Warhammer: Empire Reboot

Page 716

"There are individuals within the Val-Synn administration who are secretly colluding with the Imperial rebels and are suspected of using the warehouses of world resources to supply strategic resources to the Chaos forces."

Von Kreissing's expression changed drastically.

He tried to speak, but Lawson's voice had already drowned him out.

"In accordance with Article 17 of the Imperial Wartime Emergency Decree, our department is now conducting a comprehensive security review of Val-Sion. All management personnel are to cooperate with the investigation immediately and await trial on the spot."

"We'll find out who the rebels are after the interrogation."

“Anyone who resists the investigation shall be treated as a rebel and killed immediately.”

Von Kreissing's brain began to work at high speed.

Colluding with the rebels? Supplying Chaos?

Nonsense.

Val-Sion hasn't allocated a single round of ammunition; all supplies are locked in the warehouse. How could they possibly be being sent to Chaos?

He wanted to cite the relevant articles to refute this.

He had memorized the principles of separation of imperial institutions, the independent jurisdiction of the Ministry of the Interior, and the summons approval process for forty years.

But he couldn't open his mouth.

Because the charge against Lawson was allegedly collusion with the rebels.

Once the label of "suspected of colluding with rebels" is attached, the Ministry of the Interior's protective shield immediately becomes invalid.

The principle of separation of powers within the empire protected the Ministry of the Interior from arbitrary control by local officials, but did not protect rebels.

The approval process guarantees the right of Interior Ministry officials to summon insurrection, but not the rights of rebels.

Lawson didn't try to reason with them.

These officials had been immersed in the imperial system for decades, strictly following the rules. They would collect ammunition and store it, and destroy it when the warehouses were full. Every step was documented with a legal number, and every decision required approval and signature.

They didn't think they had done anything wrong, and they certainly hadn't violated any imperial laws.

You can't reason with a gear that operates according to its design.

It will only tell you that it is turning according to the rules.

Therefore, Lawson doesn't reason with the gears.

He simply labeled the gears as potentially faulty.

In the logic of imperial power, being suspected of treason is a universal key.

Traitors are not protected by law.

It wasn't that Von Kreiss didn't want to refute; it was that he couldn't.

There are only two ways to refute allegations of collusion with the rebels. First, prove one's innocence, but proving innocence requires an investigation, and the power to investigate rests with Lawson.

Second, while denying that Lawson had the right to investigate, Lawson was the behind-the-scenes figure in the Empire, and the Empire's wartime emergency decrees granted the highest-ranking officer in a war zone the immediate authority to take action in cases of suspected rebellion.

You try to stop him with a clause, but he throws an even bigger clause back at you.

And he had a gun.

Von Kreissing's knees began to tremble.

He knew he had not colluded with the rebels.

He was trembling because he suddenly realized something.

Lawson didn't care whether he was a rebel or not.

"Suspected collusion with rebels" is merely a pretext for taking over the planet.

This logic is all too familiar.

Von Kreissing had used legal provisions to overpower countless planetary governors and Astronautical commanders within the Interior Ministry. Today, he was being overpowered by the same logic.

The difference is that the other side has bigger laws and bigger guns.

Lawson's voice still echoes on the broadcast network.

The guards of Val-Synn stood at their posts with guns at the ready.

They heard about alleged collusion with the rebels and saw the cornerstone sequence moving forward.

Imperial soldiers were trained to obey authority.

When two authorities clash, they will instinctively submit to the one with the greater authority.

Lawson, the powerful figure behind the Empire's dark side, is renowned for his prestige.

Von Kreissing, the Planetary Director of the Imperial Interior Ministry, owns a genuine leather swivel chair.

The choice is clear.

Several guards quietly moved their gun barrels away from the direction of the foundation sequence and turned them towards the ground.

Inside the warehouse, the Cornerstone Order began taking control of the Ministry of the Interior officials one by one. Two Cornerstone Order members were responsible for each official; one disarmed the other, and the other handcuffed their wrists.

Moen stood at the warehouse door, watching all of this.

He is a smart man.

He could hear the flaws in Lawson's story.

What intercepted intelligence, what suspected collusion with rebels? Val-Sion hasn't even left the depot, so where did this chaos come from?

But he also understood what Lawson was really trying to say.

The game I play is called "Whose Fist Is Bigger?"

Moen lowered his head, deciding to cooperate fully in the events to come.

More light screens unfolded on the landing site outside the warehouse.

The foundational sequence emerged from the light curtain, advancing simultaneously toward the administrative district, storage area, garrison barracks, communications center, and power core.

Lawson brought in 300,000 people to take over the planet.

He walked out of the warehouse and headed towards the administration building.

Er Gou saw Mo En still standing at the warehouse entrance in a daze and casually patted him on the shoulder.

Moen's knees buckled, and he almost knelt down.

Don't just stand there.

"My family's habit is to arrest first and then interrogate."

Von Kreissing's office was even more respectable than Rosen had imagined.

Marble floors, genuine leather swivel chairs, and a gilded imperial double-headed eagle relief.

A dish of candied fruit and dried fruit sat on the corner of the table; these were genuine fruit products.

Lawson glanced at the candied fruit dish and sat down in von Kreissing's leather swivel chair.

The chair back creaked in protest.

"The first step in the counterinsurgency investigation is to verify the flow of supplies."

Lawson looked at von Kreissing, who was being held in front of the desk, along with seven deputy general managers and dozens of department heads.

"Bring me the complete inventory list, inbound and outbound records, tax collection ledgers, and material classification ledgers for all storage layers on this planet."

The lock on Von Kreissing's wrist has been unlocked.

He glanced at the person beside him and said, "Master of the Seal, Val-Sion is fully cooperating with the investigation, including the file key and access code..."

A voice slowly crept in from behind him.

"Wait a minute."

The deputy chief financial officer, Grassi, spoke.

His obesity was almost glaringly obvious in the darker side of the empire.

Thick rings of flesh clung to his neck, stretching his greyish-white Minister of the Interior's robes to a taut line. The bronze badge on his chest was sunken into his fat, revealing only half of his eagle wing.

In most Imperial worlds, a commoner in the Underworld would be grateful to the Emperor for being able to eat two meals of synthetic protein a day.

People who can get this fat either had a noble birth or have a lot of money to spare.

Grassi belongs to the latter category.

His wrist lock was unlocked along with the lock when Lawson ordered Von Kreissing to be released.

The core files required the deputy chief financial officer's access code. After the cornerstone sequence released him, he stretched his wrists and even straightened his cuffs.

That composure stood in stark contrast to von Kreess's pallor.

"Your Excellency, the Master of the Seal."

Grassi bowed slightly, causing the flesh ring to sway.

"Of course you can submit your file. But before you do, I have a suggestion that might be more beneficial to you."

Lawson glanced at him.

"explain."

Grassi did not answer immediately.

He first looked at von Kreissing, then swept his gaze over the seven deputy general managers and the department heads huddled against the wall.

"Val-Synn has two sets of inventory ledgers."

The air in the office seemed to sink.

Von Kreissing's expression changed instantly.

“Grasi, you…”