At this moment, the Avars are at their most confident, launching a counter-offensive against the M Continent, with all the countries within their domain crawling at their feet, just short of declaring allegiance. One could say that on the Solun Continent, the Dragon is the number one power, and the Avars are number two. Even the most powerful church in the M Continent must give some face to the Avars and the Dragon Church.
This is still the first time the Avars have been so blatantly ignored and humiliated.
Upon reflection, one could guess that the Avars’ defeat on the M Continent was indeed true, but this group of port-dwelling Avars, who are accustomed to piracy, ponder why a loss on the M Continent should concern them.
“Let them experience the might of our cannons!”
An excited Avar soldier shouted, noticing the large ships across from them—the perfect catch.
“Just be careful not to damage the ship; otherwise, we’ll have to repair it,” another soldier joked.
The Avar “navy” soldiers continuously aimed the cannons brought by maritime trade at the Empire’s fleet.
The gunners on the Avar ships were focused on targeting those large vessels. Although they did not recognize the opposing flag, they were very familiar with the Castilian banner. To ordinary sailors, the Avars could not possibly be defeated; it seemed like a lie fabricated by the Castilians to cover their own failures. The Avar gunners laughed internally, this well-prepared cannon had yet to fire a shot, and it was perfect to test the waters with the Castilian fleet.
Waves rolled, and the sea wind brought the salty and fishy scent directly to them. The cannons on the Avar fleet were arranged neatly under the sun, shining with a cold metallic light, and all the gunners were ready. The commander, with a sneer, issued the command: “All set, fire at will once they are within range!”
The gunners held a high status; on the sea, cannons could often shoot farther than magic. They were constantly calculating the distance, licking their lips and imagining what good loot they would secure from this big fish.
But at that moment, a deafening roar shattered the air. Before the Avar fleet’s cannons could spit fire, the enemy’s cannons fired first, sending huge droplets of water soaring in front of the Avar fleet.
The Avar fleet’s commander was momentarily stunned, clearly not anticipating the enemy also had cannons. But he quickly regained his composure and mockingly told his subordinates, “These people are truly foolish. Even with cannons, they don’t know how to use them. Clearly, they fired before we even reached range—if I were in their position, I would…”
Before he could finish his sentence, a cannonball struck the Avar’s main ship directly, exploding and sending shards of steel and wood flying, causing soldiers on the deck to stumble and lose balance.
“Report! The enemy’s range—has exceeded our limits!” A shout filled with disbelief came from the lookout tower. The commander’s face turned pale, his hands gripping the ship’s rail, struggling to believe the reality, his eyes fixed on that massive fleet.
Flames erupted again, accompanied by the rising wails of the Avar fleet, cannonballs flew like sentient beings, penetrating another ship’s side. With splintering wood, screams, and surging seawater, that ship began to capsize, soldiers on deck scattered in a desperate attempt to escape but found nowhere to go.
The soldiers desperately attempted to retaliate, but their cannons could never reach the enemy ships. Each shot fired brought back only fiercer counter-attacks from the enemy.
Fear spread like an epidemic throughout the fleet. Seeing this, the commander immediately shouted, “Accelerate! Have those mages use magic to speed up! Quickly close in to return fire, and prepare for boarding!”
Though arrogant, this commander was no fool. Instead of fleeing, he chose to close the distance. The opposing ships clearly appeared to be cargo vessels that were bound to be slower than warships controlled by specialized mages. As long as they could close in, they could strike back, and as long as they could strike back, there was hope.
“Oh? They aren’t fleeing, but instead are coming towards us?”
Bernice watched with some interest as the ships approached rapidly, creating waves behind them, seemingly making use of water magic to accelerate their ships across the sea with minimal magic. It was somewhat interesting, but just somewhat.
“Activate defenses!” Bernice commanded.
A fast Avar ship rapidly approached the fleet and started firing continuously. Just as the cannons were about to hit the ship’s hull, they were blocked by an enchanted barrier, leaving the Avar commander and the professionals dumbfounded.
The Avars felt they were now wealthy enough to even buy the fragmented Castilian territories piece by piece. Yet, even such extravagant Avars never considered putting a layer of defensive enchantment on their ship, let alone a high-level enchantment capable of withstanding cannon fire.
Such enchantments, even on armor, would be treasured family heirlooms for the Avars, much less on a ship, especially one that was not a main war vessel.
The Avar commander, dumbfounded, turned to the nearby professional and asked, “What’s the difference between this defensive enchantment and the one on our walls?”
The professional instinctively replied, “My lord, our wall’s defensive enchantment cannot be simplified to be used on a cargo ship.”
The commander turned and slapped the professional hard, catching him off guard and knocking him to the ground. Holding his reddened cheek, he asked, “My lord, what is the meaning of this?”
The commander murmured, “Hmm, it seems this is not a dream…”
If the long-range cannons had led the commander to believe there was still a chance, the appearance of the sea wall completely dashed any last hopes he had.
Isn’t this a joke? A wall in the middle of the ocean? Now, it seems there is indeed a sea wall right in front of him.
Of course, if they could get closer, a boarding battle might still hold some hope. But at this moment, the commander had fully convinced himself that the Avars indeed had suffered defeat on the M Continent, and for a moment, all fighting spirit vanished, like he had entered a sage’s time, connecting all the clues in his mind.
“My lord, should we pursue?”
The signal soldier asked with a trembling voice, seemingly sensing something was off.
“Pursue what?”
The Avar commander, engrossed in his sage time, had completely calmed down. No wonder the enemy could completely ignore the Avars; they genuinely had the qualifications to do so. With such a powerful fleet, why were they waving the Castilian flag?
Looking at the wreckage scattered across the sea, with enemy cannon hits everywhere, the commander said, “Stop pursuing. Instead, monitor this fleet. It would be better to get closer and express our goodwill! It seems there are also Avars on their ships; we’ll say it’s all a misunderstanding! Additionally, inform the Dragon Church and investigate their origins.”
Once the Avar fleet returned to the harbor, some immediately reported the naval battle to the Dragon Church. Meanwhile, in the shadows, others began contacting the Night Sanctuary.
After hearing about this matter, the priest wearing the black and white mask had an even more mischievous smile beneath his mask, as if the mask itself was smiling along with the priest’s expression.
“Good, very good!”
Although unaware of the enemy’s background, it didn’t matter. No matter how powerful their firepower or solid their enchantments, so long as they were human, they would have dreams. And as long as they were in the dream, they could only submit to his strength.
The priest of the Night Sanctuary clenched his fist tightly, already planning. This fleet would become his aid against the dragons.
Thinking about soon possessing such powerful strength, the smile on the priest’s mask grew increasingly reckless.
