October 1, 1853.

A dense drizzle like silk enveloped Constantinople at the junction of the Eurasian continent, washing away the dust that once covered the city, leaving Constantinople renewed.

The city under the gentle drizzle exuded an air of incomparable tranquility and harmony, with occasional passersby walking under umbrellas on the rain-drenched roads, the smoke from the Danube River and the Caucasus Region seemed to have entirely vanished at this moment.

However, all the tranquility and harmony were mere illusions brought by the rain. In the military port on the outskirts far from the city center of Constantinople, a scene incongruous with the peaceful city was secretly unfolding in this ancient military port.

Under the drizzle and the Mediterranean breeze covering the military port, rows of ships were neatly docked on the crescent-shaped port waters, and boxes of supplies were being transported in batches by speedboats shuttling between ships. Whether on the speedboats or the ships, every sailor's expression was unusually solemn, and an inexplicable killing intent pervaded the military port.

Aboard a main sail battleship anchored in the military port, Grand Marshal Mahmoud and the newly appointed commander of the "United Fleet," Ottoman Pasha, stood on the deck of the sail battleship, letting the rain beat down on them.

After a while, Grand Marshal Mahmoud spoke softly, "Osman, do you really understand what your mission is?"

Ottoman Pasha was taken aback for a moment, then nodded and said to Grand Marshal Mahmoud, "Grand Marshal, I understand!"

"Then tell me." Grand Marshal Mahmoud turned his gaze to Ottoman Pasha, inquiring.

"To protect the Ottoman Empire's sea transportation supply line to the Caucasus Region!" Ottoman Pasha spoke with determined assurance to Mahmoud.

Hearing Ottoman Pasha's response, Grand Marshal Mahmoud knew that he still hadn't grasped the full meaning of his intention, hesitated for a moment, unsure whether to give a more obvious hint so his subordinate could understand his intentions.

But when he thought about the fleet he had built with his own hands possibly being sent to their doom because of a single word from him, his heart felt reluctant.

Even though the plan was proposed and executed by him, Mahmoud found himself unable to do it when the moment came.

After a few seconds of indecision, Mahmoud still couldn't bring himself to tell Ottoman Pasha, a bitter smile appeared on his lips, then he patted Ottoman Pasha's shoulder and said, "You're right! Protecting the Empire's supply line in the Black Sea is indeed your task!"

"Rest assured! I will complete the mission and not give the Russian Empire any chance!" Ottoman Pasha replied decisively to Mahmoud.

Upon hearing Ottoman Pasha's words, Mahmoud's lips moved slightly, and he solemnly said, "At all costs, you must protect our maritime lifeline!"

Then, Mahmoud repeated emphatically, "Remember, at all costs!"

Looking at the attitude of the Grand Marshal in front of him, although Ottoman Pasha didn't understand why Mahmoud was repeating himself, he still nodded and assured Grand Marshal Mahmoud that he would complete the mission.

The drizzle stopped at noon, and the dark clouds over Constantinople drifted eastward.

At three in the afternoon, the sky began to clear, the bright sunlight bathed the waters of the military port, reflecting a sparkling scene.

The speedboats responsible for loading supplies successfully delivered all the military and daily materials needed by the fleet onto the ships.

After the fleet's quartermaster reported to Ottoman Pasha that all supplies had been fully loaded, Ottoman Pasha glanced at Grand Marshal Mahmoud.

"Let's set out!" Grand Marshal Mahmoud nodded at Ottoman Pasha, then returned to the dock by speedboat.

Watching Mahmoud's departing silhouette, Ottoman Pasha's heart was exceptionally moved.

It had been over thirty years since he served as an ordinary naval soldier to becoming the commander of the fleet. In these thirty-plus years, he often fantasized about commanding a large fleet, roaming the Black Sea and the Mediterranean, and making contributions to His Majesty the Sultan.

And now, he finally had the opportunity to realize his dream. Ottoman Pasha took a deep breath, briefly calmed his emotions, and gave the order to set sail to the flag signal soldier.

The flag signal soldier, upon hearing Ottoman Pasha's command, quickly climbed to the lookout of the warship, conveying the signal to direct the fleet in all four directions simultaneously.

Upon seeing the orders conveyed by the flagship's signal flags, surrounding naval flag signal soldiers swiftly informed their captains.

The captains immediately relayed the instructions to the sailors onboard, then ordered the lookout's signal soldiers to send back a "received" reply to the flagship.

The surrounding flag signal soldiers also waved the bi-colored signal flags to send a unified response to the flagship.

"Commander, all the fleets have received your orders!" The flag signal soldier on the lookout shouted to Ottoman Pasha on the deck.

"Depart!" Ottoman Pasha waved his hand gently, and the sails on the mast began to unfurl, quickly swelling with the power of the sea wind.

The shimmering sea surface, stirred into waves by the launch of the "Leviathan" battleship, started to churn.

Watching this seafaring strategic fortress capable of cutting through the waves, Ottoman Pasha felt a surge of overwhelming ambition, believing that the fleet under his command would assuredly keep the Ottoman Empire's supply lines unobstructed, regardless of what the Russian Empire might do!

Under the lead of the flagship, the rest of the fleet began to move sequentially.

As all the ships in the "United Fleet" set sail from Constantinople Port in a single file, Ottoman Pasha once again ordered the flag signal soldier to command the surrounding fleets to change their formation.

Eight steam fast ships advanced as the vanguard to scout ahead for enemies, while the double-deck battleships and swift sailing ships formed a protective escort on either flank of the sailing battleships.

The entire fleet began moving in a side-by-side horizontal formation towards the direction of Sinop Port.

After navigating the Black Sea for approximately four hours, the fleet finally arrived at Sinop Port. During the third and a half hour, when the United Fleet reached the central sea area of the Black Sea Region, the vanguard steam fast ships of the United Fleet had a fierce clash with the Russian "Wolf Pack" which had come to hunt.

The two sides engaged in intense combat less than 15 nautical miles from Sinop Port. After a moment of battle, this pack of wolves realized the arrival of the main naval forces of the United Fleet. Under Admiral Nakhimov's orders, the wolves disengaged and quickly left the area.

Seeing this, the eight steam-powered ships began to pursue the fleeing ships, and one Russian Empire double-deck battleship, due to its slower speed, got entangled by the eight steam-powered ships.

Nakhimov, with no choice left, decided to sacrifice it to save the rest, ordering the remaining fleet to return to the Sevastopol Fortress first.

As for that one double-deck battleship, after managing to get a kill (one steam-powered ship was sunk), it too was inevitably sunk by the arriving main forces of the United Fleet.

"The Russian Empire Navy is nothing more than this! Just look at them, fleeing with their tails between their legs after being defeated by our fleet!" On the command ship, Ottoman Pasha confidently observed the floating debris and the Russian Navy sailors clinging to them through his spyglass, and said this to his subordinates next to him.

"You are absolutely right! The Russian Empire Navy is completely vulnerable!" The naval officer standing beside Ottoman Pasha fawned, then pointed at the Russians floating on the water and asked, "Commander, what should we do with those people floating on the water? Should we rescue them all, or..."

The naval officer made a hand-slashing gesture, the implication of which was clear.

"We are engaged in a holy war with the heretics!" Ottoman Pasha subtly said to the naval officer.

"I understand!" The naval subordinate immediately nodded in acknowledgment towards Ottoman Pasha.

Solid cannonballs began to be fired at the spot where the double-deck battleship had sunk, and the waves created by the shells submerged the surviving personnel.

Watching the struggling Russians in pain on the sea surface, Ottoman Pasha felt an indescribable sense of satisfaction within.

After approximately five minutes of bombardment by the two sailing battleships' 80 cannons, no human silhouette could be seen on the sea surface anymore.

At this point, including the captain, none of the crew members survived.

Having done all this, the United Fleet, under Ottoman Pasha's orders, also entered Sinop Port.

The garrison at Sinop Port, upon seeing such a massive fleet entering the port, also felt reassured for the upcoming supply operations.

When Ottoman Pasha arrived at the dock in a fast boat, the Major General of the garrison appeared to welcome Ottoman Pasha at the port.

When the garrison Major General learned that Ottoman Pasha had destroyed a Russian Empire warship on the way to Sinop Port, he became even more enthusiastic in his manner towards Ottoman Pasha and informed him that there would be an important banquet that evening which Ottoman Pasha needed to attend.

In the face of the garrison Major General's enthusiastic invitation, Ottoman Pasha readily agreed without hesitation.

That night, a grand welcome ceremony was held at the Sinop Port garrison command center.

Attending the ceremony were not only the garrison Major General and Ottoman Pasha but also the merchants stationed at Sinop Port, and the nobles residing near Sinop Port.

Meanwhile, at the location where the double-deck battleship sank, a large Russian fleet was silently approaching.

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