Chapter 97: How Could My Ship Girls Have Any Bad Intentions?
By the time Lin Lan and Rupprecht returned to the hotel, it was already nearing midnight.
Lin Lan had booked a luxury suite on the top floor of the hotel.
After taking the elevator up and arriving at their room, he opened the door, and the two of them walked inside.
Upon entering, the spacious room's luxurious dark decor made Lin Lan gasp in surprise, prompting him to exclaim,
"This money was well spent; the room's decor is quite nice."
However, while Lin Lan gave the room such a high evaluation, Rupprecht was not satisfied.
"This room is too small, clearly inferior to our Iron Blood dormitory."
Hearing the pink-haired dragon girl's words, Lin Lan thought back to his experiences at the Iron Blood Fortress.
It did seem to be the case. After all, this room was just a hotel; it couldn't compare to the style of a real castle.
"That's why I suggested returning to the port area directly, but you insisted on staying in the city for the night," he replied helplessly to Rupprecht.
He was about to head for a shower when he was suddenly embraced by the pink-haired girl.
"No, at the port, you're everyone's Commander."
Lin Lan listened to the girl's soft whispers, puzzled by what Rupprecht meant.
But in the next moment, he saw her eyes, misty and focused intently on him.
"But tonight, I want you to be mine alone."
"Rupprecht..."
Before Lin Lan could finish his sentence, the pink-haired dragon girl had already risen on her toes and kissed him deeply.
Seconds passed.
"Hmm, hmm, hmm~"
Lin Lan, whose thoughts had been interrupted by the girl's sweet kiss, looked at her seductive figure.
She licked her lips and brushed her long pink hair behind her back, a mischievous smile on her face like that of a child who had successfully pulled off a prank.
"Tonight, you belong to me, Rupprecht. This is the price for leaving us before. Tonight, we must go wild~"
With her tender confession, she pushed him onto the room's large, soft bed.
Lin Lan saw the delicate Iron Blood dragon girl now sitting atop him, her adorable face filled with love.
He wanted to say something, but he found himself at a loss for words.
In the game, Rupprecht had appeared as a part of the fifth phase of research, but her in-game strength wasn't all that impressive.
Even the oath ring was given to her based on Lin Lan's principle of not neglecting any of his ship girls.
To be honest, by then, Lin Lan was no longer as attentive to the new ship girls joining the port as he had been at the beginning.
He no longer took the time to read their lines and learn their backstories.
This was a secret he'd kept buried in his heart, something he dared not share with anyone.
He hadn't taken the time to get to know Rupprecht.
Simply because her strength didn't rank among the top, he ignored the love this dragon girl had for him.
Even now, having been transported to this world and resolved to change, the mistakes of his past continued to haunt him.
"Then, I shall begin now, hmm~"
The dragon girl had no idea what was going through Lin Lan's mind.
She looked down at him, a satisfied, arrogant laugh escaping her lips, like a true dragon surveying the precious treasures within her lair.
But suddenly, Lin Lan reached out and wrapped his arms around her slender waist.
"Huh, huh? You—?"
Lin Lan's sudden move left Rupprecht momentarily stunned.
Lin Lan, lying beneath her, wore an expression of guilt as he gazed up at her flustered face.
He had finally decided to voice everything in his heart.
"Rupprecht, ever since you were born, I haven't spent much time focusing on you. You know that, right..."
Lin Lan knew that now might not be the right time to say these things.
Although he had never viewed his ship girls as mere game data, he had grown numb over time due to the monotony and demands of his work.
This was a hurdle he had never been able to overcome.
Now, with the dragon girl about to deepen their bond, his conscience urged him to confess his feelings to his ship girls and seek their forgiveness.
Otherwise, he would forever feel unworthy of his ship girls and the love they held for him.
Only by facing his past mistakes and obtaining forgiveness from those involved could he truly move forward and make amends.
"Because of work, I didn't take the time to understand your true feelings and hobbies, and I ignored you because I was only concerned with your combat strength..."
"I'm sorry for never..."
Lin Lan continued speaking to himself, but in the next second, he felt something press against his chest.
Rupprecht had bent down again, silencing him with another kiss.
The sweet scent of youth from the pink-haired dragon girl filled his nostrils.
"What a fool," she muttered.
After a long kiss, Rupprecht lay on Lin Lan's chest, her tone carrying a touch of girlish irritation:
"You've got it wrong. You have always been mine, not the other way around."
"From the moment you created me, from the first time I saw you, you have always belonged to me."
"And besides, I don't know about anyone else, but everyone I know in the port, including those who joined after me, has never complained about you."
"All of us have only wished you could recover from your exhaustion soon."
Rupprecht's misty gaze and her words sent a shiver down Lin Lan's spine.
As it turned out, he didn't need to express his worries to the ship girls.
Because his ship girls had never blamed him, always offering him their sincerest love.
All he needed to do was cherish himself and avoid falling into the same numbness and apathy as before, which was the best way to atone for his past actions.
Having finally figured everything out, Lin Lan no longer hesitated.
He would use his actions to repay his ship girls.
"Huh? Why do I feel like your eyes and aura have changed? W-wait, what are you doing—mm!"
Rupprecht was surprised to find that Lin Lan's entire demeanor had transformed.
But they had a whole night ahead to explore this change further.
...
As the sky outside the large floor-to-ceiling windows began to lighten, Lin Lan slowly opened his drowsy eyes.
In his arms lay the exhausted yet content pink-haired girl.
Lin Lan woke up at around seven, as usual.
He realized that his body didn't feel tired at all; instead, he felt refreshed.
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