No comment gets a wide grin from Claude since that really does sum it up, doesn't it? "For what it's worth, I won't be taking offense if you do say we're behind. It's rather true for Fodlan, even if some of the advances turned out to be intentionally suppressed. Regardless, there's lots we have yet to learn of given what I've found here."

Some of that is a distraction because Claude needs to consider how to answer Shepard's next question. Normally - what with he's already told others here and there in different ways - it wouldn't be a question that'd give him any pause. But there's still the issue of what he'd rather the Free Cities not learn about him; even that operates on the assumption they don't already know something from bringing him here. The gun in his hand is studied again while he weighs options back and forth before eventually looking up with his answer ready.

"I was. I was in charge of tactics and strategy and I planned what was to be done and when. It was a rather sizable army so needless to say it also involved a lot of coordination and dealing with some... interesting personalities." There's a bit of a grin with that since that's an understatement. "Mostly from afar, since those I worked with directly were far less combative even when rightfully disagreeing with me."

He'll leave it there unless Shepard has other questions about that admittedly vague answer, if only because he's also curious. "What was yours like?"