The warning still hung over the conference room as Blood Angel swiped across the holographic interface.
The star map disappeared, replaced by an enormous leaderboard surrounded by patterns of burning golden flames.
At the top, a line of brilliant lettering appeared.
[Imperial Faction — Chapter Rankings]
Hundreds of Chapter names appeared beneath the heading.
[Rank 1: Terran Dragon Guard — Lv. 5 — 20,000/20,000]
[Chapter Master: Defending the Imperium is My Sacred Duty]
[Rank 2: God's Scythe — Lv. 5 — 20,000/20,000]
[Chapter Master: Son of God, Emperor Among Men]
[Rank 3: Sacred Tribunal — Lv. 5 — 11,200/20,000]
[Chapter Master: The Imperium's Purest Inquisitor]
[Rank 4: Second Imperium — Lv. 5 — 9,873/20,000]
[Chapter Master: Worthy of Sanguinius's Blood]
[Rank 5: ...]
Blood Angel surveyed everyone around the table before focusing on the first-place entry.
"This Chapter is currently the strongest fighting force among the Imperial-aligned players."
"The Terran Dragon Guard."
"Their Chapter Master, [Defending the Imperium is My Sacred Duty], has already undergone the enhancements to become an Ultramarine."
"He's an exceptionally powerful warrior, but what's even more impressive is his command ability. His tactical reasoning is incredibly precise, and he's an extraordinary military strategist."
"We've also managed to gather information about their core members and how they operate."
"They have a dedicated support network outside the game, much like ours, allowing them to devote themselves almost entirely to developing their forces."
White Scars leaned back in his chair.
"They've got the Imperium backing them, which makes obtaining resources much easier than it is for us."
"They also have an enormous stockpile of Imperial Coins."
"We shouldn't underestimate their strength."
Blood Angel nodded.
"Fortunately, our relationship with them is fairly good."
He glanced at Schrödinger Bro, who nodded in confirmation.
"We've had some communication and cooperation with them, both in the real world and inside the game."
"Our ideologies differ, but we haven't had any conflicts so far."
Tax Bro breathed a sigh of relief.
"Well, that's good."
"One less powerful faction we have to worry about fighting."
Unfortunately, Blood Angel didn't seem particularly relieved.
His finger moved down the leaderboard and stopped at second place.
[Rank 2: God's Scythe — Lv. 5 — 20,000/20,000]
[Chapter Master: Son of God, Emperor Among Men]
His expression darkened.
"Now, these guys are probably going to be a problem."
The conference room immediately fell silent.
Tax Bro frowned.
"God's Scythe?"
"That name sounds a little..."
White Scars finished the thought in his usual calm voice.
"God's Scythe. A scythe is meant for harvesting."
"So what exactly are they harvesting?"
"Chaos?"
"Or xenos?"
Blood Angel shook his head.
"Neither."
"They harvest the weak."
His voice grew colder.
"They're fiercely committed to the Imperial faction, but their idea of loyalty is very different from ours."
"Under the leadership of their Chapter Master, [Son of God, Emperor Among Men], they've thrown themselves into the arms of the Imperium's aristocracy and High Lords."
"In exchange, they've gained access to the resources of numerous Imperial worlds."
"Their military strength is no less impressive than that of the Terran Dragon Guard."
Schrödinger Bro frowned.
"Aristocrats and High Lords?"
"Those pieces of garbage who treat Imperial citizens like disposable supplies?"
Blood Angel nodded.
"Exactly."
"But the biggest problem isn't even their connections."
"It's their ideology."
"They believe that weakness itself is a sin and that everyone's suffering is simply their predetermined fate."
"As far as they're concerned, any ordinary citizen living in misery must be paying for sins they've committed."
The conference room fell deathly silent.
Then Tax Bro slammed his fist against the table.
"FUCK!"
His voice trembled with barely suppressed anger.
"That same old bullshit again!"
"'Everyone gets what fate has decided'?"
"'Being weak is a sin'?"
"Then why the hell aren't they the ones being punished?"
White Scars spoke evenly.
"Because they don't consider themselves weak."
"And they certainly don't believe they're guilty of anything."
[Execute Old Man the War Criminal] spoke next, his hoarse voice filled with anger.
"What kind of fucked-up ideology is that?"
"The weak deserve to die?"
"Ordinary people suffer because they're paying for their sins?"
"Paying for what fucking sins?!"
He leaned forward, his expression darkening.
"I want to string those bastards up and use them as lantern fuel!"
"The Emperor founded the Imperium to protect humanity, not to divide human beings into a hundred different classes!"
"Those bastards are nothing but Chaos worshippers wearing Imperial uniforms!"
Tax Bro leaned back in his chair, fists still clenched.
His voice was icy.
"No wonder they hate Crimson Dawn so much."
"Our whole philosophy of earning dignity through labor probably sounds like outright heresy to them."
Blood Angel nodded.
"Exactly."
"To us, ordinary people deserve the opportunity to build better lives."
"To them, giving common citizens independence and dignity threatens the entire social order they're trying to preserve."
He glanced toward the second-ranked Chapter.
"And that difference isn't going to disappear anytime soon."
"During the latest update, sixty thousand new players joined the Imperial faction."
"Forty thousand of them joined subsidiary Chapters belonging to God's Scythe."
Tax Bro slammed his fist against the table again.
"Those goddamn assholes!"
"I was arguing with them in the world chat just yesterday!"
His anger was obvious.
"They kept making all these smug, sarcastic comments about us!"
"Apparently, we don't understand what true loyalty means!"
"According to them, true loyalty means obeying the nobility without question, and commoners should be grateful just to have work!"
"They called Crimson Dawn a bunch of bleeding-heart do-gooders who'd eventually get wiped out by Chaos."
"They even said all the ordinary citizens we've helped develop are worthless!"
"Fuck, I wanted to reach right through the internet and slap every last one of them!"
White Scars remained expressionless.
"That's what happens when people mistake obedience to the powerful for loyalty to humanity."
He paused, his eyes calm and calculating.
"They've built their entire position around serving the Imperial nobility. Our existence challenges the way they justify that power."
"Of course they're going to despise us."
A faintly mocking smile appeared on his lips.
"Although I have to admit, their behavior in the world chat is something else."
"They spend half their time preaching about duty, honor, and proper conduct."
"And the other half screaming insults at anyone who disagrees with them."
"So much for their precious discipline."
Quiet laughter spread throughout the room.
Tax Bro rolled his eyes.
"Tell me about it."
"When the world chat first opened, I actually tried having a reasonable conversation with them."
"I explained what we'd accomplished on Aurelian IV and Planet Dal."
"All I got back was a bunch of insults and accusations of heresy."
"So naturally, I gave them a few choice insults of my own."
"Then they suddenly started acting confused, spamming question marks like they couldn't understand why I was pissed!"
[Execute Old Man the War Criminal] slapped his thigh and burst out laughing.
"HAHAHAHA!"
"God, I can already picture it!"
Tax Bro snorted.
"I swear, arguing with those people is harder than fighting Chaos Spawn."
"At least Chaos Spawn don't pretend they're doing you a favor while trying to tear your head off."
The remark drew another round of laughter.
Even a few of the more reserved players couldn't suppress their smiles.
Blood Angel shook his head helplessly and raised a hand to restore order.
Once the laughter subsided, he continued.
"So, these are probably going to be our primary enemies within the Imperial faction."
"They have considerable resources, powerful allies, and an ideology that directly opposes everything Crimson Dawn stands for."
"We need to keep a close eye on them."
--
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