Hathaway stood on the deck, holding up her binoculars to take a look at the ship ahead...... Perhaps because of the fog, neither the fleeing nor the chasing sides expected that there would be a large warship hidden in the large mist ahead. As for the merchant ship that fled with all its might, although the fog ahead was a little treacherous, the result of breaking into it was no worse than falling into the hands of pirates, so it had no intention of avoiding it at all, and sailed straight in the direction of the fog.

Hathaway's eyes were more focused on the skull flags on the three pirate ships...... This is the pirate ship of the Iron Skull Gang, one of which has a black flag with a white skull symbol painted on it, and their flag is very distinctive - it is white, and then a black, metallic skull symbol.

The skull flag fluttered and twisted in the sea breeze, adding to the hideousness of the skull.

Sailing at sea is very boring, but for Hathaway, it is a good opportunity to learn and observe. Except for spending part of her time training the crew members to become more proficient in using new weapons, she spent most of the rest of her time working with Arling. Hegel consulted on the essentials of naval warfare, or spent it reading.

The classics in the Demon Spirit Hall are not only magic and martial arts, but also include many military books. You must know that in the era when the goblin civilization ruled the world, the strength of its legions was also strong, and the sea, land and air were under its rule. As the goblin civilization gradually disappeared into history for many reasons, there are many classics in the Demon Spirit Palace...... Civilization is immortal.

Hathaway compiled a large number of works on internal affairs, smelting, and military affairs in the Demon Temple, and then printed them. It was distributed to relevant departments or personnel, and most of the books stored on this warship were textbooks related to naval warfare, and in the past year, the overall combat effectiveness of the Pink Skull Pirate Regiment had an absolute relationship with these books. However, at this time, Hathaway also did a lot of reading in order to pass the time, and also to learn more about naval warfare. Hegel, a man with a wealth of experience in naval warfare, was beside him. I can just ask from time to time.

Battleship. More uncertain than a battle on land, and even a storm is enough to change the course of the battle. Although she possessed great magical powers and martial arts, she never thought of controlling naval warfare on her own...... Maybe she has the strength. But this situation is not replicable. Hathaway couldn't imagine being on the ocean all day. It was a nightmare.

In fact, if she was standing on a certain warship, she would have a great deal of confidence in controlling the entire warship. But if in a large-scale naval battle. When a dozen or dozens of warships are mixed together, the role of individual power will be greatly reduced at that time...... War is an art of group command, not an individual show.

And the naval battle at this moment is not the kind of naval battle that used the ramming horn as the most powerful weapon centuries ago, and tried to board the enemy's warship and decide the final victor with flesh and blood.

With the advancement of warships, trebuchets and crossbows became indispensable weapons on ships, and bows and arrows were also the most popular long-range attacks. As for the magician, it is a powerful force with absolute intimidation.

The heavy crossbow is a rather terrifying weapon in naval warfare. You know, the sea breeze has a great influence on arrows. A heavy crossbow bolt can attack at a distance of hundreds of meters, and they can even easily pierce some defensive spells, tearing apart the mage's weak body.

In the pursuit battle at sea, there are too many uncertainties, and it is far more difficult for a ship to escape from the attack of three ships than for one person to ride a war horse and throw off three cavalry on land. So looking at the merchant ship that was trying its best to escape in front, and on the other hand, it had to dodge attacks from the rear, Hathaway was still quite impressed.

"That ship is fast enough, we can just sit for it." Ah Ling. Hegel laughed.

"But...... How did the Iron Skull end up in this sea? Hathaway wondered.

"It's not hard to understand."

Ah Ling. After a moment's thought, Hegel smiled and said, "We have all overlooked one thing, although the Imperial Navy scared those pirates away from the waters near the Cordillera Plateau, it does not mean that they have to call it a day. ”

"You're saying we're thinking of being with them?" Hathaway asked with a wink, feeling a little incredulous.

Their plan was to avoid being detected by the surveillance methods they left behind, but now it seems that their thinking is somewhat similar to that of the pirates.

"Your Excellency, you don't have to worry."

I can see that Hathaway is a little depressed, Arling. Hegel explained: "This sea area is also unfamiliar to those pirates, they cannot set up any detection devices in this sea area, and it is considered their bad luck to meet us, and now is a good opportunity to divide them into annihilation." ”

Although there are some worries about the smooth implementation of the plan, Ah Ling. Hegel's words nevertheless gave her great comfort.

At this time, the four ships also rushed into the fog one after another...... The merchant ships originally had the idea of breaking the jars, so after rushing in, when they saw these warships, they sailed to the side very calmly, and the pirates were a little dumbfounded.

A moment ago, those pirates were still aggressive, but when those pirates suddenly saw six large warships appear out of thin air in an encirclement, they immediately seemed overwhelmed...... Although Hathaway and the others are wearing merchant ship logos, the system of warships and merchant ships is absolutely different.

Generally speaking, pirate ships mostly choose fast boats, which are based on speed and agility and are easy to handle. Although they were a little shocked, the pirates did it in time, trying to quickly close the distance between them and the fleet.

However, Ah Ling. Hegel had already commanded the warships to seize the most advantageous position, and before they could finish their evasive moves, the three pirates were covered in a rain of arrows...... And among these arrows, there are also crossbow bolts and rockets.

There were several pirates who wanted to go and extinguish the rockets. But then several crossbow arrows were shot, and the body was carried up by the crossbow arrows and nailed to the bulkhead fiercely.

Hathaway frowned, although the attack was sharp, she didn't use a new weapon, which made her a little strange, was it an old habit that was hard to break?

Ah Ling. Hegel noticed the change in her expression and explained: "Bullets and special arrows are very expensive, and it is easy to solve them with just three pirate ships. ”

Truly. Just a round of blows. There weren't many pirates standing on the deck of the pirate ship, and the fire was rife, and the 'crackling' began to spread, especially the sails and ropes that the crew took care of. It's all burned down. The last pirate ship was lucky. It's located further back. After noticing that something is wrong, turn around and drive back in time. But it wasn't slow, but that was the end of the good fortune. Hathaway stretched out her bow and mounted a special arrow, already aiming at her target.

At first glance, the shape of this arrow may not be different from that of a normal arrow, but if you look closely, you will see that the cluster and shaft of this arrow are thicker than ordinary arrows.

Burst rocket, that's the name Hathaway gave. The cluster and shaft of this arrow are specially made, soaked in a special agent, and after being impacted, it will produce a slight burst, and in the shaft, Hathaway placed the explosive and incendiary charges in two sections. Both of these potions can be refined by a junior alchemist, and they are extremely powerful, and the materials used are not expensive.

Shout~

As soon as Hathaway let go, the arrow burst through the air and struck the back chord of the pirate ship...... None of the pirates thought the arrow was of any practical significance, but rather some kind of venting, and one of them even extended his middle finger with a lewd smile on his face.

However, in the next moment, with an earth-shattering loud noise, a huge orange-red fireball suddenly burst out at the stern of the ship, and immediately the boiling heat swept the pirates on the aft deck, and the sea suddenly resounded with screams and the smell of burnt human flesh......

The three pirate ships soon turned into a large mass of charred sharded wood floating on the surface of the sea, with many of the ship's debris and corpses in them.

Ah Ling. Hegel had already ordered the boat to be lowered for the rescue, and some of the surviving pirates swam desperately to the rescue ship with broken planks...... They would rather be put to death than die in the middle of the sea now.

Wow, wow, wow......

Hurried footsteps came from behind, and then Bi Lin. Hegel's angry voice: "Father, when are you going to rescue those pirates?" Iron Skull people all deserve to die, and even if we have food, we shouldn't feed such people! ”

"The Iron Skull people appear in such a place, and we can only know their approximate location and number from the mouths of these captives." Ah Ling. Hegel turned around and looked at his daughter with some reproach, only to find that she was accompanied by a strange lady, who must have been about thirty years of age.

"Father, news doesn't have to come from a captive. My lord, this is Captain Cannelly of the Champs, and I believe she will provide some information. "Bilin. Hegel introduced the two to the woman next to them.

Hathaway, the name of the Champs-Écoupés, had vaguely heard it, but it was not very familiar. But Captain Cannelly, who was a woman in this mostly men's job, was obviously quite capable of doing it herself, so when it came to verifying the situation, her tone was gentle, but firm.

Cannelli also looked at Hathaway and Arling with some curiosity. Hegel, the former is the Countess of Cordillera who is currently in turmoil in the Empire, and the latter is the legendary Arling. Hegel, founder of the Pink Skull Pirates.

“…… That's pretty much it, if you go in that direction, you're bound to see the Iron Skull Pirate Regiment's fleet. Thank you again for your rescue, Lord Earl, can we go? Canelly asked.

"I'm afraid not." Hathaway had an apologetic look on her face: "This military operation is extremely secretive, and we must ensure the safety of the operation, so you must follow our fleet." ”

When Canelly heard this, she said anxiously, "Lord Earl, we will keep it a secret......"

"I trust your assurances. But we can't risk the lives of our brothers. ”

Ah Ling. Hegel interrupted her and ordered, "Captain Cannelly please go down and rest." ”

Several crew members approached and embraced Canelly, who was still arguing, out of the room.

"What do you think, sir?" Ah Ling. Hegel asked.

"We can't let them slip through the net,"

Hathaway smiled, "Find them, destroy them." ”

"Yes, my lord!" Ah Ling. Hegel nodded slightly, and immediately passed the order, and the fleet immediately adjusted its direction and sailed in the other direction. (To be continued......)