Chapter 981
However, such a tragic scene did not happen. Most of the Carthage fleet agilely avoided the violent collisions and barely passed by the Diónia warships.
After experiencing such a thrilling scene, most of the Carthage sailors did not feel any lingering fear. Instead, they yelled in excitement, "See that, Diónia? This is the true strength of the Carthage sailors!"
"Hey, you guys are too clumsy. You're just like old ladies in their sixties or seventies!"
"How dare you compete with us with such skills. Even if we collide with you a hundred times, you won't be able to touch me!"
… …
The Diónia could not understand the shouts of the Carthage sailors, but they could understand the humiliating gestures of the enemy. Some of the Carthage sailors even lifted their clothes, took out their things, and peed on them. It was a great humiliation!
Even the calm captain of the flagship could not help but curse, "Damn the Carthage! If there were bows and arrows on the ship, I would have shot them to death with one shot! "
Cykerian was also angry, but as the commander, he could not show it. Instead, he said in a low voice, "It's too early for the Carthage to be happy. Our fast warships will send them to Poseidon!"
Cykerian had chosen to form a double horizontal line in order to use the more agile fast warships as the rear line to eliminate the merchant ships that had avoided the first round of attacks. However, he did not expect that the warships at the front would not be able to gain anything from the charge.
So, he turned around and looked at the back of the ship with an expectant gaze.
In the end, he could not believe what he saw. The Carthage merchant ships were like fish swimming in the water. Using the surging waves, they once again narrowly avoided the attack of the fast warships and passed through the gaps between the warships. At the same time, mocking laughter could be heard from the rear.
Therian could no longer hold back his emotions. He punched the mast fiercely and roared, "Chase after them and sink these damned merchant ships!"
In fact, he didn't even need to give the order. Almost all the warships quickly turned around and chased after Carthage's merchant ship.
The Diónia Navy had been developing rapidly in recent years, with outstanding results. Aside from that natural storm, they had almost never suffered a defeat. Even the once-powerful Carthage Navy was trampled under their feet. How proud were they? They had never suffered such humiliation before. All the crew members would never allow these Carthage merchant ships that had trampled on their dignity to leave just like that. Everyone was filled with anger. Not only did the captain ask them to speed up, but the sailors also pushed the oars even harder. Each warship sped up to catch up with the merchant ships in front of them. They swore to crash into the merchant ships in front of them to vent their anger.
At this point, it would be difficult for anyone to stop their pursuit in a short period of time. Therian knew his fleet well, so he encouraged them to continue attacking.
A sea chase began.
Now, the Diónia Sicilian fleet was divided into two parts. 80 warships were chasing and intercepting more than 200 Carthage merchant ships that were circling the islands in the waters near Eryx, while 200 warships were madly chasing the 60 Carthage merchant ships that were provoking them in the waters near Lili.
… …
The chase in the south had just begun, while the chase in the north had been going on for some time. Although the cunning Carthage merchant ships shuttled between the islands and reefs of this sea, forcing the Diónia warships, who were not very familiar with the sea conditions here, to slow down and pursue cautiously, giving the Carthage merchant ships more opportunities to shake off the pursuit. But when the warships under Stefakas were completely dispersed throughout the sea, disaster struck for the Carthage merchant ships.
After all, once the fleet was dispersed, the Carthage merchant ships would each be in charge of a small area of the sea. It was inevitable that the Carthage merchant ships would frequently encounter the warships. These Carthage sailors were indeed very good at maneuvering sailboats, but sailboats mainly relied on the wind. When sailing against the wind, their speed would naturally be affected. On the other hand, the Diónia warships relied on oarsmen and were almost unaffected by the wind. The narrow waterways divided by the islands and reefs also caused the Carthage merchant ships to lose enough space to dodge. Once the two sides met head-on, the merchant ships that did not have the ability to fight would sink almost immediately.
After more than half an hour, nearly half of the Carthage merchant ships had been lost. Many Carthage sailors were standing on each of the islands and reefs, who had swam ashore after their ships sank. At this rate, the Carthage fleet would be completely wiped out in another half an hour.
However, Stefakas did not let the victory before him get to his head. He had two doubts. First, since the Carthage fleet's escape tactic had failed, why were these merchant ships still dealing with them in this area? Second, he had just discovered that the Carthage merchant ships were stacked with simple empty wooden cages, tightly covered with linen. They looked like they were loaded with goods, but after the ship sank, they all floated up. It was no wonder that Stefakas had found it strange that the Carthage merchant ships could move so quickly even though they were carrying so much weight.
The Carthage merchant ships had obviously used such a disguise to achieve some purpose by luring them into it! Stefakas raised his vigilance. He ordered his flagship to stop chasing the enemy ships and sail to the west between Agusa Island and Phorbantia Island, which was the center of the sea. At the same time, he sent out a number of fast ships to closely investigate the surrounding situation, especially in the west.
The reason why he did not immediately assemble the warships was that he thought that in a little while, his fleet would basically be able to wipe out the Carthage merchant ships that had deceived them. Not only would it be a big blow to the Carthage people, but it would also complete the mission given to them by Officer Secorian and also let them vent their anger.
"General, look! Another merchant ship has been sunk! "the crew on the deck shouted excitedly.
"The captain of that fast warship is Ilias, right?" Stefakas looked ahead with great interest. "To be able to reverse immediately after missing the target and use the stern to overturn the merchant ships, Ilias is very quick-witted!"
"Compared to merchant ships, our warships are gigantic. Whether it's the bow or the stern, we can ram and sink them. But up until now, I've only seen Ilias's warship adopt this new tactic. Even I haven't thought of it this way. Ilias is indeed the best captain in our fleet!" The captain of the flagship on the side exclaimed in admiration.
"Our traditional habits have shackled our thinking!" Stefakas nodded his head and said seriously, "When we go back, spread this new tactic. In the future, when our fleet encounters the Carthage merchant ships again, we will have another weapon."
"Yes, sir!"
"Enemy sightings!" The lookout on the mainmast suddenly shouted nervously, "The fast ships in the west have raised their yellow flags! There are three yellow flags! "
Stefakas was greatly shocked. What he had been worried about had come true! There was no doubt that it was the Carthage fleet that was attacking, and their numbers far exceeded his B Squadron!
"Blow the bugle! Raise the yellow flag! Raise the Apollo flag! " Stefakas shouted loudly. He was very nervous. He had to immediately gather all the scattered warships to prevent them from being defeated one by one.
Then, he said with a solemn expression, "Inform a fast ship to head south immediately. Tell Sir Secorian that the Carthage fleet is attacking. We need immediate reinforcements!"
After giving the order, Stefakas calmed down a little. He thought that since the fast ship had discovered the enemy, it meant that the enemy's fleet was still four or five miles away. This sea area was only four or five miles in circumference. His fleet still had time to adjust their tactics and respond.
But what he did not know was that there was an island called Hiera directly west of the flagship. The fast ship that was supposed to deliver the message was originally located on the west side of Hilla Island. When his lookout discovered that the Carthage fleet was coming from the west, he immediately raised the yellow flag. But after a while, the captain of the fast ship did not hear the bugle sound from the flagship of the B Squadron (according to the regulations of the Diónia Navy, when the flagship conveys orders, it must sound the bugle at the same time to alert the warships under its command). He was puzzled and soon realized that he had made a mistake. Because Hilla Island was blocking him, the lookout on the flagship probably could not see the raised flag at all. He hurriedly ordered the fast ship to go around Hilla Island. Soon, he heard the bugle sound, but it took some time.
Although the 80 Dionian warships were scattered in this region of the sea and were not too far from the flagship, they could almost all hear the bugle call. However, it would still take some time for them to know the order issued by the flagship. This was because warships in battle would not allow the lookout to remain on the mast. Otherwise, the huge impact would cause the lookout to fall. Hence, the speed of the warship had to be reduced to allow the lookout to climb up the main mast. There were also some warships that were separated by islands and could not see the flag signal at all, so they had to go around. So it would take time for all the warships to regroup around Stefakas's flagship.
And now, time was undoubtedly of the essence. Just as the flagship of the Diónia B Squadron sounded the bugle, Morbar, the commander of the Carthage Navy, had led 170 warships to the west side of Hilla Island and immediately launched an attack on the three Diónia warships that were chasing the merchant ships there.
At the same time, the Carthage fleet quickly divided into two groups, each with 75 warships, one from the north and the other from the south, bypassing Hilla Island to attack the other Diónia warships.
When the merchant ship crew on Hilla Island saw that the Carthage fleet had finally appeared, they all cheered and shouted, "It's time for our revenge! Send all the Diónia people to the sea to feed the fish! … "
Among the three Dionysian warships, there were two raven warships and one fast warship. They only cared about intercepting the fleeing Carthaginian merchant ships. By the time they discovered the Carthaginian fleet approaching, it was already too late for them to retreat.
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