The conversation ended with a grim nod from Caetrax.

Sabellus said nothing more, only saluted and turned to begin relaying orders to the staff.

Julius remained at the map table a moment longer, fingers pressed to the edge, knuckles white.

Germania wasn't lost—yet.

But the seeds had been sown, and whether they would grow into banners of resistance or roots of loyalty, only time would tell.

The next week passed like smoke in wind.

The landscape shifted around him in long stretches of road and rolling earth.

Villages in the forests gave way to cultivated fields.

Fields turned into towns, roads widened.

By the fourth day, the air began to change—not just in warmth, but in scent.

The tang of steel and pine gave way to dust, bread ovens, and the faint perfume of civilization.

By the eighth day, the banners of Romanus snapped in the wind ahead of him.

His escort had swelled as the journey neared its end, with additional units joining from forward camps and waystations ensuring their Emperor was guarenteed protection on his way to the heart of the Empire.

When he crested the final hill overlooking the Arx Regalis—the Eternal City—he did so at the head of a procession nearly five hundred strong.

Legionnaires.

Praetorians.

Administrative aides.

Engineers.

Even a few Root agents, riding under cover as quartermasters.

The city sprawled out before him like a jewel cut into the land.

It was not the Old Rome, not truly, but its bones were there.

Reforged.

Retooled.

This land had been tooled to appear just as rome had, with the seven hills having been made with earth brought in from other regions.

Where a simple village within the grand walls created by Julius system one stood now great structures were being created.

The greatest still were those created by Julius the Cathedral, Barracks, Garrison, Fort, Senate, Library, and of course the Imperial Palace itself.

Even the Senate's new hall glimmered beside the Temple of Unity, whose open roof shone with mirrored brass that caught the sun and scattered its warmth across the adjacent avenues.

His heart was put at ease as he watched the walls getting larged until they blocked his view of the city beyond.

White stone.

Imperial red banners curling in the breeze.

And beneath it, hidden from all save the trusted few—vaults designed to house relics not simply as objects of reverence, but as instruments of control and domination.

Julius passed through the gates without fanfare, just as he had left.

His people watched, but did not cheer.

They bowed.

They whispered.

The Emperor had returned.

And with him—change.

The relics were delivered under heavy guard.

The blackwood box containing the Codex Vitae et Veritas was carried by two Root handlers and flanked by an entire wing of the imperial praetorians.

It was taken directly into the lower sanctum of the Basilica Nova, where Julius had already designated its resting place—a chamber carved beneath the temple floor, sealed in imperial wards, sanctified in both Roman rite and Christian blessing as scribed by the system during the Basilicas creation.

A union of old gods and new projecting freedom of religion.

The Chalice of Concordia was delivered to the central administrative court—the curia of domestic affairs.

There, it would sit in the center of the Orator's Well, a fountain chamber where debates were held and judgments passed.

Already its aura had begun to work.

The clerks who'd fought over tax policy were now speaking calmly.

Even the more volatile members of the civil staff had grown subdued.

He did not equip the Seal of the Mediator.

Not yet.

He kept it close, but its use would come only when needed.

Some powers were best left sheathed.

Julius stood alone in the Sanctum Arx that evening, high above the city.

It was his private place—one that overlooked not just the great spires, but the roads that stretched out like veins to every corner of his domain.

The sky was blood-orange as the sun dipped behind the mountains.

Behind him, the relics had been cataloged.

with his spoils interred within the Eternal City, Julius's racing heart finally was allowed to settle, his mind turning once more to the battlefields of Francia.

A far away land where his legions were still fighting and dying on his orders.

Where Yuri had been taken away, and possibly turned into an enemy by means he did not yet know.

There had always been methods within the game to convert an enemies heroes and cause them to switch sides or even betray your own, but that was only generally in the case where the target heroes loyalty was low to begin with, Yuri's loyalty was far from low.

But even as an expert or even sage of the game itself, he was far from complete in his knowledge of its inner workings, countless relics and artifacts were reviewed in his mind only to reveal that whatever had been done to Yuri was something new to him.

But this was still a problem for the future, and when he found out how it happened he'd try to use that same power to bring her back.

Having followed the team assigned to socket the Codex, Julius stood within the Bascilica, the heart of religious belief within the empire.

As he gazed around at its holy edifeces he noticed there was one new one he did not recnognize from the game lore of pagan, or even christian beliefs.

The statue he assumed was of himself, but on a grander scale, though something was different about this statue.

All the other gods, and goddess were given statues but they lacked a certain luster whereas this one of himself almost glowed like it was radiating sunlight, stepping closer he read the carving below the statue,.

His people had marked this statue as the Conquering god, while the other Sol became the 2nd sun of Rome which was viewed by many as being unimportant or overshadowed by the better known Sol Indignes, the Deified Sun, while he was known by his people as Sol Invictus, The conquering Sun.

There was a cult mechanic in the game but it almost always led to ruin so Julius had never explored it much in favor of more controllable military and domestic measures.

Deciding to investigate further later on he turned from his own visage, and entered the underground vault.

Arriving he quickly sighted the socketed Codex which was floating above a pedestal at the center of the room.

Julius approached it and without doing anything the book turned to face him, its cover opening and pages unfurling.

Without hesitation Julius checked the item and saw that the plan had worked the Bascillica was a far grander structure to socket within compared to the dinky shrine from hence he pulled the codex from.

Quickly manipulating the pages and making his selections;

Pax Imperatoria | Peace By The Sword

- Boosts public order through the presence of the full fledged legions, suppresses local resistance to occupation.

Edictum Agrarium | Fields Of The Empire

- Increases crop yields by 20%, while decreasing the risk of crop failure and famine.

Imperium Aeternum | Eternal Rome Doctrine

- Faster cultural assimilation, and promotion of imperial customs and laws.

Hospitium Populi | Shelter For The Displaced

- Encourages refugee settlement, 25% boost to population growth and public order during peacetime.