a heart of stone can remain calm in the face of great storms and decisively choose the path that is most likely to succeed in the face of human suffering.

Only then can one remain calm and hold the rudder firmly when everyone else is shocked and terrified by the facts.

If Hades were truly a zealot, he would have been defeated by reality long ago.

Galo knew that only the most sincere truth could touch the coldest soul.

"The Death Guard welcomes you, as do I, Vox, Lord Mortalian, and all the Death Guards. Although you often roam among the Death Guards, you still feel that no one among them can reach your level, right?"

"So Death Guard is trying to change itself, Hades. I think you should realize all this. Death Guard is trying to catch up with you, or rather, welcome."

As expected, Hades completely crashed, uttering meaningless monosyllabic interrogative sentences.

“…Never mind, never mind…Master, stop chanting, stop chanting.”

Galo crossed his arms and watched with satisfaction as Hades wavered and eventually broke down.

"Don't put too much pressure on yourself. Barbarossa has become what it is today, Death Guard has become what it is today. You've done more than enough. If you need help, Death Guard is always ready—not just when you command us as commander."

Then Galo left, with the air of a victor, with an inexplicable ease of having avenged his great grudge.

"You little brat," he thought, "Barbarus's little brat, no matter how powerful you are, it was Garo who chose you back then. In the end, you've fallen into this trap."

Galo could sense that after entering the Death Guard, Hades had been looking down on them from a superior perspective.

But now, today, Galo, together with all the Death Guardians and the thriving Barbaros, has successfully dragged Hades down from his pedestal.

"Come down here, you little brat," Gara thought, "when I was conquering Terra, you weren't even born yet."

Also, Death Guard welcomes you.

I wrote this late at night, so it might be a bit sentimental and stream-of-consciousness... I've tidied it up a bit, added some more details, and am now getting ready to move on to the next part of the story.

If you don't like it, just ignore this chapter! ( )

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