I Became a Captain of the British Empire - Chapter 141



Halifax Fleet Battle (11)

cozy

My eyes are far away. Like a fetus buried in amniotic fluid. The bright light obscured my vision, and the retinas facing the light shrank.

don’t want to wake up I want to leave my body in the flash of eternity like this and sink to the bottom where the end is unknown. Just like so many warships did.

Like Queen Mary of Jutland.

Like Hood in the Denmark Strait.

Like Kirishima in Guadalcanal.

Like the Malay Prince of Wales,

Like Repulse off the coast of Kuantan… .

… …

“Wait, that’s not it.”

Thoughts woke up. am i dead?

“no.”

Your voice sounds right. The mind is not even hazy. It’s not a dream, it looks too familiar to be dead.

“At least, this won’t be hell.”

It is a familiar ceiling.

I’ve been to Repulse’s hospital room often.

A room that smells like medicine. Fluorescent lights, beds, and medical equipment standing upright at the bedside are good for the eyes.

“Admiral? Admiral!”

Kirk’s crying voice at the bedside added a sense of realism. Fortunately, the mouth moved well.

“… are you okay.”

“My, Admiral?”

Of course, it was difficult to calm the orderly who was frightened and mad with just that.

Swept away by the chaotic atmosphere for a while, I barely asked after the adjutant came running.

“Who is the enemy aircraft carrier?”

“The carrier… .”

Kirk and Richie look at each other. Then he nodded and replied.

“No more.”

* * *

After I regained my composure, I stepped out into the hallway with portholes despite the military surgeon’s dissuading me. The scars of the battle were left all over the ship. The burnt smell stung the tip of his nose.

As I approached the porthole, I saw something floating like a light on the dark sea. I took the binoculars from Kirk and focused my eyes.

“The enemy Lexington class.”

The huge ship, whose entire hull was engulfed in flames, fell to the surface of the water.

“Any survivors?”

“We are currently rescuing, but not very many.”

“How much time has passed?”

“It’s just over an hour.”

I opened my eyes and asked again.

“1 hours?”

“yes.”

“… It’s been sticking the hull out of the water for an hour. It seems that there are quite a few lingering feelings left.”

In an instant, the tension disappeared and the body collapsed like a doll.

background goes down

Just as he was about to land on the floor, Kirk hurriedly supported his body.

“Admiral! Don’t overdo it!”

“Damn it, where did I get hit?”

“There are no traumas. But don’t overdo it. After resting, you should undergo a detailed examination in your home country.”

“You got an unexpected vacation.”

It was a joke, but Kirk didn’t seem to be at ease.

“Never wake up! Commanding the fleet is no problem, so don’t worry and get a good night’s sleep!”

bang-

The sound of the door closing reverberates through the hospital room.

… Are there really any problems?

It’s unknown, but I was afraid of Kirk’s begging eyes, so I decided to just lie on the bed.

Leaving behind Kirk, who had gone to the car, the adjutant who remained in the room quietly opened his mouth.

“Admiral, about Repulse… .”

“Isn’t this Repulse?”

“no. I am Rinaun.”

Right.

The hallway was so cluttered I thought it was Repulse.

“I see, Rinaun is also seriously injured.”

“Repulse is currently on standby at sea 15 nautical miles from the rear. The current escort is… .”

“Don’t worry.”

In an instant, the adjutant blinks and stops talking.

Soon, a strange voice was heard.

“yes?”

“Torbay is a great officer. An escort is also attached, so there will be no chance of being sunk.”

Looking at the smiling face, Lieutenant Colonel Richie, his adjutant, couldn’t hide his embarrassment.

He probably thought that I would have a lingering attachment to Repulse. But I’m not entrusting the ship to just anyone.

Repulse will be safe.

“All that remains… .”

And still, one aircraft carrier remains.

* * *

June 5, 1931. 6 o’clock in the morning.

Coast near Halifax.

U.S. Navy’s 16th Task Force’s flagship ‘Montana’.

A chilly morning came with the wind. Admiral Taylor, who led the battered fleet, swallowed dryly as he watched the great fleet cast a shadow with the dawn of the horizon.

“I ended up following you all the way here.”

The operation proceeded as originally planned. The torpedo boats, destroyer fleet, and air corps blocked the enemy fleet with all their strength.

However, the largest fleet in human history has been advancing silently, as if saying that a large army does not need strategy. No means could stop them.

“Admiral, the air force is launching an air strike.”

The sound of propellers announcing the start of the war. It is the shadow of the plane that I looked at tirelessly.

Taylor looked up at the cloudless sky.

“… You sick bastards.”

The Army Air Corps, which ensured the annihilation of the enemy fleet, rewrote the history of bombing and flooded the sea with countless water columns.

Admiral Taylor, who vividly witnessed the miraculous hit rate and heard the record of the sinking reported to the Admiralty, was amazed at his patience in not taking off his helmet on the spot.

“Air Corps, leave. Report from the 7th Destroyer Squadron! Prior to aviation… .”

Not a single battleship was disengaged by air raids.

“No criminal record. The enemy fleet is in good health.”

No wonder.

Enemy fighters and anti-aircraft guns hit and destroyed all the torpedo bombers flying at low altitude. From a safe high altitude, carpet bombing or bombardment air groups had no experience attacking a moving ship.

I did see hits coming out from time to time, but a few bombs couldn’t stop the battleship. The battleships in the rear row disappeared from sight before I knew it, but that was the end.

“Those bastards will definitely have to be disbanded when the war is over. You idiots who eat and drink.”

After uttering a rather extreme argument, Admiral Taylor turned to his line.

Iron castles marching in a row.

Montana, North Carolina, Louisiana, Washington.

The four giant ships lead, followed by California, Ohio and Mississippi.

Seven battleships, excluding New Mexico, which had been scuttled the previous day, and West Virginia, Arizona, and New York, which were missing during the night, were the last battleships of the United States.

“Admiral, there are still six 16-inch gun battleships left.”

Admiral Taylor, who quietly gazed at the battle lines, pleaded with Vice Admiral Daniel, commander of the 6th Battleship Squadron.

“yet… You don’t know about combat.”

Taylor looked back at him quietly. Seeing the fighting spirit on his face, the admiral smiled lightly.

“Is that so?”

The ensuing battle did not last long like the bloody battle of the previous day.

The U.S. Navy personnel who stayed up all night and retreated could not produce the same combat power as yesterday.

The hull, beaten by shells, cried out in exhaustion. The tilted hull washed itself on the surface of the water. The blood-stained sea hastened its sinking with strong waves, as if it were still hungry.

Finally, the first victim was engulfed in flames.

“Lou, Louisiana, out of navigation!”

The ranks of high-speed battleships, which had crept through the bullets of the 16-inch guns, opened fire all at once.

Over the burning battleship ‘Malaya’ with a broken mast, sister ships of the Queen Elizabeth class rushed. Like a herd of piranhas attacking wounded prey, they mercilessly pounded the Louisiana’s hull.

A series of 15-inch bullets hit the armor and caused sparks. The armor soon allowed the shells to penetrate, leaving a horrifying plosive sound.

Immediately, a salvo hit Louisiana.

Four turrets were crumpled one after another, and the majestic gun barrel was mercilessly torn and broken. The shells stuck in the engine room detonated one after another. The two beautiful chimneys roared, spewing out flames instead of smoke.

The 50,000-ton hull shakes violently and the gun barrels descend from the four main turrets. The shells that penetrated the superstructure landed on the other side of the water.

Bavaria and Baden, which joined soon after, also attacked Louisiana with high-speed 15-inch guns.

It was as if he would pay back many times what he had done to her.

Gunfire rang incessantly, and steel shards flew across the sky. Two masts fell screaming in the flames.

“Louisiana! It sinks!”

It was the tragic end of a new ship that was called the most complete ship of the South Dakota class. Her sister ships, however, were not much of a different fate.

It was when the Louisiana was being eaten away by 15-inch gun battleships. Rodney’s bombardment hit Washington, who followed her.

Washington is the last ship of the South Dakota class. Created through feedback from leading ships, she had to become the world’s strongest battleship in name and reality.

However, the urgent exhibition schedule could not live up to such expectations, especially for the skill level of the crew. The 12 guns spewed fire violently, but Rodney, who maneuvered through the water column with skillful steering, seldom allowed a hit.

Rather, the hull hit by the reinforced weight bullets was engulfed in flames first. Three R-class battleships followed, joining the bombardment.

The four battleships, starving for their achievements, ate Washington without concessions.

“Washington, out of combat.”

“… Can’t you deal with a battleship one rank lower than yourself?”

There is no time to look back at the dead ship.

The admiral sighed and turned his head.

“Are Ohio and Mississippi still adrift?”

“Mississippi is out of line, currently drifting. Ohio is following at 12 knots.”

Beyond the two burning South Dakota class ships, the battleship California, engulfed in a column of water, fired back fire.

The rookie ships that the US Navy is proud of were barely following the fleet behind them.

“Tell them to speed up!”

“The agency says it’s the limit. More than that, if I don’t save you from this side… .”

“Who wants to save who!”

“Admiral, Invincible class, advancing!”

thud-

Montana’s hull rocked once. It was a volley of Invincible and Indomitable. Fire poured out of the pierced armor and the hull vibrated.

“Admiral! Go to the command tower! It’s dangerous here!”

“There is no safe place!”

Admiral Taylor shouted, frowning and pointing out the window. North Carolina, which followed closely behind Montana, was also beaten unilaterally by Indipatigable’s excellent shooting.

Watching the burning battleships, the admiral took a step closer to the window. To the shocked staff, he told what he once said.

“… If God still takes care of me, won’t he help me to avoid being hit by shells?”

Unless I’m out of luck.

At that moment, Invincible’s 16-inch rounds penetrated the base of Montana’s bridge.

thud-

A plosive sound colored the admiral’s ears.

“sh*t.”

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Pieces of broken windows covered his body. Realizing that he couldn’t raise his back, Taylor looked down.

Where the legs should have been, blood and flesh were mingled with the steel. Unexpectedly, I felt no pain.

It’s like someone else’s body.

Taylor, who had been looking down at herself with a blank face, let out a smirk before she knew it.

“… I am finished now.”

On the bridge without an answer, he tilted his head back in a blurry gaze. Beyond the broken wall, the burning fleet was reflected as it was.

The front line collapsed in an instant.

North Carolina, which accumulated hits one after another, fired the last salvo and was sunk by crossfire with Rodney and Indipatible.

A volley of 35 cm naval guns from the Monarhi class hit California. An Iron Duke-class sister ship approaching 10km tore off her armor.

Three King George V-class ships charged against Ohio and Mississippi. Soon, a Mississippi salvo blew the Ajax’s magazines and created a huge mushroom cloud.

But nothing changes.

Still, the enemy moved forward without hesitation.

Drenched in thick fire smoke, he closed his eyes. Distant memories rose like fog.

… …

“Hey Taylor! The treaty has been canceled! They said they were building a new battleship!”

“Is that true?”

“Yeah, damn it! It’s worthwhile for the younger generation to join forces.”

“Then can I stay in the military too?”

“of course! We will need more talented people like you in the future.”

… …

“Hey, Taylor! Your position has been decided. It’s a reconnaissance fleet. Well, it’s an important title even for a 2nd line unit. Take it well.”

“I am Colonel Marshall, who has been assigned to the admiral’s air staff.”

“Two new South Dakota-class ships will be under your command.”

… …

“This war is impossible! For what reason do you intend to declare war?”

“In this decisive battle, there is no chance of winning unless we catch the main forces of the Royal Navy.”

“This operation must succeed, Marshall.”

… …

“Now that I see it, everything is a failure.”

There was no staff left to answer the monologue. Screams and pleading echoed from the surviving radios. Off Montana’s side, a cruiser cut in half was eaten up by rough waves.

Scenes too painful to not be the end.

Looking at the fire-breathing Invincible in the distance, he said with a dejected face.

“You made a bad bet.”

Darkness soon after.

Admiral Taylor closed his eyes.