126 . Enemy Site Inspection 1
“My mother told me that I shouldn’t talk to strangers …” (Mitsuha)
Ultimate skill [Act like a child]!!
It’s been a long time, since I used this…
“Eh…”(Soldier)
Un, he’s troubled! From his point of view, he can only see me as a 12 to 13 years old girl! …No, I’m not happy at all!
The young soldier who called to me was around 20 years old . Looking at the rank badge, it is a rank equivalent to a senior soldier by earth’s standard . I remembered the ranks of the captured battleship crews .
“Wait, No, I’m not suspicious!” (Soldier)
“My mother told me that every suspicious person says that…” (Mitsuha)
“Ugh…” (Soldier)
Alright, he’s troubled!
…tte, I bullied him too much huh, I feel bad for him . He just doing his job after all, he doesn’t have bad intentions .
“I’m waiting because my father isn’t coming back . It’s been quite a while since the Cariard left the port…” (Mitsuha)
The Cariard is one of the three captured battleships .
“Uh… . ” (Soldier)
The soldier is unable to think of anything to say .
Well that’s because something like expeditionary fleet is the same as gambling . Aside from getting any result, it wasn’t guaranteed for it to return safely . No, the chances of returning aren’t that high… In fact, it will not return .
Moreover, He can’t possibly tell a little girl that [They are unlikely to return safely] .
“Do you know something about it?” (Mitsuha)
“Ah, no, umm, I-I’m not sure because I’m in a different department . Well then, excuse me…” (Soldier)
After saying that, the soldier walks away .
Alright, I won!
Maybe the soldier from earlier was a security guard .
Particularly, this is not on the premises of the military, and the appearance of the military ship is not classified either, so there is no problem viewing the ships from here . The others also sightseeing here . The only reason he approached me was that he just worried because a little girl was sitting alone in such a place .
… don’t tell me, he’s picking me up?
Nonono, it’s bad… Here, I should look like 12 – 13 years old girl . it’s not so bad if it’s a 14 – 15 years old boy, but…
“You alone? Do you want to drink tea at the café?” (Boy)
Gyaaaaa!!!
A 14 – 15 years old boy called out to me!!
U~n, Power of Words, what fearful thing!!
The boy dressed like a newbie sailor .
That’s right, the adult age here is fifteen, so if the army recruits many young people, of course, those of that age will also be recruited… Or worse, even younger people may be recruited as a child soldier or an elementary military student .
There are many tasks that even children can do, such as chores, messenger on board, lookouts, and taking care of officers .
And the rest of the soldiers will take turns . Because not everyone at the base will rest at the same time . Also, there may be various things like night shift . So, it’s no wonder if young people are off on weekdays . And in this era, the only women in the army would be just the clerks at ground facilities or aunts at mess hall, there would be no other women . Especially when it comes to teenage girls…
That’s a sweet bait! If a girl who might be interested in warships was sitting alone in such a place, then…
Normally, of course, I will promptly refuse .
But my mission this time is [to collect information]! Yeah, information sources that seem to be useful are valuable .
I’ve heard from all of the captured crews what recruits know, but it’s been a while since they left .
The difference in the freshness of information is as large as the difference in the amount of known information between lower-ranking officers and senior officers . The rudimentary thing is to hear from the bottom officer before getting any important information from the senior officer . It is more efficient and reduces the probability of suspicion .
With that in mind, I slightly casted my eyes down, and shyly replied .
“…y-yes…” (Mitsuha)
I have experienced something like called by a boy!! And I also can act like what a boy would like!!
I was called when I was in 2nd year in high school, and the other day when I was in junior high school!
I refused on the spot though, damn it!
Also, there was a senior that asked me out!
… It was a female senior though!! What do you mean by [I want you to be my petite soeur]!!
(Note: Lmao . For anyone who doesn’t know French, “petite soeur” = “little sister”)
Damn it!!
Hah hah… (Gasping SFX)
No, leaving that aside!
“Some shops are already open this time . Let’s go there!” (The Boi)
The boy who called out to me couldn’t believe that he had succeeded . With a flustered face, he hastily turned back . Umu, here is for once, the elder sister turns to be the lead…
“Yes, I got it!” (Mitsuha)
And we arrived at a cafe just a short walk from the place we were just at .
The seats are not terrace seats, but table seats inside the store .
In this area, the price seems to be different depending on the seat, even if it is the same menu at the same store .
The highest is the terrace seats, and the cheapest are the counter seats . The table seats in the store are in the mid-range . The price between the terrace seats and counter seats seems to be about 2-3 times different .
I didn’t want to spend too much money on a boy who was just a child from my point of view, so I said that I could use a counter seat, but as a boy, it seemed unacceptable .
Actually, he wanted to use terrace seat, but apparently there was a problem other than the money . … Yeah, because [this place is right next to the naval base], he said .
Because it is a large base, the number of soldiers who are off today is a lot . And, of course, among them, there are colleagues, seniors, and superiors, which many of them have neither wives nor girlfriends .
And the terrace seats stand out .
Yeah, well, that’s that…
“a Café” (Boy)
“I’d like a Café Allongé please” (Mitsuha)
We ordered a drink from the waiter and chatted for a while .
Ah, he doesn’t seem hungry because he goes out after eating a free breakfast at the mess hall . I also had breakfast at the inn, so only drinks .
Soldier … It’s a bit uncomfortable to say that a 15-year-old boy is a [Soldier], but here he is a respectable adult and a full-fledged member of society . It’s bad to call him [boy], and to me he looks like 18 – 19 years old… .
The [Marine] seems to give an image of the army, and the [Sailor] is also referred as [Junior Officer] who is non-commissioned officer . So, to avoid being rude… then, isn’t [Militant] safe…?
Well, at any rate, it’s a conversation!
No, I too, can manage if it’s just to talk with boys .
“Thank you for the invitation! Are you a sailor? Or, ground duty?” (Mitsuha)
First, let’s hear the affiliation of the other party . This changes the direction of the information and the reliability . It’s hard to say something like [I don’t know] when asked by a girl, a boy of this age is absolutely determined to say something appropriate . So, I have to judge the credibility here .
“Sa-sailor! I’m on the new 64-gates ship, Leviathan, amazing right!” (Boy)
(Note: 64-gates where gates here is linked to the number of guns on board)
Alright, it’s a hit!
Even ground duty staff could have good information . But it must be a certain class or higher and a person who is assigned to the above information . However, if you are a sailor, even the lower one has some good information in general . Like the performance of the ship, the weapons on board, the planned action …
And young sailors usually have high self-esteem .
The Navy isn’t just composed of sailors . The ship’s operation is supported by people working on ground . So, not all department working on board . However, young sailor tends to think that they are going to the battlefield by the ship and that they are great . Moreover, from the story of the captured crews and the state of the seized ship, the 64 gates seem to be state-of-the-art ships . The seized ship has 40-gates .
Militant… No, he’s clearly younger than me, and it’s awkward addressing him this way . Well, let’s settle by [Militant-kun]!
So, this militant-kun probably thinks of me as [a little daughter of a wealthy immigrant house] . I don’t think if it’s ever crossed his mind that I, who appeared to be a 12 – 13 years old girl, was a spy . And a spy wouldn’t bother using exotic features that stands out . Also, there’s no way for a spy to deal with lower ranks .
… No, he won’t even think that far . He’s still around 15 years old boy after all…
Even though my clothes are expensive from public point of view, from a normal boy’s point of view the will only look like [the clothes of a common girl who worked hard to dressed up] .
Boys are completely clueless at how much money it costs to dress a girl, or the hassle and money involved in beauty and makeup! …No, I didn’t spend that much time and money though . It’s just, Mitchan of the liquor store always complained about that .
(Note: Mitchan is her friend on Earth . And is a daughter of Liquor store owner . Just a reminder)
Anyway, the information war has started .
Ready… Fight!!
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