Crossover Shipgirls: Building a Dimensional Empire from Scratch

Tohru needed some time to return home, gather friends, and collect local specialties.

After setting up the Dimensional Anchor, Setsuna discovered that this world had already been integrated into the primary world's transportation network.

Opening the interface, he saw:

• [Primary Node: Constantinople]

• [Node 1: Azur Lane - Port Area]

• [Node 2: Demon Slayer]

• [Node 3: Chaldea]

• [Node 4: Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid (Inner World)]

…

The ability to instantly jump between these nodes in the future was exciting. Setsuna couldn't help but imagine a day when Dimensional Anchors would span countless universes, linking the primary world to the multiverse.

"In this universe, human society exists in the surface world, while the dragons and magic reside in the inner world?"

He observed, finding it fascinating.

Using the standard Paradox Interactive colonizer's playbook, this prosperous, pre-space-age human society, with its meager military strength, could eventually be subjected to sustainable resource extraction, just like the Demon Slayer world.

With humanity here already under a loose global government, it would be easy to support a few proxies, demonstrate the superiority of spacefaring civilizations, and take control of the entire planet.

From there, technology could be advanced, spaceships launched, and resources funneled back to the primary world.

As for the inner world, it was trickier—too many peculiar factions existed. Cautious engagement would be the best approach for now.

While waiting for Tohru's return, Setsuna decided to take the shipgirls and Heroic Spirits on a stroll through human society, something he hadn't done in a long time.

Except for Artoria, none of the others had ever experienced a modern civilization. They were instantly dazzled by the bright lights and bustling streets of the city.

"Um, Commander, there are so many people. I'm a bit… uncomfortable…"

Belfast, usually poised and composed, clung to Setsuna's arm, glancing around nervously.

Tokyo was incredibly lively, with throngs of men and women bustling through the city.

Commuters, students, workers, tourists… Compared to Constantinople, this place was packed to the brim. Although its size was only one-twentieth of the capital, its population exceeded 30 million, making the city feel shoulder-to-shoulder crowded.

"That said, walking through the city with the Commander is something my sisters haven't had the chance to experience," Implacable said, naturally linking her arm with Setsuna's other side.

Even in her uniform, Setsuna couldn't ignore the aircraft carrier's… presence.

With a shipgirl on each arm, Setsuna felt like he was in paradise, albeit under the scrutinizing gazes of passersby.

"Who is this guy? A young master with two girlfriends?"

"Uh, is that… triplets behind him?"

People whispered as they glanced at the peculiar group.

Belfast and Implacable's beauty was unmatched—enough to outshine even the top courtesans of Kabukicho, making them look like mere commoners by comparison.

Meanwhile, the three Heroic Spirits trailing behind were even more perplexing.

They looked almost identical, with only slight differences in hairstyle and eye color.

Artoria was in the center, with Jeanne Alter and Jeanne d'Arc flanking her on either side. Together, they appeared as if molded from the same template.

"Triplets? Who's a triplet with them?! Keep spouting nonsense, and I'll burn you!" Jeanne Alter snapped, glaring at the onlookers.

Jeanne Alter's murderous glare quickly scared off anyone attempting to approach the group.

She genuinely seemed ready to unleash her Noble Phantasm on anyone she found annoying. That's just how carefree and chaotic Heroic Spirits like her could be.

Though they didn't have this world's currency, Setsuna's reserves of precious metals were plentiful. He casually pulled out a few gold bars, exchanged them for a stack of cash, and took the shipgirls and Heroic Spirits for a stroll through Ginza.

Artoria practically lit up when she spotted a buffet restaurant. Back in the capital, the dishes cooked by the Eastern shipgirls were excellent, but they didn't work as full-time chefs.

When it was the Royal shipgirls' turn to cook, it was often a test of endurance. Opportunities for an all-you-can-eat feast were rare.

She led Jeanne Alter and Jeanne d'Arc on a rampage through various restaurants, to the point where one owner couldn't stop wondering how such a petite girl managed to eat more food than her own height combined!

Meanwhile, in one of the most expensive malls in Asia, Setsuna was leading Belfast and Implacable on a shopping spree.

They had no interest in random luxury items like cosmetics or handbags, which were utterly useless to shipgirls. However, the diverse range of clothing quickly caught Belfast's attention.

"Commander, should we buy some clothes to bring back? Maybe Bulin could use them as inspiration for designing outfits?"

"These clothes are quite beautiful," the maid mused, holding up a dark evening gown.

The store clerk, observing Belfast's stunning elegance and Setsuna's refined demeanor, immediately assumed he was a wealthy young master shopping with his girlfriend. The clerk eagerly approached, showering them with compliments.

"Wow, madam, you have such great taste! This is one of our Italian handcrafted designs, absolutely perfect for you. It's only 1.37 million yen, and you can pair it with this silk scarf…"

"Commander, is this expensive?" Belfast asked, unfamiliar with the prices in this world.

"Not at all. I'll take it all," Setsuna said decisively.

"Every design, every size—pack it all up. We'll bring them back to the port area for the shipgirls."

He didn't hold back when it came to buying clothes for his "wives." With literal mines in his backyard—and across multiple worlds—splurging was never an issue.

...

A few hours later, the group had nearly emptied half of Ginza's shopping district. Belfast and Implacable stuffed their purchases, including an array of quirky trinkets, into their ship rigging.

Artoria, thoroughly satisfied from her feast, declared the outing a major success.

As Setsuna checked the time, he started thinking about contacting Tohru.

"Why's she taking so long? Did her dad catch her? Or maybe she ran into a sea monster? No way, right?"

Just as he was contemplating these possibilities—

Swish—

A massive spatial rift suddenly appeared in the night sky.

Tohru, in her full dragon form, emerged from the rift. Thanks to the cognitive obstruction magic surrounding her, the bystanders merely felt a slight gust of wind, none the wiser to what had occurred.

"Hey, everyone! Sorry for the wait!!" Tohru's voice echoed telepathically.

"I brought two friends! Uh, they didn't want to come at first, so it took me a bit longer."

From behind her, a slightly smaller, pure-white juvenile dragon flew out of the rift.

Swish—

The young dragon landed gracefully on the ground. A red magic circle appeared above her head, and she transformed into a petite girl about eight or nine years old.

She had silver twin tails, blue eyes, and two silvery-white dragon horns adorning her head. Her frilly Lolita outfit paired with white stockings, and a thin tail wagging behind her, made her look irresistibly adorable.

Her chubby, baby-faced features made her almost painfully cute.

"Kanna!!!" Setsuna exclaimed as he rushed over to ruffle her hair.

"Eek… I'm here with Lady Tohru!"

"To protect her from being tricked by strange people!" Kanna declared with a determined pout.

Kanna balled her fists and lightly pounded Setsuna twice, her first meeting with him leaving her a bit shy. Her mind was still full of Tohru.

"She's so cute!!!" Belfast couldn't resist Kanna's charm and crouched down, treating her like a little Sakura Empire destroyer.

"Little one, how old are you?"

"Would you like some snacks? Hmm, I have some freshly bought chips and bread…"

"…"

"Fourteen thousand years old!" Kanna declared confidently.

"???"

The maid froze mid-offer, her hand holding out snacks hovering in the air.

"What?"

"My birthday is in 12,000 BCE! I just celebrated my 14,000th birthday!" the petite dragon girl replied.

"Eh?!"

Belfast was utterly shaken.

As a shipgirl, she had always thought she'd lived through a lot compared to the Commander. Warspite and other older ships often got teased as "aunties" by smaller shipgirls.

But now, in comparison to a dragon girl, even the "aunties" like Hood, Warspite, and Mikasa seemed like toddlers. None of them would ever need to worry about age again—before dragons, they were all little girls.

While everyone was playing with Kanna—

Crackle—

Boom—

A thunderous roar of lightning and thunder came from the sky.

From the spatial rift emerged an immense and immeasurable dragon.

Unlike the western, four-legged dragons like Tohru and Kanna, this one resembled the design of an eastern dragon. Its body was a brilliant blue-green, adorned with intricate, multicolored patterns, and it had a pair of grand feathered wings.

Its massive form loomed like a mountain, stretching across the skies for thousands of kilometers, its full length impossible to see at once.

Tohru's dragon form, alongside the Eternal Snowfall, was barely the size of its eye.

It was Quetzalcoatl—the Feathered Serpent God, a creation deity revered in Mayan culture as the Sun's sovereign.

Even gazing up at it inspired an undeniable sense of awe and reverence.

The great dragon circled high above, before lowering its head and opening its eyes slightly, gazing imperiously at the creatures below.

Though ordinary humans couldn't perceive its full form, they instinctively felt a chill in the air, as if the temperature had dropped a few degrees.

"Oh, so it's you?! I forgot you and Tohru get along," Setsuna remarked with some surprise.

The Heroic Spirits around him were less composed, visibly shaken.

"Th-th-this… this dragon is too big!" Jeanne d'Arc stammered, tugging on Jeanne Alter's sleeve.

"You're the Dragon Witch, aren't you? Do something!!!"

"You want me to tame that?!" Jeanne Alter pointed at herself and then at the colossal Quetzalcoatl, wearing a look that screamed, Are you kidding me?!

"Does that even qualify as a dragon?!"

"Lucoa!!!" Tohru bellowed from the ground, shouting at the sky.

"You're scaring people!!! Hurry up and transform back!!!"

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

40 Advanced Chapters Available on Patreon: 

Patreon.com/DaoOfHeaven