The Abyssal Warships turned their main and secondary guns, calibrated their angles, and after aiming at Zuikaku, immediately fired a full broadside, hoping to sink her with their shells.
Watching the incoming shells fly toward her, Zuikaku, who was rushing toward the seven Abyssal Battleships, was very disdainful, continuously dodging. "You couldn't even hit me in your prime, so don't even dream of hitting me now with your weakened bodies."
Slash!
The flaming Tachi swung horizontally, directly cutting the Abyssal Battleship in front of her into two pieces. Amidst an explosion, it sank to the bottom of the sea, as dead as could be.
Having sunk one, Zuikaku's rigging beneath her feet exerted force. With a thump, it kicked up waves on the sea's surface. With a whoosh, her figure turned into an afterimage. When she reappeared, she was behind an Abyssal Battleship, her flaming Tachi thrust into its chest.
"One!" Pulling out the flaming Tachi, only six Abyssal Battleships remained on the scene. Zuikaku began to count each one she took down.
"Two!" An Abyssal Battleship's head was severed, and then Zuikaku delivered a horizontal kick, sending the body flying backward... "Six!" This last Abyssal Battleship actually tried to run, which gave Zuikaku a headache. 'Don't you Abyssals not run away? How can you violate your pride like this!' Not wanting to chase the Abyssal Battleship, Zuikaku aimed at its back and threw the Tachi directly. With a squelch, it hit the chest, and the Abyssal Battleship exploded and sank to the bottom of the sea.
Things were also going smoothly on Azuma's side. The strongest one here was only an Aircraft Carrier Wo-Class; although the three Wo-Class ships were a bit troublesome, fortunately, her skills were excellent. With the help of Yukikaze and Unicorn, they quickly eliminated all twenty-plus Abyssal Warships.
However, after Azuma and the other Ship Girls had eliminated the Abyssal Warships, they found that the abyssal mist had not dissipated. This strange phenomenon made Azuma feel uneasy.
"Strange! Why hasn't the sky cleared up yet, even though we've killed all the Abyssals?" Yukikaze said in confusion.
"This pitch-black weather makes me feel so uncomfortable!" Unicorn said with a bit of fear.
"Be careful! Don't let your guard down, or you could lose your life at any moment. I can tell you quite seriously that this phenomenon is not normal." Azuma became alert, constantly checking the surroundings, trying to find the cause of the problem.
"Maybe you're overthinking it. Perhaps this abyssal mist will dissipate in a moment." Zuikaku sheathed her sword, speaking very relaxed and naturally.
"Zuikaku! You'd better be careful. I also feel that this is abnormal," Shokaku said with a solemn expression.
"Sister Shokaku, why are even you saying that!" Sighing, Zuikaku was quite speechless. Why were there so many paranoid people! Azuma was like this, and now even Sister Shokaku was like this. Don't you all feel tired?
Just as Zuikaku sighed, Azuma detected an abnormality in the space near Zuikaku. She immediately spoke up. "Zuikaku! Danger! Get away from there!"
Clang! Bang!
With Azuma's warning, Zuikaku also sensed an abnormality behind her. She quickly drew her Tachi and blocked it in front of her chest to defend. However, because the attacker's strength was too powerful, she couldn't block all the force and was eventually sent flying backward.
The moment she flew back, a mouthful of fresh blood sprayed from her mouth, and her entire body erupted with a golden light. Everyone was familiar with this light; it was the Ship Girl's heavily damaged mechanism.
The Ship Girls couldn't help but gasp. Zuikaku's strength was obvious to everyone; her power ranked second in the Naval Base. Such a powerful Ship Girl had been heavily damaged by a single sneak attack.
If they were hit by this attacker, wouldn't they end up just like Zuikaku? Thus, all the Ship Girls became alert, not daring to act rashly. They focused all their attention on observing the surroundings, ready to launch an attack the moment they found any abnormality.
The launched Zuikaku lay on the sea's surface, but her sister didn't dare to go forward to check on Zuikaku's injuries. Because the newcomer was hostile, she couldn't rule out being ambushed while checking. It was best to stay with everyone to ensure safety; senseless emotional actions would only waste lives for nothing.
Azuma and the other Ship Girls focused their attention on the place where Zuikaku had been knocked away. Suddenly, a cloud of black mist appeared, and a snowy-white, slender hand reached out from within. "You have some skill. I didn't expect you wouldn't be sunk after taking one of my hits."
The black mist expanded into a human shape. Before long, a black-haired loli wearing a Gothic Lolita dress walked out. She wore a large Gothic dark-style headband, and her slender, beautiful legs were encased in black silk stockings, making one unable to resist wanting to touch them at a glance.
Everyone carefully observed the loli before them. She had black hair and crimson eyes, and coupled with that ominous resentment that made Ship Girls feel uncomfortable, she was a special Abyssal—an Abyssal Princess possessing Ship Qi. Her strength was at least Nightmare-Tier.
The Ship Girls began to grow nervous. Nightmare Abyssals were incredibly powerful, and Gold-Plated Ship Girls simply couldn't compete with them.
Looking at the Ship Girls around her, the black-haired girl released a wave of pressure, bearing down on Azuma and the others.
This pressure was incredibly powerful, instantly pinning Yukikaze and Unicorn down. Their entire bodies were pressed against the sea surface like dead fish, unable to move a muscle.
"So strong! Is this the power of a Nightmare Abyssal? As expected, it's this powerful, truly terrifying." Azuma gripped her rigging Tachi tightly, using all her strength to resist the pressure, barely managing to keep from collapsing.
Besides Azuma, Shokaku also hadn't been pinned down by the pressure, but her body was trembling slightly, her silver teeth clenched. She looked like she was struggling to resist. "How could it be a Nightmare Abyssal? No one here can defeat her! Are they doomed today?"
Just how strong was a Nightmare Abyssal? They were existences that killed Gold-Plated Ship Girls like slaughtering chickens. Some stronger Gold-Plated Ship Girls might have a bit of resistance, but Ship Girls below that level couldn't even fight back, pinned down directly by the pressure.
"First, let me introduce myself. I am Island Princess, a Five-Star Nightmare Deep Sea!" Island Princess said with great contempt. "Though your strength is decent, you're not worth mentioning in my eyes. You killed all my servants, so we are now mortal enemies. But don't worry, I am a very kind-hearted person."
"A kind-hearted Abyssal? You're not afraid of making people die of laughter by saying that," Azuma mocked.
"You don't believe me? Fine. As long as you kill all the Ship Girls here, I can let you go. How about it? Don't you feel lucky? Don't you feel at ease? No need to thank me, it's just because I'm a good person." Pointing her finger at Azuma, Island Princess spoke with extreme malice.
Azuma glanced at them and then fell into deep thought, making Shokaku, Yukikaze, and Unicorn nervous. Azuma wouldn't really want to kill them, would she? Although they were all Ship Girls from the same Naval Base, it was entirely possible she'd choose to kill them to save her own life when threatened.
Azuma moved, her back to Island Princess, facing Yukikaze and Unicorn. She lowered her body and placed her rigging Tachi into its scabbard, assuming a draw-sword stance. "Sorry! Yukikaze, Unicorn... compared to seeking death by fighting a Nightmare Abyssal, I think it's better to kill you. Only then can I survive."
"Don't worry, as the Admiral's Ship Girls, I'll be ruthless so you die without any pain."
Azuma's voice was icy, making Shokaku even more terrified. She hadn't expected Azuma to be such a brutal Ship Girl. They were clearly all Ship Girls of the Illustrious Naval Base, yet she dared to kill them. Even if she survived, wasn't she afraid of the Admiral's fury once he found out? "Azuma! Yukikaze and Unicorn are our companions! They aren't our enemies, that Nightmare Abyssal is! Don't be foolish!"
"I know that without you telling me! But don't forget, you are my love rivals. Don't think I don't know what you're thinking. You all want to become the Admiral's Wife Ship, and I won't tolerate that." Azuma said with a face full of anger.
"The Admiral is mine, and can only be mine. None of you should think of stealing the Admiral from my side. As long as I kill you all, I can become the Admiral's Wife Ship. Without competitors, it means I can safely secure the position of Wife Ship."
"If the Admiral finds out you killed us, he will definitely avenge us and kill you," Shokaku warned.
"He won't know. As long as I kill you all, naturally, no one will know about this," Azuma said with a fierce expression.
The conversation had completely broken down. There was no other way. Having reached this point, Shokaku sighed and said, "Azuma! If you're really determined to be this heartless, fine! But don't think we'll just let you sink us without a fight."
Shokaku gripped her flute tightly, intending to stop Azuma the moment she moved to kill Yukikaze and Unicorn. Could she let Azuma kill their companions? Of course not. If the Admiral knew she did nothing while watching Azuma kill their comrades, it would ruin her image in the Admiral's eyes!
A wave of killing intent swept toward Shokaku, causing her heart to sink into an abyss. She turned her head and saw it was Island Princess; her expression instantly turned grim.
Island Princess was warning Shokaku not to interfere. If she dared to stop it, Island Princess would be the first to kill her. This made Shokaku afraid to act. To avoid being misunderstood by Island Princess, she even moved her rigging flute behind her back, putting on a show of not intending to move.
Seeing that Shokaku wouldn't intervene, Island Princess was very satisfied. She turned her gaze back to Azuma, while Yukikaze and Unicorn, whom Azuma was about to kill, had terrified looks in their eyes, appearing quite frightened.
This was normal; after all, who isn't afraid of death? It would be abnormal not to be afraid. Island Princess loved watching Ship Girls kill each other most of all. Seeing her kill her own companions with her own hands made her feel an irrepressible joy.
As for whether Island Princess would let Azuma go after she killed all the Ship Girls, Island Princess naturally had no intention of doing so! Only a fool would let her go. Once Azuma killed all the Ship Girls here, Island Princess would move to finish her off.
Azuma's potential was very strong; Island Princess could tell at a glance that she had the potential to become an Epic Ship Girl in the future. How could Island Princess let an enemy who would threaten her in the future go?
"Sister Azuma, do you really want to kill me?" Unicorn said pitifully, like an abandoned puppy.
"Don't look at me with those eyes. Doing that only makes me more determined to kill you. After all, who knows if the Admiral likes lolis," Azuma said, her expression becoming even more resolute.
"You can't kill Unicorn! If you're going to kill someone, kill me first!" Unicorn was the first person to accept her; how could Yukikaze let her die? Yukikaze roared from the side.
Unicorn was deeply moved: Yukikaze, you're so good. I didn't expect you to be so loyal. We've clearly only known each other for a short time, yet you're looking out for me like this.
Unicorn shouted, "Thank you, Yukikaze, but I won't let you die. Sister Azuma, if you're going to kill someone, kill me."
"Stop talking! Who told you I'm only killing one of you? I'm going to kill all of you. None of you will escape," Azuma said mercilessly.
A flash of light erupted as Azuma drew her Tachi. A sword qi two zhang wide shot out violently from the draw.
The power of the sword qi was extremely formidable. As soon as it was released, the air in its path was completely cleared, leaving only the sound of air rushing back in, hinting at the sharpness of that strike.
But surprisingly, the target of this sword qi wasn't Yukikaze or Unicorn, but Island Princess, whom no one expected.
Bang!
That's right, Island Princess was sent flying. Island Princess hadn't expected this sword qi to be aimed at her. She had originally thought Azuma really wanted to kill the Ship Girls here, so she had lowered her guard against Azuma.
At that moment, Azuma's expression had been so serious that she fooled everyone. They all thought Azuma wanted to kill the Ship Girls just to become the Admiral's Wife Ship.
Because of this, Island Princess was careless. She didn't dodge and was struck by the sword qi. If you ask if it hurt Island Princess—of course it hurt!
If it were an ordinary Gold-Plated Ship Girl, Island Princess might not have felt much power, but Azuma was strangely strong.
From her ability to resist Island Princess's pressure, one could tell her strength was not simple. The power of this sword qi had already reached the full-strength blow of an ordinary Three-Star Epic Ship Girl. Why was Azuma so strong? Could it be she was about to break through to Three-Star Epic Ship Girl?
If that was the case, Island Princess couldn't help but gasp. Azuma's aura suggested she had been born no more than three months ago. To be breaking through to Three-Star Epic Ship Girl so quickly... this girl was truly terrifying and must not be allowed to live!
In the brief moment she was flying backward, Island Princess thought of many things before finally crashing into the sea.
"Everyone, let's retreat quickly back to the Naval Base. The Naval Base has a Silver Barrier left by the Admiral, which can withstand attacks from a Five-Star Nightmare Deep Sea," Azuma said loudly.
Hearing this, the other Ship Girls realized that Azuma's attempt to kill them was a ruse. Her real goal was to ambush Island Princess to allow for a tactical retreat back to the Naval Base.
Yukikaze pulled Unicorn and started running toward the Naval Base, while Shokaku carried the heavily damaged Zuikaku on her back, sliding forward on her rigging.
The group of Ship Girls rushed toward the Illustrious Naval Base. In the retreating party, Azuma stood at the rear to prevent Island Princess from attacking the group.
Would that Nightmare Abyssal die from Azuma's full-strength sword qi?
No! If a Nightmare Abyssal were that easy to kill, they wouldn't be called Nightmare Abyssals.
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