The next day, early morning, the sky was slightly tinged with white, and sunlight spilled across the land, gilding it with a golden edge.
Wang Yu and his group arrived at the Tianqing City pier early. A long queue had already formed at the Tianqing City pier, and behind it were many boats, including quite a few luxurious yachts. Looking out, they were densely packed, dazzling the eyes.
At the end of the pier was a flat beach, where a group of beautiful ladies in swimsuits ran on the sand. Everything seemed so wonderful.
Wang Yu stood on the pier, holding large and small bags, as all sorts of people passed by them.
He remembered when he first arrived in this world, summoned alone and isolated, knocked unconscious before he could even understand anything. At that time, he had nothing, knew nothing, and depended on others for everything. He even thought of using York’s identity to become a Commander.
Now, he was surrounded by many people, such as the gentle and virtuous Glorious, and the innocent and lovely Gascogne, who were currently waiting for him at the port area.
And there was the mature and charming Amagi beside him, leaning on the pier's railing, gazing into the distance, her graceful silhouette inspiring infinite imagination.
There was also little York; he had finally achieved his wish, possessing little York, possessing everything about her.
He could listen to her happily call him Commander every day, watch little York rack her brains to do all sorts of chuunibyou silly things to attract his attention, and accompany her to eat, walk, shop, travel, and play. These were all things little York had once said about the happy life she wanted to have with her Commander.
Thinking of this, a sudden sense of happiness welled up in Wang Yu’s heart.
He looked at the distant sky, which was azure, so blue it seemed capable of washing away all the dust in the world.
“Commander, when are we departing?” York’s voice interrupted Wang Yu’s reverie.
She jumped up on the platform, did a somersault, and as she landed, her body leaned forward, her arm swinging, striking a pose ready for departure.
Looking at York in front of him, Wang Yu couldn’t help but smile slightly. This little girl was as impatient as ever.
Wang Yu walked forward, took York’s small hand, and slowly led her towards Amagi. York followed behind Wang Yu with small, quick steps, constantly looking around, as if searching for something.
“Once everything arrives, we’ll depart.”
Of course, they didn’t just buy gifts yesterday; they bought many, many other miscellaneous items.
Yesterday, Wang Yu and York shopped until dark, returning fully loaded. They also bought many children’s toys, dolls, toy cars, and various other supplies.
After all, the port area’s previous supplies all came from the Headquarters’ supply fleet. It was always the same few items. He had been eating the fleet’s standard meals until now. The taste was okay, but eating it every day, he was almost sick of it.
If it weren’t for little York often foraging to add to his meals, he would have almost forgotten other flavors.
Now that he had the means to shop, he simply bought everything. He couldn’t rely on the Headquarters’ supply fleet at all; it came a few times a month, and the supplies were always the same. To get anything else, he had to apply in advance, which was ridiculous.
Soon, merchants arrived one after another, delivering all the items to the pier as agreed yesterday.
These large and small packages of goods piled up on the pier like a moving small mountain.
With the willingness to pay extra, all shops had added delivery services.
“Do you need to find a cargo ship?”
Just then, a young sailor in a white uniform walked towards them.
“We have transported many goods; it’s absolutely professional. Plus, the cargo ship also has various amusement parks and commercial areas, absolutely great value for money.”
“We will depart with other fleets, with dedicated Ship Girls escorts, and we’ll take the old route, absolutely safe.”
The young man said earnestly, trying hard to sell their cargo ship to Wang Yu, his peripheral vision uncontrollably glancing at Amagi beside him. However, to his disappointment, neither Wang Yu nor Amagi showed much interest in his words.
“No need, we have our own ship. And we definitely aren’t on the same route.” Wang Yu shook his head, declining the young sailor.
Where do you have a ship? Even if you’re refusing, you don’t need to find such an excuse, do you?
The young sailor sighed and was about to turn and leave when he heard Wang Yu say to the excessively beautiful girl:
“Everything is here. Then, I’ll leave it to you, Amagi.”
“My Lord, there’s no need to be so polite. Amagi will make the arrangements.”
The beautiful girl took off her hat, revealing a pair of alluring fox ears. She parted her red lips and softly agreed.
He watched as the girl gracefully climbed over the railing, flipped, and jumped down the pier. Before the people on the pier could react, she plunged directly into the cold seawater.
Go save her!
The young sailor subconsciously lunged towards the pier railing, but soon, he was stunned by the scene before him.
A steel creation hundreds of meters long suddenly appeared before everyone.
This was a giant steel warship, its enormous hull several stories high, densely covered with thick, sturdy gun barrels. On both sides of the warship’s outer shell, rows of sharp autocannons looked fierce and menacing.
And the entire steel behemoth, like a steel beast dominating the sea, floated silently on the surface.
The entire sea level seemed to be slightly raised by this warship.
The young sailor stared blankly at the giant steel warship before him, involuntarily swallowing. His mind was a blank.
Screams erupted on the pier, one after another, ceaseless.
Ship Girlss were not common, and the opportunity for a Ship Girls to reveal her true warship form was even rarer, especially for a capital ship like Amagi.
Therefore, when this scene was displayed before them, their shock was imaginable.
“W-what… what’s going on?” the young sailor stammered, his eyes unblinking, fixed on the steel warship. He felt his throat was unusually dry, and even swallowing saliva became incredibly difficult. “Are you… are you a Commander?”
On the deck of the giant steel warship, a long-haired figure holding a red umbrella slowly turned her head. A pair of clear, transparent purple eyes carried a hint of charm, and a faint smile played on her lips.
“Yes.” Wang Yu nodded.
He looked at the young man who looked like a sailor in front of him and chuckled: “So it’s not an excuse. I really do have a ship, and I don’t need your cargo ship. And, indeed, we’re not going the same way.”
But the young sailor could no longer hear anything. He just stared blankly at the sweet-looking woman in a red dress with long, flowing hair and the steel warship beneath her that seemed to block out all scenery.
Wang Yu shook his head slightly at the dumbfounded young sailor. He had also seen a Ship Girls reveal her true warship form for the first time, but since it was his Ship Girls, he naturally had to put on a calm, accustomed demeanor.
When they departed from the port area earlier, Manjuu had driven the landing craft to see them off, and it couldn’t possibly wait at the pier all this time, having already returned to the port area.
However, with Amagi and York by his side, there was naturally no need to worry about sea navigation.
Although a Ship Girls revealing her true warship form would increase crude oil consumption and also enlarge the target, apart from a slight increase in firepower, it had no practical strategic significance. But occasionally displaying the warship’s grandeur was indeed incredibly cool.
“Indeed, looking at it this way, it’s certainly not something the aura of ship gear can compare to,” Wang Yu murmured, looking up.
This was a different feeling altogether; it lacked some of the harmonious beauty of a Ship Girls and her ship gear but added a sense of invincible dominance.
Moreover, the warship’s size and firepower distribution were much stronger than the warships he remembered.
“Amagi, you seem to be different from the warships in my memory.”
“Hehe, My Lord, Amagi can also improve, you know…” Amagi waved her long sleeve, and the steel warship let out an exhilarating hum.
Soon, the loaded warship slowly started moving, leaving the pier amidst the astonished gazes of the crowd.
York stood on the deck, watching the flower pier slowly recede. Her large, rolling eyes darted around. She kicked off and jumped onto the bow, shouting: “Commander, what is our journey?”
Wang Yu smiled slightly, somewhat chuunibyou-like. He put his finger to the bridge of his nose, then extended it forward, and softly said: “Lady York, our journey is the sea of stars.”
Only the wind carried away strings of bell-like laughter….