The Culprit Gradually Surfaces

Alvin, carrying Grox Steak and Amasec, pushed open the dilapidated wooden door of the shrine and saw a familiar person.

Tark was sitting on a chair, legs crossed, acting as if the shrine was his own home.

"Mr. Tark, why are you here?" Alvin couldn't help but be a little curious, but his expression quickly changed, sensing a bad omen. "Could it be... the Cult is making another big move?"

Seeing Alvin's serious expression, Tark guessed what he was thinking and shook his head. "Don't worry, kid, it's not as serious as you imagine."

Hearing this, Alvin breathed a sigh of relief. He was starting to feel overwhelmed by the constant bad news.

"Where's Aruman?"

Tark, still with his legs crossed, asked casually.

"He might have gone out for something, I'm not too sure." Alvin envied Tark's relaxed state of mind, but unfortunately, he couldn't be that way himself.

Suddenly, Tark's gaze, sharp as a hawk's, locked onto the bottle of Amasec. "Kid, you're doing well for yourself, you can afford this stuff now?"

"You might be mistaken, Father Aruman's wine. I was just running an errand for him." Alvin's mouth twitched slightly, seeing Tark's intentions clearly.

It was too obvious; his eyes were practically bulging, as if he wanted to stick to the bottle!

"Oh, so it's Aruman's." Tark exclaimed in mock realization, then, with a speed Alvin couldn't follow, he darted over, slung an arm around his neck, and said with a wide grin, "Aruman and I are bros, we've been through hell together. Let me help him try it."

Without waiting for Alvin to refuse, he snatched the bottle of Amasec.

BANG!

The bottle was opened, and Tark took a deep breath, his face filled with ecstasy. "Wonderful, this is the kind of drink a real man should have. Amasec really hits the spot!"

Gulp, gulp, gulp.

Before Alvin could even react, Tark downed nearly half the bottle in one go.

As if on cue, Father Aruman pushed the door open and saw Tark chugging the Amasec.

After a moment of silence, Aruman looked at Alvin with a mournful gaze, as if to say: Why didn't you stop him?

Alvin looked helpless, as if he could do nothing. "Believe me, Father Aruman, I swear by the Emperor, I really did try my best to stop him, but... I couldn't!"

"Omnissiah above, I'll get rid of you, you damn maggot, in the Emperor's name today!"

Without another word, Aruman's mechanical arm wielded his power axe and brought it down towards Tark's forehead with astonishing speed and force!

However, the old man from Catachan was clearly no pushover. He dodged the axe with ease and casually flicked his pinky finger to tuck a strand of hair behind his ear, saying with a flourish, "It's just a couple of drinks, Aruman. Does it have to hurt our friendship this much?"

"Fine, buy me another bottle, and I'll pretend this never happened." Aruman sneered and fired a bolter round.

BOOM!

The door, which had only been repaired a few days ago, was once again blasted to pieces.

Alvin, as usual, found a corner to hide in, waiting for these two "gentlemen" to finish their spat. Honestly, he couldn't quite understand their complicated relationship.

If Tark hadn't dodged so quickly just now, that axe would have probably chopped his head clean off.

After a while, the two finally finished their fight, and the shrine was once again in ruins.

Tark and Aruman sat amidst the scattered debris, drinking Amasec mouthful by mouthful, their arms around each other's shoulders, completely devoid of the murderous intent they'd shown moments before.

It was... utterly absurd!

"What brings you up here this time?"

Aruman, like Alvin, clearly suspected that the Underhive Cult was planning something big.

"The Iron Hammer Gang destroyed the Bone Gang in the South District, and their territory has now expanded to two districts." When it came to serious matters, Tark seemed a bit more reliable. He glanced at Alvin and said in a low voice, "The scouts we sent out say that the Iron Hammer Gang has inexplicably acquired a large amount of standard PDF equipment."

He paused for a few seconds, then looked meaningfully at Aruman. "You should understand what that means, right?"

"Some high-ranking nobles are secretly supporting the Cult."

Aruman's expression flickered, and he rasped, "And only a few families could provide standard PDF equipment."

PDF, also known as the Planetary Defense Force, was the armed force controlled by the Planetary Governor, completely subservient to the local ruler.

On the hive world of Losel, the only families capable of controlling the Planetary Defense Force were Planetary Governor Gerken Hadley and his allied forces.

"Gerken Hadley shouldn't be that kind of person." To this day, Aruman still couldn't believe it. He shook his head. "If it really was Gerken Hadley, why didn't he kill you back then? Why exile you to the Underhive? It doesn't make sense."

"I didn't say it was Gerken Hadley." Tark sighed. He still held a degree of respect for the Planetary Governor.

Gerken Hadley was once an honor of the Astra Militarum, having rendered immense service before being appointed Planetary Governor of Losel by the Imperium.

If such a heroic figure had fallen to Chaos, Tark simply couldn't bring himself to believe it.

"The scope is too wide. As far as I know, there are three families that can provide standard PDF equipment." Aruman frowned deeply and said, "The Hadley Family, which controls military power; the Meyer Family, which controls logistics; and the Cobdo Family, which controls recruitment and training."

"Um... I think I know which family it is."

Just then, Alvin suddenly spoke up. Looking at their surprised gazes, he cleared his throat. "Actually, I saw that Cult Psychic who appeared in the Underhive again today."

"Where did you see them?" Tark looked astonished, sizing Alvin up. "That's not right. If you really saw them, how could you have come back alive?"

Alvin could somewhat understand why Father Aruman always wanted to chop Tark to pieces.

"Today... wait, you saw them at the 'Celebration'?!"

Father Aruman's mind worked quickly, and he immediately grasped the crucial point. The red light in his mechanical eyes flickered, as if signaling his inner emotions.

"Praise the Omnissiah, just as you thought."

Alvin's expression was grave, and he spoke word by word: "The Cult's Psychic, Rashid Hadley, is now the Hadley Family's first-in-line heir!"

"Rashid Hadley, how could it be him?!"

Tark, standing nearby, was almost stunned speechless by the news. Suddenly, he became agitated and growled, "Impossible, it can't be Rashid Hadley, you must have seen wrong, right!"

Seemingly sensing the confusion on Alvin's face, Aruman's expression was also complex. He explained, "Tark had secretly assassinated the suspected Cultist, the Hadley Family's first-in-line heir, Rashid Hadley. It was Rashid who pleaded for him, and Governor Hadley changed his sentence to exile instead of immediate execution."

So that's how it was, but why would Rashid plead for Tark?

Alvin looked at Tark curiously, only to see him looking dejected. He said softly, "I know what you want to ask. It was Rashid who showed me the evidence of Karen Hadley falling into chaos back then. He also provided Karen's actions and location, which allowed me to succeed in the assassination."

"So Rashid used you to remove Karen, that obstacle?"

Alvin suddenly understood, quickly piecing together the train of thought. "Then, after Karen was eliminated, he took the position of first-in-line heir and also dealt with you, the most troublesome person!"

Tark was in pain, his fingers digging deeply into his hair, his eyes bloodshot, like a ferocious beast. "I thought Rashid was very kind. He was always very considerate to us old soldiers, but I never expected... it was him, orchestrating all of this behind the scenes!"

"It's not that simple, Tark."

A deep, chilling voice, as if suppressing anger and killing intent, was squeezed out from between Priest Aruman's teeth.

The Tech-Priest, always known for his calmness, now showed eyes that seemed ready to devour someone. The sound of his teeth grinding was chilling. "The matter of our 175th Regiment's retired brothers being inexplicably wiped out while on a mission in the wilderness... this bastard is probably involved!"

Out of the warehouse, feeling a bit complicated.