Chapter 43: Departure, Military Rations Can Sometimes Hold Little Surprises!

At this point, the swarm on the surface had been essentially wiped out. The surviving Tyranids posed no threat whatsoever, having lost the command of the Hive Mind's synaptic nodes.

These beastly insects were even inferior to wild beasts; Tyranids possessed no concept of a soul—they were merely savage engines of slaughter.

The remaining Space Marines, along with the Battle Sisters and the Astra Militarum, could effortlessly eliminate these bugs the moment they spotted them.

As for the Genestealers, over the past few days, Rhode, accompanied by the Commissar and the Canoness, had strictly screened everyone to ensure no one was infected by the swarm, had become bald, or had grown strange white bony outgrowths on their heads.

Organisms like Genestealers would invariably find a way to escape the moment a hive fleet arrived, because failing to do so meant they would be immediately rounded up by the swarm and reabsorbed into the flagship.

Moreover, developing a Genestealer cult required at least several decades, spanning multiple generations of propagation.

Soon! Rhode descended to the surface to begin loading supplies. Since he was embarking on a long-distance voyage, preparing extra food was the right choice.

"Lord Rhode, we have loaded a vast quantity of canned meats, high-grade compressed wheat biscuits, and some fresh water for you." The Imperial Commissar directed several Astra Militarum soldiers as they continuously hauled supplies into Rhode's King Joe.

"Are these canned meats alright? I've heard that some places produce grox-meat cans, and I used to worry so much about accidentally eating grox cans that I would always heat them up before consumption." Rhode asked quietly.

After all, there were simply too many pieces of dark culinary art in the Warhammer universe; before his monster enhancement, Rhode had eaten canned food with his heart in his throat.

He had to repeatedly confirm that the meat inside, or the cans themselves, weren't moving.

Rumor had it that some guardsmen had to keep a knife ready at all times before eating canned food, because fresh surprises would occasionally burst out from inside the cans.

"Hahahaha! Lord Rhode, have you heard that rumor too?

First of all, you must understand that creatures like groxes are enormous in size, extremely foul-tempered, and the cost of large-scale farming is frighteningly high.

They are generally only supplied in small quantities to the military and are considered scarce items. However, our agri-world breeds a vast number of docile livestock.

This place is also a military canned meat production base for the Imperial Navy, so you can rest assured that groxes have never been raised on this planet.

The canned meat produced here is unquestionably qualified, and our military rations don't even contain corpse-starch." The Imperial Commissar explained.

Hearing this, Rhode finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"Hahahaha! Then load me up with a lot more."

"No problem at all. We lack everything here except these cans. I'll load you up with enough food to last two years. These military rations have a very long shelf life, usually three to five years."

While the Imperial Commissar was chatting with Rhode, Canoness Anna pulled the young Hospitaller Sister Elena aside.

"Elena, I am giving you a special mission. You must do this... and then..."

"This, Canoness! Why not send a Battle Sister instead?"

"Lord Rhode does not lack combat prowess; what he lacks is someone to look after him, and you Hospitallers excel at that."

Soon, the compartments of the King Joe were laden with a massive quantity of military rations and fresh water.

Finally, Rhode approached Polar Space Marine Captain Drees, the Imperial Commissar, and Canoness Anna, nodding to each of them.

"Take care on your journey, Lord Rhode. I believe we shall meet again, and by then, I hope to follow under your banner to purge the enemies of the Emperor." Drees nodded to Rhode and said.

"For the Imperium! For the Emperor! Lord Rhode, go do what you must!" The Canoness, leading all the Battle Sisters, dropped to one knee collectively in salute to Rhode.

As a half-primarch and the Emperor's chosen one, he was fully qualified to receive the highest salute of the Battle Sisters.

"Captain Drees, Canoness Anna, and Commissar Carter, I shall miss the days we fought side by side! May the Emperor protect you!" Rhode waved, climbed into the King Joe, and piloted the colossal machine as it slowly ascended into the sky.

Below, over a thousand Astra Militarum soldiers, Astartes monks, and Battle Sisters collectively waved farewell to Rhode. However, amidst the crowd,

Rhode seemed unable to spot that young Hospitaller Sister. Since he was leaving, that girl Elena must be hiding in some cave crying her eyes out, right?

It felt a bit heartbreaking to leave her behind! I hadn't even given her any gene-seed yet!

Rhode shook his head, piloting the King Joe up into outer space.

Then he summoned the Pedom ship, commanding the 120-meter-tall King Joe to transform and divide into four parts. The most crucial chest compartment was integrated into the vessel, while the remaining sections were affixed to the underside of the spacecraft.

Given King Joe's current size, the lower cargo bay could no longer hold it, forcing it to transform and attach to the exterior of the ship instead.

Upon entering the interior of the spacecraft, Rhode opened the cargo hatch and began moving the crates of military canned goods and fresh water into the cargo hold of the Pedom ship.

In truth, the Pedom spaceship was already loaded with a fair amount of compressed rations and solid water—enough to sustain a thousand people for a year—along with a water recycling and filtration system.

However, the food consisted entirely of gooey white paste; although its nutritional value was high, Rhode declared it completely unpalatable. Who would eat paste when there were canned military rations available?

Just as Rhode was about to leave,

A loud crash echoed! A massive wooden crate of military rations tumbled down.

Rhode immediately placed his hand upon the Pedomium pistol at his waist.

"Ouch!"

From within the spilled crate of military rations tumbled a woman dressed in a white medical uniform, sitting on the ground and rubbing her backside.

Good grief! This military ration crate really did deliver a pleasant surprise!

"Elena? When did you sneak onto the ship? Is there anyone else with you besides yourself?" Rhode withdrew his hand from his pistol, crouched down in front of Elena, and asked with narrowed eyes.

"L-Lord Rhode, there is no one else, just me. I came aboard under the orders of Canoness Anna; she said she wanted me to look after your daily life." The young sister smiled at Rhode and stuck out her tongue.

"Look after my daily life? Exactly how are you supposed to do that?" Rhode stroked his chin and spoke.

During a boring space voyage, having a pretty young Hospitaller Sister to accompany him sounded like great fun!

"Just taking care of you!" the young sister said with a look of utter perplexity. How else was she supposed to take care of him?

"You smell awful. Be a good girl! Go take a bath, and I'll give you a shot later."

The sister nodded. Due to the swarm invasion, she and the main force had been running around constantly, and she hadn't bathed in over ten days. She did indeed smell a bit foul.

"Oh! Alright. But Lord Rhode, what kind of shot are you going to give me?"

What did getting a shot even mean? Usually, she was the one administering shots to people!