Chapter 25: Suppression (3 Minutes)

"Successful destruction of masts and paddle wheels."

Naturally, the enemy crew was in complete disarray. Though some cannons continued firing, most of the deck crew were fleeing from the collapsing masts, while officers barked orders in a frenzy on the deck.

"Switching to armor-piercing rounds for the 150mm smoothbore cannon."

"Aiming for penetration?"

"Yes. Explosive rounds would cause excessive damage."

The next target was the cannons on the enemy’s side. Despite being heavily outgunned, the pirates continued firing, likely unaware of the chaos on their own deck.

"We’ll also take out the officers on the deck."

Sniping with main or machine guns would typically be impossible, but with Ringo’s custom cannons, shells, and exceptional computing power, they achieved near-unbelievable precision. At a rate of 45 rounds per minute, armor-piercing shells flew directly into the barrels protruding from the enemy’s hull, while the 20mm machine guns picked off the officers attempting to maintain control on the deck.

The 150mm shells struck the enemy’s cannons, reducing them to shrapnel that tore through nearby crew members, leaving no survivors. The shells pierced through the cannons and exited the other side of the hull.

"Oh—"

The forward side of the enemy ship erupted in a massive explosion.

"It appears there was a chain reaction."

Either the cannon had just been loaded, or rounds had been stored nearby. The blast shredded the upper structures.

"Quite a spectacle… Think they’ll sink?"

"If they do, so be it."

"Straight to the point, huh?"

As they conversed, the enemy ship lost all operational cannons and its officers, plunging into utter chaos. Once they’d taken out the cannons on one side, the 150mm smoothbore cannons ceased fire.

"Now then…"

With all masts broken, cannons destroyed, and paddle wheels shattered, the large sailing ship was helpless.

"For a show of force, let’s furl our sails and switch to motorized travel."

Now they needed to drive out the remaining crew. Closing in with motorized propulsion, they planned to intimidate the enemy with warning shots.

The humanoid machine communicators climbed the masts, swiftly securing and rolling up the sails. Their speed was far beyond what any human could achieve, and soon the enemy crew noticed, pointing and shouting in alarm.

"Those communicators sure move well."

The humanoid machine communicators moved nimbly from mast to mast, and within minutes, all three ships had furled their sails. The diesel engines kicked in, and the paddle wheels began churning the water. As the ships picked up speed and maneuvered, the communicators efficiently descended the masts with ropes and ladders. Now only a few hundred meters away, the enemy crew had a clear view, and several began untying the ropes for the lifeboats, sparking a frenzy among the crew.

"…How are they even going to lower those boats?"

"Usually with ropes, but we can give them some time."

The three LST-class light trade ships approached slowly, turning their paddle wheels as the terrified crew scrambled. Any remaining officers had been reduced to meat by Ringo’s sniping, leaving the pirates disorganized and leaderless.

"Oh, they’re jumping overboard."

"That’s quite a height to jump from. They’ll be fine?"

One by one, the pirates leaped into the sea, skipping the ropes and ladders in their haste to escape, cramming into four quickly lowered lifeboats.

"Will everyone fit?"

"They should be able to."

Watching casually, she and Ringo monitored the scene. By the time Paraiso moved alongside the enemy ship, the pirate-laden boats had rowed a considerable distance away, likely pushed by sheer panic.

"Initiating boarding."

Ropes fired from Paraiso, securing lines to the drifting pirate ship, and soon, armed humanoid machine communicators began boarding.

"There are survivors aboard. Proceeding with elimination."

"Hopefully, they left something valuable behind."

Drones entered through breaches in the hull and upper deck, utilizing bio-radar to ensure no survivors were hiding as they systematically secured the ship.

"We should be able to secure the cannons and ammunition. However, analyzing them onboard is safer to prevent accidents."

"Do we have drones equipped for analysis?"

"Yes. We can use general-purpose drones. Sacrificing a few should help us make some educated guesses about the materials."

"Go ahead if it’s worth it based on the resources we’ve secured. It’s not essential if it risks the drones."

The cargo hold scans indicated significant metal deposits. Estimating that this haul could cover the operation’s costs in iron, Ringo maneuvered the three ships into position to offload cargo. Due to the size disparity, they cut openings in the hull using construction drones for more efficient loading.

"The lack of watertight compartments makes unloading easy."

"Right? It’s wooden, and technically, it floats… so the design doesn’t need much refinement."

"Not always the case, but this ship certainly lacks sophisticated waterproofing."

With a makeshift opening, they started unloading the spoils. Prioritizing metal, they hauled out iron cannons, believed to be cast iron.

"Good thing we brought the drones."

"Indeed."

Humanoid machine communicators struggled with such heavy lifting, as they were built with human-like strength limitations and prone to muscle fiber strain, effectively giving them "muscle soreness" after heavy labor.

"Even just these cannons provide a hefty resource gain. A ship-of-the-line is practically a floating iron mine."

"Heh, that’s true, though it’s not like we can go pirate-hunting just for resources…"

Each cannon weighed several tons, and there were around 40 onboard. This single haul might yield more iron than their latest trade at Telek Harbor. In hindsight, perhaps destroying some cannons had been a bit wasteful.

"It would be nice to salvage the iron used in the ship's structure, but that might be too difficult here."

"Especially out here on the sea."

Dismantling the ship while at sea wasn’t feasible; they could only strip what was easy to reach. The pirate ship used a mysterious engine likely powered by magic instead of a steam engine, which would have added even more iron.

"This magical engine would be worth investigating if possible."

"Not sure if it’s even operable. Could we even load it onto our ships?"

"No, it’s far too large."

"Then dismantle and analyze as much as you can before we dispose of it."

Deploying general-purpose drones, they began analyzing the ship’s magical engine and other components. By the time they had loaded as much metal as possible, night had fallen. The humanoid machine communicators were done for the day, needing rest and food to function the next day. Meanwhile, the drones could work non-stop, charged and ready, to complete the analysis overnight before they resumed their course to Telek Harbor the next morning. The pirate ship was set for demolition to prevent it from drifting and causing further disruptions.

"Take care of the rest for me~"

"Understood, Commander Mom."

As Ringo continued analyzing the enemy ship with drones, the humanoid machine communicators swiftly prepared her for bed. They undressed her, dressed her in sleepwear, brushed her hair, and tucked her into bed like a princess.

Notably, when she was awake, she scolded them for helping too much. But when she was sleepy, she accepted their assistance without protest. Ringo had learned this and planned to continue caring for her at every opportunity.

"Good night."

"…Good night."