A fresh start

When Seira and Milena returned after helping Ira with her work, they discovered that during their absence, Rinna had secretly gone on a date with Shinnosuke—naturally, the two were furious.

"Rinna-san, that's unfair! I was planning to give Shinnosuke-kun his new glasses as a gift!"

"What cowardly tactics! A fox-woman... no, wait—fox-woman is my position, so yes, a thief cat, a thief cat indeed!"

While it's perfectly fine for the two of them to be angry about Rinna's own admission of sneaking ahead, it's another matter entirely when their anger is directed at Shinnosuke instead of Rinna.

No matter how much Shinnosuke tries to protest or explain, the two refuse to listen.

"Master, unnecessary excuses are just pouring oil on the fire. In situations like this, a man can only stay silent and listen. Any other action would be a blunder—wait for the storm to pass, then win back their favor afterward."

Markus leaned in and whispered to Shinnosuke, seeing the situation.

"Markus, you're just talking as if it's someone else's problem..."

"Yes, it is someone else's problem for me."

"Just wait and see—I'll get you two beautiful, lively female dolls soon, and make you feel exactly the same way!"

"What are you talking about? Female-type dolls reflect the preferences and tastes of their owner, the master. The most extreme example is the biological tissue exterior model."

"Then what if they were more rigid and mechanical instead of lively and bouncy?"

"That's not the point. We fundamentally don't possess concepts like gender or emotions. The appearance of such traits is merely the result of accumulated experience through our learning system."

"That can't be right. Don't you have a type you prefer or something?"

"Calling it a 'type' is difficult for me—'type' refers to a model or specification in my understanding..."

The conversation between Shinnosuke and Marks kept drifting further off track.

"Who are you two whispering about over there?"

And just like that, it turned into pouring oil on a fire.

Yet, this kind of commotion would soon settle down.

When Fuuki, fully armed and having completed all procedures, was brought into Shinnosuke's dock, the two were overwhelmed by her appearance.

"This is our new ship... A beautiful ship..."

"Fuuki, you're a beautiful ship."

The XC-F01 Fuuki, belonging to the Akneria Galactic Federation Free Merchant Ship Consortium, had a pitch-black hull (due to Shinnosuke skimping on paint costs) and was larger than the Cerberus, making her presence distinctly more imposing.

A护卫 ship with capabilities comparable to a light cruiser equipped with four powerful engines from Psycho-J Industries.

While its main gun is limited to destroyer-class firepower, it boasts exceptional range and precision targeting, making it capable of serving as a sniper vessel.

As secondary armaments, one rapid-fire cannon and one laser Gatling gun are mounted at the bow, and similarly one rapid-fire cannon and one Gatling gun are positioned at the stern.

Taking into account past experiences where we had to respond to attacks from behind while retreating during escort missions, the stern side has been equipped with enhanced weaponry.

One Gatling gun is mounted on the bottom of the hull.

In addition, it is equipped with five automatic anti-aircraft machine guns at various points on the hull, as well as missile launchers and space torpedo launchers, making its armament surpass that of Cerberus.

Its payload capacity reaches 100 tons—more than three times that of Cerberus—more than sufficient for Shinosuke.

"Alright, this is our new escort vessel, XD-F01 Fukubuki. Faster than Cerberus, heavily armed, and with superior cargo capacity. With this Fukubuki, we must start anew and tackle all kinds of missions with renewed determination."

"Yes, sir! We'll work even harder than before!"

"I'll make sure to become a crew member who's truly useful, mark my words!"

Seira and Millena listen intently to Shinosuke's words, their expressions serious.

"I'd love to get straight to familiar navigation, but in truth, we're currently facing a crisis."

"「Huh?」"

The sudden revelation leaves Seira and Millena stunned.

Ignoring their shock, Shinosuke continues speaking.

"Due to losing Cerberus and gaining Fuuki, our economic situation is extremely dire. If we continue like this, our savings will run out soon—so much so that we won't even be able to pay Seria and Millena's salaries. In short, we're running out of time."

He speaks with authority, but really, it just means we don't have money, and if we're going to keep doing familiar navigation, we'd better get to work.

"Then let's get to work right away!"

"YES, SIR!"

Having overcome a severe injury that cost him one eye, and with the introduction of the new vessel proceeding in haste, Shinosuke and the others quickly resumed their duties.