From beginning to end, the battlecruiser Rabbit seemed less like it was conducting a cautious military reconnaissance and more like it was dancing a hot number, striking a pose right in front of the enemy.
Whatever its actual effectiveness, the story and legend of it were already off the charts.
For "Commander" Major General Jaeger Sobeck, even if he dropped dead the next day, this operation would provide future historians and artists with plenty of material.
Of course, no one in the future would know that he himself had spent the whole time sitting silently in his comfortable, luxurious commander's chair, watching his subordinates pull off this grand spectacle.
When Rabbit reentered the jump route, everyone finally let their emotions out. Some even started cheering.
Sobeck looked down at Captain Pegase, seated on the second level of the bridge. The man still carried himself with the composed, refined manner of an academic, but Sobeck could clearly see a look of pride on his face.
Was this what an academic was supposed to be? Wasn't he just a lunatic?
...So what kind of eccentrics had I ended up with for captains?!
He was starting to miss Captain Red Mountain, who had retired and gone home to raise horses. Though the old Kieyan sailor often showed him no respect and would take jabs at him out of nowhere, deep down he was even more cautious than Sobeck. Wouldn't that make him a better partner?
But by then, it was too late to say anything. When Rabbit returned to the DL277 system, the entire fleet greeted it with rapturous enthusiasm.
Even General Farrell, who was always stern and severe, called personally, beaming as he offered his praise. "You're good. You really are as capable as they say."
"Well, actually, this was not your