Meng Jiao looked at the bright-eyed Woflin general and gave an awkward, troubled smile. "Well, General, I'm not good with words, and I'm a simple-minded man. Honestly, anything too theoretical is beyond my understanding. From now on, I suppose you'll have to discuss it with Simon and General Lumba instead."
Brigadier General Takai shrugged and grinned. "That's fine. I'll have plenty of time from now on."
"...General, to be honest, if you were human, and if you hadn't been born in the Empire, you might have become a scholar."
"Ahahahaha! Brother Meng, you keep saying you're not good with words, but you sure know how to flatter someone!"
"No, I mean it."
"Isn't it all the more flattering because you mean it?" the Woflin general said with a laugh.
Then he sobered, his expression turning grave. "But, Brother Meng Jiao, if I wanted to know how you moved your troops nearby and launched a surprise attack right under our noses, you wouldn't tell me, would you?"
Meng Jiao offered an apologetic smile, but said nothing.
He couldn't exactly tell the man that the White Star Merchants' Association from the Empire had hosted a banquet that evening, and that General Lumba, the mayor of Marshal Li Gele, had attended with representatives of the city's residents, bringing wine and fresh food. After all, the banquet had a commercial purpose, and many of the attendees were representatives of merchants who had come from the Empire proper through the Gate of Glory. Wasn't it perfectly reasonable for General Lumba, as mayor, to bring local specialties?
Naturally, three armored vehicles carrying a hundred assault troops and two psychics, painted in flashy, cute designs and outfitted with cargo compartments, had been inconspicuous enough when they joined the convoy.
Besides, ninety-nine percent of this planet's surface was