Chapter 172: Warhammer: Lord of the Endless Monster Horde [172]

Words : 1652 Updated : Oct 11th, 2025

"Then I'll trouble you to arrange it, Captain-General Trajan. The second matter is that I have a genetically enhanced warrior who very much wants to spar with one of your Custodian Guards," Rhodes said. Having been here for more than half a month, it was about time to arrange a fight between Titus and the Custodian Guards. Rhodes was quite eager for this battle. How strong are the Super Space Marines, after all? Compared with the Custodian Guards, will they be evenly matched, utterly defeated, or even superior? "Are you sure you want your subordinate to spar with one of the Custodian Guards?" Trajann asked with some surprise. What was the purpose of this sparring match? Was Lord Loki trying to show off his strength, taking the opportunity to warn the Empire not to renege on their deals? Countless thoughts flashed through Trajann's mind as he considered Rhodes' intentions. "What do you think, Captain-General Trajann?" Rhodes asked. "Since Lord Loki is so interested, I have no problem with it. Would your subordinates like to challenge an ordinary Custodian Guard, a Shield-Captain, or even me, the Custodian Captain-General?" Trajann asked with a smile as he looked at Rhodes. Since Rhodes wanted to see the might of the Custodian Guards, he was willing to oblige. As the Emperor's personal guard, the Custodians were the Empire's most expensive and genetically enhanced warriors. Besides, Trajann was also curious about this mysterious Eldar noble family. For the Empire, this was a golden opportunity to learn more about a potential rival in the future. "Then it's settled. Tomorrow, I'll have Rhodes bring his wife to pray to the Golden Throne. As for my other subordinates, they'll also come tomorrow to spar with one of your Custodian Guards," Rhodes said. "Wait a moment! Lord Loki, since this is a friendly sparring match, how about we add a small wager to make it more interesting? For instance, if you win, we'll present you with a gift. But if you lose, you agree to one small request from us. What do you think?" Trajann suggested. "Are you saying you want to add a little wager to this fight?" Rhodes chuckled. So, they wanted to gamble. What exactly was this Custodian betting on? "Just a small wager. Here's my idea: if your bodyguard, Rhodes, loses, would you allow him and his wife to return to the Empire? After all, his wife is still loyal to the Emperor. I believe it would be better for them to live among humanity," Trajann said. This Trajann was still targeting him! They couldn't stop coveting his genes. They just couldn't let it go! "That wager seems a bit unfair to me. After all, I don't even know what the Empire is offering as a stake. Rhodes is an extremely important subordinate of mine," Rhodes replied. "Lord Loki, I can authorize the release of some Eldar captives previously held by the Empire. How about that?" Trajann proposed. This was a calculated offer. The Eldar cared deeply about their kin and would go to great lengths to rescue them. They would even risk angering the Human Empire or sacrificing an entire planet of humans for the sake of saving a single Elda. Trajann figured that Lord Loki would undoubtedly agree. After all, to the Eldar, humans were far less valuable than their own. "I refuse! My family doesn't lack for people, and I have no interest in rescuing fallen kinsmen," Rhodes said flatly. You miscalculated, Captain-Generall! I'm not even a real Eldar. Why would I bother saving those prisoners? If there were tens of thousands of them, maybe I could sell them for some gold. But for just a small number, it's completely worthless. Besides, the only Eldar who have been captured by the Empire are either Corsairs or Dark Eldar. Those scum deserve to die. This time, it was Trajan's turn to be shocked. He hadn't expected this Eldar to reject the offer so quickly! Aren't all Eldar willing to go to great lengths to rescue their kin? Why would this one refuse to trade a single human bodyguard for them? What's so special about this human bodyguard anyway? His genes should only be useful for Custodian augmentation experiments, right? "Then, Lord Loki, what do you want?" Trajann asked. "Here's the deal: your Empire does have something I want, namely your Custodian augmentation technology," Rhodes said with a smile. "Apologies, Lord Loki, but that's the human core technology. It absolutely cannot be shared," Trajann said, shaking his head. Custodian augmentation technology is the most tightly guarded secret of the Human Empire. "In that case, it seems your Empire has nothing that can persuade me to gamble with my subordinate," Rhodes said calmly. "The transformation technology of the Imperial Guard is impossible, but you can request anything else." "How about this! If my subordinate wins tomorrow, I hope Captain-General Trajann can introduce me to the Great Sage of the Adeptus Mechanicus, Belisarius Cawl," Rhodes said. Over the past few days, he had tried to visit Belisarius Cawl privately, but it seemed this person was quite wary of him, refusing to meet entirely. Since that was the case, Rhodes decided he would have the Captain-General bring him out. "This is not a problem! I can arrange for Belisarius Cawl to meet with you," Trajann nodded and replied. "Deal then. Farewell, Captain-General Trajann." After speaking, Rhodes took his three scientists back to the spaceship and shared the two pieces of good news with Elena and Titus. Elena was visibly excited—finally, she could meet the Emperor. Titus, too, was pleased, as he could finally spar with the Imperial Guard. The night passed without much event. ... Early the next morning, Rhodes brought Titus along in addition to his three scientists. This time, however, Daram disguised himself as Loki. To ensure victory in the battle, Rhodes had specially enhanced Titus' armor the previous night by incorporating materials from the Ace Killer Weapon System. Upon arriving at the palace, the group was led to the largest training arena. There were no spectators around—only some members of the Imperial Guard. The competition was to be conducted in secret. "Lord Loki, is this your enhanced warrior subordinate?" Trajann asked as he looked at Titus, standing behind Daram. This one looks somewhat similar to an Imperial Guard member! His height was almost the same, and his physique was exceptionally robust, unlike the typical slender build of Eldar warriors. Could this be a modified warrior created by the Eldar? The Rogue Traders had mentioned before that this family seemed to possess some kind of monster-like modified warriors with immense power. It was said they could defeat Space Marines barehanded, even without wearing any armor. That must be this kind of creature. "Yes! Now, who will fight him?" "Pick anyone you like from among my brothers," Trajann said, gesturing to the hundred or so Imperial Guards present. Daram, playing the role of Lord Loki, gave Titus a signal, and the latter stepped forward, casually pointing at one of the Imperial Guard members. Trajann nodded slightly, and the chosen Imperial Guard member stepped into the arena. "The match begins. This is a friendly sparring session—do not harm each other," Trajann instructed his subordinate before stepping out of the arena. The Imperial Guard warrior, wielding a battle halberd, faced Titus. As the match began, the Imperial Guard immediately launched an attack, moving with incredible speed. In an instant, he closed in on Titus, swinging his weapon down fiercely. Titus raised his kinetic sword to block the Imperial Guard's weapon. When their weapons collided, the kinetic force fields emitted a sharp crackling sound. The Imperial Guard's strength failed to overpower Titus'. In this first clash of power, the two were evenly matched. The bioengineered muscles of the Jotunn enhancements granted the super Space Marine unimaginable strength. Coupled with enhancements to his organs and reinforced bones, the super Space Marine's strength was not far behind that of the Imperial Guard. Finding no advantage in strength, the Imperial Guard began to leverage his speed. His weapon began to move with blinding speed, unleashing ferocious attacks, each aimed at a vital point. Titus swung his kinetic sword to block the attacks. Their weapons clashed repeatedly, moving so fast that they were almost imperceptible to the naked eye. The Imperial Guard's reaction time was measured in nanoseconds, while the super Space Marine, after completing his enhancements, was no slower. Titus had extremely rich combat experience and sharp battle awareness. However, the Imperial Guard, from the moment of their transformation, underwent rigorous combat training, learning to face all kinds of enemies and adapt to various battle scenarios. In terms of combat experience, the two were evenly matched, with neither able to gain the upper hand. For a while, the fight was deadlocked. The Imperial Guard couldn't take down Titus, nor could Titus overpower his opponent. After battling fiercely for dozens of minutes, neither side gained an advantage. Rhodes, watching from the sidelines, nodded approvingly. His super Space Marine was physically on par with the Imperial Guard. However, with similar physical capabilities and combat experience, the superiority of their weaponry would now come into play. The Imperial Guard's weapons and equipment were undoubtedly the most advanced in the Empire, forged from aurichalcum and far superior to Terminator armor. However, the power armor and kinetic sword Titus was equipped with were crafted from the materials of the Ace Killer Weapon System. The two weapons were simply not on the same level. As their weapons collided once again, the Imperial Guard's kinetic weapon broke apart, and his aurichalcum armor showed multiple fractures. In contrast, Titus' power armor, made from Ace Killer Weapon System materials, remained pristine, without a single scratch.

Chapter 172: Warhammer: Lord of the Endless Monster Horde [172]

Comments (0)