By the time the fleet returned from the Blue World, autumn had already deepened.
A few weeks later, Constantinople welcomed its first snowfall of the winter.
From the skies above, the city was blanketed in silver.
Bulins, little girls, and shipgirls bustled through the streets.
To the north, in Golden Horn Bay, three naval bases stood side by side—each belonging to the Azur Lane, Fleet of Fog, and Sirens. Their architectural styles were distinct: Azur Lane's base bore blue and white exteriors adorned with naval flags, the Fleet of Fog's deep blue port flew their signature black banner, while the Sirens' base was draped in sleek black and yellow, radiating high-tech vibes.
Shipgirls from all three factions frequently patrolled the waters and exchanged greetings when they crossed paths.
However, unlike their Azur Lane counterparts, the Fleet of Fog shipgirls lacked the ability to manifest ship rigging. Instead, they traveled in their physical ship forms.
The silver-and-white hull of Yamato glided slowly along the nearshore waters, standing in stark contrast to the shipgirls who walked on the waves.
Every so often, shipgirls would climb aboard her deck for a meal, turning her into a sort of floating sea hotel.
In the administrative center's side wing, home to the Royal Maid Corps, Belfast led her team in maintaining order and tending to the daily needs of the Commander and the shipgirls.
Originally, the maid squad was fairly small—excluding cosplaying noble Neptune and the mischievous Cheshire, there were only about a dozen members.
But now, as Belfast observed the chatter-filled room, she found herself surrounded by nearly twenty girls—shipgirls, catgirls, and even dragon girls.
The catgirls had grown rapidly. When Shinano first brought Chocola, Vanilla, and the others back, they had appeared as small as destroyer-class shipgirls.
Yet in just a few weeks, they had shot up in height, now resembling light cruisers. Even the little shipgirls had begun calling them "big sisters."
Despite this, their true ages were barely a year old.
As expected, Setsuna had entrusted their education to the Royal Maid Corps.
"Does the Commander think the maid squad is some kind of special care center?" Belfast sighed, glancing at the newly assembled recruits.
Six catgirls in total—Chocola, Vanilla, Maple, Cinnamon, Azuki, and Coconut—the main cast of Nekopara.
They stood neatly in a row, tails and ears twitching in sync.
At the very end of the line, an extra figure had snuck in—a dragon girl, Tohru.
She was still in the middle of her maid apprenticeship.
"Wow! Your tail is huge! Why does it have scales?"
"And why do your ears look different from ours?"
Chocola, mesmerized by Tohru's thick dragon tail, stared in curiosity.
"Because I'm a dragon, little kittens~"
"I could gobble up at least ten of you in a single bite, you know~"
The dragon girl bared her fangs, unfurling her wings and flexing her claws to startle the catgirls.
"Meow meow meow?!?!"
The six catgirls instantly huddled together, trembling in fear.
"Tohru!!!"
Bonk!
Belfast delivered a light knock to her head.
"Just kidding! Ehehe~"
Tohru stuck out her tongue playfully, attempting to brush it off.
Once the terrified catgirls were reassured, Belfast and the rest of the Royal Maids began teaching them the basics of household chores.
Leading the group, Belfast walked them through the administrative center, explaining as they went.
"The duty of the Maid Corps includes taking care of the Commander's daily needs, assisting with administrative work, maintaining cleanliness, and… well, eliminating enemies when necessary."
"For now, you only need to master basic housekeeping skills."
She glanced at the catgirls. Given their capabilities, combat was out of the question, and tasks like document processing or data analysis were too complex for them. The most suitable work for them was serving tea, cleaning, cooking, and other household chores.
With more shipgirls and companions around the Commander, the Royal Maid Corps was starting to get overwhelmed. Plus, Tohru had a bad habit of sneaking tail meat into meals for the Commander and the shipgirls, tarnishing the reputation of the maid squad.
This new group of catgirls was just the right solution to ease Belfast's burden.
"Alright, let me first introduce you to this place and explain the rules of the Maid Corps," Belfast cleared her throat and began.
"The Maid Corps operates on a rotating shift system: three-person teams with two days off per week."
"Every morning, before the Commander wakes up, you must prepare his breakfast and lay out fresh clothes for him and his companions."
"Lunch and dinner depend on what the Commander wants that day. You should seek training in cooking from the Dragon Empery and Iris Libre shipgirls."
"Additionally, once the Commander has gone to bed, do not disturb him unless it's an emergency…"
Belfast listed off the responsibilities, then folded her arms and looked at the catgirls.
"Any questions?"
"Wow—"
The catgirls were awestruck by the elegant and composed head maid. Everything about her movements exuded grace and perfection.
"I have a question!"
A twin-tailed, amber-eyed catgirl raised her hand.
"What do you mean by preparing breakfast for the Commander and his companions? How many companions does he have?"
"…"
Belfast thought for a moment.
"That means those who live with the Commander. The number varies—sometimes two or three, sometimes four or five."
"Generally, we prepare food for the maximum number of people. Right now, that should be five."
"Basically, his harem. Counting you, that makes six," Dido stated bluntly.
"Wow, so that means you're the ones who keep him company at night? We're for the daytime, and you're for the nighttime?"
Chocola and Vanilla looked impressed.
"???"
"Where did you learn such things?" Belfast blinked in confusion.
"Our world has catgirl partners too," said a slightly taller, heterochromatic-eyed catgirl.
"Catgirl marriage customs follow a polygamous system. We don't feel jealousy toward the partners our owner acknowledges."
"So, can we also become the Master's catgirl companions? Your system is quite similar to ours…"
"???"
Now Belfast and Tohru were the ones stunned.
What else could you expect from a world originating from an eroge?
Catgirls grew quickly, were adorable, combined the best traits of both cats and humans, and remained eternally youthful.
They weren't particularly intelligent, but they were fiercely loyal.
And they followed a polygamous system—if you courted one catgirl, the others would even help you win her over.
In the world of "Nekopara," catgirls were essentially designed for a harem setting.
"…"
"That topic is too early for you all," Belfast coughed lightly.
"But we reach adulthood in just one and a half years!" Chocola tilted her head.
"Huh?!"
The entire Maid Corps and Tohru suddenly felt a sense of crisis.
"Are you here to compete for the Commander too?!"
…
Training the catgirls turned out to be even more troublesome than Belfast had anticipated.
Belfast quickly realized that while the catgirls looked mature, their actual knowledge level was even lower than the lolis from the Black Bullet world.
—After all, they had been just cats before.
How much could a kitten possibly learn in a year? Most of their actions relied on instinct, and their grasp of fundamental knowledge was close to zero.
Forget understanding advanced technology like starships, missiles, or aircraft—if no one taught them, they wouldn't even know how to use household appliances like a washing machine or a microwave.
"Come, let me teach you how to wash dishes."
"This is detergent. You squeeze two drops onto the plate, then use a cloth to…"
Sirius, the maid, guided Chocola and Vanilla through the process of cleaning tableware.
Sniff, sniff~~
The two little catgirls curiously examined Sirius and the dish in her hand.
Twitching their noses, they took a whiff—then, without warning, stuck out their tongues and licked the plate.
"Bleh! So bitter! It's not mint-flavored?"
"Pfft! Pah! Pah! Cough, cough—"
"???!!!"
Sirius was utterly horrified.
"Do you just lick anything you come across?!"
"I thought it smelled like catnip…"
Chocola pouted pitifully.
"..."
The maid squad despaired over the catgirls.
Even training Tohru hadn't been this exhausting.
That dragon girl's methods were extreme—she had a habit of solving problems with bizarre magic—but at least she was extremely intelligent, far surpassing most people.
"How did you even survive in that world?"
Belfast rubbed her temples, exhausted.
"Do you mean to tell me that you've just been getting by on sheer cuteness?!"
"That does seem to be the case."
Tohru pondered for a moment.
"I looked into that world's system—catgirls there aren't allowed to roam freely unless they pass an exam."
"Only after demonstrating basic common sense and an elementary school-level education can they gain independence. Otherwise, they must always be accompanied by an owner when outside."
"So, you're saying they don't even have an elementary-level education?!"
Belfast slapped her forehead.
"I should've had you attend classes with Tina, Enju, and Kayo."
"Commander, what you really want is for me to train pets, isn't it?!"
...
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