Chapter 692: There's Another Kind of Cannon

“A distress signal?” a German naval officer in the radio room asked, frowning at the telegram in his hand. He glanced doubtfully at the radio operator who had just received it, then finally folded the message and turned to walk down the corridor.

The coordinates given in the telegram were not far from this German warship; in fact, they were very close. In another compartment, the German radar operator had already seen the strange course of two ships on his screen not far away and had also written down his observations on a note to be sent to the command tower.

Ever since Germany’s new cruisers (which, in terms of anti-ship firepower, were really just large-tonnage destroyers) had begun to enter service on a large scale, some of the makeshift ships in the German Navy had become somewhat disposable. This was especially true for the armored cruiser Lützow, which had been forcibly attached to the carrier group for defensive duties. Because this was a waste of its capabilities, it had been put back into service as an independent ocean raider.

As for the fleet’s night-time anti-surface warfare capabilities, which had originally been provided by three, now only two, armored cruisers, this role was now filled by the new battleship Grand Admiral Raeder. And so, for this mission to evacuate civilians, the armored cruiser Lützow had naturally been sent out to act as a temporary escort and fast support ship.

After more than two months of major overhaul and refit, this pocket battleship, or rather, armored cruiser, had undergone significant changes. First, it was fitted with the navy’s first gunnery control radar, which allowed it to adjust its fire based on radar in very poor visibility conditions and hit distant targets.

Not only was it equipped with fire-control radar, but a search radar and an anti-aircraft fire director radar had also been installed at the very top of its mast. It could be said that to enable this warship to operate independently, the German Navy had given it a revolutionary super-refit. Although its firepower and mobility had not been improved, the upgrades to its electronic equipment could only be described as heaven-defying.

This warship had distinctive features from the time it was built. This uniquely German naval vessel was armed with two triple-turrets of 280mm main guns. Although the number was not large, their caliber surpassed that of most light cruisers. And this warship’s speed was an astonishing 29 knots. Benefiting from the steady technological development of German naval engines, its speed exceeded that of any cruiser.

At the time, the design philosophy for this warship was very clear: sink all warships and merchant ships inferior to it, and then, when the enemy’s powerful heavy cruisers, battlecruisers, and battleships arrived, immediately use its high speed to turn and flee. A typical commerce raiding mentality had created this nondescript, cross-class warship.

Why did only the Germans play with such a seemingly good design? The reason was actually very simple. The navies of other countries looked down on such a strange warship: its armor was average and its tonnage limited. Although its firepower was strong, its density was very low. Its protection was about the same as a light cruiser’s, and it was no match for an enemy’s capital ships. Apart from sneak attacks, this ship seemed to be of little other use.

In the ship’s bridge command tower, a middle-aged German officer stood with his hands behind his back. To one side were the helmsman and navigation officers, and to the other were his artillery colleagues. He took the distress telegram from the radio officer’s hand and examined it carefully.

After reading it, he glanced at the first officer beside him and gave the order for battle: “Adjust course to port. We are heading to the scene of the incident to rescue our ship. Prepare ammunition, sound the battle alarm, and bring the entire ship to combat readiness. Hoist the battle flag of the Third Reich’s Navy and broadcast on the public channel that the German Navy is conducting an escort mission in this sea area!”

“Yes, Captain!” The first officer stood at attention and immediately issued a series of combat orders. The alarm was quickly sounded. The low-angle 150mm secondary guns on both sides of the ship slowly turned towards the distant sea, exuding a murderous aura. And the more numerous 105mm and 88mm anti-aircraft guns also entered a state of combat readiness. In an instant, the warship Lützow became like a porcupine.

“Tch, I thought it was some great ship from the American side. Turns out it’s just a destroyer… really…” The officer in charge of gunnery control glanced at the telegram and then sneered at this combat mission. After all, the opponent was not on the same level at all, making it difficult to muster any desire to fight.

The American destroyer was a small one, with a displacement of just over 2,000 tons, while the German ship was a standard cruiser of 16,000 tons full-load displacement, even approaching that of a heavy cruiser. In terms of firepower and other aspects, the two sides were clearly not in the same league.

While the armored cruiser Lützow was accelerating towards the scene of the incident, the American destroyer’s approach to the German transport was not as smooth as they had imagined. Because compared to the slightly clumsy ironclad Lützow, the carrier Imperium, which had received the distress signal from 100 kilometers away, had a much faster reaction time.

Two Fw-190 fighters on a routine patrol immediately headed for the sea area where the incident had occurred after receiving their orders. Just as the German-American merchant Kohler was at a loss, thinking his end had come, the two German fighters that appeared in the sky immediately made the situation complicated and full of variables. These two planes were not carrying effective weapons to deal with a destroyer, so they could only lower their altitude and begin to hail the Americans by radio.

It was the same public channel, and a mechanical German voice sounded once again. But to Kohler’s ears, who had not yet had time to descend the iron ladder, these sounds were no different from the most beautiful music. “This is a patrol aircraft of the German Naval Air Arm. We are taking over the escort of our national vessel. All other ships, please leave this sea area immediately! I repeat! All other ships, please leave this sea area immediately!”

This was definitely not good news for the U.S. Navy. After all, the appearance of German naval aircraft meant that if a conflict were to arise, dozens of German planes would arrive within a dozen minutes, and they might even be carrying torpedoes and aerial bombs. A carrier fleet was obviously not something a single destroyer could provoke. Anyone who wasn’t a fool could figure this out immediately.

“This is the United States Navy destroyer! Since you have taken over this transport, we will leave immediately! We will leave immediately!” In the end, the captain of the American destroyer chose to back down. After all, circumstances were stronger than men. In the North Atlantic, the German carrier fleet was currently the boss, a presence that no one could afford to provoke.

“Two planes scared the Americans away?” Kohler found it incredible. He watched the two German fighters that were continuously circling the American destroyer as it followed, and for the first time, he felt a flicker of affection for his motherland. After all, there were not many countries that could make the Americans listen to reason, and these countries were, without exception, first-class world powers.

“In the Atlantic, our navy has never lost!” The captain of the transport ship also clearly breathed a sigh of relief at the appearance of the planes. He walked to the railing and explained to Kohler, “The Führer has led us to be invincible. Our navy is the true hegemon of the entire North Atlantic!” His face was filled with pride as he spoke, with a kind of uniquely Aryan arrogance.

Seeing the American warship in the distance turning and fleeing in disgrace, many of the German-Americans on the transport ship let out a cheer. After all, they had been bullied to death by the Americans these past few days and had lost a considerable amount of property. To now be able to see their own country drive away the swaggering American destroyer was indeed a very gratifying thing.

At this moment, someone noticed that in another direction, a massive warship had appeared on the horizon. From this distance, one could tell that this newly appeared warship was more than just a little bigger than the American destroyer. Under the terrified gazes of the people, the 10,000-plus-ton armored cruiser entered the transport’s escort course. The German naval battle flag flying from its mast billowed in the wind, making a flapping sound.

“This is the Third Reich warship Lützow. Welcome to the sea area controlled by the Third Reich!” In the radio, the voice of the Lützow’s captain came through on the dedicated German naval channel. Compared to the arrogant American destroyer moments ago, this warship was even larger and more majestic. Its sheer presence alone left the German-Americans on the transport ship speechless.

“Thank you for coming to help. Those Americans just tried to board and inspect us, and they even fired a shot to threaten us to slow down,” the captain said, picking up the microphone and speaking to the German naval vessel.

A moment of silence and static followed on the radio, and then the voice of the Lützow’s captain came through: “They fired on you?”

“Yes, they fired!” the transport captain said into the microphone as if it were the most ordinary thing in the world.

“Give the order. This warship will prepare to open fire!” the captain of the Lützow said, standing on his bridge with a frown.

“But, Captain, they’ve already moved out of the range of our secondary guns. Should we accelerate to catch up?” the first officer asked, taken aback.

“Not necessary. We have another kind of cannon with enough range!” the captain cut him off coldly and then spoke.

Then, under everyone’s gaze, in front of the German-Americans, with the roar of machinery and the grinding of metal, the two massive 280mm main gun turrets on the armored cruiser Lützow began to rotate. The even larger and more sinister gun muzzles pointed towards the distant sea.

Published: 2025-09-19T06:55:50.000+00:00
Last Edited: 2026-02-25T20:18:00.000+00:00
URL: https://www.patreon.com/caleredhair/posts/mtr-c692-theres-139241847

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