Starting from the Planetary Governor - Chapter 516

Chapter 514, Slow Down

Humphrey’s prestige strategy is actually quite difficult. There are many hurdles to overcome.

For example, Gu Hang heard from Gallardo that the Space Marine representative from the High Lords’ Council has been contacting several powerful Chapters.

Among them is the Black Crusaders, a powerful and top-tier Chapter. They are also a highly resilient Chapter, but their situation is completely different from that of the Ironclad.

The Black Crusaders are a successor to the Golden Knights Chapter and possess considerable influence and background. However, they do not occupy any territory; they are a fleet-based Chapter, lacking even a homeworld. They recruit and resupply wherever they are attacked, then rush to the next battlefield…

Moreover, they are quite obedient.

This obedience does not mean that they will do whatever the Empire tells them to do, nor does it mean that they will obey the Imperial government’s interference in their Chapter’s internal affairs. But at least, when the Empire calls for them, they will respond in most cases. They are also very happy to accept requests for assistance from all over the Empire, and they will come whenever they are able.

This has garnered them considerable prestige and goodwill, leading to numerous local powers offering support, donations, and rewards as a token of gratitude, or simply to establish friendly relations in exchange for future Black Crusaders’ assistance.

And generally, they do achieve their goals.

However, this also means that despite their vast size, the Black Crusaders are also quite busy.

Upon receiving the Empire’s call, the Black Crusaders expressed their strong desire to participate in the rebellion suppression operation. Unfortunately, their many expeditionary fleets were almost all occupied with their own missions. While they promised to mobilize a force as soon as possible, even they couldn’t commit to a specific timeframe.

Besides the Black Crusaders, several renowned Chapters also responded to the call, including several renowned founding Chapters. For example, the Blood Angels and the Bats, operating in the Empire’s northern territories, and the equally renowned Infinite Chapter in the eastern territories, the parent Chapter of the Ironclad.

The father is punishing his son.

The Inquisition, having suffered a crushing defeat, was also seething with rage. They were drawing upon their elite allies, particularly the Sisters of Battle, to bolster their efforts.

As these factions gradually joined the battle against the Iron Armor, the challenges facing Humphrey Paul would only grow ever greater.

Only by overcoming each hurdle could Paul’s envisioned strategy of prestige take shape.

Before then, he must carefully select his opponents and his strategy. He couldn’t face a formidable opponent too early, lest he suffer defeat before the point of need, prematurely ending the wave he had anticipated.

This was precisely why Gu Hang judged that, with the Iron Fury Stone’s surge already underway on the western and northern fronts, he would have to commit the vast majority of his forces to maintain this offensive.

They lacked the strength to advance south, nor could they afford to be strategically insane.

The Alliance was a classic example of a relatively unreputable but formidable opponent. Victory wouldn’t necessarily confer significant prestige, and the battle would be difficult.

But if they did come, Gu Hang wouldn’t mind dealing Humphrey Paul a head-on blow in the south.

The price offered by the Empire was more than enough to satisfy Gu Hang, and joining the war was acceptable.

However, the truth was, the Iron Armor’s response to the Alliance was primarily verbal attacks, supplemented by minor actions. Just as Gu Hang had anticipated, they didn’t dare to march south.

Their primary “mind games” were to exploit the influence built up by the Fury Flame Legion’s frequent activities in the Menghe Star Region over the years to disrupt the Alliance.

They dispatched numerous “military advisors” and “independent advisors.” Most of these individuals came from the auxiliary forces of several chapters, including the Iron Armor. While not considered the most elite military force, the auxiliary forces, known as the “Imperial Legion,” painstakingly built by Humphrey Paul, were superior to the average strength of the Astra Militarum.

Of course, the Imperial Legion wasn’t a fully-fledged, large-scale force. On those worlds, it was at most a regiment, or even just a few companies.

The officers in charge served as military advisors, guiding the local communities in building stronger units modeled after the Imperial Legion.

This wasn’t entirely for the Alliance’s benefit. Over the years, establishing local defense forces modeled after the Imperial Legion had served as a means of exerting influence over the region.

Objectively speaking, this had a significant impact on the Alliance’s operations in Menghe.

Initially, they had hoped to rally the entire Menghe star region behind a united front through diplomatic means alone. However, diplomacy and political tactics alone proved insufficient.

So, they resorted to military means.

After the Alliance’s advance fleet arrived, a series of offensives began.

Initially, there wasn’t much fighting. The Menghe star region, near Dragon Eagle, was relatively close to the Alliance and relatively timid. Once the fleet arrived and the army was deployed, the local forces largely refrained from resistance, allowing Alliance officials to be dispatched. Various supplies began to be collected, and the Alliance directly took over Imperial taxes and planetary defense forces.

With wealth and troops in hand, problems became relatively minor.

After stabilizing one world, the advance fleet would move on to the next, leaving only a small army on the previous one.

This pattern was generally not a major problem. The Alliance officials who remained, aided by a small army, were able to maintain control of the world. The Alliance’s strength and sense of justice ensured a relatively stable control of the situation. However, this was

n’t always the case.

Some worlds, while the Alliance’s fleet and main military presence were present, presented no problems; after the main forces left, problems began to arise.

Minor problems involved local uprisings, which prevented the Alliance’s established cooperative governments from controlling the global situation.

In areas with more serious problems, there have even been instances of local cooperative governments being overthrown, Alliance troops being besieged, and Alliance officials being killed.

When this happens, the Alliance is often forced to bring back the main force of its previously departed advance forces to resolve the local “rebellion.”

This, however, severely slows down the Alliance’s operations.

For several months, after initially gaining control of approximately seven star regions and 103 worlds in the Menghe Star Region, progress has been significantly slowed.

Gu Hang personally came this time to address this issue.

(End of Chapter)