Chapter 72: The Guilty Ulrich

As soon as Lin Lan finished speaking, the usually aloof black-haired woman, Ulrich, embraced him.

Feeling Ulrich's warm hug and inhaling the coffee-like scent from her, Lin Lan finally felt as if he had truly come back to life.

Everything he experienced in the spiritual world felt like a nightmare.

"Commander, you're finally awake," Ulrich said, her cold tone softened with incredible tenderness and care.

Before Lin Lan could speak, his stomach growled loudly.

He suddenly felt an intense hunger.

According to the news, it had been three days since Ulrich destroyed the government building. 

He had likely been sustained by IV drips during these days, having eaten nothing.

"Commander, you must be hungry. I'll have Z23 and the others prepare some food for you right away."

Hearing Lin Lan's stomach growling, Ulrich reluctantly released him and gently placed him back on the pillow.

"Is this a hospital? I thought you guys would take me back to the port area," Lin Lan joked after seeing Ulrich, looking haggard, speaking to a communicator.

"It was Akashi who insisted we bring you to a hospital in the county. Our new port area doesn't have medical facilities."

Lin Lan was surprised. "Akashi? So she really came. I vaguely heard her talking to U1206 before, and I thought it was just a nightmare."

"She and U1206 did indeed take care of you in the hospital room all day yesterday. They set out with the Bismarck fleet from the Sakura Empire's base and were supposed to return to the Iron Blood fortress…" 

"But how could hearing them talk be a nightmare?"

Ulrich retrieved a pear from the bedside, peeled it with a small knife, and began slicing it into pieces.

Looking at Lin Lan with concern, she showed a puzzled expression.

Lin Lan sighed, realizing that the conversation he vaguely heard between the two lolis was not a dream.

But he couldn't very well tell Ulrich that he had actually woken up yesterday only to be knocked out again by that little schemer, Akashi.

"It's nothing, just a nightmare. Could you tell me what happened after I fainted?"

Ulrich cut the white pear into pieces and fed them to Lin Lan.

"Well, it's a long story."

A few minutes later, Lin Lan understood the series of events that had happened since he lost consciousness.

In summary, not long after he fainted, Zeppelin and others arrived with the Ironblood forces, and the Brunhilde fleet, which had been unexpectedly contacted by Zeppelin, also came.

Upon learning about Lin Lan's condition, Akashi, who was with the Brunhilde fleet, saw the monster inside him and proposed using Ryuuhou's exorcism charm to try and save him.

After applying the charm to his forehead and performing the exorcism ritual in miko attire, the effect was remarkable.

The monster within him was completely dispelled.

"I can't believe there was such a thing."

As Lin Lan finished the sweet pear, he marveled at the story.

He finally understood where the white light that saved him had come from.

The ancient demon army leader Abbott's mention of Liao Continent's miko and charms referred to the exorcism ritual performed by Akashi.

He hadn't expected his Sakura fleet to have such abilities.

But thinking carefully, it seemed to make sense.

Many of the Sakura fleet's ship girls were also priestesses, exorcists, or spirit mediums.

Through the game's illustrations and character voices, he learned that these ship girls weren't just cosplaying; they truly possessed these abilities.

The light aircraft carrier Ryuuhou, as an exorcist, could use charms to control aircraft in the game.

However, the idea that Akashi, the schemer, could also be considered a miko was hard for Lin Lan to accept.

Well, after all, she was both his lifesaver and his scheming wife, so he couldn't be too biased.

"Not accounting for the attack by such a strange creature and causing you such serious harm is my failure as the flagship."

"I will take the initiative to request a change of flagship with Bismarck and Frederick."

Lin Lan could detect a hint of negativity in Ulrich's tone.

Surprised, he looked at the visibly distressed Iron Blood ship girl and realized that Ulrich seemed to be attributing all the blame for his injury to herself.

Really, it's not your fault; that Ulrich...

Instinctively, Lin Lan tried to counter Ulrich's self-blame:

"There's no need for that, Ulrich. You've already done very well. Who could have predicted an attack from such an unknown monster?"

"As the flagship, I should have anticipated all possible emergencies. This isn't an excuse for my failure."

Ulrich gently shook her head, her tone carrying deeper self-reproach:

"If it weren't for Brunhilde and the others arriving with Akashi right away, you would…"

Her voice trailed off, becoming increasingly dejected, and she even lowered her head slightly.

This was the first time Lin Lan had seen the usually confident Ulrich show such emotion.

Ulrich was being too harsh on herself, deeply immersed in self-reproach that was putting her in a dangerous state.

He wanted to comfort her but wasn't sure how to do it.

Looking at Ulrich, who had always carried herself with confidence and a smile, with her dark yellow eyes now closed in deep regret, Lin Lan decided that he had to act quickly.

Taking a deep breath, he spoke sternly with a commanding tone:

"Ulrich, as your commander, I order you not to consider changing the flagship. For now, you are the flagship of the port area. My decision is final, and no one can override it."

"I won't allow you to continue blaming yourself for this incident. No one can calculate everything perfectly. Everything you did that day was already the best you could do!"

"Do you hear me, Ulrich?"

Lin Lan's words made Ulrich open her eyes, lift her head, and look at him in surprise.

The once pale-skinned, black-haired, and aloof woman now showed a slightly astonished expression on her tired face.

After meeting the unwavering gaze of her beloved commander, Ulrich and Lin Lan stared at each other for a long time.

Finally, she gave a soft smile, and a gentle smile reappeared on her face, which had previously seemed indifferent to outsiders.

Besides the relief in her expression, a blush began to rise on her cheeks.

"Heh, this is the first time I've heard you speak to us in this tone."

Ulrich's tone had lost the previous negativity.

The confidence that once defined this powerful Iron Blood battleship girl had returned.

"Ah, well, um…"

Seeing the familiar smile return to Ulrich's face, Lin Lan sighed in relief.

Realizing, thanks to Ulrich's reminder, that his tone had indeed been a bit too forceful in his urgency, he hurriedly started to apologize.

But before he could, Ulrich's soft body pressed close to him.

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