239 Portrait of the Battle 6

Credits to: Philip

{It seems that they have entered the position to flank the opponent.} Pilot

The pilot’s voice was heard via the [In-flight communications system] (ICS) devicewith my headset.

This time,the crew included a Tactical Coordinator (TACCO)that seemed to be the senior officer, and he’s also the captain. I wonder if he got assigned to this Crew formation because it is important to make a battlefield analysis for this mission.

No, this patrol aircraft doesn’t fly directly into the fight, it will just circle as instructed, so I don’t think having one has much to do with it.

[Roger that. Continue monitoring while maintaining the current altitude!] Mitsuha

And so, the job of this aircraft today is to stay in the air at an altitude where the engine sound does not reach the ships below and even if it is visually identified, it’ll be recognized as a bird or something.

Well, I don’t think there is anyone who can leisurely take a look at the sky during the battle or listen to the faint engine noise during the artillery battle, so I think it’s okay to lower the altitude a little. But I didn’t do that. There is no need since it is better to keep staying at a high altitude, allowing us to see a wider area.

I don’t know anything about politics, strategy, or tactics.

All I know is that both fleets intended to fight from the very beginning.

The country that had this patrol aircraft issued said, [Our allies have been struck by war. So, if they are about to lose, our country will show them with a little force].

……As you can see, even though I’m transferring to another world with the mysterious power that is supposed to be , what’s happening now?

That’s why it seems that the people on board this plane, both the crew and the scholars, want to see the .

Even on modern earth, many people seriously believe in the existence of God. ……Or at least enough to kill other human beings in the name of God.

……But unfortunately, even if our fleet were to come in to play, we would not see whatever the crew of this aircraft would expect.

Our mechanical god (Deus ex machina) is a little unsophisticated.

It seems that the battle started after a considerable amount of time had passed.

No, it took a long time to get into the position to fire at each other, not all ships are in a position where they can fire, and the lines of ships or battle lines are quite different…

Somehow, it feels like they are running around in a mess, divided into several lines of battleships.

Is it a matter of skill, or is it something else entirely…?

Well, a sailing ship, is different from a powered ship, right? Are they having difficulties to form a long battle line?

Or are they not adopting the tactic of bombarding the ship of the line with a single line of battleships?

Certainly, the maximum strength of a 64-gun ship may be a little insufficient for a ship of the line. Isn’t it still the era of ?

Well, isn’t the ships and naval tactics of this world progressed the same as the Earth? As far as the information I gathered when I talked to the uncles of the Navy, it felt like it was pretty similar.

U ~ mu……

It seems that the wind is quite strong today.

No, the sea breeze, not here at the altitude where this patrol aircraft is flying.

So each ship has folded some of its sails so that it will not be swayed by the wind too much.

Alright, that strategy seems to be usable for .

Yeah, of course, I’ve been studying properly. I’m using the !

I’ve read a book about the fleet battles of the Earth’s sailing era. [I stood from sudden downwind on a calm sea, but I wasn’t aware of it! ].

(TN:『風下かざしもに立ったが、うぬの不覚よ！』)

……Are you a Ninja?!

No, every naval officer of this era knows that much, but I have a special move.

While thinking of such things, both sides started to suffer damage!

Well, they can’t aim well, so they’re shooting at a close distance of about 200 to 300 meters, so that’s about right. It’s not the same as the high-angular fire that shoots shells with a parabolic trajectory from a long distance such as several thousand meters up to 20,000 or 30,000 meters.

……However, the ship doesn’t sink easily even if it got hit because the explosive charge contained in the shell did not explode. Since it is made of wood, it seems that even if the upper part is destroyed to some extent, it will not sink with just that much.

It seems that the main things to destroy were the Mast and the Rigging, kill the crew with scattered pieces of wood and take away the maneuvering ability, or transfer the slashing corps to the enemy ship. But, in such a turbulent battle your ship will come into contact with the enemy ship. When that happens, you can’t afford to hang out for too long. It’s not a one-on-one battle…

There’s no flashy explosion or flames spewing out or black smoke, so I can’t get anything from this plane at high altitude, but maybe there are already a lot of casualties. And with that being said…

The people I met at the royal capital party, the people who told me interesting stories at the bar in the port city, and the soldiers.

No matter which part of the ship they are on. Whether he’s a great man on the deck or a sailor at the bottom.

[Death] comes equally regardless.

The patrol plane crew are Navy soldiers, even though they’re the flight crew.

And they should be more interested in naval officers, ships, and artillery battles than ordinary people.

That’s why everyone is looking down through the airplane window while doing their job. From this altitude, you won’t be able to see in much detail though…

Ah, many of the lookout windows bulge outwards, commonly known as [Telescope with eyes], an overhanging type of window. Therefore, you can see directly below. ……Although, it’s too far away to see well.

(TN: 『出目金でめきん』suggestions?)

It’s already been a long time since the artillery battle began.

The number of remaining ships are around 30 on each side.

Well, when it comes to the great naval battle that could strike the fate of the country, it may be total war with as many ships as possible, even reaching three digit numbers each, but this time it’s just a skirmish, and the number of remaining ships were shockingly quite big.

But that seems to be the case because I know about the big battles on Earth, and a clash between two groups of 30 ships with about 60 artillery pieces each at this level of civilization would be considerable…

…Especially for those who put themselves on the battlefield.

{It seems that the allies are inferior. Of the squadrons divided into five rows, three seem to have taken considerable damage.} Ordnanceman

The onboard Ordnanceman, who was checking the details with binoculars, told me so.

The Vanell Kingdom side, which is supposed to be an ally of my country, has five battle lines with six ships each. They’re quite distorted. However, for the time being, it’s still a battle line. Five of them are acting separately. Under the command of each squadron commander so that they can occupy a more advantageous position.

On the other hand, the enemy, the Noral Kingdom side, forms eight battle lines of four ships each. A total of 32 ships, two more than the Vanell Kingdom fleet.

It is not possible to communicate in detail via radio, and maneuvering is not the same as a power ship, so I wonder if that number of ships is the limit for unified action. There seems to be a limit to the distance at which the flag signal raised by the squadron flagship can be seen.

However, not all of the ships are the strongest battleships, and there are various types, from the latest 64-gun ships to the slightly older 40-gun ships. They form a battle line for ships of the same class.

……Well, if you do not align with each ship’s performance, there is no reason to take Fleet action.

Speed, turning radius, offensive power, defensive power, and much more. Only ships with the same performance can take the same actions.

So, well, the number of ships doesn’t determine their superiority or inferiority…

{Our allies made a mistake…} Ordnanceman

Yeah, as the on-board Ordnanceman said, the Vanell Kingdom’s fleet was making a big mistake.

Normally, the windward side was advantageous for fleet battles between sailing ships.

It’s easy to think so, but it’s just that . But then, a huge deathtrap awaits them.

……The wind is too strong today.

When the wind is too strong, the sailing ship that receives the wind from the sails tilts greatly to the leeward side. And as a result…

If it tilts towards the leeward side, the lowermost gun deck would be washed out by the waves, and the gun gate cannot be opened. In other words, the number of guns that can be used would drastically be reduced.

Furthermore, since the guns that can be used would also be facing downward, the maximum elevation angle would not be enough.

Therefore, the Vanell Kingdom fleet, which beliefs in engagement from the windward side as , has greatly reduced its attack power. Moreover…

[Seems like the enemy wanted to reduce their number of ships per squadron to four so they can easily move around, are they aiming for the rear ships of the Vanell fleet?] Mitsuha

Yes, even in a rear-end artillery battle, the front ship cannot support the rear ship because the guns are only up to the side of the ship and the area for the adjustments of the gun is too narrow.

To support them, they must turn back.

However, turning back in such a situation was too reckless and risky. Although the number of individual ships was small, eight enemy squadrons cannot miss such a chance.

{It’s been decided…} Ordnanceman

It was affirmed by the on-board weapons officer (ORDNANCE) using a large camera, rather than binoculars.

The camera pod at the belly of the aircraft was also taking some shots, but apparently it wasn’t enough.

And so, I…….

[I’m heading out! Our fleet has begun to intervene!] Mitsuha

The case of intervention has been explained in advance. So, this plane will be waiting in the sky as it is.

Alright, transfer!

Appearing in a room I rented at the home base of Wolf fang on Earth. I grabbed a shoulder-mounted megaphone…

Transfer!

{Sortie! All crew members, to Battlestations!!!} Mitsuha

I transferred to the crow’s nest of the ship in the center of the squadron and shouted through the megaphone.

First, I went into the sky to check the position of the ship, then I moved to the crow’s nest.

Since the distance between the ships was close, my voice via the megaphone will reach the other ships in front and behind. Just in case, I raised the flag signal, but…

[[[[[[U ōo ōo ~~!!]]]]]]

Oh my, it seems that the flag signal was not necessary judging from the roaring screams from all the ships. Oh well, I will still raise it according to the procedure.

The three former captured ships sailing in a single line of battle off the coast of Count Bozes.

Now it has become the ships of our country and new names have been given, but only for today’s action we will return to their old nation and their old ship’s name.

They’re being called by their old names… urusai wa!

(TN:　昔の名前で出ています……、って、うるさいわ！A pun maybe?)

{All ships, both sides, ready for artillery fire! Target, enemies, Noral Kingdom Fleet!

Full speed on both sides… Vanell Kingdom Expedition Fleet, move out!!!} Mitsuha

No, it doesn’t have a propeller and we’re already sailing at high speed, but this is the momentum!

Alright, transfer!!!