Warhammer: Empire Reboot

Guilliman spoke first: "Father, since I awakened and led the Unyielding Expedition, I have tried countless times to patch up the wreckage of the old system, but every reform has run into bureaucratic barriers and religious backlash. After Lawson came, the Empire changed its way of life."

Leon added succinctly, "To put it simply, militarily, we are now more than a hundred times stronger than when the Great Crusade ended!"

The Emperor's lips curled up: "Back when Makado held the position of Scepter of Terra and maintained the government affairs of the empire for me, you bunch of unruly brats never gave him such high praise."

Guilliman then explained earnestly, “Father, Elder Macado’s greatness lies in his perseverance. He maintained the framework you left behind when the tide was about to turn, allowing the flame of the empire to continue in the darkness. But what he did is incomparable to what Lord Lawson did!”

The emperor did not refute.

Because this assessment hit the nail on the head.

While Macardo possessed wisdom and psychic abilities that were beyond the reach of ordinary people, he was ultimately a regent under the emperor's wing, and his vision and methods were limited by the framework of the old era.

Lawson had long since transcended the realm of mundane political affairs.

In terms of current control over both the real and ethereal realms, Lawson has already surpassed all the pioneers of human civilization.

The emperor felt no discomfort at losing power; instead, he felt a sense of relief and acceptance that transcended ten thousand years.

Human civilization has finally given birth to a supreme entity that does not need to rely on the halo of a god-emperor and can support an entire starry sky on its own.

"If Makado could see this scene now, he would probably look up from his files and offer a few words of praise, which is quite rare."

The emperor gathered his thoughts and looked again at the blue sky and morning light outside the window: "That's why I want to see it for myself."

“Look at those peripheral star sectors that were once just code names on the star map, and see what they have become now. Look at those mortals who have never stepped out of the bottom of the hive capital, and see if they have escaped the fear of living in constant fear. Also, look at the empire you speak of, and see if it is really as you say it is.”

Lawson straightened up from the round table: "Since you want to see, let's go."

After he finished speaking, ripples appeared in the air from the light screen.

When he reached the static field, the Emperor suddenly stopped and looked back at Guilliman.

"And Robert."

“Sometimes, it’s really not right to lock yourself in your study all day and struggle with spreadsheets. That Elven girl’s judgment was very accurate… She’s right.”

Guilliman: "Huh?"

Lawson burst out laughing on the spot.

Without explanation, the emperor stepped into the static force field.

The council chamber fell silent once more.

Leon turned his head, somewhat bewildered: "Robert, what did Father mean by what he just said?"

Guilliman straightened his cuffs expressionlessly and said decisively, "It's nothing, Leon. Do you want to stay for dinner?"

"Just say you want me to leave..."

……

When the static force field unfolded again, the emperor stood on a gentle slope, with a stone path under his feet that had been washed clean by the rain, and a row of trees with newly sprouted buds on both sides of the path.

Further on, the grassland stretches along the hillside into the distance, a river flows through the valley, its surface shimmering in the sunlight, and several white tour boats are sailing on the waterway.

The sky was very blue, and the clouds were not thick.

The city can be seen in the distance.

It was a large-scale industrial city, with green spaces and waterways interspersed among high-rise buildings, and several spires that once belonged to the Nest City era were still preserved there.

Further out are sprawling new industrial zones, with hundreds of large factories stretching along transport lines and rail trains passing over elevated tracks from time to time.

If we only consider the city's size, it remains a typical example of a human-made industrial world.

Lawson stood beside him, his hands in his robe pockets: "How is it?"

The emperor's gaze crossed the river and landed on a meadow in the distance.

There are people there, quite a few of them.

Dozens of civilian hovercraft were parked on the riverbank, a group of civilians were setting up tents on the grass, and several children were running around along the river.

A little further away, a family was having a barbecue, and the aroma of the grilled meat wafted over on the wind.

"what are they doing?"

"travel."

The emperor turned his head: "Tourism?"

Lawson smiled and said, "Today is a local day off, and this valley is a natural park that was developed a few years ago. It's less than 40 kilometers from the city, so many people bring their families to stay overnight."

The emperor looked at the meadow again.

A man was squatting on the ground struggling with an inflatable tent, while his wife watched for a long time with her arms crossed before finally going over to help.

Two children were chasing insects on the riverbank with a long stick.

The scene was so ordinary that even the Lord of Humanity, accustomed to mass sacrifices and reports of star sector survival, couldn't find a suitable comment.

What kind of world was this before?

Lawson raised his hand, and a small light screen appeared in front of the two of them.

[Tahith-117.]

[Original Category: Level 3 Heavy Industrial Nest City World.]

[Current classification: A world of integrated industrial and residential development.]

Population: 183 billion.

[Main industries: Precision machinery, civilian anti-gravity equipment, ship components, biomaterials, and new alloy processing.]

Ecological restoration completion rate: 87.3%.

Lawson flipped through a few pages.

An image of a planet from twenty years ago appeared before the Emperor's eyes.

The sky was grayish-yellow, and the entire Northern Hemisphere was almost covered by industrial smog. The seventeen nests looked like steel spikes piercing the earth, and the ground between the cities was covered with chemical waste, garbage mountains, and untreated heavy metal pollution areas.

That river we just saw also existed back then, only it was black.

There was no grass on either side of the river; it was all piled up with slag.

"Let's go."

"The city is more interesting than here."

The two were constantly enveloped in a layer of spiritual energy.

Pedestrians will instinctively avoid them without realizing that there are people there.

The two walked along the riverbank into the city.

The further in you go, the more people there are.

The streets are wide, and maglev buses pass by almost every few tens of seconds. The commercial areas along the roadside are not luxurious, but they are very lively.

The emperor watched very carefully the whole way.

Humans certainly make up the vast majority.

But occasionally, some different figures will appear inside.

A short, Titanic repairman was sitting in a small repair shop on the side of the street, wearing a magnifying glass on his head and holding a mechanical watch that was only half the size of his palm.

He was sitting opposite an elderly human man.

"Twenty-seven Imperial Credits".

"Yesterday you said twenty-two."

"Before I took it apart yesterday, I didn't know that the second escapement wheel inside was also broken."

The watch repairman from Titanium used tweezers to pick up a barely visible part and waved it in front of the customer: "Look, it's all worn smooth."

The old man craned his neck and looked for a long time.

"I can't tell."

"You can't tell and you still say I'm lying?"

"I just think five credits are too expensive."

Titanium laughed: "Sir, your watch is older than my grandfather. It took me two hours to find a suitable part. Twenty-seven is already a price for a regular customer."

The emperor stood not far away and watched for a while.

"Titanium group?"

Lawson glanced at the beehive: "His father came from the Titanium Empire's technology exchange zone and later obtained a long-term residency permit. He himself attended a vocational school here and opened this shop after getting married."

"He used his skills to repair watches?"

Lawson laughed: "It's their own preference."

"Just because he's a Tau doesn't mean he has to make combat suits for the Empire every day."

No sooner had the words been spoken than a loud voice suddenly came from ahead.

"Bullshit! I swear on the ancestral spirit's beard, it can run for at least another six months!"

Lawson and the Emperor turned their heads at the same time.

In a roadside repair shop seven or eight times larger than the watch repair shop from before, a Wotan man was crawling out from under the chassis of a vehicle.

He was arguing heatedly with his guests across a civilian transport vehicle.

The emperor watched the two argue for a long time.

In the end, the driver was the first to give in.

"Okay, I'll do as you say. I'll drive it for two months. If the axle really breaks on the road after two months, I'll have a tow truck bring it back, and you'll be responsible."

"If it breaks under normal operating conditions, I will refund the cost of parts and labor in full!"

Wotan's mechanic tossed the wrench onto the toolbox, spittle flying everywhere.

The Emperor gazed thoughtfully at the short, stocky figure who had crawled back under the car: "The Wotan clan has also integrated into the community system."

"They are closer to the human way of life," Lawson said. "And the heavy industrial world particularly likes them. They may be a bit temperamental, but their technology is superb."

The emperor's gaze continued to move deeper into the street.