Chapter 362: Incoming World Eaters
Just as the remaining Greenskins were gradually being purged and the battlefield had not yet completely calmed down, the frigate in orbit transmitted a new emergency alarm—a Chaos Warband fleet abruptly appeared at the edge of the star system.
Detection data clearly showed that this fleet was composed of several cruisers of various models, all exuding an aura of blasphemy and corruption.
Their twisted silhouettes were slowly adjusting their direction, aiming straight for the Death World.
With only that single, solitary frigate under Ryo's command, it was absolutely impossible to stop this fleet in a head-on confrontation.
Ryo immediately made a decision.
He ordered the frigate to abandon its orbital defense position and immediately evacuate the star system to avoid meaningless losses.
At the same time, he turned to Margaret and Maria, issuing the same command: "House Nearl, evacuate along with the frigate. You do not need to participate in the upcoming battle; that is not House Nearl's responsibility."
However, Młynar Nearl, piloting his Imperial Knight, took a step forward, his deep and resolute voice transmitting through the external vox-casters: "Magos, the words 'flee without a fight' have never existed in House Nearl's dictionary.
"Our honor is built upon protection and bloody battles, built upon head-on confrontations with formidable foes.
"Abandoning allies and tarnishing our Knightly oaths just to survive is more unacceptable than dying in battle."
The other Imperial Knights behind him also emitted resonant hums, demonstrating their unanimous resolve. "We shall stay and face the enemy alongside you, fighting to the very end."
Faced with House Nearl's unquestionable persistence, no expression could be seen on Ryo's mechanical face, the light of his optical lenses remaining as steady as usual.
He did not try to persuade them further, simply accepting their choice in silence.
He instead devoted all his energy into organizing the planetary defense, mobilizing the remaining Skitarii, Cybernetica Automata, and all available ground firepower to redeploy the defense line, preparing to meet the attacks from orbit and the potential planetary assault that would follow.
The pressure was immense, but Ryo's logic core clearly evaluated the situation; this was far from an unsolvable dead end.
First, he had an absolute route of retreat.
The dimensional teleporter was in his hands. As long as he wished, he could lead his core personnel and equipment to evacuate this Death World at any time, heading to the United Federation of Planets, Night City, or even other new dimensions.
The Chaos Warband might be powerful, but they absolutely did not possess the capability for cross-dimensional pursuit.
Second, he still held power sufficient to turn the tide of battle in his hands.
Although the black sphere used previously—capable of erasing everything within a five-kilometer radius—had astonishing effects, it was not his only treasured collection. In fact, the black sphere itself was not unique.
Within his dimensional storage device, other vastly powerful ancient relics were sealed, each possessing the capability to overturn the battlefield at critical moments.
However, these relics, without exception, were non-renewable resources.
They were solitary items; using one meant having one less, and their value could not be measured by ordinary resources.
Using a black sphere when facing the Greenskins was to break the deadlock and avoid falling into the mastermind's trap.
From the appearance of the Chaos fleet, it could be seen that the mastermind hoped to use the Orks to tie him down, then throw in the Chaos Warband to further escalate the situation, thereby crushing Ryo's defenses.
It was just that Ryo used the black sphere to break the situation, allowing the Orks to be cleared out early, so he could focus on dealing with the Chaos fleet.
And facing a Chaos fleet, using relics of the same tier or even more dangerous ones would still exact a rather steep price for Ryo.
He needed to weigh whether it was worth expending these precious trump cards prematurely just to hold this outpost.
He temporarily suppressed the thought of using the relics immediately, preparing to rely on conventional forces for resistance first, observe the specific actions of the Chaos Warband, and simultaneously look forward to the timely arrival of the Titan reinforcements from Nexum.
True trump cards must never be revealed easily unless absolutely necessary.
Just as the orbital sensors outlined the silhouette of the Chaos fleet, the IFF system locked onto a Legion heraldry variant that Ryo was not unfamiliar with amidst the complex, blasphemous signals—it belonged to the World Eaters.
Seeing this mark, a dust-covered data record was activated within Ryo's processor.
He indeed had past interactions with this Legion, back in the distant past, during the glorious era of the Great Crusade, before they had even reclaimed their Primarch.
At that time, they were still called the "War Hounds," a Legion renowned for their tenacity and close-combat skills, whose valor even won them a title bestowed personally by the Emperor.
Ryo had limited contact and cooperation with the upper echelons of the War Hounds Legion when they were still rational and communicative.
He remembered that although those Astartes were belligerent, they still maintained the Legion's structure and sense of honor.
However, everything changed with the return of their gene-father—Angron.
In Ryo's view, the Primarch Angron himself was a massive failure, a tragedy shaped by a cruel fate and ultimately destroyed by it. But what was even more tragic was that he dragged his entire Legion into the abyss with him.
When the War Hounds welcomed their father with honor and anticipation, Angron responded to them with nothing but ruthless blades.
He slaughtered almost all the Legion high command who came to make contact, announcing his arrival in the bloodiest manner.
Later, supposedly under Khârn's "guidance," Angron reluctantly accepted the Legion, but the price was heavy.
He forced the entire Legion to implant those nerve-destroying slave implants originating from his homeworld, Nuceria—the "Butcher's Nails."
This barbaric device amplified all aggression and fury, stifling calm thought and nobler emotions.
Their former glory and valor were replaced by endless rage and a lust for slaughter.
The name "War Hounds" was discarded, replaced by the "World Eaters," symbolizing utter destruction.
Angron used the Butcher's Nails to personally destroy the formidable Legion the Emperor had bestowed upon him, and also completely destroyed his own remaining rationality.
Now, appearing at the edge of the star system was precisely such a group of lunatics cursed by their Primarch's madness, left with nothing but an endless thirst for blood and skulls.
They were more dangerous than the Greenskins, more frenzied than the Death Guard.
Ryo knew that there was absolutely no room for negotiation or maneuver with these berserkers driven by the Butcher's Nails. Only total destruction could end their threat.
He stared at the World Eaters ships accelerating towards the Death World on the sensors, evaluating the tactics they were most likely to adopt—without a doubt, they would launch boarding actions in the most direct, barbaric manner, thirsting to tear apart every living thing before them with chainaxes and power klaws.
The base's defense line was about to face an unprecedented test.