"Mr. Swain, the Custodes are the Emperor's personal guard; everything else is secondary. If one day Our Lord no longer wishes to be the Lord of the Imperium, we will naturally retire with Our Lord. It's just that Our Lord has 21 Primarchs, so it's hard to say who it would be passed to." Valdor first stated his position, then subtly implied that even if the Emperor stepped down, it wouldn't necessarily be the 19th Legion's turn to take power.
"Ah, I said 'if,' just 'if,' alright?" Swain poured Valdor a cup of Ceylon black tea, a specialty of the Tower Lord reserved for distinguished guests.
"Thank you." Valdor very politely prepared to end the conversation.
"Mr. Valdor, then how do the Custodes view the Astartes Legions?" Swain didn't quite grasp Valdor's unspoken hint.
At the same time, Valdor also misunderstood Swain. Pouring him water wasn't meant for him to drink because he was thirsty and take a break; it was to drink and then continue chatting.
"Hm??" The Custodes' stern gazes instantly reverted to their previous wary looks, and some radical Custodes even began to consider finding an opportunity to secretly eliminate this fellow.
This was a slippery slope that couldn't even be touched!!!
A large portion of the Custodes internally believed that the Astartes were mass-produced weapons crudely manufactured by the Emperor to fulfill the Great Crusade, and that they would most likely be purged after the Great Crusade concluded.
They were very familiar with this matter.
The problem was, was this something that could be said in public?
"This question is the same as the one Mr. Swain just asked about the Primarchs. If there's nothing else, I need to start working." Valdor remained patient, but his attitude already showed some impatience.
Why does this person have so many sharp questions!?!?!
"Ha, I apologize for interrupting your work, Lord Valdor, I have one last question." Swain refilled Valdor's teacup, indicating this was the final question.
"Please speak." Valdor could only endure and answer the other party's question. Without a doubt, the person the Emperor would want to see after talking with the Primarchs was this curious individual in front of him. Until the Emperor's attitude became clear, he could only humor the other party.
"The Custodes are perfect humans meticulously crafted by the Emperor. How do the Custodes view ordinary mortals?"
"Click."
As soon as Swain finished his question, the distinct sound of a boltgun being cocked echoed in the air.
Kid, don't you want to seriously consider whether the question you just asked is enough to kill you ten times over!?!
The Custodes considered even the Astartes, who had been modified by the Emperor, to be defective products. You compare these lowly commoners to the Custodes? Are you trying to stir up conflict between the Emperor and the populace? Everyone knows the Custodes represent the Emperor; defying the Custodes is defying the Emperor!!
"Mr. Swain, the Custodes are also modified from ordinary people. Ordinary people are the cornerstone of the Imperium and are very important. Our Lord loves the human race; this is the Custodes' attitude." Upon hearing this, Valdor no longer paid attention to this curious individual. Valdor had many things to deal with and no time to continue talking nonsense with this ignorant fellow.
He couldn't answer these questions. Every Custodian was unique; they had their own thoughts. Although some viewed the Astartes and mortals as mere weeds, many Custodes were very protective of ordinary people. The highest position among the Custodes was the Custodian General, followed by the Tribunes; this was also the message the Emperor conveyed to the Custodes.
"Mm-hmm, the Emperor loves the human race, that's just wonderful. You're busy, you're busy."
"It's just that the Emperor doesn't love anyone," Swain added silently in his mind, then refilled Valdor's tea and turned his gaze to the Sisters of Silence in the corner.
"?????" A string of question marks immediately appeared above the Sisters of Silence's heads.
From the moment they stepped off the Stormbird, this person had been staring at them. Coupled with the increasingly sharp questions he had just asked the Custodian General, this made the Sisters of Silence, who had always lived like ascetics, intensely curious.
However, unlike the Custodes, the Sisters of Silence were now also looking at the curious individual in front of them with very curious eyes.
From Swain's clear eyes, they felt no hint of disgust or malice, only pure curiosity. The captain of the Fire Drakes squad, Yore, even felt a faint sense of pity in his curious gaze.
"He really understands the Imperium," Yore thought to herself after sensing that goodwill.
"Sisters of Silence, you've all had a difficult journey. Since you've traveled so far, please rest well here before continuing your journey." Swain carried the teapot and poured tea into each Sister of Silence's cup.
"Thank you for your warm hospitality, Mr. Swain." Yore used sign language to express her gratitude to Swain.
"Alright, I don't understand your gestures, but I can roughly guess. Please enjoy the local specialties. You need to eat well to have the strength to fight the enemy." Swain smiled and had people bring various local delicacies from Kiavahr to the guests.
"Eat, don't be formal," Yore instructed her sisters in sign language, then watched Swain leave the room to arrange other matters.
"The Sisters of Silence are good in every way, but they are too kind-hearted and too stubborn," Swain sighed, shaking his head as he left the reception room.
Due to their soulless nature, the Sisters of Silence were disliked from birth. Wild soulless individuals experienced various forms of bullying during their growth. Every soulless person who grew up could be said to have endured all the disdain of the world.
Yet, the soulless ones were active on the front lines of defense against demonic incursions. Even after being betrayed by their comrades, their descendants still forgave their former allies, the Custodes.
Yes, the Custodes betrayed their allies!
After the Emperor ascended to the Golden Throne, the soulless ones were ostracized by the High Lords of Terra due to their unique nature. Most of the high-ranking members of the Silent Sisterhood died in the Webway War. Furthermore, because they only obeyed the Emperor's personal commands, they were expelled, and eventually even their organization was disbanded.
Their main base on the Moon also fell into disuse. This state continued until the end of the far-off 41st Millennium, when Guilliman's return led to their re-gathering and reorganization across the galaxy.
If not for the Black Ships and the Officio Assassinorum retaining positions and connections related to the soulless ones, Guilliman would have had to rebuild the Silent Sisterhood from scratch.
As for what the Custodes were doing when the Sisters of Silence were expelled? Pardon me, the Custodes were in self-reflection. What were the Custodes doing when the Silent Sisterhood's organization was disbanded? The Custodes were still in self-reflection.