The German fleet led by Rear Admiral Sorochin was in danger.

After the assassination of Grand Duke Ferdinand, Leeheiden called the German emperor and asked the German navy to agree to keep several warships participating in the Adriatic joint naval exercises in Austro-Hungarian waters at the Port of Pola in order to put pressure on the Serbs. The Germans agreed to the Austro-Hungarian side's request, and the battle fleet led by Rear Admiral Mauf continued to stay in the Adriatic Sea.

But two days before the war broke out, Tirpitz suddenly ordered Rear Admiral Sorochin to lead a cruiser fleet composed of the battlecruiser "Goben" and the cruiser "Brest" to return to Germany. Thank goodness, the war broke out on the third day, and the fleet led by Major General Sorochin remained in the port of Messina in Italy to add coal, otherwise it would be unable to escape death when it entered the Atlantic Ocean.

At this time, the situation was very unfavorable to Sorochin. The host and boiler of the "Goben" were somewhat malfunctioning and could only run for 18 knots. Although the British had not participated in the war, they had been sending warships to stare at Sorochin's movements. Admiral Mirné, commander of the British Royal Navy's Mediterranean Fleet, was ordered to keep a close eye on the German warships. Once the British declared war, they immediately sank the German ship as soon as possible.

The main force of the Mediterranean fleet led by Mirne included two "Invincible" class battlecruisers, three "Sanctuary" class and three "Fearful" class front dreadnoughts. But he made a mistake and placed the fleet at the entrance of the Otranto Strait to block the strait and prevent Sorochin from escaping back to the coastal port of Austro-Hungary, with the intention of forcing him to flee westward to return to his homeland.

Sorochin repaired the host of the "Goben" in Messina, and at this time he received a telegram from the Admiralty that the Ottoman Empire might join the Allies. Faced with this severe situation, Sorochin decided to lead the fleet to Turkey at all costs.

Lee Haydn decided to take the initiative to support the Sorochin fleet's breakthrough operation.

On the evening of August 6, he led a fleet of two battleships, two battlecruisers, four cruisers and eight destroyers to embark on the Otranto Strait. At the same time, Lieutenant General Negovan, the commander of the second battleship, also led a fleet of the same as him to leave Bora's naval base, and two German battleships were also traveling with him.

In the early morning of August 6, 1914, Sorochin ordered two warships stranded in Italy to sail and break through the British blockade line and head to Turkey. The time he chose was not allowed to be issued. Shortly after his fleet was dispatched, the British government issued a declaration of war on Germany.

Fortunately, the British believed that Sorochin would choose to go westward to break back to Germany, and placed the main force of the surveillance fleet in the west, leaving only a cruiser "Glast" in the east of the Strait of Messina to monitor the operations of the German fleet. The "Glast" outside the port of Messina discovered the figures of the "Goben" and "Brest" who were sailing in the dark, following Sorochin's fleet while tracking Sorochin and calling the police to Mirnie.

The Germans also discovered the "Gracester" that was following behind him, but Sorochin did not want to be entangled with it, and since Britain and Germany had not declared war, they did not order artillery. The "Gracester" called the police outside, but regardless of the disparity in strength, they chased closely behind the German fleet. The next morning, after receiving the news that Britain and Germany declared war, the two sides launched a short artillery battle. The Germans were not interested in fighting, and the British did not dare to get close. None of the shells on both sides hit.

At the same time, Admiral Doblaze led four British armored cruisers to catch up from the Messina Strait, while General Mirné, who commanded two battlecruisers and four former dreadnoughts, wasted half a day in the Otranto Strait due to verification of the situation.

When Mirne reacted and led the fleet to intercept the south, there was no hurry to come.

At this time, in order to support Sorochin's breakthrough, the Austro-Hungarian fleet led by Li Haydn had also arrived at the Otranto Strait. Standing on the bridge of the flagship "United Force", Li Haydn looked around his fleet, not afraid of the upcoming battle.

Now his main battleships "United Force" and "Prince Eugen" are equipped with 12 330mm naval guns, while the "Cryni" and "Queen Teresa" are equipped with 10 305mm main guns. Whether it is the tonnage, defense, or the number and caliber of the main guns, he is stronger than Mirne's fleet.

In the war room on the third floor of the "United Force" bridge, a group of staff from the fleet gathered together and surrounded a huge chart table to discuss where the British might appear. The messages sent back from the submarine force proved that the British were sailing towards the Kihira Strait in Greece.

There seems to be no hope of meeting the British.

After about 10 hours of the fleet sailing in the Adriatic Sea at a cruise speed of 15 knots, the fleet entered the Strait of Otranto. During this period, Lee Hayden and Brigadier General Pachner, the chief of staff of the fleet, took turns to work, each sleeping for less than 5 hours. Without any trouble overnight, the Italians declared neutrality and refused to fulfill their obligations in the Three Kingdoms Alliance.

The next morning, just as dawn, the fleet turned into a state of combat. Although most of the nervousness did not sleep well that night, the officers and soldiers on the ship were very excited about the upcoming battle. The four destroyers were sent out as reconnaissance ships and searched forward about 15 nautical miles in front of the fleet at a distance of 10 nautical miles. By noon, no enemy was found.

At 1 noon, Leheiden received a telegram from the "Goben". Major General Sorochin saw that he could not break through the British blockade of the Otranto Strait, changed his course and headed towards Cape Matapan in Greece. A British cruiser was chasing behind him. He decided to run to Turkey because he had just received a telegram from the German Admiralty, telling him that the Turks would soon join the Allies.

The fleet has maintained radio silence since its departure, and Lee Haydn wanted to turn the "Goben" back so that he could form a two-sided attack on the British. Lee Haydn ordered the fleet to accelerate and turn along the Ionian Islands toward Greece.

The entire fleet accelerated to 20 knots, and he hoped to meet the British fleet halfway.

Lee Haydn listened to the discussions of the staff inside on the bridge, but never said anything. Perhaps the British would send reinforcements soon after they were hit. At that time, the entire Imperial fleet could only stay in the port. This may be the only large-scale combat operation of the Imperial surface fleet in the short term.

Now he is more concerned about combat on land.

Compared with the land, there are relatively few tactics available at sea combat, and more of a competition of strength. The weaker side may win in one or two battles, but the final result of a naval battle still depends on the strength comparison between the two sides.

In the current situation, his fleet can still gain the upper hand when facing the British.
Chapter completed!