Page 59
"I'm sorry, Sora, I didn't know you've been having such a hard time."
Although Himeko vaguely resonated with the tragedy of her other self, after listening to the whole story, it seemed that Sora was the walking tragic entity.
He did not embellish or exaggerate, but just by listening to him calmly describing everything that happened around her, Ji Zi could already imagine what a suffocating life it was.
"It was hard but I have no regrets. While leaving behind memories, I also have to look forward. When I decided with the system to move forward on this path, I was ready to be stabbed in the back. But on the bright side, people think I am heartless but also appreciate my contributions, which is a little consolation."
Sora sat back at the table: "Many of the things you saw were not normal in a time-travelling career. Jizi, for me, reuniting with an old lover is so difficult that it can be regarded as a fantasy, so I am not mentally prepared to deal with these old relationships. You will think I am clumsy, or greedy... Please understand me, I will be at a loss too. What I can do now is to let them stay with me for a while longer, as for the future..."
He took another sip of coffee, and his eyes became "determined" again.
It's not that I made up my mind, I was just suffering:
"Hiss... I might take a team of women with me, but who knows when I might ascend to heaven. Even if we move forward with a plan, we still have to take it one step at a time."
"It seems the guest carriages are destined to be expanded."
Jizi didn't know how to help Kong share the burden, so she could only choose a plan that was more in line with her abilities.
"Speaking of expansion... By the way, this is the share from Esta. We have to work with the Black Tower to study the rift phenomenon tomorrow. There are extra allowances. You can use them as development funds."
As he spoke, Kong used his cell phone to transfer money to Ji Zi.
"so much??"
"It's a pity that credit points don't have magic power after all. If they were like the gold coins or Mora I won, I could cast a 'Mansion Spell' or make a Dust Song Pot to solve everyone's housing needs."
Kong Rui commented: "Credit points are convenient, but they are, after all, a tool for the company to conquer the galaxy. If you use tools given by others to play their games, you will lose sooner or later. It would be better to exchange them for connections and tangible things - that's why I found Esta."
"You really want to take advantage of Ester... What about Xiao Sanyue?"
After listening to Sora complaining so much, Himeko no longer looked at him as a pig eating cabbage, but she still had to ask Sora how he planned to deal with the "friendly relationship" with the passengers and employers.
"My relationship with Esta...is similar to your relationship with Black Tower, but she is much easier to serve than Black Tower."
Sora rolled his eyes upwards, "As for Sanyue--I promise I won't attack her, but if she attacks me, please let me go."
89. Lawrence Commander Alternate
"That's enough training for today. I'm amazed by your talent, Ms. Eula."
"You taught me well. The largest ship I've ever seen was the wooden warship of Liyue and Inazuma. To drive such a huge warship, it would take a lot of people, right?"
Eula, who was also injected with the navigator potion, was qualified to guide the jump for Befa, but Befa did not comfort her. Even without psychic powers, she was very suitable for flying a ship and had a good talent for steering and observation.
Eula is driven by struggle, but as a Mondstadt person, she also yearns for freedom. When simulating driving a ship, that kind of freedom seems to be compatible with her blood, and it evokes the blood of Lawrence before he became a noble.
They were once mortals who followed the God of Wind to break free from the cage, but as the descendants of those ancestors, Eula has become addicted to galloping across the sea of stars, and the Wings of Wind are not enough to attract her.
...After all, strictly speaking, the Befa's ship is not traveling on a plane, but flying.
After only one day of teaching, the relationship between Eula and Befa became extremely harmonious. As a cruiser itself, Befa generously explained to Eula the purpose of each of its modules, and guided Eula to locate and simulate jumps on the star map shared by Ester. The compatibility of the two quickly reached a good level, and they began to promote each other commercially.
"The Ship Girl must integrate the work of many people into herself. This is our strength and our destiny."
Belfa nodded. "For operators of traditional ships, wisdom and on-the-spot judgment are the most important during navigation, but shipgirls can process a lot of complex information by instinct. So what we need is not a helmsman, an engine operator or a maintenance worker, but a leader, a commander... You now meet all the requirements to be selected as a candidate for commander."
"Oh? Does that mean I can command you instead of Sora from now on?"
Eula teased.
"If the master is absent due to force majeure, yes, you can command me in his place."
"Hey, you don't have to be so serious. I don't want to take the vacant job."
The vengeful knight was frightened by the maid's sudden serious expression and waved his hands repeatedly.
"I'm not kidding. Before that, you still need to learn how to mobilize your mental power to support me in combat. This is a long process that requires adjustment. Although I sincerely hope that there will never be a day when you are forced to take the position, it is necessary to prepare for a rainy day now."
Even though Eula had begged for mercy, Befa continued to explain in an unkind manner: "Not just you, I hope Ms. Holhaiya can also sail with me skillfully. But she has important matters to attend to now. I will invite her when she has time."
"Tsk, if that fat snake learns it too, won't my position become precarious?" Eula held up her pointed chin and gritted her teeth.
"Don't worry about that happening." Befa said comfortingly.
"Why? Aren't you afraid that too many women will come around Sora and we'll be eliminated?"
"The number of fleets the master once led completely meets your definition of 'too many women', but he handled it well. Every ship girl was able to get a piece of pure land around him at the right time, so I believe he can also handle the relationship with everyone and not neglect everyone."
Belfa added: "No matter how troublesome or useless a ship girl is, as long as the master accepts her, he will care for her. Of course, if you learn to drive a ship, you will have more opportunities to interact with the master in handling practical affairs, which is indeed an advantage."
“…It sounds even sadder.”
Eula wisely chose not to expand on the topic right away.
"I'm hungry. Sora is on the boat too, right? Let's go get him to eat."
"Yes, but I have to go back to the dining car to prepare the meal. I apologize for not being able to accompany you."
"Don't be like that. It makes me seem like I really have a personal maid. It's depraved!" Eula felt a chill all over her body when Befa bowed to her again, and her back was covered with goose bumps.
"This is necessary etiquette. Please accept my support when you attend the banquet. Regardless of whether you need someone to serve you or not, a qualified head maid can add brilliance to you in public. You can say that I am the jewel worn by you and your master. If I am not shining and beautiful, I will be looked down upon."
"..."
This guy's way of thinking is even more extreme than Noelle's.
"I'll go get Sora and Himeko back to the car to eat."
"Excuse me."
"I told you not to use honorifics!"
"Hehe... Although it may be a bit rude, seeing Ms. Eula's troubled expression makes Befa happy, just like seeing her master in trouble."
Looking at Eula, whose face was slightly red, Befa smiled faintly:
"I know this is a sign of everyone's acceptance of Befa, but please allow me to keep this little hobby."
"You just want to make fun of me - I'll remember this grudge!"
Eula rushed out the door angrily.
Every time after spending time with Befa, she would reflect on herself, wondering where she was inferior to her and why she was always secretly angry at her every move.
Now she understood that what she lacked was femininity - if she had to say it, even Fatty Snake, that out-and-out bad woman, was more feminine than her. She had to rely on her so-called aristocratic upbringing to maintain her false decency.
But there is no way, the work has worn her down to the point where she has almost no competitive edge except for dancing, false etiquette and conversation.
Otherwise, besides building up popularity for Sora...why not try to take care of Sora in private? Not the kind of care that would keep watch for him in the wild...but the kind that would fold his blanket and give him a towel?
But this thought that was inconsistent with her personality only lasted for a short while before it was extinguished by a sentence from the captain's room: "But she came to attack me, please let me go."
I'm studying hard in the command room, so I tolerated you having afternoon tea with Jizi, but now you openly tell Jizi that you want to kidnap her "daughter"?
She walked in with a sullen face, and before Kong turned around to say hello, she reached out her hands from both sides, pinched Kong's cheeks and pulled them to the sides.
"Are you still planning to harm March? Hmm? You don't care about your dignity anymore, do you?"
"Wu——Just, just to give Jizi a heads-up. I haven't done anything yet, and I don't plan to do anything!"
Although Eula's pulling caused Kong's face to hurt, this strange force-applying action was like Eula acting as a neck pillow for Kong from behind, cushioning his head and causing him to gradually lose himself in the pain and the greater pleasure of the elasticity of the back of his head.
"It seems that you are not completely unrestrained, hehe..."
As a result, Ji Zi's originally complicated expression turned into a wonderful pleasure under Eula's tormenting of the sky.
90. In prison!
Before dinner, Kong was severely abused by Eula, but after dinner he seemed to have forgotten the pain and followed the established procedure to accompany San Yueqi.
Kong means - you can lose your head and bleed, but you can't change your mind about what you promised, and you can't go back on your word even if it's the smallest promise.
Eula praised his responsible behavior in keeping his promise, and then kicked him out of the living room.
Finally, I recalled the remaining elasticity on the soles of my feet and realized that I would never get tired of kicking them no matter how many times I kicked them.
Kong, who was kicked out, looked back dazed and found Paimon floating beside him with a bucket of popcorn and a numb look on his face.
"Why were you kicked out too? What did you do?" Kong unceremoniously snatched a handful of popcorn from Paimon's bucket.
"Leave some for me! I came out to accompany you because I felt sorry for you, didn't I?"
Paimon's numb expression immediately lifted, and he quickly threw a handful of popcorn into his mouth as if protecting his food: "Crunch. And you said there's no need to climb onto San Yue Qi's bed, but I'm here to be a light bulb. You two are probably going to get along really well, so just treat me as an insurance policy."
"...Were you poisoned by Ji Zi's coffee today? How could you have such a reckless thought?"
Kong Qi said.
"…It's because it's too boring. None of those TV shows are as interesting as watching you being bullied by girls."
Under Kong's inquiring gaze, Paimon still chose to tell the truth.
"...You don't believe in pleasure, do you? Looks like I have to prepare to clean up the mess—"
Sora immediately scowled at Paimon and cracked his knuckles.
"I'm just plain bored!"
"...Okay, but remember, don't point fingers at us while we're watching movies or playing games."
While bickering, Kong knocked on March's door for the second time with a dead look in his eyes.
"welcome!"
The girl opened the door almost after a delay of one second. It was obvious that she was prepared. Her big, blinking eyes showed that she had been waiting for a long time.
"Little Paimon is here too - I've prepared some delicious juice to treat you."
"Eh? Did San Yue Qi already know that I would come along?"
Paimeng was a little flattered, but then she felt a little guilty. After all, she came here prepared to ruin their relationship.
"After all, you and Sora are almost inseparable. I thought it was a bit strange that you didn't come yesterday. Hehe, sometimes I feel like you are Sora's other half."
March moved aside. Today she actually wore flannel pajamas while waiting for Kong to arrive. Although it seemed more homely and relaxing, it seemed that her figure was covered up a lot and was not as exciting as before.
"Don't worry, I won't harm her even if the universe is destroyed."
"Don't worry, even if all the women in the world died, they wouldn't do anything to me - it's even more serious!"
However, the two guys showed disgusted faces at the same time without hesitation, which surprised Sanyue:
“Is this the value of a best friend?”