jdhmnovel Chapter 75 Operation Overlord — ...
Chapter 75 Operation Overlord — ...
Rich Brother's donation will result in an extra chapter on July 7th.
The counterattack came from the beach. The industrial-era Sharps rifle used fixed paper cartridges. A naval infantryman pulled the trigger and shot a church soldier in the head from 100 meters away. The Sharps rifle had been used as a sniper rifle in Alice's original timeline, and it was even more so now. Naval infantrymen using the Sharps praised its accuracy as "the most accurate rifle in the world".
After pulling the trigger, the soldier pulled down the lever that served as the trigger guard, and the bolt fell. He blew on the chamber to disperse the remaining ash, then took out a paper cartridge from his pocket, inserted it into the chamber, and pulled the lever back. The Sharps rifle was very reliable, and its breech-loading and integral fixed ammunition made it the best choice for the naval infantry after much deliberation.
However, the main players in the landing operation were still the navy. The first task force displayed its might on the sea, and the "Hiun" made a beautiful arc and fired a salvo at the "Glory Goddess" from a distance of 1000 meters. The Type 90 escort ships following behind then joined the bombardment feast.
A towering column of water shot up as Alice leaned against the mainmast. A group of officers held binoculars or nautical charts clipped to wooden boards. The sailors were engaged in a fierce battle, which resembled a one-sided target practice. The once glorious flagship of the Church had been reduced to a raging wreck. As the last second-class battleship was detonated by a 122mm shell, Alice raised her hand and ordered a ceasefire.
The "Feiyun" immediately hoisted signal flags, and the signalman waved two flags in his hand. Whistles sounded on all the ships of the First Task Force, and the gunners ordered a ceasefire.
The wind blew away the smoke of battle, and many people could only watch from afar as the wreckage of the Church's Holy Invincible Fleet burned on the sea. Several large ships still showed some of their structure. The most intact ship, the Glory Goddess, was stranded next to a rock in the harbor. The ship was capsized, and only the lower half of the pure bronze goddess statue remained. All that was left was the hull riddled with holes.
Everyone knew that victory in the naval battle would change the landscape of the world, or at least the landscape of the demon realm.
With a massive deployment of rifled cannons and steamships, the Amerlane vanguard navy became the masters of this sea. Yugo Latto tremblingly lowered his binoculars and looked at the small figures around him. All the systems that Alice had built had been put to the test in actual combat today. Despite being at a decisive disadvantage in terms of the number of ships and cannons, the Amerlane First Task Force achieved a perfect and comprehensive victory in the naval battle.
They suffered no losses, the Church launched no effective attacks, and the few shells that did hit were blocked by the hull. Even the massive battleship "Glory Goddess," a symbol of the Church's naval power, was no match for them.
All the cannons in the fleet were now quite hot. Alice nodded, satisfied with everything. The navy's fleet formation was perfect, with gunners, gunners, fire control rooms, and ammunition supply systems working together seamlessly. Add to that the lighting system, flag signals, and signal flags, and everything was perfectly integrated as planned. She had built a truly 19th-century fleet system.
There were only a few ships left in the bay, but the number of sunken ships was too great, so Alice decided that the fleet should not enter the harbor in large numbers to avoid hitting the wreckage and causing unnecessary losses.
Several Type 037 corvettes and two Type 90 escort ships replaced the main fleet and entered the harbor. The Type 037s were responsible for assessing the hydrographic conditions, guiding the large ships in, and keeping watch on the surroundings. The dark blue 30mm Hotchkiss rotary cannons looked tough in the sunlight. The Amerinsky tricolor flag was hoisted on the ships, and the Church's cross flag slowly sank to the bottom of the sea, announcing the victory of the Battle of Brittany.
The distant rumbling sounds were like a relentless storm as the Second Task Force bombarded the defenses of Caro Bay. Infantry charged, then artillery bombarded; artillery bombarded, then infantry charged. The simple and effective tactics left no officer in the Church with a countermeasure.
"That northern demon..."
"What? Lord Ravut?"
“I once heard a rumor that the inventors of these muskets and cannons we have are the demons from the north, from the old queen and the new vampire princess.”
"I still don't know what that means. I thought these things left behind by the new Demon King's fleeing army were their trump card, but I never expected... Hahaha!!!"
The man known as Ravut was one of the Church's generals. He looked at the Church's annihilated fleet in the harbor and at the Demon fleet that sailed proudly like swans in the distance. Compared to those beautiful ships that spewed black smoke, the Church's Glory Goddess looked like a pregnant woman—huge in appearance but actually vulnerable.
It now appears that the Northern Demons were the inventors of the gunpowder system, and this view is correct. The Demon infantry's artillery was the dominant force in this battle, with each shell producing a terrifying explosion. It was like a combination of magicians and artillery. The magicians' fireballs could explode, but their range was not as far as that of the artillery, while the artillery had a long range but could not explode.
The demons' cannons not only had a long range, but also produced deadly explosions, which were fatal to the church's wooden ships.
The demon infantry's rifles not only had a long range, but also a high rate of fire. He personally witnessed a demon infantryman fire two shots in ten seconds at a distance of 150 paces, killing two church musketeers who were loading gunpowder.
How are we supposed to fight this? The demon fleet kept firing meteors and cannons at sea, almost collapsing a section of the city wall. You have to understand that for the past few hundred years, the Duke of Brittany established Brittany's independence by relying on the city walls surrounding the Bay of Caro.
Now, in just one day, the walls of Carlo Bay were breached. He saw an officer bravely step forward with a line of soldiers. The officer shouted to maintain formation, but his expensive and conspicuous attire immediately attracted the attention of the demon infantry. One demon infantryman raised his musket, pulled the trigger, and the officer fell straight to the ground. The hard-won troops immediately collapsed.
The demon infantry drew ever closer until they reached an unseen dividing line. The victors on the sea ceased their bombardment, and the cannons were transported ashore. The demons had secured a stable bridgehead, all within a morning.
Lavut stood on a bell tower behind the city wall, looking around. The bell tower was tall, and behind the city wall, several officers had already gathered the soldiers and organized them into a line behind the gap in the wall, where the enemy's cannons could not fire.
But he didn't notice that the sunlight reflected off the binoculars in his hand, attracting the attention of a small figure on the sea. A dark blue gun barrel rested on a slender hand, and the mechanically manufactured perforated sight was adjusted to a suitable distance. This Sharps rifle was different from the Sharps rifles used by the naval infantry in that it used .50 caliber metal ammunition and was known as the "Sharps Big 50".
Its user, on the swaying ship, aimed at her enemy, her delicate fingers slowly pulling the trigger. With the response of the mechanical mechanism, a snap was heard, but the hammer was not fired. This Sharps rifle had a second trigger, the function of which was to set the trigger pull.
The shooter gave a sweet smile, her finger on the trigger. The ship rocked from side to side, but she held the rifle firmly and pulled the trigger.
boom!
1247 meter
Alice lowered her rifle, picked up her binoculars, and saw something falling down. That was probably her target. She uttered an untimely but chilling remark.
"Hehe, thanks for your cooperation, Mr. Prey~"