Chapter 362: The Variable

The news from the rear had lifted Holland’s spirits. The confirmation that the sunken armored ship was the Admiral Graf Spee, one of the three mainstays of the German carrier formation’s escort ships, also confirmed that the German carrier fleet was directly in his line of pursuit.

Although his own arrangements were foolproof, if the German carriers were to be sunk by another force, then as the commander, the glory of his victory would still lose a lot of its color. So to be able to personally annihilate the German Navy’s High Seas Fleet, Holland felt that his own myth could be considered perfect.

In terms of tactical arrangements, he could be said to have been flawless. In terms of frontline combat, he could be said to be incomparably brave. This one battle was enough to make him famous throughout the world. It would not be an exaggeration to say he would be revered as the contemporary god of the British Navy.

Because of the terrifying speed of the entire fleet, the huge waves kicked up by the bow could occasionally even wash onto the deck. The huge bow of the ship forged ahead on the sea surface, which made Vice-Admiral Holland, who had seen all of this in the faint light, feel very good.

However, just as Vice-Admiral Holland was in a good mood, at 3:30 AM, the German naval military airfield in Belgium was brightly lit. Thirty Stuka dive bombers were being loaded with huge aerial bombs by the ground crew. And at another field airfield not far away, 50 Fw-190 fighters with torpedoes were waiting to take off. They would take off in formation at night and then head to the battle location, striving to begin their attack on the British fleet at the very moment the sky brightened.

At the same time, at a military airfield in the Netherlands, 30 Do-217 bombers had also been loaded with bombs. Accompanying their takeoff were a full 40 Stuka bombers from the surrounding airfields, as well as 30 Fw-190D air force fighters with drop tanks. These planes were to take off at dawn to attack the two battleships, the King George V and the Howe, which were now fleeing.

In the German capital of Berlin, at 1:17 AM, the Führer, Akado Rudolph, had summoned his Chief of the Naval Staff, Raeder, and the Chief of the Air Force Staff, Kesselring, and had inquired in detail about the process of the Battle of the English Channel. No one was sleeping. The Supreme High Command was brightly lit, waiting for a final result that was unknown, for better or for worse.

Similarly, in the British capital of London, Churchill looked at the eastern sky, it was unknown whether in anticipation or in nervousness. Akado, because he had not known that the battle had begun, had still slept for two hours. And Churchill had been waiting for news all along, waiting for the future of the British Empire.

At 3:45 AM, Vice-Admiral Holland ordered the fleet to abandon its formation, with the destroyers and cruisers as the vanguard, to advance and entangle the German navy’s escort ships, and to completely bite down on the German High Seas Fleet. If this tactic were to be executed, then the German High Seas Fleet would be doomed.

At almost the same moment, the German fighters in the Netherlands and Belgium took off in swarms and flew toward their target sea area. Nearly 200 planes took off from various airfields, whistling as they passed over large tracts of farmland and forests, and flew toward the boundless sea.

In the North Sea, all the cruisers and destroyers of the British pursuit fleet began to accelerate. The actual distance between the two sides was only a short 17 kilometers. On the rearguard German destroyers, the radar operators stared at the densely packed dozen or so British warships on their screens, sweating profusely.

“Shouldn’t we be doing something now?” on the bridge of that I-class destroyer, the first mate asked his captain with an expectant look on his face.

“To protect Poison, Gray Wolf cannot be exposed,” the captain said with a sigh. “I can die, but not as the German spy Gray Wolf. I can only be the captain of a British destroyer!”

“I’ll shoot you in a non-lethal way, and then throw you in the sea,” the first mate said with a grin. “If you don’t die, someone will be your witness.”

As he spoke, he took out his own pistol and aimed it at the captain. “If you are still alive, tell Poison to pass on to the Führer that for the rise of Germany, I did my best!”

“Crack!” With a gunshot, a bullet hit the leg of the captain, that is, the German spy Gray Wolf. Blood immediately gushed out. The first mate had the soldiers on the bridge take the leg-wounded Gray Wolf back to the cabin where the British crew were being held, and then he himself took over command of the entire bridge.

“Continue to advance at full speed. Insert between the two warships, the Hood and the Renown! Signal the Renown that our ship is preparing to advance for a torpedo salvo to disperse the enemy destroyers and cruisers,” the first mate commanded loudly, standing on the bridge.

“Torpedo tubes, aim to both sides! Prepare to fire torpedoes simultaneously!” the first mate gave one order after another loudly, staring at the sea surface in front. “Heil Führer Akado Rudolph! Long live the Holy Greater German Third Reich! We will exchange our sacrifice for the greatest victory in the history of the German Navy!”

“Victory!” everyone shouted loudly, raising their right hands. This I-class destroyer cut through the waves and charged forward, closing the distance with the Hood and the Renown in the front rank in one go. And directly in front of it, a British cruiser was also sailing at high speed.

“In a moment, create a flaw. Let the captured British sailors escape. At least a few must survive to be witnesses for the captain! Understood?” the first mate asked, looking at his own sweaty palms and smiling. “We people should die here today, but some people must live! Don’t envy those who live, because compared to them, it’s really hard to say who is happier!”

Yes, if one could die for one’s motherland now, would that not also be a kind of happiness? The living still have to face that environment of deceit and fear, and still have to struggle alone in the enemy’s lair, continuing to betray those friends who call them brothers, continuing to destroy another country that has treated them well. Compared to being dead, these people who have survived are perhaps even more tragic.

This was war. This was the war of spies. It was like the flames of hell, roasting one’s own heart, a torment every minute and every second. To destroy another motherland for one’s own motherland, to plot against those familiar faces who laughed with you every day in the pub for the sake of victory.

The sky was about to brighten. And the surrounding night had become even more pitch black. This was the brief darkness before the dawn. This was the last chance for the British Navy.

“Boom!” The 381mm main guns of the Hood opened fire. Although the distance was not close, it still opened fire, letting out its own roar, firing its shells at a relatively extreme range.

“Boom!” The battlecruiser Renown was not to be outdone and fired its own first salvo. Although it was only the four forward main guns, it was still like a dazzling flame in the darkness, emitting a ball of light.

“Prepare to fire torpedoes!” On the bridge of the I-class destroyer, the first mate frowned as he watched the two giant warships on either side of him fire their shells. At this moment, he did not know exactly how far the two sides were from each other and could only make a vague judgment based on the fleet’s actions.

The destroyer was still accelerating, still overdrawing its power system. Its speed of more than 30 knots was much faster than the Hood and the Renown, and it had already inserted itself into the middle position between the two giant warships.

“Fire torpedoes! Then release the British sailors!” the first mate finally commanded. “Have them occupy the telegraph room! From this moment on, our mission of being undercover in the enemy camp is completely over!”

“Thump!” A series of sounds, not loud under the influence of the distant artillery fire, as the torpedoes were fired one by one into the water. They immediately raised a white wake and swam toward the pitch-black sea in the distance.

Just a few dozen seconds later, the sound of gunfire rang out on this I-class destroyer. The British sailors fought desperately to seize the weapons of their guards, and a fierce exchange of fire broke out between the two sides. The British sailors were unstoppable, and they suppressed the smaller number of German spies in several locations, including the bridge. They retook the telegraph room and immediately contacted their command ship.

“Admiral Holland, a strange telegram from one of the destroyers in the fleet,” an officer said, handing a telegram to Holland. “It says to beware of torpedoes to the right.”

“Torpedoes to the right? A dozen or so minutes ago, an I-class destroyer was trying to pass between us and the Renown. I thought it was a bit strange… No! Order the warships to evade at once!” Holland muttered twice and then was so scared he broke out in a cold sweat.

He finally knew what the reason for the German navy’s risky move was. He finally knew where the feeling of unease that had been pervading him, even when he was sure of victory, had come from. So this was the biggest nail that the Germans had planted in the British Navy, and he had actually, after so much careful selection, chosen this very nail!

“My God! Do you really want to destroy the British Empire?” Vice-Admiral Holland wailed, looking up at the sky.

And just as he was wailing, on the port side of the battlecruiser Renown, a violent explosion suddenly occurred. There were as many as three of them. Three torpedoes had hit the broadside of the Renown at almost the same time, causing a violent explosion.

“Aim at that I-class destroyer! Fire and sink it! Fire and sink it! Sink it for me!” The sound of the explosion had awakened Vice-Admiral Holland, who had almost fainted from anger. He grabbed Captain Kerr, who was standing beside him, stunned by the scene before him, and commanded loudly, “Fire! Sink it!”

The Hood, with its high speed and greater distance, had dodged four torpedoes, but the remaining one had still hit it. And because of the Hood‘s turn, this torpedo had hit the stern of the Hood squarely.

The sound of the explosion followed. The violent shaking made Vice-Admiral Holland stumble a step and support himself with his hand on the chart table on the side. Subsequently, the secondary guns of the Hood opened fire, and the shells rained down on their own warship.

A Battle of the English Channel that the British were sure to win had undergone a heaven-and-earth change because of the defection of a single destroyer.