Eight years wasn't a long period of time. The Valkyrie soldiers who had joined the Northlands back then were still young kids, but it wasn't exactly a short period of time either. With sufficient benefits and powerful individuals to call upon, the Northlands had completely taken off after several battles.
The distance between the new Mist Alliance and the mega empires was probably the distance they needed to prove their strength.
This wasn't a peaceful Earth. Since everyone knew that a Holy War was about to arrive, any increase in national strength would naturally be invested into the Bloodshed Land.
The Northlands Mist Alliance had been making a lot of money from weapons over the past few years. However, their most advanced and mature weapons and equipment were only for their own use … What? Advanced weapons that hadn't even been labeled had appeared on the battlefields in other regions? They hadn't even seen the Mist Alliance's soldiers before?
Cough, perhaps I would see those new weapons in the near future, or perhaps I would never see them again. For example, the super super gnome death RPGs that had a range even shorter than an explosion radius, or the super flamethrower that accidentally purchased unstable gnome fuel, which would explode after three seconds of firing … That thing was called a super bomber by some people, and some countries were actually buying it in large quantities.
Over the past few years, the Mist Alliance's military observers, weapons dealers, and engineers had traveled all over the world, producing all sorts of weapons and equipment that had been tested in real battles. However, there were some things that the Mist Alliance didn't buy.
"The new Borealis airship fleet is the most advanced airship fleet in the entire Mist Alliance. Compared to the original Borealis airship fleet, its hull is longer, its armor is thicker, and its cannons are stronger …"
"I know better than all of you. There's no need to explain to me."
After I sent away the engineer who kept rambling on, I began to carefully inspect the airship's data.
The new Borealis was the first North Star airship. The airship was 302 meters long and 60 meters wide. It had twenty heavy cannons charged with magic crystals, four mage towers for defensive spells, and one offensive mage tower. The ship's bow had two super main cannons with a maximum range of 30 kilometers. It also had a built-in hangar that could store sixteen Vulture type 4 assault airships, four Hurricane type 2 patrol airships, and forty Pygmy Phoenix fighter airships.
Even if this didn't seem like much, the difference was obvious when compared to the original Borealis airship fleet's data.
The Borealis was a super-heavy battleship with a length of 243 meters and a width of 40 meters. It had nine heavy cannons charged with magic crystals, seven medium mage towers, one super mage tower, and thirty-two medium and small engineering cannons. The super main cannon at the head of the ship had a maximum range of 30 kilometers. It had a built-in hangar that could store three Vulture assault ships.
Back in the day, the Borealis could be considered a prototype that the Ottoman Empire had meticulously developed. It was indeed very powerful. Not only could it be used as a powerful gunship, it also had a mage tower on top of it to increase the spellcasters' combat strength, and it also had a small storage cabin for small ships. It could be said that it had all the necessary functions. However, in actual combat, it revealed many problems.
The super main cannons would be so powerful that even SemiGod behemoths wouldn't be able to withstand them. However, the mana consumption would be tremendous. A mage tower that lacked mana would easily become nothing more than a decoration. And if the mage tower was attacked by an aerial Knight, the mage tower would have to rely on the engineering cannons that had been dismantled from the city walls. Using ground cannons to attack an aerial Knight would have a terrible range and accuracy that could be ignored.
And if the mage tower was to launch a surprise attack on the ground, they wouldn't dare to casually use their main cannons. They would have to rely on the engineering cannons. These cannons were basically the battleship version of a ground attack plane. They would be far too dangerous and wasteful. As for the Vulture assault ships, it was likely that nobody would count on them.
The Borealis prototype could be said to be a classic theoretical prototype. It looked quite beautiful, and its functions were quite comprehensive. However, it was full of problems when used in actual combat. Being all-powerful meant being useless. If it wasn't for the fact that I had transformed it into an undead airship with unlimited endurance, it would have sunk long ago.
Meanwhile, the new Borealis was obviously a battleship that was only functional.
The Borealis gave up on the overly expensive and impractical large-scale mage towers. Instead, it chose to focus on defensive mage towers. It was likely that the main job of the mages on the ship would be to provide protection for the ship and maintain all sorts of defensive spells. The offensive mage towers would probably only be used when an archmage was stationed on the ship.
The Borealis also completely eliminated the engineering cannons that were far too outdated. The Borealis instead doubled the number of magical-crystal cannons that could use up magical ores and gems. The Borealis also abandoned the mage towers that used up a large amount of energy. The firepower of the Borealis' twin cannons was also doubled. It could be said that the Borealis' mid-range and long-range cannons were now many times more powerful.
The Borealis would obviously rely on airships for ground and air attacks. The Borealis changed from battleships to motherships, which doubtlessly meant that this was the Borealis' most important combat function.
I also learned from some information that the Borealis actually had nearly a hundred Griffin Knight and 12 Aurora Knight stationed on the ship. This doubtlessly meant that the Borealis was determined to strengthen its aerial forces … It was likely that even two Dragon Knight knights would be swiftly defeated.
The Mist Alliance's engineers were no idiots. Even if I didn't do anything, they learned from actual combat. They unhesitatingly gave up on the old generation's battleship magic squads and cannons. They instead chose to use motherships and airships, which would strengthen the Borealis' aerial and ground support abilities. This greatly increased the Borealis' strategic importance to the overall battle situation.
"All seven Borealis are motherships?"
I recalled that the few motherships that were still under construction at the time didn't have any motherships.
"The Borealis are all motherships that have a certain amount of cannons and cannons. The old motherships have either been sold off or directly modified. The new motherships are all primarily airships. Actual combat has proven the advantages of this combat style. However, due to the limited production capacity of our shipyards, only four of the Borealis airships have been deployed …"
I nodded and didn't even ask for the reason. Shipbuilding required a large amount of money. It also required a sufficient industrial, magical, and alchemical foundation. The Northlands' industrial foundation was quite weak. I was already quite satisfied that they were able to accomplish this much. It would seem that I had made quite a lot of money from selling weapons over the past few years.
After the Borealis were completed, it would also take time and effort to prepare the assault airships and small fighter airships. None of this could be accomplished in a short period of time.
"Then, are the other three motherships empty?"
"No, this time, Her Highness Renée brought the Avalanche Squadron, Silver Cross Knight Squadron, and more than ten other infantry and Knight squadrons. She also brought the Northlands elves' archers and mages. They'll be useful during the landing battle. There are also sixteen adult dragons following the airship fleet. However, they're all young dragons that are around ten meters long. "
I nodded in satisfaction. At the very least, it sounded quite reliable for the time being. Renée and her airship fleet had already arrived in front of us. It was just that the new Borealis had been sent to pick us up.
As for the dragons, as the Mist Alliance and the Underground Dragon City became more and more connected, the Underground's black and red dragons had already become the Mist Alliance's mercenaries. Apart from the fact that these large dragons were paid ridiculously high wages, they were also highly compatible with the motherships. They were fast, highly skilled in aerial combat, and could even cast spells. This made up for the motherships' lack of agility.
Of course, the old dragons were still quite reserved. Little Red's Underground Dragon City wouldn't be able to command them. The Dragons and young black and red dragons didn't have any morals to begin with. They used to have the so-called dignity of dragons, but now that the Dragons Empress had ordered them to do so, they would be able to maintain their dignity and earn money. Humans' wars weren't that difficult for dragons, and their lives would be in even less danger than robbing someone or running into a Dragonslayer. Not only that, their income would be stable, and they would also have a good reputation and honor. Why wouldn't they do this?
"It would seem that Renée isn't here just to save people …"
If she was only here to save people, then it would be far more convenient to leave all the airships empty. Since she was here with heavy firepower and powerful warriors, it was only natural that she intended to have a good fight.
"Her Majesty said that this will be the first direct battle of the Holy War. Our Mist Alliance's first airship fleet needs to fight in style and with vigor …"
"… And then the fairies will broadcast the entire battle. That'll make it convenient for them to sell their firearms?"
The young captain of the new Borealis chuckled but didn't respond. However, his silence proved my inference right.
"You've already mass-produced the shrunken version of the mothership?"
"… The first mothership was delivered to Bardi two months ago. However, please don't call it the shrunken version. This is Bardi's commercial version."
I chuckled and didn't say anything else. The mothership's carrying capacity was limited, and it was here to save people. Renée wouldn't be so foolish as to fill it up with elite troops. She probably only brought a squadron of each troop type with her. She intended to use the battlefield to collect data and test the Mist Alliance's troop types' adaptability against the Chaos Abyss's troops.
"She's really becoming more and more like it …"
I could only sigh in amazement. Perhaps Renée wasn't an all-rounded queen who was skilled at managing government affairs. However, in terms of military affairs, the Knight Princess's constant victories brought her endless glory. She had excellent foresight, and she always made correct and farsighted decisions. As the Mist Alliance continued to grow stronger, Renée became more and more famous. She was faintly becoming the leader of the younger generation.
"It would seem that I truly chose an excellent successor."
One day later, the new Borealis met up with the Big Dipper airship fleet again. I met up with Renée again, but this time, her situation was rather strange.
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