Like Being Defiant?

"Tch, foolish monkeys."

The Archon, reduced to a limbless stump, watched the praying Space Marines and Sisters and could not help muttering a sarcastic remark in Aeldari.

Cawl and Romulus's gazes swiftly converged on him.

Romulus's eyes turned dangerous. His thoughts had just been interrupted by the sudden burst of religious fervor, and he had not yet decided what to do when he remembered they still had a prisoner.

Trying to make yourself noticed, are you?

Of course, he knew what the Archon was mocking.

After all, the Aeldari's experiences during a certain period of their past closely resembled those of the current Imperium of Man.

In ancient times, the Aeldari had been incomparably powerful. Their near-limitless lifespans and technology inherited from the Old Ones had made them the rulers of the galaxy for a very long time.

And as everyone knew, people could not be left with too much free time.

The same applied to the Aeldari.

With their productive capacity liberated and no real rivals left, the Aeldari began pursuing sensory stimulation. Relying on the fact that no matter how recklessly they indulged themselves, they would not die, they sank into increasingly perverse ways of life.

The countless extreme emotions produced during that process birthed the Prince of Pleasure—Slaanesh—and ultimately led directly to the collapse of the Aeldari Empire. It split into the three main Aeldari factions of today, all barely clinging to survival.

Did that not look remarkably like the Imperium of Man today?

Both ruled most of the galaxy's territory. Both were stagnant and corrupt.

The only difference was that the Aeldari had indulged in excess because they had no enemies, while humanity had become fanatical and extreme in its struggle for survival.

Thus, in the eyes of most Aeldari who understood humanity, the current Emperor was no different from Slaanesh.

And humans who believed in the Emperor were naturally no different in their eyes from Aeldari who believed in Slaanesh—utterly, hopelessly stupid.

But what the hell was an Aeldari doing whining here?

Sure, they could mock the Emperor and the Imperium all they wanted. The Emperor was a fraud, and the Imperium was trash; everyone knew that.

But these things had brought Slaanesh into existence and still never reflected on it, yet they had the nerve to act smug?

"..."

Romulus and Cawl's gazes met for an instant. Clearly, both understood Aeldari.

That did not look like the behavior of people who had never dealt with Aeldari before.

They both thought the same thing.

Romulus had reason to believe that the Archmagos knew how to interrogate Aeldari, yet he had said nothing. Or rather, from the moment the Drukhari boarded the ship, maintaining stability had been his objective.

Cawl then stepped back half a meter, signaling that he was handing the disposition of the xenos over to them.

"This is your spoils."

So said Cawl.

"Mm."

Romulus nodded and looked at the Archon, who hung from an Adamantium coffin, his appearance already utterly ruined.

To prevent the Archon from committing suicide, the Carcharodons' Apothecary had examined him thoroughly at once. Naturally, an Apothecary's methods of examination were anything but gentle when dealing with xenos.

"Heh heh. If there's something you want to ask, just say it."

The Archon raised his head, his sinister eyes sweeping over the crowd as he etched the appearances of these monkeys deep into his soul.

The Archon swore that he would repay today's humiliation.

One day, he would add these monkeys to his collection, torment them with the most horrifying tortures, then throw them to a Haemonculus to be remade into Talos Pain Engines.

"Will you tell the truth?"

"What do you think?"

"I don't think you will. You people always love weaving schemes, and there is never a single truthful word from your mouths. I'm afraid some necessary measures will be required."

"Oh? Perhaps if you beg me for mercy now, I'll consider sending you an invitation when I take your life in the future."

Every Sister and Astartes present looked at the xenos with fury, wishing they could hack it into a thousand pieces.

To insult a saint in such a manner had pushed everyone's rage to its limit.

"Heh heh."

Even after falling into enemy hands and losing all ability to resist, the Archon showed no awareness whatsoever of being a prisoner.

His gaze was contemptuous, without the slightest hint of panic or despair. He glanced at the Black Box imprisoning his subordinates, then began hurling the foulest insults he knew at everyone present.

He had spent three empty, dark years imprisoned by a Haemonculus. Only when his soul was on the verge of completely draining away had that Haemonculus, having gained nothing from him, been forced to honor their agreement and release him.

The Archon did not believe that these monkeys, who had never even touched the limits of sentient perception, could torture him into speaking.

At Tyberos's order, the Apothecary patiently gagged the Archon.

The Transmigrators looked at the exceedingly defiant Archon and found him ridiculous.

Ridiculous in the literal sense.

At the thought that this stubborn fellow, who could endure any torture without yielding, would soon sob and spill every scrap of information in his mind, they found it absurd.

Where most Imperium personnel were helpless when facing Drukhari, the Transmigrators had plenty of methods.

"Inquisitor Aglaia."

Ramesses, the team's Librarian, spoke.

"My lord!"

Aglaia hurriedly straightened up, somewhat puzzled as to why he had called for her first.

After all, her interrogation had been rather embarrassing. She had gotten nothing out of them and had even been tricked, so when she saw the captured Archon, she had forcibly suppressed her excitement and intended to let Romulus and the others handle him first.

"I heard that among the upper nobility of the Imperium's civilized worlds, a heretical cult known as Hedonism Cult, dedicated to concentrated extravagance and indulgence, often becomes fashionable?"

Aglaia did not deliberately study Demons. She knew very well where sinking ever deeper into the Warp would lead. However, she was familiar with heretical beliefs like the Hedonism Cult, which frequently erupted among the Imperium's upper classes.

After all, if one studied the history of the Imperium, one could not avoid Chaos.

The Horus Heresy subject Aglaia had recently been researching was closely connected to Chaos through the Primarchs' betrayal.

"Yes."

Not knowing why Ramesses had raised the question, Aglaia confirmed that everyone nearby was qualified to hear such forbidden knowledge. After considering it for a moment, she answered him.

"Based on the recorded information, these cults are generally difficult to detect, and usually only enter an Inquisitor's notice after a demonic disaster has erupted?"

Ramesses looked like a seeker sincerely asking for the truth.

Aglaia keenly noticed that slight change. She raised her eyes toward the Archon's pupils and discovered that the gaze once filled with provocation now carried a trace of deeply concealed terror.

"Yes. Because these heretics usually hide among the upper classes, even the Inquisition cannot investigate them without cause. Moreover, the power they possess allows them to conceal their heretical acts well, which is why such cults ultimately bring about great disasters."

She immediately played along.