Hikaru wandered leisurely through his newly manifested naval district.
Glowworm and Vampire skipped and bounced joyfully, their little faces practically breaking from smiling so hard.
They had lived in this naval district for many years—it had long since become their irreplaceable home.
Now that their commander had returned, and their old base had been recreated, the two little lolis were almost bursting from happiness.
Fletcher followed closely at Hikaru's side in tiny steps. Her big eyes kept darting around the naval district, revealing a faint look of confusion.
"You can go play with them if you want. Why keep following me?" Hikaru gave her a nod, but the cat-eared maid simply shook her head.
"That's not it, Commander."
Fletcher fiddled with her apron and said hesitantly, "Don't you think something's… off about this naval district?"
"Off? What do you mean?"
Hikaru hadn't felt anything strange at first, but Fletcher's comment piqued his curiosity.
He turned to look at Lexington beside him.
Lexington had just withdrawn her gaze from the distant Commander's Office, her face showing a contemplative expression.
"Commander, this naval district—it's exactly the same as our old one."
Hikaru grinned. "Of course it is. I manifested it based on the appearance of our previous base."
Lexington gently shook her head. "That's not what I meant."
At that moment, California ran over to a blackboard hanging on a white wall. She wiped at it with her hand and exclaimed, "Hey, Hikaru! Come look at this!"
Lexington frowned at the way California so casually called their commander by name, but California acted like she hadn't noticed at all.
Lexington smiled slightly. Since the base has returned, as the head wife, I must take responsibility for managing the shipgirls. Let's start by teaching California some proper discipline.
Yes, she definitely needs to learn some rules.
Hikaru, however, didn't mind at all. Compared to Fletcher and the others constantly addressing him so formally, he actually found California's blunt and easygoing attitude more endearing. Truthfully, he wasn't the type to care much about rank and status.
Honestly, could a commander who lives off shipgirls really afford to put on airs in front of them?
He casually walked over to California and laid a hand on her shoulder. "Alright, bro, what am I supposed to be looking at?"
Fletcher puffed her cheeks and tugged at Lexington's sleeve. "Big sis Lexington, look at the Commander and California!"
Lexington rubbed her cat ears and chuckled, "I see it."
She thought to herself, Compared to California, even Fletcher the little maid can't be underestimated.
Sigh… as the head wife, every shipgirl eyeing the Commander is a love rival. I can't afford to take any of them lightly.
Unaware that she'd already been placed on Lexington's "love rival" list, California threw her arm around Hikaru's neck and pointed at the chalk drawing on the blackboard.
"Look! What do you make of this?"
Though Hikaru and California often addressed each other like bros for fun, when a young girl's soft body pressed tightly against him, he couldn't help but think wickedly: If you hold me any longer, we can't be bros anymore…
That said, he kept his thoughts to himself and seriously followed the direction of California's fair fingertip to look at the board.
There, drawn in colorful chalk, were several stick figures holding hands. The drawing was clumsy and childlike—clearly the work of a child. If it weren't for the long lines meant to represent girls' long hair, Hikaru wouldn't even be able to tell their genders.
The title above it was easy enough to understand: "We're All Good Friends."
Hikaru didn't see anything strange. He patted California's hand to catch his breath and asked, "Don't squeeze me so hard. What's wrong with this drawing?"
California widened her eyes and tugged Hikaru closer to the board. She picked up a broken piece of pink chalk from the ground and held it up to his nose.
"Look—the break is fresh."
Then she brushed her hand against the blackboard again and held it up to show him the chalk dust on her fingers.
"See? It's dry chalk dust. No dust buildup at all."
Hikaru frowned. "Okay, just tell me what you're getting at."
[End of Chapter]
[50 Power Stones = Extra Chapter]
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