The Brazen Boldness Of The Moria Empire

World Era 1911, January 7th.

About a week have passed since the start of the new year. Out on the vast sea in the southeastern region of the Polia Kingdom mainland, three 300-ton fishing vessels were hard at work.

Though these steam-powered ships had been built over 15 years ago, they were still functioning well enough to continue operating without issue.

“Wow, it’s a full catch.”

With a cigarette between his lips, the captain surveyed the crew continuing their work, a look of satisfaction in his eyes. Since they had ventured quite far from the mainland, they needed to make a good catch to cover fuel costs and earn a profit.

Fortunately, they had found the right spot and located a large school of fish. The three vessels encircled it and cast their nets, managing a good haul. Watching this, the captain glanced at the two other ships that made up the fleet and smirked.

When they first came out here, everyone had been anxious. But thankfully, they’d all managed to fill their holds. The captain silently gave thanks that they hadn’t gone toward the Sea of the Abyss. There were rumors that the mythical sea monster Kraken had appeared there, attacking many fishing boats and warships alike.

‘What if we had gone there two years ago?’

He considered himself incredibly lucky. Of course, the ship he was commanding was already outdated, and heading to the Sea of Paradise would’ve been reckless, so he hadn’t attempted it. In any case, with the catch secured, they could now return to the mainland.

Just as he was about to ring the bell signaling the end of operations while hauling the nets, something caught his eye — a vessel approaching. He quickly raised his telescope and peered out over the sea, cursing under his breath as his face twisted with rage.

“Damn those Moria bastards!”

It was a fleet of fishing boats from the infamous Moria Empire. No fewer than thirty ships were heading their way — known across the world for sweeping up fishery resources from every ocean they could.

Having suffered from them before, the captain couldn’t contain his anger. He yanked hard on the net ropes to halt operations. Ding-ding-ding! At the sound of the loud bell, the nearly finished crew assumed it meant the work was finally done.

But their faces froze as they saw the captain storm out of the bridge, shouting.

“The pirates of Moria are here! Haul in the remaining nets, now!”

“Damn it, them again?”

“They keep crossing into our waters like it’s nothing.”

“Bastards! They’re taking the fish we’re supposed to catch, and we’ll be left with nothing next time!”

Everyone burst out in frustration. Still, there was nothing they could do. Their numbers were overwhelming, and the intimidation from the Empire’s authority left them paralyzed.

There had been countless incidents before, yet not once had the government stepped in to help.

“Let’s clean up and head back.”

“Yeah, let’s not linger and risk being attacked.”

They were tough, but the fishermen of Moria were notorious among seafarers for their cruelty. Some even resorted to outright piracy at sea. The crew quickly started reeling in their nets and organizing their gear.

Time passed, and soon the cleanup was done. The two nearby fishing vessels also signaled that they were finished. Hissing black smoke as they powered up, the three ships began to move.

They turned their course northwest and started sailing away. But then, something strange happened. About half of the Moria fleet broke off and began heading toward the Polia fishing boats.

“What are they up to now?”

Unease crept into the captain’s face. He glanced toward a metal locker in the corner — inside were a few firearms, kept just in case of danger at sea.

‘Let’s hope they don’t try anything weird…’

Even as he thought this, the Moria vessels kept closing in. Since their ships were full, they were slower and couldn’t outrun them. As the distance steadily closed, the captain decided he couldn’t take chances. He called out to a few trusted crew members.

“Something’s off. Arm yourselves, just in case.”

“Agreed. I’ve got a bad feeling too.”

“They’re chasing us like it’s planned. I think they’re after our catch.”

“Are they seriously insane?”

While listening to his crew, the captain walked over to the metal locker and unlocked the padlock using a key on his necklace. Click — the lock released, and with a creak, he opened the steel door. Inside were one rifle and two revolver-type pistols.

The rifle was the older Kodia single-shot model, formerly the mainstay before the army switched to a newer design. It was the captain’s favored weapon from his brief military days. He handed the two pistols over, and the crew began loading them with practiced hands.

After loading the rounds and grabbing extra ammunition, they left the cabin. From the deck, they could now see the Moria vessels up close — nearly 15 of them.

“Let’s give a warning shot first.”

They raised their weapons as a show of force, signaling they were ready to fire if provoked. In response, the Moria fishermen also lifted their guns, as if to say they were armed too. At this point, they looked less like fishing vessels and more like gunboats.

“Captain, looks like they have more guns than we do.”

“Damn bastards!”

“What now?”

“What else? We defend our catch. You want to just hand it over?”

If the Morian ships tried anything resembling piracy, they’d fight back to the end. At that moment, the other two Polia ships could also be seen arming themselves with a few firearms. This alone showed how lawless the seas had become.

A tense standoff followed. The hope was that the enemy would retreat. But just then, they saw a signboard raised from the other side — it bore words written in Polian script.

“They’re saying, hand over everything and get lost.”

“I see it too!”

“Captain, if we don’t hand it over, they really might open fire.”

Hearing this, the captain felt torn. Giving up everything would be devastating. If they lost the entire catch, they’d be returning home empty-handed and drowning in debt — as good as dead.

‘Damn… if we give in, we’re ruined. If we resist, we’ll be attacked.’

As he was thinking this, someone on one of the friendly ships shouted something — they were clearly refusing. That ship’s captain had always been known for a hot temper. Maybe that’s why they were being so defiant.

Then, a gunshot rang out. The Moria side had fired first. Reacting instinctively from his military days, the captain dove behind cover. His crew quickly followed suit, ducking low.

The captain yelled out to them.

“Fire back!”

When the captain shouted and pulled the trigger, Bang! a gunshot rang out. Following his lead, the rest of the crew fired their pistols, and soon gunfire echoed from both sides. The three fishing boats of the Polia Kingdom and the fifteen vessels from the Moria Empire exchanged gunfire back and forth.

In truth, almost no one landed a proper hit. Shooting from a ship rocking on the waves was no easy task. Even shooting on solid ground would be difficult — let alone on the churning sea. Bullets ended up scarring only the ships’ surfaces.

The gunfire continued for thirty minutes. Eventually, it was inevitable that the Polia side began to be pushed back. Their numbers were smaller, and they didn’t have much ammunition. Unlike the military, they only needed minimal arms for self-defense, so they couldn’t carry much.

In the end, two of Polia’s fishing boats were captured by the Moria fleet, and the third had to abandon its precious catch and flee. It wasn’t until they sailed northwest for an entire day that they encountered a Polia patrol ship and were able to request aid.

Fortunately, with wireless communication equipment now installed, the report was quickly relayed to nearby patrol ships. The radio chain extended all the way to the mainland, and the news soon reached the King in the royal palace.

Royal Palace of the Polia Kingdom, Grand Council Chamber.

Many ministers responsible for different departments were seated. All eyes turned to King Ian. The topic of this council was none other than the capture of two Polian fishing boats by Moria Empire vessels.

“I’ve heard that lately the Moria Empire’s fishing fleets have been appearing in our waters more frequently, but now they’ve even fired upon and seized our ships. How can this be considered normal?”

“It may be due to what happened in the Sea of the Abyss. After the incident with the Kraken, the Moria Empire likely faced a shortage in fishery resources, leading to increasingly aggressive behavior.”

So said Marquis Norwen, recently appointed as chancellor. Ian recalled how fishing activity had decreased in the Sea of the Abyss due to the Kraken, but he also thought, Wasn’t the situation already resolved after the Kraken was hunted last year?

“Have the fishing vessels of other nations still not returned to the Sea of the Abyss?”

“It appears not. The shock of the Kraken was so great that many fishermen are still reluctant to resume operations.”

Although the Kraken had been hunted, most ordinary fishermen were still too frightened to go back. The resulting drop in catch volumes likely led the Moria Empire — which had once imported large amounts — to push its domestic fishermen harder.

Moria has a lot of desert terrain and low food self-sufficiency. So naturally, they would rely heavily on marine resources.

“Count Montblé, urgently contact the ambassador of the Moria Empire and demand the return of our crew and fishing vessels.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“This happened in our waters, to our people. Demand full accountability.”

“Understood…”

Count Montblé’s voice wavered briefly before agreeing. Dealing with the Moria Empire diplomatically was no easy feat. In fact, the Polia Kingdom had never before made a diplomatic request over incidents like this.

Many in the room worried that the king was provoking Moria too much. But Ian felt they had to respond firmly to such an outrageous act. Even if it was a great power, how could they send ships into foreign waters and commit piracy at will?

They remind me too much of a certain country… how unpleasant.

With the recent discovery of oil and the Moria Empire’s obstruction of drilling efforts, Ian found himself more and more displeased with them.

Reflecting this, the Polian Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned the Moria ambassador and formally lodged a protest, demanding a resolution.

But the ambassador responded with shameless arrogance.

“We did nothing wrong. Your side overreacted and fired first.”

“What are you saying? We have eyewitnesses who saw Moria open fire first.”

“Eyewitnesses? Anyone can be coached to say what you want. According to our fishermen, it was your side who fired first.”

“That’s absurd!”

Count Montblé couldn’t hide his disbelief at the ambassador’s brazen words. It was clear the Moria Empire intended to shift the blame entirely.

“Then how do you explain this? The incident occurred in our territorial waters. Your fishing vessels entered without permission.”

“Do you have proof that the incident happened in your waters?”

“Of course not. But our ships wouldn’t stray from their designated area.”

“And how are we supposed to trust that? The borders aren’t clearly demarcated. It could very well have been outside your waters.”

Montblé had no response to that. Technically, the ambassador wasn’t wrong. In the end, the ambassador left the embassy without any resolution, and Montblé had no choice but to report this to King Ian.

“How disgracefully shameless.”

As Ian commented, it became clear that the Moria Empire had no intention of solving the matter. Reports said they wouldn’t return the vessels or crew unless compensation was paid.

‘We don’t even have satellites to prove those waters were ours. And if they deny everything, we have no evidence. Still, if that’s how they want to play… then we’ll play just as dirty.’

Ian immediately issued a command to the navy — expand the patrol range of all vessels. If any foreign fishing boats entered Polia’s waters, they were to be warned three times. If those warnings were ignored, they were to be seized immediately.

The navy, while shocked by the order, had no choice but to obey. Soon, the newly expanded patrol routes enabled them to spot a group of Moria vessels illegally fishing in Polian waters.

Three warnings were issued.

But the Morian fishermen, relying on the prestige of their empire, continued fishing without concern. That’s when the Polia patrol ship fired its relatively small but effective deck gun.

Surprised, the Moria vessels assumed it wouldn’t hit.

But when one of their ships was actually struck in the follow-up barrage, they were stunned by Polia’s seriousness — and realized, too late, that the patrol ships weren’t bluffing.