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

Page 190

Only the main planet remains unconquered; all the planets outside the galaxy have fallen. Faced with hundreds or thousands of alien forces outnumbering their own, the Mechanicus clings desperately to their last stronghold, teetering on the brink of collapse under the onslaught of Memanic.

They haven't given up yet. The foundries and furnaces on Ruster's main planet cannot fall into enemy hands. The mechanical marvels that have brought together humanity over centuries cannot be handed over to others so easily. Every capital city of a foundry world is an unrepeatable miracle, and they cannot be taken away.

However, the numbers on the logic engine are deflecting, and the numbers accurate to six decimal places are decreasing, like the enemy's artillery barrage. As time goes by, the sages' calculated odds of winning are getting lower and lower, and that number is getting infinitely close to zero.

The sages, known for their reason and logic, certainly knew what this meant: failure, death, limbs and oil spilled everywhere, cables roughly ripped out, wet parts trembling and exposed to the radiation wasteland.

Logically, they should abandon this futile resistance, withdraw their entire army to the main city, destroy the data, smash the furnace, and bring an end to the wisdom accumulated by humanity over generations.

But that number hadn't completely reached zero yet; a small team of explorers on the outer mining planet escaped before the entire star system was sealed off by Memanic—

They are the final uncertainties, clinging tightly to the logic engine of every sage, holding onto the number that represents victory or defeat, ensuring that it still exists in the realm of "existence" at the last moment.

If, hypothetically speaking, they could bring back reinforcements in time...

The Death Guard, which was recuperating in Galaspa, received an urgent order from the Empire, and the entire fleet began to slowly depart from the Galaspa star system.

The decree, issued directly from Terra, was vague and ambiguous, with crucial information obscured by its wavering vocabulary. In short, it stated nothing except where the Death Guard was going.

The Lord of Death was very dissatisfied with this, but his commander seemed to have no complaints. In Mortalian's eyes, Hades was frantically packing up gold and silver, wishing he could load every bullet that had just come off the assembly line onto the ship.

Forget it, leave him alone.

What Mortarian didn't know was that after seeing the edict, Hades's alarm bells went off. Knowing all the Empire's messy operations, he realized that this campaign of concealing information was probably no ordinary one. Hades hurriedly worked overtime overnight to take charge of production and transportation. For him, every extra cannon meant a greater chance of success.

As the Death Guard traveled through the warp, they received a communication request directly from the main battlefield: Leon Johnson, commander of the First Legion, requested to speak with Mortarion, commander of the Fourteenth Legion.

Another brother. Mortarion no longer reacted; he only hoped that the Death Guard could fight normally and then win.

In the dimly lit conference room of the Death Guard, Mortarion, clad in full armor, had poisonous mist flowing along the curves of his armor, shrouding the Lord of Death in mystery.

In other corners beyond the reach of the communication channels, Hades, Garo, and Vox stood silently.

Hades, the lion of Caliban, knew this was not a conversation he could interfere with; the lion was proud enough to be arrogant and stubborn.

However, Hades felt that Mortarian and Leon Johnson should be able to have a proper conversation compared to Peturabo.

Three, two, one.

A faint electric current flickered, the light outlining the majestic figure of the Forest Child. His emerald armor was the ever-lush forest of Caliban. The Lion Sword leaned obediently beside its master, who, with blond hair and green eyes, silently stared at the opposite side.

Beneath the shadow of the hood, Mortarian raised an eyebrow slightly.

The farmer from Barbarossa was no stranger to this feeling.

This guy, Leon Johnson, the aura he exudes, that constant vigilance, that constant alertness, is not human, but more like a wild beast.

Those beasts devoid of civilization, compassion, and human emotion.

On the barren plains of Barbarus, Mortarion once hunted those solitary beasts. These wild creatures, living alone, were weary of the wilderness, arrogant, constantly on guard, and aggressive.

Now, a beast is eyeing Mortalian with predatory intent. Mortalian can sense the undercurrent beneath that veiled gaze. His brother, Leon Johnson, is assessing Mortalian as Mortalian assesses him.

Or perhaps he was trying to attack Mortarion, a measured gaze before the beast launched its attack.

Was Leon Johnson trying to make Mortarian back down? Was he judging his brother, who was about to join the war, with his own malicious and savage rudeness? Those eyes were fixed maliciously on Mortarian, trying to make him flee.

Mortarian certainly knew what to do. When you encounter a wild beast, the best course of action is neither to turn and run away nor to attack rashly. On the wasteland, the farmer's breathing did not change in the slightest when facing the lion. The farmer slowly raised his scythe that harvested life and calmly confronted the giant beast.

The two Primarchs stood in silent confrontation.

Finally, the lion withdrew his aggressive gaze and nodded proudly, as if giving a brief welcome greeting.

But Mortalian knew that the lion was affirming Mortalian's actions just now. Mortalian couldn't help but sneer in his heart, "Another arrogant fellow. What right does he have to judge the strength of Mortalian and the Death Guard?"

When none of that mattered, Horus was a miracle among his brothers, and Mortarion asked for nothing more.

[First Legion Dark Angel, Leon Johnson.]

Leon spoke, his voice steady and deep, carrying an unquestionable certainty. Even though the lion himself looked slightly haggard and tired from the battle, his words were still Caliban's sharpest sword.

Mortarion, Death Guard of the Fourteenth Legion.

The Pale King responded with his hoarse voice, like a gentle breeze passing through a tomb. Before death and tombstones, even the sharpest blade becomes pale and powerless.

The Empire is currently experiencing a war, an unprecedented war, and Mortarion, you and your legions are not part of the core of this campaign.

However, this does not mean the Death Guard will be absent.

The alien race known as "Randan" is escaping the Empire's encirclement. We need to deploy Death Guards in advance along Randan's retreat route to block their escape route towards the northeast of the Empire.

The good news is that, according to the Empire's plan, you won't encounter Randan's fleet immediately, and the First Legion's Dark Angels fleet will likely tear apart this escape route before you meet Randan.

[The enemy's data will be transmitted to the Death Guard. Do you have any questions?]

Mortarian's voice, tinged with slight anger, rang out.

[You mean, the Death Guard was urgently summoned here merely to observe a battle? To serve as an insignificant substitute? We might not even be fighting at all?]

The lion glared at Mortarian with displeasure.

【Yes. 】

Mortarian let out a loud hiss from beneath his breathing mask.

Leon ignored him, speaking arrogantly in a lecturing tone.

[Mortalian, this is a hunt. The Empire is as bloodied as its enemies. You should be thankful that the Death Guard doesn't have to face this battle directly, instead of acting like warmongers.]

Listening to Mortalian's breathing, Hades felt that Mortalian was about to suffocate, but Mortalian still managed to utter his words through the respirator.

【Okay, I know. 】

The Lord of Death abruptly ended the communication, and the Primarch angrily slammed his scythe into the ground.

Hades was certain he heard Mortarian mutter curses under his breath.

"I now truly believe Horus is a miracle."

Mortarian said to Hades, "I'm even starting to regret distancing myself from him."

Even if they could all fall into depravity, Horus is still at least better than these bastards.

I can't keep up with all the research, so I'm going to start making things up. I created a Forge world, and by the way, the Basmemanik in that game is based on the Death Guard's interception of Basmemanik during the Second Battle of Randan.

The current timeline is the Third Battle of Randan, but the bad news is that someone told me that the timeline I was referring to before, where Mortarion's return occurred, was fucking wrong. This is fucking embarrassing. (That timeline was written in a rather formal and rigorous way.) No wonder I was wondering why the Second Battle of Randan and the Battle of Druun occurred before the Primarch's return, yet the term "Death Guard" still appeared.

Grandma's legs.

Speaking of which, are you guys planning to let me destroy the two Primarchs? I'm thinking of just killing them off, but if you want to see, I can use my imagination and make up some reasons why they died.

Chapter 227 Leon's Leadership

The aloof lion does not express what he considers indifferent friendliness to his brothers; such lukewarm emotions are not suited to the smoke-filled battlefield. In this battle, the lion is designated as the "commander," and he will issue his orders with an unquestionable tone and a judgmental, suspicious gaze.

Even if Mortarian would be unhappy for a long time after this terrible first meeting, Leon Johnson wouldn't waste too much energy on it. To him, it was merely a legion skilled in frontal warfare being deployed along the escape route of the Randan branch. He would delegate command of this part to his knights. The lion's gaze should be focused on the much larger and more brutal forest of war, where everyone bleeds and sacrifice is more common than breathing.

The war raged on, igniting a blazing inferno that caused stars to fall and the sun to dim. Multiple legions were thrown into this protracted war, and Ran Dan, which had been severely damaged in the previous two battles, would finally make a quiet exit in this galactic drama.

But this did not mean the battle would be easy. With the First Legion as the main force, the Second Legion, the Sixth Legion, and the Eleventh Legion participated in the main battle zone. However, this battle was different from any of the Lion's previous battles. In addition to seriously facing the threat from the Randan aliens, the Lion and the Wolf's keen sense of smell detected an unusual scent in the blood.

That wasn't the aura emanating from the opposite side of the battlefield.

Compared to the wolf king, the lion king is more perceptive. When mysterious soldiers from the last legion infiltrated the battlefield, the lion had to be even more cautious.

Each legion has its own unique imperial function, while the First Legion, the Dark Angels, and the Sixth Legion, the Space Wolves, are precisely the ones wielding the blades that sever decapitations from the inside.

They were given the powers of "regulation", "vigilance" and "extermination".

But Leon Johnsen knew that the Lion preferred to take the initiative and be vigilant rather than blindly follow orders like the Wolf King. He knew secrets that his brothers did not, and he upheld the bottom line that his brothers were unaware of. Because of Leon Johnsen's extremely hard-working and loyal nature, his father, the Emperor, had also given the First Legion many gifts.

Some gifts that can easily make troubles and worries disappear.

The Dark Angels are even the only Legion capable of launching a trial and extermination against the Mechanicus Forgeworld. Unlike other Legions that more or less need to cooperate with the Mechanicus Forgeworld, the Dark Angels possess their own unique technology.

Aside from the Empire, Terra, and the Emperor, the Lion has the right to wipe out everything when necessary.

Therefore, he had no reaction to Mortarion and his Fourteenth Legion. On the intricate battlefields of Randan, Mortarion and the Death Guard were merely lucky individuals who could be seen through at a glance. They were only conscripted here because of the Empire's needs. They did not need to shed fearless blood, nor did they need the lion's excessive gaze.

So Leon Johnson simply assigned the Death Guard mission to Mortalian and, incidentally, had a brief meeting with Mortalian because of the bond of being "both Primarchs".

If Mortarian possessed strategic wisdom, he should understand Leon Johnson's actions. Leon Johnson considered it an extremely high level of respect and courtesy that the Lion could personally take time to have a conversation with Mortarian while commanding the main battlefield of Randan.

Unfortunately, the lion's "obvious" goodwill was not accepted by Mortarian, who was "lacking in war wisdom".

Perhaps it was Leon Johnsen's initial aggression and subsequent arrogant words that caused Mortalian to frown throughout the journey, and to repeatedly shoo Hades away when he tried to comfort him. However, despite grumbling inwardly, Mortalian still directed the Death Guard to proceed according to the route given by Leon Johnsen.

Although he was very unhappy, no, extremely unhappy, Mortarian also sensed something was amiss from the Empire's large-scale mobilization of its legions.

In the confrontation with the lion, in just one glance, Mortarion could see the Primarch's undisguised wariness in that instant.

Motalian was certainly familiar with this attitude, but he concealed it well. The shadow of the hood, the cover of the breathing mask, and the drifting of poison gas meant that no one would notice him.

It wasn't the kind of disgust that Perturabo had. Even Perturabo wouldn't look at other Legions' Primarchs with that kind of gaze. Things became clear: apart from the Deathguard who knew the future in advance, the First Legion was at least on guard against a future where a star had fallen and a civilization had been tarnished.

The unusual content of the edict for this battle, the information that was deliberately blocked, gave the Lord of Death a vague premonition that it was different from the usual battles.

Primarch thought indifferently that he hadn't met most of his brothers yet, but he didn't expect to either.

So even though Mortarian was very unhappy, he obediently and carefully directed the Death Guard's advance. The construction in Barbarus and Galaspa at least made Mortarian realize the scarcity of the Legion's resources, and he didn't want to waste his strength on something he didn't understand.

The Death Guard's fleet sailed smoothly through the universe.

As the lion followed its path, the stellar communication system near the Mandeville point in the Just system did not respond to the Death Guard's calls. While some small star systems do sometimes malfunction, a star system that has forged a world should not make such a basic mistake.

The Just Star System is a small, remote star system, but its location connects two large star systems. In subspace, only Just Star's trajectory remains stable, while in the physical universe, Just Star is obviously quite far from its two nearest star systems, making it difficult to travel to the next star system using only physical navigation.

Its unique geographical location makes Ruster a kind of star system gateway. Because this star system is located in a remote part of the empire's borders, it is usually in a deserted state.

But now, Randan's retreat has brought this star system back to the strategists' table. Holding it off means that behind Ruster lie several rich and bustling imperial star systems, and Ruster cannot afford to fall.

According to the First Legion's calculations, Randan would not have retreated to this place. Even under the worst-case scenario, Randan could not have retreated here. However, because the governors of the planets in the world behind Ruster kept calling for help, the Death Guard was sent over.

For these planetary governors, crying out and calling for help was never a bad idea, and indeed, the arrival of the Death Guard saved their lives.

The exam was submitted.

I pray online for my teacher's mercy.

I'll try a little harder, and tonight I won't wait any longer; the card will be gone in a flash.

Chapter 228 Rust, Fungi, Pain

The Death Guardian, which had not received a response from Rust, remained briefly docked in the warp. However, in contrast to Rust's delayed response, the Death Guardian received another faint distress signal.

After analysis, the dynamically encrypted signal was found to use the Mechanicus's ciphertext. Master Foundry Hades successfully cracked the signal and traced its origin to a nearly destroyed Mechanicus vessel.

The small boat drifted silently in the warp turbulence. It was not a ship specifically designed for warp travel. Its Geiger field was almost non-existent, indicating that it had entered the warp urgently. Based on the paint on it, the Deathguard determined that it was a ship from Ruster.

The mission to recover the ship and its crew was assigned. Given the possibility that the Mechanicus vessel might be contaminated by the warp, the Death Guard dispatched a squad led by Hades.

Something's not right.

Hades stood silently on the deck of the small boat, which showed obvious signs of contamination due to the lack of necessary subspace protection facilities.

Generally speaking, entering the Warp without protective measures will likely result in nothing serious if you're lucky, but if you're unlucky, the crew will go mad, the ship will grow a mouth, and the Warp will reveal the deepest fears of human nightmares, driving any sentient being insane.

So Hades was actually prepared to see a ship full of twisted creatures, but—

The ship's corrosion clearly shows a tendency to occur.

Swarms of flies crowded onto the deck, buzzing and dripping pus from the gaps between the planks, making the ground even smoother. Glistening, colored particles piled up on the metal walls, and rust gnawed at every corner of the ship. The dull, rough surfaces writhed like some kind of living slime mold, turning steel into dirt particles like soil in their wake.

Hades fell silent. These were obvious signs of filth. Was it too late to run now?

And what's with this "beating Ran Dan" thing?

Is this warp space very close to Nurgle's domain? Or is it just a coincidence? But when Deathguards and Nurgle appear in the same area at the same time, you can't be too careful.

This vibrant scene was faithfully transmitted back to the command room on the Endurance. Mortalian silently watched the swarm of flies, while the Primarch breathed heavily, raising his hand to signal Garro to put all Deathguards on alert. The Deathguards' Geiger Field was activated to its maximum, ready to forcibly jump out of the warp at any time.

Hades, act according to your own judgment. If you sense danger, be prepared to retreat at any time.

Standing on the edge of the ship's deck, Hades silently crouched down and ran his hand across the now fertile floor. Thick moss breathed on the rust, emitting a beautiful yet dangerous emerald green. But wherever Hades touched, these lives withered instantly, revealing the original appearance of the deck below. The metal was gone, replaced by thick rust.

They are still in the warp. Hades is unsure of the consequences of using a large-scale dark domain here. It is very likely that when these warp phenomena disappear, he will be thrown out of the warp.

Well, but the Death Guard main fleet is still anchored in warp space. Their only information about the Ruster system is the small boat where Hades is. If there is no other information, the Death Guard has no choice but to either force open the Mandeville point in Ruster and continue the Empire's orders, or disobey and return to the previous system.

However, it's not a good choice to disobey orders and retreat without a legitimate reason. At least you need a reason, but you can't just use Nurgle to tell Lionheart that the Death Guard is not going to fight, can you?

Hades looked at the moss on the ground, and after briefly sensing the warp power here, he got up and began to deploy.

It's worth exploring; the subspace energy here is insufficient to support a large number of psionic creatures and summoning arrays.