This girl California had clearly grown—she was already capable of saying something that sly?
But her love for the naval base was genuine.
This was her Commander's home, and naturally, that made it her home too. And not just for now—she meant forever, from birth to death.
Hikaru glanced at Bismarck, who stood protectively by his side. Perhaps there was another reason California didn't want to leave.
After the defeat of Abyssal Barbarossa, the enemy had offered a six-star main gun rig from the German faction. It was meant for Tirpitz—to carry the prestige of German shipgirls and spread their legend across the world.
But Tirpitz had dismissed the cannon outright. It had no anti-air modifier—useless to her.
So Hikaru had casually assigned it to California instead. The girl had long been drooling over high-grade equipment. She got so excited she kissed Hikaru several times on the spot.
Now, California looked slightly guilty—probably afraid Bismarck might come to reclaim the cannon.
After all, it was a German main gun, and technically Tirpitz's spoils. Her concern wasn't unreasonable.
But Hikaru could only chuckle. If she knew what kind of gear Bismarck was actually wearing, she'd drop those silly worries in an instant.
The shipgirls were working with high enthusiasm, and soon, reports began flowing back one after another.
Lexington reported that many trophies from the Commander's office and collection room were missing.
These included Yamato's horn, Kaga's Kutani sake bottle, the cat-ear hair clip from the Fortress Princess, the "special little panties" of a supply-type Abyssal, and various other trophies—greatswords, ship models, radar systems, and numerous medals and commendations earned during past operations.
Glowworm reported that the dormitories were missing many furnishings: televisions, game consoles, 3D board game tables, ice cream machines, and more.
Vampire reported that farming and ranching equipment—like the combine harvester and mechanical scarecrows—were gone.
Yat Sen's report, of course, confirmed the kitchen was missing all ingredients, though the recipe books were still there.
Finally, Tirpitz reported that everything in the warehouse—equipment, miscellaneous items—was intact.
There was nothing new or extra that had appeared.
"Just as I suspected," Hikaru said, tapping the table. "I think I understand why."
Lexington looked puzzled. "Why weren't those things transferred over?"
"It's probably a matter of incompatible rules between the two worlds," Hikaru replied. "Like those 3D tabletop systems—they exceed the technological level of this world. And consumables, like food, probably have to be produced and processed here manually. As for the medals… I'm not entirely sure."
In truth, Hikaru had long noticed how different the dream naval base was.
Back when he first summoned Glowworm and the others, he'd been amazed at their descriptions of the dream base: an endless supply of food in the fridge, newspapers in the reading room updating themselves, and even TV programs synchronized with the real world.
Clearly, some kind of black-tech was involved.
Not to mention the 3D tabletop devices—such things didn't exist in the real world at all.
When shifting from the dream base to reality, certain rules must've clashed or failed to integrate. Some items simply vanished in the process.
Like the endlessly replenishing food.
Still, Hikaru was quite curious. Items like tabletop consoles and game machines were all considered "furniture" drawn from loot boxes. So… if he were to draw one from a box in the real world, would it actually appear here?
His consciousness paused over the in-game shop for a moment—but in the end, he held back.
One loot box cost 50 diamonds. You were guaranteed one item, but the chance of it being something good was low.
Right now, he was critically low on diamonds. He couldn't afford to toss away 50 of them.
That said, if he wanted to develop agriculture properly, he'd need to pull an automatic harvester eventually.
Not yet, though. The island didn't even have the space to develop farming at the moment.
With the base now physically manifested, Hikaru opened his long-term missions for review.
Long-term Mission: Become the World's Number One Commander.
Three requirements must be met:
The Seven Seas recognize your naval base as the strongest.
The shipgirls' happiness must be above the "happy" level, and married shipgirls must be at the "dream-like happiness" level.
Your naval base rating must be at Brilliant Radiance or higher.
Until recently, Hikaru didn't even have a physical base, so of course there was no rating.
Now, he tried assessing the base.
[Inconspicuous Little Naval Base]
"It seems your base is still mired in poverty. External enemies feel no fear toward it. Culture and trade are practically nonexistent. On the plus side, the shipgirls stationed here still wear hopeful smiles, dreaming of future happiness."
[End of Chapter]
[100 Power Stones = Extra Chapter]
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