Steel, gunpowder, and spellcasters

Chapter 24 Determination
"Hey, they really came?" The fat captain's tone was very relaxed, but he looked confident despite the hostile intentions of the newcomers: "Raise the flag, raise the naval ensign."

Sailors climbed the mainmast, and the blue and yellow pinstripe flag symbolizing the Blue Republic was taken down and replaced with a striking red flag with a diagonal cross that fluttered in the wind.

This flag represents the Veneta Navy; blue symbolizes Veneta, and red symbolizes blood. The flag signifies that the Navy established the Blue Republic with its blood.

However, the real reason the flag was red was because the designers thought it was more eye-catching and easily recognizable from a distance. The explanation of blood came later, and through misinterpretation, it eventually became the official explanation.

The portly captain, hands on his hips, boasted to the army's landlubbers, "On the inland seas, pirates will always give the navy some face. Seeing this flag, any wicked villains with ill intentions will retreat on their own."

The captain's calm and composed demeanor impressed the trainee officers. It seemed they wouldn't be seeing any pirates today, and Winters felt a little disappointed.

But things then took an unexpected turn from the fat captain's prediction. Winters watched as the other ship first revealed only its masts, then its sails, then its deck, and finally the entire ship came into view.

If I'm not hallucinating, then the distance between the two ships is decreasing.

The portly captain remained calm and composed: "They're probably too far away to see the flag clearly. Give them some time."

After a short while, Winters could clearly see the bare top of the enemy's mast—they weren't flying any flags. This meant that the enemy could also see the Skuas's flag, and the newcomers hadn't been deterred by that naval ensign.

"Lower all the sails, sail at full sail!" The fat captain was starting to get anxious. The sailors obeyed and climbed up the barge along the rigging, unfurled the tied-up sails, and hoisted the square sails back onto the Scaber's mainmast and foremast.

The sails on all three masts of the Skua were suddenly filled with wind, causing those on deck to stumble. Even the most oblivious passengers could feel the ship slowly accelerating, and the clueless trainee officers all came out of their cabins onto the deck, including Major General Layton and Major Moritz.

"It's alright, their sails are small, and they're not fast even at full speed. The Skua will shake them off in no time," the fat captain said, wiping the sweat from his brow.

The straggler's sails, which had been billowing in the wind, suddenly began to deflate. The sea is a fickle lover, and the power of the sea breeze was waning.

"It doesn't matter if the wind is weak. The Skua has more sails than them. We're slower, but they're even slower," the fat captain confidently concluded.

Before the words were even finished, under the watchful eyes of everyone on the Skua, a pair of wings extended from the sides of the other ship and began to flap on the water.

The approaching boat was equipped not only with sails but also with oars. The wind weakened, but as the oars were swung, the approaching boat's speed increased instead of decreasing, and the distance between the two boats was rapidly closed.

In fact, the hybrid propeller and sail system is the standard configuration in the Gulf of Cenat in this era. Most of the boats sailing in this area are flat-bottomed sailing ships, which use sails with the wind and oars for use against the wind.

Ships like the Skua, equipped with complex rigging and powered solely by wind, are outliers on the inland sea. While these self-sufficient sailing vessels, requiring fewer crew members, represent the future, their short-distance maneuverability in light winds is far inferior to that of their predecessors, the galley sailing vessels.

The two ships were now much closer together, so close that Winters could see people the size of ants climbing between the sails of the other ship.

The man climbed to the top of the mast and raised a flag with red and black colors, each occupying half of the flagpole.

"Whose flag is this?" Layton asked in a deep voice, having already figured out the Skua's current predicament.

“It’s nobody’s flag,” the fat captain said, his voice trembling with tears. “This flag means that if we don’t stop and surrender, we’ll all be killed, not a single one will be left alive.”

A flash of red light appeared at the bow of the approaching ship, followed by a plume of white smoke. "Boom!" A cannon shot rang out, and a gray object flew from the bow of the opposing ship to the stern of the Skua, splashing water.

The sides of the galley were meant for the oarsmen, so the main cannons were positioned at the bow. This shot was clearly a show of force against the Skuas.

“The pirates only want the goods. If they can’t leave, just give them the stuff in the cargo hold.” One of the passengers on the Skua spoke up. They were clearly unwilling to risk their lives for the shipowner’s interests, since the looting wasn’t theirs anyway.

"Give it to them, if they only want the cargo, that's fine." The fat captain's legs were weak and he could barely stand. "I'm afraid they'll also want the ship! The most valuable thing at sea isn't the cargo, it's the ship!"

"Give him a damn thing! Not even a handful of dirt!" The thunderous voice startled the fat captain, causing him to fall to the ground. Major General Layton roared in fury, his bloodshot eyes blazing, "You'd give him anything if I robbed you? Give him nothing! If word gets out, where will I put my face?! Where will the Hailan Army put its face?!"

With no hope of escape, the fat captain had already planned to surrender. The prospect of losing both the ship and the cargo filled him with immense grief, but it was better than losing his life, wasn't it? However, seeing Rear Admiral Layton's tough stance, he suddenly found his backbone and felt that there was still a glimmer of hope to save the ship and the cargo.

“That’s right, General. If we really fight, these pirates might not be able to defeat us.” The fat captain muttered as he began to do the math: “We have more than fifty men on this ship, all of them are tough guys. This pirate ship that came is not big, and they might not have as many men as us.”

“That’s right!” the fat captain said loudly, having made up his mind. “We’ll definitely win this battle.”

"Then let's take him down!" Major General Layton slammed his fist on the gunwale.

"Calm down!" Several passengers, unaware of how they had gotten involved in a battle with pirates, exclaimed, "What if they sink us? They have cannons!"

"No, the pirates only want money. If they sink the Skua, they'll have no money left." The fat captain suddenly changed from a surrenderist to a war advocate: "Besides, we have cannons too, right in the cabin."

"You have cannons, why don't you mount them on the deck and put them in the cabin?" Major Moritz, who hadn't spoken until now, pointed at the fat captain and demanded.

“The Skua has a shallow draft and a high superstructure, making it unstable. I’m afraid it will capsize if the cannons are placed on the deck.” The fat captain licked his lips. “There are four six-pound cannons on board, and a few rotary cannons as well.”

"Bring everything up!"

“General! Please wait…” A refined-looking, well-dressed middle-aged passenger stepped forward: “You must understand, you are risking your officer’s life to protect the ship owner’s property!”

"I am protecting the honor of the Vineta Army!" Major General Layton retorted sharply.

"This has absolutely nothing to do with honor!"

"Honor is a soldier's life! If my officers are willing to give up honor to save their own lives, then they don't deserve to be officers! You say I don't cherish the lives of my men? I'll be the first to board after we make contact!" Major General Layton's words silenced everyone on deck.

"It's not safe to surrender," the fat captain, who was the first to come to his senses, quickly chimed in. "The pirates will rob you of all your money, then detain you and demand a ransom. If you can't pay the ransom, you'll be sold into slavery on the plantations of Taneria."

The middle-aged passenger, who clearly had some social standing, fell silent. It was unclear whether he was intimidated by the major general's imposing manner or intimidated by the fat captain's ambiguous words.

"Stop talking nonsense! Prepare your weapons!" The major general slammed his fist on the stern mast.

He walked to the sterncastle, staring directly into the eyes of the warrant officers standing on the deck, and said in a hateful voice, "That ship behind us is a pirate ship, here to find us. Some people think you're all useless, unable to defeat pirates, and should just surrender. Which coward wants to surrender? Step forward, and I'll give you a small boat to surrender to!" He glanced around, but the warrant officers didn't budge. "Very well, Venetta men, how could you surrender to pirates? You are officers trained with great effort by the army; it's time to see what you're made of! Whether you're cowards or heroes, we'll find out today! A bunch of rotten bastards born of (swear words), you dare to come looking for trouble with us? Get your weapons! Come with me and kill all this scum!"

The warrant officers were roused to a roar by the major general, and Winters felt as if a fire was burning in his chest. He jumped off the stern deck and headed straight for the cabin to retrieve his longsword.

Major Moritz said to the fat captain in an unfriendly tone, "You're lucky. It seems this battle is inevitable today. It's truly unacceptable for a dignified army to surrender to pirates. However, perhaps we can devise a reasonable plan..."

Winters jumped down two decks and headed straight for his cabin to retrieve his luggage, which was with his longsword. Although it was an unsharpened sword used in swordsmanship class, it was the only weapon he could think of in the rush.

However, once he actually got his hands on the sword, he realized that this weapon didn't seem suitable for use on a ship. The longsword was too long; to swing it freely, the surrounding space would need to be at least three and a half meters high.

If used in a cramped and low-ceilinged space like a ship's cabin, it's easy to bump into the cabin ceiling or bulkhead. It's also not suitable for use on deck, because there are cables everywhere, making it easier to get caught on them.

However, Winters had no other usable weapons, so he took his longsword with him, since having something is better than having nothing.

Winters suddenly remembered that the female thief's dagger was still there, so he hurriedly searched for it. Ike carefully put his satchel in his bag, and he quickly found the dagger.

Because the dagger had once been used as a material for a light spell, its surface had changed from a normal metallic color to a red and black hue. Winters tested it and found it still very sharp, so he tucked it into his belt for future use.

Bud also went into the cabin to get his longsword. He saw Winters putting a dagger into his belt and quickly stopped him: "You're in such a sorry state, don't even think about boarding. Your arm was just stitched up, won't it burst open again if you exert any force?"

"If it bursts open, sew it back up!" How could Winters let his classmates and comrades fight while he pretended to be a wounded soldier in the back?

Having fought the female thief, he knew all too well how dangerous real combat could be, and how it could really kill someone, but he was even more unwilling to be a coward.

“Go help those guys in the artillery department set up the cannons. They won’t miss you in hand-to-hand combat,” Bard said decisively.

Winters pretended not to hear and walked straight out of the lower sterncast where the wounded spellcasters were resting. As soon as he stepped out, he saw the first mate and a sailor carrying a wooden barrel full of swords onto the deck and distributing them one by one to the people on board.

Winters quickly changed into a one-handed scimitar. This scimitar had a wider blade, shorter length, a forward center of gravity, and a large tsuba (handguard).

Winters often saw sailors carrying these knives. After holding one in his hand and comparing it to his own, he immediately understood why sailors loved using this weapon.

Its shorter length makes it easier to maneuver on a small boat, reducing the risk of snagging on the hull or ropes. The wider blade and forward-positioned center of gravity result in more powerful swings. Since sailors don't wear armor, its slashing effect is exceptional.

"A few more men, help move the cannons! Someone come here!" Winters had just switched to a more useful short scimitar when he heard cries for help coming from the cabin, and he immediately went to help.

When Winters climbed the ladder to the lower deck, several artillery cadets were struggling to move a cannon.

The ship's cannons were short-barreled, with small calibers but very thick barrels, encased in layers of iron hoops, making them extremely cumbersome. The ship's hold was cramped and filled with cargo, leaving the warrant officers with virtually no room to maneuver.

Winters looked around and decided that the cargo needed to be unloaded first to make it easier to move, but unloading was clearly not feasible now. So Winters could only lend a hand, and the cannon could only be inclined inch by inch.

Major Moritz also went down to the lower deck and saw the trainee officers moving cannons. He felt like he was about to cry from the stupidity of these young men: "Don't bother moving these few dilapidated six-pound cannons. Can you even move them? Is there enough time? Aren't there rotary cannons? Where are they?"

Upon seeing the swivel guns equipped on the Skua, Major Moritz's eyes lit up: "Still worried about the breech-loading guns? Great! Perfect for dealing with pirates."

"Where are the bullets? Find them all first." The major began searching the lower deck of the ship on his own, and finally found the bullets of the rotary cannon in a few wooden crates: "Send a few men to load the bullets with gunpowder, and carry one of the rotary cannon barrels up."

The breech-loading rotary cannon on the Skuas was known in the Silk Road as a "Frangipani" or "mother-and-child cannon." Gunpowder and shells were loaded into a single magazine, which was inserted into the main gun's breech compartment and ignited during firing. The combustion process primarily occurred inside the magazine, with the main cannon body acting as a barrel.

The advantage is that you can prepare many bullets in advance, and replace them after firing one. You don't need to load and fire one shot at a time, and the rate of fire is very fast.

The drawback was that, due to limitations in manufacturing technology, there was severe air leakage at the junction of the cannon and the magazine. Therefore, the cannon's power was very low, and it couldn't fire very far. However, it was perfectly adequate for close-quarters boarding combat.

Upon hearing this, Winters and several artillery warrant officers abandoned their six-pound cannons and turned to lift the rotary cannons.

"Don't just focus on lifting the cannon barrels, go load the bullets, take all the bullets." Major Moritz was both annoyed and amused to see these young men rushing to move the cannons and then the rotary cannons. "Relax, it's just a few dozen pirates. There will be much bigger scenes like this in the future."

Winters was being led around in circles by the major, and he and another artillery warrant officer climbed up to the lower deck carrying a dozen or so small rotary cannon barrels.

By this time, the lower deck was in complete chaos. Warrant officers and sailors were running around, each seemingly unaware of what they were doing, yet everyone was busy.

Winters stopped the first mate, who was carrying a matchlock gun in each hand, and ordered him to take two men to get gunpowder and lead bullets.

The fat captain was incredibly stingy; he was the kind of guy who only took in things and never gave them away, and he treasured everything he owned.

Cannons, rotary cannons, matchlock guns, swords, gunpowder—he had everything an armed merchant ship should have. But he locked them all up, carefully storing them on the ship, never letting the sailors practice on them, for fear that the rough sailors would damage them.

The most important thing in the fat captain's eyes was to prevent the ship and all the property on it from depreciating and losing value.

Winters was dumbfounded when the first mate broke the lock and opened the gunpowder barrel that the captain had "treasured." He only knew how to use a matchlock gun and had never learned how to handle a cannon.

"How... how do we load the gun?" Winters was holding several spinning cannons, unsure of what to do.

"Load the gunpowder like you would load a musket!" the artillery warrant officer said reproachfully, busy with his work without turning his head.

"What I mean is, how much should we load? How much gunpowder? And the shells?" If we load too little gunpowder, the power won't be enough; if we load too much, the gunner will be blown up first.

"There's no time to find shells, so just fill them with lead pellets and use them as grapeshot. The amount of lead pellets you fill will equal the amount of gunpowder you fill."

Are you referring to volume or weight?

"Alright, go find the matchlock!" The artillery warrant officer angrily snatched the musket from Winters' hands and chased him away.

(End of this chapter)