Mediterranean Hegemon of Ancient Greece Chapter 1295: The Great Naval Battle of Cyprus (2)

The sailors swiftly pulled their wooden oars inside, and the opposing Warship, equally well-trained, withdrew its oars just in time. The two Warships brushed past each other. Through the narrow hatches, the Cyprus sailors could clearly see the enemy crew. The opposing sailors looked cold and confident; many even wore faint, mocking smiles.

With a deafening crash, the 12-meter-long drawbridge slammed down, spiking into the deck of the Cyprus Warship. Weighed down by this sudden, massive burden, the forward-surging Cyprus Warship ground to a halt. Forty Daonian Fleet Infantry swiftly stormed across the drawbridge, charging the enemy vessel.

Right at that moment, another Cyprus Warship sailing parallel within the double-column formation made a slight turn, hurtling straight toward the hull of the immobilized Corvus Warship.

The Daonian sailors remained entirely composed in the face of this deadly threat. Following their captain's orders as the collision bore down on them, they used the embedded drawbridge as a fulcrum to twist their entire Warship, angling the hull so it would not take the enemy's ram head-on. At first glance, the effort seemed futile; past experience dictated that a ramming of this magnitude would still inflict catastrophic damage on the Warship. But—

This Corvus Warship was an iron ship!

Over the years, the Theonia Akademia, the Thurii Shipyard, and the Iron Workshop had collaborated tirelessly, running countless experiments. By banding the weaker sections of the Corvus Warship's hull with custom-forged iron plating, they dramatically enhanced its resistance to ramming while maintaining its buoyancy and balance on the waves. The only tradeoff was a slower sailing speed.

Because the entire Warship was painted pitch-black, outsiders had no way of spotting these hidden reinforcements. Unaware of the truth, the Cyprus crew watched in sheer disbelief as the Daonian vessel survived such a devastating impact completely unscathed.

Just then, a Fast Warship that had been lurking behind the iron ship surged forward like a phantom. It swiftly rammed into the enemy vessel while it was still pressed against the Corvus Warship.

Unable to evade in time, the Cyprus crew could only pray for the same miracle that had just saved the Corvus Warship. But no miracle came... Seawater poured through the shattered breach and flooded the lower decks...

Meanwhile, after the Daonian Fleet Infantry stormed the other Cyprus Warship, they did not fight their way down into the cabins. Instead, they slaughtered the crew and helmsmen on deck, completely destroyed the ship's rudder, and swiftly retreated to the Corvus Warship, pulling up the drawbridge behind them.

Stripped of its rudder, the Cyprus Warship lost all maneuverability, turning it into a target for enemy vessels. To avoid being sunk, its best option was to withdraw from the battlefield entirely.

By the time Alitaka arrived near the battlefield with the main force of the Persian Fleet, he was astonished to find the Cyprus Warships clustered together, awaiting his arrival.

He quickly learned the reason: the Daonian Fleet in the bay not only possessed sturdy Warships but also utilized bizarre tactics and strong defenses. Despite having a slight numerical advantage over the enemy, the Cyprus fleet had failed to gain the upper hand in their assault. After losing over a dozen Warships without achieving significant results, the crewmen's morale had taken a blow, forcing them to temporarily retreat and wait for reinforcements.

The combat prowess of this Daonian Fleet was certainly startling, but as the commander of the Persian Fleet, Alitaka secretly rejoiced at the minor setback suffered by the insubordinate Cypriots. He viewed this as the perfect opportunity to elevate his prestige within the Fleet.

After listening carefully to the Cypriots' account of the battle, he still decided to maintain the double-column attack formation. However, he discarded their tactic of concentrating the assault on a single flank. Instead, leveraging the massive advantage of having more than twice as many Warships as the enemy, he launched a full-scale, multi-directional assault, intending to stretch the Daonian Fleet's defenses to the breaking point.

Up on the high ground of the beach, the soldiers of the Theonia Legion watched countless Persian Warships spread across the distant sea like a massive fishing net. They bore down aggressively, posturing to completely ensnare the Daonian Fleet, which had tightly contracted into a defensive sphere. Seeing this, every soldier broke into a cold sweat over the Fleet's safety.

Right in the eye of the storm, however, Secilian laughed with unshakeable composure. "The Persian Fleet has finally committed their entire force. Excellent! These cowardly Persian servants will soon learn just how formidable the Daonian Fleet truly is!

...

By the time the dense sea fog cleared and daylight flooded the waters, Midorades immediately realized something was wrong. While he couldn't pinpoint the Fleet's exact location, the morning sun—which should have appeared to their front right—was now shining from their back right. They had clearly veered vastly off course.

With great difficulty, he rallied the scattered Warships and cargo vessels in the vicinity. He then dispatched fast ships to fan out and scout toward the sun, while ordering the entire Fleet to also sail in the sun's direction.

As they sailed on, they picked up more straggling Warships and troopships. The Fleet under his command gradually swelled to include the Second Fleet's 1st Squadron, 2nd Squadron, and 5th Squadron, along with parts of its 4th Squadron. They also gathered the First Fleet's 3rd Squadron, 4th Squadron, and 5th Squadron, plus fragments of its 6th Squadron's Warships, bringing their total to over 700 vessels. This also included nearly 400 troopships... Despite the staggering size of this mixed Fleet, Midorades ordered the vessels to increase the distance between them, doubling the sprawling footprint of their formation. It was exactly this measure that finally allowed the scouting ships sent by Secilian to spot them.

A few hours later, Midorades led the Fleet to the bay where the Daionian Army had made its landing. In the coastal waters, he saw countless Persian Warships stacked layer upon layer, charging and circling a single point, like a flock of sky-blotting vultures sharing a meal. The Daonian Warships were almost entirely hidden beneath the onslaught.

Though burning with anxiety, Midorades did not impulsively order a reckless charge. He directed the troopships to stay back temporarily, letting all the Warships fan out as they advanced on the Persian Fleet. Then, arranging his forces into the Starry Sky formation—Fast Warships in the vanguard and Corvus Warships bringing up the rear—he launched the assault.

Alitaka had been coordinating and commanding the battle from his Flagship in the rear. After a grueling battle, the Persian Fleet had finally broken through the Daonian Fleet's defenses, scattering their formation. Just as they prepared to press the advantage and completely obliterate the enemy, he received an urgent report from a fast ship: a far larger Daonian Fleet was rapidly closing in!

This news instantly doused Alitaka's passion for glorious victory. Turning pale with horror, his only thought was to order the Fleet to retreat immediately. But his Warships were already deeply embroiled in combat and scattered across the vast coastal waters; there was no way for them to receive his command swiftly.

Meanwhile, heralded by the blare of war horns, the newly arrived Daonian Fleet swooped down upon its prey like a massive eagle with outspread wings.

Following their prolonged battle, the Persian Fleet had suffered lost Warships, exhausted sailors, and fractured formations. The Daonian Fleet led by Midorades had endured a long voyage and its crew was similarly fatigued, but the conviction to save their comrades and defeat the enemy sent their morale skyrocketing. Bolstered by the always-victorious Starry Sky formation, their combat power doubled.

Thus, the Persian Fleet was routed upon the very first clash. They broke and fled in all directions, with the Daonian Warships hot on their heels in pursuit.

Worse still, during their flight to the south, the fleeing Persian Fleet encountered the late-arriving Daunian 3rd Fleet, which was escorting the supply vessels. Caught in a brutal pincer attack from front and back, their losses became even more catastrophic...

...

Midorades jumped down from his command ship, wading through the seawater onto the beach.

The beach was now teeming with landed Daonian soldiers. Under the shouts of their officers, they gathered squad by squad and began marching toward the camp currently being constructed by the previously landed Daonian soldiers.

Midorades was heading to the same destination. Thanks to his distinct commander's helmet, any soldier who bumped into him—whether they recognized him or not—respectfully saluted him.

Ordinarily, he would have smiled and returned the greetings. Now, however, consumed by anxiety, he acted as if he hadn't seen them, quickly walking into the temporary tents of the field hospital.

Here, no one saluted him. The doctors and nurses were busy rushing to save the wounded.

The landed soldiers of the Theonia Legion hadn't engaged the Cypriots in battle; all these wounded hailed from the Daonian Fleet that had just finished fighting.

Midorades stopped a soldier who was helping clear away waste. "Where is Secilian?" he asked in a low voice.

The soldier glanced at him, then hastily pointed ahead. "He's... he's all the way in the back."

Though he said 'the back,' it was actually just the other side of the tent. To ensure air circulation, convenience during emergencies, and a good recovery environment for patients, these specialized field hospital tents were equipped with multiple canvas screens. Secilian's sickbed was right beside one of these screens. The canvas had been parted slightly, allowing a beam of sunlight to project inward and fall directly onto Secilian. Guided by this light, two nurses were meticulously cleaning his wounds.