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WHOOSH! WHOOSH!
A shrill, piercing sound sliced through the air as a dense volley of arrows rained down from the pitch-black night sky, hurtling toward Queen Rhaenys.
Ahh!!
Thud! Thud!
It was near midnight. Many Velaryon soldiers, drowsy and unguarded, were caught completely off guard. Struck down in an instant, their bodies became pincushions of feathered shafts.
Those stationed near the ship's railing, upon being hit by the barrage, toppled over the edge like dumplings into boiling water, plunging into the frigid sea below.
DING! DING! DING!
"Enemy attack! Enemy attack!"
The soldiers who remained standing scrambled to ring the alarm bells, their urgent shouts echoing across the ship.
CLANK! CLANK!
Waking abruptly from his slumber, Vaemond Velaryon hurriedly donned his armor with the aid of his attendants. The moment they handed him his sword and shield, he stormed onto the deck.
*BOOOOM!!!*
No sooner had he stepped outside than a blazing, barrel-shaped object came hurtling down from the darkness—
CRACK!
It crashed into the massive silver seahorse emblem on the ship's sail. The barrel shattered on impact, spilling its contents across the fabric.
The embers smoldering on the sail flared violently, the mysterious liquid acting as an accelerant and setting the ship ablaze in an instant.
"Using fire barrels to burn our sails?"
Vaemond's eyes widened in fury.
"Damn it—they're trying to make sure we never leave this place alive!"
Vaemond was no fool. With years of naval warfare experience, he instantly understood the enemy's strategy.
Fortunately, Queen Rhaenys was second only to Sea Snake among the Velaryon fleet's largest hundred-meter-long oared warships.
Even without sails, its powerful rowing mechanisms provided enough force to escape the battlefield.
Vaemond wasn't worried about whether he could flee—what truly angered him was his brother's prior military orders.
By all logic, his fleet should have been positioned in a staggered formation, facing Bloodstone Island in vertical columns—
A formation that allowed for both flexibility in attack and ease of retreat.
Moreover, as the commanding flagship, Queen Rhaenys should have remained safely at the rear.
However, two days prior, Vaemond had received a sealed raven-letter bearing his brother's lordly sigil, ordering him to form a horizontal battle line to intimidate Bloodstone Island.
Orders were orders.
Besides, Bloodstone Island seemed to have been thoroughly intimidated—there had been no movement from them for over two weeks.
Believing the enemy was too frightened to act, Vaemond followed the command, altering his fleet's formation.
At first glance, it gave the illusion that the enemy's fleet was so vast it could blockade the entire sea.
But in doing so, the fleet's overall defensive capabilities had been significantly weakened.
Worst of all, the flagship had been placed in clear sight of the enemy.
And now, as expected—Bloodstone's night raid had struck directly at Queen Rhaenys!
Vaemond clenched his jaw, his grip tightening around his sword.
"Relay my orders! All ships surrounding the flagship are to hold the defensive line at all costs. The largest warships on both outer flanks—break through the enemy's center!"
Despite the sudden attack, Vaemond remained calm and composed.
His soldiers swiftly transmitted his orders using specialized signal lanterns, the flickering lights cutting through the night to rally the fleet.
"Heave-ho! Heave-ho!"
On either flank of the Velaryon defensive line, massive oared warships surged forward, their hulls slicing through the waves.
Amidst the thunderous rhythm of hundreds of rowers straining at their oars, the two warships changed course, steering toward the heart of the Kingdom of the Three Daughters' fleet.
Vaemond's strategy was clear—he intended to use these two large warships as spears to drive into the enemy's formation, splitting it in half.
The plan was to first eliminate the portion of the enemy fleet that had been cut off, then turn and deal with the remaining forces.
Of course, if those two warships were to fall before accomplishing their objective, Vaemond would abandon them without hesitation and retreat.
In terms of tactical acumen, Vaemond was undoubtedly a commander of both courage and cunning.
WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH!
Suddenly, the relentless rain of arrows upon Queen Rhaenys ceased.
The reason soon became clear—the vanguard of the Kingdom of the Three Daughters' fleet had closed in.
CLICK! CLICK!
Wooden boarding planks, their ends lined with hooked claws, were thrown onto the starboard side of Queen Rhaenys, anchoring onto its railing.
"Kill them!"
Wearing hardened leather armor and round-topped helmets, the soldiers of the Kingdom of the Three Daughters charged across the planks, eager to seize the deck.
At the same time, others swung from their own masts, gripping ropes tied to their warships, and leaped through the air toward Queen Rhaenys.
Boarding action—the most common, yet most brutal form of close-quarters combat in naval warfare.
SLASH! SLASH!
Before the first wave of attackers could steady themselves on the starboard deck, they were cut down by Velaryon soldiers, who had been preemptively positioned in tight ranks by Vaemond.
WHOOSH! WHOOSH!
The Velaryon archers, long suppressed by enemy arrow fire, finally saw their chance to retaliate.
The soldiers from the Kingdom of the Three Daughters, who swung through the air with strange battle cries, made for perfect targets.
Every passing second saw at least a dozen of them struck by arrows, their bodies pierced by steel before plummeting into the sea.
Yet, despite these losses, the attackers still held the advantage in numbers.
Queen Rhaenys, a large warship, carried no more than two hundred crewmen. Even with reinforcements from the medium-sized warships flanking it, the total defenders numbered only around four hundred.
Meanwhile, the enemy's boarding force, consisting of six warships, charged forward like a tide. Over a thousand soldiers, clambering over each other, were engaged in vicious boarding actions.
As the foremost Velaryon soldiers fought desperately, their blades dulled, and their arms grew weary from the endless hacking and slashing.
The fresh troops from the Kingdom of the Three Daughters seized this opportunity, cutting down any Velaryon soldier whose guard wavered.
Though Velaryon reinforcements rushed forward to fill the gaps, the enemy was slowly gaining ground, establishing a foothold on Queen Rhaenys.
Blood flowed freely across the deck, pooling beneath severed limbs that began to pile up on the wooden boards.
CRASH! CRASH!
Two deafening impacts suddenly reverberated across the battlefield.
It turned out that the two massive Velaryon warships on either flank had successfully driven into the heart of the Kingdom of Three Daughters' fleet.
Their reinforced rams struck with such force that they pierced straight into the hulls of two opposing warships.
The impact was so violent that one of the Three Daughters' Kingdom warships nearly split in half at the point of impact.
"Kill them!"
As the three massive warships settled from the violent collision, hundreds of Velaryon soldiers leaped onto the enemy deck, launching a fierce boarding assault.
The ferocity of their charge, bolstered by sheer numbers, sent a wave of panic through the ranks of the Kingdom of Three Daughters' soldiers.
With their fleet now divided, it seemed the battle was once again tilting in Velaryon's favor.
Vaemond, standing upon the deck of Queen Rhaenys, sensed victory was near.
He immediately ordered the rest of the Velaryon fleet to close in, pressing the attack to eliminate the forward half of the enemy force before turning on the rear.
However, he had underestimated his enemies.
SPLASH! SPLASH!
Soft splashes echoed across the dark sea, but they were drowned out by the clamor of battle on the deck of Queen Rhaenys.
CLICK! CLICK! CLICK!
Suddenly, a series of hooked rope ladders latched onto the port side of the ship from below.
A moment later, from the shadowed waters, lightly armored soldiers of the Kingdom of Three Daughters climbed aboard, weapons clenched between their teeth like silent wraiths emerging from the abyss.
Shhk! Shhk!
Velaryon soldiers, their focus entirely on the raging battle at the starboard side, did not notice the intruders—until it was too late.
The boarding soldiers plunged their blades into the exposed necks of the unsuspecting defenders.
"Damn it! We're under attack from behind!"
Vaemond, realizing the ambush, charged forward with sword and shield in hand.
His mastery of the shield-and-sword combat style was evident—within moments, he and his soldiers had cut down the infiltrators.
Yet, this diversion had cost them dearly.
With their forces now spread thin, the defensive line on the starboard deck had crumbled.
If this continued, Queen Rhaenys, the flagship, would inevitably fall into enemy hands. And once the command center was lost, the battle would be lost as well.
Recognizing the dire situation, Vaemond made the only choice left to him—retreat.
With his personal guards forming a protective line, he prepared to escape onto one of the flanking Velaryon warships, hoping to flee back to Stepstones amidst the chaos.
*ROOOAR!!!*
Just then, a deafening roar, more powerful than the cries of battle, resounded across the night sky.
Then—a shadow descended.
A massive, winged silhouette plummeted from above, streaking toward an enemy warship positioned at the front of Queen Rhaenys.
At the same time, the dark sky was suddenly illuminated by a brilliant orange flame.
*BOOOOM!!!*
A torrent of fire crashed upon the warship, and the descending shadow struck with it.
A tremendous explosion erupted, sending a storm of burning embers cascading across the waters, igniting the vessel in a raging inferno.
..
..
[IMAGE]
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[Chapter End's]
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