Phicris' words interrupted Guilliman's thoughts, causing him to pause for a moment before raising his head and asking Phicris.
"Is this rebellion?"
"No, they are merely refusing your reforms, and only recognize the system established by the Holy Emperor for them. They have already expelled the reform members sent by the New Council, declaring that they only obey orders from Holy Terra.
Furthermore, they have issued a notice to other worlds, requesting them to join in the refusal. Currently, several families have responded, stating that unless Your Excellency can obtain the Emperor's permission, they will not acknowledge your reforms," Phicris said.
"Require me to obtain the Holy Emperor's recognition?" Guilliman took a few steps, then looked up at Phicris again and asked, "Did they say anything else? Did they make any demands?"
"The information received so far is just this," Phicris said, with suppressed anger. "Should we dispatch troops to punish these families, Your Excellency? This is disrespect towards you."
"No, this is not disrespect towards me. They are testing me, Phicris. They are trying to gauge the strength and resolve of my reforms. Wait a moment; I expect other families will speak up. Send people to collect evidence of their crimes, and we will settle accounts all at once."
Guilliman could see the true purpose of this declaration at a glance.
The other party wasn't rebellious; they had even positioned themselves perfectly.
Neither the Inquisition nor other organizations could find any handle on their treason.
The current situation in the Imperium is extremely delicate. Logically, the awakened Guilliman should have gone to Holy Terra, obtained the authority of the Terra Council, and then issued various commands.
But now, Guilliman remained in Ultramar, issuing various commands from Macragge.
He is the Imperial Regent, personally appointed by the Emperor, the rightful ruler of the Imperium.
Yet for ten thousand years, the Imperium had been receiving orders from the Terra Council, and a subconscious understanding had long been formed that the core power of the Imperium lay on Terra.
Loyalty to Guilliman and loyalty to the Terra Council both appeared, on the surface, to be loyalty to the Imperium.
"Why are these mortals jumping out at this time? Are they so ignorant that they can't see that Your Excellency's actions are an attempt to save humanity?" Phicris said indignantly.
"They see it precisely, which is why they oppose it." Guilliman looked at a Seraph flying and flapping its wings. It circled, relayed information to a crew member, and then flew off to other places, continuing to fulfill the mission assigned by its programming.
"Why do you say that, Your Excellency? Since they see it, why would they oppose you? Have they all abandoned the Imperium and are no longer loyal?"
Phicris asked, puzzled.
"There are many kinds of loyalty, Phicris. Loyalty to ideals, loyalty to individuals, and the loyalty of the greedy to power and strength. They are loyal to the Imperium, but they are not loyal to me, nor to the future I am trying to create."
"I don't understand? Shouldn't loyalty mean giving everything?"
Confusion appeared on Phicris' broad, resolute face.
Guilliman withdrew his gaze, not allowing himself to look at that detestable technological creation.
"That is your idea, Phicris. More people think, 'If I am loyal to this person, what will I gain?' If they gain nothing, why would they be loyal?
They hope I will back down in exchange for their loyalty. This is their true intention. The Glaus family is just the first; countless other families are watching."
"They have held the position of rulers for generations, enjoying wealth and luxurious lives that ordinary people do not have.
They believe they were rewarded for their loyalty, and it is what they deserve. I should continue to use these rewards to maintain their loyalty; otherwise, it is my fault," Guilliman said with a laugh. "As for the greater cause of saving humanity, they believe they are already loyal enough, and if humanity is heading towards a crisis, there is nothing they can do.
Asking them to sacrifice their own interests for the greater good of humanity is absolutely impossible."
"What should we do then?" Phicris asked.
"I will go to the Natal system, declare the Glaus family Anathema Rebel, execute every single person in that family, and announce to the entire Imperium that the reforms must proceed.
Anyone who does not acknowledge them is a Chaos heretic attempting to destroy humanity."
Guilliman's words were filled with indifference; he didn't care at all about the people who were about to be executed.
The Glaus family was vast in scale, possessing numerous businesses and a fleet.
It would not be an exaggeration to call them a stellar dynasty.
This family had not produced any traitors; they maintained their loyalty to the Emperor and the Imperium.
But Guilliman did not need this kind of loyalty.
What he needed was the kind of loyalty that involved obeying him and accepting his reforms.
Many families had produced figures loyal to the Emperor and the Imperium, but this did not negate some of their sins.
The reason these families were willing to be loyal to the Imperium and the Emperor was that the Imperium and the Emperor could bring them immense benefits.
They could use the Emperor's authority to legitimately rule a world.
And when rebellion occurred on that world, they could request the protection of the Imperial Guard and the Imperial Navy to suppress the rebels.
Loyalty to the Emperor meant that they only needed to be accountable to the Emperor and the Imperium.
They could adopt any system to rule their world and extract all the wealth they could.
The reason the Glaus family publicly issued such a declaration was undoubtedly that Guilliman's reforms had shaken the foundation of their power and wealth.
To defend their power and wealth, they issued this declaration.
The meaning was very clear: unless Guilliman backed down, they would not remain loyal to him.
It is a pity that the long passage of time had made them forget how the Primarchs and the Emperor built the Imperium.
The Primarchs turned the dynasties and xenos empires unwilling to submit into ruins, and the Human Imperium was built upon the remnants of those civilizations.
What they relied on was never the cunning tactics of politics.
The Glaus family attempted to probe Guilliman's bottom line, wanting to secure the greatest possible benefits, and even force Guilliman to retract his reform orders.
And Guilliman's bottom line was to let the nobles who cooperated with the reforms live.
If the Glaus family wanted more, then they should prepare to face the wrath of a Primarch.
Guilliman would not back down; he would respond with the strongest possible attitude.
planet Natal.
Neek Hive City.
The Hive City was divided into three levels: upper, middle, and lower.
The lower level belonged to the poor peasants and gangs, the middle level to the working class, and the upper level, with its beautiful environment and fresh air, belonged to the nobles.
The nobles occupied 99% of the wealth in the Natal system, monopolizing many fields such as pharmaceuticals, healthcare, machinery, and shipping.
They enjoyed a level of luxury unimaginable to ordinary people.
In the industrialized Hive City, green plants and healthy food were very scarce.
Ordinary people ate either nutrient paste or heavily contaminated foods like ant-cattle and ground worms.
Ninety-nine percent of the populace would never know what flowers and plants looked like in their entire lives.
The air in the Hive City was circulated and purified by Adeptus Mechanicus equipment.
It was quite normal for the commoners living in the Hive City to have never seen green plants.
Of course, the lives of the nobles were completely different.
Their estates had gardens created from green plants brought from various worlds.
They ate harmless grains from agricultural worlds.
Even the fruits they enjoyed were specially transported from other systems, each one worth as much as a commoner's lifetime of labor.
The wealth gap in the Imperium was far greater than ordinary people could imagine.
For some ancient merchant families, the accumulated wealth was astronomical.
Over a dozen systems were their industries.
Unless declared traitors by the Imperium, there was no possibility of their decline.
Top of Neek Hive City.
Many nobles gathered at a luxurious banquet.
"This is betrayal! Guilliman is betraying us! We serve the Imperium, we die for the Emperor, yet he wants to strip us of our rights!" an old noble shouted indignantly.