[Worthy of Sanguinius's Blood] closed the regional channel and turned to smile at [Loyal Battle Sister of the Imperium] beside him:
"Looks like our luck isn't too bad."
"Having an acquaintance to show us the ropes is way better than stumbling around in the dark."
[Loyal Battle Sister of the Imperium] nodded.
This girl, who had previously served as an intern medic in the Emperor's Children Legion...
Was now dressed in the uniform of a transport ship logistics administrator.
It wasn't exactly the Battle Sister power armor she dreamed of, but at least it was a management role, so she didn't have to break her back doing manual labor.
Time slowly ticked by as they moved cargo.
Two hours later, the cargo at Berth 214 was finally completely unloaded.
[Worthy of Sanguinius's Blood], leading over five hundred players with sore, aching muscles, found the loading supervisor and explained their situation.
The heavy-set local checked their work logs and, without giving them a hard time, paid out their wages on the spot...
Thirty Macragge local coins per person.
"Thirty coins..."
[I Eat Tomatoes] stared blankly at the shiny silver coins in his hand.
"What is this even enough for?"
[Worthy of Sanguinius's Blood] patted him on the shoulder:
"Enough for a meal."
"Let's go. Don't make the girl wait too long."
The group stepped out of the gates of Berth 214 and immediately spotted the tall figure waiting a short distance away.
Her pale blue dispatcher uniform was tailored perfectly, accentuating her well-proportioned figure, which stood around 175cm.
Her shoulder-length black hair was neatly tied back, framing a face that had soft lines but carried a distinct, striking energy.
Her features weren't the drop-dead gorgeous type, but put together, they were incredibly pleasant to look at.
Especially her eyes, which were currently sparkling with amusement as she looked at their group of dirt-smudged cargo haulers.
[Want to Stroll Among the Sea of Stars] slowly walked over, the smile on her lips widening:
"Looks like I can't keep my promise about treating you guys to a meal after all!"
She swept her gaze over the massive crowd:
"There are hundreds of you here... I definitely can't afford that."
"I've only been working for a little over a month."
A wave of good-natured laughter rippled through the group.
[Worthy of Sanguinius's Blood] stepped forward, speaking seriously:
"No worries, we just need you to show us around."
"And tell us how to get down to the surface of Macragge."
He paused, his voice turning solemn:
"We want to know where we can find Guilliman."
[Want to Stroll Among the Sea of Stars] nodded:
"Oh, well, that makes things a lot simpler."
"Follow me."
She turned around and headed deeper down the corridor, talking as she walked:
"But if you want to meet Guilliman, that's going to be difficult..."
[Worthy of Sanguinius's Blood] caught up to her. "Why do you say that?"
"You guys know how it is. Guilliman's reputation on Macragge might even outshine the Emperor's."
[Want to Stroll Among the Sea of Stars]'s voice carried a hint of awe:
"There isn't a single person in the entire Five Hundred Worlds of Ultramar who doesn't revere him."
"Someone of his stature isn't just someone anyone can walk up and meet."
"There are nearly three thousand players here on Macragge..."
She paused, her tone turning strange:
"And so far, not a single one has managed to successfully infiltrate the Ultramarines Legion."
"Let alone actually become a member and meet the Imperial Regent face-to-face."
[For the Regent Yellow Guilliman] frowned:
"Not a single one?"
"Nope."
[Want to Stroll Among the Sea of Stars] shook her head:
"There are actually several players who managed to pass the initial provincial screening for Ultramarine recruits."
"But that's all it was—the provincial screening."
"They didn't even make it to the Ultramarines recruitment headquarters in Macragge City before they were washed out."
She glanced back at them, a meaningful look on her face:
"As for the reason..."
"You guys know."
The group exchanged bewildered looks.
[Want to Stroll Among the Sea of Stars] kept walking, continuing her explanation:
"The Macragge of the 31st Millennium is the world with the highest happiness index, security, and quality of life in the entire Imperium of Man during the Great Crusade."
"Bar none."
Her voice turned serious, as if she were lecturing a group of freshmen:
"First off, there's the universal basic welfare Guilliman established."
"The Codex Ultramar explicitly states that every citizen has the unconditional right to food, shelter, basic healthcare, and compulsory education."
"What does that mean?"
"It means even if you're a homeless vagrant, you still get free food rations, you get to live in government-provided housing, you get free medical care, and your kids get a free education."
[I Eat Tomatoes] swallowed hard: "That... that's fucking better than modern society!"
"It gets even better."
[Want to Stroll Among the Sea of Stars] continued:
"This place has achieved peak social equality."
"Hereditary aristocratic privileges are abolished. Everyone is equal before the law."
"Class mobility is based entirely on individual ability and social contribution."
"Regardless of your background, as long as you pass the exams and selection processes, you can enter the administrative system, the military, academia, or even become a member of the Senate."
She paused, adding: "On top of that, the life expectancy here is incredibly long."
"Thanks to advanced medical technology, the average citizen lives to be 100 to 200 years old, far surpassing other worlds in the Imperium."
[For the Regent Yellow Guilliman] went quiet.
After a long moment, he finally spoke up:
"So what you're saying is..."
"What I'm saying is."
[Want to Stroll Among the Sea of Stars] stopped and turned to face them:
"The citizens of the 31st Millennium Macragge are rational, disciplined, honorable, and revere duty and competence."
"They are incredibly outstanding."
"Incredibly proud."
"And..."
Her mouth twitched:
"...incredibly sweaty."
[Worthy of Sanguinius's Blood] felt a headache coming on.
[Want to Stroll Among the Sea of Stars] kept going:
"Countless exceptional teenagers from all across the Five Hundred Worlds of Ultramar want nothing more than to join the Ultramarines Legion."
"Because the Ultramarines are the most respected group in all of society. They are the guardians of the Five Hundred Worlds."
"They view it as the ultimate honor, and they constantly strive towards it."
"That's why the blueberry tin cans can constantly maintain a roster of two hundred and fifty thousand Astartes."
"Do you know how many eligible teenagers come to Macragge every year to sign up for the Ultramarines selection trials?"
"Let me think... how many was it on average?"
"Oh right, about... a million a year."
A collective gasp echoed through the group.
"And those million applicants were already the cream of the crop, handpicked from their respective planets."
"Out of that million, the number who actually become full-fledged Ultramarines is somewhere between one and three thousand."
"An acceptance rate of less than one percent."
"And that's just the raw data."
"The truly terrifying part is the sheer quality of those million applicants."
She paused before continuing:
"These kids receive the absolute best education in all of Ultramar from the moment they are born."
"Physical attributes, genetic optimization—the recruitment headquarters has a comprehensive evaluation system for all of it."
"Psychological resilience, willpower tests—there are endless layers of screening."
"But the most insane part is..."
She looked at the group:
"The locals' sense of identity and belonging with the Ultramarines is something us outsiders can't even begin to replicate."
"They grow up listening to stories about Guilliman. Becoming an Ultramarine is their lifelong pursuit."
"That deep-seated, desperate craving, that almost fanatical obsession... it's something that can be quantified during the selection process."
"So you can imagine just how difficult it is to actually become an Ultramarine."
[Worthy of Sanguinius's Blood] fell silent.
He thought back to the Emperor's Children recruits on Laeran.
Those young men, plucked from the noble houses of Chemos, were as arrogant as peacocks.
Only now did he realize that those recruits were already the elite of the elite.
And on Macragge, every single teenager trying to become an Ultramarine was the tryhard king among the elite.
"As for administrative and judicial careers, they are just as hyper-competitive, ranking only a step below becoming an Astartes."
"And the Ultramar Auxilia and PDF? Also insanely competitive due to their excellent benefits."
[I Eat Tomatoes] spoke up gloomily: "So... basically, our group is nothing but trash here on Macragge?"
[Want to Stroll Among the Sea of Stars] shook her head:
"I wouldn't say that. Some people have made it."
"Out of the three thousand players who spawned in Ultramar, one guy is actually doing really well."
[Worthy of Sanguinius's Blood]'s eyes lit up: "Who?"
"A player named [How Can You Manage Governance While Surrounded by Bugs]."
[Want to Stroll Among the Sea of Stars] couldn't suppress a smile as she said the ID:
"He's currently a supervisory commissioner for some department in the Augustus Valley."
[For the Regent Yellow Guilliman]: "Supervisory commissioner?"
"Sounds pretty high up there."
"It's alright. It's one of the more promising roles for low-level officials."
[Want to Stroll Among the Sea of Stars] explained:
"According to him, when he first spawned in, he was just a supervisory archives clerk—the absolute bottom of the barrel, just sorting files."
"But one day, a big shot from the provincial government came down for an inspection. He seized the opportunity to say a few choice words, caught the big shot's eye, and got fast-tracked to supervisory commissioner."
[I Eat Tomatoes] was green with envy: "That's insane RNG."
"Luck played a part, sure, but he was also prepared."
[Want to Stroll Among the Sea of Stars] shrugged:
"He said that since he spawned, he spent every single day studying Macragge's laws, administrative procedures, and historical development. He wrote hundreds of thousands of words in notes alone."
"When the opportunity came, he was ready to grab it."
The group fell silent.
In the regional channel, one player couldn't hold back anymore:
"Holy shit, this is way too complicated..."
"Isn't this supposed to be like a video game? Aren't we supposed to be the main characters wherever we go?"
Another player chimed in:
"Yeah!"
"Aren't we supposed to just join the Ultramarines, get the Astartes augmentations, and power-level our way up?"
"Become a Sergeant, then a Company Champion, then a Captain, then the Legion Champion, then the Commander of the Primarch's Honor Guard, and finally follow Guilliman around chopping up daemons??"
[Want to Stroll Among the Sea of Stars] glanced back at the player who spoke, her expression incredibly complex.
Just then, [Sacrifice is the Greatest Loyalty] spoke up in the channel:
"Wake up. It's different here."
"When have we ever been the main characters?"
"Back with the Emperor's Children, we didn't even get as much screen time as the Chaos faction players..."
"All the spotlight went to the actual members of the Emperor's Children, and..."
"Crimson Dawn!"
[Worthy of Sanguinius's Blood] froze for a second, then slowly lowered his head.
A sudden realization hit him.
He and the Inquisitor had been far too naive.
They thought that just because they were players in the Warhammer universe, they could change history and be the main characters.
They thought that if they just worked hard, they could meet Guilliman, meet the Emperor, and become a crucial part of their forces.
Now they understood...
They had to actually grind just to earn an audience with Guilliman and the Emperor?
He silently prayed for the Imperium's Purest Inquisitor.
Here on Macragge, there was at least fairness and equal opportunity guaranteed by the Codex Ultramar.
As long as you were willing to sweat, you had a chance.
But the place the Inquisitor went to...
Holy Terra.
Was there even a single damn thing "holy" about that place?
Holy Terra, the capital of the Imperium of Man.
A place teeming with ancient, hoarding High Lords and crusty aristocrats.
Arguably the place with the most severe class disparity in the entire Imperium.
You could see the resplendent Imperial Palace in all its glory, and right next to it, you'd find the most wretched, destitute refugees scraping by at the very bottom of the hive cities.
A normal person trying to meet the Emperor?
That would probably...
[Worthy of Sanguinius's Blood] didn't dare think about it any further.
He took a deep breath and looked up at the pale blue figure ahead of him.
[Want to Stroll Among the Sea of Stars] was standing at the end of the corridor, looking back at them.
"What are you waiting for?"
She wore a bright smile:
"Weren't you guys trying to get to Macragge?"
"The orbital elevator down to the surface is right up ahead."
"Hurry up, don't dawdle."
[Worthy of Sanguinius's Blood] stepped forward to follow her.
Behind him, over five hundred players filed in.
Looking around at the advanced, bustling environment, and then glancing down at his Imperial Coin balance—a staggering 976,000—he suddenly smiled.
Bring on the sweat!
When it came to grinding, gamers bowed down to absolutely nobody!
The Ultramarines Legion, huh?
Guilliman, huh? Watch me roll a teenage alt and conquer you all!!
I have to show you some hardcore plays, Guilliman!!