"So... you're saying... I'm still just a burden?"
Anastasia's face turned deathly pale.
"That's not it, Ana, please listen to me..."
Jeanne couldn't bear to see Anastasia looking so pitiful.
However, before she could finish, Ryou interrupted her firmly.
"If you want the truth, yes. Right now, not only can you not help us, but we would also need to divert our attention to protect you. You would hold us back."
His words pierced Anastasia's heart like an arrow.
"I-I'm sorry for wasting your time. I truly apologize!"
Anastasia covered her mouth with her hand and ran off without looking back.
As she turned, everyone saw countless crystal tears streaming down her face.
"Ryou! That was too much!"
Jeanne, unable to hold back any longer, angrily confronted him, her silver-blue eyes glaring at him.
"Even if your intentions were good, those words were far too hurtful."
Ryou sighed.
"Better to hurt her now than let her hold onto unrealistic fantasies. You understand, don't you? The enemy we're facing this time is not like the ones before. Any mistake could cost us the battle. Losing means death. I won't take that risk, nor will I let you or Ais step into such danger."
He looked Jeanne straight in the eye with unwavering sincerity.
Jeanne had no choice but to back down.
Without alerting anyone, the four of them soon boarded the Yamato, which slowly sailed toward the distant British Isles on the far side of the planet.
What he didn't realize was that, despite his good intentions, his words had deeply wounded Anastasia's heart, leading to irreversible consequences.
In the bedroom of the Admiral's quarters, Anastasia lay on her bed, hugging her faceless doll and crying silently. For a long time, she murmured between sobs.
"Viy, am I really that useless?"
In the empty room, Anastasia spoke to her most cherished doll.
It seemed like a perfectly normal scene.
However, something strange happened.
The faceless doll in Anastasia's arms seemed to come to life. Its pitch-black face rippled like water, and then a sharp, sinister child's voice emanated from the doll.
"How could that be, my dear master? You are the most adorable, beautiful, and talented girl in the entire world! If someone doesn't like you, they must either be brainless or... well, something else must be wrong with them."
Anastasia hadn't turned on the lights. The room was completely dark, with only a faint sliver of moonlight drifting in from outside. In the dim light, the room—previously warm and cozy—suddenly felt eerie, especially with the talking doll.
Yet, Anastasia didn't seem surprised at all, as if this was something she was used to.
"But, I showed Ryou-sama the ice control techniques you taught me, and he still didn't acknowledge me..."
Anastasia's expression turned dejected.
"That's because he's foolish and has no taste. He can't see how amazing you are, my dear master!"
The doll, named Viy by Anastasia, responded without hesitation.
Anastasia puffed up her cheeks and tapped the doll in her arms with her fingers, expressing her displeasure.
"Don't speak ill of Ryou-sma. He's my savior and the one I've sworn to follow for life."
Viy immediately realized that trying to sow discord was pointless. But with such an innocent and naive princess, it had a thousand ways to manipulate her into doing what it wanted.
It quickly shifted tactics.
"Master, what do you think of the two females around Ryou-sama?"
"Females? Oh, you mean Lady Jeanne and Ais?"
Anastasia looked confused.
"Master, how do you think you compare to them?"
"Hmm..."
Anastasia immediately looked troubled.
No matter how critically she tried to view them, she had to admit that, even in terms of appearance alone, each had its unique charm. And when it came to talent, they were superior to her.
"That's the problem, my dear master. It's not that you aren't good enough; it's just that you need to be even better. Even animals know to choose the most beautiful and capable mate, so they can produce the best offspring."
However, Viy's words seemed a bit too much for a girl who had never even been in a relationship before.
"A mate! Offspring! What are you talking about, you shameless thing!"
Though Anastasia's words were scolding, a faint blush appeared on her face, and her gaze became unfocused, showing she wasn't entirely against the idea.
Viy felt several dark lines appear on its metaphorical forehead.
'Is this really what she focuses on, despite everything I've said? My foolish master!'
Viy knew that if it didn't steer the conversation back on track, this simple-minded princess would lead them off to who knows where.
"Master, if you want to achieve your goals, you must become much stronger. That way, not only will you more easily attract the attention of the males you desire, but when your power surpasses theirs, you can even use less... gentle means to ensure their eyes are only on you. So, my sweet master, grow stronger!"
Viy's devilish whisper echoed in Anastasia's ears.
She couldn't help but imagine the sweet scene where her beloved only had eyes for her.
Maybe that wouldn't be so bad...
Unknowingly, a dark seed of love had been planted in Anastasia's heart.
"But... but that doesn't seem right."
Anastasia hesitated, her expression uncertain.
Viy, being the devil that understood human hearts so well, knew that its foolish master was already swayed.
'All that hard work, using pure abyssal magic to subtly corrupt and twist her heart little by little, is finally paying off!'
Viy thought gleefully to itself.
But outwardly, it continued to tempt her.
"Love is inherently selfish. Or are you saying you're willing to give up?"
"Of course not!"
Anastasia blinked, her expression innocent and cute.
"But what should I do?"
'She's hooked!'
With a sly smile spreading across its completely black face, Viy finally revealed its true intentions.
"In this world, where the source of magic is inert, you have almost no chance of becoming stronger here... So, you must go to other worlds."
With that, Viy had finally revealed its true purpose.
"But..."
Upon hearing that she would have to leave, Anastasia hesitated, a trace of reluctance appearing on her face.
"A temporary farewell is for a better reunion in the future. Or is this the extent of your resolve, Master?"
Seeing that Anastasia was visibly wavering, Viy quickly added more fuel to the fire.
"Or perhaps... are you content to watch from afar as the one you love flirts with another woman?"
"No!!!"
Anastasia suddenly screamed.
With her piercing cry, a torrent of magic surged from her body, instantly freezing the entire room in ice.
Overwhelmed by her emotions, Anastasia's magic spiraled out of control.
Sitting amidst the frost-covered bedroom, Anastasia looked like a pure white spirit born of ice and snow—beautiful, yet cold.
Viy, like a devil whispering in her ear, painted a picture in Anastasia's mind that filled her with intense fury. Under the influence of abyssal magic, a particular negative emotion within her heart was magnified infinitely.
That emotion was—jealousy!
Just as ambition can corrupt a man, a woman's jealousy can be an equally terrifying force, capable of turning an angel into a demon.
"What should I do?"
Anastasia asked.
Viy was overjoyed. The fish was finally, completely hooked.
It had been worth sealing its powers and pretending to be a motionless, mute doll.
In its excitement, Viy failed to notice that Anastasia's voice had suddenly deepened, and her once innocent demeanor was shifting toward something much colder.
"You don't need to do anything, my dear Master. Leave everything to your loyal servant, Viy."
As Viy spoke these deceitful words, it gathered the last remnants of its abyssal magic.
Without any visible movement, a black vortex slowly formed in the air, expanding until it was large enough for a person to step through.
From the outside, the vortex appeared completely dark, as if it were connected to a black hole, devouring even the light.
But soon, the vortex began to destabilize.
Viy hurriedly shouted, "Master, please hurry! I can't maintain this portal for long!"
Anastasia nodded, picked up Viy's physical form—the faceless doll—and quickly approached the vortex.
She looked back at everything in her bedroom one last time, then, urged by Viy, stepped into the vortex.
The vortex rapidly shrank and eventually vanished into thin air.
...
At that very moment, over the Pacific Ocean, a massive warship was cutting through the sea at a speed of 60 knots.
Standing at the bow of the Yamato, Ryou suddenly felt something at the exact moment Anastasia disappeared from this world as if something connected to him had just left.
The feeling wasn't strong, so he dismissed it as a mere illusion and didn't give it further thought.
Little did he know that by the time he and Anastasia reunited, everything would have changed.
Sailing across the vast ocean, with nothing but the unchanging sea in sight, the journey felt somewhat monotonous.
Luckily, with the cheerful Shimakaze around, the trip wasn't entirely devoid of fun.
Moreover, Ryou didn't hide anything and confessed the full story of his relationship with Yamato to Jeanne.
At first, Jeanne almost lost her temper and even came close to turning into an Avenger-class Servant. However, perhaps due to the precedent set by Freya and Syr, and the fact that he had been open about it this time, Jeanne reluctantly accepted the situation.
He later learned that Jeanne had been troubled by this and had confided Scathach, about it.
To her surprise, Scathach had been completely unfazed, instead offering a more compelling theory.
"As long as you're strong enough, having multiple partners is only natural. It's the law of the jungle—survival of the fittest."
Scathach even went on to give examples of how, in Lion Pride, a single male often dominates several females, and how medieval nobles had many mistresses in addition to their wives.
Hearing Jeanne recount this, Ryou could only break out in a cold sweat. "Yep, that's Scathach for you."
Thanks to Scathach's solid reasoning, and the fact that Jeanne wasn't willing to give up on her relationship with him, she slowly came to terms with it.
However, accepting it didn't mean he could do as he pleased.
And so, Ryou spent his time either teasing Shimakaze or secretly engaging in some harmonious activities with Yamato or Jeanne.
One noteworthy moment occurred when he pulled Jeanne aside for their second secret tryst and revealed a little secret to her.
That secret was: "Sneaking off to do this is pointless. The entire ship is Yamato's body. She's aware of everything that happens onboard."
"So what we're doing isn't secret—it's like broadcasting an adult film to Yamato in real-time."
This revelation shocked Jeanne, but to his surprise, it also made her more... sensitive, easily reaching her peak.
Whether it was because they did the deed a lot of times, Jeanne completely abandoned any restraint, her wild behavior catching him off guard.
However, when Ryou tried to drag the peeping Yamato into the mix to unlock his 3P achievement, Jeanne was so startled that she grabbed her clothes and ran away.
He could only smile wryly. Yamato secretly watching had excited Jeanne, but when Yamato showed herself, Jeanne became shy.
Left in an awkward situation by Jeanne, Ryou had no choice but to ask Yamato to use paizuri to help relieve his... desires.
With all these antics happening on the Yamato, the sea voyage wasn't as dull as it first seemed.
Time flew by, and after a week of sailing, the Yamato passed through the Strait of Malacca, crossed the Indian Ocean, and arrived at the entrance of the Suez Canal.
Initially, Ryou had planned to take the long route around the Cape of Good Hope, which would have added four more days to their journey.
But Yamato volunteered to take them through the Suez Canal, across the Mediterranean Sea, and through the Strait of Gibraltar, directly penetrating the enemy's heartland.
Ryou had heard reports before his journey that the aircraft carriers had successfully passed through the Suez Canal.
Given that modern aircraft carriers were much wider than the Yamato, and the canal's depth was sufficient, plus Yamato's superhuman precision in controlling the ship, traversing the canal, though risky, wasn't a major problem.
In the worst-case scenario, if anything went wrong with the canal, Yamato could always switch to her shipgirl form.
Ryou immediately decided: they would take the canal!
Three days later, the British Isles came into view!