Dark clouds piled up in the sky, half of a crescent moon emerged from the clouds, and the sea surface was a deep black color.
While the sailors were bent over the deck, Chief Confranc stood on the bow deck of the Nemesis, wearing a heavy gray coat and letting his hair hang over his shoulders. The torch in the direction of the pier was no longer visible, and the "Nemesis" sailed out of the monitoring range of the port observation tower, and arrived at the vast sea area.
Patriarch Confranc took a deep breath, and then ordered people to light up the headlights on the bow.
The "Nemesis" is a command ship. The headlights on the bow are used to guide the course of the ship in the middle of the night, and are used to issue some combat orders in naval battles. But at this time, Patriarch Confranc and General John of the Rose Strait Navy only quietly drove the "Nemesis" out of the port alone, and the role of the bow lights is naturally not the former two.
"Damn weather."
The cold and humid air from the sea was poured into his lungs, and the patriarch Kongfraun couldn't help but sneezed. He cursed and looked towards the direction of Qiandao Bay.
As one of the most important armed forces of the empire, the navy of Rose Strait is not so closely connected with the royal family.
Before the sea battle between Yager and Roland, the Roland Royal Fleet was severely damaged, and the remaining navy was mostly composed of armed merchant ships from the Port Alliance family and the Chamber of Commerce. Naturally, the degree of loyalty and direct affiliation was far lower than the original navy. Because of this, in the later period of Edmund IV's reign, Ornan Port in Rose Strait was ordered to secretly build an imperial fleet.
It is a pity that Edmund IV himself did not have time to see this navy appear on the ocean.
According to the general situation, after the death of Edmund IV, the Naval Council should truthfully report the existence of this fleet to the new ruler of the empire. However, Edmund IV himself did not leave a bloodline. At that time, King John VI of the Kingdom of Jager bribed the Pope and tried to claim the Roland throne through his marriage with Princess Anne. There were also endless disputes among the several grand dukes in the country... In time, no one can be sure who the crown will fall on.
In order to ensure the safety of the empire, the committee asked the navy not to participate in the battle for succession to the throne. The navy is independent from this chaos and guards the most important throat of the empire. Therefore, after a secret vote at that time, the Naval Council had always decided to temporarily conceal the fleet.
The reason is well found, but who doesn't know what's going on
It’s not that these guys from the Port Navy Committee can’t decide who is the winner in the end, and no one has the ability to influence the entire navy to support a certain competitor. Knowing that anyone’s choice will be interfered by other families, they simply decide Such a secret agreement of mutual checks and balances was formed. In private, the Martin family, the Confranc family... are not all doing their best to support a certain heir to the throne.
The grand duke supported by the Martin family was assassinated to death in the process of competing for the throne—it is said that he was poisoned to death. Patriarch Confranc felt that it was inseparable from the Heinrich family in all likelihood. However, King John VI of Jager, whom the Confranc family took refuge in private, was opposed by the general public in Roland...
The one who ascended the throne in the end was Princess Adele, whom no one was optimistic about at the beginning.
The Martin family was already on the decline. Once the grand duke they supported died, this family, which could be called ancient glory, was quickly pushed out of the Navy Council. Patriarch Martin, who participated in the secret vote, was knocked out of the head in an "accident" in a tavern. King Jager, supported by the Confranc family, did not give up on the erosion of Rose Strait, and the situation of the Confranc family was not greatly affected. Even through the support of the Heinrich family in order to support the coronation of Princess Adele, the power from The port was transferred away, and the United Navy took the opportunity to gain control of the secret fleet.
"Is it almost there?"
General John also boarded the deck at this time. He took an adjutant and walked to the side of Chief Confranc, looking at the sea in the distance.
"Soon."
Patriarch Confranc nodded his head when he saw the mist gradually seeping the cold light on the surface of the sea.
Admiral John was the representative of the opposition to the Queen's Government in the navy won by Patriarch Confranc. In the plan of Patriarch Confranc, one-third of the navy will join the conspiracy, and one-third of the navy plus the secret fleet will cooperate with Sir Avaro's actions to capture the Strait of Roses. The odds of success are high.
If this operation is successful, the Confranc family will receive the economic support of the Free Commercial City and the subsequent military support of the Yager Kingdom. John VI also promised to make the illegitimate daughter of the Confranc family his legitimate queen, and Miss Confranc and his son Bagley would become his crown princes.
Once Queen Adele dies and John VI successfully seizes the Roland throne, Bagley will become the future Roland monarch.
Even without the threat of Sir Avaro, with such huge power and interests in front, the Confranc family can only regretfully let the young queen go to hell.
"Then let me know."
General John said bluntly, not in a good tone.
However, the Navy and the Navy Council have never dealt with it very much, and the patriarch Confranc didn't care.
The Navy and the Navy Commission sound alike and are easily mistaken for the same institution. In fact, the relationship between the two is very delicate. The Naval Council was the period of the "Double Kings". The queen believed that the discipline of the navy was broken and corrupt for a long time. It was suggested that Edmund III should set up an institution to supervise the navy. Inside the navy, they have their own system.
If the patriarch of Confranc was the navy, there would be an extra organization pressing on his head out of thin air, so it would be strange if he didn't feel angry.
—Thanks to the hostility towards Adele's mother and Adele within the navy, the Confranc family was able to successfully win over the navy to conceal the secret fleet.
Patriarch Kongfranc stepped forward and personally started signaling in the direction of Qiandao Bay with the bow lights.
The secret fleet is hidden in the Thousand Islands Bay. When merchant ships full of gold and silver pass by, they will disguise themselves as pirate ships and sail out of the Thousand Islands Bay to operate, or at certain times to attack the common enemy of the Confranc family and the navy. For the rest of the time, this fleet hides quietly in the intricate island group of Qiandao Bay under the cover of natural fog. When the Rose Strait wants to dispatch this fleet, it will send a command ship to come at night , to send the agreed signal.
Once the signal of the incoming ship is wrong, or there is no signal at all, it will be attacked immediately when it enters the waters where the fleet is located.
In order to contain each other between the Confranc family and the navy, the specific signal is controlled by the patriarch Confranc, and the command ship must be the "Nemesis" belonging to the navy. Every time they want to mobilize the secret fleet, representatives of both sides must be present.
At this time, the command ship "Nemesis" has gradually approached a secret anchorage named "Red Rose Point" in the south of Qiandao Bay. In the hazy fog, some vague ships can be vaguely seen in the shadow of the reef. Sail silhouette. After the three signals were sent out, a little navigation light lit up in the mist, and a signal was also sent out.
"alright."
Patriarch Confranc stepped back from the bow and was about to turn his head to talk to General John when his chest suddenly felt cold, and the cold and sharp pain made him lower his head subconsciously.
A blade protruded from his chest.
"Thank you, Mr. Confranc."
At some point, the "deputy" brought by General John stepped forward silently, and after Patriarch Confranc gave the signal, he sent a Mashto knife into his heart.
Patriarch Confranc's eyes widened. Before he could figure out what happened, the "adjutant" drew out the knife neatly.
He fell back heavily on the deck in horror and unfulfilled rage, splashing warm blood.
The young "adjutant" retracted the Mashto knife, raised his hand and straightened his military cap. The light on the bow illuminated the androgynously handsome face of the "Adjutant", with a little red hair leaking from the gap in the hat.
The "adjutant" looked at the pale-faced General John, and said politely: "Next, I hope we can continue to cooperate happily."
While she was speaking, the busy sailors on the deck finally straightened up and breathed a sigh of relief. If the thoughtful patriarch Confranc could pay attention to these little people he looked down upon, he would find that they were not naval soldiers, but pirate members of the Iron Cross.
General John nodded stiffly.
A few days ago, General John had just secretly met with Patriarch Confranc, and the two sides reached an agreement. General John led one-third of the naval fleet to cooperate with the patriarch Confranc's rebellion. After the incident was successful, General John would become the governor of Rose Strait, controlling the richest throat of the two seas.
Just after General John signed the secret contract and sent Patriarch Confranc away, as soon as he turned around and returned to the room, a knife was gently placed on his neck in the dark.
In that moment, General John had absolutely cursed Patriarch Confranc and himself with all the most vicious words he knew.
- Patriarch Confranc, this idiot, was able to be followed to him.
—how stupid was he to conspire with a fool who was being followed into his house
When the candle was lit, General John recognized the uninvited guest in the middle of the night, the head of the Iron Cross Pirates, the new member of the Abigail Naval Council who the navy didn't take seriously at all. She brought two things: one was the multi-bladed mashto knife, and the other was a message from the Queen.
The Queen gave Admiral John the choice of having his throat slit by a Mashto knife or continuing to hold his current position as admiral.
"... I am willing to leave your past mistakes behind, as long as you deliver with the same sincerity."
Thinking of Heinrich, Dalton, Rodri and those members of the Old God sect who defected after the mutiny, the queen did not pursue their crimes anymore, but those traitors in Port Zarago who colluded with foreign countries were thrown on the guillotine ... Hesitating again and again, General John made his choice.
Abigail smiled and threw the body of Chief Confranc into the cabin. The pirates next to him immediately came up and wiped the blood off the deck.
At the anchorage at Hongmeijiao in Qiandao Bay, after receiving the message and confirming that the signal was correct, the long-awaited fleet lifted anchor and set sail, and warships sailed slowly out of the white mist.
Seeing the warships coming after them, General John roughly estimated the number of artillery on it in his mind, and imagined what would happen if the fleet discovered that the soldiers on the command ship were all replaced by pirates, and couldn't help breaking out in a cold sweat . Abigail on the side calmly pretended to be his adjutant, and followed behind him every step of the way.
General John calmed down and began to issue orders proficiently. The command ship turned around and headed back, and the fleet broke through the waves towards Rose Strait.
On the sea, the wind and waves gradually picked up.
……………
At the banquet, thousands of candles lit up the hall brightly. After dancing with the Negotiator of the Free Commercial City, Avery Consul, the Queen politely declined the invitations of others and withdrew from the dance floor.
After the dance, the dinner officially began, and the queen and her cronies sat behind the long horizontal table at the front of the hall. On the wall behind the queen is the scene of the Virgin Mary strolling in the rose garden of God, and the angels and saints spread the white tablecloth in the garden, implying that the current Roland Empire regards the queen as the incarnation of the Holy Spirit.
The Consul of Avery and his entourage sat on the long table on the left under the horizontal table. He noticed that the cloth on the table was not starched linen but another kind of cloth that was more delicate and white. These cloths are all the more holy in the light of the candles on the table. The Consul of Yavelli frowned imperceptibly.
The queen raised her glass, and with a smile, she delivered a speech to everyone. She first thanked God for his blessing to Roland, and then thanked all those present who contributed to the prosperity and tranquility of the Rose Strait—some of them looked a little bit uneasy.
The Queen's words were elegant and her voice was clear and gentle: "Please drink to your heart's content!"
After she finished speaking, she toasted to everyone, and the people toasted, and the butler played the clarinet that symbolized the beginning of the feast.
The Consul of Avelli touched the wine glass to his lips symbolically, and did not drink even a sip of the fine wine inside. After putting down the wine glass, he counted silently in his heart.
Before the sound of the clarinet fell, the sound of the cannon that shook the eardrums rang out.