The Emperor’s Angel of Death

Thinking of the Internal Affairs Director's cold, old face, Sojash's mood worsened. He looked at the somewhat trembling envoy and said coldly:

"What if I say no?"

"Then... then we must, while still at peace, transfer the population and facilities to neighboring sectors as quickly as possible. Everything that cannot be taken must be destroyed, leaving nothing for the enemy... not a single brick or tile."

"Do you think the Necrons would like to live in human houses?"

"My Lord, I... I am just conveying the message."

Suddenly, Sojash smiled. He had found the loophole Tyrion had left him in the message.

"I will not become the Guardian of Orpheus, but the Star Knights and the people of Orpheus will not leave here."

"This—"

"Don't misunderstand, I will not disobey Terra's orders. I will simply exercise a power granted to the Astartes Chapters by the Throne, which you can also convey to Terra."

"What is it?"

Sojash walked to the star map, drew his sword, and pointed at it.

"The Star Knights will launch a crusade! To reclaim the fallen territories of Orpheus!"

This was a solution Sojash had thought of for a long time, and Tyrion's placement of a backdoor in Terra's instructions made it even easier for him.

The envoy was clearly not expecting this move from Sojash, and stammered:

"But... but, my Lord, if you are not the Guardian of Orpheus, you have no right to command the Orpheus forces. The Sector Governor must obey Terra's instructions..."

"But Terra's instructions stated that as long as I am confident in defending this place, then the people of Orpheus do not need to be transferred, correct? This has nothing to do with whether or not I am the Guardian. And after I establish the Orpheus Expeditionary Force, whether or not the Governor joins is up to him."

Saying that, Sojash raised his chin.

"Get me the Governor's communication."

"Yes!"

Soon, the image of Governor Garibrun Ronn in military uniform appeared on the bridge.

"Governor Garibrun Ronn, I, Sojash Alexei, will lead the Star Knights Chapter in launching a reclamation crusade into the fallen regions of Orpheus. What are your thoughts, and those of the people of Orpheus?"

"Orpheus is our home, a territory earned by countless ancestors and sages with their lives. We are willing to die to protect even a grain of sand of our home! I, Garibrun Ronn, will lead all the soldiers and civilians of Orpheus to join the Expeditionary Force, until the last world, the last satellite returns to the light of the Throne!"

The envoy was a little dumbfounded. The situation had exceeded his expectations, but it seemed that what Sojash was doing was indeed not a problem. Astartes could indeed independently launch crusades, and Sojash had clearly stated that he was confident in defending Orpheus. As for the Exterminatus order and the title of Guardian of Orpheus, there seemed to be no clear connection between them.

After thinking it over, the envoy could only helplessly say:

"My Lord, the situation is beyond my expectations. I can only convey it on your behalf, but the mustering orders from the Departmento Munitorum and the Navy must be executed."

"Of course, I will not interfere with the work of the Departmento Munitorum. The Departmento Munitorum will decide which troops to transfer. The same goes for the Navy, but there are not many ships that can be moved. The rest are from the Chapter and the Orpheus local fleet, and they certainly will not move."

In the end, Sojash successfully bypassed the trap set by the High Lords through this clever means, completing his control over the Orpheus Sector.

Of course, this was both a gain and a huge burden, but it was better than the Agripinaa Sector, because Orpheus's productivity and industrial level were ten times higher than that of Agripinaa. It was just that the military pressure seemed to be greater. After all, Menach was more troublesome than a Hive Fleet, but fortunately, Sojash knew that Menach was currently unable to spare any forces, and with the "pruning" plan of the Silent King, Menach's threat to Orpheus should not be too great, at least in the short term, so he could safely manage and plan.

However, the Legion's current problem was that there were too many "enclaves." The Agripinaa and Orpheus Sectors were extremely far apart, which meant that the Legion's strength would be spread out a lot, making it difficult to concentrate.

The only way to solve this was to expand the army, and accelerate the expansion.

Sojash had already sent a message to the Agripinaa Sector, allowing Ustad to recruit new soldiers locally. He would transform as many soldiers as there were gene-seeds, without having to transport them to Naisen.

He also planned to do the same in Orpheus, directly recruiting, transforming, and training them locally. According to the current situation, with the intensity of the fighting in the two war zones, let alone 10,000, even 100,000 Space Marines might not be enough. It could only be said that the Great Crusade era of the Empire was really lucky, without opponents of the scale of the Necrons and the Tyranids, otherwise the Emperor would probably have a headache as well.

If so many Space Marines were needed, then the demand for mortal troops would only be greater.

No mistakes, one first one hair one inside one capacity one in one see!

As the mustering orders from the Departmento Munitorum and the Navy were conveyed, all the Imperial Guard gathered in Orpheus began to withdraw. Sojash had a strong interest in the Necromunda Spider Legion and the Van Saar family, so when they withdrew, he sent a team of Chapter serfs as representatives to this mysterious hive world to conduct investigations and establish contact with the Van Saar family.

In addition, the Chapters that came to reinforce would also go to new battlefields. Sojash personally bid them farewell, but one thing was coincidental, that was, the next battlefield that the Minotaurs Chapter was going to was actually Rynn. Obviously, the fighting there had attracted the attention of Terra, or perhaps the Imperial Fists had exerted its political power, but Sojash personally believed that it should be the former.

To be honest, the new Chapter Master of the Imperial Fists, in his personal opinion, was a bit too mediocre, and was unlikely to do this for this Second Founding Chapter.

But since the Minotaurs had gone, presumably the support there would be very strong. The Dragon Riders who were sent out could also be withdrawn, to avoid colliding with the Imperial reinforcements and creating friction.

But Sojash couldn't say for sure how long it would take, because the Minotaurs had suffered such heavy losses, they would definitely go to replenish their personnel and ships first. Even if these were already prepared, it would take some time on the road. Only the Emperor knew when the reinforcements would actually arrive on Rynn.

Like a grand feast, as the reinforcements from all sides withdrew, the Amara ​​system soon only had the Star Knights Chapter and the accompanying Adeptus Mechanicus allies, not including the reinforcements from the Jouranites Legion, who withdrew less than a week after the Battle of Amara.

Afterwards, Sojash had a meeting with the Inquisition to discuss their respective ideas.

The Inquisition was not optimistic about the situation. The brutality of the fighting in Amara ​​surprised all the Inquisitors, especially the overwhelming technological advantage of the Necrons over humanity, which was unreservedly demonstrated for the first time in a large-scale war. This caused a huge shake-up in the Xenos Ordos of the Tempestus Sector, and some Grand Inquisitors became proponents of abandoning the sector.