The scarred strongman's fist shot straight for Horatio's face, with a force that clearly wasn't meant to leave him alive.
"Die!"
'+Activating Power Fist... 100%+'
'+Power Fist Activation Complete+'
Thump!
A muffled sound echoed through the carriage.
"Ugh! Ow! Argh!" The strongman's face was filled with shock, and he kept letting out unpleasant cries.
His sandbag-sized fist landed squarely in Horatio's iron palm.
"Home run," Horatio, slightly shorter than the strongman, showed a cold smile.
Crack!
The next second, the strongman's fist instantly turned into mincemeat in Horatio's hand, blood and flesh squeezed out from between the metal fingers as if it had gone through a meat grinder.
"Ah!!!!" The strongman immediately burst into wailing, tears and blood gushing out like a pump-activated faucet.
Bang!
Horatio frowned, raising his hand and punching the scarred strongman's face, which was filled with shock and pain.
The riot helmet, along with his head, instantly shattered into countless fragments, spraying backward like a detonated Claymore mine, knocking several Evil Cultists off balance and drenching them in blood.
The scarred strongman's headless corpse was thrown to the ground by the immense force.
Horatio's face was grim; he shook his iron hand with a look of disdain, flicking off the clinging blood and tissue.
Everyone was stunned; they couldn't imagine a mortal being capable of such a feat.
Even the Female Hunter-Duke, kneeling on the ground, stared blankly at Horatio, who was clad in a blood-stained prison uniform, with extreme terror.
Normally, only the Emperor's Angels of Death, fully armed Space Marines, could achieve such immense power.
How could he, with only that old prosthetic limb that looked neither advanced nor new, just...
Seizing the moment of everyone's shock, Horatio stepped over the blood-soaked ground and, like an arrow released from a bowstring, rushed forward, preparing for a quick fight.
"Eek!!!"
The continuously approaching heavy footsteps jolted the Evil Cultists awake, and goosebumps instantly prickled their entire bodies.
"Mon... monster..."
These guys trembled all over, constantly backing away.
Although they had been ordered to take him alive, their survival instincts had made them disregard obeying orders.
Suddenly, a tingling sensation spread throughout Horatio's body, as if an electric current was passing through him.
Bang! Bang!
A person's constantly trembling finger pulled the trigger twice during a muscle spasm.
[!] Horatio felt a burning pain in his shoulder.
The first bullet grazed his shoulder, leaving a small blood mark; if it had been a few millimeters lower, it would have directly blown off his shoulder blade.
Horatio took several deep breaths, feeling a bit unnerved.
But in his mind, he quickly recalled his instructor's advice—when facing heinous criminals, one must never lose composure, and even less show fear.
So he tried his best to suppress his chaotic thoughts, showing no surprise on his face, maintaining his cold, ruthless expression as if it didn't matter.
His prosthetic limb had just felt a jolt. Horatio's gaze fell on his iron hand, where a hot, deformed bullet was clamped between two fingers.
That was the second bullet.
[Is this the danger-avoidance instinct brought by the Foreboding Tarot?]
Click.
He crushed the bullet like a kernel of corn into a shiny silver iron flower.
The Evil Cultists looked as if they had lost their souls, with only despair in their eyes.
Having learned his lesson, Horatio suddenly sobered up—he was not a Space Marine; as a mortal, he would still die if shot, so he had to remain cautious until he was completely safe.
He immediately tore off the seat cushion with the steel plate embedded in it and held it in front of him, then crouched and lunged forward to continue the assault.
To prevent ricocheting bullets from injuring the Female Hunter-Duke on the ground, he aimed the soft cushion's side towards the enemy so that the bullets would embed themselves and not bounce around.
Whoosh—the air shrieked as it was torn, and a rapid, short burst of gunfire abruptly ceased.
Horatio delivered a hand chop to the nearest person; the steel automatic rifle, along with the helmet and the person, was violently smashed into a V-shape.
"Ah! Ow!!"
These guys were the most fanatical zealots within the Slaanesh cult, specifically dispatched to carry out this disguised kidnapping mission.
Yet, this group of big, burly men were now screaming as if they had seen a ghost.
At the end of the carriage, the dim yellow light cast shadows of figures on the carriage wall.
Hands rose, hands fell.
Each time they fell, a round pool of blood splattered on the cabin wall, and each time they rose, a long string of blood drops was flung out.
The air gradually became filled with gore, and terrified wails, miserable screams, and desperate groans intertwined, echoing within the small carriage.
However, the slaughter did not stop there...
Click!
The rear armored hatch was pulled open, and an Evil Cultist, in a panicked rush, jumped down, falling half-dead as soon as he landed. Before he could even get up, he was immediately crushed into bloody mud by the following vehicle.
The last guy froze upon seeing this scene, his legs trembling uncontrollably.
"What are you standing around for? Get down."
The young man's voice came from behind him.
"Eek!" The Evil Cultist let out a desperate, voiceless scream, his hair standing on end, and a warm stream, accompanied by a foul stench from his crotch, uncontrollably gushed out.
Clang!—
Horatio swung the seat cushion with the steel plate, gathering strength for a strike.
The Evil Cultist's spine instantly snapped into an inverted V-shape, his entire body flying out directly and crashing heavily into the front of the truck following behind, turning into a disgusting mess of organs and blood.
[My apologies, big brother.]
Horatio pressed his palms together towards the truck driver, closing the door apologetically.
Sweating all over, Horatio leaned against the door, panting. The strong smell of blood mixed with the foul odor of feces and urine in the carriage assaulted his nostrils, making him feel a bit nauseous.
Horatio frowned and spat on the face of one of the dead men.
He casually pulled a handkerchief from the chest of a corpse, wiped his blood-stained iron hand clean, then Horatio straightened his somewhat numb and aching back, his gaze falling upon the handcuffed Female Hunter-Duke.
The moment their eyes met, like a wild wolf and a trapped doe, the disheveled Female Hunter-Duke was the first to avert her gaze.
Horatio casually tossed the soiled handkerchief and walked towards the Female Hunter-Duke.
Her hands were cuffed behind her back, her well-developed body lay on the ground in an S-shape, her armor was scattered in pieces, and her combat uniform was torn in large sections, presenting a picture of battle-damaged ruin.
"If you move again... I'll kill you," the Female Hunter-Duke threatened, trembling all over and gasping for air. Her melodious, lark-like voice was slightly hoarse, and her tone was a mix of fear and hatred.
"It doesn't matter, whether I move or not, you're still threatening to kill me, aren't you?"
Horatio carefully avoided the exposed skin of the Female Hunter-Duke, and quite like a Gentleman, he flipped her over.
"Don't touch me! Go away!"
The Female Hunter-Duke struggled desperately, kicking her long legs back and forth, but she couldn't touch Horatio at all.
"Don't move, save your strength. How do you unlock this thing?" He had searched for a long time on the Female Hunter-Duke's body but couldn't find the handcuff key.
"These are biometric handcuffs, find the touchpad on them, then... Ugh! Hey!"
Horatio was searching for a way to unlock the handcuffs and accidentally touched a red button. The Female Hunter-Duke's body instantly convulsed, her bright almond eyes rolling upwards.
After a while, her tense body relaxed, and she took deep breaths of the turbid air in the carriage.
[Hmm... it seems this is an electric shock switch to prevent prisoners from escaping.]
"I'll kill you... you bastard, you must have done that on purpose!" The paralysis from the electric current caused saliva to trickle from the corners of her mouth.
Her hair was disheveled, and her eyes glared fiercely at Horatio, but she could do nothing to him.
"How do I unlock it, exactly? I'm in a hurry."
"Press my finger on it..."
Horatio did as she said, bending the girl's slender, jade-like fingers to an extreme angle to barely make contact.
"Ugh! Ugh!! Softer, softer!" The Female Hunter-Duke's lips twitched, biting her red lips tightly.
"Alright, it's unlocked." The moment the Female Hunter-Duke's finger pressed on it, the handcuffs automatically released.
Whoosh! The instant the handcuffs slipped from the girl's wrists, a sharp slap came flying towards Horatio's face.
Horatio had a fair understanding of this girl's temper, and he had just tormented her again, so he was already prepared. He calmly leaned back, dodging the slap.
"Scoundrel..." The girl squeezed out a barely audible sound, and the next second, a pistol was drawn from her waist holster, pointing directly at Horatio's brow.
[Stress response!]
"Calm down!"
Horatio reacted extremely quickly, pressing down on her hand. He couldn't disarm her, but he did manage to point the muzzle at the ceiling, his index finger pressing against the trigger to prevent it from firing, and his long ring finger smoothly pushed the safety on.
The Female Hunter-Duke's lips were tightly pursed, her eyes, filled with hostility and terror, fixed on Horatio's blue eyes, like a wounded fawn.
"I won't hurt you, it's temporarily safe now, calm down, calm down," Horatio said with a serious gaze and solemn tone.
The Female Hunter-Duke lowered her head, kneeling on the ground, her soft blonde hair falling loosely over her shoulders. She didn't speak, her index finger resting tightly on the trigger, but she was eventually softened by Horatio's calming words and gradually loosened her grip on the gun.
At such close range, Horatio could faintly hear her uncontrollable sobs.
"Wuwu..."
The girl could no longer control her emotions; large teardrops rolled from the corners of her beautiful eyes, and the tear stains marred the makeup on her lovely face.
A sixteen or seventeen-year-old girl was, after all, still a girl. She hadn't let her tears fall even when facing so many people just now, which was the utmost strength she could muster.
After a series of near-death experiences, recalling the recent dangers made it difficult to control her emotions, leading to her agitated behavior just now.
Horatio could understand her feelings, but he didn't know how to comfort her, so he could only gently pat her back, afraid she might choke on her tears.
After a while.
The Female Hunter-Duke struggled to suppress her sobs, her brows tightly furrowed, her crimson lips slightly parted, and her husky voice trembled as she spoke: "How did you know? The Evil Cultists' conspiracy, and the police sign language."
"Uh..."
The Female Hunter-Duke's first question stumped Horatio.
[I can't exactly say I'm from 3K Ancient Terra, half a colleague of yours, and can even see fragments of the future, can I?]
According to the Empire's conservative nature, once these strange, flashy, unknown things were exposed, only death or a miserable death awaited.
Horatio's eyes darted to the right, quickly thinking of a reply in his mind.
"I knocked down a few shady guys in prison, and they told me the plan. As for the sign language, having played cat and mouse with the cops for so long, of course I understand it."
Horatio lied without batting an eye.
Suddenly, the forward lurch caused by the brakes made the already chaotic interior of the vehicle even more messy.
Horatio reached out to steady the seat cushion, and with one hand, lifted the Female Hunter-Duke from the blood-stained carriage floor onto the seat.
"Get up, put on your gear. I'm afraid we've reached those guys' lair."
Soon, the sound of the anti-riot door separating the cockpit and the carriage opening could be heard.
"We're here! You've all had your fun, now it's our turn..."
The Evil Cultist who walked out yawned, his words half-spoken, but when he saw the carnage of corpses scattered throughout the carriage, his words were swallowed back.
Horatio and the Female Hunter-Duke stared at him in unison, their gazes sharper, colder, and more ferocious than the other's.
The Female Hunter-Duke wanted to rush forward, but Horatio pressed her back into the seat.
"Just put on your gear, leave the rest to me." The face that had been quite benevolent just moments ago instantly turned chillingly grim.
The Female Hunter-Duke stared blankly at the young man, and somehow, she unexpectedly felt a long-lost sense of security.
The Evil Cultist instinctively recoiled, stumbling as he fled.
"Quick, close the door! Notify the Chief Priest, the two sacrifices have broken free! Hurry!"
With that, he slapped the emergency closing switch, and the heavy anti-riot door quickly shut.
"Phew." The man took a deep breath, wiping the cold sweat from his forehead.
Click!—
Before he could even pick up the communicator, an exceptionally sharp, piercing sound startled the two people in the driver's cab, making them turn around abruptly.
Only an iron hand was wedged in the closing door gap. If it were an ordinary limb, it would have been severed on the spot, but this iron hand not only showed no deformation but also squeezed and deformed the eight-centimeter thick anti-riot door!
Behind the gap, a pair of cold, terrifying blue eyes stared intently at them, like a beast lurking in the darkness.
"Didn't you want to come out and play? Why are you hiding?"
The cold words pierced their rapidly pounding hearts like sharp icicles.
Creak—
The anti-riot door was violently pushed back, and the gears emitted a piercing scraping sound.
Horatio's arm grew hotter and hotter, and the cooling device continuously spewed out scalding coolant vapor.
"Ugh!"
Click! Bang!
The two Evil Cultists were dumbfounded. This was an eight-centimeter thick, half-ton security anti-riot door that only anti-armor weapons could penetrate!
Yet, this rather slender young man in front of them had actually pushed it back with his bare hands??
Hiss—the steam from the coolant grew thicker and thicker, until it obscured their vision.
In the rising steam, a figure swayed and straightened, appearing exceptionally sinister and terrifying in the mist.
Thump, thump.
Dull footsteps sounded, growing closer and closer.
"Ah... ah!" The first person to open the door was wide-eyed, his face pale, as if he had seen a ghost in the middle of the night.
Bang!
A sudden burst of gunpowder combustion echoed in the small driver's cab.
The man turned his head, only to see his fellow cultist in the passenger seat, mouth agape, lying face up on the control panel, eyes wide with despair and lifeless, blood gushing from the back of his head, soaking the dashboard, and a pistol slipping from his limp hand to the floor.
"A true... devil..."
Before he could turn his head back, Horatio stepped forward.
Splatter!
The inside of the one-way windshield was stained with a large patch of crimson from the viscous blood and flesh splattered by a slap.