"Zeke, Sergeant Victor is looking for you," a voice called out from outside the tent.
Bela nodded toward Zeke, who struggled to stand up, patting his bulging stomach.
"Phew, thanks for the feast." Zeke bid Bela farewell.
Bela watched with a smile as Zeke left the tent, then began sweeping the empty cans to the side.
"Truly, thanks to Zeke, I've finally cleared out some of this stockpiled food. It would have gone bad if we didn't eat it soon."
–
Though night had fallen, the camp remained buzzing with activity.
Thanks to Zeke, Sergeant Victor's office had been upgraded from a battered field table to a proper, respectable office building.
Zeke knocked on the door. From inside came Victor's voice: "Enter."
Zeke pushed the door open.
Sergeant Victor wasn't sitting behind his desk. Instead, he stood by a glassless window with his hands behind his back, looking out at the camp that had been completely transformed.
"We have all seen your sincerity."
He turned to face Zeke. "Now, it is our turn to show you some of ours."
Zeke followed Victor over to the desk.
"First, regarding the Tech-Priest," Victor began. "I've received word that a Titan Legion of the Adeptus Mechanicus is stationed in the Agripinaa Sector. I will find a way to help you contact them."
Zeke nodded, though he didn't hold much hope. Agripinaa was the strategic base for Typhus's fleet. Victor likely didn't know that the Titan Legion he mentioned was already in over its head, barely surviving itself.
But it didn't matter. Soon enough, Archmagos Cawl would arrive on Cadia. Zeke was confident Cawl would be more than willing to help him. After all, Zeke held something no "Cog-boy" could refuse: knowledge—knowledge that could bring about true change.
"Next, the materials." Victor picked up a pen. "List what you need. The more detailed, the better."
"First, gold. As much as possible."
Golden Apples. Maybe even Enchanted Golden Apples. The two apples Zeke had in his backpack from the reward chests were almost starting to rot.
"Gold? That won't be a problem," Victor replied. "Karmine has already given me a detailed report. We will use gold to trade for that miraculous milk of yours."
Victor's gaze turned deep. "Speaking of which... your milk isn't just a simple painkiller, is it?"
"Correct," Zeke admitted. "It can clear certain... you can think of them as 'abnormal statuses' from the body."
"Clearing abnormal statuses..." Victor repeated the phrase, lowering his voice. "Then... can it clear the Corruption of Chaos?"
The air in the room seemed to freeze. The torchlight cast flickering shadows against the walls; in the unseen darkness, it felt as though several pairs of eyes had suddenly appeared, peering in.
Corruption of Chaos? How should I know? Zeke remained silent. He had never encountered someone currently undergoing the process of corruption, so he had no way of knowing.
Zeke looked at Victor. "Sergeant Victor, if you can find a sample, perhaps we can test it."
This time, it was Victor who fell silent. What was the difference between that and playing with fire? The Corruption of Chaos was silent, stealthy, and spread with terrifying speed.
"...Understood." Victor neither confirmed nor denied the possibility.
"Diamonds," Zeke stated his second objective. "Again, the more, the better."
"Diamonds." Victor noted it down. "Industrial grade or gemstone quality?"
"Doesn't matter," Zeke shook his head. "As long as it's diamond."
Victor didn't ask further questions, simply nodding and writing: Diamonds, any quality, large quantities.
"Also, Lapis Lazuli and Lava," Zeke continued his list.
Lapis was essential for enchanting, and lava was needed for Obsidian and, eventually, a Nether Portal.
"Lapis Lazuli, lava." Victor looked up. "It seems most of what you need are minerals?"
"You could say that," Zeke acknowledged.
"If minerals are your primary need, we might be able to provide some very soon."
"How so?"
"Remember the radio responses you got when you were broadcasting from that stone pillar in the plains?" Victor prompted. "One of them claimed to be from the 23rd Regiment."
"The 23rd... I remember." Zeke recalled them; they were the ones who commented that his "pillar was cool."
"The 23rd Regiment is actually stationed in a system on the outskirts of Cadia, on a planet called Solar Mariatus."
"That planet has a harsh environment, covered in active volcanoes. But it is also incredibly rich in minerals. It's no exaggeration to say there are more minerals than stones there."
"Cadia established several ore refineries there. The 23rd's mission was to garrison those facilities."
Victor sighed. "After Cadia issued the high-level recall order, part of the 23rd was ordered to take transport ships back to the home world as reinforcements. You know what happened after that."
"The remnants of the 23rd are expected to arrive here tomorrow," Victor continued. "If they have the materials on them, I will provide them to you immediately."
This was an unexpected windfall. Zeke hadn't expected to settle the "final payment" so quickly. Sergeant Victor was proving to be quite reliable. In that case, Zeke didn't see the need to hold back.
"I also need Pumpkins for building Iron Golems, Wool for beds, some Adamantium would be nice, and maybe one of the Empire's ultimate weapons, a Cyclonic Torpedo..."
Stop, stop, stop! What on earth?
Even a Cyclonic Torpedo? That was an Exterminatus weapon capable of destroying an entire planet. Was that something you could just "get"?
Sergeant Victor quickly called a halt to the list and handed the pen to Zeke to write everything down in detail. Zeke wrote furiously, filling the page with his requirements. Not satisfied, he flipped the paper over and filled the back before handing it back to Victor.
Victor took a quick glance, closed his eyes in a moment of despair, and tucked the paper away.
"Let's leave it at that for now. Next are the specifics regarding the tunnel."
"During this time, I've gathered everyone in the camp with surveying experience to analyze and calculate based on your abilities."
"We found that your ability has even more room to be utilized."
He walked to the table and pulled out a blueprint covered in lines and annotations, handing it to Zeke. "We have decided to expand the scale of the tunnel several times over."
Zeke took the blueprint. It showed a cross-section of an underground passage. It could no longer be called a secret path; it was a full-blown tunnel. Inside the tunnel, something Zeke had recently seen was drawn.
"You plan to send Leman Russ Tanks through? This... it's not impossible."
The blueprint detailed a ramp design for the entrance and exit, showing exactly how the tanks would enter and emerge.
"Yes. We are going to give those traitors in the Bastion..." Victor's voice turned ice-cold. "...a massive surprise they will never see coming."
Zeke could already imagine the look on the traitors' faces when a tank suddenly emerged from their rear.
"To allow the units arriving later enough time to muster, and to ensure we are fully prepared for the sortie," Victor said, his finger tracing a line from the camp to the Bastion on the map before slamming down on the icon. (TL/N: Sortie is an attack made by troops coming out from a position of defence.)
"We have decided to officially begin work tomorrow morning. The tunnel is scheduled for completion by the day after tomorrow."
"Then, we retake the Bastion!"
His words were firm and final, leaving no room for doubt.