Chapter 139: Malcador, Fuck You
Hades was looking helplessly at the so-called "highly educated individuals" standing before him.
"My lord, I am their current representative,"
A plump, greasy man spoke to Hades in a flattering tone.
Behind him stood a large group of people, their clothing somewhat tattered yet still unable to conceal their former splendor.
Hades felt as if an anime anger mark had just popped up above his head.
He had specifically put aside the supervision of the Star Ring's construction, as well as the migration and registration of Barbarus' population, just to come here and welcome the people Malcador had sent him.
Not long ago, the weapons and fleet funded by the Emperor for Mortarion had just arrived in port. Watching the extravagant wealth practically spill out of those transport ships, Hades couldn't help but feel a slight anticipation for Malcador.
But reality proved—Malcador, you never fail to amaze me.
Looking at the shipload of people who resembled refugees fleeing from disaster, Hades found himself deeply questioning his life choices.
Had he known, he would have just asked the Emperor directly.
But in reality, Hades knew that the Empire's administration was largely managed by Malcador. If he had gone to the Emperor for help, chances were that the order would have ended up in Malcador's hands anyway.
Hades gritted his teeth at the thought.
However, Malcador had his own difficulties as well. The key departments on Terra had an enormous demand for talent. He himself never had enough people—why would he send valuable personnel to a relatively remote planet?
Not even a Primarch's homeworld was an exception.
Thus, Malcador decisively issued an edict to the Segmentum Tempestus, where Barbarus was located, ordering the collection of noble offspring with criminal records from various planets.
And so, Hades received a group of so-called "educated individuals" who had either lost political struggles at home, been convicted of dereliction of duty, or were about to be executed for corruption and bribery.
At least they were literate and had received higher education—technically.
Hades cursed Malcador in his heart once again.
This was bureaucracy taken to a whole new level.
The middle-aged man standing in front of Hades, seeing that the Legionary commander was ignoring him, remained unperturbed. With a practiced smile, he stood respectfully by Hades' side, waiting.
His name was Fuller. Originally, he had been a high-ranking official in a hive city, rising to his position under the protection of a powerful noble family. But when his patrons needed a scapegoat for execution, Fuller was the one they sacrificed.
Fuller didn't resent them. From the moment he had been taken under their wing, he had known his fate was sealed. So he never saved too much money, spent lavishly, never started a family—he had lived without regrets, knowing he would end up in prison eventually.
What he hadn't expected was that a few words from the true rulers of the uppermost echelons had led to him being dragged roughly out of prison by guards and thrown onto a ship bound for Barbarus.
Well, at least he got to live a little longer.
However, the lord standing before him now seemed quite irritated. Fuller could tell—this man was not pleased about receiving a group of fallen nobles.
Most likely, this lord had been quietly taken advantage of by those above him. And worse yet, he had no way to protest—he could only swallow the loss in silence.
Fuller tried to make himself appear less offensive and sighed inwardly.
As the temporary leader of this group, randomly chosen by those in power, he was probably going to suffer for it.
He had caught glimpses of these Legion officers before—short-tempered, to say the least. And they certainly didn't see ordinary mortals like him as worth their attention.
However, after a brief moment of stiffness, the imposing figure in front of him spoke in a voice devoid of clear emotion.
"Your name?"
"Fuller, my lord. My name is Fuller."
Hades paused, suppressing his rising urge to kill Malcador.
"Alright, Fuller. Tell me where you people came from."
Fuller was taken aback.
A lord who actually asked questions rationally without immediately venting his anger?
That was rare.
The few strands of hair he had left swayed slightly as he hastily began explaining everything he knew.
"My lord, most of us come from noble families within the Segmentum Tempestus. We are all High Gothic speakers and were convicted for various reasons. But now, we have been assigned to serve under you."
Great. And all of them were criminals.
Hades now fully understood Malcador's scheme.
He decided to take back the sympathy he had felt for Malcador when Mortarion had confronted him on Mars.
Education was crucial, but sending a group of corrupt individuals—
Hades could feel his anger bubbling up again.
"Guilty?"
His low voice rippled through the air like a death knell. The slight rustling and murmuring among the crowd instantly fell silent, as if they had all been buried alive.
"Y-yes, my lord," Fuller stammered.
The sudden burst of killing intent from Hades made Fuller's knees go weak, and he collapsed to the ground.
His reaction snapped the rest of the group out of their stunned state. Overwhelmed by fear, they too fell to their knees like a wave crashing down.
But instead of satisfaction, Hades just felt exasperated.
It wasn't even really their fault.
Ha.
Malcador, you son of a—!!!
Even if they were criminals, Hades couldn't just execute all of them. He still needed manpower. But first, he would have to filter out the truly useless ones and put the rest under strict supervision.
"Do not kneel."
A clear, childish voice cut through the silence.
Hades sighed, already knowing who it was before turning his head.
Sure enough—little Herila.
Thanks to the Death Guard's ample food rations and Jin's deliberate efforts to separate the siblings, young Herila's null field had rapidly strengthened in recent days.
She had even instinctively developed the stealth ability unique to untouchables.
Noticing that Herila had suddenly become much harder to track down, Jin had quickly reported the anomaly to Hades.
Hades observed the girl. If he remembered correctly, stealth was an advanced skill usually possessed only by the most elite Sisters of Silence.
Realizing that Herila's anti-psyker field had already reached an impressive level, Hades had made a swift decision—he would personally look after the child.
Of course, in true Death Guard fashion, that still meant free-range parenting.
Just put a tracking marker on the little girl and tell little Herila where she is allowed to go. If she exceeds the designated area, an alarm will automatically go off.
And if little Herila gets into trouble, she can find Hades.
The rather quiet Had was content to stay in the archives and study, while little Herila, who didn't like reading, often got bored and came to bother him from time to time.
Hades scratched his chin.
He suddenly realized that no one had ever taught little Herila that children shouldn't speak when adults are handling business.
The native-born Barbarus girl clearly didn't understand these noble customs. She simply relied on her experience growing up on Barbarus, knowing at least that she shouldn't kneel.
Speaking of which, could it be that other Barbarus children were at the same level as her?
Hades took a sharp breath. He suddenly realized that this was probably true.
The Barbarus-born Death Guards had all been trained in military discipline by Mortarion back in the day, but in daily life, the small villages never had such rules.
Everyone just lived in a chaotic mess, and those from the strongholds might seem a little more disciplined.
But only seem a little more disciplined.
"Little Herila,"
Hades opened a private communication channel and spoke seriously.
"When people are handling business, you are not allowed to interrupt."
"You are not allowed to speak without permission."
"Oh, sorry."
Little Herila instantly shrank back. Realizing her mistake, she activated stealth mode, covered her mouth with one hand, and obediently stood beside Hades.
Meanwhile, Fuller continued kneeling, trembling, not knowing what was happening.
In his view, a little girl had suddenly appeared out of nowhere and then vanished just as suddenly!
It was terrifying! Was she a ghost?
Fuller trembled all over, his belly shaking with fear. He wasn't afraid of death, but he was afraid of ghosts!
His fear made him instinctively ignore the fact that Hades' aura had already softened.
"Get up."
Hades sighed silently.
"Now, line up properly. Each of you, go over there and register."
"Write down your name, age, home planet, and either your crimes or how you ended up here."
"Write it clearly."
"If anyone lies about their past…"
Hades didn't finish his sentence. Instead, he watched with satisfaction as the group trembled and rushed to get in line.
<+>
If you want to see more chapter of this story and don't mind paying $5 each month to read the latest posted chapter, please go to my
Latest Posted Chapter in Patreon:
Link to the latest posted chapter: