Joseon Needs a Coup - Chapter 214



Only Noblemtl

#214. Glorious Days of the Navy (7)

“···They are having fun.”

“It seems like you fight better than I thought.”

Rear Admiral Bezobrazzoff looked at the Korean Imperial Navy squadron that was attacking the transport convoy.

They were fighting quite aggressively with only six destroyers and unskilled sailors.

Actually, that was right. It was a much better option than engaging in a useless artillery battle and failing to properly hit the transports.

Kwaaaaang!!!

The explosions and sparks that could be heard everywhere, like fireworks, spoke of how brutal their hunting was.

“Wow, looks like a big one exploded.”

Judging by the amount of noise felt up to this point, it seemed like they had caught no ordinary guy.

“It looks like the ammunition has exploded. I hope the brave destroyers don’t get caught in that explosion.”

It seemed as though they had rammed a transport ship full of ammunition. They just hoped that the poor destroyer wouldn’t be damaged or destroyed by the blast and shockwave from the explosion if it got too close.

“Commander, our intercepts indicate that enemy ships are rapidly leaving Busan Port.”

After a moment of contemplation, Major General Bezobrazzoff sighed and nodded.

Well then, that’s right. When your terrified young ones are dying and desperately crying out for help, there’s no way the beast in the cave wouldn’t come out.

Rear Admiral Bezobrazzoff had no doubt that the gunfire, flames, and black smoke heard from far away would be clearly audible to the eyes and ears of the Japanese naval forces in Busan.

No, maybe it would have been louder. They would run for their lives, watching the helpless dying transport ships.

Not knowing that even more frightening things may lie far ahead.

Bezobrazzoff thought that their death in fear was the best revenge and gift he could give to his comrades who had fought bravely at Jemulpo.

And it was a thought that had always been in my heart since immediately after that vicious surprise attack.

Now that the opportunity had come, he had to act.

Instead of the fear or dread of death, the brave sailors and officers of the Vladivostok cruiser squadron felt the excitement, vengeance, anger and disgust that men might display before battle.

He looked at everyone on the bridge and raised his voice.

“Today we will show the might of the Imperial Russian Navy to the enemy. The enemy has filled us with anger and hostility, and has made us stand on this battlefield, on this sea! Brave officers of the Imperial Russian Navy! Wherever we go, screams and mournful cries will echo from the enemy’s ranks, and our fleet will stand firm as a rock against the enemy’s fire! May the wise Tsar and the benevolent saint who looks down on us protect us in this battle, and let us avenge the Varyag and the Koryets, which must be done today!”

At some point, their battle cry became the shouting of the names of the Varyag and the Koryets.

“Full speed ahead!”

At his shout, everyone on the bridge began to shout like their ancestors who had stopped Napoleon’s advance and brought the horror of Europe to its knees, like their predecessors who had made their last stand at Sevastopol.

“For the Varyags and the Koryets!”

“For the Tsar and the brothers and the saints of the Orthodox Church who look down on us!”

“For the brave sailors and all who went into battle!”

After confirming that he was fully determined to fight, he looked out at the sea again with a satisfied expression.

He had no intention of waiting for the Japanese ships to crawl out into the sea off Busan and form battle lines.

The plan was to use powerful firepower to beat them up one by one as soon as they came out of the port and send them all to the hell where Baba Yaga was waiting.

“They don’t seem to know we’re here.”

“Then things will be easier. Let’s go at full speed.”

In fact, if it weren’t for the information support that came in between, they wouldn’t have been able to act so boldly.

Even though the Japanese Third Fleet was composed of very old-fashioned ships, there was a risk that even such ships could inflict significant damage on the cruiser fleet if they were to launch a surprise attack.

However, the information they had was reliable, and the 3rd Fleet was so finely divided that only one gunboat, Atago, belonging to the 7th Squadron of the 3rd Fleet, was able to come to Busan to provide immediate assistance.

The rest were mostly dispersed to defend the archipelago waters, and even those were gunboats, except for four cruisers, so they were not a force to be concerned about.

If I had to pay attention, it would probably be the Japanese Navy’s 2nd Fleet stationed at Gunsanpo. If they growled that they were coming, I could just run away, so it wasn’t bad in many ways.

“The port is now in sight! Six enemy ships are attempting to escape the outskirts of the port. A flotilla of two cruisers and four torpedo boats!”

“Prepare the fleet for battle. Let’s show them the power of the Bogatyr.”

Ah, the power of the Bogatyr…

Major General Bezobrazzoff recalled a tale he had once heard. It was about heroes who boasted of their brute strength and slew evil dragons and monsters while carrying out justice, something that every Slav would have heard of.

Although the age of heroes and knights had passed, if there was anything that had inherited their might, Bezobrazzoff could proudly say it was these great cruisers.

And I had no doubt that these cruisers would be more than enough to inflict the wrath of the Russian Empire on those bastards.

He cleared his throat and then, in a booming voice, blurted out the words so clear that even the sound of the 203mm guns could not be heard.

“All hands, prepare for battle!”

Then, he ordered the entire cruiser fleet to be ready for battle via radio and telegraph.

Now all that remained was to send all the enemies to hell.

The guns of the great cruiser began to turn towards the port.

And then he prepared to fire as ordered.

The enemies will soon realize that they have been taken advantage of.

Because visual observation of the lookout comes much earlier than the cannon firing range.

Of course, that didn’t mean there was any way for them to escape. Even if they tried to escape, they would just be trapped in a narrow harbor and die, and in that case, it would be better to come out into the open sea and shoot at least one shot before dying.

And Bezobrazzoff was waiting for it.

Even though I knew full well that it was a surprise attack, I had no choice but to get hit.

It will make your enemies feel helpless enough.

What a bitter revenge this is.

“It seems the enemies have seen us now.”

“Let them feel the fear. We will destroy the enemy with crossfire.”

As expected, the watchdogs reported that the enemy was leaving the port at the fastest speed they could manage. It seemed that they had chosen to enter the open sea where there was a slight chance of survival rather than being trapped and dying inside.

“Commander, it appears the enemy is attempting to break our lines.”

“I’m watching too.”

Bezobrazzoff said with a frown on one side of his face. While the two protected cruisers were rushing towards the short-ranged formation, the torpedo boats that could act as a guerrilla force were clearly visible moving hurriedly to make a diversionary maneuver.

“Two enemy cruisers are coming in front. The remaining torpedo boats will most likely attempt to bypass us as soon as they get outside the harbor.”

It was as the captain said. It was clear that the enemy was trying to tie them up in a melee, despite their superior firepower and weight class.

They probably thought that if they could just buy enough time here, the fleets in the Sasebo and Tsushima areas would come to their aid, and that the fleeing transport ships would at least be able to enter the safety of the Port of Busan.

It was a fairly rational, yet ordinary judgment.

But now that they knew the intention, there was no reason for the cruiser fleet to just go along with it.

“Ha, would you like to reenact the fleet battle with the Beiyang Fleet?”

Rear Admiral Bezobrazzoff ridiculed the Japanese Navy.

They were foolish to compare themselves to the Beiyang Fleet, a mere navy.

The reason they were able to succeed at that time was because they had tried to hastily form a horizontal formation but failed, and the Beiyang Fleet, which had formed a crescent-shaped battle line, was unable to respond properly.

But the sea they faced in November 1903 was completely different. Instead of the small and weak wings of the Qing navy that the Japanese navy had encountered then, there were much faster and more powerful wings waiting for them to get out of the harbor, like a hunter targeting a predator’s vital point.

Rear Admiral Bezobrazzoff decided to unleash a barrage of fire the moment the enemy fleet entered port, so as to prevent them from making the maneuver in the first place.

They are slow-moving ships with a maximum speed of less than 11 knots, so it should be relatively easy to hit them.

He was brave, but he secretly mourned his enemies whose ships could not keep up with his ideas.

As I said before, this place was to become the graveyard for our enemies.

“Enemy ships are coming out of the harbor!”

“Now is the time, open fire!”

“Commence firing!”

A loud command was given over the radio and the cannon, and immediately all sixteen 203mm guns opened fire.

The same was true of the 84 152mm guns. The salvos fired at two enemy cruisers that tried to get close were truly devastating.

The shelling, which continued for about 3 km, was one-sided.

“Hit! Hit! The first salvo hits the lead enemy ship squarely!”

“Hurrah! Hurrah!”

In the first volley, Je-won, who was in the lead, was fatally wounded, and in the second volley, Pyeong-won, who was struggling to maneuver right next to him, was struck.

Jewon counterattacked with 210mm long-barreled guns and 150mm single-barreled guns, but to no avail.

“One enemy cruiser appears to have been badly damaged by the salvo. It is slowly listing to starboard.”

Rear Admiral Bezobrazzoff observed the enemy ships’ condition through a telescope in the conning tower.

After two salvos, flames were seen rising from the ship, along with thick smoke.

One of them hit the bridge, adding further confusion to the already chaotic ship.

“The other ship… seems to have stopped operating. Its speed has dropped significantly.”

The result was a hit by two 203mm shells.

However, it seemed as if they had not lost their fighting spirit and continued to advance towards us.

“Enemy ships continue to approach!”

“Concentrate firepower on the lead ship. We’ll deal with those that fall behind later.”

He continued to give orders calmly. If he hadn’t lost his fighting spirit, he would have to make him lose it physically.

Soon, another incredible barrage of cannon fire followed.

As the distance gradually decreased, the silent 75mm guns also opened fire, showering the enemy cruisers with fire as they headed toward their ‘glorious death’.