Boer militia captain: "General, you may not know that the Griqualand Republic is already part of Britain's Cape Colony. If you withdraw from the territory of the Griqualand Republic now, we can pretend nothing ever happened."
Naldovich's face darkened. "Are you threatening the great Kingdom of East Africa?"
"That is not our intention. We are merely stating a fact. After all, Britain has the final say in the Griqualand Republic now. If your country wishes to annex Griqualand, I believe it is the British who should be worried, not us."
Though his words were crude, the reasoning was sound. The Griqualand Republic was now effectively a local government under Cape Colony. Decision-making power lay in Cape Town; at most, Griqualand could fight for a few special privileges.
This put Naldovich in quite a difficult position. Just as he was at a loss over how to handle the matter, the main force caught up from behind.
"Naldovich, what happened? Why has your unit stopped here instead of continuing forward?" Naldovich's superior, Second Brigade Commander Griffin, came over and asked.
"Reporting to the brigade commander! We ran into a minor problem..." Naldovich recounted what had just happened to Griffin.
Griffin said, "I see. You need not concern yourself with this. I'll handle it."
With that, Griffin walked up to the Boer militia. "Are you soldiers of this so-called Griqualand Republic?"
Seeing the opposing force grow in number put considerable pressure on the Boer militia. The militia captain took a deep breath, then said neither humbly nor arrogantly, "Yes, General. We are militiamen of the Griqualand Republic."
Griffin said, "Very well. Whether you represent Griqualand or Cape Town, what comes next is no longer something a small fry like you can participate in. Therefore, I advise you to lay down your weapons and