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

Volume 1, Chapter 25: Specialized Courses

After seeing Wang Jing off, Su Yuru lay back down on her brother's wooden bed. Recalling what Wang Jing had just said to her, she couldn't help but feel a little melancholy.

Not only is it that vixen Zhuo Yuelin, but after my brother becomes an admiral, he'll also have his own ship girls, and they're all stunning beauties... With so many girls, what if my brother couldn't resist the temptation one day... No, impossible! How could my brother do such a thing? He, he said he'd be with you forever, Su Yurou! You have to believe in your brother!

The girl turned away, burying her face completely in the white pillow like an ostrich. But… even her brother is a normal boy… what if he did something with his ship girl while I was away… sister-in-law, sister-in-law or something? I don’t want that! If brother can hold back while I’m gone… then I’ll give you a reward after Xiaorou arrives, so brother… you have to wait for Xiaorou…

………………

While the girl in the distance is feeling sentimental about her brother, Su Yuchen, located in Tsugawa, is beginning her first professional lesson as a trainee admiral, accompanied by her ship girl brilliance.

Before becoming a trainee admiral, most candidates already have some understanding of the admiral profession and have learned many of the skills necessary to become an admiral. However, as novices, they still know very little about what an admiral needs to know and do. Therefore, for them, the most important thing to learn at this time is how to be a good admiral.

Su Yuchen was no exception. In the spacious lecture hall that held nearly a thousand people, Su Yuchen and Guanghui found a relatively secluded spot to sit down. Even so, countless envious glances were still cast their way around them. After all… in this classroom filled with young girls, Guanghui, a mature and gentle beauty, was simply too conspicuous. Many people were even speculating about her romantic interests.

Hey! Look over there, what a beautiful woman!

"That figure and demeanor, she'd be a battleship, ah, so enviable..."

"Warning! Warning! European seals spotted! Fellow Africans, please wear sunglasses to avoid sunburn!"

"There were three people in our class who built a capital ship, right? Can you guess which one it is?"

"Who cares who they are? They're all a bunch of despicable white monkeys. When I get the chance, I'll definitely poke their asses with a spear!"

The murmurs of conversation echoed in the already uneasy classroom, but Su Yuchen seemed completely oblivious, listening intently to the bald professor lecturing while diligently taking notes. Guanghui, meanwhile, was reading a book on air warfare borrowed from the academy's library; as a ship girl, she naturally didn't need to attend the admiral's theoretical lectures.

Before long, Su Yuchen, who was listening attentively to the instructor's teachings, had filled her notebook with dense notes. In the real world, admirals aren't like those in games, where simply clicking on a ship girl will automatically send her to attack the deep sea, and a quick click on resupply is all it takes. Leaving aside the issue of how to allocate ammunition for different types of warships, just figuring out the allocation of ships for sorties is enough to give admirals a headache for half a day.

Just like before carrying out an attack mission, the admiral must collect various intelligences about the target sea area in order to analyze the degree of danger of the target sea area. After the initial analysis, the admiral must select the ships to be deployed based on the results. After all, the ammunition and fuel that ship girls can use are not the same as ordinary shells and oil. The production of similar quantities to cursed steel makes it impossible for admirals to waste combat power at will.

If only one deep-sea destroyer is present in the target area, admirals will generally only dispatch one destroyer shipgirl, or, to be on the safe side, two or one light cruiser shipgirl. After sortieing, it's not enough to just wait for the battle results at the naval base; admirals also need to use the radio station set up at the naval base to coordinate and command the shipgirls participating in the battle. This reduces the shipgirls' tactical misjudgments and greatly alleviates their panic during combat.

Perhaps in other people's eyes, the admiral is simply the epitome of a perfect job: few tasks, high pay, surrounded by young and beautiful ship girls, and even has the privilege of having multiple married ships.

No matter how you look at it, this is enough to make countless people fight tooth and nail for a single spot, and that is indeed the case. But in reality, an admiral has a lot to worry about: the various daily tasks and activities of the naval base, socializing with other admirals or merchants, suppression missions when the deep sea appears, the distribution of various ammunition and supplies, and the mental state and psychological problems of the ship girls. All of these require the admiral to take care of one by one.

Warfare is all about logistics, and even with the help of a secretary ship, it's not an easy task for an admiral who is just an ordinary human to complete these tasks.

The professional class ended amidst the attention and curious discussions of many. Guanghui thoughtfully helped Su Yuchen pack up her books and study materials. Looking at the notebook filled with key points in her hand, Su Yuchen breathed a sigh of relief, "Phew, class is finally over. Let's go, Guanghui, you still have your aviation warfare theory class next."

"Yes, Admiral." Hikari straightened her clothes and followed behind her Admiral. But when she looked up, she found that her Admiral's attention had been drawn to a short-haired boy walking towards him, with a lively-looking woman with brown hair following behind him.

"Hello, you must be Su Yuchen? My name is Zhang Hao..."

Volume 1, Chapter 26: Heartbroken

"Ah, hello." Su Yuchen looked up in surprise when her name was called. She didn't know the other person or why they knew her.

"Excuse me, is there anything I can help you with?" Looking at the unremarkable-looking boy of similar age in front of him, the boy searched his memory for any recollection of meeting this person before, and answered politely. However, no matter how hard he tried to recall, he still couldn't remember him at all, although the name Zhang Hao sounded somewhat familiar to him.

"Sorry, sorry, actually I don't have anything important to say." The boy named Zhang Hao quickly waved his hand and chuckled dryly. "I just happened to see you in the same classroom, so I thought I'd come over and say hello. After all, we're both those despicable guys who built capital ships. Oh, by the way, let me introduce you, this is my ship girl, her name is Hinata..."

"I see," Su Yuchen pondered for a moment. No wonder she seemed to have heard this name recently. Yuan Ye had mentioned it to her just yesterday, saying that besides herself, two other people had also been fortunate enough to build a capital ship, and Zhang Hao seemed to be one of those two.

"...Well, although it can't compare to those high-speed ships, it's still a main battleship, which is enough to make me proud..." Ignoring Zhang Hao's self-talk, Su Yuchen looked over his shoulder at the Hyuga-class battleship standing behind him, and the Hyuga, noticing his gaze, waved to him lively.

"Country bumpkins"—that was Su Yuchen's only impression of the two Ise-class sisters in the game. They lacked exquisite character illustrations that would catch the eye, as well as armor and firepower comparable to Rona, or speed comparable to high-speed battleships. Although they could be converted into versatile carrier battleships, they were neither the best nor the worst, and still couldn't escape the tragic fate of becoming fodder for other characters.

However, in this world where large warships are extremely scarce, they were fortunate enough to transform into the main force that every admiral desperately wanted. While feeling regretful about this change, Su Yuchen also felt a slight sense of relief. Whether in the game or in reality, his love for ship girls was genuine, and he was naturally happy that they could find a good home... even though he himself had fed many Ise-class ships in the game.

"...I'm so lucky I managed to build Hyuga, otherwise I really wouldn't know how I would explain it when I got home. Phew, after saying so much, I almost forgot to ask, Su Yuchen, which ship girl did you build? If I had to guess, it must be a very advanced and powerful battleship, right?" Zhang Hao, his gaze fixed on the elegant and beautiful Hikari behind the boy, said with a somewhat envious tone, his eyes filled with admiration.

"As expected, this topic still comes up," Su Yuchen thought with a wry smile. He turned to look at Illustrious, who was smiling at him, and then hesitated before answering, "My ship girl, well... she's not a particularly powerful capital ship. Her only advantage is speed; her firepower and armor are somewhat lacking..."

After hesitating for a moment, Su Yuchen stammered, trying to bluff her way out. Before becoming a formal admiral, it was best to follow her mentor Junquan's advice and conceal her glorious identity. Even if she wasn't afraid of those high-intensity support missions, she still had to be wary of some envious villains who had forgotten their duties as admirals.

"Oh, I see..." Hearing Su Yuchen's answer, for some reason, Zhang Hao's smile deepened. Firepower and armor are lacking? What kind of capital ship is that? They don't even dare to say their name; they're probably just a half-baked vessel! Ha! I was worried he'd be competing with me for a spot on this year's trainee admiral committee.

"I even bet with someone that it would be a more advanced battleship, but I was wrong, and now I'm wasting my lunch money. Ah, I didn't mean anything by it, but the firepower and armor are a bit weaker, which is fatal for a capital ship. Look at our Hyuga, the Super-Dreadnought, with 305mm of armor at the waterline, plus the Type 41 35.6cm twin-mounted guns and 14cm single-mounted guns. It feels like it could one-shot an abyssal battleship, haha!"

Unexpectedly, as Zhang Hao spoke, his expression became increasingly smug. Su Yuchen, who was standing to the side, frowned inwardly. Although her stammering had led him to mistakenly believe that Guanghui was weak, the obvious contempt in his words still made her feel very uncomfortable.

"So, is there anything else?" Su Yuchen sighed inwardly again, already getting a little impatient. If it was just to show off her ship girls, she might as well have gone to the Aviation Tactics Department with Illustrious earlier. She couldn't possibly talk to a bunch of guys who worship big ships and big guns.

"Yes, actually I was also wondering if you had any plans to join the Trainee Admiral Committee." Ignoring the boy's slightly helpless tone, Zhang Hao grinned. Since his own ship girls were still stronger, there was no need to try to build a good relationship with him. If he knew what was good for him, he shouldn't try to compete with him for one of the few spots on the Trainee Admiral Committee, otherwise, he wouldn't hold back during the exercises.

The Trainee Admiral Committee? ...I think I heard Instructor Junquan mention it before. It's like a student council, and Senior Han Jing seems to be a member...Given my situation, it's best to avoid getting involved in this kind of thing. "I have no intention of joining the committee, at least not now." After determining that there was no need for her to join the Trainee Admiral Committee, Su Yuchen, who already had little interest, decisively shook her head.

"Really? That's fine then. We're all right now. Hinata, let's go." After receiving the boy's reply, Zhang Hao's attitude completely changed. He then rudely led Hinata away from the classroom.

"Ha..." Zhang Hao's figure, which made the surrounding colleagues frown in secret, disappeared in front of the classroom door. Su Yuchen breathed a sigh of exhaustion. It was really tiring to talk to such a competitive guy.

Being looked down upon is unpleasant, and her weak armor and firepower are indeed true. However, Illustrious isn't a battleship. Relying on carrier-based aircraft for attacks, she's completely incomparable to the less advanced and less anti-aircraft Hyuga. I wonder what kind of expression Zhang Hao would have if he knew Illustrious's true identity?

"Admiral, you don't look well... Is it because of Glorious that you're in a difficult situation...?"

Volume 1, Chapter 27: Air Tactics Division

Following the numerous signs throughout the academy, Su Yuchen and Guanghui arrived at the Naval Academy's Aviation Tactics Division for the first time. Unlike the bustling scenes in other campuses, the atmosphere here was rather deserted. Even after arriving at the main teaching building, the boy and Guanghui still didn't see a single person.

Well, there's nothing we can do about it. The power of aircraft carriers directly leads to their scarcity. Even light aircraft carriers, whose combat capabilities are significantly reduced, are still considered the mainstay ship type above battleships in the navy's fleet.

The ability to launch carrier-based aircraft beyond visual range gives them a more flexible and versatile combat style than traditional gunboats. Coupled with their superior search capabilities compared to other warships, aircraft carriers and light carriers have become synonymous with power and good fortune. According to Yuan Ye, including himself, there are only four aircraft carrier-type ship girls in this naval academy, two of which are instructors specially hired by the academy.

"It's really quiet here." As they walked through the spacious atrium, the boy looked around, searching for their classroom on the floor plan in front of the school building. "Uh...where's the lecturer for the Basic Theory of Air Combat..."

"Ah, found it! It's on the second floor, Admiral." A beautiful voice, tinged with a hint of joy, came from behind. She bent down slightly, smoothed her flowing hair, and pointed her slender, delicate fingers to a classroom on the second floor of the floor plan next to the boy. Perhaps because the two were so close, the boy's full and soft breasts seemed to brush against her arm without her noticing.

"!!" The soft touch traveled rapidly through the boy's nerves, disrupting his thoughts and causing his face to flush instantly. In a panic, the boy turned his head and instinctively looked at the light that was so close to him.

"Huh? What's wrong?" Noticing that the boy in front of her suddenly looked at her in a flustered manner, seemingly unaware of the radiance of the unintentional touch just now, she tilted her head in confusion.

"Ah, it's nothing!" The boy quickly waved his hand, his hands twitching nervously as he pretended to turn back and continue looking at the floor plan in front of him, seemingly trying to hide his embarrassment. He shifted slightly and then asked Guanghui again, "By the way, Guanghui, did you find the classroom just now? Is it on the second floor?"

"Yes, Admiral, the classroom is right here." Seeing that Guanghui seemed to have no suspicions, she pointed to the floor plan again, and Su Yuchen, who was extremely embarrassed, finally breathed a sigh of relief. After finally calming down, he was about to consider whether he should tell Guanghui that she could be very unguarded at times, but unexpectedly, he felt that unforgettable soft touch on his shoulder again.

Startled instinctively, the boy glanced at Guanghui's face again, only to find that she was looking at Su Yuchen, who was blushing.

"Admiral?" A bright smile graced her stunningly beautiful face. Under the uneasy gaze of the young man, she mischievously blinked her sea-blue eyes, a sight that almost melted the heart of Su Yuchen, who was fortunate enough to witness such a scene.

By now, even a fool would know that Guanghui must have done this on purpose after discovering the truth. Realizing this, the boy, who had never experienced anything like this before, blushed even more deeply. "Guanghui... I, let's hurry to the classroom, class is about to start..." He stammered, not even knowing what he was saying. After failing to cover up his mistake, the boy walked straight towards the stairs not far away without waiting for Guanghui's response.

"Hehe~ The Admiral is shy~" Seeing the boy's obviously awkward movements, Hikaru, who wasn't in a hurry to follow, covered his mouth and chuckled reservedly. "To say something like that so seriously in the classroom, the Admiral is so cute. For an Admiral like that, a reward is definitely in order~"

…………

Arriving at the door of the aviation tactics classroom first, the boy with his head down finally stopped. Recalling Guanghui's little prank just now, the blush on his face, which had been fading, started to rise again.

I don't know why, but ever since we came out of the admiral's professional lecture, Glorious has become a little different. Is it because of what I said? ...I wonder how she really sees me. This kind of intimate prank is something that only people who are very close would do, but we've only known each other for such a short time...

The boy was quite puzzled. Having almost no experience interacting with girls, he couldn't possibly guess what kind of image he had in Glorious's mind. He probably thought he was just a novice admiral with little ability. However, he seemed to have forgotten that for such lovely beings as ship girls, the admiral was the person they trusted and relied on the most.

As mentioned before, ship girls easily develop feelings for their admirals. If the admirable qualities that attract ship girls are the foundation, and the little things in daily life are the catalysts for affection, then the events that make ship girls blush can be described as the tornado that brings love.

While the reality isn't quite that exaggerated, as described, ship girls do easily develop feelings for their admirals. If this were still in a game, Su Yuchen might have noticed that her beloved Illustrious's affection level had already increased significantly. Even if she hadn't reached the point of liking him yet, she was certainly not far off.

After a while, Glorious finally walked gracefully to the boy's side, her gentle smile unchanged, as if nothing had happened. "Admiral, walking so fast in the corridor is very dangerous, please be careful."

The concerned words reached the boy's ears, pulling him back from his self-doubt. He stole a glance at Guanghui's expression, which was no different from usual, and took a deep breath. Since Guanghui hadn't mentioned what had just happened, he needed to act normal and not disappoint her. As for what Guanghui thought of him… well, as long as he worked hard enough, one day he would become an admiral who would impress Guanghui. Giving herself a pep talk, Su Yuchen quickly answered Guanghui, suppressing all her emotions, "Okay, I understand. Let's go in then, don't keep the instructor waiting."

"Hmm!" With a strange smile, she nodded and followed the boy into the elegantly decorated classroom. There were brand-new desks and chairs, windowsills filled with various flowers and plants, and spotless transparent glass. However, the only flaw was that there was no one at all under the podium.

"Ah, welcome!" At this moment, a somewhat weak-sounding voice rang out from the podium.

Volume 1, Chapter 28: Langley

Following the sound, the boy and Guanghui looked at the figure sitting behind the podium at the same time. It was a woman with long light brown hair and a petite figure.

She wore a black, boat-shaped military cap, and a pair of red-framed glasses perched on her small nose. If it weren't for the instructor's badge hanging around her neck, Su Yuchen might have mistaken her for a fellow ship girl who had come to study with her without a second thought.

"Good morning. You're here to learn about air combat, right?" She gently placed the novel she had been holding onto the podium, then stood up and said softly, "I thought this year would be like every year, with no new students coming to my lecture..."

"Oh? Ah... Good morning, teacher. We are the students who came to listen to your lecture."

The boy responded hastily, never expecting that such a small and unassuming ship girl was actually an instructor. He almost embarrassed himself by misunderstanding her identity.

"Greetings, Instructor." Unlike her admiral's somewhat flustered reaction, even though she was equally surprised, the mature and composed Radiance gracefully gave the other party a Western-style ladylike greeting.

"Please come in quickly. There are plenty of empty seats in the classroom. Just choose whichever one you like." After exchanging greetings, she noticed that Su Yuchen and Guanghui were still standing at the door. Feeling that she had been a bit impolite, she hurriedly invited Su Yuchen and Guanghui in.

As an instructor, the ship girl in front of him seemed rather timid. "Ah, sorry, I almost forgot to introduce myself… I'm the light aircraft carrier USS Langley, responsible for teaching theoretical knowledge of aviation tactics. If you don't mind, please just call me Langley…"

"Hello, Instructor Langley, my name is Su Yuchen, and I'm a newly recruited trainee admiral." After hearing Langley's self-introduction, the boy quickly introduced himself as well. He glanced at Illustrious beside him, then introduced her to Instructor Langley, who was also looking at Illustrious, "This is my initial ship girl, named Illustrious, she's an armored..."

However, before the boy could finish speaking, he noticed an expression of utter disbelief on the face of the instructor he had just met.

"Radiant... Huh—?!!! Radiant?... Could it be, the first ship of the Radiant-class armored aircraft carrier, Radiant?! No, that can't be... Isn't that the legendary five-star ship girl? How could this be..." With wide eyes, Langley, also a ship girl, immediately guessed Radiant's identity and was completely unable to understand what was happening in front of her. She looked at Radiant, who was clinging to the boy like a little bird, and became very helpless.

Her mouth was agape, and she was so flustered that she was like a fish out of water. She didn't even have time to care about the astonishing fact that a trainee admiral would have a five-star aircraft carrier ship girl.

A five-star aircraft carrier lady suddenly visits her long-neglected teacher, and apparently, she's even coming to listen to her lecture. What should she do in this situation? Awaiting your reply, urgent!

"Ah, ah... ah... You, hello, Miss Glorious..." Completely unable to process this unbelievable news, Langley took a long time to recover. Completely bewildered, she stared at Glorious in front of her and suddenly gave a perfect ninety-degree bow. Perhaps forgetting she was standing in front of the lectern, she blankly slammed her forehead against the seemingly hard surface. "Ouch! That hurts..."

"Are you alright, Professor Langley? Please calm down!"

"Instructor, are you alright?"

........................

"...When launching carrier-based aircraft, over the same runway distance, flying against the wind allows the aircraft to generate greater lift, enabling them to reach takeoff speed as quickly as possible. This also improves safety and increases the aircraft's payload..."

Standing on the podium, Langley, who had finally calmed down, held a piece of chalk in his hand and wrote neat characters on the blackboard while explaining the points that needed attention.

"Sigh..." She glanced back at Su Yuchen, who was diligently taking notes, and Guanghui, who was listening intently, and then sighed. Ah... her behavior just now was truly embarrassing; as a teacher, how could she act like that...

But there's nothing I can do about it. How could a five-star aircraft carrier come to me to learn air combat tactics and stuff like that? I'm just a half-baked converted light carrier, and I'm supposed to teach an advanced and powerful armored carrier? It just doesn't seem right... I really hope my previous combat experience can come in handy...

Shaking her head in frustration, she tried to refocus her attention on the lesson. If she made a mistake about any important points, it would be incredibly embarrassing. She couldn't believe that someone in this world could actually build a five-star ship girl… The name Su Yuchen sounded familiar, but she couldn't quite place it. She'd better ask Hornet when she got back…

"Admiral, don't you really need to rest? You can leave the note-taking to me. You must be very tired after listening to lectures all morning." Below the podium, looking at Su Yuchen sitting next to him, diligently writing down one tip after another in her notebook, Guanghui frowned slightly with a hint of worry. Her gentle voice, like flowing water, reached the boy's ears, making it clear that she was concerned.

It's true that ship girls with wife-like qualities are wonderful enough to make countless people yearn for them. Their gentleness can bring you the warmth of a harbor, and their virtuousness can help you handle all the trivial matters in your life. However, the only drawback is that these virtuous and gentle women will always subconsciously do the work that is originally yours. If you don't want to be turned into someone who can't do anything, then you'd better think of a way to avoid being led by the nose by them as soon as possible.

Perhaps this scene seemed too familiar, because when Glorious asked her again if she needed to rest, Su Yuchen, recalling how Xiaorou had taken such good care of her when she first came to this world, stretched and quickly shook her head, feeling a little apprehensive. "It's okay, I'm not tired yet. Glorious, you just need to listen carefully to the lecture. Please leave this little thing to me. Assisting our ship girls in their studies is also our admiral's job."

If it weren't for his strong self-control, he would have almost become a useless person who didn't lift a finger back then. Now, he doesn't want to become an admiral who only relies on his ship girls but has no real skills.

"Since you've said so, Admiral, please don't push yourself. If you get tired, be sure to tell Radiant..."

Default volume

Book 1, Chapter 29: Lexington

"There are many things to be aware of when operating at night, but the most important of all is light control. It is best to turn off the lights and perform a zigzag maneuver immediately after recovering the carrier-based aircraft to prevent torpedo attacks from submarines..."

The lesson continued. As Langley lectured on the theory of night combat, Glorious, sitting upright in his chair, seemed to suddenly remember something, and the corners of his ever-present smile turned up slightly. "Night combat, huh?"

"Hmm? What's wrong?" Su Yuchen looked up curiously when she heard Guanghui say something.

"Ah, it's nothing. Instructor Langley is explaining night combat techniques." Illustrious shook her head and gave Su Yuchen a very pleasant smile. "Admiral, don't let my appearance fool you, I actually have a surprising fondness for night raids." Because her predecessor, the armored aircraft carrier Illustrious, had historically launched a night raid on the Taranto naval base, she seemed to have a particular interest in night raids.

After speaking with a light laugh, she glanced at the boy, only to suddenly notice that his face had turned slightly red for some reason. "??" Tilting her head, she carefully recalled what she had just said, and it wasn't until a while later that she finally realized there was a hint of ambiguity in her words that made her blush.

A thin blush immediately spread across her delicate face. With a hint of reproach, she pouted her glistening red lips. "Hmm~ Admiral, really, I didn't mean that~~... But, Admiral, you really do... like it?"

The topic veered in an indescribable direction. Under Guanghui's smiling gaze, the blushing boy turned his head away guiltily. Although he had misunderstood Guanghui's words, as an energetic boy, it was hard to believe that he didn't like that kind of thing, let alone others.

"Well... I am a man after all... It's impossible for me to say I hate it... Ahaha—the weather is so nice today, what should we eat for lunch?" The embarrassed boy scratched his cheek awkwardly and quickly changed the subject.

"Hehe, Admiral is shy." Looking at Su Yuchen, who was defeated in just one round, Guanghui covered his mouth and chuckled, then squinted his eyes happily. "How about English steak for lunch? I'm very good at Western food!" On the way back, let's also buy some ingredients for making desserts. Admiral has worked hard all morning, so we should treat him properly.

"Um... today's class is over..." Langley, having finished her lesson, stood behind the podium, looking innocently at the two whispering figures. "Since Wasp, who's in charge of practical training, isn't here, I'll be temporarily handling tomorrow's practical training..."

………………

"Ah..." With a sigh of frustration, the boy led Glorious out of the gates of the Aviation Tactical Academy. He hadn't expected that Teacher Langley had overheard what he and Glorious had just said. Sigh... he hoped she wouldn't misunderstand. "It's almost noon, Glorious, let's go back to the school building."

“Yes, Admiral.” Radiant nodded gently. “But we’re missing some seasonings if we want to make steak. Could you come with me to buy some?”

"Of course, no problem." The boy answered without hesitation. Recalling the incredibly delicious dinner Guanghui had prepared the night before, all his regrets vanished instantly. His taste buds perked up, and he eagerly anticipated what Guanghui's steak would taste like.

"I heard they are the Lexington-class sisters, rumored to be powerful and beautiful five-star aircraft carriers."