Realm of Power

The wind and snow fell on the ocean city in the northwest of Imperial New Kyoto.

Looking out from the emperor's office at the highest point of the Imperial Palace of Emperor Aseril, the landscape of the northwest sea city with a population of more than 600,000 is very majestic. The sharp spiers of the adjacent buildings shine brightly under the white snow, forming a tic-shaped shape. The outer streets of the city are criss-crossed, separating the business district from the dock area. The powerful empire that emerged from the wilderness of the northwest through violent raids and conquests will shock everyone who comes here for the first time. Shake, the military god emperor who made the entire Opalo feel frightened. His office is behind the long snow-capped palace wall. The outer wall of the palace is a rare crimson color, like human blood, and like human blood. There is a battle flag, and outside the palace wall is a whole team of Imperial Guards in black military uniforms. This palace and the Empire's new Kyoto show a world-dominating atmosphere. The huge red palace is called the "Red Palace" by the empire.

The coldness of Icadiva style and the romance of Salander style are also reflected in every decoration of this majestic imperial Kyoto. The red color has a fairy tale-like dazzle. Fifty meters outside the Red Palace is the wide Ravhur River. , the commercial area on the other side of the river is packed with people. The Imperial Avenue, which contrasts with the imperial Kyoto, runs from the Emperor Asser Palace where the emperor resides to the coast of Kyoto. There are many shops. Against the backdrop of the white snow on the roofs, there are crowds of people in costumes, mixed with handsome men in straight military uniforms. Figures, the park is full of laughing children,

A black carriage drove past the street, with a colorful billboard hanging on the body. The sign read, "Walilan perfume, brings you top beauty!" This is a recent trend coming from the Ptau region in the far south. , it is said that merchant ships sailing into the inland sea have such suspensions on their sides. In order to open up the situation in the inland sea ports and seize the market, the merchants' propaganda is overwhelming. The coast of Xinjing is snow-white, the waves carry white ice floes floating, and the huge imperial warships crack the ice on the sea, providing space for what follows. Merchant fleets crush the frozen ice. The goods on the pier are still piled up, merchant fleets and warships are sailing on the sea at the same time, and the decks of some merchant ships from other countries are crowded with people watching the scenery.

The fat man turned around from the window with the wine glass in hand. Looking at the anxious-looking envoy of Emperor Istan behind him, he said with a smile, "Your Excellency has also seen that the current focus of the empire's military power is still in the Slavic wilderness further north, and the empire has just settled on the new capital, and various tasks are thousands of times. With no clue, the Imperial Navy is in winter It is impossible to dispatch. It is really impossible to assist the Istan Empire in containing the Feishan Navy. In fact, I personally recommend that you go to the Stirlingland Navy. Their navy is closer to Feishan and has more familiar forces than ours. The advantage of Fei Shan’s navy!”

"But the Strand Navy was completely defeated by His Majesty's Navy! If it was His Majesty's Navy, Feishan's Navy would definitely be suppressed! If His Majesty agreed to dispatch the navy, Istan was previously willing to give the Empire five million gold coins for military expenses immediately You can pay first Pay half! "The special envoy of Emperor Istanbul is a serious-faced middle-aged man with a thin figure wearing the black tailtail dress of an Istanbul foreign minister, but he has a military temperament all over his body, and he speaks with a smile. Soldiers are straightforward and straightforward. If you are a real foreign affairs officer, you will know what a man-eater the honest-looking emperor in front of you is, and he will not show such an eager expression at the beginning. It feels like shouting Come and kill me!

"For five million, it's not worth the gain to let the empire establish a strong enemy in the inland sea!" The fat man rolled his eyes. Speaking unhurriedly, the Istan people finally decided to take action against Feishan. It was a good opportunity for the Falcon Empire to watch the fight between tigers and tigers. The other party was a soldier. He could tell at a glance that five million military expenditures It might be tempting for other countries. But this is the Falcon Empire, the most wealthy Falcon Empire in the world! Five million is only one-tenth of a quarter's income for the empire. I don't know what the talented emperor of Istan thinks. With such a small amount of money, he wants the empire to dispatch the navy to attack Feishan. Play forward. None of the shells I fired were worth the money! The fat man said unceremoniously that if he wanted to mobilize the Imperial Navy, he would not even think about it if he did not have a troop expenditure of more than 30 million.

"Thirty million!"

The Istan envoy hesitated for a moment. If he hadn't seen the terrifying power of the Imperial Dragon-class battleship, he would have simply chosen to turn around and leave. But now, he felt that the price was not outrageous. Thirty million was the Istan Empire's. The total income of the past year, although the Istan people just North Africa has made a huge fortune, but it is very difficult to spend such a large amount of military expenditure in one go. It is the soldiers and nobles of Istanbul who have made a fortune in the north of Congo, and because of the acquisition of this wealth , the calls within the Istan Empire to declare war on Feishan have been like rolling winter thunder,

"We can't afford 30 million, but if His Majesty is willing to help with this, His Majesty the Emperor of our country promises to use one-third of Fei Shan's land as reward!"

The special envoy of Emperor Istan took a deep breath and said in a solemn voice. He realized that this fat emperor would not let go until there was no benefit. He grinned slightly and decided to play the last trump card he could. According to what he had said about this rise before departure. The powerful and savage people northwest of Obarro According to the analysis of the empire, the Falcon Empire greedily annexed Gangfei and forcefully annexed Gaul. I heard that it expanded thousands of miles to Xiangdong last month, which proves that the head of this powerful empire, the young emperor in front of him, has deep feelings in his heart. Ambitions can be felt even from thousands of miles away.

"Use Feishan's land as a condition for the Falcon Empire to dispatch its navy!"

His suggestion was approved by Emperor Istan. Feishan was an old enemy of the Istan Empire. In order to defeat this century-old enemy, the Emperor of Istan had been planning for twenty years. In terms of army alone, the Istan Empire gained 200 from the Falcon Empire. After the Gate Thunder God, he was confident enough to blast through the opponent's land defense line, and the army directly hit the Feishan Kingdom. Under the capital, they used sharp spears and curved swords to completely wipe out the Feishan people from this land, but they have been slow to take action because the powerful Feishan navy has arrived at the coast of Istanbul, just like a cruising boat. On the coastline of the Istan Empire, the giant shark that may bite at any time has made the entire Istan Empire's coastal defense nervous to the extreme.

Once the two countries start fighting, when the army of the Istan Empire advances towards King Feshan, the army of the Feshan Kingdom may also land on the coast of the Istan Empire at the same time, making the entire war situation unpredictable. Emperor Istan It was originally planned to take a year to build up his own navy. However, the plan to fully take over the Congolese Navy failed. Some construction shipyards in the Eastern Province were also sabotaged by major unknown forces last month, and the naval construction plan can no longer be implemented. Since it is not possible internally, the only option is to find external aid. Currently, the one that can suppress the Feishan naval fleet is the most attractive to the Emperor of Istan. Naturally, in the battle for the southern coastline of Congo, it easily defeated the inland sea overlord of the Strand Navy. Falcon Imperial Navy,

What made Emperor Istan make such a judgment was the Imperial Dragon-class battleship given as a gift, which deeply shocked this emperor who only had a little knowledge of maritime hegemony. Originally, this emperor only thought that the Falcon Empire Navy was in conflict with Sri Lanka. The strength of Trant's navy is high and low. But when the huge Dragon-class battleship deployed its gun bays in response to the order, the opened black baffles stood up like the reverse scales of a giant dragon. The entire Istani nobles on the viewing platform were almost stunned.

"So big!"

"It's such a pleasing performance! I just don't know what it feels like to stand on it!!" Various sighs came from the viewing platform, and the Imperial Dragon-class gun warehouse that was enough to make any maritime opponent feel numb was opened. The reviews here are enough to make most of the enemies of the Empire, who know what the opening of the dragon turret means, feel happy.

The Istani nobles on the viewing platform pointed at the huge dragon, as if looking at another gorgeous decoration. As the last item in the viewing process, they wanted this ship to represent the Falcon Empire's strongest force on the sea. The Dragon-class battleship fired at a target that had been erected in advance to prove the combat effectiveness of the entire battleship. Looking at the densely opened baffles on the side of the Dragon-class battleship, it did not look as powerful as the giant navy trebuchet. .

The Istani nobles on the viewing platform were all talking about it, "Can it be done? Even such a thin tube can sink a huge warship!"

"That is, apart from the shock at first glance, this warship without any trebuchets, trebuchets, or even shipside fenders can also defeat the Feishan naval battleship!"

"You're kidding. It just looks better." Except for His Majesty the Emperor and a few people who are well aware of the fear of the Falcon Empire's navy, most Istan people have a very shallow understanding of the navy. The Istan Empire has always competed for supremacy on land, and for the ocean Its function is only limited to fishing and small trade. Coupled with the suppression of the old enemy Feishan Navy, the entire Istan navy has less than fifty warships, including less than ten large warships. It is absolutely unheard of for the navy to observe the ceremony.

"Such a warship really has the power to suppress the ground?"

Even several confidant generals under Emperor Istan are discussing in low voices. They are dissatisfied with the emperor's development of the navy. It is enough for the empire to have an army that dominates the mainland. No matter how powerful the navy is, can it still attack land? There are not a few people in the Istanbul Army who have this idea.

Listening to various sounds in his ears, Emperor Istan took a complex and sharp deep breath, waved his hand, and ordered, "The test firing can begin!" A flagman standing behind him waved his hand. flag,

"It's a test firing order!"

The captain of the Dragon-class battleship saw the flag from the viewing platform and gave the order with a solemn expression. He and the gunners in the Dragon-class battleship were both elites of the Imperial Navy. This time, in addition to taking the battleship to a port controlled by the Istans, At the same time, he came as a trainer. Part of his obligation as a gift of a battleship is to help the Istan Empire train a group of sailors who can operate dragon-class battleships. As a dragon-class When the battleship made its first appearance, everyone, including the captain, was filled with excitement. The loud noise from the viewing platform had already reached here. Although he could not understand what the Istan people on the viewing platform were saying, he could not understand what was being said. The few people around him who were sent to take over from Istanbul had smiles that showed no respect at all. The captain could also feel their contempt for this ship, which represented the most powerful force in the empire.

"Laugh at it, I hope you can still laugh!" The captain grinned noncommittally, turned to the microphone placed on the command bridge, and shouted, "Prepare for bombardment, the fortress target is 150 meters ahead. ! "

"Pop!" The iron cables fixing the gun base were untied, and the artilleryman expertly pushed the gun rail. Loading the powder belt and aiming at the side target were completed within five minutes. A whole row of black and dim muzzles were heading towards The direction of the target is slowly raised, like Thor's hammer brewing and accumulating power.

"Look, those little black tubes can still move!" The sound of people watching the show rang out again from the auditorium, and many people stretched their necks and heard the sound of getting ready. At the same time, it is transmitted to the command bridge of the battleship through the copper pipe installed in the gun bunker.

The so-called test target is a small fortress temporarily built with stones a hundred meters away. It is only thirty meters long and wide. This is an Istani engineer who has never seen the power of a dragon-class battleship's salvo. It was established based on twice the bombardment intensity of catapults on ordinary warships. In their view, the bombardment intensity of a naval warship to this extent is already the limit.

"All fire! Three consecutive shots!" The captain held his breath and yelled violently, and the sound exploded through the copper pipe in the gun compartment.

Boom! "The sound was like a huge thunder shaking the port. All the discussions were suppressed. The Istani nobles who were caught off guard were so frightened that they fainted on the spot. The huge air wave even swept to the viewing platform a hundred meters away, as if it was overturned by a strong wind. The table in front caused a stir, and the spectators ran around in confusion.

On the nearly churning sea, three horizontal rows of white smoke mixed with fire shot out from the side of the Dragon-class battleship. The shining white light burned everyone's eyes, and the huge battleship almost moved several meters across the sea. A wave of several meters high was set off. In the distance, the so-called small target fortress was hit by countless cannonballs. Like straw swept by the strong wind, half of it was blown away in the dense explosion. Some Thor cannonballs were fired from the gap. Entering the interior of the fortress, red explosive flames exploded intensively from the interior of the fortress again. The rubble was scattered and scattered, and was completely flattened in just a few seconds.

"hiss!"

There was a sound of gasping, and the army generals of the Istan Empire all turned pale. They looked at the small fortress that had completely disappeared, and their mouths were slightly open. It was terrible. Such power has exceeded the limit of their imagination for siege weapons. Even if a powerful and heavy warship throws stones, it would take at least dozens of strikes to destroy such a small fortress to bring down the outer wall. And here, Under the concentrated attack of such powerful naval warships, it was unable to sustain it for even a minute. If the enemy facing such a battleship is themselves, the army generals will no longer know how to face such a weapon.

Emperor Istan, who was standing on the viewing platform, stood up from the viewing platform at the reception port almost at once. His face was red and bright with excitement, and his eyes wanted to be directly attached to this dragon-class battleship, like a super beast of the sea. The battleship showed a ferocious appearance, and the excited hands clenched into fists. "It is indeed the Dragon of the Sea! Kyoto was destroyed by such a force! Fei Shan's navy could only tremble under such power."

This viewing ceremony shocked the entire Istan, and even the inland sea area. After learning the news, Feishan Kingdom quietly sent naval intelligence personnel to check the ruins where the target was located. The people who came back looked pale. Return a few crushed stones and report them to the Feishan Kingdom’s Military Department. “If they were placed on the sea according to the proportion of a small fortress, It is the length of a large Filoya-class battleship that the Feishan Navy is proud of. A single blow from the opponent is enough to penetrate a large Filoya-class battleship. Fortunately, Istan is unable to withstand it and breaks in the middle! We only have one such warship, otherwise, our navy would be better off returning as soon as possible! It’s possible that we will continue to wander along the coastline and encounter another enemy!

"So, we can't compete at all. If it's a head-on battle! Our navy may be completely annihilated." Feishan's navy officials looked at the report provided by the intelligence personnel, and their faces were solemn. The Strand navy suffered a disastrous defeat in the southern part of Congo. From the news on the coast, they know that their opponent is the latest Falcon Empire ship that has emerged in the outer seas. The Strand Navy was not only severely damaged by this battle, but the old Lord of the Admiralty, who was known as the protector of the country, also took the blame and stepped down. The first thing the new Lord of the Admiralty did when he took office was to immediately declare his sincerity to the Falcon Navy. , completely opening up the entire inland sea, and indicating that the Strand Navy would no longer interfere with the opening of the Falcon Empire’s inland sea,

If the sea area is a territory, this is a complete loss of city and land, loss of power and humiliation of the country. When the news came, not only the inland sea was in an uproar, but the Fei Shan Navy was also in an uproar.

"The spineless Strand cowards!" The naval hardliners within the Feishan Navy reacted fiercely to this. They expressed extreme contempt for the Strand people's incompetence and spineless performance. After all, they were the most powerful people in the inner sea. The inland sea overlord who has been dominant for ten years , failure is not shameful, but if you fail once, you will not even have the courage to continue fighting, which makes the equally famous Feishan Navy feel ashamed. Now it seems that the Strand Navy has clearly understood The gap is so huge that the consequence of continuing the war is destruction.

"It seems that we must be prepared. It would be great if we could also obtain such a super battleship Dragon! At least, we need to ensure that we will not face such a battleship!" Admiral Fei Shan made a decision,

The appearance of the Falcon Empire Dragon-class battleship on the eve of the upcoming war between the two countries caused the balance of naval power between the two sides to change quietly. Perhaps even Fatty himself did not expect that a small stone dropped unintentionally would cause the sea area to start rolling.