The fleet's sails gradually vanished beyond the horizon of sea and sky, leaving no trace behind.
Only three battalions totaling nine thousand men had been dispatched to reinforce Hilowas Island this time. There simply weren't enough ships to transport more. If not for the addition of eight whaling ships, Sembawood's fleet — even with the two new large ocean-going armed merchant vessels recently launched from the Oxbow Bay shipyard — could have transported at most just over four thousand men in a single trip.
Moreover, given the nature of the slavers and slave-hunting parties from the Haneabada Kingdom, they rarely stayed in one place for more than a month when raiding. By the time the fleet reached Hilowas Island, the enemy might have already left — making not only the trip a waste of effort but also a waste of time. It would be far better for Lorist to remain in the family's territory, await their news, and attend to family affairs. Being away too long would cause many matters to fall behind...
Though Bodenfeng spoke diplomatically, Lorist understood what he meant. As long as he remained in the Northland, things would stay stable. If he was absent for too long, even the three allied families might begin harboring ulterior thoughts. At the gathering at the end of last year, Bodenfeng and Steward Speer had received the guests on the family's behalf. This year, Lorist absolutely had to make an appearance.
As for Lorist's concern about encountering the enemy on Hilowas Island, Bodenfeng smiled and said there was nothing to worry about. According to reports from the surviving soldiers and guardsmen of the Third Guard Battalion, the enemy's main force was a ragtag mob. The only real concern was the handful of Great Swordmasters among them. But this time, two heavy infantry battalions and one Single-Wheel Steel Crossbow Battalion were being sent to Hilowas Island. Once they formed their battle formations, even Great Swordmasters wouldn't dare face their charge head-on.
Bodenfeng reasoned that if the enemy was few in number or had already abandoned the island, the three battalions would sweep the entire place and handle the aftermath. If the enemy still held Hilowas Island, they would advance cautiously, fortify each position they took, engage the enemy, and wait for further reinforcements. With the speed of Dawn's Flying Fish, it would only take about ten days or so to bring Lorist to the island.
Five
Lorist's orders were that if Hilowas Island was recaptured, they were to proceed to
A sea breeze blew against their faces, carrying a faint briny scent. They stood at Oxbow Bay, named for the bull-horn-shaped cliffs that curved around it. The semicircular cliff wall enclosed the bay within, forming a tranquil harbor shielded from the storms raging outside. The family had employed nearly a thousand laborers to carve out a path to the cliff's summit, planning to build a lighthouse at its very edge to guide ships that lost their way during moonless nights.
Lorist had come to the cliff for three reasons: to see off the departing fleet, to inspect the lighthouse site, and because he had his own plans — to see whether a gun emplacement could eventually be built up here. That way, no hostile fleet would dare threaten Oxbow Bay or the port city below.
The fleet had already sailed far away. Lorist walked to the inner side of the cliff and gazed down at the port city and Oxbow Bay.
The port city was still bustling with activity. Workers streamed to and fro at every construction site. The setbacks the family had suffered on Hilowas Island had done nothing to dampen the development of this emerging city. This time, Lorist had relocated over seven hundred refugees from White Deer Town here. In the past two days, the sound of those displaced people weeping for their lost loved ones could still be heard from time to time...
On the other side of Oxbow Bay was the ever-expanding shipyard. From the cliff's summit, one could see five ship keels laid out in a row in the yard, with countless workers swarming around them like ants around food, laboring away. In a few months, these five new ships would be launched as the family's newest warships.
At the Oxbow Bay shipyard's dock, another warship was moored — similar in design to Dawn's Flying Fish but even larger. This was the Storm, a newly acquired large three-masted fore-and-aft rigged warship. One hundred twenty-eight handpicked sailors were familiarizing themselves with the vessel's handling. Once Sembawood returned from this voyage, the Storm would be fitted with twenty-four bronze cannons, becoming a true tempest of the seas — an invincible warship...
"Malek," Lorist said, "this time I want to transfer half of the veterans from your Chariot Steel Crossbow Corps to the Single-Wheel Steel Crossbow Corps to accelerate its formation. I intend to deploy the Single-Wheel Steel Crossbow Corps to Hilowas Island."
Malek's expression didn't change. He was silent for a moment before replying, "My lord, may I make a suggestion?"
"Oh, go ahead." Lorist hadn't expected this from the man they called "Iron Face" and was momentarily taken aback.
Malek hesitated briefly before continuing. "Dolles once served as deputy commander of the Chariot Steel Crossbow Corps. As his superior, I know him well. I've sparred with him too. He's talented, but he's been stuck at Silver Three-Star rank for too long — three years without any progress. What he needs is time to train himself properly, so he might have a chance of advancing to the Gold rank within two or three years.
My lord, I understand your purpose in forming the Single-Wheel Steel Crossbow Corps. You won't let those slavers and slave owners of the Haneabada Kingdom off the hook. The day the Single-Wheel Steel Crossbow Corps is fully formed will be the day you march on their kingdom. I hope you'll swap my position with Dolles — let me take command of the Single-Wheel Steel Crossbow Corps and accompany you on the campaign.
My lord, I believe this would serve both purposes. The Chariot Steel Crossbow Corps handles the defense and offensive operations of the Northland territories. These past few years, the Northland has been firmly under the control of our Norton Family and our three allies. The next few years should remain peaceful with no major disturbances. As commander of the Chariot Corps, Dolles would have the time to cultivate his abilities properly and raise his personal strength..."
"Pfft." Lorist couldn't help but laugh. Malek's long-winded explanation ultimately came down to boredom from having no battles to fight in the Chariot Corps. But his reasoning was sound — Dolles really did need time to train and advance to the Gold rank. That way, Lorist could promote him without anyone raising objections about whether he could hold his authority.
"Why do you think I'm going to march on the Haneabada Kingdom?" Lorist asked.
"My lord, we are the roaring bears of the Northland. Our family has never silently endured a slap in the face. From what I know of you, my lord, you're not the type to swallow your anger and let things slide. You will absolutely retaliate — and from the way you executed those captured Haneabada Kingdom sailors, this retaliation will not only be doubled but devastating..." Malek replied.
"That's..." The words sounded awkward. Was he saying Lorist was narrow-minded and vindictive? Lorist frowned and thought about it for a while before deciding to let the matter drop. He knew Malek well enough — the man was simply straightforward, always speaking his mind.
"Actually, Malek, there's another reason I placed you as commander of the Chariot Corps. The family's Gold Knights are only the few of you. Now we've added
"My lord, the Anxin Plain and Red River Plain are garrisoned by Fierce Tiger Ross's two lance cavalry regiments. Behind them lies Bedrock Castle, which has both a front and rear garrison company, Paulbins's First Guard Battalion inside, the First Security Battalion watching the armory, and Terman's knight order as well. No one dares underestimate our family's military anymore.
The Chariot Steel Crossbow Corps has always been kept secret from outsiders — only our three allied families know a little about it. So whether I'm there or not makes no difference. If you swap me with Dolles, it would actually motivate him — making him understand that without advancing to the Gold rank, you won't be able to give him important commands. That way, he'll work even harder at his cultivation..."
Well, Malek had even resorted to reverse psychology to get what he wanted.
Lorist laughed. "All right, Malek, you've convinced me. Once the Hilowas Island matter is resolved, I'll transfer Dolles back and you'll take command of the Single-Wheel Steel Crossbow Corps. But you need to hurry about the veteran transfers from the Chariot Corps, and don't overdo it — we can't let it hurt the Chariot Corps's combat effectiveness."
"Yes, I understand. Thank you, my lord." Malek snapped to attention and saluted.
After descending the cliff, Lorist headed toward the valley in the Blademountain Range where Professor Bob's gunpowder laboratory was located, accompanied by Schwade and a squad of guards. Even from a distance, the rumbling of cannon fire was constant and unrelenting.
Entering the valley, Professor Bob spotted Lorist and rushed over, his face flushed red, shouting at the top of his lungs: "My lord, I can't take it anymore! Either move the cannon-firing range somewhere else, or move my laboratory to a quieter spot!"
This was yet another oversight. The valley where Professor Bob's gunpowder laboratory sat had seemed fine when he was conducting his own experiments. But now that all the cast bronze cannons had been brought here for training gunners, the nonstop booming was unbearable...
"All right, I'll have them relocate right away!" Lorist shouted back just as loudly — otherwise no one could hear a word.
He waved to signal Schwade to go over and order the gunners to cease their practice and quiet things down.
After much effort, the cannon fire finally stopped. The air reeked of gunpowder.
Master Sid came down from the cannon range with Master Julien. Both had scarves wrapped around their faces and ear protectors on.
"My lord, you're here." Master Sid removed his ear protectors as he spoke. "It's too quiet. The silence without the rumbling feels strange."
"You two are both madmen!" Professor Bob grumbled loudly.
"Haha..." Master Sid and Master Julien both laughed.
"My lord, all thirty-six newly cast bronze cannons have completed their test firings and passed inspection. They're now being handed over to the new gunners for training. Master Sid has added aiming devices to the bronze cannons, and the gunners are picking it up quickly — they can already hit five or six shots out of ten." Master Julien reported.
"Oh right, I asked about the recoil gun carriage — have you finished it? These bronze cannons are going to be mounted in shipboard gun batteries, not on land. We need a proper recoil-absorbing mount, not those heavy solid carriages."
Master Sid replied, "My lord, we did finish it, but not with the steel spring recoil design you described. We failed many times trying to produce those steel springs. In the end, Master Farin suggested we borrow the idea from the recoil straps used on large ballistae — using tendons and leather straps to achieve the same effect. We were just testing it, and so far the results look quite good. The cannons don't shift significantly when fired."
"Good. Fit twenty-four of the bronze cannons with the same recoil mounts and ship them to Oxbow Bay to be installed on the Storm. Have the gunners train on board. The other twelve bronze cannons need a new training ground as well — don't disturb Professor Bob here anymore," Lorist said.
"Actually, my lord, there's another issue. The gunners have pointed out that being accurate on land is useless — once at sea, the ship rises and falls with the waves, and they might not hit a single shot out of ten. So the gunners feel that accurate long-range shooting on land won't translate to the ocean. Do you have any solutions?" Master Sid asked.
"Hmm? That's easy to solve." In his previous life, Lorist had watched a film about the Russian Tsarist navy's development, and the scenes showing how naval gunners were trained were still clear in his memory. "Choose a new coastal training site, face the guns toward the sea, and build several large swing frames — each one sized to match a ship's gun battery. Mount the bronze cannons on the frames, then place small boats or wooden models a few hundred meters out on the water — anything that floats will do. Use these as targets when firing. Before each shot, swing the frame to simulate the rolling of the waves. With enough practice, the gunners will develop the feel for it, and they'll be able to hit their marks at sea..."
Over the following ten days or so, Lorist busied himself with training the Storm's gunners and sailors, handled family affairs at the port, and anxiously awaited news from Bodenfeng about the reinforcement of Hilowas Island.
Good news came from the territory as well. Old Balack had been toiling away in the paper workshop for over a month and finally produced clean white sheets of paper. Lorist generously rewarded the personnel who had developed the new paper, then ordered Old Balack to expand the production workshop into a full series of production stages. The waste material from making the white paper could be used to produce rough paper, for instance. He also planned to establish a paper-cutting factory that would use the white paper to manufacture folders of various sizes, notebooks, blank sketchbooks, and other finished products for trade.
In addition to the success in papermaking, Technician Manchini from the glass production facility brought Lorist two new products. The first was a magnifying glass with a gold frame. Its golden handle was engraved with delicate patterns, giving it an air of elegance and luxury — clearly the work of the old silversmith.
The second was a set of exquisite transparent teapot and teacups that Technician Manchini had crafted from oil glass. After rewarding him generously, Lorist offered a suggestion: the transparent teaware looked very refined and understated, which might not appeal to some newly wealthy merchants. But if delicate gold wire patterns were engraved along the rims of the teapots and teacups, the price could be raised considerably and sold for a much higher sum. Technician Manchini left deeply inspired.
Another seven or eight days passed. Just when Lorist was growing desperate with waiting, Dawn's Flying Fish appeared in the distance, speeding toward Oxbow Bay.
...(To be continued.)