"Know the enemy and know yourself, and you need not fear the result of a hundred battles," Solo replied calmly.
"What do you think the enemy's next move will be?" Commander Tirymaki asked.
Solo pondered for a moment before saying slowly, "The Confederacy of Independent Systems is pouring all its resources into shifting its industries to military production. They clearly didn't anticipate the Republic's massive and well-trained military force; they originally thought they'd only have to deal with the outdated ships of the Judicial Forces.
Though caught off guard now, they'll quickly adapt.
In a few weeks, our sector will see millions of new combat robots and hundreds of warships.
When that happens, the brass will undoubtedly order us to attack Separatist-controlled planets, and they'll fight desperately to drive us out of the territories we've seized. It's going to be chaos."
Major General Surabai joined the conversation. "There's a rumor that the Separatist Army's supreme commander is a man called Grievous. Do you know anything about him?"
"I can't be certain, but... I've heard he's a ruthless character," Solo said with a smile, taking a sip from his glass. His voice carried a note of uncertainty as he continued, "I've only heard rumors, but he's said to be a genius commander himself. Almost his entire body is composed of prosthetic limbs, making him more like a robot. I think it was due to some accident, but I don't have the details."
The other officers wore expressions of solemnity mixed with disdain. Perhaps only when facing General Grievous himself would they truly feel fear.
At that moment, Rinuan recalled their previous meeting and asked curiously, "Why isn't Captain Ragnos here?"
"He's overseeing the loading of personnel and equipment," Solo explained. "We need to return to Donovia as soon as possible to organize patrols for the trade routes."
"What about your apprentice?"
"Ahsoka is downstairs," Solo said, pointing to a table on the lower level. "She's scarfing down sweets with a group of young officers."
The officers chuckled, and the atmosphere lightened considerably.
"General, your achievements are truly remarkable," Vice Admiral Liburn said, his tone now deferential. "Defeating overwhelming enemy forces, capturing Donovia, and establishing a stable fuel supply line—this has been a tremendous help to us."
"It's true that fuel from Donovia meets nearly all of our fleet's needs," Colonel Tamauskas of Logistics agreed. "The other fuel factories we control are all over 140 parsecs away, outside our sector. Losing Donovia would have catastrophic consequences."
"Looks like I'll be kept busy, then," Solo said with a wry smile, spreading his hands. "We didn't get much in terms of reinforcements."
Everyone turned to Tamauskas, awaiting his explanation.
"There's nothing I can do about it," Tamauskas said helplessly, spreading his hands. "Seven Clone Trooper Battalions originally arrived, but the higher-ups reassigned four of them. I barely managed to keep the remaining three. Most of the technical equipment was also requisitioned. However, we can allocate a few special units and a Consular-class frigate to you. That's all we can manage. The entire Twelfth Sector Fleet only received 120 Hailfire-class ships, roughly equivalent to twenty Star Corps and sixteen Infantry Legions. The remaining Clone Trooper units will have to be transported on passenger liners and cargo ships, which severely limits our transport capacity."
"In terms of technology and equipment, what I've captured so far is sufficient," Solo said. "The troops are a bit short-handed, but I've reprogrammed the captured Separatist robots and integrated them into the unit. They're junk, but losing them is better than losing clone troopers."
"You're actually using enemy robots?" Captain Detroit exclaimed, astonished.
"It's all I've got. We have to make do," Solo shrugged.
"Since you're on the front lines, we can allocate you a Dreadnought-class heavy cruiser and a Lantilles Militia Regiment," Major General Surabai said.
"That would be fantastic," Solo's eyes lit up. "But is this a new model of the Dreadnought-class? I haven't seen this type before."
"It's an old ship, purchased thirty years ago, but it's been modernized at an LKC Corporation shipyard," Surabai explained. "Originally, the shipyard specialized in civilian vessels, so the engineers focused on reliability. The refitted Dreadnought-class has sharper, more angular lines, but its performance is solid. Their GG Language motto is 'We make interstellar travel less thrilling.'"
He turned to Captain Falk, who had remained silent until now. "Let Captain Falk give you the detailed specifications of the ship. He will be its commanding officer."
Captain Falk immediately stood and began his detailed explanation. "This 'Dreadnought-class' heavy cruiser is 600 meters long and has a crew of 9,000, a reduction of 6,000 from the original design. Its armaments include ten heavy turbolaser cannons, twenty quad turbolaser cannons, ten light turbolaser cannons, and twenty-four twin light laser cannons. The cargo bay has been converted into a fighter hangar, accommodating two squadrons of Z-95 fighters (AF-4 variant), totaling twenty-four aircraft."
Solo nodded in satisfaction. "Its performance is quite impressive."
"This ship was retrofit based on the plans from the Katan Fleet, which originally required only around 2,000 crew members," Surabaya added.
Solo frowned, suddenly remembering something.
The Katan Fleet, as far as he knew, was the Lost Blade Fleet.
The conversation shifted to another topic. "I also need some capable officers," Solo said. "While Clone Troopers are reliable, their thinking is too rigid. They lack top-tier specialists and lack combat experience."
The officers nodded in agreement.
Vice Admiral Liburn turned to Rinuan. "Is a group of Officer Academy interns on your ship today?"
Rinuan nodded. "Yes, they're downstairs celebrating their commissioning."
"General, we can select a few from this group to assign to you," Liburn said. "These officers haven't been officially commissioned yet, and three more groups of graduates will be reporting in soon. Would you like to review their files?"
Solo shook his head firmly. "No need. I've already made my selection."
Everyone froze, exchanging surprised glances.
"Who did you choose?" Rinuan asked curiously.
"The four young officers sitting with my apprentice downstairs," Solo replied, pointing toward the lower deck. "Anyone who can get along with Ahsoka should be able to adapt to my command style."
Rinuan followed Solo's gaze and saw the shocked expressions on the four young officers' faces, inwardly chuckling. *This General moves with lightning speed. How fascinating. He's definitely worth observing closely.*
Solo pressed the communication button on his arm armor, activating the channel. "Ahsoka."
"Master, what is it?" Ahsoka immediately looked up, scanning the area before spotting Solo by the second-floor balcony railing. She waved excitedly.
"Tell the four officers with you to pack their bags and report to the *Dingyuan* immediately. From now on, they'll be under my command."
"Really?!" Ahsoka jumped up, overjoyed. "Yes!"
The surrounding young officers looked on with envious expressions.
As the officers began discussing military details only they understood, Solo leaned back in a luxurious armchair, quietly savoring his wine.
He wasn't usually a drinker, but during these rare moments of relaxation, a fine wine always brought a pleasant sense of contentment.
Even more wondrous was that, as a Jedi, he could perceive the wine's richness and aroma through the Force. This experience was unimaginable to ordinary people; such a flavor simply didn't exist on Earth.
A thought flashed through his mind: "While I still have the chance to enjoy this, I should relax and savor it. Who knows when I'll be able to sit so peacefully again?"
Indeed, in this war-torn Galactic conflict, no one could predict the future. All Solo knew for certain was that the path ahead was filled with unknowns and challenges.
Please Support me by becoming my patreon member and get 10+ chapters.
[email protected]/Ajal69
change @ with a
Thank You to Those who joined my