He filled a bowl of porridge, grabbed another five buns, and sat down at an empty table, stretching his aching body.
His new body had made him feel great, so he had worked himself to the bone without regard for his life. Now that he relaxed, he realized that nothing in his body felt right.
Looks like I need to take it easier this afternoon, Old John thought. Otherwise, if his body gave out, there would be nowhere to cry about it.
With the porridge, Old John wolfed down the buns one by one. After finishing them in a few bites, he carried his bowl back to the serving window and joined the queue.
As he waited, he sipped the thin porridge still in his mouth, unable to believe that the water in it was actually Purified Water.
Pure Starch plus Purified Water—those were practically luxuries beyond Old John's reach.
For the bowl of porridge he had just eaten, he could not have afforded it even after hauling cargo in the Underhive for an entire year.
Even the food he had eaten these past few days was worth more than he was, never mind that pocket watch that might as well have been a divine artifact.
When Lord Angel's servant had given him the pocket watch, he had said that as long as Old John made no mistakes at work, it would be given to him as a bonus.
At the time, Old John had only one thought: Loyalty!
Forget hauling cargo—he would even be willing to murder nobles!
As he thought about it, Old John suddenly realized that the soreness throughout his body seemed to be easing. In just this short while, the discomfort had already faded considerably.
Holy shit! Ice!
Old John had heard of this stuff that could rapidly ease muscle pain. Though he could not afford it, that did not stop him from imagining how good it must have felt.
This sensation was almost exactly like what he had imagined. If he had had this stuff back then, he could have hauled three times as much cargo in a day!
And now the cafeteria was providing it for free. Lord Angel's kindness could never be repaid!
As for whether it might be Vitamin Pills, Old John did not even dare consider it. That was beyond the limits of his imagination.
Naturally, Huron was not as utterly deranged as Old John imagined. The porridge merely had Vitamin Pills mixed into it, just like before.
As Nano-healing Agents, treating minor problems such as muscle strains naturally fell within their capabilities.
And since each Civilian Factory could only produce one kind of everyday consumer good, there was no way to adjust output. After handing out one billion units of Vitamin Pills a day as wages, there were still leftovers.
The Warp Routes in the Maelstrom Zone were treacherous and unpredictable. A single business trip had to be measured in years, and the return cycle was so long that it left Huron speechless.
Rather than relying on foreign trade to absorb excess production capacity, he might as well add them directly to the rations as nutritional supplements and improve the workers' health.
After all, constantly stuffing themselves with carbohydrates without anything else could easily cause problems. Though Vitamin Pills were not actually vitamins, they could convert Starch into other nutrients and maintain stable vital signs.
Even setting aside the values Huron had developed in his previous life, he had already regarded all of Badab as his own property.
What was the big deal about giving his own people a few benefits? It was not as though he could not afford it.
Of course, only Huron thought that way. Seeing the daily consumption figures, the uninformed Odinson felt as though the sky had fallen.
If the Chapter Master had not been able to produce staggering quantities of supplies every day, Odinson would have wanted to remonstrate to the death and beg Huron to lower the benefits.
Even the previous Chapter Serfs had not been able to eat Vitamin Pills like food, yet these laborers were doing exactly that.
But Huron naturally would not play favorites. Of the remaining two Civilian Factories, one was used to produce "Gene-seed."
This stuff could only produce enough for one hundred thousand people a day and was extremely precious. Its effects were naturally excellent as well, comprehensively improving human bodily functions. It was specially supplied to elite units such as Tempestus Scions.
Over the past several days, enough had gradually been produced for more than a million people. Naturally, Huron was not going to stockpile it until it bred offspring, so every Chapter Serf had been fed two doses.
It could be taken multiple times to enhance the effect, though subsequent improvements would grow smaller and smaller. An ordinary Tempestus Scion only received two or three doses.
But Huron did not care. It was truly blown in by the wind anyway, so they could eat as much as they could.
System: I have no objections.
But if other nobles saw this operation, they would probably be clutching their hearts in anguish.
Never mind the expensive and extremely difficult-to-buy Gene-seed—even the inexpensive Vitamin Pills were genuine resources.
Bright white Vitamin Pills were being handed out to those poor Underhive wretches for free. What a sin!
With the Vitamin Pills supporting them, the efficiency of the entire project remained within a high range.
Otherwise, even with the system boosting their enthusiasm for work, it could not change the actual wear and tear on the human body.
In fact, under high-intensity physical labor and the efficient treatment of the Vitamin Pills, quite a few people were instead growing stronger and stronger.
All one could say was that technology and ruthless methods really did nourish people.
As time passed, one month later, the reaction zone of the Super-large Starch Factory was nearly complete. Since all the equipment was ready-made, trial operations had already begun.
Meanwhile, the energy zone, feed zone, control zone, and the transport channels connecting them were being built in full swing.
Old John, who had always worked diligently, was summoned to the management office for questioning.
"Become Lord Angel's servant? M-Me?" Old John looked at the manager before him, both delighted and terrified.
The manager had just told him that after evaluation, he could join the Chapter Auxiliary for training.
He did not know what a Chapter Auxiliary was, but he understood that it was an organization managed by Angels. Not only would he be able to see Angels often, he might even have a chance of becoming one!
But he did not understand what was special about him that had caught Lord Angel's eye.
If it was diligence, the hundred or so people in his team worked just as hard, and the other teams were much the same. If it was results, there were countless people who could endure more than he could. Some were practically miniature Ogryns, able to lift objects weighing a ton without changing expression.
Seeing how nervous he was, the manager reassured him, "If you really cannot figure it out, just chalk it up to luck. There will be further selections later. You were simply lucky enough to be chosen in the first batch."
"Then... then what will I be doing?" Seeing how kind the manager was, Old John relaxed and grew curious.
The manager thought of the Chapter's orders. "Probably work similar to mine."
Old John was so frightened that he dropped to his knees with a thud, only to be yanked back up by the manager. "What the hell are you doing?"
"M-My lord, can I become someone like you?" Old John's voice trembled.
This man was the highest-ranking official Old John had ever encountered in his life. Not only could he command a PDF Regiment, he could also chat and laugh with Adeptus Mechanicus Magos. Old John had even seen him accompany Lord Angel on inspections of the construction site.
The manager finally understood and was somewhat speechless. "The work I do is all exhausting work. You will understand when the time comes."
He had originally been a captain in an artillery company of the Chapter Serfs. But Odinson had seen that the military currently had few assignments and they happened to be short-handed, so he had pulled him over to handle management work.
He was now desperate for these people to come work as soon as possible so that he could return to his original post.
Especially since he had heard that the Chapter Master intended to reorganize the Chapter Serfs. When the time came, he might even be promoted, perhaps even become an Astartes Reserve.
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