Firefighter

A cold glint flashed, and the Black Robe Cultist held a poisoned dagger, lunging for Rovi's nape.

He moved with incredible speed.

This was clearly an assassin who had undergone physical augmentation.

However, Rovi didn't even blink.

It was as if the attacker wasn't a deadly killer, but an insignificant fly.

"Bang!"

A dull thud erupted in the cramped office.

The Black Robe Cultist's head exploded like a rotten watermelon, splattering gore across the walls.

The headless corpse stumbled forward a few steps due to inertia.

Finally, it collapsed at Rovi's feet, twitching twice before going still.

Buck blew on the muzzle smoke of his Bolter and grinned menacingly.

"Playing with knives in front of me? You must be dreaming."

Rovi shifted slightly, avoiding the blood spreading across the floor.

He took out a clean white handkerchief from his pocket and gently wiped his blood-free coat hem.

Then, he tossed the handkerchief onto the corpse.

"See, this is the evidence."

Rovi pointed to a tattoo revealed at the corpse's neck—

A festering, three-ringed symbol.

Arranged in a triangle, one above and two below.

The mark of the Followers of Nurgle.

It symbolized the cycle of "death, decay, and rebirth."

"Supervisor Kase, there's a cultist of Chaos hidden in your office."

"Furthermore, according to last night's surveillance, your personal account received a massive remittance from the under-hive black market a month ago."

Rovi said slowly.

To Kase, however, every word sounded like the death knell of the Ordo.

"Collusion with Heretics, poisoning the water supply, disrupting the Tithe collection."

Rovi stood up, placing his hands on the desk and leaning forward.

His deep brown eyes stared at Kase, as if piercing his ugly soul.

"According to Imperial law, these are crimes warranting an exterminatus."

"Not just you, your family, and everyone connected to you will be purged. The Ordo's interrogation chambers have plenty of ways to make life worse than death."

"No... No, I didn't, I was forced!" Kase broke down.

He slid off his chair and knelt on the floor, snot and tears blurring his face. "They came to me!"

"They said if I added something to the water, those lowlifes would get sick, production would drop, and you'd be executed for failing your mission... I didn't know it was Chaos, I really didn't!"

"To get rid of me, they'd plunge an entire planet into famine and plague?" Rovi looked at the pathetic and detestable fat man, feeling no pity.

This was the world of Warhammer.

Stupidity was more terrifying than malice.

And when stupidity combined with greed, it became fertile ground for destruction.

"You have two choices, Kase."

Rovi sat back down in his chair, tapping his fingers lightly on the tabletop.

"First, I hand you over to the fifty thousand Farm Workers outside right now. I'll tell them that the mastermind behind last night's attempt to turn them into rotten flesh monsters was you."

"I think they'll be more than happy to 'discuss' things with you using their sickles."

Kase trembled.

Imagining the scene, his trousers instantly became wet.

"Second."

Rovi pulled out a prepared parchment document from his inner coat. "You sign this document."

Kase crawled over tremblingly and glanced at the document.

It wasn't a resignation letter, nor an abdication.

It was a Wartime Emergency Authorization.

The content read:

Given that Granary Seven has been attacked by unknown armed assailants, and to ensure the safety of the Tithe production;

I, Kais, voluntarily request the Governor's Mansion to dispatch special agricultural consultant Rovi to temporarily take over all administrative and military command authority of the Granary;

Until the crisis is resolved or the Governor issues new appointments.

"Sign it."

Rovi handed over a quill.

"This will prove you 'voluntarily requested assistance,' not that you were 'fleeing from guilt' or 'colluding with the enemy.' It will buy you a few more days before the Ordo arrives."

"I'll sign, I'll sign!"

Kais nodded frantically, as if trying to smash his head on the floor.

With trembling hands, he signed his name on the document and pressed his fingerprint.

Rovi picked up the document and checked the signature.

Once confirmed, he carefully tucked it into his robes.

He had not usurped power directly.

In the world of Warhammer, procedural justice is often more important than factual justice.

With this document, he was no longer a "rebellious secretary" but a "firefighter dispatched in a time of crisis."

"Very good."

Rovi stood up and adjusted his robes.

"Buck, have someone take him away. Send him to the Adeptus Mechanicus, to Priest Alpha."

"What? You said you'd spare my life!" Kais shrieked in terror, "I already signed!"

"I did spare your life," Rovi stared at him expressionlessly. "I didn't hand you over to the Farm Workers, nor did I execute you on the spot."

"The Adeptus Mechanicus needed a wetware processor for low-level data computations recently. Biologically speaking, a Servitor is still alive."

Rovi's eyes turned cold.

"Did you think signing this would absolve you of colluding with Heretics?"

"This document is merely to make the transfer of power more 'legitimate,' and to avoid troubling Governor Alicia."

"As for your fate... the moment you decided to pray to the Dark Gods, your soul no longer belonged to the Emperor."

"Take him away."

Buck's subordinates dragged the screaming Kais out like a dead dog.

Rovi sighed softly.

He turned around, his gaze falling on the chair symbolizing the highest authority of Granary Seven.

He did not sit in it directly.

Instead, he pulled over an ordinary chair from the side and sat at the side of the desk.

Then, he took out a sheet of paper and began to write.

This was a report for Governor Alicia.

"To the esteemed Governor:

Early this morning, Granary Seven detected severe Heretic infiltration activities.

Under your wise guidance and special authorization, this subordinate assisted Supervisor Kais in emergency response.

Unfortunately, Supervisor Kais, due to severe mental contamination during the confrontation with the Heretics, is no longer able to fulfill his duties.

To ensure the completion of the Tithe mission, this subordinate, in accordance with the Wartime Emergency Regulations, and at the request of Supervisor Kais, has temporarily assumed command authority..."

Rovi attributed all the credit to the Governor's "guidance."

He wrapped all his actions in the guise of "legality."

He absolutely could not become an "usurper."

He had to be the sharpest, most obedient knife in the Governor's hand.

After finishing the report, Rovi placed the quill back into the ink bottle.

His movements were gentle, as if soothing a frightened cat.

He did not seal it immediately.

Instead, he repeatedly scrutinized every word and punctuation mark on the parchment.

In the world of Warhammer, words are not just carriers of information, but also nooses for conviction.

A poorly worded report can be more deadly than a Bolter—

The latter can only kill your body.

The former can cause the Ordo to extract your soul and light it as a candle.

After confirming that the wording contained no transgression and perfectly positioned Governor Alicia as the "behind-the-scenes director of all actions," Rovi lit the wax seal.

The dark red wax dripped onto the seal of the envelope, emitting a scent mixed with pine resin and some unknown spice.

He picked up the brass seal left by Kais, symbolizing the Supervisor's authority, and pressed it down heavily before the wax could solidify.

"Click."

As the seal was lifted, an invisible pressure seemed to settle with it.