The soot on the southeastern seas became thicker and thicker as the Italian fleet sailed forward; After a short time, Dante's main lookout saw the target that had appeared at the junction of sea and sky. Although the image in the rangefinder was still very blurry, the Italians were able to determine in an instant that it was a warship and not a merchant ship. As the distance closes, the outline of the target becomes clearer; The tall inverted freeboard, the beehive-dense square portholes, the four or even six chimneys, the bastion-like bridge, and the turret that was noticeably smaller than its size, all proved that the comer was a French armored cruiser!

"3 Gambita-class, 1 Michelet-class, 1 Reina-class, and 2 ships with six chimneys...... Quinette class. These were all cutting-edge armored cruisers built and commissioned by the French Navy after 1905. Leffel held the telescope in his hand, and instantly reported the lineup of ships of the imaginary enemy of the Italian Navy. To his surprise, the French fleet had only patrols, but not a single capital battleship; In the previous hunt for merchant ships, the French should have known that they had a dreadnought of Dante. Sending out a patrol to fight a dreadnought is simply an idiot's move!

"Could it be that this French patrol fleet is just an avant-garde reconnaissance force, like us?" Leffel frowned and pondered for a moment, and suddenly a flash of inspiration flashed in his mind, and he couldn't help but speak in a lost voice. If this is the case, it must prove that there must be a big fish of the French in the rear. Because these 7 armored cruisers are also the current fastest force of the Entente in the Mediterranean; The only thing that can make them act together as a forward reconnaissance mission is the main fleets of France and Britain!

Leffel had this guess in mind. He made up his mind to use fire reconnaissance to confirm the situation; Under his command. The Italian battleships took the lead. Lead 4 high-performance loading cruisers straight ahead. With the strength of his own dreadnoughts against the cruisers, Lefell obviously had enough confidence to fight this French fleet head-on. This battleship Dante is also a product of the Italian Navy's concept of high-speed heavy artillery. During the completed sea trials in January 1912, the Dante set a speed record of 24.2 knots for a dreadnought in a ventilated state, and in some ways she was the only battle cruiser in the Mediterranean!

At the same time that the Italian fleet discovered the target, the French patrol also saw the Italian battleship inserting itself at high speed for the first time. The previous shelling of the Italian light cruiser had already made the French have a certain psychological preparation, and at this moment they saw the Italian dreadnoughts coming at them. The French immediately didn't say a word, turned around and accelerated, and began to run away and transfer. As for the level of their own warships, the French still have a lot of self-knowledge. If the incoming ship was the same type of Italian cruiser, the French, who did not know the thickness of the armor of the Italian battleship, would still have the confidence to fight with it; And if you are facing the absolute main force of dreadnoughts, rushing up with a patrol can only be a way to send you to death.

Seeing that the Frenchman turned around and ran, without the slightest intention of dragging mud and water, Lefehr, who was located on the Dante, couldn't help but curse. Due to the current good visibility of this sea area, the two sides can clearly identify each other's lineup and strength through the magnified image in the guò rangefinder from 20 kilometers away. This undoubtedly allowed the French to turn to evacuation in a calm manner. Leifer's original intention to take advantage of Dante's speed and firepower to take advantage of the avant-garde battle fell through. All he could do now was try to scout the French main fleet that might appear in the vicinity.

The pursuit of the Italian fleet did not last long. 10:18 a.m. Dante's main lookout reported to the conning tower that a large cloud of black smoke had appeared in the south, and Leyfere immediately concluded that this must be the capital ship group of the French. Nearly half an hour later, one after another, the figures of the pea-sized ships appeared before the eyes of the Italians, just as they had seen the French armored cruisers before. The good weather with high visibility, which had been angrily cursed by Lefehr before, has now become the capital of the Italians to act and settle down. In the clear sun, the iconic castle-like bridge of the French capital ship stood out, with thick and hideous gun barrels sticking out from the turret or side, reflecting the cold jet-black sheen.

"God, the French have come to so many ships! Did they bring the whole navy with them? Seeing the large battleships like fortresses one after another, one team after another became clear in the field of vision, and there were also a large number of juniors next to him, Lefer's pupils constricted, and his face was full of shock. Contact the chart room at once to confirm our current location and inform the Austrian barbarians of the whole situation. We found 20-26 Allied battleships, and a total of no less than 40 cruisers and destroyers; 6 of the capital ships have five chimneys, and it can already be concluded that they are French Danton-class dreadnoughts! Leffel turned abruptly and said loudly to one of the staff officers who was also standing still.

In the telegraph room above the command tower, the Italian signal corps was hurriedly pressing the button, first translating the plaintext into code words against the codebook, and then transmitting it to the capital ship headquarters in the rear through the antenna on the guò high mast cantilever. And Lefeel, who has completed a role-play that quickly transforms from hunter to prey, has decided to eat the French today. After the distance between the two sides had been increased to 20,000 yards, he had the torpedo boats stop firing smoke screens, while the fleet slowed down to 16 knots, taking advantage of the favorable weather with excellent visibility at the moment, to hang the French main fleet far away. After the rangefinder magnified image of the target, the detailed lineup of the French fleet was gradually presented to the Italians: in addition to the six Danton-class dreadnoughts that the French were proud of, they also had 10 standard forward dreadnoughts of the 4th class equipped with four 305 mm L40 main guns. And next to the main French fleet, there are 6 old man dreadnoughts with two slender chimneys; With a top speed of 18 knots and a two-turret twin 305mm L35 main gun servo, these old ships, which have been in service for more than 13 years, also have the capital to drag their bodies to the forefront of the decisive battle in the Mediterranean.

"In addition to the majesty of the main guns of the battery, and the French batch of ironclad ships that are not even dreadnought in the strict sense, France and Britain have deployed all the front-line combat forces they can assemble in the Mediterranean Sea in this sea area!" Receiving the constant reports of battleship identification from the lookouts on the mainmast, Leifer's face was complicated, and he didn't know whether it was shock, awe, fear, or joy. At that time, the French fleet, which could compete with the British Navy, although it had long lost its glory as the second in the world, was surpassed by the United States and Germany after entering the 20th century; However, with a good national economy and an industrial base second only to Germany on the European continent, the size of its fleet is completely proud of the small miscellaneous fish among the great powers like Italy. The current 6 to 1 number of dreadnoughts is the best proof of the disparity in national strength between the two sides. And even in the comparison of the number of capital ships on the slipway, Italy is quite inferior to France: in addition to the four Guba-class super-dreadnoughts that are about to become combat-ready, the French have also started construction of three improved Breton-class and five new Normandy-class. As long as these warships can be completed normally, the French Navy will be able to sit firmly in the fourth place in the world!

"Well, but ......" a fierce glint flashed in Leffel's eyes. This time, the main force of the French fleet was exhausted, but it undoubtedly gave its own side a perfect opportunity to strangle it in the bud of growth. Although the main force of this decisive battle of the fleet was the Austro-Hungarian dreadnought group, which made the Italians, who thought highly of themselves, feel humiliated and humiliated; But this did not prevent Italy from stepping on the corpse of the French fleet and finally becoming the strongest naval force in the Mediterranean. In a sense, the Francismo between Austria-Hungary and France was exactly what Italy dreamed of. Although the current Combined Fleet has a considerable advantage in the performance of a single ship, it is impossible to eat the six French Danton-class; If Austria-Hungary and France were to lose both, or even die together, then this would be the perfect ending for the Italian Navy, which had long relied on Austria-Hungary and French counterparts as imaginary enemies!

"Send another signal to urge House, let him immediately lead the main force of the fleet to meet the battle!" Lefell said.

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The waves are raging and the sea breeze is blowing. The United Forces' commander tower, who was protected by 350 mm heavy armor, was in good spirits, and Admiral House held the telegram from Leffel, his brow furrowed slightly, and he bowed his head and groaned. The telegram sent back by Dante was complete and clear: the Italians not only gave the position of the Allied capital ship group, but also reported to the general flagship the level of the lineup, the arrangement of the line, the course of the fleet, and the real-time speed. According to this report, House, who has been in the army for forty years, instantly established a perfect and magnificent three-dimensional naval battle model in his mind; In this case, he can easily let his own fleet cut into the battle with an absolutely active attitude.

"Your Excellency, the Italians have sent another telegram: the French fleet has changed course to 197 and the speed is maintained at 14 knots, and they want us to enter the battlefield at once to fight it!" An adjutant hurried into the Command Tower with an ink-stained telegraph page and reported to House.

"Leffel, this poisonous scorpion, so soon wants the fleet that the Habsburg Empire has worked so hard to build for fifteen years to fight with the French?" House sneered, his sinister intentions for the Italians in his heart were already clear, "But alas, I am the commander-in-chief of the fleet!" How could I allow Franz my fleets to fall victim to your dominance of the Mediterranean? ”

"Your Excellency, are we ready to avoid the French fleet?" A staff officer couldn't help but ask.

"Of course this battle has to be fought. The Italians' avant-garde reconnaissance has provided us with sufficient battlefield intelligence, and not taking the initiative to attack is tantamount to missing a good opportunity. However, in the decisive battle, it is difficult to say whether the Italian battleships will face the situation of fighting more with less, and will be attacked by the enemy, so that they will sink and lose in battle! House smiled and said aloud, "Order, the fleet accelerates to 20 knots, heading 161, and prepares for a decisive battle with the British and French fleets!" (To be continued......)