Black Corporation: Joseon [EN]: Chapter 946

946. Corsica Naval Battle (2)

‘Even if we lose, we’ll land a solid blow. Afterward, we’ll secure political stakes through negotiations.’

The pro-war faction’s idea was immediately opposed by the integration faction.

“That’s absurd!”

“You need power to demand stakes! What good will it do to waste our strength in a pointless battle and then demand a share? Do you think they’ll listen?”

The integration faction’s point was valid.

However, the pro-war faction didn’t back down.

“What good is strength if we bow down here! We won’t get what we deserve! We need to show them how powerful we are! Make an impression like, ‘Venice is strong!’”

“Are we going to waste our precious strength for that one impression? It would be better to set up camp under the Habsburgs [a powerful European dynasty] and wage a war of attrition [a prolonged conflict where each side seeks to gradually wear down the other]!”

“Battle is the only answer! Only then can we secure Venice’s autonomy and sovereignty even after unification! Our proud Venice! We can’t put our homeland under the likes of Florence, Milan, or Genoa! Especially not Genoa! Begging for negotiations from those who were defeated by us and only watched our every move! That’s a disgrace! It must never happen!”

The integration faction lamented at the pro-war faction’s outcry.

“That’s madness, madness….”

“They’re going to ruin everything because of pride….”

Unfortunately, most Venetian citizens felt similarly to the pro-war faction.

-Bow our heads to the Florentine moneylenders and the Genoese losers? Absolutely not!

-We are citizens of the great Venice!

-No one can look down on us!

-Above all, we can’t stand watching those Genoese bastards!

In the end, the main ruling class and citizens of Venice made the irrational decision of ‘negotiations after war’ and supported it because of Genoa.

* * *

The Battle of Chioggia in 1380, which humiliated Genoa, was Venice’s pride and joy.

Through that battle’s victory, they brought Genoa to ruin and firmly established themselves as the dominant power in the Mediterranean.

-No matter what anyone says, the Mediterranean belongs to Venice!

However, this glory of Venice quickly faded after Hyang’s full-scale intervention.

From some point on, Florence began to emerge as a leading figure in the Mediterranean, and as the Suez Canal [a vital shipping route connecting the Red Sea and the Mediterranean] became important, Venice continued to be pushed to the periphery.

On the other hand, Genoa, which had been cautiously observing the great powers due to its unstable political situation, was regaining its strength. This was thanks to successful investments made by connecting with Spanish nobles.

Venice was already uncomfortable with Florence challenging its position, but the revival of Genoa was infuriating.

Moreover, when the Florentine Medici family [a powerful banking family and political dynasty in Florence] took the lead in calling for the ‘unification of Italy’ and asked them to participate, most Venetians, regardless of their status, were furious.

-Unification? Good! But the main player in that unification must be Venice! Not those Florentine moneylenders!

As Venice was preparing in its own way amidst this social consensus, news of Genoa’s defeat arrived.

“Hahaha! Those Genoese losers have lost again!”

“A loser is just a loser!”

“It’s a festival!”

However, the rumor that soon reached Venice, which was gleefully enjoying Genoa’s defeat, was enough to turn joy into anger.

-The Genoese bastards are flocking to the army!

-It’s for the unification of Northern Italy!

“Isn’t Venice the only one left in Northern Italy?”

“Those bastards!”

In the end, the long-standing animosity towards Genoa overwhelmed the Venetians’ reason.

* * *

This movement of Venice was reported to Florence by spies planted by the Medici family.

Hyang, who was analyzing the report with Lorenzo de Medici, had an incredulous expression.

‘Seriously!’

Venice’s choice now was simple.

-If I hit them hard, they’ll be scared and negotiate, right?

‘There are more than a few countries that have failed like that, but they’re choosing this? Ah! It’s a long time before their era, isn’t it?’

Hyang, grumbling inwardly, looked back at Lorenzo and the others.

“If I were Venice, I would take good care of my military power and use it as a bargaining chip in negotiations, but they’re going to waste this precious military power in battle? I don’t understand.”

“I can explain that part.”

Piero Colleoni, who was sitting on one side, stepped forward at Hyang’s words. He was the condottiero [a leader of a mercenary company] of the mercenary corps in charge of the defense of Florence—or rather, the Medici—and had risen to become a key commander in the Florentine army.

Because Piero had proven his solid career and ability, people looked at him with serious faces.

Piero cleared his throat slightly and got to the point.

“To put it bluntly, Venice’s army is still mainly composed of mercenaries.”

As soon as Piero finished speaking, Hyang picked up on the implication.

“Does that mean they can recover quickly even if they lose considerable forces?”

“That’s right. Until Venice’s treasury is empty, the loss of the army’s strength can be recovered.”

“But it takes time to turn recruits into combat power… Ah! They were mercenaries.”

“That’s right. It is said that strengthening the standing army is the trend these days, but the core of Venice’s army is still mercenaries. And, if time is a factor, the Habsburg army is stationed around Venice. They will use them.”

“I see… Then, if we want to inflict serious damage on Venice’s power and force negotiations, we must be fully prepared.”

“That’s right. And we must neutralize the Venetian navy before the army.”

“The navy?”

“Yes. The navy is mainly composed of citizens rather than mercenaries.”

“Hoo….”

Hyang and Lorenzo’s eyes lit up at Piero’s explanation.

“The navy….”

As Hyang muttered with shining eyes, the Imperial Navy commanders fidgeted.

There was no one as eager for a naval battle as they were.

‘I’m sick of land bombardment now! I want to go to the sea!’

‘I want to tear through the enemy’s fleet and shred enemy ships with cannons!’

‘Naval battle! Naval battle! Absolutely naval battle!’

The naval commanders looked at Hyang with desperate expressions because naval warfare was the best way to prove their worth.

Whether they knew their feelings or not, Hyang looked at the map with Lorenzo and spoke.

“Thanks to Portugal being with us, the French navy is not moving properly, and all that’s left is Spain… What is the probability that France and Spain will jointly attack Portugal?”

“It won’t be that high. To subdue the Portuguese navy, you have to be prepared for considerable losses, and both countries don’t want to see themselves suffer such losses.”

“People’s greed… or is it selfishness?”

Hyang muttered with a bitter smile.

However, he couldn’t help but understand why the two countries were holding back.

* * *

Raising proper sailors took as long as creating a proper army.

Every time a ship was lost, 200 to 300 skilled sailors were lost.

No, the latest large battleships required at least 500 people to fight properly.

And the losses incurred in the process of subduing the Portuguese navy were not just one or two battleships.

Therefore, both France and Spain were only watching each other’s movements.

-We need to subdue Portugal, but I don’t want to be the first to step up. Can’t you step up first?

“Our France has England holding us back, so it’s difficult to deploy our forces. If Spain steps up first, we will follow immediately.”

“Our Spain is not in a comfortable situation either. We also have to supply goods to the Kingdom of Naples, and we also have to check the Imperial Navy lurking in Genoa and Livorno. England is quiet these days, so I think it’s best for France to step up first.”

The two countries were pushing each other with plausible excuses.

Portugal right in front of them was a problem, but the Empire behind it was an even bigger problem. And the competition for new land that was sure to take place after the war, whether they won or lost, was the biggest problem.

To gain an advantage in the competition, they had to secure many well-made ships and skilled sailors.

For that reason, they were not stepping up first, but pushing each other.

* * *

“I can’t help but admire the plan to tie up the Spanish and French navies with just one map every time I see it.”

“You flatter me.”

While showing humility to Lorenzo’s praise, Hyang couldn’t take his eyes off the map.

‘It seems like I can pick out the assault turtle ships and other battleships and move them appropriately, but the Kingdom of Naples is in the way.’

The routes through which supplies were delivered to the Imperial Army stationed in Italy were two.

One was to cross the Great Ocean—now the Atlantic Ocean—from Shinji, and the other was to use the Suez route.

Due to production capacity and distance issues, about 70% of the supplies needed by the Imperial Army and the Allied Forces were coming through the Suez Canal.

This is where the Kingdom of Naples became a hindrance.

The sea route from Prince Henry’s port to Livorno was passing between the Kingdom of Naples and Sicily.

Now, there was nothing wrong because the Imperial Navy escort fleet was moving with the transport fleet. However, if the forces were dispersed for offensive operations, there could be those who would make dangerous attempts.

“Even if that happens, our navy will definitely win!”

The Imperial Navy commanders guaranteed a sure victory, but Hyang couldn’t shake off the anxiety brought about by the word ‘if.’

-If even one or two transport ships are lost, the soldiers will worry about supplies and their morale will drop.

-And seeing this, the enemies will target the supply route more persistently.

-To prevent this, we also need to put more battleships into escort. But then Livorno and Genoa could be attacked.

-The best thing is to increase the size of the fleet altogether. However, it is difficult to withdraw more forces from Shinji due to the sea wall problem. It takes too long to bypass Africa from the mainland.

“Hoo~.”

Hyang sighed softly and muttered while looking at the map.

“Venetian Navy… Is there a way to use them?”

At a similar time, the naval staff of France and Spain were also coming up with similar ideas.

“What if we use the Venetian navy? If possible, with the Habsburgs as well.”

“Good idea?”

“Then let’s move right away!”

The monarchs of France and Spain immediately approved after hearing the navy’s plan, and envoys from both countries rushed to Vienna and Venice.

“Venice’s naval power is the strongest in the Mediterranean! Please let Venice be the main force of the Allied Fleet!”

“The Habsburgs also need the sea! Don’t just watch this time, step up!”