December 30 in the Medland Glory calendar.

Late, eight o'clock.

In the southwest sea of Casica, a huge fleet is neatly lined up on the sea.

Thousands of large and small ships occupy the sea area within a radius of tens of miles.

Battleships, large cruisers, fast cruisers, fast frigates, and other battleships were arranged in two goose-like arrays on the periphery, like a bracket, protecting hundreds of large troop carriers and logistics baggage ships in the middle.

Admiral Durinde, the commander-in-chief of the Ice Kingdom's home fleet, stood in the bow of his beloved flagship, the first-class heavy battleship 'Authority of the Seas', wearing a full uniform, frowning and drinking sour lemonade.

The water was not fresh, it had been stuffy in the tanks of the water carrier for half a month, with an unpleasant smell of rotting wood.

The cook on the boat was a little ruthless, and he squeezed the juice of at least two lemons into a glass of water. The taste of this glass of lemonade becomes even more 'exciting'!

Dulinder gritted his teeth and poured the 'wonderful' lemonade down little by little.

In the early days when Metland emerged from darkness and began to seek resources from the sea, 'sepsis', or 'scurvy', caused a large number of sailors to die of illness. Sometimes, a large fleet can die of all sailors and soldiers due to this terrible disease, and the entire fleet will become a 'ghost ship'.

The Royal Academy of Sciences of the Delen Empire is still somewhat capable.

The naval strength of the Delen Empire is too weak to be mentioned...... But they clearly stated that the lack of fresh fruits and vegetables was the only cause of 'sepsis'.

Lemons, which are easy to store, have become an indispensable strategic material for the navies and commercial fleets of various countries.

From this point of view, the Delen Empire has made a great contribution to the maritime cause of the Metland continent.

"It's a pity that your navy is too weak...... Moreover, lemon juice is really, too unpleasant to drink. ”

Durinder frowned and handed the cup to the orderly behind him.

He folded his hands behind his back and furrowed his brow as he looked at the majestic ships near the Authority of the Seas.

It was already night, and the sailors of the naval battleship, in perfect accordance with the regulations of the navy, had extinguished almost all the lights, and all of them remained in their cabins, sleeping, reading, or writing letters, and whatever they were doing, there was not a single superfluous figure on the deck except for the sentries and officers on duty.

Durinde's gaze fell on the troop carrier in the center of the huge fleet, protected by naval ships.

His brow suddenly furrowed tightly.

The five hundred large troop carriers were brightly lit, and for miles he could hear the clamour, noise, shouts, and occasionally terrible howls and cries of the soldiers of the Army.

It didn't take to see it for himself, Durind knew what was going on those troop carriers.

Alcoholism, gambling, brawls, and even bullying in the military, among other terrible things......

The Ice Sea Kingdom is a typical sea power country, and the navy is the sharpest sword and sword of the empire, and the most powerful force of the empire - 'the elite of the empire, all join the navy', this is not an empty word.

Even the lowest-ranking trainee sailors in Durind's home fleet had completed at least three years of primary education, and after joining the home fleet, they were required to receive follow-up education in the navy, as well as rigorous military training.

And the army on those troop carriers......

ruffians, scoundrels, hooligans, gangsters, robbers, kidnappers, pickpockets, liars...... In short, all the villains you can imagine have been incorporated into the army by order of the Empire.

In the Ice Kingdom, the army is synonymous with 'cannon fodder', and their only use is to act as a watchdog for the navy in the lands conquered by the navy.

Watch dogs, of course, the more vicious the better.

Under such a guiding ideology, one can imagine what kind of virtue the army of the Ice Sea Kingdom is.

As far as Dulinder could see, two large troop carriers lay side by side, and between the two ships, less than twenty feet apart, a small platform ten feet wide was erected with a wide gangplank.

Two naked Army soldiers, with strips of linen wrapped around their fists, were roaring, punching and punching on the small platform.

The punch hit the head, and the two army soldiers were already bleeding from their heads. A coarse strip of linen wrapped around the fist, and under heavy blows, the lethality of the strip of cloth was comparable to that of a dull knife.

A large patch of skin had been scraped off their faces, and blood stained their upper bodies.

On the decks of the two troop carriers, hundreds of army soldiers roared loudly, and from time to time the sound of coins clashing with the sea breeze drifted over.

They're gambling!

This bunch of damn scoundrels...... Dulinde put his hands behind his back and whispered a sneer to the adjutant beside him: "Fortunately, they are not my soldiers, otherwise, I would have hung them in the muzzle of the gun and shot them away one by one." ”

The adjutant beside Durinde, a handsome rear admiral, was also wearing a full set of neat uniforms, with his hands behind his back, and said with a calm smile: "Your Excellency, the glorious navy, there will be no such scum. ”

Durinder shook his head with a smile as he looked down at the sea below the battleship.

In the deep seawater, a streamlined, almost mile-long black shadow is quietly suspended in the seawater.

Dulinde knocked the guardrail in front of him, making a 'ding' sound: "Your Excellency Henrak, the moonlight is good today, can you help me get some tender and delicious supper?" ”

Subtle ripples rippled on the surface of the sea.

After a few breaths, a water tank was thick and thin, gray-white throughout, making up for countless purple-red spots, and there were countless plate-sized suction cups, and sharp protruding wrists and feet protruding from the seawater.

On the sucker of the wrist and foot, a bluefin tuna more than ten feet long is frantically shaking its tail, but it is sucked on the sucker, and there is no possibility of breaking free.

A long chirp came from the depths of the water.

Durind and the adjutant smiled, such a big bluefin tuna, but a treasure!

"Ha, dear Lord Henrak, when you return to the Empire, I will treat you to tender veal...... Uh, hopefully this time, we'll have enough to gain, and if I don't treat you to a meal, I'm going to go bankrupt. ”

Durind smiled brightly.

The long chirp came from the depths of the sea again, and waves more than a foot high rose on the surface of the sea.

Dulinde clapped his hands, and several sturdy sailors rushed up, and they quickly untied the big fish from Henrak's wrists and feet.

A medium-sized logistics vessel approached the 'Authority of the Seas' as it was out of the water. On the deck, a group of logistics sailors took over the big fish, and on a special platform on the deck of the logistics ship, the big fish was bled and disemboweled, and handled cleanly.

Dulinde leaned against the guardrail, smiling as the sailors on the logistics ship were busy.

"Prepare us a delicious sashimi, and everyone can share the rest."

Durind and the lieutenant were looking forward to the next delicious and fresh snack, when a thumb-sized conch chirped softly from a thin blue metal chain on Durinde's wrist.

Durind's brow furrowed, and he glanced at his lieutenant, and the two of them simultaneously spread out their strides and rushed towards the captain's room on the battleship.

The captain's quarters of the Sea Authority are spacious enough to accommodate more than a dozen people working here.

The captain's room, which is covered with various nautical charts, hangs an ancient bronze mirror in the center of one wall. The bronze mirror, which is six feet high and three feet wide, is hazy, and if you observe it carefully, this bronze mirror is gray and dusty, and there is nothing unusual; But if you peek out of the corner of your eye, you will find that there seem to be countless figures flickering in this bronze mirror at any time.

Durind came to the bronze mirror, he glanced at his lieutenant, and said helplessly, "I hate dealing with these things...... But...... Well, that's my job. ”

Durind frowned, pulled out a small sharp dagger, and gently slashed his right index finger.

A drop of blood oozed out, and Durind smeared it on the bronze mirror.

A faint glow shone from the bronze mirror, and an intricately shaped badge flashed, and Durind and his lieutenant had already seen the badge clearly.

"A message from the Imperial Embassy in Delun?" Dulinder muttered in a low voice, "So, is it His Highness George's order?" ”

A blurred, distorted figure emerges from within the bronze mirror.

Accompanied by a sharp, muffled whisper, accompanied by strange fluctuations that made the soul shake and restless, lines of twisted blood words slowly oozed out of the bronze mirror.

"Before the war begins, organize an elite assault team to raid the house of the chairman of the Seven Committee of Tulum Harbor, Wittu?"

"Kill Leah, the mistress of the House of Witu, and hide her body in the affairs of Freret, a member of the royal family of the Delenn Empire?"

"Hmm, this operation was answered by the secret line planted by the embassy next to Freret?"

Durind and his lieutenant glanced at each other.

"Is this to provoke disputes between the local and royal families of the Delun Empire?" Dulinde frowned: "Seemingly, it's a good idea...... It would be beneficial to us if the port of Tulum was left in chaos before the outbreak of war. ”

Dulinde's adjutant lowered his voice: "Moreover, the family background of the Ritu family should be very rich." ”

Dulinde glanced at his lieutenant: "Dear Mr. Dirks, please pay attention to your identity, you are a glorious naval ......"

Adjutant Rear Admiral Dicks smiled: "But, General, the children have been stuffy on the ship for many days...... I feel that in order to maintain morale, they should be given an extra allowance. ”

Dulinde narrowed his eyes: "Do you think, how many people should be in this commando team?" ”

Dirks chuckled and shook his head: "A hillbilly nobleman in Port Tulun, how strong can they be?" A full battalion of marines should be enough, right? ”

Dulinde smiled: "Well, the landing point is in ......"

Dex walked over to a full map of the terrain of Tulum Harbor and put his finger on the map a little.

Loew Ridge!