Gull Island.
A spring-like island with a mild climate, pleasant and livable.
The Marine 329 Branch Base stood right by the harbor, a cluster of tall, white buildings that stood out from afar.
Nao tried to keep a low profile when he arrived.
His original plan was just to have the base assist him in locating Rear Admiral Chishio's residence, but the moment he stepped through the door, the entire base was thrown into an uproar.
Marines who had been in training rushed over to join the spectacle, eager to catch a glimpse of Nao's "presence."
Within moments, the entrance to the base was packed wall-to-wall with a dense crowd.
Nao was a bit overwhelmed. Only now did he fully realize just how famous Gion was in the hearts of the younger generation of Marines. She wasn't just well-known—she was practically a living legend.
It made sense. In her early twenties, Gion had already risen to the rank of Rear Admiral at Marine Headquarters. She was also renowned as the most beautiful woman in the Marines, a future swordmaster, with a dazzling array of titles. How could she not attract fervent admiration?
She was, in every sense of the word, a "blossom on a high mountain."
Thankfully, the base's commanding officer—Captain Bako—arrived just in time to smooth things over.
With a stern demeanor, he quickly dispersed the onlookers, then personally escorted Nao to the reception room, where they sat on a wide sofa in front of a tea table.
Once they were alone, Captain Bako's demeanor shifted entirely.
"Rear Admiral Gion, I've already sent someone to retrieve Rear Admiral Chishio's address. We should have the information within ten minutes," he said, rubbing his hands with an ingratiating smile. "If there's anything else you need, just say the word. I'll do my utmost to make it happen."
His groveling attitude made Nao frown slightly in discomfort.
Nao wasn't naïve; he had no strong opinions against political maneuvering. But the Marines weren't the World Government. Regardless of what form their justice took, at the end of the day, they were marines.
And marines should at least have a marine's spine.
"Thank you. I appreciate your help."
Nao responded with polite indifference, lowering his gaze to sip his tea and saying nothing more.
His distant tone immediately discouraged Bako, who had been hoping to curry favor. Realizing he was unwelcome, the captain offered a stiff salute and sensibly stationed himself at the door to play the part of a guard, no longer daring to interrupt the big shot from Headquarters.
A short while later, Chishio's exact address was delivered to the reception room.
Nao expressed his thanks again. Without lingering at the 329th Branch any longer, he left under Captain Bako's fawning escort and made his way toward the indicated location.
"She lives in a small village outside the city…?"
Nao glanced at the address information, his mind turning. "It seems Gion was right. Rear Admiral Chishio must indeed dislike crowds. She's probably a naturally reserved and solitary person."
Such people tended to be stubborn and set in their ways, making it difficult to change their minds.
This was going to be tricky.
In any case, once they met, he needed to first figure out exactly why she had abruptly resigned from the Marines and vanished three years ago.
Identify the root cause, then address it directly.
Nao's strategy was clear.
He hadn't even realized that over these few days of close contact with Gion, the way he thought of her had subtly shifted. Somewhere along the line, "Rear Admiral Gion" in his mind had simply become "Gion."
"Now that she doesn't have to babysit me anymore, Gion can finally enjoy a few days of peace and quiet," he mused, glancing up at the sky. "Hmm, it's almost noon. She's probably finished catching up on sleep and is now in the main training room, instructing the girls."
Back at the training room entrance, he had confidently assured Rosinante that Gion's one-on-one guidance sessions involved too much physical contact for any of the male recruits to participate.
Who would have thought he'd become the first exception? And for three whole days, no less.
Life was truly unpredictable.
Suddenly, Nao remembered the system's side mission: "The Superior's Confession." His mind stirred with a mischievous idea.
The mission description only required Gion to say the words "Nao, I like you." There were no further conditions—no need for mutual attraction or even for her to develop feelings.
So… if he used Gion's mouth to say those words himself, would the system recognize it as mission completion?
Glancing around at the empty countryside path, he lowered his voice and softly murmured:
"Nao, I like you."
Hearing those words in Gion's voice made his heart feel strangely ticklish… and a little giddy?
Shaking his head to clear the thought, he quickly checked the system's mission panel. As expected, the title still displayed a dim yellow question mark, indicating the mission was incomplete.
So, no shortcuts after all.
Nao sighed and was about to close the system panel when a new notification popped up in the information bar.
[Bella Mia has completed initial affection. Flirtatious relationship established.]
[Player awarded first-level points: 900 points]
[Romantic relationship not yet established. Please continue efforts to complete the final conquest for second-level rewards.]
"…Huh?"
Nao was stunned.
Mia—he vaguely remembered her. The blue-haired recruit he'd spoken with two or three times. Not particularly close. In fact, he'd even mixed her up with Shia, the girl who'd boldly confessed her feelings.
How had he suddenly completed initial affection with her?
His first thought was that the system was clearly buggy—after all, he hadn't even made it out of the "tutorial village," so how could it suddenly trigger this? But before he could think further, a new flood of notifications appeared, forcing him to refocus.
[Shureya has completed initial affection. Flirtatious relationship established.]
[Player awarded first-level points: 500 points]
[Milando Flower has completed initial affection. Flirtatious relationship established.]
[Player awarded first-level points: 600 points]
[Monica has completed initial affection. Flirtatious relationship established.]
…
The notifications kept pouring in, faster and faster, like a stream of bullet comments.
"Three, four, five…"
At first, Nao tried to count how many names appeared, but soon he couldn't keep up. He could only stare blankly as the message log scrolled madly.
After several seconds, the notifications finally stopped. Nao scrolled back to tally them, and his eyes widened in shock—
Twenty-six.
Every single one of them was a female recruit from the same elite training program.
"…No, this isn't a bug."
Realizing this, Nao's brows furrowed. A sudden realization dawned on him.
The system notifications—could they be connected to Gion, who was still using his body back on the ship?