Bloodfire, accompanied by the daemon's manic laughter, wrapped itself around Ignis's body. He felt a flicker of panic and instinctively tried to draw upon the psychic power granted by The Emperor to resist it.
Yet the burning pain he had expected never came. Instead, it felt oddly comfortable, like soaking in warm water. The bloodfire injected some kind of miraculous power into his body. The Salamander could clearly feel his physical strength increase—his muscles brimmed with greater power than before, his senses sharpened enough to catch subtle movements he would once have missed, and even a faintly aching wound had recovered, no longer hurting.
If it weren't for that idiotic daemon's incessant, gleeful laughter during the process, everything would have seemed perfectly normal.
But is the Blood God's blessing really that easy to take?
Would there be some damned aftereffect?
Like suddenly growing strange crimson cables out of my head and having them plug straight into my brain or something.
Thankfully, after patting his head and confirming it was still just rough stubble—no extra crimson components or anything bizarre—Ignis finally relaxed a little. After all, many of the Blood God's followers gradually lost their sanity, becoming half-mad or completely insane. His wariness was only natural.
The Salamander walked into the bathroom, tore away the fragile bandages, and examined his wound. All that remained was glossy black skin, the sharply defined muscles beneath it, and a barely noticeable scar. He knew the Chaos Gods possessed the power to resurrect and heal their followers so they could better carry out assigned tasks. Still, experiencing it firsthand—and doing so while still retaining his sanity—was a first.
He checked the rest of his body in the mirror, making sure nothing extra had grown where it shouldn't—no eight-pointed stars, no Blood God sigils. Only then did he get dressed and return to the garage.
Ignis picked up the chainaxe again, and the daemon immediately started yapping.
"Human, you should be grateful for His blessing. Otherwise, the warpflame alone would have left you with that wound forever. The Blood God favors you—and hopes you won't grow timid."
"What? You think I'd chicken out?" Ignis replied flatly, already thinking about welding a sturdy container and covering it in sacred symbols. The Imperial Aquila, Ecclesiarchy seals, purity skulls—the whole set. Would seal this loudmouthed thing completely. "That's a joke. I don't even know how to write the word 'coward.'"
Come to think of it, how did Razor put up with this thing's constant chatter? Oh right—he went insane. Guess he didn't put up with it after all.
Ignis continued to treat this daemon weapon with deep suspicion. Among the loyal servants of the Imperium, there were indeed those who had received Khorne's blessings and still remained loyal, slaughtering the enemies of the Imperium with fervor. But that was one thing when you didn't know about it. Once you did, it inevitably felt unsettling.
After all, this was power granted by the Imperium's greatest enemy—The Emperor's foremost nemesis. Even if Warhammer fans joked about the Golden Throne and the Brass Throne as "big brother" and "second brother," a Chaos God was still a Chaos God. Corruption and downfall had always followed in the Imperium's shadow. Even if some forces, like the Death Cults, could be controlled, the devastation wrought by Khorne was equally immense.
Now, aside from The Emperor, Khorne was also "investing" in him. That was not a good sign at all. Neither of those two handed out power for free—it only meant the enemies he was about to face had leveled up.
Thinking of the hidden Slaanesh strike force made the Salamander's head ache. Ever since the narcotics factory had been destroyed, there had been almost no related news. Markus's side had made no progress either. His network leaned more toward the Defense Force, and infiltrating a highly covert Slaanesh cult was truly difficult.
"Remember to kill for Khorne. The Lord of Blood and Skulls will protect you from Warp sorcery."
Only then did Ignis realize the chattering nuisance had been talking for quite some time.
"Are you always this talkative? I thought Khorne's underlings were all the strong, silent type. Did you get stuffed into a weapon because you talked too much and fought too poorly?"
That question actually left the daemon speechless. It took a long while before it answered.
"Mainly because I don't have a physical body right now. Besides talking, what else can I do? If I had a body, I'd fight you right now."
"Then shut up. I've heard more than enough," Ignis replied. He had already been generous with this daemon. Aside from talking too much, it hadn't caused any real harm—at least it was no longer trying to corrupt him.
"Hmph, you…"
Ignis tossed the axe onto the pile of steel. The moment it left his hand, the daemon's voice vanished. It seemed it was restricted here. In the Imperium, a living daemon bound within a weapon could cause unimaginable chaos. There had even been cases of a single daemon weapon corrupting an entire planet. Compared to that, this thing lying quietly here was almost remarkable.
Still, the Salamander did not lower his guard. The storage box he had mentioned earlier would still be welded, and every sacred seal that belonged on it would be applied without exception. Fortunately, he still remembered some consecration scriptures. Even if The Emperor didn't particularly care for such things, sealing wax purity seals were undeniably effective against daemons.
He could even cover the outer box in purity seals until it looked like a Christmas tree.
With the wound no longer hurting, Ignis could finally do something he actually enjoyed. Stretching his body, he walked into the kitchen, took a frozen alloy popsicle from the freezer, and popped it into his mouth.
He hadn't had a proper meal in days. Not only did the Belisarian Furnace demanded massive amounts of energy, even his stomach was yearning for real food. The collaboration meal sets were fine, but Billy's rotten luck meant that after eating over a hundred of them, he still hadn't pulled the hidden collectible. It made the Salamander wonder if the whole "hidden collectible" thing was a scam.
Judging from Nicole's attitude, though, the robot had been paying for all of it out of his own pocket. Ignis couldn't help but wonder if Billy had left enough funds for weapon maintenance and ammunition. Otherwise, before next month's paycheck, who knew how he'd survive.
Taking out the frozen meat to thaw, the Salamander planned the next meal. The giant took down the massive apron he'd made himself from the wall, with four bold characters emblazoned on it.
[Head of the Household].
Yes. Only the strongest person got to decide what was for dinner tonight.
A large slab of beef and half a rack of pork ribs. Honestly, Ignis could eat all of this himself. But supplies were limited, and he hadn't gone to the market recently, so he'd have to be a bit frugal. In a few days, he'd do a big shopping run and properly replenish his nutrition.
To be honest, Ignis thought the Belisarian Furnace was an amazing thing. It had already saved his life twice, and it would surely do so many more times in the future.
Thanks, Belisarius Cawl.
While waiting for the meat to thaw, the Salamander returned to his room. Redesigning a suitable weapon was now the top priority. With one power fist gone and a shield now confirmed, continuing to use a power gauntlet on the right hand would be awkward.
The attack range of a power gauntlet was simply too short. Add a shield, and it became even more inconvenient. Ignis pondered which weapons would pair well with a shield.
The chainaxe could be used directly, but as a daemon weapon, the Salamander didn't dare rely on it too much. Without purification methods, excessive dependence could truly lead to corruption by a Chaos God.
What about forging a sword? Ignis considered the idea. A short sword paired with a large shield was reminiscent of Ultramarine veterans in the 30K era. But the steel he had on hand couldn't compare to that era's materials, and the weapon's power would be limited.
So, what kind of weapon didn't rely too heavily on material strength, could deliver sufficient power, and could be wielded with one hand?
His gaze shifted to the forging hammer. This actually seemed like an excellent base. Add a disintegration field generator, and wouldn't that make it a perfectly handy short-handled thunder hammer?
It could also be carried easily. If modified so the haft could house an Ether battery, it could activate the disintegration field for short bursts even without power armor support.
As for the shield, Ignis leaned toward the large curved shields used by Bladeguard Veterans. They could cover almost the entire body. However, New Eridu lacked polarized field technology. Instead, they used an electrical field that formed a current layer on the armor's surface, intercepting and prematurely detonating some ammunition while also damaging enemies in melee.
That technology could be adapted, but given the enemies he might face, the shield would need to be thicker—and therefore heavier.
Considering his load-bearing capacity, the use of an autocannon would be limited. But completely abandoning ranged firepower wasn't realistic either. That would have to be delegated to Billy.
Hopefully, the robot would like it.
The power gauntlet also came with a built-in flamer. That could be modified into a more compact flamer cannon, mounted on the shield or handheld to provide support fire—much like how Bladeguard Veterans used plasma pistols or bolt pistols for mid-range combat.
As Ignis thought, his hands began sketching blueprints. He quickly became absorbed, and an entire afternoon passed. He completely forgot about the thawing meat, only snapping back to reality when he heard Nicole and the others returning home.
"Weren't you stuck in bed this morning, unable to move?" Nicole, the head of the Cunning Hares, froze when she saw the Salamander hard at work.
"You recovered fast," Nekomata leaned in and poked his wound. "It doesn't hurt anymore?"
"It's fine now," Ignis replied, standing up and stretching. The blueprints were essentially finished. All that remained was the forging.
"Billy pulled the hidden collectible today. We don't have to eat collaboration meals anymore," Anby said, with a rare excitement in her voice. It seemed even she couldn't handle fast food every day.
"Yep, yep! I was super lucky today!" Billy Kid wiggled his way in, holding a small clay figure high.
"Look, it's the hidden one! A recreation of the classic pose from Episode 18 of the Starlight Knight. Cool, right?"
Ignis had once been interested in such things, but the nature of his work left no time for it, and the interest faded. In the Warhammer universe, collectible figures were not something to mess with lightly—either they belonged to The Emperor or the four Chaos Gods. They were for worship or destruction, not personal collections.
Wait. People really did worship figurines. In that case, The Emperor's little statues were basically figures too. High-quality ones from certain religious worlds, with limited circulation, could count as hidden collectibles.
As the Salamander's thoughts drifted, Nicole, in a great mood, patted his abdomen. His hardened muscles gave a faint crackling sound.
"Oh right, Old Man Rhodes's case has been settled," she said, pulling up the news on her phone. "The shady agency was crushed, and the Cunning Hares won big! Even if we find Perlman and the court reopens, I'll have much more confidence now."
So, when you were studying the law, it wasn't with a guaranteed win in mind, huh?
Still, Ignis decided not to spoil her mood today.
"At least the old man's life will be easier from now on. When will the compensation be paid?"
"That? Public Security is already handling it. We helped them a lot this time, so they're giving us priority," Nicole said, thumping her chest. "This is the Cunning Hares' current strength!"
"And! Today's good news doesn't stop there!" she announced loudly.
"Markus's commission fee came in! A huge sum! Everyone gets a share!"
"Nice!" The others cheered, especially Billy, who was the happiest—he'd spent quite a bit chasing that hidden figure.
"I've decided to take part of it to help improve the orphanage's living conditions. Anyone object?" Nicole asked.
"Of course not." No one minded the suggestion.
"Oh right, about those beds we mentioned last time—I finished them when I had some free time. We can deliver them tomorrow," Ignis said, pointing to the parts stacked in the garage. "And Billy."
The robot shifted his attention from the figure to the Salamander.
"What is it, big guy?"
"Do you want an autocannon?"
"Huh?"
The topic shift was a bit abrupt. Billy didn't react right away.
===BREAK===
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