The Divine Throne of Shipgirls

"Just think—every one of us here is a seasoned veteran, every shipgirl under our command has either reached level 100 or is grinding toward it. These are not just a handful of extraordinary individuals—we're talking about thousands of the finest elites forces, all stationed aboard warships. And yet, this happened right under all our noses. Who could possibly pull off such a thing?"

Shun suddenly turned and jabbed a finger at the Tirpitz nestled in Hikaru's arms.

"No one else could do it. If someone could... then it could only be the unmatched ghost-god—Tirpitz!"

With the way he framed it, even Hikaru almost felt like the culprit himself. Shun had hit a sore spot—the truth was, on this entire ship, only Tirpitz and Lexington had the strength to pull off something like this… if Commander Noboru had indeed been abducted, or assassinated and his body destroyed.

The Commanders were now looking at Hikaru with dark, suspicious eyes.

To put it plainly, Hikaru was still a newcomer to them. Their doubts and fears had never really faded. If anything, the awe-inspiring strength of Tirpitz and Lexington had only fanned the flames further.

Then, Takeyama Takeshi—the chef-turned-Commander—stepped forward and roared in Hikaru's defense.

"You people... are you all heartless beasts? Who turned the tide when everything was collapsing? Who saved the entire South Domain Strategic Army? If it weren't for Commander Hikaru's shipgirls throwing themselves into the fire, risking their lives for you, we'd all be fish food by now! And now that you're safe, what? You turn around and stab your savior in the back? Is this what we Commanders have become—gutless, ungrateful dogs?"

His impassioned outburst did have some effect. A few of the Commanders, unable to meet his gaze, quietly looked away.

It made sense—while Hikaru could have committed the crime, he had no reason to.

Everyone knew Representative Murong was coming. Everyone knew this ship was crawling with people. Everyone knew there were thousands of Commanders and shipgirls present. What kind of rabid lunatic would strike now? What kind of idiot would choose this moment to settle a grudge with Commander Noboru?

Just as the tide was slowly turning in Hikaru's favor, Wakayama Shogo stepped forward.

He gave a polite bow to Hikaru, smiling—but the smile carried hidden blades.

"First and foremost, let me express my utmost gratitude to Commander Hikaru. He didn't just save us—he saved millions of lives across the Country. Without Commander Hikaru and his shipgirls, we'd be slaves under an Abyssal flagship right now. He is, without exaggeration, the savior of our nation."

Classic setup: praise before the plunge. Everyone could tell Wakayama was about to go in hard.

The higher the pedestal, the harder the fall. And Wakayama had just placed Hikaru atop a national altar—what was coming next would surely be a plunge into the abyss.

Everyone held their breath, waiting to hear what "brilliance" Wakayama had in store.

"I have just three questions," Wakayama said, raising three fingers.

The first finger came down.

"First: Commander Hikaru's first major contribution was bringing Commander Kazeharu to justice. I was there. The two had already clashed, and Kazeharu was subdued by none other than the ghost-god Tirpitz. Later, when we faced the Abyssal flagship Monitor, Kazeharu's shipgirl Hiei bravely volunteered for a hopeless fight—trying to protect her Commander, pure and reckless heroism. But we must also notice that at the time, Commander Hikaru stood aside, arms crossed, smirking.

"No one on the Silent Horizon knew yet that Tirpitz had such terrifying strength—except for Commander Hikaru himself. So I ask you all: Why did Commander Hikaru wait until several high-level shipgirls were utterly defeated before casually sending in Tirpitz to earn the glory? While the rest of us were terrified, he was so relaxed. I ask you—could any of us stomach doing such a thing?"

The moment Wakayama finished, murmurs spread across the room. Even Representative Murong looked at Hikaru with a new and uncomfortable gaze, as if seeing him in a different light entirely.

[End of Chapter]

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