“Aah, the wolf of Kastagir, just the lady I was hoping to meet” 
Cornelius almost had to shout to be heard over the constant droning of wagon wheels, horses and men stomping through the landscape. He sat atop the first of the baggage wagons, on his wondrous enchanted chest. In one hand he held his staff upright like a standard bearer, but without the flag. In the other he held what seemed to be a chalice (non-regimental issue) and every now and then he took a sip of something that made his lips curl ever so slightly. 
He had observed the strategist from his vantage point during the king's speech, curious about how she'd react. 
He was quite fond of the woman, and secretly treasured each chance he had to speak with her. Not only was her mind as sharp as a knife, but her tongue was as well. On top of that he absolutely adored the fact that she'd risen to such a position of power as a female. Her strategies were successful often enough and some of the other military commanders loathed her for it. Every time the king asked Cornelius for advice, he tended to favour lady Ramia. She brought something extra to the table... Subtlety, finesse. Powerful men could be so simple-minded.

“I have spoken with the lord... [loud rumble as the wagon rolls over some rocks] The lord general... [an officer shouts an order, and a choir of sodiers answers] Hold on.”
Cornelius put the chalice down on the chest and with a wave of his hand the clatter and noise of the moving army disappears. The rythmic clop-clop of lady Ramia's mount is the only sound that still lingers. Strangely enough everyone else still trudges on like nothing is wrong. 
A thousand leagues away the otherwise quiet forest erupts with the sound of soldiers marching, metal against sand and rocks, officers bellowing out orders and a constant low grinding of a heavy wagon being dragged uphill. 

“There, now we can speak undisturbed. My ears ache already and we've only just started. As I tried to say earlier, I've spoken with the lord general lssiam about what awaits us on the other end of the Umbrian gap. He feels that we should have the advantage of surprising the Dumnonian army and thus have a few... As he called them 'easy victories' before they are able to regroup and mount a proper defense. Now, of course I would never call the lord general a fool... I'd much rather hear you say it with all those fancy military words you like so much.”