Small Species: Ramming Conch

Opening the silver case, Evan saw a green, gemstone-like pointer slowly turning amid the complex mechanical dial to the steady ticking, before gradually stopping at the three o'clock direction.

"Level-one battle readiness! Three o'clock direction! Prepare the cannons!" Gell's command rang across the entire ship.

Although Evan had no idea what was happening, he did not dare speak carelessly at a time like this. On a ship at war, there were no uncles or nephews, only superiors and subordinates. If his words delayed the battle, then even if Gell did not punish him, Evan would never forgive himself.

Evan did not understand, but that did not mean the other officers did not.

"It really is a sea monster! Why would a sea monster come to a place like the Nearshore?" the Navigator asked in surprise.

"The Sea Monster Pointer is far too imprecise. It can only confirm their existence through the unique Sound Waves of sea monsters; it cannot distinguish their rank at all." The helmsman gripped the ship's wheel and carefully adjusted the Silver Wing's heading as he complained.

"In a place like the Nearshore, running into a Small Species sea monster around thirty meters long would already be incredibly lucky. How could there possibly be a Large Species? Not to mention Giant Species, which are rare even in the deep sea.

"Besides, we should be grateful we were once part of a Fourth-Rate Battleship. Otherwise, we would not even have been issued a Sea Monster Pointer with this level of precision. Be content!" The first mate was the most easygoing. As the man in charge of the ship's logistics, he naturally knew how precious a Sea Monster Pointer was.

The first mate, Navigator, and helmsman were all standing beside him, Battleship Captain Gell. They had all seen the indication from the strange device in Gell's hand and began discussing it among themselves.

The officers had clearly weathered many storms and were not nervous. They were merely curious about why a sea monster that lived in the deep sea had appeared along a Nearshore route.

Listening from the side, Evan found it fascinating. To him, tales of sea monsters still belonged to the realm of stories; he had not encountered them even during recruit training.

What Evan did not know was that all kinds of mystical knowledge involving the hidden world were Forbidden Knowledge whose widespread dissemination was jointly restricted by secular nations and churches.

Mystical knowledge often involved power. Like the Knight training method, without the corresponding foundation knowledge and guidance from someone to lead the way, recklessly exploring the unknown often led to disastrous consequences.

The Knight training method was not all that dangerous. At worst, when advancing as a knight, one would completely lose one's reason, have one's body taken over by savage instincts, and turn into a beast.

It harmed oneself, but could not harm many others.

Yet among the other strange and difficult-to-discern forms of mystical knowledge, it would not be surprising if some concealed the gaze of terrifying evil gods. One could imagine that once such power spiraled out of control and brought about an irresistible horror, it could drag an entire city into the grave.

With his family inheritance cut off, Evan had inherited little mystical knowledge hidden in the deeper layers of the world aside from the core knightly legacy. Under those circumstances, butler Leo would not have taught him knowledge that was temporarily useless.

Nor was this something recruits were supposed to encounter in naval training camp. By the time they truly needed to face mysteries of this level, most of them would already be crewmen or even officers aboard at least a Fourth-Rate Battleship, with plenty of time to learn from their seniors.

Thus, ever since crossing into this world, aside from the undeniably real power of an Extraordinary Knight, Evan had seen little that surpassed the nautical technology and science of his former era.

Only now did he finally feel as though he was in a fantastical other world.

Then his first thought was:

"Wow! My first battle at sea as a recruit is against a sea monster. I'm amazing!"

"It's here!"

Ignoring the discussion behind him, Gell was the first to spot the sea monster's trail. After all, the huge creature had not made the slightest effort to hide itself.

Accompanied by a tremendous splash, a gigantic sea conch taller than a house burst through the sea fog and appeared before them.

Its black shell was cold and hard, with a metallic sheen. Long dark-blue tentacles danced beneath the water, constantly churning the sea. Combined with its enormous, beyond-common-sense size, it was utterly shocking!

The moment it appeared,

boundless seawater erupted from behind the conch-like sea monster. It accelerated instantly, like an indestructible battering ram, charging at high speed with enough momentum to smash the Silver Wing to pieces.

Stunned speechless, Evan could finally imagine what that merchant ship had encountered. He could also understand the despair they must have felt when a "battering ram" larger than a house bore down on them at sea!

"Confirmed sea monster type: Small Species, Ramming Conch. Gunnery officer, concentrate fire from the starboard cannons! Fire!" Gell truly deserved to be a former Battleship Captain seasoned by countless battles. He swiftly identified the sea monster and calmly directed the artillery attack. His knightly lung capacity made his command thunderous, resounding throughout the warship.

"Understood! Distance: 0.5 nautical miles. Target: Ramming Conch directly ahead. Fire!" The gunnery officer's shout immediately sounded. The artillery crews did not need to think; they only needed to carry out their officer's orders.

Perhaps this sea monster had no experience fighting human warships. The angle it chose for its attack happened to be directly ahead of one side of the ship, the direction where the ship's cannons could unleash their full power.

"Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!"...

Amid the continuous roar of cannon fire, orange-red flashes tore across the sea. In the first volley, all twenty cannons fired at once. Most of the whistling solid cannonballs crashed into the water around it, while only three struck its conch shell, producing enormous metallic clangs!

Evan saw tiny fragments of shell fall from the sea monster's body, and its speed slowed somewhat.

The bombardment was working! The sea monster was not invulnerable after all!

Gell remained calm and composed. He had experienced similar scenes too many times to count. Although sea monsters were the true rulers of the deep sea, that referred to Giant Species and even Children of the Sea Goddess. Small Species like this could still be dealt with using a warship's cannons.

As long as the order was not withdrawn, the bombardment would continue.

After another volley, as though aided by the gods, five cannonballs struck the sea monster at once. Even its thick shell cracked, injuring its main body. From somewhere unseen, the sea monster let out a shrill, piercing cry like a baby's wail.

"Screee—!"

Even though it had come within five hundred meters of the Silver Wing and looked as though it could smash the ship into fragments the next moment, the sea monster no longer dared charge recklessly. After releasing another hate-filled cry, it sank into the sea.

"Did it flee?" Evan looked around. He was the only one who did not understand sea monster behavior and could not judge what it would do next.

Animals in nature had all kinds of habits. Some would retreat to seek other prey after a slight setback, while others would hold a grudge and become impossible to shake once they latched on. Evan did not know which kind this sea monster was.

"Gunnery officer, prepare Alchemy Bombs. Be ready for anything underwater!"

"Yes, sir! Alchemy Bombs ready! First batch, ten groups! Bomb throwers, prepare!"

Only after issuing the new orders did Gell turn back and explain to Evan:

"Ramming Conches are relatively common Small Species sea monsters. Their most common method of attack is to churn the currents on the sea and ram ships after accelerating, but they are also extremely cunning. You cannot judge their absolute strength by size alone.

"The sea monsters in the Black Sea are all kin of Sea Monster Mother Ecto. They attack human ships not to feed, but because of their bloodline-deep hatred for land creatures. They believe land creatures are traitors to the sea!"

At this point, Gell's tone became extremely grave:

"When you encounter them at sea, most battles end only when one side falls forever. Remember! As long as you have not seen its corpse, you must never let down your guard."

The existence of sea monsters was still relatively basic mystical knowledge and could be shared, with limitations, among frontline combat personnel.

However, what Gell had just said was, strictly speaking, core knowledge involving the Source of Mysticism. Some mystics could even invoke the names of sacred beings in rituals to receive bestowed power.

He would only explain this to Evan. Had it been anyone else, even a young officer he valued highly, Gell would not have freely taught Extraordinary knowledge of this level.

Even if Extraordinary people on the Knight's Path could not directly draw power from this knowledge, its value remained. In the eyes of untrained Extraordinary people lacking systematic inheritance, it was a priceless treasure!

The officers beside him exchanged glances. Given their understanding of Gell, they seemed to realize something at once, and their gazes toward Evan became increasingly kind.

"Tick, tick, tick..." The Sea Monster Pointer's sound became increasingly frantic. The green gemstone pointer spun round and round without stopping, as though it had gone out of control.

"Order! Gunnery officer, drop bombs! Target: directly beneath the warship!"

"Bomb throwers! First batch! Target directly below! Drop!"

Following the gunnery officer's loud command, heavy objects struck the water with simultaneous splashes from both sides of the ship.

"Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!"...

Muffled explosions sounded in succession underwater. No one knew whether they had hit the target or struck the seabed. This era lacked underwater detection equipment, and especially against an opponent as extraordinary as a sea monster, all they could rely on was the commander's experience.

Gell was confident he could defeat a Small Species, but the sea was ultimately the enemy's home ground. Any misjudgment could plunge them into grave danger.

After glancing at the Sea Monster Pointer that was still spinning wildly, Gell decisively gave the order:

"Sail Master, raise the sails! We are leaving these waters."

Since this sea monster wanted to play hide-and-seek, they would find a way to draw it out and make it reveal itself.

"Yes, sir! Raise the sails! Full sails, accelerate!"

"Ho! Heave—ho! Heave—ho!"

As the Sail Master gave the order, the sailors' chant rose. The sails on the three Main Masts were raised in sequence, then filled by the sea breeze.

But Evan immediately sensed that something was wrong!

Although the fog was thick and the wind weak, that also meant the waves were low. They could raise every sail, what was commonly called sailing at full sail. Yet the warship's speed did not increase noticeably, as though...

As though something had caught hold of it!