NOVEL WEB Chapter 12: Departure
Hades walked silently, even cautiously, along the small path at the edge of the settlement.
Occasionally, figures would appear in the distance, but upon seeing Hades, they would choose to take a different route to avoid him.
‘It was always like this.’ Hades thought quietly.
Although he had long since stopped caring about such things, knowing the reason behind the villagers' aversion filled him with a sense of melancholy.
This truly was the grimdark world of Warhammer.
Power always came with consequences.
Just as powerful psykers were more prone to madness and being watched by Daemons, untouchables were naturally despised by their kin.
But their avoidance was beneficial; at least Hades didn't have to go out of his way to avoid them.
Carefully, Hades tried to ensure that his five-meter radius black field didn't touch any villagers.
He carried a letter in his pocket.
He had just tied one letter to the door handle of Herila's house, placing the empty bowl that had held the porridge back on her windowsill.
The porridge had tasted quite mediocre.
In the letter to Herila, Hades simply mentioned that he was leaving the northern settlement to head south in search of a "so-called" relative.
A fictitious relative!
He couldn't tell Herila the real reason due to his condition. In this dark world, ignorance could be the greatest protection.
In addition, Hades had scratched his head and couldn't help but fill the rest of the letter with recipes, detailing the amounts of ingredients, seasonings, cooking methods, and appropriate heat levels for various dishes.
Hades knew that this parting might be forever.
Instead of a heavy farewell, he chose to leave something useful for her future life.
He hoped that the time she had spent with him wouldn’t bring trouble to Herila.
….
As he neared his destination, Hades walked along the central road of the settlement, trying to keep his distance from others.
When it was unavoidable, and someone came too close, he would momentarily expand his field to its extreme, diluting it to avoid causing harm.
The other letter was addressed to Mortarion.
He couldn’t just disappear without a word; that would easily lead to him being deemed a traitor and subsequently hunted down.
In the letter, he truthfully explained the reason for his departure—his condition.
Hades described the changes in his abilities after the battle with the Xenos Overlord Lazar.
Of course, to avoid suspicion, Hades merely described his ability as one "completely opposite to psyker abilities," one that could suppress psychic powers.
He didn’t mention "untouchable."
How could a mere farmer from Barbarus know such a sophisticated term?
He also mentioned his plan to head south to the swamps.
…..
Mortarion’s adoptive father, Necare, was further north, while the southern region was scattered with various Overlords.
Unlike the northern Overlords who mostly submitted to Necare, the southern Overlords were in a loose state of constant conflict.
This lack of unity meant there was no dominant Overlord in the south, leading to smaller-scale but frequent battles, causing great suffering to the local humans.
Currently, Mortarion's resistance was primarily fighting northern Overlords and some minor forces.
Mortarion had planned to send Calas Typhon to the south for combat.
In fact, preparations were already underway.
Once they eliminated another nearby Overlord and increased their numbers, Calas Typhon would lead a Death Guard squad south.
The Death Guard's mission was to liberate southern human villages and conduct reconnaissance for Mortarion's future southern campaign.
Even with their current weaponry, a Death Guard elite would struggle to kill a mid-sized psyker Overlord.
These mid-sized Overlords, while perhaps not as formidable in close combat as larger ones, were challenging to fight due to their psychic powers and poison mist.
Except for Hades, who managed to single-handedly kill a mid-sized Overlord due to the Overlord’s weakened state and Hades’ ability to counter psyker powers.
Few believed Hades’ feat.
Most assumed he had just been incredibly lucky since the Overlord had already been severely injured from previous battles with Mortarion.
Even Mortarion's bodyguard, Huznir, had scoffed, claiming that if he had faced the Xenos Overlord Lazar, he could have taken its head without the same struggle Hades endured.
Mortarion had immediately stopped Huznir's remarks and punished him by assigning him to the logistics corps.
"Death Guards must not belittle each other."
"We are a united force."
However, Mortarion’s thoughts weren't entirely on what he was saying.
Only he knew what a feat it was for Hades to single-handedly kill the Xenos Overlord Lazar.
Lazar was no minor Overlord; his psychic powers and combat skills were formidable.
To put it in perspective, it's like believing your pet cat has impressive attack capabilities, enough to fight a hawk.
But when it arms itself with iron claws and takes down a state-of-the-art fighter jet equipped with advanced electronics, wouldn’t anyone question it?
Even if the plane was running out of fuel, had no ammunition, and was close to being scrapped.
Only those who had fought against the Overlords knew the disparity between humans and these Overlords.
These humans were still too weak.
But... What exactly is Hades? Did he truly win the battle? Or had the Xenos Overlord already taken control of him?
After sending someone to observe Hades, Mortarion was convinced Hades was normal and not under any spell.
Perhaps the Xenos Overlord was truly on the brink of death.
Moreover, Hades' combat strength was indeed among the best of mortals.
Afterwards, Mortarion received Hades' letter, brought in by the Death Guard standing watch outside.
‘If that’s his condition... it could indeed explain some things.’
‘An untouchable, huh?’
‘No wonder Typhon always complained of headaches around Hades.’
Mortarion thought with a touch of subtlety.
But now both of them were heading south.
What a small world.
Hades was running with a bag on his back and a scythe in hand, aiming to reach the next human village before nightfall.
His recent experience had left him drenched in cold sweat.
He had reached the door of the war room, intending to bid Mortarion farewell before leaving.
Out of curiosity, he had extended his black field, wanting to see what the Primarch’s Warp projection looked like.
But as soon as he began to extend it, a sudden sense of danger hit him, his heart started racing, and Hades immediately stopped.
There was something ominous in that place.
Mortarion had long been under its gaze.
Hades’ heart was pounding.
Was... was it possible that from the moment he met Mortarion, he had already been noticed by the Plague Father?
Was Nurgle watching him?
Damn.
Hades silently cried inside, feeling like a mischievous sprite whose toe had been stepped on.
