Warhammer 40k: Starting as a Rogue Trader

Chapter 95: Trade Hub

And just as Lucan was using this group of Mekboyz to complete his plan, some changes were also occurring within the Koronus Expanse.

Xenos attacks on various human-held planets were becoming more frequent.

Especially those of the Dark Eldar; they were frequently raiding the worlds and fleets of the Imperium of Man. No one knew why these blasphemous xenos had suddenly become so frenzied.

There were also rumors that some unknown changes had occurred in the Dark City belonging to these profane xenos.

An Imperial Navy fleet even encountered an entire Chaos fleet. And after destroying that patrolling Imperial Navy fleet, the Chaos forces once again retreated back into the Warp.

The Imperium's psykers with precognitive abilities also seemed to have received some revelation; the movements of Imperial fleets began to become more and more frequent.

But regardless of what was happening, the increasingly chaotic situation in the Expanse led to a growing demand for weapons and equipment among the various factions.

And at this moment, Agathos could be said to be changing with each new day.

Agathos had now become the trade hub for the surrounding star systems.

The influx of population from various worlds was allowing this world's population level to rapidly recover. And Pavian had also quietly used the newly constructed warships to travel to the Mongorte Dynasty's new food factory, transporting back large quantities of processed Mushroom-men.

And this food also supported Agathos's growing population.

Just as Lucan had once thought, these newly immigrated people had originally believed they were just cargo to be consumed, destined to work themselves to death in dark mines or in factories filled with toxic waste. What frightened them most was whether they would become living consumables for some experiment or technology.

However, when they arrived at Agathos, a world unknown to them, they discovered that they might truly have been blessed by the God-Emperor.

Amiable Ecclesiarchy priests counseled them on their anxieties, and those soldiers clad in armor used methods they didn't understand to heal their bodies of numerous chronic ailments.

It was just that in the mouths of these priests, besides the God-Emperor, there was now also a Living Saint named Lucan.

And the priests said that their current life was all given to them by him!

However, the soldiers would still take away any mutants who had been sent in among the mixed populations from other Dynasties. The Dynasty only needed normal humans. Even the Mongorte Dynasty had no intention of sheltering these mutants who could potentially cause Chaos corruption, regardless of whether they were innocent or had become mutants for other reasons.

Lucan's benevolence also had its limits. At least for now, he had no way to save these people. And the other laborers had no objections to the handling of the mutants; it wasn't just the Dynasty that feared these people, these common citizens of the Imperium also detested mutants.

For the other laborers, the hellish life they had imagined did not appear.

What awaited them were clean houses, clean clothes, and a previously unimaginable abundance of food. Although they still had to squeeze into crowded dormitories with dozens of others, it was already much better than their former lives.

And the foremen and officials here also explained the system of Agathos to these newcomers. These people, unwanted by other Dynasties, experienced the concept of a wage for the first time.

Although the workload they would face would still be very high and very hard, at least they could eat their fill, wear warm clothes, and live on.

And with the large influx of population, there were inevitably spies from other factions, or followers of certain Chaos cults. In almost every transport ship full of people, some problematic individuals could be rooted out.

As the head of the Inquisition's branch office on Agathos, Ian was responsible for this aspect of the work. Although his work was still heavy, it was much easier than he had imagined.

The authority Lucan had given him allowed him to deploy many soldiers, a power far greater than he had when working under Derek.

And while searching for heretics, he also discovered a special force that was cleaning up the unstable elements within Agathos.

He asked Rebecca, but Rebecca also stated she knew nothing about it.

When he tried to investigate, assassins from the Death Cult proactively found him, presenting him with proof of Lucan's authority.

This let him know that Lucan, this Rogue Trader, had other forces operating beneath the surface to maintain Agathos's stability. And the people Ian had asked about were precisely the Ghosts led by Norris. Under the training of the Death Cult assassins, their combat effectiveness had been further improved.

Ghosts, who could cloak, teleport, and mind-control, and who acted in groups, were the best secret agents for operating in the shadows.

And the Death Cult's mystical method of finding enemies of mankind also played a huge role. Their ability to screen for xenos and even Chaos was sometimes beyond what even Ian, as an Inquisitor, could match.

Moreover, the population registration system, implemented at great expense, at least brought the vast majority of Agathos's people under the Dynasty's management.

Only those registered could enjoy the preferential policies of the Mongorte Dynasty.

And with the support of these policies, if you were still unwilling to register, there was only one possibility: there was definitely something wrong with you. And without registered information, it was almost impossible to move around on Agathos; both work-points and extra money were tied to your identity information.

And for most people who supported the Dynasty, they would also proactively report those problematic individuals to the Enforcers. Their hard-won life had given them human dignity, and like their Rogue Trader, they would not allow anyone to destroy this hard-won gift.

And all registered individuals were required to undergo mutation screening.

This filtered out many of the unstable elements within the Dynasty.

The starport, once abandoned due to the rebellion, was now in use again.

The Dynasty's fleet and large merchant ships from various factions were docked there.

Every day, a large quantity of population, supplies, and minerals were transported to the surface of Agathos via a space elevator. These things accelerated Agathos's development speed.

Similarly, sets of combat suits and weapons also traveled with these merchant ships to various worlds.

Through continuous military expansion, the number of PDF soldiers in the Mongorte Dynasty had already reached one million.

Armored regiments composed of Siege Tanks, and air squadrons of units like Liberators and Banshees, were also under construction.

Only fighter models like the Viking, which required skilled pilots, were still in the familiarization phase; otherwise, even skilled pilots from StarCraft might crush themselves during the transformation process.

After several months of non-stop production from the Barracks, combat suits had already filled the warehouses and covered every soldier, even creating a serious surplus.

And Rebecca, with Lucan's permission, also increased the trade volume of combat suits.

As the reverse-engineering of the jump drive technology and quantum communication progressed, the resources consumed by Pavian also increased daily.

Much equipment needed to be purchased from the Adeptus Mechanicus at high prices.

And with the spread of the "Cult of the Holy Machine" within the Expanse, many members of the Mechanicus seeking new knowledge and new technologies also came to Agathos, drawn by its fame.

After witnessing the SCVs and the special purifying and pleasing abilities of the Sacred Engine Cult, many Tech-Priests chose to join.

However, although this boosted Agathos's research and manufacturing capabilities, it also greatly increased the consumption of funds.

This led to Rebecca having to approve a large number of funding requests from these Tech-Priests every day.

This caused no small number of arguments between Rebecca and Pavian. She would scold Pavian for not running a household and not knowing the price of essentials, but she had no choice but to satisfy their requests as much as possible. After all, what they were doing was incredibly important for the Dynasty.

(End of Chapter)