Steel, gunpowder, and spellcasters

Chapter 68 The Angel of Vengeance
The sun is setting in the west, and the southeast wind is gradually weakening.

As the bells rang, the Glorious turned around, raised its sails against the wind, and anchored, waiting for the other warships that had arrived at the anchorage earlier to catch up with the ships that lagged behind.

Although the army and navy officers in Venetta had always disliked each other, after two days on the ship, even the most prejudiced army officer had to admit that managing a fleet was definitely a technical skill.

To command fifty soldiers, all you need to do is have a loud voice. But to lead fifty hundred-man squads into battle, you need an effective command system.

The Third "Great Vineta" Legion consisted of fifty-nine hundred-man squads, totaling just over five thousand men, which paled in comparison to the massive battles fought by ancient empires in historical accounts, often involving hundreds of thousands of soldiers.

(54 centurions and 5 chief centurions; please refer to previous chapters for legion organization.)
But just to put these five thousand people together as an army, it would take the concerted efforts of seventy-six officers, one hundred and eighteen military police, sixty-two standard-bearers, forty buglers, thirteen barbers who also served as army doctors, and three priests accompanying the army.

Thank goodness, the soldiers are responsible for cooking their own food; otherwise, dozens more cooks would have to be added to the list.

However, managing a fleet is a level more difficult than managing a legion.

Winters's revenge fleet included galleons and oar-sailed warships from the Inland Sea Fleet, requisitioned merchant ships, and supply ships specifically for transporting supplies.

These ships differed in type, age, draft, and seaworthiness. Naval warships could cut through the waves at speeds exceeding ten knots; it would be a wonder if heavy merchant ships capsized at that speed. Flat-bottomed galleys couldn't withstand strong winds and waves, but deep-draft merchant ships and warships couldn't navigate shallow waters either.

These diverse ships cannot sail in a column, one after another, for long periods of time. The ships will naturally spread out, and those with poor seaworthiness will fall behind.

So these past two days, when Winters was getting some fresh air on deck, he couldn't see any other ships at all. The ocean was so vast that he could only occasionally spot sails on the horizon.

Therefore, the naval headquarters planned the route and anchorage for the revenge fleet in advance. Departing from Haidong Port, the fleet would regroup at the anchorage every sixty or seventy nautical miles before heading to the next anchorage.

Lieutenant Commander Contair said to Winters, "After two days and nights of working without a single ship falling behind, it seems the navy is really going all out."

Winters felt that for someone like Contair, who always said "the navy only has sailors and captains, no officers," to say such a thing, naval officers should take it as the highest praise.

At this moment, Winters was half-lying on a bed in a cabin at the stern of the Glorious, staring intently at the cabin door.

This "bed" is less of a bed and more of a wooden box. It has two-foot-high sideboards, making it feel like lying in a coffin. This design was created to prevent sleeping people from being thrown off the bed by rough seas.

Not far above his head, just like beneath him, was a ship's plank.

To save space, the beds are in bunk beds. Four beds were crammed into this small cabin, leaving only an arm's width of aisle in the middle, making it feel very cramped.

The lodgings were rather meager, but this was actually an exceptional privilege afforded to the navy. Living conditions at sea were extremely harsh; naval sailors could only sleep curled up in hammocks, and inevitably woke up with aches and pains all over their bodies.

Even so, it was still better than the situation of many merchant ship sailors. The crew of the Skua simply slept on the deck, where the dampness caused them to develop skin diseases, and they couldn't sleep soundly. When the waves were high, they would be tossed and turned on the deck with the rhythm of the waves.

The Venetian Navy showed its utmost sincerity, streamlining the crew of the Glorious, even eliminating the gunners, retaining only the sailors who could keep the warship running. They also temporarily converted all the space into cabins—effectively turning this flagship of the Inland Sea Fleet into a command post and living quarters for army officers.

To ensure smooth communication, the navy even arranged for the commander of the Third Army Corps to be in the same cabin as the commander of the Inland Fleet. As Lieutenant Commander Contel said, they really wanted to give the Tanilians a good beating, and were even willing to start currying favor with their old adversary for it.

Because it anchored against the wind, the Glorious remained stable, only rising and falling slightly with the waves.

Andrei was clearly asleep, as the snoring coming from the bunk above Winters was sometimes loud and sometimes soft.

Bard, on the upper bunk opposite, was reading his well-worn old book again. Winters, sensing the ship's movement, seized the moment when the ship rose to its highest point and came to a stop, and used his Arrow Technique.

A steel awl flew from his hand and embedded itself in the cabin door.

Winters breathed a sigh of satisfaction and pulled out another steel awl.

There are now more than a dozen steel awls stuck in a small circle carved out of the center of the door panel, while there are no steel awls outside the small circle, only holes left from previous practice.

Both a spellcaster's burst of magical power and magical skill can only be improved through persistent practice. If you have the opportunity to practice, practice; if you don't, create the opportunity.

It was about two and a half steps from his hand to the hatch. Winters had already started practicing six-step target practice in the basement of his house. He could hit the target every time from such a short distance, so there was not much point in practicing.

However, space on the ship was extremely limited, and there was no suitable training area. Moreover, there were many high-ranking officers, so Winters dared not act recklessly. He could only play around in the cabin as a game.

"Remember to remind me not to play darts with you again," Bud said with a smile, sticking his head out of his bunk, looking at the steel spike stuck in the door.

“No problem.” Winters also got playful, switched to a dart-throwing stance, aimed twice, and threw the steel spike toward the hatch.

But just as the steel cone slipped from someone's hand, someone opened the door from the outside.

——Cut——

As the three warrant officers idly whiled away the time in the cabin of the Glory, a light sailing ship pulled up at the dock of Blue Harbor.

The sailors on board looked haggard and exhausted. Working in two shifts, day and night, they maneuvered the swift sailboat toward Blue Harbor. They encountered headwinds and torrential rain along the way, but neither could defeat these resolute sailors.

The sailors were unaware that they had broken the record for the shortest travel time from Golden Harbor to Blue Harbor, and had widened the gap to the second-place finisher by a significant margin. Though this little episode remained unknown to the world, the sea remembered it forever.

Their record will stand for centuries until it is broken by the revolutionary clipper ship.

However, they were too late; the Republic of Veneta had already dispatched their vengeful angels.

Upon learning this news, Captain Kenway—one of the leaders of Captain Tanilla and the Plantation Owners' Union—did not attempt to meet with Governor Debella again, but instead returned directly to his ship.

War has begun, and it will not end until one side surrenders.

Kenway tried to stop it from happening, but his efforts proved futile.

Now, he needs to inform the other captains as soon as possible that Venetta's Third Legion has set sail.

I'm experiencing writer's block today; I've only written 2,000 words by 11:53 PM. Lately, I've been writing until 1 or 2 AM. I'm afraid I'll collapse from exhaustion if this continues. So, I'm giving up on the goal of writing 4,000 words a day and instead aiming to go to bed before midnight. Edward Kenway + Francis Drake, this is practically a dream men's doubles team! 233333
Now it's time for acknowledgments. Thank you to everyone who voted for me. Thank you all.

Thank you to writersblock for the recommendation vote, thank you to Yuan Hongjian for the recommendation vote, thank you to kkkkk for the recommendation vote, thank you to "I don't know what to call" for the recommendation vote, and thank you to 20181013204343295 for the recommendation vote.

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(End of this chapter)