Warhammer: Lord of the Endless Monster Horde

"I never thought there would be a researcher like you among us humans, Ms. Salome!" Kania said with a hint of curiosity.

 Where exactly did this mysterious woman come from? She even served as the chief scientist in this dark Eldar's Haemonculus.

"I have nothing to say!" Salome snorted coldly, speaking up. Her mind was buzzing, a bit of a mess. Was she… truly human?

 DNA doesn't lie — her species was indeed very similar to humans.

 But no matter what, she would always be loyal to her master. It was her master who gave her a second chance at life.

 Her species and humans were almost indistinguishable. The fact that her genetic test results identified her as human wasn't really an issue.

 Besides, it seemed like her master had planned all of this. All she needed to do was observe quietly and adapt.

"Salome's identity is currently off-limits," Rhodes said, feigning anger. "Mr. Kania, please refrain from asking further about this matter, okay?"

 Even if she was bait, others must not see through it so easily. Rhodes intended for Salome to infiltrate the Empire under the guise of a human.

 And not just any human — she would take on the role of an extraordinarily significant scientist. This scientist's identity would need to be uncovered bit by bit by Kania himself.

 For instance, she could be a scientist from the Golden Age, one who had been in stasis, or someone tied to an ancient alliance between two races, perhaps even a human scientist sent to assist the Eldar's empire.

 In any case, the final interpretation of her identity rested with him.

"I overstepped, Lord Loki, and Ms. Salome. I was just curious about your identity! Let's not discuss this topic any further," Kania said apologetically, immediately standing up and bowing to Rhodes to express his regret.

 However, deep down, a seed of curiosity had already been planted. What was this woman's true identity?

 What kind of technology did she possess that made a member of the Eldar value her so highly?

The two sides continued their conversation casually. Kania began introducing Rhodes to his Rogue Traders Dynasty — a powerful dynasty ruling two star sectors on the edge of the galaxy, with over a dozen planets.

 It included three Forge Worlds, four Hive Worlds, three Agricultural Worlds, and several mining planets. Even among the rogue traders communities, his dynasty was one of the most prominent.

 Otherwise, he wouldn't have been entrusted by a high lord of the Empire with such an important task, working alongside an Imperial Inquisitor.

 He even had a team of Imperial Space Marine warriors and Battle Sisters assigned solely to protect his safety and ensure that chaos corruption wouldn't occur on his ship.

Rhodes, in turn, shared the ancient history of the Eldar empire with Kania, focusing especially on the splendor of humanity's Golden Age.

 He also described the relationship between humanity during the Golden Age and the Eldar race. All this information came from the historical archives of the Harlequin.

 The Laughing God had arranged a convincing ancient noble identity within the Eldar for Rhodes. Naturally, the performance had to be convincing.

 If necessary, the Laughing God could even provide an ancient planet as a nominal base for his family.

"I've encountered many Xenos over the years," Kania began, "had dealings with them, and even fought wars against them. Those were the glorious and unforgettable youthful days."

"Mr. Kania, you must be quite old," Rhodes remarked. "I've heard that rogue traders employ various methods to extend their lifespans. May I ask, how old are you now?

 How many heirs do you have? Have you already chosen your successor? I hope to establish a long-term partnership with your Rogue Traders Dynasty, to expand our family's business into the Human Empire."

Come and take the bait! Rhodes thought. The human race was deeply concerned about their longevity, especially those in positions of power.

"I have many heirs, so many that I've lost count. I'm already over 780 years old!

 I've undergone numerous life-extending surgeries. Based on my current condition, I can probably live for another 50 years at most.

 For us humans, 50 years is a long time, but for someone like you, an Eldar, it must feel like the blink of an eye," Kania sighed.

The one thing humanity could never compete with the Eldar on was lifespan — it was a perpetual source of pain for the human race.

"That's truly a pity. Decades from now, I won't be able to see you anymore. I wish you could live a few hundred more years, so we could continue doing business together. I have a very favorable impression of you," Rhodes said.

Hearing this, Kania gave a bitter smile. The typical lifespan of a rogue trader was around 800 years — this was already the limit. Living longer would require massive mechanical modifications to over 70-80% of the body, along with memory backups. This could extend life by several thousand years.

 But would he still be himself then? Once memory backups came into play, the real him would already be gone!

After all, not everyone had the knowledge or technology of Belisarius Cawl, the great Magos of the Mechanicum, who had lived for over 10,000 years.

He had even met the Emperor himself, along with those mythical Primarchs, the sons of gods.

 "If I can find a better life-extension procedure, then perhaps we may have a chance to meet again in the future," Kania said.

 The Empire's best life-extension surgeries currently include many techniques derived from Xenos technology.

 Who knows if this Haemonculus of the Dark Eldar has any advanced biological technologies?

"Perhaps you could try the latest technology from my family. We are currently developing a new life-extension serum that can greatly prolong life," Rhodes said with a smile.

 His Gomora and Golza, these ancient beasts, are beings capable of surviving for hundreds of millions or even tens of millions of years.

 Rhodes had already tasked three scientists to begin studying the longevity mechanisms of these monsters. Developing a life-extension serum was not impossible.

"Are you saying that you have a serum that can extend my lifespan?" Kania asked, his face lighting up with excitement.

"Hehe! If you are willing to use it, I roughly estimate that this new life-extension serum could give you at least another hundred years of life," Rhodes replied.

 Saying thousands or tens of thousands of years would be too shocking, so Rhodes made a conservative estimate of 100 years instead.

"This… Lord Loki! Are you serious about extending my life by a hundred? You're not joking, are you? And can you guarantee its safety?" Kania was visibly unsettled this time.

 A hundred years is enough time to witness the rise and fall of empires and the ebb and flow of the ages.

 The temptation was indeed great. If its safety could be confirmed, he was willing to take the risk and try it.

"I am certain, and I can guarantee its safety.

 After all, we have many collaborations ahead of us, don't we?

 Let's discuss this life-extension serum further after our trip to Terra is over," Rhodes said with a smile. After all, it was still in the development stage.

"Hahaha, alright then. After our trip to Terra, we'll give your life-extension serum a try," Kania said happily, nodding. He was indeed looking forward to it.

"Take a look at my new products! I have many kinds of new monster serums here: berserk types, strength types, and all sorts of others.

 More importantly, I carefully screened them and selected a monster enhancement serum that is particularly suitable for humans," Rhodes said.

 He then opened a silver case, revealing seven types of monster enhancement serums.

They were derived from Guigass, Melba, Golza, Gomora, Red King, Miclas, and the Chaos Daemon Slayer.

 The Chaos Daemon Slayer was a flesh-and-blood lifeform and humanoid at that.

Most importantly, it carried the light of the Human Emperor, a psychic energy now even integrated into its DNA.

 Using the monster gene enhancement from the Chaos Daemon Slayer wouldn't significantly alter a human's appearance.

 After all, when the Chaos Daemon Slayer removed its armor and mask, its face was quite similar to that of a human. Its intimidating features were just from its armor and mask!

Rhodes felt that the Chaos Daemon Slayer had a strong affinity with the human race of the Empire.

 Thus, he had specifically extracted some of the Daemon Slayer's blood to test his theory.

After analysis by his three scientists, it turned out that the genetic compatibility of the other large monsters wasn't even as high as that of Guigass!

 After all, humans evolved from ancient apes, and Guigass, being a giant gorilla, was technically a closer match. However, due to the psychic light of the Human Emperor, the three scientists leaned more toward using the Chaos Daemon Slayer's genes to create the human monster enhancement serum.

"Lord Loki! Are you sure this serum can perfectly adapt to our human physiology?" Kania asked.

 If it were compatible, it would essentially be a new form of enhanced warrior transformation!

"Then let's conduct a test. After all, facts speak louder than words.

 I see you have quite a few ordinary warriors by your side. You can try the version I recommend or any of the other monster enhancement serums I have here.

 Since we've been having such a pleasant conversation, I'll offer the first three monster enhancement serums for free. After using those three, we can discuss the cost for the remaining seven," Rhodes said.

"Alright, let's give it a try! Lord Loki, I've decided to use the version you recommended. I trust your expertise," Kania said.

 He then clapped his hands, signaling to his butler outside to select ten loyal warriors from the family to enter.

Rhodes smiled as he took out the Chaos Daemon Slayer's monster serum. Whether this succeeded or not would soon be clear.

 No, wait! He also needed the Emperor's blessing for this to work.

Soon, the first brave warrior stood before Rhodes and, in front of everyone, injected himself with the gene serum derived from the Chaos Daemon Slayer.