Inside the Governor's Office reception room, Priest Williams did not touch the food served by the maid.
Although he hadn't eaten before coming, he was in no mood to fill his stomach; instead, he was contemplating how to face Alex.
It wasn't that he hadn't met a Planetary Governor before; Williams had met both Alex and the previous Governor.
He had even served Old Bishop during several meetings with the previous Governor.
What he was pondering was how to complete the task Old Bishop had given him.
Williams felt a certain awe towards Alex.
This awe stemmed not only from Alex's identity as a Planetary Governor and the authority of an Inquisitor, but more so because he had received the favor and blessing of the God-Emperor.
The appearance of the sanctus wine was an undeniable miracle for the Ecclesiarchy, a fact that had already been confirmed within the Ecclesiarchy.
It was not only recognized by the Sector Ecclesiarchy but also reported to the Ecclesiarchy Headquarters on Holy Terra, receiving the Pope's personal approval.
Although the sanctus wine had only appeared a few years ago, the Ecclesiarchy Headquarters on Holy Terra already knew about it and had even, with an administrative efficiency absolutely high for the Imperium, determined it to be a miracle.
This was an incredible efficiency, even for the Ecclesiarchy.
The reason for such exaggerated efficiency, besides the Sector Ecclesiarchy's emphasis on this matter and their efforts to promote it through various means, was actually Holy Terra's own Pay attention to of the Rostov II planet.
Yes, Holy Terra had always been watching this planet.
This was information Williams had gathered while serving Old Bishop, from his communications with the Sector Ecclesiarchy.
Old Bishop was truly too old; often, his letters needed to be written by someone else.
While automated scribe Servitors or servitor skulls could record Old Bishop's words, what they recorded was often somewhat imprecise or merely colloquial.
Document writing was an art and a professional discipline; Williams had spent three years learning how to write standard Imperial official documents in High Gothic, and writing letters was one of his main duties while accompanying Old Bishop.
This allowed him to acquire much important information, one of which was Holy Terra's attention to this frontier planet.
This was an unimaginable fact.
After all, both Rostov II and the Mariupol Sector were insignificant corners of the Imperial frontier to Holy Terra; under normal circumstances, it might take hundreds of years to even once alarm Holy Terra or gain a glance from the Department of Internal Affairs.
The Imperium governed too many Sectors and worlds, just as the Grand Elder of Seres in the 3k era could not possibly concern himself with what happened in a natural village today, let alone understand what decisions the village chief made.
To Holy Terra, the Mariupol Sector was an insignificant backwater, let alone a small village like Rostov II?
But Holy Terra had always been watching this village, and the Ecclesiarchy Headquarters had also made many inquiries about it.
Ultimately, it was because Alex's Planetary Governor appointment decree originated from the Terra Imperial Palace, personally delivered by the Custodian Guard Captain to the High Lords of Terra, and then issued by the Department of Internal Affairs.
This was the first decree issued by the Emperor since the Great Rebellion and his ascension to the Golden Throne.
The Ecclesiarchy Pope wept bitterly for this, holding a grand mass and religious procession with hundreds of millions of people on Holy Terra to celebrate, even once believing that Her Majesty the Saint had returned to his loyalty Imperium.
But the Throne Room door remained tightly shut, and the Custodian Guard were tight-lipped about it.
Aside from the Custodian Guard Captain personally confirming that this letter of appointment came from Her Majesty the Saint himself, no other information was revealed.
Although the High Lords of Terra and the Department of Internal Affairs had many ideas and schemes regarding this, when the Custodian Guard stepped out of the Imperial Palace and personally supervised the execution of this matter, the High Lords of Terra could not cause any trouble.
Although after the Great Rebellion, three Gene-Seed Primarchs and the Terra Council jointly issued the "Restriction Order" against the Custodian Guard, prohibiting the Custodian Guard from leaving the Imperial Palace, that thing was only a superficial restriction on the Custodian Guard.
Moreover, the authority of the Gene-Seed Primarchs and the Terra Council was no match for the Emperor himself.
(Complaining about a certain 'Cloud Hammer' opinion that the Custodian Guard did nothing for ten thousand years; in fact, three Gene-Seed Primarchs forbade the Custodian Guard from doing anything, and they could only stay in the Imperial Palace to protect the Emperor.)
When executing the Emperor's sacred decree, the Custodian Guard were serious; they even dispatched an Imperial Edict Envoy, who had not appeared in the Imperium for ten thousand years, to the Inquisition to read out this letter of appointment.
It was precisely because of this that all factions on Holy Terra were very closely watching what was happening on Rostov II.
It was only due to the Custodian Guard's obstruction that they were unable to take any action to interfere with or influence what was happening on Rostov II.
But both the Ecclesiarchy and the Inquisition gave almost full support to this matter.
Otherwise, if Alex wanted a ship, how could he immediately be given one?
Even if the Imperial Navy wanted to order a cruiser, it would take ten years to produce it and put it into service, even if the Adeptus Mechanicus was efficient and the shipyard happened to be free.
It was precisely because of this that when the Emperor's miracle appeared on Rostov II and the sanctus wine was brewed, it immediately received the Ecclesiarchy's approval.
Because the Ecclesiarchy had been waiting for this.
The reason Old Bishop wanted to turn Rostov II into a Shrine World was precisely because of this.
In his view, Alex was a Planetary Governor personally appointed by the Emperor, which was a great honor and a sacred responsibility.
This signified that Alex would bring hope to the Imperium in the future, or that he would establish a great holy deed, make immense contributions to the Imperium, and become a Saint.
And Rostov II, this planet that had already received the divine grace of Her Majesty the Saint, would certainly become a new holy site for the Ecclesiarchy!
The Ecclesiarchy had formulated a series of actions for this, and even now, a large contingent of Pilgrims was already on its way!
According to their plan, the Pilgrims would open up the Rostov Sub-Sector, building a terrestrial divine kingdom directly under the Ecclesiarchy around Rostov II as the holy site!
However, now, the obstacle to the Ecclesiarchy's series of plans was Alex, the Saint already predestined by the Ecclesiarchy.
Thus, things suddenly became awkward, and Old Bishop had no choice but to try every means to bypass Alex or persuade him to support the Ecclesiarchy.
And Williams being sent to Alex's side was one of the efforts Old Bishop made.
"Your Majesty, please tell me, what should I do…?" The young Williams silently pulled out an exquisite miniature shrine and prayed to the Emperor.
At this moment, the door to the reception room was pushed open, and Alex stepped inside.
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