Chapter 9: The Treacherous Noble Sons
"9455, what are you doing?" Doss glanced at the engineer and the corpse on his back. "Isn't collecting and disposing of corpses the medic's job? I'm ordering you, Private, tell me why."
Doss had now mastered the basics of communicating with the Kriegers. In the Death Korps, rank was everything.
"That's what happens when you spend too much time with madmen, you'll eventually turn into one too," Doss chuckled to himself.
9455 didn't want to respond, but after hearing it was an "order," he replied, "He is 3529, my comrade-in-arms. I'm making cremation bombs using his remains."
Doss pressed, "And what about them? They were your comrades, too. That's no excuse, Private." He tilted his head, gesturing for 9455 to look outside the trench.
Medics were piling bodies together and pouring flammable liquid on them. These corpses had to be destroyed to prevent Chaos decay.
"3529 is different. He... he is a comrade who went through the Mother Planet Selection Tournament with me. We went through many battles together. Today, he was charging forward..." 9455's words were intermittent, and he didn't want to continue.
At that moment, the medic set the mountain of corpses ablaze. Doss, who didn't have the habit of wearing a gas mask, frowned at the smell of burning flesh. "Then what's the use of the ash bombs you made?"
The raging fire of the corpse pyre was reflected in the dark lenses of 9455's gas mask, yet it seemed as if the fire burned from the depths of his eyes.
"One will be left behind, and one will be declared."
Doss didn't ask any more questions. He stepped aside to make way for 9455, watching his back as the engineer walked away. A series of shallow footprints were left on the ground; after all, it was the weight of two people.
Doss thought of something very unethical: Did 0361 have such ash bombs? If this were confirmed, Doss might open the door to a new world.
Should I just ask? He dismissed the thought. It would probably be pointless. So what should he do? Search through the overcoat when 0361 wasn't around? Doss imagined himself being discovered by 0361, entering vertically and exiting horizontally.
Never mind. I'll test that out later.
...
In the command bunker, officers gathered around the tactical display.
"The Cadian Assault Force, the Salamanders Chapter, and the 1st and 3rd Stu Guards Regiments are all present. The Planetary Defense Force has also deployed personnel to participate in the battle." A lieutenant colonel reported the latest situation to 0361, who nodded.
"All units except the 3rd, 8th, and 14th Battalions have been transferred to the main battlefield. The 3rd, 8th, and 14th Battalions will launch a feint attack on the eastern front, with the 1st Stuar Guards Regiment providing support."
"What if the enemy notices?" someone asked.
"Bomb them so badly they can't even lift their heads." 0361 paused. "How many shells do we have left?"
"About eight hundred units."
"Fire all guns. Charge the moment the Earthshaker cannons stop."
"What about the Salamanders? They're demanding our cooperation."
0361 thought for a moment. "Send all the Death Riders and armored units to reinforce the western front."
"All of them?"
"All." 0361 nodded. "A surprise attack. Quick, before the feint attack on the eastern front ends."
After thinking for a moment, he added, "Have the political commissar supervise the soldiers. They should only launch a feint attack and not go too deep. Also, have the Salamanders send two Astartes to assist."
"Clear."
Hours later, the engineers arrived. When Doss saw the two engineers blocking his way, he instinctively asked, "Can I not go?"
Two engineers grabbed him from either side and dragged him toward the front lines. Doss didn't even consider struggling; it must have been 0361's order. He wasn't arrogant enough to think he was more important than Regiment Commander 0361.
When Doss saw the two Astartes from the Salamanders Chapter, his heart sank. What? Why did you bring me to such a dangerous battlefield? Are you trying to murder me?
He maintained a composed expression as he performed the Aquila salute.
One of these two Astartes was the company champion, wearing the laurel wreath, the commander of this operation. The other Astartes was a type that Doss had never seen before, around 2.5 meters tall. Weren't normal Astartes only 2.2 meters tall?
Dos considered a possibility: this might be the Imperium's latest achievement.
He wisely averted his gaze. He'd better stay away from this behemoth. Dos involuntarily took a half-step back, then bumped into someone.
Now, how embarrassing...
The main problem was that Doss's elbow had struck a place it shouldn't have. His intuition told him the other person had a big temper. He felt something cool and slightly stinging on his neck, like a hand resting there. Doss was now certain it was a hand.
Five long, slender fingers were placed on Doss's neck. To be precise, five fingers gripped his neck, forcibly twisting his upper body nearly 150 degrees.
A pair of narrow, amber eyes entered Doss's field of vision. The woman was looking at Doss with a forced smile.
Judging from the rough calluses on his neck, this pretty woman frequently handled knives and guns; she was definitely not just a pretty face. If he didn't quickly admit his mistake, he might get beaten up.
"Ma'am, please let me explain..." Doss felt the hand on his neck tighten even more.
"So, Mr. Commissar, when are you going to take your hand off?" The woman pushed him hard, and Doss, unsteady on his feet, fell to the ground.
Doss habitually said, "You messed with me, you've nothing but trouble." Then he picked up his hat.
This surprised her.
After putting on his hat, Doss added, "If you still want to argue, I'll have to kneel and beg for your forgiveness. Hurry up and choose, I don't have that much patience." As he spoke, he sat down cross-legged.
"Fine, what a spineless coward." Katana was speechless. How did someone like this become a commissar?
One of the male officers with her said, "Alright, Katana, stop bullying him, or the commander will scold you again."
Katana rolled her eyes and ignored him.
The officer extended his hand to Doss. "Hello, my name is Snow, and her name is Katana."
Doss had already placed his hand in Snow's, but Snow's hand suddenly jerked, and Doss fell to the ground with a thud.
What does this mean? Are you going to help me up? Are you retaliating against me like this?
Doss stood up from the ground, dusted off his coat, and straightened his hat. You'll be in for a world of trouble in my dreams tonight.
Actually, Snow didn't do it on purpose. He had just glanced at Doss's epaulets and realized he was a colonel. The commissar of an ordinary rookie regiment only had the rank of lieutenant colonel.
Could this person be the commissar of the army on the defense line?
Snow was so startled that his hand trembled. His and Katana's combined ranks didn't even equal the others. By the time he realized what was happening, Doss had already stood up. His heart skipped a beat, especially when he saw Doss pull on the brim of his hat with his white-gloved right hand.
Snow looked into Doss's eyes and felt an indescribable gloom filling those blue eyes hidden beneath the brim. Oh no...
The thought consumed Snow's mind; he even forgot to ask the other man's name or clarify things with him.
Seeing that the two didn't intend to make things difficult for him any further, Doss hurriedly slipped away. He felt that he hadn't had a single smooth day since becoming the commissar of the 946th Regiment.
Snow watched him go. But Snow quickly guessed Doss's identity, the commissar of Krieg's 946th Regiment. It was said that those who could become Krieg's commissars were no ordinary people. They had to be the most resolute and the most ruthless. They were all assigned to this position because they had offended the Departmento Munitorum, but this man didn't seem to be one of them.
That would only mean one of those specially appointed noble sons. To be able to order the Departmento Munitorum to place a colonel-level officer directly there was definitely the work of a powerful noble family.
Combined with Doss's chilling gaze, dead blue eyes, the truth had come to light: he was a ruthless nobleman.
Snow had an idea: perhaps this was the only way to avoid retaliation.
[End of Chapter]