Sir, Would You Be Interested in Learning About the Emperor of Mankind on the Golden Throne?

Zhou Yun rolled the six as copper coins between his fingers as he entered the market closest to his apartment.

"Come on, take a look! Fish sauce from Talassar—so good that even the coarsest bread will make you eat three loaves!"

"Olives, fresh olives, crisp and sweet!"

"Marble from the Crown of Hera, perfect for carving! Come take a look!"

"Wine from Laxos! Have a taste!"

The moment Zhou Yun stepped into the market, his nostrils filled with the fresh, fishy scent of fish sauce and the sweet fragrance of all kinds of fruit trees. His ears were filled with the cries of vendors at every stall, while his eyes were overwhelmed by the dazzling variety of goods in every color.

The sheer flood of information even made Zhou Yun feel slightly dizzy, but he still keenly noticed the soldiers guarding the market amid the crowd.

Ever since Governor Conor had returned from his expedition against the Illyrium Barbarians in the polar regions, his reputation greatly enhanced, he had begun reforming this city and this planet,

including newly launched urban construction projects that provided jobs, the newly established city guard corps, lower taxes on agricultural goods brought into the city by independent farmers, and stronger ties between Macragge and other planets.

Zhou Yun's gaze swept over the las-carbines in the soldiers' hands.

One shot from those things could completely vaporize a person's head, yet the warriors wielding these laser weapons wore armor resembling that of ancient soldiers, defending a market styled after humanity's first millennium—a market where ingredients from another planet were being sold.

This bizarre sense of contrast permeated all of Macragge.

This peculiar sight was all the result of Old Night, the catastrophe that had swallowed the entire galaxy.

Human civilization had once conquered nearly the entire galaxy, becoming a colossal power capable of rivaling the Aeldari Empire.

In those days, humanity was enlightened, technologically advanced, and socially unified. Dozens of once-powerful alien races had been forced to sign non-aggression pacts with humanity, simply because human technology had become almost divine.

They could easily extinguish stars and alter planetary orbits. They shaped the flow of time and rearranged the scale of space. STC technology made it possible to manufacture anything with ease, while the highly intelligent Men of Iron served humanity as slaves.

Humanity had been so powerful in that age that later generations spoke of it as though it were a myth.

But the outbreak of the Men of Iron Rebellion marked the beginning of everything's collapse. Its causes, course, and outcome had all been swallowed by history. No one knew what had happened; they only knew that afterward, fear of artificial intelligence had been etched into their genes, and that... it had dealt human civilization a devastating blow.

Yet even so, weakened human civilization still controlled the stars and the material universe, until a storm rose in the Warp hidden beyond the material realm.

Human civilization of that era had relied heavily on the Warp. Leaving aside the many technologies founded upon it, even the most crucial technology—the means of travel that had kept all human civilization united—depended on the Warp's very nature.

The storms raging through the Warp severed the connections between humanity's colonies. A civilization that had once spanned the stars was sliced into scattered fragments. Many highly specialized planets, designed for efficiency, rapidly declined due to a lack of imported supplies. Magnificent cities once worthy of being called paradise quickly became filthy hive cities. Severe famine began to spread, technology regressed, and civilization receded.

And that was only the beginning. The effects of the Warp storms soon spread from the Warp into reality. Human genes began mutating frequently, uncontrolled mutants and mad psykers appeared in great numbers, and even the grotesque, terrifying things within the Warp began entering reality. It was said that many planets simply fell into the Warp.

And those aliens that had once signed peace treaties with humanity seized the opportunity, betrayed humanity, and began enslaving, plundering, and massacring humans...

In the end, chaos replaced civilization, madness replaced wisdom, superstition replaced reason, darkness replaced light, and despair replaced hope. Human civilization fell into a chaotic night.

That catastrophe, which lasted thousands of years, was called Old Night.

Macragge had been one of the luckier ones. This mountainous planet had survived, and its inhabitants preserved or rediscovered some of the technologies of the past. They had even rebuilt sublight engines, allowing travel between nearby planets.

That had also created this planet's peculiar blend of primitiveness and advancement.

Perhaps that was why Zhou Yun had actually managed to buy parchment in this market.

Rubbing the parchment in his hand, Zhou Yun could not help marveling at his own good luck.

Compared to paper made from industrial pulp, parchment was better suited for certain rituals, though it was less effective than papyrus when it came to some psychic spells.

Honestly, Zhou Yun was not sure why papyrus and parchment had such properties.

Perhaps it was simply because, in people's minds... these two kinds of paper were more closely associated with magic, rituals, and such things?

After all, the Warp was a dimension of consciousness. In that dimension, cognition truly possessed power. Belief really was your magic.

Like a certain moth Primarch, whose excessive faith in the numerology he had invented made that utterly superstitious nonsense—neither scientific nor magical—actually work.

Zhou Yun tucked the parchment he had bought beneath his left arm, then bought two loaves of bread from a bakery, a jar of fish sauce produced on the ocean world of Talassar from a stall, and some fresh fruits and vegetables before preparing to leave the market.

But as noon approached, more people flooded into the market. The crowd became packed, and Zhou Yun had to struggle for quite a while before squeezing his way close to the market gate...

"Sir, would you be willing to spare a little time to learn about our one true Lord?"

"Ma'am, would you like to learn about the one true Lord?"

"Sir..."

"..." Zhou Yun saw a young girl preaching by the gate.

The little girl wore a plain brown robe, her hair carefully tied up. Beads of sweat hung from her forehead, and she held several sheets of paper covered in writing as she preached to passersby in the market.

But whenever the pedestrians heard the words "one true Lord," they reacted as though they had been provoked, all showing bored or disgusted expressions as they avoided her.

Tsk... Zhou Yun decided to avoid her too.

In this universe, religions were backed either by four certain peddlers, some wild daemon, or a dragon sleeping beneath Mars.

Even if there was nothing behind them, the Warp could still give birth to something through worship...

But as though she had sensed Zhou Yun's gaze, the girl turned her head, and her eyes met his.

Then the girl squeezed through the crowded throng and walked toward Zhou Yun.

"Sir, would you be interested in learning about our one true—"

"Little girl, would you be interested in learning about the Emperor of Mankind seated upon the Golden Throne?"