This is our Warhammer journey

Chapter 213 Local Issues
751-M41
After nearly three long meetings, the High Lords had been eagerly awaiting the arrival of the Dawn Fleet, even to the point of losing a Minister of Justice.

According to the report relayed by Imperial Navigator Envoy Kadak Mil, the leaders of the Dawn Fleet officially completed the handover of power with the various chapters stationed in Altramar, and departed immediately after loading some Imperial officials and representatives of the Imperial Guard.

They returned along the later route of the Dawn Expedition and soon headed to the Voronin Cluster in the very center of the Extreme Starfield, now the Dawn Sector.

The Cult of Mechanics was on edge, and the nobles of the sector were all in danger, fearing that their power would fall into the wrong hands. The High Lords, enjoying the spectacle, slowly pushed forward with reforms in the Vortex region with the assistance of the Valyrian Guard, while keeping an eye on the situation in the eastern part of the Empire.

However, nine months later, when the Dawn Fleet, led by Imperial-class battleships, entered the sector, what happened was quite unexpected.

There was no bloodshed or purge as expected, no iron-fisted suppression or power transition.

Conversely, the Dawn Fleet remained on expeditionary duty, devoting all its efforts to eliminating the Orc raiding parties and pirate fleets rampaging through the sector.

For six whole months, the fleet traversed the star sector, responding to every distress signal, like a wandering legion of guardians.

Romulus would occasionally be invited by the planet's governor to set foot on the surface, where he would listen to reports in magnificent palaces or simple military and political halls, hear the political demands of the local nobles, and offer political advice.

However, no mandatory orders were ever issued.

Meanwhile, Karna frequently appears in the preaching halls at the bottom of the hive and mission stations in remote worlds.

Food and water were delivered to every human being as he moved about, and the Emperor's Light was proclaimed to weary civilians and bewildered believers, while the doctrines of the Church of Dawn quietly spread.

Then the fleet will simply leave, without even bothering to resupply, leaving each department to continue operating according to existing procedures.

This puts the Mechanicus faction, led by Incaladion, the creator of the world, in an awkward position.

Leveraging their monopolistic advantage in the industrial system, they have been spreading the message that the Primarchs do not trust mortals to the Sector Nobles, and have also provided some good things in the hopes of hindering the Primarchs' rule and facilitating their subsequent plans.

However, the inaction of the Dawn Fleet caused the plan to fall through.

The only rumor circulating is that the Primarch is assessing the conditions of various worlds in order to select future sector capitals.

But six months later, the Dawn Fleet still patrols the sea of ​​stars, like a silent observer rather than a ruler.

The High Lords and the High Sages of the Cult of Mechanics were caught in a subtle dilemma.

The events that unfolded on Macurag remain vivid in my memory; those Primarchs were far from gentle shepherds, but rather lurking lions.

These beings at the pinnacle of power do not underestimate the Primarch; they wonder if Romulus truly intends to give them a grand life.

“A superstructure dominated by nobles and bound by blood ties is completely unsuitable for undertaking important tasks.”

Above the Cardinal World of Astorgius, Romulus flipped through the documents in his hand.

These are reports submitted by agents after conducting detailed investigations into the political, military, and cultural systems of various planets within the Dawn Star Sector.

These reports provide detailed accounts of the political corruption, military apathy, and cultural decay in every world within the Dawn Sector.

The nobles indulged in endless banquets, the planetary defense forces were privatized into family guards, and the state priests colluded with local powers to exploit the last vestiges of wealth from the lower classes.

The Alpha Legion's intelligence system is of considerable reference value, especially in terms of developing ordinary human agents.

Meanwhile, the Dark Angels' mortal agents infiltrated the State Church's missionary corps. This intertwined intelligence network of the State Church and mortal agents, one overt and one covert, laid bare the true nature of the sector before the Primarch. Frankly, as the Sector's Regent, Romulus was quite dissatisfied with the information he had gathered.

In one agricultural world, a governor deliberately suppressed grain purchase prices to maintain the import of luxury goods, causing billions of farmers to struggle on the brink of starvation; in another hive city, a family of law enforcement officials monopolized judicial power for generations, turning the law into an auction where the highest bidder wins.
He's tempted to kill someone if he's dissatisfied.

His gaze shifted downwards and landed on a report about an important gathering of nobles.

The nobles of the sector remained immersed in optimistic fantasies.

In their eyes, the new Primarch was nothing more than a “more warlike and more amiable sector governor” who even generously exempted them from taxes for several years.

The crystal glasses clinked lightly at the banquet, and the nobles laughed and discussed the “easy-going” ruler, as if he were just another bureaucrat who could be bribed, delayed, and fooled.

The high lords, however, were quite perceptive.

After all, they can do the math. The sheer number of steel-like Astral Legions forged by the Dawn Expedition alone is equivalent to the tithes of countless worlds.

Instead of getting hung up on that small amount of tax, why not go with the flow and do someone a favor?

Romulus was right about something, and they agreed with it: they simply couldn't make good use of the vast majority of the tithes they collected.

However, the Primarchs did not use this reason to split the Empire, nor did they intend to use it to seize power in Terra or reorganize the Council. Instead, they were trying to solve local problems, which made the Highlords feel much more at ease.

After sacrificing a Minister of Justice, the two sides successfully reached an agreement.

Their interests are completely different from those of the local nobles. If it weren't for the constraints of the current state of the empire, they would have already taken over these sector nobles.

High lords are the most shrewd of all, one in a million capable individuals. But as the saying goes, those who eat meat are despicable; they also have their own interests, so sometimes they can appear frighteningly stupid.

When viewed from an objective perspective, these astute individuals can fully demonstrate their insight and political acumen.

At least in Romulus's view, dealing with the High Lords was much more comfortable than dealing with these sector nobles.

This tax exemption acted like a powerful stimulant, intensifying their extravagance and indulgence. In their magnificent palaces, fine wines flowed like rivers, and delicacies piled up like mountains.

Nobles, draped in luxurious silks, laughed and reveled at a long table inlaid with jewels, as if this eternal feast would never end.

The sector's economic data is indeed rising strangely, the pollutants continuously being exported from the hive factories have decreased, the barns in the agricultural world are full of uncollected grain, and the trade fleet routes within the sector are busier than ever before.

However, all this prosperity had nothing to do with the imperial nobles.

They disdain participating in production and care nothing for the fate of the lower classes; they simply greedily convert the extra profits from tax exemptions into more luxury goods, more extravagant mansions, and more debauched entertainment.

Only a very few astute nobles noticed the precise implications hidden within Romulus's seemingly mild "political advice" when they perused it.

Which families monopolize power on the planet? Which worlds are rife with corruption? Which defense forces have long since degenerated into private armies?

These clever people began to quietly sell off non-core assets, reform family discipline, and even voluntarily donate money to the state religion, trying to cloak themselves in a veneer of piety before the storm arrived.

(End of this chapter)