Lexington's eyes sparkled. "Commander, with this much resource haul, you're that much closer to bringing everyone into this world, aren't you?"
"Of course! At this rate, I'll be able to bring the whole base over soon. It's a day worth celebrating—give me a kiss!"
Lexington blushed and leaned in for a sweet kiss.
With beauty in his arms and joy in his heart, Hikaru felt completely elated. He made up his mind—he wouldn't cut back on sorties anymore. If he just stayed cooped up at the Academy all day, how could he possibly stumble into fortune like this?
That reminded him: it was time to push for a rank promotion. A higher rank meant a bigger monthly allowance for Academy resource purchases. Right now, he was capped at 30++ per month.
But reporting this capture of an Abyssal transport ship would be more than enough to secure a promotion.
As for the whale's resources? Well… the battle had been too intense. The whale got ruptured, and all the resources spilled into the deep ocean currents. Curse those cruel, merciless tides!
What a shame.
(He was quite proud of that excuse.)
While Hikaru was still riding his high, California came bounding over from the back compartment of the whale.
She was holding an unopened pair of cute girl's underwear, wide-eyed. "You guys won't believe the treasure I just found!"
At the rear of the whale's mouth, they found a cache of utterly baffling supplies.
Instant noodles. Plush toys. Game consoles. Swimsuits. Sugary drinks. All kinds of snacks. Manga. Rows of brightly colored, stylish clothing.
"This is irrefutable proof that the Abyssal flagships have high intelligence and live like humans!"
California waved the little pair of panties in the air like a declaration.
There had always been rumors that the Abyssal shipgirls had cities built under the ocean, and some even claimed that the flagships came from another world, connected via sea-floor portals. Whatever the case, it was generally accepted that the Abyssal flagships were highly intelligent.
But whether they also experienced joy, pain, sorrow, and love—that was something the naval headquarters and various governments deliberately avoided discussing.
Which made sense. If the public accepted that Abyssal shipgirls were essentially a new form of humanlike life, people might lose the will to fight them.
The official story was: Abyssal shipgirls are hostile to all life and exist solely to kill. But based on glimpses of classified documents Hikaru had seen, he suspected that even in Abyssal–controlled regions like Africa and Australia, normal human society still continued to exist. That suggested Abyssal flagships were not purely agents of destruction.
And honestly, if destruction were their only goal, why didn't they just charge onto land and start wrecking everything solo? Beings that powerful could cause chaos unchecked.
Still, it was impossible to "redeem" the Abyssal flagships. The more likely truth was that they occupied or enslaved humans to exploit their suffering and negative emotions—just like vampires keeping human blood slaves in those dark fantasy novels.
"I wonder…" Hikaru mused. "Could there be an Abyssal Tirpitz among them?"
Lexington picked up a Bismarck plush and looked thoughtful.
"I read in the materials that some Abyssal shipgirls still retain a shred of conscience," California said brightly. "If they haven't spilled blood, they might self-purify after defeat and become salvageable shipgirls. Commander, why not fish up a Abyssal Tirpitz?"
A commander could never build a duplicate shipgirl—no two identical characters from construction—but if one was salvaged, that was fair game.
Tirpitz glanced at Hikaru. "Commander, do you want to fish up another Tirpitz?"
"No. I only need my Tirpitz."
Hikaru's survival instincts were razor sharp.
Tirpitz huffed and held out her hand to California. "Playtime's over. Give me back my rigging."
California looked distressed and started whining.
"Nooo, I've only used it for a couple days! Tirpitz, you're the best—Commander, help me out here…"
Hikaru shamelessly ignored her pleas and snatched the unopened pair of underwear from her hand, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.
"Is this… Abyssal technology?"
(End of Chapter)
[+50 Power Stones = Extra Chapter]