Chapter 64 Decisive Battle One
When the war on the shore was in full swing, the Venetian navy had no further action except to attack the Roman army camps on the hills of the Acropolis. If they were willing, once they joined the battlefield, the outcome would be decided immediately. It was just because the Venetians were unwilling to pay losses, so they all watched from the wall.
But when they looked at the stalemate battle in front of them, the Venetians couldn't help but get anxious. If Baron Seren Venier had not given the strict order, they would have taken action long ago.
However, when Arslan led the cavalry to attack the rear of the Latin coalition, the Venetians also discovered something was wrong at the sea.
"That's-"
"Looking there, it seems that something happened there?!"
"Military flag, the crusade flag has fallen!"
Although the distance was very far, the Venetian Navy, who was watching every change in the war situation from afar, still found that the most conspicuous crusading flag fell down and disappeared from sight - that was an extremely abnormal thing. You must know that the flag representing the morale and fighting spirit of the army could not be allowed to fall anyway.
"It's the central army, something must have happened there!" The Venetians who reacted immediately immediately realized something was wrong and guessed something. You must know that it is entirely possible if the Greeks use some means to attack and behead them. Once they succeed, the entire battle situation may be reversed...
"Go and rescue!" At this time, the Venetians on the ship couldn't help panic. They were all from the Venier family, so they naturally followed the leader of Sainvenir and did not want to see him have any wings. After all, the purpose of their trip was not for the boring war between the Latin Crusaders and the Greeks, but also had an important task. It determines whether the Venier family can take the opportunity to replace the Dandoro family to run for the next consul - the old Dandoro in Constantinople. However, Ranieri Dandoro, who had a great chance, suffered a crushing defeat at Fort Wiscari and lost most of the garrison on Crete. Once they succeeded this time, they would definitely gain a large number of supporters. Because of this, as the commander of this operation, Sainvenir's safety cannot be lost.
"But Lord Sain had given orders before..."
"Where is there any time to care about those things at this time? We can't take any risks!"
Several Venetian nobles who were on the ship looked at each other and nodded and made up their minds to order the army to dock. Although the combat effectiveness of the Venetian army on land has never been very strong, it still has an advantage over the ups and downs of the Roman army and the Crusaders composed of subdued knights. As long as they appear, the outcome of the battle will inevitably be completely locked in their hands.
But at this moment, the Venetian soldiers under his command suddenly exclaimed, "Look!"
Then everyone looked in the sound and saw a sailboat appearing behind them at some point behind the reef behind the bay, which was completely beyond their expectations. Suddenly, the atmosphere became tense. Several Venetian nobles who were originally planning to attack the land also subconsciously clenched their fists and looked at the sudden appearance of the uninvited guest. Although it was just a sailboat, it was too strange that no flags appeared in this war zone. A feeling of uneasiness arose naturally, which made them feel a sense of frizz in their hearts.
"This...what is going on?" He focused his attention on the life-and-death battle on the land ahead. The Venetians were also careless, and no one noticed how the ship appeared here.
"Is it because of the Greeks who did something?"
"But there is only one ship what they want to do. Are they crazy?"
The Venetians, who were puzzled, stared at the strange scene in front of them, and at the same time, they were watching all the movements of the surrounding sea. Their place was overseas, and there was a circle of tall rocks outside blocking the view. If there was any ambush on the other side, they would have to hide behind. But what exactly did the Greeks send a small boat to do?
"Let's go over and take a look!" Then a nobleman ordered, but it aroused opposition from his colleagues.
"Are you stupid? There is obviously a trap!"
"What are you afraid of? Even if there are any traps, do you think the Greeks can cause any storm at sea?" The noble sneered on his face. This was not extreme conceit, but a thorough fact. Venice, which had the hegemony at sea, did not take anyone seriously except Genoa. Even the Pope had to rely on them to maintain the crusade war against the East. Even the powerful Roman Empire during the period of Emperor Manuel was not their opponent, let alone the Greeks who were already so weak now? Therefore, even if there were ambushes on the sea, the noble was confident enough to deal with it. After all, it was just a desperate struggle of a mantis arm. The Venetian nobles waved their hand and then left the line and circled them and slowly approached the sailboats that were motionless.
Strangely, from the moment, there was no one on the deck of the ship, and there was no movement at all, which was too suspicious. However, this aggravated the curiosity of the Venetians. Their warships were covered with iron armor and fireproof materials in front of them, and were not afraid of the attack of Greek fire. The sailors who easily boarded the ship asked a pungent smell as soon as they came up, but they had never encountered it. The alert sailors held weapons and looked carefully at everything around them just in case, but beyond their expectations, there was no ambushing Greeks under the cabin, which disappointed them. After all, these Venetian sailors had been waiting for a long time, but who would have thought it was a real empty ship.
Immediately, while asking a few people to go down to check if there was any inside, waving the flag to tell the flagship not far away that everything was safe. The captain who came up to check the situation couldn't help but look disappointed on his face.
"What... it turns out that it's not a Greek at all, it's just an empty ship."
"But how did it come about?" the subordinates on the side asked in confusion. They really couldn't figure out what was going on. Even if the Greeks had made some traps, this thing was not threatening at all! For a moment, the Venetians actually felt like they couldn't smile bitterly.
At this time, the Venetian sailors who had been drilling down to check it finally arrived at the bottom deck city, and the pungent smell that they had smelled was getting heavier and heavier. I don’t know what it was, but the smell of sulfur and charcoal was a little different. But I saw that it was pitch black inside, and the place where the paddler was located was completely closed, without any light coming in! When I jumped off the ladder, the Venetian felt that it seemed that some soft thing was stepping on a thick layer of soft things. Subconsciously leaned over and touched it, it felt like sand powder was spreading under my feet.
Chapter completed!