In the jet-black zodiac piercing through the rough waters of the high seas, Abraham calmly observed the blue horizon with tranquility. Other than the scraps of wood scattered throughout the cold water, it was a beautiful sight for the middle-aged man.
Abraham recently departed from the UNS Light Bringer and headed out to the captured merchant vessel known as Pinguis Arca. The reason for his visit was an investigation.
But it was mostly because of his desire to know the consequences or results of his decision.
As a middle-aged man of the 21st century, he wasn't a power-hungry bastard who would kill others simply because they defied him. He was rational, instead of emotional.
Abraham also didn't wish to be out of touch with reality and wanted to see what he had done personally. It might not be good for him now, but it will bring results in the future.
'Though… I'm starting to doubt whether I'm ready or not.' He quietly thought to himself and glanced at the Marines beside him. Despite the victory, they were still cautious of their surroundings.
This made the Fleet Admiral give them a sense of profound respect.
Anyhow, there was a reason why Abraham doubted his readiness to tackle the matter. It was mostly because this was the first time he would be seeing a corpse with his very eyes.
Watching a corpse through the lenses of the television compared to seeing one, in reality, was the largest difference he had to tackle.
He would feel the dreaded atmosphere, smell their blood, see the expressions they had before their untimely demise, and come to terms that he had ended their lives.
Even though Abraham could try to justify himself as doing it for the greater good. Monsters always begin with this phrase. All for the greater good.
If he promotes such a saying to his enemies, then it wouldn't take long before he would have such words pointed at his own subordinates or people.
'Am I wrong with my thoughts, Systema?' Abraham asked his partner for her opinion regarding the matter of morality.
In a second, a mechanical bell rang inside his mind.
*Ding!*
| In terms of logic and result-based decisions, it might sound foolish. However, logic and result-based decisions are imprudent themselves as they don't include the variables of their actions in their equation. |
| One's action can affect the outcome, and results might be far from what one would expect. So, I have no opinion regarding the matter as what's important is that it works for the Fleet Admiral. |
| Nonetheless, Systema appreciates the thoughts of the Fleet Admiral. |
| The price of life must always be heavy. Otherwise, the moment it becomes lighter would be the time someone has become a true monster. |
What Systema meant was simple. Logical and result-based decisions wouldn't always be the best ones. The world of humanity doesn't move in the wheel of logic.
Instead, they roll over through interactions, emotions, and relationships. Logic was merely an afterthought, and one must understand this simple fact.
Variables will always be there, and what you expect through your result-based decision might not appear.
But… One can manipulate the variables instead of affecting the entirety. However, this subject was something for the future to discuss.
"Sometimes, I can't help but wonder that you might be an actual old-sagely man, Systema." Abraham lightly chuckled as his thoughts might have gone too deep.
He mustn't overthink things and continue to move at his own pace. After all, he might stumble if he becomes too impatient.
"Sir, we are about 5 minutes away from the merchant vessel." The Marine steering the jet-black zodiac reported to the Fleet Admiral.
Abraham nodded in understanding and asked something from the Marine.
"Can you give me a radio?" There was something he wanted to do, but since he had decided to investigate the merchant ship. He couldn't find time to do so.
Since he had time before reaching the slave-trading ship, this might be the perfect time for Abraham to enact what he wanted to do.
"Here, Sir." The Marine complied and gave the Fleet Admiral a radio. He was curious as to why the highest of command wanted it, but it wasn't in his rank to question his superiors.
Abraham held the radio with his black-gloved hands and opened a transmission with the Combat Information Center of the UNS Light Bringer.
*This is Overwatch, is something needed?* A voice came out of the radio, which seemed to be the comm operator of the CIC.
"Overwatch, I am Fleet Admiral Shepherd. I'd like to contact the captain of the UNS Light Bringer, Captain Lux. Can you call him?" Abraham asked to communicate with Captain Lux.
*Captain Lux is present in the Combat Information Center, Fleet Admiral. I will call him for you.* The comm operator accepted the Fleet Admiral's request.
"Thank you," Abraham responded and waited for Captain Lux to call him.
He could have immediately done it without wasting time. But after getting a warning from Lieutenant Commander Morgen, he decided to be cautious and patient.
After some time, the communication line was opened and the captain's voice escaped the radio.
*Sir, how may I help you?* Captain Lux coolly asked since the Fleet Admiral might want him to do something.
"I'm giving you a warning, Captain Lux. I'll be summoning more warships to our fleet, so I want our naval personnel to be ready and not get frightened by their emergence."
Abraham wanted to summon warships since the total balance of his Naval Points numbered over 2,000. It was enough to summon two warships in the random naval spin.
While he could have waited until they returned to the port, Abraham needed more ships to manage the aftermath of the recent naval engagement.
The UNS Light Bringer would be having a hard time handling the rescued hostages and prisoners of war, so the assistance of another ship was required.
*Affirmative, Fleet Admiral. I'll be giving orders for the naval personnel to abstain from acting without direct orders.* Captain Lux felt a bit delighted to hear about the reinforcements.
The current operations were far from good in his opinion. There were too many hostages and prisoners of war for a single warship to handle.
So, more ships of the United Navy were a piece of good news for the captain.
"Good, I don't want an accident to happen because of misunderstandings." Abraham closed the radio after uttering such words and turned his gaze towards the high seas.
He took a deep breath and thought that it was about time.
'I hope my luck is as good as before.' Abraham thought and silently prayed to the RNG god for some blessings in his next endeavors.
After taking his time, the middle-aged man returned to reality with determination. He took a deep breath and called upon his precious partner.
"Systema, I'd like to purchase two Naval Random Spin." While it might seem it was better to save some of his Naval Points, Abraham felt that this wasn't some sort of game but actual reality.
He can't save his Naval Points and use them when he finds himself in a troublesome circumstance. After all, it's not like the warships could magically take care of his issues.
The naval personnel in their respective warships also needed to be debriefed to understand the current situation of the United Navy. Especially when the naval personnel aren't automatically imprinted with current vital information.
As Abraham entertained his thoughts, a mechanical bell rang inside his mind.
*Ding!*
| Random Naval Spin Selected! |
| Triggering Spin… |
A gigantic floating wheel materialized before his sight. Inside it were hundreds of classes of warships and ships from different nations across the globe.
With the spin triggered, the arrow at the center of the massive wheel began revolving. It started slowly at first, but with time, it became faster than ever before.
In seconds, Abraham could only watch a blurry arrow spinning at an unparalleled speed.
As he watched it with a scrutinizing gaze, Abraham felt nervous inside. His heart rapidly beat while he felt chills echoing in his spine. And his muscles also tensed.
What Abraham wanted from the Random Naval Spin was simple. A ship that was large and had great firepower was enough for the middle-aged man.
But whether he could get the ship he wanted from the gacha was another problem. This was why he disliked gacha games despite being addicted to them.
It didn't take long before Systema announced the end of the thrilling experience.
| Revolution Terminating in 5…4…3…2…1… |
| Congratulations! You have received (Admiral Gorshkov-Class Frigate)! |
Abraham raised an eyebrow and wondered what the frigate was. He couldn't remember a trace of it in his memories regarding naval ships, but it wasn't like he was a great naval nerd in his former life.
He was only aware of ships or warships that kept popping up in the news or on the Internet.
'From its name, it looks like this is a Russian frigate. Which I guess makes it better. Russians are known to put a lot of firepower in their ships, though their defensive capabilities are questionable.'
Realizing that it was a modern Russian warship, Abraham's confusion became delight.
Firepower was what he needed since stealth and anti-missile protection technology were impractical in the current state of affairs where their adversaries only had wooden ships to work on.
Obviously, this would change in the future. But Abraham wanted a ship that could throw a lot of punches. It appears he got one.
Though… Before Abraham could continue thinking about the Admiral Gorshkov Class Frigate, the massive wheel didn't disappear and began spinning once again.
| Triggering Spin… |
Abraham ordered two Random Naval Spin, so with the first one done, the second probably followed.
The middle-aged man gazed at the spinning arrow with a hopeful gaze. A cargo ship would be good enough for him.
With the firepower problem partially solved, he needed more space for the rescued hostages and the prisoners of war.
That's the reason he hoped for a big ship. It doesn't even need guns, as long as it could transport hundreds of people with ease, it was enough.
At any rate, like before, it took some time until Systema announced the termination of the arrow's revolution.
| Revolution Terminating in 5…4…3…2…1… |
| Congratulations! You have received (San Antonio-Class Amphibious Transport Dock)! |