Volume 9 Chapter 1 Part 7

After all, the Head Mage of the Ducet family hates everyone who’s doing anything outside of the role they’ve been assigned.

* * *

The Fantasia Union’s fleet was sailing slowly, receiving a breeze from the south. Alexis Ducet, the Marquis of Halusia. Was on one of the ironclad ships that he has designated as his flagship.

It was a clear day and visibility was good. The small island of Bretland was on his left, and the island of Atlatan was faintly visible on his right.

Beyond this point was a strait dividing these two countries, and the width of the sea gradually narrowed the further they sailed. However, they had no intention of turning this place into a battlefield. This is because the currents were getting stronger.

The sea was calm at the current moment, but the waves created by the fleet overlapped with one another in a complex manner. The ironclad ship was rocking slowly up and down. Two owls then flew by and perched themselves on the mast, revealing that this place was not far away from the dry land at all.

There was a watchpost at the top of the mast, and Kato and Meletes was standing there, observing the surroundings with his keen eyes. He came up with a plan for the naval battle with the Nords, and therefore, Alexis allowed him to accompany him to the battle this time as a member of his staff.

The Head Mage, Hostio, remained in Halusia, claiming that he has high administrative skills and is good at domestic affairs, which made him ideal for the work from behind the desk, but when it came to the actual field combat, he wouldn’t be all that helpful.

「My familiar has discovered a Nord fleet. It’s a large fleet that seems to be filling the entire sea. 」

Cato called out to Alexis from the top of the mast. The owl was his familiar. A raven had just flown some distance away from the Union’s fleet, circled a few degrees, and then left. It must’ve been the familiar of a Norse Mage.

With that, the enemy now also knew that the Fantasia Union’s fleet was approaching them. However, that didn’t mean that Alexis intended for this to be a prolonged war of attrition. On the contrary, when he was setting out with his fleet, he held a grand ceremony and declared that he will head to Bretland and kill the Ocean King. The information had already spread far and wide, and when Eric heard about it, he became furious.

According to Kato, that was all a part of the plan to lure the fleet of the Nords out that has been inspired by his discussion with Theo Cornero’s Head Mage, Siluca Meletes.

「Raise the flag. 」

Alexis ordered Kato. This is to notify the felt of the Fantasia Union of the approach of an enemy fleet.

Several types of flags were prepared, and the signals of musical instruments were carefully played as well. This is the same tactic that Alexis used in the battle against the Marquis of Dawson, and it is effective in commanding a motley army in a chaotic battlefield.

「Change the formation. 」

After waiting for a while, Alexis had Kato raise the second flag.

The sailing ships other than the iron-clad ships that saw the flag slowly changed course and lined up in a circle outside the ten iron-clad ships. Chains and gangplanks were placed around the stern of the ship, in front and the bow of the ship and behind it. The sails were then lowered, and the ships came to a complete stop at sea.

「Wait for the enemy to approach. 」

Alexis said quietly. His knees tremble with fear as he thought of another battle. He felt like he was going to faint, but he had no choice but to hold on for now…

* * *

Eric the Ocean King also heard from his contracted Mage onboard that he had discovered the location of the Fantasia Union’s fleet. He blew the signal horn and ordered all ships to pick up speed.

The rowers of Eric’s boat were also shouting and moving their oars with all their strength. The Nord fleet moves at full speed towards their enemies, and eventually, the shadows of enemy ships became visible with the naked eye only a short while after they started rowing.

「What is that formation? 」

When viewed through a telescope, the Union fleet was lined up in a ring. It was a formation he had never seen or heard of before. Moreover, all the ships were connected by gangplanks. The fleet had stopped moving, exposing its thinly defended sides.

「No matter which ship you board, you can cross to another ship, right? 」

Eric called out to his soldiers.

The Nord way of fighting was to charge at enemy ships and board them to overwhelm the bewildered crew as fast as possible. And the formation in which the enemy ships were lined up right was the perfect one for them to do just that.

「Looks like the Fantasia Union dogs don’t know how to properly wage war at the sea. 」

One of Eric’s aides said mockingly and laughed heartly.

「True, but with that formation, it’s going to be easy for the enemy ships to send reinforcements to each other even if we do board them. 」

Eric puts his hand on the condyle and tapping his foot on the deck of the ship. That was a habit of his whenever he was thinking about something.

「We will spread out and surround the enemy fleet. If we attack from all directions at the same time, the enemy will not be able to concentrate their forces and launch an effective counterattack against us, and we’ll use that chance to gradually annihilate them. 」

The fleet of the Nords had the advantage over the Fantasia Union’s when it came to the number of ships and warriors, and since the Union’s flagship was such a large ironed ship, it’s going to be necessary for them to be wary of things such as the catapults and heavy crossbows. On the flipside, the longboats of the Nords had great maneuverability, so, even if the Union’s soldiers began to target them, actually landing a hit would not be such an easy task. All that the Nords would have to do is to block the incoming arrows with their shields and board the enemy ships as soon as possible. After that, all that Eric would need to do was to activate the power of his 「Berserk」Banner and have his soldiers kill every last one of the Fantasia Union’s soldiers. The captains of every boat in the fleet are Eric’s subordinate Lords, so they and their men would receive the power of Eric’s Banner without any issues.

The Nord fleet, now a group of berserkers, raced forward to meet their enemies.

「The enemy fleet is dispersing and approaching. 」

Kato, who was watching the movements of the Nord fleet from the mast, reported to Alexis. It was an expected move. They probably intend to surround the ship Alexis was on and have as many soldiers as possible board it all at once to overwhelm the forces of the Fantasia Union.

「All ships, lower the boats. 」

Alexis commanded, and the third flag was raised on the mast.

Taking this as a signal, the small boats that had been suspended on both sides of the large ship were lowered into the sea one after another. Each of the boats had a retinue of two oarsmen and an archer with a long-range weapon such as a bow or a crossbow. These are all the members of Halusian light cavalry.

The total number of small boats was about 2,000. Boats and rowers went around fishing villages along the cities and villages on the coast in order to recruit people and requisite their boats for the sake of the war effort, and that’s how such big numbers could be achieved.

They didn’t know when they would be attacked by the Nords, and because they knew what would happen if they were attacked, many fishermen offered to help without a word of complaint.

The small boats then waited hidden behind the sailboats lined up in a ring. The boats were crowded together, and there was no room for anything to squeeze between them.

「Wait for the battle to begin. 」
Alexis continued to give orders.

The sun was setting in the west, and the wind was getting stiffer. There were no waves on the water’s surface, and it looks like a blue carpet has been spread out on the sea’s surface. The ripples from the ship spread out like an intricate pattern.

A moment of tense waiting has passed.

Eventually, the Nord fleet rang their horns all at once. That was the signal to start the attack.