Chapter 469: Diving

Because Zala said she wanted to swim, they had to go to the seaside; where the seawater was deeper, there happened to be a large pile of rocks beside where everyone was staying, and the seawater below was deeper.

"Here is fine; the place is also higher and the water deeper." Qin Ge said to Zala.

"Well, this really is a good place." Zala smiled and said, "Then, Commander, do you go first or shall I? Or I could give you a demonstration? First, let's agree: if you can't swim, don't push yourself."

Qin Ge laughed and said, "I grew up by the sea since I was little, so swimming is already second nature to me; although I can't compare with you shipgirls, I still have quite a bit of confidence."

"Oh? Then I look forward to your performance, Commander." Zala said.

"Good." Qin Ge nodded.

Just as the two were preparing to jump from the boulder, they saw a human figure appear in the seawater below.

Qin Ge exclaimed in surprise, "U81, what are you doing here?"

Indeed, the little head poking out from the seawater below was U81's silhouette.

After hearing Qin Ge's voice, U81 looked left and right for a moment, still not spotting his position; finally, when she lifted her head, she saw Qin Ge and Zala standing on the boulder.

"Eh, Commander, how come you're here?" U81 asked in surprise.

"I was about to jump into the water and swim with Zala here; how did you end up here? And you seem to have come by diving?" Qin Ge asked U81.

"I was playing hide-and-seek with U96 and the others; do you want to play, Commander?" U81 asked with a laugh.

Qin Ge shook his head: "No, when you few dive, you go straight into deep water; I wouldn't know how to find you then."

"You can also dive, Commander, just like this: as long as you thrust your head into the water, you'll go straight under." U81 said, and immediately plunged her head into the water; her silhouette vanished from the surface instantly, and when she reappeared she was already on the other side.

Qin Ge hastily shook his head: "I can't do that……"

He is a proper human being, while the U81 before him is a submarine; comparing diving with a submarine, he's not crazy.

"Commander, you're so lame." U81 mocked mercilessly.

Qin Ge helplessly rubbed his nose, causing Zala beside him to giggle.

Then he looked at the tall boulder, and a idea flashed in his mind; he said to U81, "How about we play diving instead? Like this."

After saying that, Qin Ge stepped back a few paces, took a run‑up and leapt, spinning once in the air before diving headfirst into the sea, sending up a large spray.

As the spray splashed down onto the surface, Qin Ge emerged from the water, shook the droplets from his hair, swung his arms to keep his balance, and said to the nearby U81, "How was that?"

"Looks like this is pretty fun." U81 said, her eyes lighting up.

"Right?" Qin Ge said with a smile, a look of pride in his expression.

He then raised his head, waved at Zala on the boulder, and said, "Zala, you jump down too."

Zala smiled, gave an OK sign, took two steps forward, then leapt like a fish, diving with a very standard form.

At the moment she hit the water, hardly any splash appeared on the surface, forming a stark contrast to Qin Ge's entry just before.

Soon Zala surfaced, shook water from her hair, and gave Qin Ge a teasing smile, saying, "Commander, what do you think of my dive?"

Qin Ge's face darkened: "We're not competing over who makes the smallest splash, but who has the most fun diving."

Zala blinked and said, "All right."

U81 nearby swam over immediately and said to Qin Ge, "Commander, let's keep jumping."

Qin Ge smiled and nodded, "Okay."

After saying that, he swam over to the side of the boulder together with Zala and U81.

Zala's swimming posture was very graceful, while Qin Ge used a fairly ordinary civilian stroke; as for U81, she plunged headfirst into the water and, when she reappeared, was already far away—a method that simply cannot be compared.

However, their speeds were not far apart; they all reached the shore at almost the same time. Without pause, they clambered onto the boulder and then jumped off one by one.

Once more, because the diving was just for fun, they each performed various goofy moves in the air. One after another they jumped into the water, then surfaced from the sea and hurriedly swam toward the shore.

The sounds of joy were loud and carried far.

So not long after, when Qin Ge, U81, and Zala climbed onto the boulder again, they suddenly saw several heads poking out from below at the same time.

"U81, I found you!" U556 said to U81.

"Hmph, if it weren't for me and the Commander playing diving here, you could never have found me." U81 said, unwilling to concede.

"Diving? I want to play too." I-25 nearby said happily.

"Eh, didn't we agree to play hide-and-seek?" U556 said.

"Nope, I want to go play diving with the Commander." I-25 said.

"I want to go too." Nautilus said weakly, but her eyes were full of longing.

"Actually, I also think hide-and-seek is rather boring; why don't we all follow the Commander and go diving?" U96 said.

"Eh?"

Thus, with an overwhelming majority, the hide‑and‑seek game was finally passed over, replaced by diving together with Qin Ge.

Not far away, watching Qin Ge, the submarine, and Zala diving together, Ou Gen Qin Wang couldn't help but smile: "I've never seen the Commander this happy before; he always gave off a mature vibe."

"Perhaps it's because we're around? The Commander deliberately maintains that demeanor, not wanting us to see his childish side, nor his weak side."

"Because he is the soul of our fleet, he is the banner of our fleet. And here, in this relaxed atmosphere, he inadvertently let it show." Guanghui smiled.

"More and more people are joining in." Luodenni said with a laugh to everyone, "Even the usually shy Du Jiao Shou has gone; do you want to go?"

"I'm not going; a lady must keep her ladylike propriety." Guanghui said with a smile.

"Then I'll go; compared to a lady's elegance, I feel happier playing with the Commander." Luodenni said with a laugh.

"Me too; I haven't relaxed like this in a long time, so I can really enjoy this." Ou Gen Qin Wang also rose from his chair and said to Luodenni beside him,

"Um, sis, can I go too?" Fearless, watching Luodenni and Ou Gen Qin Wang walk away, whispered to Guanghui.

"Fearless, you must keep your ladylike grace." Guanghui smiled.

"Oh." Fearless was instantly sunk.