If I can see you, you will see me.

The Germans had actually noticed the unidentified ships approaching each other ten minutes earlier, and the heavy cruiser Herbert sounded the battle alarm at 8:44 a.m. and reported to the other ships in the fleet.

However, after observation and comparison, both the Franz Cruiser and the destroyer Bugyos mistakenly believed that they were actually two "merchant ships".

So the battle alarm was lifted.

But only a few minutes later, the Franz realized its mistake, hurriedly sounded the alarm again, and informed the fleet to prepare for battle.

"It's a prestige-class battlecruiser, and the other is the Hood!" Colonel Kurt reported loudly.

"Adjust the course to 350!" Lieutenant General Walter urged again: "Complete the combat preparations as soon as possible, they may have to open fire." ”

The 1st Battle Group was ordered not to engage the Royal Navy fleet, which had superior forces, but now the capital ships of both sides were two battle cruisers, which did not violate the orders of the superiors.

The Franz-class battlecruisers are equivalent to the Scharnhorst-class in another plane in nature, but because they are not in a hurry, and the German Society has relatively sufficient resources to develop supporting equipment, the Franz-class is equipped with a 34-type triple 350mm, 50 times the diameter naval gun.

At this point, it is much stronger than the Scharnhorst class, which chose a triple 283mm main gun in order not to delay the service time.

The armor-piercing projectile weighs 625kg, has a muzzle velocity of 880m/s, and has an armor-piercing depth of more than 360mm in 20km, which is powerful enough to deal a fatal blow to the prestige class, the Hood class, and the Dunkirk class.

The Hood's main armor belt was 305mm thick and 12° inward, making it an embarrassing blow at a distance of only five nautical miles.

Of course, in the face of the armor-piercing shells fired by the 381mm guns of the Hood and the Counterattack, the Franz class was also unable to resist.

"They fired!"

The lookout posts of several German battleships observed the conspicuous fire of the British battleships firing their guns in the distance.

More than ten seconds later, the 381mm armor-piercing projectile, which had flown over a distance of more than 9,000 meters, landed 200 meters away from the left front of the Albert, splashing a tall column of water that soared into the sky.

However, the German sailors, who had been disturbed by the storm all night, seemed to be a little numb, and this column of water was not necessarily more terrifying than the stormy waves.

"Comrade commander, confirm that it is the water column of 381-mm shells!"

"The Albert rangefinder is complete, at a distance of 9200, and they are about to open fire."

Twenty seconds later, the nine 350mm guns of the battlecruiser Albert roared in unison.

Only a minute later, the Franz opened fire.

The distance between the two sides can be said to be very close, and in normal sea conditions, it usually only takes two or three rounds to form a straddle fire, but the current bad sea conditions have caused both sides to spread out shelling amazingly.

The British and German firing lasted about ten minutes, and the Hood formed a straddle fire in the fifth salvo - that is, the shells fired from a round of fire were distributed on both sides of the target at the same time, in a sense this is equivalent to a hit, as long as the fire continues, the target is hit is a matter of probability.

The British destroyers initially tried to gain a good position, but the undulating waves made the attempt meaningless.

So the seven destroyers lined up in front of and behind the two capital ships in turn and opened fire on the German battleships.

Under the gray sky, rain and snow are flying, the wind is howling, and Beihai, which has been "calm" for 20 years, is once again lively.

The roar of the large-caliber naval guns resounded in the sky, and everything was silent—all the sounds between the sea and the sky were silenced.

Although the poor combat environment greatly affected the accuracy of the British and Germans' shelling, as long as the sample size was large enough, the probability of an event would eventually occur.

At 9:14 a.m., after nearly fourteen rounds of shooting, a small probability event occurred.

“…… Helmut, what are you doing? Can't even 30% of your usual training performance now? ”

When the first mate of the Albert was questioning the gunner, a 381mm armor-piercing shell hit the stern of the battlecruiser!

"Boom !!"

The officers and men of the whole ship only felt their bodies tremble, and the internal lights flickered.

The weak armor could not withstand the heavy shells, several compartments in the stern were easily penetrated, dozens of pounds of explosives were detonated inside, and most of the crew members were crushed on the spot, and only a few were seriously injured but not killed.

Fireworks and smoke erupted from the cracked hole, like a volcanic eruption.

Like the kind of flower spray canister when you open champagne to celebrate, countless pieces of structural steel and various equipment are splashed out!

The faces of the officers in the bridge changed drastically, their expressions were solemn, and the captain shouted: "Count the damage!" ”

It's a bit funny that after so much fighting, the British destroyers also got hits, and a 120mm high-explosive bomb landed next to the bridge of the Albert.

"Boom! Whoa—"

Even if the armor is not solid, it is not something that a mere 120mm naval gun can touch porcelain, and this shell has no effect except for shattering some glass.

The icy cold wind penetrated the bridge from the breach, sending shivers down the shoulders of the officers here.

After about three minutes, the Franz finally made a leap.

Immediately afterward, she had the best luck to hit the next volley.

The second of the nine armor-piercing shells landed fifteen meters from the side of the Hood, and after entering the water, the trajectory of the 350mm armor-piercing shells quickly changed due to the sudden change in density, and the 350mm armor-piercing shells rushed forward almost flat.

"Boom!"

A dull explosion rang out, and the water shot hit the Hood two meters below the waterline, tearing a gaping hole there.

The underwater protection system worked as it should, but more or less caused damage to the Hood.

The other shell was even more terrifying - it hit the bridge directly!

The 625kg armor-piercing projectile pierced through the armor and exploded with a bang.

Three officers and eight sailors were killed on the spot, and many more were wounded, unable to count on two hands.

It was fortunate that it didn't hit the conning tower, otherwise it would have been up to God to roll the dice on whether the Hood's eleven-inch-thick conning tower could hold the 350mm armor-piercing bullets.

This blow caused her to temporarily lose her command, the rangefinder and shooting command instrument were malfunctioning, and the communication line was also unstable, but fortunately, the backup line was working normally.

The slap-in "Aunt Hood" was silent, and a column of black-gray smoke rose from her bridge, but it was sparse, as the howling north wind quickly blew it away.

The fierce artillery battle on both sides continued, and after sailing farther and farther parallel sailing, the British and German fleets invariably turned and continued to fire in circles.

Because reinforcements could not arrive in time for the reinforcements of the fleet and the air force in this situation, this sea area became an isolated decisive battle between the two sides.

No foreign aid, it's fair, isn't it?

But in fact the Workers' Navy still had the upper hand, because the extra Herbert Heavy Cruiser was not soy sauce.

At 9:28, a 381mm armor-piercing projectile from the Counterattack hit the Albert's mainmast.

The explosion itself did not cause many casualties, but the main radio antenna was blown up and the radio direction finder malfunctioned.

Immediately afterward, another shell from the Hood hit the bow.

The armor-piercing shell went almost unimpeded, penetrating several compartments, but did not detonate, and eventually went straight out from the other side.

I have worn it!

Apart from a slight ingress of water and minor injuries to two sailors, no effective damage was done.

"Set up an emergency antenna and check for damage!" The captain commanded.

Around this time, the Royal Navy destroyers began to try again to gain a good position.

I don't know if it's an illusion, but the wind and waves seem to be a little smaller than half an hour ago.

Sensing that these petty intentions were causing trouble, the Herbert Heavy Cruiser immediately turned his guns and began to suppress the British destroyers.

The 203mm guns were not enough of a threat to the Counter Attack and the Hood, and were only the icing on the cake, but they were a big killer when dealing with small destroyers.

German destroyers also began to try to do what the opposing side was doing - trying to use torpedo attacks and disrupt the opposing formation.

One after another, the six destroyers turned their course, detached from their original positions, and turned southwest.

About four minutes later, the Albert's retaliatory return shot landed on the Counter-Attack.

A 350mm armor-piercing bullet hit her A turret unbiasedly!

The nine-inch, 228mm armor, unable to hold off the ferocious shells at such a close distance, was easily pierced.

The shells that exploded inside were like firecrackers thrown into iron barrels, and in the dull sound of explosions, dozens of British officers and soldiers inside were covered with flesh and blood, and most of them were killed on the spot.

The two 381mm armor-piercing shells and the propellant pack that had just been transported from the silo to the turret were being reloaded, and naturally they were detonated.

All of this happened in a very short period of less than a second.

"Boom—"

The MkI twin 381mm main turret was almost blown away, the base joints were badly deformed, and the turret weighing more than 700 tons was skewed in place.

As far as the eye could see, there was fire and billowing smoke, and the slippery deck was quickly dried by the heat.

"The destruction of the main turret of the Counterattack was observed, comrades, well done!"

The German fleet cheered in unison, and the nervous officers and men were overjoyed, and the nervousness and joy were displayed on their faces at the same time, which looked quite funny.

Sensing that their capital ship had suffered heavy damage, the Royal Navy destroyers reacted quickly.

The destroyers USS Hunter and USS Firefly reversed course, activated the smoke generators, and pulled a wall of smoke on the surface of the sea to cover the Counterattack.

However, the high winds on the surface of the sea severely affected the cover effect - the smoke dissipated much faster than usual.

As a result, the two fired torpedoes at the German fleet in unison, and the deterrence was greater than the attack, so they did not seriously calculate the launch of the elements.

The bravery of the two destroyers managed to protect the Counterattack, but they were also targeted by the Herbert Heavy Cruiser.

"Boom! Rumble! ”

The Herbert's shelling was so precise that the second salvo hit the Hunter with two shells.

The 203mm fuse grenade hit the starboard side of the Hunter, tearing a huge hole there, and a water-tube boiler was reduced to pieces of metal on the spot.

Another shell exploded in front of battery B, instantly blowing the MkIX 120mm naval gun to pieces, and the gunners operating the gun were also reduced to stumps and broken arms.

Some of the intestines and minced flesh were glued to the glass of the bridge, and the blood quickly flowed to the left, down, and right.

The stubborn British sailors continued to fight hard, using the remaining three naval guns and anti-aircraft machine guns to fire heavily at the heavy cruisers in the distance.

But Herbert showed no mercy, and she beat the guy mercilessly.

Another shell hit the stern of the Hunter, detonating the depth charges stored there.

In a deafening explosion, she almost jumped out of the sea with a standard displacement of only 1,400 tons, and then fell back again!

With the keel badly damaged and the tail largely gone, the tiny destroyer was transformed into a purgatory of fire and smoke in thirty seconds.

After receiving another 150mm grenade, the Hunter capsized to the right at a speed visible to the naked eye, and a considerable part of the crew did not have time to evacuate.

The victory and defeat have been divided, how can the mantis arm stop the car?

German sailors, who considered themselves righteous, stopped firing at the dying destroyer and turned to attack the Firefly.

However, the luck of the German fleet also seemed to run out.

At 9:47 a.m. Oslo time, the sky was already bright, visibility was greatly improved, and the wind and waves were rapidly decreasing.

It was at this moment that the Hood delivered a fatal blow to the Albert.

A 381mm armor-piercing projectile hit the waterline, tearing a small hole, and the icy sea water rushed in.

Another shell smashed under turret No. 3, penetrated the broadside armor belt, and arrived at the ammunition depot without bias......

In the penultimate second of 9:47 a.m., the British sailors saw a scene that they will never forget-

A huge flame burst out in the second half of the Albert, and countless fragments, large and small, were thrown into the sky!

The huge explosion inside made the integrity of the battlecruiser cease to exist, and the buoyancy of the reserve was instantly negative.

The captain realized that the situation was irreversible and there was no need for any more useless attempts, so he decisively ordered the ship to be abandoned and evacuated.

Now it was the turn of the British to cheer.

But they seemed to be rejoicing too soon.

At the same time, two nautical miles west of the British fleet, a periscope was carefully observing the scene.

The U-44 is a Type VIIB submarine that set sail from Wilhelmshaven six days ago to patrol the waters of western Norway.

They had almost run out of batteries last night, so they sailed on a diesel engine to recharge their batteries, but the storm forced them to dodge.

By the time the morning came, the sonar had reported what appeared to be an unusual, abrupt noise, but could not be sure if it was the noise of the waves.

So, U-44 chose to float to periscope depth.

The captain, Captain Wolfe, was overjoyed - the enemy and our fleets were at war, and the battle was intractable, and they actually encountered such a good opportunity?

"No one noticed us, so it's a great opportunity." He held back his agitated heart and said solemnly: "Are you ready, comrades? ”

"Of course!"

"It's a prestige-class, it's a... No, that's the Hood...... Great, get the torpedo compartment ready. Now, the emission parameters are solved. ”

The damaged Counterattack was about to get out of the fight, but the Albert's condition turned the tide and the officers and men immediately decided to continue the battle.

"Launch."

"Puff-puff-puff-puff-"

A few seconds later, four G7a 533mm torpedoes quietly left the bow tubes of the U-44.

(End of chapter)