Warhammer: Hail to the Void Lords!.

Chapter 1067 09.1066: 'Innocence'

“You said you sent them here for training as a ‘planetary defense force’,” Horatio’s voice rang out in the smoke-filled office, tinged with a barely perceptible sarcasm, “but isn’t your ‘planetary defense force’ a little too well-equipped?”

The governor's fat face was still full of smiles as he calmly swirled the red wine in his glass: "Polaberia suffered a devastating invasion by the Greenskins. Now, I will never let the same thing happen again in my hands."

"As the Supreme Lord Colonel of the Guardian Emperor Hanyu Holy Fleet, I must ask a question."

Horatio leaned forward slightly, the joints of his power armor emitting a soft hydraulic creak, subtly increasing the pressure. "How can you guarantee your loyalty to the Empire?"

"Have I done anything to betray the God Emperor?" the fat governor asked in an exaggeratedly pitiful tone, as if he had suffered a great injustice.

This expression, combined with his wide-open mouth that almost reached his ears, created a chilling and terrifying sight.

"I expect you to fulfill your duties."

Horatio said in a businesslike, detached tone, "After all, the Imperial Navy now has a formal base on your planet."

I must ensure that the leader of this planet is first and foremost loyal to the Lord of Humanity on the Golden Throne, and that he will never commit any act of disobedience.

"Hehe, Lord, there's no need to worry."

The portly governor seemed completely oblivious to the threat in his words, and sank back into his chair. "I am but a minor colonial governor. If Your Excellency were to discover any disobedience on my part and wish to crush me, it would be an easy task."

Having said that, he raised his wine glass and gestured to Horatio across the distance.

The group walked out of the governor's office, leaving behind the oppressive luxury, and stepped into the open courtyard leading to the flight dock.

“Although I haven’t found any suspicious acts of betrayal on his part yet,” Horatio said in a low voice to his companion as he strode forward, “we are in a dangerous situation.”

"Sir, although his men are a bit stronger than the average Astragalus soldier, we shouldn't be in a dangerous situation, right?" Captain Valina asked, holding her Hellfire Gun, somewhat puzzled.

By her standards as a loyalist of the Storm Legion, the mercenaries' movements, though skillful, were nothing more than that.

"That's the problem." Horatio's expression turned extremely serious. "The vast majority of the soldiers in our training base right now are new recruits who have just put down their hoes. Although you and Krieg's colleagues are providing military training, their current actual skill level is probably not even enough to beat regular Astragalus soldiers, let alone the Governor's mercenaries, who are all veterans who have seen real blood."

“The commander’s concerns are valid. If things go wrong, we won’t even be able to protect ourselves,” Yadwiga immediately agreed. “I’m not exaggerating. I’ve seen too many unexpected betrayals in the battles between Sintira and the Whirlwind Guard. Besides, it wouldn’t be surprising if this governor really wanted to harm us.”

She instinctively gripped the hilt of her sword: "If the governor's troops launch a surprise attack on our training base, our recruits will be quickly routed. Whether or not such a terrible situation occurs, we should be prepared for the worst. When the blade is really at our throats, he won't care who you are or what rank you hold."

As the group walked through the courtyard and reached the hovercar, a petite figure was already waiting there.

Yoyo's uniform was filthy, and a leaf even clung to her messy hair. But she still exuded a vibrant spirit. The moment she saw Horatio, she straightened her back and saluted him in a serious yet somewhat comical manner.

"Reporting, boss! The task you assigned us has not been completed satisfactorily!"

Yoyo loudly uttered this ridiculous statement, but she didn't seem to realize anything was wrong, and continued excitedly reporting:

"We didn't find much useful information in that fat man's office; the defenses were too tight! His office is right behind the courtyard and his bedroom. Once that person is carried away by his servants, chair and all, the room automatically activates an infrared laser beam. Plus, there are those private soldiers patrolling on unpredictable routes... I've tried it these past few days, but each time I only dared to enter his office for a few minutes before having to come out. I took a few pictures of the documents on his desk before he left!"

"Also, we successfully sneaked into the surveillance room! Although the surveillance room didn't capture anything inside the Governor's Office, I found the trail of that 'mysterious man' in the tavern based on the date you mentioned, boss!"

"You did a great job, yo-yo. Get on the plane now."

Yoyo leaped onto the hovercar in a flash. As Horatio sat down and fastened his seatbelt, he heard a clear gurgling sound coming from the belly of the half-cat girl beside him.

"Hehe... Sorry, I haven't eaten yet today." Youyou scratched her head sheepishly.

“I know a place in Volshar that has lots of good food and is very safe.” Yadviga got into the car on the other side, pulled the heavy sliding door shut, and suggested, “Want to go, Commander Citizen?”

“Good. Everyone, change into civilian clothes.” Horatio took off his conspicuous power armor and casually put on a dark blue trench coat that he often wore.

They arrived at a smooth, cobblestone street outside the inner wall of the old Royal Court of Władysław.

This is the segregated area of ​​the native Polaberia. Looking around, apart from a few Polaberia people with horse ears, you can hardly see any other humans on the streets.

It was springtime in Polaberia, and the weather was still cool. Everyone was wrapped tightly in their coats, and no one could tell what Horatio and his party were wearing under their heavy clothing.

The Hell Soldiers selected by Valina had already changed into local clothing and blended seamlessly into the sparse crowd.

A Hellfire sniper, carrying an unassuming "fishing tackle bag," climbed onto the attic of an old house and took up a commanding position.

Valina herself bought a steaming hot drink and pretended to be a passerby warming herself on the street. She leaned against the flower-lined handrail not far from Horatio, her wary gaze seemingly casually sweeping over everything around her.

Horatio also discovered that the reason Yadvig recommended this place was because it was really safe—there weren't many tall, dense modern buildings around, so there was a lack of ideal sniping spots.

All the houses retain the old-fashioned attic style, the streets are narrow and winding, any high point can be easily countered by friendly snipers, and all potentially threatening areas can be scanned at a glance.

(End of this chapter)