Chapter 990: Full of Energy

As night fell, Guanghui and the others finally returned to the fortress base, checked in with Ninghai, who was in charge of logistics here, and then went back to the rest area prepared for each fleet.

However, Guanghui did not follow the others.

Now she was walking with a light, quick yet graceful step toward the command hall.

Upon entering the command hall's doors, the scene was very familiar. Qin Ge was at his desk beside the nautical chart, reviewing documents coming from all departments.

Not far from him was another table where Zhenhai was busy gathering various information. This setup was almost identical to the office in the port area, which is why Guanghui found it familiar.

The work here is by no means more relaxed than sea combat; on the contrary, it is even more laborious.

Because during sea combat, although the fighting is dangerous, for us ship girls who are already accustomed to battle, it has become routine.

Moreover, the important battles are not fought consecutively; usually a small-scale engagement can be settled in a few tens of minutes or an hour, with most of the time spent on vigilance and searching.

During these lulls in vigilance and searching, for our main force ships or vanguard, it is a very leisurely and enjoyable time. That is why some battle maniacs and laziness sufferers would rather give up the chance to become a secretary ship and go out on missions.

Compared to time spent outside, duties in the command hall are very busy. As Qin Ge's secretary ship, one must not only accurately collect information summarized from all departments, but also categorize it for his easy review.

After all, this is not ordinary work; a single decimal point error could trigger a chain reaction. Therefore, wartime secretary ships are basically very careful and experienced vessels, and Qin Ge would not assign secretary ship duties to ordinary ships.

Even though Guanghui's steps were light, the keen-eared Zhenhai still heard them. She immediately lifted her head, and upon seeing Guanghui, the two exchanged a smile without saying anything.

Guanghui nodded at Zhenhai, then walked toward Qin Ge's position. As his figure drew nearer, Guanghui's smile became more evident; she stopped before him and spoke with a smile.

"Commander, Guanghui reporting."

Hearing that familiar, gentle voice, Qin Ge jerked his head up to see Guanghui in a white dress standing before him, a gentle smile on her face.

"Guanghui! Why are you back so soon?" Qin Ge said, somewhat surprised.

Seeing Qin Ge's surprised expression, Guanghui laughed and said, "Because our squad's supplies have run out, we're returning now, possibly a day or two ahead of schedule."

Qin Ge nodded in realization, saying, "So you encountered more enemies on this trip? Supplies were used up that fast; the fighting must have been intense."

"Not bad; in the core area waters, that's how it is—encountering enemies far more often than usual. To hold a stretch of sea, one must indeed go through more battles, so supplies are likely consumed faster." Guanghui said without blushing or her heart racing.

"Heh, that's pretty good. Anyway, you'll soon be rotating as secretary ship, so this time you don't need to go out. Rest a bit at the fortress base, or get familiar with the work environment alongside Zhenhai; the coming days will be hard on you." Qin Ge laughed.

"Being able to assist the commander is wonderful. Although I've been with the commander for a long time, my time as his secretary ship has been short, so I also want to take these couple of days to learn properly from Miss Zhenhai." Guanghui laughed.

Zhenhai beside her lifted her head with a laugh, saying, "Miss Guanghui, you're too modest. You've followed the commander for a long time and are more familiar with his habits. Moreover, the secretary ship's work, put bluntly, is just this; with your experience, Miss Guanghui, none of it is difficult for you."

"Heh, Zhenhai is right; I have great confidence in Guanghui's abilities. Otherwise, I wouldn't have directly named her when confirming the quota." Qin Ge laughed.

"Hehe, then thank you for the commander's trust. I'll first tidy up a bit, and when today's work is done, commander, don't forget to come see me." Guanghui said.

"Oh, okay." Qin Ge paused slightly, then agreed amid Guanghui's gentle smile.

After saying that, she gave a simple farewell, and Guanghui left the command hall. Watching her voluptuous back, Zhenhai turned her head toward Qin Ge with a laugh, saying, "Heh, commander, you've got a beautiful woman inviting you tonight, so hurry up and put some effort into finishing these tasks, then you can keep the appointment."

Qin Ge couldn't help but roll his eyes, "I always feel there's something behind your words."

"Heh, isn't that so?" Zhenhai laughed, saying, "Moreover, the commander has been full of energy lately; Guanghui's return is timely, after all, she too is a vigorous lady."

Qin Ge blinked, then rubbed his nose, "So you don't like it?"

Zhenhai's face flushed; although she had brought up the topic herself, hearing Qin Ge's counterquestion made her a bit shy.

"The point isn't that, but with recent continuous work, the commander should be exhausted, as usual. However, it seems that since a few days ago, the commander suddenly became full of vigor—both his work and his body are much better than before."

"If it weren't for the commander's habits and our unchanged interactions, I'd suspect he'd turned into a different person. Could you tell me what's going on?" Zhenhai changed the subject.

Qin Ge's eyelids twitched; indeed, as expected of Zhenhai, she noticed the change in him so quickly.

"Perhaps it's the result of the Hearth Goddess's long‑term efforts showing up? I now feel like a martial‑arts novel protagonist who has opened the Ren and Du meridians—my whole body is brimming with spirit."

"If it weren't for lacking strength, I'd love to take my gliding device and join you in attacking the Sirens." Qin Ge hurriedly said, pulling out the Hearth Goddess as his excuse.

"Is that so?" Zhenhai chuckled, "If it's true, that would be great—as long as the commander's body stays healthy and he's fine every day, we can rest easy."

"However, don't even think about us joining you in attacking the Sirens; if the commander were to charge onto the front line to face the Sirens, we ship girls would be utterly ashamed."

"Heh, just idle talk; as commander, I can't cause you trouble." Qin Ge laughed, having finally smoothed over that earlier problem.

Zhenhai didn't doubt it much, after all—such a blessing is unimaginable for us.