Northern Home Is Dead

Her Repulse; she already knew the answer in her heart, but she was unwilling to admit it.

Nero turned and looked intently at Repulse, his eyes unblinking, and said, "Repulse, do you believe me?"

"Of course!" Repulse nodded without hesitation, her trust in the admiral as a ship girl was almost unconditional.

"That's good!" Nero patted Repulse on the shoulder and laughed happily.

Upon hearing Repulse, Shengwang was taken aback, then burst into laughter.

"Yes, as a ship girl, all you need to do is trust your admiral unconditionally, and leave everything else to the admiral."

They trusted the admiral, and naturally believed that he would not betray their trust.

"Ah!!!" Xiao Ninghai shouted from afar, clutching his head, "Oh no! I forgot to cook!"

"Hahahaha!" The people around him laughed good-naturedly. How could they blame Ninghai? In fact, they had all forgotten about eating.

Yat Sen walked over and said, "We've already missed lunch. Let's go prepare now so we can start dinner earlier."

"Everyone is so happy today, we must prepare a sumptuous dinner to celebrate!"

Yat Sen's words drew cheers from everyone. It seemed that they could enjoy a delicious meal tonight, which was a double blessing.

As the boisterous crowd gradually dispersed, Hokusai excitedly ran back to her room. As soon as she entered, she loudly asked Katsushika Hokusai, who was already sitting on the sofa:

"Father, how is it? How is it?"

Katsushika Hokusai glanced at the beaming Hokusai, and he was naturally very satisfied with his daughter's performance.

But seeing Hokusai's proud and smug look, Katsushika Hokusai stretched out two tentacles and gestured.

That means you still have a long way to go.

Hokusai understood what her father meant. She glared at him and pouted like a little girl.

"Father, you can't judge this by your own standards!"

Of course, Hokusai didn't think she could compare to her father, Katsushika Hokusai; she considered herself far from reaching his level.

However, she was happy today and decided not to argue with her father.

Hokusai tossed her head and said, "I'm going to play with everyone now, I'm not talking to you anymore!"

Watching Hokusai rush in and then rush out, Katsushika Hokusai blinked, thinking to himself: Was I too strict? Perhaps I should praise her?

The naval base's dining hall is now bustling with activity, as those who haven't had lunch are eagerly awaiting dinner.

As soon as Hokusai entered the door, everyone cheered for her, as if welcoming an important guest.

"Hokusai, over here, over here!"

"Sister Hokusai! Sister Hokusai!"

Everyone was talking at once, making it noisy and chaotic.

Hokusai smiled and walked to an empty spot to sit down, answering everyone's greetings one by one.

Bang!

Yat Sen placed a large bowl of fragrant oil-splashed noodles in front of Hokusai.

"You must be hungry. Have a bowl of noodles to tide you over."

The aroma immediately filled the air, making the ship girls, who hadn't eaten lunch, even hungrier.

They all asked, "Yat Sen, is dinner not ready yet?"

Everyone was starving and couldn't wait to eat.

Yat Sen said, "Yours are not ready yet; this is specially prepared for Hokusai."

"Thanks!"

Hokusai is really hungry right now. Painting can be a very physically demanding activity, especially since she just created such a large mural. She is already so hungry that her stomach and back are practically hanging off.

"Then I won't be polite!"

Snoring!

Hokusai, ignoring the still-hot noodles, ate them in big mouthfuls, and they looked especially delicious.

However, this is a special treatment for Hokusai; others will still have to wait.

No one objected; everyone considered it perfectly reasonable for Hokusai to receive such privileges.

Everyone continued to joke around, patiently waiting for the big meal to come.

Today is a truly joyous day; the naval base is filled with the merriment of a festival.

Even Tirpitz, who usually stayed in his room and refused to leave, joined everyone in the cafeteria.

The children ran around energetically, chasing and playing with each other.

Several drunkards were already drinking in broad daylight, and the lack of snacks to go with their drinks couldn't stop them at all.

Chapter 26, Section 465 Northern Home Dies

Dinner was finally ready, much to everyone's anticipation.

Although it was still early and not dark yet, that didn't matter at all; everyone excitedly began scrambling for the food on the table.

The lively and joyful scene was also warm and harmonious, creating a very pleasant atmosphere.

Yuxian smiled and said to Mash, "This is really a nice place."

"Yes!" Mash nodded. "Chaldea used to be like this too. The dining hall was just as lively as it is now during mealtimes. It's a pity..."

She was reminded of the Chaldea dinner parties of the past, and felt deeply moved.

Yuxian comforted Mash, "Don't worry, aren't we making an effort? More and more people are being found, and one day Chaldea will return to its former bustling state."

Although Chaldea has finally regained its popularity and is no longer as deserted as it was at the beginning, it is still far from its heyday.

However, Yuxian believes that everyone will return someday, and he is working hard towards that goal.

Dinner started early but ended quite late; everyone seemed to be full of energy and the commotion lasted until very late.

On his way back to his room, Yuxian saw a man on the dock gazing at the distant sea.

Yuxian recognized that it was Hokusai.

He thought for a moment and quietly walked over and stood beside her.

"What are you thinking about?"

Hokusai turned her head slightly and looked at Yuxian, "I'm really going to be a little reluctant to leave here."

Yuxian sighed inwardly. As expected, the ship girls were simple-minded. After spending so much time with them, it was inevitable that Hokusai would develop feelings for them.

After a moment's thought, he said, "You can choose to stay here, that's fine."

Hokusai smiled, shook her head and said, "I'd rather not. The longer I stay, the more reluctant I'll be to leave. I understand that."

She continued, "I really can't imagine what kind of determination Nero must have had to leave here. Her feelings for the ship girls are so much deeper than mine."

She sighed deeply, "It's really hard to imagine such a scene. Perhaps that's why she was the emperor and I was just a painter."

Yuxian didn't know how to respond. As the Master of Chaldea, he naturally hoped that everyone would return.

However, this is a very painful thing for those who have already established deep bonds in other worlds.

Parting is always a particularly sad thing, no matter when.

Is the Master blaming himself?

Seeing that Yuxian hadn't spoken for a long time, Hokusai asked, with some suspicion.

"Actually, you don't need to think that way. You should know that we have lived in Chaldea for a longer time and have a deeper bond with each other."

"Furthermore, all the decisions were made by ourselves and have nothing to do with you, Master."

Hokusai explained slowly.

"But..."

Yuxian wanted to say something more, but Hokusai interrupted him.

She turned to Yuxian and teased, "Master doesn't actually think you're that charming, does he?"

Yuxian said irritably, "I know, I'm just a tool. I'm bad at management, bad at fighting, bad at logistics, bad at everything."

Hokusai Rong chuckled, "It's good that Master understands."

She smoothed her hair, which had been tousled by the sea breeze, and turned to leave.

After walking a few steps, Hokusai turned around and said, "Master isn't actually that useless. Don't underestimate yourself. You still have some merits."

Yuxian blinked hard and said with a wry smile, "Why do your words make me even sadder? You're not praising me, are you?"

"Of course I'm praising you, it's up to you to interpret it!"

Hokusai waved his hand and turned to leave, leaving Yuxian standing there helplessly shrugging his shoulders.

A few days later, it was finally time to leave.

Yuxian and his group stood in the center of the town hall's plaza, ready to be teleported back to Chaldea.

Everyone came to see them off.

Karna frowned and stood there without saying a word.

Yuxian knew what he was thinking and said with a smile, "It's okay, you can go back and visit when you have time, it's not a big deal."

Karna nodded and said, "Master, please be careful. There will be a more suitable person with you next time."

As he spoke, he glanced at Miyamoto Musashi, clearly displeased with Musashi's persistent drunkenness.

"Huh? Why am I not suitable!" Musashi immediately objected, rolling up her sleeves and glaring at Karna, "Don't think I'm afraid of you just because you're the Little Sun. Come on, let's have a fight!"

Karna didn't want to pay any attention to her; he wouldn't engage in a pointless battle.

"Tch!" Musashi thought it was pointless when Karna didn't respond.

She made the somewhat sad farewell easier in this way.

Elizabeth Báthory stepped forward and said to Yuxian, "Manager, I'll remember to send you a copy when I release my next album, don't worry!"

She remained as optimistic as ever, Yuxian put Yu Xian at ease. He then gestured to Arjuna and Karna with his eyes.

The two nodded knowingly.

Yuxian then looked at Nero and said to her, "Your Her Majesty, please continue your efforts and strive to overturn the deep sea as soon as possible."

"Mmm!"

"I will handle everything here."

As for Nero's matter, Yuxian won't say more. His Her Majesty the Emperor is a reliable person, and I believe he will definitely be able to handle it well.

On the other side, Hokusai was saying goodbye to everyone one by one.

She acted very freely, not at all like the teary-eyed girl I had imagined; instead, she was chatting and laughing.

There is always a time to say goodbye; in the end, it was time to leave.

"Hokusai ..."

Northern Home is Hokusai's best friend and also the one among the ship girls who is most reluctant to part with her.

Her expression was one of sadness and reluctance.

Hokusai looked at her and winked mysteriously at her.

Northern Home seemed to have received some kind of signal; his eyes darted around, and then he nodded heavily.

Yuxian and his group disappeared from the naval base before everyone's eyes and returned to Chaldea.