Cleansing Operation

When night fell, Bayev had already finalized all the battle plans.

This assault would be carried out jointly by the Custodes, Enforcers, and Defense Force.

They would conduct a precise cleansing of the residential districts surrounding Sacred Plaza to ensure the smooth celebration of Ascension Day of the Emperor.

The targets of the Cleansing Operation had all been marked.

The most important targets were the Heretics carrying Chaos Bio-Weapons.

They would be executed by the Adeptus Custodes.

The remaining Heretics would be cleared out by the Defense Force led by Ari.

As for the Enforcers led by Claudi, they would handle the murderers and street thugs who lacked much combat capability.

As well as those followers involved in heretical and evil rituals.

That was right. While Ron had used Psyker Power to search for the Heretics of the Shattered Eye cult, he had also marked these potential threats along the way.

This filled Bayev with immense admiration—and even deeper fear.

What a terrifying, all-knowing power.

He was confident that after this operation, those residential districts would become some of the safest places in the Upper Hive.

Of course, only temporarily. No one knew what horrors might emerge in the future.

After the assignments had been issued, Carter, Ari, and Claudi left the Combat Command Room of the Departmento Munitorum separately.

They would lead their respective teams into tonight's battle, equipped with specialized gear.

The square before the Departmento Munitorum was brightly lit.

Fifty-five Custodes, five hundred elite Defense Force soldiers, and a thousand Enforcers had all assembled.

"One-Eye, how's it going?"

After organizing the troops, Kais saw Ari come out and stepped forward to ask.

Ari shoved the Data-slate into Kais's arms.

"Here. These are the bastards we need to deal with. Every last one of them is a vicious Heretic!"

He bared his teeth in a savage grin. "You make the arrangements. Give me the toughest ones. I can't wait to blast those scum's assholes apart!"

No matter where they were in a Hive City, Heretics were the kind of people everyone had the right to kill.

They were dangerous and utterly disgusting.

Heretics liked kidnapping women and children, torturing them to death, then toying with their corpses.

No one knew what evil rituals they performed with those bodies, or what terrifying Daemons they summoned.

In Ari's eyes, Heretics were the most revolting things in the world—far more hateful than Ork Gretchin!

The best way to deal with Heretics was to blast apart their assholes, then shove a Thermite Incendiary Bomb into their mouths and send them straight to hell!

Not far away stood the Enforcers' formation. The Arbites wore thick Flak Armor and helmets.

They carried out their missions in squads.

Each squad consisted of six men, equipped with Breaching Rams, Autoguns, Riot Shields, Steel Batons, and other gear.

Inspector Claudi was nervously assigning tasks to the captains under his command.

This was the first major operation he had participated in since taking office.

It was said that the Governor himself was personally leading and commanding it, so he absolutely could not make a mistake!

Otherwise, those bastards eyeing his position would seize this chance to take the inspector's post from him!

"Don't let any criminals on the list get away! Otherwise, you damned bastards can all get out there and patrol the streets!"

Claudi roared at the captains.

Afterward, the captains repeated those exact words to the Arbites squads under them.

Under the pressure from their superiors, the patrol officers of the Arbites squads all came to deeply understand the significance of this operation.

They had to give it everything they had. No mistakes would be tolerated.

Otherwise, they would lose their jobs!

While the other teams in the square noisily relayed orders and made plans,

the fifty-five Custodes led by Carter silently wiped down their weapons and equipment.

They were the finest warriors in the Palatine District, and they had already carved their respective targets deep into their minds.

Their burden in this Cleansing Operation was the heaviest. They carried all the Governor's hopes.

No matter whether the other teams succeeded in their missions, if they failed, everything would be ruined!

As the night deepened, every team put on Night Vision Devices.

They boarded their respective transports and headed for their assigned targets.

Viewed from the air, team after team dispersed into the residential districts that needed cleansing beneath the cover of darkness.

The squads reached their respective target locations and quietly awaited the order to attack.

Inside the Combat Command Room of the Departmento Munitorum,

Bayev watched the Holographic Map of the residential districts around Sacred Plaza. Red dots arrived one after another at their designated positions.

To avoid alerting the enemy and allowing the Heretics to release the terrifying Chaos Bio-Weapons ahead of time,

no one was permitted to act without authorization.

They had to wait until the Custodes launched their assault before beginning their own missions.

The Custodes' plan was simple.

They would operate in groups of three and launch simultaneous surprise attacks on their target Heretics after reaching their designated positions.

The operational guidelines were: execute the Heretics, locate and prevent the release of the Chaos Bio-Weapons!

Bayev watched tensely as the red dots representing the Custodes reached their respective target locations.

They would launch their assault simultaneously in five minutes.

"May the God-Emperor protect us."

He glanced at the time and murmured.

The plans had all been arranged, and everyone was in position.

All he could do now was wait.

--

Drake Mega-Residential Area.

Level Thirteen, Sector C31.

The space here was vast and labyrinthine. Nearly ten thousand people lived on this level alone.

It was already late at night, and the workers exhausted from a long day had all fallen into deep sleep.

Everything was quiet. There were not even any rats.

There was simply no excess food here to support other small creatures.

Of course, the occasional gunshot and scream still rang out.

Some unfortunate person or family had probably been killed.

But no one dared come out to look or offer help.

Security in the Drake Residential District had been getting worse and worse lately. Robberies and murders happened without end.

Even the Enforcers were becoming reluctant to patrol this area.

The Logistics Department's Corpse Retrieval Crew, however, arrived very quickly.

Because if they were even one step too late, the valuable corpses would vanish without a trace.

In short, in times like these, no one dared meddle in another person's misfortune.

Everyone kept their doors tightly shut and prayed for their own safety.

In a corner of a rusted corridor, beneath the sickly green glow of a Phosphorescent Strip Light, the screams continued.

They belonged to a young female worker being violated by a thug.

She cried for help, but no one answered.

The surrounding doors were all locked tight.

"You're too damn noisy, you filthy bitch!"

The thug on top of her raised his fist and beat her until her head was bloody.

Pain and Fear nearly suffocated her. She no longer dared resist in any way.

Someone, please save me!

Tears silently streamed down the worker's face as she thought in despair.

She thought of the Governor.

That morning, her coworkers had said that the great Governor had been chosen and blessed by the God-Emperor.

He would come save everyone!

"God-Emperor above, Governor... anyone at all, please save me..."

The worker groaned weakly.

The thug sneered and punched her hard.

"Another idiot with a broken brain.

You think those big shots sitting high above care whether you live or die?

Serve me properly.

If I'm in a good mood, maybe I'll consider sparing your life!

Understand?

Bitch!"

Another punch landed, and the worker could no longer make a sound.

The thug seemed addicted to hitting her and raised his fist again.

She did not even have the strength to block it. Closing her eyes, she fell into complete despair!

Splat!

The expected punch never came down. The worker opened her eyes.

She saw a dagger embedded in the thug's neck!