You'll Change!! You Swear!!!

There was no time to notify Phoros, much less have him send anyone.

Damn it!

Only five minutes.

Sooner or later, I'm going to kill every last one of these damned Xenos.

Lin En rose through gritted teeth and turned to Valerian and Carl behind him.

The two Custodians immediately readied themselves.

Valerian and Carl put their hands on their weapons and looked at Lin En with barely concealed anticipation.

Here it comes! Lord Lin En is finally going to send us down to fight!

We've been waiting for this the whole trip!

Of course we'd have a part to play! We're the Emperor's personal guards, the finest warriors in the entire Imperium...

Ever since they had come to Lord Lin En's side, they had stood around like decorations. The idleness was driving them mad.

Now they could finally win back their pride!

They straightened their pauldrons and each took a discreet step toward Lin En.

Come on. We're ready.

But Lin En clenched his jaw, steeled himself, and swore. He sprang from his seat, yanked open the hatch, and jumped into a single-person Assault Pod.

Eighty thousand civilians. Eighty thousand lives! If I don't go now, what am I waiting for? My own funeral?!

Iron Hammer turned in alarm. "What are you doing?!"

Lin En didn't look back. "Saving people! Valerian, Carl, follow me!"

"What?! My lord! You can't—" Valerian's voice cracked.

Before he could finish, the Assault Pod launched from beneath the ship.

It broke away from the small craft, its engine igniting as it plunged toward Slaughterhouse III Planet's atmosphere.

Friction set the pod's nose glowing red. Like a firecracker, it shot through the clouds and Slaughterhouse Three's gray-green sky, straight toward the mine.

"My lord!!!" the two black-armored Custodians aboard the ship cried out in unison.