Pillars of Ita

The released clockwork fairies set off a storm. They hummed and fluttered their thin wings, like a mechanical wave - precise, cold, and the edges reflected the cold sunlight, even in the sky. In addition, people can also feel the breath coming like a storm.

People on board the Horned Grebe saw those tiny black spots rising into the sky. Even though they blended into the vast sky and sea, they still couldn't help but feel chilling, just like the chill that ran along their spines.

Some people immediately tried to turn around and flee, but the officers grabbed these people and shouted at them:

"Go back to your posts, otherwise no one will survive!"

But the sailors are not soldiers. Most of them were even forcibly recruited from the port. Their faces were pale and their voices stammered: "Don't you see, the 'Tuna' and the 'Galapad' are finished..." …They’re coming.”

Of course the officers saw it, "Those... are just clockwork goblins..."

They are just the garrison of Brianos, second-rate guards from various places, some of them are the governor's retinue, private soldiers and locals. They are not so much connected by loyalty and courage as by interests.

Fortunately, the governor of Brianos finally made up his mind and mustered up the courage to knock on his cane - the walnut handle made a dull sound when it poked on the deck. The old governor's voice was old and hollow: "Form up, prepare. Fight back."

The tone was uncertain, but in any case, the officers had a backbone and quickly calmed down the commotion on each ship. The Oshu people's formation was a battle line, with the seven-winged sailboats and the Horned Grebe forming a double longitudinal array - the small ship in front and the large ship in the back.

A silver sail was spread out on the sea, glittering and majestic. A row of black gun muzzles faced the incoming lone ship. The Seven Seas Traveler appeared alone in the sea of ​​clouds, which finally made people feel relieved.

Even if it's just a moment of false relief.

Alyssa was holding a notebook, flipping through the pages, and read mechanically:

"The 'Horned Grebe' has an old-fashioned mechanical calculator, which can guarantee a certain hit rate within three airs. They will open fire after we enter the effective range, and the 'Horned Grebe' will guide other ships to fire."

"The small-caliber magic cannon on the sailboat is nothing to worry about. It does not pose a threat within two miles of air. However, there are forty-two magic cannons on the 'Horned Grebe'. When we break into within two miles of air, , the probability of the Seven Seas Traveler being hit will skyrocket."

"Will the wind direction change in the afternoon?" Tianlan asked curiously while listening to Alyssa's concise analysis.

Sylvide smiled slightly and shook her head.

Fang Plover looked at her, and Miss Ship Officer's bright eyes looked at the blue sky, which was clear and clear: "The wind in the Zhili Islands is affected by the high-pressure belt on the sea of ​​clouds. There is no large land here, and the alternation of sea and land winds is not obvious. , there is no influence of day and night, and the same wind direction will be maintained after autumn.”

The female privateer interrupted with some enthusiasm: "Beifeng, you can easily occupy the upper wind. If you maintain this speed, you will cut into the formation of the Imperial Navy in about half an hour."

Unlike the aristocrats of the empire, she has to look forward and backward in everything. She had this kind of character, otherwise she would not have gone against the grain and joined the Corinthian navy—and then returned to the ranks of pirates many years later. "Keep this speed for about half an hour, and you will cut into the Imperial Navy's formation."

Catherine looked at the silver sail on the sea level with emerald eyes, looking at it with some disdain. After a moment, she looked back at Fang Plover: "If it is my subordinate, there is nothing to say. Battles in the air and on the sea will inevitably cause casualties, and we will meet on a narrow road. The brave wins. But do you have the guts, little guy? Your ship may not be able to survive the Imperial battle."

She still didn't believe that if Fang Yu dared to give it a try, he must have some remaining trump cards.

"Ms. Catherine, what do you think of the Imperial people?" Fang Plover asked.

"Imperial people?" Catherine was a little surprised. In the air and sea, the Imperial people were her old rivals. She had fought against the Oshu navy more than once. If anyone knew this opponent better, she would naturally be ranked number one.

The outside world usually thinks that the Oshurs are brave, warlike, and advocating glory, but there is also another voice that describes the empire as pedantic, outdated, and that the nobles are greedy for life and afraid of death. Two completely different evaluations will appear on the same object. This sounded confusing, but Catherine shook her head disdainfully: "The Imperial people are nothing special. They are no different from other people I have met. Some of them are brave and fearless, but some are greedy for life." Death, the Oshu people like to claim that they have inherited the courage since the Silver Helmet era, but in fact, the most in the country are just ordinary people."

"I have also fought against their main fleet. The elite fleet of the Empire is indeed difficult to deal with, but apart from the main fleet, the remaining scraps are just like this. You have also fought against them, what do you think?"

Fang Plover said seriously: "I agree, so I want to bet that the Brianos don't have the courage to fight us."

The female privateer was slightly startled.

At this time, the Brianos fleet finally opened fire. Different fire lights flickered under the shadow of the sails in the distance. The sound came first and then came. It took a full seven seconds for the cannonballs to fly through the air, with a strange sound. Screaming, it flew past from an invisible place.

The people on the boat didn't even move their expressions. After all, it has been commonplace for a long time. The hit rate of the magic cannon at this distance is less than 1%. If it can hit, it can only be blamed on their 'good luck', Fang Plover. Tata didn't even let him deploy the magic engine's shield.

Only the three of them, Ian, seemed a little nervous. After all, they had not experienced much battle in the air and sea, and it had only been one day and one night. Among the three, only Lark had adapted a little, and was following Cuisi to repair the damage on the ship.

Fang Yu didn't say much about this.

In fact, when they experienced the first air battle over Oronze, everyone was equally nervous, but after experiencing too many battles, they had already become accustomed to it. Luo Hao, Papalar and Xiangxiang were even a little excited in their bones.

The three of them gathered next to the only ballista on the stern, taking aim here and there. But in fact, the ballista couldn't hit that far at all. It was just a decoration. Fortunately, everyone was used to this ballista, which was basically unused. Displayed.

"Miss Tata, put down all the wing sails," Fang Plover sent a message into his heart, "retract the hatch of the air combat deck and prepare to accelerate."

An unexpected voice interrupted.

"Brother Ed, why don't you let me try?" Tian Lan asked eagerly, "Didn't I level up recently? After the poet reaches level 20, he can learn large-scale suites. If he uses the organ on the ship, he might be able to summon one. The north wind speeds up the Seven Seas Traveler."

Fang Yu looked at her suspiciously, "North Wind Suite?"

Miss Poet nodded. The large pipe organ on the Seven Seas Traveler was originally used for this purpose, but her upgrade was too slow. She didn't use that cabin for the first time until the Seven Seas Traveler was about to be replaced.

"Then..." Fang Yu thought for a moment, and there was really no reason to object. Although he had never watched Tianlan practice, it would not have any negative effects, so he nodded: "Go ahead and give it a try."

Tian Lan left happily. Although she was a little tired, she still wanted to shine for everyone. She considered herself an indispensable member of the Seven Seas Traveler, otherwise she would not have taken the initiative to take on the logistics. Work.

This is not a well-oiled department on the Seven Seas Traveler. In fact, she often secretly transfers money to it. However, few people except Sylvide know about this.

Suddenly there was a heartbreaking noise from the sound transmission tubes all over the ship, like a clumsy giant beast vibrating its throat and whimpering. Alyssa was so scared that her hands shook and the book in her hand almost fell on the deck. superior.

She fished it out with her hand, caught her notepad, and shouted angrily into the microphone: "Tianlan, what the hell are you doing!"

"Oops, I'm not very skilled," Tianlan's voice came from inside, "This pipe organ has accumulated a lot of dust, but don't worry, Sister Alyssa, I have a way."

She tried to play a note, as if a ray was drawn from the north wind. The crisp, cold, ghost-like girl moved her steps, as if flowing through the cold-covered forest, gathering in the thousands of winds. Together.

She roared and rushed.

Fang Plover held down his flipped collar, and Baggins also held down his hat. Catherine's long hair was flying, and the red hair passed over her neck one by one, and the golden earrings fluttered. Hill Wade covered her billowing skirt with one hand.

She raised her head and looked at the fluttering sail——

The Seven Seas Traveler suddenly sped up, and Sky Blue's happy voice floated in the sound tube: "Look, let me just say it!?"

As soon as she was distracted, the noise caused the boat to shake, almost throwing everyone to the ground.

Fang Plover got up from the ground, shook his head and sighed:

"Tianlan, concentrate on your work!"

The Brianos on the other side naturally noticed the sudden increase in speed of the Seven Seas Traveler. The voices on the deck were getting lower. The other party did not seem to be afraid of them. The more than forty magic cannons seemed to have been lost for a while. Persuasiveness.

"Fire, fire quickly——"

The officer urged another shot.

The sailors were a little silent, closed the gun bolts, and fired the magic array again. The roaring shells flew across a distance of three miles. Finally, one shot aimed at the mainmast of the Seven Seas Traveler, but the blue light shone slightly, and the shells were protecting it. A bright light exploded on the shield, and the smoke dissipated.

"The remaining shield of the magic engine is 77%," Ms. Tata's voice was as calm as ever, like ice water, cold and calm. There is no proprietary ship shield on the Seven Seas Traveler, and it uses the automatic shield of the magic furnace. With a force field shield, "We can withstand up to three such attacks, Mr. Knight."

"Narrow the scope of the shield," Fang Plover replied, "Only protect the most critical core parts."

"But that will put the Seven Seas Traveler at greater risk of damage, and we may have to pass through a turbulent area next. Ed, have you really thought about it?"

"I understand, Miss Tata." Fang Yu nodded.

"Okay." Miss Goblin's voice sounded focused and gentle.

"Let me figure it out." Catherine turned her head and looked at the troubled look on his face. She was also an old sailor, so she naturally understood what the other person was worried about and said, "After all, I can't stay here in vain, but I I'm only responsible for the cannons on this part of the ship, and I'll leave the other directions to you." She pointed to Siesta. "The maid lady should be able to take charge of the direction of the stern. I think she is quite capable. Plus the other lady should be enough."

Miss Catman nodded slightly.

"But the heavy naval guns on the Horned Grebe are no joke. You should be more careful," Catherine reminded solemnly, "After all, even I can't guarantee that we can defend them all. If it doesn't work... Just ask the sea witch to take action. As long as you don't show it too obviously, nothing will happen."

Everyone nodded.

When the Seven Seas Traveler broke into the dividing line between the two skies, the accuracy of the Horned Grebe's firepower suddenly improved a lot. The old-fashioned mechanical computer seemed to have begun to play a role, and the shells fell in the wind like scattered water splashes. around the ship.

Then the sailboats also started to fire, and the small projectiles drew a line, passed through the sea of ​​clouds, and landed in the thick clouds. Some exploded, like New Year's fireworks, and stirred up clouds and mist, like lines rising from the sea. water column.

The Seven Seas Traveler sailed zigzag between the water columns. Miss Longhun looked at everything calmly, as if she were picking up the silver needle with her white and thin hands and threading the needle on the azure curtain. The gravel fell on one side of her hand.

It takes up to four seconds from the moment the cannon is ejected from the chamber to when it hits the target, and four seconds is enough for Miss Goblin to use her calculating eyes to draw clear arcs from their rise to their fall. .

It was enough for most of the cannonballs to avoid the Seven Seas Traveler's trajectory.

The huge sail shadow of the 'San Jose' finally bypassed the northern island and appeared in the field of vision behind the Seven Seas Traveler. The ship's officer on the ship was putting down the telescope in his hand and looking at this scene with some amazement:

"There should either be an experienced veteran or a talented captain on that ship, so that the Brianos fleet will try not to harm them. The empire needs such talents."

"I'm afraid the other party won't give in so easily." The boatswain replied from the side.

The ship's officer shook his head and said with certainty: "Their ship is injured and has an inclination of 7°. With the intensity of firepower of the Horned Grebe, they cannot rush through. As long as the captain is not a fool, he will choose to surrender."

He put away the telescope, handed it to the boatswain aside, and nodded: "But you are right, we cannot give any chance. We should also maintain the highest respect for such opponents, raise the artillery, and force them to attack The fleet of Brianos approaches."

The gun doors on the 'San Jose' slowly opened, and then there was a bright flash of fire - the terrifying scream could be heard across the sky. It was the large magic cannon on the main battleship. The shell fell into the sea about a mile away.

Then a bright light flashed, and a fireball rose from the clouds. The air waves generated by the explosion directly pushed the clouds to form a huge tsunami-like wave. A hot wind could be felt from thousands of meters away. Fang Plover looked in that direction motionless.

Alyssa could see the imperial people's intentions at a glance: "They are forcing us to move closer to the Brianos."

"Then as they wish."

Fang Plover raised his head, and the golden firelight carved a silhouette on his face, "Miss Tata, there is no need to go around anymore, drive straight through."

Miss Goblin nodded slightly. Of course she understood the risks of doing so, but as long as one of the three super-large magic cannons on the 'San Jose' hit, it would be enough to turn the Seven Seas Traveler into ashes. This is not what they It’s time to hesitate.

Catherine was leaping high, her red hair flying like a flag, she turned the cage handle in her hand, and cut a ray of cold light with the tip of her sword.

The long sword light formed a sharp edge in the space, twelve meters long, crossing horizontally with the cannonballs in mid-air. The metal shell and components turned into raindrops, but it still triggered the inertial fuse, lighting up a sea of ​​scorching light. Purpose shines.

Shrapnel fell like rain. The female pirate held her cloak and swiped it hard, causing the metal fragments to clang on the deck. She took a slight breath and looked up.

Towards the stern of the ship, the maid lady and Dalil were in a rare state of confusion. Siesta was using her gauntlet to open up a cyan wind element shield. There were burn marks here and there on the maid's skirt and hair accessories. She There was also a trace of blood on his face.

Miss Catman is slightly better.

But there was also a burnt piece on her tail. The breastplate was dented like a mirror. A shrapnel cut a hole and was still inserted there. She exposed her fangs and breathed, and her lungs were full of rust. smell.

The seventh round, the eighth round opened fire. More shells rained down.

Most are still scattered on both sides of the Seven Seas Traveler, but there are still some precise hits. There is a blue light flashing in the explosion fire, and the shield of the magic engine comes to an end. If another shell hits the core crystal at this time, It will directly trigger an explosion that destroys everything.

But another light curtain with a similar color lit up. In the smoke, it was almost difficult for people to distinguish the difference between it and the magic engine shield. The light curtain stopped every cannonball flying towards the core area, causing it to Detonate in advance before reaching a safe area.

As for the rest, Miya has nothing to do with it - she doesn't need to. She doesn't need to be too conspicuous in case it attracts the dragon knights from the empire, although the empire's dragon knights should all be located on the border of the Great Rainforest.

But who knows?

This is also Fang Plover’s advice.

As for the shells that flew towards the corner area, they finally slipped through the net. One shell hit the lower part of the stern of the Seven Seas Traveler. Siesta and Dariel had no time to stop it. Everyone felt a heavy blow to the ship's hull and the explosion. The flames almost lifted off the entire armrest on the poop.

Fragments of wood chips flew everywhere, but fortunately the thick magic wood was not penetrated by the bullet - but the subsequent explosion opened a big hole there, and the infirmary was on fire below. It was unknown what the damage was.

This was the first time in a quarter of an hour that the Seven Sea Traveler had actually been hit. Almost all the Brianos cheered. The opponent was finally not indestructible. At first, they almost lost their courage.

But the cheers ended abruptly.

The flames emerging from the large hole on the right side of the Seven Seas Traveler were quickly extinguished. The hole was being repaired at a speed visible to the naked eye. The wooden planks seemed to grow automatically from the cracked hole, and the curled iron sheet returned to its original shape, giving birth to a Every rivet.

Trixis and Lark stood on the left and right in the corridor, wearing magic gloves on their hands. Silver beams of light extended from the siren structures waving tentacles beside them, repairing the damage on the Seven Seas Traveler's hull. Breach.

The sailboat began to return to its right position, regaining about one or two degrees of inclination, but Fang Plover knew that it was only temporary. Cui Xisi and Lark were able to repair the structural damage on the hull, but the pipe network that transmitted magic power and the balance of the wind element were all damaged. Broken.

Those things can only be repaired and repaired one by one after returning to the port.

"Fire again, fire again!"

On the Brianos warship, the officers screamed at the top of their lungs and their eyes turned blood red, as if otherwise, the rising cloud pillar would not be able to catch up with the fish-like sailboat.

The flames at the muzzle rose, the sound of the cannon was deafening, and the shells fell like raindrops towards the Seven Sea Traveler. In the blink of an eye, two fire clouds rose up - but before the Brianos could cheer, the gap under the flames Closed again.

"Ed," Catherine rarely called out his name with a serious expression. She looked at the Horned Grebe on the other side: "We can't go on any further. The damage to the Seven Seas Traveler is more serious than imagined. We rush You can't break through the firepower network of the Empire unless you let the Sea Witch take action - or do you have any other way?"

Fang Plover looked at the Brianos fleet, and he did still have a way. Now, it's their turn to fight back.

He raised his head, but his eyes were not actually fixed on the clouds there, but on a scene passing through the clouds - the clockwork goblin flew across a distance of nearly four miles and finally arrived at the Brianos. Above the fleet.

The field of view shown in the eyepiece has reflected everything, the silver sails spread out under the clouds, and the imperial fleet lined up.

Fang Yu raised his hand and gently pressed down the magic glove under the gaze of the privateering female pirate.

Like the tide breaking through the dam, dense waves poured down from the clouds. They were black swarms and the open fangs of the giant beast. In fact, long after the Brianos sailors completed a round of bombardment, they had already I heard a buzzing sound coming from above the clouds.

Someone looked up and saw this shocking scene, "Look at the sky!"

"what is that?"

"It's the Clockwork Fairy!"

"It's just a clockwork goblin!" the officers shouted harshly, but there was a hint of uneasiness in their voices. Although they knew that they were just small structural objects, there seemed to be similar scenes in history. An idea flashed in their hearts. Pass:

"Efreet!"

The Lotaos had used the same move against the Imperials.

The knowledgeable stationed wizard on board the Horned Grebe had already opened the shield in advance.

The clockwork goblins fell like rain, just like thousands of suns rising simultaneously on the blue, spherical light curtain. However, the bright light produced by the explosion of gray crystal was not powerful enough to shake a fifth-class frigate. 's shield.

But the remaining wing sailing ships did not have comparable shields. Most of them, like the Seven Seas Traveler, did not have shields installed. Raining fire djinn fell directly on the decks of these wing sailing ships.

The sailboat did not have a dedicated artillery deck, and the clumsy magic cannons were crowded on the upper deck in a mess. The Imperials did not expect that there would be close combat, or lacked sufficient safety awareness. In order to save trouble and convenience, the cannonballs, magic cannons were The charges were brought on deck.

When the efreeti arrived, these explosives were set off immediately.

A huge fireball rose from the sailboat, directly sweeping away the sailors, marines, and imperial officers on the deck. On one ship, everyone on the deck was vaporized in an instant, and experienced an unforgettable resurrection experience. .

Another ship was ignited by the ammunition depot, and was turned into ashes in the brilliant fire. The explosion affected a nearby ship, and the wing sailboat soon capsized in the fire. The survivors of the two ships There are not many left.

After the fire giant, the disaster star came immediately. These were physical flying objects, and their speed was not fast enough to be recognized by the magic shield as an attack, so they passed through the shield smoothly and then attacked the people on the ship. attack.

Fang Plover let these fighting goblins fly into the lower deck, and used the terrain there to fight with the Marines on the Horned Grebe. It took the Brianos nearly a quarter of an hour to completely calm down the Marines on the ship. fighting.

They returned to the deck, and the sailboats on each wing were in a mess. Three ships were directly lost in one attack, and another ship almost quit the battle due to excessive attrition. The hands of the officers holding the swords were shaking - they had not even really seen the enemy during the battle, and the wreckage on the deck was a witness to that tragic battle.

The old governor was protected by a silver-helmeted knight, so he did not worry about being afraid of a few little clockwork goblins, but he remained silent at the moment. When the smoke cleared, the other party saw that the devil-like sailboat was approaching the sky. within the range.

"Sir, the other party has already come closer. I, we..."

The staff in the captain's room began to retreat.

The old man's hand holding the cane turned blue and white, "The 'San Jose' asked us to stop it."

"How is it possible!?"

"Maybe," his voice trembled, "try again."

The Seven Seas Traveler is as beautiful as the day she was born, and the shape of the ship is the most beautiful on the sea. However, the officers on board the Horned Grebe only felt chills stand on end, and they were giving orders to the sailors at the top of their lungs:

"Go back to your respective posts!"

"Quick, stop them!"

The sailors reluctantly returned to their posts, and it took almost twice as long to reload the magic cannon. They acted stiffly, aimed awkwardly, and fired. The sound of the cannons was sporadic, completely unlike before. look like.

It seems that even basic standards cannot be maintained.

Scattered shells grazed the side of the Nanami Traveler and landed in the sea of ​​clouds. However, the hit rate of the magic cannon had increased sharply at this distance. Several shells still hit the Nanami Traveler. The flames shone on the sea of ​​clouds, but Nanami's The Traveler is still moving forward.

Is that ship immortal?

This ridiculous thought couldn't help but arise in everyone's mind.

But only Catherine understood that the Seven Seas Traveler had reached its limit. The hull was tilted at nearly 21°, and the balance of the wind element could no longer be maintained on one side. This was the result of Trixis and Lark's non-stop damage control.

They were close to within five yards of each other. The Horned Grebe's towering freeboard and black gun ports were clearly visible. The pieces of silver sails were like a wall standing in the air and sea. Brianos's Marines Already on the side of the ship, he raised his gun and aimed it in this direction.

Finally in mid-air.

Fang Plover said nothing. The Seven Seas Traveler once again opened the air combat deck, and Miss Tata released the last batch of clockwork fairies - those were real clockwork fairies that Fang Plover had not even had time to modify. They were the most original and traditional 'I'-shaped hair. A fairy.

The densely packed clockwork goblins rising fell in the eyes of the Brianos. They had no time to distinguish the models of the clockwork goblins. They were only filled with fear. The morale of the sailors completely collapsed. No matter what the officers said, they could not tell the difference. Not willing to stay on deck any longer.

In fact, the officers were all beating up in their hearts and couldn't help but look in the direction of the captain's room.

At this time, the San Jose opened fire again, and the shells landed far away from the stern of the Seven Seas Traveler, nearly a mile away.

The ship's officer was raising his telescope to observe the battlefield in this direction. He finally noticed the hesitation of the Brianos. A trace of worry involuntarily appeared on his brows, and he finally guessed the worst outcome.

"It's broken," he began. "We might have gone wrong."

"gentlemen?"

asked the bosun.

In the captain's room of the Horned Grebe, the nobles also expressed the same views to the old man:

"Master Governor, he, they are here..."

"what should we do?"

The old governor's face was turning green and white, leaving them two rounds of fire, but what if it didn't work?

On the deck of the Seven Seas Traveler——

"They still have two chances to fire volleys," Catherine was speaking. It was the first time that she felt the excitement of a battle in the air and on the sea. It was even more exciting than when she ordered her fleet to charge against the pirate king.

She looked in that direction and solemnly reminded the little captain, "You can only withstand the next salvo if you are lucky enough, but you can't survive the next round anyway, let alone fight with the opponent. "Board battle."

"Let that woman take action."

"Keep heading." Fang Plover replied.

The female pirate glared at him.

Fang Yuan's heart was as calm as water, and the previous depression had been wiped away by this time. He actually had no thoughts in his mind. The brave man who met on a narrow road would win - that's all. If the opponent chooses to open fire, then he would use his last trump card.

Time will decide the rest.

He stood on the bow of the ship, staring in the direction of the Brianos fleet, while the Empire responded to his gaze with silent silence - after about a minute, Fang Plover couldn't help but raise his eyebrows, and there was no need to fire. Such a long lead time.

He couldn't help but look at Catherine beside him, and the female pirate also raised her eyebrows slightly.

The Imperials have answered everything.

They finally became discouraged, and the Horned Grebe was the first to start turning - in mid-air, less than a thousand meters away, the huge hull began to slowly turn to the side of the island, and the sailboats that could still move also fled in all directions.

The Brianos made a way for them in front.

A smile bloomed on Fang Plover's face.

He held the side of the ship with his hands, causing Catherine on the side to look over in surprise. She looked at the little guy up and down. She was still looking at the Imperial fleet from the corner of her eye, but there was an inexplicable feeling in her heart. mood.

"I underestimated you before," Catherine said. "It seems that no one is more suitable to go to St. John's than you. There must be a place for you there."

"I won't be a pirate."

“It’s also an adventurer’s paradise.”

...(End of chapter)