One standard hour later, Nimrod returned to the palace, ready to hear Howard's proposed allocation scheme for the seized industries.
"My king, among all factories awaiting redistribution, the pharmaceutical enterprises of House Simanski boast the largest scale and output."
"House Kovalenko's industries center on chemical production, with prior involvement in pharmaceuticals, yielding an average of fifty-two thousand units per production cycle."
"Considering industrial synergy and the time required for integration, it is most prudent to entrust House Simanski's pharmaceutical assets to House Kovalenko for management."
And so Howard continued, delineating his plan with meticulous detail, outlining the reassignment of each fallen house's holdings to optimize Vostonia's economic resurgence.
Nimrod, having absorbed the comprehensive allocation scheme, nodded with satisfaction, his approval evident in his composed demeanor.
"Excellent. Proceed with your allocation plan precisely as presented. Dispatch communiqués to each noble house immediately, informing them of their new responsibilities."
"You are a true Arbiter, Howard. Return to me in one standard hour."
"Arbiter?"
Howard's query betrayed his confusion, for was not "Arbites" the title borne by the enforcers of the Underhive's domes, the iron-handed justices of the Imperium?
"You shall understand in due time."
"As you command, my king."
Howard withdrew, descending twelve levels to the office of the court chancellor. There, he activated his vox-comm, his voice steady despite the weight of his task.
"Count Howard, I am executing our king's orders. What are his further instructions?"
"Countess Lysara, congratulations are in order. Our king has decreed that House Simanski's pharmaceutical industries be placed under your stewardship. Dispatch your agents to assume control at once."
Howard mastered his own stirrings of envy, maintaining a tone of measured neutrality as he relayed the king's decision.
"Truly?"
Lysara's voice, crackling through the vox-channel, brimmed with exhilaration, her astonishment palpable.
"Indeed, it is so."
Howard understood her incredulity. Every noble knew that managing the vast holdings of House Boleslav with only the workforce of Hanliman's dome stretched their capacities to the limit.
Yet overcoming the human frailty of greed was another matter entirely, one the former king had failed to surmount, his avarice an insatiable abyss.
"Praise be to our king! His wisdom is boundless!"
Thereafter, Howard's vox buzzed with the fervent accolades of noble houses, each extolling Nimrod's sagacity and benevolence.
[Our king has won the hearts of the nobility, cementing his dominion over Tetzvok.
Yet, above all, it is his unmatched might that anchors his rule.]
His deep blue eyes glimmered with aspiration, lost in reverie, until the insistent chime of his chronometer roused him. He adjusted his resplendent robes and hastened toward the palace with purposeful strides.
Concurrently, within the ethereal crucible of the Nation of Disorder, Nimrod cast the Arbites gavels into a roaring furnace.
Golden radiance erupted, the forge crackling with arcane energy as a viscous, auric potion took form, its surface shimmering with otherworldly potency.
He ladled the "Arbiter" potion, destined to guide Howard along the "Justiciar" pathway. This choice was not merely due to the availability of materials, which constrained him to this formula alone.
Rather, it was a calculated decision, for while Howard's loyalty met Nimrod's minimum threshold, it paled beside the unwavering devotion of Bukayo and Rawlslev.
The "Justiciar" pathway, adjacent to the "Black Emperor" pathway, was a strategic selection.
Certain pathways, in their middle sequences, permitted relatively safe transitions, as they stemmed from the same Sefirah.
The Nation of Disorder governed both the "Black Emperor" and "Justiciar" pathways. As its master, Nimrod would, upon unlocking higher authorities, exert profound influence over Beyonders of the "Justiciar" pathway.
Both "Black Emperor" and "Justiciar" Beyonders, upon ascending to Old One, could be molded to his will.
Returning to the material realm, Nimrod stood before Howard, opening his palm to reveal a vial of golden, gelatinous potion.
"Drink this."
Howard gazed upon the radiant concoction, a flicker of dread passing through his eyes.
[Poison? Impossible! My king could crush me as easily as an insect.
Could it be… the boon Rawlslev spoke of?]
Resolving that he had no choice, Howard accepted the vial, steeled himself, and quaffed the potion in a single resolute gulp.
Nimrod guided Howard through the meditative techniques to harness the potion's overflowing energies, then offered solemn counsel.
"Thus it is done. Practice meditation diligently and fulfill your role as an Arbites. In doing so, you shall master the power I have bestowed upon you."
Only then did Howard grasp the nature of the boon. Only a being as sublime as the Omnissiah could grant such power through so miraculous a method.
He turned to Nimrod, his voice trembling with fervor. "As you command, my lord!"
"The Arbites institution of Vostonia is admirable, balancing the nobles and the Mechanicus, yet it remains imperfect."
"My lord, what is your intent?"
Howard harbored no doubt that, should Nimrod desire autocracy, his might could enforce it without contest.
"The current Arbites system fosters equilibrium, but true Arbites are guardians of order."
Seeing comprehension dawn in Howard's eyes, Nimrod continued, his voice resonant with purpose.
"Martian technologies have flooded Vostonia, propelling this world into rapid industrialization."
"But what of the Underhive, or even the Sump? Its denizens live without hope, languishing in despair, brawling over scraps, killing, and betraying for a single meal."
"From my ascent, you must have glimpsed the latent strength within the Underhive's masses."
Howard's realization struck like a thunderbolt, his azure eyes alight with understanding.
"Your intent is clear, my lord. By granting hope to the Underhive's people, they will unleash their initiative, labor with zeal, enhance productivity, and thereby elevate industrial output."
"Precisely, yet there is more. In time, you shall see the fuller vision."
The taint of Chaos remained unknown to Vostonians, and Nimrod refrained from explicit mention.
His thoughts drifted to a distant future, over ten millennia hence, when another Primarch, Roboute Guilliman, would awaken and speak to Dante.
As Guilliman had articulated, only by improving the living conditions of the masses could a clear divide be drawn between loyalty and treachery, enabling them to comprehend the cause for which they fought.
Through his own rise, Nimrod had learned the profound significance of a single meal to an Underhive dweller.
He also grasped the truth in Guilliman's query to Dante: when great foes assail, what reason has one, dwelling in a brutal hell, to resist temptation?
Uneducated masses, even when hearing the grand truths preached by Ecclesiarchy priests, would not heed them. They knew only the oldest, most primal truth: without food, death followed. Whoever fed them was their god.
Since the "Black Emperor" sought to establish his own order, Nimrod resolved to begin now. He lacked the power to transform all of humanity, but he could start with his homeland.
Nimrod envisioned a thriving, prosperous world brimming with developmental potential—the embryonic form of his dominion.
"I command you to journey to Hanliman's dome. Using its existing infrastructure and the systems I established, construct a new dome entirely."
"I shall assign you a labor cohort. You may draw upon my prior institutions or recruit from neighboring domes."
"I expect you to master the role of an Arbiter, learning to forge a new order."
Nimrod's tone grew resolute. "The order I demand is not charity bestowed upon the masses but a system wherein, through effort and contribution, they can earn sustenance and live with dignity!"
"This system must be scalable, applicable to every hive, every Underhive, every dome!"
Howard's brow furrowed, the magnitude of the task weighing upon him.
Were Nimrod merely demanding a prosperous dome, House Finder's wealth could achieve it with ease.
But to transform all of Vostonia? Even if Tetzvok's Upper Hive nobles bankrupted themselves, it would fall short, and other houses would never consent.
Seeing Howard's contemplation, Nimrod chose to broaden his perspective.
"Do not be shackled by Mechanicus dogma. Technology is but a tool. I charge you with creating a new order."
"Establish a meritocratic standard. Workers meeting quotas receive standard rations; the exceptional may ascend to Upper Hive labor."
"The Upper Hive can host new manufactories, even become a Mid-Hive. Spires can be razed, new Upper Hives built, and atop them, new spires raised."
Howard's eyes widened, epiphany igniting within him. He spoke with unwavering confidence.
"As you decree, my lord."
"Wield the power I have granted you wisely."
Howard's deep blue eyes shone with resolve. "I shall not fail you."
"Now, lead me to your family's vault."
"My lord, follow me."
--
T/N: To those who does not know difference between Arbites and Arbiter.
Arbites (Warhammer 40k): The Adeptus Arbites are the Imperium of Man's law enforcement. Known as the Emperor's Wrath, they enforce Imperial law across countless worlds under the Ecclesiarchy and Adeptus Terra.
Arbiter (Lord of Mysteries): In Lord of the Mysteries, an Arbiter is a Sequence 9 Beyonder of the Justiciar Pathway.