ASAHI NO NISHISEI - Rising Sun Goes West (1)

Battle of Iloa Sea 3

Flagship Arsacus, Altian Empire Fleet

The swarm of fighters that had rampaged through the skies above the Altian Empire's fleet had shot up all the weapons they could carry, and were returning to the flagship Akagi. The Altian soldiers looked on with despair and frustration at this leisurely sight.

"The enemy's air force is returning to front."

One of the soldiers informed Tema, the overall commander, of the situation. About 200 warships had been sunk, and nearly 450 dragons had been destroyed. Even so, there were still more than 1.500 ships left in the fleet, but the morale of the soldiers was already waning.

"......"

Tema, the commander of the fleet, was troubled by the damage his fleet was suffering. As he explored all possibilities, he realized the exact reason why the Altian Empire's forces had been repeatedly defeated by the Japanese. It was the difference in performance of the weapons themselves due to the mighty power of the enemy ships. The enemy might still have some hidden power. However, although they have lost a lot of their dragons, they still have almost 80% of their total strength, including troops and warships. It's true that each of the enemy's ships is huge, but at a rough estimate, there are about thirty of them, so even if there's a huge difference in the performance of their weapons, they might be able to push back with sheer number.

"Lord Tema!"

The voice of Aphra, the captain of the flagship Arsacus, echoed in his troubled head.

"Give the order to attack! Now is a good time, when the enemy is quiet! We have lost a lot of dragons, but if we can get close to the enemy ships and engage them in hand-to-hand combat, we stand a good chance of winning!"

"But we can't continue fighting when we don't know the full extent of the enemy's power..."

Tema was unable to decide whether to proceed or not. But if they can't see the full extent of the enemy's power, they can't continue to fight.

"Enemy ships opened fire!"

The flash from the end of the gun barrels, and after a slight time lag, a very accurate gunfire struck the Altian fleet. Immediately afterwards, the sound of gunfire, left behind by shells exceeding the speed of sound, rang out irregularly. Following the ship-to-ship missile attack, fighter attack, and anti-submarine attack, a new attack was launched.

"About 100 ships in the fleet are sunk!"

The damage report was relayed to the commander. From the deck of the flagship Arsacus, which was sailing behind, they could see pieces of wood and parts that looked like the wreckage of warships flying in front of the fleet.

"No way, we're still fifteen leagues from the enemy! There's no way their artillery can reach us...!"

Tema couldn't accept the reality of what was happening in front of him. However, in front of his eyes, the warships of the powerful Altian Empire were being blown away like wood chips.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The sound of the Japan-US Joint Fleet's artillery barrage continued to reverberate as the fleet of what should have been 1.700 ships was reduced in number at an alarming rate. The impact of the gunfire scattered the hulls of the ships, and the crews were blown away and flying in the air. The enemy's long range, accurate and continuous bombardment does not allow any counterattack by the Altian forces, and from a far distance out of range, they unilaterally annihilate the Altian fleet.

"Lord Tema!"

Just as Tema was looking at the sea in a daze, one of his subordinates came running up to him, gasping for breath.