Refusal

Linda was already aroused, the moisture at the corners of her eyes making her even more alluring.

She had completely fallen for him.

As long as the Governor nodded, she was willing to do anything.

Ron looked at Linda and swallowed, finding it difficult to restrain himself as well.

In broad daylight, she was practically inviting him to commit a crime!

Linda stared at him with concern in her eyes. "Is something wrong, my lord? Let me accompany you back to your room."

Ron frowned. Was she asking when she already knew the answer?

If he really went into a room with her, the situation would become difficult to control.

He glanced at her again.

Hiss... it really would be hard to control...

Seeing that Ron had not agreed, Linda hesitated for a while.

Then she gritted her teeth and said with a flushed face, "If you don't want to go to the room, then... then here is fine too."

Huh?

Ron glanced at the row of maids standing not far away. They were cautiously peeking over, their faces slightly red.

In public? That did not seem appropriate, did it?

Ron wanted to act on impulse, but he could not afford to.

What if acting on impulse got him sent back to the Palace of Slaanesh?

He had to restrain his desires, at least until Little Sun's abilities had recovered enough for him to protect himself!

Seeing Ron hesitate, Linda was about to make a move.

Whew, this would not do!

Ron hurriedly held her down and soothed her. "Next time, definitely!"

"My lord, you promised me?"

Linda, still kneeling, raised her head with an expectant look.

What kind of magical angle was this?

Ron truly could not restrain himself and made a few moves before rising with satisfaction and leaving.

"I have business to attend to. We'll go deeper another time!"

He really did have business.

After leaving Spire Mansion, Ron arrived at the Ecclesiarchy Cathedral under Carter's protection.

He had something important to discuss with Bishop Dony.

A few days earlier, Bishop Dony had been very pleased to learn that Ron had used gold and gemstones to adorn the God-Emperor Statue, and his attitude toward Ron had improved considerably.

This time, he had even come to the cathedral entrance in advance to greet Ron.

"Bishop, you are being far too courteous, aren't you?"

Ron got out of the vehicle and exchanged pleasantries. "I merely made a trifling contribution for His Majesty the God-Emperor."

"The great God-Emperor will not forget anyone's contributions!"

Bishop Dony smiled broadly. "Governor, let me lead you in prayer."

He turned and walked inside.

Ron followed him. He had not come here intending to pray.

But since he was already here, he might as well pray.

He followed Bishop Dony to the Shrine and prayed under his guidance.

Cherubs flew around him, chanting hymns of praise.

Some Cherubs even carried Holy Water, splashing it over him as though it cost nothing.

The entire cathedral was serving Ron alone.

It seemed there really was not much business here.

But that made sense. This cathedral had originally served the nobles and officials of the Upper Hive.

Yet during that Horus Heresy, the Upper Hive's nobles and officials had almost all been slaughtered.

Those lucky enough to survive had been purged by Bayev once more.

There probably were not many left now who had the heart to come pray.

There were quite a few faithful believers among the territory's people now.

But at this time, they were either in the mines or in the factories. They were lucky if they had time to sleep.

How could they possibly have time to visit the cathedral?

Even if they were willing to sacrifice their precious rest time to come to the cathedral and pray for the God-Emperor's protection,

after prolonged hunger, they simply lacked the strength to walk such a long distance to the cathedral.

Even if they truly had the strength, Sacred Plaza was already under martial law.

They would be stopped by the Arbites and driven away.

If they stubbornly tried to force their way through, a beating would be considered light punishment. The unlucky ones might even be executed on the spot.

But that was only temporary.

Everything would change in the future.

Every citizen of Ers was qualified—and had to be qualified—to pray for the God-Emperor's protection.

After the prayer ended, Ron approached Bishop Dony and handed him a Data-slate containing documents related to the ceremony.

From the time Earth Planet had shouldered crushing taxes until the current Warp rift, gatherings for Ascension Day of the Emperor had been suspended for many years.

Now, he intended to revive Ascension Day of the Emperor and hold a grand ceremony on that day!

Ron promised that he would help the Ecclesiarchy restore its former glory in the future and hoped Bishop Dony would cooperate with him during the ceremony.

Based on their interactions over the past few days, he felt that the old Chaplain was unlikely to refuse.

Bishop Dony carefully reviewed the text and images on the Data-slate.

Put simply, it was the Imperium's version of a PPT, detailing the ceremony's procedures, the attire of the relevant personnel, and the speeches.

Of course, the most important section concerned Bishop Dony. He would need to cooperate with Ron's actions.

On Ascension Day of the Emperor, the God-Emperor Statue would appear in its entirety and reveal a great miracle.

Along with the grand ceremony, Bishop Dony would announce to everyone, according to divine revelation, that Ron was The Savior.

Afterward, the benevolent Imperial Governor Ron Grant would appear before his people in the most perfect manner.

He would make a promise to save the people from suffering!

That was the entire plan.

The entire plan would consume most of the Palatine District's stockpiled resources. It was a massive gamble!

As he read on, Bishop Dony's expression grew increasingly solemn.

Ron's heart tightened as well. "If there are any issues, please raise them. We can make changes and cooperate."

"All I see is deception!"

Bishop Dony gripped the Data-slate tightly, suppressing his emotions. "You are deceiving the faithful, attempting to exploit the God-Emperor's majesty for political gain...

What blasphemy!"

"This is only temporary. I will—"

"I will not agree!" Bishop Dony cut off Ron's explanation. "Leave, Governor. The Ecclesiarchy will never tolerate such blasphemy!"

He shoved the Data-slate back into Ron's hands, then turned and left with his staff.

Influenced by their master, the Cherubs also moved away from Ron and flew far into the distance.

"At least listen to my explanation," Ron sighed. "What is wrong with a well-intentioned lie? I am doing this for the people of the territory too."

"Lies breed Heresy. The God-Emperor accepts no deception!"

Bishop Dony's stern voice carried back, leaving no room for negotiation.

Ron watched the other man's retreating back and let out a deep sigh.

It seemed there was no way to win the Ecclesiarchy's support.

But the plan had already begun. He had already sent word out: the benevolent Lord Ron Grant had received the God-Emperor's Blessing and would save the people from suffering.

Such news, combined with the miracle bestowed by the God-Emperor—the God-Emperor Statue restoring itself overnight—

would multiply its inspiring effect.

But now, not only could he not obtain the Ecclesiarchy's support, he might even face its opposition.

This was becoming troublesome...

If the Ecclesiarchy suddenly came out against him on the day of the ceremony, the situation would become impossible to control.

Ron looked at Bishop Dony's departing back, feeling somewhat helpless.

He could not even use force against the old man.

When the Upper Hive's forces had resisted the Heresy's believers, Bishop Dony had led the Chaplains in charging at the very front.

Wielding a massive Power Axe, he had braved the artillery fire and hacked his way into the enemy's rear.

In the end, he had split the head of the heretical high priest who blasphemed the God-Emperor with a single blow.

That had dealt a tremendous blow to the Heresy's morale, giving the Palatine District a chance to turn defeat into victory.

Ron truly did not want to harm this old man, this loyal and fanatical, even somewhat radical believer in the God-Emperor.

His expression grim, he turned and left the cathedral.

The Palatine District had already expended so much manpower and resources. The Ascension Day of the Emperor ceremony had to continue.

The arrow was on the string; it had to be fired!

Ron boarded the hover car and set off for Spire Mansion.

Face-to-face communication had failed. He could only activate Plan B.

"Since I can't convince you, then I'll let the God-Emperor do it!"