CHAPTER 215: CH-211 PREPARATION ARE COMPLETE -2

(The Strategic Command division is a body Kallus created at the same time as the Imperial Command, based on the Red Empress’s analysis and projected future needs. Its purpose is straightforward: to develop strategies for both major battles and internal security. In essence, this body will serve a role similar to the CIA, the FBI, and the military combined—handling any function those institutions would, once it reaches its full strength in the future.)

But that was then, and the situation now is a bit different from when he and the Red Empress first formed the Strategic Command. There are changes he wants to make to it.

Now that Kallus was ready to hand over the Strategic Command to those who would lead it in his stead, he noticed a few things that were out of order—issues that could create problems for him in the future, but could likely be avoided. So he decided to make those changes right then and there.

Since it was too much work and too much power concentrated in a single body, the Strategic Command Division was to be further split into three separate divisions. These divisions would report directly to the Imperial Command and the Imperial Commander.

The restructuring was essentially a division of the Strategic Command’s own framework into three parts for two main reasons: first, to prevent excessive power from being centralized in one body, and second, to improve efficiency by allowing each division to focus on a specific area.

Originally, the idea was for the Strategic Command to be led solely by the Grand Admiral, who would in turn be regulated by the Imperial Command. However, this setup proved to be a distraction for the Grand Admiral, pulling them away from their primary role and expertise—leading in battle—especially under the direct oversight of the Imperial Commander.

While it could be argued that the Grand Admiral was capable of handling these additional responsibilities—particularly with the Void Fleet’s defensive strength of thirty thousand ships—Kallus strongly disagreed. To him, this arrangement was nothing but inefficient and improper.

He had his reasons. First, no matter how skilled or experienced the seven Grand Admirals were—including Ezra, who had once served as the head of a naval force in a previous life—their past environments were too different from their current one. Their previous achievements, impressive as they were, did not directly translate to the present context. At least for now, they could not be burdened with such extensive responsibilities.

Second, running organisation’s that function like the CIA or FBI requires specialised skills outside the expertise of Ezra and the other six Grand admiral.

Second, running organizations that function like the CIA or FBI requires specialized skills beyond the expertise of Ezra and the other six Grand Admirals.

It wasn’t that they lacked those skills entirely, but rather that they weren’t specialized in the fields needed to handle both external and internal matters—areas that demand expertise in surveillance, cyber operations, political manipulation, legal enforcement, and so on. Their true strengths lay in command and combat planning.

And because of this—and because Kallus didn’t want them dealing with matters they weren’t particularly outstanding at, especially when he already had suitable people for exactly that purpose.

Ultimately, the Strategic Command Division would still be led by the Grand Admiral, along with other appointees Kallus had already selected to head the remaining two divisions within the Strategic Command.

In essence, the setup would resemble a council, where the division commanders—currently the Grand Admirals—would collectively decide the best course of action for the three organizations.

The Grand Admiral would retain full control over the Military Division. The second division, named the External Intelligence and Covert Operations Division (EICP), would be led by individuals holding the position of Director. Depending on the scale of operations, there could be multiple Directors. These Directors would hold a rank equal to that of the Grand Admiral and would have total authority over the EICP Division.

The third division, named the Internal Security and Counter-Intelligence Division (ISCI), would likewise be led by Directors of equal rank to the Grand Admiral, and they would have full authority over the ISCI Division.

Even though this created separation—and potentially reduced both the power and decision-making efficiency of the Strategic Council—since the authority that would have rested solely with the Grand Admiral was now divided among three groups, it still had its advantages.

There was another reason Kallus chose not to form three completely separate bodies, but instead kept them as divisions within the Strategic Command: in a spacefaring civilization, the boundaries between military forces and organizations equivalent to the CIA or FBI tend to blur.

After all, there are no fixed borders in space as there are on Earth. In space, the military’s role is not only to defend planets and star systems, but also to strike across vast distances—just as they would be doing in a few hours against the Minotaur Clan.

In other words, the responsibilities of the Military Division and those of the other two divisions inevitably overlap. Keeping them within a single unified body, even as separate divisions, makes it easier for them to work toward their individual objectives while still coordinating seamlessly.

And while the Strategic Command, with its three divisions, worked well in their own individual roles and objectives—still able to coordinate with each other seamlessly, albeit with a bit of inefficiency—they would still get the job done effectively this way, more so than the original structure. This arrangement also eliminated some of the problems Kallus knew would arise from the structure he and the Red Empress had originally built the Strategic Command upon.

As he finalized and laid out the new structure of the Strategic Command to the Red Empress in the Ajax meeting room they now occupied, she nodded continuously while he finished explaining the complete outline—how he wanted the Strategic Command to be, and how it would develop further.

She couldn’t help but say, "You finally realized and made changes, hmm?"

Kallus wore a proud look—proud for creating an organizational body on his own that was not fundamentally flawed but was functional and efficient in the things it was built for. The rest, however, would have to be left to time, to see whether it achieved the objectives he had created it for.

But as he heard the Empress’s words, his proud expression shifted to one of confusion, and he murmured—not to her, but to himself—"Figured it out myself?"

Then Kallus turned to look at her, his eyes seeming to say, What are you on about? I can’t understand—can I have your help? The Red Empress understood his gaze and the message it carried, but she didn’t answer—doing so would make things too easy, and they weren’t difficult to begin with. Instead, she shook her head and said, "Have a guess yourself," her tone laced with amusement.

Kallus, hearing her amused tone, couldn’t help but look at her with an expression that all but accused her of making him suffer on purpose. But the Red Empress didn’t even glance at him this time; her face was turned in another direction as she watched the space outside through the augmented reality display, observing countless warships of their Void Fleet shifting and reforming their formations.

Kallus shook his head, knowing he wouldn’t be getting anything out of her. So, he thought—and thought a lot. In just a few seconds, his mind raced through countless possibilities before things finally clicked, taking him back a few days earlier (or, in universal dimensional time, a few years).

He remembered the time they had been deep in discussion, making major changes to the Void Fleet and creating both the Imperial Command and the Strategic Command in preparation for the fleet’s transition into an empire that would soon come to pass. As the realization struck, he considered that perhaps the Strategic Command they had formed was flawed from the beginning.

But that wasn’t the case with the Imperial Command—it had been perfect. So why was the Strategic Command different? This wasn’t something that should have happened in the first place, especially with the Red Empress beside him, advising him when they created these two major pillars of his fleet.

He finally reached the conclusion that it hadn’t been a mistake or oversight at all, but rather something the Red Empress had perhaps done deliberately—for him to discover and correct on his own, and in the process, learn from the error she might have intentionally allowed to exist.

Realizing this, his face grew a bit hot and red with embarrassment—it had taken him a few years to figure out something so obvious, something he should have thought of long ago.

Meanwhile, back onboard the Obliterator, Kallus had just finished signing a few documents and approving several matters. As he leaned back and tapped into the memory of his primordial spirit, his face once again flushed slightly red. The Red Empress, seated beside him, glanced at him with a knowing smile and said, "Looks like you finally realized what I meant."