British hegemon

Chapter 61 English Cruiser

Even during the Age of Exploration, sailing ships were still very slow. Even the most famous galleons could only sail at a speed of about seven to ten knots.

If even the advanced galleons were like this, Roger's Kirk, which was more than two hundred years behind, was naturally even slower, reaching a maximum speed of around four knots under normal weather conditions, which translates to less than five miles per hour.

Even after being modified to be more pirate-friendly, the Seawolf's average speed was only five to six miles per hour.

This isn't considered fast on land, but seagoing vessels can generally sail day and night, so it's still acceptable.

I learned from the hired temporary captain that the voyage from Aran Island to Skylis on the east coast of Ireland is about 180 miles long, and if all goes well, we should arrive by tomorrow evening.

How could things possibly go smoothly? Not to mention the English naval blockade and the increasingly rampant pirate raids.

The conditions at sea are beyond human control; favorable or adverse winds, rough seas, and dense fog can all hinder a voyage.

The temporary captain then changed the subject: "However, considering the need to evade English patrol vessels, Irish coastal lords' anti-smuggling ships, and pirates that may appear at any time, we must prepare for a three-day voyage."

So far, the journey from Arun Island has been smooth sailing, with clear skies and gentle breezes.

Because the weather was relatively stable, there were significantly more ships sailing in this area this time than when we went to Elsa Rock last time.

They even spotted several small, suspiciously moving boats stealthily following them from afar, but no ships approached the Seawolf until it had crossed Elsa Rock and was almost at the mouth of the strait between Ireland and Britain.

Just as everyone was puzzled, Olaf pointed to the triangular sea wolf flag hanging high on the mainmast, clearing up their doubts.

Roger couldn't help but chuckle, forgetting the background and identity of his ship. This era was not a society governed by the rule of law, and no one wanted to provoke such a criminal force as pirates.

Just as I was pondering how to return to my old ways, walking the line between black and white, a warning came from the mainmast lookout tower: "The Three Lions flag, it's an English patrol ship."

There was no fear in the henchman's voice; on the contrary, he was full of excitement and agitation.

"How many?" Olaf asked loudly, looking up.

"There is only one, but it is not a ship."

Roger, who was standing on the deck enjoying the sea breeze, turned around upon hearing this and climbed the wooden ladder to the stern tower. Leaning against the tower railing and shading his eyes with his hand, he looked at the sea to his left and rear. Sure enough, there was a ship approaching in the distance.

After pausing to observe for a while, I vaguely saw that the ship was indeed flying the British Three Lions flag.

"Lord Roger, should we immediately take cover (the pursuit)?"

The interim captain and Olaf spoke at the same time, but what they said was completely contradictory.

Roger couldn't help but turn his head and glance at the two people behind him.

"Huh? What do you mean?" This question was directed at Olaf.

"Chase after it and shoot. It's an English naval patrol boat. If you don't shoot it, it will keep bothering you and might even attract other enemy ships."

Roger didn't speak; he thought he had misheard. How could they just do it like that?

"Can it work? Are you confident?"

Olaf withdrew his gaze from the distance, patted the longsword at his waist, and said, "I just saw that the small patrol boats the English have in the north are all merchant ships serving in the military."

"There are usually no more than ten soldiers on the ship. They are all caravan guards. They can only scare ordinary smuggling merchant ships. They are easy to fight." As the third leader of the pirates, he naturally has a lot of experience.

"Even if we can't beat them, we can hoist a triangular sail and row against the wind to escape north. Their horizontal sails can't sail against the wind, and they can't catch up with us by rowing alone. It will be dark in two hours, and they won't dare to keep chasing us." Olaf seemed very enthusiastic about this kind of robbery.

As the saying goes, fortune favors the bold, and Roger was indeed tempted.

The Seawolf recently practiced sailing against the wind on several occasions. Although the speed was very slow, it was much faster than simply rowing.

If we can't win, we can always run. Why not give it a shot? "Turn around and engage the enemy!"

"Lower the sails! Turn the rudder! Prepare to engage the enemy!" Olaf shouted Roger's orders to the sailors and guards from the stern tower.

The temporary captain was somewhat afraid, but he had done his fair share of plundering small merchant ships at sea with Baron John in the past. After a brief hesitation, he immediately turned around and directed the temporary sailors to steer the ship.

As it lowered its square sail, the Seawolf changed course and hoisted its triangular sail. After offsetting its forward momentum, it began to move slowly at an angle toward the English patrol boat.

Thanks to the "disastrous" exercise before departure, the group, having "died" once, at least knew what to do when facing the enemy.

The chainmail wasn't always on; those heavy things weren't very comfortable to wear. At this moment, the young horseman was helping Roger put on the chainmail, putting on the throat guard, shoulder guard, hand guard, and neck guard one by one. Finally, he sheathed the hunting knife, took out the polished Viking battle axe, and weighed it in his hand.

Roger wasn't very good with a sword, or rather, he simply couldn't use one, so the knight's longsword his "father" left him was temporarily given to Olaf.

Roger originally intended to give the knight's sword to Olaf, but Olaf refused to accept it under any circumstances. So Roger allowed him to use it temporarily, since he couldn't let the sharp blade lie in the storeroom and rust.

Except for Roger, the others wore armor as everyday clothing.

Sergeant Maren wore cloth-faced iron armor with a disc helmet, and his half-sword, strapped to a leather belt at his waist, was incredibly sharp.

The bald man and the ponytail man were still wearing their flashy half-body chainmail over cotton armor. They didn't touch the single-handed swords at their waists, which were just for show. Instead, they held iron-winged short spears in one hand and small round shields in the other, and climbed up to the bow tower early to be on guard and prepare for battle.

Olaf joined later, so his armor was naturally the leftovers from the first few people: a cotton armor plate helmet with a round shield for naval combat. But the knight's longsword at his waist was the finest weapon among them.

Black Dog also wore a full set of cotton armor and a disc helmet, complete with a short spear, short sword, and kite shield. He wanted to stay by Roger's side as a close bodyguard, but Roger sent him to the bow of the ship to stand guard and prepare for battle.

The temporary captain, first mate, and sailor, along with two fishermen and sailors who had learned to handle triangular sails, were left to steer the ship; three other fishermen and sailors were also ordered to board the bow, where they would continue to use crossbows to shoot the enemy from a distance after Roger, Marne, and Olaf had finished firing the first few rounds of arrows.

The crossbow itself doesn't have much of a technical barrier, and some fishermen had learned a little about it before, so they were able to use it to some extent.

"You don't need to participate in the battle for a while. Go to the watchtower and replace the henchmen. Let him help load the crossbows."

The young horseman was timid and had no combat experience, so Roger ordered him to replace the henchmen on the mainmast lookout tower and be responsible for observing the surrounding sea and being alert to any other enemy ships that might appear.

The henchman had seen the world of pirates and had reportedly fought and killed for them on the fringes, so he was given the task of loading the crossbows and passing them arrows.

At this moment, ten people were crammed into the bow tower of the Seawolf. The first group of main force consisted of Roger, Maen, and Olaf. The second group of core members consisted of Bald Ponytail and Black Dog. The three fishermen, sailors, and henchmen were substitutes on the sidelines.

Although he guessed that most of the other side were caravan guards, Roger was still a little nervous when facing the English army head-on for the first time. The bald man with the ponytail and the black dog next to him were breathing rapidly, the three fishermen behind him were visibly trembling, and even Roger himself was somewhat nervous.

"I've only just begun to emerge, I hope I don't get shut down," Roger silently prayed.

"No need for everyone to squeeze on, Brother Marn. You take the three of them to guard the stern tower." Olaf said, seeing everyone crowding at the bow, and told Marn to take the bald man with the ponytail and the black dog to the stern.

The group all looked at Roger, who then spoke, "Let's listen to Olaf."

"After boarding, don't jump overboard. None of you are familiar with naval warfare, and jumping overboard could easily lead to falling into the water. Just wait for the enemy to come over from the tower and deck."

"Wait until the enemy ships board and begin to jump over, then use the high ground to inflict casualties on the enemy until we have an absolute advantage before charging down to annihilate the remaining enemy."

At this time, naval battles often involved boarding the ship using planks. The planks had barbs, and once you grabbed the side of the ship, it was very difficult to break free, leaving you with no choice but to fight to the death.

"Remember not to panic. The enemy sailors are not as capable as you are. The ship will rock when we board, so everyone must hold on tight."

Olaf shouted at the top of his lungs, both to repeat the naval tactics practiced before departure and to boost the morale of the tense group.

Roger had already cocked the crossbow by stepping on the foot pedal. The short, thick bolt was loaded into the slotted arrow shaft. He raised the crossbow and aimed at the English ship, which was still some distance away, hoping that he could hit the bullseye from a hundred paces away.

A minute passed, and the Seawolf was sailing against the wind, feeling a little closer.

Three minutes passed, and the Seawolf's triangular sails, operated by the old fisherman, came into play, and the angled hull slowly moved toward the enemy warship.

Five minutes passed, and the distance between them grew closer until they could see each other's ships.

Within seven minutes, the crew of the Seawolf had a clear view of the situation on the Three Lions ship. There were three or four people on the side of the ship and on the stern tower, most of them wearing cotton armor and carrying short spears. Some of the people on the tower were also holding longbows.

But the Nafi ship was shorter than the Kirk ship, and even though Roger's pirate ship was a small Kirk ship, it was still at least three feet taller than the Nafi ship.

Moreover, there seems to be some difference in the weapons and armor of the two sides.

The two ships were within a hundred paces of each other. The English side was small and weak, while Roger's side had a low average fighting strength. Both sides were on the verge of war, but neither side fired the first arrow.

Despite the sea breeze, the two ships remained close together.

At that moment, a loud shout came from under the Three Lions flag, and the English patrol ship abruptly changed course.

"They've escaped! They've run away! They've turned and fled!" The young stable boy on the mainmast's lookout tower shouted at the top of his lungs, pointing at the English patrol ship.

The English patrol boat, flying the three lions, fled towards the Galloway peninsula on the west coast.