My ship girl setup is off...

Page 72

Seeing the panic in his eyes, Brest smiled. This was how it should be, in the water, to truly become one with his commander, doing the most primal things in this ocean, in this natural world.

"It will be over soon, so please relax. No one knows you're here, so just enjoy yourself, my hero..."

Then, underwater, Brest unfurled his materialized wings and enlarged them to envelop himself and his beloved hero. Soon, a different vibration frequency emanated from the water, rising from low to high until it rapidly sublimated.

Chapter 205 Cleveland

"Yay~, Commander, long time no see! How have you been? It's getting chilly lately, remember to wear more clothes."

After a series of subtle maneuvers, a car that looked very expensive braked suddenly to within five meters of Zheng Ri. From the automatically opening and rising car door, a very handsome, confident, and sunny young man named Cleveland stepped out.

However, as soon as they came out, they noticed that their commander wasn't wearing many clothes, so they reminded him.

"Oh! My dear Cleveland, I've been waiting for you for so long, I almost couldn't resist rushing over and holding you in my arms."

Seeing that it was Cleveland who had come, Zheng Ri breathed a sigh of relief and then spoke to her in a somewhat translator-like tone. Cleveland, however, pleased him and immediately gave him a big hug.

"What nonsense is the Commander spouting? Seriously, oh Amagi, Atago, Joan of Arc, and Brest, you're all here too?"

After hugging Masaharu tightly, Cleveland noticed that several ship girls were standing behind her. Looking at the familiar figures in front of her, Cleveland couldn't help but call out their names.

"Good day, Cleveland. I thought you were ignoring us."

Looking at the tomboyish White Eagle in front of her, Atago greeted her with a smile. They were already port veterans and had been through many battles together, so they naturally talked like old friends who rarely met.

"Hey, not at all! I'm just paying more attention to the Commander. If it were you, you'd probably do the same."

After letting go of formalities, Cleveland scratched the back of his head and said cheerfully, having already gotten to know his personality, he even joked around.

"Hehe~, yeah, this time we're entrusting the Commander to you guys. Sigh~, I really wish we had switched places."

Atago spoke with a hint of sadness, glancing at Masahiro, thinking that she hadn't spent much time with the Commander and it was a pity they were about to part ways.

"Don't say that. After all, the Commander belongs to everyone, not just anyone's personal property. Besides, Enterprise has already invited the Commander, and I even drove to pick him up. You agree, right, Commander?"

Cleveland understood Atago's meaning; she simply wanted to pull things along. But Cleveland wasn't going to argue with them. Instead, he patted Masaharu on the shoulder, reminding him to stop thinking about Sakura Empire and come to our free Eagle Union instead.

"Yes, that's correct."

Zheng Ri didn't catch their argument, but nodded while observing the car that Cleveland had driven. Wasn't that the McLaren that Aunt Saint drove?

“Miss Cleveland, then I entrust the master to you.”

Ignoring their mutual probing, Amagi politely addressed Cleveland, saying that although she didn't doubt what the Eagle Union ship girls might do, she still had to say something.

"Don't worry, of course, Miss Amagi. By the way, Miss Joan of Arc and Miss Brest, is there anything else you two need to say to the Commander?"

Compared to her natural conversations with Atago, Cleveland maintained a respectful attitude towards the two ship girls, Amagi and Iris Liberty, and was generally not very familiar with them.

"I have nothing more to say to the Commander; I'm merely accompanying him. However, please look for me when you arrive at Iris Liberty."

Joan of Arc shook her head, her gaze towards the sun filled with longing. She hadn't found a moment to speak privately with the commander in the past few days.

"I have none left either, but I wish you a safe journey, hero."

On the contrary, Brest looked at Jeong-il with a faint smile, as if reminding him that it was best not to reveal what had happened before, otherwise...

"Okay, then what about you, Commander?"

“No more…”

Zheng Ri glanced at Brest, shook his head, and thought to himself that he had been sexually assaulted underwater by the research vessel and didn't know what to say.

"Alright, that's settled then. Commander, please get in the car with me."

Seeing that no one had any objections, Cleveland took Zheng Ri to the car, but Cleveland reminded him just as Zheng Ri was about to open the passenger door.

"Ah, Commander, you'd better sit in the middle seat at the back; the front seats are already taken."

Seeing that he was about to open the car door, she reminded him. Zheng Ri was a little confused, wondering why he wouldn't get out if there were still people inside the car, but he still listened to her and walked to the back parking space. As soon as he opened the car door, he saw the ship girl with a trench coat and beige hair greeting him.

"Hello~, Commander, it's been a long time~"

"Huh? Denver? You guys are in there?"

As he watched her smile and wave at him, Zheng Ri looked inside and, wow, apart from Cleveland sitting in the driver's seat, all the other seats were occupied, leaving just one seat.

And the ship girls sitting inside are Columbia and Montpellier, they're all here, right?

"Hehe, let's talk inside, come on in."

Seeing that he seemed ready to say something, Denver grabbed his hand and pulled him into the seat, then closed the door. He gave Cleveland an OK sign, and Cleveland turned the key, pressed the clutch and accelerator. The McLaren immediately reversed, turned around, and then gradually accelerated away.

After watching the car leave, Amagi, Jeanne, and the others went their separate ways back to their respective places. Since the commander was no longer there, they were all going home.

"By the way, Commander, you still remember me? How about some candy as a reward?"

Looking at the finished product, Denver said approvingly, then took out a piece of bubble gum from his pocket—the same kind his sister Columbia ate.

"Sure, it tastes good. By the way, why didn't you all come out of the car earlier?"

I took the candy Denver handed to me, tore open the wrapper, and popped it into my mouth. It was indeed sweet, so sweet, just like life. As long as you work hard, life will definitely get sweeter and sweeter.

"Hey, the main problem is that getting off the vehicle would take up too much time, Commander. Besides, we're not really familiar with them; we just nod to each other when we bump into each other."

Denver didn't take it seriously, popped a candy into his own mouth, took the trash from Denver's hand and put it into the prepared trash bag, chewing on the sweetness that seeped into his heart, and explaining why.

"Alright, so you guys just came here for a drive around Cleveland?"

Zheng Ri thought about it and realized that they wouldn't just follow Cleveland around for no reason, so they must have just come for a drive.

Chapter 206 Open and aboveboard favoritism

"Hey, Commander, you're so oblivious! We all followed my sister here just to see you! We like you!"

Denver retorted to his nonsense, his face flushing pink. He hadn't expected to just blurt it out like that. Oh no.

“Denver is right, clear, and straightforward, Commander. You need to be more pragmatic, otherwise no one but us will like you. You don’t want anyone to see you like this, do you?”

Columbia, sitting in the passenger seat, was also chewing bubble gum and acknowledging and affirming Denver's words. Although he didn't turn his head to look at Zheng Ri, his gaze was already fixed on him through the rearview mirror in the upper left corner.

"Columbia, stop watching that stuff."

Although her sister's words were a bit blunt, causing Cleveland's face to flush, she frowned and lectured Columbia when she heard the string of words Columbia used, saying that it was okay to say it, but not to the commander.

"Ah, yes, yes, yes."

Columbia agreed with her sister, saying that they should just sit down and be done with it, but she still made sure to sit up straight, worried that her poor posture would make the commander think she was a bad girl.

Denver is right.

Montpellier

She turned her head to look at Zheng Ri, then turned back, nodded and said something. But then, as if she remembered something, she moved slightly closer to him and slowly reached out to take his arm.

Seeing that he did not make any move to resist, Montpellier curled the corners of his mouth and revealed a faint smile.

However, Zheng Ri did not make any move. He just felt something was wrong when he saw Montpellier taking the initiative. It was different from the sister-complex character he remembered.

"...Why are you making that face?"

Montpellier, who had been watching him closely, noticed the change in his expression, as if he had seen something incredible, and couldn't help but darken his face.

"No, I just feel... that you would do something like this on your own initiative, and I feel a little..."

Noticing Montpellier's displeasure, Zheng Ri explained somewhat awkwardly, "How should I put it? It's like the strange feeling of someone who never really liked you suddenly changing their attitude. It's absurd, and it feels a bit awkward."

"...I did this because I like you, not because of my sister."

Noticing his gaze shifting between her and his sister, Montpellier sensed the problem and earnestly explained to him that she didn't like him because of his sister; although there was a connection, it wasn't the main reason.

"I see... Thank you."

Hearing Montpellier's almost confessional words, Zheng Ri smiled and nodded with satisfaction. Montpellier, on the other hand, turned her face away from him, but she knew that when she saw him smiling at her again, she would find it hard to maintain her current attitude.

Then the car fell silent. Because of Denver's opening remarks and Montpellier's confession to the commander, an ambiguous atmosphere gradually filled the car. Even Cleveland, who was pretending to be nonchalant, was affected. His usual smile was replaced by a shy and conflicted expression.

"By the way, Cleveland, did you borrow the McLaren from Aunt Saint?"

Seeing that things were getting a little out of hand, Zheng Ri had no choice but to take the lead and talk about topics that everyone already knew the answer to, while Cleveland nodded and began to calmly explain to him.

"Well, it seems like St. Louis will be buying these two cars. I don't think they'll be of much use to me. I'd rather we ride our electric scooters around. If we have the chance, Commander, I'll take you for a spin on the highway."

"But Commander... why don't you call me 'Cathay' anymore?"

After expressing her thoughts, Cleveland had already figured out how to hang out with the commander, but when she heard him call her name and thought about what Helena had told her, she couldn't help but bring it up again.

"Huh? Big Sister! It's not okay for us to call you 'Daddy,' but it's okay for us to call you 'Commander,' right? You're showing favoritism towards the Commander! You're discriminating against us younger sisters!"

Upon hearing Cleveland's story, Denver immediately jumped in and couldn't help but refute her. However, it was clear that Cleveland wasn't buying it and directly confronted her.

"If you can call me 'Commander,' you can try too, but you'll have to bear the consequences."

"Um, no need, Big Sister. I think it's better to just call you Big Sister, after all, it's the Commander's nickname for you, hahaha."

Sensing his sister's anger, Denver immediately stopped jumping around. It was obvious that she was biased. What else could he do but admit that his sister was the boss?

Oh, no, the Commander is the sky, and the Sister is the sea; neither can be missing.

"Joy, let you dance!"

Seeing Denver get the short end of the stick, Columbia blew out his bubblegum and grinned. Denver always talks nonsense, and now he's messed up in front of the Commander and chickened out.

"Well... I remember you didn't like this in Cleveland, so I won't mention it. Besides, you weren't happy when Denver brought it up, right?"

Seeing the little farce unfolding before him, Zheng Ri continued talking. In truth, the main point was that if he swore an oath to Cleveland to call him "Daddy Cleveland" again, he would be acting like a rebellious son.

What about the inheritance of fluids from father to son, and the free discussion of intestinal fluids...?

"Commander, you call Helena 'Mom' in private, so in that case, Commander, you can call me 'Clyde' in private too. I... I really like hearing you call me that..."

Cleveland said stiffly, "Helena has a nickname, so it's only right that I have a nickname for the Commander." Especially thinking about such a nickname... Cleveland couldn't help but blush slightly.

It felt like a very subtle kind of stimulation.

There wasn't much more to say after that, as they gradually arrived at their destination. Especially when they saw Enterprise dressed in Christmas costumes and the Eagle Union ship girls waiting around, Masaharu knew it was time to leave.

"Commander, long time no see... Happy Winter Solstice!"

As soon as Zheng Ri stepped out of the McLaren, feeling the sudden temperature change between the inside and outside of the car and shivering slightly, Qi Gong immediately rushed over and hugged him tightly, as if afraid that Zheng Ri would run away.

"Hmm, long time no see, Qi..."

Before Zheng Ri could finish speaking, the company had already kissed him.

Chapter 207, "The Embrace of Enterprises," has been revised.

Soft lips pressed against mine, feeling the tenderness...

Ruan, Zheng Ri began to close her eyes.

At first, Zheng Ri was a little unaccustomed to the company's initiative and was somewhat surprised. But when he saw her purple eyes staring intently at him, filled with joy and delight at his arrival, he met her gaze and looked into her beautiful eyes, enjoying her initiative.

"Wow... I have a feeling that Enterprise is becoming more proactive lately? Yorktown, you should be more proactive too!"

Watching the two kissing in front of her, Bumblebee, now dressed in a banquet outfit and sporting pigtails, leaned close to her older sister Yorktown's ear and whispered that since Enterprise and the Commander met last time, she had become more proactive, so she urged her older sister to hurry up and make love.

"Hmm... it's a good thing that companies are becoming more proactive, but as for me... I'm not in a hurry..."

Yorktown, who had initially looked at the company with envy, began to hesitate after hearing what Bumblebee said. Bumblebee was right; he had never taken that step. Opportunities would come eventually, but he was unwilling to move forward and remained stagnant.

Like Yorktown, the Eagle Union ship girls around the area, who were also waiting for the official day, all seemed to have reached a tacit understanding and remained silent. Most of them looked at Enterprise with envious eyes, and some ship girls had already begun to imagine themselves as Enterprise.

It wasn't until two or three minutes later that Enterprise ended her kiss with the Commander. Seeing him slightly out of breath, Enterprise smiled with satisfaction and hugged him even tighter, unwilling to let go.

"Commander, I'm so happy that you're here with me now."

The company leaned close to his ear and spoke to him, their faces touching as they talked, feeling the warmth emanating from his body. At that moment, the company was even less willing to let go.

However, just because companies are unwilling to let go doesn't mean that anyone else will continue to watch.

"Alright, Enterprise, it's getting cold now, we can't just leave the Commander here. Let's take him inside."

Holding a large paper umbrella, dressed in a kimono and mink coat, with white stockings covering her legs, Saint Louis reminded her that although the commander was good, everyone else would have objections if he kept monopolizing her.

"Sodayo! Enterprise! Release the Commander! The Commander should be with Saratoga!"

A pink figure emerged from the crowd and came between Enterprise and Jeongil, linking arms with Jeongil while speaking to Enterprise.

"Yeah, St. Louis, and old buddy, you're right."

Hearing their words, Enterprise finally relaxed her grip on the sun. Seeing the possessive expression on Saratoga's face, she couldn't help but laugh. However, Saratoga didn't agree with her at all, instead pointing her cane at Enterprise with dissatisfaction:

"Don't call me old buddy, I'm not old at all. If you say that again, I'm warning you, my wand isn't just for show!"

Looking at Saratoga, who still maintained her magical girl persona, Enterprise and Masahiro exchanged a glance and laughed simultaneously.

"Alright, buddy, I'll listen to you, Commander. Please follow me inside."