How do I start a romantic relationship with a ship girl?

Page 5

As the thick smoke slowly dissipated, Xu Huan's figure gradually emerged from it.

The surrounding ships had all been reduced to scrap metal, and even the sky was temporarily obscured by the thick smoke rising into the air.

"It seems the main target didn't include me... otherwise I wouldn't have only been affected like this..." Gently reaching out to lift the cover in front of him, the young man looked again in the direction from which the shells had come.

A tall, beautiful woman with short black hair was also sizing him up.

Like spider tentacles, the ship's rigging glided gently across the sea surface, while the red and black mechanical dragon twisted uneasily, emanating an ominous and dangerous aura.

The black and red military uniform rustled in the sea breeze, and her long, straight legs were mostly covered by black knee-high boots, with only her fair skin showing in the absolute area between her and her short skirt.

She had short, ear-length hair, red horns, a pert nose, and a face as delicate as snow.

A pair of bewitching yellow eyes were staring at Xu Huan, radiating a chilling aura.

Ironblood Battleship H, 1939 design by Ulrich von Hutten (KMS).

"Is this one of the leaders of the Sirens? Or is it another ship girl?" Seeing the other party's similar black and red color scheme, Xu Huan was a little unsure for a moment.

I hadn't made any special effort to conceal my presence, so the other party should have discovered me, but they didn't choose me as their primary target...

So, does this mean the other character is also a ship girl, just like the little octopus?

But looking at their eyes... why do they seem so unfriendly?

Just as Xu Huan was wondering, Hu Teng was also somewhat puzzled.

Didn't the radar just show only thirteen targets?

And... when did male humanoid sirens first appear?

However, she didn't think too much about it. With a flick of her arm, a black claw attached itself directly to her arm.

Judging from its appearance, the other party is a humanoid siren model that I have never seen before.

Before knowing the full story, everything should be handled with caution, but going all out from the start is the best approach.

The mechanical dragon behind him roared, and the cannons extending from its mouth began to aim at the young man on the distant sea, constantly condensing incandescent orbs. The terrifying energy within them could even cause the surrounding air to distort slightly.

"Oh? You're not planning to exchange words before attacking? Then it's most likely the Sirens..."

Although he didn't understand why the Siren leader in front of him was targeting his own men, since the other side wasn't going to communicate, he could save himself some trouble.

"roar---!!"

The blazing sphere, which had been gathering power for a long time, was finally spat out from the mechanical dragon's mouth and shot towards the youth at an extremely fast speed.

Xu Huan neither dodged nor evaded. Just as the ball of light was about to hit his face, a dark blue shield suddenly appeared, deflecting the cannonball into the wreckage of the Sirens on the other side.

Immediately afterwards, an explosion occurred that was much larger than the combined impact of all the previous shells.

The shockwave roared out, bringing with it strong winds and whipping up huge waves that swept towards Xu Huan.

Chapter Seven Commander?

One towering wave after another crashed against the young man's body, but the intense impact did not cause Xu Huan to react in the slightest. His eyes remained fixed on the spot where the short-haired ship girl had been.

"The person has disappeared... Is this a simple and effective cover-up?"

As he spoke, he seemed to glance unintentionally at the next wave that was about to crash onto him.

There appears to be a figure moving rapidly within it.

Although it only lasted for a moment, it was still captured by the young man.

Xu Huan took a deep breath and slowly opened his clenched fist.

As the wave surged forward, just as it was about to strike him, a black claw tore through the wave, emerging directly from the center of the surge. Hu Teng, like a venomous snake that had been waiting for its chance, lunged straight at him.

"Om-!"

A glint of gold flashed in Hu Tengyao's eyes.

Things seem to be progressing much more smoothly than expected.

"pat-"

Just as the black claws were about to touch the youth in front of them, a faint collision sound suddenly rang out, but was quickly drowned out by the sound of surging waves.

Time seemed to stand still at this moment. Hu Teng tried his best, but he couldn't move forward even half a step.

"Don't look down on people..." The young man's leisurely sigh rang in his ears, and then Hu Teng found himself suddenly lifted a distance in place.

A strong feeling of suffocation washed over him, and Hu Teng lowered his head in surprise.

An arm covered in black armor had somehow gripped his throat and lifted him into the air.

The force transmitted through his arms felt as if it could tear him apart at any moment.

"Miss...."

Xu Huan spoke calmly.

The opponent's tactics weren't particularly clever, and they made a fatal mistake—rushing into close combat without knowing the enemy's strength...

Is it fair to say that he was too confident in his abilities?

Hu Teng's black claws rested weakly on Xu Huan's arm, and a series of fleeting thoughts flashed through his yellowish-brown eyes.

This was the first time she had encountered such a formidable enemy.

Even when he had the upper hand and launched a ruthless attack, he was subdued with one hand before he could even see his opponent's movements.

"You must still have some trump cards up your sleeve, right? Bring them out as soon as possible..." the young man in front of him said calmly.

There was no mockery, no underestimation of the opponent, and not a trace of smugness. Hu Teng didn't even seem to have any emotional fluctuations.

It was as if the request was just an ordinary, unremarkable one.

This male siren....

Hu Teng gritted his teeth and mobilized almost all of his mental energy to supply his ship equipment once again.

A red and black mechanical dragon suddenly appeared, letting out an angry roar.

Ripples began to spread through the space behind her, and countless cannonballs materialized out of thin air, radiating intense heat as they aimed at Xu Huan, poised to fire.

[The Poet Laureate's Theory of Rhythm]

One of Hu Teng's skills.

"Let me go..." Hu Teng's eyes revealed a resolute look.

“…Psionic?” Xu Huan glanced at the ever-increasing number of shells close at hand and smiled. “With such outstanding long-range firepower, why did you decide to engage in close combat from the start? Even I couldn’t withstand a single head-on hit from these shells, could I?”

"Also... I have some knowledge of psionic energy."

As he finished speaking, a deep blue glint flashed in Xu Huan's eyes.

An invisible energy wave emanated from him and swept across the entire sea area in an instant.

The roaring mechanical dragon froze in mid-air the moment it touched the ripples, and the cannonballs that had been accumulating disappeared one after another. The countless ripples in the space were wiped away as if by a giant hand, leaving no trace.

"??!!!!!"

Hu Teng stared blankly at the sight, and for the first time, an expression of disbelief appeared in his usually bewitching eyes.

The claws, which had been powerless, seemed to regain their strength and suddenly burst forth, directly prying open Xu Huan's palm. Then, using the recoil, the whole person flew backward, creating a long distance.

She put away her ship equipment, bit her lower lip, and asked Xu Huan in disbelief:

"Wait... you mean... the Commander...?"

"What commander?"

Hu Teng's sudden outburst surprised Xu Huan, and the first question he asked after the other party distanced himself was even more baffling.

"Why did you just unleash such pure mental energy...? You're not a Siren..." Hu Teng shook his head, answering his own question.

It wasn't that she lacked the ability to accept things, but rather that the person in front of her was simply too overwhelming.

The Ironbloods searched almost the entire Earth for a human with mental energy affinity, that is, a human with the potential to become a commander, but found no one who fit the bill. Yet today, she stumbled upon this special mission.

Most importantly, I just treated them like sirens...

"I was never a Siren, I'm human." Seeing that the other party had put away their weapon and showed no intention of continuing the attack, Xu Huan replied directly.

"...You're human, so why are you standing in the center of the Siren fleet?" Hutten asked anxiously.

If other Ironblood ship girls were present, they would definitely be quite surprised—

In their memory, Hu Teng had never been so out of control as he was now.

"Uh... it's not strange for a human like me to be standing in the middle of the Sirens' fleet, is it?" Xu Huan scratched his head and continued, "I was originally planning to test the so-called strength of the Sirens, but I didn't expect you to beat me to it..."

"...I mistook you for a Siren just now, I'm sorry."

Taking a deep breath and remaining silent for a long time, Hu Teng finally accepted the fact that he had just attacked the only potential commander. He bowed slightly and apologized very formally.

"So you must be a ship girl? What's your name?"

Seeing that the other party's attitude was fairly sincere, Xu Huan didn't want to pursue it too much. He treated this kind of intense battle as a warm-up and also took the opportunity to get some information.

He has always been good-tempered when interacting with humanoid beings.