"And just call me Boris, that's fine."

Recommended by Vice Admiral Gustav to board the ship, it's been only ten days since setting out to sea.

This disheveled, middle-aged officer with a melancholy gaze has already made all the officers on board, including Captain Aiven, genuinely admire him due to his extraordinary abilities.

Perhaps this is truly someone who doesn't show off their abilities?

Still, anyone on this ship can clearly see that Major Boris, who seems a bit eccentric, is undoubtedly a man with a story.

Currently.

The main crew and officers of the Level 3 Battleship "Storm Horn" were originally formed around the core of a bottom-tier Level 6 Cruiser "Conch".

After undergoing a major reshuffling, a large number of excellent new recruits from the same batch as Captain Aiven were filled in, and then replenishments were made before executing cross-national missions and setting out for the New Continent.

Now, it has completed its full capacity of 350 personnel allocation.

However, the deficiencies in officer quality and lack of personnel experience still exist.

The "Sailing" skill is relatively better.

Since Aiven became the captain, the crew has essentially not been idle.

They've constantly been running around, dealing with various dangerous sea conditions including "storm", "tsunami", and "Black Dam". Practicing even taught them almost everything they need.

However, another critical skill, "Crew Gun", can't be deemed as "excellent".

According to the Navy Code of Phaletis, each cannon's crew consists of 6 members, including one Cannon Commander.

Each artillery deck (Level 3 ships have three artillery decks including the main deck) has one primary and one secondary Fire Control Officer.

During mid-to-long-range engagements, the cannon crew is responsible for loading ammunition, while the Fire Control Officer sets the firing parameters for the artillery, adjusting angles up, down, left, and right.

Finally, under the command of the Gunpowder Chief, each cannon's Cannon Commander is responsible for firing the artillery under their command.

Artillery firing is a tactical operation requiring multi-person coordination, complexity, and precision, especially in the chaotic battleground during engagements. The quality of the cannoniers heavily impacts the warship's firepower performance.

No matter how superior the ship and artillery are, if they're handed over to a group of amateurs, they may not be able to defeat opponents even one or two levels lower.

Although Boris joined mid-way, he is an Official Knight with a Major rank and is a renowned "artillery expert" not just in the New Continent's Navy Base!

Upon taking office, he was appointed as the Cannon Commander on "Storm Horn", responsible for the daily training of the cannoneers.

In just ten days at sea, although not completely transformed, the cannoneers have laid the groundwork for becoming excellent artillerymen.

Especially under the guidance of Major Boris, as long as they go through another few battles, the future is promising!

As for why this renowned and immensely capable artillery expert would humble himself to take on a low-profile role as Cannon Commander on Aiven's ship, a position previously nonexistent on "Storm Horn",

The reason is quite simple.

Major Boris, who seems to have endless prestige, has actually received a promise from Base Commander Vice Admiral Gustav:

Once this battle is over and he successfully helps the Kingdom achieve its predetermined goals, the General will approve his retirement application!

As for why he wants to retire at the peak of his military career, that's another story.

With a command from Captain Aiven,

Boris has already unceremoniously taken over the command originally belonging to Gunpowder Chief Reeves, issuing his orders with the powerful lung capacity of an Official Knight:

"Cannon crew, take your positions!"

Thump.. thump.. thump..

The ship's cannoneers have quickly run, according to the artillery operation manual, into their respective combat positions.

The two artillery decks and main deck are equipped with eighteen 24-pound cannons, twenty 12-pound cannons, ten 9-pound cannons, and two 6-pound cannons on the stern tower.

Due to the design of broadside cannons on battleships in this era, inevitably half of the firepower is at rest, so the cannon crews only need to attend to one side's broadside at a time.

During the sea training of this period, although the cannoneers have gained direct improvement, they have not escaped the bitterness of Major Boris, who has a cold, iron-faced personality.

Having no intention to stay long on "Storm Horn", Boris isn't afraid to offend anyone, demanding the highest standards from them in all things.

Even the older Gunpowder Chief Reeves is cautiously attentive, accommodating this military rank and capability-overpowering artillery expert more than himself.

The entire artillery section, top to bottom, dares not slack off in the slightest.

"We're heading to leeward! Maintain formation!"

Sticking to his usual cautious approach, Aiven ordered the two warships to block from the leeward side, preventing Pirate Ships from escaping and avoiding any bizarrely capable Extraordinary using scent to detect the battleships in advance.

The Navy's warships circled towards the Pirate Fleet's stern, and the distance between the two gradually closed to 500 meters.

Although the effective range of the artillery is 1 kilometer, at the current distance, accuracy, artillery power, and firing frequency have reached an optimal balance.

"Each cannon crew load the Scorching Bullet!"

Each cannon crew rapidly uses the furnace to heat the "solid shot" until red hot, inserting a wad of wet mud between the gunpowder and cannonball during loading, taking slightly longer than loading normal solid shots.

But now, having the advantage and ample time to prepare, Boris's choice was, of course, the favorite of all artillerymen—the "Scorching Shell".

Boris personally entered the lower cannon deck, overseeing the nine 24-pound cannons on one side of the ship, while the gunpowder chief Reeves supervised the upper deck.

Seeing that all the gun crews completed loading within the stipulated time, Boris nodded slightly, calmly drawing the artillery commander's saber from his waist, which had a slight curvature and a brass handguard.

As the saber slightly lifted, an extraordinary spiritual light, invisible to the naked eye, exploded simultaneously along the blade, spreading to each of the ship's ready-to-fire shipborne artillery weapons.

Every cannon seemed to undergo a micro-adjustment in an instant.

"Everyone, prepare, fire!"

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!....

Orange-red cannon flames illuminated the sea surface beneath the dense fog.

Two battleships adjusted their firing arcs, simultaneously unleashing a total of 18 pieces of 24-pound artillery, 20 pieces of 12-pound artillery, 10 pieces of 9-pound artillery, and 2 pieces of 6-pound artillery, pouring out like a scorching rainstorm.

It just began.

The pirate fleet, believing they were only encountering ordinary fog, had temporarily stopped on the sea surface using their sailing tactics without realizing that disaster would suddenly descend from the sky.

In fact, with their strength, they wouldn't fear even encountering multiple cruisers from the navy. They could fight or flee, and since they hadn't yet reached the combat area, their vigilance wasn't that high.

Upon hearing the cannon fire, they were already facing the navy's heavenly justice!

Crack...

"Enem...."

"Ah...!"

Boom——!

The hull of the fore-and-aft rigged sloop was as fragile as cardboard under the attack of the scorching shell, with the fiery iron cannonballs easily slicing through the ship's masts and penetrating layers of deck planks.

Some even shot from the stern, bouncing along the way and destroying everything in the cannon deck.

The human body, even the body of an extraordinary, would be easily torn to shreds under the powerful kinetic energy.

With just one round of volley, a huge blaze broke out among the four pirate ships.

Because.

Coincidentally, the ammunition storage of a fore-and-aft rigged sloop positioned at the end of the line was pierced by a scorching shell, directly triggering a spectacular explosion!

Upon close observation, one would find that the shells fired from the "Storm Horn" surpassed the "Endeavor" in penetration and precision, with the largest victories almost solely credited to the "Storm Horn".

At this point.

The pirates, suddenly attacked and shrouded in fog, were in a chaotic formation, only able to blindly fire back in fragments, unable even to send signals, let alone mount a systematic resistance.

"All gun crews, load the scorching shells!"

The command saber raised high once again emitted extraordinary spiritual light.

"Prepare! Fire!"

The storm of iron and fire poured out once more.

After the second volley was completed.

The sporadic retaliatory fire from the remaining three pirate ships had completely ceased, and even the painful wails from the injured were barely audible.

Fierce flames rose from the three pirate ships, clearly seen by the ordinary crew who hadn't activated mind connection, despite the cover of fog.

The naval battle was concluded in less than a minute from its start.

The opponents were not an evil god or a massive sea monster. It was the battleships, humanity's greatest maritime asset, demonstrating an unparalleled combat advantage against common sea vessels.

The firepower comparison between the two sides was not on the same level, especially since the navy added a powerful buff for themselves.

[Ocean Treasure: Artillery Commander's Saber!]

A powerful heirloom belonging to Major Boris's family.

Ability: Extreme Cannon Skill—able to unleash 200% of the shipborne artillery's range, precision, and power.

Limitation: It must meet the definition of large-scale armed "shipborne artillery".

Special equipment like the Inverted Cross Halberd on the "Guard Commander" is not included.

Aiven clearly saw that with the help of this magical command saber, the cannonballs pierced through their ship's hull and shot out through the opposite bulwark.

Already dominating in firepower, the power was further amplified, catapulting the killing power of the ship's smoothbore guns by a generation.

At this time, against these pirate ships—even for a Level 5 Battleship—"Storm Horn" was almost a ruthless force!

Even without the assistance of the "Endeavor", Aiven had the confidence to annihilate them unscathed!

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