The staff was cold in Julius's hand.

Not the cold of iron or silver, but of something far heavier—responsibility, veiled in reverence.

The ceremonial transfer, meant as a sign of humility and unity, felt instead like a new weight being laid across his already-burdened shoulders.

And yet… he took it.

Held it for a breath longer than protocol demanded.

Then turned away.

"Serena,"

he said at last, his voice clipped.

"Begin preparation for full annexation protocols. The southern faith courts must be reorganized by week's end. Move civic engineers into position."

"Yes, Imperator."

She did not ask if he was certain.

She already knew he was.

Jesus III stepped back, his hands clasped in front of him.

"My retinue awaits outside. I shall return to the chapel complex on the outer forum. There, we'll begin the ecclesiastical revisions."

Julius gave a curt nod.

"Remain under guard. Not for your protection—but for our people's."

The Pontiff offered no offense.

"Wise."

He turned and departed as silently as he had come, robes whispering along the floor like wind through parchment.

The doors closed behind him.

Silence returned.

And with it, the ache behind Julius's eyes.

He turned back toward the throne but didn't sit.

Instead, he walked to the open marble windows that overlooked the southern reaches of the city—staring far into the distance, as if he could sight the Principality itself.

Far beyond those hills, the banners of Christ still fluttered.

And now, they were his banners too.

With the system map being pulled up Julius watched as the map slowly updated itself, with the Empires boundaries surging across the previously darkened lands of the Principality like a raging fire, illuminating the lands in the glow of the system light.

"Damn it all,"

he muttered.

Serena stepped beside him.

"You should rest."

"I should be in Francia,"

he snapped.

She said nothing.

"I should be burying that cursed Prince in a battlefield trench and breaking the last of the high nobles. I should be crowning myself not just Emperor—but Conqueror of all Western lands."

"And yet,"

she replied softly,

"you're here, for your people."

The quiet settled again.

"You know what happens if I leave now,"

he said.

She nodded.

"The transition will fracture. Governors will be pulled between mandates. The southern towns will riot. Churches will split."

"And if I stay,"

Julius muttered,

"I delay the deathblow in the west, reinforcements are needed but now we need to send forces to police the new holdings and prevent possible uprising by the knight orders who have only sworn allegiance to the church."

"You gained a province without lifting a sword,"

she countered.

"And this gives us a chance to send a message to every neutral state watching."

"That I can be reasoned with?"

"That your empire is inevitable,"

she corrected.

"That you are willing to rule peacefully without harming the people, unlike Visigoth that only knows how to conquer and oppress."

Julius let the idea settle.

Still, his fingers tightened around the Pontiff's staff.

"Where are we with troop recruitment?"

Serena was already ahead of him.

"Four legions remain stationed in Provincia Carthago with all having almost completed their required training to meet your standards to be called men of the legion. Another two are already marching west to provide reinforcements to the ongoing war in Francia."

"Hmm, we'll need all four to remain in Carthago to manage the former Ramas, and the new Militant orders of Christendom..."

"Heh..."

Serena cleared her throat a little.

"yes?"

"There are other legions also availible though... they have special circumstances."

"Oh?"

"We have three Iron Maiden legions, approximately 15,000 women who have completed legionaire training and have been organized into home guard units awaiting deployment."

"Hmm, well that's good to know but, as much as i'd like to deploy them, the principality is a fairly masoginistic state, and if its found we sent in all-female legions to police them, that is likely to ignite further conflict."

"What if we do a mix then?, send in two of the Iron Maidens, and have one of your own Praetorian legions join them, then even if trouble is stirred up, your elites will be there to be able to handle it and the ladies will get the chance to work alongside your elites and become far more experienced than if they had been dispatched to the warfront."

Julius leaned back resting against a column pondering over the suggestion, he'd still be able to send a few legions on to the warfront preventing its collapse all while increasing his overall force of arms by introducing his Iron Maidens, would possibly show this world the possibility of female warriors and double his possible warforce, meanwhile the other nations were likely to look down on Romanus, further repressing their own women, if they lower their guards or worse descend into becoming animals just cause there are women on the battlefield they'll learn real quick that one should fear the wrath of women warriors more than the blades of men.

Serena across from him crossed her arms, thanks to their current location the entire set of legions can arrive in the principality within a week.

Nodding his head after thinking it through, this was the best option, while he could introduce the Iron maidens into the Francian front he was more worried of the ladies being affected mentally by the horrors of war, but if they could ease into it by training further with his Praetorian guard in establishing control and order in the Principality they would be ready for future missions of putting down insurrections or even participating in future wars.

He turned, walking out of the throne room with Serena and a small troop of administrators until they reached the war table in his command room.

The holographic map flickered to life in front of his view as he approached, its glowing projection now laced with soft golden outlines—Christendom's provinces marked with pulsing rings of opportunity, using his system make as a reference, Julius began pondering on the area map before him.