Chapter 180: The Might of Industry, Myr's Sea of Fire
Essos, Myr
Myr, which had undergone a peaceful transformation, had never suffered the calamities of war. As one of the Nine Free Cities, Myr always maintained a high level of vigilance and defensive awareness.
In history, this city was nearly captured in an attack by Volantis. It was from that time on that the Myrish people began to prioritize urban defense.
Therefore, whether facing invaders from the vast seas or enemies attempting to breach the walls from the land, Myr had meticulous defense plans and emergency measures.
The city's previous leaders had carefully designed a series of fortifications and tactics to ensure that under any circumstances, Myr could hold onto its independence and freedom.
However, the Golden Company's offensive exceeded everyone's expectations. The ferocity of their assault almost caught the Myrish defenders off guard.
They not only launched a fierce attack on the city's East Gate, attempting to break through, but a massive fleet also appeared at sea, forming a pincer movement against Myr from both land and sea.
This fleet appearing at sea, although not directly subordinate to the Golden Company in name, called itself the Joint Mercenary Fleet.
It was precisely because of their presence that the Golden Company's offensive became increasingly violent, making Myr's defensive situation even more severe.
The Joint Fleet's catapult ships had been continuously launching fireballs. These attacks significantly dispersed the defenders' strength. Even though the councillors were constantly deploying private soldiers to fight the fires, the situation inside the city remained dire.
Fires were breaking out almost everywhere. If not for the few sorcerers remaining here, the flames would likely have been even more intense.
Although the city-states of Braavos and Pentos had not formally declared war on Myr and still maintained a facade of neutrality, their participation in the attack via a mercenary fleet was undoubtedly a provocation against Myr.
This act of waging war under the guise of mercenaries was effectively a disguised declaration of war. After suffering the attack, Omar Panaym and the others decided to persuade Aegon to lead his troops north.
"Hurry up and assemble those heavy catapults for me! By the Lord of Light! We're actually being beaten like this by war machines? If you're not embarrassed, I certainly am!"
After leading the sorcerers to extinguish another open flame and organizing the workers to assemble the heavy catapults, Trang Taip gave the order directly.
As these heavy catapults were continuously brought into service, the pressure within Myr suddenly lessened. With more and more catapults entering operation, the Joint Fleet began to scatter to avoid being hit.
Those fellows from the Golden Company were indeed cunning; they appeared to be launching a ground assault, but in reality, their true killing blow came from the sea.
However, after the initial panic, the Myrish defenders organized a counterattack. Even though the warships in the military harbor had been attacked by the Joint Fleet at the very start, the defenders quickly adapted.
After the enemy sank several ships attempting to leave the harbor, they shifted their attention toward Myr's main urban area.
They did not know that the true trump card of the Myrish fleet was the small vessels hidden within the military harbor.
When Aegon had lived on Earth, he had played a classic real-time strategy game that featured a type of suicide attack vessel called a Fire Ship, and the concept had always remained fresh in his memory.
After gaining control of Myr, Aegon had been thinking about how to maximize the damage dealt to an enemy fleet.
Aegon understood after conquering the Kingdom of the Three Daughters that those Braavosi fellows would eventually face off against him. Moreover, the fleets of the Arbor, the Iron Fleet, and the Royal Fleet of Westeros were not forces to be trifled with.
It was for this reason that Aegon had become obsessed with developing new types of warships.
The fire ship Aegon designed was somewhat similar to a longship, with the fire ship in front and a maneuvering vessel behind.
The fire ship was packed with various oils and flammable materials, while the maneuvering vessel behind was similar to a galley, capable of being operated by thirty to forty people simultaneously.
During naval battles, the crew would use the maneuvering vessel to push the fire ship forward.
The fire ship had a ram and spikes at the front. Just before striking an enemy vessel, the crew aboard the maneuvering ship would ignite the fire ship in advance, then release the bindings and let it surge forward on its own.
When the Joint Fleet attacked Myr's military harbor, they only blocked the main entrance because, in their view, the large warships in the harbor were already trapped.
Therefore, their task was simply to keep these ships bottled up.
It was precisely because of this arrogant mindset that they encountered a far more terrifying attack.
Myr's military harbor had five exits.
The central channel was the largest, allowing three Swan Ships or galleons to enter or exit side-by-side.
The other four exits only allowed small merchant or transport vessels to pass.
It was through these inconspicuous exits that, after the Joint Fleet began to scatter, a large group of new warships resembling small longships suddenly rushed out.
This miraculous scene was quickly reported by the Joint Fleet's lookouts to the flagship, the Purple Light.
The commander of the Joint Fleet was a man named Jack Antaryon, a kinsman of the current Sealord, Ferrego Antaryon.
The Sealord of Braavos was somewhat similar to a president on Earth, though this position was effectively held for life.
Since the current Sealord, Ferrego Antaryon, had been suffering from a serious illness, his family members were constantly looking for opportunities to secure more benefits for themselves during his tenure.
The reason Jack Antaryon joined the Joint Fleet this time was to bring the city of Myr directly under the influence of Braavos.
After Pentos completely bowed before Braavos, some people in Braavos began to harbor imperial ambitions.
Although Braavosi always called themselves free men, no one is immune to the lure of profit.
Furthermore, the title of "free men" often helped them openly interfere in the politics and systems of the other Free Cities, something they were very experienced at.
"Lord Jack! Our men have spotted the enemy's longship units. What should we do now? Do we need to send the escort fleet to attack them?"
After noticing something was wrong, Jack Antaryon's first mate hurriedly reported to him.
Jack Antaryon picked up his spyglass and observed the situation in the distance, furrowing his brows.
It was his first time seeing such a warship; it looked like a longship, yet it clearly wasn't.
After thinking for a moment, Jack Antaryon decided to dispatch an escort fleet to disperse these strange vessels, as he wasn't quite sure what they were.
Thus, under the command of the fleet's signalmen, about thirty ships began moving to intercept the fire ships emerging from Myr's military harbor.
These ships were Braavosi purple-sailed ships.
They were somewhat smaller than average galleons, but their carrying capacity and durability were extremely impressive.
Among ships of similar displacement, these purple-sailed vessels could even be considered among the finest.
Braavosi purple-sailed ships were highly practical. They could carry weapons such as scorpions and also accommodate large numbers of soldiers on deck.
Just when the distance between the two sides had narrowed to roughly three hundred meters, clusters of flames suddenly ignited on the fire ships in front.
Immediately afterward, under the astonished gazes of the Joint Fleet's crews, these strange fire ships suddenly separated into two sections, sending the burning vessels surging directly toward them.
"Evade!"
"Watch out!"
"Moon Singer save me..."
"Abandon ship! Quickly!"
...
These sailors were not fools. They understood perfectly well what would happen if those burning vessels struck them.
Thus, the purple-sailed escort fleet descended into complete chaos the moment they grasped the danger.
Some fled left and right, while others desperately furled their sails and attempted to turn away.
But under these circumstances, they simply did not have enough time.
Many helmsmen, in their panic, even rammed their own allies.
This chaos provided the fire ship squadrons with a perfect opportunity.
Boom...
Crack...
Rumble...
...
Amid a series of collisions and roaring explosions, the purple-sailed ships dispatched from the Joint Fleet were completely wiped out by the fire ships.
Those maneuvering vessels that had completed their attack quickly raised their sails and returned to the harbor.
As long as the chains and hooks remained intact, these maneuvering ships could theoretically continue launching fire ship attacks indefinitely.
After eliminating the escort fleet, the fire ships began dispersing to both flanks.
When Jack Antaryon—a commander not particularly skilled in naval warfare—received reports of the situation, he immediately fell into a panic.
The enemy's tactics were unlike anything he had ever seen before.
Although Braavos was wealthy, they had never been so extravagant.
"Lord Jack, give the order quickly, or it will be too late!"
After hearing the first mate's shout, Jack Antaryon finally regained some composure.
Unfortunately, it was already too late.
The fire ships, like a swarm of enraged hornets, formed two advancing columns and charged directly toward the Joint Fleet from both flanks.
In this era, aside from simple flag signals, communication between ships was extremely slow.
Sometimes vessels farther away could not even see the flagship's signals, so they generally followed the actions of the friendly ships nearest to them.
The problem lay precisely with these peripheral ships.
As the fire ships executed their double envelopment, Jack Antaryon immediately ordered the fleet to break out to the north.
However, Myr's fire ships launched their assault almost simultaneously.
Thus, very quickly, vessels carrying terrifying flames rushed straight toward the Joint Fleet.
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