Year 865, the newly designated Sector 43 of the Maelstrom, Sixth War Zone.
The Chaos monsters here had already been wiped out, leaving only some conventional enemies of humanity to give the Imperial reinforcements a chance to contribute.
Still, to guard against unforeseen developments, the Alliance had left a hundred combat citizens stationed in the war zone to prevent anything from spiraling out of control.
"I have to admit, I'm honestly a little jealous that they still get to experience proper, old-fashioned combat," William said in the garrison citizens' small group chat.
On a nearby planet, a company of the Celestial Guards Chapter was leading an Astra Militarum force comprising a Catoria regiment and a Fres grenadier regiment in a furious slugging match with the Orks that had occupied the entire world.
"If you're jealous, just go down there and fight alongside them. Surely you have at least one android?" James asked, somewhat puzzled.
Alliance citizens had already explored the idea of experiencing the battlefield with deliberately reduced combat capabilities.
All he had to do was make himself an android with lower stats and control it remotely with psychic power.
It was hardly any trouble.
Every Alliance citizen's warship had a custom-built interior, but surely none of them lacked even an android factory?
"You don't get it," William said, shaking his head. "I don't want to experience combat. I want to experience struggling alongside my comrades, fighting our hearts out together."
"I'm on duty right now, so I can't seal away my memories and go play. If an android breaks, I can just replace it. There's no sense of immersion at all, you know?"
After a moment's thought, he offered an example. "Like in the Hall of Echoes. Plenty of our veterans left emotional snapshots from when they took control