Starting from the Planetary Governor

Chapter 1256: Chapter 683, Seating Order

Salius strode on the Golden Pass.

Two of Otaubis’ trusted aides followed behind, heads held high, eyes straight ahead; the two in front quickened their pace and pushed open the heavy doors so that Salius could stride through without stopping.

Stepping into the meeting hall, Salius swept his gaze around, and his steps involuntarily became lighter.

He saw a large meeting table, where all were people of significance.

The one seated at the head looked like an ordinary person; it was Salius’s first time seeing him in person, but he had seen the portraits and images many times before.

That was Gu Hang, Marshal of the Imperial Star Realm Army, Southern Commander of the Iron Armor Campaign, Dragonhawk Star Domain Leader, Alliance Governor, and a legally recognized Alpha-class Psychic by the Imperial Psychic Association.

Seated to Gu Hang’s immediate left was someone Salius also recognized.

That was his predecessor, the first Western Commander, and the Lord of the Phoenix who founded the Phoenix Legion, Su Lie.

Earlier, Salius had already received news of the Phoenix Legion’s reemergence and decisive impact on the battlefield.

Salius was indeed surprised by the Phoenix Legion’s return.

Though unclear how it was achieved, it was evidently credited to Gu Hang.

The second on the left was another Interstellar Warrior. He wore black power armor painted in black, with a white and black cross insignia on his shoulder.

That was Xi Rui, Fourth Fleet Marshal of the Black Cross Legion. He was the number two figure in the now-defunct Northern Line Army, second only to Marshal Le Luwa, and was the highest commander of the remaining Northern Line Army forces at the time and now.

The second seat to Gu Hang’s right was occupied by the Phoenix Battalion Leader, Martins Salas, who had fought alongside him over the past year and saved his life, someone he admired greatly.

Most of the others, he didn’t recognize. However, though he might not recognize the people, the symbols and decorations on them were quite obvious.

Among them were high-ranking Judgment Chiefs from the Anti-Extraterrestrial Alliance, Sisterhood leaders from the Battle Nun Association, an Imperial Navy Admiral…

The most numerous were leaders of Starfighter Battle Groups.

Such a distinguished group of leaders could actually be described as a “crowd.”

Not mentioning Martins first, Blood Shark, and the Spear of the Dragon King’s Battle Group Leaders, Yeerma Youyin and Tai Shichen, had all fought alongside him on the Western battlefield and were acquaintances.

Aside from that, two other Battle Group Leaders wore color schemes: the upper part in orange-red and the lower in bronze belonging to the New World’s Torch, and the orange-red and black scheme of the Fury Flame Battle Group.

These groups, sentenced to penitential expeditions, now also served under the Alliance. Their Battle Group Leaders were no longer the originals but were promoted newcomers. Regardless of how inexperienced these new Battle Group Leaders were, or how low their status as Atonement Battle Groups was, the title of Battle Group Leader denoted control over an entire standard Starfighter Battle Group, already a precious force. Not to mention, they had Gu Hang’s backing.

Setting everything else aside, the last point alone was enough to grant them a seat at the table.

Such a gathering already sufficed to halt Salius’s wind-like steps.

The sound of Interstellar Warriors stepping on the floor was usually very heavy. They could, of course, control their steps to run quickly without making a sound during stealth operations. However, typically, they deliberately stepped heavily to assert their strength and intimidate opponents and enemies.

The same principle applied in political and military discussions.

Originally, Salius acted instinctively that way. But now, he had to relax his steps slightly.

At the same time, he noticed that there were only two vacant seats at the long table.

One was to Gu Hang’s direct right.

The other was directly across from Gu Hang, at the other end of the table.

Now here was the choice before Salius.

Both seats were available to him, and he could choose either.

Choosing directly across from Gu Hang, at the other end of the table, appeared to position him as an equal to Gu Hang.

Salius had initially intended to do this.

But now, he felt some hesitation.

Should he actually sit to Gu Hang’s immediate right?

The seat certainly held prestige, sitting directly across from Su Lie wouldn’t undermine Salius at all. However, sitting there would implicitly suggest that after the merger of the West and South Lines, his status would be just beneath Gu Hang’s, with Southern Commander Gu Hang being the one in charge, not him.

This did not align with his initial thinking.

The West Line, unlike the now-devastated and almost non-existent North Line, still retained substantial combat strength. Furthermore, speaking of achievements, the West Line eliminated the primary rebel leader in this Iron Armor uprising, Marshal Humphrey Paolo of the Iron Armor Legion himself.

Wouldn’t this suffice to make the West Line equal to the South Line?

On reflection, perhaps not.

Without Martins’ support, the West Line’s outcome might have been slightly better than the North Line’s, yet it would be limited.

If not for Martins’ timely intervention during the crucial final battle, Salius himself might have fallen victim to Humphrey Paolo’s blade.

Speaking of merits in the Western battle, could Salius truly claim to have achieved more than Martins?

It’s hard to say so with certainty.

To exaggerate, saying it was fifty-fifty wouldn’t be too far-fetched.

Under such circumstances, with Martins resting in the second seat to the right, what should Salius do?

Moreover, Martins was, in essence, still a subordinate in Gu Hang’s Southern Army.

Sitting across from Su Lie, his predecessor as Western Commander and a founder of a Battle Group, wouldn’t diminish him.

Salius internally debated for quite a while before finally making a decision.

He chose to sit in the first seat to Gu Hang’s right, following his instincts.

“I am not acknowledging Gu Hang’s absolute leadership.”

“I am merely showing him respect.”

“Otherwise, sitting directly opposite might seem too antagonistic, not conducive to unity…”

“With Su Lie, Xi Rui, and Martins sitting behind, me sitting in front shouldn’t appear embarrassing, right?”

In a flash, many thoughts crossed his mind, and he gradually transitioned from unease to peace of mind.

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!