A faint smirk touched his lips as he added, “I’ve even had the Minitour clan and their forces seal off every region surrounding the Holy Region. No one’s getting in or out—not with the kind of phenomenon stirring there. I won’t allow anyone to snoop around and risk leaking what’s happening.”

The four listened carefully as the Star Emperor spoke. They nodded silently in agreement with the first part of his statement, having already committed to the plan. However, the last part caught them off guard—they had completely forgotten about that detail.

Still, they couldn’t help but offer silent praise to the Star Emperor for wisely using whatever resources he had at hand to minimize the fallout. After all, they shared some of the blame. Each of them recalled how they had urged the Star Emperor to deploy his fleet first, citing his empire’s proximity to both the Minotaur clans and the Holy Region. That part had been true—but now it seemed their impatience might end up costing them dearly.

Thinking on this, a vague sense of guilt stirred within them. After all, they had essentially used the Star Emperor’s fleet to “test the waters.” But who could’ve predicted such an outcome?

The realization stung, and their frustration only deepened—especially toward the Minotaur clan. All four silently fumed, their thoughts aligned: If that lowly race hadn’t given us false information, none of this would have happened…

But even as they all shared the same thought—What can we do now? The bullet’s already been fired, and it’s far beyond our reach to stop it—they couldn’t help but quietly commend the Star Emperor. At the very least, he had taken swift, appropriate action to contain the situation, ensuring that nothing critical would leak beyond the Holy Region.

The Star Emperor, upon hearing their subtle praise, merely waved it off with a light chuckle. “Haha, thank you for the compliment, gentlemen,” he said.

“But the credit doesn’t belong to me. That was not my idea. It was actually proposed by one of my subordinates—Duke Flexym. He brought the situation to my attention and laid out this approach.”

Association Master Benjamin couldn’t help but let out a deep sigh as he spoke aloud with a wry chuckle, “Looks like it’s not just the Star Emperor who is capable—your subordinates are just as remarkable. Truly, the saying holds: only capable people with capable teams can truly rise.”

He paused, his gaze thoughtful. “You, Star Emperor, are indeed a capable leader—something many would agree on, just by looking at the astonishing prosperity and rapid growth your empire has seen since you ascended the throne.

And now, with such competent subordinates at your side, it seems the Star Empire—and your people—will only continue to flourish.”

A faint heaviness crept into his voice as he added, half in jest and half in genuine lament, “If only I had such capable and loyal people around me… I wouldn’t have to shoulder everything on my own.”

He ended with a tired smile, silently praising the Star Emperor for being surrounded by like-minded, competent allies—and not what he bitterly thought of as “deadweight teammates.”

The other three couldn’t agree more with Association Master Benjamin. Even the Dark Elven Empress let out a sigh and muttered, “Just thinking about it pains me… if only I had more people like that around me.”

The Star Emperor, hearing the compliments directed his way, simply waved them off again with a light smile before steering the conversation back to the matter at hand. “Alright then—are we all in agreement on this plan of mine? If so, please raise your hands. And if any of you have changes you wish to suggest, speak now.”

The others exchanged glances, then nodded. One by one, all four raised their hands—along with the Star Emperor himself, making five in total. It was clear: full agreement.

Guild Master Titan Dwarva spoke first, “As for changes to the plan—forget it. It’s already solid as it is. There’s no need to complicate it and risk losing the only advantage it currently holds.”

The others nodded in agreement. “Indeed, no need to modify anything,” one of them added.

The Dark Elven Empress followed with a firm tone, “It would only make things worse, just as the Guild Master said. So—no changes. Let’s move forward with it as planned.”

“Ah yes, there is one thing I’d like to suggest changing,” said the Mountain Dwarf Clan Elder, stroking his beard thoughtfully. “It’s not directly related to the plan itself, but it’s still important.”

Hearing this, the others turned toward him with curious expressions—it was clear they wanted to know what he was referring to. Even the Star Emperor leaned in slightly, his interest piqued. “Oh? And what changes are we talking about?” he asked, clearly intrigued.

The Mountain Dwarf Elder looked around at their expectant faces and gave a small chuckle. “Oh, nothing too complicated. In fact, I’m surprised no one brought it up earlier. I almost dismissed it myself. What I’m referring to is the logistical side of things.

Now that our fleets will be departing in different directions, with extended travel times, several operational elements will need to be adjusted.”

He spoke more seriously now. “We’ll need to prepare additional supplies and resources to sustain the fleets during the longer voyages. Weapon resupply, fuel reserves, even spare parts for critical systems—all of it needs to be increased.

There’s also the matter of command relays and central coordination in case unexpected situations arise. All of this could delay our deployment by two to three days… and that’s if everything proceeds swiftly.”

As he finished, a collective silence fell. The others stared at him, mouths agape—just wide enough to fit an egg, stunned by the obvious oversight.

It was true—this wasn’t some minor detail. Logistics were the backbone of any fleet movement. And yet, somehow, they had all missed it in their rush to approve the plan.

While the strategy itself was sound, they had completely overlooked this glaring flaw—an operational weak point that could cripple the entire effort if left unaddressed.

Of course, it wasn’t as if they wouldn’t have realized it eventually. Logistics were crucial—they all knew that. They would have been made aware of the issue sooner or later. Most likely, it would have come up after this meeting, when their subordinates reviewed the plan and pointed out the glaring oversight.

After all, none of them would be personally leading the fleets. Once their officers began preparing for deployment, someone would have inevitably raised concerns about supply lines, travel duration, and resource management.

And when that happened… they would’ve been embarrassed. Deeply so. Missing something so basic would have been a huge loss of face in front of their own people.

Worse, they would have had to reconvene another high-level meeting just to announce delays and patch over a mistake that should never have been missed in the first place.

Thinking of this, the four leaders turned their gazes toward the Mountain Dwarf Elder with newfound appreciation. Whether he realized it or not, he had just saved them from a major political blunder—and a good deal of embarrassment. For that alone, they were silently, genuinely grateful.

The Dark Elven Empress couldn’t help but speak up, her voice laced with genuine appreciation as she looked toward the Mountain Dwarf Elder. “It’s a good thing we have someone of your stature among us. Without your insight, we would’ve walked straight into a major blunder—one that could have caused nearly all of us to lose face in front of our subordinates. That kind of embarrassment would’ve been disastrous.”

As she spoke, her gaze shifted toward the two Guild and Association Masters. After all, they were the ones who would’ve been most affected if the Elder hadn’t spoken up. As for the Star Emperor—his fleet was already deployed. He wouldn’t have suffered the consequences of this particular oversight.

Meanwhile, the Star Emperor looked at the Mountain Dwarf Elder, surprised. A thoughtful sigh escaped him as he considered what had just been said.Looks like I need to revisit my planning. For such a critical aspect to slip by… That’s not something I can afford, no matter how much is going on.

Aloud, he echoed the Empress’s words. “I couldn’t agree more. Having someone of your stature among us truly is a blessing. If not for you, we would’ve made a grave mistake today.”

He gave a faint, resigned smile.Sigh… No way around it. Even as we age, there’s always more to learn.

“Alright, alright—enough with the praise,” the Mountain Dwarf Elder said with a small wave of his hand, a faint grin tugging at the corner of his lips. “You all would’ve realized it eventually. I just happened to say it first, that’s all.”

He glanced around the room, his tone turning slightly more serious. “And besides, we’re allies, aren’t we? Any mistake you make would end up dragging me down as well. So of course I’d point it out. Your interests are tied to mine—we’re all in the same boat here.”

His words were simple, but they carried weight.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep