I, who was eager to retire, became an Imperial General.

Chapter 177 I will surely shoulder the glory and embark on my journey home!
"..."

Upon learning the number of Allied warships that would be sent as reinforcements, even Bob was terrified and fell into a long silence.

This intelligence would undoubtedly be fatal for the Third Navy.

After all, no matter how much he believed in the strength of his own fleet, with a troop disparity of nearly eight times, he found it hard to imagine what tactics his side would need to use to turn the tide in such a desperate situation.

Moreover, John had just told him that it was still unclear where the enemy reinforcements had arrived.

If we rashly choose to launch a strong attack on the known Crescent Fleet in order to seize control of the Aiken Sea, we could easily be surrounded by the enemy and completely annihilated without knowing the enemy's naval reinforcements.

The Crescent Strait is currently under the control of the Darkmoon Clan, and landing is extremely difficult due to the firepower of the coastal defense artillery deployed by the enemy along the Crescent Strait.

The reason he had John buy him 15 days was precisely because of the coastal defense artillery.

But now, under the pressure of 241 warships, Bob felt that instead of thinking about how to win this naval battle, he should consider how to lead his troops to a safe evacuation from Faoken.

The key issue is that if the withdrawal is indeed undertaken to preserve strength, then without a doubt, the responsibility for the subsequent loss of the Faoken front will fall on the Third Navy.

As the fleet commander, he naturally could not escape the outcome of a military court-martial.

It would also give the conservatives an excuse to make things difficult for Marshal Ostan.

Therefore, even knowing that this would be an extremely difficult battle, he had to lead his troops to continue fighting.

I have to say, this is truly the worst news imaginable!
Bob sighed inwardly, but outwardly remained unchanged. He gave John, whose expression was perfectly normal, a deep look, and then asked softly:
"I understand, John. What are your plans next?"

"It's very simple. I need the Third Navy to contain the Crescent Fleet in the Aiken Sea while ensuring its own combat strength, and to drag the enemy away from the coast as much as possible, so as to help us avoid being attacked by the enemy fleet in the subsequent seizure of control of the Crescent Strait."

Meeting Bob's scrutinizing gaze, John casually took a map of the Faoken Sea from Wendy beside him, then pointed to a location called the 'Bohemian Islands' 300 kilometers away from the Crescent Strait, and then said in a deep voice:

"Marshal Bob, although I don't have much experience in naval warfare, in my opinion, what naval warfare requires, in addition to accurate gunners and strong mobility, is the utilization of the sea terrain."

"Before arriving at Faoken, I used some channels to find intelligence about the waters near Faoken. This island group, located in the eastern part of the Aiken Sea, consists of thirty-six huge islands, with a distance of at least five kilometers between them, and the coast is full of reefs and whirlpools. In my opinion, it can serve as a natural barrier and aid for our navy in the event of a battle."

"Relying on the distance between the islands and the visibility obstruction provided by the mountains, even if the enemy fleet has arrived in the Faoken waters and attempted to besiege us, our forces can easily shake off the enemy's pursuit thanks to the Bohemian Islands, and even set up ambush zones to launch surprise attacks from the flanks."

"Furthermore, relying on the terrain, through tactics of infiltration and flanking maneuvers, we can continuously deplete the enemy's manpower and thus narrow the gap in combat strength between our side and the enemy."

"!"

However, upon hearing this tactical arrangement, Bob remained outwardly calm, but inwardly he was in turmoil, unable to calm down for a long time.

Because John's thoughts were exactly the same as his!

Furthermore, this differed from the rough battle plan he hastily devised after learning the number of enemy troops.

The opponent, who had never studied any naval knowledge, actually came up with a perfect solution that was most suitable for the current situation of the Third Navy.

Furthermore, he revealed the specific conditions of the sea area that the ship was completely unaware of beforehand, which greatly reduced the risk of the ship running aground and sinking due to whirlpools caused by undercurrents, thus saving unnecessary losses.

Bob had never seen such a talent, which seemed to be able to foresee the future and be proficient in everything, throughout the more than a thousand years since the founding of the Norman Empire.

It can only be said that he is indeed worthy of the almost biased appreciation of Dormammu, who is known for his strictness, when he first entered the battlefield, and he has made many desperate counterattacks on his own.
John Maslow, it seems I really underestimated you!
Bob silently marveled.

However, what he didn't know was that John's proposed plan for flanking and infiltration naval warfare using islands as cover coincided with his own ideas.

The reason is that this tactical arrangement was originally his own idea.

In the game's storyline, after the Second Legion's control of the Golden Lion Territory began to fall due to the defeat of the ground forces, Bob, realizing that his allies could not be relied upon, led the Third Navy in a strong attack on Crescent Strait.

They planned to use their firepower to forcibly seize the Crescent Strait and then gain control of the Cocobia rainforest.

However, with the support of the Allied fleet, he was forcibly repelled and his retreat was blocked. Helpless, he could only retreat to the Bohemian Islands, relying on his remaining warships. Under his brilliant tactical command, he managed to overcome the almost hopeless disparity in strength.

With only 24 damaged warships, they achieved a terrifying record of sinking nearly 100 enemy warships.

Ultimately, due to running out of ammunition and being unable to receive resupply, they were forced to perish here under the encirclement of enemy warships.

This event left behind the famous 'Battle of Bohemia' in naval history, widely regarded by countless naval officers in the game as a classic example of a desperate counterattack in naval warfare.

Even the official storyline, through the perspective of an Allied admiral, refers to this battle as 'the last glorious battle of the Imperial Navy'.

Bob himself was even given a special defeat CG by the official organization as a loser.

In that scene, Bob himself, covered in blood, stared ahead in the burning, dilapidated command room of a warship, at the enemy warships surging towards him like a tsunami, before finally shouting, "For the glory of the Empire!"

He then resolutely ordered his soldiers to pilot the dilapidated HMS Horst, charging fearlessly into the enemy's final battle amidst the burning flames.

Even now, the sense of pathos and epic grandeur remains vivid in John's memory.

The reason he revealed the tactics Bob had used in the game to his opponent in advance was not to compete for credit, but to help Bob save more time so that his opponent could come up with a more complete tactic, thereby reducing his own losses.

After all, due to the butterfly effect, the Battle of Fauken, which should have lasted for four months, has now entered the mid-stage ahead of schedule.

It may have even reached the middle or late stages.

Furthermore, John is currently unable to determine the exact location of the Allied naval fleet.

If enemy warships are about to arrive in Faoken, or have already arrived, then rather than having Bob devise a plan on the fly in the face of a sudden change, he might as well just act as a copyist and inform the enemy of their tactics in advance.

Although it was indeed somewhat shameless, he was in a hurry and had no time to spare, so he couldn't care less about moral condemnation.

After silently apologizing to Bob in his heart, John pointed to Ian, whose face was solemn, and then said in a deep voice:

"Furthermore, Marshal Bob, in my opinion, although our army is indeed far fewer in number of warships than the enemy, this gap in combat power can be made up for through Lieutenant Ian's magic."

"You already know the specific effects of the Mermaid Song spell from the last support battle on the Starry Coast, but as far as I know, that is not Lieutenant Ian's limit."

"The 'Call' effect of the Mermaid Song, besides being applicable to docile demonic whales to provide power for our forces, can also summon the overlords of the deep sea to assist our forces in naval offensive and defensive operations." "Although Lieutenant Ian's magical power has a fatal flaw and weakness in this plan—his current mid-level mage magical power and control abilities are insufficient to summon the strongest Leviathan behemoth—summoning an adult Kraken should still be no problem under the effect of the magic amplifier."

"As far as I know, an adult Kraken is no less than two thousand meters long, and has as many as eight hundred tentacles, each more than two meters wide, capable of easily piercing the deck of any current warship, as well as tentacles that can spew venom that can instantly kill mages below the mid-level."

"In addition, given that Clark possesses super-level magical power and regenerative abilities after reaching adulthood, even a single one would be comparable to a hundred battleships."

"However, compared to the docile demon whale, the Kraken's will is more tyrannical and more difficult to control. Therefore, based on my previous contact with Lieutenant Ian and the specific data obtained through the Demon Eye and analytical formulas, I believe that..."

"Even with the highest-spec magic amplification device, Lieutenant Ian can only control the Kraken to fight according to his commands for about an hour at most."

"At that time, he himself will fall into a coma uncontrollably, and Kraken will also be freed from the charm effect of the Mermaid Song spell, turning from a friendly unit into a neutral unit, or even a hostile unit."

"Therefore, you can decide when to use Lieutenant Ian, our trump card, as you see fit. And I think that if the timing is right, Lieutenant Ian's talent will surely not disappoint you!"

After smiling and nodding at Ian, whose face was full of astonishment, John then looked back at Bob, who was staring at him silently for some reason, his eyes filled with complex emotions.

Now, he has informed Bob of everything he can think of, and whether the Third Navy's subsequent course of action will be as he expects, able to withstand the enemy's endless fleet siege, or even launch a counterattack.

John was unaware of this either.

But he knew he had done his best, and the only thing he could do now was to trust.

Trust that Ian's spells will not disappoint him, trust that Bob's judgment will match the opponent's performance in the game, and trust that the members of the Third Navy will maintain their unwavering fighting spirit when facing powerful enemies.

If the result is not satisfactory, then he can only accept it.

After all, the pressure he faces as he prepares to face Roxie is no less than that on Bob.

Even more.

So many that even he, who was always so confident that he could almost be called arrogant, couldn't help but start to worry about defeat.

This caused his heart to experience phantom pain uncontrollably due to the immense mental pressure.

And he should indeed do so.

Because every decision he made directly affected the lives of 20,000 soldiers.

It's about whether he can keep going in this damn world.

It concerns whether he can act as a victor, as an ordinary citizen, or as a leader attempting to overturn this absurd era.

In the faith of the soldiers and civilians who supported him, in the silent cries of the many who still suffered oppression, yearning for light and salvation, and hoping day and night for a helping hand.

He is all alone, yet he possesses a power far greater than that of the world's most populous family.

He stepped into that place, which was filled with ambitious people, rebels, royalists, and many others who harbored ill will towards him and wished to kill him.

They may have goodwill towards him, but ultimately they will part ways or even become enemies due to his future actions.

Or they scoffed at him, never taking him seriously, seeing him as someone destined to be crushed into dust and disappear from the world in the torrent of power.

That capital city called 'Eleno', which houses so many figures and bears the endless glory and honor of the empire, as well as the bloodshed behind it.

And so began his journey upon arriving in this damned world, experiencing shameful survival and the disgraceful thought of defection, ultimately witnessing true cruelty.

What one truly desires to achieve from the bottom of one's heart is destined to be fraught with difficulties and obstacles, and will inevitably lead to conflict with the entire era.

To embark on this path, to make all that seems impossible a reality.

In order to let that light of humanity shine again in this world.

With an irresistible force, it crushed all the demons and monsters that stood in its way, until it covered the entire empire, and even the whole world.

There is one thing I must do.

And the name of that event was:
victory!

Never defeated, never stopped winning!

This goal is destined to be unattainable for a human being.

But for myself, for the player who has already glimpsed the past and the future.

However, when you are in control of the game, at the moment the game ends, the subtitles clearly displayed in your eyes, called 'The End,' already explain everything.

therefore……

"I will carry glory on my way home, and fall amidst the cries of countless people, whether they are weeping or reveling."

"Hymns and curses will fly in the obituary until angels or demons imprison my soul."

"To reach the endless burning purgatory, or a paradise filled with laughter!"

At the dock, watching the Third Navy's warships disappear into the night amidst the wailing of their horns, John murmured to himself.

Feeling the moist sea breeze blowing on his face, he raised his hand to adjust his military cap.

He then resolutely turned and walked towards the endless darkness behind him.

He knew that his own war and future were about to begin.

"despair!"

……

(End of this chapter)