Elder brother's garrison

"Ah, that's true."

"Perhaps because of the special location this time, headquarters didn't mind going all out and directly issued a massive order to have all ten naval bases stationed at the same time. You know, putting aside the gap between our rookie naval base and other naval bases, the world's top ten naval bases all have combat power that ordinary naval bases can hardly match. Now that ten naval bases have been mobilized at once, let alone large-scale deep-sea pollution, even filling up the sixth chapter's sea area would be a piece of cake. So, I suppose this large-scale deep-sea pollution should be resolved smoothly."

"Ah, that makes sense!" Upon hearing Lexington's words, Xiaobai felt a huge weight lifted from his heart, and he couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

After Lexington explained it this way, Xiaobai was completely relieved.

In that case, rather than going to Ella's hometown to prepare for a major battle with the Abyssal Fleet, this event is more like me visiting Ella's hometown and casually helping to clear out the Abyssal Fleet in front of her house.

The level of pressure feels completely different now.

Thinking about this, Xiao Bai looked at the black envelope in her hand again, and suddenly she no longer felt that the atmosphere of the envelope was gloomy and dark. Instead, she found it to be quite cute.

“The main fleet of the naval base will take some time to prepare because of its large number,” Lexington said to Xiaobai. “Then Xiaobai, you should pick a few sisters to go to Miss Ella’s hometown first, and then I will send the remaining main fleet sisters from the naval base there.”

"Oh……"

"Little Bai, which sisters do you want to choose first?"

"Hmm... then Lexington, what about you..."

"As for me... um... I'm really sorry, I have to stay here at the naval base." Lexington smiled apologetically.

"Ah...that's right."

"And, Little White."

"Ok?"

"It would be best if Xiao Hong and the others didn't go on this expedition."

"Huh?" Xiaobai was taken aback. "Why?"

"After all, those are top ten naval bases in the world. Their eyesight is far beyond that of an ordinary admiral. Although we are not afraid of Xiao Hong and the others revealing their true forms, we should at least avoid suspicion."

"Oh..." Xiaobai was a little disappointed. "Okay then."

Picking up the registration form handed to him by Lexington, Xiaobai checked off the names of Missouri, Iowa, Wisconsin, Saratoga, and Changchun.

Before the Deep Sea Fleet is fully developed, Lexington will promptly send the remaining ship girls from the newbie naval base to Ella's hometown.

So, the so-called vanguard force accompanying him... was actually just the stubborn idea of ​​an admiral who always wanted to have a few ship girls by his side. It didn't mean that he would lead them into battle and fight alongside him. So, Xiaobai didn't consider combat strength at first. He just randomly drew a few names in the ship girl roster and handed the roster back to Lexington.

Lexington picked up the roster and looked at it for a while, her eyebrows twitching unconsciously.

"Hmm...that's quite an interesting configuration." Lexington smiled at Xiaobai.

"Anyway, I'm just taking a few ship girls over there to register..." Xiaobai scratched his head and smiled sheepishly. "Lexington, what do you think of my list?"

“That’s good.” Lexington nodded. “But Little White, I suggest you bring one more person with you.”

"Who is it?"

"Miss Naige."

"what?"

“Although Miss Naige has transferred the entire naval base to us, she is still second on the admiral rankings no matter what,” Lexington said with a smile. “So this order from headquarters also includes her.”

"Uh..." Xiaobai looked at Lexington's delighted smile and didn't know what to say for a moment.

Admiral, huh.

Follow the rules.

Since headquarters has said that even one of the top ten naval bases can be missing, then even if President Er Gou has weakened to the point where only she and Helena remain in the entire naval base, she cannot be absent.

Who told her she was second?

In the mornings, President Er Gou usually lies on Bismarck's sofa, trying to disguise himself and sneak into the deep-sea maids' group to take advantage of them. Xiao Bai made a phone call to Bismarck from the office, and Bismarck hurriedly carried President Er Gou to the office.

At first, Guild Leader Er Gou didn't know what had happened. It wasn't until Xiao Bai and Lexington kindly told her about the situation in Ella's hometown and her point of view that "although you are weak now, you must go to war with us" that Guild Leader Er Gou calmed down and was dumbfounded for a long time before she finally blurted out "Holy shit".

Let's not even talk about what President Er Gou was thinking at that moment.

But happy times are always short-lived.

Since it's a black-level warning, even a novice should be given some leeway.

So after putting away the black envelope, Xiaobai didn't waste any more time at the naval base. Instead, she immediately called over the selected ship girls who were lounging around at Bismarck's house, and together with the bewildered Er Gou Guild Master, they left the rookie naval base amidst Lexington's gentle farewell.

Then it went straight all the way.

They headed towards Ella's hometown.

Oh right, of course.

On the way, Xiao Bai took the opportunity to call Luo Lian, who was in the second chapter, to tell them that she was going to Ella's hometown.

After all, President Er Gou is the second-best admiral in the world. If she didn't have a ship girl of her own by her side, it would be really embarrassing for her to show her face in public.

Even if it was a smokescreen and self-deception, Xiao Bai did make a phone call to Luo Lian, giving them Ella's address and asking Luo Lian to take Helena to the target location to meet up with her.

—As for why bringing Helena wasn't enough, we also had to bring Luo Lian along?

That's because Luo Lian has been researching the construction device for so long and has made considerable progress. She must have wanted to visit the production site of the rune parts to experience the craftsmanship of rune parts with her own eyes and hands.

As Luo Lian's closest friend, Xiao Bai naturally had to fully support Luo Lian's plan and do her a favor.

It's all just a side trip anyway.

Xiao Bai didn't deliberately bring Helena along just to try and get Luo Lian to come too.

Chapter 1418 Runes

The train was bustling with noise.

"Admiral, would you like a bite of peach?" Changchun gently peeled the peach skin off his hand, revealing the soft, tender flesh, and handed it to Xiaobai.

"Sister Changchun, the Admiral has already eaten three peaches today. How about we try something different?" Iowa said with a smile, picking up a peeled orange segment and offering it to Xiaobai's lips. "Admiral, have a slice of orange."

"Eat! Meat!" Saratoga hurriedly picked up a fried skewer and held it to White's mouth.

“…Thank you Changchun, thank you Iowa…thank you Saratoga.” Little White was silent for a long time, “but you’ve been feeding me all day, I really can’t eat anymore…”

Xiaobai watched awkwardly as the three ship girls in front of her reluctantly took back their fruit and fried skewers, and couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief, turning her attention back to the documents in her hands.

Little White is currently on a train heading to Ella City.

The documents in her hand contained information and details about Ella's hometown that she had received from headquarters before leaving the naval base.

Like the Mu family, Ella's hometown is a secret city shrouded in mist due to its unique circumstances.

This shrouded secret doesn't refer to the city being unknown to outsiders, but rather that even if outsiders know about the city, they have no idea about its true nature.

Xiao Bai looked at the documents in his hand.

Watch and watch.

He frowned, and his expression turned somewhat strange.

"President Sister." Xiaobai spoke to President Ergou, who was sitting directly opposite her, eating grapes with his legs crossed.

"Hmm? What's the matter?"

"Your Mu family's city is deliberately made to appear very dilapidated because it needs to be kept secret from the world, right?"

"Yes."

"Then why are Ella's and the others' houses different?" Xiaobai picked up the file and pointed out the pictures on it to President Ergou.

The picture on Xiaobai's file is of a very prosperous medium-sized city.

The city's aerial map was enormous and colorful, and it bordered a large, safe sea area with excellent transportation. The document also stated that Ella's city had a unique cultural heritage and was highly favored by the tourism industry.

"Uh..." President Er Gou pinched a grape and looked at the overhead view on Xiao Bai's document.

"This city is so colorful and beautiful. It makes me want to go on a trip. How can Ella and her family hide themselves like this?" Xiaobai murmured.

"The truly wise live in seclusion in the city..." President Er Gou thought for a moment, scratched his cheek, "Brilliant, truly brilliant."

"……Well……"

"That's true, as far as I know, their numbers are surprisingly small." President Er Gou popped a grape into his mouth and mumbled, "Of course, when it comes to hiding, a clan like our Mu family, with enough members to control a city, is definitely more suited to living in seclusion. But the Ella family you mentioned, Xiao Bai, actually has far fewer active members than the Mu family. I'd guess... maybe the size of a research institute. So, compared to establishing their own city, the strategy of hiding in plain sight is more suitable for them."

"Sigh...Is Ella's family really that small?"

"Who told my family to do manual labor and run a factory, while their family does scientific research?" President Er Gou muttered. "Maybe they advocate for a single lineage to carry on the family name."

"I see..." Xiaobai nodded in understanding.

Where transportation is well-developed, tourism and the economy naturally flourish.

The advantage of Ella's city compared to the remote small cities that Xiaobai had visited was that many trains could take her directly there.

Xiaobai, the ship girls, and President Ergou continued to sit on the train for half a day. The train slowly arrived at Ella's station amidst a series of churning noises.

As the train slowly arrived at Ella's house, the already bustling train was filled with tourists who stood up, packed their luggage, and poured off the train in an endless stream.

Xiaobai and the ship girls were like a lone boat on a vast ocean, swept off the train by the surging crowd. They were carried around by the flow of people in the train station until they were finally squeezed out.

The train station in Ella's hometown was extremely crowded. Even when Xiaobai and the others stood at the entrance of the train station, they could see the dense, dark mass of people on the street pushing forward into the distance.

Accompanied by a chaotic sound.

It looks like a war.

"Wow..." Xiaobai and the ship girls stood at the entrance of the train station, looking at the street in front of them.

Xiaobai had expected Ella's hometown to be very lively, but she really didn't expect it to be this lively.

This is simply...

This stands in stark contrast to the dilapidated little city where the Mu family lived.

"Xiao Bai!" Amidst the dense crowd at the train station, Xiao Bai heard a clear voice calling out.

Following the call, Xiaobai looked and saw a blue figure and a black figure, one tall and one short, standing in front of a convenience store not far away, waving at him.

Although it had been a while since they last met, Luo Lian was still just as Xiao Bai remembered her: quiet, gentle, and full of energy.

"Ah, Lianlian, and Helena too!" Xiaobai looked at the entrance of the convenience store in surprise, and led the people around her with difficulty to the front of the store. "Lianlian, you got here so quickly?"

"Yes, the moment I got the call, I found the fastest train and left." Luo Lian nodded to Xiao Bai with bright eyes and a smile on her lips.

"Admiral, I'm here." Helena smiled and reached out to straighten the collar of Guild Master Er Gou, then bowed slightly to Xiao Bai. "Admiral Xiao Bai, thank you for taking us with you this time."

"You're welcome... But it's me. You guys actually have to take care of the Admiral's Guild's order in Chapter Two, right? I'm a little worried that taking you away like this might disrupt the Admiral's Guild's operations..." Xiaobai scratched his cheek and said to Luo Lian and Helena.

"Don't worry about that, it's not a big problem." Luo Lian gave Xiao Bai a thumbs up. "I left Warspite and Des Moines with the Admiral's Guild. They've received special training from me, so they can handle any emergency even if my teacher and I aren't around, probably."

"So Warspite and Des Moines have already switched to civilian positions..." Xiaobai smiled wryly, "But no matter what... it's actually quite good this way..."

—It was Luo Lian's last two words that sent a chill down Xiao Bai's spine.

"Speaking of which," Luo Lian smiled at Xiao Bai, her eyes shining as she asked, "Xiao Bai, you said there are workshops for rune parts in this city, right?"

"Yes, Ella's family does this kind of business."

"That little blonde girl?"

"Oh, you know her?"

"..." Luo Lian shook her head with a hum, avoiding the question, "Does their family make rune parts?"

"Yes. That's why I was thinking of taking you along, and seeing if Ella could share some of her family's knowledge with you, just like the president."

"Thank you, Xiaobai." Luo Lian smiled at Xiaobai. "I'll try my best to lick the back of your knees!"

"???"noob.

The "knee hollow" meme actually dates back to when she was in the Mu family. President Er Gou gave Luo Lian the design blueprints for the construction device and told her that as long as she cracked the secret of the ship girl construction device, he would let Xiao Bai lick her knee hollow as a reward.

of course.

Xiaobai took all of this as a joke.

I didn't expect Luo Lian to still remember this joke...

Xiaobai didn't find the joke particularly funny; in fact, he felt a little embarrassed.

Xiao Bai smiled awkwardly. Although her feelings were complicated, she didn't say anything more, showing no appreciation for the situation.

"Lianlian, how's your research on the construction device going?"

Xiao Bai asked.

"We've pretty much covered all the structural issues."