Chapter 268
Chapter 268
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 268
Chapter Title: Griffino Naval Battle (6)
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The Warsaw reconnaissance squadron turned their bows toward us just as I had anticipated, closing in at maximum speed.
Given the distance between them and us, and the speed of those enemy warships right now, they wouldn't dare punch holes in our allied ships with the rams fitted to their prows.
Unlike us, they only had small ballistae, arrows, and magic at their disposal—practically useless for sinking my flagship or any of the other vessels. So they were banking on boarding us for a melee fight.
Even as a mere reconnaissance squadron, the enemy had five ships to our three, giving them a two-ship advantage. The Warsaw soldiers approaching from the side looked brimming with confidence.
"Kill Peter Jaeger! That dog Peter Jaeger is aboard that damned flagship over there!"
"This is our chance to change our fates—kill that bastard by any means necessary!"
"We've got five ships; they've only got three!"
The soldiers on the deck of my flagship were itching to charge out the moment boarding began, or to loose ballista bolts and arrows at the enemy clustered at their bow. Their faces said it all.
Some of the officers shot me pleading looks, begging to open fire right now.
But we had to hold back that boiling urge to kill until the right moment if our outnumbered force was going to have any shot at victory against their reconnaissance squadron.
"Ballistae, crossbows, and magic fire only on my command! Anyone who shoots early will face strict military justice later."
At my declaration that I'd have the head of anyone who pulled the trigger prematurely once the war was over, the soldiers on the flagship's deck stomped in frustration, though reluctantly.
As if to say their wait wouldn't be long, the Warsaw idiots hurled grapnel lines with iron hooks toward our ship.
Once the hooks caught on the deck walls shielding the deck, they pulled with all their might.
Dead set on seizing the flagship I was aboard, one enemy ship latched onto our bow, another to our side.
At this rate, we'd be fighting a 1:2 melee on deck...
But against two-to-one odds, what I'd prepared would be more than enough.
"From now on, every warship trains ballistae, crossbows, and magic on the enemy ships clinging to our flanks! Fire in unison just before they hook on and board, then each ship fights its own boarding action under the captain's command!"
With that, I readied the medieval naval battle's crowning glory—a perfect boarding melee—sword in hand as I headed to the bow.
The reason? All our firepower, ballistae included, was now focused on the flanks, leaving the bow relatively vulnerable.
Even the flanks, backed by decent firepower, would need extra troops to handle one enemy ship in melee.
"Captain Posch, take a platoon to the side and keep those Warsaw bastard scum from boarding freely! And everyone else—no flashy one-handed swordplay. Grab your warhammers and follow me! I'll lead from the front."
Captain Posch rushed off with his platoon toward the ballista batteries at my order, while I made for the bow where the enemy was hooking on and trying to board.
Even amid the chaos, the moment the soldiers saw me take the vanguard, they roared as if the boarding battle was already won.
"Commander Jaeger, the Khan Slayer, is at the front!"
"Don't fall behind the commander! Fight to the death and stick with him!"
"Long live the commander! Long live the Reich Empire!"
I'd learned that in an era without gunpowder, when the odds were against you, a capable commander leading from the front was the best way to boost allied morale.
Feeling that effect firsthand like this never failed to stir my blood, whether I liked it or not.
As a soldier—a commander, no less—I couldn't help but get fired up by the fervent cheers from my men.
But to deliver the victory I'd promised them, my heart had to burn hot while my head stayed ice cold. No getting carried away.
By the time I reached the bow, the enemy soldiers from the attached ship were clambering over the deck walls onto ours.
That's when a heavy crunch of splintering wood rang out from the right, followed by enemy screams and our allies' cheers.
I turned to see the soldiers trying to board from midships on our starboard side shredded by four siege ballistae, a hail of crossbow bolts, and a barrage of spells.
Some were pulped beyond recognition, others lost limbs in death. With naval battles favoring light armor, plenty ended up like pincushions.
"S-spare me... Aaaagh, it hurts!"
"You Reich Empire fuckers!"
"......M-Mommy! Mommy!"
The bulk of the soldiers from the flanking ship were gripped by terror, plunging into total chaos.
Captain Posch, with his platoon in support, saw the enemy wiped out in one go and their remnants leaderless.
Whether he planned to follow my lead or not, he drew his sword and led the Reich Empire soldiers onto the enemy deck, butchering them.
I watched the scene briefly before Vincent beside me bellowed a warning.
"Commander, enemy soldiers from the ship dead ahead are about to board!"
"Is that right? Good. I can't show Captain Posch up. When they try climbing over, smash their skulls with warhammers. Got it?"
The men following me roared their assent in unison.
Soon after, the enemy soldiers advanced to vault our walls onto our deck, but my marines—including me—met them with resolve to let not a single one through.
I cleaved one soldier's neck clean through with my sword, then punched a hole in another's throat from the left.
My swings were fast enough that to anyone less than expert, it might look like one stroke felled both.
Our allied soldiers bashed enemy heads helmets and all while they were exposed mid-climb, or pulverized shoulders entirely.
"Warsaw bastards, you can squirm all you want—you don't even reach the commander's toe."
"Our commander, who they call 'One-Man Battalion' the moment he grabs his sword, fights with us!"
"Die and behave, you motherless shits."
We slaughtered the enemies trying to board like it was a one-sided massacre. I was first onto their ship.
A few arrows flew my way immediately, but even at sea, a commander at the vanguard wore full plate armor.
So none pierced me.
Then I spotted enemy mages aiming staves at me, starting their incantations. Luckily, I reached them a hair before they finished.
"By the pact with the spirit of flame... Fir..."
"Die, you bastard."
The mage, staff pointed at me, was bisected from below as I swung upward. Blood gushed from the wound my blade carved.
I spun right, decapitating the mage in front, then spun again to take another's head.
The enemy soldiers witnessing it went pale with horror.
"Fuck, a monster? How many's he killing alone?"
"......Spare me."
"Is that the fucking swordmaster those damn bards bullshit about?! Why the fuck can our captain do that too?!"
But horror or no, I carved through them relentlessly, vowing not to miss a single one.
Slicing heads, chests, armpits—even crotches when they opened—killing one by one.
The Warsaw scum lost control at the sight of a four-star insignia holder rampaging like a madman.
"You idiots! Group up! Group up if you want to live!"
"If the platoon leader says so, then kill that damned Peter Jaeger bastard! How the fuck do we beat him?"
"......Grab a sword, spear—anything—and take down that crazy fuck at the front!"
Soldiers ignoring officers weren't soldiers; they were weaker than civilians, mere idiot scum. My men spared only those dropping weapons to surrender, butchering the rest without mercy.
About twelve minutes later, no enemy soldiers remained on the Warsaw warship's deck where I stood.
"Go below deck and subdue all the rowers. Bind the hands of any who surrender and stash them in our hold. Kill the rest."
With that, I fully seized the enemy ship and led my soldiers back to the flagship.
Once back, the battle report came: our other warships had used ballistae to dominate their boarding actions too, winning without heavy losses.
"One enemy ship fled the moment boarding started. We captured four Warsaw ships. What are your orders?"
Normally, I'd pursue and capture the fugitive too, but not now. No time.
We had to prepare for their main fleet of 116 ships closing in.
"Lure them straight to our main force like this. Rest for ten minutes, then pull back the instant their fleet comes into view."
Come on and chase us, you bastard scum.