64: Chapter 64 Academy

"Good afternoon, Commander." Olena looked at her Commander, who was slumped in his chair looking like he was about to burn out into a pile of ash, and simply couldn't bear to watch.

Finals were approaching, and it just so happened that her Commander had fallen behind on too much of what he actually needed to learn, resulting in this state.

But could you say it was his fault? It didn't really seem like it...

The core course exams didn't affect graduation procedures; it was just that getting a high score could earn a specially-made Twin 203mm/L45 Main Gun rigging as a prize, and her Commander really wanted it.

I already said we don't need it...

Olena wasn't gloating; instead, she pushed the hot milk tea in her hand toward Finn...

Wait, had she already taken a sip from this cup?

Watching Finn take big gulps of the milk tea, Olena's cheeks flushed, but she still didn't say anything.

A Ship Girl naturally wanted to become stronger, but it definitely shouldn't come at the cost of the Commander's immense sacrifice. Fortunately, being in the Academy, exam grades were considered the smallest possible price.

Seeing Finn's HP bar gradually recover, Olena lightly tapped his forehead.

"Ouch..." Finn rubbed his forehead. "By the way, Olena..."

"Yes?"

"Did someone come looking for you today?" Finn remembered seeing a few Ship Girls taking Olena away during class.

"Yes, that's right," Olena nodded. "It was about Commander Lin and his group."

"Eh? Didn't I already talk about that before?" Finn scratched his head, not quite understanding.

"Because the information you provided was completely incomplete!" Olena said helplessly. "You didn't say a single thing about Commander Lin's specific details or his fleet composition."

"...Oh, right." Finn was still a bit dazed.

Olena didn't know what to say. She sighed; her Commander had always been like this, and she'd gotten used to it over the past year or so.

This time, the person in charge of the Ship Girl General Bureau had brought in the bureau's artist, requesting her to describe Lin Yuming's appearance so the artist could reconstruct it.

It had to be said that the artist's reconstruction was very precise, reaching nearly 90% similarity to the Lin Yuming in her memories.

The other matter was the scale of the enemy fleet. Considering that the information captured by the crew on the cruise ship was incomplete, she had provided them with detailed information this time.

Lin Yuming's suspected vanguard fleet consisted of four Light Cruisers and 48 Destroyers, which was much larger than a typical outpost detachment.

The Ship Girl Z23 by his side was a Destroyer; it was currently impossible to confirm if more Ship Girls existed.

The dark blue diagonal stripes on the sides of his warships were likely a unique camouflage pattern; aside from being distinctive, their purpose was currently unclear.

As for those unidentified aircraft, named P-51D-NA-20 and codenamed mustang, there was no further information. It could only be judged that they likely took off from nearby airfields or large warships capable of aircraft operations, but Olena completely failed to understand their internal structure due to the distance.

Fortunately, the Ship Girl General Bureau understood her. Although they were somewhat disappointed, they didn't press her further.

Regarding the issue of no humans working on the Destroyers, Olena was also somewhat puzzled and could only attribute it to the existence of something like Construction Fairies that could replace humans in operating the warships.

At the same time, based on their performance in the storm, these entities were definitely well-trained, though perhaps a bit inflexible.

As for the rest, it was no longer Olena's concern; she had already said everything she could.

Snapping back to the present, Olena watched her Commander enjoy his lunch. He had to continue studying in the afternoon, which was hard on him.

The noon break passed quickly. Before long, Finn had to take his leave, leaving Olena alone.

She stood up, tidied up the scraps Finn had left behind, and then put on her coat.

The Apprentice Knight Order... or rather, the Ship Girl Combat Detachment Reserve, still had training sessions. she had delayed it all morning and had to make up for it today.

The Reserve was a period all Academy Ship Girls had to go through—or perhaps it could be called a 'newbie protection period'?

Although Olena was no longer a newbie, compared to other outstanding Ship Girls, her progress could only be described as mediocre.

I must work harder to progress alongside the Commander.

In a corner seat, two newspapers were lowered.

Two Ship Girls watched the departing Olena and then glanced at each other.

"See, I told you, there's nothing strange about them," one Ship Girl said, spreading her hands. "You know how mindless Finn Hawke usually is."

"Maybe I'm overthinking it..." the other Ship Girl sighed. "Forget it, we're just responsible for monitoring anyway. Let's just finish the mission."

——————

Evening.

"Olena, it's time to stop." A Ship Girl nearby patted Olena's rigging. "The target is about to be smashed to pieces by you."

"Oh..." Olena looked up at the sky. "It's already this late. It's time to go pick him up."

"Finn is an adult, why do you still need to pick him up?" the Ship Girl nearby teased.

Olena smiled and said nothing.

The Maritime Academy's training grounds and docks were located near the main shipping lane. One reason was limited conditions, and the other was to provide protection and necessary deterrence for passing ships.

Merchant ships and cruise ships were constant on the shipping lane, but the ship that appeared this evening was a rare medium-sized Sailing Ship.

That's truly rare, Olena thought to herself.

Ship Girls of her generation rarely saw wooden Sailing Ships going out to sea anymore; most were docked at the shore as exhibits or served as the Federation's historical fleet for review in the capital.

Wait, are those Ship Girls on the ship? I've heard for a long time that there are several adventure teams composed of Sailing Ship Girls who are explorers of the world's borders and most dangerous zones. It seems I've met them today.

The ship looked fully loaded, appearing to have had another bountiful harvest.

Olena and the Ship Girl beside her stood straight and fired a round of salutes.

This was a mark of respect for those with great merit.

Unexpectedly, the Sailing Ship also fired a round of salutes in response, a full seven shots.

How friendly.

Alright, time to go back, Olena thought.

"Is that the Olena Nimi mentioned? She's quite polite," Royal Fortune remarked, putting down her binoculars.

Is it really polite to peep at people like that? Golden Deer complained internally, but she didn't say anything.

Finn Hawke and his Ship Girl weren't their primary focus. Let the Commander worry about their business.

After all, the Commander had given them other, more important things to do.

Golden Deer looked down at the waterline. The heavy cargo in the hold was all the foundation for paving the Commander's path.

...

...