The transport craft slowly descended onto the battleship's landing pad. It had been towed in, so it came to a very steady stop.
Then the hatch opened.
A blue-skinned, elegantly dressed alien slowly emerged from the transport craft.
Following behind him was an attendant wearing the combat armor of the Tau civilization's Fire Clan.
The attendant carried no weapon, which was nothing unusual. What mattered was that he was a male human.
Aside from this one male human attendant, the Tau brought nothing else—not even servants to wait on him.
The two of them disembarked from the transport craft openly and with perfect composure. Then the ship's counter-boarding team stepped forward and made way for them.
He Chou, who had been assigned by the team leader to receive the alien diplomats because he had voiced objections, stood there waiting.
"Hello," He Chou greeted them.
He had done his homework before coming. He knew that the Tau were a caste-based civilization with strict clan divisions. Just as the Fire Clan served as warriors, another clan was responsible for diplomacy.
The Tau before him was clearly a member of the Water Clan, the caste responsible for diplomacy.
As for the human beside him...
The information the Tau had recently volunteered during their exchanges with the Tyran Navy had not explained where these humans came from.
But the Imperium had encountered the Tau long ago.
Thanks to intelligence rapidly coordinated by Ultramar, He Chou was able to learn this human's identity.
Gou Weisa.
That was what humans who had defected to the Tau civilization were called.
They were still treated with some dignity. They were not captive slaves, at least not in terms of their treatment.
Gou Weisa could even use Tau equipment, eat Tau food, and still worship the human Emperor.
It