novelhk Page 51
Page 51
"Yes sir!"
Hans, whose lifeboat was engraved with the number "6", shouted excitedly from afar. Like Popeye after eating spinach, he swung his oar with great force, launching his lifeboat directly from the sea onto the empty space on the starboard side of the wooden boat.
"What's wrong?"
Latis kept stroking the ship's rudder, and then took a black box from Hans's hand with a puzzled look.
"Ah, it's a nautical chart!"
Thursday picked up the box in surprise and said:
"This is an item obtained after defeating a ferocious sea monster called the 'Echo Shark.' Once installed on the ship, it can read information about the sea areas it has passed through... Where did you get it?"
"Yes, madam!"
Hans gave a spirited salute and used vivid body language to describe how his lifeboat crashed down from the sky and killed the unfortunate echo shark.
"Okay, fine, anyway..."
On Thursday, the black box was placed under the ship's rudder. Then, the person closed their eyes and activated their consciousness. A wooden map slowly rose up and stopped in front of the rudder.
"Master, the corresponding nautical chart has been generated in the cabin. Shall we go in and take a look together?"
"Okay." Latis nodded, quickly rubbing the ship's wheel again. Only after seeing a blush rise on Thursday's face did he nod in satisfaction.
He walked into the cabin, and at the same time, Hans dragged the lifeboat to the warehouse at the stern. There, there was another Hans, number 1 and number 5. Hans number 6, who looked exactly the same, sat next to them, his eyes closed like a lifeless robot.
[You've finally confirmed Hans's mechanics: he can survive as long as his lifeboat doesn't sink. Unfortunately, Hans's lifeboat starts wearing out after it goes to sea, and you even tried having Hans number 6 ride in Hans number 1's boat, but as soon as the switch happened, Hans number 6 also instantly became completely debilitated.]
[You're intentionally keeping some Hans in reserve, after all, Hans number 6's strength is undeniable, and over time, they might become a decisive force.]
"Speaking of which, Hans and his lifeboat have that 'as long as the ship is there, the ship will stay' kind of thing..." Latis stroked his chin thoughtfully. "Wow, does that mean Hans is also a ship girl?"
He shuddered and quickly shook off this thought, which he considered a form of mental pollution.
After studying the nautical charts for half a day, you discover that there is a ship type distribution center a hundred nautical miles away.
[Considering that it is currently a truce period, ships can freely enter and leave the assembly point without fear of being damaged. Therefore, after collecting two tons of driftwood from the ship's hold to repair the hull, you and Thursday set off for the assembly point.]
Several hours later, you successfully arrived at the ship type distribution center. On the port side of a nearly 500-meter-long mothership, a large floating harbor formed by dozens of frigates and cruisers bridging each other appeared before you. Many people were moving back and forth between the floating platforms, creating a lively scene.
You will approach the distribution center on Thursday and, guided by a small escort boat, temporarily anchor at the dock.
"Go get the parking permit first!"
On the escort vessel, a white-haired ship girl waved a signal flag and shouted loudly.
"Well, it's quite professional." Latis looked at the bustling port with great curiosity, feeling quite like a tourist.
He took Thursday and went up to the floating platform to the processing window at the dock.
"Welcome to SM Shipyard. What is your ship's name?"
"Star, Thursday..."
"Uh, ship type?"
"An all-wood passenger and cargo ship."
"Hmm, civilian vessels, then there's no need for combat capability testing or combat authorization permits. The berthing permits are very easy to obtain."
"Thanks……"
"Next question: what are your dimensions and load-bearing capacity?"
"150 meters long, 50 meters wide, and 15,000 tons."
"Pfft!" The staff member at the processing desk spat out his coffee and shouted, "Young Master Duo?"
"Wow, 15,000 tons..."
Thursday hid behind Latis and whispered.
"My goodness!" The staff member sat back down in a daze and couldn't help but ask, "Where did you find so much wood? The largest all-wooden ship I've ever seen is only 50 meters long!"
"Haha..." Latis chuckled dryly twice and asked, "Can we get the berthing permit now?"
“Okay…” The staff member scratched his messy hair in shock, took out a parking permit and said:
"The berthing fee for civilian vessels is one credit per day. This fee is very low; with Thursday's carrying capacity, one logistical transport mission would be enough for you to berth for a year. However, given her size, if you want to carry out armed modifications later, the number of credits required could be astronomical."
"By the way, here's an internal map of the harbor. Hey bro, you can check out the 'Old Time Bar' sometime; it's a place where human ship captains often gather."
"Hoo." Latis nodded, then suddenly squinted as he turned to leave. He seemed to see a socket on the staff member's arm...
Holding your berthing permit, you pilot the Thursday into the berth. The berth manager looks at you with a troubled expression and says, "There aren't many berths left for civilian vessels of this size. Let me see, only G Port No. 8 and C Port No. 13 are available. Which number do you prefer?"
After some thought, you chose G8 over C13. Before you've made a name for yourself, everyone still refers to ships by their numbers, and you'd much rather hear genuine exclamations like, "Wow, your G8 is huge!" than comments like, "Wow, that G8 is amazing!"
After docking, you studied the map. This ship type hub has numerous shops, and you highlighted several areas: the Armament Sales and Modification Area, the Civilian Ship Mission Request Area, the Deep Sea Ruins Adventure Center, the Military Ship Mission Request Area, and the Sea God's Abode.
Upon reaching the final location, you suddenly recall your innate talent, the one called "Eternal False God." Does this world truly possess gods? What, then, are the periods of war and truce? You vaguely sense that this world is more than just being entirely submerged in the ocean.
[Since the free berthing period only lasts a week, you need to earn enough credits as soon as possible. So you rush to the civilian vessel mission office, hoping to achieve financial freedom soon and shed Thursday's current nickname of "Big G8" (a derogatory term implying someone who is unlucky or unlucky).]
Civilian vessels are divided into two types of missions: transportation and support. You look directly at the highest-paying missions and find that support missions require coordination and qualification verification with various organizations at distribution centers. Not wanting to waste this time, you choose transportation missions.
"Are you the captain of G8?"
Latis looked at the middle-aged man in front of him who reeked of fish and nodded helplessly.
"Damn, your G8 is huge!"
The middle-aged man sighed sincerely:
"Such a large G8 must be extremely sturdy."
Latis suddenly regretted choosing this number. He never imagined that being praised for G8 by a middle-aged man would feel so strange.
"Deliver this cargo to the Independent Fleet. I'll send you the location on your nautical chart later. Once it's done, I'll give you 100 credits."
Latis curiously lifted the cover of the cargo and took a look, then was shocked to find that it was full of damaged Gonzalo, oops, ship-type reactors!
"Oh, and by the way, please pass on a message for me," the middle-aged man said. "Tell them that the God of Hunting has sent a divine decree saying that this year's battle will begin earlier than planned!"
Chapter 67 I'm Super, Hatsune Miku! (Two Chapters Combined)
You accepted the middle-aged man's request and received a holy emblem from him.
[You keenly sensed the violent divine power contained within the holy emblem. Subsequently, you automatically recognized the name of the God of Hunting and discovered that you had gained a new skill: the ability to disguise divine power.]
[Are you going to be reincarnated as a professional fortune teller this time? You shake your head. You, Lala, have always despised the behavior of those pretentious riddle tellers. This land doesn't need profound riddles; since you, Lala, arrived, it has been left with only vulgar abstractions.]
"Nonsense!" Latis cursed angrily, taking the ship girl's hand and striding towards the dock, shouting loudly:
"Going back to plant cotton on Friday!"
On Thursday, I jogged after him blankly, thinking to myself:
"Friday? Aren't I on Thursday? What does planting cotton mean? Does Master have other ship girls?"
[You witnessed firsthand how convenient cargo transportation is in this world; with just a flick of Thursday's wrist, a ten-ton cargo container was tossed onto the deck.]
"Okay!" You reluctantly admit that she's stronger now, and you temporarily abandon your idea of competing with Thursday to see who's the real muscle king.
The coordinates of the destination were marked on the nautical chart on Thursday. It's 500 nautical miles from the distribution center, and a one-way trip would take you a whole day.
"Looks like we still need to upgrade the materials for Thursday. Relying solely on wood will only make it stronger and heavier, but it won't make it faster..."
Latis sighed sadly and summoned Hans for today's shift.
You summoned your seventh Hans, and with waves of exhilaration from the activation of your talent, you involuntarily opened your arms. One Hans shot out of your body into the sea, then a second, a third…
[Six Hans, each a number 6, lined up on the sea, watching you, still immersed in the afterglow of the launch, and shouted, "Yes, sir!" You were startled, trembling all over, and dropped another Hans, a number 1.]
[Hans #1 sighed very gently and went into the warehouse with the six hyperthyroid Hans. Watching Hans #6, arm in arm, starting to do squats together, and the humble Hans #1 crawling huddled in the shadows in the corner, you felt the scene was somewhat mentally disturbing.]
A day later, you arrived at your destination safely. A cruiser girl led Thursday into the center of the fleet. You saw a cool, green-haired girl with twin tails emerge from the battleship "Future," which was surrounded by ships. After watching Thursday unload its cargo, she turned to you and asked businesslike, "Did the messenger send a message?"
[But at that moment, your mind was completely occupied with "I'm so excited, Hatsune Miku!", and you didn't even hear her question. The two escorting ship girls, seeing you staring intently at their leader, changed color and rolled up their sleeves, heading straight for you.]
"Don't touch my master!"
On Thursday, her voice trembling, she closed her eyes and pushed forward haphazardly, sending two escort ship girls flying backward and crashing into the sea.
"Huh?" Hatsune Miku walked over in surprise, grabbed Thursday's hand and twisted it forcefully, then exclaimed in astonishment:
"What a powerful ship girl! What brand of ship-type reactor do you use?"
"Found it at sea..." Thursday struggled to break free from Hatsune Miku's grasp and stammered.
"The mission is complete. Can we...can we leave now?"
Hatsune Miku loosely clenched her right hand, a hint of seriousness flashing in her pale green pupils.
"How could a civilian passenger/cargo ship break free from my grip?"
She patted her skirt, looked at Thursday who was holding Latis's arm, and said with a sigh:
“Commoner, what’s your number? G8? It’s a pity you already have an owner, otherwise, if I trained you, you would definitely become an excellent armed ship.”
"Why does it smell like citrus..." Latis scratched his head, took the commission certificate from the frigate, shrugged, and turned to walk towards Thursday's main body.
"Ah, right!"
Latis suddenly turned around and said awkwardly:
"I suddenly remembered that the middle-aged man asked me to pass on a message to you."
"Hmm?" Hatsune Miku continued to look at Latis's arm, which was being linked with Thursday's, and silently thought:
"I hope this child won't be fooled by cunning humans. I, the Future, will never make a contract with humans in this lifetime! Sweet and soft ship girls are much better..."
"...That's it. Uh, hello? Did you hear me?"
"Huh?" Hatsune Miku snapped out of her daze and said with a serious expression:
“I was spacing out, human. Say it again.”
"Hey, can you stop being so self-righteous about slacking off?!" Latis yelled, sighing as he raised a finger and said, enunciating each word clearly:
"I say, the God of Hunting has sent a divine decree that this year's battle season will begin ahead of schedule!"
"pay……"
dong dong!