Keith seemed to understand the point and added, "If taking off from South Africa, helicopters would enter from the mountainous west or north, but entering from the east requires flying across half of Ezulwini Valley and would enter Matsapha Airport's radar detection range before reaching the presidential palace."

Harrowby frowned and asked, "Can we fly at low altitude to avoid the radar?"

Deng Shiyang extended his hand, pointing to Kwaluseni, east of the presidential palace, and said, "This area has a widely dispersed population, and even if we avoid radar, the engine noise won’t escape the ears of people on the ground."

Keith approached the TV screen, estimated the actual distance to scale, and said, "Just fly straight through. It’s only about ten minutes; even if they spot us, they won’t have time to react."

Deng Shiyang replied, "If it’s an airstrike or direct helicopter assault, ten minutes is indeed too short for a response. But deploying mortar teams takes time, and if the helicopter carrying the mortar teams is detected, the element of surprise is lost."

Keith listened and nodded slightly.

"Can we go around?" Harrowby asked.

Keith stared at the mountainous region beside Ezulwini Valley for a while before responding, "That’s hard to say. I’d need to know the population distribution in that area before I can plan the flight route. I hope you can get a recent satellite image of Swaziland—Google Earth only has one from 2007."

"I’ll get it for you in two days." Harrowby nodded and said, "I can get an image from seven days ago."

"Perfect." Keith smiled, satisfied, and said, "Before we start the operation, I hope you can also provide the latest satellite images."

"No problem." Harrowby readily agreed, then looked at Deng Shiyang and said, "Now, let's set aside the deployment issue and discuss the plan to attack the presidential palace."

Keith echoed, "I want to hear what someone who has been there thinks."

Seeing that the two shared the same opinion, Deng Shiyang didn’t decline. He pointed at the laptop on the desk and asked, "May I?"

Harrowby nodded and then stood up to let him take the seat at the desk.

Deng Shiyang sat down, operated the laptop to enlarge the satellite image, and said, "The terrain to the east, south, and west of the presidential palace is open, and it’s near the highway, making it unsuitable for concealment and retreat."

The other two nodded.

He moved the mouse cursor to the mountains north of the presidential palace and said, "The only suitable place to set up mortars is here." Then, slowly moving the cursor, he pointed to a ridge and said, "This ridge is two miles from the presidential palace and has no trees, making it ideal both as a mortar position and landing zone."

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

He dragged the mouse to center the presidential palace on the screen, then zoomed in, saying, "I mentioned in the report that the presidential guard's barracks are in the front yard, made of plastic and fiberglass, and have low resistance to attacks."

The other two nodded again.

"My idea is to conduct a mortar barrage on the front yard late at night." He paused and pointed with the cursor to several concrete buildings along the fence, adding, "Considering firepower density and lethality, I think we need at least three mortars, with a caliber no less than eighty-one millimeters."

Harrowby rubbed his chin and asked, "How much ammunition do you need?"

"The front yard of the presidential palace covers about five acres..." Deng Shiyang thought for a moment and replied, "I need 200 high-explosive rounds. A skilled mortar crew can fire seven to eight rounds per minute, and three mortars can expend all the ammunition in just ten minutes. The helicopter lands after the barrage to send in the assault team."

"Good idea. What comes next?"

"If all goes well, the presidential guard will have been largely neutralized by the mortar barrage, and the remaining enemies can be eliminated with helicopter fire support before taking over the presidential residence." Deng Shiyang paused, then looked at Keith with a questioning expression and said, "Regarding personnel and equipment, someone here is more qualified to speak than I am."

Harrowby shifted his gaze to Keith.

Keith seemed prepared. He smiled and replied, "If the mortar barrage works as expected, along with helicopter fire support, the assault team doesn't need to be large." He paused and continued, "I think forty-eight men should be enough, divided into four twelve-man squads. They’ll be equipped with automatic rifles, rocket launchers, and a large number of grenades. If possible, get a few grenade launchers and body armor for them."

Harrowby seemed to be calculating something and remained silent.

"Of course, we also need a reserve team to counter any government backlash."

"With the assault team and the mortar crew, we need at least five helicopters." Harrowby muttered to himself.

"Right!" Keith acknowledged and then said to Harrowby, "We’ll recruit men in Angola and go to Botswana for short-term training. Before the operation starts, we’ll head to the sea base by ship. Can you arrange that?"

Harrowby nodded and replied, "No problem. My company recently got a contract to train the anti-poaching unit in Chobe National Park, so setting up a temporary training camp there won’t be an issue."

"As for the weapons, I plan to buy them locally in South Africa. I suggest bringing Du Preez into this—he knows a guy from the 32nd Battalion who’s a capable arms dealer."

"You two are in charge. Decide for yourselves who to bring in as deputies."

"Thank you." Keith nodded, then continued, "Besides the weapons, transportation is the biggest challenge. I don’t think we should rent anything because those shipping companies dealing in illegal business can’t be trusted and are prone to leaks. It’d be better to spend extra money to buy the necessary helicopters and ships, then hire pilots and sailors. We can always sell them later, and it won’t cost much more."

"That would require more initial funding. You need to create a detailed financial budget and timeline—this is a specific request from the client."

Keith pursed his lips and answered, "We don’t have all the intelligence yet, so the budget will have to wait until the plan is finalized."

"I understand. Just a reminder." Harrowby picked up his coffee cup, took a sip, only to find it empty. He glanced at the wall clock and yawned, saying, "Since the general strategy is set, let’s end it here for today."

After hearing this, Deng Shiyang and Keith wisely stood up to leave.

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32nd Battalion: Nicknamed the "Buffalo Battalion," it was a special unit under the South African Defence Force composed mainly of foreigners. The battalion initially assisted UNITA in Angola's counter-insurgency efforts and was later deployed domestically to suppress opposition forces after South West Africa gained independence. It was infamous during the apartheid era and was disbanded in 1993.