How do I start a romantic relationship with a ship girl?

Page 9

"...Royal."

The girl answered through gritted teeth.

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In the evening, after confirming that they had reached a relatively safe sea area, the ship, which had been submerged underwater, finally briefly surfaced.

The crimson sun gradually sank below the horizon, its lingering flames turning half the sky's clouds a fiery red. Birds occasionally darted overhead, a refreshing evening breeze blew, and the sea shimmered like golden scales as the waves crashed against the shore.

Everything was so refreshing and delightful.

Xu Huan sat at the bow of the boat, his eyes slightly narrowed, feeling the gentle sea breeze on his face, savoring the moment of leisure.

How long has it been since he last rested like this? He himself couldn't quite remember.

Before each mission, he was told that after completing the task, he would be given a trip to a vacation planet to enjoy himself, but after each mission was completed, nothing more was said.

The planets where missions are carried out are mostly bizarrely shaped, some even teeming with insect hives; finding even a slightly flat surface is considered lucky...

People say that the scenery on the vacation planet is very pleasant, and the natural scenery is extremely beautiful. It is completely different from the main planet, which is filled with steel forests. Living there will give you an indescribable sense of comfort and relaxation.

Xu Huan had never been there, but the scenery in front of him seemed to him no less impressive than that so-called vacation planet.

Light footsteps approached from behind, accompanied by a faint, pleasant fragrance.

"The weather is nice today."

A slightly hoarse voice came from beside him. Xu Huan turned his head and saw that Hu Teng had chosen a seat relatively close to him and sat down.

The ship girl had changed into a more casual outfit, revealing a black choker around her neck. Her loose black and red short-sleeved T-shirt couldn't cover her fair shoulders, and her delicate collarbone was even partially exposed. Her slender legs, encased in knee-high boots, hung down, swaying gently.

While her overall figure was less curvaceous than that of the royal family, it possessed a more slender and elongated silhouette.

The setting sun cast its rays upon Hu Teng's delicate face, which shone brightly against his scornful yellow vertical pupils, creating a dazzling effect.

"What? Has this seat been reserved?" The ship girl smiled as she noticed Xu Huan's gaze and teased, "Or are you not used to having someone sit next to you?"

"No, that's not true... I just thought you had already disembarked."

"Your captain wasn't very welcoming, but he eventually made an exception and gave me a room."

Hu Teng pulled his swaying legs back in front of him, gently hugged them, rested his head on them, turned his face to the side, and scrutinized Xu Huan with his vertical pupils.

Her actions were very direct, without any attempt to conceal them, and even her eyes seemed to carry a hint of aggression.

"What are you looking at?"

Xu Huan felt slightly uncomfortable with such a direct gaze.

"Look at you."

"...What's so interesting about me?"

“Wrong. Even disregarding all other factors, from an appearance standpoint, you are quite admirable,” Hutten explained. “Hmm… I remember Frederick the Great was probably the type who liked this most, right? Bismarck, I think too…”

"so?"

Frederick the Great and Bismarck, for example, are probably ship girls from Ironblood.

"Mr. Xu Huan, would you like to come back to Ironblood with me?" The ship girl extended an invitation very directly.

A sea breeze blew by, and Hu Teng's hair swayed in the wind. Her loose T-shirt slid down her shoulders, revealing most of her ample bustier.

"I've heard that the ship girls in Ironblood aren't very easy to get along with?" Xu Huan replied casually with his eyes closed.

"I guess it was Miss Royal Fortune who said it?" Hu Teng had expected this and didn't refute it.

"However, generally speaking, Ironblood's ship girls are probably the most difficult to get along with... But you are different, you are very strong... In many situations, strong personal strength can solve a lot of problems."

"I bet there are other ship girls in Ironblood who are even stronger than you, right?"

"Each one has his own merits."

"Then I'm not going."

"Hmm?" Hu Teng blinked in confusion.

"If they're difficult to deal with... I can't beat them if there are too many of them."

Xu Huan was completely satisfied.

"...You're quite interesting. I never thought there could be such a reason for refusal."

"Good health is the most important thing; once you die, everything is gone."

So where do you plan to go next?

"It's the Royal Family, right? It was Little Octopus's suggestion. I'm unfamiliar with this place, so I had no choice but to follow her route, right?" Xu Huan didn't have the same level of vigilance as the Royal Family and spoke directly.

"Royal..." Hu Teng pondered for a long time, "I understand, it was a bit unexpected..."

"Hmm? Is there a problem with the royal family?"

“Ironblood...including your captain, doesn’t have a good relationship with the Royal Navy, so it’s a bit surprising that she would suggest you go there.”

Xu Huan smiled slightly: "Doesn't this just prove that Ironblood is more dangerous to her than the royal family?"

Chapter Thirteen: Recognizing the Commander

Hu Teng was speechless upon hearing this.

She never expected that her probing would go too far, causing Royal Wealth to choose Royal, with whom she had a past grudge, rather than Ironblood, which was the closest.

Most importantly, they even managed to persuade Xu Huan as well...

However... this actually suited her just the way she wanted to be.

"That's great. I don't need to go back to the port area recently... so I'll just go with you guys to have a look around there."

"Oh? Wasn't it said that your Ironblood and Royal families don't have a very good relationship?"

"Aside from some conflicts between factions, the main reason for the bad relationship is related to the historical prototype ships, such as Bismarck and Hood, which can easily have an emotional impact on the ship girls... As for me, I'm fine."

As he said this, Hu Teng pursed his lower lip slightly, and his voice became much softer:

"Because the prototype ships in my history haven't even been launched yet...so there haven't been any major conflicts."

“I understand…” Xu Huan echoed, “Although not having a historical prototype might feel like something is missing, not being bound by the past might actually make you feel more at ease, right?”

"oh....?"

Hu Teng lifted his chin off his knees, somewhat surprised.

The young man in front of me didn't seem like the type to comfort people, so how could he say something like that?

Not bad.

"I think I've heard you mention something about a commander before. Can you tell me about it?" the young man asked again.

"Well... that's exactly what it sounds like. A human who can command ship girls in battle is called a commander." When it came to serious matters, Hu Teng's tone became much more serious.

"Commander ship girl...?"

Xu Huan was somewhat puzzled.

It wasn't that he looked down on his comrades, but given the current combat strength of the ship girls, there was absolutely no need for a human to act as a so-called commander. If it were an ordinary person, then this so-called commander would actually become a hindrance to the ship girls.

Even within the Human Alliance, elite soldiers like him, trained specifically for special missions, are extremely rare, and their combat effectiveness drops by more than half without the help of high-tech equipment.

Fighting alien life with bare hands... is practically suicidal.

Another solution is to try to master psionic energy.

But as it stands, apart from himself, no one else in the Human Alliance seems to be able to master this thing.

"Yes, that's the one who commands us..."

Hu Teng explained, "Commanders rarely need to go to the front lines, so their combat effectiveness is relatively low. Their main role is to provide mental energy boosts to the ship girls, thus enhancing their combat power. This is why one must have mental energy affinity to become a commander."

"Provides energy boosts and enhances combat power? Sounds like a human power bank..."

"That's one way to understand it... But aside from these conditions, the most important thing is to gain the approval of the ship girls. Without the approval of the ship girls, there's no point in talking about amplifying mental power."

"Can it be forced?" Xu Huan asked the question he was most curious about.

Without the aid of other equipment, the combat power of humans is far inferior to that of ship girls. If, as Hu Teng said, they really can play such a crucial role...

Then probably no one will care about the commander's own will.

They were simply kidnapped and imprisoned in a certain place to be used as batteries.

It wasn't that Xu Huan had a dark heart, but rather that he had simply witnessed far too many such incidents.

For example, a certain race was domesticated specifically for canning because of its delicious meat... and so on.

“No, the Commander's approval is like a contract, and recognition is the signature of that contract. Without the ship girl's recognition, even if you want to offer a boost, it won't work…” Hu Teng shook his head.

"Recognition is an emotion. Once you gain the recognition of a ship girl, you generally won't be forced to do anything. As for other things like getting the ship girl to follow orders, that depends on your own charm."

"Generally speaking?"

"...There are always some ship girls who are very aggressive."

"Understood...."

"Then—would you like to think about it?"