188: Chapter 188 A New Day

"Glorious? Has the Commander already left?"

"Ah, Helena, you're here."

"Mhm..."

Glorious hung a set of men's uniforms on the rack next to the Central Control Center's console. "Half an hour ago. Helena, you should have come earlier."

"There's no need to rush to meet him," Helena chuckled. "He and I share a telepathic connection. Do you believe it?"

Glorious glanced at her and shook her head.

"Yes, I'm joking," Helena shrugged. "Thank you, Glorious. You've taken good care of him."

"It's what I should do. After all, he is my Commander too."

"It's more than that, Glorious, my dear Red Rose." Helena stretched. "Do you dare say you don't have any feelings for him at all?"

"..." Glorious lowered her head and continued her work.

Helena leaned against the console. "Béarn and Dark Realm have made an Oath with the Commander?"

"Yes."

"He certainly dotes on them." Helena shook her head. "But he shouldn't have chosen to hide it. Although Dark Realm and Béarn are small, their experiences are countless times more than those of the ordinary Dark Realm and Béarn."

"That's why Béarn called him out on it," Glorious replied, brewing some tea for herself. "Would you like some?"

"I'd love a cup," Helena replied. "It's rare for me to be back; I need to rest for a while too."

Seeing her dazed expression, Helena's smile grew more meaningful. "What, are you thinking about their Oath with him?"

"I didn't expect him to... make an Oath with them so easily."

"It was just time," Helena shook her head. "The Commander is actually quite conservative; he won't easily promise a lifetime. But perhaps... you are worth it too?"

Without waiting for an answer, Helena stood up and looked out the window. "This oasis—how does the Commander view it?"

"Regardless of how the Commander views it, we must build this place into a new home," Glorious answered. "Since the Commander left, perhaps his perception of time has been less than a year, but you know what you've done and where you've been after stepping into the higher dimensions. If it weren't for you helping Elizabeth, her stubborn nature would have likely triggered Logic's defensive counterattack mechanism long ago..."

"Knowing too much won't do you any good." Helena gave her a wink.

"If Kasumi weren't here recovering from her injuries, I wouldn't have thought so much." Glorious closed her eyes, precisely poured the tea into the cup, and handed it to Helena. "Helena, although my level is far below yours, I hope you can tell me: what are you planning?"

"Of course, it's to keep the Commander by our side forever~"

——————

"Morning, A6."

"Zzz..."

"Ah, looks like you stayed up late again yesterday."

Li Ming sat up. He had spent the last bit of his time resting his head on Glorious's lap.

On the bright side, his spirit today was much better than the previous two times he returned.

He quickly opened the door to wash up. Today was Wednesday, and he still had to go to class like a good student.

After a quick breakfast, he dragged Alert and Anshan up, and Li Ming headed out first.

"The Commander's spirit is much better today compared to the last two times," Z23 murmured, watching his departing figure.

"Maybe he found some secret technique for power-napping?" Anshan shuffled over to Z23 in her slippers.

Behind them, Alert rushed into the bathroom to wash up.

"...Morning, Teacher."

"Mhm... morning." Ms. Stuart glared at him but didn't do anything.

Li Ming gave a sheepish smile and sat down in his seat.

Cliff was slumped on his desk catching up on sleep; it was clear that Linde was quite strict with him.

It continued like this until noon. Only when Ms. Stuart announced the end of class did Li Ming stand up.

"Li Ming, stay behind for a moment," Stuart suddenly said.

"Ah, okay."

Keeping Li Ming alone, Ms. Stuart stood on her tiptoes and circled him carefully. "Mhm, good. You don't seem to be injured."

"Uh, what do you mean?"

"That fellow Lauren didn't even tell me since I didn't ask," Ms. Stuart said with her hands on her hips, looking quite cute despite being only 1.4 meters tall.

"I already know about the Longchuan Workshop matter. Lately, Hualefu has been investigating the mysterious disappearances of employees, and it's even linked to the bizarre death of a Hualefu factory owner in the industrial district. Be careful not to get kidnapped."

"Alright, Teacher. I'll try not to leave the academy for a while."

"That's good," Ms. Stuart nodded. "As long as you haven't actually done anything wrong, I will protect you."

Li Ming found it a bit funny and instinctively reached out his hand.

Then, his hand was nearly snapped off by Stuart on the spot.

"Li Ming, in the context of your xia people, this is called 'refusing a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit'."

"Gwa! Teacher! I was wrong—!"

"Go, go, go! Get as far away as possible!"

"Yes, ma'am!"

Watching Li Ming scurry away, Ms. Stuart didn't know whether to be angry or laugh.

——————

Laffey was unusually diligent for once.

Although there were still two days before departure, she had already prepared her luggage in advance.

According to the plan, at the end of the fourth week, she would take over Z23's shift and live with Li Ming for five weeks as his companion Ship Girl.

Fujian naturally saw all of this.

Although she was incredibly busy, there was no doubt she would go along this time. However, she wouldn't directly reveal herself to her Commander. Instead, she would part ways with Laffey on the high seas and head to Edenia with the flagship fleet to participate in diplomatic affairs.

Letter after letter written to the Commander were sealed and stored under her desk.

She was a mature Ship Girl now, not a willful child. She didn't want to make things difficult for him; the emotional outburst from last time must not happen again.

She had only reaffirmed her relationship with the Commander and hadn't truly made an Oath with him yet.

If possible, she wanted it to be during a sunset, when they reunited...

"What? Is our dear Flagship Lady feeling lovesick again?"

"Golden Deer... ah, sorry, I spaced out. Please continue."

"I wasn't saying anything at all," Golden Deer said, looking at her with a smile.

"Eh?"

Seeing Fujian's bewildered expression, Golden Deer couldn't help but laugh. "...Alright, no more jokes. I'll continue. Once Z23 returns, I'll take over her shift and return to Oronia to take charge of the chamber of commerce again. I've already prepared a plan for the matters here; just follow the general idea and adapt as needed."

"Of course. I'll handle things on Edenia's side. Although we haven't fully reached our expected combat power, it's time to flex our muscles." Fujian straightened her arm and looked at the map across the desk.

...

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