Chapter 122: The Fall of the Monarch
"Rotate the turrets, one o'clock position, full firepower. Suppress the enemy and do not let them return fire." The decisive battle between the Scottish and Welsh forces was underway in the St. George's Channel. The crux of this critical engagement lay with the Scottish Monarch-class battleship. Although this vessel was one of the King George V-class battleships, its formidable firepower meant that, under normal circumstances, it would be considered a class unto itself.
The battleship Monarch was a premier warship in modern naval warfare, possessing the strength to turn the tide of a conflict. Every nation had such core trump cards. Much like the Terminator technology hidden within the Kingdom of Kestan or the nuclear technology of the Eastern Alliance and the electromagnetic technology of Israel, the naval warfare technologies of the United Kingdom and the Gale Empire were top-tier. The difference was that the United Kingdom's naval technology and Israel's electromagnetic technology were openly acknowledged. Furthermore, while the top-tier technologies of the Kestan Kingdom and the Eastern Alliance were common knowledge, they denied their existence because these assets were not internationally recognized. No one acknowledged the legitimacy of nuclear weapons or Terminators; international regulations dictated that they should not exist, and no nation was permitted to possess them. To conceal this reality, the Eastern Alliance referred to its nuclear missiles as "mass-projectiles," and the Kestan Kingdom labeled its Terminators as "robotics technology." In truth, they were merely deceiving themselves.
However, the United Kingdom's battleship Monarch was different. It was an overt superweapon. The Gale Empire and the United Kingdom made no attempt to conceal their strength. They flaunted the power of the Monarch as if fearful of being attacked by other nations. Yet, to Trexi, the Monarch was merely one ship in the United Kingdom's vast naval fleet. The true deterrent to other nations should be the entire British fleet, not any single vessel. If the Monarch were to sink, it would only plunge the British citizenry into panic. What Trexi needed to do was demonstrate that the Monarch could be defeated by other warships, thereby eliminating the public's reliance on a single vessel. While this might disrupt military morale to an extent, the fact that he was the one orchestrating it would ultimately bolster his own prestige.
"Ha! Dealing with me won't be that easy! Interceptor missiles, grid coverage, Erebus—show them your speed!" As Cole spoke, he seemed to trigger a hidden mechanism; his speed suddenly doubled from a pathetic twenty knots, allowing him to nimbly dodge the incoming shells. Twenty knots versus forty knots—the difference was immense. Twenty knots was essentially the speed of an old-fashioned battleship, which typically lacked speed due to the combination of heavy, shallow-draft guns and a light hull. But forty knots? That was the speed of a destroyer! While it couldn't compare to a motorboat or a torpedo boat, it was truly extraordinary. Imagine an assassin as light as a swallow, yet carrying a massive 381mm cannon—how terrifying would that be?
"Hmph. I'm done playing with you. Let's end this in one go! Endless darkness, shroud them in death! Erebus, finish off the Monarch!" Seemingly unwilling to waste more time, Cole grew serious, aiming his 381mm guns at the deck of the Monarch. The electromagnetic accelerator began to whir rapidly, the current reaching the intensity of lightning. A single strike at this power was enough to pierce the Monarch's armor, but it meant the Erebus-class monitor could not maintain continuous fire, lest the barrels overheat severely. Yet, Cole seemed indifferent to this. After the first volley, the Erebus-class 381mm guns suddenly emitted gusts of mist—liquid nitrogen. Cole was using it to force-cool the barrels. It was a dangerous maneuver; if not controlled precisely, the 381mm cannon would be ruined. But if managed correctly, the gun could fire continuously. Cole had clearly planned for this.
A triple burst. For this triple-mounted 381mm cannon, a triple burst meant firing nine shells at once. Such firepower was simply not something the Monarch's armor could withstand. As expected, 20 kilometers away, the steel behemoth exploded from within. Though it could not be observed directly, a close-range view would reveal that the Monarch's 410mm turret had been blown into the sky. This was a strategic strike. During the United Kingdom's war of independence, this "Ship of the Century" had withstood the combined fire of three battleships of equal tonnage. Even then, after absorbing that barrage, the Monarch had only suffered moderate damage; it had remained combat-capable. Yet now, facing a mere monitor, the Monarch had been heavily damaged before it could even get close. It was a humiliation in the history of the Monarch, and even if it were only a military exercise, it was unacceptable.
Yet this scene signaled the end of the battle between Wales and Scotland. If even the legendary battleship Monarch had failed, what else could possibly withstand the Welsh offensive?
---
*Author's Note:*
Are the results out yet? I hope those who performed well can fully unleash their excitement, and for those who didn't do as well as hoped, do not be discouraged. Exams are like that—they possess a certain degree of controllability, but also uncertainty. No one can guarantee that their results will be good, nor can anyone be certain they will be poor. Life is the same, which is why every day can be different. If everything were predetermined, life would be dull and tedious.