This was the first time Emrys had ever been so flustered, cold sweat uncontrollably trickling down his face.
It was no exaggeration to say that if he really let Aldrich board his ship, the Inquisition would be knocking on his door the very next day, and it might even be led by Gregor Eisenhorn, the infamous "Fallen Angel Inquisitor"!
If it was that guy, he thought he'd better burn incense and pray early, hoping the Yellow Weasel could manifest and save his dog life, otherwise, a few fleets would be useless!
"You look quite flustered, don't you?" Aldrich glanced at the profusely sweating Emrys and asked meaningfully, "Is there... something contraband on your ship?"
Well, that's hard to say.
Strictly speaking, contraband naturally didn't exist, but other things like xenos, Iron Men, intelligent AIs, C'tan... those were another matter.
Any one of these, picked at random, would surely make any seasoned Inquisitor let out a sharp shriek, then issue an extermination order without hesitation.
What the Fernando family did, in some respects, wasn't as big of a deal as Emrys'.
After all, daring to hide C'tan, Necrons, Eldar, Iron Men, intelligent AIs—any one of these revealed would justify the Inquisition executing him hundreds of times over!
"How about we talk about something else?" Emrys offered an awkward but polite smile.
"Don't be so nervous, I was just asking casually, I'm not investigating you." Aldrich waved his hand and said to himself, "Although you are among the top three suspected targets of the Inquisition, this has nothing to do with my request."
Great, how on earth did he manage to be among the top three suspected targets of the Inquisition? Emrys smiled awkwardly, deciding it was better to remain silent.
"This matter wasn't a sudden whim of mine." Aldrich paused after every sentence he spoke.
"Originally, I had two missions: first, to investigate whether the Fernando family was colluding with xenos and attempting to subvert the Imperium; second, to find a suitable merchant fleet or exploration team to go to the black Zone and search for a person."
Hearing this, a guess suddenly popped into Emrys' mind, and he stared at Aldrich incredulously.
"You don't mean to say"
"Exactly, it's just as you're thinking."
Aldrich nodded slightly, saying meaningfully, "The Inquisition's objective and Emrys' objective are aligned on this matter."
"Were there Inquisitors among the personnel who accompanied my father to the black Zone back then?" Emrys took a deep breath and asked in shock.
Under Emrys' shocked gaze, Aldrich's tone was solemn as he slowly said, "This matter is known only to a very select few Inquisitors. Tar Sokenus, the most extreme Inquisitor within the Inquisition, was given the title 'Apostle of Ash'."
"Sounds a bit dangerous?" Emrys shrank his neck; he now had an inexplicable fear of Inquisitors.
It was probably like a mouse seeing a cat; who could blame him when his own background wasn't exactly clean?
Aldrich glanced at him and said indifferently, "Tar Sokenus once served as Corien Vantos' subordinate, participating in the Tyranids Quarantine Zone project, but he considered its methods too weak, believing that every soul should become a burning thorn, offering its life to the Emperor."
Emrys knew about the Tyranids Quarantine Zone project; it involved using extermination to burn out a biological extinction zone around the Sun system, a scorched-earth policy to cut off the Tyranids invasion.
Even this plan could be deemed "weak"; it only goes to show how "Talented" the Inquisition is!
"Of course, he did more than just that." Aldrich continued, "Tar Sokenus once witnessed Eisenhorn using a demonic weapon and attempted to assassinate this legendary Inquisitor. He also massacred three of his followers, casting their skulls into a holy grail, proclaiming the words, 'Whoever dares to touch the darkness, even their breath is betrayal.'"
Good heavens... He even dared to assassinate Eisenhorn; this guy has some serious guts!
Emrys couldn't help but swallow, dumbfounded.
Who was Eisenhorn?
A legendary Inquisitor, with an impressive resume, having slaughtered countless daemons and Chaos entities; he was practically an "executioner"!
"But what's most outrageous about Tar Sokenus is that, to eliminate a daemon, he stole the skeletal remains of a 'Saint' and combined them with a Necron tomb world technologist's living incinerator, leading to him being declared a top-level heretic by the Martian Mechanicum."
Speaking of this "Legend," Aldrich also had a headache.
"Of course, his response to this incident afterward was to burn down a data sanctum of the Martian Mechanicum."
"The Mechanicum tolerated that?" Emrys' eyelids twitched wildly; this guy was an absolute lunatic!
"No, even with an Inquisitorial representative mediating, the Martian Fabricator-General's stance was very firm." Aldrich shook his head and said, "It's precisely because of this that he was forced to leave the Inquisition twenty years ago and joined Emrys' exploration fleet."
So that's what happened, but with such a lunatic joining the fleet, Emrys suddenly felt a bit of sympathy for his nominal father.
"But, just one year ago... around the time you authenticated your family bloodline."
Suddenly, Aldrich's tone deepened, his eyes flickering.
"The Inquisition received a Warp message from Tar Sokenus"
"He wasn't missing?!" Emrys' pupils contracted slightly, somewhat horrified.
If the accompanying Inquisitor from the fleet that went missing back then was still to live, then did that mean his nominal father and the personnel from the fleet that explored the black Zone twenty years ago were all still to live?
"According to the Mechanicum's Archmagos' assessment, this astropathic message was very likely sent twenty years ago."
Aldrich also had a headache and wanted to pinch his temples, but realizing they were wrapped in bandages, he gave up the idea and continued, "The specific content of the astropathic message has been classified as top secret by the Inquisition, and my mission is to board a merchant ship or exploration team and go to the black Zone to find his traces."
"Originally, after resolving the Fernando family matter, I intended to wait for the Mechanicum's exploration fleet to arrive and then proceed together."
At this point, Aldrich looked up and stared at him, his eyes holding a hint of strangeness and mystery.
"But now, I've changed my mind. Since your destination aligns with my mission, why don't I join your convoy? Our objectives are the same, after all."
"This...?"
Emrys was still very hesitant; he was truly afraid of Inquisitors.
Seeing him still hesitate, Aldrich couldn't help but speak, "I met you here, and I've lived until now because of you. This must be an omen from the God-Emperor. What are you still hesitating about?"
"Uh" Emrys gave an awkward smile but couldn't tell the truth.
"Don't worry, I'm not a rookie Inquisitor, nor am I unreasonable." Aldrich saw through his worry and said exasperatedly, "What do Rogue Traders look like? How could I not know? I won't pursue your little matters, is that enough?"
"It's not that it's impossible, but will you swear?"
Emrys was still uneasy.
"Alright, I, Aldrich Von Braun, swear by the Golden Throne and the God-Emperor that I will absolutely not pursue your heretical actions!"
Aldrich spoke all that in one breath, a little winded.
"Good, don't you regret it."
Emrys meaningfully patted Aldrich's shoulder.
"You said it yourself, you won't pursue my heretical actions."
Aldrich was unconcerned; what grand scenes hadn't he witnessed!
It's just hiding a "Fallen Angel," is there anything more blasphemous than that?