On the boundless blue sea, the Scarborough Royal was patrolling its territory like a lion.
This second-class warship belonged to the British Navy. It had a displacement of 2000 tons, 90 cannons, and nearly 700 sailors. It was a terrifying existence in the Caribbean Sea.
Every once in a while, the Scarborough would regularly cruise out of the port. According to the orders of the Admiralty, it maintained the order of several nearby sea trade routes. Everywhere it passed, pirates would flee upon hearing the news.
In fact, just hearing the name of the Scarborough was enough to make the most powerful pirates tremble in fear.
Therefore, every time the Scarborough sailed out of the port, it would encounter very few battles, unless you included the one-sided attack and the fleeing pirates.
Captain Elmer was sitting on the deck, sipping red wine while listening to the violin played by the musicians.
However, not long after he immersed himself in the music, he was interrupted by someone. Overhead? The lookout suddenly shouted, "An armed merchant ship has been spotted in the southwest direction!"
Elmer frowned, his face showing a hint of displeasure.
The chief officer heard him and quickly walked to the side of the ship. He took the copper binoculars and looked at them for a while. "The French flag is hanging on the mast. It has a deep draft and its speed is only about three knots. It must be carrying a lot of cargo."
Captain Elmer finally put down the wine in his hand and slowly walked over.
Europe was now in the midst of the War of the Spanish Succession. In order to prevent the Bourbons from annexing Spain, the new Grand Alliance, including Britain, united against France and its allies. Both sides were in a state of war.
At this time, the French armed merchant ship could only blame its bad luck for bumping into the Scarborough.
Elmer glanced at the sailors on the deck and saw that everyone was looking at him with eyes full of desire. He smiled and said, "If this is a gift from God, why should we reject it?"
The sailors immediately cheered when they heard this. Everyone would have starved to death if they waited for the Admiralty to pay them. Extra loot like this was the only motivation for them to go out to sea. Even if most of the loot ended up in Elmer's and the Admiral's pockets, everyone was already used to this kind of thing. They were satisfied with a little soup to drink.
With the captain's order, the Scarborough immediately began to adjust its course and sailed towards the "unlucky" armed merchant ship. At the same time, it opened its cannons, revealing the densely packed black cannons inside, like a shark baring its sharp teeth.
Although the battle was about to begin, the atmosphere on the deck was generally relaxed. The violinist in charge was still performing diligently.
The difference in firepower between the two sides was huge. There was no suspense in this battle. If the other side knew what was good for them, they would soon surrender and hand over the goods. If Elmer was in a good mood, he might even spare the lives of the people on the ship.
The sailors of the Scarborough were immersed in the joy of receiving some extra income. Only one of the officer candidates on the ship was slightly worried. He said to Elmer, "Sir, isn't this a little too simple? Our route is not a secret. Why would a French merchant ship dare to appear at this time?"
Before he could finish his sentence, he was interrupted by his comrade. "In the face of absolute power, no tricks or schemes will work. Relax, Burnett. We are on the Scarborough. We have no natural enemies in these waters."
"…"
Unlike the joyous atmosphere on the Scarborough, the pirates on the Sea Lion were generally silent. They were about to face the biggest battle of their lives.
It had been half a month since they left Nassau. Thanks to Goodwin's betrayal, Orff's prestige on the ship had soared. Even if there were still people who were dissatisfied with him, they did not dare to show it.
However, under such circumstances, when Orff said that to obtain the fifth piece of the treasure map, they needed to first take down the Scarborough Royal, even the most fanatical pirates found it difficult to continue supporting him.
Because this had nothing to do with courage. It was complete madness.
All the pirates operating in the Caribbean Sea knew that the Scarborough was not to be touched. Although there was no written ban, pirates would usually choose to avoid the navy. Attacking the navy's supply ship was already a very risky move, and the Sea Lion had paid a heavy price for it.
For the sake of Kidd's treasure, everyone reluctantly accepted the operation at that time. Moreover, the firepower of the supply ship was similar to that of the Sea Lion. As long as the command was right, bravery could win. But the Scarborough … it was a completely different matter.
The oldest gunner on the ship was the first to speak. "The Scarborough is equipped with three times the number of cannons we have, and they are more powerful and have a longer range. There is no way we can fight this battle. Not to mention that our hull is far less sturdy than a warship. One round of fire, and we will completely fall apart. Mr. Orff, I have always trusted your leadership ability, but this time, I have to object because this action is simply suicide. "
His words were also supported by the majority of the pirates.
Orff had to raise his voice. "Gentlemen, I agree with you. In terms of firepower, we are indeed at a disadvantage. If we fight head-on, we definitely have no chance. So, our only hope is to join the ship."
"Join the ship? I know that we have recruited a lot of good people this time, but even if we include the cook, the ship's doctor, and the other technical personnel, we only have 173 people. How are we going to fight against 700 people? And the most important thing is that with the Scarborough's firepower, I'm afraid we will be sunk before we even get close to it. "Owen, the boatswain, also voiced his doubts.
"Yes, you are right. Under normal circumstances, that would be the case." Orff paused. "Unless we don't have to approach the Scarborough, but let it approach us."
"How is that possible?!"
"Of course, it is impossible when we raise the black sails. Once the Scarborough finds out that we are pirates, the only option left is to open fire. But if we can make them believe that we are just a merchant ship, the situation will be different. No one would go against a ship full of porcelain, right?"
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