Warhammer: In the Name of Nirvana

"So, I wonder if our respected Chief Executive of the Department of Administration, Mr. Morgan, has any guiding opinions on the establishment of the Provisional Military Committee for the Great Expedition?"

[Chief Executive of the Administration Department? 】

"The position the Emperor decided to give you: Although we have also considered the positions of Secretary of the Council, Chief of Civil Affairs, Chief Secretary of the Warmaster, Standing Chief, and Director of Administration, they are not suitable. Specifically, they are not suitable. It’s perfect for announcing it to the public.”

"After all, no matter how much you personally dislike honor and profit, titles like [Secretary] or [Secretary-General] are still too tempting: let a primarch serve as the Secretary-General of the Warmaster? Horus himself would not I dare not think so, he will be the first to stand up and oppose it.”

【makes sense. 】

Morgan used his fork to tear off a piece of the gradually cooling steak and put it in his mouth.

[Even Zhuang Sen was not arrogant enough to let me be his secretary. 】

"What title did he give you?"

【……】

[Private consultant. 】

"..."

"How smart."

The palm-printer sighed softly.

One of his hands was placed on the table, while the other hand was shaking the wine glass in his palm at a constant speed. The plate in front of him was already clean. As a [Mortal], the palm-stamped person can eat as much as he wants. , is naturally much smaller than the Primarch: even a [Featherweight] Primarch like Morgan.

And while the Emperor's daughter was cleaning up the remaining meat, bread and sauces on the dinner plate, the Emperor's loyal servant took the opportunity to explain to her what kind of straw team the former would face.

"I try to be as concise and to the point as possible."

Makado cleared his throat.

"To put it simply: after the Emperor returns to Holy Terra, all military activities related to the Great Crusade and political activities in parts of the front line will be fully taken over by an organization called the [Provisional Committee]. Of course, this The Provisional Council was never a regular administrative branch of the Empire, and in all regular Imperial documents we treat it as if it did not exist, but it does exist."

"People will know it, understand it, fear it: then they will not admit it."

[Shadow cabinet? 】

"That's understandable."

【How? 】

"Have my own skills."

The person holding the print pursed his lips and smiled.

"You can understand it this way: the existence of a level like the Provisional Board of Directors will only appear in some of the highest-level or most confidential official documents and notifications, and the readers of these official documents and notifications will naturally understand that an unrecognized , what does such a huge institution mean?”

"They won't be curious."

"Silence is the voice of the wise."

【……】

The primarch nodded.

【continue. 】

Morgan used her fork and fingers to knead the slightly cooled rolls into dough one by one, then dipped them in the cream and jam on the other side of the plate and threw them into her mouth: for her, this was a This is a habit. After all, she often accidentally misses the best time to eat the food on her plate because she is obsessed with feeding her daughter or pets.

"In this temporary committee, there are only two institutions worth remembering: The first is the [Parliament], which is literally a parliament composed of various primarchs. It is mainly responsible for voting. Voting on the most important issues in the Great Crusade, it is the highest authority in the Provisional Council, responsible only to the Emperor and the Empire, and all houses in the Council are equal. Horus, as Warmaster, is only the chief , will not have any special powers at the class level."

【Um……】

Morgan nodded, and while chewing the food, he digested the words of the palm-printer: the professional terms in Malcador's mouth were not uncommon words. Morgan knew very well that he and the Emperor only learned from the ancient political history of mankind. I found some [not too bad, but not too good] systems to make up for it.

But despite this, this is still a complete system: compared with the [initial plan] where the Lord of Mankind threw everything to the Warmaster and the Palmist, this [second plan] is simply exuding a golden light that reaches into the sky. .

[What about the second one? 】

"The second institution that needs to be remembered is the [Council], which is the small permanent institution that you and Horus are responsible for managing. It is a subordinate institution of the Parliament and is responsible to the Parliament."

"As for the responsibilities of the Council, it is mainly to serve the Council. At the same time, you are responsible for handling the daily affairs of the Great Crusade, maintaining the normal operation of the Great Crusade, executing issues voted by the Council, receiving and executing orders from Holy Terra, and …”

The palm bearer snorted, and a trace of ridicule flashed in his pupils.

"Inform all members of Parliament when and where Parliament should be convened."

【……】

The Primarch's fingers that were kneading the bread paused for a moment. She narrowed her eyes, and her two thin eyebrows curved into a playful arc.

[Let me think about it, the Council of the Primarchs, as the highest authority in this temporary committee, will not be permanent: only the Council is permanent, right? . 】

"That's right."

Machado nodded, and not surprisingly, received a soft smile from the Lord of Avalon.

"Of course the parliament will not be permanent. This is due to realism considerations: after all, how can a dozen generals and their legions scattered in all directions gather together often, let alone attend in full."

"On the contrary, the single-line connection between you and Horus is easy to establish and maintain. This makes it possible to establish a small standing body like the Council, and you and Horus will also be responsible for holding regular meetings. Parliament, or an emergency parliament convened because of emergencies and the Emperor's orders."

"As for your communication with Horus: the Emperor will take care of it."

[Can the Emperor ensure that Horus and I can stay in contact with each other across the galaxy? 】

"Of course he can."

[Then why doesn't he work hard to ensure that he can keep in contact with every primarch: at least with primarchs like Horus, Magnus or Perturabo, maybe they have something urgent? 】

"..."

[He can do it, right? 】

"……it should be OK."

[But he won’t do it, right? 】

"……probably not."

【……】

"..."

[You have persuaded him many times, right? 】

"……should be."

【……】

"..."

【Continued Cup? 】

"White wine, how about that?"

——————

[So: Is there anything else in this Universiade Temporary Committee, a permanent organization? 】

"Not anymore."

Makado shook his head. He held his fork and simply sketched a rough tree diagram on the snow-white tablecloth.

"In the beginning, the Temporary Council will only consist of two bodies, the Primarch Council as the highest authority but not permanent, and the Council as a permanent body serving the Primarch Council: I once proposed to the Emperor He came up with several more complex, yet more mature and more fault-tolerant solutions, but he..."

[But he has concerns? 】

"But he didn't want to hear it."

【……】

Morgan narrowed her eyes and looked at Malcador's face carefully.

Is this really not a joke?

With such doubts, she looked at the helpless face of the person holding the seal, as well as the powerless hands and shrugs: after a while, two equally weak fingers each held their own wine glasses and clinked their glasses in salute.

[But this is not a bad thing: any institution should not be too complicated at the beginning, just like a baby cannot crawl out of the mother's womb fully developed, it still needs secondary growth. 】

"So it is."

The palm bearer sighed, and of course he knew that Morgan was just trying to comfort himself: unlucky guys like the two of them, who had the misfortune to serve an extraordinary master, must have the ability to enjoy themselves in hardship.

After all, if Morgan really couldn't stand it anymore, she could lose her temper to Jonson and even the entire Dark Angels Legion, and even make the [Indomitable Truth] remain as silent as a chill and tremble under her wrath.

In the past twenty years, the Lord of Avalon has had several similar performances, and even forced Coswayne and some of the high-ranking knight captains of the First Legion to learn how to do it quickly and cost-effectively. An apology cake: After all, we can’t count on Johnson on this matter, right?

But Machado couldn't do it.

Don't ask, you won't be able to win if you ask.

Makado sighed in his heart, while Morgan sipped the wine and wondered in his mind what this Galaxy-level grass-roots team could be shaped into.

[So, we actually still have the power to establish departments? 】

"Yes."

The palm bearer nodded again.

"What the Emperor means is that the Primarch Council can vote to authorize the Council to establish formal subordinate institutions. Considering the reality that the Council cannot meet frequently, the Council also has the power to bypass the Primarch Council and establish Temporary project processing team.”

"However, whether it is a subordinate agency or a temporary project processing group, the Primarch Council has the power to cancel it. At the same time, the Primarch Council also has the power to ban the Council: but there must be at least four-fifths of the votes in favor, and This proposal will need to be approved again by the Emperor or the Terran Council."

[Isn’t this kind of power to ban us unnecessary? 】

“The veto is the essence of it all.”

Macha took a sip of wine.

"Although most of the Primarchs don't care much about political games, there are still smart people among your brothers: always make the scene look better, so that smart people can turn a blind eye to it. , close one eye.”

【What a wise saying. 】

Morgan smiled and nodded. She seemed to have seen what it looked like more than ten years ago when she asked Hawthorne and the others to create the superstructure of the entire Avalon Federation.

[In other words, my so-called chief executive of the administrative department is in the name of the council? 】

"Yes and no."

The person holding the seal leans forward.

"Your official title is the administrative advisor of the council, and the warmaster is the chairman of the council: in addition to the two of you, the council will at least have a military advisor, or some other informal title."

"Except for this, you and Horus are both members of the Primarch Council and no longer have any extra power: As for your official [official position] in the imperial government, how about we refer to Guilliman?"

[Greater Avalon Sector? 】

"No."

The palm-printer shook his head, and the smile on his face looked like that of an elder distributing candies and gifts to children.

"At this point, the Emperor will definitely give you a reward in disguise: you will be the supreme governor of the Far Eastern Frontier Special Administrative Region. As for other powers, such as military and governorship, they will be similar to those of Guilliman before."

"And besides that..."

The person holding the seal paused.

"You can also serve as the guardian of the entire maelstrom area."

【……】

[Major whirlpool area? 】

Morgan did not show joy, but frowned: The Maelstrom has never been a good and stable place. On the contrary, ever since the tentacles of the Great Crusade took this important transportation hub of the galaxy into their hands, the Maelstrom has always been A bottomless pit that swallows up the empire's military power.

If it was located in the center of the Milky Way, its geographical location was too important, and it was extremely wealthy, I'm afraid the Empire would have treated it coldly just like the famous Ghoul Stars area.

[You mean, I will be responsible for the Maelstrom area: But between Avalon and the Maelstrom area, there is at least Olympia of the Iron Warriors Legion, not to mention the home planets of several legions, which are themselves far away from the Maelstrom area. It's not even remotely close. 】

Faced with Morgan's doubts, Macado just waved the wine glass leisurely.

"Don't panic, little guy: since I said this is a reward, you can naturally choose to give it up and refuse to include the Maelstrom area into your country."

[…Will the Emperor allow it? 】

"It's a play on words."

Machado snorted softly.

"Do you know how the Empire defines your Far Eastern frontier area?"

【have no idea. 】

"What's different from Guilliman's Great Ultramar Sector is that because you don't like to expand into the interior of the empire, Holy Terra will not forcibly delineate the boundaries of the Far Eastern Frontier. We will only roughly determine [ scope】."

"North of Ultramar, east of the Maelstrom area, including the Maelstrom area, and south of the Ghoul Stars: This area, including all the lands and worlds within it, theoretically belongs to your Far Eastern Frontier."

"Whether you take it or not is up to you."

【……】

【What a hot gift. 】

"The hotter things are yet to come."

The palmer smiled.

"Although the power of the Emperor and I can help you settle many things, there is one thing that we cannot settle: that is how you should get along with Horus. After all, the balance between the two of you is the basis of all this?"

[Will he be more difficult than Jonson? 】

"I'm not sure. I haven't seen what Jonson's anger and paranoia are like, but you saw Horus's anger and paranoia with your own eyes a few hours ago: compare the two, what do you think of the two of them? ?”

【……】

[Let me make an inference. 】

"Um."

【You are not allowed to laugh at me. 】

"of course not."

[I think if we give Jonson and Horus some more time to let them experience the world from their hearts and see their own hearts clearly, then we might find that: in fact, from the bottom of their hearts...]

[Jonson is gentler than Horus. 】

"..."

【……】

"..."

"puff……"

[You said you wouldn’t laugh! 】

"Sorry...sorry...Pfft...Pfft hahahahaha..."

The wrinkled face of the printmaker looked so bright for the first time. Fortunately, he didn't forget to take out a tissue and pretend to cover up his gaffe.

"are you serious."

【……probably. 】

"……puff……"

【Stop laughing! 】

——————

【……】

Too angry.

Go back and beat up Conrad.

——————

"So, how are you going to deal with the problem with Horus?"

[I didn’t quite think it through, but I knew how to lay the foundation. 】

[This needs your help. 】

"Tell me."

Machado raised his eyebrows, his curiosity aroused.

What was Morgan laughing at.

[I hope, Lord Sealbearer, you can use your means to let Horus know one thing unintentionally: that is, I have privately approached the Emperor and requested that one of my powers be combined with one of his powers. , exchange it. 】

"What power?"

[The power to communicate with the Terran Council of Holy Terra with full authority. 】

"This was originally yours."

[But it can’t be: what Horus got is the most important thing. 】

"..."

"What are you going to give him?"

【……】

Morgan stood up, reached across the entire table, came to the ear of the person holding the seal, and whispered softly.

【Very simple. 】

[As the Minister of Administration, I have obtained the power that the Warmaster should have to make daily military reports to the Terran Parliament: combined with the power of administrative reporting that I originally had, now I have the power to conduct military reports with Terra. Full authority to communicate. 】

[As compensation, as the general person in charge of the internal affairs of the Great Crusade, I was required to return to Terra regularly, be personally summoned by the Emperor, and report to the Emperor on the progress of the Great Crusade: after the Emperor returned to Terra, I was originally The only one of all the Primarchs to have regular personal audience with the Emperor. 】

"..."

Makado's pupils widened, seeing Morgan's smile, and realized something.

[I have this power, don’t I? 】

"……certainly."

[And now, under the Emperor's initiative, I surrendered this power in exchange for Horus's military reporting rights: I have full authority to communicate with the Terran Council, and the Warmaster should return to Terra regularly. , accept the Emperor's summons, listen to the Emperor's teachings, and become the only one who can see the Emperor. 】

[This is the emperor's will. 】

[The Emperor wants to see his Shepherd: Even if it goes against the system he personally established, even if it hurts his daughter, he is willing to do it for Horus. 】

"..."

Macado's breathing was a little heavy, and there was cold air between his lips and teeth. There was only Morgan's subtle whisper in his ears.

[And all of this, whether it is the Emperor's hints, the Emperor's wishes, or my favors, as well as the psychological harm I have suffered in private: these things are real, and they are all difficult to be careful about, and they will be charged. Ruth knew: didn't she? 】

"..."

"..."

"certainly."

Machado nodded, and there was a trace of admiration and fear in his eyes when he looked at Morgan.

"I promise: He'll know."