Chapter 5: The Four Factions Assemble (Part 1)
Hey y'all! I'm back with another chapter! To my EN server comrades, how goes the start to PR2 farming? I started with mama FdG and just need 80% more on her 2.4M exp grind before she's ready.
Back to the story, some of you have expressed their concerns on the Shikikan being a bit OP. The reason why I was worried about splitting this chapter up a bit was due to this happening, but I probably should've clarified to not worry regardless in the last chapter. So with that said, rest assured y'all, the shipfu waifus will forever outclass him, especially in the strength department. Also, some of the shipfu waifus will seem a bit OC in this chapter for the sake of the story so keep that in mind if it does seem a bit uncharacteristic. With that out of the way, let's move on to this chapter!
"We do have a lot in common. The same air, the same Earth, the same sky. Maybe if we started looking at what's the same instead of always looking at what's different, ...well, who knows?" ― Meowth (Pokemon: The First Movie: Mewtwo Strikes Back, Pokemon franchise)
"Are you okay Ayanami?" The Shikikan asked after making a mad dash to save her thanks to Akashi's prototype flotational gadget. His legs were feeling quite wobbly and weakened due to the force the gadget exerted on them during his dash, making it difficult to even stand up.
Managing to calm down and compose herself, she spoke. "Hai Shikikan, and it's all thanks to you." She said with a bright happy smile as she enjoyed being held so dearly in his arms.
{Meanwhile…}
"Ney Takao-chan, what do you think the commander will be like?" A young woman with long flowing black hair that had two animal-like ears on her head and dressed in a white naval uniform asked. She and two other yet-known figures had ship girl rigging out and were currently sailing away from their Sakura Empire homeland.
"Hard to say, Nagato-sama herself said that the information she received about him was rather bleak and didn't say much about him other than that he was a graduate from the now gone World Maritime Naval Academy." Another woman also dressed in a white naval uniform and had her long black hair tied in a ponytail thanks to an elegant looking white ribbon replied.
"I just hope he's got a good head on his shoulders"…'And doesn't treat me like a child…'. A young girl with short white hair dressed in a traditional-looking Japanese robe added her two cents. "Hmmm? Takao! Atago! My planes have picked up signs of someone fighting Siren ships in the north-north west area!"
"What do you say Takao-chan?"
"…..We should go and help. Let's go."
Following her lead, the other two figures followed after her. Not much after, they saw signs of Siren ship wreckage, but no signs of friendlies.
"Ara, looks like they were able to put some of the Siren ships down themselves."
"I'm not seeing anyone, what about your planes Shouhou?"
"Nothing ye-wait! I've picked up two ship girls fighting a Siren battleship near the mountain range up ahead!"
"Let's go!" The young woman with her hair in a ponytail exclaimed before dashing towards where the young girl pointed out.
The area they reached was cover in rather thick smoke, seemingly caused by all the fighting and gunfire.
"Ara? Is that…?" The young woman with her black hair flowing freely said before taking a closer look, "….Ayanami-chan?"
"Ayanami is the one fighting?" The young woman with a ponytail replied before squinting in the direction the other woman was looking at. "Wait…is she in someone's arms? And isn't that her friend from the Royal Navy?" She said out-loud, trying to get a better look.
"I can't see anything throw the smoke and neither can my planes."
"Wait….Ayanami-chan's friend is kneeling down and…crying?"
"Huh?" The young woman with a ponytail was squinting really hard trying to see. "Ayanami is crying too!? Curse all this smoke, I can't make out anything! Wait…why is that person holding her smiling? Is he an enemy!?" She said sounding alarmed before making launching herself towards Ayanami.
"Huh!? Wait Takao-chan!" "Takao!? Where are you going?" The two other girls said out of surprise.
"Swift death unto evil!" The one with a ponytail declared as she unsheathed the katana by her side.
{Back to Shikikan, Ayanami, and Javelin}
'Good thing I asked Akashi for her gadget. It did a number on my legs from the sheer force, but it's a small price to pay for Ayanami's safety. That said, it sure is smoky around here, I can barely even see ten feet away. ' The Shikikan sighed.
"Swift death unto evil!"
The Shikikan looked to his right and was able to make out a figure of someone jumping high into the air with a katana about to swing down on…him!?
Time, once again, felt like it was slowed down.
Ayanami, not able to make out the figure either due to the smoke, quickly jumped out of the Shikikan's arms and engaged her rigging and her sword just in time to stop the heavy blade about to crash down on the Shikikan.
Thinking on his own two fatigued feet, he quickly pulled out his nine-ringed dadao and braced himself for the incoming blade with Ayanami.
The force from the clash of blades was strong enough to cause ripples on the water around the Shikikan and Ayanami, clearing most of the surrounding smoke and debris in the air.
'So strong! Ugh' The Shikikan was shocked at the force that came down upon him. Even though he had Ayanami's help, the force was strong enough to make his arms feel like they were in danger of shattering.
After the powerful sword clash, it took Ayanami a second to realize who it was that attacked them.
"Takao-san!? Why are you attacking the Shikikan!?" She exclaimed.
"Eh? Wait…this is the Shikikan!?" The attacked seemed genuinely surprised.
"Ey!" Javelin shouted before thrusting her javelin at the attacker, who immediately jumped backwards.
Javelin was about to continue her attack before she noticed the familiar face. "Wait, you're from the Sakura Empire!"
"Takao-chan!" "Takao!" Two other figures appeared before rushing besides the attacker.
"Atago-san? Shouhou? Why are you all here?" Ayanami asked seemingly confused.
"Ayanami! You're okay!" The young girl who just appeared exclaimed in relief upon seeing Ayanami.
"I could ask the same to you Ayanami-chan. Also who is that next to you?" The other young lady who appeared asked.
After a few minutes of clearing the confusion….
"I-I am so sorry Shikikan! Please forgive this lowly Takao for her reckless and insubordinate behavior!" The young woman now known as Takao exclaimed while in a dogeza position, her face red with embarrassment, guilt, and regret.
"Sigh Takao-chan…You should've listened to me when I said to rest after all those missions we had to do, now look at what you've gotten yourself into." The young woman who appeared besides Takao was now known as Atago, her sister ship, said a with a tired expression and a hand to her head.
"Well at least no one's hurt haha….." The young girl named Shouhou said, trying to ease the situation a bit.
"Um, you don't have to go that far….It's okay, really! I probably would've done the same if I saw someone important to me seemingly in trouble too. I'm glad you care for your friends and I promise that I won't hold this against you ever." The Shikikan said, also trying to calm down the embarrassed and guilt-ridden girl bowing down to him and apologizing frantically.
"I sincerely thank you for your mercy! I swear on my honor to make it up to you by serving as your shield and sword henceforth Shikikan!" Takao announced while bowing deeply in sincere gratitude.
Unsure of what to say from Takao's 'display', he decided to just go along with it. "I look forward to working with you uhm...Takao right?" The Shikikan said with a light smile before moving over to offer her a hand up.
Unfortunately though, it seemed that Akashi's gadget had hit its limits and began to sputter mid-step before eventually dying on him. With the one thing allowing him to not sink into the sea now out of commission, he began to sink.
"Whoa!" He said as he was half-submerged into the water. Thankfully Takao was able to quickly grab the Shikikan by his arms before lifting him up out of the water and off his feet.
'She picked me off the ground as if I weighed less than a pillow. I'd better make sure to stay on the ship-girls good sides….I'd hate to be on the receiving end of their superhuman strength afterall…' He pondered as he was slowly being brought into a princess carry in Takao's arms.
"Ahaha…thank you for that, but this is a little…" He started to say with an embarrassed flush on his face.
"Do not fret Shikikan, you weigh nothing at all compared to my rigging." Takao said assuring him with a small, yet sincere smile.
"Ara Shikikan, your face is all red, how cute wink." Atago said, teasing the noticeably embarrassed Shikikan.
Putting his sweater hoodie on to cover his face, he asked, "C-could you bring me back to the ship over there please?"
"Araaa, I think we are going to get along well Shikikannn." Atago said with a mischievous and happy look as she continued to tease him.
"Ahaaa…Go easy on him Atago…." Shouhou couldn't bring herself to not feel pity for her new commander.
'God this is embarrassing….but I'll still take this over Sirens any day though…' Shikikan said in his mind as he was being carried off.
Finally being dropped off at his boat, he radioed the recue boat with the Dragon Empery sisters on board, Z23, and Laffey to relocate to his position. In less than a minute, he spotted the boat, with the two girls bandaged up and sound asleep in each other's arms.
'Wow that's cute' He thought as he saw the girls before shaking his head to get back to the task at hand. He had the Manjuus bring them to the medical room onboard his ship and had them rest there as they sailed back to base.
"Alright everyone, job well done! Let's head back to base, but would you girls like to join me on the ship instead of going on foot? I'm sure you all must be exhausted from all the fighting you just did."
Laffey immediately jumped aboard his ship. "Sleeppyyy, goodnighttt." She said before she found herself a comfortable and shady spot and fell asleep immediately.
"Oy Laffey! It's not healthy to-yawnnnn….?...!." Z23 began to say before she started yawning. "S-sorry for the childish display S-Shikikan, I didn't…I mean I…." She was flustered because she didn't want the Shikikan to think of her as a child.
"Hehe….we have been up since sunrise, so a nap does sound nice right now. What do you say Nimi? Ayanami?" Javelin asked before joining Laffey in the shaded spot.
Ayanami and Z23 looked at Shikikan for guidance, who replied with a smile. "You girls have done a great job today and have earned a nice long rest. Go ahead." He said all while smiling and gesturing them to go join the two fast asleep destroyers.
"I-If you say so Herr Kommandant…" Z23 then joined the other two before closing her eyes and letting sleep take over.
Ayanami instead went over to stand before the Shikikan, giving him a bow. "Thank you again for saving me Shikikan."
Patting her head in response, he replied, "Don't mention it Ayanami. I'm just glad I made it in time. It'll be a while until we get back to base so go ahead and join them."
"Hai" She said with a happy smile before joining the now three in total asleep destroyers. She thought about the warmth and kindness she felt from the Shikikan's head-pat before falling asleep next to the other girls with a blissful smile on her face.
'They really are just normal girls.' The Shikikan thought as he looked on at the fast-asleep starter squad. 'I'm really glad I made it here.' He was really happy to be safe and alive, and felt that he was quickly getting better the more time he spent with the girls. He couldn't help but smile at the sight of the four adorable young girls asleep next to each, looking so calm and peaceful.
"Ara Shikikan, it's not polite to stare at sleeping girls you knowwww."
He turned around and noticed that Atago had someone managed to get behind him without a sound.
"Sorry about that ahaaa…" He said with an awkward laugh while rubbing his head.
Atago giggled in response. "I'm just joking Shikikan, they really are cute when they're all asleep together like that."
"Shikikan, I'll scout ahead and make sure our path back is clear." Takao who was by the bow of the ship said before advancing ahead.
"I'll join you Takao. See you back at base Atago! Shikikan!" Shouhou said before following after her.
"Hey Atago, didn't you say that you and Takao were really busy with missions and didn't have much rest?"
"Hai, but Takao-chan is just like that, an honest-to-a-fault hard working girl. She ends up worrying Onee-san quite a bit you know?" Atago sighed as she saw the two off.
"…You're a really good sister huh Atago? I'm sure Takao works hard knowing that she has you by her side. At least, that's what I think I would feel if I was in her position ahaha..." The Shikikan said with a smile before turning to look at Atago.
The Shikikan didn't notice it due to all the commotion before and now, but he missed several notifications on his watch that all read 'Affinity up!' followed by the names of the ship girls except for the three notifications that read 'New ship girl acquired!'. The newest one that just popped up was another 'Affinity up', but this time it had a '+10' next to Atago's name.
"Ara Ara Shikikan, Onee-san doesn't mind doting on you too you know?" Atago said before grabbing one of the Shikikan's arms and pressing it to her chest with a very happy smile on her face. "Come, Onee-san wants to learn all about you Shi-ki-kannn wink." She tugged on his arm before escorting him off towards inside the ship. Shikikan wasn't able to resist for 3 reasons: Her grip was unbreakable, the soft sensation on his arm was pure bliss, and he too wanted to learn more about the Atago. Unfortunately, his trance was broken when he felt something looking at him from behind. He glanced back towards the sky, but found nothing.
"Shikikan?" Atago noticed him turn his head
"Hmm? Oh, its nothing, I thought I saw something. But anyway, could you tell me about yourself, Takao, and the Sakura Empire? I'd love to learn more all about it."
"Hai, with pleasure Shikikan." Atago said before they both disappeared into the ship.
Meanwhile, camouflaged into the sky was a small black spy drone that had an eerie yellow glow...
Through the camera on the drone, was a very pale girl with long, wild white hair and glowing yellow eyes. "Found youuuuuuuuu. Arbiter will be quite pleased eheheee…" Said girl spoke aloud before having the drone come back.
Back to the Shikikan, it has been a little over an hour since they started sailing back to the base. He learned a lot about Atago, her sisters, and the Sakura Empire during his conversation in the lounge area of the ship, which comprised of a large sofa encompassing a wooden coffee table, a decent sized fridge filled with food and drinks, and some plants scattered around the small room.
"Onee-san has been doing all of the talking and has told quite a bit about herself to Shikikan, so now it's your turn. Onee-san wants to learn and know more all about you wink. "Well.." Before he could even continue, his conversation with Atago was unfortunately brought to a halt when the door opened.
"Shikikan, we are almost home!" Javelin appeared, seemingly well rested.
"Thanks Javelin, did you have a nice rest?"
"It was great! I even had a nice dream heheee" She said while having her hands to her face and swinging her head left and right repeatedly with a happy face.
"Araaa I wonder if it was with a certain someone hmmmm." Atago began, teasing the young girl.
"Ey!? Uhm I forget ahahaaa…." Javelin tried her best to make a not so obvious excuse, to which Atago couldn't help but giggle.
The Shikikan got out of his chair and walked up to Javelin to rub the slightly messy bed-hair on her head. "Are the others up too?"
"Yep! I won rock-paper-scissors, so I got to tell y- I-I mean they are all waiting outside for you ahahahaa..." Javelin was not very good at secrets.
The Shikikan only smiled in response as he patted her head once more before walking on out with the girls in tow.
"Sorry, but it looks like we'll have to continue this conversation later Atago."
"Don't worry Shikikan, we'll have plenty of time to get to know each other wink."
The sun was beginning to set and as he looked ahead, he saw the lights on the base beginning to light up. Takao and Shouhou were still in front of the ship sailing on ahead, but as the ship neared the dockyard, they saw two familiar figures waiting for them.
"Welcome back nyaaaa!" Akashi shouted and waved, while Shiranui offered a small wave.
A few minutes later, the ship was docked and some Manjuus rushed out beginning to perform maintenance checks on the ship.
"There are two injured girls in the medical room, please take care of them. Thank you" The Shikikan saluted the ever so helpful allies he had, to which they happily chirped and saluted back.
"Nya! Takao, Atago, Shouhou!"
"Akashi!" Shouhou said before giving Akashi a high five.
"Glad to see you are well Akashi. We managed to meet up with Shikikan on our way here and decided to come back together." Takao filled the catgirl in, omitting her earlier mistake of course.
"Takao-chan accidentally attacked the Shikikan thinking he was an enemy." Atago said with a devious smirk on her face confusing the cat girl and ghost girl.
"Oy Atago!" Takao said with a dark blush as she tried to swipe at her sister, who gracefully dodged with ease.
"Alright girls, great work again." The Shikikan appeared behind them all.
"Groannnnn" Laffey's and Shouhou's stomachs called out.
"Laffey wants food."
"Uhm….I uhhh…" Shouhou was cutely flustered after her stomach betrayed her.
The Shikikan offered them all a warm smile before speaking once more. "As thanks for all your hard work, how about I make dinner?"
Laffey and Akashi ran up and latched onto the Shikikan. "Shikikan is the besttttt (nyaaa)."
Javelin and Z23, both blushing from the bold display of affection they just saw, spoke in unison. "No fair Laffey! Akashi!" They both then looked at the Shikikan before reddening even more and looking away.
"Shikikan, you can cook?" Takao came up and asked.
"Hai Shikikan makes delicious food des" Ayanami said with a sincere smile.
"I will vouch for her and confirm that she's telling the truth. He's a great chef ufufu.." Shiranui chimed in.
"Ara Shikikan, you continue to surprise you like Onee-san to help you?"
"Thanks, Atago, but I'm sure I'll be fine. Since everyone is probably tired and hungry, let me do the kitchen work. Feel free to relax while I try to make something nice and quick." He said before rolling up his sleeves and walking towards the canteen.
"I'm glad the Shikikan seems like a nice, respectable fellow" Takao started.
"Ara Takao, are you starting to feel smitten over the Shikikan hehe." Atago teased, leading to Takao trying to swipe at her again, failing once more.
"Ahaha… well anyway, the Shikikan is super nice and cool! He helped all of us earlier and made the best lunch earlier for us too!" Javelin said singing praises.
The girls began chattering amongst themselves as they all walked together, following after the Shikikan to the canteen.
{With the Shikikan}
'Wow, the kitchen is fully stocked again.' The Shikikan was greeted with a fridge full of new ingredients and the kitchen fully cleaned.
'Chirp!' The Chef Manjuus appeared in a line before him.
"Thanks for your hard work. Ready to help me make a dinner for nine hungry ship girls?"
'Chirp!' The Manjuus accepted the challenge with sparkles in their eyes.
'Alright let's see, since they all must be famished, let's just make one big thing so they can have their seconds if they wanted. Alright yeah, let's go with this.' The Shikikan confirmed in his mind what he wanted to make before acting as a head chef with the Manjuus there to help.
Back in the canteen dining area, the girls gathered around a large round table and were happily chatting with each other still. The starter squad each told their story of how they met the Shikikan and Akashi was stunned to hear that her gadget was in total shambles. As they were talking, they smelled something really aromatic coming from the kitchen that was strong enough to cause all of their stomachs to grumble. They all blushed at the embarrassing noise they made before they all laughed it off.
"Now I'm really excited to try the Shikikan's cooking after you girls talking about your lunches he made, and this amazi-I mean fragrant smell in the air!" Shouhou stuttered a bit in her attempt to maintain an adult image.
"Herr Kommandant is really talented at cooking. I'm sure you'll love it!" Z23 professed her faith in Shikikan's cooking talent.
"Ohhh? Is that so little Nimi?"
A new voice came from the doorway as it opened to reveal a beautiful young lady with long flowing silver hair and a red hair strand on the side of her head all while dressed in a provocative Ironblood uniform.
"Prinz E-Eugen-san!" Z23 said as she got out of her chair to greet the new person. "I thought you were still on a mission back in Ironblood lands?"
"Hooo? Did you not miss me Nimi? I–missed-you-lots." She said the latter half while grabbing hold of Nimi and touching her provocatively.
Z23 struggled for a bit, before managing to break free albeit with an extremely red blush on her face in addition to a very cute pout and a tick mark on the side of her head. "I-I hate it when you do that Eugen-san! H-How shameless!"
"Entschuldigung Nimi, you're just too cute that I can't help but want to mess with you wink."
"Hhmph!" Z23 looked away with an upset pout and a still very red blush.
"Anyway, what's this wonderful smell? I smelled it all the way from the dockyard when I arrived and followed it until it led me here." The young lady now known as Prinz Eugen asked.
"It's the Shikikan's cooking! He should be done soon so feel free to come join us!" Javelin spoke up from her seat.
"Ohhh? The new Shikikan is cooking for you all? How interesting….Well don't mind if I do…" Prinz Eugen responded before taking a seat in the last open spot on the table between Z23 and Atago, the latter who offered her a small smile to which she responded back with one of her own. There smiles seemed a little strained, but otherwise there was no real tension apparent.
A few moments later, the kitchen doors opened with the Manjuus pushing out a cart full of plates with silver cloches on it.
"Well I hope everyone is hungry because I went a little overboard, I thin-oh?" The Shikikan began to speak before he noticed a new face amongst the girls. "I'm sorry but I don't think we've met?"
Prinz Eugen stood up to stand before the Shikikan. She had one hand on her hips while the other was on her lips. She seemed to be observing the Shikikan's features carefully. He didn't know what to do so he just stared back at her with a small smile.
'Are all ship girls either extremely pretty or cute?' The Shikikan said in his mind.
"Hmm...so you're the Commander huh, how much happiness can you bring me? I'm looking forward to it a lot~ I'm the miracle of the Ironblood Third Reich, third ship of the Admiral Hipper-class - Prinz Eugen." She introduced herself all while looking intently at the Shikikan.
"A pleasure to meet you Prinz Eugen, apologies for not greeting you personally once you arrived. I don't believe I was informed of your arrival. I am the Shikikan of the base and I look forward to working with you. I have just finished making dinner for everyone, if you would like, please join us, there's plenty to go around." He greeted her back with a formal tone and small gentlemanly bow.
Upon looking back up, he noticed that she moved in a bit closer to the point where her face was mere centimeters away from his own. She was staring straight into his eyes with a curious look in her own.
Some of the other girls were blushing at how bold she was, while the others were more interested in the hidden plates in front of them [Author's Note: I'll let y'all figure out who's who].
"Hmm your eyes are very interesting Shikikan, I wouldn't mind staring at them ev-er-y-day." Prinz Eugen smirked as she said that, seemingly trying to test the Commander.
Not wanting to be a blushing, stuttering mess in front of all of the girls, he said the first thing that popped up in his mind. "I-I could say the same for you Prinz Eugen. Y-your eyes are quite amazing as well." He wasn't wrong, while his eyes were a mesmerizing amethyst color, her eyes were a beautiful amber color that seemed to glisten in the canteen lights.
Now all the girls looked up, except for Laffey and Shiranui, in surprise to hear the Shikikan's bold reply.
Eugen herself was surprised a bit before a challenging smirk appeared on her face once more. "Hoooo? Looks like I'm going to have some fun at this base after all." She stepped away before walking back to her seat, to which a Manjuu brought a plate with a cloche on top in front of her.
"Ahaha…well anyway, where was I? Oh right, so I went a bit overboard with the cooking, so feel free to have as much as you want." The Manjuus then lifted all the cloches to reveal a glistening plate of chicken curry and rice. The fragrant smell of the cubed chicken bits, medley of spices, and freshly cooked potatoes, onions, and carrots all steamed together and assaulted the girls' senses once the cloches came off. "It's not very spicy, but if you want more of a kick, feel free to add some of this." The Shikikan then placed in the center table a large pot of sauce that was red in color. "This is a spicy curry sauce mixture, so feel free to use it if you want a spicier curry."
The girls all began to take their first bites and not even a second later…
"A-amazing!" Takao exclaimed before beginning to dig in.
"Ara ara Shikikan. Onee-san loves it!" Atago was happily devouring her plate.
"Gnom Om Gnom!" Shouhou momentarily gave up acting like a completely grown up adult in favor of enjoying the curry.
"So good! But spicyieewwoo.." Javelin didn't regret putting some of the spicy sauce on her plate since it was still absolutely delicious.
"Nyaaaaaaaaa Shikikan you're the best nyaaaa." Akashi was about done with her first plate while Shiranui and Ayanami were focused on fully covering their plates with the spicy sauce before enjoying it even more than they already were.
"Laffey loves Shikikan om gnom nom…" She said as she devoured her first plate, to which a Manjuu replaced with another plate.
"Beeindruckend Shikikan, I could almost fall for you wink." Eugen was happily enjoying her plate.
"Told you that you would like Eugen-san. Mmh köstlich! Z23 was also entranced by the amount of flavor packed into each bite of curry she took.
"There's plenty more girls, feel free to eat as much as you want." The Shikikan said with a happy and relieved smile as he grabbed himself a plate.
After about an hour, the giant vat of curry the Shikikan prepared was actually void of anymore curry.
"Wow, I'm actually surprised we managed to finish it." The Shikikan said.
"Thank you Shikikan it was the best curry I've ever had!" Shouhou came up and thanked him, to which he happily head patted in response. She didn't even realize that she was not acting like her image for an ideal adult because of how nice the head patting felt.
"It truly was Shikikan. But to think Atago finished 30 plates…." Takao said in awe of the stack of plates next to Atago.
"Date, Onee-san couldn't help but enjoy Shikikan's hard work." Atago said as she happily took another bite.
"Laffey is full and sleepyyy….Goodnightt….zzzzz" She said before excusing herself and walking back to her room.
"I think I'll turn in early too, thank you for everything today Herr Kommandant." Z23 smiled at the Shikikan before leaving as well.
"Shikikan, it was delicious, thank you." Ayanami smiled happily once more before giving him a bow and heading on back too.
The other girls also gave the Shikikan their thanks for the wonderful meal before heading on out, well all except for one.
"Ney Shikikan, care for a drink?" It was Eugen. She currently had two fancy cordial glasses and a large bottle of brandy in her hands.
'It has been a long day and it would be nice to relax a bit…' He took a second to think before answering, "sounds good to me." He took a seat next to Eugen before she poured him a glass of the dark substance.
"Prost Shikikan" They clanged their glasses together before enjoying the aromatic dark brown liquor.
"Wow…this is some great stuff you have here Eugen." He said before savoring another large swig.
"Hoooo, looks like you can handle your liquor pretty well Shikikan, color me surprised." Eugen said before downing the rest of her drink and pouring herself and the Shikikan some more.
After a while enjoying their drinks in comfortable silence, the two began talking, well mostly Eugen talking about herself, her sister, and what the Iron Blood is like. Soon enough, the last of the brandy was poured out into their glasses. The Shikikan was more than just a bit tipsy but not enough to be called drunk, while Eugen seemed to be swaying back and forth.
"A-are you a-alright Eugen?" It took him some effort to speak properly without sounding like a slurring mess.
"Hic….Shi-ki-kannnnn, I had another bottle to myself on my way here so don't think you can hold your liquor better tha-hic…..me." She said before cozying up a bit closer to the Shikikan and wrapping her arms around his right arm. "Ney Shikikan, tell me, what made you want to join this war?"
Trying to clear his mind a bit in order to speak properly, he took a large breath and chugged a glass of water the Manjuus left for them. "Well…it's a rather long story that might ruin the mood a bit…" He said with a small down-hearted smile.
Eugen must've noticed his mood change as her expression was a mix of curiosity and slight concern. "Don't push yourself if you don't want to, but I'm willing to offer an ear to my new drinking buddy if you feel like it." She said as she released his arm before giving him a pat on the shoulder.
He offered her a thankful smile before he spilled out everything he remembered to her, starting with that day. By the end of it, Eugen expression changed to a sullen look, but before she could say something, Shikikan spoke once more.
"D-don't get me wrong though, even though I had to go through hell and back to get here, I'm still not going to give up on my dream to be someone who can help and protect others. I might be scarred and a bit scared, but I promise you that I'll do more than just my best as Commander." He said before offering her a smile filled with determination.
Eugen couldn't help but smile a bit in return before downing the rest of her drink. She hiccupped a bit before glomming onto his arm once more. "Since you're my new Kommandant and drinking buddy, I'll protect you from the Sirens if they ever threaten you. Rest assured, you have the miracle of the Ironblood Third Reich on your side after all wink."
"Ara, Onee-san is here for you too Shikikan." They turned around to the canteen door, where their eyes met Atago's. "I didn't mean to eavesdrop, but I when I noticed that you were still in here with Eugen, Onee-san couldn't help herself." She said before coming to over and embracing the seated Shikikan. His face was pressed against her soft pillows that he couldn't help but want to press himself more into. 'Must be the liquor.' He thought as he was unable and unwanting to break the comforting embrace.
"You've been through far too much Shikikan, Onee-san hereby promises to protect and support you with all she has. For now though, you should head to bed and clear out the liquor. You probably should too Prinz Eugen-san."
"Huhhh, I'm fin-hic…ee." Eugen tried to reply before deciding Atago was right.
"Well I'll be on my way back to the Iron Blood dorm, see you tomorrow Herr Kommandant." Eugen nodded Atago as well before she struggled a bit and stumbled out of the canteen.
"Do you want Onee-san to accompany you back to your office Shikikan?"
"Thanks, but I'm feeling a lot sober and better getting my past off my chest. I didn't mean to keep it a secret, but it's just hard to find a good time to tell it without completely ruining the mood you know?" He said as he got out of his seat slowly so that the room didn't start to spin.
Atago looked at him with wonder. "It is a rather sensitive topic so no one can really blame you. But in all seriousness though Shikikan, I'm amazed at how quickly you've approved according to what you told me you were like just a month ago."
Shikikan offered her a light smile in response. "I am too, but the thought of having others go through what I had to is what's driving me to speed on ahead. I'm still not fully recovered from the trauma, but as I promised Eugen, I won't let it affect my duty to protect and work with you girls."
Atago couldn't help but smile back at him before sighing. "Ara ara, you and Takao-chan are quite like-minded. You both prioritize others over yourselves to the point it worries Onee-san so. Just make sure to take of yourself too unless you want Onee-san here to scold you." She said with a smile that was surprisingly quite intimidating.
Shikikan gulped before responding. "Ahaha will do."
Saying goodnight to Atago, he stumbled a bit back to his office. Once he got there however, he noticed something was different.
'Wait, was there always two floors to this building?' Shikikan at first thought he was just seeing things, but after rubbing his eyes and taking a deep breath, his office building did indeed have two floors now. He unlocked the door and walked into his office, seeing that everything seemed the same, except for two things. A spiral staircase in the corner of the room and a letter on his desk. Opening the letter, he found out it was from the Manjuus telling him that they added a second floor to the building for his private quarters.
'How? Just how the hell did they build a whole floor addition in under the few hours I was gone?'
He couldn't believe that the Manjuus were nothing short of miracle workers once again. He walked up the spiral staircase and opened the door at the top and into his quarters. He noticed that his room was on the smaller side, but it had everything you would need to call it an apartment rather than just a private quarter. Upon entering past the humble entrance area was a small simple kitchen that was stocked with pots, pans, a small fridge, a microwave, and an electric stove. The fridge had more liquor and had enough food to last a week inside. Continuing further was a small living space that consisted of a full sized bed in the corner, a desk with a computer set up on the opposite corner, a small closet with his custom fitted commander uniform hung up and a drawer filled with the casual clothes he bought at Akashi's store, and a door that led to a small bathroom comprised of a small standing shower, toilet, and sink.
'Yep, the Manjuus are miracle workers in disguise alright. I can't appreciate them enough.' He decided to stop questioning how they continuously defy logic and to just always be thankful they are on his side.
He looked at the clock on the nightstand next to his bed and saw it was just past 11:00 pm and decided that he should get to bed soon. He took a nice cold shower to sober up and cool off, brushed his teeth, and drank a large glass of water from the kitchen before putting on one his new casual clothes (a white t-shirt and grey sweatpants) and collapsing into his bed.
'What an eventful day. I'm glad the girls seem nice and seem to get along with each other. Starting tomorrow, I probably should try and get to know each one of them individually though. But now, sleep sounds way too good.' He plugged in his phone, placed his watch on the wireless charging pad, and fell asleep. Unlike other nights, he didn't have that reoccurring nightmare that he used to always get back in the hospital and was able to sleep soundly with a blissful look on his face.
[Morning time]
'Ring! Ring! Ring!'
Shikikan woke up to the sound of the alarm clock going off before silencing it. He looked around, confused as to where he was before he realized that he was now officially the Commander of the Azur Lane and was living on base now. He got up relieved that he wasn't a bit hungover, before going into the bathroom and freshening up. After brushing his teeth and splashing cold water on his face to wake up, he noticed that it was just barely past 6:00 am. He made himself a simple eggs, bacon, and bread and some coffee for breakfast before changing into his uniform, grabbing his phone and watch, putting on his shoes, and walking downstairs to his office. Making his way down, he saw the four large black boxes he bought from Shiranui yesterday on the coffee table and a large intimidating stack of papers on his desk.
'I guess I don't really have a set time to work so I have to manage everything myself.' Looking down at his watch, he finally noticed all the notifications he received.
'Still not sure what this affinity thing is all about, but Teito said it's best to always be over a score of 50 right?' He looked down and noticed scores next to all the ship girls he met so far:
Laffey: 60
Javelin: 66
Z23: 61
Ayanami: 69
Akashi: 58
Shiranui: 57
Ning Hai:53
Ping Hai: 52
Atago: 65
Takao: 56
Shouhou: 55
'Okay so they are all above 50 so that's good, but I wonder what exactly it means and how high the scores go.' He pondered as he continued to read his notifications, before seeing two that read that the two Wisdom cubes he left at the dockyard will be done by lunch today. 'Guess I'll head to the dockyard before lunch, but before that, let's get some exercise and take a stroll around the base.'
As he walked around, he noticed the trees were starting to change color and the weather was starting to get colder as fall made its arrival. He ended up finding himself walking by the dorms in the order of Eagle Union, Royal Navy, Iron Blood, and Sakura Empire. The first three dorms he saw no one as he was walking by since it was still not even 7:00 am yet, but he noticed a familiar figure nearby the Sakura Empire dorm swinging her sword.
"You're up early Takao." He said as he walked up to the beautiful heavy cruiser.
"Oh, ohayou gozaimasu Shikikan. I didn't expect anyone else to be up this early. Are you out for a walk?" She asked as she stopped what she was doing before taking a break and walking to him.
"Yep, I had a surprisingly nice sleep and felt the need to get some exercise and fresh air ahaha, how about you? Morning training?"
"Hai, skipping a day of training would dull my blade and skills as a swordswoman. I shan't allow myself to slack for even a moment." She replied before taking her sword up again and swinging it down that showed off her discipline and hard work as she continuously repeated the motion.
The Shikikan couldn't help but smile. "Atago was right, you are quite the hard-worker and someone everyone can rely. I'm glad to have you with me Takao." He said sincerely before a devious thought popped up in his mind. "…Despite what happened yesterday ahaha."
Takao stopped mid-swing as a dark blush appeared on her face as she looked at him. "I-I sincerely apologize for my lack of restraint and reckless-" She began to apologize profusely before Shikikan chimed in.
"Ahaha, sorry about that Takao, looks like Atago's and Eugen's teasing nature rubbed off on me a bit." He said while rubbing the back of his head with a smile on his face.
Takao looked at him with a cute pout and blush still very much visible on her face.
'Cute….no wonder Atago likes teasing Takao so much.' Shikikan thought as he saw a more vivid side to the usually serious, straight-forward girl.
"But in all seriousness though, I'm not the least bit mad about yesterday. No one got hurt and you showed me how much you care for your friends and allies. I can't help but just admire you Takao." He smiled as he poured out his honest feelings to her with ease.
Takao was now blushing madly once again, but for a different reason this time. Unnoticed by either of them, the Shikikan's watch had an 'affinity up!' notification next to Takao's name.
"T-thank you S-Shikikan. I-I look forward to assisting in y-your efforts." Takao was having trouble speaking clearly, let alone look at him as she spoke.
The Shikikan offered her a smile before speaking once more. "Well I should let you get back to your training, feel free to stop by the canteen later, I'm thinking of helping the Manjuus make breakfast." He said as he walked off. Takao gave him a bow as he walked off, however, with his back turned away from her, the Shikikan couldn't see the small, yet happy and sincere smile Takao had on her face as she saw him off.
'He really is as nice as the others say. He sees us not as tools of war, but as people.' Takao continued to smile and felt her face getting hot before realizing she was out in public. 'H-how shameless Takao!' She scolded herself in her mind before getting back to training albeit with a noticeable blush still on her face.
A slightly shorter chapter, but I decided it be better to space out this chapter a bit more than I previously intended. Next chapter should be up in a few days, emphasis on 'should' lol. Tune in next time for Chapter 5: The Four Factions Assemble (Part 2)!
Happy holidays everyone!
