"I am Charlotte — once the fleet commander of the Warhammer Revolutionary Army's Third Corps, Seventh Fleet. …"
In the skies above several hundred places upon the planet there appeared a huge holographic image — that was the unmanned holographic-projection robots projecting out Charlotte's image, in this present moment, along with the sound besides.
It let the people in very nearly every place upon this planet hear it.
And apart from this, this video would, besides, be sent out to every comm network upon this planet.
"Charlotte! It truly is Charlotte!" In General Ted's trembling voice was an agitation hard to hold in check.
Never in his wildest dreams had he imagined that the daughter he'd lost would, of all things, appear once more before his very eyes.
…
A little over an hour later.
A shuttle-craft, bearing General Ted, made its way toward that crimson-red interstellar warship.
General Ted gulped, looking somewhat tense.
On the one hand, there was the coming-back-to-life of his own daughter; on the other, there was his curiosity toward this mysterious and mighty interstellar fleet.
Very soon, the shuttle-craft reached the hangar, and the gate opened.
General Ted caught sight of his daughter Charlotte, clad in white military uniform; and at Charlotte's side there was, besides, his other daughter — Midai'er.
"Charlotte… Midai'er!" General Ted, agitated, walked briskly down and, in one motion, gathered these two daughters of his into his arms.
"Honored Father!"
Charlotte forcibly held down the agitated feeling within her; Midai'er, outright, wept for very joy.
But General Ted very soon brought his emotions under control — for he'd caught sight of a man in military uniform standing behind Charlotte.
Though he was of the human race.
Yet, in his standing as chieftain of the White Tiger tribe, General Ted sensed the hidden aura upon this man — a thing exceedingly terrifying!
For all the world like a giant beast at rest.
"Honored Father, allow me to introduce. This is my commander; he…" Here Charlotte faltered; all at once she knew not how she ought to introduce Zhao Chen's standing.
For some of Zhao Chen's identities were of a fairly confidential nature; Charlotte didn't know which could be spoken of and which could not, and she looked toward Zhao Chen.
Zhao Chen, smiling, stepped forward and extended his hand.
"Supreme Commander of the Owl Dragon Legion, Zhao Chen. Very glad to be able to meet His Excellency the chieftain of the White Tiger tribe."
"The Owl Dragon Legion? That'd be this interstellar fleet, then?" General Ted gripped Zhao Chen's hand together with his own.
"That's right." Zhao Chen nodded.
"I've never heard of this force within the Warhammer Interstellar Commonwealth." General Ted was puzzled.
"We come from the Starlight Empire; I'm a lord of the Starlight Empire — only, my circumstances are somewhat particular, and it's not convenient, just now, to explain it all clearly. But this His Excellency the chieftain may rest assured of: we are friends," Zhao Chen said with a well-meaning laugh.
"My deepest thanks to your fleet for helping us." In General Ted's heart were a great many doubts; but since the other party's words had already hinted that it wasn't convenient to speak, he asked no further either.
At least in the present situation, it was the other party who'd helped him; and were there truly some scheme afoot — well, think of it: what did the White Tiger tribe have left now?
No interstellar fleet worth the name; no territory; nothing but a pack of homeless curs, and no more.
"Chieftain Ted hasn't seen Charlotte in a very long while; there ought to be a great many words to say. Let's find a fitting place to talk." Zhao Chen invited.
The starship dining hall — within a private room.
Chieftain Ted's tail, at this moment, began to sway to and fro against his own will; feeling somewhat embarrassed, he forcibly pressed the tail down beneath his backside — but the sound issuing from within his belly nonetheless laid bare his thoughts of the moment.
It wasn't that Chieftain Ted paid no heed to his bearing.
It was simply that the things laid out upon this table roused Chieftain Ted's very instincts.
A whole table of whole-fish banquet — dishes great and small, as many as 30 of them; even the very air seemed to be suffused with the fragrance of fish.
Above all that enormous fish-head in the middle: the head a full half-meter high, drizzled over with a broth of overflowing fragrance, and rich, plump meat-juices besides.
Gulp.
Seeing Chieftain Ted's loss of composure, Zhao Chen had long foreseen it — for all the dishes he'd arranged were ones Charlotte was fond of.
Sure enough: as the daughter is, so must the father be.
"No need to stand on ceremony; please, help yourself." Zhao Chen, seeing that Chieftain Ted was slow to take up his chopsticks, invited him.
"This… this is far too sumptuous — all of it natural foodstuffs…" Chieftain Ted gulped.
Even in his high standing as chieftain, it had already been a great many years since he'd enjoyed food so sumptuous — and in such quantity, besides…
Far too extravagant.
"It's nothing; it's only a bit much in quantity. The dishes are all the standard issue for us starship crew," Zhao Chen said, mild and unruffled.
"Standard issue for the crew?" Chieftain Ted didn't believe it — food this extravagant, how could it possibly be standard issue.
"It truly is! I saw the crew outside, when they were resting — they all eat these; every month they have a set meal-standard. My goodness — I do so envy Sister Charlotte, getting to work here. By the look of it, Sister Charlotte seems even to have put on 10 catties," Midai'er said outright.
Charlotte was as though thunderstruck, her tail standing bolt upright all over; the motion she'd been about to make — picking up a fish — froze mid-way.
She shot a glare at this little sister of hers, and thereafter, in secret, gave her own waist a feel — truly put on 10 catties?
It couldn't be…
Just think of it: these two years' time she'd spent in the Owl Dragon Legion, three meals a day… five… seven meals?
Charlotte cast a sidelong glance at Zhao Chen, and thought to herself in secret: the Lord Commander wouldn't find me too fat, would he…
No good!
She couldn't go on indulging herself like this.
She had to slim down!
She had to keep her appetite in check!
But…
Charlotte looked at the sumptuous whole-fish banquet before her, and her tail drooped down, spiritless and dispirited.
"Fat? I feel Charlotte's just fine, the way she is now," Zhao Chen said offhandedly, off to the side.
When Charlotte first came, she'd in fact been very thin, very slight.
This while past, her weight had indeed increased no little; but because what she ate was fish, her figure was still kept quite well — one might even say her charm had grown no small amount over when she first came.
Adding to that the treatment she'd undergone in the medical ship, the scars upon her skin had all vanished; her skin had turned so fine a puff might break it.
Even the places on her body where the white fur grew — the fur's color had bettered a great deal.
One had only to look at these three White Tiger beast-folk here to know it: of them, Charlotte's fur-color was the finest!
"Midai'er — no rudeness!" Chieftain Ted glared at his younger daughter.
Midai'er let her ears droop.
"Let's talk as we eat." Zhao Chen took the initiative to take up his chopsticks.
Charlotte wavered a moment; perhaps on account of Zhao Chen's consoling words just now, she nonetheless resolved to first enjoy to the full this meal before her, and consider the matter of slimming down afterward.
Chieftain Ted, too, took up his chopsticks, and savored this sumptuous, delectable fare.
Over the course of this meal, Chieftain Ted came, besides, to understand Charlotte's experiences this while past; he sighed over his daughter's great good fortune to be alive, and at the same time was grateful for Zhao Chen's life-saving grace.
Zhao Chen, too, came to understand in broad strokes the present situation within Warhammer, along with the present circumstances of Chieftain Ted and his people.