[Bonus Chapter]
As always, Abyssals could die without anyone shedding a tear—but if a shipgirl was sunk under a commander's watch, even the lightest outcome could leave the commander shaken for months. The worst cases ended in resignations from active duty… or even in taking their own lives..
After all, to a commander, a shipgirl was part of his soul.
Even if an Abyssal Leader wasn't fully leveled, no one could relax—not with the record-breaking strength of Barbarossa looming in the dark.
Just by base stats alone, Barbarossa outclassed any fully-leveled capital ship many times over. Her durability alone was equivalent to more than twenty capital ships combined. She commanded hundreds of thousands of Abyssal troops, and fought in home waters that favored her. With that kind of advantage, if she truly was fully leveled, then defeating her would take over a hundred max-level capital ship-class shipgirls. And even if China could somehow muster that many… how many would they lose in the process?
The difference between max-level and merely high-level was enormous. A level 100 capital ship could easily overpower ten level 99s. The same power gap existed between 79 and 89. So one maxed Abyssal flagship carried the threat of dozens—or even hundreds—of lesser ones.
And considering Barbarossa was likely flanked by other Abyssal flagships as escorts, the pressure was absolutely suffocating.
That was why Operation Chicxulub was born.
Someone finally dared to ask, "Fleet Admiral, do you think Operation Chicxulub will succeed?"
Fleet Admiral Gorou's answer was curt. "We pray."
Hikaru let out a silent sigh. Chicxulub… even three thousand years ago, there had been a plan like this—staking everything on a massive, ultra-high-yield nuclear strike to force peace. The code name hadn't changed.
"Chicxulub" referred to a massive impact crater in ancient Mexico, formed by a meteor ten kilometers wide. It left a scar roughly 180 kilometers across, and many believed that strike was what caused the extinction of the dinosaurs.
The energy released by that meteor was estimated to be in the hundreds of trillions of tons of TNT, the largest explosive event in Earth's history.
Of course, that was no longer the case. Not after Earth had been ripped apart and reshaped into the fantasy-like "Isle Earth." These days, even something like Chicxulub was barely a dent—like tapping a spoon against an apple's skin.
Still, the military named the operation after that event.
But how powerful could their biggest nukes really be? Five hundred megatons? A billion?
Too small.
At the far end of the war table, Fleet Admiral Gorou clapped his hands. "We're expanding this war council. All commanders of mid-Captain rank and above are now seated members. The rest of you may remain and listen."
Masaki tugged on Hikaru's arm. "Let's go lean against a pillar or something. This war isn't ending any time soon—we need to learn how to conserve energy."
Hikaru blinked. "I… might not be able to stay with you."
Masaki frowned in confusion. "What do you mean? Wait, now that I think about it—how'd you even get in here? Come on, let's hide you somewhere. Take off your badge, quick—it's too flashy!"
But Hikaru didn't move. He was watching Indiana whisper something into Fleet Admiral Gorou's ear. Both of them looked straight at him. The Fleet Admiral gave a subtle nod.
Just then, a beautiful woman with flowing black hair strode up to him.
"Excuse me—are you Kuramoto Hikaru…?"
Masaki nearly had a heart attack while frantically helping Hikaru take off his badge. Was he caught? Were they going to throw him in the brig?
"I'm Hikaru. Can I help you?"
"I'm Inazuma, a destroyer shipgirl under Fleet Admiral Gorou's command. He invites you to attend the war council."
Masaki froze.
What.
The.
Hell?
The Fleet Admiral was inviting Hikaru to the council?
There's no way.
"My shipgirls?" Hikaru asked.
"They may accompany you."
"Alright then. Please thank the Fleet Admiral for me."
Inazuma left to find them seats.
Masaki stared after her, then at Hikaru.
"What year is it? Did we already win the war against the Abyssals or something?"
"Haha, quit clowning around." Hikaru patted his shoulder. "We'll talk later."
He was already on his way over—Yamato was waving him toward her.
[End of Chapter]
[50 Power Stones = Extra Chapter]
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