The Imperial Frontier: A Debate on Faith

Even in the deepest reaches of the underworld, the light of the Emperor's faith once shone here. Thousands of years ago, this Imperial monastery was already standing at the very core of this withered planet.

Stained-glass windows of many colors hung high above the inner hall of the monastery, casting dim light—as if from the void itself—into the cathedral, illuminating the four colossal statues.

These four silent guardians, hooded and clutching greatswords, supported the weight of the space with their massive frames.

A towering dome loomed overhead, adorned with countless lily patterns and the majestic silhouette of the Golden Throne. Myriad rays of light radiated from the throne as the core, eventually transforming into endless carved prayers that blanketed the entire ceiling.

Beneath the dome, several high-ranking members of the Devout Society sat around a mahogany-colored round table. Candles burned in a centerpiece, casting flickering, uncertain light upon their faces.

Henry sat in his chair, the flames dancing like candles in the wind amidst a flurry of curses and the vibration of the table. The leader of the Underhive Convent rubbed the bridge of his nose in resignation.

"Mosley, brother, calm down."

"Calm? We lost an entire shipment of Crimson Essence! An entire shipment!" Mosley, clad in grey robes, roared.

He had donned his vestments as a priest, the emblem of three coiled snakes intertwined embroidered on his robe, along with the metal decorative plates hanging around his neck.

Mosley shouted as he glared at Vito. "This is all because of your plan! Vito Constantine! If you hadn't used the Crimson Essence as bait, we wouldn't have suffered such a massive loss! An entire shipment! Not to mention the batch we practically gave away for free before!"

"I thought as a priest, Brother Mosley, you would enjoy expanding the flock," Vito said with a smile.

"The flock? No! They only help us for the Crimson Essence. Most of them rely on us to keep providing it—junkies! It is a blasphemy against the gods! A disgrace!"

Henry looked at Vito, who leaned back in his chair, resting an arm casually on the armrest.

"Indeed, Brother Vito, such expansion of the faith is highly unstable. Although we have successfully recruited many and seized quite a bit of territory through this method."

"Blasphemy! It is blasphemy! Factories must have missionaries present so that the faithful brothers can conduct visionary preaching, allowing followers to see the true image of the gods and hear their voices. What you are doing now is just throwing a group of ignorant lambs into a vortex of chaos!" Mosley stood up and shouted, glaring at Vito and pointing a finger at him.

"You have no faith at all! Vito Constantine! You are not a member of the family! You don't understand our truth at all!"

"Enough! Mosley! I will not allow you to insult Brother Vito!" Henry stood up and reprimanded him sharply. Mosley glared at Henry before sitting back down, fuming.

Henry watched the irritable priest sit down and turned his gaze to Vito. "You need to resolve this, problem, Brother Vito, at this meeting."

Vito smiled, clapped his hands, and stood up. Seeing this, Henry sat back down, yielding the stage to the young brother of the faith.

"Well said, Brother Mosley and Brother Henry. Indeed, such preaching is very chaotic. Our new brothers do not understand what the voices of the gods mean; they are only left in confusion and disarray."

Vito began to pace as he spoke, circling the round table and walking behind the others. "We have indeed suffered significant losses. We do not know how the Hammer Gang found out about the Crimson Essence issue."

"No, we do know. It was that woman! Silver Snake! The woman you've been consorting with!" Mosley slammed the table as he spoke.

"Miss Silver Snake is the intelligence hub of the Underhive. We all trade information with her. The Hammer Gang obviously got the news from her, but the question is, how?"

Henry frowned, watching the pacing Vito. "You mean there is a traitor? Within our ranks?"

"That possibility cannot be ruled out."

"But I suspect the traitor is not within the Convent. I frequent Silver Snake's bar; if it were one of our own, I would have noticed. But I often see many Underhive workers going there—Hammer Gang workers."

Vito smiled and stopped, leaning against a statue. "Brothers and sisters, I suspect our traitor might be passing information to the factory workers, which eventually makes its way to Silver Snake."

"Then why wouldn't he just tell Mal the Hammer directly? Why go through all that trouble?" Henry asked. Vito offered a wry, helpless smile.

"Money, of course, Brother Henry. If he told Mal directly, he wouldn't get any benefits. Why not sell it to Silver Snake instead?"

"Hmph, greedy wretch," Mosley said dismissively, crossing his arms.

Vito snapped his fingers. "Exactly, greed. Much of the intelligence regarding the Hammer Gang is passed on in this very way. We use Crimson Essence as a bargaining chip to trade for a batch of less-than-pious informants, and through that, we gain intelligence."

"That is why our recent results have been fruitful. It is a double-edged sword, brothers and sisters, and we should be grateful that Mal took so long to realize how to exploit this."

Vito walked back to the table and sat in his seat. He smiled and looked around at everyone. "So, unfortunately for him, it is too late for Mal. We will take his most important factory this week—the Hammer factory we have never been able to conquer before."

The group began to whisper among themselves until Henry tapped the table to quiet everyone down. The leader of the Underhive Convent looked at Vito with curiosity, and even Mosley looked over, intrigued.

"How will we take it?"

"You see, we have taken so many of his factories that Mal's attention is entirely focused on defending those small and medium-sized ones we might target, while he ignores the fact that in his own stronghold, his home base, there are already some... of our supporters."

Vito smiled at Mosley. "Brother Mosley, you see, I have saved the largest Hammer factory for you. The workers there are waiting for the gospel and guidance from you and your priests. I trust you aren't worried about the risk of being discovered?"

Vito's slightly sarcastic smile enraged Mosley. He stood up in a fury and slammed his hand on the table. "Are you insulting me?! Are you questioning my courage and resolve to sacrifice for the Lord of Redemption?!"

"No, of course not. I trust you all very much, my brother, which is why I intend to entrust the most important task to you," Vito said, waving his hand, his smile remaining fixed.

"Mal has not yet noticed the problem right under his nose. I will have my brothers continue to attack his peripheral factories and outposts, making him believe we are preparing to launch a major offensive to distract him."

"And you, brother, you and your priests can infiltrate the Hammer factory, use faith and truth to convert the workers, and lead them to start a riot, or an uprising—whatever you prefer to call it. We will coordinate from inside and out to help us take the factory."

Henry frowned slightly, looking puzzled. "If what you say is true, Vito, how can we take the Hammer factory while launching a series of peripheral offensives? We will lack the manpower and weapons."

Vito clutched his stomach, laughing playfully. "That is why we need so many of those new believers—lacking in piety, perhaps, but very brave."

"Our new brothers will shoulder the responsibility of the peripheral offensives. They are numerous, and when combined with some of our elite brothers, it will be easy to create the illusion of a large-scale assault."

"Furthermore, under the influence of the Crimson Essence and the chaotic whispers of the gods, these junkies—who, as Brother Mosley says, lack faith—are very brave. They will serve as our great sacrifices on the road to redemption."

Everyone looked at Vito. Even Mosley showed a hint of surprise. Was this all part of the plan? Everything—the seemingly chaotic and disorderly actions—was actually interconnected and logically sound. It was hard to believe he had thought of this on the spot.

But then again, based on what I know of Vito, he might actually have thought of it on the spot, though no one can say for sure how many plans he has stored in his head.

Henry looked at Vito across the table through the hazy candlelight. He was silent for a moment. "Was this all planned by you?" "Maybe, maybe not. But that doesn't matter."

Vito held up one hand, five fingers spread. "I have also acquired five fully equipped Sentinel Walker mechs. With their cooperation, we will take the factory. Of course, with the help of Brother Mosley."

Whispers broke out again. Henry was incredibly astonished. "Where did you get the Sentinel Walkers? I don't remember—"

"I picked up the shipment just tonight before the meeting, my dear Mal. Hammer bought five Sentinels from the Upper Hive, so I thought, since he's already caused us so much loss and with that Crimson Essence transport ship being hijacked, I might as well take them as compensation."

Vito wagged his finger playfully. "Honestly, those big guys are fierce; they'll definitely be a huge help."

The young member of the Order looked at the priest with a smile—not a sincere one, of course, but rather a provocative one. "Brother Mosley, when will you be ready? If you need time, I can..."

"No! We are ready now! We are ready to spread the voice of the faith at any moment." Mosley accepted the challenge. He had to; he could not tolerate this young newcomer to the Order challenging his authority and making him appear incompetent.

Henry frowned slightly, seemingly realizing something, but he chose to remain silent. He glanced at Vito out of the corner of his eye, and the latter revealed a genuine smile. "Excellent."