139: Chapter 139 Tracking

"Tanks..."

She crouched down to examine the tracks.

"Two tanks..."

At the collapsed cave entrance, she noticed a deeper set of tracks, but they only extended for a short distance.

"Is this... a smoke grenade?"

She found some fragments on the uneven ground and, next to the deeper tread marks, discovered two spent smoke grenade canisters.

Then the tread marks reverted to those of the lighter vehicle.

This ability...

"Helena? Helena? Can you hear me?"

She switched on her communicator.

"What is it?" Helena's voice came through promptly.

"The Commander has arrived in the area where his consciousness previously manifested. Judging by the signs of engagement on the scene, the Commander's initial contact involved the use of smoke grenades," she said, holding up a smoke grenade casing. "Aside from that, there are no traces of other debris or bodies, except for one cave that was blown shut."

"Understood. Any other signs?"

"Yes. Two completely different sets of tread marks, yet they connect seamlessly."

"Seamlessly?..." Helena pondered for a moment. "Memphis, I need you to continue tracking the Commander. Protect him until his main body awakens."

"Understood."

Her pink hair was tousled by the wasteland's dusty wind. She looked towards the distant vehicle tracks.

He went that way.

She followed. Along the way, she wasn't trailed by creatures like Helena had been earlier. In fact, although the area had become a wasteland, the silence was unnervingly profound.

"This is..."

Memphis Meta's gaze fell upon a glinting object.

It was a shell casing... no, a pile of shell casings. .50 caliber machine gun rounds.

There had been an exchange of fire, but from the looks of it, her Commander hadn't shown any signs of fatigue.

After all, the vehicle tracks continued onward.

Splish-splash...

"Is it raining?..."

Memphis paused briefly, watching the raindrops fall from the sky.

This world still has precipitation, after all...

Although it wasn't heavy, the rain would also obscure the trail left by her Commander. She needed to pick up the pace.

——————

"A bountiful harvest."

Li Ming was hiding in a cave, watching as the raindrops outside gradually ceased.

The nanomist inside the cave was dissipating. According to Zheng-chan, the bones and carapace of these creatures could be considered a 'rich ore,' very valuable.

He couldn't help but think of the giant serpent he'd taken down with the Tiger II last time. How much would that thing be worth?

This period of unconsciousness seemed a bit longer than usual. A whole day had passed, and he was still here. It was probably due to the drunkenness.

Although operating in tank form wasn't particularly concerning in the rain, the hellcat was an open-topped vehicle. The feeling of rainwater getting inside was as unpleasant as tilting your head back and drinking it with your mouth wide open.

"Alright, let's move on." Li Ming's manifested body retracted back into the tank, and his consciousness returned to the gun sight. "Zheng-chan, are you done?"

"All set, Commander," Logic replied. "As per your request, I've left behind 10% of the machine gun shell casings as evidence of your presence here."

"Good, then let's continue!"

Rarely feeling so motivated again, the radial engine roared once more. The hellcat charged out of the cave, crushing over land that even raindrops couldn't moisten, and continued its advance.

Half an hour later.

Looking at the shell casings in the cave, Memphis observed the still-fresh vehicle tracks.

Catching up.

——————

"It's gotten dark."

The hellcat switched on its headlights.

The muzzle, already blackened by gunpowder smoke, was further shrouded by the night. Li Ming's manifested form appeared atop the hellcat's Commander's cupola.

"Nice weather tonight, huh... There are even stars... lots of stars..."

He looked up at the sky. Whether it was his imagination or not, the night here, even with stars, seemed far brighter than any starry night he remembered.

He could vaguely see wisps of grayish-green mist shimmering under the starry sky. It wasn't an illusion; it was a real nebula.

"Zheng-chan, speaking of..."

"What is it, Commander?"

"Have you ever breached the light cone?" Li Ming asked out of the blue.

"Why do you ask?" Logic was taken aback.

"No reason, just curious."

"Although it's still far beyond your current reach... yes," Logic answered in his mind. "During my continuous process of self-iteration, the development of superluminal components was completed long ago."

"That's great..."

"What are you planning?" Logic grew wary. "Li Ming, I'm warning you, don't even think about me granting you access to the superluminal engine to go gallivanting around. If something goes wrong, I might not be able to save you."

"Ahaha, no, no..." Li Ming laughed awkwardly. "Just thinking..."

"What I mean is, you'll inevitably come into contact with it, but not now, at least," Logic's tone softened a bit, as if offering comfort. "And your current goal isn't to explore space, is it?"

"Right. Before that, I need to find them..." Li Ming leaned against the turret. "Hundreds of girls, and so far only... a dozen or so..."

"Don't rush, Commander. Have faith in your Ship Girls, and most importantly, have faith in yourself."

"...Sigh, Logic." Li Ming sighed. "I..."

"Commander, there are some things perhaps I shouldn't be the one to say, but given my current permissions, I feel I can share a few thoughts with you," Logic interrupted him. "From a solitary island to Horizons Edge, aside from emotional matters, you haven't performed poorly. While some actions have been impulsive, overall, some of the operations you define as failures are logically understandable, even partially correct."

Logic paused. "You know, usually my defense protocols would prohibit Ms. Verres's expert team from conducting research and inspections on our faction, or even on you personally. But this time, my alarm system didn't trigger. Do you know why?"

"Uh..." Li Ming hesitated.

"Because the algorithm determined you needed this opportunity. At the same time, I must admit this venture was necessary for you, for what you wish to accomplish, and even for the deployment of the information network. When you were saving the cruise ship, if you had chosen to abandon it or decisively sink it, then if discovered later, inspections on you would have been completely banned—I believe Fujian would think the same."

"However, your contact with Finn Hawke provided a positive start for subsequent developments, making me feel this gamble was worth placing my bet."

"Bringing the topic back, you feel your abilities are unworthy of them. But what about now? You are a leader unknown to most. You command a fleet substantial enough to influence the region. You can establish a comprehensive and rapidly developing industrial system through application terminals, supporting the entire supply chain from R&D to production."

"You may not excel in strategy and tactics, but you've achieved the prerequisites for both—information and logistics. You don't lack Ship Girls who are exceptionally skilled in strategy and tactics, but you've provided them with the most powerful platform."

"If you think my words are off-base, you can verify with them later. But for now... you have your little girlfriend chasing after you~"

Instantly, the hellcat's right track locked in place under the night sky, executing a sharp 180-degree turn before coming to a stop.

"Zheng-chan, give me the flare gun! One white flare!"

"Roger that~"

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