When they finished selecting their courses, Hikaru and his group ran into the Battle of the Hundred Clubs recruiters.
These student clubs came in all sorts of varieties, but Hikaru had neither the interest nor the time to join. Politely refusing the enthusiastic invitations from the senior students (read: old sea veterans), he was unexpectedly approached by someone else.
"I'm Sakakibara Tetsuya," the boy introduced himself, briefly glancing at Lexington before quickly looking away. "Your shipgirls are impressive, but my Hornet is pretty strong too."
Hikaru chuckled. "Yeah, sure. The future is bright for you. Is that all you wanted to say?"
"Of course not. The Seal Flex-Off champion's prize should've gone to you, but the reward's been assigned to me. When do you want to come and collect it?"
"Forget it, you keep it. Just make sure you contribute to the nation in the future."
Patting Sakakibara on the shoulder, Hikaru left with his wife.
What a weird guy.
Then again, Hikaru figured it was just the typical pride of the young and ambitious. With all the chaos he'd been through, their little rivalries didn't really register with him anymore.
Whatever. Right now, the priority was collecting his resources.
The reward from the Academy totaled 11++, worth about 11 million on the open market, or 5.5 million at the Academy's internal pricing. It was a pretty hefty sum, filling an entire truck's worth of cargo space.
Signing off on the paperwork transferred the resources to his name, but when the warehouse manager heard Hikaru intended to take all the materials out at once, she couldn't help but comment, "You're not planning another large-scale construction, are you? The biggest rookie mistake is burning through resources too fast. You already have two capital ships—just focus on raising them properly."
Hikaru insisted, so the manager reluctantly led him inside and had her staff bring out eleven large crates.
She left them to it, clearly not wanting to watch.
Hikaru needed roughly 9++ worth of resources to complete the next stage of his Manifest the Naval Base mission. But obviously, absorbing all that in the Academy's warehouse wasn't an option. He needed to move them back home.
But first, he had to resupply his wife. She had mentioned she hadn't been refueled since their last sortie.
Just like shipgirl construction, resupplying transformed the materials into swirling light.
Hikaru watched as fuel and ammo decreased by about 60 units each, with steel barely touched. But aluminum? That plummeted fast.
100, 300, 600, 1000…
It wasn't until over 1,000 units of aluminum had been consumed that Lexington finally stopped, offering a shy smile. "I might have eaten a bit much. You're not mad, are you?"
Running the numbers in his head, Hikaru realized that a single B-25 required 15 aluminum per sortie. Given Lexington's plane capacity was likely in the high eighties or nineties, she had probably gone through her entire squadron in a single battle. No wonder when she showed off to Elizabeth yesterday, the planes had only appeared as holograms—she probably hadn't been able to manifest a single real aircraft.
Aircraft don't get lost just from bombing runs. Only anti-aircraft fire or enemy fighters could take them down. Hikaru couldn't even imagine what kind of enemy could force Lexington to lose her entire air group. One abyssal Yamato certainly wouldn't have been enough.
"That battle… was it really that dangerous?"
Unable to hold back the question, Hikaru asked.
Lexington nodded gently. "At the time, I thought about just sinking and ending it all… But I couldn't. I'm your wife, the secretary ship of the base. I couldn't just give up. I knew if you came back and found me gone, you'd be heartbroken."
"I'm sorry."
"It wasn't your fault. There's nothing to apologize for."
California rolled her eyes. "Okay, but shouldn't we start moving these crates to the front gate?"
The transport trucks were already waiting, but they couldn't enter the Academy grounds. They had to move everything outside first.
It would've been a real pain for normal humans, but not for shipgirls. With their ship gear activated, California and Lexington each carried two crates like shopping bags. Even Glowworm balanced one on her head as she trotted along behind them.
Hikaru, now possessing similar strength, chose not to show off.
Still, those six-star aircraft on Lexington… Strong as they were, the operational cost was terrifying.
One B-25 required 15 aluminum, whereas most bombers used 4 or 5. Even the four-star BTD-1 only consumed 5. Aluminum was already worth three times as much as fuel, ammo, or steel. Half the cost of every 1++ crate was aluminum alone.
He couldn't afford to send her into combat with subpar equipment. Unlike a game, real life didn't guarantee that low-level sorties wouldn't suddenly spawn high-tier enemies. One surprise attack from an abyssal Flagship could be fatal.
Relying solely on Fletcher's salary, which could buy about 0.2++ per month, clearly wouldn't cover the cost of high-frequency operations. Hikaru glanced at his monthly missions, wondering how he could start making some serious money.
After moving all the crates to their courtyard, the afternoon had already rolled around.
Standing in front of the stacks, Hikaru placed his hand on each one.
The crates dissolved into shimmering mist and were absorbed into his body.
Lexington and the others stood by, knowing this was part of summoning more of their comrades. They braced themselves for the possibility of some strange mission—maybe something like defeating 100 enemy ships.
But they were used to that kind of thing. Weekly tasks like that had been their routine. Whatever came next, it couldn't possibly be as weird as stripping an abyssal Supply Ship's panties for a reward.
Now that was some questionable game design… and yet they had still loved their reckless Commander.
Hikaru's hand paused.
[Main Quest: Manifest the Naval Base - Stage 1 Complete. Commander's Office Unlocked. You can now manifest your Commander's Office in the real world.]
[Main Quest: Manifest the Naval Base - Stage 2 Begins. Progress: 0/10000 Fuel, 0/10000 Ammo, 0/10000 Steel, 0/10000 Aluminum. Complete Stage 2 to unlock the next module.]
Stage 1 was done, and Hikaru could see what lay ahead: the restaurant, academy, bathhouse, dormitories, various other buildings, and the shop.
Six stages remaining, potentially requiring another 60++ or more—tens of millions worth.
According to the description, once fully unlocked, he could transfer his original Commander's Office into this world, effectively recreating his entire in-game base.
Not a bad deal, but Hikaru noticed the game's functions—resources, sorties, campaigns—were all gone. Only diamonds remained. He still had a stash of construction blueprints, repair tools, development plans, and thousands of pieces of equipment, all sitting in storage. That storage, presumably, would be unlocked with the "Other Buildings" module.
Could he somehow borrow enough to unlock everything at once?
Tempting, but risky.
First, he had no guarantee the later stages would still cost 10++ each. With all the premium items in storage, it felt suspiciously like a cash grab waiting to happen.
Second, even if he unlocked everything, he couldn't protect it. Without a proper base, he'd be an easy target for anyone looking to seize his assets or force him into political alliances.
No, the key was his shipgirls. As they arrived, his strength would grow. Once he had enough of them, he could negotiate as an equal, not a pawn.
One Lexington was already a powerhouse, but she was a long-range artillery unit. He needed frontline heavy hitters—battleships like Secretary Lee, Vittorio Veneto, or Richelieu. Once they joined him, Lexington could show off her B-25s without fear.
Having thought it through, Hikaru decided to take it slow—aim to graduate in a year and secure his official base allocation.
Sensing his shift in mood, Lexington leaned in. "Commander, when can we bring over the next one?"
"Probably early next month," Hikaru replied. "But actually… we can already reach out to them, at least a little."
Before Lexington could respond, Fletcher jumped in, "I want to talk to my sisters!"
Glowworm immediately clung to Hikaru's leg, looking up with teary eyes. "Commander! Javelin! I've been away from Javelin for so long!"
Lexington also looked concerned. "Do we need any special preparations? Honestly, I'm a little worried about how the base is holding up without me… And I'm worried about Saratoga too."
"No special prep needed. Just hold my hand. But let's do it inside, just to be safe."
While he couldn't physically manifest the base yet, Hikaru could now enter his Commander's Office in spirit—no longer as an overhead observer, but as if he were actually there. He couldn't interact with much, but it was progress.
Apparently, he could bring shipgirls with him, since their souls were linked.
Lexington, Fletcher, and Glowworm eagerly grabbed his hands.
California stood off to the side, arms crossed, looking left out.
Hikaru smiled and waved her over. "What are you standing there for? You're one of us now. Come meet your seniors."
Confused but excited, California hurried over and grabbed his hand.
She had been curious about Hikaru's past and his legendary base since the very moment Lexington had flattened her in that sparring match. Now she finally had the chance to see it for herself.