bookpower Chapter 189 : Chapter 189
Chapter 189 : Chapter 189
The northern port of the Jerpan Archipelago.Until a little while ago, this port was full of warships.
Warships to invade the Plank Kingdom.
Many common people had come to watch. Most of them had come to see off their sons and fathers, who were being dragged off to war again, with tears.
‘Most of the common people weren’t interested in winning the war. They only…… wished for the safe return of those going to war.’
Loa thought as she looked out at the sea.
‘Most of them probably won’t come back alive. Because he is a man who shows no mercy to his enemies.’
The ‘he’ Loa was thinking of was King Leonardo.
The man she admired, the king she respected.
So Loa’s heart was complicated.
Because soon, the army of the man she admired would kill her own father.
‘Father also…… ended up setting out.’
The Great Lord of the Jerpan Archipelago, Hideon Tyrrell.
He had originally not intended to set out. Instead, he had planned to remain at the castle and prepare the second and third expeditionary forces.
But the other lords did not allow it.
They were heading to a dangerous battlefield leading their armies, so it was inconvenient for them in many ways for the Great Lord to remain in the home country.
Whether it was the Great Lord or the other lords, they were allies for the time being, but they were still wary of each other.
So the lords said that if Hideon Tyrrell did not set out, they would not set out either.
And Hideon Tyrrell had no choice but to set out.
‘……He should have just canceled the war. He shouldn’t have set out.’
Loa knows.
That all those who have set out now will die.
So, Loa tried to persuade the lords and her father in her own way.
Really, until the very end.
‘But…… no one listened. That the Plank Kingdom was strong.’
It was irreversible now.
As promised to King Leonardo, Loa had to prepare to welcome the occupying forces of the Plank Kingdom.
And she had to help those occupying forces and offer the Jerpan Archipelago to King Leonardo.
“……I resolved to do so. But my heart is heavy.”
Loa muttered with a sigh.
Her guard, Aeris, who was next to her, asked in a worried voice.
“My lady, are you alright? You look very tired.”
“Yes…… I’m fine.”
“Let’s return to the carriage. Now that the army has set out, there is nothing for you to do, my lady.”
“……That’s right.”
Aeris still didn’t know.
That Loa had promised to offer the Jerpan Archipelago to King Leonardo.
‘I’ll have to tell her now.’
“Aeris, um…… there’s something I need to tell you.”
Loa opened her mouth with difficulty.
***
Hideon Tyrrell.
He nodded cautiously as he looked at the ninety ships following behind his own.
‘It’s a large army. A really large army.’
Hideon Tyrrell did not think he would lose this war.
He thought that there was no way they could lose when the lords and their armies, who had become accustomed to battle over the past dozen years, had gathered in such large numbers and joined forces.
‘Loa warned that the Plank Kingdom was strong, but that was probably a lie to stop the war.’
Loa was a smart child. Wise, and kind-hearted.
Because Loa was like that, she probably wanted to stop more knights and soldiers from dying in the war.
‘Knights that fly in the sky. And they use explosive magic, that’s ridiculous.’
It was something that couldn’t exist in common sense.
Taming and riding flying monsters, how could one believe that?
It would be easier to make orcs or ogres follow by starving and whipping them.
If the knights and soldiers who had gone to the Plank Kingdom with Loa were alive, and they had given the same testimony as Loa, Hideon Tyrrell would have postponed the war.
But they had all died in an attack by a sea monster at sea, so no one had returned alive except for Loa and her guard.
Hideon Tyrrell turned his gaze forward again.
‘Once we arrive in the Plank Kingdom…… we’ll start plundering right away. We don’t have enough food, so we need to secure food first.’
The food loaded on the ships now was enough for the entire army to eat for about three months.
Considering that it would take a month by sea to get from the Jerpan Archipelago to the Plank Kingdom, and another month by sea to return, the actual food they could use in the war was only for a month.
‘And when a battle breaks out, food consumption increases. So it’s right to think of it as a two-week supply, not a month’s supply.’
Of course, he could restrict the soldiers’ food rations.
But that was a last resort.
If he reduced the food rations, the army’s morale would hit rock bottom, there would be many complaints, and they would not listen to orders well—.
Just as Hideon Tyrrell was thinking that.
“……Twelve o’clock direction! Unidentified vessel has appeared!!”
At the soldier’s words, Hideon Tyrrell took out a telescope.
An unidentified vessel? In this vast sea?
Click—.
When he checked the twelve o’clock direction through the telescope.
He could see a number of truly unidentifiable vessels.
‘About eighteen ships……?’
It wasn’t a large number.
And if the ships were coming from that direction, they were probably ships from the Jerpan Archipelago.
‘Did they know we were going to attack? Maybe Loa told the Plank Kingdom…… no, that can’t be. There’s no reason for Loa to do that.’
Unless Loa wanted the Jerpan Archipelago to lose the war.
If not that, there was no way she would tell the Plank Kingdom about the invasion.
Because she was his daughter, Hideon Tyrrell trusted Loa.
‘Well, it doesn’t matter. I can just push through with the number of ships……?’
“……What is that large ship?”
Hideon Tyrrell was surprised to see a ship that was particularly larger than the others in his telescope.
Moreover, that ship had no sails or oars.
But it was majestically, and clearly, getting closer.
‘It seems like the small ships in front are escorts. Escorting that large ship…….’
“Prepare for battle! The enemy’s numbers are small, but do not be careless!”
—Yes!
Puuuu—!
At Hideon Tyrrell’s command, the soldiers became busy.
Some prepared bows and arrows, while others prepared for close-quarters combat.
The other ships also became busy upon hearing the flagship’s signal. They were also preparing for battle.
But then.
Piyooooo……!
A sound he had never heard before was heard.
From the unidentified vessel.
He didn’t know what sound it was, but one thing was certain, it was not a sound made by a human mouth.
Just then, the soldier who had first identified the unidentified vessel let out a dazed sound.
“……What is that.”
“Why, why! What do you see!”
Another soldier nearby asked worriedly.
But there was no need to hear the answer.
Because, in an instant, ‘it’ came flying from the sky.
—Piyooooo!
—Piyoooo!
—Piyooooooo!!
A winged monster.
A monster he had never seen before approaches.
Knights were riding on top of it.
He couldn’t see them clearly because of the distance, but they were wearing armor, so they were definitely knights.
Seeing that, Hideon Tyrrell was reminded of his daughter’s warning.
‘……Knights that fly in the sky.’
And.
‘They use explosive magic……?’
So far, there was no sign of those knights using magic.
In the first place, there was no way they could use magic in such a shaky situation—.
Swoosh…….
From high in the sky, the ‘flying knight’ who had flown in first threw something black.
It wasn’t within arrow range, and they had no confidence in hitting an enemy flying at that speed.
So the soldiers of the Jerpan Archipelago could only watch it, with arrows notched on their bowstrings.
Thwack—!!
The black something thrown by the ‘flying knight’ pierced through the ship and went inside.
Nothing happened.
The soldiers, who had been extremely tense, were relieved, but also embarrassed at themselves for being so tense, so they mocked the ‘flying knights.’
“Hahahaha! What’s that! Did they come to throw rocks or something?”
“Bows! Let’s try to hit them properly with bows!”
“Charge! Charge!!”
Thus, the soldiers’ morale rose in a very short moment.
The same went for the lords.
They too were relieved that the ‘flying knights’ were not as powerful as they looked, and they all let out a sigh of relief—.
Boom—!
Booooom—!!
Boom boom boom—!!
“U-uaaaagh!”
“Ex-explosion! Explosion!
“Sinking…… we’re sinking!!”
“Aaargh!! My, my leg!! My leg!!”
As if to make them regret mocking them.
Suddenly, the ship exploded from below.
A hole so large that it was impossible to repair was blown right under the ship.
The soldiers who were nearby lost their limbs or were mostly killed.
Piyooooo—!
Swoosh…….
As the ‘flying knights’ turned and came again.
The soldiers of the Jerpan Archipelago, who now realized that the ‘black something’ they were throwing was explosive, screamed.
“Aaaaaaaah! Block it! Block it!!”
“Shoot the arrows! If you want to live, shoot the arrows!!”
“Throw the spears! Throw the swords! Throw something, you bastards!!”
“Lifeboats! Bring the lifeboats! We have to live!!”
Panic-stricken.
Literally, that was the situation that unfolded on the ships of the Jerpan Archipelago.
And it took less than 10 seconds for that panic to turn into a ‘scene of carnage.’
Boom—!
Booooom—!
Boom!!
The 90 warships of the Jerpan Archipelago.
The elite army that filled them.
They were destined to be annihilated at sea before they could even fight, before they could even set foot on the land of the Plank Kingdom.
Hideon Tyrrell, who had been hit by the first bombardment, had long since disappeared beneath the sea.
***
“Your Majesty, it is a great victory! All ninety ships of the Jerpan Archipelago have been sunk.”
Ronak said in a slightly excited voice into the crystal ball. How could he not be excited?
He had achieved an unbelievable great victory.
It would be strange not to be excited.
‘When His Majesty first showed me the blueprints for the ‘Griffon Aircraft Carrier,’ I wondered what kind of ship it was…… it’s truly amazing.’
With a ship like this, it was impossible to lose at sea.
Truly.
King Leonardo’s voice was heard from the crystal ball.
However, that voice was not very bright for a ‘king who had received a report of a great victory.’
「”……I see. Good work. What about our army’s casualties?”」
“There are none.”
「”Hmm…… excellent. Then proceed with the occupation of the Jerpan Archipelago as planned. We have agreed to receive the cooperation of the woman who came as an envoy before, so there should be no major problems. But do not be careless.”」
“Yes, I understand.”
「”If necessary, you may bombard the ports or attack those who resist. But there must be no harm to civilians.”」
“I understand.”
「”Alright. Good luck then. Make sure to establish the ‘Sea Crystal Ball Communication Network’ so that you can communicate via crystal ball even when you go to the Jerpan Archipelago.”」
“Yes!”
Crackle—.
The sound of the connection being cut was heard from the crystal ball.
Rollo, who had been listening to the conversation between the king and Ronak from the side, asked.
“The king…… does not seem very pleased. Even though it’s a great victory.”
“His Majesty did not want this war. He did not want anyone to die, whether they were soldiers of the Plank Kingdom or people of the Jerpan Archipelago.”
“Is that so. He is truly our king.”
“Hmm. But—.”
Ronak turned his gaze to the other side of the sea.
There, he could see the ships of the Jerpan Archipelago, devastated by the bombardment of the Gryphon Knights.
Most of them had sunk, and even the ones that were still afloat were not in good shape.
Even those were being bombarded again by the Gryphon Knights.
Booooom!!!
“His Majesty did not want anyone to die. But for the sake of the kingdom, he is that ruthless.”
“……That’s right. It was an excellent choice to follow him. If we were still pirates now, we would probably be the ones getting hit by those Madans.”
“That’s probably right.”
Ronak took a deep breath.
He shouted vigorously to the soldiers watching him from below the ship.
“His Majesty has ordered us to occupy the Jerpan Archipelago! So tonight, we dine in the castle of the Great Lord of the Jerpan Archipelago!”
Ooh!
The sailors answered vigorously.
The morale of the soldiers, who had achieved a complete victory without lifting a finger, was sky-high.