I'm not a lord

Chapter 365 The Naval Battle Ends and the Belated Intelligence
Neil's fleet sailed westward against the current, taking advantage of the east wind.

To turn back to River Bend Fort, the sails must be furled first, and then a 180-degree turn must be made on the water.

But this is easier said than done?

Light steering is a major challenge.

Neil's fleet was divided into more than ten rows and advanced in sequence. The first two rows had already begun close combat with Lynn's fleet, while the ships in the back rows continued to advance according to orders.

If a retreat is truly necessary, the order must first be passed to the last row, and the retreat must begin from the last row, with each row following suit.

But where would Nir's fleet find such strong execution capabilities?
Although the core fleet of warships came from Amber Harbor and the command was relatively strict, more than half of the ships were still pieced together from autonomous cities throughout the royal territory.

The worst part is that the most elite Amber Harbor warships are at the forefront as the vanguard, while the less elite warships follow behind as cheerleaders and atmosphere-setters.

Neil didn't even dare to imagine the serious consequences that would ensue once the order to retreat was given.

Imagine if the four or five rows of ragtag warships behind them all hurriedly turned around after receiving the order to retreat, and the entire fleet's formation would immediately fall apart.

And would the commander of the opposing fleet let Neil escape safely? No one would miss the opportunity to kick a man when he's down, and they would definitely take advantage of the situation to launch an even more ferocious attack.

Both fleets were sailing on the same tranquil river channel, and shipbuilding technology had not undergone significant iterations, so their speeds would inevitably be similar under the same conditions.

Without the support of the ships behind them and facing the powerful offensive of the enemy fleet, Neil's elite warships in the first few rows will only be defeated faster, and the defeat and rout will be transmitted to the ships behind them.

Therefore, Neil immediately realized his fatal mistake after giving the order.

"No, no, we can't retreat, at least not now! Order all ships to keep moving forward and break through the enemy fleet!"

When the commander-in-chief leads a rabble, the best approach is to blindfold the soldiers and then continuously issue orders to charge forward.

Once signs of retreat appear, it will lead to an uncontrollable and utter defeat.

In this situation, a full-scale charge might offer a sliver of hope for victory, while a reckless retreat would inevitably lead to a rout and certain certain death.

Neil had led the Amber Harbor militia to hold off Duke Lothair of the Marsh for more than half a year, so he was not lacking in experience and was able to quickly realize and make up for his mistakes.

Upon hearing the order, the first mate, who was below the stern deck, was initially taken aback, but then quickly understood and relayed the latest instructions to the rowers below deck.

The rowers had just received orders to turn, but less than half a minute later, new orders told them to continue heading west.

They were completely bewildered, but they could only obey orders. The flagship, which had already turned slightly, slowly sailed back to the westward channel thanks to the rowers' efforts.

The flagship and the vanguard ships are in relatively good condition, as they are the most elite crew members in Amber Harbor.

However, the last few rows of ships lacked this discipline. They first received the retreat order through flag signals and were also preparing to order their oarsmen to turn around, but the order was quickly changed, and they were ordered to continue forward.

This fluctuating and unpredictable transmission of orders clearly caused considerable confusion among the ships in the later rows.

In addition, the captains on these ships heard the unprecedented cannon fire. Although they could not see the devastation on the vanguard ships, they would wonder if the course of the battle was turning against them.

Why did the retreat order, which had just been communicated, change so quickly?
What exactly happened on the flagship and the vanguard ship?
Should we really continue?
The same hesitation arose in the minds of these captains.

In the era before long-distance communication technology, the difficulty of commanding a large fleet was about the same as commanding tens of thousands of soldiers.

The commander-in-chief's primary task is not to arrange troops and use them like a genius, but to do a good job in united front work within the military.

At the very least, the commander-in-chief must be of one mind with the lower- and middle-ranking officers in order for the commander-in-chief to be able to command such a large army.

Conversely, if some mid- to low-ranking generals develop disloyal intentions, the army is likely to run into trouble on the battlefield.

Neil is now facing this deadly trouble.

The captains in the back rows weren't very familiar with him, and they weren't determined to fight to the death for Neil or Otto.

Just because Neil made a 'small' mistake and transmitted a wrong order, these captains began to doubt the course of the battle.

After receiving orders to continue westward, some captains chose to obey, while others chose to sneak away.

The last three rows of the fleet immediately broke into disagreements and chaos, with dozens of ships twisting into several strands on the surface of the Jinghe River.

"Where are you going? Why are you turning around? Didn't you receive orders to continue?"

"The orders I received were clearly to turn around and retreat from River Bend Fortress. Get out of my way and don't block my path!"

"Are you trying to disobey orders, kid? His Majesty Otto is in River Bend Fortress. If you disobey orders, everyone on the ship will be sent to the guillotine!"

"Don't try to scare me with the king! I'm just following Mayor Neil's orders! If you don't move aside, I'm going to shoot an arrow at you!"

Faced with traffic congestion on the water, the captains exchanged heated words like drivers who had been involved in a rear-end collision, and almost came to blows.

Compared to the chaotic Amber Harbor fleet, Lynn's fleet was remarkably united.

In fact, the fleet that Lynn cobbled together could hardly be called elite, and it would most likely turn into a rabble in the face of a tough battle.

However, the current situation is that Lynn's side is in a position of absolute advantage.

The gunners on the ship's side operated the breech-loading cannons, unleashing a dense hail of bullets to relentlessly slaughter the sailors on the enemy ship's deck.

The gunners at the bow methodically loaded gunpowder into the long-barreled bronze cannons and bombarded the enemy ships in the following rows.

Anyone with eyes can see that these two types of artillery are far too overpowered, leaving the opponent helpless and a resounding victory seemingly within reach.

"Hahaha, die, die! All of you, go to the river and feed the fish!" Captain Hawke even left his post and ran to the ship's side to operate the breech-loading cannon, personally experiencing the thrill of cutting melons and vegetables.

Seeing the blooming blood on the enemy ship and hearing the painful cries of the enemy sailors, Hawke's blood boiled even more!
An aura of 'victory' hovered above Lynn's fleet, and the entire fleet seemed to be injected with adrenaline, its momentum suddenly soaring.

Anyone can fight when things are going well. At this point, there's no need for Leon and Hawke to give orders anymore. The first three rows of ships continue their charge, while the ships in the back rows accelerate and flank from the sides, expanding the battle line to the entire river! These ships from the various autonomous cities of the Swamp Territory have all signed combat contracts with Lynn. In addition to a fixed base salary, they can also earn high commissions based on the sailors and warships they capture.

The more victories one achieves, the higher one's salary.

The captains in the later rows, fearing that friendly forces would steal their credit, stood on the deck and roared at the rowers on the lower decks:
"Faster, faster, faster! Did you all skip breakfast today? Or are you all putting all your energy into women's bellies? Didn't you see the other ship has already overtaken us? Row with all your might! After we win this battle, I'll give each of you three silver shields!"

Motivated by the money, the oarsmen rowed so fast they were practically phantoms, and the speed of the boat suddenly increased, giving the oarsman the momentum of a steamship.

As for the sailors on deck, they were even more imposing. As soon as they spotted an enemy ship, they unleashed a barrage of crossbow bolts as if they didn't care about the cost. Once they were close enough to board the enemy ship, as soon as the cannons on the ship's side finished firing, they brandished all sorts of melee weapons and jumped onto the enemy ship with a roar.

What they saw were not enemy sailors, but groups of moving Northern Golden Shields!
Forty minutes after the two fleets officially clashed, the battle had already turned overwhelmingly in Lynn's favor.

Mayor Neil's most relied-upon vanguard ships were mostly severely damaged, with two even being completely captured by Lynn's sailors. The middle rows of warships also suffered varying degrees of damage, especially the sailors responsible for boarding operations, who suffered heavy losses under the strafing of the Franco cannons.

The following ships were thrown into chaos; some fled the battlefield, while others were rammed and capsized by friendly vessels.
As for Neil himself, his flagship was already surrounded by several ships, and a large river fortress even rammed directly into his port side, the iron-plated ramming head creating a large hole in his flagship.

Neil, fearing being hit by cannon fire, had already retreated into the stern tower.

Although he couldn't see the devastation his own fleet had suffered, just hearing the incessant booming of cannons and seeing enemy sailors leaping onto the flagship's deck, he knew that his side had no chance of winning.

If even the flagship is about to be sunk, how much better can the other ships be?

He was likely defeated in this naval battle.

"Captain, we..."

The first mate and several core crew members stood beside Neil, all of them having drawn their scimitars or longswords, ready to fight to the death.

According to the traditions of the continent of Dievas, the commander of the defeated side usually bears the main responsibility.

Even if Neil manages to escape and return to Amber Harbor, he will still face certain death and be sent to the guillotine.

The Amber Harbor City Council entrusted him with the city's best ships and sailors, but the ships were almost all lost. As the commander, he could not escape blame and could only atone with his death.

The first mate and crew members would naturally be implicated as well. They might be spared the death penalty, but they would inevitably face confiscation of a large sum of money and huge fines, which would be no different from death for them.

In municipalities, especially large ones like Amber Harbor, people are judged solely on their wealth or ability to create it. Losing wealth and being burdened with debt is worse than death; dying on the battlefield like a warrior might even earn you a good reputation.

"This defeat is not our fault; it's just that the enemy is too strong."

Faced with the final outcome, Neil showed no fear or panic.

As he said, the failure was not his or the flagship crew's fault; it was simply because Lynn was too shameless.

First, they created the bronze mortar, and then they secretly developed a strange cannon that could fire hundreds of iron bullets at the same time.

You're already in this state, so I'll let you win, okay?

However, Neil believes that the person most responsible for this defeat is not Lynn, but Arno, whose intelligence work has been a complete failure.

You should know that Lynn's shipyard is in Three Rivers City, which is also considered Arno's hometown.

The barrels of the new artillery were already inside Senier's mouth, yet Arno hadn't managed to gather any intelligence about them.

If given the chance, Neil would love to stab Arno a few times right now to vent his anger.

But he no longer has that chance.

The shouts of battle from the deck grew closer and closer to the sterncastle. The Amber Harbor sailors, already battered by the hail of iron bullets, were utterly unable to withstand the ferocious onslaught of the opposing sailors.

"Gentlemen, please follow me."

Neil had just drawn his longsword, ready to fight to the death, when a heavy cast iron shell pierced the wooden wall behind him, the powerful impact instantly sweeping across the entire sterncastle.

He was sent flying out of the building and lost consciousness in mid-air.

While the fierce battle raged on the Tranquil River, several fast horses sailed into River Bend Castle and brought Arno the latest intelligence from Three Rivers City.

"You mean Lynn equipped the armed merchant ships with a new type of cannon that can fire hundreds of small shells at once? Why did it take you so long to bring back such important intelligence?" Arno stared at the spies in front of him, his face full of astonishment and panic.

The most important aspect of intelligence is its timeliness.

Mayor Neil's fleet has already encountered Lynn's fleet, and the two sides are probably close to deciding the outcome.

However, the crucial intelligence on the new artillery only reached Arno now, and with the end of the naval battle, this intelligence was no different from a piece of waste paper.

"The shipyard in Sanhe City has been closed since last winter, and the craftsmen involved in the ship modification were not allowed to go home until March of this year. We couldn't get this information before then!"

The spies also had something to say: were they not trying hard enough or not wanting to gather intelligence? Lynn was just too cunning!
The craftsmen had just been released from the shipyard when Lynn's fleet began its eastward expedition.

These spies couldn't use Lynn's relay system and had to constantly evade the pursuit of local officials and soldiers. They rushed as fast as they could, and only then did they arrive at River Bend Castle at the same time as Lynn's navy.

"If only it had been a day earlier! It's too late, far too late!" Arno slumped down, pounding the armrest of his chair and sighing repeatedly.

If this intelligence had reached him a day earlier, Mayor Neil wouldn't have led the fleet to engage Lynn in a decisive battle.

Currently, Lynn's fleet, relying on this special new type of cannon, is likely to gain the initiative in the naval battle and even severely damage Neil's fleet.

In this way, Lynn could completely control the Tranquil River waterway and use his navy to besiege River Bend on the island in the middle of the river.

At this thought, Arno suddenly realized that River Bend Fort was no longer safe!

(End of this chapter)