Chapter 278: Fire!
"Fire!"
At the exact moment the heavy crossbows were loosed, Desmond shouted.
"Fire!" Voices relayed the command below deck, and the prepared gunners immediately lit their match cords.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
In a line, the three galleons erupted with bursts of firelight. Smoke from the ignited gunpowder filled the area around the muzzles, as seventy-five grapeshot rounds sprayed into the air, scattering into a rain of deadly pellets.
The barrage fell upon the three houseboats like a storm.
Standing at the bow, Simon could clearly hear the sound of cannonballs piercing wooden planks; it was as sharp and clean as a finger punching through paper.
In an instant, the three houseboats were riddled with holes, wood splinters flying everywhere. The pirates aboard were shredded into pulp, blood mist bursting across the decks.
This single volley rendered all three houseboats incapable of continuing the fight. Most of the pirates were already dead.
"Starboard turn!" Desmond shouted again.
As the command rang out, the galleons began shifting position. After firing from the port side, they now brought their starboard cannons to face the enemy.
"Fire!"
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Another round of cannon fire shook the decks. In Simon’s eyes, the three enemy ships had become sieves, slowly beginning to sink.
These house boats had only been meant to harass the fleet. The main force of the pirates was still onshore.
With the three ships sunk, the fleet sped toward the coast.
Bay Town
Captain Henry slowly pulled his sword from the body of a villager, bloodlust in his eyes. Just then, he turned around and stared in disbelief at the sight of the sinking ships.
Other Latin raiders also paused their massacre, looking in horror toward the battlefield at sea.
"This can’t be!" Henry stammered, then barked. "Search the village! Find Dustin; he must still be here. He couldn’t have gone far!"
He glanced again at the flags fluttering on the warships. Then he stepped on the body of an elderly woman and viciously stabbed her in the leg with his sword.
"Speak! Where is Dustin?"
The old woman was already soaked in blood. She spat a mouthful of blood in his face and laughed coldly, staring at the approaching warships.
"That ship... Must be my son. He’s come. He’ll kill all of you dogs!"
"Stupid! You Eldorian pigs!" Henry roared as he drove the blade into her chest.
Blood splattered. The old woman grimaced in pain, but her eyes still held a smile as she gazed at the towering ships drawing near.
Screams echoed through the village as Henry trampled over corpses in a mad search. "Dustin, you coward! Are you really going to let them die in front of your eyes?"
He seized a barely-breathing, half-naked woman, already brutalised beyond recognition, and shouted again: "Come out! Or I’ll slaughter every last person in this village!"
The Eldorian Empire flags flew closer. Henry spiralled into madness.
His ships had sunk; he could never have imagined that the Eldorian Empire’s warships could annihilate them so swiftly. Now he had no way out. He had to find Dustin fast.
Slashing the woman’s throat, he continued his frantic search. He didn’t intend to escape; they were suicide warriors. If the mission failed, returning home meant death anyway.
"Land!"
The Brambleford docked near the shore. Desmond couldn’t wait. He leapt from the deck with his men, wading through waist-deep water as they stormed the beach.
Simon, flanked by William and Thomas, also jumped down and charged forward with more than six hundred soldiers into Bay Town.
The pirates hadn’t left. They were still searching for something.
Seeing the troops land, two hundred pirate warriors shouted and charged.
Desmond and the sailors were already blood-eyed with rage. Corpses of their fellow villagers lay everywhere, blood staining the sea red.
"Kill them!"
Simon saw the corpse of a baby hacked in two, and his fury erupted. The shame his people had suffered in this life and the last surged from his chest as uncontainable wrath.
’You savages, how dare you trample on the dignity of my people!’
"Kill!"
A thunderous roar came from the sailors as they charged like an iron tide. Their blades flashed, cutting down heads one after another.
The pirates wore plain clothing and wielded inferior swords, no match at all for armoured sailors. Two hundred enemies were instantly broken apart by six hundred Eldorian Empire troops. Simon and Desmond fought side by side.
In that moment, Simon was no longer a prince. He was just another soldier, a man burning with hatred for the invaders of his homeland.
Living in such a brutal age, Simon had never neglected his martial skills. His predecessor’s training left him with a solid foundation.
He dodged a blade slashing toward his side, spun around, and slashed his sword across the enemy’s throat. Blood gushed out as the warrior collapsed.
William and Thomas fought by hissides, blocking other attacks.
Though only two hundred strong, the pirates fought with suicidal tenacity. Simon could feel that these were battle-hardened veterans.
But sheer numbers and superior gear made a difference. Before long, most of them were dead or dying.
Suddenly, the sound of another battle came from the south of Bay Town.
Simon looked up to see Ashenford’s army banner fluttering; it was the reinforcements.
The remaining pirates realised they were surrounded. With solemn expressions, they gathered together and drove their swords into their own stomachs.
"Your Highness, Ashenford’s Commander O’Neil reports, apologies for arriving late!" A middle-aged general hurried forward and knelt before Simon.
"You should be ashamed!" Simon roared. "Bay Town was under attack, and you come this late?"
O’Neil replied. "Your Highness, the moment we heard of the pirates’ presence, I gathered troops and marched here. But Ashenford has no cavalry; we had to come on foot. I was burning with anxiety the whole way."
Simon sighed heavily. At that moment, the sound of sobbing echoed nearby. Looking over, he saw Desmond weeping bitterly as he held the body of an elderly woman.
Simon recognised her, Desmond’s mother. His heart ached.
Nearby, over thirty sailors from Bay Town were searching through the bodies, trying to find their family members.
Crying gradually filled the air of Bay Town.
The other sailors looked solemn and sorrowful. Scenes like this were all too common. In Ashenford, which relied on fishing, who didn’t have a loved one taken by the pirates?