Each girl had their own opinions of their new commander, but one thing's for sure, the man was a giant. He stood at 190 centimeters with a large build. The girls predicted that William was packed with muscles underneath his uniform, and the man's face looked serious, so they decided to act professional…but, all of that changed when they saw him capable of smiling, and he's even easy to approach after conversing with him for a bit.
William ate his lunch with a smile on his face, it's been a while since he managed to get a taste of real food as the food back in that prison mine was disgusting. It did have the nutrients needed for the body, but the taste? God, if it wasn't for his special forces training, William might puked after a spoonful of it. That's why, the dishes that were served before him did well in reviving his dead taste buds due to two years tasting horrendous food.
"This is delicious, my compliments to the chef." William said while smiling a bit.
"I'll be sure to relay that to the Royal Maids, master." Belfast said to William.
"Oh yes, I assumed you ladies were the ones in charge of this base." William said to them.
"Somewhat. Our previous commander had decided upon the multiple secretaries system." Hood said to William.
Multiple secretaries system huh? So basically each secretary oversees some part of the base's function, such as its administrative matter or the military action part, it's effective and capable to ease the burden of having a single secretary for everything…Granted, some disagreement could surface every now and then, but William personally thought that this was a good system to implement on this base.
"Is that so…What are you in charge of, Ms. Hood?" William asked Hood.
"I'm in charge of the Commander's Secretarial duties, basically I'm the one who would be your personal secretary." Hood explained while smiling.
"Ah I see, how about you ladies?" William asked the others.
"I'm in charge of this base's internal affairs." Belfast said to William.
"I'm in charge of the first fleet." Enterprise said to William.
"Second for me." Prinz said to William.
"Third one for me." Kongou said to William.
"There's others that are in charge of maintenance and external relations, but both of them are currently busy attending to their tasks, so they couldn't welcome you directly." Belfast further explained.
"Ah, I see…Well, I'll be in your girls' care from now on." William said while smiling.
They continued by eating light snacks and drinking tea, typical of the Royal Navy's ship girls afternoon routine, and William couldn't see any reason he shouldn't join…Been a while since he drank black tea, and this one was quite good! Well, his suspicion for high command did alleviate a little since they legitimately put him in a seemingly nice position…
"Commander, may I ask you something?" Kongou suddenly asked William.
"Sure, ask away." William said to Kongou.
"High Command did give your name, but they didn't give your other information. For starters, only now we know what you looked like." Kongou said to William.
"Huh…I never thought they took it that far…But there's a legitimate reason for that, do you girls know about the terrorist group that emerged lately?" William asked them.
"Terrorist group? I'm sorry, but we didn't know much about what's going on outside the base." Enterprise said to William.
"It's fine…There's a possibility that they could target this base, that's why my profile was kept closely guarded by HIGHCOM…But don't worry about it too much, we have bigger problems." William told them.
"The Sirens…" Enterprise said out loud.
Yeah, those things that William now knew exist but no actual experience in encountering them…Several documents from high command suggested that they already encountered the Sirens even before the outbreak of the Azur Lane and Crimson Axis war, but the details were obscure as at the time, the Sirens were just those kind of mysteries on the seas that correlates with the disappearance of ships…That was until near the end of the war where the Sirens started showing their true face.
"Yes. You girls have fought them directly, they are the true threat…What's your opinion?" William asked the girls.
"They're quite interesting. Honestly, they're powerful and cunning enemies…They hit hard and are hard to track down." Prinz said to William.
"But can they be killed?" William asked Prinz.
"With enough firepower, they would still succumb to our might. Staying alive long enough to achieve that, now that would be the real challenge." Prinz said to William.
"You girls have it rough." William said while frowning a bit.
"What about you, commander? May I ask what you were doing prior to transferring here?" Hood asked William.
…Now what to tell these gorgeous ladies? He got so many things and experiences that he could tell them but then high command would send someone to silence him…After contemplating for a few seconds, William decided to play it safe and told them the 'revised' version of his tale…
"Hmm…Five years ago I graduated from a military academy and was immediately assigned to a task force. We went all around the world for quite a bit while fighting on behalf of Azur Lane. Things were good, we never lacked action and the pay was nice…One day though, we got our arse kicked hard" William said to the girls.
"Was that during the opening stage of Azur Lane and Crimson Axis war?" Kongou asked William.
"Yeah, the battle cost us quite a bit…But, we continued fighting despite that loss. Until two years ago, the task force was disbanded, and I was moved from the frontline for a bit" William further said.
"Disbanded?" Enterprise asked with cocked eyebrows.
"Disbanded, our number dwindled to just me and three other personnel…I was moved away from the frontline, that is until High Command decided to post me here." William said while he stared at his cup.
"…You've been through a lot." Hood said while frowning a bit.
"…It looks like we're finished with lunch, let's do a tour of the base, commander." Enterprise said to William.
"Sounds great, let's do it." William nodded his head.
William and the girls started exploring every building on the base, the girls informed him of the buildings' functions around the base, and William made sure to take in every single bit of information he could get. He asked questions, he spent a bit exploring the buildings, meeting several ship girls who were not on patrol duty…He has to say, there's a lot of them in this base ranging from those cute little destroyers to the absolutely stacked and thicc battleships.
"And these two buildings are our general store and munitions shop, you could shop for your daily necessities and weaponry in this place." Enterprise said to William.
There's two girls standing by in front of the building and they're Akashi and Shiranui, both immediately went over to William and the girls to greet them…Well, he's lucky that the base has a supplies store and munition shop…Wait, munition shop? What were the chances he could get weaponry for himself? He's going to need it if he's going to go to the frontline again and all he has now was his old M16-
"Unya? So you're the new Shikikan huh? Nice to meet you nya, I'm Akashi. You ask, I deliver…for a certain fee, of course hehehe." Akashi introduced herself.
"Good afternoon Shikikan, my name is Shiranui, and I'm the one handling the munitions shop." Shiranui introduced herself.
"Both of you are the shop owners huh?" William asked rhetorically.
"That's right! Well unfortunately, we don't have much in stock for now. Some overseas goods were late because of the Siren's blockade, they will take an additional two days before they can arrive here." Akashi said to William.
"I see…Well, I'm officially start working tomorrow, so I'll see what I can do about it." William said while smiling a bit.
"Thank you shikikan nya!" Akashi said while smiling.
Both Akashi and Shiranui started conversing with the other girls while William surveyed the munitions shop, this building would probably the one that will be targeted by airstrikes or bombardment such as orbital bombardment…Oh wait, that's from his novel, they didn't have that kind of weapon YET. Siren battleships and aircraft would be a major threat to this building…William hoped that their AA guns and coastal guns would do well in case of attack…Speaking of that, he noticed something above the canteen.
"…That helicopter." William muttered out loud.
"Ah, it's a modified helicopter, the previous commander used it to oversee the battle from the air." Belfast said to William.
"Huh…that makes sense. If I may ask, why did he retire? I wasn't given much info about him." William asked Belfast.
"There are lots of reasons, but I suppose the primary one was the fact that he alone wished to retire, he built this base and made sure it runs well before parting ways with us." Belfast said to William.
"What kind of man is he?" William asked again.
"…He's the serious type, all about protocols and keeping things professional. He worked hard and wasn't afraid to do what needed to be done." It was Enterprise who answered him.
"…He sounds quite admirable." William muttered out loud.
But the girls didn't show any sign of admiration whenever they talked about him, their faces remained neutral and composed…William squinted his eyes a bit. There's something going on between these girls and the previous commander, what did he do? Or rather, what didn't he do? These girls didn't look like they held some kind of attachment to him…He'll get to that later.
"I believe we're done here for now commander, what do you wish to do next?" Hood asked William.
"I'd like to go to my quarters for now, do you girls have smartphones?" William asked them.
"Yes we do." Belfast said to William.
"Great. Here's my number, if you need to inform me of anything you could call me or come straight to my quarters…I may look too serious or frightening, but I believe close working relationships will improve our overall performance. Don't be a stranger, we're comrades from this day on." William said as he gave Belfast a card with his number on it.
""""""Yes sir!"""""" The secretaries replied.
William made his way to his room alone, he entered the room, closed the door and looked at his new room, and sighed a bit. He walked to the office chair near the study and he sat there, he took out his phone and searched for a contact named Helena. He pressed the contact button and dialed her number, it didn't take long for the person to answer his call.
"…Lena, I made the biggest mistake of my life." William said in a low tone.
"Huh, I didn't expect you to say that as soon as you arrived on the base." Lena said to William.
"Can you blame me!? I was stuck in Deep End which are filled with burly men, and suddenly I was thrown into a paradise full of beautiful girls, with big boobs, supple arses, great thighs, and it drove me mad! Fuck! I had to struggle keeping things professional when we were on tour! If it wasn't for my willpower, I'd be walking with my main guns raised to fire!" William ranted on the phone.
Yeah, William's not the serious type, he often took things lightly and constantly tried to joke. He also likes to drink, often had disagreements with his superiors, didn't exactly follow rule books or protocols and thus on paper he's a bad subordinate with disciplinary problems…But in actuality, he's cool under pressure, his jokes were his effort to keep morale high, his drinking were his attempts to keep himself sane, the disagreements were because sometimes his superiors didn't really understand what he experienced on the field. And rule books? Sometimes, not following one was the best strategy he could use to achieve victory…and he's willing to do it every time if it will give him victory with minimal losses.
"Fufufufuahahahahaha!" Lena giggled before laughing out loud.
"…You're enjoying this!" William said with an exasperated tone.
"Ahahaha! Of course I am! YOU of all people, panicking like this? That's a first!" Lena said to William.
"Hah…What to do now? God, this would be fatal in the long run." William said after sighing.
"Relieve yourself, it's the only way. When's the last time you ever touched a woman?" Lena asked William.
"Two and half years ago" William immediately responded.
"That's quite a while…Wait, that would be me?!" Lena exclaimed.
…There you have it folks, William and Lena were involved in a romantic relationship in the past. And by god, their relationship wasn't disclosed to the public, but those who know definitely said they complement each other well. Lena was the only one he never openly berated regarding his job and how he should handle his missions, even Lena often gave him advice that he seriously considered and that's because both of them understood each other…too bad, fate didn't allow them to be together…
"Yeah! Hah…tell me why we broke up again?" William asked Lena.
"Don't you remember? The engagement, one which turned into a chaotic mess…God, Will, I wish my dad was more sane at that time." Lena said with a sad tone.
"Right. Sometimes I wonder why and how fucked up things were back then…So, yeah. How's married life, Lena?" William lightly asked Lena.
"…You sure you want to talk about this, Will?" Lena said with a hesitant tone.
"…On second thought, maybe not…Hah…Alright, thanks for hearing me out at least. I…don't have many friends left." William said to Lena gratefully.
"Chin up will you? Despite high command and the public's opinion, you're always the hero in my eyes. You got new responsibilities now, the girls would need you there…I was the one who recommended your name because I know you're going to pull through this in the end, no matter what." Lena said to William with a soft tone.
"That's comforting…" William managed to crack a small smile.
"…I have to go now, my husband is calling me." Lena said to William.
"Sure, just make sure he doesn't know that your ex-boyfriend is calling you." William replied while grinning.
"Har har, will do." Lena said before ending the call.
William plopped himself to the bed while staring at his phone, he decided to check on his mail and opened his social media but it was empty as usual save for advertisement and notifications about his subscription on a few things…Man, his phone's like a graveyard. There was a ping and he opened it, it's Belfast who notified him that she had saved his number. William smiled a bit as he also saved hers, which was before a call came from Lena that startled him…
"Yes?" William asked Lena.
"I was just notified that you're needed for a raid, this will get you up to speed with that group of terrorists we mentioned yesterday…" Lena said to William.
"Really? After I just got here!?" William asked Lena with half closed eyes.
"It can't be helped Will, we only got one shot at this…Head to the island's local city's outskirts, there's a hotel named 'Crescent Moon' at that location. That's where you need to meet with the strike force, you're leaving on a chopper as soon as you arrive. It'll be a quick raid, you'll be back before dawn." Lena informed William.
"…Fine." William said and ended the call.
Sighing as he put his phone down, William lazily got off from his bed and approached the trunk that he carried. He inputted the code on its lock and opened the trunk, he smiled bitterly at the contents. The look he gave was one filled with nostalgia and PTSD at the same time, but he shook that off as he took the things inside the trunk.
"What a reunion…Should I tell them about this? Nah, I'll be back before dawn anyway so that's fine." William muttered to himself.
.
Belfast walked toward William's room, it's 7.30 AM, and William would be needed for the meeting between the leaders of each faction at 9 AM. Belfast was a bit nervous to be honest, that's because she didn't know much about William yet, about his habits, his preference, but today would be a great opportunity to start learning about him. She arrived in front of William's room, she composed herself for a bit before she knocked on it.
"Excuse me Master Blaze, I'm coming in." Belfast said as she opened the door.
William's room was still a plain looking room other than a wardrobe, night stand, a study, stack of boxes and luggage and a bed with a big lump encased within a blanket on top of it. Belfast smiled as she approached the lump, William must've been quite tired yesterday. Belfast gets close to the lump as she smiles, duty calls, and it's time for him to wake up.
"Master, it's morning already. Please wake up." Belfast said while smiling.
She expected that he wouldn't respond at first, and she was right, she tried again but this time she shook him lightly. But when she touched the lump, there's this unmistakable feeling that this lump was devoid of any kind of human body's warmth. Belfast eyes widened a bit as she opened the blanket, what she found was a hugging pillow alongside several shirts messily folded inside it…
"Oh dear." Belfast muttered to herself.
…Now where would William be, she wondered? Did he go out jogging in the morning? Did he already wake up and is now roaming around the base? Was he in the toilet? There's so many possibilities. Her answer came half a minute later, however, in the form of the man himself entering the room, Belfast cocked her head when she heard the door open.
There stood William, wearing forestland Battle Dress Uniform, with a military grade bulletproof vest, a green scarf on his neck, knife with its scabbard on his left shoulder, ammo pouches around his waist, a pistol and a holster on his right thigh, combat boots and knee and elbow pads. His face was dirtied by dirt and some small blood splatters, his hair was unkempt and dirty and he's carrying an M16A4 Assault Rifle with suppressor, vertical fore grip, and holographic sight attached.
"Bollocks…" William muttered.
"Master Blaze, I think some explanation is in order." Belfast said to William.
"Err…Yeah, this will be hard to explain. But, it's also one of my jobs so don't worry about it, Belfast." William said while smiling.
"Master, forgive my rudeness, but isn't an officer not supposed to participate in combat?" Belfast asked William.
"I'm a special case, so that rule doesn't apply to me… Anyway, we don't have anything planned for today right?" William asked Belfast.
"Oh, there's a meeting between you and the faction leaders at nine this morning. I'm afraid you won't have time to rest." Belfast said to William.
"Ah…if that's how it is…That means I need to shower and eat something first."
Belfast smiled as she helped William who sat on a spare chair removing his equipment, she helped take off the bulletproof vest, the ammo pouches, and at the same time inspected for any signs of injuries on him…After making sure everything checks out, she took the rifle to store it. But she stopped for a bit while looking at the rifle she held…
"Interested?" William asked Belfast.
"A little bit, us ship girls don't really use this kind of weapon much." Belfast said to William.
"Yeah, the guns you girls have are even more destructive than that flimsy rifle. But it served me well enough since my graduation, it stuck with me that long, and we went through many close calls together…On the battlefield, that gun is like an extension of myself."
Belfast nodded her head as she inspected the rifle in detail, it's true that the rifle looked quite worn out with scratches here and there. Placing down the weapon on the nearby desk, she then took off the pistol alongside its holster and placed it beside the rifle.
"Now this one is a more familiar design." Belfast commented.
"Huh, have you ever wielded one?" William asked Belfast.
"No, but our fellow maid Sheffield always carries one around." Belfast said to William.
"I see." William simply answered.
William got up and headed straight for the bathroom that's connected with his room, taking a quick shower, cleaning every nook and cranny, he got out of the room with only a towel covering him. He found Belfast already waiting with his clothes…Wait, how did she know where he put that? Ah never mind, it's not like William cares that a gorgeous maid like her is touching his personal stuff. Belfast helped him put on his clothes, she made sure that William was properly dressed before she smiled in satisfaction.
"Now that you're dressed, where would you like to eat breakfast?" Belfast asked while smiling.
"In my office is fine, thank you" William replied while smiling too.
"Very well then, I will bring breakfast there. Should I accompany you to the office before that?" Belfast asked further.
"No need Belfast, I'll walk there by myself" William said to Belfast.
"Understood, master" Belfast bowed a bit.
Belfast smiled as she walked away, William maintained his composure before he leaned a bit to the wall…Damn! So this is the feeling when you get a maid that attends to your daily needs! Man, this job started to grow on him. No one seemed to care about wearing uniforms on this base, but he heard that it's fine since ship girls were given liberty on their dressing choice…Yeah, he could get used to this. Unfortunately he can't laze around because this privilege was given to him at the cost of a mountain of tasks he has to complete, bloody hell…
Making his way to his new office, he managed to find it without getting lost. He opened the door and stepped inside the room…It's indeed an officer's working room, with tables, office chair, large cupboard, big window, sofa set with a coffee table…But there's no decoration whatsoever other than the carpet for the room, a flag of Azur Lane in the corner of the room, and a plant in a pot on top of the coffee table…Oh well, since it's his room now he might as well make it comfortable to work in.
He seated himself on the chair, he was about to lean on the chair and perhaps take a quick nap before the door was opened that resulted with him propelling back to alert. There stood Hood, already dressed in her usual dress while carrying a stack of papers with Illustrious…Wait, Illustrious?! William's eyes widened a bit, hoo boy am absolute beauty just came to this place! Illustrious, the voluptuous woman with silver hair smiled at him and William had a hard time keeping his gaze on her face.
"Oh, Lord Blaze, you're already here." Hood said to William.
"Ah, so you're our new commander. How do you do milord? I'm Illustrious, it's a pleasure to meet you." Illustrious introduced herself.
"…The name's William Blaze Milady, I'm honored to know a beauty such as you." William replied while smirking.
"My, thank you! But milord, now that I've looked at you, it seems you looked unwell." Illustrious said as she approached him with Hood.
"She's right milord, you looked a bit pale and your eyes looked tired. Did you not have a good night's rest?" Hood asked William.
"Err…well, something like that. I think I'll be fine to continue a bit." William said while smiling a bit.
"Is that so? Please don't push yourself too hard, it would be bad if our new commander fell ill on his first day of duty." Hood said while smiling.
Shit she was right, William didn't think this through at all on his way home from the fight as he could surely rest for a few good hours on the helicopter! But no, his too-brave-and-too-badass-to-sleep mode was active, and he sat awake while reading up reports about their raid instead of just shutting his eyes! Oh well, a loss is a loss so he's got no choice but to carry on like this…It's his own fault to be honest.
"So, what brings you two lovely ladies to my office?" William asked as he put his hands on the table.
"I wish to deliver these papers, there's quite a bit of work piling up before you arrived, so it'll be better to start working on it bit by bit. I'll be helping you with this task." Hood said to William.
"I'm just curious about you Milord, so I came with Ms. Hood to see you." Illustrious said while smiling.
"I see…In that case, you two could stay here until the meeting at 9." William said as he looked through the documents.
""Yes milord."" Both Illustrious and Hood said.
William started to read the documents that Hood carried while she stood to his right side, Illustrious pulled a chair and sat in front of his desk while she kept smiling. William didn't know what she was thinking right now, but he didn't care since the beauty in front of him already gave him enough of an energy boost to pull through this current task for him.
"Lord Blaze hmm, I heard you came from Royal Navy Officer Academy." Illustrious said to William.
"Yes, and I was drafted into the Azur Lane Military Expedition Unit as soon as I graduated from the academy." William said to Illustrious.
"What was your job when you're on the expedition?" Illustrious asked William.
"You can say…I'm the one who was always stuck on the frontline, with a rifle in his hands and dealing with whatever request high command might have for us." William said to Illustrious while smiling a bit.
"So you're a frontline soldier...May I ask which unit specifically?" Illustrious asked further.
"…Azur Lane Task Force ...Nimbus." William said after hesitating for a bit.
Both Illustrious and Hood nodded their heads before their eyes widened and stared back at William with a gaping mouth that they had to cover with their hands. William wasn't sure that being honest like this would be good but lying about it wouldn't sit well with him. Task Force Nimbus of Azur Lane was known as the myth among the alliance forces, everyone knew they existed but no one could exactly pinpoint their location and area of operation. They just appear on one site then disappear without trace, with their targets destroyed and no sign of them ever being there.
Black Ops units would suit their unit definition well, the boogeyman on the battlefield and the one name thrown in when there's any mysterious disappearance or the sudden death or destruction of opposing forces. Hood had heard of his story yesterday, connected the dots, and she came to the grim conclusion that the task force no longer existed. William himself said that the unit was disbanded after it lost too many people…But who were they fighting to receive such casualties? Their enemies must be so powerful…
"…You're among the myths of the battlefield…You must be very skilled, milord." Illustrious said to William.
"People do said so." William simply answered while smiling wryly.
"Then, taking your story from yesterday into account, which means the task force no longer exists because it got wiped out…What exactly happened, sir?" Hood curiously asked.
"…I'm not exactly allowed to tell you. But to put it simply, the enemies we fought? They know everything about us, our tactics, strategy, doctrine…that become our greatest weakness yet at the same time…our strength as well…In the end, we prevailed…but at massive cost." William said as he frowned.
He was spared from further explanation as Belfast arrived with a trolley bearing foods, drinks, and snacks as well. She brought William's breakfast alongside putting tea and snacks for Illustrious and Hood to enjoy, William cocked his eyebrows…How did Belfast know that these two ladies would stop by here?
"Belfast, you knew Ms. Hood and Ms. Illustrious would be here?" William asked Belfast.
"Yes, call it a maid's intuition." Belfast said while smiling confidently.
"As expected of our perfect head maid!" Illustrious said while smiling.
"Ah, your black tea is the best, Ms. Belfast." Hood said to Belfast.
"Thank you, Madam Hood." Belfast said while bowing.
"…Whoa." William simply said in amazement.
With it, William enjoyed his breakfast and the ladies enjoyed the tea and snacks while chatting leisurely. He had to say, the food he ate was as delicious as the one he ate yesterday…Another thing he would like to add in the list of his growing fondness of this new job of his. While chatting about mundane things, William made sure to open himself to the ladies' questions because he believed this shouldn't make him feel like strangers…
The ladies were actively trying to get to know him, they asked about his hobby, his art preference, his musical preference, his interest…The ladies were relentless, and William struggled a bit in answering their questions. What made these girls so interested in him? He's their new commander, sure but this doesn't feel like subordinates getting to know their superior. It's almost like someone who gets to know someone for a-.
PING!
"Ah, hold on." William said to the girls.
William took out his phone and he was right as Lena did called him, he set his phone on the table and set it to loudspeaker mode because he's still eating his breakfast. Why the hell would she call this morning? As far as he was concerned, everything related to last night's raid was already reported to her.
"Hey, good morning Will! How's your day inside a base filled with gorgeous ladies this morning?" Lena asked him.
"It went well so far. So any reason why you're calling me this early?" William asked Lena.
"Straight to the point! Can't I call you just because I miss you?" Lena asked William.
"…Okay, you're drunk." William stated to the point.
"I can assure you I'm not! My husband was too busy this morning, I need someone to chat with while I'm eating breakfast alone." Lena said to William.
"Poor you Lena, here I am eating breakfast accompanied by three gorgeous ladies." William said while smirking.
"What?! Hey, no fair!" Lena said in a whining tone.
"You're the one who put me on this job! You got no right to complain! That being said, this is a good opportunity to introduce yourself." William said to Lena.
"I suppose so…Um, hey there ladies." Lena said out loud.
"Good morning, Mrs. Lena." "Hello, Mrs. Lena." "Morning, Mrs. Lena." Belfast, Hood and Illustrious said at once.
"I'm Admiral Helena McAllen, the one in charge of William here, and as well his liaison with high command. He could be a little slacker, but he's a good man so take good care of him for me." Lena said with a light hearted tone.
"Hey now." William squinted his eyes at the remark.
"That being said. Will, what are you going to do today?" Lena asked him.
"…A meeting with four main factions, the ship girl leaders are all here" William told her of the plan.
"Perfect. That should be a good start, well I will wait for the good news here so bye for now!" Lena said as she hung up the phone.
…Wait, that's all of it? William thought Lena did have something important to talk to him and that question of hers was just the opening salvo. Shrugging, he continued with his breakfast then kept working on the documents while joining the occasional chat between the ladies…At nine, he decided to go to the meeting.
.
William entered the designated meeting room in the academy building, he was surprised though that the room was jam packed with ship girls. Each faction seemed to have more than two representatives as some could be seen standing behind their leaders, William looked over at everyone in the room as he went inside accompanied by Belfast, Illustrious and Hood.
There's Enterprise as Eagle Union representative alongside Brooklyn who sat beside her, there's Bismarck as the leader of Iron Blood with Tirpitz who sat beside her, there's Nagato as the leader of Sakura Empire with Shoukaku accompanying beside her and lastly, Queen Elizabeth as the leader of Royal Navy with Warspite beside her…All the big shots were here and all eyes in the room were directed at him. Nervous? Bloody hell he is!
"Good morning everyone, I suppose an introduction is in order. My name is William Blaze, I have been assigned to this base as the replacement commanding officer. I will do my best, and I look forward to working together with everyone." Yes, at least William didn't stutter.
"Good morning, so you're the new commander. It's good to see that the Royal Navy Officer Academy managed to produce a capable officer such as you, you have my approval." Elizabeth said to William.
Well, whatever in that file that Elizabeth read must have been one big fat lie, or she read his profile when he just graduated from the academy. If she managed to read the full dossier about him, William was sure that he would get harsh wordings from the queen instead of praises like now…
"Your words flatter me, your majesty." William said while smiling.
"Guten tag, Kommandant. My name is Bismarck, I'm the leader of the Iron Bloods. We look forward to witnessing your prowess in battle, Prinz has told me that you're a veteran warrior…perhaps we can spare some time to test our skills against each other?" Bismarck introduced herself.
"The offer is quite intriguing, Ms. Bismarck. But allow me to consider it." William replied while smiling.
"Ohayou gozaimasu, shikikan-sama. My name is Nagato, the leader of the Sakura Empire fleet girls. Sakura Empire is ready to aid thou in the defense against the Sirens, say the word, and we'll move as thou will." Nagato introduced herself while bowing a little.
"Thank you for your support, I will certainly count on you and everyone in the future, Ms. Nagato." William replied.
"Good morning commander, my name is Enterprise, and I serve as the representative for Eagle Union at this meeting. We are ready to support you and battle against the Sirens at your word." Enterprise said with a serious face.
"Understood, the Union's help is appreciated, Ms. Enterprise." William replied while smiling a bit.
…These four were the representative of each major faction of Azur Lane, but what about Iris Libre? Vichya Dominion? Dragon Empery? Northern Parliament? Sardegna Empire? There's a lot of representatives who didn't appear at today's meeting…Were they even on this base or they still fought in the waters on their home front? Oh well, maybe he'll get a chance to meet one of them in the future…
"…Some of you already knew about me being a veteran soldier, but I mostly dealt with operations that don't involve naval combat. However, I was also taught on how to handle naval operations in case the situation demands it…Looks like I get to practice my knowledge and skill for real. That being said, I would like to know the current situation for our base, operations, and enemy positions." William said out loud.
And so begins the grueling meeting to explain things to William in detail, he focused his mind solely in absorbing information and asking questions to anything relevant to the fleet operation. They were so absorbed by it that they didn't realize that it was noon by the time they decided to take a break for a bit. They have been discussing things for three hours non-stop, and William felt drained as he slumped a bit on his seat.
"You're quite the studious one, Lord Blaze." Hood commented from his side.
"I can't afford to mess this job of mine and put you girls in danger." William said as he looked upwards.
"Ufufufu, I'm glad that our commander cares for us." Hood said while smiling.
"…That being said, I didn't expect that there would be so many girls attending this meeting. You know anything about that, Ms. Hood?" William asked Hood.
"If I had to assume, that's because the girls were quite curious about you, commander. Words travel fast in this place…Beside, the previous commander was quite unapproachable with his professionalism. But you're different, you don't seem to mind getting to know us on a personal level." Hood said while smiling a bit.
…There! That right there was one clue he sought. See, he knew there's something going on with the previous commander of this base and it turns out he was unapproachable and that resulted with the ship girls not feeling any sorts of attachment or even interpersonal relationship or something? Too by the book and too stoic huh? Well, William isn't that kind of person…
"I already mentioned it before. I believe that success could be achieved with a close working relationship, which means I have to get to know everyone better. But I don't mind doing that outside of work too because I'm just that kind of person, Ms. Hood. Making friends with you girls is a privilege I'm glad to have." William said to Hood while smiling.
"I see…Then I believe we could make that plan of yours work, milord. The girls here might be a bit eccentric at times, but they're good girls you can rely on." Hood said to William while smiling confidently.
The meeting continued all the way until dusk when William said he now knew most of the base's aspects and operations, he could continue the work now and thanked the girls for their cooperation. After some chit chat with the girls on the base, eating dinner alongside everyone else, William headed back to his room, opened the door, took off his clothes and jumped straight into the bed only with boxers on as his extreme fatigue finally took a toll on him…Morning came and William still in deep sleep even after almost ten hour sleep.
"Master…Master, please wake up." A feminine voice was heard.
"…What? Is it time to mine those coals already?" William groggily answered.
"Mining coal?" The voice's owner was clearly confused.
"…My back is killing me John…Can't I sit this one out?" William further said.
"Master, it would seem you're not fully awake yet…Perhaps this would wake you?" The voice said.
William felt something cold and thin touching his neck, his battle proven reflex kicked in as he grabbed whoever holding that thing to his neck and pinned them down on the bed. He could hear a cute yelp as William held down the person as he tried to reach for his knife on his left shoulder scabbard…When he realized that he's not on the battlefield, almost naked in his room, that immediately made him jolted his eyes open.
Below him was Belfast, her face showing signs of surprise as her little prank had resulted in her witnessing her master's prowess in forcefully laying down a lady…that sentence somehow came out wrong…William was about to say something before his mind almost shut down at the sight below him. Belfast sprawled on the bed beneath him, she's panting a bit due to her being surprised, her cheeks decorated in light blush, a few strands of her hair were out of order, some part of her clothes were messed up and she laid down in a vulnerable position.
Seconds went by and William felt his self-control slipping away as her cleavage looked very inviting for him to bury his face in…Belfast looked downwards and widened her eyes for a bit before pulling off the greatest smirk she ever pulled in the last month, William followed suit and he felt a bit embarrassed. That's because his morning wood had turned into a raging boner, pitching a large tent on his boxer and man it begged for some sweet release from its shackle…
"Belfast." William called her name.
"Yes master?" Belfast asked while smiling.
"…Don't ever do that again in the future." William simply warned her.
"I have learned my lesson and shall reflect on my mistakes, but would other methods do as long as it didn't make you feel threatened, master?" Belfast asked William.
"…Yeah, that would be fine." William said to Belfast.
"Understood." Belfast said while smiling.
The door was opened and both Belfast and William looked at whose intruding, the intruder had a name and it's Sheffield…She wordlessly stared at the scene before her and she pulled out her handgun, she aimed at William without any hint of hesitation and squeezed the trigger. The weapon was fired and the bullet hit him straight on the cranium, William fell back on the bed.
"Sheffield, this is an accident." Belfast calmly explained.
"…Is that so? For a second there I thought he's going to force himself on you." Sheffield answered.
"I don't think our master is that kind of man…I hope that weapon of yours used non-lethal ammunition?" Belfast asked as she checked on William.
"Blank rounds, yes." Sheffield simply answered.
William laid down on the bed unconscious, Belfast sighed a bit as she remembered that today Hood would like to settle some administrative matters with him, Illustrious seems want to take him on a lunch, Enterprise and Prinz wants to talk about the fleet, Brooklyn also seems to have diplomatic matters that she would like to address with him and few Sakura Empire girls seemed to be planning to visit him later in the afternoon...There's no way he could do all that anytime soon with him being unconscious like this.
"The ladies would not like this," Belfast commented as she inspected William's head trauma.
Third time's the charm. That sentence correlates so well with William's condition where the third day's the start of him handling the antics of the ship girls on the base…Belfast and Sheffield somehow managed to carry him to the infirmary, Vestal was stunned when she saw both girls carrying their unconscious commander inside. After doing a brief check up on him, she looked at the maids with half closed eyes.
"This is clearly the product of blunt force trauma and judging by its size…Did one of you shoot him?" Vestal asked Belfast and Sheffield.
"I did. Master and Belfast were involved in a misunderstanding and my body moved on instinct." Sheffield said to Vestal.
"Mou…he will be alright but I think it would take him a while to wake up." Vestal said while touching her left cheek.
"Thank you Madam Vestal, we'll be taking our leave now. We'll trust him in your good hands." Belfast said while bowing a bit.
Belfast and Sheffield exited the infirmary to attend to their other duties…as well telling those who sought William that he would be unavailable for a while. Vestal took a while to sort out the medicine on the shelves before she looked at William again, her lips smiled a bit.
"Okay commander, you can stop pretending." Vestal said to William.
"Yeah… you got me. Ouch, that stings." William said to Vestal.
William rose up from the infirmary bed while nursing the place where he got hit by Sheffield's pistol bullet, Vestal got close and started to treat the bruise on the area impacted. William thought that Vestal was quite attentive, and he should know better than to fool a doctor by pretending to be unconscious…The reason he did all this? Well, he'll let Belfast explain that misunderstanding as his word alone would seemingly won't work for Sheffield…
"So you're the doctor, I wanted to visit you yesterday but I haven't gotten the chance to." William said to Vestal.
"That I am Commander, I run this infirmary but if required I could also sortie with the girls out there…I'm a repair ship, but you would know better than to underestimate me." Vestal said to William.
"Got it…Hey, I was wondering…Would it be alright if I sometimes bother you at night?" William asked Vestal.
"Oh my…" Vestal was speechless and unable to respond…
"…Sorry, that came out wrong. I have tasks from high command that could potentially injure me sometimes, I would need your help in the future." William said to Vestal.
"…Why at night commander?" Vestal asked William.
"Because during the day I'm working as the commander of this base." William answered while smiling a bit.
"Ah…I see what you mean now…If that's your request, then I'll certainly do my best to fulfill it." Vestal answered while smiling.
"Thank you…and don't tell anyone else about this without my permission." William said to Vestal.
Well, that went right out of the window as someone was about to open the infirmary door but stopped when they heard that conversation…Enterprise cocked her eyebrows in confusion, their commander has another task at night? And it could injure him sometimes. He's a veteran soldier, is he also required to go into direct combat sometimes? Why hide that fact from them? Well, Enterprise is going to get her answer because she then decided to open the door.
Updated: 25-07-2021 (Beta Readed by Culture-Hunt3r)
Well, the base finally has a commander once again. William could ease down to his new job in a base filled with beautiful girls, let's hope the man could remain focus on his work. Thank you for the follow, favorite and review dear readers! Stay tuned for the next one!
See you next time!
- Dasmara