Theo became the new king of Ceren.
But instead of just being the king or taking the throne- he instead struck a deal with them.
Or rather, he was in the middle of striking that deal.
Planet Vordak was rich in precious gemstones. People used these as plain jewelry and they weren't that special to them- however to humans, these were precious things.
So, humans abused the Sahalla by providing drugs and alcohol as gifts and then extorted the jewelry as money from them.
What started as a rather profitable business on both sides- ended up being corrupted a lot sooner than anyone could ever expect.
So, the trickery on the Sahalla's part was understandable.