It's time to give out the rings, Admiral!

"The straight-line distance is about 40 nautical miles!" Upon hearing Junquan's question, a ship girl with gorgeous long golden hair and a rapier in her hand immediately and efficiently reported the information on her map to Junquan.

Watching Junquan lead the fleet away from the land, Langley, left behind, stared at their wake with a conflicted expression. She knew that with all her carrier-based aircraft gone and almost no combat power left, going back to request support was the best option. But emotionally, she felt extremely unwilling. If she were stronger and had more aircraft, would the outcome of this battle have been completely different?

Noticing the resentment on Langley's face, she silently followed behind her. Leipzig, who had also stayed behind, spoke in a deep voice, "There's no point in standing here in a daze, Langley. Time is money. The sooner we go back and request reinforcements, the sooner Junquan and the others can be rescued."

………………

Inside the naval academy's campus, Su Yuchen, completely unaware of what was happening at sea, was leisurely enjoying the coffee that Glorious had specially brewed for him. With two gentle ship girls by his side, the unease that had been building up in the young man's heart gradually dissipated.

The boy picked up the teacup overflowing with the aroma of coffee, took a small sip, and savored the sweet and mellow flavor flowing in his mouth. He nodded slightly to the expectant Radiance, "Hmm, it has a very special aroma. It tastes very good, Radiance."

"Really, Admiral? I'm glad you like it." Upon receiving praise from his Admiral, Glorious's handsome face immediately lit up with the joy of a child receiving candy.

However, just as someone was interacting intimately with his ship girls, several strangely shaped deep-sea bombers, appearing out of nowhere, quietly broke through the blockade and flew over the city.

They flew in neat formations, looking down from the air at the city's buildings, which resembled toys, and the humans, who looked like ants. Because they were so small compared to normal airplanes, when they calmly dropped their bombs and then quietly flew away, no one noticed that they had ever been there, until one deadly bomb after another accurately landed in a nearby factory.

With several loud bangs that shook the earth, books on the bookshelves in the boys' dormitory fell to the ground, and the windows shattered cleanly with a loud "bang."

Before Su Yuchen, who had almost choked on his coffee, could understand what the loud noise meant, he was suddenly tackled to the sofa by his two ship girl friends, who thought they were under attack.

"Danger, Admiral!" "Watch out! Brother!"

The air in their lungs was squeezed out by the weight of the girls. Although the bodies of Glorious and Unicorn were so soft and light without their ship equipment deployed, what was suffocating was that, in that sudden impact, the face of a certain "tragic" guy was just happened to be sandwiched between the two mounds of ferocious soft flesh on Glorious's chest.

When the man came to his senses, the soft flesh, carrying a unique fragrance, had already completely blocked his mouth and nose, leaving him unable to breathe and causing him to struggle helplessly like a small boat in a giant wave.

However, as you know, the result of struggling in this situation was that when the Radiant One and Unicorn, who had already secured their safety, released the most important Admiral and stood up, someone's face had already turned bluish-purple.

Breathing in the fresh air, almost thinking he was about to become the world's first victim of a chest-killing incident, the boy, before the blushing radiance could say anything to him, ran to the window frame without glass and looked in the direction from which the loud noise came.

Thick smoke billowed from the dock not far away, forming a mushroom-shaped black cloud that slowly rose, carried by the air currents. That area had originally housed an arsenal near the naval academy, but now it was a scene of utter devastation, like a living hell.

Intense flames engulfed everything around them, interspersed with several explosions caused by the ignition of dangerous materials. Seeing this, the boy's heart sank. It all seemed too coincidental; it didn't look like a disaster caused by accident.

Just as the boy had imagined, the piercing air raid siren finally sounded, accompanied by the familiar bell signaling the emergency assembly of all students at the Naval Academy.

Volume 1, Chapter 71: Conscription

The three urgent tolls followed by one slow one are a set of whistles that the Naval Academy had established from its inception, used to urgently summon all trainee admirals with combat capabilities and their ship girls.

Generally speaking, when the giant bell in the academy's auditorium is struck in this rhythm, it means that the academy has encountered a situation that cannot be resolved by the nearby naval base or the ship girl instructors in the academy. Therefore, it is forced to conscript these trainee admirals and ship girls who have not yet officially joined the service.

This situation is often accompanied by extremely high risks. It is not uncommon for recruited ship girls to be attacked and sunk in some uncontrollable situations.

Take the last time the deep-sea flagship led the large fleet to attack, for example. The number of uncommissioned ship girls that were heavily damaged and eventually sank was more than a single digit, not to mention the countless ship girls that were slightly or even moderately damaged.

However, even knowing the danger, these trainee admirals and their ship girls still had to rush to the academy's central training ground to assemble immediately. The order to assemble was mandatory; if you didn't come and were discovered later, you might be permanently disqualified from becoming an admiral.

Upon hearing the unsettling bell, the boy, still in the school building, hurriedly changed into his uniform as a trainee admiral with the help of Radiant, and then led Radiant and Unicorn to the central playground, which was to be used as the meeting point.

Perhaps because she and her two ship girls had taken too long to prepare, when Su Yuchen arrived at the training ground with her family, most of the trainee admirals and ship girls were already lined up neatly in front of the temporary platform, listening to Leipzig, whom she had met once before, speaking with a serious expression.

Feeling a little embarrassed about being late, the boy quietly took Radiance and Unicorn to the back of the line. Ignoring the pained expressions of the trainee admirals around him, who looked like they were being suffocated by the sun, he tilted his ear and listened intently to what Leipzig, who was standing on the pedestal, was saying.

"...A massive deep-sea fleet has appeared 70 nautical miles east of the academy. The instructors sent to intercept them are trapped in the sandbar islands to the southeast due to insufficient intelligence support. The city of Tsugawa is also currently being bombed to varying degrees by deep-sea carrier-based aircraft. Faced with this situation, we have no choice but to initiate emergency mobilization procedures for this contingency..."

"Emergency conscription? No way? We were just admitted to the academy, are we really going to be sent to the battlefield?"

"We can't even beat the instructors, how could we possibly win? Isn't this just sending our ship girls to their deaths?"

"I heard they also have deep-sea carrier-based aircraft, which means the enemy has aircraft carriers? What's the point of fighting then? Why not call in the generals and marshals to help?"

Upon hearing what Leipzig was saying on the stage, the students below, who were astonished by the content of her words, suddenly became restless. However, as if she had anticipated this situation, Leipzig remained calm and simply raised her ship's rigging, firing a shot into the air with her 150mm ship gun.

The deafening roar of cannons immediately silenced the restless trainee admirals.

"Quiet down! I know it's dangerous to send a bunch of greenhorns like you who've never been on the battlefield to fight the deep sea, but we don't have time to complain here! The city of Tsugawa has already been bombed, and we don't know how much longer the instructors trapped in the sandbars can hold out. If this continues, do you know how many innocent civilians will be affected?"

"What exactly is your purpose in becoming admirals? Isn't it to protect your homeland and safeguard this ocean? Or are you just infatuated with the beauty of our ship girls and it's just a passing fancy? If that's the case, I suggest you pack your bags and go home as soon as possible!"

Leipzig's resounding words made most of the trainee admirals lower their heads in shame. Looking at Leipzig's disdainful expression on the stage, Su Yuchen, who was happily sandwiched between Radiance and Unicorn at the very end of the line, showed a very surprised expression. She did not expect that Leipzig, who usually acted like a money-grubber and would not do anything without a profit, would also act so righteously in this situation.

Leipzig glanced disdainfully at the trainee admirals before her, who stood with their heads bowed, too afraid to utter a word. Standing on the platform, she sighed quietly. If she could, she wouldn't want these ship girls and admirals, who had no combat experience, to fight against the brutal Abyss. She was also a ship girl and could understand these young people's worries about the safety of their ship girls. But this was the Naval Academy, the army that protected the ocean on which humanity depended for survival. Responsibility forced them to carry on.

She slowly took out the summons personally signed by the academy dean from her pocket, and then read it aloud in front of everyone: "According to preliminary estimates, the strength of the attacking deep-sea fleet includes two fleet carriers, two standard battleships, one escort light carrier, two battlecruisers, three heavy cruisers, and several light cruisers and destroyers."

"In response to the above situation, after evaluation, the academy has decided to activate the Level 2 Emergency Recruitment Regulations, recruiting all ship girls with combat capabilities of light cruiser or above within the academy. Based on their grade, senior ship girls will be responsible for the main interception missions, while junior ship girls will be responsible for tasks such as coastal defense and handling emergencies."

"That's all. Now, all eligible ship girls and admirals, please assemble at the dock on the east side. You have twenty minutes to resupply and prepare. That's all, dismissed!"

As Leipzig finished speaking, the once orderly ranks quickly became disorganized. Regardless of their mindset, the qualified trainee admirals and ship girls hurriedly headed to the dock on the east side to assemble, while the majority of the trainee admirals who did not meet the requirements watched them leave with lingering fear, along with their ship girls. No one wanted to participate in a war, because where there is war, there is bloodshed.

As a trainee admiral who possesses a large aircraft carrier and a light aircraft carrier, Su Yuchen was naturally among the eligible admirals. However, instead of rushing to the beach with his ship girls like the other eligible admirals, he remained in the same spot, frowning and lost in thought.

From the very beginning, for some reason, the ominous premonition in his heart became clearer and clearer, as if something he didn't want to see was about to happen to him, making him very uneasy. He turned around and looked at Radiance and the Unicorn beside him, but the words he wanted to say were swallowed back.

"What's wrong, Admiral? You seem very worried?" Seeing the anxious expression on the boy's face, Hikari, unaware of what was on his mind, frowned with a touch of heartache. She reached out and gently stroked the boy's hair, as if trying to comfort him.

"Are you worried about my and Unicorn's safety? Don't be so nervous. We're only responsible for coastal defense, not going to the front lines. If you're still worried, Admiral, I can just take Unicorn and hide behind everyone when we encounter deep sea. After all, we're an aircraft carrier, so no one will say anything."

It's no wonder she's considered the most admired "wife-class" regular aircraft carrier. Illustrious's words, both intimate and playful, were like a sharp sword, instantly halting the previously worried young man's momentum.

He smiled helplessly, the unease he had felt earlier dissipating considerably. However, before he could emphasize anything more to his ship girls, he heard Instructor Langley's relieved shout from behind him.

"Su Yuchen, Miss Guanghui, I've finally found you..."

………………

"...That's the situation." In the office building at the northernmost end of the academy, Leipzig, having completed her recruitment mission, was reporting the situation to the academy dean, who was sitting behind a luxurious desk. She placed a list of recruited ship girls in front of the figure in the white uniform, then stepped back to await further orders.

"Well then, you should go and get ready, Leipzig. Junquan isn't here right now, so the command duties for later will be temporarily in your hands." After glancing at the form in his hand and thinking for a moment, the dean waved his hand, indicating that Leipzig didn't need to wait there any longer.

Watching Leipzig's figure disappear behind the door, she sighed wearily and took out a long-unused radio from the cabinet next to her. "Hello... Lexington? It's me. There's some emergency at the academy. Are you free now? Could you come and help?"

With a crackling sound of electricity, a gentle voice that one could never tire of hearing soon came from the somewhat old radio: "It's you, Dean. The city has just been bombed. Princeton's reconnaissance plane has brought back the necessary intelligence for us, so I'm now preparing to head to the academy with Jiajia. With so many capital ships coming from the Deep Sea this time, I figured you wouldn't be able to handle it."

"Yeah, do you think all the other ship girls have as much combat experience as you, and are decked out in god-tier gear?" Lexington thought to herself on the other end of the radio, but the academy headmaster, showing no sign of anything amiss, continued, "That's good. I've already sent the students out to sea. How long will it take you to get there?"

"Jiajia and I have only just set off, but it's alright, we can launch our carrier-based aircraft at the dock ahead of time... The Admiral is probably still at the academy right now, and those Abyssal dared to attack at this time... Hehehe... If the Admiral suffers even the slightest injury, you Abyssal, hehe..."

Even through the radio, one could feel the dark aura emanating from Lexington. The Dean anxiously pulled out a handkerchief to wipe the sweat from his face. "Is that so? Then hurry over as soon as possible. I still have to deal with the supply issues here. That's all for now."

Volume 1, Chapter 72: Sister, look!

"Instructor Langley, is there something important you need from Guanghui and me?" Su Yuchen asked, puzzled, as Instructor Langley, who had just found her breathless, eagerly led Guanghui and the others in a direction different from the ordered meeting point. She had always found Langley's hesitant attitude strange.

Could it be that they want him and Guanghui to go on some dangerous mission? That won't do! Although he knew it wasn't good to criticize his mentor in his heart, the boy couldn't help but have some very bad thoughts in his mind.

Hearing the boy's doubtful words, perhaps sensing the opportune moment, Instructor Langley, who was walking at the front without turning her head, cautiously glanced around. After confirming that there were no other trainee admirals or ship girls around, the timid Langley suddenly turned around and gave Su Yuchen and the two ship girls beside her a pleading look.

"...Su Yuchen, I know this is a bit abrupt, but could you please, please ask that you and Miss Glorious join our rescue team! Without the support of a large aircraft carrier, our mission will be very difficult to complete!"

Instructor Langley's sudden words surprised both Su Yuchen and Radiant Unicorn, who hadn't expected it. The astonished boy instinctively reached out and supported Instructor Langley's shoulder, who was about to bend down to him and Radiant Unicorn.

"Instructor, please calm down. If you have any requests, just say so. There's no need for this. ...However, you asked me and Guanghui to join your rescue team, but Guanghui and I don't even know what the rescue team's mission is. How can we agree to that?"

"Ah... I'm sorry." Finally realizing that she had been too hasty, Langley slowly straightened up. She looked at the boy and Glorious with some apology, and then patiently explained to them why she had called them here.

"Su Yuchen, you and Miss Radiant should already know what happened today from Leipzig. Junquan and the others are still trapped in the sandbars in the southeast. It would be difficult for them to escape on their own, so the headmaster asked me to assemble a rescue team to assist them... Because there are several aircraft carriers from the Deep Sea that attacked this time, just to be on the safe side, I have no choice but to ask for your and Miss Radiant's help. Please, Su Yuchen."

Junquan? Could it be that Junquan, the instructor, was also trapped in the deep sea like the other instructors? After hearing Instructor Langley's pleading words, the already uneasy boy bit his lip and lowered his head.

Normally, he would never allow his ship girls to take such a dangerous mission. However, after hearing from Mentor Langley that among the trapped ship girls was Mentor Junquan, who had helped him and Glorious a lot, the boy became extremely conflicted when he recalled the help she had given to Glorious and himself.

Refusing would trouble his conscience, but not refusing would put Guanghui at great risk. Caught between three gazes filled with different emotions, the conflicted boy looked up at Guanghui, who was pressed close to his side. "Guanghui... what do you think?"

"It's entirely up to you, Admiral. As long as it's your decision, I'll do whatever you say." The boy's reply was still Irene's gentle smile that made people relax involuntarily. Looking at the smile on her face, Su Yuchen gritted her teeth and made up her mind.

As an admiral, making such judgments was one of his indispensable duties... Of course, he alone would bear the consequences of his choices. He composed himself and looked at the Langley, which had been waiting for his answer, before saying, "Instructor, Glorious and I have decided to help you, but besides Glorious, who else will accompany her?"

"Really?! Thank you, Su Yuchen, and Miss Guanghui, thank you!" Overjoyed to hear that the boy had agreed to the request that even he found hard to accept, Instructor Langley, whose arms had been trembling with nervousness, immediately let out a long sigh of relief.

Gently raising her arm to wipe away the tears welling up in her eyes, she laid out her entire plan to the young man before her: "Besides me, there's Miss Guadalcanal and her admiral. She'll be working with me to protect Miss Radiant. All Miss Radiant has to do is deploy carrier-based aircraft to provide air support for Junquan and the others once we reach our designated positions, giving them a chance to come and join us."

It doesn't sound like a particularly difficult mission, and they'll be taking a different route from the main force, bypassing the deep-sea main battle group from the side. If they don't need to engage the enemy's capital ships head-on, with two light carriers and one regular carrier, they shouldn't have too much trouble even if they encounter several light cruisers and destroyers.

Furthermore, the deep-sea carrier fleet also has to focus on attacking the Monarch's Mentor and suppressing the ship girl trainees sent by the academy, so they probably won't have much energy to spare to deal with us...

After mentally reviewing Instructor Langley's plan and finding it feasible, the boy nodded to Instructor Langley, "Since we've already decided, let's not delay and set off immediately, Instructor Langley."

After speaking to Instructor Langley, the boy looked out at the turbulent sea. Watching the waves rise and fall, he silently prayed for the instructors who had already set sail.

My dear mentor, I hope you are all safe and sound.

………………

He quickly followed Instructor Langley to a port where the other ship girls were gathering. As soon as he stepped onto the dock, the boy saw a young man, a little older than himself, standing there quietly with his ship girls, waiting.

Seeing that she and Instructor Langley had quickly approached them, the trainee admiral, who seemed to have no other distinguishing features except for being a little tall, immediately greeted Instructor Langley and the boy behind her, "Instructor, is this our companion who went on the rescue mission with us? Hello, my name is Jia Shuai, and I was recruited as a trainee admiral in the previous two years. This is my ship girl, named Guadalcanal, a light aircraft carrier."

Perhaps because he had created an aircraft carrier-type ship girl that few in the entire school possessed, he showed a rather proud expression when he turned to introduce his ship girl to the boy.

However, the moment someone revealed the name of his ship girl, his attempt to show off his ship was destined to end in tragedy and gloom. Before his proud demeanor could last long, and before the somewhat embarrassed boy could respond, Instructor Langley, standing to the side, couldn't bear to watch any longer and told him a cruel reality that seemed like a fantasy to everyone else.

"Jia Shuai, why haven't you gotten rid of this bad habit of showing off? You're really putting Miss Guadalcanal in a difficult position... And, even if you want to show off your boat, don't do it in front of... sigh..."

As he spoke, Langley, looking quite troubled, rubbed his smooth forehead, as if giving up. Perhaps it really was as Hornet had said; the best way to get this guy out of his bad habit of sunbathing on the ship was to let him personally experience the pain of being sunburned.

"Let me introduce them. This is Su Yuchen, who will be joining us on the rescue operation. The two next to him are his ship girls, Illustrious and Unicorn, a full-fledged armored aircraft carrier and a four-star light aircraft carrier..."

Just as he had imagined, Langley's helpless words had barely faded when the complacent admiral's expression vanished. After two gasps of shock, all that remained in the air were the stunned faces and gaping mouths of Jia Shuai and Guadalcanal.

"Aircraft carriers?! Two of them?! This... how is this possible?! Instructor Langley?!... You... you're not kidding, are you?! He's really just a newly enrolled trainee admiral? And not some admiral senior of general rank or above?!" Jia Shuai was so surprised that he couldn't speak clearly, and even bit his tongue a few times. After pausing for a while, he finally asked the question that he most wanted to ask.

A trainee admiral who owns an aircraft carrier and a four-star light aircraft... Look, sister, he's God!

"I'm not joking with you, Jia Shuai. Without Su Yuchen's help, we probably wouldn't have been able to complete this rescue mission on our own. Wasn't this operation considered your and Guadalcanal's graduation exam? You should really thank Su Yuchen." Facing the incredulous Admiral Jia Shuai, who seemed to have heard that the world was about to end, Instructor Langley calmly delivered his final death sentence.

Similar incidents have been happening frequently lately, and everyone is familiar with how to handle such situations. After waiting for a while, seeing the ashen face of the trainee admiral named Jia Shuai gradually improve, the wise Su Yuchen stepped forward to greet him, "Hello, senior, you will also be participating in this mission, right? I hope we can cooperate smoothly."

"Ah, I hope we can work together smoothly. But before that, I want to thank you, because this rescue mission has been treated as my graduation exam. I originally thought it would only be my ship girl and Instructor Langley going to carry it out, so your arrival has really been a huge help to me..."

Hearing the boy's words, Jia Shuai took a deep breath, forcing himself to forget all the unpleasantness that had just occurred. He then forced a still-stiff smile at the boy. Judging from his current appearance, he probably wouldn't dare show off his ships to other admirals again, if he didn't want to relive the pain of being dominated by European dogs that day…

………………

"Radiant, be careful when you go out to sea later. Try to avoid the deep sea if possible, and try not to have a direct confrontation with it." Watching Radiant unfold her ship equipment amidst a blue flash, Su Yuchen, standing on the shore and holding Unicorn's hand, still gave her ship girl some final words of advice with some concern.

This battle is different from the one where we helped the mentors. Instead of conducting reconnaissance in the rear, this time we have to go out into dangerous waters to provide air support for the trapped mentors. If we are not careful, we could be caught by the battleships in the deep sea.

As for the unicorn who was following the boy, she had never even participated in any exercises, so naturally the boy wouldn't allow her to participate in such a dangerous mission.

"Yes! I understand, Admiral. Please don't look like that. Glorious will definitely complete the mission and return safely." Looking at her Admiral's worried face, Glorious, standing on the sea, gave him a warm, maternal smile. She glanced at the boy's collar, then suddenly seemed to remember something and looked into his eyes. "Admiral, after this battle is over..."

"Huh? What did you say, Glorious?" However, until the very end, the girl didn't have time to hear what Glorious had just said. Her voice was drowned out by Instructor Langley's questioning from the side and the sound of Guadalcanal launching its carrier-based aircraft from the other side.

"Are you ready, Miss Glorious? It's time for us to set off."

Volume 1, Chapter 73: Battle

The salty sea breeze, carrying a chill, swept across the sea, just like the cold wind in the twelfth lunar month, instantly making one feel the biting cold.

Several hours had passed since Junquan led his team to the southeastern sandbar after separating from Langley. During this difficult period, they had been dealing with the seemingly endless bombardment from the deep-sea carrier. As ship girl instructors were hit one after another, their already struggling combat strength had dropped to a precarious state.

With a few instructors still capable of fighting, the leader, Junquan, continued to operate her tattered ship, traversing between several small islands. The anti-aircraft guns, their barrels glowing red, roared incessantly, firing shells at an angle into the distant sky in an attempt to disperse the swarms of deep-sea bombers that were once again flying in.

Even so, facing the locust-like swarms of deep-sea carrier-based aircraft, their already insufficient anti-aircraft firepower was now even more negligible. After barely shooting down a few stray bombers, they advanced unimpeded and easily dropped deadly bombs over the instructors' heads.

Watching the deep-sea bombers circle overhead as if mocking them, then turn and leisurely depart, Junquan, raising her head and gritting her teeth, shoved aside Glory, who was still venting its anger by unleashing a barrage of shells on the departing deep-sea aircraft. Before the latter could understand what was happening, a huge column of water erupted beside them, and shrapnel from the exploding bombs swept through everything around them, making them look even more disheveled.

Her once beautiful blue dress was now tattered beyond recognition. Ignoring her exposed thighs and pink underwear, she silently climbed out of the sea, wiped the seawater off her face, and helped Junquan, who was now unsteady on his feet. "Junquan, are you alright? Thank you for saving me."

"I'm fine." Hearing her colleague's worried voice, Junquan, who was still dizzy from the explosion, silently shook her head. She released her arm from Guangrong's shoulder, and, having lost her usual composure, covered her forehead and stood firmly on the sea.

Looking at the fleet of planes disappearing into the distance once again, she clenched her hands, as if trying to hide the sense of powerlessness that was gradually welling up in her heart. She didn't know whether she was saying to Glory or to herself, "Hold on... just hold on a little longer, the reinforcements will be here soon."

Junquan's voice, squeezed out through clenched teeth, reached Glorious's ears. She remained silent, glancing at Junquan's ankles already submerged in the water. As the flagship of this hastily assembled fleet, and the only battleship, Junquan had shielded herself and her comrades from countless attacks, faithfully fulfilling her duty to protect humanity. But… she feared they wouldn't be able to wait for reinforcements. And even if reinforcements did arrive, could they withstand an attack from a deep-sea carrier?

If there's truly no other way, then at least we must take those deep-sea creatures to a place far from land. Assessing the grim prospects of their fate, and praying for the safety of the people in the academy and the city, a dim yet resolute glint appeared in his eyes as he stepped forward to block Junquan, who was about to continue leading the group.

Seeing Junquan's confused expression, she pointed to her tattered ship rigging and shouted at him, "Junquan! You're heavily damaged now! If this continues, you'll be sunk! So, I suggest you go rest on the island like Houston! Leave the command duties to me!"

Unexpectedly, Glorious would step forward to stop her. Wiping away the red liquid that was obscuring her vision, Junquan, her face turning pale, closed her eyes and shook her head. She wanted to refuse Glorious's kind request, but before she could speak, she received what could be described as bad news.

"Jun Quan! Lin Xian, who was just behind us a moment ago... she's gone!" Emerald, standing at the end of the line, shouted in alarm to Jun Quan. Her words made all the ship girl instructors' hearts skip a beat.