Emperor's Bane

Chapter 841: Spark of Corax

"I left once to join the greatest cause in the galaxy."

"It was an expedition, an expedition just to restore past glory and reason: I had to abandon you temporarily, because it concerned the fate of thousands of worlds and innocent people, and I had to make a rational choice."

"But now, my duty has come to an end. I have gained a new position in a longer war. It urges me to return here, to Redemption Star, to resume my former responsibilities, and to make up for the damage my departure has brought to you."

“So, I’m back.”

"I brought knowledge, experience, lessons and most importantly, confidence. I brought the legend of rebirth from the ashes, the ambition to the stars and the fearlessness of blood: I have witnessed the establishment of a great country. Now, it is time to put the experience into reality."

"Here, I invite you, my former companions who have shared honor and disgrace with me."

"I need your help, I ask for your help. We still have the same dreams and goals, just like we breathe the air under the same mountain and stand on the same dry soil: we are not people from two different worlds."

"I am no nobler than you."

"It was so in the past, and it is so now."

"We can still get along like brothers and complete our unfinished business as before."

"Starting from Redemption, to every star our eyes can now see."

"I will not lie to you. This is destined to be a long war. None of us will be able to see the day when it ends. It may span a thousand years, ten thousand years, or even end in failure. But the fire that we ignited with our own hands will burn in everyone's heart, leaving behind ashes and fire."

"Perhaps you want to say that my great ambitions are just a bunch of useless castles in the air."

"Perhaps you want to say, as we have always said before: Ten thousand years is too long, just fight for the day and night."

"OK then."

"Let's start with the first promise in front of us."

—Excerpt from the first impromptu speech that Raven King Corax gave to his former fellow rebels upon his return to Redemption.

------

Many times, Corax felt that he was actually a very lucky person.

Compared with his other brothers, he may not have ended up in a better world: but he met a group of better people, a group of people he could also call brothers.

Perhaps, he did not obtain the most powerful legion, and the Raven Guard is still a force ranked at the bottom until today, but he still gathered around him a group of loyal and capable heirs, and more people will join in the future.

As for himself: Corax may not be the strongest, the most agile or the smartest of all the Primarchs, but his strength is just enough to reap lives, his speed is just enough to keep up with the pace of shadows, and his innate knowledge and acquired concepts are enough to fulfill his dreams at this stage.

With all these, how could he not be considered the luckiest man?
Whenever he thought of this, a smile would appear on the corner of the Crow King's mouth.

Then, he would look out the window, at the Redemption Star, which had become full of vitality after several environmental transformations, although the conditions were still not favorable, and the new generation running and playing freely on the ground.

They were the very reason for his fight.

Twenty years after returning to his home planet, Corax became even more convinced of this.

The Primarch would never forget the day when he returned to the land of Redemption and summoned his old subordinates with an uneasy mood.

His brothers, those who did not die and did not join the Legion, came from all over Redemption and Kavach: some of them looked very old, some were still fighting, and some to this day had never truly forgiven Corax for abandoning his home planet.

But fortunately, the blood of those who fought side by side in the past still connected them: after the Raven King visited and talked with them one by one, he reunited the old team, and with the absolutely loyal and reliable Raven Guard Legion that had gone through the waves of the Great Crusade, he began another journey in the Storm Star Field.

He was extremely grateful that he had listened to Morgan and Perturabo's advice before leaving and did not hand over Redemption Planet, the main planet it orbited, and the industrial world of Kavach to any party.

The struggle between Mars, Reza and the local factions in this world lasted for a cruel century, but in the end, no side had a clear advantage.

Thus, the Raven King easily took control of the two worlds again. After experiencing the trials and battles of the Great Crusade, Corax was no longer timid about ruling. He loudly read out the rewards and lands granted to him by the Emperor and suppressed all voices of dissatisfaction.

Then, he did what he promised.

The uprising that had to be interrupted because of the Great Crusade has once again surged. Among the old companions of the Raven King, there are many who still maintain their passion and dreams. They have become Corax's most powerful assistants.

For example, Alyn, as one of the Primarch's closest friends, could have enjoyed a quiet life on Redemption, but when he saw the people of the main planet Kavach suffering from the power struggle within the Mechanicus, he secretly infiltrated them, preparing to imitate the Primarch and launch another uprising.

This would undoubtedly be a provocation to the empire, leading to repression and tragedy.

But the Crow King returned in time.

Although Alyn always resented the Raven King's half-heartedness in the past, under Corax's sincere heart and patient persuasion, he believed in the Primarch again: and his story is just a microcosm of the past twenty years.

When the last disgruntled old brother chose to return, the Raven King had completed the reorganization of the two worlds. He did not dare to say that he had done it perfectly, but he ensured that the oppressed got what they deserved.

Of course, there was blood involved.

The remnants of the forces that had ruled Kavach long before the birth of the Raven King were completely wiped out this time: seeing their corpses, the representatives of Mars could not accept the Primarch's conditions and had to withdraw unwillingly. Of course, they would complain to the Forge General about the evil deeds of the Raven Guard.

But the Raven King didn't care. Redemption Star and Kavach were originally independent systems. The excellent production capacity of the two worlds was enough to support the 19th Legion, which was not large in number. The likes and dislikes of Mars were irrelevant to the Primarch.

On the other hand, Ryza, who was allied with the Queen of Avalon, was easier to talk to. After contacting the home planet, Ryza's envoys readily made concessions and gave up most of the interests they had previously fought for: in exchange for the friendship of the Raven Guard.

These Ryza people left behind a large number of technical backbones that they had trained in the previous century. These people did not belong to the system of the Mechanicus, so the Raven Guard could use them directly.

The Raven King cleaned out some of the cold-blooded and ruthless technocrats, but he soon discovered that another group of technocrats sympathized with or understood the dreams of the Rebellion. They were also willing to serve the Primarch and were also willing to try to make the Primarch's dreams come true.

Through their technology and rationality.

Thus, in Kavach, something that had never been heard of in the human empire before began to emerge gradually: the Primarch and the Raven Guard still held the highest power, but they began to tentatively hand over the direct management of society to various technical experts.

These experts can build a relatively better society through scientific analysis and engineering construction, by rationally allocating and utilizing the resources of the two worlds. The Raven King and the Raven Guards follow behind them, monitoring their possibility of corruption.

This caused a lot of trouble: for example, people who understand technology may not necessarily understand governance, but overall it is still feasible. After all, within the Mechanicus system, people who understand technology often hold high positions. It is impossible for them to only understand technology. At least they must understand management.

After a period of implementation, the Raven King began to try to have his old friends, the rebels and the technical bureaucrats work together to form a more complex parliament to preside over the reconstruction and daily management of Kavach. At least from their current performance, this parliament is better than most of the imperial governors.

Under their governance, the Crow King can look further afield with confidence.

And he also did not forget the contribution made by Riza in this.

In return, the Crow King also promised that they would give more benefits to Riza's representatives in future expansion.

He did not break his promise.

Corax did not forget that the fiefdom given to him by the Emperor was far more than the narrow space of Redemption and Kavach, but also the vast wasteland in the southern part of the Storm Segmentum: this land was not rich, and there were countless mutants and aliens hidden in it, and it also had the important task of guarding the south of Terra.

All in all, it is not easy to rule here.

But the Raven King was not under much pressure: because among the three Primarchs who had the power to divide the entire Storm Segmentum, Corax's kingdom was the smallest one, far less than Dorne in the north and Mortarion next to him.

But being small also has its advantages. The Raven King tamed his territory at a faster speed. Although he was not cruel, he never showed mercy when conquering: if the tyrants did not want to give up their thrones voluntarily, they would be greeted by the claws of the Raven Guards.

Corax, on the other hand, also withstood the pressure from Holy Terra: he paid his taxes, even proportionally more than most Primarchs, but he always worked hard to ensure that the tribute to Terra did not unduly affect the lives of his people.

But Mortarion next door didn't seem to have this awareness.

Therefore, Corax's rule has been relatively stable. Although the Raven Guard are not good at governance, they can easily protect the safety of the world and the integrity of the waterways. In particular, their supervision of the worlds under their command is always extremely efficient, allowing the world governors loyal to Corax to always suppress their tyrannical tendencies just right.

With these benefits, after twenty years of stable rule, the Raven King successfully established a thriving country in the southernmost part of the galaxy. He did not try to expand outward, but focused on governing the internal affairs at hand.

He extended the model of Redemption Star and Kavach to every world before him, trying one by one, bringing freedom under the most practical conditions possible: although he knew that these good things might not last long, it proved that he had been there and tried.

The difficulty of fighting wits and courage with conservative dignitaries in various places far exceeds the consumption brought by the war: not to mention that while governing internally, Corax must also constantly withstand external threats.

The biggest of these comes from Terra.

The Raven King had met the High Lords and the famous Malcador, and he had a good impression of all of them: perhaps they had various flaws, but they were indeed loyal and had no problems with their abilities.

But the more this happened, the more Corax found it strange. These were obviously some loyal and capable bureaucrats who were trustworthy: How did they calculate such an outrageous tax? And where did they get the courage? Did they really promote such a tax to the entire galaxy?
What about the emperor? Doesn’t the emperor care?

Corax had written letters of complaint and protested to the high lords in righteous words. If he had not been so busy, he would have even wanted to go to Terra to petition in person. But all his efforts were in vain, and the attitudes of the high lords did not change at all.

They did appease the Primarch and made concessions on several tax issues, but this only meant that the next time would be more fierce: if Corax had tried to pay as much tax as possible in the beginning, now he had no intention of doing so at all.

Because Terra's ever-increasing tax demands in recent years have caused the Primarch's advisors and most trusted officers to wonder if the High Lords are deliberately trying to force them to rebel, and then reasonably wipe them out?
This is not an exaggeration: Holy Terra's tax demands in recent years would have been enough to make Corax's twenty years of work completely in vain.

At this rate, in another twenty years, the taxes on Holy Terra would be enough to return Redemption Star to the time five million years ago.

It is absolutely impossible to give in and admit defeat.

After realizing that the Sigillite and his minions were completely uncommunicative, the Raven King began to choose another path. He tried to communicate with his neighbors and brothers to the east: finding confidence in their equally passive anti-tax policies.

But more importantly, he began to try to send his letters directly to the palace: teams of the most trusted Raven Guards, carrying the ardent hopes of the Primarch and the Legion, boarded ships bound for Terra and quietly groped their way to the gate guarded by the Imperial Guards.

Fortunately, most of the letters will be taken seriously by the Guards, who will bring them in after making a promise.

Unfortunately, to this day, Corax has not received a single reply.

His father seemed to have forgotten him and the entire Raven Guard.

No, Corax could never believe that the Emperor who had stood in the moonlight of Redemption, smiling at him and offering him his hand, welcoming him home, would forget him, would ignore the suffering that had taken place in this land.

The Emperor would not turn a blind eye: unless He had no idea what was happening.

……

Yup!

Unless... he didn't know at all.

So, if that's the case...

Where is the Emperor now?

It has been twenty years since the Lord of Mankind left the Great Crusade. This is indeed too long: in those most marginalized cursed universes, or in worlds that are relatively unwilling to submit to the rule of the Empire, rumors about this have long been unsuppressed.

Everyone was secretly wondering: Where is the Emperor?

Why didn't he show up? Why didn't he stop the High Lord?
Why did he no longer stand among his people and warriors?
No matter how busy he is, is he so busy that he can't even walk out of the palace and show himself?
Why was he so silent? Why did he care so little about the Imperium? Why did the actions of Malcador and the High Lords reach such absurdity and cruelty, but the Lord of Mankind, who holds the supreme power, remained silent?

Is he unwilling to talk, or...

Corax didn't dare to think further.

But there is one thing he is very clear about.

Within the borders of the Empire, among the twenty Primarchs, there is definitely more than one who shares the same thoughts and concerns as him.

But they are not the Crow King, and they will continue to think about things that the Crow King dare not think about.

As for Corax?

……

Even more worrying than Emperor Corax is another problem that is closer at hand.

------

"Another protest from Mortarion?"

When another letter with three white skulls carved on it was placed on the table, Corax was no longer surprised by it: seeing the familiar tone of the Lord of Death on the paper, the Raven King even felt nostalgic several times.

It had been some time since he had received a sarcastic letter from Mortarion.

I still miss it.

“Let me see…”

Corax opened the letter: Perhaps only the Barbarus farmer would still insist on writing letters in this interstellar age.

"Mortarion protests that we incited the Governor of the Stormcrow system to defect: Is that true?"

"A month ago, my Lord."

The Primarch's adjutant Sorolla was originally trained by the Raven King as his own Sevatar. However, it was proved that although Sorolla was indeed an extremely hard-working genius, he was still unable to compare with the famous Prince of Crows in many aspects: even though he was already the youngest commander of the entire Raven Guard.

"The governor of the system surrendered to us on his own initiative and voluntarily raised the flag of the Raven Guard. According to him, this was the result of a referendum on the planet."

"Our intelligence personnel have confirmed that he is not lying. The world has indeed chosen to side with us because of overwhelming public opinion."

"Because they believe that Mortarion has been neglecting them for a long time, and the Death Guard's rule is also very rough; and on the other hand, because the Fourteenth Legion has been indulging in various expeditions, the world believes that the Death Guard Legion has not fulfilled the security they promised."

"They prefer us: at least our troops are closer."

"Besides, we can also help them defend against taxes from Terra, right?"

The Crow King added this with a smile.

And Sorolla lowered his head: Most of the Astartes warriors actually didn't dare to criticize Terra or the High Lords in private.

Especially in the Raven Guard: excessive modesty has always been the label of this legion.

“They didn’t say that directly, but it’s certainly a big part of it.”

"No wonder my brother is angry."

The Crow King shook his head helplessly.

"I thought he would get used to it. How many years has this been going on?"

"In these twenty years, we have made peace and fallen out with the Death Guard at least three times."

"Three times..."

The Raven King threw the letter aside.

“Even the process is exactly the same every time.”

"My brother Mortarion, he was obsessed with crusades, obsessed with expanding his territory, obsessed with gaining more and more glory in an independent manner, obsessed with proving his worth to Terra, obsessed with paying too much attention to Barbarus, and indifferent to the other worlds under his rule."

“He seemed to be my carbon copy: we were doing opposite things, like looking in a mirror.”

"And it turns out that I look more popular on this side of the mirror than he does on the other side."

"It's always like this. His world can't stand his rule anymore, so he turns to me, whether I want him to or not. As a result, he thinks that I stabbed him in the back while he was working diligently to fight the aliens."

"Then, he would fly into a rage, and our two legions would begin to constantly clash on the border and in the void, sometimes even interfering with the outside world's trade routes and other sealed nations, causing trouble for others."

Corax shook his head and sighed.

“And what happens?”

The Primarch looked to his scion, and Sorolla answered fluently.

"Then, when our two legions were obsessed with confronting each other, those alien pirates hiding in the shadows would appear and plunder our world. As a result, you and Lord Mortarion had to join forces to deal a brutal blow to those damned aliens."

"When the aliens are destroyed, our two legions will return to harmony. The friendship of fighting side by side will make us forget the unpleasantness and return to the real life again: we will indulge in internal governance, while Lord Mortarion will continue to hunt down those aliens in the shadows."

“This will continue until he feels like we are stabbing him in the back again.”

"Yes, it's like a cycle: and the fourth cycle seems to have begun."

"..."

Sorolla was silent for a moment.

"So, we are going to reject that Governor?"

"Refuse? Why refuse?"

The Crow King waved his hand.

"If they want to come, let them come: but they must abide by our rules."

"As for Mortarion?"

“I’ve never been afraid of him.”

"That's not what I meant, my lord."

Sorolla lowered his voice.

"I mean, if friction breaks out between our legions again, Holy Terra may choose to take the opportunity to intervene. After all, the previous friction has made them unbearable. What if the Sigillite or even the Emperor holds us accountable? How should we respond then?"

"Emperor?"

The Crow King smiled.

"If this little thing can make the Emperor show up, then I will be willing to apologize to Mortarion at that time."

"..."

Then he was silent for a moment.

"You know what I'm more worried about?"

"What worries me more is that even if our two legions really fought each other in the end, the Emperor did not leave his palace, the Emperor did not stop our actions, and the Emperor did not use practical actions to tell everyone looking at Terra that he was still standing there."

"Do you know where this will lead?"

"Now, too many people have begun to doubt."

"And if their suspicions become reality."

"By then, I'm afraid the situation between us and Mortarion won't be just a matter of friction."

"Pray, Sorolla."

"Pray that my father really just doesn't want to bother with our business."

"Pray my father really just doesn't think these taxes are a big deal."

"Pray that he is safe and sound: pray that he will be able to walk out of the palace one day."

"Prove to us... that he is still alive."

------

"..."

"But you know what?"

“Every success I’ve had along the way has not come from prayer.”

"I will pray for the Emperor, but I will not pray for my own life, nor for my country or my people: for there is nothing I can do about the Emperor, but there is something I can do about you."

"Remember to remind me that the expansion of the 19th Legion should not stop. We only have 150,000 soldiers now. It is enough for a war, but it is far from enough to manage a country."

"Tell them to continue to expand their military."

"I need an army of 250,000 men, or more if possible."

"..."

"Hopefully I won't have to use them."

In the shadows, Corax's sigh slowly spread far away.

(End of this chapter)