Seeing Feisal's nervous face, Soshyan leaned back slightly, put his arms on the armrests, and glanced at Tyra in the observation window in the distance.
"I don't want anyone to die. I just want the Mantis Warriors to get the justice they deserve. This is my promise."
Hearing this, Tirian smiled and asked in a playful tone:
"Have they been treated unfairly?"
"They were the first battle groups to participate in this Maelstrom Expedition. They have washed away their past shame with blood in the battle."
"Is it the matter of canceling the Atonement Expedition? Do we need to mobilize so many troops? It's just a matter of a piece of official document, and they don't need to come to Terra at all."
Soshyan pursed his lips.
"Also. They hope to get their Chapter Master back."
"Oh~"
Tyrion nodded forcefully and drawled.
Then the conversation changed.
“What does this have to do with justice?”
"They have made contributions, made sacrifices, and made many military exploits, which more than offset the mistakes they made in the past."
"I told you, canceling the Atonement Expedition is just a matter of an official document."
"The Mantis Warriors are willing to offer their sacrifice in exchange for the return of the Neoterra Chapter Master. This is no more than a request."
"Isn't it too much?"
Tyrion tilted his head and asked meaningfully:
"Chapter Master Soshyan, how much do you know about Imperial law?"
"not much."
"So do you know what the consequences are under Imperial law once a citizen commits a third-degree felony?"
Soshyan was silent. At this time, a war group servant came over with a plate. There were two iron cans on the plate. Tirian was not polite, took the iron can, opened the ring, and drank. Take a sip of this Chapter's specialty drink, fresh from the freezer.
"Well, this stuff has a very unique taste. I thought Space Marines drank something very exciting."
As he spoke, he glanced at the logo on the jar, a red ant bull wearing a chef's apron holding a thumbs up.
"Red ant bull? It's really interesting. It seems that space warriors also have a rich food culture. Ah, to get back to the subject, once a citizen commits a third-degree felony, first he will be executed, and then his immediate family members will become slaves or servitors, and relatives within three generations will be forced to do so. Fifty years of labor.”
Soshyan frowned slightly.
"Does it feel cruel?"
"It has nothing to do with what we're talking about."
"Look, if a mortal makes a mistake and needs his loved ones to accept such a severe punishment to make amends, then the crime caused by Neotra far exceeds any laws of the empire."
"The dedication of the Mantis warriors is also far beyond what mortals can do."
"So is this what you call justice? An acknowledgment of the inequality in the value of life between Space Marines and ordinary people?"
Soshyan's palms suddenly grasped the metal armrest of the chair, and the surrounding Terminator guards also slightly tilted their heads towards the imperial prime minister, dissatisfaction brewing in the air.
"So, are you here to argue with me?"
"No, I'm just here to indicate your attitude. It seems that in your opinion, a person who has been declared a traitor can be released with merit. Perhaps it is because you are used to this kind of thing? Just like the Blood Knight That? But is it justice? No, never, it's a privilege and you had a great victory so you think you should have that privilege."
"Prime Minister, I must point out that you and the high lords are able to boast and point out the country on Terra because of the warriors fighting bloody battles on the battlefield. They should not be treated so harshly."
"Then Chapter Commander Soshyan, when one day a Chaos traitor who killed the soldiers of your Chapter comes to you with the head of another Chaos traitor, will you forgive him just like that?"
Soshyan turned his head and looked at the other party with somewhat annoyed eyes.
"I must point out that your Excellency is confusing the situation. The leader of the Neoterra Chapter was only deceived. He never really betrayed the empire, otherwise he would not surrender."
Tyrion smiled and drank the last sip of the drink in the jar, then threw it aside under the worried look of the waitress. The jar hit the ground with a series of clanking sounds.
"Captain Soshyan, could you please tell me if everyone you ordered to be killed during the expedition was guilty?"
"you--"
"Chapter Commander, please don't get angry. I'm not saying this to ridicule you. In fact, just looking at the results, the lives consumed by this expedition have been far lower than the council's expectations. There should be no one who can do it better than you. Better."
When the other party said this, Soshiyang couldn't help but turn his eyes back to Terra angrily.
"I say this because I hope Chapter Leader you can understand one thing. Why are the laws of the Empire so strict? Why can't the Empire easily forgive traitors? Why does the Empire always seem to punish everyone? The reason is simple. The Empire does Without motivating everyone, the empire has no way to treat everyone well, and the empire has no ability to distinguish who is right and who is wrong. For our infinitely proliferating and infinitely chaotic race, only punishment can be as close to fairness and justice as possible. , and only by punishing us can everyone feel the real existence of the political entity "Empire", so do you also have the illusion that for sacrifice, the Empire will just pass by with a light word, but for betrayal, the Empire will pursue it relentlessly ? But it’s not because anyone ‘thought’ it would be like this, but the true status quo of the empire determines that it can only be like this. The laws of the empire are never just, and its value is only used. Fear and authority have a chokehold on everyone.”
Soshyan's expression slowly darkened, but it was not gloomy.
But his mind didn't change.
"What happened to the Mantis Warrior is excusable after all. What's the point of keeping Neotra locked up? Why can't he continue to create value for the Emperor?"
"What you said is correct, but who can guarantee that he will not make a second mistake?"
"I'm willing to guarantee it."
"Ah, why do you want to vouch for him?"
"This is my promise."
Tyrion spread his hands.
"Now, this is the problem. As you said before, Neotra was just deceived, so why was he deceived? Because of the oath and promise between the Astartes brothers, this is a...ah , Personally, I actually appreciate the feeling of brotherhood and comradeship among Astartes, because it is one of the few feelings among humans that can transcend identity, interests, and even positions, but equally, this kind of love is very rare. It can easily make people dizzy and act impulsively."
Then the old bureaucrat lowered his voice.
"Captain Soshyan, do you know about the Fist of Paragon?"
Soshyan narrowed his eyes and did not answer immediately, but Tireen smiled and waved his hand.
"Don't get me wrong, I have no intention of tracing back those ancient histories. This is just what I accidentally saw in the historical document reports compiled by the Assassin's Court."
"Know."
"Then I think you must have understood the intentions of the high lords. They are not targeting the Mantis Warriors or you, but... the Mantis Warriors have already made such a mistake once. For various reasons, we should avoid them. It’s a second offense, are you right?”
Soshiyang raised his head slightly. He had already tasted some of it. He could only say that this Tirian was worthy of being a roly-poly who had been ups and downs in the imperial officialdom for hundreds of years. For the first time, he was at a disadvantage in a verbal confrontation with a mortal.
The other party had said so much to me before, but he only conveyed a few meanings——
According to the legal rules of the empire, Neoterra's crimes can never be exonerated with merit.
But in reality, it is not impossible to show mercy outside the law, but there is a condition, that is, this 'favour' cannot be given to the Mantis Warriors by Soshyan.
The reason why Soshyan cannot be allowed to show kindness to the Mantis Warrior is because the Mantis Warrior made mistakes before because of "brotherhood". The high lords want to prevent the second Huron from appearing because of "brotherhood", and it is The more powerful Huron.
After realizing these points, Soshiyang had some concerns in his mind, so he turned around and said:
"I understand, then Prime Minister Tyrion, I will not bring the Mantis Warriors to Terra, but you must ensure that their demands can be met after I leave the solar system."
Tyrion's fat, round face showed a slightly funny smile and nodded.
"no problem."
(End of chapter)
