The Impregnable Fortress

Aquitaine was the gateway to Porvin, the capital of the West. The river that cut through the heart of Porvin met the sea in the Aquitaine region.

In other words, if Aquitaine fell, a direct path all the way to the Western capital would open. It was the capital’s leash and windpipe. The moment this place was blocked, Porvin would choke and die.

That was why Aquitaine’s fortress was more solid and sturdy than any other in the West. The triple walls facing the sea averaged ten meters thick.

It was an absurd thickness that could shrug off not only primitive siege weapons like catapults, but even cannon fire from gunpowder weapons without so much as a scratch.

On top of that, five resident 7th Tier mages and two 8th Tier mages were stationed there. Even if the fortress were surrounded, there would be no problem. The Wyvern Knight Order permanently based inside could freely come and go even during a siege, throwing the enemy into chaos. For that reason, Aquitaine’s fortress was often regarded as one of the empire’s most powerful strongholds.

Therefore, Louis Armand, the Castellan of Aquitaine, viewed the current situation as one he could endure. He had not yet properly recognized the existence of the enemy fleet. He had heard roughly how impressive their so-called “cannons” were, but he was confident that if the fight took place on open plains, his side would prevail. He believed the mages’ firepower would be more than enough to inflict serious damage on the enemy’s artillery.

“Execute the scorched-earth tactic! Sweep away every civilian home outside the walls and burn every last crop! Ensure they cannot obtain any supplies whatsoever beyond the fortress!”

They would hold out until reinforcements arrived from the imperial center. In the meantime, they would prevent the enemy from securing any supplies.

Because the Southern army had advanced at such terrifying speed, the scorched-earth operation was also carried out in haste.

Acts bordering on outright plunder were committed against the people outside the walls… but that was none of his concern.

The survival of the West was far more important than the lives of mere commoners. The destruction of Western public sentiment in the process was simply an added bonus.

In any case, Aquitaine had successfully prepared for a protracted war. By squeezing the populace, they had gathered enough resources to last at least a year.

The Castellan of Aquitaine, Louis, replied to the letter from Porvin as follows.

That moment was midday on the day the Siege of Aquitaine began. It was right around the time the Dreadnought entered the waters fifty kilometers from Aquitaine.

A warship’s naval guns are not particularly precise weapons. To be more exact, they are not weapons capable of destroying only a specific desired point.

The purpose of a warship is total devastation. It exists to obliterate the target area and everything around it with overwhelming firepower.

Until now, that had not been an issue. Sarcen Fortress had been a purely military installation with almost no civilian residents. It was a thorough military stronghold built to block the road and extract tolls, so smashing it to pieces had been of no concern.

The battle on the Arcal Plain had been the same. There, they had collapsed the canyon to separate the conscripts from the elite troops. The place where the elite soldiers had gathered could be pounded without restraint.

But… Aquitaine was slightly different. It was a port city located directly in front of Porvin, the Western capital. In terms from his previous life, it held a relationship similar to Seoul and Incheon.

The only difference was that its importance and weight within the West far ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠exceeded that of Incheon relative to Seoul.

Naturally, Aquitaine’s population was enormous. In this era between the medieval and early modern periods, it boasted thirty thousand residents. One could not simply hurl naval gunfire into such a major city.

After all, their goal was to annex the West. If the entire urban center of Aquitaine were wiped out like Sarcen Fortress and thirty thousand people slaughtered, public sentiment would be finished as well.

Because the Dreadnought possessed enough power to accidentally blow away the entire Aquitaine fortress along with its magic towers if it misfired, they had to be even more cautious.

And to destroy only the magic towers where the mages were stationed…

“It means we have to close the distance ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and fire directly,” the bridge crew’s hesitation was evident in the report received through the crystal orb.

When one thought about it, that made sense. The Dreadnought had never yet fought and defeated mages in a direct frontal engagement. It was only natural to feel uneasy at the prospect of facing mages.

Of course, to someone like him who knew the combat record that Dreadnought-class battleships had shown during the World Wars, there was no particular problem.

“There’s no need to worry.”

Worry about losing to mages? He did not feel any such concern. Why would a warship be called a battleship instead of a gunboat or ironclad? It was because a battleship was neither a ship equipped only with cannons nor one equipped only with armor plates.

It was a vessel built solely for combat, armed with massive guns and thick armor. Standing at the forefront of a naval fleet and engaging enemy warships in close-quarters brawls was the very reason for a Dreadnought-class battleship’s existence.

That was why battleships were fundamentally designed for counter-defense. In other words, they were capable of blocking their own guns. It meant that even the 305mm naval guns capable of tearing apart fortresses and melting knights could not penetrate the ship’s armor.

Furthermore, after interrogating captured Western officers, they had learned that the enemy fortress contained only four 7th Tier mages and two 8th Tier mages in total.

On top of that, the coastal mages had only ever faced fragile ships, so they specialized in wide-area spells with low penetration power.

If one were to compare it to shells, they were using high-explosive rounds rather than armor-piercing ones. In game terms, low-damage area-of-effect attacks.

That level of magic? The standard armor could easily shrug it off.

“So go and clearly teach the enemy why this ship is called a Dreadnought.”

Dreadnought. Literally translated, it meant “one who knows no fear.” It was time to clearly show them why this ship feared nothing.

May 18th. 17:03.

The bridge of the Dreadnought, which had been stationary in international waters off Aquitaine, began to bustle with activity. Officers rushed to their stations while off-duty sailors hurried to their posts.

As the massive mana engine pulsed, the entire ship trembled faintly. It looked like a colossal creature awakening from a deep slumber.

The captain of the Dreadnought, watching the scene from the combat bridge, turned to those around him and issued his command.

“Everyone, you all heard His Highness the Archduke’s words clearly!”

If someone else had said it, they might have doubted it once or twice. But if it came from Archduke Kyle, who had personally designed this ship, it was different. There had never been a single incorrect statement among the things that man had said.

“From now on, we are going to smash those mage bastards right in front of their faces!”

Everyone on the bridge swallowed hard. Until now, the South had fought many enemies head-on. From ordinary infantry without any special abilities to knights, and even aerial cavalry known as wyverns.

But engaging mages—the natural enemy of ships—in close-quarters brawling carried an entirely different weight. It meant they were voluntarily abandoning the range advantage the Southern army had possessed until now.

Yet no one objected. They all knew the power of this vessel.

“All hands to battle stations!”

As the siren signaling battle stations sounded, the massive ship’s screws began to spin furiously.

“Both sides, full speed ahead!”

Leaving the escorting destroyers behind, the Dreadnought turned its enormous bulk toward the fortress.

Naturally, this sight was observed by the sentries ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠of Aquitaine Fortress. A gray citadel slicing through the crimson sea.

The sentries who recognized its identity from ten kilometers away immediately raised the alarm. The monster that had destroyed Sarcen Fortress in a single blow was now approaching their own stronghold.

By the time the mages hurriedly climbed the offensive magic towers, the battleship had already closed to within eight kilometers of Aquitaine Fortress. However, they could not fire recklessly. The farther magic traveled from the caster, the weaker its power became.

Therefore, a mage’s effective range in war was at best one to two kilometers. When accuracy was taken into account, the actual range could shrink even further. This was precisely why mages had desperately blocked the development of guns and cannons until now.

“Battle stations! Deploy shield magic!”

Even as the mages hurriedly raised their shields, the battleship drew closer with every passing second. The colossal steel fortress approaching at forty kilometers per hour gave the mages an indescribable sense of oppression. They had all heard roughly how powerful those monstrous naval guns were.

Thus, the moment the battleship entered their range, the mages unleashed the strongest attack they could muster.

One kilometer. The instant the fortress and the battleship had fully closed the distance.

7th Tier mage Elvin gathered all his strength and cast his spell.

Kugugugung—!

The fireball that struck the battleship’s forward armor erupted in a massive explosion, swallowing the vessel whole. Pitch-black smoke soared high into the sky.

The tremendous shockwave shook the sea’s surface, and a colossal blast roared out. It was clear proof that the spell had landed perfectly.

“Hah, no matter how much those bastards struggle…”

Only then did Elvin breathe a sigh of relief ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and begin preparing his next spell. It had been a 7th Tier mage’s full-powered attack. No matter how large the ship, it should have been split cleanly in half.

“As expected, they still can’t stand against mages.”

With the tension released, a natural laugh escaped him. Elvin, his expression once again relaxed, pointed his staff toward the rising clouds of smoke—

“Huh?”

Something that should not have been visible came into sight. The Dreadnought’s massive hull. There was the ship, silently sailing across the sea still burning from the remnants of the spell.

Upon seeing it, Elvin could only doubt his own eyes.

“Wh-what… no damage?”

It was the moment every bit of common sense he had ever possessed was shattered. And it was also the last sight he would ever see in his life.

By then the distance between the fortress and the battleship had closed to 750 meters. The Dreadnought’s 305mm guns, now directly before them, roared with ferocious flame. Two shells fired in direct aim literally split one magic tower in half and sent it flying into the sky.

It was the beginning of a one-sided beating.