Chapter 491: Am I an investor in the Assassin’s Court?
There is no doubt that the mastermind behind the assassination attempt on him was Norberto.
But the mastermind behind the assassination is no longer important. What Gu Hang cares about is the executor of this assassination: the Assassin's Court.
They are just a knife, yes, but it is an important knife.
They are professionals in assassination.
Gu Hang killed these elite assassins like killing chickens. These elite assassins' frontal combat capabilities were just so-so. He freed his hands and crushed them to death easily.
But the problem is that the most important thing an assassin does when carrying out an assassination is to create unfair and non-positive actions.
The most important actions of the assassins today were all arranged around blocking Gu Hang's psychic energy. First, they used the Black Stone Bracelet to perform a long-distance sniper attack; when that failed, they also blocked his psychic energy and used the melta to attack.
This is a method to deal with a powerful psychic like Gu Hang; but if it is to deal with some powerful warriors, even top-level space marines, they will have other methods.
Accurate intelligence, sufficient targeted means, powerful technology, elite transformed assassins who are fearless of death...these are the secrets to the success of the Assassin's Court.
They failed this time because of insufficient intelligence. But next time, after having gained experience, they will definitely not treat Gu Hang with Alpha-level specifications. They may turn to poison, blow up the spacecraft and other methods. Even if they detect the interference and intervention of the subspace when investigating the failed site, they are likely to use some black technology, either from the aliens or from prehistoric archaeological findings, to temporarily block the subspace and carry out the next operation.
In short, if the Assassin's Court wants to kill someone, the success rate is very high if they spare no expense.
Gu Hang could do it once, but it's impossible for him to do it all the time.
However, the Assassin's Court is ultimately a clear institution in the Empire, and their actions are not in vain.
The leader of the Assassin's Court, known as the 'Grand Master', is a candidate for a seat on the High Council. Although not this time, throughout history, they have often been among the High Lords.
There was even a time in an obscure period of Imperial history when the Grand Master of the Assassin's Court carried out a reign of terror and espionage through assassination and violence, completely controlling the entire Supreme Council.
Although that period was short-lived, after various parties rose up in resistance, the Assassins were defeated by positive forces such as the Space Marines and the Astra Militarum, thus quickly ending their rule. But this incident still left a far-reaching impact.
From that point on, the Assassins' Court could no longer act independently.
In theory, the Assassin's Court needs authorization to do its work, but the level of authorization required varies depending on the specific circumstances of the target.
This means that it is not easy to send out the Assassin's Court to act as a knife.
Gu Hang could think of three possible ways for Norberto and the interest group of Iron Fury Stone to get the Assassin Court to do the work:
Otherwise, this is Norberto himself independently authorizing the act and the Assassin's Court taking action.
This situation is the simplest, but also the least likely.
Norberto should have certain authority. After all, he is one of the high lords, and the Assassin's Court is relatively weak now.
But the target cannot be Gu Hang.
For someone like Gu Hang, an appointment had to be voted on by the Supreme Council, and now he was considered the focus of the empire's political arena. The decision-makers of the Assassin's Court had a little political sensitivity and knew that they couldn't do it.
This possibility is relatively low.
Secondly, there were changes in the Supreme Council. Maybe after the last meeting, another meeting was held, or there was a secret resolution, the previous resolution was overturned, and multiple high lords signed the authorization at the same time. Even if Ou Juren and Gallardo did not sign, they tacitly abandoned Gu Hang.
But Gu Hang quickly ruled out this possibility.
He had previously analyzed that the interest group targeting the Iron Fury Stone and Norberto was the fundamental trend of the empire. Whether Gu Hang was there or not would not affect it.
Without an alliance, it's just a matter of changing the knife to do the job.
Gu Hang's existence is actually beneficial to the advancement of the general trend. Otherwise, the Supreme Council would not have carried out special approval and passed it with a high vote when it was obviously not in compliance with the regulations for him to become the marshal.
The fundamentals changed in just a few days, abandoning Gu Hang? This is unrealistic and irrational, and it doesn't fit the situation in the imperial political arena at all.
The third reason is that Norberto had his own power or collaborators within the Assassin's Court. He skipped the original process and directly ordered the assassination through his collaborators.
This is of course against the rules, but... Gu Hang doesn't believe that if the other party dares to do it, they will leave a particularly obvious handle that can be easily caught.
I'm afraid everything that needs to be cleaned up has been cleaned up.
After thinking through these possibilities carefully, Gu Hang felt relieved.
As long as it is not the second worst case scenario, he should not be chased and killed by the Assassin's Court. If this is the case, Gu Hang will have to consider escaping from Holy Terra at the speed of light, or even escaping directly into the Kingdom of Storm God, and then find a way to return to his homeland through the subspace, and then prepare to raise the flag of rebellion.
But the probability of this is extremely low.
The first scenario is also low. The third most likely scenario is that the assassination should be a one-time thing.
The Assassin's Court illegally carried out a mission, which not only failed, but also caused a big mess. In this case, Norberto will definitely pay the price for this. No matter how strong his connections in the Assassin's Court are, it is impossible for him to work for him again in a short period of time.
Of course, these are all speculations. Although Gu Hang has a good grasp of the situation, his life is at stake, so he cannot afford to be careless at all.
He will be very cautious for a long time to come.
…
While waiting, the people who were supposed to come arrived one after another.
The fastest came from the Imperial Guards, with a centurion arriving; followed by those who were at the General's Terrace or were originally going to the General's Terrace, also arriving.
Gallardo, Ou Juren, and Xue Yongsheng, the Supreme Marshal of the Star Army, came here.
The faces of the three men were very heavy. The five bodies of the assassins lying on the ground looked very iconic after the camouflage wore off. Of course, they recognized what was happening at the first time.
Gallardo strode forward to Gu Hang's side and looked around: "Are you okay?"
"It's okay. I'm standing here fine. Don't worry too much."
"That's good." Gallardo breathed a sigh of relief. "I was very angry when I heard the news, but the best news is that you are okay."
At this point, he still couldn't hold back his anger and cursed: "Some people who break the rules will definitely pay the price!"
On the other side, after chatting with the centurion of the imperial guards for a few words, Ou Juren also came over with a gloomy face and said to Gu Hang: "Gallardo is right, someone will definitely pay the price."
Everyone knew who he was talking about, and Gu Hang just smiled.
The attitudes of Gallardo and Ou Juren probably indicate that they are not abandoned in this matter, and the second most terrible situation can be basically eliminated.
He was quite relaxed.
Gu Hang looked at the imperial guards beside him again, with a questioning look in his eyes.
"Ahem..." Ou Juren was a little embarrassed, as if the communication with the centurion of the imperial guards just now was not very smooth.
He originally wanted to send the imperial guards away directly, but obviously, the emperor's imperial guards ignored him.
The High Lord doesn't work either!
"Gu Hang, you may have to go with this centurion of the Imperial Guard. This matter is quite a big deal, and the Imperial Guard needs to investigate it carefully, so you have to cooperate. However, I promise that there will be no problem. The Psychic Order will issue you this psychic examination certificate, and the Supreme Council will not sit idly by."
"Besides, going to the Imperial Guards now is also a good choice. If someone wants to do something in the Imperial Guards, it will be even more impossible to succeed."
Gu Hang nodded slightly: "Okay, no problem."
He was mentally prepared for this. After revealing his psychic powers, the Imperial Guards would definitely not turn a blind eye.
In fact, the fact that his psychic power exceeded the registered level was not a big deal. He was only S-level under normal circumstances, the legal level of a psychic. He reported A-level because he had not updated his information in the Psychic Order for some time.
This might be a crime for someone else, but not for Gu Hang.
As for the Alpha level required to break free and shatter the Black Stone Bracelet, I, Marshal Gu, don't know. Maybe I was a little excited about the life and death situation just now. Now you can check casually, and I am definitely not at the Alpha level, and I definitely can't reach the level of being monitored all the time in the black prison.
However, what Gu Hang least wanted to face was the problem of subspace rifts.
Although he only made a small cut, the imperial guards arrived too quickly and Gu Hang had no time to deal with the traces.
However, the Imperial Guards were not psychic experts, so they hoped that they would not detect the aura left by the warp under the normal high-intensity psychic power display.
In conventional concepts, the subspace = demons.
If he gets involved, Gu Hang will have a lot more trouble in the future. Even the court of justice may get involved.
But for now, it seems to be okay.
Gu Hang comforted Lacroxia and the others, then obediently followed the imperial guards and left.
Among the few people left on the field, Xue Yongsheng's eyes flickered.
It's not that he felt guilty. He really had no idea about the matter and had no involvement in it.
But like everyone else, the mastermind of this assassination was too obvious. He had a good relationship with Norberto, but he still didn't expect that the old guy could bypass the Supreme Council and launch such a high-quality operation.
These five dead assassins were probably the best in the entire Assassin's Court and were extremely valuable.
Norberto is quite capable.
But that Gu Hang is more capable!
He was able to survive such an assassination attempt, and not a single one of the five top assassins escaped, all of them died on the spot.
This ability is what a top psychic must have.
What's more, Gu Hang didn't die, and the assassin's body was lying here. Xue Yongsheng looked at the expressions of Ou Juren and Gallardo beside him and knew that a bloody storm was about to ensue.
He couldn't help but shudder.
I decided in my heart that I would draw a clear line between myself and Norberto from now on.
Although they have a good relationship and have some tacit understanding on some things, such as following Norberto's vote in the Supreme Council this time, they are not considered to be political allies with a deep bond.
Seeing that Norberto was in big trouble, Xue Yongsheng decided to stay away to avoid being splattered with blood.
After thinking about it, Xue Yongsheng did not leave in a hurry, but walked forward and chatted with Ou Juren and Gallardo for a while.
During the conversation, he expressed some meanings implicitly.
First of all, this matter has nothing to do with me. If there is a grievance, there is a perpetrator. Don't blame me.
Secondly, I have no problem with Gu Hang. Look, I came to his inauguration ceremony. If there are further ceremonies, I will still come, and I will also help to resolve some of the dissatisfaction within the Star Army with Gu Hang's promotion to marshal.
Third, I am also very indignant about what Norberto did. If you need any help, please let me know.
This is undoubtedly a gesture of goodwill.
Ou Juren and Gallardo responded politely.
After Xue Yongsheng left, Ou Juren said to Gallardo, "I didn't expect there would be an unexpected benefit. Norberto... Hehe, this time you shot yourself in the foot."
Gallardo did not smile at all. He emphasized: "That old man must pay the price!"
"I know you are angry, but calm down," Ou Juren said. "Be patient. The rope will get tighter, but not now."
Gallardo turned around suddenly and said, "Gu Hang almost died! You want me to calm down? How can I calm down!"
He seemed to feel that he had lost his composure, but he could not calm down. He added: "He is an important part of our plan. According to our idea, he will fire the first shot and destroy the Fury of Flame! If he dies, based on my understanding of the situation in the Dragon Eagle Star Region, the alliance will inevitably collapse and all plans will be disrupted!"
"We must make Norberto pay a heavy price. Otherwise, if the target is you or me next time, are we sure we can withstand this level of assassination?"
This time, it was Ou Juren who remained silent.
After a moment of silence, he said, "Okay, I'll think of a way. Clement is also involved in this matter, and he has to give an explanation."
…
Jefferson Clement, although not one of the High Lords, but as the Grand Master of the Assassin's Court, his status is still very noble and special.
He is capable of getting a seat. And even without this seat, the Assassin's Court cannot be ignored.
But even though he was such a person, he could only sit in front of Gu Hang and apologize to him.
Of course it’s not servile, Gu Hang hasn’t reached that level yet.
But at least his attitude was sincere.
"Marshal Gu..."
"Not yet."
Clement smiled and said, "Soon. I have to admit to you that this operation was caused by a major problem within the Assassin's Court. An Assassin mentor named Naldo Crowe violated the rules of the Assassin's Court and issued an operation order without authorization, which led to this accident."
"I will not shirk the responsibilities that the Assassin's Court should bear, and I will give you corresponding compensation."
"On behalf of the Assassin's Court, I sincerely invite you to become a patron of the Assassin's Court. From now on, you can donate funds to the Assassin's Court. The specific amount is up to you."
"You will also automatically obtain the authority to issue missions to the Assassin's Court. Of course, you still need to comply with the Imperial decrees. The Assassin's Court will examine whether you have the authorization to issue missions to the target based on the target's situation. According to your level, the Imperial Marshal and the Star Region Head - of course I know you are not yet, but you will be soon - you can let the Assassin's Court take action. The target selection is actually quite wide."
"Also, the Assassin's Court has an iron rule: do not kill investors."
"I wonder if my sincerity will satisfy you?"
Gu Hang did not express his opinion immediately.
But in fact, he was quite satisfied.
As an "investor", the amount of money to be invested is actually not much, just a few million or tens of millions, and its symbolic significance is greater than its practical significance.
The Assassin's Court is not short of this money.
The attached power is the most important: after the "investment", Gu Hang can give tasks to the Assassin's Court.
To put it bluntly, it is hiring a killer.
Even though Gu Hang wanted to let the Assassin's Court go out to work, he was still limited by the authority of the assassination target. For example, if he gave the Assassin's Court a task now, saying that he wanted to kill Norberto, it would definitely not work. No matter how much money he gave, it would be useless because he did not have enough authority; but after he got the rank of marshal and established the position of Dragon Eagle leader, he ordered people to kill the former leader Tan Jiuyi, and that would definitely be enough.
Moreover, the Assassin's Court is used not only in internal strife.
If he encounters a green tide of the same level as the Iron Tooth War again, he can issue a mission to the Assassin's Court to assassinate the greenskin leader.
The Assassin's Court has this ability and has successful cases.
Of course, the Assassin's Court will pay a hefty price for this, and Gu Hang will also have to pay for it - this is the concept of an investor, if you pay money, the Assassin's Court will help you kill everyone you have the authority to kill.
Even though they have to pay money and are restricted by authority, the Assassin's Court does not take on anyone's work. Many people want to have this channel but don't have the opportunity.
That's an added bonus.
Although they cannot kill the person Gu Hang wants to kill now, there is no telling when this rare channel may be used in the future.
Gu Hang had personally experienced the "service" of the Assassin's Court once and was quite "satisfied".
What's more, Gu Hang was also very concerned about the iron rule that 'the Assassin's Court does not kill investors'.
However, this does not mean that it is a complete talisman. After all, there is a subtext: if you are no longer an investor, you can be killed.
It doesn’t say that investors are irrevocable.
However, the news of revoking the investor's qualification will be sent to the person himself. If there is a higher-level will in the future to let the Assassin's Court take action against Gu Hang, the Assassin's Court will not be able to refuse, so they will also inform Gu Hang first that your investor qualification is gone.
It's also a disguised way of notifying you in advance: I have no other choice, I have to take action, so take care of yourself, let's compete.
This is actually very disadvantageous to the Assassin's Court.
The best way to complete a mission, of course, is for the target to not know that he or she is about to be assassinated; conversely, if the target is on guard, the difficulty of the mission will naturally increase significantly.
But even though Gu Hang was actually quite satisfied, he did not express his opinion immediately.
He also cares about one other thing:
"So, Master Clement, where is this Naldo Crowe now?"
————
5k
Still owe 66k
(End of this chapter)
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