Warhammer: Hail to the Void Lords!.

Chapter 1043, page 9 of 1042: "Is your security reliable?"

"...His enemies wanted to end his legend with cold, sharp blades! But his unwavering faith in the God-Emperor saved him! After what his enemies thought was a fatal blow, the great Saint Drusus was resurrected! From then on, he became a true saint! A living saint walking among mortals!"

His legend continues to this day! One day, he will return to us and continue to bring us the gospel of the God-King!

On the elegant and towering pulpit of the Cathedral of Enlightenment, Hieronymus Dororoso, the new Monsignor of the Diocese of Sutas, was speaking to the dark mass of believers below in his high-pitched, passionate, and infectious voice, recounting the legendary story of Saint Drusus's assassination, death, ascension, and resurrection.

His voice echoed beneath the elaborately designed, massive dome, making every listener feel their chest resonate with the sermon.

No one knows whether this miraculous resurrection legend is true or false, but since those who come here to attend Mass are undoubtedly believers of the Order of St. Drusus, their emotions are stirred by the priest's sermon, sometimes angry, sometimes weeping, sometimes excited, sometimes hopeful, like sheep following a shepherd.

Although a bloody incident occurred on the pilgrimage route during the day, the Ascension Day ceremony of St. Drusus was still held as scheduled in this magnificent church that evening, thanks to the court's swift and decisive blockade and control.

The court did not disclose any information about the riot to the public, and the general public knew nothing about the inside story of the incident, regarding it only as a small-scale disturbance.

The good news is that security around the church has been strengthened like never before.

More troops were urgently dispatched to the Cathedral of Enlightenment, including some of the most famous elite regiments in the Sintira armed forces—the grenadier regiment personally led by Major General Rana, the Guards Carbine Regiment and Cuirassier Regiment of the Third Cavalry Corps, and the "famous" 17th Sintira Flintlock Regiment, the "top students".

However, the bad news is that this seemingly impregnable security operation is actually shared equally between the Sintira noble army and the Republican Guard, who are bitter enemies.

The military affairs department seemed to be deliberately creating this tense standoff, with their duty zones being interlocked and layered.

Major General Rana stared at the deployment map in his hand, at a loss for what to do.

His defense zone was ruthlessly fragmented and pieced together. Without this deployment map sent by the Ministry of Military Affairs, he wouldn't even know which plots or corners around the Qiming Cathedral, which covers thousands of square meters, were under the responsibility of his troops.

The proud noble army would never stoop to seek any coordination with the Republican Guard.

They stood rigidly and stubbornly on their respective plots of land, like adorned nutcracker guards at a king's coronation, silent and maintaining a distance from the surrounding crowd.

Although the total number of troops maintaining security has increased, this deployment, which is uncoordinated and even subtly hostile, is truly worrying.

Worse still, this wasn't Abyss Harbor, there was no naval prison, and Horatio lacked a legitimate reason to send armed sailors here.

His orbital landing force, which has not yet been officially named, is also unable to participate in local security missions.

Those bailiffs from the Gothic Ministry of Justice who had been tested for loyalty were deployed by the Marshal of Justice to the main streets of the hive city, and were not responsible for security inside the church.

This was not the intention of the military marshal, but rather a requirement from the state religion.

The priests reasoned that 'the imperial bailiffs exuded an excessively violent aura, which would disrupt the harmony and cohesion within the Holy Church.'

Due to considerations of religious sanctity, the idea of ​​using bailiffs for adjustments had to be abandoned.

At this moment, Horatio was accompanied only by Louise, who had also attended the baptism, Lina, who was with her eldest son Horace, and the accompanying officers Jadviga and Poniatowski.

Arabella and Diana both served as lead singers and conductors in the nun's choir behind the scenes. Archie, Ledos, Fideo, and others remained on the orbital fleet as garrison officers—one of the fleet's commander and vice-commander had to remain on the fleet to deal with any emergencies, and while the vice-commander was on duty, the heads of each department had to be on duty.

In other words, with Horatio on shore and Archie in charge of the fleet, the most experienced officers in each ship's department must remain on duty to assist the fleet commander's adjutant.

Not to mention that Louise and Horatio had come to the ground together, making it even more difficult for them to leave.

"Do you think this level of security is reliable?" Horatio asked in a low voice to Jadwiga beside him.

She shook her head, her pupils fixed on the flickering candlelight inside the church.

“There is a lack of basic coordination between the units. The only thing we can trust now is the professional competence and on-the-spot skills of the soldiers in each unit.” Jadvig looked at the curtained section where she and Horatio were, and the tall grenadiers wearing bearskin hats standing on both sides of the outer Roman columns behind them, and said, “This is my brother’s direct control area, protected by the most elite grenadier guards. No one dares to make a move within this area.”

"Do those Sintira flintlock musketeers even have 'professionalism' and 'skill in action'?" Horatio asked in a sarcastic tone.

Yadvig did not answer directly. Her gaze passed over the crowd and landed on the circular corridor high up in the church. Her ears twitched almost imperceptibly, as if trying to catch a faint sound that was inaudible to ordinary people.

"If it's her, you can trust her manners."

"Who is she?" Horatio asked.

"The battalion commander of the 10th Leap Regiment, Luisa-Antoine de Sai de Vigo."

The troops currently responsible for guarding the higher areas inside the church include the elite Leaping Infantry Battalion of the 'Top Student' regiment, which are responsible for covert sentries.

Upon hearing this, a figure immediately came to Horatio's mind.

That was the sniper girl he had glimpsed during the defense of the Minerva Monastery.

She wasn't even as tall as that huge anti-materiel sniper rifle.

However, he and she only met once on the battlefield, and due to the chaotic political situation afterwards, Horatio had no private interactions with any of the Sintira conservative troops, and they were not familiar with each other.

"You seem to know this noblewoman officer very well. It's rare to hear you speak so highly of someone from a noble army."

"Putting the matter aside, I have no problem with her. We're from the same hometown. She's a descendant of the first generation of noble immigrants from Sintira, Polaberia."

While cautiously observing his surroundings, Yadviga whispered, “He won the Noble Shooting Masters Championship at the age of 12, joined the Boy Scouts of New Brittany at 15 for survival training in the wilderness of Polaberia, and became a squire of the 17th Flintlock Regiment of Sintira at the age of 18.”

If it's her and her unit, their professional competence is absolutely reliable. But the problem is…

Jadwiga's gaze swept over the magnificent and extravagantly luxurious cathedral. As the largest cathedral in all of Sintira and the seat of the Archbishop himself, it was simply too large and its structure too complex.

"I think that she and her people alone may not be able to take care of every corner."

(End of this chapter)