The Naval Base of the Unnamed Ship Girls

Unlike Kokang, which deliberately splashes water to show off its presence, or Kokang, which submerges its feet completely underwater for the sake of its body... or rather, the stability of the boat.

Ardon simply stepped lightly on the water, as if he were on flat ground, without even his heels getting submerged.

"Wow, as expected of the first generation of ship girls." Seeing Adun's relaxed and casual demeanor, as if she had seen something very surprising, Kogan said with shining eyes.

"What is a first-generation ship girl?" Adun asked curiously as her body swayed gently with the ripples on the water.

"They are ship girls summoned by the Admiral using the construction device. Their combat skills are like instincts they were born with." Guogan explained earnestly, knowing that Sister Yadun's memories were a bit confused due to the malfunction of the construction device.

"Aren't you the same?" Yaton asked, seeing that Kokang was also very skilled at navigating the ocean.

"Guogan is a second-generation ship girl. Most of the initial ship girls in the naval base are second-generation ship girls like Guogan. They just inherit the ship equipment space of their predecessors. These combat skills need to be trained later. Guogan graduated from the ship girl academy with the third place."

It seemed that this third-place finish was something the ship was very proud of, as Kogan said with a proud expression.

With Guo Gan's explanation and the impressions that occasionally popped up in her own memory, Ya Dun finally understood that the ship girls in this world had three origins.

The first type, like myself, involves the admiral placing different amounts of resources into the naval base's construction device according to the construction formula, and then summoning a ship girl based on luck and lineage. These ship girls, regardless of ship type or rarity, are collectively referred to as the first generation.

They possess memories of their time as giant steel creations and are naturally endowed with skillful combat techniques. If they are meritorious ship girls with outstanding achievements, they possess the power of mentor-level ship girls as soon as they are built.

Similarly, due to memory issues, these original ship girls are also the most prone to conflict.

For others, the world war hundreds of years ago is just a story in history books, but for these first-generation ship girls, before being summoned, they were still sailing on the vast ocean, firing at the enemy in accordance with the orders of their creator, mankind, for their country, honor, interests, and for all sorts of reasons.

It's clear how inevitable a fight would be if the first-generation ships Bismarck and Hood were summoned from a naval base, not to mention the American and Japanese ships that also used the same fuel.

Another type is those who possess the talent of ship girls and inherit the ship equipment of the first generation of ship girls. These are what the Kokang people call the second generation ship girls. This inheritance may have only been passed down for one generation or it may have been passed down for several generations. All of these ship girls are called the second generation ship girls.

These people with ship girl talents are basically descendants of humans and ship girls. At least so far, there is no record of pure-blooded humans having the qualifications to inherit ship equipment.

However, given that ship girls have existed in this world for many years, many retired ship girls have long been integrated into human life, and now most humans have more or less ship girl blood.

For example, that admiral with a bit of a brain problem, she has a predecessor who was a meritorious ship girl, so she was able to have a ship girl's exclusive ship equipment space. Unfortunately, for some reason, she did not make good use of this ship girl bloodline, so that ship equipment space can only be used as storage space to put some things.

These next-generation ship girls, after inheriting the ship equipment space of their predecessors, cannot become qualified ship girls overnight. All combat skills must be trained, which is why there are ship girl academies.

In these second-generation ship girls, the conflicts between the first-generation ship girls have been greatly reduced, since they only inherit the ship equipment and memories, not the personality (ship personality).

The experiences of the first-generation ship girls before they became ship girls are like slides imprinted in the minds of the second-generation ship girls, and do not significantly affect their daily lives.

Therefore, it's not unreasonable for the second-generation Bismarck ship girl and the second-generation Hood ship girl to drink black tea and eat desserts together. They might even find common ground in raising cats and become good friends.

It's hard to say whether the first-generation ship girls or the second-generation ship girls are stronger in combat. Although the first-generation ship girls have very skilled combat techniques from birth, these combat techniques are often already fixed. On the other hand, the second-generation ship girls are not affected by these techniques, so it is not impossible for them to have stronger combat power through training.

The true test of strength and weakness lies in actual combat; otherwise, what is the purpose of the quarterly exercises held by the various governor-general's offices?

As for the third type, after sinking the Abyssal Fleet, some Abyssal ship girls will be incredibly lucky and shed their Abyssal aura, reappearing in the world as a ship girl. Apart from losing their memories of being Abyssal or even earlier, their combat instincts are not much different from the original ship girls.

This kind of thing is common sense in this world. Similarly, some ship girls, after being sunk by the Abyss, are corrupted by the aura of the Abyss and become Abyss ship girls. They also lose their memories of their ship girl days and are left with only hatred for each other as mortal enemies.

Because of this situation, many ship girls are unwilling to transform into deep-sea warriors and point their cannons at their former comrades. In the face of certain defeat, they would choose to end their lives with a spectacular fireworks display. Therefore, the third type of ship girl is even rarer.

"I see." Ardon nodded, having grasped some basic facts about this world.

Seeing that Sister Adun was ready, the captain of the flagship and secretary ship, the Courageous, waved her hand and shouted towards the sea outside the Admiral's shipyard:

"The First Fleet of the Admiral's Office, No. 666, is embarking on its first near-shore patrol!!"

Chapter Six: They've Arrived

Throughout history, regardless of the type of war, they have all been fought for the sake of interests, such as land, resources, and wealth.

The same applies to this world that has humans, ship girls, and deep-sea fleets.

Fortunately, after so many years of struggle and development, humanity has discovered that deep-sea fleets are not quite what they need.

First of all, land is taboo for the deep sea. In addition, places without the aura of the deep sea would severely weaken the power of the deep-sea fleet. Traveling within the range of human life is as uncomfortable for the deep-sea fleet as a fish out of water.

Similarly, humans cannot live indefinitely in a deep sea where there is only water, especially one with severe radiation, excessive pollution, and almost no sunlight.

If the two groups hadn't had completely different requirements for their living environment, and if they hadn't fought each other so fiercely when they first met hundreds of years ago, the deep-sea fleet and humanity might have been able to work together to create a better future.

Since the “NC” war decades ago nearly destroyed the planet, the human ship girl group, which was severely weakened, signed a temporary non-aggression pact with the deep-sea fleet group.

However, this peace is relative, because living under the same sky, the environments in which we live are not isolated from each other.

Sometimes, the aura of the deep sea, carried by ocean currents, can permeate the world that originally belonged to humans. Along with this aura come deep-sea fleets searching for new homes, even if the places permeated by this aura were originally places where humans and ship girls gathered.

Similarly, sometimes the aura of the deep sea will suddenly dissipate from a corner of the deep sea area, and humans and ship girls, who are vying for more living space, will naturally not let go of such a good opportunity.

Thus, the Naval Base was born, a base used by the Human Federation to defend against deep-sea invasions and to develop new settlements, inlaid like tiny pearls on the dividing line between the blue and black areas of this planet.

Also born were the Deep Sea Princesses from the Deep Sea Fleet. Each Deep Sea Princess had titles such as a mobile fortress, an unsinkable destroyer, and a calamity of the sea.

In this situation, whether it is a naval base that has been built for many years or a newly established naval base that has just been separated, they are all at the forefront, with very few exceptions.

Since it's a frontline base, daily patrols are necessary regardless of whether there are enemies nearby. Even with all-weather strategic allies, border sentries are never lacking. Moreover, human ship girls and deep-sea creatures are always ready to stab each other in the back.

If they really encounter the enemy, even if they can't defeat them, they can at least send a message to the rear so that other garrison units and the rear area can make preparations.

No matter how cute or adorable they are, ship girls are, in essence, soldiers.

"I take back what I just said." Although he didn't say it aloud, Yaton, who was maintaining a steady speed on the water, covered his forehead and watched as Kokang, like surfers, created ripples on the water in various poses.

This isn't a patrol, it's just someone out playing in the water! Where are the parents? Quickly drag this brat back, or he might get stranded in the deep sea and die!

"Huh, Kogan is patrolling very seriously, isn't he?" Hearing Aden's question, Kogan slowed down and walked alongside Aden, continuing, "I've been maintaining the escort formation. I'll take care of Aden's flanks, don't worry."

"Escort?" After hearing Kogan's serious explanation, Yadun looked at the sky, as if trying to see through the azure firmament to the stars hanging in the universe, and said in a slightly strange tone.

"Kogan is just a little excited as it's his first time at sea." Seeing Yaton's gaze, Kogan thought the other party had noticed something was wrong with him, so he shrank back and said.

After all, even an aircraft carrier escort fleet doesn't take such an extreme approach as Kokang.

"Didn't you ever go to sea when you were studying at that ship girl academy?" Yaton didn't quite believe Kogan's statement.

"It's not our first time at sea. What Kokang means is that this is Kokang's first official voyage, and the first time we've gotten so close to that side," Kokang said nervously, looking at the endless black curtain on the horizon.

That's where the deep sea lives, covering more than half the surface of the planet.

"Close? I feel it's quite far." Although she could see it, Adon judged that the very edge of those black curtains was several hundred kilometers away from here. Compared to the vast ocean, it was indeed not that far, but at the current speed of the two ship girls, it would take several hours to rush in.

"Could we encounter enemies here too?" Adun thought there was no need to be nervous.

Before Kokang could respond, Yadun suddenly asked, "What should we do if we actually encounter those deep-sea fleets now?"

"Ah, the Abyssal Fleet is here?" Startled by Adun's words, Guogan immediately raised his miniature Soviet-made 130mm single-barrel naval gun and aimed it at the empty ocean, but he did not find any trace of the Abyssal Fleet.

"That scared me to death, Guogan." Guogan's gaze shifted to Yadun, and seeing the older woman's calm demeanor, he assumed Yadun was simply asking him how to deal with an encounter with the deep-sea fleet, and quickly replied:

"As a patrol fleet, if we encounter a small deep-sea fleet, we must immediately report to the admiral of the naval base and determine whether to intercept or evade based on the type and number of the enemy."

"What if we encounter a large-scale deep-sea fleet?" Adun asked, his gaze fixed on the black curtain of the horizon.

"For example... if we encounter a large-scale deep-sea fleet, we must evade it immediately before we are discovered. If we cannot evade it, we must send the intelligence back to the naval base." According to Kokang, no matter what happens, the admiral must be informed as soon as possible.

"How do we notify the governor... the admiral? Is there a telepathic communication network?" Adon withdrew his gaze, turned his head, and asked seriously.

“The mental communication network between the admiral and the ship girls has a limited range, and this area is not covered by satellite signals, so this is the only way to do it,” Guogan said, taking out a small wireless telegraph machine from the ship’s equipment space.

"..." Indeed, they've made the most of everything. In a world with satellites and telepathic networks, this primitive wireless telegraph machine still has a purpose. Adun has some respect for the humans and ship girls of this world.

Furthermore, it is certain that, as a ship girl, the wireless telegraph machine in Kogan's hands may look small, but its actual power may be quite impressive. After all, it is a telegraph machine on a ship, and even if it is just a destroyer, it is enough to transmit signals to the naval base.

"Is there a problem?" Kokang asked nervously, feeling the older sister's gaze. Was the transmitter in his hand strange?

"No problem, I just didn't expect that the (brain-dead) admiral would actually be able to translate Morse code," Adun said with some emotion. That admiral, really, wouldn't he translate "Who is God?" as "Has God eaten?"

"There's no need to doubt that. The admiral's graduation grades were excellent, otherwise he wouldn't have been able to own an independent naval base right after graduation." It seemed that Kogan had a lot of confidence in that admiral who was a bit of a nutcase.

"Okay, that's good. You can send a telegram to the admiral now," Adon confirmed.

"Huh??" Kokang looked completely bewildered.

"They're here."

Chapter Seven: The Damned Power of the World

"Huff...huff...huff, how many is this now? Oh no, I should check how many are left."

The admiral, whom Admiral Adon described as having a screw loose, was panting heavily as he slammed a metal rod into the ground on a high point on the island where the naval base was located. Fortunately, the admiral had the blood of a ship girl flowing through his veins; an ordinary human could not stand something weighing several tons upright and then slam it into a rock with sheer force.

Unfortunately, even though he possessed the bloodline of a ship girl, the admiral, who had not fully unlocked the power of his bloodline, was so exhausted after doing all this that he collapsed to the ground.

The device that the admiral painstakingly installed at the naval base was a simplified version of a wireless signal communication base station. Once installed, it could send and receive wireless signals within a certain area. Although the signal strength and range were not as good as those of satellites in orbit, it could at least achieve real-time signal transmission within the sea area under the naval base's jurisdiction.

Even if lossless video signal transmission and other inexplicable things can't be achieved, at least a few mobile phones can be used as communication tools between the ship girls and the naval base. That way, they won't have to wait every day for the ship girls on missions to send telegrams back.

The thought of ship girls made the admiral take a deep breath and shout at the sky, "This isn't something an admiral should be doing!!"

If it weren't for that support supply mothership girl named Spear of Adun damaging my construction machine when I was summoned, I should at least have been able to build a few destroyer girls to help me with these things.

As the admiral, who is at the core of the naval base, he should theoretically be sitting on the soft sofa in his office right now, holding a cup of black tea, eating desserts, and enjoying a perfect afternoon tea time.

Therefore, it is clear that Ayton's assessment that "this admiral has a screw loose" is not entirely unbiased.

After resting for a while, the admiral took out a map of the island where the naval base was located, found his current location, drew a red circle around it, and then checked the surrounding environment before heading towards the next suitable place to set up a wireless signal communication base station.

Meanwhile, in the admiral's office at the naval base, some distance away from the admiral, a radio was beeping.

"Haven't you received the Admiral's orders yet?" Adon asked Kogan, who was hiding beside him, while staring at the men who could be considered enemies.

"No...we haven't received any orders." Guo Gan cautiously looked at the deep-sea destroyer fleet that was already visible to the naked eye in the distance from where the two were. When he saw that the fleet had deviated from its original course and was heading towards their area, he knew that they had been discovered.

Was she about to face her first battle as a qualified ship girl right here? A sense of unease crept into her mind, but this tension dissipated considerably upon seeing Adun's calm expression.

This demonstrates the destroyer's unwavering trust in the older sister-class ship girl!

If Adun knew what Gogan was thinking, he wouldn't have remained so calm.

The Spear of Adun, the support and supply mothership—this is the name after it was corrected by the power of the world. Although it is unknown exactly how it was corrected, after such a long time of sorting out its memories and worldview, Adun is certain that a force has indeed changed it.

Let's just call it Inhibition Force, Adun thought, fitting a term that popped into his head into the name.

Before being modified by the Restraint Force, Adun's original name should have been the Protoss Ark - Spear of Adun. It came from a great Protoss civilization that had entered the interstellar age. The Protoss created the Spear of Adun so that one day in the future, when the Protoss were plunged into a dark age, they could ensure that their civilization could survive that difficult time.

Therefore, they called the Spear of Adun the Ark, and even at the height of their civilization, they managed to build only three of them, despite the entire nation's resources being devoted to their cause.

Powered by a star, it can travel for hundreds of millions of years without going out. It stores all the glorious achievements of the Protoss throughout history. If the power of the Spear of Adun were fully unleashed in this world, theoretically there should be no need for ship girls or deep-sea creatures. It's no exaggeration to say that the existence of this planet is questionable.

While studying himself, Adun sensed a planetary weapon called the Purifier's Light, which could burn a planet into a glass sphere.

Unfortunately, after being modified by that suppressive force, Adun is certain that these things no longer have the effect of burning glass balls, at least not for the time being.