Chapter 232: Big Ship vs. Small Ship
Meanwhile, on the Nilfgaardian privateer ship.
"Why haven't they raised the white flag yet? Can't they find one?"
"Could they be planning to fight to the death?"
Sir Henry Morgan snorted disdainfully at his subordinate's reply: "Unless that merchant ship's captain has gone mad."
He became a pirate captain at twenty-three, and this was his eighth year at sea.
Since he acquired this decommissioned Nilfgaardian warship from the usurper emperor of Nilfgaard, he had never encountered a merchant ship captain who dared to resist to the end after seeing so many ballistas on his warship.
Although many in the North had heard of Nilfgaard's cruel treatment of people from other nations.
Most people, given the choice between an early death and a later death, would still voluntarily choose the latter.
Even if being captured by Nilfgaardians meant a miserable life of slavery.
Humans, after all, always hold onto a glimmer of hope.
Others might be captured and forced into slavery, laboring in mines until death.
But what if they were different?
Sir Henry Morgan believed.
This was what scholars called human nature, or the inherent flaws of humanity, or some other nonsense.
But none of that mattered.
Even if the other side wasn't willing to surrender.
It didn't matter.
Once they displayed their might, the other side would naturally face reality and surrender obediently.
"Privateer ship versus merchant ship, advantage mine! All hands, to battle stations!"
At Sir Henry Morgan's command, the privateer ship's deck immediately became a hive of activity.
Some crew members adjusted the positions of the ballistas.
Others began loading ammunition into these sharp instruments of naval warfare.
Brazier's were also brought out.
The large ballista bolts they loaded were specially made.
Their arrowheads were wrapped in tinder.
Once ignited and fired onto an enemy ship, they would erupt in raging flames.
Ships of this era were all made of wood, even naval vessels.
Even if the enemy immediately sent people to extinguish the flames, it would still tie up some of their manpower.
Moreover, the burning flames would also cause panic among the crew.
It would have a demoralizing effect.
This tactic, when explained now, might seem ordinary and unremarkable, but Sir Henry Morgan relied on these seemingly mundane tactics to achieve overwhelming success in naval battles, always coming out victorious.
As the distance between the two ships was not far at this time, people on the merchant ship could see the Nilfgaardian privateer's actions without needing a spyglass.
When they saw those terrifying ballistas already aimed at them, especially after the large ballista bolts loaded onto them were ignited...
Panic immediately spread like a plague across the merchant ship's deck.
"They're aiming at us? They're aiming at us!"
"We're finished!"
"I surrender! Don't shoot! I surrender!"
Although Lynn had just revealed his plan to the sailors, their knowledge of the ballistas' immense power still caused them to fall uncontrollably into panic.
After all, they weren't the navy, but merchant ship sailors.
At most, they had mentally prepared themselves to fight pirates, but they had never imagined fighting a privateer ship equipped with ballistas.
The captain tried to stabilize the sailors' collapsing morale.
But most of the sailors were still scared out of their wits.
They say a newborn calf fears no tiger.
But the more the sailors understood the power of warship ballistas, the more they fell into panic.
Only Lynn, standing at the stern, remained, squinting intently, staring fixedly at the distance between the two ships.
Just before their merchant ship was about to enter the ballistas' range, Lynn turned and shouted to Borch:
"Now!"
Borch grabbed the anchor and threw it with all his might.
The heavy anchor crashed into the sea, sending a splash.
It dragged along the seabed for more than ten meters, churning up a large amount of mud and sand, before finally hooking onto a submerged rock.
"Hard to starboard!"
The helmsman beside Lynn frantically spun the ship's wheel all the way to the right, to its limit.
The bow of the ship, hooked by the underwater rock, was first violently pulled downwards by the dragging force from beneath the water.
Then, it rapidly turned to the right.
The turning maneuver was so violent that everyone on board could hear the groaning of the ship's hull, strained under the pressure.
Many sailors on deck immediately began to pray.
But fortunately, the worst-case scenario finally didn't happen.
Although some planks warped and cracked in places.
At least it didn't break apart.
"Tea, Vea!"
The two Zerrikanian girls unchained the anchor.
The now-turned merchant ship charged towards the privateer ship like a wild boar galloping across the sea.
"You idiots! What are you all standing around for? Open fire! Sink that ship!"
Under Sir Henry Morgan's roar, the privateer ship's crew finally came to their senses, as if waking from a dream.
They fired all the ignited large ballista bolts at once.
"Please step aside, sir, it's more fitting for me."
The helmsman felt himself pushed aside.
Borch laughed heartily.
Under his personal command, the merchant ship miraculously dodged all the bombardments.
Whizz! Whizz! Whizz!
All the large ballista bolts plunged into the water, creating splash after splash.
"Prepare for boarding, gentlemen!"
The captain straightened his captain's hat and took the opportunity to bellow.
"The sea gods are with us, lads! Kill them all!"
The sailors, whose morale had just plummeted to rock bottom, now found their spirits ignited after the incredible U-turn and miraculous evasive maneuvers.
They had originally thought they would be sunk just by turning.
But unexpectedly, not only did they complete the turn quickly, not a single large ballista bolt hit them.
Were the sea gods truly protecting them?
Their previous panic was due to finding no hope.
But now, they discovered there was still a chance to fight, and these men who made their living on the sea rallied once more.
Now it was the privateer ship's crew who began to panic.
"Fire! Hit them! Hit them fast!"
"No, there's no time to reload!"
"They're going to ram us!"
In the terrified eyes of the crew, the merchant ship's bow violently slammed into the side of the privateer ship.
All the crew members on the privateer ship's deck were knocked off balance.
Several unlucky souls were even knocked into the water.
"Follow me, everyone!"
The captain, wielding a cutlass, led the charge, leaping onto the privateer ship's deck.
With a swift cut, he instantly felled a crew member who was just about to engage.
Following the captain were Borch, and the two Zerrikanian girls who closely guarded him.
Borch wielded a silver cat-school steel sword, striking swiftly and nimbly. Enemies engaging him were generally dead before they could even launch an attack.
Tea and Vea, guarding him, were equally deadly roses. Although their swordsmanship wasn't as swift as Borch's, it was just as lethal.
Soon, the area around the three of them was covered in blood and entrails.
Seeing the four charging leaders so valiant, the other sailors' morale instantly surged. They too roared, closely following the four onto the deck.
Although they hadn't received much combat training, this was the sea, not land.
Naval battles only had two outcomes: victory or death.
Now their merchant ship and the privateer ship were stuck together like a young couple in love, inseparable.
At such a time, was there any other option but to charge?
....
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