"Avitus."
Caelan's desk was piled high with case files on House Avitus, among which the information on the current head of the house, Olus Avitus, was the most detailed.
This house was very ancient; its genealogy could be traced back thousands of years to the era of humanity's first colonization of Macragge.
Although all Macraggians could trace their bloodlines back to ancient Terra, with the blood of commoners and nobles being equally old, only the most prominent nobles possessed the ability to record and properly preserve their history.
Over the long millennia, while the number of five hundred seats in the Senate had never increased or decreased, some illustrious ancient families had inevitably been lost to the currents of history.
The fact that House Avitus had perfectly preserved thousands of years of history precisely proved that they had been among Macragge's rulers since the very beginning of the colony.
This also aligned with the meaning of the name Avitus. In ancient Terran language, Avitus meant 'ancient and grandfatherly'.
In the Warhammer universe, any name could hold hidden implications, and this name almost immediately made Caelan think of Nurgle.
However, Tzeentch's involvement couldn't be ruled out either; it was even possible all four Gods were involved.
Olus Avitus, currently nine years old, was one of the youngest senators in Macragge's Senate.
During his early youth, his performance among his peers hadn't been particularly outstanding.
He wasn't a brilliantly talented leader, but he also wasn't at the bottom.
He could only be considered average, forever undistinguished among the children of other nobles.
His interactions with other noble children were quite distant, and no one was known to have a particularly close private relationship with him.
The turning point in his fate occurred one year ago.
The previous head of the house had passed away suddenly at the age of thirty-five, significantly lower than the average noble lifespan of forty, triggering a fierce struggle for succession.
In this internal family conflict, the originally unremarkable Olus unexpectedly distinguished himself.
His father had died in an accident two years prior, which allowed Olus to inherit his father's political legacy.
Through a series of ingenious alliances and frequently occurring 'accidents', Olus successfully forced his uncles to withdraw from the competition for various reasons, ultimately ascending to the position of family head and claiming one of the five hundred Senate seats.
From that point on, Olus's personality became noticeably different from before.
Previously low-key and reserved, he was now sharp and aggressive.
This change was particularly evident during the last Senate meeting, where he even dared to openly question Konnor in front of everyone.
In others' eyes, Olus's arrogance could be easily explained by youthful success.
A person's mindset changes with their position. Olus had been low-key because he had to endure patiently. Now that he was at the core of power, it was only natural for him to show his edge and climb by any means necessary.
However, Caelan always felt that Olus's transformation was unusual.
Caelan knew he was now seeking answers with a preconceived notion, viewing Avitus through a biased lens. But such caution was necessary when dealing with Chaos.
Still, he was only suspicious. Without evidence, Caelan would not easily convict Avitus.
Admittedly, he could simply kill Avitus and save himself the trouble.
But if he killed this time based on suspicion, what about next time?
This time it was Avitus; what if the scope expanded to an entire city next time? Would he then have to adopt the policy of "better to kill a thousand innocents than let one guilty escape"?
If the scope of suspicion expanded further to an entire world, would he then have to issue an Exterminatus on that world?
The corruption of humanity often begins with small compromises, which then lead to breaking boundaries.
While teaching the Primarchs to grow, Caelan had also been growing himself.
He knew that once a bottom line is crossed, it only gets lower, until you can never go back.
Caelan couldn't be sure if this, too, was an elaborate conspiracy woven by Tzeentch. The only thing he could do was try his best not to fall for it.
"It seems I must confirm this myself," Caelan muttered to himself.
To obtain the truth, he couldn't rely on baseless speculation. He had to go and ask Avitus.
He hadn't chosen to accompany Guilliman on the northern expedition, but had instead decided to remain behind in Macragge.
This was both at Guilliman's request and because Caelan's intuition told him that the danger wasn't outside the city, but within it.
Guilliman was a primarch; he could protect himself in danger.
But Konnor and Euten were only mortals, very fragile. A single assassination attempt could take their lives.
Caelan's psychic prowess had grown increasingly profound and unpredictable. His psychic perception was like an invisible spiderweb covering the entire city; any minute psychic reaction would trigger the web's senses.
Furthermore, "Father." Guilliman's voice seemed to whisper in Caelan's ear.
Caelan replied, "I'm here."
"How are things inside the city?"
"As usual. I plan to personally investigate some clues."
Even with Guilliman a thousand miles away, Caelan could still communicate with him in real time.
This had nothing to do with psychic powers, but technology. Everything was under control!
"Be cautious, Father. If there is indeed a conspiracy behind him, it must be aimed at us. He is merely a pawn."
"Don't worry. I know my limits."
…...
Olus Avitus lay on the lawn of his garden, gazing at the clear, boundless sky.
He slowly extended his right hand towards the heavens and clenched it into a fist, as if trying to grasp the sun itself.
"I have been reborn. In this life, I will take back everything that belongs to me!"
He was not a native Macraggian.
Three years ago, he had stumbled into this unfamiliar world through some twist of fate.
Initially, he thought he had traveled to a parallel world similar to ancient Rome.
It took him several weeks to gradually sort out the original owner's interpersonal relationships.
At that time, he was still confident, believing that with his knowledge beyond this era, he would eventually reach the pinnacle of power as Consul and lead the Macraggians in a rapid march into the industrial age.
However, when he witnessed these Romans holding swords in one hand and lasguns in the other, with some even piloting starships into space.
He finally realized this world was not simple.
To uncover the truth, he spent an entire year immersed in the library, diligently learning and studying the history, finally piecing together the whole story.
"So I didn't travel to a parallel world, but into the future," Olus murmured to himself.
Human civilization in the interstellar age divided eras by millennia.
Macragge's ancestors came from Terra but had lost contact with Terra for certain reasons.
This explained why Macragge was so peculiar: possessing highly advanced interstellar technology, yet practicing the ancient Roman Republic system.
But the political traditions of Western civilization had always been republicanism and parliamentarism; later eras merely built upon and refined these foundations.
The East, on the other hand, had the opposite tradition, having long revered centralized, unified rule.
Olus had once entertained thoughts of giving up on himself, planning to live comfortably as a pleasure-seeking wastrel, wasting his days in dissipation.
But fate had other plans. When his father and grandfather met with consecutive misfortunes, his father's old subordinates forcibly thrust him into the spotlight.
Those loyal retainers insisted he compete for the position of family head because he was his father's only heir.
Olus was self-aware. He knew that even inheriting his father's political legacy, he couldn't outmaneuver his scheming uncles.
So he originally only intended to make up the numbers, but unexpectedly,
All his uncles died in a series of successive accidents.
His third uncle was mistaken for a wild boar while hunting and tragically killed by other nobles. His fifth uncle was hit by a chariot and crippled when going out.
His sixth sister, the most outstanding of the younger generation, tripped due to an ingrown toenail while going out and fell to her death.
In short, all the strong competitors died bizarrely, and outsiders, for some reason, mistakenly believed that he had ruthlessly eliminated his uncles.
Olus decided to let the mistake stand, allowing the outside speculation to continue.
The remaining uncles, terrified by Olus's alleged ruthlessness, voluntarily withdrew and sought to ingratiate themselves with him.
And so, quite bewilderingly, he became the head of House Avitus.
After becoming the head, Olus regained his confidence.
There were even rumors circulating about his brilliant and devious strategies. After hearing them repeated, even he started believing them himself.
The taste of power made him crave more. Since the position of family head had been so easily obtained, he naturally set his sights on Macragge's dual Consulship!
"So you're a reincarnator," Caelan muttered to himself.
The simplest way to get the truth was, of course, to ask Avitus.
Avitus wouldn't willingly tell him, but Caelan was a psyker. He could peek into Avitus's thoughts.
Caelan rarely used this power because he constantly restrained himself.
Otherwise, once he became addicted to peeking into others' secrets, he would never be able to turn back.
If everyone was laid bare before him like glass, life would be far too boring.
"Who are you?" Olus's expression changed dramatically. He stared in terror at the man who had appeared out of nowhere. "How did you get in? Guards! Where are the guards?"
"Do not panic. I mean you no harm. I am here to help you."
Caelan's voice seemed to carry some calming power. "Do you still remember how you crossed into this world?"
Caelan only roughly scanned Olus's surface memories, not delving deeply. Rashly peering into a soul that might be contaminated by Chaos was too dangerous.
Olus's breathing gradually steadied, and he unconsciously answered the question:
"Of course I remember. At that time, there was a saying online about a great being called the God of All Knowledge. There was a popular game called 'Ask the God'."
"On September 9th, 9999 AD, at 9:09 PM, you light nine candles at the 9 o'clock direction in your home and devoutly pray to the God of All Knowledge, and you would get an answer to one question."
"I did it, and then I ended up here."
"Why did you try it?"
Olus answered, "A perfect moment filled with so many nines happens only once in a lifetime. Of course, I had to try it. There wasn't any real danger anyway."
"What was your occupation before you crossed over?"
"I wasn't working yet. I was a university student."
"Well, that explains it."
Caelan shook his head. "Do you have any ideas about the accidents that befell your uncles?"
Olus asked, puzzled, "Weren't they just coincidences?"
"When it looks too much like a coincidence, it's probably not a coincidence."
"I don't understand."
"Never mind. You don't need to understand."
In Caelan's psychic perception, Olus had already taken on a different form.
His physical appearance was still that of Olus, the noble youth of Macragge, but his soul was a completely unfamiliar face.
Olus lay on the ground, his eyes rolling back. His soul and his 'figure' had both been rendered unconscious by the psychic shock.
Caelan was helping him.
The laws of the Warp were completely different from those of the material universe. There, the concept of time did not exist. Cases of time-space travel using the Warp as a medium were not uncommon.
In 40k, the Inquisition even had specific organizations like the Ordo Chronos to handle such anomalous cases.
The mechanism of Olus's transmigration was similar to the principle of human teleportation technology.
Teleportation disassembles the body, transmits it to the destination, reassembles it, while simultaneously launching the soul into the Warp and bouncing it back into the reassembled body.
Olus's crossing experience involved using prayer to launch his soul into the Warp and then bounce it back into the body of the youth named Olus Avitus.
Although the principles were similar, the key difference lay in the duration of exposure.
The Imperium's teleportation technology only exposed one to the Warp for an instant, rendering the risk of corruption virtually zero.
But Olus was different. In terms of material universe chronology, he had crossed twenty millennia. How long had he been exposed to the Warp?
Although he hadn't yet shown any physical or mental mutations, he was still very dangerous.
The safest option would be to crush Olus right now.
But if he did that, the clues would be completely broken.
"This is difficult!"
Caelan muttered to himself, then suddenly called out, seemingly without context, "Claudia."
A faint light-blue psychic ripple appeared in the air, and a young woman in a purple dress gracefully curtsied.
"My Lord."
The newcomer was Caelan's acquaintance from Olympia.
"Lilith, when did you arrive?"
"Three years ago."
"You didn't stay in Olympia?"
"My Lord commanded me to follow you. Lady Calliphone is protected by other sisters."
"You arrived before I even came?"
Lilith respectfully bowed her head, "Only after you descended into this world could I track you here."
"How did Claudia find me? Did she place some kind of navigation beacon on me?"
"That is thanks to your kids, my Lord."
"The Primarchs' prophecies and art of numerology reveal a general direction for us. We only need to send out enough sisters, and we can eventually find you."
"I see."
What else could Caelan say?
"I cannot see if there is any corruption on him. Do you have any other methods for deeper screening while ensuring safety?"
"My Lord, as far back as the Golden Age, our ancestors were experts in combating psykers and Chaos."
Lilith's answer was very artful. She would not, and dared not, deceive Caelan with lies.
But she also couldn't reveal the complete truth.
That was something only her Master was qualified to divulge to Caelan.
Nevertheless, in humanity's Golden Age, their ancestors were experts in this field, and they themselves were too.
Lilith's psychic power seeped into Olus's body like a murmuring stream, acting like delicate scalpels, peeling apart his soul layer by layer without damaging its foundation.
When the integrity of his soul was breached, something that had been hiding deep within Olus's soul was suddenly exposed to view!
"Hee hee." It let out a childishly innocent smile, showing gleaming white teeth, and stretched out its arms towards Caelan.
But before it could make any move, the psychic powers of Lilith and Caelan simultaneously restrained it.
'Was this thing parasitic by its own accord, or was it a generous gift from a certain God of All Knowledge?'
'Although outwardly no abnormality could be seen, a Warp entity was living inside him!'
If Caelan hadn't noticed Olus because of his outstanding behavior, he would never have paid him any attention.
'How many such people were there?'
Questions surged endlessly in Caelan's mind, and he felt a deep chill.
'Tzeentch's reach was far too long!'
"My Lord, it is a Warp entity, but not a demon in the conventional sense."
The Warp contained not only demons but also many 'neutral' Warp entities.
Demons belong to the Gods, while Warp entities are born in the Warp but are unrelated to the Gods, such as Void Whales, Psychneuein, Enslavers, etc.
Although these things often cause even greater harm to the material universe than demons, they are indeed not demons.
Caelan noticed, "They seem to be bound?"
The creature was furry, its body and eyes both blue. It looked like a harmless little pet.
But a neutral Warp entity had bonded with a mortal.
Was this a Thousand Son or a Possessed Marine?
Thousand Sons have Tutelaries, while Possessed Marines achieve perfect symbiosis with a demon.
Both seem harmless, but in essence, they are both deceptions of Chaos.
In Chaos's plan, so-called neutrality can also be betrayed at any time.
The Thousand Sons initially trusted their Tutelaries too, but the Tutelaries eventually betrayed their masters, turning on them.
And Possessed Marines are just bait thrown out by the Gods; except for the initial Company of the Serrated Sun, all later Possessed Marines are merely hosts for demons.
The bizarre deaths of Olus's uncles were likely caused by this entity.
It was just a coincidence.
A low-level psyker can make themselves lucky; this entity simply needed to make Olus even luckier.
But making someone lucky correspondingly makes others unlucky.
If you win the lottery, the person who would have won loses that wealth, or has a large portion of it taken away.
For Olus to inherit the position of family head, his uncles had to be unlucky and die bizarrely.
That answered the question of the coincidence. But how many people like Olus were there?
Even if these people were only mortals, and the harm they could cause was small,
With the help of these 'Tutelaries', they could probably rise to high positions easily.
Once in high positions, the damage they could inflict on the Imperium of Man would be immeasurable!
If, by chance, any of these people were to become Space Marines, the consequences would be even more catastrophic!
"Lilith, do you have any other sisters in Macragge?"
Lilith nodded respectfully, "Both Consul Konnor and Lady Euten are protected by my sisters."
What Caelan could think of, Claudia could naturally think of too.
It wasn't that they shared telepathy, but when it came to rigorously guarding against Chaos, Claudia would only be more diligent than Caelan.
She had to weld the doors shut to prevent anyone from getting through without paying.
.....
30 Chapters [email protected]/DaoistJinzu