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

"So beautiful and so elegant! Coach! I think I'm in love again!"

"Why would a five-star ship girl like that come to our naval academy? Could she be a newly hired instructor?"

"Really? Then I'll definitely go listen to their lectures."

"Hey! Bro, wake up. Your ship girl is just a destroyer; she can't attend aviation tactics classes."

"Both my older and younger sisters are so beautiful. If I could just have a few words with them, I would gladly give up ten years of my life."

"Give up, those legendary ship girls are beyond our reach. Besides, look, they're all wearing diamond rings on their left ring fingers."

"Really! I've never heard of such a thing! Who is it that can marry both a wife and a sister-in-law at the same time? They're twin beauties! This is just too enviable!!"

"Oh well, there's no use being jealous. With that kind of ability, you'd at least be a general-level admiral, maybe even a marshal-level veteran admiral revered by thousands."

Shining brightly, the boy headed towards the academy's main road, but a commotion brought him back to reality as he savored the delicious food Shining had prepared. He looked up and saw a large group of naval academy students, dressed like him in their apprentice admiral uniforms, gathered there. "Hmm? What happened? Why are so many people gathered here?"

"I don't know." The radiance behind him also shook his head in confusion.

"Let's go take a look, Radiant." With that, the curious boy walked towards the group of people. He gently patted a boy who looked a bit excited from behind and asked him, "Hey, what happened here? Why are you all gathered here?"

"Huh? You didn't know? This news is almost known throughout the entire Naval Academy!"

The man turned around and looked at the boy with a surprised expression, seemingly astonished by Su Yuchen's level of interest. He pointed to the faculty office building not far away and then shouted excitedly.

"The ship girls Lexington and Saratoga just came to our academy! Did you know? They're legendary five-star aircraft carriers!! And the most famous wife and sister-in-law!! So many of us gathered here just to catch a glimpse of them! Ahhh, it's just a pity I arrived too late and didn't get to see them at all!!!"

Book 1, Chapter 30: Radiant Unease

A five-star aircraft carrier ship girl? Actually, there's one right here. Su Yuchen smiled wryly. Following the excited man's finger, he looked at the building not far away and muttered to himself, "My wife and sister-in-law..."

As his favorite pair of sisters in the game, he really wanted to meet the real Lady Lex and Sis Sara in this world. He also envied the admiral who was lucky enough to have both of them. However… he had resigned himself to his fate. Perhaps he was just not born with the talent to be the protagonist. Besides, he already had Illustrious, so what was he thinking about? Even if they were his sister-in-law, they were already someone else's ship girls…

Shaking his head as if trying to shake off his chaotic thoughts, the boy thanked his remorseful friend beside him and then returned to Radiant's side, who was waiting for him.

"Admiral, has something happened?" Sensing that his admiral seemed a little down, Glorious frowned with concern.

"Hmm? Oh, nothing. I heard from them that Lexington and Saratoga, two legendary five-star ship girls, visited our academy. What are they here for? I'm really curious..."

Looking at the somewhat absent-minded boy, Glorious frowned and felt a little uncomfortable for some reason. "Admiral... do you like Lexington? I heard that she is called 'Madam' by you..." She quietly clenched her hands, feeling a bit sour and uncomfortable.

Even though he was feeling down, the observant boy still noticed the change in Guanghui's tone. He looked up at Guanghui's brows, which revealed a hint of unease, and suddenly felt very guilty.

What stupid thing am I doing? It's true that my wife and sister-in-law are popular, but Illustrious is your starting ship! Compared to my wife and Jiajia, who already have an admiral, she's the one you should be focusing on! And compared to my wife, Illustrious is just as good. After giving himself a good scolding, and banishing all those useless thoughts, the boy's mood immediately improved. "Like? No, don't misunderstand, Illustrious… well, I guess I'm just a little nostalgic…"

"Nostalgia?"

"Hmm! How should I put it... maybe it's because she was my bride in the game... Ah, no... you see... actually, I've read quite a few novels about ship girls before, and in those novels, many of the protagonists gradually reached the pinnacle of their lives with Lexington's help... so... ahahaha..." The boy, who almost let slip the secret, quickly corrected himself. He scratched his cheek, sweating profusely and feeling very embarrassed. Although this explanation was quite awkward, he didn't have time to worry about that at the moment.

"Pfft..." Perhaps because she heard the boy reveal his embarrassing past, Glorious suddenly covered her mouth and chuckled softly. She raised her face and looked into the embarrassed boy's eyes. "Oh, I see. I thought you were asking for... Ah, it's getting late, Admiral. We should go back. If we don't go back soon, I might not have time to make you steak. Weren't you planning to go to the training grounds this afternoon?"

Seeing Guanghui change the subject without understanding what was going on, Su Yuchen glanced at his watch and, realizing it was indeed getting late, quickly replied, "It's almost midnight! Let's hurry back." He didn't want to miss the food Guanghui had made; although he had only eaten it once, he found himself almost unable to leave that taste behind.

"Look! Look! Mrs. Lek is out!!" Just as the two were about to leave, a scream full of surprise came from behind them. The boy and Guanghui subconsciously turned around, and what came into view was a head of incredibly eye-catching flaxen hair.

Her flowing hair stirred countless hearts; her deep blue eyes, her flawless, snow-white skin, and the proud bosom hidden beneath her pristine white naval uniform…

A symbolic sea-blue headdress swayed gently in the breeze, and a golden sash hung neatly on her chest. Perhaps for convenience, or perhaps because she didn't want to share her beauty with anyone other than important people, Lexington, dressed in much more conservative white trousers, walked out of the office building with light steps. Although her long, slender, and toned legs were hidden in the wide trousers in the illustration, her beauty, which was in no way inferior to her radiance, attracted the attention of almost everyone in just a moment.

"Sister, wait for me." Another melodious voice rang out, and behind the dazzling Lexington, a blonde girl followed closely behind. She had a similar beauty to Mrs. Lexington, but her temperament was completely different; she was a lively and beautiful young woman.

Her headdress, tilted to the left, her knee-length sailor uniform, which also appeared much more conservative, and the black band around her neck—all these, combined with what she had just said, made it immediately clear to anyone with eyes to recognize her. She was Saratoga, Lexington's sister.

Looking at the two sisters' graceful figures, Su Yuchen smiled. He had finally met the real Mrs. and Jiajia. This fulfilled one of his wishes since coming to this world. He turned his head and gently said to Guanghui, who was also amazed by the sisters' beauty, "Let's go, Guanghui. If we don't leave now, we really won't have time for lunch."

"Hmm? Ah, yes, Admiral." With a nod of agreement as Hikaru regained his senses, the two of them quietly left the area where the crowd had gathered.

However, as they left, none of them noticed that the boy's silhouette had already been etched into someone's eyes through the crowd.

Book 1, Chapter 31: Gaga's Discovery

"Sister, wait for me!" Saratoga, who had only been distracted for a moment, quickly called out to her sister, realizing that she had fallen behind. She jogged lightly and soon caught up with her sister again.

As originally planned, my sister and I came to the Naval Academy today to meet up with Wasp, who was staying there, to tell her about the recent search results, and to visit the academy dean, who is an old friend. However, Wasp seemed to be on a mission and was not at the academy, so we did not meet.

Hearing her sister's call, Lexington turned around, her gentle and lovely face revealing a hint of worry. She looked at her absent-minded sister and said helplessly to Saratoga, who was lost in thought, "Gaga, what are you doing? Let's go, Washington and the others are still waiting for us, don't keep them waiting."

She sighed melancholy, silently lowering her head to look at the still-shining ring on her left ring finger. Everything before her eyes blurred. Ever since that incident, Jiajia had often drifted off into thought for no apparent reason, and her lively smile was rarely seen anymore… Sigh… But I can't blame her. After all, the most important person to me, just like that, was gone. How could she not be devastated…

“Sister…” Saratoga, who had stopped slowly and was looking down as if lost in thought, suddenly asked her sister, “Sister, why do we have to stop and rest here in Tsugawa? There are still so many places we haven’t explored…” The brim of her hat covered the girl’s face, making it impossible to see her expression.

Hearing her younger sister's words, Lexington lovingly reached out and stroked the girl's long, smooth, golden hair. As the older sister, she could clearly sense the emotions suppressed in her sister's words, but even she, usually so intelligent and kind, felt somewhat helpless at this moment. "No need to rush, Jiajia. Wouldn't it be better to rest here for a few days and relax?"

"But sister! What if something happens to your husband while we're resting here?! You're his wife! Why don't you seem worried at all?!" However, her sister's comforting words had no effect; instead, they caused the girl's pent-up anxiety and unease to erupt. Clenching her fists tightly, she screamed hysterically at Lexington.

But for a woman who already had her beloved, the girl's words were incredibly hurtful. Lexington's dignified face instantly turned pale, and her shapely body swayed helplessly. "Don't be so willful, okay! Jaja! He's your favorite brother-in-law, but he's also my most beloved husband! ... How could I not worry about him?! How could I not miss him?! If I could, I would love to go find him without sleep or rest!" Perhaps Jaja's words touched on the wound she least wanted to relive, because the usually gentle and dignified Lexington surprisingly yelled at her sister.

Completely stunned, Saratoga was stunned when her doting older sister yelled at her like that. She stared blankly at Lexington's pale face, shrinking back in fear. Knowing full well the hurt her words would cause her sister, she blurted them out without thinking. Her voice trembling slightly with tears, Saratoga knew she had gone too far and began to apologize to her sister, "I'm so sorry, sister... I didn't mean to..."

"Sigh... It's alright, Jiajia, I don't blame you." Seeing the tears welling up in the girl's eyes, Mrs. Lek realized she had been too impulsive and gently hugged Jiajia. "Although we both really want to find your brother-in-law, we can't ignore other people's feelings. We've been searching for over a month, and everyone is exhausted, so we need to rest. And you, Jiajia, you haven't had a proper rest in a long time either."

"Yes, sister, I understand..." Feeling the warmth in her sister's arms, the girl gradually calmed down. She gently wiped away the tears that had accumulated in the corners of her eyes. Her eyes glanced inadvertently at the wall of people beside her, but the next second, a familiar yet unwavering figure suddenly came into her view.

"!!!" As if electrocuted, the girl's eyes widened instantly. She hurriedly broke free from Lexington's embrace and looked towards the wall of people not far away. That figure... there was no mistake! It must be her brother-in-law! Ignoring her surprised sister, she rushed towards the direction where that figure had been.

"Wow! It's Saratoga! Saratoga is running this way!"

"What? Move aside! Let me see!"

"Hey! Jiajia is looking at me. Could it be that she's taken a liking to someone as smart and handsome as me?"

"You wish! You narcissist, insisting that she was looking at me!"

"Saratoga, I'm your fan! Please give me your autograph!"

Ignoring the annoying noises, Saratoga charged straight into the crowd. Anxious about the onlookers, she used her ship girl powers to easily push aside a large group of people. Although a few stumbled and fell, she successfully passed through the human wall. Compared to her brother-in-law, she couldn't care less about these bystanders.

"Brother-in-law! Brother-in-law!" After finally getting over the thick wall of people, the girl sat down on the ground, tears welling up in her eyes, as she looked at the empty tree-lined path.

"Gaga, what's wrong?" Looking at Gaga sitting on the ground, the wife, who had rushed over, asked in confusion. As for those unfortunate souls who had been pushed to the ground by Saratoga and even suffered minor injuries, she subconsciously ignored them. Even a gentle wife didn't like those people who liked to watch them.

"Sister! I saw brother-in-law! He was just here!" Saratoga shouted to her sister, pointing to the spot where her brother-in-law had just been.

Upon hearing her sister's words, Lexington felt her heart skip a beat. She clutched her chest, trying to calm herself. "What? Are you serious? Jaja, you really saw your brother-in-law here?"

"Yes! Sister! I absolutely cannot mistake my brother-in-law!" Without a doubt, the girl nodded vigorously. She was confident that she could recognize her brother-in-law within five seconds, even if he was disfigured, since her favorability rating had reached two hundred.

"But... Tsugawa, we've searched back and forth so many times, we shouldn't have missed anything... Kaka... could you be mistaken...?"

"No, sister! You have to believe Jiajia!! I must have seen brother-in-law! There's no mistake!"

Seeing her sister's resolute expression, Lexington wavered. Her vision blurred as she looked towards the spot her sister had just pointed. If the Admiral really is still in this city... but why hasn't he come looking for us...? "Jiajia, let's go back first, discuss it with Washington and the others, and then search for Tsugawa again..." After a while, Lexington suddenly raised her head, looked at her sister, and said softly.

Since you, Admiral, aren't coming to us, then we'll come to you...

Volume 1, Chapter 32: Exercises

Back at the school building, after enjoying the delicious steak prepared by Guanghui, Su Yuchen rested for a while before going with Guanghui to the training ground on the east side of the academy.

Every afternoon, this place is open to the trainee admirals and their ship girls who are still studying at this academy, so that they can learn and familiarize themselves with actual combat. After all, no matter how good you are at theoretical strategizing, it is just theoretical operation. Without actual practice, no matter how advanced the tactics and methods you learn are, you can't integrate them into the ship girls' own combat style.

Although the academy's rules stipulate that every afternoon is free time for the admirals and ship girls to have their own activities—giving the admirals and ship girls free time to develop bonds is also an important part of the academy's curriculum.

However, just staying idle in the dormitory still felt like something was missing. So, on Guanghui's suggestion, and after hearing that large ships like aircraft carriers had their own training grounds, the boy decided to go to the training ground with Guanghui to practice in practice.

The training ground is located on the east side of the academy, encompassing a sea area approximately 12 nautical miles from east to west. Because the academy is located on an island, this conveniently facilitates the layout of the entire training ground.

They arrived at the dock without incident, but Su Yuchen found that many people had already arrived at the training ground earlier than them. The station next to them, where they could collect practice ammunition, was already crowded with ship girls and their admirals who were eager to fire a shot at sea.

"Ha...looks like we're a bit late..." Looking at the bustling scene, Su Yuchen scratched her forehead with a headache. With so many people, who knows how long it would take to get a queue.

“Yes, Admiral. How about we wait here for a while?” Radiant, standing next to the boy, suggested, looking somewhat troubled.

If we take Guanghui to queue now, there will be so many people, and Guanghui is such a mature and beautiful woman. If she's not careful, she might get taken advantage of, and that would be terrible. Hearing Guanghui's suggestion, Su Yuchen, who had been frowning, quickly nodded. "Okay then, there's a place to rest over there. Let's sit there and wait for a while." As he spoke, he pointed to a bench nearby where people could rest for a bit, and then led Guanghui over.

"Ah, Admiral, don't rush. It's a bit dirty. Let me wipe it for you before you sit down. Heave-ho~" Seeing her Admiral turn around to sit down, the thoughtful and virtuous Glorious quickly stopped him. Looking at the boy's somewhat confused and youthful face, she took out a clean white handkerchief from her pocket and carefully wiped the chair surface. "Alright, Admiral, you can sit down now."

"Th...thank you, Glorious." Looking at Glorious, who had knelt down and was virtuously wiping the place where he was going to sit, her hair flowing, exuding a wifely charm yet slightly alluring, the boy felt his heart beat a little faster. That inexplicable flutter seemed to be constantly reminding him just how lucky he was to have created Glorious.

"You're welcome, Admiral. It's just what I should do."

……

"boom!"

"Shiki, you're rushing too fast! Retreat a little and coordinate with Mutsuki to advance by flanking!" "Z22! Torpedo salvo! Focus fire on Anthony on your port side!" On the sea not far away, several destroyer ship girls were dodging and firing shells from their cannons amidst a net of paintballs.

Sitting on a bench at the dock with Glorious, Su Yuchen watched intently as the little ship girls performed various tactical maneuvers and maneuvers under the command of her admiral.

The level of command and coordination among the ship girls in this 3v3 exercise demonstrates that the senior students have already acquired the basic abilities to become admirals. For them, all they lack is a practical exam that will allow them to graduate from the naval academy.

The battle was fierce, with both sides' artillery constantly spewing fire at each other, and torpedoes drawing white streaks, threatening the hypothetical enemy while also forcing them to remain constantly vigilant against these threats from beneath the water.

However, because destroyers have the fastest speed among existing ship types, and with the support and cover of their teammates, neither side has been able to achieve any results so far. All torpedoes missed their targets, and artillery fire landed on the sea surface far away from the enemy.

As a shell landed near Z22, it turned out to be a near miss, which was a pity for everyone and pushed the exercise to a heated stage, with both sides pouring more ammunition at each other.

The shelling could be unlimited, but the ammunition was finite. As the competition reached its climax, both sides had almost exhausted their ammunition. Torpedoes were used up, and the originally plentiful paintballs for the exercise were reduced to only a few rounds. If this continued, the exercise would likely end in a tactical defeat for both sides, as determined by the referee.

However, compared to the consumption of ammunition, the mental and physical exhaustion of maintaining such a high-intensity battle was far more devastating for these destroyer ship girls who had never been on the battlefield before. They had to be constantly vigilant to prevent stray bullets from hitting them, and they also had to concentrate, calculate lead time, and fire their shells at the enemy as accurately as possible.

Given the immense physical and mental strain, their ability to persevere without any mishaps is a testament to their well-trained nature. However, for these young girls, the most challenging part is only just beginning. As the battle nears its end, it's natural for people to unconsciously relax their guard.

Just as expected, a moment before the referee blew the final whistle, one of the destroyer girls, Kiat, suddenly froze. A 127mm shell that she could have dodged exploded in the water at her feet, splashing pink paint all over her. Finally, a trainee admiral who was temporarily acting as the referee blew the final whistle.

With a narrow advantage of hitting the target with a single shot, the combination of Shiki, Z22, and Mutsuki defeated Anthony, Bauer, and Kiat.

As the exciting exercise finally came to a close, Su Yuchen, thoroughly satisfied, couldn't help but applaud. Although they were just small destroyers, they still used their small bodies to protect humanity and were heroes who deserved everyone's respect.

"These are such hardworking little ones. As their older sister, I also need to work harder so that I can protect the Admiral," Radiant remarked with equal feeling.

Before the person who heard Guanghui's words could feel embarrassed, a familiar voice suddenly appeared behind the boy and Guanghui.

"Hey? Isn't this Yu Chen? You're here for training too?"

Volume 1, Chapter 33: Let's Have a Battle

"Hey? Isn't this Yu Chen? You're here for training too?" Hearing a familiar voice behind him, the boy turned around and saw Yuan Ye with Tianlong beside him, his face showing some surprise. He was holding a large box containing a lot of paintballs of both 14cm and 12.7cm sizes for training.

"Yuan Ye? That's surprising. You actually brought Tianlong out for exercises so diligently. This is really unlike you. Don't you always say that you would never leave home if you could avoid going out?" The boy and Guanghui stood up from the bench together, looking at Tianlong, who had already deployed its ship equipment, with some surprise.

The boy's slightly surprised voice reached Yuan Ye's ears. Perhaps it was the questioning tone in his voice that made someone feel a little resentful, Yuan Ye raised his eyebrows heavily. "How rude of me, Yu Chen. What do you mean 'actually'? I really like being an admiral, you know. What's wrong with bringing Tianlong to the exercise?"

"Really? But why do I always feel like you have some other purpose or something?" Su Yuchen was a little skeptical. He already knew his friend's temperament quite well. If there wasn't something that could attract him, he wouldn't have bothered to bring Tianlong to training.

Isn't it wonderful to just laze around in the dorm, eating and waiting to die? What's more, he has Tianlong to take care of him.

"Hello, Mr. Su Yuchen, and Ms. Guanghui." Seeing Tianlong bowing and greeting them, the boy and Guanghui quickly responded, "Hello, Tianlong." "Good day, Ms. Tianlong."

But upon hearing the boy's words, Yuan Ye chuckled strangely. His real purpose for coming here? Needless to say, it was to witness the beautiful sight of the ship girls unfurling their ship equipment as they raced across the sea! With the sea winds so strong, who knew he might just get lucky and catch a glimpse under one of the ship girls' skirts?

However, these things couldn't be said aloud. If Tianlong found out, she'd be kneeling on a washboard and getting a lecture when they got back. "Hehe, none of that matters. But Yuchen, why don't you go to the carrier's dedicated training ground with Guanghui? Large ship girls like aircraft carriers should have their own training grounds, right?" Before Tianlong became suspicious, Yuan Ye wisely changed the subject.

At this point, Su Yuchen rubbed his head in exasperation. He also wanted to train with Guanghui, but the ammunition distribution area was still packed with people. If this continued, he would have to give up his training with Guanghui today. "There's nothing I can do. There are just too many people waiting to collect their ammunition. If we go to queue now, we don't know how long we'll have to wait."

"Huh? Don't you know?" Upon hearing the boy's words, Yuan Ye slapped his forehead as if he couldn't stand it anymore. "Are you kidding me, Yu Chen? This is where you pick up the shells and torpedoes for traditional gunboats. The bombs and torpedoes for carrier-based aircraft that the aircraft carrier needs are all picked up at the dedicated training ground for the aircraft carrier. What are you waiting for here?"

"Huh? Is that how it is?" The boy scratched his head awkwardly. He really knew too little about the Naval Academy, which had made Guanghui and himself wait here for so long for nothing.

"Of course, would I lie to you? Hey! By the way, Yu Chen. How about you have your Glorious and Tianlong do an exercise? Although Tianlong is definitely no match for Glorious, how can I miss an opportunity like this, which you might only get once in your life? In case we encounter a rare deep-sea aircraft carrier, this experience might come in handy."

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

Under Yuan Ye's persistent insistence, Su Yuchen agreed to a match with him and brought Guanghui to a training ground for aircraft carrier ship girls that was far away. Because aircraft carriers have the ability to fight beyond visual range, the sea area allocated to the training ground for aircraft carriers is also very wide.

Arriving at the dock, the boy gazed at the sea that occupied about two-thirds of the entire training ground and breathed a sigh of relief. At least he didn't have to worry about being seen by people from other training grounds if he practiced here.

However, what attracts more attention than the boy's inner thoughts is the unfamiliar newcomer standing behind him. According to Yuan Ye, he is a friend from the same hometown as Yuan Ye, named Fang Wanyan. The petite girl next to him is his ship girl, named Amethyst, a Black Swan-class frigate.

A ship girl exercise can't be without a referee. Yuan Ye originally planned to ask a ship girl to temporarily act as a referee, but unfortunately he couldn't find a ship girl available nearby. In addition, he didn't want others to know that he had created Illustrious. So, with no other choice, Yuan Ye returned to the school building and called his childhood friend and little brother.

"Brother Yu Chen! I admire you so much! Please accept me as your little brother! I'll be a great follower!" Since he was Yuan Ye's trusted brother, Su Yu Chen didn't think much of it and let Yuan Ye invite him over, but who knew...