Bab 3

It's been a few days since Dalian and I arrived in this strange world. We've gotten accustomed to things now and have formed stronger bonds with the girls of Dragon Empery who have taken to calling me their Empress. It's amusing, to say the least, but I'm quite certain they don't really mean it in the way it could be taken. After all, why would anyone make someone they just met their monarch? 

Regardless, we've been aiding them in reconstruction, particularly to our home port in Liaoning. Together, both Dalian and I were able to modify their existing infrastructure to work with our more advanced designs. Of course, we are limited by the technology of this time but at the very least we can now make repairs if we are damaged. Now Dalian and I are sitting on the beach near the naval base basking in the sun.

Dalian: I miss the noise.

Surprised at her remark, I turn to face her. She's looking out to sea seemingly lost in thought. Unsure of whether she was speaking directly to me or merely thinking out loud, I decide to respond but keep my voice low enough that if she isn't speaking to me, she won't notice I spoke. 

Me: Too quiet here?

Dalian: Fewer people. Fewer vehicles. Less noise.

 Me: I don't know. It has its own charm. Back home you'd be hard-pressed to find this same beach not rolled with people. 

She laughs, turning to face me, wrapping her legs beneath her in the process. 

Dalian: So you prefer it here then.

Me: Well, I never really got to experience much of our world so I can't say which I'd prefer.

A look of guilt passes over her facial features and she looks away but I reach up and turn her face back towards mine. 

Me: Hey, it's not your fault. 

Dalian: You keep saying so but I can't forget that we were there. I was there solely to protect you and I failed.

Me: No. You kept my sailors safe and made sure everyone made it back safely. 

Dalian: But-

Me: No buts. It was my own crew's lack of experience that ultimately led to my demise. You more than outperformed yourself in keeping the enemy at bay for hours allowing me to complete the mission I had set out to do. 

She doesn't seem too convinced but she relents knowing that this isn't a fight she can win. Leaning down, she rests her head in my lap. We stay like this for a while until someone interrupts our peaceful retreat. 

Tai: Uhm-

Me: Ready?

Tai: Yep.

Me: We'll be there soon.

As soon as Tai Yuan leaves, Dalian groans and buries her head even further into my lap. Giggling to myself, I run my fingers through her hair before leaning down to whisper in her hair. 

Me: I thought you preferred noise.

She bolts up and I burst into laughter once more as she fans away my attempts to pull her back into my lap. After a few more teases here and there, we both stand and begin making our way to the base. It's a short but scenic walk which Dalian doesn't fail to take full advantage of, stopping every so often to point out the indigenous fauna all around us. Still, I can't help but feel she's merely delaying the inevitable and soon enough, we join the others on the pier.

Yat-Sen: We've spoken at length about it and we've agreed to make you our leader. 

Me: What? Why?

Yat-Sen: That alternative was considered but this decision isn't just my own or the other girls here but that of the people of Dragon Empery as well. Ever since your arrival you've been a beacon of hope. Not to mention the work you've done improving our facilities both civilian and military. Everyone, myself included, loves and adores you.

Me: I only did what anyone in my position would do. Besides, I'd hardly consider such work worthy of such reward. Certainly not over everyone else's years of service. 

Ying: I'm actually surprised at your reluctance to take the role given you initially pointed out the need for us to have a capital ship.

Me: True but I said so under the assumption that you'd already had someone in mind.

Yat-Sen: We do. That person is you.

Ying: And if you think about it it also makes the most strategic sense since you have much more advanced systems than our entire fleet combined. Any other choice would merely result in you operating as an intermediary instead since your infrastructure would still be necessary to detect enemies and communicate at long range. 

Dalian: They're not wrong. It's how you and I identified each other despite being far out of range of their sensors. 

Yat-Sen: Precisely, and no doubt you know tactics that could prove vital to our survival. Right now we're cut off from our allies by distance and the fact that our enemies are perfectly positioned in between our mainland and theirs. This means that we can't depend on others to defend our waters so even without all your other qualities, your ability to detect vessels at incredible range would be enough to warrant having you as our command vessel.

Me: I suppose, but I was of the inclination that I'd be living a nice quiet life without paperwork.

Dalian: I'll help you, though what should we call you?

Me: What do you mean?

Dalian: Well, you are now the leader-

Me: Hey now, I didn't agree to anything yet.

Dalian: We both know you're not going to refuse so it leaves your title.

Me: Why can't we just stick to my name? 

Yat-Sen: Well, while that might work for us addressing you directly, it'd be more convenient to use a title to introduce you to those of other nations. 

Dalian: Not to mention you could get to be addressed by a cool title!

 Chao: Why not just stick to what we've been playing around with so far? 

Ying: You mean Empress? 

Chao: Yeah. It makes the most sense since technically we are an Empire of sorts. 

Dalian: Oh yeah. Empery is another name for Empire. 

Yat-Sen: I agree. Empress sounds perfect. 

Me: Why do I feel like I have no say in this entire ordeal?

Dalian: Hehe. Well...

We continue talking for some time with various ideas being pitched but in all honesty, I doubt they could ever come up with something more fitting than Empress and in the end, that's what they choose. At some point, Dalian redesignates herself as my self-proclaimed protector to which no one argues, perhaps noticing how overprotective she's been of me ever since our reunion. Yat-Sen agrees to operate as a secretary (assistant) thus finalizing our meeting. To assist with her new role, she undergoes a small retrofit which sees a significant upgrade to her communications system thanks to a few spare parts that were found in Dalian which were meant for the South Sea Fleet.