This winter was destined to be anything but peaceful...
"Enemy attack! Enemy attack!!"
The alarm blared at the North Sea port of the Barton Empire. Accompanied by wave after wave of shouting, the entire port—even the nearby waters—fell into a commotion.
"An unfamiliar fleet has been spotted in the outer waters! More than twenty ships have been sighted so far!"
"Is it the enemy fleet that attacked the North Sea before?"
"Can't confirm!"
"Fuck! Of all times, it had to be now!"
The sudden emergency, combined with the unverified intelligence, threw the Barton Empire into chaos.
Because the previous clash had left the North Sea region without any fleet stationed there, the East Sea Fleet and West Sea Fleet had each urgently dispatched a formation to assist with the defense and prevent a repeat of the situation.
At present, the North Sea's defensive forces consisted of two large warships and twenty-six Fast Ships.
There had originally been only twenty Fast Ships. Of the six additional vessels, some had been hurriedly built in the North Sea after the losses they had suffered, while others were Fast Ships that had survived the previous bombing and had since been repaired.
After being supplied with naval personnel, these Fast Ships were directly incorporated into the existing defensive fleet.
At this moment, facing what was suspected to be the culprit behind the destruction of the North Sea Fleet, along with one formation each from their East Sea Fleet and West Sea Fleet, it would have been a lie to say that the two defensive formations felt no tension whatsoever.
"Watch out for the enemy's aerial attacks!"
Some of the fighting back then had taken place directly within the Barton Empire's territorial waters. During the clashes between the two sides, certain intelligence had naturally been exposed