"I don't hold grudges. I only blame myself," said Gorou with a shake of his head, a nostalgic look surfacing on his face. "Indiana, it's been so many years since you last called me by my name."
To hear it again all of a sudden stirred even the iron-hard heart of Fleet Admiral Gorou.
Indiana stomped her foot. "And you still say you're not holding a grudge? If you really weren't, you'd be helping Hikaru right now! I'm telling you, every shipgirl here can sense it—Hikaru is a good man."
"I never said he wasn't a good man. He's even a great hero. And I trust you completely," said Gorou, crushing that fleeting tenderness in his heart. His voice turned cold. "But, Indiana, the world is governed by humans."
Indiana fell silent, stunned, unable to respond.
"I'm really going to get mad now!"
Tirpitz's cheeks puffed up as she summoned her rigging's cannons, casually pointing them at the assembled Commanders.
"Commander, can I just blow them all up already?"
Hikaru had no doubt that Tirpitz could actually do it.
But… could he allow it?
If Tirpitz truly attacked the Commanders, they might suffer a crushing defeat—but she wouldn't escape unscathed either.
And at that point, Hikaru's entire group would be branded public enemies, to be killed by all.
Where exactly had things gone wrong?
What had actually happened to Commander Noboru?
Unfortunately, Hikaru had no time to ponder the matter further.
Marshal Heizou stepped out from the crowd, his tone cold. "Hikaru, I believe you wouldn't do something so vile. But you must give us an explanation today. If you speak honestly about your background, then perhaps the stain on your name can be cleared."
Wakayama Shogo smiled faintly. "That's all I was trying to say as well. Hikaru, don't think I'm targeting you personally. I'm just doing my duty."
Shun's face twitched. If anyone here wanted to bury Hikaru in a coffin and hammer in ten thousand nails, it was him.
His grudge with Hikaru was deep and irreconcilable.
"It's still too early to talk about 'clearing your name,'" Shun said viciously, eyes gleaming with satisfaction. "Commander Hikaru, what are your answers to the three suspicions Wakayama raised?"
"I don't have an explanation," Hikaru replied, spreading his hands. "If you trust me, great. If not, well, I can't help that. Either way—I have no explanation."
Representative Murong's expression changed slightly. With an attitude like that, wasn't Hikaru basically confirming their suspicions?
Just then, the Commander in charge of conducting a thorough search aboard the Silent Horizon stepped forward and saluted Fleet Admiral Gorou.
"Fleet Admiral, we've found no trace of Commander Noboru or the two Commanders."
Gorou turned thoughtfully to another Commander. "Your report. What's the status of the crew investigation? Where was the last confirmed sighting of Commander Noboru?"
"Sir, according to preliminary questioning, the last sighting of Commander Noboru was being carried into compartment A1309 by the two Commanders. Nothing else unusual reported."
Compartment A1309—Gorou knew this warship like the back of his hand. If he remembered correctly, that room was located on Deck B1, at the core of the carrier.
In other words—directly beneath the feet of thousands of Commanders and Marshals.
"Anything found in A1309?"
"Sir, no signs of struggle or damage. The compartment was intact. Only one detail of note—the door was locked from the inside when we arrived."
Gorou nodded slightly.
In fact, the reason they opened that compartment in the first place was because one of Murong's aides had been sent to fetch Commander Noboru but couldn't get the door open. After reporting back, Marshal Heizou personally ordered them to force it open.
But there had been no one inside.
This had turned into a locked-room mystery—possibly a locked-room murder case.
Fleet Admiral Gorou looked toward Hikaru.
"Hikaru. Do you have anything to say?"
"Not really," said Hikaru with a shrug. "But if I may, I'd like to inspect the scene myself."
"You must not, Fleet Admiral! Absolutely not!" Shun leapt out, visibly agitated. "What if he uses the opportunity to destroy evidence? With Tirpitz and Lexington by his side, he could pull it off right under our noses!"
[End of Chapter]
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