Pirate Kingship.

Chapter 9: Escape at Sea, Revealing the Prowess

Byron, who has just successfully joined the "Man-eating Shark", does not know that he has a new code name "Son of the Devil", and his head is worth 5000 pounds!
After the lookout sounded the alarm, the entire pirate ship fell into chaos.

First mate [Bonebreaker] Miles said with an undisguised panic in his tone:
"Captain! Those man-eating sharks didn't have advance warning. When they found the cruiser, they were too close to us and we couldn't avoid them!
Moreover, the force 6 wind from the northeast is coming too fast, so we have to reduce the sails or even reef the sails.”

As he spoke, large black shark fins could be clearly seen swimming in circles near the waterline of the pirate ship.

The cruiser's arrival was not noticed at all.

In fact, these man-eating sharks raised by [Blood Eye] Salman are not just pets, but the most capable assistants and knife-wielding guards of the pirate ship.

With a sense of smell that is 32 times more acute than that of a hound, plus some kind of extraordinary power transformation, they can easily sense a drop of blood 5 kilometers away.

As a scout, he is definitely a rare and good helper.

However, if one wants to continue to control these sharks to serve them, a blood sacrifice must be held, otherwise they will disobey orders and even turn against their masters.

If you want to blame someone, blame Bloodeye Salman for recalling all the sharks he released when he was performing a blood sacrifice with the Pelican crew.

After the feeding was over, the man-eating sharks had not yet returned to their posts.

[Yanjian] took advantage of the cover of heavy fog and broke through the safe distance that both sides could avoid in advance.

How big is the gap in hard power between pirate ships and warships? They know better than those navies that are gearing up for battle!
Moreover, a captain of a level 5 ship would have at least a second-order [professional] rank no matter which extraordinary sequence he took.

There is absolutely no advantage at the extraordinary level.

[Blood Eyes] Salman finally stopped eating. His eyes, which were originally like slits, suddenly widened and emitted blood light, scanning the entire ship.

All the pirates, including Byron, were startled.

Then he decisively issued the order:
“I’ll take the helm myself.

Order: Fold the topsail and topsail, reef the topsail by 50%, abandon those worthless baggage, reduce weight and speed up, and do everything possible to get rid of them! "

On a fully-rigged galleon, a foremast or mainmast usually has four sails hanging from it, from bottom to top: main, topsail, topsail, and polesail.

Just to control a square sail, nine types of rigging are required:
Halyard, rigging rope, rigging halyard, sheet, headsheet, batten halyard, and three sets of furling halyards for the sheet/bottom/side.

A sailing battleship usually has 11 cross sails, so these rigging need to be repeated 11 times, for a total of at least 99 riggings. Large battleships may have more than one similar rigging.

Therefore, as the only power source for a sailboat, the extremely complicated sail rig needs to be carefully "adjusted" from time to time to achieve high speed.

You must also be prepared to deal with sudden changes in wind direction at sea.

Once the sails are damaged and a large area of ​​the ship loses speed, it will be the end of us, isolated and helpless in the vast ocean.

"As ordered!"

The rigger immediately ordered the sailors to tighten the capstan and reef the topsail and polesail as soon as possible.

At the same time, he commanded a group of the bravest sailors to climb up the tall and sturdy mast along the fishing net-like side ropes in the bumpy waves.

Use the reefing spike to reduce the windward area of ​​the "upper sail", reducing the sail area by 50% at one time.

If the sails are allowed to fully sail, the overly strong bowing effect of the cross sail alone may cause the warship to constantly "kowtow" at sea.

If the ship crashed into the sea, it would be ridiculous for all the pirates on the ship to die.

In these level 6 gales, we must ensure high speed while preventing the sails from being torn by the sea breeze.

It is a severe test of the rigging length and sailor's skills, and it is definitely not something that all sailboats can do easily.

At the same time, the boatswain rushed to the hatch and shouted the captain's order to the sailors below:

"The captain has ordered us to abandon the baggage! Quick, quick, quick!"

Pfft!Pfft!
Blankets, cloth, ironware, wine barrels, and iron pots stolen from the Pelican fell into the sea one after another.

The warships behind showed no intention of slowing down to salvage the spoils.

It was obvious that he didn't care about these odds and ends and only had eyes for the big fish on the pirate ship!

As time went by, the pirates had exhausted all their tricks and the distance between the two sides continued to narrow.

It's only a matter of time before you're caught up.

The pirates of the Man-eating Shark took up their respective battle positions, shouting and yelling, carrying machetes, daggers, boarding axes, and muskets.

All pirates knew that they did not have a privateering license issued by the Kingdom of Hattings. Once caught, the only outcome would be hanging on the gallows.

Byron watched the cruiser coming from the northeast become clearer and clearer, and the malice he sensed with his [spirituality] became stronger and stronger. He muttered to himself:
"One is a soldier and the other is a thief. It's reasonable for you to kill each other!

But the premise is that I am not on this boat. "

If the weather, wind direction, and relative position were different, the pirate ship might still be able to escape by relying on its inherent flexibility.

But at present, sailing under exactly the same tailwind is precisely the home ground for medium-sized warships such as cruisers.

Including [Blood Eye] Salman, a transcendent who does not know the sequence yet, everyone is helpless.

However, Byron still held a life-saving straw in his hand!
That was his [Talent·Weather Intuition]: Today, it was sunny and turned cloudy. At 1:35 pm, the wind was northeast force 6, and it turned to force 3 in 7 hours, with medium waves.
Even extraordinary beings are just weak ants under the mighty power of nature.

The wind speed is still increasing, which is their only chance of survival!
But there is a prerequisite, the [Man-eating Shark] must be able to last for three hours.

Sailors on the sea share a common destiny as a boat. There is no option to frown and retreat behind the others. Once the group loses, no one can escape.

During the storm five days ago, Byron was powerless to resist the crisis that came from his dreams.

But this time, he wants to take his destiny firmly into his own hands.

He looked down at the palms of his hands, which were covered with calluses from years of sword practice since childhood.

Then he quickly walked through a group of shouting pirates and walked towards the pile of spoils taken from the Pelican in the middle of the deck.

At a glance, one could see that among the wooden barrels with more than a dozen swords of various colors, a long sword that was different from the sailor's scimitar stood out.

It was a half-sword in a sheath that had an elegant shape but revealed deadly murderous intent from the inside out.

The half-hand sword is also known as: hybrid sword, one-handed sword, guard sword, single/two-handed mixed sword.

It combines the lightness of a broadsword, the thrust of a knight's sword, the slashing and hacking of a two-handed sword, and the classicism of a longsword.

It can be used with both hands or with a shield, and is known as the most perfect sword in the era of cold weapons.

It is also one of the most commonly used weapons in current wars and the most popular among knights.

[Echoes of History] was activated, and a new line of text appeared in the log's supply column:
“The half-hand sword is 120 centimeters long and weighs 1.98 kilograms. The hilt has a double grip and a brass weight ball.

The previous owner: Captain Jody Gordon of the Pelican, a first-order Attendant-level Knight of Punishment in the Inquisition.

He died from being backstabbed by his crewmates and strangled by a group of marine pirates on the Shark.

This is a fine weapon, just one step away from reaching the level of a [Rare Item], with its own name and [Judgment Inscription]. "

Seeing the history of this sword, Byron's deep eyes dimmed for a moment:
"The captain of the Pelican, Jody Gordon, was the one who gave the order to pull me out of the sea, which was equivalent to saving my life.

Although a vassal of a vassal, he is not my vassal.

But Lord Crawford died fighting for Lancaster, and you died protecting Lord Crawford's property.

I will bear all your hatred in the name of Lancaster, and I will make them pay with blood!"

At this moment, a cold shout suddenly sounded behind Byron:
"New boy, put down your sword.

Newcomers on board are not eligible to share our spoils!"

When he looked up, he saw the first mate [Bone Crusher] Miles, walking towards him aggressively.

Salman [Blood Eyes], who was at the helm himself, did not stop it either.

No matter how strict the rules are on the pirate ship, they still belong to the black zone of the lawful evil camp.

Newcomers always have to go through this step to show their respect. Their future status and how much say they have are largely determined by their performance at this time.

"Oh?"

There was a flash of murderous intent in Byron's eyes.

It stands to reason that in wartime victory is the most important thing.

Experienced pirates would not temporarily replace weapons that were not convenient for them, even if the spoils were much better than their original weapons.

That is irresponsible for one's own life.

But the key to the problem is obviously not the sword in hand.

On a pirate ship where no cook can survive for more than a month, how could anyone take a consumables chef seriously?

If there hadn't been this sudden pursuit, even if Byron survived temporarily in the future, he would have been destined to be at the bottom of the entire pirate ship food chain.

'Don't talk when you are poor, and don't advise others when you are in a low position!

This is a universal truth.

If I want to interfere with the captain's decision and even the direction of the next battle, I must have enough say on the ship! '

Byron turned a deaf ear to the first mate's words, stood up, and hung the half-sword on his belt.

If I were still in the navy, perhaps everything would be based on procedures and seniority.

But among pirates, the way to convince others is very simple and direct.

Just at the moment Miles stepped into the maximum attack circle of the [Hand and a Half Sword].

Clang——!
The sword was unsheathed, a cold light flashed, and the whistling wind blew his hair back suddenly.

When Miles saw the scene clearly again, he found that the sharp blade of the long sword had fallen on his neck.

A drop of cold sweat slowly slid down the forehead of the pirate first mate.

Opposite him, Byron's hand holding the sword was as steady as a rock, his face expressionless as he said:

"【Pirate Ten Commandments】Commandment 2: Everyone is treated equally, the capable are promoted and the mediocre are demoted.

"Mr. First Mate, do you think I am qualified to replace you?"

(End of this chapter)