Empire of the Ring

Chapter 697: A Hospital Ship in the Indian Ocean (2)

“You mean there are no injuries?”

“Yes, Princess, the pirates came so fast that we had to attack in self-defense. Unfortunately, no one survived.”

“That is unfortunate, but your response is admirable. How can you subdue them so quickly in that short period of time?”

“The pirates were no match for our royal guards. It was their fault that they underestimated the hospital ship.”

Lieutenant Shim’s voice was full of confidence.

He was proud of the fact that he easily guarded the hospital ship against the encounter of pirate boats.

Zeynep knew something had happened because of the sudden emergency bell sound and the loud sound of machine guns. She was stuck in the cabin in horror and just found out what happened from Lieutenant Shim.

So she was asking if there were any injuries.

The hospital ship had a chance to play its part, and the force of the Royal Bodyguards was so strong that it left no injuries.

The principle was that a hospital ship would save any life even if it was an enemy.

The captain of the frigate ship, The Ural, was in a bad mood.

It was getting refueled while the hospital ship was encountering pirates, but the situation had already been concluded when it finally caught up with the hospital ship.

Fortunately, the ship overpowered the enemy without harm, but the fault of letting the hospital ship sail alone was not eliminated.

Thinking about being reprimanded by Admiral Jun, who was known to be stricter than the Duke of Kazakhstan, made him dizzy.

So he hurriedly got off his ship and headed for the hospital ship.

This was because he had to make things right with the princess to avoid harsh reprimand from Admiral Jun.

“It wasn’t a big deal, but I think you’re more surprised, captain.”

“Princess, this isn’t a small issue. The problem is that the pirates targeted the hospital ship. I feel like I’ve been to hell. It’s my fault that I judged that we’ve passed the danger zone.”

“In fact, any ship is relaxingly sailing in Arabian waters. It’s the pirates’ fault for trying to hijack the hospital ship. How could it be your fault?”

“The problem is that in any case, the hospital ship has become their target.”

“Don’t be so hard on yourself. We had the ability to defend ourselves, so we sailed alone. We actually sank two pirate boats.”

“Princess, you must be in a terrible shock to hear such loud gunshots. Can you continue sailing like this?”

Lieutenant Colonel Ivanov, captain of the Ural, was on edge.

He could bear a severe reprimand for this, but he was more worried about the princess’s condition.

“There’s nothing to be afraid of when we have you and a strong crew. And even if a stronger enemy attacks, the frigate can suppress them easily. I found the battle very interesting.”

He knew Princess Zeynep was bold but he was still dumbfounded as she said she was not afraid but rather, interested in the situation.

“We’ve reported our encounter with the pirate ship to the Indian Ocean fleet, so there will be an order soon.”

“Oh, my! Do you have to report every little thing that happened during the voyage?”

“We need to let them know that the waters in Arabia are not safe, so they can prevent other damage. We have to tell them to sail in international waters instead of following the coastline because of this mishap. We need to report in detail to share information.”

As soon as the report was made, the cause of such an incident should be revealed.

The hospital ship moved alone, and that was the reason that the pirates made it a target.

Ivanov, who allowed the ship’s solo voyage, should make clear of his mistake.

“Don’t write it in your navigational log, just move on. You’re going to have a hard time because of a little happening. If you really need to report it, report that the ship made a solo voyage because I was stubborn.”

He appreciated the consideration of the princess, but he could not write a false report.

“I have already reported to the commander of the fleet that it was caused by my misjudgment. Pirates’ approach to the hospital ship is not something to be ignored.”

***

Admiral Jun was stunned when he heard that the pirate boats had targeted the hospital ship.

-What? Why would pirates attack a Kazakh ship?

“It looks like the pirates targeted the hospital ship because it didn’t mark its nationality on the hospital ship.”

It was not until Jun heard Lieutenant Colonel Ivanov’s explanation that there was no indication of nationality on the hospital ship.

-The ship will have to wear a flag on the mast from now on.

“Yes, sir. Commander.”

-How is the princess?

“She said it was rather interesting.”

-She can endure it because she’s a bold person, but if anyone else would have said it, then she should go back right now. If the Royal Bodyguards weren’t stationed there, it could have been a disaster. Never make such a mistake in the future again.

“I’m sorry to have troubled you. The crew was on board, and I was a little careless as we entered safe waters.”

-Be on your guard at all times.

An Aegis destroyer, which was taking a rest, was dispatched right away to escort the hospital ship.

It was a little too much to send an Aegis destroyer because of a mere appearance of pirate ships, but it was to be considerate of Princess Zeynep in case she was surprised.

It was a good thing that guards were on the hospital ship.

If the Duke of Kazakhstan had heard this, it would have been extremely distressing for him.

He would probably go to war with Somalia as a whole if the princess was kept as a hostage.

The mere thought of it made Admiral Jun dizzy. He could not sit still unless he took action.

Thus, he decided to attack a pirate village near Kismayo, another stronghold of Somali pirates.

It was about 1,600 kilometers from the Port of Victoria on Seychelles to Kismayo, a port south of Somalia.

It was a good distance to reach in 30 hours by sailing at 30 knots.

He was considering a plan to send a frigate lounging around in the Port of Victoria to devastate the pirates.

Pirates also had a mother ship that carried boats, and sinking it alone would make it difficult for the pirate boats to come out far and operate.

He could not wipe out pirates completely, but if the mother ship was destroyed, the pirates would be inactive for the time being.

It may turn into an international issue, but Admiral Jun put his plan into action without a blink of an eye. The commander of the Kazakh Royal Navy’s fleet had the authority to carry out such operations independently.

***

Two frigates that received Admiral Jun’s order were sailing toward Somalia’s Kismayo.

The frigates, which were newly dispatched this time, were the latest version made in a Turkish shipyard and boasted a maximum speed of 35 knots.

Sailing at about 25 knots per hour on average, the two ships arrived at Kismayo Beach in 35 hours.

Kismayo was a port city located in the southern part of Somalia, about 400 kilometers from Mogadishu.

The home to pirates was located about 30 kilometers south of the Kismayo port, which had about 5,000 active members.

Pirates usually moved into three groups, with two hijacker groups and one support group, and the payment for the release of the hostage was based on the principle of equal distribution to the three groups.

The hijacking of ships by Somali pirates was known to be elaborate and deliberate.

Pirates usually waited on a mother ship capable of ocean navigation before intercepting the communication of foreign vessels through land-based radio stations or planned to hijack passing cargo ships that stood out.

Once a target ship was set, the groups were divided into three high-speed boats and arrived at the target, threatening with rocket launchers and occupying the steering room before securing the hostages.

Then, they quickly entered Somali territorial waters to negotiate the release of the hostages to avoid the pursuit of the multinational fleet.

They were not interested in cargo and aimed only to hostage the crew and receive payment for their release in cash.

The main weapons used by pirates include portable rocket launchers, M60 machine guns, and AK rifles.

What was unusual was that in Somalia, one of the jobs young people were envious of is piracy.

Because pirates had luxury villas and luxury foreign cars, many Somali women wanted to marry a pirate.

“Captain, I suspect three 500-ton ships floating near the beach.”

Lieutenant Commander Azuka, the deputy commander of the frigate 902, said as he turned the telescope over to the captain after examining the beach.

Then Lieutenant Colonel Almaz, the commander of the frigate 902, shook his head.

“That’s a fishing boat.”

“There can’t be such a big fishing boat in Somalia. Can you see four small boats hanging from the deck? This is not a tuna fishing area, but there are too many small boats. If it’s not the mother ship of pirate ships, there’s no reason to dock here. This is likely to be the Puntland or the Merca group of 12 Somali military cliques.”

The Puntland group, a military clique operating off the coast of Kismayo Port in southern Somalia, had about 10,000 members, while the Merca group, a military clique operating off the southern port of Merca, had 5,000 members.

Usually, it was rare to see a fishing boat that weighed more than 500 tons in poor Somalia, and there was no reason for that ship to anchor and dock on a beach where there was no suitable port.

“Get in touch with the 903. If they also have the same opinion as us, let’s launch an attack unconditionally.”

Upon the captain’s order, Lieutenant commander Azuka diligently communicated with the frigate 903 to determine if it was the mother ship of pirate ships.

“Captain, the 903 agrees with us. The communicator of 903 said that there can’t be a fishing boat of that size here.”

A ship of such a big size should enter a port to carry ice, but it was suspicious that it was on such an isolated beach.

There was no freezer to store the fish and the facilities to supply oil or water either.

“Look through the telescope again. If you see anything suspicious, launch the attack.”

“Captain, they’re suddenly floundering up the anchor. I think they found our ships.”

There were two large warships just a kilometer away, but the pirates were not too worried. It was because warships from other countries could not enter the area without permission and attack even if they were proven to be pirates as this was in Somali waters.

But there was something they did not know.

The Kazakh Navy was a group that completely ignored such clumsy international laws.