Chapter 27 - Weapon prototype

[ Akashi Shop. ]

 "Nyaaa~! I'm here nyaaaa~"

 In a small shop selling ship equipment and ammunition. A cat girl is seen busy carrying a box that says "Eagle Union Tech Box" with the number 4 on the outside. It is a box containing Eagle Union ship equipment with Elite or Super Rare rarity. The activity occurred because the Admiral of the Eagle Union nation gave an open invitation to other nations to conduct a submarine hunting exercise.

 The submarine in question is the mysterious USS Seawolf.

 The military operation carried out by the USS Seawolf is an action that violates Azur Lane security protocols. Officially, the USS Seawolf is not registered with the Eagle Union nation or the Azur Lane alliance. Because the conflict between ship girls and humanity has occurred and heated up, information about the illegal Seawolf program has been known to the Azur Lane alliance and forced the Eagle Union to stop the Seawolf program. The Eagle Union knows how big the conflict is to the safety of humanity and stops the Seawolf program to quell the futile conflict.

 As a final tribute and apology from the Eagle Union nation, a military operation to hunt for the Seawolf submarine will be carried out. Warning boards and invitation letters have been distributed to various nations to hunt for the USS Seawolf in the open sea.

 Previously, the Azur Lane military base was attacked by a surprise from the siren unit but was successfully controlled by a mysterious smoke screen and a mysterious submarine attack from the Eagle Union. The reactions given by other nations were surprise and curiosity about the smoke screen that damaged their ship's equipment. Strange effect such as jammers and signal boosters made them wonder about the technology being developed by the Eagle Union nation. To answer their curiosity, several nations participated in the Eagle Union submarine hunting military operation to measure the strength of their ships with the Eagle Union nation.

 "Akashi, do you have any spare parts for the PBY-5A Catalina?"

 "Hey! Akashi! I want to buy Hedgehog equipment!"

 "Akashi! We want to buy Depth Charge ammunition!"

 "Akashi! Sonar!"

 "Akashi!!"

 "Be patient nyaa~ this cat only has two hands.."

 From a distance, Helena noticed the hustle and bustle of Akashi's small shop then moved to the ghostly figure standing at the warehouse door while taking notes on the equipment coming out of the warehouse door.

 "Good morning, Shiranui. Are you busy?"

 Helena greeted the figure followed by two purple fireballs that flew after the figure in front of her. The figure was the IJN Shiranui, a destroyer from the Sakura Empire who worked in charge of the logistics of the Azur Lane alliance with Akashi.

 "Helena? It's unusual for you to come to this place. Is this related to the big event you're going to do?"

 "Ah, that... The rumor has reached your ears?"

 "Of course, with the siren attack that could be stopped quickly. The other nations are very interested in seeing the power of your mysterious submarine."

 "Then, maybe this will help you," Helena handed over a proposal paper containing a request to sell Eagle Union's special weapon. The special weapon in question was a small torpedo equipped with active sonar to search for its target.

 "Torpedo? Isn't that too small for a destroyer's conventional torpedo launcher?" Shiranui asked.

 "Yes, this is a lightweight torpedo being developed by Eagle Union to hunt siren submarines. The launch system uses a torpedo tube that is easy to install and remove. We will use this torpedo as a field test against the USS Seawolf."

 "I understand. What should I do?" Shiranui replied.

 "The Admiral just gave me a short message to sell and recommend this new torpedo to ships from the Eagle Union nation."

 "New technology from Eagle Union, huh? Can I see it?" Shiranui stopped her little activity and looked Helena in the eye seriously. A magical sentence uttered by Helena had caught Shiranui's attention.

 "T-That…" Helena tried to change the subject to Eagle Union's sensitive new technology.

 "Is that torpedo still a nations secret?" Shiranui asked.

 "Un!" Helena just nodded to answer Shiranui's question.

 "We also don't know whether it will succeed or fail," Helena said with shaky voice.

 "Then, I will wait for the stable and safe version. Warehouse number twelve has just been emptied and is ready for use. I will prepare a report on its use for Eagle Union."

 "Thank you, Shiranui. We were greatly helped by the report."

 After that brief conversation, several Manjuu lined up in front of the door of warehouse number twelve which slowly opened wide. Not long after that, a convoy of Eagle Union logistics vehicles was seen entering the warehouse area and stopping in front of the door of warehouse number twelve. The Manjuu who had been waiting worked together to unload the wooden boxes containing Eagle Union's light torpedoes.

 Helena and Shiranui watched the manjuu's work carefully. The slightest mistake would destroy the storage warehouse filled with active ammunition.

 "Helena, you made a new weapons factory? This company logo looks different from usual," said Shiranui.

 "Ah, that's because we made a new subsidiary of a retired former military official. His life's dedication to the safety of humanity made him stay on the front lines without being directly involved in establishing the factory."

 "By making a logistics chain for Eagle Union ships?"

 "Exactly."

 "Mark-50 torpedo? Besides the different sizes and shapes. Do you still use the same format for naming weapons? Is this a development of the Mark-28 torpedo?"

 "No, it's very different from the previous torpedo. This torpedo has a design that allows it to attack targets below the surface of the sea such as siren submarines."

 "Is it possible? That sounds like a fake and scam?"

 "That's right, this torpedo is still in the testing stage like the smokescreen used before."

 "Eh? That smokescreen is yours? As usual, you guys are always developing strange weapons every day."

 "Yes and... What about the Sakura Empire? Did you manage to develop that new weapon?" Helena asked.

 "That weapon? Ah.. The Yamato-class Triple 460mm Type 94?" Shiranui replied.

 "Un! The largest main gun of a Battleship ever made to create. Didn't the Iron Blood faction come up with the same idea to create a copycat version of it?"

 "That weapon may be very large, but it is rarely used in real battles. More precisely, Musashi and Yamato did not have the opportunity to use their main guns."

 "What a coincidence, this torpedo is also the same. The Mark-50 was just freshly created and will make its debut to search for targets in the depths of the sea. Regardless of size, a weapon will be useless if it is not used, right?" Helena said with a sweet smile.

 "That's right, as a Sakura Empire destroyer tasked with managing the Azur Lane alliance's weapons and ammunition. I had thought about throwing away unused weapons as toys for Sakura Empire's children."

 "S-Shiranui, that sounds terrible for someone who takes care of our logistics needs."

 "Don't worry, I only throw away weapons and ammunition that are past their use-by date."

 Without realizing it, the manjuu on duty had finished their work. The warehouse that was originally empty was slowly filled with wooden boxes belonging to Eagle Union.

 "Thank you, Shiranui. Your help has been very helpful to our nation. Ah! Before I forget. There is someone who offers you a ship retrofit."

 "Eh? Retrofit?" Shiranui replied.

 "Here's his business card, if you need a retrofit facility. Please contact the number listed on this business card." Helena gave Shiranui a business card that had a company logo on it.

 "Isn't this the same company that made the Mark-50 torpedo?" Shiranui asked.

 "Y-Yes, this is just an invitation to cooperate in the future, I guess…"

 "T-Thank you, I will use it if I have the chance."

 "We should be the ones thanking you for your help, Shiranui."

 Helena and Shiranui continued their conversation about the rental and administration fees that needed to be reported to Azur Lane.

 That same day, the sale of the Mark-50 torpedo became a hot topic for ships from the Eagle Union nation. Torpedoes that used the Acoustic Homing attribute were commonplace for submarines. However, technology that could use torpedoes up to a depth of 1,900 feet was a new toy for the ship girls. Moreover, the Acoustic Homing used by the Mark-50 torpedo used an active sonar system to chase its target.

 With that, hunting for siren submarines would become very fun.