Just as Hornet was about to say something, three figures emerged from the gates of the construction warehouse.
Tetsuya's heart tightened. How do you judge if a shipgirl is powerful? The simplest way was by height—those tall, mature "big sisters" were almost always capital ships.
Of the two female figures, one looked just over 170 cm, and the other, following slightly behind, was easily 180 cm. That's ridiculously tall!
The students began to buzz with excitement. Tetsuya tried to calm himself. Don't panic… the shorter one might just be a heavy cruiser. As for the tall one, even if she's a battlecruiser or battleship, it doesn't necessarily mean she's high rarity!
The next moment, Hikaru stepped out with Lexington at his side. The amber glow of the streetlights slanted down, illuminating his wife like a fairy walking out of a storybook.
Silence fell like a curtain. Everyone was stunned by Lexington's breathtaking beauty—their very souls felt like they'd been struck.
Only after a heartbeat came the scattered murmurs of admiration, first from the shipgirls who recovered quickest, followed by an eruption of gasps from the crowd of Commanders as they surged forward.
Tetsuya glanced at the two stunning beauties beside Hikaru, then looked at his own flat-chested shipgirl. A wave of despair washed over him.
He had lost—completely.
The flood of people startled Hikaru.
Among the crowd, he vaguely caught a glimpse of Masaki wiping his eyes, and saw Yuji walking away with the defeated air of a man who'd lost everything.
As the crowd risked spiraling into chaos, Elizabeth furrowed her brow, summoned her shield, and slammed it to the ground with a thunderous boom.
"QUIET!"
The instructors quickly stepped in to restore order. Though the crowd stopped pushing, whispers and resentful glances filled the air.
The glasses girl Hikaru had seen earlier, now red-eyed, shouted, "What shipgirl is that?!"
The others immediately echoed the question.
Since the information had to be registered anyway, Hikaru led Lexington to Langley.
"This is Lexington, five stars," Hikaru pointed to California who trailed behind like a bonus prize, "And California, three stars."
The crowd rippled with excitement.
"A five-star Lexington?" Langley asked skeptically. From what she knew, Lexington was only rated four stars.
"He's not lying," Yat Sen, who had somehow arrived unnoticed, spoke up. "I'll take over his file. Hikaru, come to my office."
Langley nodded and handed over the paperwork.
No one dared make a fuss in front of the Dean.
A path opened through the crowd as everyone watched Hikaru leave with his fleet.
Low whispers filled the air.
"Did you hear? Lexington."
"They're saying it's five-star. Is there even a five-star Lexington?"
"I mean, sure… but why the hell is she wearing a wedding dress right from the start? Did he strip her and put it on himself? Isn't that asking for a broken arm?"
"She's so gorgeous… with makeup and everything. My heart skipped a beat—Fubuki, stop kicking me!"
"Get me this guy's full dossier before 10 p.m. tonight, or I'll drop to my knees and beg like a wailing child!"
Lexington paid them no mind. To her, these strangers combined didn't matter as much as a single strand of Hikaru's hair.
Suddenly, someone in the crowd shouted, "Hey! Why is she wearing a wedding ring?!"
Hikaru looked toward the voice. He actually recognized the girl—it was the military-sponsored student who had summoned that toilet-fish during Saint Build Day. Who knew she had chosen to attend Windridge Academy?
Lexington smiled serenely, raising her hand, still entwined with Hikaru's.
"Because I'm already married to him."
Crack.
It felt like Hikaru could hear the sound of thousands of hearts shattering.
Then Lexington's eyes lit up as she spotted someone.
"Glowworm, Fletcher, come here."
Glowworm ran over and hugged Lexington's leg, looking up to complain, "Lexington-sis, Fletcher has been fooling around with the Commander behind your back!"
Glowworm was the first ship to join the base, followed by Lexington. They had fought side by side many times in the early days and were very close.
Lexington gave Hikaru a sly, knowing look that made him break into a cold sweat.
Hikaru pretended not to hear and activated his ability to check Glowworm's emotional state. Her aura glowed a somewhat dim orange.
[Glowworm: Currently "Happy"]
She seemed genuinely content. Once Javelin arrived to reunite with her, Glowworm's happiness would surely stabilize.
Hikaru then turned his gaze to Fletcher, who was wearing a maid outfit and wringing her hands nervously. Her emotional color was a purplish hue tinged with grey.
[Fletcher: "At Peace," but tinged with "Dejection" due to Lexington's arrival]
Notably, both Glowworm and Fletcher had big, pulsating heart icons floating above their heads—especially Fletcher's, which throbbed so hard it felt like a literal marriage proposal.
Shaking off these delusions, Hikaru exited the emotional reading mode.
Just my imagination…
Little maid Fletcher trailed dejectedly behind Hikaru, forming a pitiful contrast with the brooding California.
The unrest in the crowd could no longer be contained, even with instructors present.
"Fletcher? That Fletcher?"
"No way… there hasn't been a single Fletcher sighted across all East Continent bases."
"Hahaha, this is all a dream. I'll wake up tomorrow to sunshine and rainbows."
"Dean Yat Sen, this is all a joke, right? Like some April Fool's prank?"
Ignoring the murmuring, Yat Sen quickened her pace, leading them away from the restless mob.
Hikaru sighed dramatically. "I really wanted to enjoy the food festival and bond with my classmates…"
Inside the office, Yat Sen wore a grave expression.
"This is more complicated than I thought. Your Glowworm is already over level 90 and appears to have grown. Now you've added a fully-grown max-level Fletcher and a fully-grown five-star Lexington… What about your own level?"
Hikaru quickly answered, "Max level."
Lexington only blinked, offering no further comment.
Yat Sen then glanced at California, who stood stiff as a statue.
"California, have you grown as well?"
California pouted. "I haven't… I'm still level one."
Yat Sen sighed. "Still, even without counting California, your three awakened shipgirls are all exceptionally rare and powerful. This isn't something we can just overlook."
Hikaru and Lexington exchanged glances. "What should we do?"
Yat Sen tapped her desk. "I've already reported this to the Shipgirl Headquarters. All we can do is wait."
Lexington, however, didn't seem nervous at all. She busied herself playing with Hikaru's hands, blowing softly into his ear, and hugging his waist like a mischievous child.
Fletcher and California, watching from the side: Our hearts ache, but we won't say a word.
Before they could get a response from Headquarters, Elizabeth barged in, peeking around like a suspicious raccoon.
Yat Sen called her over. "As a faculty member, gambling and manipulating the odds is a serious offense. All your illicit gains will be confiscated, and your gambling capital will be donated to the academy's public fund. You're also to write a 3,000-word reflection and read it aloud at next month's faculty meeting."
Elizabeth collapsed onto the floor. "Noooo, Dean, you're ruining me!"
Yat Sen waved dismissively. "Serves you right!"
Elizabeth rolled around in protest but finally gave up, sprawling on the floor like a dead fish.
A long leg nudged her aside.
Lexington stood, shielding Hikaru behind her, and spoke coldly and clearly.
"Ya-ma-to!"
Yamato had arrived.
Yamato sat on Yat Sen's desk, crossing her long legs as she lit a cigarette, exhaling a perfect smoke ring.
"Bottom line, if the higher-ups ask questions, we need a plausible excuse—even if it sounds ridiculous."
After a moment's thought, Hikaru proposed the perfect lie.
"I once had a powerful base. We were separated, and now I'm not constructing shipgirls—I'm summoning the ones I lost."
Elizabeth couldn't help but chime in, "How old are you? How could your shipgirls be that highly trained?"
Yamato slammed her hand on the desk and stood. "I love this excuse. We'll go with that. If anyone doesn't like it, they can file a complaint with Headquarters."
Yat Sen frowned. "Are we really going with this?"
Yamato waved it off. "If anyone questions it, just say they fought deep in the heart of Abyssal territory. If they still object, send them on a strike mission to the Abyssal stronghold."
Considering how much of the world had fallen to the Abyssals, this was a rock-solid way to silence any dissent.
Seizing the moment, Hikaru added, "How about letting me graduate now and go set up my own base to fight the Abyssals?"
Graduating on the first day—what a rush.
Yamato looked at him like he was an idiot. "Your shipgirls might be strong, but are you even qualified as a Commander? If you want your own base, fine—I'll give you the chance. You can apply for graduation at the end of the year. Pass the exam and the internship, and you'll get your base."
Despite her blunt words, Hikaru admitted she had a point. He nodded. "Deal."
Satisfied, Yamato started to leave but paused, glancing at Lexington.
"You're strong. Interested in sparring with me?"
Lexington snuggled into Hikaru's chest, feigning innocence. "I only know how to care for my husband. I don't know how to fight."
Yamato scoffed and left.
Once she was gone, Hikaru cleared his throat. "Dean, I heard there's a reward for new shipgirl construction?"