My ship girl setup is off...

Page 174

However, they did not maintain this serious atmosphere for long. A few minutes later, a figure came from not far away and joined them.

"Memphis? You went to see the commander?"

Seeing the energy fluctuations of the friendly units she had marked, Helena META turned her head and looked at Memphis, who was approaching. She guessed that this was the only explanation.

Hmm, the familiar scent on her is clearly the Commander's.

"...Yeah, I went to see him, just like you."

After speaking, Memphis Meta fell silent, as if deep in thought. But Helena Meta wasn't in a hurry, because that's how Memphis is. After Meta, there are always many changes, even if she herself knows it.

"Helena... I think we don't need to stay here any longer."

"Why do you say that?"

Feeling the gazes of her companions turning towards her, Helena Meta's smile dipped slightly. She didn't quite understand Memphis's intention, but she wasn't in a hurry. She wanted to hear what Memphis had to say first.

"Because yesterday, after the Purifier verified his identity, he swore allegiance to him."

Helena's smile froze instantly, followed by a look of confusion.

"...what?"

...

"Zero, she hasn't come back yet..."

While Helena Meta and the others were in shock, Empres, the arbitrator, was at his base, resting his face on his hand, waiting for her return.

Because only she, after Dreamweaver Zero returns, can execute all action orders. However, she said she needs to confirm the commander's identity, saying that his identity is very likely that of the creator of the others. In that case...

"Is this how it ends? Then, what is the purpose of our creation? No, this should be something that he gives us meaning..."

After closing her eyes and thinking deeply, Empres couldn't figure it out. Since she couldn't figure it out, she decided not to think about it anymore. But even so, Empres looked at the observer who was staring at the photo. Seeing that she was still so reluctant to let go of that photo and the person in it, Empres felt a little irritated, but she didn't know what was making her irritated.

Just looking at her like this made him feel a little irritated, and Empres noticed his abnormality, but he couldn't explain it clearly.

But this period of time did not last long, because Zero had returned.

"Is it... all confirmed? Zero..."

Dreamweaver Zero glanced at her, then nodded gently, speaking in a soft, yet undeniably authoritative tone...

"Suspension of execution"

Chapter 463 Worries and Concerns

"Why? I need a reason, zero."

Upon seeing her return, Reinpus smiled with delight, but expressed his bewilderment at her request for a suspension of operations.

“We have found Father… Reinpus. Therefore, we should regroup the fleet and establish our base near Father before proceeding with the next step.”

Dreamweaver Zero came to Reinpus's side and, as usual, slightly opened her arms to her, putting aside Reinpus's initial small suggestions. Then, like an older sister, she hugged the soft younger sister in front of her, even though the younger sister had a higher priority than herself.

"I...understand. Then, let's suspend the planned operation for now..."

He held her soft body in his arms. After thinking for a moment, Reinpus decided to listen to her and put everything else aside for now, prioritizing her current orders.

"Tempalans, Hermite, Strykerens, stop for now..."

No sooner had Reinpus finished speaking than a virtual projection appeared beside her from who-knows-where, expressed its obedience, and then immediately disappeared.

"By the way, Zero, could you tell me about him? I'm quite interested..."

After holding her for a while, Reinpus let go of her. He felt a little jealous seeing Zero's spirits lift after he talked about her, but he was still happy because of her good spirits.

And deep down, Reinpus felt a deep-seated resistance and tension when facing his creator.

"Yes... I'll be fine, and I'll share with you everything about our father, anything related to him..."

...

"So, what are your thoughts, my lord? And Akagi, Taihou, if you continue to be so disrespectful in front of my lord, then I will teach you a lesson."

Arriving at his office and sitting not far from him, Amagi began to think about the Sirens. His handsome brows furrowed as he thought about what had happened the night before. He heard Akagi and Taihou arguing over who would become their master, which made Amagi feel the noise and gave them a small warning.

"Um... Sister Amagi, I understand..."

Upon hearing Amagi's warning, Akagi, who had originally wanted to argue with Taihou, stopped. The blush that had appeared on her pretty face from the argument began to fade, and even her fox ears, which had been standing tall, moved back, turning into airplane ears, making her look somewhat aggrieved.

Only Taihou, as if she had won a victory, sat on Seiji's lap, one arm around his neck and the other hand pointing at Akagi, forcing Akagi to take a deep breath and swallow her anger.

Avoid her sharp edge, and yield the power while she is in power. Then, with a sudden counterattack, catch her off guard and send her tumbling off her horse.

As for seeing her sister Akagi become somewhat impotent and furious, Kaga was already used to it. She simply stood beside Akagi, gently and properly holding the freshly brewed tea in her hands, and then taking a good sip.

Hmm, good tea.

"Hehe~, Commander, Commander~ Taihou won this time, Commander, can you give Taihou a small reward?"

Having secured the victory for the time being, Taihou stretched out her finger and drew a small circle on his chest, staring at Zheng Ri with alluring eyes, like a cute little animal begging for affection.

Although this little animal is quite aggressive and fears no one.

"Alright, alright, you want a reward, right? Then I'll give you a proper reward tonight."

After saying that, Zheng Ri patted her pert buttocks, making her happily let out a charming cry.

"Hehe, that would be great~, but Commander, if possible, let's do it now! Taihou, Taihou is available anytime, anywhere~"

"That won't do. You can't make a fuss until tonight, or it won't count, okay?"

"Mmm~, Taihou knows, Taihou won't cause any trouble for the Commander~"

After calming Taifeng down, Zheng Ri looked at Tiancheng with a faint smile on his face. Seeing that the other side had been waiting for a long time, Zheng Ri had no choice but to cough lightly and give his reply.

"Well, don't worry, Amagi. In a sense, the Sirens aren't our enemies. As for their true intentions, whether they're going to do something or not, we'll have to wait and see."

"Just like you wouldn't easily call out 'Commander,' do you think they would readily pledge allegiance to someone else?"

“No, my lord, these two things cannot be confused. We are absolutely loyal to you. If loyalty is not absolute, then it is absolutely disloyal.”

"Even though we've been enemies with them for so long, we still can't figure out their purpose. Just like those Metas, my lord, the power of others is merely something to be borrowed."

"Moreover, there is an old saying in Donghuang: 'If you are not of our race, you are an outsider.' Although the relationship between our lord and us cannot be described with such superficial words, Tiancheng believes that this saying is very appropriate when facing the Sirens."

Amagi's words did not agree with, and could even be described as opposing, Masahiro's ideas. The Sirens, who had always been his enemies, had suddenly become his allies, which was perplexing.

accept.

Because no one can guarantee their absolute purity, what if they have ulterior motives? In such close proximity, no ship girl can guarantee that she can perfectly dodge and protect the commander under the Sirens' barrage of attacks?

Hard to say.

After listening to Amagi's concerns, Zheng Ri initially wanted to say that it was unnecessary, since he knew what the Sirens' goal was. However, he thought about how they claimed to be saving humanity, but the methods they used were rather extreme.

As for how extreme it is, just look at the ship girls who are forced to become META beings. After all, it seems that every world that the Sirens use as an experiment produces one or two ship girls who are forced to become META beings.

Thinking about it this way, Amagi's idea is not surprising.

For a moment, Zheng Ri also realized the problem, but he didn't know what to say, so he could only stroke the now obedient and docile Dai Feng while thinking about these things.

However, this stalemate did not last long. While Zheng Ri was still thinking, several figures appeared behind him, and they were all familiar faces.

Chapter 464 Understanding the Situation

"While what you said, Amagi, is correct, don't forget one thing: they have already shown submission, and it's genuine submission."

"Helena? No, you're Meta, aren't you?"

Upon hearing the objection to his words, Amagi noticed the presence behind Seiji, namely Helena META and others. If he had only seen two last time, this time four or five METAs had arrived at once.

For a moment, Tiancheng's already furrowed brows deepened. As everyone knows, no one visits a temple without a reason; their arrival must have something else on their mind.

Of course, it wasn't just Amagi; Akagi and the others beside Masahi also noticed Helena META's presence, but they only acted wary, because their previous interactions had made the ship girls roughly understand that they were also on the Commander's side.

But that alone is not enough.

"META...Helena-senpai, I didn't expect things to turn out like this?"

Essex, who was handling documents, also noticed their arrival. She secretly tossed the sleeping eagle out the window to transmit information, while quickly sending out the current situation to notify the sisters nearby. Then she immediately stood up and slowly walked to the edge of the room.

"Hmm~, it's Essex. I really miss you now, but let's talk about that later, Commander."

Helena Meta naturally noticed Essex's subtle movements, but she didn't say anything. Instead, she changed the subject to Jung-il. Seeing that he was staring at her, Helena Meta smiled slightly and began to talk about things related to him.

To be precise, it's a matter concerning the Sirens.

"The Sirens have now stopped their activation experiments, and I can roughly guess the situation, but the information conveyed by Memphis alone is not enough..."

"Helena, I also need to know everything you know, Commander. Please don't hide anything from me, Commander. I want to know..."

Ignoring their wary gazes, Helena Meta walked around and, in front of Akagi and the others, slowly sat on Zheng Ri's lap, habitually wrapping her arms around his neck, staring into his comforting eyes, and gently stroking his cheek.

"As for everything... I don't know much, but after Memphis left, the Purifier said that Dreamweaver Zero would come to meet me. However, she already came last night and told me some things."

"Just like the Purifier, she calls me Father. Although I don't know the details yet, she said she would explain it to me later."

Zheng Ri noticed the changes in the expressions on the ship girls' faces, but didn't say anything. Instead, he told them what he knew. Last night, Zero didn't say much, only that the Sirens' experiment would be canceled and that she would come to his side.

But Zero didn't say anything more detailed, and it wasn't appropriate to ask. After that, she could only sleep with her new daughter.

However, to Masaharu's surprise, the Sirens' bodies were much colder than the ship girls' warm bodies, making it very comfortable to sleep with them.

"Hmm~? Commander, is that all? You can't hide anything from Helena, there should be more, right?"

Helena META narrowed her eyes slightly, looking somewhat skeptical of his words. Clearly, the commander hadn't told the whole story.

Even so, Helena META was dissatisfied. The commander forbade, could not, and could not hold anything back from Helena.

Well, what I haven't mentioned yet are all other unrelated things, anyway, that's how it is.

"Commander, is that alright? Helena needs to know everything."

Helena META made a grabbing motion towards Jung Il, a gesture that was very familiar: "I want them all."

"Helena, let's talk about these things later. You, you're the one Sheffield spoke of that needs protecting? Just a mere human? Heh heh~"

Helena for the day

Elizabeth Meta didn't understand her persistence, but since many Metas had already come over, those private matters should be discussed later. Then, Elizabeth Meta walked over.

A pair of blood-red eyes were fixed on him, as if Zheng Ri's presence had piqued her interest, and her words made Sheffield META, who was following behind her, blush.

"...You're Elizabeth? You're the person I dreamed about?"

Seeing META approaching with white hair and bloodshot eyes, Zheng Ri couldn't recognize her at first. But after observing her carefully, he realized that she was the figure from his dream, and he was quite surprised.

"Hmm? Dreaming? You're the one who inexplicably contacted me? Heh~, it seems that compared to those illusory and nonexistent gods, my existence is more like that of a god? Very well."

Unexpectedly, the person who contacted her was actually the commander of Sheffield. For a moment, Elizabeth META stared at him with curiosity and surprise, becoming increasingly interested in the man before her.

"Commander, you didn't tell Helena about this. Is that considered hiding something from her, or a sign of distrust?"

When Zheng Ri said it, apart from the ship girls who knew about it, Helena META frowned. She didn't know about this matter, which made Helena META feel a little wronged. She trusted the commander so much, so why didn't he tell her so many things?

"Of course not... Mom, I just feel it's unnecessary. Okay, okay, I know what you're thinking, but let's talk about these things later, okay?"

Zheng Ri patted Helena Meta's head, feeling that the topic was getting further and further off track. He needed to get down to business.

"So, I can consider all activities related to the Sirens to be suspended, is that it? Very well, but that alone is not enough."

Once the serious business was discussed, Elizabeth Meta temporarily set aside her curiosity about him and instead turned to hostility toward the Sirens.

Chapter 465 Dividing and Eating

"Um, about this, do you want to talk to the Purifier first?"

Hearing the anger in Elizabeth META's words, Zheng Ri was at a loss for words. He only understood the basics of the problems that had occurred, but he didn't know the complete story. He only knew that Zero and the others' actions had indirectly or directly led to their situation.

However, knowing only a little bit is not enough to fully engage in the conversation. To truly have a dialogue, we must wait for the arrival of Dreamweaver Zero.

"Her? No, she doesn't have the authority. I need to deal with the higher-ups of the Sirens more directly. The experimental agency alone is not enough."

"At least at the level of an arbitration body."

Elizabeth Meta raised an eyebrow, quickly thinking of the siren responsible for running errands, and couldn't help but shake her head. She was very good at changing her tune, but this was not what she wanted.

"I see... Then let's wait for Zero to come over and talk about it?"

"Dreamweaver Zero... I didn't expect you to know about them too. Hmph~, fine, I'll be waiting. But before that, I want to tell you something in advance."

Elizabeth META approached Jeong-il, ignoring Helena META sitting on his lap, and looked him up and down with amusement. Jeong-il, on the other hand, felt uncomfortable being stared at by Elizabeth META's blood-red eyes.

"I am very interested in you. Before dealing with the Sirens, I will come and have a proper talk with you. You'd better remember that."

After speaking, without waiting for the other METAs to think, she temporarily left. Of the METAs present, only Elizabeth left; the others were those Zheng Ri was quite familiar with, and...